https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=CD889AD1-DFD1-4C17-A2F1-C62FC1072C30
Washington, D.C.) – Today, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) sharply criticized the Republican tax plan as a “massive giveaway to the rich” and highlighted how the bill would hurt middle class families, including provisions in the bill that would raise taxes on middle class families in exchange for a tax cut to the richest Americans and spike health care premiums for millions of working people. Senator Murray, a senior member of the Senate Budget Committee, questioned the Republican tax plan’s purported benefits for middle class families during a committee hearing, citing how the GOP tax plan would dramatically raise taxes on working people, increase the nation’s debt, worsen economic inequality and pave the way for cuts to critical safety net programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. During the hearing, Senator Murray urged her Republican colleagues to reject the partisan proposal and begin working with Democrats to craft a tax plan that actually benefits middle class families.
Senator Murray also underlined the GOP tax bill’s negative impact on working people earlier in the day, voicing her strong opposition to Senate Republicans’ most recent proposal to include a provision in the tax bill that would strip millions of their coverage in order to pay for tax breaks for the wealthy. Responding to reports that Senate Republicans may now support a bipartisan plan negotiated by Senators Murray and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) to stabilize health care markets and lower costs for patients, as an incentive for their votes for the Republican tax plan, Senator Murray made clear that the Murray-Alexander stabilization plan, currently backed by 60 Senators and counting, won’t undo any of the damage that this latest Republican health care repeal effort would cause and will ultimately take money out of the pockets of middle class families.
Full text of Senator Murray’s remarks below.
Thank you Chairman Enzi and Ranking Member Sanders.
Before I start I want to make some quick clarifications—since it sounds like some of my Republican colleagues are confused and may be at the wrong hearing.
If anyone is here to mark up a bill that cuts taxes for the middle class—this is the wrong room, sorry.
If anyone is here to mark up a bill that actually creates jobs and invests in our workforce, and doesn’t just pay lip service to it—this isn’t the right place.
If anyone is here because they care about the deficit and debt—and want to vote for a bill that reduces it—again, wrong room.
I’m not sure where you want to go—but I can tell you that it’s not here, and it’s not this bill.
But if anyone is looking for the markup of a bill that RAISES taxes on the middle class, hands another massive tax cut to the richest Americans, increases health care premiums for millions of patients, makes a back-door attempt to drill for oil in one of our planet’s most pristine regions, and blasts a massive hole in our deficit that puts Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security in grave danger, well—then you are in the right place!
Chairman Enzi—I know I shouldn’t be shocked any more—but I have to admit, I am.
I have sat next to so many Republicans over the years who have told me—with straight faces—that they care passionately about the deficit and debt, who have sat here in this room and gone to the Senate floor with charts and graphs and big arrows pointing to the sky, talking about how much the deficit will increase under Democratic proposals to invest in the middle class.
Presenting this as not just a budget issue—but a moral issue. It’s about our children and grandchildren, they said. It’s about the future of our country—they insisted.
Well—where are all those so-called deficit hawks now? Where are those charts and graphs? I would like to see them today. Where is the moral outrage? Where is the concern for our children, grandchildren, and the fiscal health of our nation?
When Democrats wanted to increase investments in education, health care, and middle class tax cuts, deficit hawks were front and center, leading the opposition.
But now that Republican leaders are trying to jam through this massive tax cut for the rich, which every analysis has shown would blast a historic hole in our deficit. Well, the silence, so far, is deafening.
So once again, I shouldn’t be shocked any more—but I really am.
This is an issue that should be bipartisan. There is absolutely no reason that Republicans leaders had to try to jam this partisan bill through.
There is no reason this had to be such a massive giveaway to the rich. There is no reason—absolutely no reason—that this has to include a health care provision that would lead to 13 million more people without insurance, showing up in emergency rooms, and increasing premiums for everyone else.
There is no reason for this—because Democrats have made it very clear: if Republicans want to work with us to cut taxes for the middle class—we are ready to get to work!
If they want to work with us to actually deliver on the promises President Trump made on the campaign trail to put workers and the middle class first, which he has spent every day breaking, we will be there.
And it’s not too late.
This is a bad bill. Not if you’re a millionaire or a billionaire—then it’s fantastic.
But for workers, patients, the middle class, and those who go to work every day trying to join the middle class—it’s awful.
If you truly care about the deficit and debt—it’s a disaster.
And there are Republicans on this Committee who have the power to stand up, do the right thing, and get to work in a bipartisan way on a bill they can truly be proud of.
I know it won’t be easy for them to buck the leadership of their party who have already made a terrible mistake by going down this path.
But I am hopeful it happens.
And I am ready to get to work with them if it does.
RELATED STORY: RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel: "Democrats were for tax reform before they were against it"---Shared news story from the Washington Examiner posted on the White House page.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/11/29/rnc-chairwoman-ronna-mcdaniel-democrats-were-tax-reform-they-were
Original Washington Examiner posted article (link source)
Quote: " The country is ready for tax reform. It’s great news, then, that the House of Representatives passed its tax cut bill, and they did it on the same day the Senate Finance Committee passed its version. The Tax Cuts & Jobs Act is steadily making its way through Congress and will be a welcome relief to families, businesses, and workers, letting everyone keep more of their hard-earned money.
Now, as the full Senate prepares to consider the bill, Democrats in Congress vowing to oppose the bill should remember what they themselves once supported.
Just take Democrat leadership, for example. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said this August that his party wanted a plan that would ease the tax burden on the middle-class. He even said he would negotiate with Republicans to get that done. Last year, he was in favor of cutting the corporate tax rate to make American businesses competitive worldwide.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in May spoke in favor of reforms to create a fair tax system and grow the economy – and she specifically cautioned against ideological negotiation in the process. Last year she also highlighted the need for a lower corporate tax rate, and previously spoke in favor of repealing the Alternative Minimum Tax – part of the Republicans’ own tax plan.
Schumer and Pelosi are joined in hypocrisy by a slew of their Democrat colleagues: Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri has called for tax reform. So have Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Bill Nelson of Florida, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin. Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan agreed this year, as did Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio.
In fact, Democrats were in favor of key provisions of the new tax cut package before there ever was a plan. They supported expanding the child tax credit. When former President Barack Obama proposed in 2012 slashing the corporate tax rate, they were on board. In 2010, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., wanted a repeal of the Alternative Minimum Tax. Just last year, then-Democratic presidential primary candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., wanted it replaced with a simpler flat rate.
Early this year, Democrats said they would set partisanship aside to work on these much-needed reforms. Then, when President Trump and Republicans offered a framework to do just that, they reversed course and adopted a disingenuous narrative that paints the plan as a scheme to help the wealthy.
It’s anything but that.
Statement from the Press Secretary on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Passing the Senate Budget Committee
President Donald J. Trump applauds the Senate Budget Committee on taking an important step toward passing historic tax relief and reform and clearing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act this afternoon. The momentum driving our shared priorities of job growth, economic competiveness, and fiscal responsibility through tax reform is undeniable, and this Administration is encouraged by the progress the Senate has made toward achieving these priorities. The President looks forward to providing tax cuts for hardworking Americans by the end of the year.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/11/28/statement-press-secretary-tax-cuts-and-jobs-act-passing-senate-budget
(PAGE 2) THE GOVERNOR'S RESPONSE TO GOP TAX CUTS
10 reasons to say ‘no’ to the GOP’s budget-busting, millionaire-windfall tax plan--from the Governor's blog page.
https://medium.com/wagovernor/10-reasons-to-say-no-to-the-gop-s-budget-busting-millionaire-windfall-tax-plan-d0ff2975e279
Republicans are blowing a $1.5 trillion hole in the federal budget to fund massive tax cuts for the wealthy and leave Washington’s middle-class families behind.
The GOP tax plan being jammed through Congress is a bad deal for the middle class, a bad deal for Washington state, and a bad deal for America.
Let’s take a look at 10 reasons Congress should just say “no” and try again.
1. Middle-income Washingtonians would be forced to pay hundreds of dollars more in federal taxes. Thanks to the elimination of the state and local tax deduction (SALT), about 1 million hard-working Washingtonians would no longer be able to claim this deduction, increasing their federal taxes by hundreds of dollars each year on average. Eighty-five percent of Washingtonians who claim this deduction are middle-income.
2. Makes it more expensive to be a teacher. Under the bill passed by the House, Washington’s 64,000 teachers would lose deductions for classroom supplies. Teachers spend, on average, $500 of their own money each year on supplies. Guess who would get to keep their deduction for supply expenses? Corporations.
3. Makes it more expensive to be a senior. Washington’s 1.6 million seniors would lose their ability to deduct medical expenses. If you think that’s a tough enough hit on seniors, the GOP tax plan would also result in $25 billion in cuts to Medicare nationally, which would amount to roughly $500 million in cuts in Washington state.
4. Makes it harder to afford a college education. The GOP plan would eliminate the student loan interest deduction, forcing more than 275,000 Washingtonians to pay over $1,000 more each year, on average, on their student debt. It also would impose massive tax and tuition increases on thousands of graduate students at the University of Washington and Washington State University, and would prevent major employers in our region — such as Amazon and Starbucks — from continuing to offer tax-free tuition assistance programs to their workers.
5. Harms the retirement of Washington’s teachers, firefighters and law enforcement officers. The GOP plan effectively would take money out of the pockets of nearly 320,000 public workers in Washington — including teachers, fire fighters, law enforcement officers, public safety employees and judges — by unfairly taxing public pension plans to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy. These workers already pay more than $3.6 billion each year toward their retirement. At a time when too many Americans are having trouble saving for retirement, we should not be making it even harder.
6. Reduces incentive to give to charity. Washington is home to some of the leading philanthropic organizations working on cures for devastating diseases, eradicating poverty and improving public education. According to the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT), 32 million fewer Americans would donate to charitable causes under the House bill — and charitable donations would drop by $95 billion each year.
7. Immediately stops development of affordable housing and worsens the homelessness crisis. The GOP plan would immediately halt the development of more than 2,000 affordable housing units in Washington, by eliminating tax-exempt bonds that have already produced almost 55,000 apartments and supported more than 87,000 jobs across the state. The immediate effects would deny affordable housing to an estimated 4,000 families in Snohomish, King, Clark, Pierce, Whitman and Spokane counties, including more than 1,000 elderly households and over 300 people with disabilities.
8. Ends incentives to hire veterans, people with disabilities and unemployed Americans. The GOP plan would eliminate the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC), which helped more than 50,000 disadvantaged workers in Washington find jobs last year — including 2,000 veterans, almost 500 of whom were unemployed for six months or more and over 40 of whom were veterans with disabilities. WOTC has shown tremendous success in increasing self-sufficiency and moving people from public assistance to employment.
9. Threatens infrastructure projects and thousands of construction jobs across Washington. The GOP plan would abolish an essential financing tool used by entities across the state — including colleges, ports, hospitals, charities, municipal governments, businesses and nonprofit organizations — to develop 21st century infrastructure and put Washingtonians to work. Tax-exempt bond financing creates thousands of jobs each year that help build new educational facilities, expand manufacturing operations, conduct environmental restoration, and more. Without these bonds, thousands of Washington jobs and dozens of critical infrastructure projects would be lost.
10. This plan increases the federal deficit by $1.5 trillion to benefit the wealthiest 1 percent.
On September 27, 1994, Minority Whip Newt Gingrich joined hundreds of Republicans to sign a “Contract With America” that included legislation to enact a balanced budget requirement and “restore fiscal responsibility to an out-of-control Congress.”
Yet here we are today, with sweeping legislation that balloons the deficit by a whopping $1.5 trillion. And instead of using tax savings to help working families, it heaps nearly 50 percent of the benefits on the wealthiest 1 percent of taxpayers while increasing taxes on 36 million middle-class families.
It is clear the plan will have damaging and far-reaching consequences for Washingtonians — from exacerbating homelessness to worsening student debt. The decision to release the GOP tax plan less than a month before scheduling a vote in Congress means federal lawmakers and our state — not to mention Washington families — have been given no meaningful opportunities for input on wide-ranging tax proposals that affect each and every Washingtonian. That should be considered an essential step to crafting thoughtful policy that benefits, rather than harms, our state.
That’s why I have called on the state’s congressional delegation to reject this partisan approach. We can and must do better.
(PAGE 3)
AG FERGUSON FILES MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST UBER FOR FAILING TO REPORT MASSIVE DATA BREACH
Press release issued 11/ 28/ 17http://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/ag-ferguson-files-multi-million-dollar-lawsuit-against-uber-failing-report
OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today filed a multi-million dollar consumer protection lawsuit against ride sharing company Uber, alleging thousands of violations of the state’s data breach notification law. Uber discovered a data breach potentially affecting 57 million passengers and drivers around the world, including the names and driver’s license numbers of at least 10,888 Uber drivers in Washington.
Under a 2015 amendment to the state’s data breach law requested by Ferguson, consumers must be notified within 45 days of a breach, and the Attorney General’s Office also must be notified within 45 days if the breach affects 500 or more Washingtonians. This is the first lawsuit filed under the revised statute.
“Washington law is clear: When a data breach puts people at risk, businesses must inform them,” Ferguson said. “Uber’s conduct has been truly stunning. There is no excuse for keeping this information from consumers.”
The complaint, filed today in King County Superior Court, alleges thousands of violations of Washington’s data breach law by failing to notify affected drivers and the Attorney General’s Office within 45 days of the breach.
In November 2016, an individual contacted Uber claiming he had accessed Uber’s user information. Uber investigated and confirmed that person and one other individual had in fact accessed the company’s files, including the names, email addresses and telephone numbers of about 50 million passengers worldwide. If Uber’s assessment of the compromised data is correct, this type of information does not require notification under Washington’s law.
However, the hackers also obtained the names and driver’s license numbers of about 7 million drivers for the company. About 600,000 of those drivers live in the United States, and at least 10,888 live in Washington.
Uber notified the Attorney General’s Office of the breach Nov. 21, 2017, roughly 372 days after it discovered the breach. Rather than reporting the breach as required by law, the company has admitted to paying the hackers to destroy the stolen data.
This lawsuit does not address any data security issues that may have led to the breach. Today’s lawsuit does not preclude future action on other issues.
The office argues each day Uber failed to report for each individual qualifies as a separate violation under the law. Ferguson’s lawsuit asks for civil penalties of up to $2,000 per violation, which should result in a penalty in the millions of dollars. The state also asks for recovery of its costs and fees.
Senior Counsel Shannon Smith and Assistant Attorneys General Tiffany Lee and Andrea Alegrett are handling the case.
Data breach notification in Washington
Ferguson updated Washington’s data breach notification laws with agency request legislation passed in 2015. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Zack Hudgins (D-Tukwila) and Sen. John Braun (R-Centralia).
Washington has two data breach laws: One applying to individuals and businesses, the other for local and state government agencies. The laws are essentially the same and require notification to Washingtonians at risk of harm because of a security breach that includes personal information, meaning someone’s name and any of the following:
Social Security number;
Driver’s license number or Washington identification card number; or
Bank account number or credit or debit card number, in combination with any required security code, access code, or password that would permit access to an individual’s account.
This FAQ document lays out the data breach law for businesses.
Since reporting began in 2015, the Attorney General’s Office has produced annual reports examining the data from the previous year. The most recent report found that breaches affected nearly 3 million Washingtonians, more than six times the number affected in the previous 12 months.
( page 4)
60 days behind bars for former insurance agent in $233K workers' comp scam---Press release from the Labor and Industries, posted 11/ 27/ 17
http://lni.wa.gov/News/2017/pr171127a.aspEverett – A Lake Stevens man who ran his own insurance agency while claiming he was too disabled to work must serve 60 days in jail.
James C. Kooy, 53, was sentenced today, Nov. 27, on one count of first-degree theft for wrongfully receiving more than $233,000 in workers' compensation payments from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I).
Kooy had pleaded guilty to the felony charge in Snohomish County Superior Court in September. Judge Bruce Weiss also ordered Kooy to repay the state for an amount to be determined at a hearing in March.
"This case was truly outrageous. He worked for at least five years in his own business without telling us or his doctors," said Elizabeth Smith, assistant director of L&I's Fraud Prevention & Labor Standards.
"By cheating to get cash benefits, he took money away from legitimately injured workers who really do need help to heal and get back to work."
Business generated $800,000 in revenue
An L&I investigation determined Kooy owned and operated By the Lake Insurance Inc. at the same time he claimed to be too injured to work and was receiving workers' comp benefits. Over that five-year period ending in April 2015, the investigation found the Lake Stevens business generated more than $800,000 in revenue.
The Washington Attorney General's Office prosecuted the case as an "aggravated," or especially serious, offense because it happened over a long time, and involved multiple acts as well as the loss of a large amount of money. Aggravated cases can result in more severe punishment.
Said he would sell business
Kooy, who had earlier twisted his knee while working as a heavy equipment operator, began receiving partial wage replacement benefits from L&I in 2008.
In June 2010, he opened his insurance agency, so L&I stopped providing the cash benefits. The department later reinstated the wage replacement checks after his lawyer said Kooy was unable to work and planned to sell the company, according to charging papers.
Fails to tell doctors, falsely declares to L&I
In 2015, L&I began investigating Kooy after receiving information that he did not sell the business and was likely working. The investigation found Kooy still owned the business and was selling insurance policies, attending business meetings and personally communicating with clients and vendors.
At the same time, he didn't tell his physicians and vocational counselor he was working, and falsely declared on L&I forms that he was not working — all deceptions that enabled him to keep getting state wage replacement checks.
Injured workers must tell L&I if they work
L&I administers the state workers' comp insurance system that provides medical, vocational and other services to help employees injured on the job heal and return to work.
Injured workers are sometimes eligible to receive limited replacement of their wages, if their doctor confirms they can't work because of the injury. Workers, however, must notify L&I if they do work.
EFSEC votes to deny proposed Vancouver oil terminal
Council directs staff to draft final recommendation report for Gov. Inslee---A UTC press release issued 11/ 28/ 17https://www.utc.wa.gov/aboutUs/Lists/News/DispForm.aspx?ID=488
OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) today voted to recommend the governor deny the proposed Vancouver Energy project.
The council voted unanimously to submit a recommendation to deny the project and directed staff to draft its final recommendation report. The report will be presented to the council for approval at meeting on Dec. 19.
After the final report is approved in December, EFSEC will submit its formal recommendation and the accompanying record documents on Dec. 29 to Gov. Jay Inslee. The governor then has 60 days to make a final decision.
In 2013, Tesoro Savage Petroleum Terminal LLC, also known as Vancouver Energy, applied for a site certification agreement from EFSEC to construct and operate the Tesoro Savage Vancouver Energy Distribution Terminal at the Port of Vancouver, Washington. At full operation, the project would be capable of receiving up to 360,000 barrels of crude oil transported by train, per day, for delivery to refineries primarily located on the West Coast.
EFSEC held a public meeting to vote on its recommendation Tuesday afternoon in the J.A. Cherberg Building in Olympia. No public comment was taken.
TVW’s broadcast of the meeting can be found online at www.tvw.org.
Key findings of the final Environmental Impact Statement, which evaluates the potential environmental impacts of constructing and operating the proposed terminal, were presented to council members during a Nov. 21 public workshop in Olympia.
The Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the project was released in November 2015 and received approximately 250,000 comments.
EFSEC was created by the state Legislature in 1970 to provide one-stop licensing for large energy projects. The council's responsibilities include siting large natural gas and oil pipelines, thermal electric power plants that are 350 megawatts or greater and their dedicated transmission lines, new oil refineries or large expansions of existing facilities, and underground natural gas storage fields.
Daily Bible Verse: [ The Day of the Lord ] But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,
2 Peter 3:10-11 NKJV
Free bible studies (WBS)
Learn english using the bible as text (WEI)
(Join us in worship every Sunday starting at 10:30AM Church of Christ)
