09 Feb 2012

Schilling, Chu Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Reform Small Business Contracting

By Andie Pivarunas

Washington, DC - Along with Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-32), Congressman Bobby Schilling (IL-17) today introduced the bipartisan Building Better Business Partnerships Act.  The bill, which is part of the House Committee on Small Business contracting reform initiative, is intended to help remove bureaucratic impediments for small contractors wishing to do business with the federal government.

Small businesses have proven that they can perform a service or produce goods for the government at a lower cost and often at a faster pace than their larger counterparts, however - as illustrated in this CNBC piece, "Fifth Time's a Charm: Winning a Government Contract" - too many challenges remain for too many businesspeople seeking to break through the bureaucracy. 

Rep. Schilling said, "As a small business owner, I understand that many federal programs intended to help businesses are ultimately too time consuming or onerous to navigate.  Unfortunately, many mentor-protégé programs are no different.  The Building Better Business Partnerships Act would streamline the contracting process, and place the SBA in charge of overseeing and setting standards for mentor-protégé programs based on what we know works.  This bill also adds transparency to the program by requiring the SBA to report on the number of small businesses participating in each program, including the number of those that are women-owned, disadvantaged, HUBZone, or service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.  This will help all small businesses to more easily and more effectively contract with the federal government, enabling them to grow, create jobs, and get folks back to work."

Mentor-protégé programs are intended to partner small businesses with established mentors in order to improve the small business' ability to win and perform on contracts and subcontracts, but the 13 federal agency programs lack standardized measures of success and are duplicative.  This creates an unnecessary paperwork burden for participants.  The Building Better Business Partnerships Act allows the Small Business Administration (SBA) to oversee civilian agency mentor-protégé programs in order to promote portability of agreements between the agencies, guarantee that the programs benefit small businesses, and ensure that the mentor-protégé agreement doesn't inadvertently harm the protégé's small business status.  It also encourages equal treatment among small businesses (women- and minority-owned, etc) by authorizing the SBA to have mentor-protégé programs for all small businesses. 

"I hear one question over and over again from small businesses: How do I break into federal contracting?" said Rep. Chu, Ranking Member on the Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Workforce.  "With annual spending averaging $500 billion, there is no better way for small businesses to expand during these tough times than through federal contracts.  Unfortunately, only 20 percent of that spending is going to small businesses right now.   The Building Better Businesses Partnership Act of 2012 will help small firms break into federal contracting by making it easier for them to join mentor-protégé programs. Helping small businesses win contracts will help put Americans back to work, and with two out of every three jobs coming from small businesses, this bill will help the true driving force behind America's economy."

As part of the Committee's contracting initiative, two other bipartisan pieces of legislation were introduced today with the goal of creating protections to fight contracting fraud and empowering advocates who fight for small business during the federal acquisition process.  More information on the Committee's initiative can be found here on the Committee's website.

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08 Feb 2012

Grassley: High-Skilled American Workers Struggling to Find Jobs

By Sen. Chuck Grassley

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

WASHINGTON - Senator Chuck Grassley said today that he is concerned that President Obama doesn't understand the difficulty that many high-skilled American workers are facing as they look for employment.

In a letter to the President, Grassley notes that the President seemed surprised about the employment struggles of high-skilled Americans when he learned during an online conversation with Jennifer Wedel whose husband, a  semiconductor engineer, had been out of work for three years.

Grassley said the administration's recent policy changes affecting foreign students and spouses of H-1B visa holders puts American workers at a disadvantage.  Instead, Grassley said that President Obama should support his H-1B reform legislation that will help ensure high-skilled Americans are given the first opportunity to compete for jobs.

Grassley's H-1B visa reform legislation would help to root out fraud and abuse in the program.  The legislation makes reforms to increase enforcement, modify wage requirements and ensure protection for visa holders and American workers.  The bill does not eliminate the program or change the numerical cap of visas available to petitioning employers.  The legislation has been introduced in previous congresses by Grassley and Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois.

 

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

 

February 7, 2012

 

President Barack Obama

The White House

Washington, D.C. 20500

 

Dear Mr. President:

I read with interest news reports about your Google Plus "hangout" on January 30th, specifically your conversation with Ms. Jennifer Wedel.  Ms. Wedel told of her husband's personal struggle in trying to find employment despite the fact that he has an engineering degree and over ten years of experience.  She expressed concern that the government continues to distribute H-1B visas at a time of record unemployment.

I was surprised to learn that you responded to Ms. Wedel by saying "industry tells me that they don't have enough highly skilled engineers."  You also said that "the word we're getting is that somebody in that kind of high-tech field, that kind of engineer, should be able to find something right away."  You said there's a huge demand for engineers across the country, with which Ms. Wedel seemed to take issue.  Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) would also suggest otherwise.  According to the BLS, the unemployment rate for electrical engineers rose 3.7% from 2006 to 2010.

Your response to Ms. Wedel leads me to believe that you don't understand the plight of many unemployed high-skill Americans.  Mr. Wedel's situation is all too common.  Thousands of qualified Americans remain out of work while companies are incentivized to import foreign workers.  I'm concerned that you're hearing only one side of the story -- from businesses who claim that there are better and brighter people abroad.

Despite your online chat and interest in investigating the problem, just last week, your administration proposed rules to "attract and retain highly skilled immigrants."  The Department of Homeland Security will expand the eligibility for foreign students to stay in the U.S. under the Optional Practical Training program.  This program does not have U.S. worker protections, nor does it require that employers pay prevailing wages to these foreign students/employees.  Your administration will also provide work authorizations to spouses of H-1B visa holders, thus increasing the competition for many Americans who are looking for work.   It's astonishing that, at this time of record unemployment, your administration's solution is to grant more work authorizations to foreign workers.  These initiatives will do very little to boost our economy or increase our competitiveness.

Nevertheless, I'm encouraged by your statement that "The H1-B should be reserved only for those companies who say they cannot find somebody in that particular field."  I have long believed that it's not unreasonable to ask businesses to first determine if there are qualified Americans to fill vacant positions.  It seems you may agree with this premise.

Therefore, I strongly encourage you to endorse legislation that I have cosponsored with Senator Durbin in the past.  Our bill, which has been included in various comprehensive immigration reform proposals, warrants your leadership.  With your help, we can reform the H-1B visa program and ensure that Americans like Mr. Wedel are on equal footing with foreign workers who are flooding the market.

While I'm glad that Mr. Wedel has been contacted by many employers since your online discussion took place, there are many more highly skilled Americans that need our help and attention.  I hope you'll work with me to make changes to the H-1B visa program on behalf of all these Americans.

I appreciate your consideration of my views.

 

Sincerely,

Charles E. Grassley

United States Senator
06 Feb 2012

Great Communicators Get the Health-Care Jobs, Promotions, Experts Say

By Ginny Grimsley
2 Specialists Share Tips for Getting Your Message Across

There's a bright spot in the U.S. employment picture: the health-care industry.

Health-care employers added 17,000 jobs in November, and they've been adding an average 27,000 jobs a month since December 2010, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report.

That's the good news. The bad news is nearly 10,000 health-care workers have lost jobs since August; there were 136 mass layoffs in that time period.

"Finding work in health-care is definitely getting easier, but the stiff competition means you'll need more than credentials to land those jobs," says Stephanie Roberson Barnard, a communications consultant who specializes in training medical professionals to speak and write clearly and effectively.

"Check any online job-hunting Web site for science, technical, pharmaceutical, biotech and medical jobs and you'll find one common requirement: 'excellent communication skills,'" she and co-author Deborah St. James write in their new book, Listen. Write. Present: The Elements for Communicating Science and Technology (Yale University Press; 2012), www.ListenWritePresent.com.

Unfortunately, the science-rich education required for health-care professionals leaves little room for learning how to craft a message for a particular audience, be it an email or a PowerPoint presentation. And that's essential not only for getting jobs, but for keeping them and winning promotions, Barnard says.

She and St. James, deputy director of publications and communications for a North Carolina biotech company, offer these tips for getting your message across:

• Plan: Take time to get to know your clients, colleagues and co-workers. Establish rapport and cultivate a collaborative relationship by finding out about others' interests (check out the pictures in their offices for clues) and inquiring about them. If you have never been to their offices, look them up on Google or their company's Web site. Always keep your personal conversations light and professional.

• Listen: Smile, nod, and acknowledge the speaker - and mean it. Really focus on what the person is saying and not just on the words. Truly effective communication requires your full attention. It's better to spend a few minutes concentrating on the other person's message during a conversation than wasting time trying to remember what he or she said because you were trying to do something else. It's okay to write or type notes as long as you ask permission first.

• Present: Practice. Practice. Practice. Need we say more? Of all the tips we offer, practicing is perhaps the most important one. People in our audiences often suggest that it's possible to over practice. They claim that too much practicing makes a talk appear staged. We have found that the "stiff" presenters are the ones who haven't practiced. They're so busy trying to remember what they're going to say, they can't tune into the audience or deviate from their slides. In contrast, the speakers who have mastered their content seem to glide about the room, exuding just the right amount of enthusiasm.

• Meet: Respect people's time by presenting materials simply. The biggest complaint people have about meetings is that they last too long. For this reason, presenting your ideas in a simple, concise fashion will give you the advantage of appearing focused and prepared. Remember, never compromise content for simplicity.

• Serve: Be kind to others. It costs nothing and requires no skill. Your kind words, good deed, or thoughtful gift may even launch a cascade of positive gestures among others. A recent study by researchers from the University of California San Diego and Harvard University suggests that cooperative behavior spreads among people. This ripple effect can have a wonderful positive impact on the corporate culture of your organization.

"Good leaders must learn to communicate not only within their field of expertise but also to reach people outside their field of authority, influence and passion," Barnard says. "With proper training and practice anyone can become a better communicator."

About Stephanie Roberson Barnard

Stephanie Roberson Barnard has trained thousands of pharmaceutical industry professionals on how to be more effective speakers, writers and communicators. She has also coached hundreds of health-care professionals on presentation skills for FDA hearings, CFO reports and scientific speaker programs, as well as national and international congresses. Her clients include AstraZeneca, Bayer Corporation, WL Gore, and Boehringer Ingelheim. This is her second Yale Press book collaboration with Deborah St. James.

About Deborah St. James

Deborah St. James is Deputy Director of Publications and Scientific Communications at Grifols. She has worked in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry for more than 20 years. Prior to her current position, she was Bayer Corporation's senior manager for national sales training in the pharmaceutical division. She is a former college English instructor and Senior Editor of Better Health magazine.

06 Feb 2012

Braley Statement on President's Veterans' Jobs Corps Proposal

By Randy Stalsberg

Washington, DC - Rep. Bruce Braley (IA-01) released the following statement today after President Obama urged Congress to create a new Veterans Jobs Corps that would put veterans to work as first responders or as workers repairing trails, building roads, and doing other projects on public lands:

"After holding a hearing just yesterday on reducing veterans' unemployment, I welcome the idea of a Veterans Jobs Corps.  One out of every four combat veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan is out-of-work, and this program could help reduce that number.

 

"Men and women who've put their lives on the line for our country deserve every opportunity when they return home.  Why not provide them the opportunity to continue contributing to the nation they love, whether as firefighters, cops, or rangers?  They've already rebuilt Iraq and Afghanistan.  It's time to give them the chance to help rebuild America."

Braley is the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.

# # #
06 Feb 2012

STATE FARM® HIRING Top Employer Seeks Qualified Candidates

By Missy Dundov
Bloomington, IL (February 3, 2012)--State Farm reports nearly 3,000 openings across the United States and Canada.
State Farm's commitment to creating innovative solutions to serve customers and policyholders is generating employment opportunities.
"As we continue to define our workforce to best meet our customers' evolving needs, we are seeking skills and talents from numerous diverse labor markets," said State Farm Vice President Human Resources, Mary Schmidt.
Named a top employer, State Farm is a family of insurance and financial services companies that together serve tens of millions of customers. Our business lines offer more than 100 products.
State Farm has offices in all 50 states and three Canadian provinces. Current openings exist in:
  • Claims
  • Customer Service
  • IT/Systems
  • Underwriting
03 Feb 2012

Governor Quinn Announces Chrysler Increasing Production at Belvidere Plant to Build Next Generation of Vehicles

By Nafia Khan

State's Support Helping to Create 1,800 Jobs

BELVIDERE - February 2, 2012. One day after laying out the Illinois Jobs Agenda for 2012 in his State of the State address, Governor Pat Quinn today announced that Chrysler Group LLC is ramping up production at its Belvidere plant to help build its next generation of vehicles. The company has invested $700 million to retool the plant and will begin production of the new Dodge Dart in the second quarter of 2012. In fall 2010, Governor Quinn announced a business investment package for the company that is supporting the creation of up to 1,800 new jobs and has been instrumental to Chrysler's decision to expand in Illinois.

"The auto industry is essential to growing our economy. Illinois automakers and their suppliers are thriving today because we have helped meet their needs," Governor Quinn said. "By providing companies like Chrysler with the tools they need, we're helping them not only succeed but thrive."

As part of its investment, Chrysler opened a 638,000 square-foot body shop to support production of the Dart, in addition to installing new machinery, tooling and material handling equipment. The new body shop increased the size of the Belvidere assembly plant to 4.8 million square feet. The plant also includes a 330,000-square-foot stamping plant. The Belvidere facility currently produces the Jeep® Compass and Jeep Patriot.

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) is administering the state's business investment package. The package consists of EDGE tax credits, Employer Training Investment Program (ETIP) job-training funds that will help enhance the skills of the company's workforce, and Large Business Development Program funds for capital improvements. Chrysler will also benefit from being located in an Enterprise Zone.

"The Rock River Valley has emerged as a strong leader in the transportation industry, and Chrysler has undoubtedly played a major role in building that reputation," said DCEO Director Warren Ribley. "Today we're pleased to stand beside them as they chart a course towards the future that includes their continued commitment to Illinois."

Illinois added more than 52,000 jobs in 2011, and has added nearly 100,000 jobs since 2010. Since January 2010, Illinois has added almost 20,000 manufacturing jobs.

For more information on why Illinois is the right place for any business, visit www.illinoisbiz.biz.

 

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03 Feb 2012

Pennsylvania's largest charter school may close as nearby school district steals its funds

By Rick Martin
By Ben Velderman
EAG Communications
CHESTER, Pa. - Three thousand students at Pennsylvania's largest charter school face the imminent risk of having their school year cancelled in the coming days or weeks, and seeing their school "stop operations" entirely due to a lack of funds.
That grim reality is a direct result of decisions by officials in the nearby Chester Upland School District to keep state funds legally owed to the Chester Community Charter School, and to use them instead to bail the district out of its "self-inflicted budgetary crisis."
That's according to a legal brief filed by attorneys representing the Chester Community Charter School in response to last month's judicial ruling that gave the Chester Upland School District a $3.2 million state bailout, and left the charter school holding almost $7 million in I.O.U. notes.
Attorneys for the Chester Community Charter School (CCCS) say the school faces a very real risk of shutting down because it cannot pay its bills.
As a result, it is "extremely likely that Chester Community Charter will have to stop operations, turning in excess of 3,000 students, nearly 700 with disabilities, out on the streets in the middle of the school year."
Jeff Dailey, an attorney who represents the families of 10 Chester Community Charter students in the ongoing legal dispute, told EAG that his clients "include children with cerebral palsy, dyslexia, reading issues and others, all of whom are in jeopardy of having their school shut down."
The charter school is facing insolvency because of the school district's "theft of money that should have gone to educate kids attending non-profit publicly established charter schools, like CCCS," Dailey wrote in an email.
Several of his special needs clients chose to attend the charter school because of its successful track record of serving special needs students.
These students have blossomed academically and socially since attending the charter school, Dailey said. If CCCS is forced into bankruptcy, those special needs students would be forced to attend the traditional school district (CUSD), which is unable to sufficiently meet their needs.
The students' continued success is very much in jeopardy, Dailey said.
Bailouts for school district, I.O.U.s for charter school
In Pennsylvania, school funding occurs on a monthly basis. The state government gives money to each school district, based on the number of students within that district.
From those funds, the school district is legally obligated to pass along the per-pupil amount it owes to the local charter schools, as determined by the number of students attending each charter. The traditional school districts act as the middle man in funding charter schools.
If a school district fails to pay the charter as required by law, the state is to deduct the amount owed to the charter school from "any and all state payments made to the district," according to the Pennsylvania charter school law.
The Chester Upland School District has not made its full monthly payments to Chester Community Charter Schools since March 2011. Beginning in April 2011, the state took over the payments and has sent $23.5 million to the charter school, but still owes it about $6.8 million.
Last December, the Chester Community Charter School filed a lawsuit against the state of Pennsylvania to recover the almost $7 million it's owed by the Chester Upland School District and - indirectly - the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
The charter school needs the $6.8 million - and the $3 million it's legally entitled to receive every month -  to pay employees, vendors, and its building leases. If no action is taken, CCCS faces a total deficit of $21.8 million.
It now appears the charter school may not be receiving any money from the state until CUSD's lawsuit against the state is resolved in the spring. The school district is suing the state for extra funding to make up for its ballooning budget problems.
As part of last month's $3.2 million temporary bailout given to the Chester Upland School District, U.S. District Judge Michael M. Baylson prohibited the Pennsylvania Department of Education "from withholding subsidies to the Chester Upland School District until further order of the court."
Baylson ordered that the $3.2 million be given to CUSD "for the payment of salaries and compensation to school district employees and to the vendors of the school district." 

That's fine for the school district, but what about the charter school?
"The recent temporary deal between the Department of Education and the Chester Upland School District does not provide any money for the charter schools, and effectively closes off funding for the rest of the year," Dailey said.
On Monday, the Commonwealth Court denied the charter school's request for immediate payment from the state, and effectively said the school will have to make do until the scheduled hearing in April.
The court's decision means the charter school's deficit will be "$10 million on February 5 and over $13 million on March 5," an amount that "imperils CCCS and its students," charter school officials said in a press release.
"The implication of the ruling is that the charter school - and its three thousand Chester students - should suffer the negative effects of program reductions and layoffs in order to establish credibility for our reasonable efforts to obtain funding required to continue to provide high quality education to the children of the City of Chester," the release reads.
Charter suffers due to district mismanagement
Chester Community Charter School is not only the largest charter school in Pennsylvania, but it educates 60 percent of all K-8 students in the city of Chester.
Charter school officials note that the school has functioned within its financial means, and is only facing a financial crisis because CUSD officials have illegally withheld funding.
While the charter school receives less than the state's $13,700 per pupil average, its students have achieved Annual Yearly Progress (as defined by the No Child Left Behind law) for three consecutive years, according to the press release.
In contrast, the Chester Upland district "spends more than $17,000 to educate each student enrolled in a district school," Pennsylvania Education Secretary Ronald Tomalis recently wrote in a letter to state Sen. Andrew Dinniman.
"Moreover, CUSD has been the beneficiary of extraordinary state assistance for years," Tomalis writes, including "$9.5 million in special appropriations over and above those provided through the traditional means of funding all Pennsylvania's school districts."
"The District knows that it budgeted improperly, and it knows that it overspent available revenues," Tomalis writes.
While the Chester Upland district has mismanaged its resources and illegally spent the charter schools' resources, it is Chester Community Charter students who stand to suffer the consequences.
The charter school has taken out loans to meet its payroll, rent payments and daily expenses. The interest charged on these loans means the charter school will have less money to spend on students in the future.
"If CCCS is unable to make these payments, it will have catastrophic effects on CCCS's ability to continue operations," CCCS Chief Financial Officer Robert Olivo wrote in an affidavit.
Pennsylvania taxpayers are left to wonder why state officials are letting one of the state's most effective and fiscally responsible charter schools twist in the wind, even while more money is being poured into an ineffective and irresponsible government-run school district.
If Pennsylvania citizens want to understand what's wrong with their state's public education system, the case of Chester Community Charter School versus the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Department of Education is a good place to start.
Contact Ben Velderman at ben@edactiongroup.org or (231) 733-4202
03 Feb 2012

Governor Quinn Announces Export Advisory Council During State of the State Address

By Nafia Khan

Council will Help Illinois Reach Ambitious Goal of Doubling Exports by 2014 

SPRINGFIELD - February 1, 2012. As part of his State of the State address today, Governor Pat Quinn announced the formation a new council that will help Illinois reach his ambitious goal of doubling the number of state exports by the end of 2014. The Governor's Export Advisory Council will work with the Governor and other state officials and agencies to provide recommendations aimed at improving Illinois' standing in the international marketplace.

"Illinois is home to world-class goods and services, and we should utilize all of our assets in order to market them around the world," Governor Quinn said. "Expanding trade opportunities in growth markets like China, Australia, Brazil and India puts Illinois products in the international marketplace and creates jobs here at home."

The council, which is headed by Navistar chairman and CEO Daniel C. Ustian, will work to increase exports by providing recommendations on state policies and programs with the goal of fully leveraging Illinois' competitive strengths in the international marketplace. The council will also advise the Governor on trade advocacy positions at the federal level, and council members will serve as international ambassadors for Illinois. Members will work to promote Illinois firms and the inherent advantages Illinois can offer countries seeking trade opportunities.

"The key for Illinois manufacturers and other businesses is to foster a strong environment for growth, and Governor Quinn shares my passion for creating those opportunities by developing a strong trade policy," said Ustian. "We have great companies and Illinois is rich in assets and talented workers. With business leaders and the Governor's administration working together, we can gain a competitive edge in the global economy."

The Governor's aggressive focus on harnessing and promoting the strength of Illinois companies abroad will have a significant impact on job creation at home. Devising and successfully implementing strategies to meet the 2014 target will result in the addition or retention of nearly 230,000 jobs in Illinois.

The Governor's Export Advisory Council will be made up of CEOs and other prominent leaders from the private and public sectors whose work in the international marketplace has uniquely positioned them to provide insight into Illinois' ability to significantly expand exports. For a complete list of members, please see the attachment.

The council will meet several times a year and will work with the Illinois Departments of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and Agriculture. After identifying challenges to expand exports, the council will recommend policies and programs that will help Illinois better compete at a global level. It will also work with their peers in the private sector and Illinois companies to promote Illinois as a great state to do business.

For more information about Governor Quinn's State of the State address, please visit www.illinois.gov, and for more information about why Illinois is a great place to do business, please visit www.illinoisbiz.biz.

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01 Feb 2012

Supreme Court case could threaten Big Labor's ability to deduct from public employee paychecks

By Rick Martin
By Victor Skinner
EAG Communications
WASHINGTON, D.C. - It's no secret that Big Labor is dependent on dues and fees automatically withdrawn from the payroll checks of union members and non-members alike.
The automatic deductions funnel millions of dollars into public sector union coffers each year, with a portion frequently going toward partisan political causes and liberal candidates who promise to preserve or expand the unions' forced dues racket.
But this vicious cycle is finally being challenged in states and municipalities around the nation. Perhaps the most important challenge, Knox vs. Service Employees International Union, was heard earlier this month by the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court.
The case is one of a growing number of examples of how public employees, including public school teachers, are pushing back against forced union dues - something many consider a violation of their First Amendment rights. American citizens should not be forced to financially support an organization or political causes they don't agree with, union objectors rightly contend.
By forcing members and non-members to subsidize its radical political agenda, Big Labor may have finally cooked its Golden Goose.
SEIU wants to run from the case
The Supreme Court case stems from a "special assessment" that was automatically withdrawn from union and non-union state employees' checks in 2005 to help defeat a ballot proposal in California that would have made it illegal to force employees to pay dues that would be used for political purposes.

The plaintiffs, who are non-union members who pay a reduced fee in lieu of union dues, claim their rights were violated when they were charged more than their regular fees to support a union political effort.
They filed a lawsuit with the help of the National Right to Work Foundation, and a federal district court ordered SEIU to pay some of their money back, records show.
SEIU appealed the decision, the appeals court sided with the union, and the objecting non-union state employees took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Then a funny thing happened. The union decided that it didn't want to pursue the case anymore, refunded the employees the full amount of the "special assessment," and is now arguing that the case is moot because there is no longer a claim, records show.
The NRTWF attorneys representing the employees say the case is still important because it would settle the question of whether union officials must give employees a chance to object to a special assessment before the union sticks its grubby hand in the cookie jar. Plus, the union never really acknowledged wrongdoing or promised not to do it again, NRTWF attorney James Young argued.
During the hearing, several justices keyed in on an important question: Why does the union want to drop its case now that the Supreme Court has agreed to hear it?
SEIU attorneys contend it's because the employees' money has been repaid in full, the union has complied with the district court's original order, and everything is now resolved.
We doubt very much that's the case.
Union leaders fear legal precedent
We believe that the real reason the union wants to run away from the case is to avoid the chance of a precedent-setting ruling that would inhibit its legal ability to take money from members and non-members to support political causes.

The union probably also fears a more expansive ruling, which could deny the right of public sector unions to automatically deduct dues from paychecks under any circumstances.
It's not clear when the court will issue a ruling in the case.
"In essence, the union has to acknowledge wrongdoing before a case is moot, and they've never done that," said Young, the attorney representing the plaintiffs.
"They fear what this court will do, and I think they have reason to," Young said, adding that a ruling could potentially have broad implications for how unions charge members and non-members.
A veteran labor attorney in Wisconsin, who has been representing school boards for decades, recently told EAG that public sector union leaders are mostly concerned with preserving the flow of dues money, and preserving the right to use that money for political causes they believe in.
He noted that many teachers unions across Wisconsin scrambled last year to extend their collective bargaining agreements with school boards. They wanted to get that done before the implementation of Act 10, which made it illegal for schools to deduct union dues from employee paychecks once the union contracts expire.
Union leaders in many districts were willing to sacrifice many employee perks to get their contracts extended. The one perk they desperately wanted to preserve was automatic dues deduction from paychecks, according to the attorney.
"All of a sudden they would call me and say, 'Let's settle this contract,'" the attorney said.  "It's all about the kids, right? The kids? Ha! They sold their members out for dues."
Employees don't pay when it's not required
There is a reason union officials are vigorously fighting to preserve the automatic dues deduction system.
Washington Post columnist George Will laid it out in an editorial during Big Labor's battle over Act 10 in Wisconsin last year.
"After Colorado in 2001 required public employees unions to have annual votes reauthorizing collection of dues, membership in the Colorado Association of Public Employees declined 70 percent. In 2005, Indiana stopped collecting dues from unionized public employees; in 2011, there are 90 percent fewer dues-paying members," Wills wrote.
"In Utah, the end of automatic dues deductions for political activities in 2001 caused teachers' payments to fall 90 percent. After a similar law passed in 1992 in Washington State, the percentage of teachers making such contributions declined from 82 to 11."
Perhaps union members are hesitant to voluntarily pay because they don't believe the benefits they receive from their unions are worth the dues. Perhaps it's because they don't like their union's aggressive political activities and negotiating tactics.
Regardless, the SEIU case and Right-to-Work legislation pending in numerous states is turning up the heat on Big Labor's forced dues racket.
And that's encouraging progress for public employees who have been forced to fund Big Labor's antics for far too long.
Contact Victor Skinner at vskinner@edactiongroup.org or (231) 733-4202
31 Jan 2012

Tax extenders, goals beyond revenue collection

By Grassley Press

Statement of Sen. Chuck Grassley

Senate Committee on Finance Hearing

"Extenders and Tax Reform: Seeking Long-Term Solutions"

Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2012

There are almost 60 provisions that expired at the end of 2011, and there are even more that expire at the end of 2012. There is general agreement that all of these extenders need to be reviewed in the context of comprehensive tax reform. As we begin to consider what such reform would look like, it is important to discuss what, if any, goals and objectives, other than revenue collection, the tax code should accomplish.

The provisions that expired at the end of last year have various objectives. The non-revenue policy objectives vary from energy independence to job creation, from encouraging donations to charity to incentivizing capital investments and research.

This Committee has held numerous tax reform hearings the past two years.  Yet, we have not discussed what we should do about the numerous non-revenue policy objectives included in the current tax code.  This has also been ignored by the various witnesses who have come before the committee, including those here today.

In his written testimony, Mr. Johnson whimsically picks winners and losers by focusing on the revenue impact but fails to address the non-revenue reasons for many of the expired provisions.  He says they should remain dead. However, he does appear to support a movement to alternative fuels "because we import oil from trouble spots in the world and because fossil fuels pollute and lead to global warming".

However, he believes the existing regime of tax incentives should be eliminated because movement to alternative fuels is better accomplished through a carbon tax.  He also states that the oil industry is undertaxed.  While I appreciate his support for alternative energy, his statements ignore the need to consider whether tax provisions should be part of a domestic energy policy that includes oil drilling.

Ms. Sherlock, a witness at the December 14, 2011, hearing on energy tax extenders, noted in her written testimony, "the income tax code has long been used as a policy tool for promoting U.S. energy priorities".

The oil and gas industries have received massive, permanent tax breaks for over a hundred years.

In contrast, tax incentives for alternative energy have existed only for a few decades and have always been temporary. These incentives first appeared in the 1970s, in direct response to the oil crisis and they help to incentivize renewable resources.

Yet, discussions on incentives for the oil industry and for alternative energy often fail to consider that a key reason to support renewable energy sources should be energy independence.

The United States sends more than $400 billion each year overseas to buy foreign oil.  Now more than ever, the United States needs to ramp up domestic production of traditional energy -- including oil, natural gas, and coal -- and expand alternative fuels and renewable energy -- including wind, solar, hydropower, biomass and geothermal.

The U.S. Treasury pays out an average $84 billion a year to defend the shipping lanes by which foreign oil reaches the United States.  I do not see these costs in discussions of cost effectiveness of energy tax incentives.

Aside from energy independence, it is also important to consider the number of domestic jobs supported by the energy sector.

Clearly, in the short-term, Congress should extend tax incentives for alternative energy sources.  With the economy still sputtering, we cannot afford the job losses that occur from pulling the rug out from under industries like biodiesel and wind that are still developing.

In the long-term, however, we need to consider whether a permanent and comprehensive energy tax policy is appropriate and, such a policy should be developed in the context of comprehensive tax reform.

For sure, we need a tax system that is less complicated, fairer, and will make us more competitive in the global economy.  However, we need to consider whether and how to balance these principles against non-revenue policy objectives of priorities.  Energy independence is only one such objective.

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