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Conference Calls

  • Integrating New Immigrants into our Communities: Smarter Policy, Smarter Politics
    02/06/2009 - 2:00pm

    On Friday, February 6, 2009 at 2:00pm EST Progressive States Network hosted a national conference call to share strategies for integrating immigrants into our communities and how states can implement them, with an eye on limiting the budget impact, welcoming immigrants, and driving local economic engines.

    The general failure of anti-immigration politics at the polls in recent years has led many state leaders to switch their focus from anti-immigration initiatives to addressing the real challenge of integrating new immigrants into our communities and economy - a strategy change that is especially critical now when we all need to work together to revive our states. All along, many state leaders have been quietly pursuing smart, integrative policies that promote stronger local communities, protect public safety and save money for the taxpayers.

    On this confernece call, we discussed the proactive and integrative immigration policies that state leaders can enact that can integrate new immigrants into our communities, while addressing voter concerns by improving public safety and highlighting the tax and fiscal contributions of those new immigrants.

    Panelists on the call were:

    • Minnesota Senator Patricia Torres Ray, Majority Whip and Vice Chair, Health, Housing and Family Security Committee
    • Jon Blazer, Public Benefits Policy Attorney, National Immigration Law Center (NILC)
    • Luvia Quiñones, New Americans Initiative Program Assistant Director, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
    • Caroline Fan, Immigration and Workers' Rights Policy Specialist, Progressive States Network
  • Economic Recovery: Federal Incentives for the States to Modernize the Unemployment Program
    12/19/2008 - 12:00pm

     

    On Friday, December 19, 2008 at 12:00pm EST, Progressive States Network together with the National Employment Law Project (NELP), the Half In Ten Campaign, and MomsRising, hosted a call to share information about the innovative state reforms featured in the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act (UIMA) and the critical role that state officials and state advocates can play in this timely federal debate.

    As state legislative sessions get going in January, states should be introducing bills right away featuring the model reforms that qualify for funding under the UIMA. In addition to discussing these reforms, the panel of experts will discuss other proven unemployment insurance policies that respond to the critical needs of workers struggling pay their bills and find new work in the midst of a severe recession.

    The outcome the federal debate over the economic recovery package to be introduced when the new Congress convenes is January is critical to the future of the state unemployment insurance programs, the nation's first line of defense against recessions. Backed by Senator Kennedy, Congressman Rangel and other Congressional leaders, the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act (UIMA) should be a core component of the national recovery agenda. The measure would provide $7 billion in incentive funds to states that provide benefits to more low-wage, women and part-time workers, helping over 500,000 workers collect benefits every year. In addition, the bill would provide all states with $500 million in funds to help them process record numbers of unemployment claims and get laid-off workers the help they need to get back on their feet.

    Panelists included (click names to contact):

    Take Action!

    Send a letter to your US Senator urging them to include passage of the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act (UIMA) in any recovery package that is passed. Go to www.momsrising.org/ModernizeUnemployment.

    Resources

    Recording of conference call: http://www.progressivestates.org/files/confcalls/unemploymentinsreform.mp3
    (listen online, or to download, right-click on the link above and select "Save Link As..", name and save)

    House Recovery Bill Would Bring Swift Relief To Economy and Unemployed Workers; Proposal Fills Major Holes in Saftey Net - National Employment Law Project (NELP) 
    A NELP press release from January 15, 2009 following the release of the details of the House Democratic Majority's economic recovery plan.  Among other provisions, the recovery plan (known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill) would enact the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act (UIMA).

    Unemployment Insurance Modernization Should Be Part of Recovery Plan - Progressive States Network

    Implementing the Model Provisions of the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act in the States - National Employment Law Project (NELP)
    This guide provides a summary of the key reforms that qualify for incentive funding under the UIMA and model
    state legislation     to help policy makers in the states as they introduce bills in preparation for their legislative
    sessions.

    Helping the Jobless Helps Us All: The Central Role of Unemployment Insurance inAmerica’s Economic Recovery - Half In Ten, NELP & the Center for American Progress Action Fund
    This new report by Maurice Emsellem and Andrew Stettner of the National Employment Law Project, Lisa Donner of Half in Ten, and Alexandra Cawthorne of the Center for American Progress Action Fund provides insight into the current unemployment crisis and explains the necessity of immediate action.

    Helping More Workers Get Unemployment Benefits: The Impact of UIMA - Half In Ten
    This webpage explains the impact of UIMA and includes a handy map and table with information about unemployment insurance in each state.

    Moms and the Unemployment Crisis: Is Federal Help on the Way? - MomsRising
    A call to action by Judi Conti of NELP, this blog article makes the case that now is the time for everyone, but especially mothers, to stand up and insist that the UIMA be signed into law as a necessary and core component of the nation’s new economic recovery agenda.

    Tell Your Senators: Economic Recovery Must Include Moms - MomsRising

    The Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act: Filling the Gaps in the Unemployment Safety NetWhile Stimulating the Economy - National Employment Law Project (NELP)
    This handy fact sheet provides information on UIMA and key state-by-state data. 

    Another Unconditional Giveaway of the Federal Unemployment Trust Funds: A Bad Deal for Jobless Workers and for the Unemployment Insurance Program - National Employment Law Project (NELP)
    This fact sheet why another no-strings-attached giveaway of the federal unemployment trust funds (like the past "Reed Act") would be devastating for jobless workers.

    Changing Workforce / Changing Economy - National Employment Law Project (NELP)
    NELP's comprehensive webpage on unemployment insurance. 

  • Universal Voter Registration
    12/05/2008 - 1:00pm

    On Friday, December 5, 2008 at 1:00pm EST, Progressive States Network hosted a national conference call to discuss strategies for implementing Universal Voter Registration, replacing our current voter-initiated registration procedures with systems designed to register every eligible voter. Leading advocates and a legislator addressed the goals, plans and successes of this growing movement.

    Speakers on the call included:

    • Senator-Elect Diane Rosenbaum, Oregon Senate
    • Wendy Weiser, Deputy Director of the Democracy Program, Brennan Center for Justice
    • Rob Richie, Director, FairVote
    • Christian Smith-Socaris, Election Reform Policy Specialist, Progressive States Network
    To listen to an audio recording of the call, click here.
  • Moving Forward with the New Progressive Mandate in the States
    11/06/2008 - 2:00pm


    [Click here for an mp3 recording of the full call.] 

    On the heels of Barack Obama’s landslide victory in Tuesday’s Presidential election, the national policy group Progressive States Network will host a conference call on Thursday in which policy experts, legislators, and advocates from across the nation will highlight the state-level mandate for progressive change that accompanied Obama’s victory and map an ambitious 50-state legislative agenda to capitalize on that mandate.

    Noting the fact that almost all states carried by Obama also saw gains for progressive leaders at the state level, PSN Executive Director Joel Barkin, who will lead the call, characterized Tuesday’s election as a genuinely national referendum in favor of progressive values.

    According to Barkin, “What we saw in this election was one of those rare, once-in a generation moments when the country speaks up as a whole and demands a new direction. This election confirmed that the majority of Americans want to move away from the conservative ideology of unfettered free markets and corporate welfare that has ravaged this country for the past three decades and instead turn toward a more equitable and just society. As a former State Senator, President Elect Obama understands better than most what a crucial role progressive state leaders can and must play in building such a society.”

    Among the key results to be detailed in the call are Democratic gubernatorial victories in Washington, North Carolina, and Delaware, which bring the total number of Democratic governorships to 29; new Democratic majorities in legislative chambers in Ohio, Wisconsin, Nevada, Delaware, and New York; expanded Democratic majorities in Oregon, Connecticut, Washington, and Michigan; as well as the legislative implications of new Democratic two-chamber-plus-governor “trifectas” in New York, Wisconsin, and Delaware, which bring the total number of Democratic trifectas to 16.

    The call will also detail shifts in the legislative map resulting from several outlying but significant Republican victories such as winning an unprecedented trifecta in Tennessee, taking the Oklahoma Senate for the first time in history, winning the Montana Senate, and holding onto the Arizona House of Representatives.

    On the ballot initiative front, speakers will detail how despite high profile losses on several gay marriage proposals, progressives fared quite well on other social issues including greater freedom for stem cell research in Michigan; protections for abortion in Colorado, South Dakota, and California; and preserving affirmative action in Colorado. Underscoring the mandate for progressive economic policy evidenced in Obama’s victory, speakers will also highlight defeats for several initiatives including a proposed repeal of the progressive income tax in Massachussetts, a measure to deregulate the pay-day lending industry in Arizona and Ohio, and a union-busting “right to work” measure in Colorado.

    In order to seize the legislative opportunity presented by this electoral mandate, PSN’s Policy team will outline a strategy to move a comprehensive set of progressive reforms in the first 100 days of the upcoming session, including proposals for partnering with Congress to push back many of the federal preemptions on state regulatory authority that have hampered attempts at progressive reform in the last decade, chief among them being the ERISA laws and SCHIP funding cuts which have proven to be a significant handicap for states pushing for health care reform in the absence of federal action on the issue.

    Despite the abundance of optimism in the wake of Tuesday’s results, Barkin stressed that the election of Democrats does not in and of itself amount to progressive change. “We’ve got a lot of work to do now to make sure our leaders follow through on the promise of change that the electorate so resoundingly demanded this Tuesday. From health care to job creation, from progressive taxation to smart energy policy, we’ve got to get out there and make sure that these victories change policies on the issues that matter to the American people instead of just changing who sits in the Statehouse. The table is set to wipe away the legacy of decades of failed conservative ideology, but what becomes of that opportunity is up to us.”