Northwest labor press., January 20, 2017, Page 5, Image 5

NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS | January 20, 2017 | PAGE 5
Corporate interests plot course on the rising ‘sea of red’ in state capitals
Meeting in private, ALEC activists
look to growing Republican
dominance in state government
to unleash a wave of laws to cut
business taxes, restrict unions
and expand school privatization.
By Robert Faturechi
ProPublica
Shortly after the November elec-
tion, with the nation’s political at-
tention focused on the Trump tran-
sition, an influential advocacy
group met outside Washington to
discuss how to leverage the extraor-
dinary shift of power to Republi-
cans in the rest of the country.
The American Legislative Ex-
change Council — a nonprofit bet-
ter known as ALEC — briefed its
members and allied groups on the
bright future for its agenda now that
Republicans will effectively control
68 of the nation’s 99 state legislative
bodies, as well as 33 governor’s
mansions. Among other things,
group members said they would
push bills to reduce corporate taxes,
weaken unions, privatize schooling
and influence the ideological debate
on college campuses.
“We can pretty much do what-
ever we want to right now,” said
Rep. Jim DeCesare, a Republican
state legislator in Kentucky, where
the party gained the state House for
the first time in nearly a century.
DeCesare, who had been minor-
ity whip, described plans for “a
pretty intense agenda” including a
so-called right-to-work law allow-
ing employees who are covered by lies with Republicans, November’s
collective bargaining agreements to results provide the best chance yet
opt out of joining labor unions. [It to turn its ideas into law. In Iowa,
was signed into law Jan. 7.] An- for example, the party regained
other, he said, would be repealing dominance in the state Senate, win-
rules that require government con- ning a trifecta of both chambers and
tractors to pay employees more than the governorship for the first time in
the minimum wage. Neighboring almost two decades. Republicans
states competing for new busi- expanded their lead in the Pennsyl-
nesses, he said, had already gutted vania Senate to a two-thirds major-
ity, large enough to threaten to over-
such regulations.
“We’ve got some catching up to ride vetoes by Gov. Tom Wolf, a
Democrat. Even
do, but we plan
in North Car-
to make up a lot
olina, where De-
of ground in a
“We can pretty much do
mocrat
Roy
very short time,”
whatever we want to
Cooper eked out
DeCesare said.
a win for gover-
“This is our time
right now.”
nor, Republicans
to shine.”
— Kentucky Republican State
retained their
Another
Representative Jim DeCesare
veto-proof ma-
ALEC official,
jorities in the
Michael Bow-
legislature,
man, told the
group that outside advocates, not where lawmakers have pushed
lawmakers, held the key to success. through a series of controversial
“Legislators are not the trailblazers laws, including one that rolled back
of developing policies,” Bowman protections for transgender people
said. “They’re actually the retail using public bathrooms. The num-
ber of states where Republicans
consumers.”
ALEC, founded in 1973, acts as control both the legislature and the
a clearinghouse for business- governor’s office will rise from 23
friendly model bills. Among its ma- to 25. The total number of Republi-
jor donors are the billionaires can legislators nationwide also has
Charles and David Koch. Members grown.
The post-election lunch meeting,
include corporations and their lob-
byists, along with hundreds of leg- held Nov. 17 at the organization’s
islators who work together to craft Arlington, Virginia, headquarters,
“free-market” legislation offered in included members of ALEC and
many states at once. The group has other conservative groups, with
successfully advanced bills impos- some calling into a private confer-
ing voter ID rules and loosening la- ence line. Ashley Varner, a strategic
bor and environmental regulations. communications director at ALEC,
Because the group generally al- opened the session by pointing out
THOMAS, COON,
NEWTON & FROST
that with the power shift in Wash-
ington, opportunities at the state
level were flying under the radar.
“There’s a sea of red,” Varner said,
adding that hundreds of incumbents
from both parties had been ousted.
“What are we going to do with these
new legislatures?’
Inez Feltscher, director of
ALEC’s education task force, out-
lined plans to advocate for legisla-
tion giving money to parents who
take their children out of public
schools — stipends they could use
for private schooling or other edu-
cational expenses. Critics of these
“education savings accounts” say
they’re a drain on public-school
funding, while proponents argue
they give parents a chance to pick
the best situation for their kids.
Feltscher acknowledged another
motivation: “To break the monop-
oly on one of the most important in-
stitutions in America.” Conserva-
tives have long been at odds with
teachers unions over the structure
and curriculum of public schools.
Another ALEC target, Feltscher
said, would be the state of “free de-
bate on American universities,”
which conservatives say are largely
dominated by left-leaning faculty,
courses and speakers. She said law-
makers could use a range of tactics
to press administrators to include
multiple ideologies during on-cam-
pus public policy talks, such as de-
manding an annual count of campus
events that included more than one
perspective. Simply requiring meas-
urement and public reporting would
apply pressure, she said, but legis-
lators could also take it to “the nu-
clear level” and threaten to pull
funding from schools that are per-
ceived to be limiting discourse.
“There’s going to be a lot more
aggression on this,” Feltscher said.
ALEC executives also forecasted
tax cuts and other conservative fis-
cal reforms in New Hampshire,
Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi,
South Carolina, and West Virginia.
Jonathan Williams, vice presi-
dent of ALEC’s Center for State
Fiscal Reform, reminded the group
that one of the only Republican ma-
jorities lost in November came in
Nevada, where taxes had been
raised. Williams acknowledged the
presidential campaign was “a little
light on policy details” but said he
was optimistic the Trump adminis-
tration would follow the states’ lead.
“The stars have aligned,” Williams
said.
Bowman, who is ALEC’s vice
president of policy, said the change
in Washington, D.C., might benefit
ALEC’s fight to preserve an-
onymity for donors to politically
active nonprofit groups at the state
level. With Trump in office, De-
mocrats might now start to see the
value of this privacy. “Democrats
who are afraid of the Republican
administration are beginning to say
‘Maybe we need to embrace some
First Amendment rights,’” Bow-
man said.
Contacted for comment, Varner,
the ALEC communications director,
said the organization’s optimism is
based not on expanded Republican
control, but rather voter discontent
with the status quo, regardless of
party. DeCesare, the Kentucky law-
maker, responded with an email
stating he didn’t attend the meeting.
Varner, however, confirmed that
DeCesare had called into the meet-
ing on the conference line.
Stephen Voss, a University of
Kentucky political scientist, said the
Republican resurgence will have a
major impact on important policies
across the country. He expects most
of the changes to percolate out of
formerly split states where the GOP
has now taken total control — like
Kentucky — rather than in states
with longstanding Republican ma-
jorities.
“Those are the states where
there’s just a lot of pent-up demand,
a lot of unhappiness with the status
quo,” he said. “The people who
have been waiting to make those
changes can now implement them.”
Voss said that shifts in political
control after years of stability often
produce a period of dramatic policy
innovation.
“And what we know about pub-
lic policy is it spreads,” Voss said.
“Other states will pick up their in-
novations, good or bad.”
Burns retires
Oregon Labor Council and pres-
ident of the LCSA board of di-
rectors.
In 2010, Burns received the
Commitment in Action award
from the Oregon Employment
and Training Association. The
award is presented annually to
an individual who makes signif-
icant contributions to the field of
workforce development.
In 2014, she received the Del
Ricks Award for community
service at the annual Labor Ap-
preciation and Recognition
Night sponsored by the North-
west Oregon Labor Council.
From Page 2
THOMAS, COON,
NEWTON & FROST
Burns became active in Local
11, serving on its Executive
Board, as a shop steward, and on
the bargaining committee for the
United Labor Union Associa-
tion, which is comprised of local
union office staff.
“Vickie has worked tirelessly
to ensure unions know where to
go when they have a member in
need, whether for food, shelter
or just someone to talk with.”
said Bob Tackett, executive sec-
retary-treasurer of the Northwest