Illegal Voting, Education and Workforce, Congressional Stock Trading, SNAP, Cybersecurity

Over 1,400 Organizations Sign Letter Calling on Congress to Protect and Strengthen SNAP
Source: Food Research and Action Center (FRAC)
July 9, 2024
The letter urges Congress to ensure that benefit adequacy, equitable access, and program administration, remain core tenets of SNAP. More must be done to ensure that SNAP benefits reach all those in need, encompassing households with children, older adults, veterans, people with disabilities, and residents of U.S. territories, so that all individuals have access to the nutrition they need to thrive. To safeguard SNAP, efforts to create a cost-neutral Thrifty Food Plan must be rejected. This includes opposing any proposed cuts, such as restricting future Thrifty Food Plan benefit adjustments, which could result in nearly $30 billion in cuts over 10 years. Such a cost-neutral plan would also negatively impact Summer EBT, the Emergency Food Assistance Program, and Puerto Rico’s Nutrition Assistance Program.
Read more...

Fitzpatrick & Golden Lead Bipartisan Coalition Demanding Vote on Congressional Stock Trading Ban
Source: U.S. Representative Brian Fitzpatrick, (R PA, 8th)
July 9, 2024
“Americans should rightfully expect Members of Congress to work relentlessly on their behalf to tackle the challenges facing our communities and country, rather than exploit their public position for personal gain,” said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1). “We must bring this common-sense, bipartisan legislation to the House floor and, once and for all, prohibit Members of Congress from trading stocks. Our constituents deserve better, and it is time to ensure we deliver results that benefit them and our communities across the country, not the pockets and unethical enrichment of elected officials.”
Read more...

Finstad Applauds Committee Passage of Education and Workforce Freedom Act
Source: U.S. Representative Brad Finstad (R-MN, 1st)
July 9, 2024
“I’ve met with local businesses, truckers, manufacturers, tradesmen, and healthcare facilities across southern Minnesota, and many of them are facing an unprecedented workforce shortage and an increasing need for skilled labor,” said Rep. Finstad. “The Education and Workforce Freedom Act ensures that young people, especially those entering the trades, have access to the programs and resources they need to meet the demands of today’s workforce and succeed. I am pleased to see that this legislation passed the House Ways and Means Committee and I look forward to its progress through the legislative process.”
Read more...

Feenstra Supports Legislation to Ban Illegal Immigrants from Voting in American Elections
Source: U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra (R-IO, 4th)
July 10, 2024
“Illegal immigrants should never be allowed to vote in American elections. It is a privilege reserved only for American citizens,” said Rep. Feenstra. “That’s why I voted for legislation to require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections and to ensure that states remove illegal immigrants from their voter rolls. We must ban illegal immigrants from voting in American elections.”

The bill heads to the senate, and Biden has vowed to veto it if it passes.
Read more...

REP. FRANKEL STATEMENT ON REPUBLICAN-PROPOSED LABOR, HHS, AND EDUCATION BILL THAT THREATENS PUBLIC EDUCATION, HARMS WOMEN AND CHILDREN
Source: U.S. Representative Lois Frankel (D-FL, 22nd)
July 10, 2024
“While Democrats work to help families make ends meet, invest in our children, support our seniors, and protect reproductive freedom, Republicans’ proposed funding bill would gut public education, hamstring the delivery of Social Security benefits, and prevent women from accessing reproductive care in any way possible,” said Rep. Frankel. “I look forward to working with my colleagues to reach an agreement on a bill that uplifts all of our families.”
Read more...

Congressman Maxwell Frost Defends U.S. Assets from China, Russia Cyberattacks, Introduces New Bill to Enhance Cybersecurity of American Spacecrafts
Source: U.S. Representative Maxwell Frost (D-FL, 10th)
July 10, 2024
“Cybersecurity threats by organized crime leaders and foreign adversaries are increasing and evolving rapidly, putting at risk our reliance on space for communications, intelligence, and business,” said Congressman Maxwell Frost. “As we enter a new era of cyber threats, establishing a reasonable timeline for NASA to incorporate cybersecurity measures into their acquisition process is more important than ever. The Spacecraft Cybersecurity Act would safeguard NASA's space missions and continue to advance our country's leadership in space exploration that contributes to our economy, security, and understanding of space.”
Read more...

Families First, Immigrants, Cattle, Education, Fair Housing, Hospitals, Inmates, Mental Health, Transgenders, Pharmacies, Rulemaking, Student Loans, Internet, Coronavirus

Today's News for the Week Prior and Up to March 22, 2020

Civil Rights and Racial Justice Organizations Denounce Discrimination Against Asian Americans and Urge Unity in Responding to Coronavirus Pandemic
Source: National Congress of American Indians
March 17, 2020
The nation’s leading civil rights and racial justice organizations issued a joint urgent call to action against racism and discrimination targeting Asian Americans related to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Read more...

======

======

The National Council of Jewish Women Applauds the US Senate’s Action On Families First Act
Source: National Council of Jewish Women, Inc.
March 18, 2020
“Among many important provisions, workers will be granted two weeks of emergency paid sick leave and twelve weeks of job-protected emergency paid family and medical leave for employees who work at companies that employ 500 people or less; increased Medicaid funding and guaranteed, no-cost coverage of COVID-19 testing in public and private health insurance; and emergency funding for unemployment insurance and for several nutrition programs, including the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). These are critical and necessary efforts to ensure individuals and families can stay home while retaining their livelihoods, ultimately reducing pressure on our health care facilities and saving lives.”
Read more...

Watchdog Report: May Never Know How Many Children Were Separated
Source: National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
March 18, 2020
“It’s pretty damning that we may never have a full accounting of how many children were or remain separated – and that Border Patrol still may not be properly tracking families. Not only was this Administration’s family separation policy heartless – they bungled its implementation at every turn. The Acting DHS Secretary claims no children have been lost – but is withholding documents on this matter from Congress. It’s time for the Administration to come clean and provide these so we can get a full accounting of this policy.”
Read more...

======

======

NAR Survey Finds Nearly Half of Realtors® Say Home Buyer Interest Has Decreased Due to the Coronavirus Outbreak
Source: National Association of Realtors
March 19, 2020
“As the country reels both economically and emotionally from the spread of COVID-19, NCBA has been hard at work ensuring that cattle producers remain able to focus on the national infrastructure priority of keeping high-quality beef available to consumers."
Read more...

NCBA Sends Letter to Capitol Hill Urging Relief for Cattle Producers
Source: National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
March 19, 2020
Nearly half of Realtors® – 48% – said home buyer interest has decreased due to the coronavirus outbreak, according to a new survey from the National Association of Realtors®. That percentage tripled from a week ago when it stood at 16%. Almost seven in 10 Realtors® – 69% – said there’s no change in the number of homes on the market due to the coronavirus outbreak, down from 87% a week ago.
Read more...

NATIONAL CONSTITUTION CENTER TO INCREASE LIVE ONLINE EDUCATIONAL OFFERINGS AND CONVERSATIONS WITH JEFFREY ROSEN AND OTHER CONSTITUTIONAL EXPERTS
Source: National Constitution Center
March 19, 2020
The National Constitution Center today announced increased offerings to support students and citizens with virtual learning resources including live lectures and conversations with constitutional experts.
Read more...

NEA to Congress: Put people first to alleviate suffering caused by COVID-19
Source: National Education Association
March 19, 2020
As COVID-19 cases are increasing daily, schools have shuttered, cities are going into quarantine, and panic has begun to grip the American public. Although the Families First Coronavirus Response Act was a step in the right direction to provide much-needed relief, Congress cannot stop there. The National Education Association is calling on members of Congress and the Trump administration to implement immediate financial support measures first, along with regulatory relief that students desperately need from the Department of Education.
Read more...

Thousands Submit Comments to HUD Opposing Its Attack on Fair Housing
Source: National Fair Housing Alliance
March 19, 2020
More than 19,500 individuals and organizations submitted comments in response to a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) proposed rule that would gut an essential civil rights tool under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) before the public comment period closed this week. The Trump administration proposed the rule in January and has since received widespread opposition from a wide array of civil rights advocates, legal experts, business groups and private citizens throughout the country.
Read more...

======

======

NILC Reacts to Coronavirus Phase 3 Legislation
Source: National Immigration Law Center
March 19, 2020
“The coronavirus phase 3 legislation introduced in the Senate is not a product of bipartisan negotiations. This is another gift to corporations that leaves out millions of tax-paying immigrants, many of whom have family members who are U.S. citizens. Our nation is facing a pandemic that does not discriminate and threatens to wipe out people’s livelihoods and devastate our economy. It is unconscionable that the Republican-controlled Senate continues to play politics with the health and well-being of Americans. We are all at risk when millions are left behind."
Read more...

======

======

Newhouse Urges Congressional Leadership to Strengthen Rural Hospitals During COVID-19 Outbreak
Source: U.S. Representative Dan Newhouse (R WA, 4th)
March 20, 2020
Rep. Dan Newhouse joined his colleagues in sending a bipartisan letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell urgently requesting additional resources for rural health care providers during the COVID-19 outbreak. The letter was signed by a bipartisan group of 28 Members of Congress.
Read more...

Norton Calls on U.S. Parole Commission to Use Its Authority to Protect D.C. Residents and Others Under its Jurisdiction During Coronavirus Pandemic
Source: National Constitution Center
March 20, 2020
“The U.S. Parole Commission has the authority to release certain inmates, such as those being held for technical supervision violations,” Norton said. “The Commission should use its authority to ensure the health of inmates, staff and the public.”
Read more...

NASW Thanks President Trump, Congress for Swift Action To Promote COVID-19 Mental Health Access
Source: National Association of Social Workers
March 20, 2020
The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) applauds the Trump Administration and Congress for swiftly enacting vitally needed legislation to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, including ensuring broad access to Medicare mental health services via telehealth. Millions of older adults now practicing social distancing to avoid spread of the coronavirus will now be able to receive in-home teletherapy via video chat on their cell phone. NASW urges administration officials and lawmakers who are currently developing the next COVID-19 package, a massive $1 trillion economic stimulus bill, to continue to prioritize strengthening the social safety net.
Read more...

State, Regional and National Organizations Urge Gov. Little to Veto Trans Sports Ban Bill
Source: National Center for Transgender Equality
March 20, 2020
House Bill 500 bans transgender student athletes from participating in sports, which is counter to current policies set by the Idaho High School Activities Association. Idaho would become the first state in the country to pass legislation targeting transgender student athletes.
Read more...

Letter: Pharmacy has a critical role to play in COVID-19 crisis
Source: National Community Pharmacists Association
March 20, 2020
"As the coronavirus pandemic continues having huge implications on our health care system, small business neighborhood pharmacies are proving what we say all the time: that they are crucial to the health of their community, whether in crisis or not."
Read more...

======

======

State Groups Request Formal Pause to Active Rulemakings and Non-Rulemaking Notices
Source: National Conference of State Legislatures
March 20, 2020
Seven state organizations, National Governors Association, National Conference of State Legislatures, The Council of State Governments, National League of Cities, National Association of Counties, United States Conference of Mayors and International City/County Management Association, requested President Donald Trump to formally pause all open public comment periods concerning both active rulemakings and non-rulemaking notices across every federal department or agency.
Read more...

Trump Administration’s plan to pause student loan payments is woefully insufficient
Source: National Consumer Law Center
March 20, 2020
“The administration’s plan to allow borrowers to request a pause in payments is woefully insufficient for addressing the needs of millions of student loan borrowers struggling during this public health crisis. Borrowers who may be short on funds and have limited bandwidth between juggling changes in their childcare and work plans should not have to also find time to consult with their loan servicer. "
Read more...

NDIA has just launched a new, national listing of Free & Low-Cost Internet Plans
Source: National Digital Inclusion Alliance
March 20, 2020
The COVID-19 health crisis has shed light on the need for home internet service, and the large number of American households in all kinds of communities who don’t have it. Some Internet Service Providers have responded with new or improved discount broadband plans, that will only be available for a short time; others continue to offer plans that were created prior to the crisis. NDIA commits to keeping this list of Free & Low-Cost Internet Plans updated daily.
Read more...

NIH shifts non-mission-critical laboratory operations to minimal maintenance phase
Source: National Institutes of Health
March 20, 2020
To further reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 and enhance the safety of staff, the National Institutes of Health is shifting all non-mission-critical laboratory operations to a maintenance phase. Beginning on Monday, March 23, only mission-critical functions within NIH research laboratories will be supported. Mission-critical functions include the following: care of research participants in NIH clinical protocols that are non-elective, research directly on COVID-19, urgent public health research recommended by NIH scientific leadership, work involving significant research investments that could be lost if not continued, and protection of life, property and resources, including the care of research animals. This follows a March 13 guidance to all eligible NIH staff to telework to the maximum extent possible.
Read more...

======

======

Local Leaders Call for Funds Directly for Cities in Senate COVID-19 Legislation
Source: National League of Cities
March 21, 2020
"As local communities continue to combat the spread of COVID-19 across our nation, we need legislation on Capitol Hill that prioritizes getting funding to cities, towns and villages," said Clarence E. Anthony, CEO and Executive Director of the National League of Cities. "Right now, we estimate that nationally, cities will need at least $250 billion in emergency funding. Local leaders stand ready to work beside Congress to help counteract the devastating economic effects brought on by the Coronavirus."
Read more...

FEDERAL LEGISLATION TO PROHIBIT SCHOOL 'LUNCH SHAMING' INTRODUCED

The Ponder would like to thank the following business for sending quality traffic our way!

======Need quality Website Traffic? Sign up!======

by: Ben R. Lujan (D-NM, 3rd)

Washington, D.C. - April 11, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- Congressman Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), the U.S. House Assistant Speaker, signed onto legislation from Rep. Deb Haaland, and other New Mexico delegation members including, Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, along with U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, to prohibit school “lunch shaming” – the practice of discriminating against or stigmatizing children who have outstanding credit or don't have enough money to pay for meals at school. The Anti-Lunch Shaming Act would ban schools from singling out children — such as by requiring them to wear hand stamps or do extra chores — because their parents or guardians have not paid their school meal bills.

“It’s simple – you can’t learn if you’re hungry. As legislators – as responsible human beings - we cannot stand by and let antiquated policies bully and stigmatize kids whose parents cannot afford to pay for their lunches. It is far past time that we end lunch shaming for the betterment of all our kids,” said Assistant Speaker Luján.

“No child should have to worry about being hungry at school, but there are still places in this country with outdated policies that force children to bear the burden of poverty,” said Haaland, a member of the Task Force on Poverty and Opportunity. “In 2017, New Mexico took the lead on ending these harmful policies and now we’re working to ensure children across the country have full stomachs when they’re in school so they can reach their full learning potential.”

“We all know children learn best when they have access to healthy and nutritious meals. For some students, their school lunch might be their only healthy meal of the day. Yet, in school cafeterias across the nation, schools are publicly shaming children whose families cannot afford for pay for their school meals. Rather than allow this to continue, this bill would require schools to treat all students the same and communicate directly with parents and guardians to address outstanding lunch payments. New Mexico led this initiative to outlaw lunch shaming and I’m proud to stand with the delegation outlaw lunch shaming nationwide,” said Torres Small.

"Lunch shaming is a practice so cruel and backwards that most Americans would be shocked to know it happens. And yet school districts across the country are allowed to use these appalling tactics. Instead of stigmatizing kids who come from struggling households, withholding hot meals from students, and depriving some children of their only healthy meal of the day, we should be working to find solutions to end childhood hunger and to support families in need,” said Udall. “We know that hunger can be an insurmountable barrier to success in the classroom. I was proud when New Mexico became the first state in the country to outlaw the practice of lunch shaming, and I will continue to do everything I can in the Senate to pass this legislation on a federal level so no child will have to spend their time at school feeling ashamed of a debt they have no power to pay.”

“Stigmatizing or shaming students for not being able to afford lunch is unacceptable. Child hunger is a serious problem facing New Mexico. We know that when children are hungry it impacts their ability to focus and learn in the classroom. Nothing is more important than improving the well-being of our children and I will continue working to find solutions that ensure our students can grow and thrive,” said Heinrich.

In March of 2017, New Mexico passed the first law in the United States to prohibit lunch shaming. The legislation spurred a number of other states to pass legislation or take action to combat lunch shaming including Virginia, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Texas, Iowa, Washington, Illinois, New York, and Pennsylvania. A number of other state legislatures are currently considering measures to address this shameful practice and the federal Anti-Lunch Shaming Act aims to provide similar protections to students throughout the country.

The Anti-Lunch Shaming Act prohibits schools participating in U.S. Department of Agriculture school lunch or breakfast programs from using humiliation or throwing a child's meal away because their parent or guardian hasn't paid their school meal bill and other shaming tactics. Instead, it requires schools to direct communications regarding meal debt to the parent or guardian, not the child.

The bill also aims to make the process for applying for free and reduced-price lunch applications easier by encouraging the Department of Agriculture to distribute the maximum number of applications for free or reduce price lunches in an understandable, uniform format and encourage schools to offer assistance to complete the applications; coordinate with State agencies, school food authorities, and local education agency liaisons to ensure that homeless children and youth, and children and youth in foster care are eligible to receive a free or reduced-price lunch; and explore innovative ways to use technology to improve communications between parents or guardians and school food authorities.

The Anti-Lunch Shaming Act has been endorsed by New Mexico Appleseed — the nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy organization that created New Mexico's Hunger Free Students’ Bill of Rights —whose Executive Director Jennifer Ramo championed the New Mexico law.

“There are few more powerful antidotes to the causes and consequences of child poverty than food and dignity. This important bill ensures that children receive the vital nutrition they need to focus in school through the national school lunch program. And, it ensures that they do so with their self-respect intact. We have saved New Mexican children from the devastating effects of being humiliated and missing meals through our state’s Hunger-Free Student Bill of Rights, and now we are excited to see this protection extended nationally to all children in need,” said Jennifer Ramo, Executive Director of New Mexico Appleseed.

The legislation is also cosponsored by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine.), Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-Penn.), Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and U.S. Representatives Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), and Gwen Moore (D-Wis.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Penn.), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.), Ann McLane Kuster (D-N.H.), Conor Lamb (D-Penn.), Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.), and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.).

Other endorsing organizations include: FRAC, Feeding America, National PTA, Share our Strength, First Focus, Food Corps, New Mexico Appleseed, Hunger Task Force, MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity, California Food Policy Advocates, New Mexico Voices for Children, Hunger Free Vermont, End Childhood Hunger – South Carolina, Hunger-Free Pennsylvania, Children’s Hunger Alliance, Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, Cultivating Community, Alabama Food Bank Association, Feed the Children, Hunger Free Oklahoma, Hunger Solutions New York, West Virginia Food & Farm Coalition, Missoula Food Bank, Food Bank of Delaware, & New Hampshire Food Bank.

The full text of the bill can be found HERE. A summary of the bill can be found HERE.

Brooks, Frankel Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Keep Girls in School Worldwide

Washington, D.C. - October 15, 2018 - (The Ponder News) -- On International Day of the Girl (October 11), Congresswomen Susan W. Brooks (R-IN, 5th) and Lois Frankel (D-FL, 22nd), co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues, announce the introduction of the Keeping Girls in School Act to support the economic and educational empowerment of girls globally.


Today, over 130 million girls worldwide are not in school. While the U.S. has been the global leader in efforts to expand and improve educational opportunities, particularly for girls, there is still more work to be done because every child deserves an equal opportunity to access quality education. This legislation brings attention to the systemic barriers preventing girls from accessing secondary education; barriers such as child marriage, religious or ethnic discrimination, female genital mutilation and poor safety traveling to schools. Reps. Nita Lowey (D-NY17) and Dan Donovan (R-NY11) are original cosponsors of the legislation.

“We must break down the barriers that keep girls out of the classroom,” said Brooks. “When girls stay in school their communities are healthier, wealthier and safer. In order to cultivate a thriving future for our world, girl’s education and development must be a top priority. When we stand up for women and girls, we help empower them to raise their voices, grasp opportunities and reach new heights.”

“When girls are educated and given the skills to support their families, we uplift communities, reduce poverty, and create a more peaceful and prosperous world,” said Frankel. “This bill puts empowering adolescent girls front and center by addressing obstacles keeping them out of school, like gender-based violence and child marriage.”

“If you limit a girl's access to education, you limit her in every area of her life,” said Jaha Dukureh, founder of Safe Hands for Girls and Africa's Regional Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women. “We have a collective responsibility to break down every barrier girls face, so that they can enjoy their right to an education and realize their full potential.”

“Failing to educate a child is a grave injustice – she is not only robbed of economic opportunities, she is deprived of her voice and her future place in the world,” said Lowey. “If we want to make sustained progress on international development and make the world a more stable place, we must prioritize education, especially for girls and young women.”

“The Keeping Girls in School Act will help empower girls by increasing their access to educational opportunities and economic security,” said Donovan. “While helping girls reach their full potential and tackling poverty, this bill also advances America’s national security interests by promoting opportunities that could lead to more stability abroad. I am proud to join Reps. Frankel, Brooks, and Lowey on this bipartisan effort and will keep on pushing for initiatives to protect and educate vulnerable women across the globe.”

BACKGROUND

The Keeping Girls in School Act focuses on closing the gender gap for adolescent girls and keeping them in school at the secondary level, a time when girls are most at risk of dropping out of school due to forced marriage, pregnancy, and other family pressures. The economic benefits of girls’ education are substantial and can help lift households, communities and nations out of poverty. Keeping girls in secondary school could*:

Add $92 billion to the economies of low and middle-income nations;

Cut child deaths by 50%;

Reduce child marriage by 66%;

Decrease violent conflict by 37%; and

Increase girls’ future wages by up to 20% for every year enrolled.

Specifically, the Keeping Girls in School Act:

Outlines and highlights a non-exhaustive list of 14 barriers that girls face in entering and remaining in secondary education institutions.

Authorizes a budget neutral funding mechanism where USAID is directed to enter into results-based financing and/or traditional grant project proposals to reduce these barriers adolescent girls face. These proposals will utilize public-private partnerships, development impact bonds, and other innovative financing mechanisms to leverage real results with measurable outcomes.

Requires that the U.S. Global Strategy to Empower Adolescent Girls be reviewed and updated every 5 years.

Full text of the legislation can be found here.

Additionally, dozens of civil, human and women’s rights organizations have endorsed the Keeping Girls in School Act. List can be found here.

*Statistics are according to UNESCO, the Education Policy and Data Center, CARE, the Global Partnership for Education, and the World Bank.

YODER FIGHTS TO EXPAND EDUCATOR EXPENSE DEDUCTION IN THE FINAL TAX BILL

By Kevin Yoder (R-KS, 3rd)



Washington, D.C. - December 13, 2017 - (The Ponder News) -- Representative Kevin Yoder (R-KS) led a group of 12 Republican House members in sending a letter to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act conference committee, calling for the doubling of the educator expense deduction in the final version of the tax reform legislation. The letter urges House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, and the rest of the conference committee to adopt the Senate’s version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in regard to the educator expense deduction. The Senate’s plan would increase the deduction from $250 to $500 per year.

Representative Yoder issued the following statement regarding his letter:

“America’s teachers sacrifice their time, energy and personal finances every day to help our children learn and grow into our next generation of leaders. We've worked hard to produce tax legislation in the House that would give a typical Overland Park teacher a tax cut of about $1,800. But I've listened to many teachers and advocates who recognize the educator expense deduction as one small way to show teachers our appreciation for their hard work. This important deduction should remain in our tax code.

"The best way to legislate in Congress is to work together, listen to our constituents, and take their concerns to Washington. That's what I'm doing here today with this letter to the conference committee. Ultimately, the goal of tax reform is to increase economic opportunity for hardworking Americans like our teachers, and we can do it in an even better way by expanding this deduction in addition to cutting their taxes."


See more headlines at The Ponder News Web Site

FERGUSON, BONAMICI INTRODUCE LEGISLATION TO PROMOTE WORK-BASED LEARNING

Source: A. Drew Ferguson (R -GA, 3rd)



Congressman Drew Ferguson (R-Ga.) has introduced the PARTNERS Act with Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.). This bill would establish a grant program to promote local partnerships to help small and medium sized businesses develop work-based learning programs. Funding for this grant would come from fees collected for H1-B visas.

“The Central Education Center in Newnan led Georgia by implementing an innovative style of apprenticeship that prepares our young people for 21st century careers,” said Ferguson. “I am introducing this bill to allow workers across the nation to have access to work-based training. The United States needs a workforce that’s competitive on the world stage, but we must also face the stark realities of our current fiscal situation. By using H1-B visa fees to fund a direct path into the workplace, we can ensure workers receive the skills for success at no cost to the American taxpayer.”

“When I visit communities in my district, I hear from hard-working Oregonians who feel left behind because they do not have the skills they need to compete in today’s economy,” said Bonamici. “Our bipartisan PARTNERS Act will bring together employers, education, training, labor, and community-based organizations to develop work-based learning programs that benefit workers and rapidly growing sectors like health care and technology. We can build pathways to get more people back to work and provide our nation’s businesses with a skilled workforce that will improve productivity and efficiency.”

The bill has received support from the National Skills Coalition, Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and Georgia Business Leaders United (BLU).

National Skills Coalition issued the following statement from Kermit Kaleba, Federal Policy Director

“National Skills Coalition (NSC) enthusiastically supports the bipartisan Promoting Apprenticeship with Regional Training Networks for Employers Required Skills (PARTNERS) Act of 2017. The bill would support partnerships between businesses and local workforce stakeholders that enable small- and medium- sized employers to develop and expand apprenticeships and work-based learning programs.”

“Small- and medium-sized businesses often lack the infrastructure to establish apprenticeships or work-based learning programs on their own. Industry and sector partnerships can help lessen the burdens businesses face when starting or expanding work-based learning programs, like apprenticeships, and help workers access and succeed in these programs.”

“Work based learning, including apprenticeship, is good for both working people and local businesses. For companies in desperate need of workers, work-based learning immediately puts motivated hires on site. Working people obtain market-driven skills and can “earn while they learn.”

“NSC applauds Representatives Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and Drew Ferguson (R-GA) for introducing this bipartisan bill.”

Rep. Chu Reintroduces Legislation to Connect High-Need Schools with Quality Teachers

Source: Judy Chu (D-CA, 27th)

Washington, D.C. - October 13, 2017 - (The Ponder News) -- Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) reintroduced the Equal Access to Quality Education Act. This bill works to close the education inequality gap by helping high-need schools attract, train, and retain the best teachers. Rep. Chu released the following statement

“Ensuring our children receive quality education is one of our greatest responsibilities. And a good education begins with a good teacher. Yet high-need communities are also the ones that have the hardest time attracting and retaining profession-ready educators. The Department of Education found that schools with mostly African-American students are twice as likely to have teachers with only one or two years of experience, compared to predominately white schools in the very same district. Inexperienced teachers lead to lower academic achievement scores, and this maintains cycles of poverty that disproportionately affect people of color. It is unconscionable to allow these race- and class-based disparities to continue.

“That is why I am re-introducing the Equal Access to Quality Education Act. This bill creates a partnership between high-need schools and schools with teacher training programs to provide support for new teachers while decreasing future turnover. Together, the programs in this bill will ensure that all students, regardless of income or race, have access to teachers who are fully prepared to help them succeed.”

Original cosponsors of the Equal Access to Quality Education Act include Reps. Mark Takano (CA-41), Dina Titus (NV-1), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), and Madeleine Bordallo (GU).

MCMORRIS RODGERS VOTES FOR SHORT-TERM EXTENSION OF TEACHING HEALTH CENTERS PROGRAM

Washington, D.C. - October 2, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) voted in favor of legislation to provide for a 3-month extension of the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) program at current funding levels. She released this statement following passage of the legislation:

“I’m glad we moved forward with a short-term extension of the THCGME program, but we also must advance a long-term solution to provide certainty for our teaching health centers, their residents, and their patients—which is what my bill, the Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act would do. Without a sustainable funding level of $157,000 per resident, per year, as recommended in the HRSA funded study published last year, the program will unravel.”

During debate on the legislation, the Congresswoman gave remarks on the House floor on the importance of the THCGME program, but also the need to support long-term reauthorization at sustainable funding levels. In case you missed it, you can watch her full remarks here:

The short-term extension was included in H.R. 3823, the Disaster Tax Relief and Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2017.

In July, the Congresswoman introduced the Training the Next Generation of Primary Care Doctors Act of 2017 to reauthorize the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) program for three years. This legislation will also allow for the expansion of new programs within existing centers or the creation of entirely new teaching health centers while emphasizing the importance of establishing sustainable funding. The Congresswoman will continue to work to see this bill advanced and provide long-term certainty for the Spokane Teaching Health Clinic, and all those who rely on this important program.

Tax Reform, Mining, Food Safety, Education, South Korea, Hurricanes, Insurance, abortion, Cuba, health care, Healthcare, Sports, Farmers, Drug Addiction, Prostate Cancer

The Ponder News
September 29, 2017
(If you are receiving this via email, you may access all the links at:
http://thepondernews.blogspot.com/2017/09/tax-reform-mining-food-safety-education.html )

Tax Reform

=====

Davis Statement on GOP Tax Reform Framework and Retreat
Rodney Davis (R-IL, 13th)
“Today House Republicans united around middle-class Americans who are being crushed by our outdated tax code,” said Davis. “Illinois residents know all too well the impact high taxes are having on their families’ ability to save and get ahead and our state’s ability to compete for good-paying jobs. Our plan uses Illinois as an example of what not to do. We want to cut tax rates for individuals, simplify but maintain important middle-class deductions, and make it so American businesses can compete globally. There’s still much more work to be done, but this is our shot at changing the lives of each working American for the better and I hope we get bipartisan support to get it done.”
Read more...

Statement from Congressman Dan Donovan on Tax Reform
Daniel Donovan (R-NY, 11th)
"...I’m of course concerned about the state and local tax deduction, and I’ll continue working with my colleagues as the legislation goes through the committee process. It’s important to me that Staten Island and Brooklyn residents benefit from tax relief and don’t shoulder the burden for cuts elsewhere in the country."
Read more...

DUNN RELEASES STATEMENT ON UNIFIED TAX REFORM BLUEPRINT
Neal Dunn (R-FL, 2nd)
“We have a once in a generation opportunity to overhaul our complex tax system, lower rates, and truly make the IRS work for the people, instead of against them,” said Dr. Dunn. “At more than 4 million words long, the current tax code is a prime example of the government red tape that is strangling our economy. By lowering rates, reducing the size and scope of the IRS, and closing loopholes, we will put more money back in the pockets of the people who earned it and supercharge the economy.”
Read more...

Fair and Simple Tax Reform for American Families and American Jobs
Bill Flores (R-TX, 17th)
Over the past eight months, American economic growth has jumped by almost 50 percent from the below-average growth levels of the last few years. We believe that tax reform can take our economic growth and job opportunities to even higher levels, and to relieve the economic strains being felt by working families.
Read more...

=====

Mining

=====

Rep. Peter DeFazio Blasts Request to Overturn Protections for Critical Watershed
Peter DeFazio (D-OR, 4th)
“This is an egregious overstep by Washington, driven by special interests,” said Rep. DeFazio. “The prohibition on mining on the Smith River and the headwaters of Hunter Creek and Pistol River has broad, overwhelming support from thousands of residents of southwest Oregon, local governments, businesses and community leaders. Re-opening this area to allow a foreign company to strip mine our public lands without paying American taxpayers hardly any royalties would devastate surrounding economies and threaten critical drinking water sources. This withdrawal has been discussed, debated and endorsed by the surrounding communities and supported by federal agencies. Chairman Bishop and the Trump administration need to respect the will of southwest Oregon.”
Read more...

=====

Food Safety

=====

DeLauro Responds to New OIG Report Detailing FDA’s Failure to Effectively Implement the Food and Safety Modernization Act
Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT, 3rd)
“The goal of the Food Safety and Modernization Act (FSMA) was to prevent food-safety problems rather than react to these issues after they arise. However, the Inspector General’s report revealed that the FDA has not taken effective or timely action to identify and correct food facility inspection violations.”
Read more...

=====

Education

=====


DelBene Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Lower College Textbook Costs
Suzan Delbene (D-WA, 1st)
“An often overlooked driver of the rising cost of college is textbooks and supplies. In addition to tackling tuition hikes and burdensome student loan debt, we must find solutions to the other factors making a college degree less attainable for working families,” DelBene said. “Technology is changing the classroom experience, and the E-BOOK Act will help spur innovation in our colleges by incentivizing the adoption of new learning technologies, which in turn will save students money.”
Read more...

=====

South Korea

=====

Congressman Dent Supports Maintaining South Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement
Charles W. Dent (R-PA, 15th)
"Retracting from this South Korea trade agreement would be detrimental to American econoimc, diplomatic, and security interests," said Dent. "It's a short-sighted move that fails to take into account two key factors. First, the deal benefits both American workers and businesses, especially in terms of agricultural exports. Second, America would be sending te wrong message to our ally by backing out of our trade agreement in the midst of the ongoing North Korea threat. We cannot slight the South Korean government in this way by seemingly abandoning them," Dent stated.
Read more...

=====

Hurricanes

=====

Diaz-Balart Votes for Tax Relief to Support Hurricane Impacted Communities
Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL, 25th)
“This year, we have experienced an extremely active hurricane season that has left destruction and devastation in its path. After days without running water or electricity, parts of Florida are just beginning the rebuilding process. A large number of homes in our community have been deemed structurally unsafe, and hundreds more require critical repair. This legislation provides significant tax relief that will assist Floridians and others who have been impacted by recent storms. Many are now left to find the financial means to make needed repairs to their homes. Among others, by eliminating the tax penalty on early retirement plan withdrawals, we can help folks access the capital required to make these repairs and get back on their feet. These tax benefits also extend to citizens of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, assisting Caribbean citizens who need our support in this difficult time.”
Read more...


=====

Insurance

=====

Duffy Introduces Bipartisan FIO Reform Act
Sean P. Duffy (R-WI, 7th)
Wisconsin Congressman Sean Duffy, chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing & Insurance, today co-introduced the Federal Insurance Office (FIO) Reform Act with Congressman Denny Heck (D-WA).
Read more...

=====

Abortion

=====

CONGRESSMAN DUNCAN'S STATEMENT ON H.R. 36
John J. Duncan, Jr. (R-TN, 2nd)
This bill would protect an unborn child old enough to feel pain from being aborted. Evidence indicates an unborn baby is able to feel pain at 20 weeks old," said Duncan.
Read more...

=====

Cuba

=====

Congressional Cuba Working Group Statement in Response to Ongoing Investigation in Cuba
Tom Emmer (R-MN, 6th)
“The federal government has a responsibility to ensure the safety and security of our diplomats and Foreign Service personnel, regardless of where they serve. Those who are responsible for perpetuating these harmful and unacceptable acts will be held accountable.
Read more...

=====

Health Care

=====

EVANS AND SMUCKER INTRODUCE BILL TO IMPROVE PEDIATRIC CARE AND REDUCE PHYSICIAN SHORTAGE
Dwight Evans (D PA, 2nd)
Rep. Dwight Evans and Rep. Smucker, along with, today introduced the Strengthening Our Pediatric Workforce Act – bipartisan legislation that will help address America’s growing pediatric physician shortage by creating a new grant program for children’s teaching hospitals to make additional residency positions available for pediatric specialists
Read more...

=====

Sports

=====

Congressman Farenthold Reintroduces the PRO Sports Act
Blake Farenthold (R-TX, 27th)
“Professional sports leagues should not be exempt from paying taxes,” said Congressman Farenthold. “These are highly profitable businesses that make tens of millions of dollars each year and have been exploiting loopholes to game the system. It’s time we blow the whistle on this foul, and get this bill over the goal line.”
Read more...

=====

Farming

=====

Faso Introduces Bill to Crack-Down on Fake Organics, Support Organic Farmers
John Faso, (R-NY, 19th)
Congressman Faso said, “Fraudulent ‘organic’ grain and feed originating overseas is not only deceptive to consumers, but it artificially drives down the price of real organics, hurting legitimate organic farmers in Upstate New York and across the country. I am proud to introduce the Organic Farmer and Consumer Protection Act alongside Congresswoman Lujan Grisham as it will crack down on these fake organics. This is commonsense legislation that puts American consumers and farmers first
Read more...

=====

Drug Addiction

=====

Op-Ed: White House must formally declare the opioid crisis a national emergency
Brian Fitzpatrick, (R PA, 8th)
A little over a month ago, President Trump announced his intention to declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency. He was right—it is an emergency. Drug overdoses killed almost 54,000 people in 2015, and the majority of those deaths involved an opioid. Last year about 12 million Americans misused an opioid, and the overdose death toll rose to 65,000. The opioid crisis is cutting deep scars in our communities, and in some states, is taking more of our loved ones than car accidents, suicides and firearms combined. It is absolutely an emergency and we urge the president to move quickly in formally declaring the opioid crisis a national health emergency.
Read more...

=====

Other

=====

ENGEL: GOP HAS WASTED TIME, JEOPARDIZED VITAL PROGRAMS
Eliot Engel (D-NY, 16th)
Congressional Republicans have spent nine months on their tired vendetta against the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Now, just days before the fiscal year ends, they’ve proven only that they were willing to put critical programs on the backburner for a shot at fulfilling their misguided political promises.
Read more...

Esty Calls on Congress to Vote on Puerto Rico Aid Relief, Expiring Federal Programs
Elizabeth Esty (D-CT, 5th)
“I am calling on my colleagues to come together to find a bipartisan approach that fully funds these programs and assists all Americans to keep our country moving forward.”
Read more...

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
By: Mrs. Brenda Fleischmann
The calendar fills up quickly in September as families return to a packed routine after quieter summer days. Unfortunately, your health might take a backseat to your busy schedule. So make a note on your calendar that September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and remind yourself—or the men in your life—about the importance of a healthy prostate.
Read more...

Byrne Attends STEM Education Signing at the White House

Source: House Representative Bradley Byrne (R-AL, 1st)

Washington, D.C. - September 25, 2017  (The Ponder News) -- Congressman Bradley Byrne (R-AL), a member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, attended a special ceremony at the White House for the signing of a Presidential Memorandum to promote STEM education.

The Presidential Memorandum calls on the Department of Education to devote at least $200 million of its grant funds each year to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs, including computer science.

Byrne said: “I applaud President Trump and his administration for their commitment to advancing STEM education. STEM is no longer a thing of the future, but it is the reality for today’s workforce. By focusing grant funding in this area, we can help ensure that our students are exposed to the skills necessary to excel in today’s 21st Century economy.”

Hypersensitivity in Title IX Enforcement

Source: Competitive Enterprise Institute

Los Angeles, CA - September 22, 2017  (The Ponder News) -- Los Angeles lawyer Ken White notes that a professor is being “investigated for writing about being investigated for writing about being investigated.” This Title IX investigation has apparently been going on since last May, making it longer than some other investigations that courts have ruled unconstitutional due to their speech-chilling nature.

Previously, Northwestern University investigated Professor Laura Kipnis after she wrote an essay for The Chronicle of Higher Education titled “Sexual Paranoia Strikes Academe,” which hypersensitive students claimed offended them and constituted sexual harassment in violation of Title IX, the federal statute against sex discrimination in educational institutions. After Kipnis defended herself against the harassment charges on Twitter, students then accused her of “retaliation” in violation of Title IX.  After an outcry from free speech advocates, charges were shelved months later.

These charges against Kipnis over an off-campus essay were made possible by the Obama administration. It changed the Education Department’s interpretation of Title IX to require colleges to investigate even off-campus student or faculty conduct alleged to constitute sexual harassment or assault. The Obama administration’s position was at odds with federal court rulings saying that Title IX does not apply off campus, such as Roe v. St. Louis University (2014).

One of Kipnis’s accusers then filed a defamation suit against Kipnis for her book Unwanted Advances: Sexual Paranoia Comes to Campus, which cast aspersions on a student’s sexual harassment claims against a former professor.

In May 2016, several Northwestern students—including the one who is suing Kipnis—then filed a Title IX complaint against the professor over her book. The University then launched an investigation, which has yet to reach a conclusion.

A lengthy investigation of a person’s speech can violate the First Amendment through its chilling effect, even if the person is never found guilty. For example, a federal appeals court found that an eight month-long civil rights investigation of citizens for their speech opposing a minority housing project protected by the Fair Housing Act was a clear violation of First Amendment rights, in White v. Lee, 227 F.3d 1214 (9th Cir. 2000).

However, Northwestern University is a private university, and thus is not bound by the First Amendment. So Kipnis would have to show that federal pressure or policies caused the investigation of her before she could sue under the First Amendment.

These endless complaints against Kipnis are facilitated by other actions taken by the Obama administration, which left the misimpression that even unreasonable and false allegations of harassment and retaliation are protected by Title IX. According to the courts, sexual harassment allegations made to campus officials are not protected against retaliation if they are either (a) factually false, or (b) based on an unreasonable misinterpretation of what constitutes sexual harassment. [See Vasconcelos v. Meese, 907 F.2d 11 (9th Cir. 1990) (false allegations not protected); Clark County School District v. Breeden, 532 U.S. 268 (2001) (unreasonable allegation not protected, such as complaint about fleeting exposure to sexual material that no reasonable person could have viewed as “severe” or “pervasive”)].

But in its publicly available letters of findings in Title IX investigations, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights fails to acknowledge that false allegations are not protected, and in 2016, one OCR staff attorney took the position that “reasonableness” should not be used in assessing harassment allegations. In 2015, an OCR regional office found that a student who made false allegations was entitled to Title IX “remedies” against a college. In its investigation of Michigan State University, it required college officials to offer “remedies” such as academic adjustments to “Student A,” whom both it and the University found had made a false allegation of sexual assault against two students. The Education Department’s strange logic was that the university did not begin proceedings against the accused students fast enough—even though it immediately kicked them out of their dorm and ordered them to stay away from the accuser. Such “interim remedies” against accused students who are never found guilty raise serious due-process issues. [See, e.g., Tyree v. Evans, 728 A.2d 101 (D.C. 1999) (due process required opportunity to cross-examine accuser before imposition of one-year no-contact order); Alberti v. Cruise, 383 F.2d 268 (4th Cir. 1967) (overly broad no-contact order violated First Amendment)].

Harvard Law Professor Jeannie Suk Gerson provides disturbing details about the ongoing investigation of Kipnis at The New Yorker:

Kipnis… was surprised when Northwestern once again launched a formal Title IX investigation of her writing. … [I]nvestigators presented her with a spreadsheet laying out dozens of quotations from her book, along with at least eighty written questions, such as “What do you mean by this statement?,” “What is the source/are the sources for this information?,” and “How do you respond to the allegation that this detail is not necessary to your argument and that its inclusion is evidence of retaliatory intent on your part?” Kipnis chose not to answer any questions, following the standard advice of counsel defending the court case.

She did submit a statement saying that “these complaints seem like an attempt to bend the campus judicial system to punish someone whose work involves questioning the campus judicial system, just as bringing Title IX complaints over my first Chronicle essay attempted to do two years ago.” In other words, the process was the punishment. Possible evidence of retaliatory purpose, she learned, included statements in the book that aggressively staked out her refusal to keep quiet. …Her prior Title IX investigation, she writes, “has made me a little mad and possibly a little dangerous. ... I mean, having been hauled up on complaints once, what do I have to lose? ‘Confidentiality’? ‘Conduct befitting a professor’? Kiss my ass. In other words, thank you to my accusers: unwitting collaborators, accidental muses.” Also presented as possible evidence was her Facebook post quoting a book review—“Kipnis doesn’t seem like the sort of enemy you’d want to attract, let alone help create”—on which Kipnis had commented, “I love that.”

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education says that in addition to trampling on academic freedom, the investigation of Kipnis also seems to contradict the logic of a Bush-era 2003 Education Department guidance document that was never withdrawn by the Obama administration.

As Reason’s Robby Soave notes:

It should be obvious that the text of Title IX does not empower university officials to investigate tenured professors for criticizing Title IX, nor was the law intended to weaponize students' grievances. Kipnis’s ongoing ordeal is a testament to the pressing need for the Education Department to rein in the Obama-era guidance that spawned this madness, and a reminder that Secretary Betsy DeVos is wholly justified in doing just that.

I earlier explained why Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was correct to criticize Obama-era Title IX interpretations at this link, since those interpretations undermine free speech and student and faculty rights on campus.

Pondering: Price Gouging,Terrorism, Nursing Home, Single Payer Health Care, Equifax, DACA, Retirement, Transportation, Education, Human Trafficking, Automatic Knives, Health Insurance

After airline ticket fares skyrocketed before and following Hurricane Irma, legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives to cap airfares when a disaster has been declared. Under the proposed bill, the “AirFAIR Act”, when a state, territory or U.S. possession makes a disaster declaration, airlines would be prohibited from making price hikes exceeding 30%. Furthermore, the Department of Transportation would have authority to further reduce the maximum allowed price increase during catastrophes.

As the nation contends with the aftermaths of Harvey and Irma and prepares for Hurricane Jose, there have been multiple reports of airlines drastically increasing prices. Some consumers noted price increases from $547 to over $3200. Other travelers posted on social media fares of $1,738 for flights between Miami and Indianapolis and a $2,370 flight between Miami and Los Angeles. Airlines have contended that they did not change their pricing structure and that price changes are dictated by computer algorithms on the companies’ booking websites.

Another bill has been introduced to fight terrorism and force the United Nations to define "international terrorism."

The Define It To Fight would withhold ten percent of United States funding to the United Nations (U.N.) until the intergovernmental organization adopts a definition for "international terrorism." Instead, those funds would be directed to the U.S. Treasury for the purpose of reducing the national debt – which now stands at more than $20 trillion.

The U.N. Security Council adopted Resolution 1373 on September 28, 2001, which created the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) to become the lead U.N. agent in the war on terror. Since then, the CTC has failed to name a single terrorist, terrorist organization or state-sponsor of terrorism. The three U.S.-identified state sponsors of terror – Iran, Syria and Sudan – have submitted reports to the CTC about their compliance with Resolution 1373. In the absence of any U.N. definition of terrorism, all three states have readily proclaimed that they are engaged in a vigorous campaign to combat terrorism despite clear and irrefutable evidence to the contrary.

The United States is the largest contributor to the U.N., providing about $3.3 billion a year to finance U.N. activities and financing 22 percent of their budget.

Eight patients at the Rehabilitation Center at Hollywood Hills tragically lost their lives because of a ‘prolonged power failure’ that shut down the facility’s air conditioning system. After the first three patients died, more than 100 others were evacuated to various medical facilities, one of which is just across the street from the nursing home.

John Barrasso (R - WY) believes Senator Bernard Sanders' (I - VT) single-payer health care bill, S. 1804, is not only a government takeover of health care, but would also put financial burdens on the American people. He has requested the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to provide a full cost estimate of the bill.

In the wake of the Equifax breach, legislation has been introduced to require accountability and transparency for data brokers like Equifax who are collecting and selling personal and sensitive information about consumers. The Data Broker Accountability and Transparency Act allows consumers to access and correct their information to help ensure maximum accuracy. The legislation also provides consumers with the right to stop data brokers from using, sharing, or selling their personal information for marketing purposes. The bill additionally requires data brokers to develop comprehensive privacy and data security programs and to provide reasonable notice in the case of breaches. The legislation empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to enforce the law and promulgate rules within one year, including rules necessary to establish a centralized website for consumers to view a list of covered data brokers and information regarding consumer rights.

President Trump has rescinded Obama's DACA program, causing much outcry from those who supported it. However, rumors have been abounding lately that Trump is making a deal with the Democrats to keep it. When confronted with the news, Trump said that no deal had been reached, and the only way he would even consider making the deal would be if the Democrats agreed to fully fund the Wall.

More than 30 states – including Arkansas and Connecticut – have established Century or Centennial Farms designations and awards. However, no federal recognition for 100-year-old farms currently exists. The Century Farms Act that has been introduced in the Senate will direct the U.S. Department of Agriculture to establish a program honoring and recognizing the invaluable contributions of century-old farms.

Because of reports that Washington Republicans are looking at cuts to Social Security and Medicare as well as place new taxes on retirement savings accounts that would reduce workers’ take home pay in order to pay for massive tax cuts for Wall Street, Senator Sherrod Brown (D - OH) has promised in front of the Senate Finance Committee to put up "One hell of a fight". He was not the only one who warned the White House and Senate and House leaders against funding corporate tax breaks by slapping new taxes on retirement savings for workers.

Their reasoning is that ‘rothification,’ would take away the freedom Americans currently have to choose the retirement savings plan that works best for them. Instead, it would force everyone into a Roth account. Unlike 401ks, IRAs or other retirement savings plans many Americans currently use, Roth savings are taxed up front, reducing workers’ take home pay and making it more expensive for Americans to save for retirement.

Roth plans are also more expensive for employers to offer and would make it harder for small businesses to provide retirement plans for their employees.

Further, the Senators also pointed out that rothification is fiscally irresponsible and would add to the federal deficit.

The Moving and Fostering Innovation to Revolutionize Smarter Transportation or the Moving FIRST Act, a bill that will enhance the transportation systems of American communities through the use of innovative technology, has been introduced in the Senate. This legislation will establish and build on the successes of the 2015 Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Cities Challenge administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) by expanding the opportunity for more communities – both urban and rural – to compete for resources that will fund efficient, creative and innovative transportation projects.

The Middle School Technical Education Program (Middle STEP) Act, legislation that would expose middle school students to career and technical education (CTE) programs focused on career exploration, has been introduced in the Senate. The Middle STEP Act would establish a pilot program that allows middle schools to partner with colleges, other postsecondary institutions, and local businesses to develop and implement CTE exploration programs that give students access to apprenticeships or project-based learning opportunities, which are traditionally not available to students until high school or higher education.

The Senate has unanimously passed the Abolish Human Trafficking Act and the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017. The measures will strengthen and reauthorize key programs that support survivors of human trafficking and provide important resources to law enforcement agencies in the fight to end modern slavery. The bills will now be sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.

The Freedom of Commerce Act, S. 1779, which would allow consumers to purchase an automatic knife legal in their state, regardless of where it was manufactured in the U.S has been introduced in the Senate.

Enacted in 1958, the Federal Switchblade Act (FSA) leverages the federal government’s power over interstate commerce to prohibit the purchase, sale and trade of automatic knives between any of the 50 states or U.S. territories. Current federal law prohibits the interstate sale and importation of switchblades, curtailing states’ rights to legislate the legality of certain tools within their borders.

This legislation would repeal certain provisions of the FSA and allow domestic manufacturers to ship and sell their products to buyers in other states, as well as permit the importation certain knife parts. Moreover, the bill would not replace or alter any existing state laws regarding switchblades and other automatic knives. Buck Knives, Inc., a knife manufacturer based in Post Falls, Idaho, supports the legislation.

Currently legal in 27 states, automatic knives are defined based on their opening mechanism and are used primarily by professional trades and outdoor recreationalists

The Small Business Health Plans bill, introduced in the Senate, would allow multiple small businesses to pool their employees, across multiple states, for the purpose of purchasing health insurance coverage for their employees in a large group market. By banding groups of small businesses together, it would provide them with greater negotiating power for better prices and greater benefits for their employees.

Democrats Introduce Bold Legislation to Broadly Expand Access to Higher Education

Source: House Representative Anthony Brown (D-MD, 4th)



Washington, D.C. - September 11, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Representative Bobby Scott (VA-03), ranking member of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, Representative Susan Davis (CA-53), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development, and Representatives Donald Norcross (NJ-01), Seth Moulton (MA-06), and Anthony Brown (MD-04), introduced the America’s College Promise Act of 2017, which would make two years of community college free and provide an affordable pathway to a four-year college degree for low-income students.

“Students and families are faced with the overwhelming burden of figuring out how to pay for college,” said Rep. Scott. “This bill will help more families gain access to quality, affordable higher education opportunities. For low-income students, this bill creates a clear pathway to a four-year degree. At a time when families feel that it is almost impossible to get a college degree at an affordable price, America’s College Promise (ACP) is a bold investment in our students to ensure they gain the skills they need to compete in a 21st century economy.”

The bill provides a federal match of $3 for every $1 invested by the state to waive community college tuition and fees for eligible students before other financial aid is applied. America’s College Promise would also help to cover a significant portion of tuition and fees— for either the first two years or last two years of college—for low-income students who choose to attend qualifying HBCUs, HSIs, AANAPISIs and other MSIs.

This legislation is a cornerstone proposal included in House Democrats’ Aim Higher initiative, a package of legislative initiatives focused on providing all students with access to a meaningful degree that costs less money and leads to a good paying job.

“Community college can be a springboard to a 4-year degree or an opportunity to develop critical workforce skills,” said Rep. Davis. “We must be expanding education opportunities at every level to allow students to find the education paths that work best for them. The America’s College Promise Act will open up even more opportunities for Americans to thrive in higher education and the workplace.”

“I’m a product of community college – it’s what took me from construction work to Congress. I know firsthand that we need to invest in our community colleges as affordable alternatives. We must encourage students to embark on a pathway that leads to a good-paying job,” said Rep. Norcross, an electrician by trade who attended Camden County College and an IBEW apprenticeship program. “Plus, as a father and grandfather, I know about the sticker shock of trying to put children through college. The cost of higher education is one of the greatest financial challenges facing American families today. It’s dragging down our economy and, more importantly, our children. The America’s College Promise Act gives our children a fair shot in the classroom and our families a fair break from that sticker shock.”

ACP was originally introduced in the 114th Congress with the goal of making community college as universal as high school. This Congress, eligibility has been expanded to allow both new and returning students to participate in America’s College Promise, in response to similar expansions in state-led Promise programs. Additionally eligibility for participation in the Pathways to HBCUs and MSIs portion of the bill has also been expanded to allow institutions to serve low-income students who may have qualified for a federal Pell Grant but were ineligible due to their immigration status.

"Far too many students are taking on the economic burden of attending college without the skills necessary to complete their degree,” said Rep. Moulton. “This bill will help provide our children the opportunity to be successful in the modern economy by eliminating barriers that stand in the way of a good education.”

“Every American should be able to earn the education and skills to compete and get ahead in the 21st century economy,” said Rep. Brown. “Community colleges are pathways to the middle class for millions of young people graduating high school, workers looking to get new skills and veterans transitioning back to civilian life. This game-changing bill will make community college free for responsible students, and create new affordable educational opportunities at diverse four-year colleges for low-income students – because in America, a quality education should be a right for everybody willing to work for it.”

ACP is supported by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC).

Citing Charlottesville Unrest and its Harmful Effect on Children, First Book Provides Resources for Educators Serving Kids in Need

by First Book

Washington, D.C. - August 19, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Our nation is reeling from the unrest in Charlottesville and the hateful rhetoric that is reverberating across the country. These groups and their acts of bigotry, racism, anti-Semitism, sexism, Islamophobia, transphobia, and homophobia are repulsive and counter to our belief in the fundamental rights that First Book has championed as leaders in the fight for educational equity.

Among those most vulnerable to this climate of violence and terror are our nation's children, in particular, children from low-income areas, including communities of color, immigrants, rural communities, and other underserved populations. First Book stands with these communities every day, providing desperately needed educational resources and supporting the heroic educators and other caring adults who work to lift these children up. These outrageous acts of hate are not only antithetical to all we believe in, but do insidious and lasting damage to these children, families, and communities – and to all of us.

First Book is committed to supporting those working in the lives of children in need with resources to help kids and families who are struggling. First Book will shortly announce an initiative to increase the supply of books and educational resources to elevate empathy and understanding, including diverse and inclusive books, and social and emotional learning guides to help children navigate their feelings and fears.

As a tangible next step, we are making a gift of new books to educators serving children in need in the Charlottesville area and beyond to help them begin to restore a sense of normalcy. We are in continuous conversation with our more than 325,000 First Book members across the country – the largest network of educators serving children from low-income communities – as to what they need and how we can best support them during this time.

We have seen first-hand the power of stories to blunt hate, create empathy, and change lives. That is our focus. Our responsibility to these children, families, educators, and communities is unwavering. As we reach this new level of crisis in our country, we are reminded that this work – while always important – has reached a new level of urgency.

First Book transforms the lives of children in need. Through a sustainable, market-driven model, First Book is creating equal access to quality education — making everything from brand-new, high-quality books and educational resources, to sports equipment, winter coats, snacks, and more – affordable to its member network of more than 325,000 educators who exclusively serve kids in need. Since 1992, First Book has distributed more than 160 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families in more than 30 countries. First Book currently reaches an average of 3 million children every year and supports more than one in four of the estimated 1.3 million classrooms and programs serving children in need. With an additional 1,000 educators joining each week, First Book is the largest and fastest-growing network of educators in the United States exclusively serving kids in need.

Note to Parents from The Ponder: Please make sure you check this out thoroughly before you let your child have one of these books. It is up to you to make sure they are not instructing your child in a biased way that does not include ALL hateful rhetoric, not just one group of individuals, or one Supremacist race.

Alabama: Common Core debate coming back to state board of education

Decatur Daily

A renewed effort to repeal the state’s Common Core education standards is on the Alabama State Board of Education’s work session agenda for Thursday.

At least one board member has asked for a discussion on repealing the Alabama College and Career Readiness Standards in several recent meetings. Other members have questions about a draft resolution.

Board member Betty Peters, R-Dothan, for years has been an opponent of the standards. She wants a repeal and change to make state education standards “what we want them to be.”

Read more...

New Bipartisan Bill Will Benefit Student Borrowers, Taxpayers by Promoting Competition Amongst Student Loan Servicers

Washington, D.C. - August 1, 2017 - (The Ponder News) -- U.S. Senators Roy Blunt (Mo.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), James Lankford (Okla.), and Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.) introduced the bipartisan Student Loan Servicer Performance Accountability Act. The legislation would benefit student loan borrowers and taxpayers by protecting and strengthening performance-based accountability of federal student loan servicers through greater competition and stronger oversight.

“Maintaining choice and competition amongst student loan servicers is the best way to ensure they will continue improving services for student borrowers,” Blunt said. “This bill will strengthen the performance-based incentives we have now, and prevent any one student loan servicer from becoming so large it poses a risk to taxpayers. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan, commonsense measure.”

“The federal government has a responsibility to make sure student loan servicing is working for student borrowers and for taxpayers. The Education Department’s plan to switch to a single servicer for its trillion-dollar loan portfolio heads in the wrong direction and could create a ‘too big to fail’ federal contractor,” Warren said. “Our bipartisan bill will ensure that there is real competition in student loan servicing and that servicers are held accountable for serving student borrowers effectively.”

“The Department of Education’s plan to reduce the number of contracted student loan servicers to just one would reduce the quality of assistance, make it harder for borrowers to manage their debt, and ultimately hurt our students, their families and our economy,” Shaheen said. “The Student Loan Servicer Performance Accountability Act will ensure strong competition and oversight so that students have high quality service so they can make informed decisions about their loan and repayment options.”

“The Student Loan Servicer Accountability Act is a commonsense bill that temporarily suspends the US Department of Education from awarding a servicing contract to a sole provider for all student loans owned by the US Department of Education,” Lankford said. “As the nation’s student loan debt continues to grow, we need to enact measures that will ensure students have all the resources available to them so they can repay their loans and get good customer service. Moving to a single federal student loan servicer would not accomplish this goal because it eliminates performance-based competition that incentivizes improved service for students. I look forward to working with my colleagues on this bipartisan legislation to prevent any disruption in service for borrowers to pay back their student loan debt.”

The current federal student loan servicing contracts expire in 2019. In May 2017, the Department of Education released a revised plan for the servicing competition that would reduce the number of federal student loan servicers from nine to one servicer for the entire trillion-dollar federal direct loan portfolio. This plan would limit the Department’s ability to ensure high-quality service to student borrowers.

The Student Loan Servicer Performance Accountability Act would:

Cancel the Department of Education’s current competition for a single federal student loan servicer;

Ensure performance-based competition in federal student loan servicing by requiring the participation of multiple servicers that contract directly with the Department of Education;

Promote competition by requiring the Department of Education to allocate loans to servicers based on measures of their performance, including scores on borrower satisfaction; and

Prohibit the Department of Education from awarding all federal student loans to a single federal student loan servicer and creating a federal student loan monopoly.

Made In America Week ....(and more...)

From the House of Representatives

Grijalva Signs Resolution of "No Confidence" Against Trump, Declares Him "Utterly Unfit" to Serve As President
Raul Grijalva (D-AZ, 3rd)
July 20, 2017
Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ) released the following statement after signing a resolution of “no confidence” in Donald Trump’s fitness to serve as President of the United States. Amongst other grievances – including Trump’s suppression of the Press, verbal assaults on women, and violation of the Emoluments Clause - the resolution addresses Trump’s troubling connections to the Russian Government during the 2016 presidential campaign. The resolution also comes after reports that Trump held a secret second meeting with Russian President, Vladimir Putin during the recent G-20 summit as well as new revelations that an eighth person with deep Russian business ties attended the June 2016 meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian attorney connected to the Kremlin.
Read more...

There is an old addage that says "If you keep looking for something wrong with someone long enough, you will find it. So, stop the witch hunt and you might gain more confidence. Of course, since he is not a lefty liberal, I'm sure there is nothing you will like about him. You guys have already made it clear that you will not work with anyone who isn't. Personally, I have no confidence in you because of that.

Grothman to Appropriators: Defund Anti-American Area Studies Programs in Higher Education Act
Glenn Grothman (R-WI, 6th)
July 20, 2017
“… at too many Title VI centers across the country, academic diversity is severely lacking, with many centers using the young, malleable minds of college-aged students as a one-sided sounding board for professors’ anti-American and anti-Semitic political agendas. These professor’s significant biases seep into how their students approach their academic course of study and prevent students from being exposed to alternative viewpoints—perspectives that often reflect the positive aspects of long-practiced and accepted American foreign policies and norms.
Read more...

It's about time someone start focusing on how our young men and women are being affected by these rogue professors.

During ‘Made in America' Week, Guthrie Votes to Improve Energy Infrastructure, Create Jobs
Brett S. Guthrie (R-KY, 2nd)
July 20, 2017
Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), a senior member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, voted for two bills to improve energy infrastructure in the United States, the Promoting Cross-Border Energy Infrastructure Act (H.R. 2883) and the Promoting Interagency Coordination for Review of Natural Gas Pipelines Act (H.R. 2910).
Read more...

GUTIÉRREZ REACTS TO SENATE INTRODUCTION OF NEW DREAM ACT
Luis Gutierrez (D-IL, 4th)
July 20, 2017
On Thursday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced a new version of the DREAM Act (an acronym for Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors). The President has pledged, through a spokesperson, to fight this bipartisan legislation that would allow immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children to live and work here legally if they meet certain criteria. This happens as the DACA program (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, the program that provides temporary deportation relief for Dreamers and allows them to work legally) is under attack by Republican leaders and it is clear the President and his team are unlikely to defend it. This could make the 800,000 people who would qualify for the DREAM Act and who currently have DACA vulnerable to deportation, especially because they have registered with federal authorities as part of the program.
Read more...

Hartzler Introduces Bill to Protect Subsidized Housing from Smoke Damage
Vicky Hartzler (R-MO, 4th)
July 20, 2017
Congresswoman Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) introduced the Smoke Free Affordable Housing Act (HR3322) today to encourage subsidized housing developers to maintain a healthy environment for residents while protecting the subsidized property from expensive smoking related remediation costs. The federal government is investing billions of dollars every year in subsidized housing only to see many properties seriously degraded by smoke damage within only a few years. The Smoke Free Affordable Housing Act would incentivize subsidized housing developers to establish and maintain smoke-free policies to create a healthy environment for residents and protect the investment of hardworking taxpayers.
Read more...

Congressman Higgins Says Proposed 2018 Federal Budget is a Vehicle to Take from Hardworking Americans & Give to the Wealthy
Brian Higgins (D-NY, 26th)
July 20, 2017
Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26), a member of the House Committee on the Budget, objected to the Fiscal Year 2018 budget resolution introduced by House Republicans this week which slashes Medicare and fails to invest in the growth of the American Economy.
Read more...

Higgins Issues Statement on U.S. - China Rice Agreement
Clay Higgins (R-LA, 3rd)
July 20, 2017
“The best rice in the world is grown in the heart of Acadiana, with Louisiana rice farmers already contributing more than $700 million to the state’s economic output each year. Expanding rice exports, while ensuring that Louisiana farmers are competing on a level playing field, supports thousands of jobs and generates much-needed economic activity in rice country. I’m glad to see Secretary Perdue and officials at USDA announce the opening of this new market, and I’m confident that Louisiana rice farmers are poised to strengthen our state’s position as one of the world’s leading rice exporters.”
Read more...

Hill Reaffirms Commitment to Enhancing American Energy Resources
French Hill (R-AR, 2nd)
July 20, 2017
“We’re working hard to implement American energy policies that boost our energy independence, benefit consumers, protect our environment, and preserve our natural resources. The common sense bills we passed this week remove unnecessary red tape and provide flexibility to our states—creating jobs, moving towards energy independence, and promoting a strong national energy policy. Enhancing our energy resources across Arkansas and the nation will greatly increase jobs and benefit hardworking Americans.”
Read more...