May 29, 2021

Legislators advance estate tax bill, vote down corporate tax hike

Members of the legislature’s Taxation Committee voted on Wednesday to advance a bill to the House floor to repeal the LePage-era tax cuts on Maine’s wealthiest estates, while also striking down a bill to raise taxes on corporations.

The committee voted in favor of a proposal by state Rep. Ben Collings (D-Portland) to raise taxes on inherited wealth. Over the course of his administration, former Gov. Paul LePage and GOP lawmakers raised the estate tax exclusion amount, below which the estate tax does not apply, from $1 million to $5.6 million for individuals or $11.2 million for joint estates of married couples.

Collings’ bill would lower the exclusion amount to $2 million.

Members of Mainers for Tax Fairness, a coalition of 23 progressive organizations, applauded the committee for advancing a bill that would recover much of the taxes on Maine’s wealthiest estates eliminated during the previous administration.

“A more effective wealth tax in the form of a stronger estate tax will help prevent runaway inequality across generations, while raising resources that can be invested in schools, health care, and other priorities that create opportunities for prosperity for low- and middle-income families,” Destie Hohman Sprage of the Maine Women’s Lobby, a member of the coalition, said in a statement.

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/legislators-advance-estate-tax-bill-vote-down-corporate-tax-hike/

May 29, 2021

Bull Moose firings underscore why we need to protect workers' rights

On May 20, the employees of the Bull Moose store in Salem, New Hampshire, received the following voicemail: “I’m just calling to let you know that the location has been closed until further notice. I just wanted to alert anybody who was scheduled for tomorrow morning. You are all set on not coming in tomorrow.”

The following day, the employees each received an email telling them they were terminated from their positions at the entertainment store. This came without warning and, as of the writing of this article, without any explanation, though there is plenty of speculation about it. It also comes at the same time that the Maine Legislature is considering LD 553, “An Act to End At-Will Employment,” sponsored by Rep. Mike Sylvester of Portland. LD 553 would make it a requirement that employers provide “just cause” for firing an employee, so companies like Bull Moose (who also did this with their Bangor store in 2004) can’t suddenly put an entire store out of work without a substantial reason.

On May 22, a Facebook post from Bull Moose began circulating online. The post reads, “We are not able to share the reasons behind our decisions regarding the Salem store as it is important to us to protect the confidentiality of our former employees. We can, however, say we are confident this decision was in the best interest of our customers, employees and business as a whole.”

The post goes on to say, “We can also say emphatically this decision had absolutely nothing to do with masks or face coverings for employees or customers.”

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/bull-moose-firings-underscore-why-we-need-to-protect-workers-rights/

May 29, 2021

Bull Moose firings underscore why we need to protect workers' rights

On May 20, the employees of the Bull Moose store in Salem, New Hampshire, received the following voicemail: “I’m just calling to let you know that the location has been closed until further notice. I just wanted to alert anybody who was scheduled for tomorrow morning. You are all set on not coming in tomorrow.”

The following day, the employees each received an email telling them they were terminated from their positions at the entertainment store. This came without warning and, as of the writing of this article, without any explanation, though there is plenty of speculation about it. It also comes at the same time that the Maine Legislature is considering LD 553, “An Act to End At-Will Employment,” sponsored by Rep. Mike Sylvester of Portland. LD 553 would make it a requirement that employers provide “just cause” for firing an employee, so companies like Bull Moose (who also did this with their Bangor store in 2004) can’t suddenly put an entire store out of work without a substantial reason.

On May 22, a Facebook post from Bull Moose began circulating online. The post reads, “We are not able to share the reasons behind our decisions regarding the Salem store as it is important to us to protect the confidentiality of our former employees. We can, however, say we are confident this decision was in the best interest of our customers, employees and business as a whole.”

The post goes on to say, “We can also say emphatically this decision had absolutely nothing to do with masks or face coverings for employees or customers.”

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/bull-moose-firings-underscore-why-we-need-to-protect-workers-rights/

May 29, 2021

'Power to the powerless:' Maine workers ask for help in fighting back against unfair legal practices

Berndt Erikson and a co-worker quit their jobs at Dollar General in Eliot, Maine earlier this month because they were fed up with low pay and being overworked.

Erikson was also angry about the exploitation of their shift manager, who was forced to work 70-hour weeks because of a staffing shortage. The manager, classified as a salaried worker, said she was making less than minimum wage when the hours she was working were added up.

But what was perhaps most frustrating, Erikson said, was that the Dollar General workers had signed away a significant amount of their ability to fight back against wage theft and exploitation when they took the job.

“When I first started working at Dollar General, I signed a document that took away my right to pursue legal action if I experienced any discrimination, wage theft, or harassment,” Erikson said during a press conference with state lawmakers on Friday. “Instead, if I brought something up, it would have to be through private arbitration — typically in a location and through a format of my employer’s design.”

Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/power-to-the-powerless-maine-workers-ask-for-help-in-fighting-back-against-unfair-legal-practices/

May 28, 2021

Judge sets trial date for lawsuit over Missouri Medicaid expansion

The lawsuit seeking to force Missouri to expand Medicaid coverage under a voter-approved constitutional amendment will go to trial June 18 in Cole County.

On Wednesday morning, Circuit Judge Jon Beetem met in a conference call with Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s office and attorneys for the three people suing for coverage. In an online notation with the case, Beetem ordered a “hearing on Stipulated Facts.”

That means that there is no dispute about what is happening. Instead, it is a dispute about how the law should be applied.

“Both sides will make their case to the judge and the judge will issue a decision in due course,” Marianna Deal, spokeswoman for Schmitt’s office, wrote in email. “Beyond that, we aren’t going to comment further on pending litigation.”

Read more: https://missouriindependent.com/2021/05/26/judge-sets-trial-date-for-lawsuit-over-missouri-medicaid-expansion/

May 28, 2021

Bowser's budget, flush with federal dollars, boosts spending on housing, mental health, violence

Bowser’s budget, flush with federal dollars, boosts spending on housing, mental health, violence prevention


D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser (D) on Thursday proposed a fiscal 2022 budget that would increase spending on a vast array of projects, including housing, education, violence prevention and bike lanes, thanks in part to a flood of federal coronavirus relief dollars.

Without raising taxes, Bowser’s draft budget would boost funding in almost every major area — with the notable exception of the police department, whose funding activists have pressured her to cut. Bowser proposed a reduction in funding of about $36 million, since the police department shrank its payroll by about 200 positions this year. But she also suggests hiring 135 additional officers next year.

The $17.5 billion budget for the year beginning Oct. 1, will be considered and revised by the D.C. Council in coming weeks. It reflects a whirlwind turnabout from last year, when the city froze hiring and pay raises while dipping deep into reserves to cover projected revenue shortfalls during the coronavirus pandemic. This year, with projected revenue rising, hiring is back — and city employees will receive their delayed raises. With more than $2.3 billion from the federal American Rescue Plan that must be used over the next four years, Bowser also proposes extensive spending.

Among the long list of ideas included in her budget proposal: $8 million to hire on-site mental health clinicians for the more than 80 public and charter schools that do not employ any; $26 million to buy laptops and smartphones for seniors and needy families; 80 Capital Bikeshare stations — enough to put one within a quarter-mile of every home — and 3,500 new electric bikes; and construction of a “sobering center” for people to detox from drugs outside of a hospital or jail.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/dc-budget-bowser-police/2021/05/27/11acef38-be69-11eb-83e3-0ca705a96ba4_story.html

May 28, 2021

BLM Co-Founder Patrisse Cullors Stepping Down From Foundation

Source: NBC - Washington

A co-founder of Black Lives Matter announced Thursday that she is stepping down as executive director of the movement’s foundation. She decried what she called a smear campaign from a far-right group, but said neither that nor recent criticism from other Black organizers influenced her departure.

Patrisse Cullors, who has been at the helm of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation for nearly six years, said she is leaving to focus on other projects, including the upcoming release of her second book and a multi-year TV development deal with Warner Bros. Her last day with the foundation is Friday.

“I’ve created the infrastructure and the support, and the necessary bones and foundation, so that I can leave,” Cullors told The Associated Press. “It feels like the time is right.”

Cullors’ departure follows a massive surge in support and political influence in the U.S. and around the world for the BLM movement, which was established nearly eight years ago in response to injustice against Black Americans. The resignation also comes on the heels of controversy over the foundation’s finances and over Cullors’ personal wealth.

Read more: https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/blm-co-founder-patrisse-cullors-stepping-down-from-foundation/2685805/

May 28, 2021

Laurel Woman Defrauds DC Medicaid Of $373K, Heads To Prison: DOJ

LAUREL, MD — Officials said a judge on May 12 sentenced a Laurel woman to 13 months in prison. Prosecutors accused the suspect, 52-year-old Folashade Adufe Horne, of defrauding the Washington, D.C. Medicaid program of $373,564.

Horne pleaded guilty to health care fraud in February, an incident report noted. The press release added that Horne must repay Medicaid in full and face a $267,567 forfeiture money judgment.

Authorities explained that Horne worked at four different home health agencies where she helped Medicaid patients perform daily activities like bathing. The U.S. Department of Justice alleged that Horne falsely reported extra services on her timesheet, meaning her employers overbilled Medicaid.

Horne charged for her home health duties when she was actually at her full-time job at a Washington, D.C. hospital, the DOJ advised. The accused woman reported working 20+ hours in a day more than 200 times, the write-up mentioned. Horne also claimed that she worked 32 hours in a day on 28 occasions, officials continued. The report informed that Horne additionally billed for work in the District of Columbia on days when she was not even in the United States.

Read more: https://patch.com/district-columbia/washingtondc/s/hle06/laurel-woman-defrauds-dc-medicaid-373k-heads-prison-doj

May 28, 2021

Conservative media outlet sues Lightfoot over interviews to reporters of color

A conservative media outlet filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against Mayor Lori Lightfoot over her decision this month to grant interviews only to reporters of color to mark her two-year anniversary in office.

Judicial Watch, another conservative organization, filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Daily Caller News Foundation and reporter Thomas Catenacci, who covers labor, the economy and politics.

Lightfoot announced last week that she would only grant interview requests from reporters of color “on the occasion of the two-year anniversary” of her inauguration. The Daily Caller’s lawsuit wrongly suggests Lightfoot had announced an ongoing policy.

The complaint alleges that Lightfoot has since granted at least one interview request from a self-identified Latino reporter but denied or failed to respond to interview requests from white reporters, including Catenacci.

Read more: https://chicago.suntimes.com/2021/5/27/22457256/conservative-media-outlet-sues-lightfoot-over-interviews-reporters-color-black-brown-reporters

May 28, 2021

Watchdog Group Claims Ethics Violation After Would-Be Rival Said Rep. Marie Newman Scuttled Deal To

Watchdog Group Claims Ethics Violation After Would-Be Rival Said Rep. Marie Newman Scuttled Deal To Hire Him


CHICAGO (CBS) — U.S. Rep. Marie Newman (D-Illinois) has only been in office five months – and now she is facing an ethics complaint over an alleged bribe.

This follows a story exposed by CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov last week.

Kozlov reported Newman was being sued by Iymen Chehade, who was considering running as an opponent. He said he signed a contract with Newman, stating that in the event Newman was elected, she would give him a Chief Foreign Policy Advisor position or a similar job.

But they had a falling out, and he was never hired.

Now, a conservative government watchdog group claims that contract is a violation of federal election law.

Read more: https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2021/05/27/watchdog-group-claims-ethics-violation-after-would-be-rival-said-rep-marie-newman-scuttled-deal-to-hire-him/