AFSCME Legislative Highlights
AFSCME LEGISLATIVE
REPORT
December 8, 2006
In this issue:
House Slated to Pass Stop-Gap Spending Measure to Keep Programs Afloat Until mid-February
In their final act, GOP congressional leaders have chosen to dump their unfinished business onto the incoming Congress by failing to approve 11 of the 13 required spending bills for the current federal fiscal year. Instead, Congress is slated to adopt an under funded stop-gap continuing resolution which will expire on February 15, 2007. This will keep government programs running at subsistence levels and starve vital services of critical funding. This will force another round of devastating cuts in Head Start, child care, public housing, job training, employment services and other programs run by state and local governments.
(Ed Jayne- ejayne@afscme.org)
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Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader-to-be Harry Reid Speak to AFSCME International Executive Board
House Speaker-to-be Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader-to-be Harry Reid (D-NV) spoke to the AFSCME International Executive Board yesterday. They made it clear that helping working families is their top priority in the 110th Congress. President McEntee made clear that changing congressional priorities is a top legislative goal for AFSCME. We are partnering with other progressive groups to start a new national grassroots campaign, Change America Now, to move forward on a populist economic agenda. (Charles Loveless- cloveless@afscme.org)
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House and Senate Reach Agreement on Medicare and Medicaid Provider Payments
The House and Senate reached agreement on a number of provisions that affect how Medicare pays providers, set to be included in a wide-ranging tax and health care bill. The agreement eliminates a five percent cut in Medicare payments to physicians that was scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2007 and provides additional funding for physicians that provide information on quality. It also reduces the limit on Medicaid provider taxes from six percent to 5.5 percent from January 1, 2008 to September 30, 2011. The Administration had proposed to reduce the limit on the payments to three percent.
In addition and in spite of intense lobbying from AFSCME and other health advocates, the agreement does not contain any funding to address a funding shortfall that a number of states will experience in 2007 in the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). And in a surprise move, the agreement contains the provisions of a bill that was approved by the House Ways and Means Committee that would make Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) more attractive to high-income individuals as tax shelters, but would do nothing to make health care more affordable to working families.
The agreement is scheduled to be considered by the House and Senate today.
(Diane B. Burke- dburke@afscme.org)
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Agreement Contains a Package of Tax Extenders
Among the tax provisions included in the package are an extension of several popular tax relief measures, including a two-year extension of the research and development tax credit and a two-year extension of the college tuition deduction at a cost of $3.3 billion. A two-year renewal of the exemption for state and local sales tax in states with no income taxes was included as well as welfare-to-work tax credits.
(Diane B. Burke- dburke@afscme.org)
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Rally for Workers' Rights
Hundreds of AFSCME activists joined thousands of other union members in rallying for the passage of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) on Capitol Hill. Legislation to strengthen workers' rights by protecting employees who exercise their right to choose a union by providing for certification of a union as a bargaining representative if a majority of employees sign authorization cards will be re-introduced in the early days of the 110th Congress, which convenes on January 3, 2007. House and Senate leaders joined with labor union officials and rank and file members to announce that EFCA will be a top priority of the 110th Congress.
(Marge Allen- mallen@afscme.org)
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Senate Passes Bill to Renew Bioterrorism Program
In the wake of 9/11, bills were enacted to strengthen the public health system and to encourage drug makers to develop drugs to counteract biological, chemical and other products that could be used by terrorists. Legislation (S. 3678) that renews or reauthorizes these programs was passed by the Senate on Tuesday. The bill authorizes the continuation of up to $1 billion per year in grants to state and local public health departments for bioterrorism preparedness. It is not clear whether the House will pass the legislation before adjourning.
(Barbara Coufal- bcoufal@afscme.org)
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Veterans Health Benefits Measure
Senate Republican leaders plan to add $3 billion for veterans' health benefits to a stop-gap spending measure after abandoning efforts to clear a Military Construction-Veterans Affairs spending bill this week. Without the spending measure, veterans would experience even longer waits for health services. The stop-gap spending bill, known as a continuing resolution, is necessary to keep a wide array of discretionary programs operating because Congress will have enacted just two of 11 appropriations bills for FY 2007 before adjourning.
(Jayne Clancy- jclancy@afscme.org)
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AFSCME Department of Legislation
Phone:
202/429-5020 or 800/732-8120
Fax: 202/223-3413
E-mail:
legislation@afscme.org
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