Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 6, 2006)
Report backs asbestos victims, says trust fund inadequate Senate Republicans push for January vote on a bill that the GAO says isn’t enough to compensate victims and families. WASHINGTON, D.C. (PAI) — A new federal study has given further am- munition to groups representing work- ers who are victims of asbestos-caused disease and to two key senators, who all say that a proposed asbestos trust fund for victims and their families is too small. The senators fear the taxpayers might have to bail it out. The mid-December Government Accountability Office (GAO) report paints a dismal financial history of other such trust funds for workers and warns lawmakers the same fate could occur with the asbestos trust fund. Other funds that exceeded initial cost estimates include the federal black lung program, pushed by the Mine Workers Union, and one for former nuclear plant workers overexposed to lethal radiation, advocated by the then-Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers Union. The GAO report comes as Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) plans to bring the asbestos trust fund bill (S. 852) up sometime this month. The report is important because S. 852 lim- its the trust fund for the 200,000-plus asbestos victims and their families to $140 billion over a period of years. It sets extreme standards workers must meet to claim money for asbestos- caused disease. And it lacks ways to add money to the fund once it runs out. It also bars victims and their families from going to court against asbestos manufacturers and their insurers, throws out past law- suits and forces victims to start the process all over again. The firms and in- surers pushed S. 852 and would pay the $140 billion, but no more. The groups, who represent worker victims of mesothelioma — an as- bestos-caused cancer — and asbestosis, and their widows and children, say the bill is pro-industry, the trust fund is too small, and that long-suffering victims would be thrown out of court should the trust fund run out of money. Victims, in- cluding construction workers, auto workers, steel workers, shipyard work- ers, suffer from diseases sometimes years after retiring. The revisions prompted victims’ Service Employees add 26,000 members in Washington State AUBURN, Wash. (PAI) — With only scattered “no” votes among about 500 delegates, a special convention of an independent union of classified school work- ers in Washington State voted last month to affiliate with the Service Employees. The new affiliate, the Public School Employees of Washington, will be SEIU Local 1948. It represents 26,000 classroom para-educators, campus security, com- puter technicians and other workers in 175 school districts across Washington, union President George Dockins said. Local 1948’s first priority will be to lobby for more money for K-12 education from the State Legislature in Olympia, SEIU said. Currently, the ratio between stu- dents and classified employees — who provide key school services, such as secre- taries, bus drivers, food service, maintenance, and thousands more classifications — is an outdated 60:1, the union said. groups and families to oppose S. 852. Early last year, the AFL-CIO walked away from the negotiations in disgust at business’ power to write it. In Decem- ber the two key senators, leaders of the Budget Committee, objected. Frist “made a commitment to bring up the asbestos trust fund bill on the heels of receiving a letter from six as- bestos victims’groups voicing our con- cerns with the funding and asking the Senate take more time to review perti- nent issues,” said Susan Vento, chair of the Committee to Protect Mesothelioma Victims. But “Frist made clear that re- gardless of whether or not serious prob- lems with the bill are resolved, he will force it to the floor for a vote in January. “We can understand why stakehold- ers are trying to hustle this legislation through — every week new problems arise. Budget issues, among many oth- ers, must be resolved before Congress even considers this piece of legislation,” Vento added. And GAO warns that, off past his- tory, the money in the trust fund may not be enough to compensate the vic- tims and their families. “Because these programs may ex- pand significantly beyond the initial costs anticipated when they were en- acted, policymakers must carefully con- sider the cost and precedent-setting im- plications of establishing any new fed- eral compensation program, particularly in light of the current federal deficit,” GAO’s report summary says. GAO found that in the black lung program and two for workers handling the nuclear materials, ”the actual num- ber of claims filed significantly ex- ceeded the estimates of the number of anticipated claims.” It said the oldest program, for black lung, was supposed to cost $3 billion in its first, limited, time frame, from 1969-76. It has cost $41 billion for coal miners permanently disabled by the crippling lung disease. “The programs have experienced unanticipated shortfalls. For instance, the Black Lung Fund borrowed over $8.7 billion from the Treasury to date and the interest payments exceeded $7 billion. All four programs have, at vari- ous times, taken years to process some claims, resulting in some claimants waiting a long time to obtain compen- sation,” GAO added. Senate Budget Committee Chair- man Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) and the panel’s top Democrat, Kent Conrad (D- N.D.), raised many of the same objec- tions in a letter to Frist. They said the cost of asbestos claims could be up to four times the money — the $140 bil- lion — that the insurers and asbestos manufacturers pledged to the fund. That lack of cash would force the taxpayers to bail out the manufacturers and insurers, in order to pay the victims and their survivors, Frist and Conrad said. Gregg and Conrad want a delay be- cause a study by the economic consult- ing firm Bales White said the total cost of paying asbestos victims and their sur- vivors could range from $301 billion to $560 billion over a period of a decade or more. S. 852 has no provisions for refilling the trust fund should it run out of cash. “There remain major unresolved questions about the budgetary impact of the bill,” the senators warned. They in- clude “the actual cost of the program,” whether the trust fund will have enough money to pay asbestos claims, and “a lack of clarity” on how much compa- nies will pay into the trust fund and how much the insurers will pay. Gregg and Conrad also questioned whether even those payments “will generate adequate revenues to satisfy the program's costs. “We believe these issues should be clarified. Because of the major adverse impact the legislation could have on the federal budget deficit if there are fund- ing shortfalls, we ask that at least until these issues are fully resolved, that the Senate not take any further action on the legislation,” the senators concluded. THE UNION PLUS ® MORTGAGE PROGRAM Provided Exclusively by Chase Home Finance When it comes to mortgages, we’re taking a stand for Union members. Chase is backing union members with the Union Plus® Mortgage Program — a home purchase and refinancing program exclusively for union members, their parents and children. • FREE Mortgage Assistance Benefit If you are unemployed or disabled. • A wide variety of mortgages Choose from fixed-rate, adjustable-rate, and low- or no-closing costs options. • Special Lending First-time homebuyer and less-than-perfect credit programs. • Savings on closing costs Member-only savings on new purchases and refinance. It all adds up to more home-buying power. Contact your local Union Plus® Mortgage Specialist 866-729-6016 Union Plus is a registered trademark of Union Privilege. Eligibility for mortgage assistance begins one year after closing on a Union Plus Mortgage through Chase Home Finance. This offer may not be combined with any other promotional offer or rebate, is not transferable, and is available to bona fide members of participating unions. For down payments of less than 20%, mortgage insurance (MI) is required and MI charges apply. All loans are subject to credit and property approval. Program terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. Not all products are available in all states or for all loan amounts. Other restrictions and limitations apply. ©2005 JPMorgan Chase & Co. All Rights Reserved. P-UP 104 2A-7604 10/05 JANUARY 6, 2006 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 9
