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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 6, 2006)
Register to Vote By Oct. 17 T HE M ARCO C ONSULTING G ROUP T HE M ARCO C ONSULTING G ROUP INVESTMENT CONSULTANTS TO MULTI - EMPLOYER BENEFIT FUNDS P LEASE CALL J ASON Z ENK IN T ACOMA , WA AT (253) 759-6768 W EST C OAST O FFICE M IDWEST O FFICE E AST C OAST O FFICE 2912 N ORTH 26 TH S TREET T ACOMA , WA 98407 P: 253-759-6768 F: 312-575-9840 550 W EST W ASHINGTON B LVD . N INTH F LOOR C HICAGO , IL 60661 P: 312 575-9000 F: 312 575-9840 1220 A DAMS S TREET F IRST F LOOR B OSTON , MA 02124 P: 617 298-0967 F: 617 298-0966 Education Department, Head Start, others brace for federal budget cuts The U.S. Labor and Education De- partments and Head Start are going to get their budgets cut again — if and when the Republican-led Congress moves ahead with an appropriations bill that has been dormant since July. In anticipation of the cuts, the Ore- gon Employment Department closed the downtown Portland employment of- fice and planned to cut 82 positions (6 percent of its workforce) over the next year. About 70 percent of its budget comes from federal funds. The looming cuts prompted a last- minute appeal by the Emergency Cam- paign for America's Priorities (ECAP), a national ad hoc coalition of unions and community groups, which is call- ing on Congress to restore funding. Each year, Congress approves the federal budget through 13 separate ap- propriations bills that cover different parts of the federal government. The one ECAP has been watching would al- locate $56.2 billion to Labor, Health & Human Services and Education. That’s a $400 million cut from this year’s budget, and $1 billion less than last year’s. The impact is worse when infla- tion is taken into account. Within the Department of Labor, the budget cuts include: A $10 million cut to the Wage and Hour Division, which enforces minimum wage, overtime and child labor laws; a $27.8 million cut in Trade Adjustment Assistance — the job training and income support program for workers who lose their jobs due to outsourcing or foreign competition; a 50 percent ($5 million) cut in a program that funds safety training by unions and community-based groups; a $2.1 mil- lion cut in coal mine enforcement, and a $431 million in cuts to Workforce In- vestment Act programs. Within the Department of Educa- tion, some programs will have their budgets frozen, including Head Start; programs and services for military fam- ilies; and vocational training grants to states.Some programs will have their budgets cut, including No Child Left Behind, the Bush Administration’s sig- nature education initiative. Next year’s budget for No Child Left Behind is $23 billion, $1.5 billion less than last year’s. That means less money for grants to ...Volunteer bus driver (From Page 1) Machinist, a member of a Railway Clerks Union, a Teamster truck driver, and finally an ATU-represented bus driver at TriMet. But he says he was one of those members who didn’t want his dues money going to anything but rep- resenting existing members; now he sees unionizing nonunion workplaces as essential to protect the well-being of all workers. “It was like a light bulb went on,” Fain said. “A lot of people in unionized jobs are complacent,” Fain said. “If everyone could get involved and do something, I think the unions and the country would be better off.” In four years of volunteering at the Bus Project, Fain says he’s gotten to meet Oregon Governor Ted Kulon- goski, former governors John Kitzhaber and Barbara Roberts, many local politi- cians and an immense network of vol- unteers. He’s become a regular caller on the 7LUHG RI :RUNLQJ LQ 3$,1" 0RVW,QVXUDQFH 3ODQV$FFHSWHG 3 528'/< 6 (59,1* 3 257/$1' : 25.(56 ) 25 2 9(5 < ($56 PAGE 8 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS help schools recruit, hire and train highly-qualified teachers to meet teacher quality requirements and reduce class sizes. Congress is supposed to pass the federal budget before the Oct. 1 begin- ning of the federal government’s fiscal year, but sometimes it fails to meet that deadline and passes a “continuing reso- lution” — basically it’s an agreement to continue spending at current levels until the final budget is worked out. Some of the current round of cuts could have bad political consequences for members of Congress up for re-election, so it’s ex- pected that the leadership will wait un- til after the November election to vote on the budget bill. Thom Hartmann Show, a progressive talk radio program that airs 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on 620 AM. A former Marine, Fain now helps sustain a weekly peace vigil in Wash- ington County that began a year ago August. And he credits the Bus Project for his transformation. “It’s energized me,” Fain said. “It was a chance to meet people and do things I would never have done.” The inspiration is mutual, say others at the Bus Project. Downen said Fain was one of a few people without whom the Bus Project would not have gotten off the ground. “With us, he’s a legend,” Downen said. The group, which works hard to give volunteers thanks and acknowledg- ment, will honor Fain by emblazoning his face on a T-shirt to be worn by vol- unteers on an Oct. 7 canvass. The bus leaves from the east side of Grant High School at 9 a.m. %HHVRQ &KLURSUDFWLF KHOSVEULQJWKH UHOLHI\RXQHHG 7UHDWPHQWIRUSDLQGXHWR RYHUXVHDQGUHSHWLWLYHPRWLRQ &KLURSUDFWLFDGMXVWPHQWV 7UHDWPHQWIRUDFFLGHQWDQG VSRUWVUHODWHGLQMXULHV 5HKDELOLWDWLRQH[HUFLVHV 7KHUDSHXWLFPDVVDJH ,QWHUQDOGLDJQRVLVDQGWUHDWPHQW /DEWHVWVDQG[UD\V 'U'DQ%HHVRQ&KLURSUDFWRU 6(7KLUWHHQWK$YHLQ6HOOZRRG &$// OCTOBER 6, 2006
