Buyer Be FAIR—Retail Workers Should Enjoy Thanksgiving Too!

— by CAP Action War Room

Season’s greetings from all of us at CAP Action! While most of us are able to be at home celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday with friends and family, not everyone is as fortunate. Retail stores across the country, instead of allowing their workers to take the day off to spend with their families, are increasingly opening on Thanksgiving Day. While some stores are staffing Thanksgiving on a volunteer basis, others are not – and with no mandatory paid vacation in the United States their employees could be threatened with firings if they choose to spend the day away from work. All this, despite the fact that openings on Thanksgiving did not help sales last year. So in your Black Friday prep, check out the graphic below to see which companies are treating their workers fairly this Thanksgiving, and which you might want to watch out for.

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The article above was created by the Center for American Progress Action Fund. It was created for the Progress Report, the daily e-mail publication of the Center for American Progress Action Fund. Click here to subscribe.

The President Just Announced This —

Our immigration system has been broken for decades. And every day we wait to act, millions of undocumented immigrants are living in the shadows: Those who want to pay taxes and play by the same rules as everyone else have no way to live right by the law. That is why President Obama is using his executive authority to address as much of the problem as he can, and why he’ll continue to work with Congress to pass comprehensive reform.

Related Articles: 

• In Arizona Case, Supreme Court Affirms Legality of Prosecutorial Discretion
• Congressional Research Svc:  Prosecutorial Discretion in Immigration Enforcement—Legal Issues
• Understanding Prosecutorial Discretion in Immigration Law
• CBO Report: Immigration Reform Will Shrink the Deficit and Grow the Economy
• CBO:  The Economic Impact of S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act   Read Complete PDF Document

Republican Revisionist Propaganda, oops, I Mean History

According to Republican leadership, “No other president in history has used Executive powers to change immigration policy.” Really? NO other President in history?  Do they own a history book? Can they read?  Senator Barbara Boxer can, and she put out this tidy little list this morning on Twitter:

A President may not be able to provide a “pathway to citizenship” via Executive action, but under the authority granted by our Constitution to the President, he/she can certainly prioritize where INS should focus its efforts. Instead of breaking up working, nurturing families to deport the parents and then relegating their American-born citizen children to foster care at taxpayer expense for years, it makes much more sense to focus on rooting out criminal elements and deporting them to their countries of origin.

Speaker Boehner has had two solid years to come up with something of his own, and he’s had a bipartisan comprehensive immigration reform bill (S744) that was passed in the senate on 6/27/2013.  Speaker Boehner alone, has been the one blocking a vote in the US House on this bill, which many claim, has more than the requisite 218 Representatives willing to stand up and vote “AYE” for passage.

“Noble” Bill Is Nothing But Another RW Attempt to Hobble the EPA

Rep. Lamar Smith, R-TX, one sponsor of the “Secret Science” bill. CREDIT: AP PHOTO/DREW ANGERER

If you can say anything about activities in the U.S. House during the 2014 lame duck session, it would begin with the word “Hobbling.”  First up in the house was HR1422, a bill to stuff “for profit” industry experts on the “scientific” board that advises the EPA and then prohibit the deposed scientific experts from saying ANYTHING regarding the results of their experience and research.  But that wasn’t enough.  Next up was HR4012, the Secret Science Reform Act of 2014.

According to the Summary on Thomas.gov:

Secret Science Reform Act of 2014 – Amends the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1978 to prohibit the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from proposing, finalizing, or disseminating a covered action unless all scientific and technical information relied on to support such action is specifically identified and publicly available in a manner sufficient for independent analysis and substantial reproduction of research results. Includes as a covered action a risk, exposure, or hazard assessment, criteria document, standard, limitation, regulation, regulatory impact analysis, or guidance.

If that isn’t a classic definition of “hobbling” the EPA into a state of inability to perform their legislative responsibilities, I don’t know what is.  This bill intentionally prohibits the Environmental Protection Agency from issuing regulations.  This bill mandates that unless they release any and all information they reviewed in arriving at any need for regulation, they are prohibited from issuing said regulations.

You might think that is reasonable, but would you want your medical records published for the world to peruse and discuss publicly?  How about their Corporate master’s records, trade secrets and various other sundry industry data?  We know they’re not going to allow that to become publicly searchable data for anybody and everybody to peruse.  Thus, if they can’t publish the research data, they can’t issue any regulation that just might keep us from getting cancer from some industrial discharge, nor would they be able to ensure the water we bathe in and drink is uncontaminated by industrial toxins.

But if that isn’t enough to prevent the issuance of ANY new regulations, reliance on fewer studies and less data (since they can’t release sensitive medical data, trade secrets, etc.), litigation and Congressional hearing costs will rise, potentially exponentially.

Once again, Republicans are spitting in the wind and looking to breed fear and hatred of a regulatory agency that they themselves created during the Nixon Administration.  Sadly, they’re claiming to fix something, but in reality, they’re disingenuously hobbling EPA’s effectiveness in protecting the environment and the population at large, ALL while they worship at the alter of the almighty dollar beside their corporate masters.

OH, and did I mention they still intend to dismantle all opportunity average Americans can actually purchase affordable health care should any of them just happen to get sick from unregulated pollution and corporate toxic waste they’d be able to dump at will?

I doubt they’d be able to ram it through the Senate during the lame duck session, but if they did,  President Obama will be dusting off another VETO pen upon it’s arrival at his desk

Note: Representative Mark Amodei NV-CD2 proudly stood up and voted AYE for this shame.

Related Posts — 

• Republicans’ ‘Secret Science’ Bill Isn’t What You Think

• House Passes Bill To Stop EPA From Using ‘Secret Science’ To Craft Pollution Rules

• CBO Report: H.R. 4012, Secret Science Reform Act of 2014

• Another attack on the EPA and public health

• STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY — H.R. 4012 – Secret Science Reform Act of 2014

“Antithesis” — Time to Send a Dictionary to Rep. Amodei

Yesterday, while the Keystone Extremely Lethal (KXL) pipeline was failing passage in the Senate, the US House was passing, HR1422, The EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act. 225 Republicans and 4 Republicans sporting Democratic credentials [Barrow (GA), Matheson (UT), Peterson (MN), and Rahall (WV)] voted AYE.  Only ONE Republican broke from the rightwing pack and voted against this first of three bills [Gibson (NY19)] which are aimed at thumbing their noses at Scientists and preventing the EPA from being able to issue ANY new regulations.

It’s not enough that the GOP House believes that 3% of Climate Scientists constitutes a MAJORITY, or that 33% of Americans who either deny or have no clue whether Climate Change is a reality. Now, they’re claiming they’ll be restoring “accountability” to the EPA’s Scientific Advisory Board by erecting roadblocks and muzzling them, basically making it harder for Scientific experts to serve on the Board and instead making it easier to pack the Board with “industry experts.”  But worse—those excluded Scientific Experts would be prohibited from talking about their research with Administrators of the EPA.  In making these changes (demanded by their corporate masters), the GOP claims enactment of this bill would increase the Board’s “effectiveness and transparency.”  HUH?  I do believe it will accomplish the antithesis of all three: accountability, effectiveness AND transparency.

Thomas.gov summarizes the bill’s provisions as follows:

EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2013 – Amends the Environmental Research, Development, and Demonstration Authorization Act of 1978 to revise the process of selecting members of the Science Advisory Board, guidelines for participation in Board advisory activities, and terms of office. (The Board provides scientific advice to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA].) Prohibits federally registered lobbyists from being appointed to the Board.

Revises the procedures for providing advice and comments to the Administrator by: (1) including risk or hazard assessments in the regulatory proposals and documents made available to the Board, and (2) requiring advice and comments to be included in the record regarding any such proposal and published in the Federal Register.

Revises the operation of Board member committees and investigative panels to: (1) require that they operate in accordance with the membership, participation, and policy requirements (including new requirements for public participation in advisory activities of the Board) contained in this Act; (2) deny them authority to make decisions on behalf of the Board; and (3) prohibit direct reporting to EPA.

Adds guidelines for the conduct of Board advisory activities, including concerning: (1) avoidance of making policy determinations or recommendations, (2) communication of uncertainties, (3) dissenting members’ views, and (4) periodic reviews to ensure that such activities address the most important scientific issues affecting EPA.

Prohibits this Act from being construed as supplanting the requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act or the Ethics in Government Act of 1978.

As I read the bill, it looks to me like they’re planning to mitigate any real scientific expertise on the board by packing the advisory committees (the hen house) with those whom the EPA regulates (the foxes), in other words, “industry experts” with profit motives.  The White House, which threatened to veto the bill, said it would “negatively affect the appointment of experts and would weaken the scientific independence and integrity of the EPA Science Advisory Board .” Sadly, “academic scientists who know the most about a subject under review can’t weigh in, but experts paid by corporations who want to block regulations can” — Union of Concerned Scientists director Andrew A. Rosenberg in an editorial for RollCall.

Rep. Mark Amodei, who supposedly represents ALL constituents of Nevada’s congressional district 2, voted FOR passage.  Should this bill become law, which I seriously doubt it would, there is a large cadre of his constituents throughout this district engaged in agriculture-related activities.  They depend on ample supplies of clean water and lands to graze their animals.  As water becomes scarcer, and as climate effects begin curtailing their grazing rights and impacting their wallets, maybe then  folks across the district will finally have to re-evaluate the wisdom of voting for the Republicans, who serve only as minions of their Corporate masters.

Related Articles —

• House Republicans just passed a bill forbidding scientists from advising the EPA on their own research
• House Republicans Are Now Using ‘GruberGate’ To Promote Distrust Of The EPA
• House passes bill to reform EPA science panel
• Congress Must Block These Attacks on Independent Science | Commentary

RE: Immigration Action

It’s time to fix our broken immigration system. Tomorrow night, President Obama will address the nation on new commonsense steps he’s taking to fix as much of it as he can. Tune in tomorrow at 8pm ET on http://WhiteHouse.gov/Immigration-Action #ImmigrationAction

The Marketplace is now OPEN

If you signed up for Marketplace insurance last time – we encourage you to come back, update your application, compare your plans, choose the option that makes the most sense for your financial and health needs and enroll. The deadline to complete these steps is December 15, 2014.

If you’re shopping for Marketplace coverage for the first time – Open Enrollment to sign up for an affordable health plan runs now through February 15^th. Your coverage can start as soon as January 1^st if you sign up by December 15, 2014.

Over the past few months, we’ve been working hard to lay the groundwork for a successful Open Enrollment. We’re committed to giving you the very best consumer experience.

Join the millions of Americans who now have access to quality, affordable coverage: sign up today! 

-Secretary Burwell

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P.S. — If you live in Idaho, Nevada, or Oregon, your process for 2015 enrollment has changed from last year. Learn about these changes in your state.

For information on resources available in your state, or to make changes to your 2014 coverage, visit the Nevada Health Link website. Your 2014 coverage ends December 31, 2014, no matter when you enrolled or update your information.

New for 2015: Beginning November 15, Small Business owners can use HealthCare.gov to apply for SHOP coverage.

Health Insurance Marketplace Opens Tomorrow

Consumers  and Small Business Owners can sign up for health plans for the first time, renew or change their plans for 2015 on HealthCare.gov [or https://www.nevadahealthlink.com/ in Nevada]; more plans are available this year

Starting tomorrow, consumers can sign up for 2015 health insurance plans through HealthCare.gov, the call center, or in-person assistance. With more issuers offering coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace this year, the consumers will find more options for themselves and their families.

“When Open Enrollment begins tomorrow, consumers who are renewing their coverage or signing up for the first time will have an opportunity to obtain quality health coverage at a price they can afford,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell. “Whether consumers visit the simpler, faster and more intuitive HealthCare.gov or contact the call center, they’re going to find more choices and competitive prices.”

The Health Insurance Marketplace is a simpler way to purchase health insurance for Americans and their families. Consumers can go online to find and compare options, see if they qualify for lower costs, and select coverage that best meets their needs and budget. About 85 percent of those who signed up last year through the Marketplace received financial assistance. Coverage begins as early as January 1, 2015 for people enrolling by December 15, 2014. Tomorrow, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is launching an education and outreach campaign in communities nationwide to drive both the uninsured and current enrollees to enroll in coverage or renew their coverage. Enrollment events will take place in local communities including in public libraries, churches, festivals, sports events, and community meetings.

“Tomorrow marks the beginning of an intense open enrollment and public education campaign for the Marketplace,” said CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. “We want consumers to visit the Marketplace, compare their options, see if they qualify for lower costs, and reenroll or get new coverage that best meets their needs and budget.”

CMS has worked to improve the consumer experience by making the application process easier. A window shopping tool allows consumers to answer a few simple questions, such as location and family size, in order to compare plans and get an estimate on how much financial assistance they may qualify for, without needing a log-in or submitting an application.

For most consumers who are renewing coverage, up to 90 percent of their application will be pre-filled based on last year’s application. And a new streamlined application reduces the number of screens to 16 with fewer clicks to navigate through the questions for most consumers signing up for the first time. Last year, consumers went through 76 screens to sign up for coverage. This year, along with a simpler, faster application, consumers can shop and enroll on a smartphone, tablet, computer, or by calling the call center or with in-person assistance.

Tomorrow, Secretary Burwell will participate in an enrollment event at the Evergreen Health Center in Manassas, Virginia with local consumers and Certified Application Counselors who are helping consumers enroll.

Open Enrollment for the Health Insurance Marketplace begins tomorrow, Nov. 15, 2014, and runs through Feb. 15, 2015. Consumers should visit HealthCare.gov to review and compare health plan options and find out if they are eligible for financial assistance, which can help pay monthly premiums and reduce out-of-pocket costs when receiving services. All consumers shopping for health insurance coverage for 2015— even those who currently have coverage through the Marketplace — should enroll or re-enroll between November 15 and December 15 in order to have coverage effective on Jan. 1, 2015.

A number of different resources are available to help consumers find Marketplace coverage. They can get more information through HealthCare.gov or CuidadoDeSalud.gov. Consumers can find local help at: Localhelp.healthcare.gov or call the Federally-facilitated Marketplace Call Center at 1-800-318-2596. TTY users should call 1-855-889-4325. Assistance is available in 150 languages. The call is free.

The Marketplace includes a Small Business Health Option Program (SHOP), designed to give small businesses new health insurance options and a simpler way to cover their employees. The SHOP is available to small employers with 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees. Starting tomorrow, November 15, 2014, the SHOP Marketplace will allow qualifying employers to find, compare, purchase, and enroll in 2015 SHOP health and dental coverage entirely online through HealthCare.gov. Employees will be able to view offers of insurance from their employer and enroll online through HealthCare.gov. Small businesses and their employees can get help from the toll-free SHOP Marketplace call center at 1-800-706-7893 or for TTY, call 711. The hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST.

To sign up for individual and family coverage, visit: https://www.healthcare.gov/apply-and-enroll/

To sign up for small business coverage, visit: https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/

For more information about Health Insurance Marketplaces, visit: www.healthcare.gov/marketplace

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Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other news materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.

Please Note: Democratic Candidates May Have Lost, But Progressive Issues Won

— by David Morris (reposted from CommonDreams)

Ballot initiatives more accurately take the ideological pulse of the people because debates over issues are not disrupted by the personality politics and subterfuge that dominate candidate races. (Photo: Susy Morris/flickr/cc)

On November 4th Democrats lost big when they ran a candidate but won big when they ran an issue.

In 42 states about 150 initiatives were on the ballot. The vast majority did not address issues dividing the two parties (e.g. raising the mandatory retirement age for judges, salary increases for state legislators, bond issues supporting a range of projects).  But scores of initiatives did involve hot button issues.  And on these American voters proved astonishingly liberal.

Voters approved every initiative to legalize or significantly reduce the penalties for marijuana possession (Alaska, California, Oregon, Washington, Washington, D.C.)  It is true that a Florida measure to legalize medical marijuana lost but 57 percent voted in favor (60 percent was required).

Voters approved every initiative to raise the minimum wage (Alaska, Arkansas, Nebraska, South Dakota). Voters in San Francisco and Oakland approved initiatives to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2018.  The good citizens of Oakland and Massachusetts overwhelmingly approved more generous paid sick leave.

Both Colorado and North Dakota voters rejected measures that would have given the fertilized egg personhood under their criminal codes.

Washington state voters approved background checks for all gun sales and transfers, including private transactions.

By a wide margin Missourians rejected a constitutional amendment to require teachers to be evaluated based on test results and fired or demoted virtually at will.

By a 59-41 margin North Dakotans voted to keep their unique statute outlawing absentee owned pharmacies despite Walmart outspending independent pharmacist supporters at least ten to one.

The vote in Colorado offers a good example of the disparity between how Americans vote on candidates and how we vote on issues.  A few years ago the Colorado legislature stripped cities and counties of the right to build their own telecommunications networks but it allowed them to reclaim that authority if they put it to a vote of their citizens.  On Tuesday 8 cities and counties did just that. Residents in every community voted by a very wide margin to permit government owned networks even while they were voting by an equally wide margin for Republican candidates who vigorously oppose government ownership of anything.

Republicans did gain a number of important victories. Most of these dealt with taxes. For example, Georgia voters by a wide margin supported a constitutional amendment prohibiting the state legislature from raising the maximum state income tax rate. Massachusetts’ voters narrowly voted to overturn a law indexing the state gasoline tax to the consumer price increase.

What did Tuesday tell us?  When given the choice between a Republican and a Democrat candidate the majority of voters chose the Republican.  When given a choice between a Republican and a Democrat position on an issue they chose the Democrat.  I’ll leave it up to others to debate the reasons behind this apparent contradiction.  My own opinion is that ballot initiatives more accurately take the ideological pulse of the people because debates over issues must focus on issues, not personality, temperament or looks.  Those on both sides of the issue can exaggerate, distort and just plain lie but they must do so in reference to the question on the ballot.  No ballot initiative ever lost because one of its main backers attended a strip club 16 years earlier.

I am buoyed by the empirical evidence: Americans even in deeply red regions are liberal on many key issues. And I am saddened that these same voters have voted to enhance the power of a party at odds with the values these voters have expressed.  The challenge, and in an age where billions of dollars in negative sound-bites define a candidate it is a daunting one, is how to make the next election on issues, not personalities.

  This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License

David Morris is Vice President and director of the New Rules Project at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which is based in Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. focusing on local economic and social development.

Voters Reject Oil Titan Chevron, Elect Progressive Bloc in Richmond, California

Tom Butt elected mayor and slate of progressive candidates all win city council seats after grim battle with corporate power

— by Nadia Prupis, Common Dreams staff writer

Members of the Asia Pacific Environmental Network march against Chevron in Richmond, California on August 9. (Photo: Malena Mayorga/Flickr)

A slew of progressive candidates were elected in Richmond, California on Tuesday night in a resounding defeat of corporate power, after a multi-million-dollar opposition campaign funded by Chevron brought national attention to the race but failed to take control of City Hall.

Local politician Tom Butt, a Democrat, was elected mayor with 51 percent of the vote, beating the Chevron-backed candidate, Nat Bates, by 16 points. Richmond Progressive Alliance representatives Eduardo Martinez, Jovanka Beckles, and outgoing  Mayor Gayle McLaughlin also won three of the four open seats on the City Council.

Collectively, those candidates became known as Team Richmond.

In a victory speech from his campaign base, Butt said, “I’ve never had such a bunch of people who are dedicated and worked so hard. It’s far away above anything that I’ve ever experienced.”

The sweeping win in the David-and-Goliath story was seen by many as an excoriation of corporate influence in elections after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision.

Uche Uwahemu, who finished third in the mayoral race, said, “The election was a referendum on Chevron and the people obviously made it clear they did not appreciate the unnecessary spending by Chevron so they took it out on the rest of the candidates.”

Chevron spent more than $3 million funding three political action committees that executed an opposition campaign including billboards, flyers, and a mobile screen, spending roughly $72 per voter in hopes of electing a slate of candidates that would be friendly to the oil giant.

Martinez, Beckles, and McLaughlin have all criticized the company and promised to tighten regulations on it. Chevron has an ugly history in the city, particularly in the wake of a large and destructive fire at their refinery in 2012, for which Richmond sued the company.

Butt spent roughly $58,000 on his campaign—a shoestring budget relative to Chevron’s resources.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License