» New Feature—Redistricting

Beginning later this year, elected officials throughout the country will begin the process of redrawing district boundaries for state legislatures, Congress, city councils, county commissions, school boards, and other local governing bodies.  Redistricting, generally carried out once per decade, represents one of the most important events in our democracy.  For the last four decades, the Voting Rights Act has played a central role in the redistricting process, helping to safeguard and protect minority voting rights.  As the redistricting process commences, black elected officials and minority communities are poised to play a central role in the redistricting process by ensuring compliance with the anti-discrimination requirements of the Voting Rights Act.  Line drawers must comply with the Voting Rights Act by creating districts that fairly reflect minority voting strength and that provide minority voters with an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.

In the coming months, NBCSL and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) will be providing updates on the redistricting process and important legal developments.  Now is the time to encourage active community participation in the process at all levels.  The LDF has been working to provide a number of resources for legislators and communities for the upcoming redistricting cycle, including advocacy support for states seeking to end practices such as prison-based gerrymandering, information regarding the central role of the Section 5 preclearance provision in the redistricting process, and release of a comprehensive redistricting guide, produced in conjunction with the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund and the Asian American Justice Center. In addition, legislators can also find a 3-minute public education video that speaks to the importance of community participation in the redistricting process available at www.redrawingthelines.org.

» State of the Union Address

President Obama gave an impassioned speech intended to build upon the bi-partisan feelings in the wake of Arizona’s tragedy.  The focus of the speech was the economy and deficit-reduction.  President Obama’s efforts at stimulating the economy have increasingly focused on encouraging corporate investment and private innovation.  The President also made a strong case to improve our schools.  Below is a breakdown of some of the President’s domestic proposals included in his address:

• Innovation- The President wants to invest in Biomedical Research, Information Technology, and Clean Energy.  This does build on some of the areas the President and Congress have also funded, but these increases should be in his next budget.
• Energy- By 2035, the President wants 80% of America’s electricity to come from clean sources including wind, solar, nuclear, clean coal, and natural gas.
• Education- The President seems to be ready to push for a reauthorization of No Child Let Behind but would use a model closer to “Race to the Top” in which states spur innovation and are granted increased flexibility.  The President also wants to increase the investment in our Nation’s Community Colleges.
• Immigration- The President wants Congress to tackle immigration reform; he made an impassioned plea for amnesty for the children of illegal immigrants, but stopped short of calling for it to be part of any legislation.
• High Speed Rail- The President wants 80% of Americans to have access to high-speed rail within 25 years, building on his current initiative that has been challenged by some state governors.
• High-Speed Wireless- The President wants 98% of Americans to have access to high-speed wireless internet coverage within the next five years.
• Simplify the Tax System- The President wants to simplify the tax system by cutting the corporate tax rate and closing tax loopholes, which should actually lower the deficit.
• Increase Exports- The President will continue to work toward doubling exports by 2014.
• Make Government More Efficient- The President will present a bill to Congress that seeks to restructure the federal government to make it more efficient.
• Deficit- The President wants to freeze domestic spending for five years and eliminate earmarks, starting with this fiscal year.  This is expected to eliminate $400 billion in government spending. President Obama also mentioned reducing healthcare costs associated with Medicare and Medicaid. The President stated his opposition to the long-term extension of tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans.

» FY2011 Appropriations

Congress has not passed a spending bill for FY2011, which began on October 1, 2010.  Since then, the government has operated under a series of Continuing Resolutions.  A Continuing Resolution continues to fund the government at its previous level until their appropriation has become law or the resolution expires.  The Senate was pushing to pass an Omnibus spending package during the lame duck session of Congress, but it abandoned that in favor of a Continuing Resolution that will last through March 4, 2011.  This, of course, leaves the current Congress with the task of funding the federal government for the second half of FY2011.  The House recently directed the Appropriations Committee to work on funding the government for the second half of 2011 using its FY2008 budget outline.  This could translate into reduction of hundreds of billions of dollars in federal spending for the rest of the fiscal year, which translates to cuts in state aid from the federal government.

»FY2012 Budget

The President will release his budget on February 7th.  Rumors have already begun to circulate about the FY2012 budget and the possibility of further cuts.  It is very likely that the President’s proposed cuts will be increased by House Republicans.  This could easily mean that the President’s budget will become the best-case scenario for state aid, which could paint a very grim picture given that federal aid has enabled states to avoid even deeper cuts over the past two years.

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»Business, Financial Services, & Insurance/International Affairs

In an effort to strengthen the bilateral relationship between United States and China, President Barack Obama hosted President Hu Jintao on a state visit as the two countries look to become partners in the future. During the summit, President Hu also met with members of the Congress, members of the Cabinet, and business leaders in Washington D.C. before heading to Chicago, IL.  As general policy, China always presents large economic deals during summits as a sign of support.  During this state visit, the Obama Administration announced that China has agreed to $45 billion worth of contracts with U.S. companies, which will spur trade and investment in the U.S.  This initiative will also support about 235,000 jobs in the U.S. as it promotes cooperation and competition.  Also, in an effort to develop a better understanding of each other while being able to benefit from each other’s contributions, President Hu proposed several exchanges among both countries which will include students, scientists, and cultural leaders.  President Obama shared his thoughts on China by stating, “I absolutely believe that China’s peaceful rise is good for the world, and it’s good for America.”

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» Health and Human Services

Healthcare Repeal Effort

As was widely expected, the House passed a repeal of the healthcare bill signed into law last year. The bill repeals the Act in its entirety. In addition, the House has directed several of its Committees to begin examining replacement legislation.  Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will resist all attempts for repeal of the bill and prevent the bill from coming up for debate.  Republicans have spoken of forcing a vote on the bill, by either resisting all legislative work or forcing a vote on a related amendment.  These attempts would likely need to garner at least 60 votes in the Senate, which will be difficult.  Any attempt will likely fail and, given the unlikely circumstance that one should succeed, President Obama will be waiting to veto the bill.  The effort will be more about getting people on the record against the bill and positioning for the upcoming 2012 elections.

Waste, Fraud, and Abuse

According the U.S. Department of Justice and Health and Human Services, the federal government recovered $4 billion, the highest annual amount ever, from healthcare fraud cases in FY2010 that had been stolen from federal healthcare programs.  Additionally, more than $2.5 billion came from recoveries obtained in civil health care matters brought under the False Claims Act.  Federal prosecutors opened over 1,000 criminal healthcare fraud investigations in fiscal 2010, and a total of approximately 700 defendants were convicted of healthcare fraud-related crimes.  HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Associate Attorney General Thomas Perrelli attributed much of the success to the Health Care Fraud Prevention & Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), opened in 2009.

New Dietary Guidelines - Combating Obesity

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services is set to release new dietary guidelines late January. The guidelines give the government’s best science-based advice to Americans to specifically reduce the risk of disease, such as obesity, improve overall health, and to optimize healthier food choices. As required by law, the dietary guidelines are reviewed and updated every five years.

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» Education

President Obama’s “100,000 Strong Initiative” will increase the number and diversity of American students studying in China.  The number of American students studying in China has increased by over 50% in recent years.  Last year, the number reached approximately 20,000, the most students from any foreign country in China.  China also supplies the greatest source of foreign students in the U.S., last year reaching 127,000.  As part of First Lady Michelle Obama’s broader campaign to engage and enrich youth, she encouraged students, during her speech at Howard University on January 19th, to study in China and work to make America and the world stronger. The 100,000 Strong Initiative will allow young people to live and study abroad, immersing themselves in another culture and education system, thus preparing young people to succeed in an increasingly competitive global economy.  The President’s goal is to send 100,000 Americans to study in China over the next four years.  Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has launched a “Double the Numbers” challenge to college presidents and universities to double their numbers of students studying abroad, with a special emphasis on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Hispanic Serving Institutions.  In efforts to make the exchanges more affordable, there will be a “mini-mester” designed for community college students, that is a shorter term than the typical semester- or year-long experience.  Also, President Hu announced that China would award 10,000 scholarships to cover living and study program expenses for American students and teachers.  As of January, the initiative has received more than $2.25 million in private sector pledges.

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» Labor, Military, and Veterans Affairs

In December, the unemployment rate rose in 20 states indicating the labor market recovery is slow in momentum.  According to the U.S. Labor Department, three states led the nation including, New York with 22,800 job cuts; followed by Minnesota with 22,400; and Florida with 17,900.  Joblessness increased most in West Virginia, where it rose by 0.3 percent, followed by Colorado, Georgia, and Nevada, which showed increases of 0.2 percent each. Nevada also faced the highest jobless rate in the county at 14.5 percent, followed by California at 12.5 percent, and Florida at 12 percent.  Michigan saw an unemployment decline by 0.7 percent, where the state is witnessing positive signs in the automakers industry, including General Motors, which posted about 750 jobs to the assembly plant.  For all of 2010, about 1.1 million jobs were created, the most since 2006. During the recession that began December 2007 and unofficially ended June 2009, the economy saw a loss of 8.4 million jobs.

Union membership among federal employees dropped 1.2 percent last year to less than 1 million out of 3.5 million full- and part-time workers.  The slimming numbers come as federal worker unions are fending off proposals by congressional Republicans to trim the federal workforce.  According to the American Federation of Government Employees, the overall drop in federal union membership is tied primarily to the government’s wider use of contract and temporary workers.

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» Housing

As part of President Barack Obama’s Administration plan, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary, Shaun Donovan, has awarded $1.41 billion to nearly 7,000 local homeless assistance programs around the nation. The funding will go towards helping these programs to stay in operation. This is also part of a larger plan of Obama’s Administration, named Opening Doors, which is the nation’s first widespread initiative to prevent and end chronic homelessness among veterans and other individuals in the United States by 2015.  HUD also announced it would renew funding for its Continuum Care programs which provide permanent and transitional housing for the homeless as well as job training, health care, mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment, and child care.  Also, thanks to funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, HUD allocated $1.5 billion to its new Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-housing (HPRP) Program, which aims to prevent people from falling into homelessness or rapidly re-housing them if they do.

Below is a chart with how much HUD allocated to each state’s local homeless programs and its number of projects:

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