Bettendorf – Last summer, NBC's America's Got Talent introduced the nation to the self-proclaimed "greatest purveyor of chain reaction gadgets in this and the 17 known universes," the Kinetic King. Viewers fell in love with the Minnesota charm ("you betcha" / "whoo hoo") and the impressive chain reactions made from tongue depressors, ping pong balls, plastic cups, and more. View his debut appearance on YouTube. The King will be packing his gadgets and heading to the Quad Cities to build several super-cool kinetic structures at the Family Museum in Bettendorf, Iowa. He will host daily detonations Tuesday, March 20 - Friday, March 23 at 4:00pm. He will conclude his visit with a final detonation on Saturday, March 24 at 11:00am.

The Kinetic King, aka Tim Fort, holds the Guinness World Record for the "Largest Stick Bomb" using 3,864 tongue depressors. It was detonated on June 20, 2010 at the Science Museum of Minnesota. Fort creates displays all over the country (some successful and some not). Many of these attempts he posts to his YouTube page (user name LunaTim). The Kinetic King placed 13th overall in season 6 of America's Got Talent.

"Oh wow!" -Howie Mandel, Season 6 America's Got Talent

"Wow!" -Nick Cannon, Season 6 America's Got Talent

"Do it again!" -Nick Cannon, Season 6 America's Got Talent

"Weird, but interesting." -Sharon Osbourne, Season 6 America's Got Talent

"Whoo hoo!" -The Kinetic King, Season 6 America's Got Talent

Find out what the buzz is about March 20-24 at the Family Museum. "It's way beyond your grandma's domino tumbling!" -The Kinetic King

Sponsored by the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs

Crosses party lines to support effort to help small businesses grow and expand

 

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) today voted in favor of a Republican-sponsored bill that would help small businesses create jobs.  The legislation passed the House and will now move to the Senate for consideration.

 

"Americans are desperate for politicians in Washington to work together," Braley said.  "Reducing restrictions so small businesses can get the capital they need to grow and expand isn't about politics, it's about putting people back to work.

"Iowans can't afford any more gridlock or inaction from Congress on creating jobs.  They don't care about party labels, they care about results."

 

The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act would make it easier for small businesses to raise capital to grow and expand their businesses by making changes to federal business regulations.  For more information on the bill, visit: http://go.usa.gov/PB5

 

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A public hearing on the House Republican amended education bill took place Monday at the
State Capitol. Although the Republican version of the Governor's bill was officially slated for debate, the
hearing involved points on the Senate Democrat version and the Governor's original plan as well. The
House amendment contains a delay on the third-grade "retention" which would go into effect in 2016-17
and removal of a section of the Governor's plan expanding online-only education.
I have received many comments from my constituents concerning the Medicaid cost containment
proposals impacting physicians. The reduction is a change
in the way Iowa pays for services where the patient is
covered by both Medicaid and Medicare. Currently, a
physician bills Medicare first and then bills Medicaid for the
remainder of the bill. As I understand it, a provider can be
paid more by Medicaid and Medicare for these "cross-over
claims" than what the state would pay if the patient was just
eligible for Medicaid. We are concerned about the level of
Medicaid reimbursement. You may be aware that states are
not to pay more than what Medicare pays. That is a problem
for states like ours, where Medicare rates are among the
lowest in the nation. I am hopeful that, by the time the Legislature has adjourned for the year that we will
have found a way to address your concerns.
For the most part the House this week has been taking up a lot of non-controversial policy bills,
but in the coming weeks debate could become a little more heated.
If you have concerns or questions I can be reached at the Capitol by emailing
steven.olson@legis.state.ia.us.

EPILEPSY FOUNDATION HOSTS WALK MARCH 31ST

Local QCA chapter working toward "not another moment lost to seizures"

Davenport, IA - The Quad City Area chapter of the Epilepsy Foundation of North/Central Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska has set Saturday, March 31st as the date for the 2012 Walk For Epilepsy. The event will be held here at NorthPark Mall in front of Dillard's.

This fundraising and awareness event is open to teams and individuals with awards for various levels of participation. A minimum level of $100.00 in pledges is requested with no additional registration fee. There are also team sponsorship opportunities available. For applications, registration or questions, contact David Umphrey, outreach services coordinator, at (309) 373-0377 or by emailing dumphrey@efncil.org.

On the day of the event, registration/check-in is from 9:00-10:00 AM; the walk will be from 10:00-11:00 AM with a closing ceremony of recognition set to begin immediately following the walk. The mall court in front of Dillard's will be the site of registration/check-in and closing ceremonies.

"Epilepsy is a condition that continues to be initially misunderstood by those that deal with it as well as by the general public," said Umphrey. "We assist anyone managing, or providing care for those living, each day with epilepsy.

"This event also helps educate anyone that has not dealt with the condition personally," he added. "We show that people with epilepsy can live with not another moment lost to seizures."

-30-

Washington, DC - Congressman Bobby Schilling (IL-17) today joined 390 of his colleagues from both sides of the aisle in supporting H.R. 3606, the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act.  The legislation also has won the support of President Barack Obama, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council, the Independent Community Bankers of America, and successful entrepreneurs like AOL's Steve Case and Staples' founder Tom Stemberg, among others.

"This bipartisan legislation is about empowering American businesses to start up, hire American workers, and jumpstart our economy," Schilling said.  "It tackles head-on obstacles that are keeping our nation's job creators, small businesses, and entrepreneurs from growing and hiring.  I was proud to cosponsor this pro-jobs package, and am pleased to join so many of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle in supporting it today."

The common-sense legislative package includes a number of measures that reduce registration requirements between emerging small businesses and the SEC to boost the economy and create opportunities for entrepreneurs across the country, without the threat of higher taxes.  These bipartisan measures will increase access to capital, spur the formation of startups and small businesses, and enable more small businesses to go public and grow. 

"The talking heads on the TV and radio like to say that Washington just can't come together and get things done, but I don't buy that,"  Schilling said.  "I focus on what we can do to improve things for my constituents and make it easier for them to succeed, not on what we can't.  My colleagues and I in the House have passed dozens of bills that would help the economy and decrease energy costs, and our work is far from over."

# # #

Legislation would allow 12 weeks of job-protected leave for treatment of service-related injuries 

 

Washington, DC - The House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity today considered a bill introduced by Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) last fall that would strengthen job protections for wounded veterans returning from service.  Braley is the highest ranking Democrat on the subcommittee.

 

The Disabled Veterans Employment Protection Act would provide military and National Guard veterans up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave in a calendar year to be treated for an injury incurred in or aggravated by military service without having to worry about losing their jobs.  The legislation would also give injured or disabled veterans the option of using sick or vacation leave they have accrued to receive pay while getting treatment.

 

"Federal law protects the jobs of servicemen and women while they're serving our country," Braley said.  "But there are no protections for injured veterans who need to seek treatment for their injuries once they return home.   With thousands of injured veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, it's time we strengthen protections and allow veterans the ability to seek out the care and treatment they need."

 

Representatives from the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, and the Department of Veterans Affairs all testified in support of Braley's bill.  A vote on the bill is expected in the coming weeks.

 

For more information on Braley's bill, visit http://go.usa.gov/PK0.

 

# # #

Fellow Iowans,

On March 7th, the Iowa Senate Ways and Means Subcommittee advanced a bill that would raise Iowa's Gas Tax by 10 cents per gallon.

Click here to take our survey and tell us whether or not you support raising Iowa's Gas Tax from 21 cents to 31 cents per gallon.

In liberty,

A.J. Spiker

Chairman, Republican Party of Iowa

The man who served as NBC-TV's legal counsel for 25 years warns the FCC is poised to resurrect broad censorship rules that were revoked in 1987 because of their chilling effect on both free speech and the television press.

Corydon B. Dunham says the proposed new Localism, Balance and Diversity Doctrine could eventually also affect news on the Internet. The FCC is reportedly planning to transfer the broadcast spectrum used by local television to the Internet to make it the nation's primary communications platform, and the agency has started to regulate the Internet.

In his new book, Government Control of News: A Constitutional Challenge (http://freespeech.authorsxpress.com/), Dunham recounts the evolution of government control of television news and the Fairness Doctrine. The book, the result of a study initiated at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at the Smithsonian Institute, examines the history of the Fairness Doctrine - the rules by which the federal government regulated TV journalism. Similar rules had governed radio news since 1934 and were applied to TV in 1949 by the Federal Communications Commission.

"TV was a powerful new medium and there were only a few broadcast stations in many communities. It was thought that this gave unusual power to station and network owners," Dunham explains. "The government justified the Fairness Doctrine as a way to ensure stations aired opposing viewpoints on issues."

But what was touted as an attempt to encourage robust discourse became a tool for censoring the news, Dunham says.

"If a complaint was made about a view that had been broadcast, the FCC investigated. If it concluded that a view should be changed, it ordered that. If it concluded other views should be presented, or even related issues, it ordered that," Dunham says.

Failure to comply could result in no license renewal, renewal for a shorter period of time, or a "negative record" applied at renewal time.

In 1987, the FCC unanimously revoked the Fairness Doctrine, with court approval, after finding it had deterred news reporting on controversial issues, and had repeatedly been used to suppress viewpoints and help some officials pursue their own political objectives, Dunham says.

After two decades of failed attempts in Congress to revive the Fairness Doctrine, support began building anew. In 2008, the FCC released a new proposed body of rules for TV news - the Localism, Balance and Diversity Doctrine.

"It has many of the same characteristics of the old Fairness Doctrine and can be expected to have similar results," Dunham says. "News broadcast by television stations would have to meet government criteria for 'localism' - local news production and coverage - as well as a regulatory balance and diversity of viewpoints. A three-vote majority of five FCC commissioners at a central government agency would make local news judgments and override those of thousands of independent, local TV reporters and editors."

It would also be enforced by having a local board at each station monitor programming, including news, and recommend against license renewal if the station did not comply with FCC policy.

In 2011, the FCC-sponsored Future of Media Study recommended the localism doctrine proceeding be ended. The present chief of the White House regulatory office has long recommended that the government regulate news to advance its political and social objectives, Dunham says.

"There is unprecedented silence from the FCC about its plans for television news in this country," Dunham says.

TV is not the only medium potentially affected.

"At the end of 2010, the FCC decided to take over regulation of the Internet in this country. It will regulate its traffic and gain some power to review content," Dunham says.

"The president, Congress and the FCC have also agreed to transfer the entire broadcast spectrum (currently used by TV stations) to the Internet over the next 10 years. If the localism doctrine is adopted, it could apply to the Internet and its participants as users of the FCC-controlled spectrum."

Dunham says requiring journalists to comply with a central government agency's policy on how to report the news means those journalists will no longer be free and independent.

"As the Fairness Doctrine broadcast history shows, the threat of loss of license will deter station news coverage, particularly of controversy, and the public will lose news and information.

"If the broadcast press is not free and independent of government, it cannot act as a watchdog for the public, which is its constitutional role."

About Corydon B. Dunham

Corydon B. Dunham is a Harvard Law School graduate. His "Government Control of News" study was expanded and developed for the Corydon B. Dunham Fellowship for the First Amendment at Harvard Law School and the Dunham Open Forum for First Amendment Values at Bowdoin College. Dunham was an executive at NBC from 1965 to 1990. He oversaw legal and government matters and Broadcast Standards. He was on the board of directors of the National Television Academy of Arts and Sciences, American Corporate Counsel Association, and American Arbitration Association among other posts.

WASHINGTON - Senators Chuck Grassley and Dick Durbin are raising concerns about potential changes being made to the L visa program that would further encourage companies to use the L-1B visa program to import foreign workers and evade restrictions of the H-1B visa program, and putting American workers at a disadvantage.

 

The L-1B visa program allows companies to transfer employees with "specialized knowledge" from the foreign facilities to their U.S. offices for up to seven years.  "Specialized knowledge" as defined by Congress is "special knowledge of the company product and its application in international markets or ... an advanced level of knowledge of processes and procedures for the company."

 

Grassley and Durbin wrote in a letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Alejandro Mayorkas that they "are concerned about attempts by unscrupulous petitioners to obtain L-1B status for workers who do not truly possess specialized knowledge relating to the petitioning company."

 

The senators also wrote that both the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' Administrative Appeals Office have considered the term "specialized knowledge" when adjudicating these visas, and encouraged U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to adopt the clear standards and reasoning provided by the State Department and the Administrative Appeals Office.

 

Grassley and Durbin are leading the effort to reform the H-1B and L visa programs and are planning to introduce legislation later this year.

 

Here's a copy of the text of the letter.  A signed copy of the letter can be found here.

 

March 7, 2012

 

The Honorable Alejandro Mayorkas

Director

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

20 Massachusetts Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20529

 

Dear Director Mayorkas:

 

It has come to our attention that you are planning to issue new guidance on the L-1B "specialized knowledge" standard in the near future.  We write today to urge you not to propose changes that would undermine the L visa program.

 

As you know, the L-1B visa program allows companies to transfer employees with "specialized knowledge" from their foreign facilities to their U.S. offices for up to seven years.  We are concerned that the L-1B program is harming American workers because some employers, especially foreign outsourcing companies, use L-1B visas to evade restrictions on the H-1B visa program.  For example, the L-1 program does not have an annual cap and does not include even the minimal labor protections of the H-1B program.

 

Congress defined L-1B "specialized knowledge" in the Immigration and Nationality Act as "special knowledge of the company product and its application in international markets or ... an advanced level of knowledge of processes and procedures for the company."  We are concerned about attempts by unscrupulous petitioners to obtain L-1B status for workers who do not truly possess specialized knowledge relating to the petitioning company.

 

As you know, on January 11, 2011, the U.S. Department of State issued new guidance to consular officers on how to adjudicate visas under the specialized knowledge category.  According to the guidelines issued by the Department of State to consular officers around the world, posts should use certain criteria to assist in making an L-1B adjudication.  The criteria include : 1) the proprietary nature of the knowledge possessed by the visa applicant; 2) whether the visa applicant is "key" or normal personnel; and 3) whether the applicant possesses more skills or knowledge than an "ordinary" employee.

 

In July 2008, USCIS's Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) considered the definition of "specialized knowledge" and concluded that a specialized knowledge employee is "an elevated class of workers within a company and not an ordinary or average employee."  In its decision, the AAO said that "'specialized knowledge' is used to describe the nature of a person's employment and that the term is listed among the higher levels of the employment hierarchy with 'managerial' and 'executive' employees."  The AAO also describes congressional intent regarding the L-1 visa program, indicating that "the original drafters intended the class of aliens eligible for the L-1 classification would be 'narrowly drawn' and 'carefully regulated and monitored' by USCIS," and that "[t]his legislative history has been widely viewed as supporting a narrow reading of the definition of specialized knowledge and the L-1 visa classification in general".

 

We agree with the AAO that "specialized knowledge" employees should possess "special" knowledge of a company product and its application in international markets or an "advanced" level of knowledge of processes and procedures of the company.  A comparison to the knowledge held by workers in the company's industry generally would be unacceptable and only undermine the specialized knowledge standard established by Congress.

 

We believe that USCIS guidance regarding the definition of specialized knowledge should adopt the standards and reasoning articulated in the January 2011 State Department guidance and the July 2008 AAO decision.  We are concerned that any weakening of the standard would create additional incentives for some employers to use the L-1B visa program in order to circumvent even the minimal wage and other labor protections for American workers in the H-1B visa program.

 

Please provide us with an update on USCIS's activity with regard to the "specialized knowledge" standard.  A prompt response to our concerns would be appreciated.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

________________________________                    ________________________________

Charles E. Grassley                       Richard J. Durbin

United States Senator

United States Senator

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