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News Friday, Mar 4 2016

On Dept. Of Labor 103rd Anniversary, Heck's Record Of Bad Labor Votes

Mar 04, 2016

On the 103rd anniversary of the establishment of the Department of Labor, American Bridge President Jessica Mackler released the following statement on Representative Joe Heck’s unacceptable record on labor:

“The Department of Labor has helped to build our middle class, level the playing field for millions of Americans, and been an unwavering defender of workers’ rights. However, the fight for working families is far from over, and Rep. Joe Heck has shown us again and again he is not on the side of working Americans. He has voted repeatedly against raising the minimum wage, to protect tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas and avoid paying their fair share of taxes. Rep. Heck is beholden to corporate special interests like the Koch brothers — and make no mistake — he is no friend of Nevada’s working families.”

Background:

Opposed Existence of Federal Minimum Wage, And Opposed Increases To Minimum Wage

Opposed Minimum Wage Increase

2013: Heck Effectively Voted Against Raising The Federal Minimum Wage To $10.10 Within Two Years. In March 2013, Heck effectively voted against an amendment that, according to Congressional Quarterly, “would [have] incrementally increase[d] the federal minimum wage to $10.10 within two years of the bill’s enactment.” The vote was on a motion to recommit the underlying bill – the proposed SKILLS Act, which would have reauthorized and overhauled 35 employment and job training programs into one funding stream for state and local use – with instructions to report it back immediately with the prescribed amendment. In addition to raising the minimum wage, the amendment would have also clarified that nothing in the bill would repeal, deny or loosen employment protections, training opportunities or educational benefits for certain seniors, veterans, women or youth. The House rejected the motion by a vote of 184 to 233. [House Vote 74, 3/15/13; Congressional Quarterly, 3/15/13; Congressional Actions, H.R. 803; Congressional Quarterly, 3/15/13]

  •  The AFL-CIO, Service Employees International Union, And Costco Supported Raising The Minimum Wage. According to the Washington Post, “Outside of Congress, organized labor groups support increasing the federal minimum wage. The AFL-CIO and the Service Employees International Union both applauded Obama for calling for a minimum wage increase. Some businesses, including the national retailer Costco, as the White House noted, have supported the idea.” [Washington Post, 2/13/13]

2014: Heck Effectively Voted Against Raising The Minimum Wage To $8.20 An Hour Through December 11, 2014. In September 2014, Heck effectively voted against an amendment to legislation funding the government through December 11, 2014, that, according to Congressional Quarterly, would have added “the text of a measure (HR 1010) that would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to $8.20 an hour, $9.15 an hour after one year, and $10.10 an hour after two years.” The amendment “would [also have] extend[ed] the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank for 5 years, [] include[d] the text of a measure (HR 377) to tighten prohibitions on pay discrimination based on sex, [and] allow[ed] student loan debt to be refinanced at rates available to current borrowers.” The proposed amendment stated that the minimum wage, equal pay and student loan provisions would be effective only through December 11, 2014. The vote was on a motion to recommit the bill and report it back with the specified amendment; the House rejected the motion by a vote of 199 to 228. [House Vote 508, 9/17/14; Congressional Quarterly,9/17/14; H.J.Res. 124, 9/17/14; Congressional Record, 9/17/14]

2014: Heck Claimed That The Minimum Wage Did Not Help People In Poverty

VIDEO: In October 2014, Heck Argued That Doubling The Minimum Wage Would Not Help People In Poverty Working Part Time Jobs Because What They Really Needed Was “A Full Time Job.” During the 2014 Congressional District 3 debate, Joe Heck said, “Well, when you look at the working age population between 18 and 64, about 3% of them that work full time live in poverty. About 17% of them are working part time and about 33% of them are unemployed. So doubling the minimum wage is not going to help those, that 50%, that are working part time or unemployed. What they need is a job and they need a full time job. And what they need is the opportunity to get into an entry level job and learn the skills that will help them propel to a higher paying job and full time employment.” [2014 Congressional District 3 debate, Vegas PBS, Uploaded YouTube 10/21/14]

Supported Protecting Breaks For Companies that Ship Jobs Overseas

Heck Signed The Taxpayer Protection Pledge

Heck Was Listed As A Signee Of The Taxpayer Protection Pledge. According to Americans For Tax Reform, Heck was one of the 39 Senators in the 113th Congress who signed the Federal Taxpayer Protection Pledge. [Americans For Tax Reform Federal Taxpayer Protection Pledge, Viewed 8/3/13]

  • With The Taxpayer Protection Pledge, Candidates Bind Themselves To Opposing “Any And All Tax Increases.” According to Americans For Tax Reform, “In the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, candidates and incumbents solemnly bind themselves to oppose any and all tax increases.” [Americans For Tax Reform, Viewed 8/3/13]
  • The Tax Code Currently Allows Companies To Receive Tax Deductions For Expenses Incurred While Shipping Jobs Overseas. According to a White House fact sheet, “Removing tax deductions for shipping jobs overseas and providing new incentives for bringing them back home (revenue neutral): The tax code currently allows companies moving operations overseas to deduct their moving expenses – and reduce their taxes in the United States as a result.  The President is proposing to change that.  These deductions will be denied, and companies will no longer be provided deductions for moving their operations abroad. At the same time, the President is proposing to give a 20 percent income tax credit for the expenses of moving operations back into the United States to help companies bring jobs home. For example: If a company was closing a plant to move that plant overseas and incurred $1 million in expenses – ranging from the cost of scrapping equipment to shipping physical capital to clean up costs – it could right now deduct those expenses, and get a tax reduction of $350,000 (assuming the firm faces the 35 percent statutory tax rate).  The President proposes to eliminate this tax deduction.  And, if a corporation moving jobs to the U.S. incurred similar expenses, the President proposes to provide that company with a tax credit of $200,000 to help offset these costs and encourage investment here at home.” [White House Fact Sheet, 1/25/12]

Heck Voted To Allow Companies That Inverted Their Businesses To Bermuda Or The Cayman Islands To Continue To Receive Federal Contracts

2014: Heck Voted To Allow The Energy Department And Related Agencies To Continue To Award Contracts To U.S.-Incorporated Companies That Had Moved To Bermuda Or The Cayman Islands. In July 2014, Heck voted against an amendment to the FY 2015 Energy-Water Appropriations bill, which, according to Congressional Quarterly, “would bar the use of funds provided in the bill for awarding contracts to corporations chartered or incorporated in Bermuda or the Cayman Islands that were previously incorporated in the United States.” The House agreed to the amendment by a vote of 221 to 200. Subsequently, the passed the amended bill; however, as of August 2014, the Senate had not taken any substantive action on the House-passed legislation. [House Vote 387, 7/10/14; Congressional Quarterly, 7/10/14; Congressional Actions, H.R. 4923]

  • Amendment Sponsor Argued Companies That Claimed To Be American When Receiving Federal Contracts Should Not Get To Claim Differently When Paying Taxes. According to the Congressional Record, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), the amendment’s sponsor, said, “My amendment would prohibit Federal contracts issued by agencies under the jurisdiction of this bill from going to entities incorporated in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, the two nations most often abused as tax havens. This body has accepted similar provisions for the Departments of Defense, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development. As before, we should not spend taxpayer money on Federal contracts that go to companies that have renounced their American citizenship in favor of an island tax haven. Just this week, Business Week wrote an article examining the loopholes that longstanding American companies like Ingersol Rand, which was founded in Connecticut in 1871, have been exploiting in order to enjoy lucrative government contracts while pretending to reside overseas for tax purposes. […] These firms simply should not be allowed to pretend they are an American company when it comes time to get contracts, then claim to be an offshore company when the tax bill arrives.” [Congressional Record, 7/10/14]

2014: Heck Effectively Voted Against Barring Companies That Used To Be Incorporated In The U.S., But Were Now Incorporated In Bermuda Or The Cayman Islands, From Receiving U.S. Government Contracts. In September 2014, Heck effectively voted against an amendment that included a provision that, according to Congressional Quarterly’s description of an earlier amendment with substantively identical language, “would bar the use of funds provided in the [underlying] bill for awarding contracts to corporations chartered or incorporated in Bermuda or the Cayman Islands that were previously incorporated in the United States.” The rest of the amendment, according to Congressional Quarterly, “would [have] extend[ed] the reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank for 5 years, and include[d] the text of a measure (HR 377) to tighten prohibitions on pay discrimination based on sex. It would [have] include[d] the text of a measure (HR 1010) that would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to $8.20 an hour, $9.15 an hour after one year, and $10.10 an hour after two years. It would also allow student loan debt to be refinanced at rates available to current borrowers.” The underlying bill funded the government through December 11, 2014; it also included a provision reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank through June 30, 2015. The proposed amendment stated that the minimum wage, equal pay and student loan provisions would be effective only through December 11, 2014. The vote was on a motion to recommit the bill and report it back with the specified amendment; the House rejected the motion by a vote of 199 to 228. [House Vote 508, 9/17/14; Congressional Quarterly, 9/17/14; Congressional Quarterly, 7/10/14; H.J.Res. 124, 9/17/14; Congressional Record, 7/10/14; Congressional Record, 9/17/14]


Published: Mar 4, 2016

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