Tag Archives: SEIU 1984

At Legislator Luncheon, NH Labor Pushes For ‘Job Creating’ Casino Bill

  By New Hampshire Labor News | April 24, 2013 - 5:53 pm | , , ,
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Credit Joe Casey
Credit Joe Casey

Credit Joe Casey

Organized labor united in support of “job creating” bill, makes case for expanded gaming at legislative luncheon

Nearly 300 State Representatives packed the State House Cafeteria today for a legislative luncheon in support of SB152, the bill to create jobs and state revenue by licensing a casino in New Hampshire. The luncheon was sponsored by the New Hampshire labor community, and included presentations from Senator Donna Soucy, NEA President Scott McGilvray, SEA representative Jay Ward, Building Trades President and IBEW 490 Business Manager Joe Casey, Representative Ed Butler, and Matthew Landry of Strategic Market Advisors.

NH Building and Construction Trades Council President Joe Casey issued the following statement:

“The turnout today was incredible, even though we were forced to change the venue at the last minute. It’s clear that support for SB152 is building in the House. The Representatives who attended today understand that SB152 will create thousands of jobs and create a critical revenue stream to fund our state’s priorities.

The New Hampshire labor community is united in support of this bill, and the luncheon today was a great opportunity to showcase that. I was proud to stand alongside Scott McGilvray and Jay Ward, and to speak to the importance of this bill to our memberships. For our part, the construction industry needs our legislators to support SB152 in order to create more than $425 million in private investment that will create thousands of jobs. Estimates show SB152 will create 3,165 on-site construction jobs, 567 indirect construction jobs, another 1,087 jobs through increased economic activity due to construction, and 1,949 full time ongoing jobs in operating the casino. Our legislators have an opportunity to stand with New Hampshire’s working men and women by passing SB152, and the great showing we had at the luncheon today shows that many of them are ready to do that.

The anti-gaming lobby tried every dirty trick in the book to try and stop this luncheon from happening – even stooping to bullying St. Paul’s church into canceling it. Their support is slipping every day, and they’re desperate to stop us from being heard. But we will not be intimidated, and we will make sure there is a full, open, and honest debate on this issue in spite of their dirty tactics. We expect to see more of their big money misinformation campaign in the coming weeks, but the people of New Hampshire support this proposal, and momentum is clearly building among our legislators. No amount of dirty tricks and robo calls from the anti-casino lobby can stop that. ”

Sponsors of today’s event include:

NH Building and Construction Trades Council
IBEW 104
IBEW 490
IBEW 2320
Granite State Teamsters
Ironworkers Local 7
NEA NH
NH Troopers Association
Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 131
Professional Fire Fighters of NH
State Employees Association

Prayer and Protest Calls for End to ICE Abuses (From InZane Times)

  By Arnie Alpert | April 10, 2013 - 5:30 pm |
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Reforms Not Raids

Editors Note: Immigration reform is a very important issue for many progressives and those in the labor community.  Over the weekend labor joined with community activists to call for real immigration reform.  After the rally Immigrations Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted raids in southern New Hampshire. ICE stated that the two events were in no way connected, however the way these raids are being conducted are now raising quite a stir.  Below is a special post from Arnie Alpert talking about the impromptu protest to the raids that were conducted.


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Forty faith, labor, and community activists prayed, sang, and protested outside Manchester’s Federal Building this afternoon to express outrage about recmanchester 4-9-13 019cropent actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in area homes and  businesses.

ICE agents entered a Nashua home in the wee hours of Sunday morning, roused residents from their beds, and took away two men in shackles.  The men had no criminal remanchester 4-9-13 040cropcords and were released by ICE on Monday, according to a Nashua Telegraph report.  

Also Sunday, a squad of ICE and local police officers entered the El Mexicano Jr. restaurant in Manchester, took away two  customers, asked other customers for ID, and threatened to return. 

The ICE actions reveal a frightening contrast to policies that manchester 4-9-13 044are supposed to place priority on people who could be considered threats to public safety and leave others alone.  The home raid also appears to violate terms of a recent federal court order which bars ICE from warrantless searches.   

Outside the Norris Cotton Federal Building, participants expressed outrage at ICE’s abusive actions.  They also said they will call on the state’s members of Congress to help rein in Imanchester 4-9-13 047CE and act speedily to approve humane immigration policies. 

Nancy Pape, chair of the NH  United Church of Christ Immigration Working Group led the group in a prayer.  Members of the Smanchester 4-9-13 024isters of Mercy  led another.  The program included a rousing rendition of “We Shall Not Be Moved” in Spanish and English, and concluded with “We Shall Overcome.”

The demonstration was organized in a day by the American manchester 4-9-13 033Friends Service Committee, NH Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees, SEIU Locals 615 and 1984, and others involved in support for immigrants’ rights and humane immigration policy,

Activists plan to meet up again at the State House Plaza in Concord on May 1, International Workers Day.  

 

Nashua: Activists Rally For Immigration Reform (From Arnie Alpert)

  By Arnie Alpert | April 6, 2013 - 6:12 pm |
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Immigration rally Nashua 4-6-13 (credit Arnie Alpert)

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“The Time is Now”nashua 4-6-13 012 crop

More than a hundred immigrants rights supporters rallied today at Nashua City Hall  and marched to the offices of Senators Kelly Ayotte and Jeanne Shaheen to call for reforms centered on a clear and direct path to citizenship for the millions of undocumented immigrants living in the USA. 

Rally speakers included Eva Castillo of the NH Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees; the Rev. Tom Woodward of the Granite State Organizing Project; Juan Zamudio, a student at Derryfield School in Manchester; Marisol Saavedra, a Nashua student; and Carols Escobar of SEIU  nashua 4-6-13 040cropLocal 615.

“In many years of working across the US, I saw time and time again bosses use the broken immigration system to mistreat, intimidate, underpay and over work undocumented workers,” said Escobar, an Ecuadoran immigrant who works as a janitor in Nashua. 

“When employers pay lower wages to some workers, all workers are affected and standards are lowered for everyone,” the Local 615 member added.

Participants included union members, faith community leaders, and otnashua 4-6-13 014cropher social justice activists adding their bodies and voices to the movement calling on Congress to act now for humane immigration policies. 

Following the brief rally, the crowd marched north into Nashua’s downtown shopping district and crossed over to the east side of the road by the office of Senator Kelly Ayotte.  There, they taped a giant letter to the window, where marchers added their signatures to a statement calling for commonsense immigration reform that fosters unity.

nashua 4-6-13 031“The time for action is long overdue and there is bipartisan agreement on moving forward,” the statement said.  “A reform package that includes a path to citizenship makes economic sense and is true to our ideals as a nation.  Taking action now makes sense politically, as well, since the American public supports immigration reform.”

Marchers continued northward to Senator Shaheen’s office where another letter was taped to the window for signatures. 

The program concluded with a statement from Germano Martins, a member of the State Employees Association (SEIU Local 1984) followed by a prayer led by the Rev. Sandra Pontoh of the Maranatha Indonesian United Church of Christ. nashua 4-6-13 109

The organizing committee included SEIU Locals 615 and 1984, the NH AFL-CIO, NH Civil Liberties Union, Lutheran Social Services, the Granite State Organizing Project, the NH Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees, the United Church of Christ Immigration Working Group, and the American Friends Service Committee.

Another rally will take place at State House Plaza in Concord at noon on Wednesday, May 1.

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nashua 4-6-13 019  nashua 4-6-13 021  nashua 4-6-13 028  nashua 4-6-13 051  nashua 4-6-13 076crop

 

All images credit to Arnie Alpert and Inzane Times.

Reposted with permission from InZane Times (Original Link)

The State Employees’ Association Recaps The Right To Work For Less (HB323) Hearing

  By New Hampshire Labor News | January 31, 2013 - 4:49 pm | ,
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Right To Work 2

A message from our friends at the State Employees’ Association of NH (SEIU 1984)

O’Brien and Co. Continue RTW Crusade

Rep. William O’Brien continued his crusade to bring right-to-work (for less) to New Hampshire on Wednesday, testifying in favor of his bill before the House labor committee.

While the bill may have a new name – the Franklin Partin act, after an anti-union activist – the arguments and attacks are the same. Sponsors promised economic growth if the state adopted the legislation.

As an example, the unseated NH Speaker of the House pointed to the case of Caterpillar Inc.’s relocation to Indiana after that state adopted right-to-work (for less) legislation. But SEA President Diana Lacey tore up that example during her testimony, noting Caterpillar pays its Indiana workers poverty-level wages.

“The move had nothing to do with Indiana’s right-to-work bill,” Lacey said. “Those two things coincided in 2012, although this process started in 2009,” when Caterpillar opened a factory there to take advantage of the depressed economy.

Despite his own twisting of facts, O’Brien still charged that opposition to right-to-work (for less) is often emotional, “because that’s where you turn when you’re short on facts.” O’Brien was then followed by the bill co-sponsors, including an, at-times, rambling Rep. Al Baldasaro, whose testimony was heavy on emotion and light on facts.

In arguing that the bill would make the state more fertile for job creation, Baldasaro mentioned that his children had to leave the state to find jobs.

“They can’t come back home, because the jobs aren’t here,” Baldassaro said.

Rep. Sally Kelly then pointed out that the states Baldasaro’s children work in, Massachusetts and Maine, are not right-to-work (for less) states, either.

This, of course, isn’t the first time O’Brien has pursued right-to-work legislation in New Hampshire. The last time, in 2011, he repeatedly delayed a final vote in order to get enough support. Still, the bill, that former Gov. John Lynch vetoed fell short of the votes needed to override the veto.

Ray Buckley, the state Democratic Party leader, noted the consistent rejection of such legislation here in his testimony.

“The reality is, there has always been a consensus in state government that they should not interfere in the rights of management and labor to collectively bargain,” Buckley said. “There is absolutely no evidence this legislation will give any benefit to New Hampshire companies, its workers and its families.”

There were some lighter moments, a marked difference from the intense hearing on the bill that took place two years ago.

Former Rep. David Welch drew laughs when he noted that he his eventual opposition to the bill came with consequences.

“I lost my election because of this issue,” Welch said, though he eventually realized “all the emails I got about the union thugs, it turns out the thugs are not in the unions.”

The biggest laughs, though, came when John Kalb, the director of New England Citizens for Right to Work, was asked if he could name any high-paying non-union shops.

Kalb’s completely straight-faced answer? “Goldman Sachs.”

The two hour and forty-five minute hearing ended without the committee making any recommendation on the bill.

Another thing that went wrong in the Bush Economy

  By Liz Iacobucci | December 1, 2012 - 10:15 am | ,
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AZ Correctional Industries

Watch this employer-recruitment video produced back in 2004 by the National Corrections Industry Association in partnership with the US Department of Justice:

Yep, if you’re a business, that’s certainly one way to “control labor costs”.  You don’t have to pay health benefits; you don’t have to pay overtime; you don’t even have to pay minimum wage.

If you’ve been watching the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) closely, this probably isn’t a big surprise.  ALEC has been pushing “prison industry enhancement” (PIE) laws at the state level for about 20 years.   Read “The Hidden History of ALEC and Prison Labor” in The Nation here.

Industry spokesmen describe the program as a “win-win” – but that’s from their perspective.

“I asked an NCIA spokesperson how private companies can get away with what could reasonably be described as forced labor. He explained that the PIE program classifies certain work functions as a ‘service’ rather than an actual ‘job’, and therefore is not subject to [restrictions in a 1979 federal law]. Conveniently, then, the backbreaking work of picking crops in the blistering sun counts as a ‘service’, so prisoners can be paid even less than the immigrants who have traditionally performed this work.”

(Yes, of course there’s a Wal-Mart connection.  Read about it in the British newspaper The Guardian, here.)

Here’s how the prison labor system works in Arizona: 

  • State law requires all able-bodied prisoners to work.
  • “Arizona statute requires that all inmates that are making $2 per hour will have deductions of 30% to offset the cost of their incarceration. In addition, thirty percent of the prisoner’s wages will be deducted for court ordered restitution.”  (Are you doing the math here?  Sounds like the inmates actually receive 80 cents an hour for their work.)
  • Nevermind the recession, the prison labor business is growing.  The number of inmate hours worked during FY12 was up 8.5% over FY11.  Room and board “contributions” were up by 9.8%.  Sales were up.  Profits were up.  Arizona Correctional Industries added new products and new customers, and “are currently working on finalizing contracts that will help grow our telemarketing and service business.”  (ACI helpfully explains “How we do it: We provide a positive learning experience for all of our workers.  We balance our home and business life.  We continually strive to improve our quality focusing on Lean Continuous improvement.  We are passionately involved in making the customer happy.”)
  • Arizona is now leading the nation in efforts to crack down on those same immigrants who used to pick crops.  Read National Public Radio’s “Prison Economics Help Drive Arizona Immigration Law” here.

Think about that employer-recruitment video that was funded by the Bush Administration in 2004:

“I have a workforce that doesn’t have car problems, or baby sitter problems et cetera.  They’re always here, and they’re always willing to come to work.”

“The situation here allows us to be able to control costs far more than we could in the past.”

“Partnerships between correctional industries and private business are a rapidly growing segment of a multi-billion dollar industry in America.”

“Bring us your business challenge.  Chances are, there’s a nearby correctional facility that can supply dependable labor, enhance your competitiveness, and increase your profitability.”

Now, think about the growth in the non-violent inmate population.

  • As of 2008, non-violent offenders made up over 60 percent of the prison and jail population.
  • If incarceration rates had tracked violent crime rates, the incarceration rate would have fallen to less than one third of the actual 2008 level.

Don’t you think something went terribly, terribly wrong?

Related Article

New Hampshire is considering privatizing the NH correctional facilities. We cannot let that happen. 

Local Government Center Rhetoric Does Not Match Reality

  By New Hampshire Labor News | November 26, 2012 - 10:24 am |
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LGC Stone

An emergency board meeting of the Local Government Center was held last week in regards to dealing with the implementation of the Hearings Officer’s Order (Final Order) in the matter of the “State of NH vs. Local Government Center et. el”.  A statement from the Executive Director was issued post meeting.

The Executive Director claims (LGC ED Message) that the requirement to purchase reinsurance will add $5 million to the rates. A look at the financials suggests otherwise. Page 5 of the 2011 financials (2011 Audited Financials ) notes two things, first that there are no claims over $1million dollars (minimizing the cost of reinsurance) and second an actual cost of ½% of contributions for reinsurance . Based on the current health insurance contribution of 400 million dollars, this equals a cost of approximately $2 million, not $5 million as overstated by the Executive Director.

“Here is where the rhetoric falls far short of the reality. Just look and compare the financials 2010 to 2011, it appears the LGC reduced the amount of dollars for reserve by 18% from the previous year, and then they further collected 4% more in contributions while experiencing an increase in claims cost of only 1%*. What does this mean to those paying the bills? The LGC kept more money, while their net assets (surplus) grew by 19% or $20.5 million,” stated Dave Lang, President of the Professional Fire Fighters of NH.

“The management of the Local Government Center would have us all believe that in order to save us $2 million or $5 million for that matter in our rates they need to keep $106,155,206 the 2011 net asset balance. NH citizens expect a level of transparency when it comes to their local governments. These repeated actions by the Local Government Center defy on all accounts that expectation,” continued Lang.

An excerpt found on page 5 of the 2011 Financials

LGC HealthTrust purchased stop loss excess coverage to help defer the impact of large claims. LGC HealthTrust retained the first $1,000,000 of each claim through June 30, 2010; the stop loss carrier reimburses amounts above that level. LGC HealthTrust paid .5% of contributions for reinsurance. HealthTrust eliminated the purchase of stop loss reinsurance as of July 1, 2010. The Board asked the actuary to assess the risk of the elimination of this coverage. The actuary’s opinion noted HealthTrust had not sustained a claim over $1,000,000. The actuary also noted HealthTrust’s level of Risk Based Capital and size gave it the ability to eliminate this coverage and the resulting cost of purchasing reinsurance. Eliminating the purchase of reinsurance reduces the cost of coverage to member groups.

*A calculated explanation of President Lang’s explanation with page references found in the 2011 Financials (web link provided above):

Statewide Watch Group Shines Light On Prison Privatization

  By New Hampshire Labor News | November 9, 2012 - 6:00 pm |
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Jail For Sale, Image from NH Prison Watch

Cross-posted from SEA / SEIU 1984 Blog

Image from NH Prison Watch .Org

The issue of privatizing New Hampshire prisons will be the topic of a series of panel discussions and documentary screenings between now and the end of the month.

The 45-minute film, “Billions Behind Bars,” explores the for-profit industry that is rapidly growing across the U.S – generating incredible revenue for shareholders and CEO’s from the incarceration of individuals.  Locally, New Hampshire’s Department of Corrections is currently reviewing proposals from for-profit companies seeking to build and operate its state prisons.

Evidence shows that private prisons do not save money. In fact, they frequently cost states more than publicly operated facilities. They are more dangerous than publicly run prisons, and they raise key moral issues.  Questions to be discussed include whether the state faces an inherent conflict between allowing profit-making prisons to operate and a moral obligation to rehabilitate prisoners.

The events are free and open to the public.

The CNBC documentary “Billions Behind Bars,” will be shown courtesy of NHPrisonWatch, a group of organizations that oppose prison privatization. To learn more visit www.NHPrisonWatch.org.

  • Nov. 14, 7 p.m. at the Congregational Church in Exeter, 21 Front St., Exeter.
  • Nov. 19, 5:30 p.m. at the Wilton Town Hall Theatre, 40 Main St., Wilton.
  • Nov. 26, 7 p.m. at Keene State College, the Mabel Brown Room, Young Student Center, 229 Main St. Keene.
  • Nov. 27, 6 p.m. at the Red River Theatres, 11 S. Main St., Concord.

Attention Younger Workers: Your Retirement Is At Stake, Too

  By New Hampshire Labor News | October 27, 2012 - 10:00 am | , ,
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retirement egg

Cross posted with permission from SEIU 1984 / SEA

If retirement is a long way off for you, it’s understandable that you might tune out what’s been happening with New Hampshire’s pension fund. Putting it simply, the defined benefit pension plan ensures that you and your family have a secure future, and that the state doesn’t dig itself further into the unfunded liability mess it’s created for itself. Here are some key points on why keeping the defined benefit (DB) pension makes more sense for younger workers than the proposed defined contribution (DC) plan:

  • Defined contribution plans are more costly: Two reports found that switching plans would increase the unfunded liability. This is largely because there would be fewer members paying into the system, leaving fewer dollars to reduce that liability.
  • Cost gets passed down to you: With the unfunded liability rising, employers would have to pick up more of the tab. Those employers include the state itself and many local communities. It is foolhardy to believe these employers will be able to offset the added expense with new revenue. This means higher tax rates for you and a decrease in vital public services.
  • You take all the risk, too: Unlike a defined benefit plan, the defined contribution plan forces you to take on all the risk of investment. The only thing that’s well-defined is how much you have to put in. How much you eventually benefit depends on how well your investments perform.
  • DB plans perform better: The pension fund has been at this a while. It’s negotiated lower rates and takes a long-term view, and the results show a DC plan could leave you with as much as 15% lesser benefit.
  • Who’s benefiting? With DC plans, fees paid to Wall Street banks take a bite out of your benefit.
  • Will it be enough? In order to make the DC plan more appealing, employer contribution rates were set at a lower level to make it look like the employee is getting a good benefit, even though it’s mostly the employee paying. That said, those contribution rates might not even be high enough to accumulate enough money to ensure an adequate retirement income.
  • Not fixed: In 2008, the legislature adopted a plan to fully fund the DB plan.  However, in 2010 the Bill O’Brien led legislature “fixed” the plan by enacting changes that undercut the 2008 plan, making the situation worse.  This is the action that led to SEA and other labor unions to file lawsuits against the state’s actions, which we expect to prevail and correct the situation.  At O’Brien’s insistence, the legislature is still considering the DC plan that will allow lawmakers to continue to raise your employee contribution rates.  Remember, with a DB plan, you have a guaranteed benefit – not a benefit based on Wall Street AND the legislature.
  • Portable, yes, reliable no: A perceived bonus to DC plans is that you can roll the money over when you leave for a new job. But that doesn’t matter if your investments don’t perform well. Again, the DB plan offers a better assurance that you’re not left without a safety net in your senior years.

Retirement may seem light years away to younger employees. You may think you have plenty of time to prepare. In the meantime, you need to ask yourself these questions:

  • Do I want to work into my 70’s to meet my living expenses?
  • Do I have the time and knowledge to manage my own 401K type plan?
  • Do I want to bet on Wall Street’s actions?
  • Can I afford to pay higher taxes for the rest of my years caused by converting the system from DB to DC?

NH Labor News 8/28/12: Private Prison: The Public’s Problem, LGC Battle Continues, NH DES Says Economy Slightly Worse, and more..

  By New Hampshire Labor News | August 28, 2012 - 10:27 am | ,
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Weekend

Private Prisons: The Public’s Problem – A Talk by Caroline Isaacs – Nashua, NH Patch: “The three companies that run for-profit prisons in Arizona have all submitted bids to take over New Hampshire’s prison system. Caroline Isaacs, who directs the AFSC’s Arizona Program in Tucson, has thoroughly investigated their performance and found it lacking.  Her report, published in Feburary, revealed widespread and persistent problems in the areas of safety, accountability, and cost.

She will share her findings during a three-day speaking tour in New Hampshire, whicih will come to Nashua’s Unitarian Universalist Church on Wednesday, September 5, from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Secretary of state in Dover about LGC ruling: ‘This is not a simple matter’ – Fosters: “DOVER — A public forum Monday night held to help area residents better understand the ruling against the Local Government Center left many questions unanswered and people still wondering when and how they will get their money back.

The LGC, a nonprofit organization that manages health insurance pools for public workers and retirees in New Hampshire, was found to have improperly collect and retain surplus funds for health and property liability funds it maintained for state and local employees and retirees. ”

Sec. of State Holds Public Forum On LGC Ruling | New Hampshire Public Radio: ““The public was very concerned about their money, where it’s parked right now, what’s going to happen to it.  I think those all  legitimate concerns.”

Lang, himself at one time was a board member of the LGC and researched the center’s finances.  His research resulted in a court order to refund $52 million dollars to public employees, retirees and municipal members who bought health and other insurance coverage from the non-profit.  LGC has already said it will appeal the ruling.”

Once again the media is blaming the teachers in the MHT School district for budget problem….

Manchester Begins The School Year After $8 Million Budget Shortfall and Teacher Union Impasse | New Hampshire Public Radio: “Manchester School District Superintendent Thomas Brennan says the teacher layoffs and program cuts came because Manchester schools faced the worst budget shortfall in recent memory.

“This year we’re talking about an 8 million dollar gap. And there’s no way that we’re going to make up 8 million dollars. In the past it might have been 1 or 2 million. It sounds a lot in some cases, it doesn’t sound a lot in others. So we always made it work. We’re not going to make it work this year.””

Goffstown selectmen deny firefighters’ retroactive raise | New Hampshire NEWS07: “electmen have denied a grievance filed by the Professional Firefighters of Goffstown that sought pay increases for three firefighters in 2011. At its regular meeting Monday night, Vice Chairman Scott Gross moved to “respectfully decline” the request of the firefighters.

Attorneys for both the town and the firefighters’ union presented their cases to the Board of Selectmen at its meeting on Aug. 20, with the union claiming that three firefighters were due a step increase pay raise in 2011, from $16 an hour to $17.28, an 8-percent increase.”

“ROCHESTER — The latest statistics released by New Hampshire Employment Security shows that the state’s economy is in slightly worse shape than a year ago. It is estimated that there were 629,000 private sector and government jobs in the Granite State in July, which is 2,100 fewer than 12 months ago, with the private sector accounting for all of this decline.

This assessment ties in with the state’s unadjusted unemployment rate for July. According to NHES, the July 2012 unemployment rate for New Hampshire was 5.7 percent, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from the June rate, which remained at 5.4 percent after revision. The July 2011 unadjusted rate was 5.5 percent.

The national unadjusted rate for July 2012 was 8.6 percent, an increase of 0.2 percentage points from the June rate and a decrease of 0.7 percentage points from the July 2011 rate.”

Lang’s battle with LGC results in state order for $52M refund | SeacoastOnline.com: “A firefighter’s nine-year effort to open the Local Government Center’s books to the public has directly resulted in an order that $52 million be refunded to public employees, retirees and municipal members who bought the LGC’s health and/or property liability insurance.

While the LGC announced Thursday it will appeal, much credit for the $52 million order can go to David Lang, a retired Hampton firefighter and president of the New Hampshire Professional Fire Fighters Association. Related agreements that the SchoolCare risk-management pool will refund municipal members $8.5 million and the Primex pool will refund between $16 million and $21 million can also be linked to Lang’s tenacity.

Secretary of State Bill Gardner said Friday that without Lang’s series of Right To Know requests for LGC information, “none of this would be happening right now.”"

Sequestration budget cuts bad for New Hampshire | SeacoastOnline.com: As staff writer Aaron Sanborn reported (Ayotte: cuts reach ‘too far,’ Aug. 23, Portsmouth Herald), federal budget sequestration has dangerously real consequences for New Hampshire.

But only half of sequestration’s impact is on defense.

Non-defense cuts will also hit hard, costing more than 2,700 New Hampshire jobs. Why? Because sequestration makes deep cuts to investments that matter for New Hampshire kids and families.

More than 17,000 New Hampshire families would lose health services through the federal Maternal & Child Health Block Grant, and 1,400 would lose quality nutrition through WIC. More than 3,600 New Hampshire children would lose educational help, including nearly 2,300 with disabilities.

Labor and Civil Liberties Organizations Come Together To Fight Against NH Voter ID Law

  By New Hampshire Labor News | August 15, 2012 - 6:10 pm | , ,
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Organizations from across New Hampshire have come together to urge the Justice Department to reject the new Voter ID law.

A coalition including League of Women Voters, N.H. Civil Liberties Union, America Votes, American Friends Service Committee, Credo SuperPAC, Demos, Fair Election Legal Network, Granite State Independent Living, Latinos Unidos, NAACP Branch 2070, NH AFL-CIO, NH Citizens Alliance, NH Young Democrats, NEA-NH, SEIU Local 1984,  Service Employees International Union and Working Families Win submitted letters today to the U.S. Department of Justice asking the Department to deny pre-clearance of the state’s new voter photo identification law (Chapter 284) and new voter registration law (Chapter 285).

New Hampshire is required to submit all changes in voting laws to the U.S. Department of Justice for pre-clearance before the laws can go into effect. Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act requires the department to deny pre-clearance of state laws that have either a discriminatory purpose or the effect of suppressing the right to vote on account of race or color or membership in a language minority.

“There’s no legitimate reason for the radical changes the photo ID law makes to the way we vote in New Hampshire,” said Joan Flood Ashwell, election law specialist for the League of Women Voters of New Hampshire. “Years of investigations by the Attorney General’s office have confirmed that we don’t have a problem with voter impersonation fraud. That’s not surprising since that kind of voter fraud is virtually unheard of anywhere in the United States. We believe the real intent of this photo ID law is to make it more difficult for certain groups of people to vote, including students, the elderly, minorities and the disabled.

“Members of the House and Senate heard testimony that thousands of New Hampshire citizens don’t have a photo ID - 25,000 to 50,000 according to the Secretary of State,” Ashwell said. “In this presidential election, students will be able to use their student IDs but that will change in 2013 when the law becomes the strictest in the United States. It will be unnecessarily more difficult for students to vote, especially those who come here from other states and are much more likely to be minorities.”

Jessica Clark, political and field director of America Votes, said the ever-changing requirements of the photo ID law and the lack of an education program seemed designed to discourage people from even trying to vote.

“We’ve already seen incorrect headlines in the papers saying that a photo ID will be needed to vote this November,” Clark said. “This is an overly complex law that requires a statewide education campaign using newspapers, TV and radio in addition to brochures and handouts. Some members of the House Election Law Committee tried to include an education campaign in the law but that was rejected by the sponsors of the legislation and by the House and Senate leadership. Voters need to know that they can sign an affidavit and obtain a ballot. In 2013, they’ll have to have a photo taken as well. America Votes believes the affidavit and photo are offensive and unnecessary but we also believe people should know there’s an option that is better than no vote at all.”

The second law, Chapter 285, changes the voter registration form to include a statement requiring people to agree that they must register their car in New Hampshire and obtain a New Hampshire driver’s license within 60 days of registering to vote. The wording of the new voter registration form contradicts New Hampshire motor vehicle laws which make it illegal for those who intend to leave New Hampshire at a specific point in time to register a car or obtain a driver’s license in New Hampshire.

“Chapter 285 is an attempt to change the definition of ‘domicile’ in Part 1, Article 11 of the New Hampshire Constitution,” said Claire Ebel, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Civil Liberties Union. “A 1984 New Hampshire Supreme Court decision – George J. Every v. Supervisors of the Madison Checklist  – defined ‘domicile’ as distinct from residence. According to Ebel, “There is no question that Chapter 285  is meant to keep out-of-state college students from being able to register and vote in New Hampshire However, that question was decided by a federal district court decision in 1972 in Newberger v. Peterson, which established the right of students to vote where they attend school.  Students, visiting faculty, members of the military and others who know that they will leave New Hampshire at some definite point in the future have the right to register and to vote here while they live here.”

The coalition’s submissions describe the two new election laws as retrogressive and discriminatory and said they will reduce minority voting across the state. They criticize the Legislature for not presenting data to determine the impact of the laws, especially since these issues were brought to their attention repeatedly in hearings and in letters. The coalition said the laws are unnecessary, and the Justice Department should deny preclearance because the state failed to meet its burden under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.