AFSCME Legislative Report
AFSCME LEGISLATIVE REPORT
July 13, 2007
In this issue:
House Appropriations Committee Passes Labor-HHS-Education
Funding Bill for FY 2008- Floor Vote Set for Next
Week
By voice vote on July 11, the full House
Appropriations Committee approved its bill to fund the Departments
of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education for FY 2008.
The bill includes a $7 billion, or 4.8 percent, increase in
discretionary spending over last year's funding level, and $10.6
billion more than President Bush's budget proposal. It provides for
increases for the Child Care and Development Block Grant, Head
Start, and the Employment Service, as well as larger increases for
K-12 Title I funding and Pell grants.
In an initial victory for health care workers, the committee
rejected an amendment to the bill that would have undercut worker
protections from potentially fatal airborne hazards. The amendment,
offered by Rep. Roger Wicker (R-MS), would have forbid the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) from enforcing
its requirement that hospitals and other employers annually test the
fit of respirators that protect workers who may be exposed to
tuberculosis (TB). Properly fitted respirators not only safeguard
against TB, but provide some protection against other airborne
hazards such as avian flu, SARS, and other biological agents that
could be released in a terrorist attack. Since 2003, Republican
leaders have inserted a rider in the Labor-HHS-Education bill to
block OSHA enforcement of this requirement. The fight to protect
health care workers is expected to continue when the full House of
Representatives debates the Labor-HHS-Education bill and the
anti-health care worker amendment is offered again.
A floor vote on the House Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill
is expected during the week of July 16. The Senate Appropriations
Committee has already passed its Labor-HHS-Education appropriations
bill, which is expected to go to the floor either later this month
or after the August recess. Then, a House-Senate conference
committee will iron out differences between the two bills.
President Bush has already threatened to veto the final bill and all
other appropriations bills that exceed his FY 2008 budget request.
GOP leaders are pushing Republicans to oppose the bill in order to
show support for the President's veto threat. Therefore, it is
imperative that GOP members are urged to vote for the bill.
(Fran Bernstein- fbernstein@afscme.org and
Linda Bennett- lbennett@afscme.org)
We Need Your Help!
Call Your Representative today at 1-888-460-0813. Urge
him/her to vote for the Labor-HHS-Education spending bill. Tell
him/her that it makes needed investments in domestic priorities.
Also, urge your Representative to oppose the Wicker amendment
because it puts health care workers and first responders at risk of
exposure to tuberculosis.
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Transportation-Housing Spending Bill Approved in
House
The House Committee on Appropriations approved the
FY 2008 Transportation-Housing spending bill on July 11 by voice
vote. The bill provides $40.2 billion for highway spending, an
amount that is $631 million more than the President requested in his
budget and a 3.2 percent increase over the FY 2007 level. The bill
also provides $9.7 billion for transit programs, $782 million above
current 2007 levels. In addition the bill grants a $134 million
increase in Capital Investment Grants for commuter rail or other
light rail systems to increase public use of mass transit, alleviate
traffic congestion and reduce gas consumption. The increase above
the President's request for these grants is expected to generate as
many as 17,400 new jobs and will provide $1.8 billion in economic
benefits to state and local communities.
The housing provisions of the bill provide $2.4 billion for the
Public Housing Capital Fund, money that is used for the maintenance
and rehabilitation of buildings. This amount is the same as the
money provided in FY 2007 but is $415 million above the President's
request. The bill also provides $4 billion for Community Development
Block Grants, an amount that is $227 million above the FY 2007 level
and $963 above the President's request. Finally the bill provides
$4.2 billion for the Public Housing Operating Fund for the
administration of public housing, including routine maintenance,
anti-crime activities and energy costs.
(Cynthia Bradley- cbradley@afscme.org)
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Commerce-Justice-Science Spending Bill Approved by House
Panel
The House Appropriations Committee approved the FY
2008 spending bill for Commerce, Justice and Science by voice vote
on July 12. The measure includes $53.6 billion in discretionary
budget authority which is five percent more than President Bush's
budget request and six percent more than was approved in fiscal
2007. The bill also includes $234 million in mandatory spending.
In particular, the bill includes $3.2 billion in funding for
state and local law enforcement initiatives, which is 10 percent
more than FY 2007 and 53 percent more than the president's request.
Specific program funding levels include $600 million for Justice
Assistance Grants, $725 million for COPS program, $85 million for
methamphetamine "hot spots," $375 million for the State Criminal
Alien Assistance Program and $205 million for Violence Against Women
Assistance grants.
(Jayne Clancy- jclancy@afscme.org and Cynthia
Bradley- cbradley@afscme.org)
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Head Start for School Readiness Act Approved by
Senate
Just before the July 4th recess, the Senate
passed the Head Start for School Readiness Act by unanimous consent,
which means that there was no roll call vote. The House approved its
Head Start bill earlier. Leaders in the House and Senate must now
meet to hammer out the differences in their bills.
The Senate bill expands eligibility to Head Start programs for
additional low-income children and families (up to 130 percent of
the federal poverty guideline) and doubles the Early Head Start
set-aside (currently 10 percent; would phase up to 20 percent over
five years). The bill strengthens education standards for the Head
Start workforce. It would require all Head Start teachers to have an
Associate's degree within five years and half of all teachers in
each state must have a Bachelor's degree in six years. Furthermore,
all Head Start curriculum specialists must have at least a
Bachelor's degree in five years and all Head Start assistant
teachers would be required to have at least a child development
associate credential in five years. The bill would also guarantee
worker training and creates a career ladder for every Head Start
employee.
(Marge Allen- mallen@afscme.org)
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House Passes Legislation Revising Federal Drug Review
Process
On Wednesday, the House passed legislation
(H.R. 2900) to reauthorize and revamp the process at the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) for reviewing and approving new
prescription drugs. The Senate passed its own FDA bill earlier this
year. The House bill does not include a provision to create a
process for the approval of generic biological drugs, such as
insulin, similar to the process that allows for the manufacture of
generic chemical drugs. Such a provision would help reduce the
burden of costly biological drugs, or biologics, on health plans
bargained by AFSCME locals around the country.
While there is not a consensus for addressing biologics in the
House, the Senate plans to press for the inclusion of such a
provision when House and Senate leaders meet in conference to
reconcile the differences between the House and Senate bills.
(Linda Bennett- lbennett@afscme.org)
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Student Loan Overhaul Passes the House
By a
vote of 273 to 149, the House cleared a major overhaul in student
aid programs that provides grants and low interest loans to
students. Significantly, the bill cuts $19 billion, over five years,
in federal subsidies that go to financial institutions that make
student loans. This would include state guaranty agencies that
assist students with loans. However, the bill includes provisions
advocated by AFSCME that would mitigate the impact of cuts on the
state agencies, which employ about 1,000 AFSCME members.
The House bill raises the maximum Pell grant by $500 over the
next four years, to a total of $5,200 by 2011. With respect to
loans, the bill gradually reduces the interest rate paid by students
on federally-backed loans by half, from the current 6.8 percent to
3.4 percent. It also increases the maximum loan amount from $7,500
to $30,500 and limits monthly loan repayments to 15 percent of the
borrower's discretionary income. The bill also grants $5,000 in loan
forgiveness for teachers, early childhood providers, police,
firefighters, prosecutors and other public servants, and a complete
release from student loans for public servants after 10 years. It
would also provide for complete forgiveness of federal student loans
after 20 years for economic hardship.
While President Bush has threatened a veto over the
loan-forgiveness provisions, it is widely expected that a broad
overhaul of student aid will become law this year. And the Senate is
expected to pass similar legislation later this month.
(Marge
Allen- mallen@afscme.org)
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House Hearing Spotlights Legislation to Improve Mental
Health Insurance Coverage
The House Education and
Labor's Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions held
a hearing Wednesday on the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and
Addiction Equity Act of 2007 (H.R. 1424), bipartisan legislation,
introduced by Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN),
designed to improve mental health insurance coverage. The goal of
this legislation, and a somewhat different Senate version (S. 588),
is to end discrimination against people with mental health disorders
by requiring employers and insurers to provide comparable coverage,
or parity, for mental and physical illnesses. Current law is set to
expire at the end of the year and only prohibits group health plans
and group health insurance issuers from imposing annual and lifetime
dollar limits on mental health coverage that are more restrictive
than limits imposed on medical and surgical. The law allows state
and local plans to opt out of these requirements. Current law also
allows plans to impose higher cost-sharing and more limits on visits
or days of coverage. The full House Education and Labor Committee is
scheduled to consider H.R. 1424 on Wednesday, July 18. The House
Energy and Commerce Committee and House Ways and Means Committee
must also consider the bill. As the House proceeds to consider
mental health parity legislation, AFSCME will advocate to close the
opt-out loophole for state and local plans and to strengthen mental
health parity.
(Linda Bennett- lbennett@afscme.org)
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Future Trade Deals in Doubt
House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and the Democratic leadership announced their
intention to oppose flawed trade agreements with South Korea and
Colombia, which the Administration has negotiated, and to oppose any
renewal of fast track trade negotiating authority until major
changes are made to our nation's trade policy. Last month the House
Democrats and the White House announced that there was progress on
improving workers' rights and the environmental provisions.
(Marge Allen- mallen@afscme.org)
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House Extends Transitional Medicaid Program
On Wednesday, the House passed legislation extending, through
September 30, the recently expired Transitional Medical Assistance
program, which guarantees Medicaid health care coverage to
low-income families as they transition from welfare to work. For
most low-income mothers moving from welfare to work, taking a job
often means they will lose health insurance, either because their
employer does not offer coverage or they are unable to afford
coverage with a low-wage job. The bill also extends an abstinence
education program. The Senate passed its bill (S. 1701) on June 27.
(Linda Bennett- lbennett@afscme.org)
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Honoring Fallen Military Service
Members
Legislation that will ensure that federal
agencies lower their flags to half-staff in honor of fallen military
service members, in accordance with state governors' proclamations,
was signed into law by the President. The bill requires all federal
government agencies in a state to comply with a governor's
proclamation to fly the national flag at half-staff in honor of
those who lose their lives serving their country. Congressman Bart
Stupak (D-MI) introduced the bill in the House because there were
several instances in his state of federal facilities ignoring the
governor's request to lower flags. In the Senate, the bill was
backed by Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI), who
said that flying the flag at half-staff was "one of the most
powerful ways we honor those who have made the ultimate
sacrifice."
(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
Website:
http://www.afscme.org/
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