 An email bulletin on national issues, exclusively for NAWB
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House Budget ResolutionHouse GOP leaders are still trying to pass the FY07 budget resolution. However, insiders indicate that the budget debate may be postponed at least a week as GOP leaders try to pass the lobbying reform bill, which is scheduled for a vote this week. However, a pre-recess dispute between appropriators and GOP conservatives may continue, further delaying passage of the House budget resolution. Senate and House AppropriationsThe Senate has been occupied this week with trying to pare down their proposed $106.5 million FY 2006 emergency supplemental appropriations bill, which includes $7.4 billion for rebuilding the Gulf Coast and $3.9 million for drought relief. President Bush has threatened to veto the bill if the Senate proposal is more than $94.5 billion. On the House side, the leadership of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor-HHS-Ed has targeted June 5th as its day to mark up that bill. It appears that, whether or not there is a final House budget resolution, the conservatives in the House will continue their attempts to enforce deep cuts in these domestic programs, including the workforce investment programs. So it continues to be imperative for the business members of the WIBs to have personal meetings with their House Representatives to show them the data on the impact that 15% cuts will have on WIA programs within their congressional districts. This is becoming increasingly important as proposals by moderate Republicans, similar to the successful Specter-Harkin Amendment to the Senate budget resolution, are not materializing at this point. WIBs should make appointments now to meet with their Members of Congress when they are at home for the Memorial Day recess, May 29th–June 2nd. ETA Proposes to Streamline SCESP ProgramThe U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) proposes to restructure the Senior Community Service Employment (SCESP) Program, the federal program designed for Older Americans. The ETA proposal recommends: Upcoming Special Events Early Bird Rate Ends May 7th for Building the Broadband Economy 2006Building the Broadband Economy 2006 is scheduled for June 8th- 9th in New York City. This conference will explore how innovative communities can take advantage of a connected world to create jobs, spur business growth, an empower citizens. Featured speakers include James Balsillie, Chairman of Research in Motion, William Eggers, Global Director of Deloitte Research and author of Government 2.0, and Ying-jeou Ma, Mayor of Taipei, to name a few. NAWB members receive a discounted registration. Click here for more details http://www.intelligentcommunity.org.
Northwest Agriculture Consortium SymposiumThe Farmworker Institute for Education and Leadership Development (FIELD) and the Northwest Agricultural Consortium-Oregon is hosting a special symposium on Rural Economic Sustainability on May 18th in Salem, Oregon. The purpose of the symposium is to unveil the results of a research study conducted on workforce issues affecting rural communities. For further information, contact Chuck Beauchamp at (541) 758-2153 or via email at charlesb@farmworkerinstitute.org.
IEDC Annual ConferenceThe theme of this year’s International Economic Development Council (IEDC) annual conference is “Road Map for the Knowledge-Driven Economy.” It will be held in New York City on September 17th – 20th. The conference agenda will cover topics in five major tracks: The Cutting Edge of Economic Development: Building Community Through Taking Risks; Attracting, Training and Retaining a Skilled Workforce to Compete in the Creative Economy; The Nuts and Bolts of Economic Development: Tools for Attracting New Investment and Building Strong Communities; High-Impact Real Estate Financing; and, Leveraging Urban, Suburban and Rural Assets for Sustained Economic Growth. To learn more about this conference, click on www.iedconline.org. New Publications
Economic Policy Institute Report Casts Doubt on Youth Dropout CrisisUSA Today reported earlier this week that a recent study by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) found that nearly 75% of minority students—and 82% of students overall— graduate with their class or soon thereafter, and that graduation rates of minorities are catching up with whites. For a copy of the article, please click on http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2006-04-19-minority-grad-rates_x.htm or http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/book_grad_rates.
Interest in Science & Technology Is Similar for Minority StudentsA recent item in the SSTI Weekly Digest cites the newly-released report, Increasing the Success of Minority Students in Science and Technology, which states that “African American and Hispanic students begin college interested in majoring in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields at rates similar to those of white and Asian-American students and persist in these fields through their third year of study, but do not arn their bachelor’s degrees at the same rate as their peers.” See http://www.acenet.edu for more details on this report prepared by the American Council on Education. New Resources
The Employment Guide® Offers Hourly Worker Recruitment SolutionsThe Employment Guide® and EmploymentGuide.com (www.EmploymentGuide.com offer a winning combination of recruitment solutions to target hourly workers in niche markets like transportation, healthcare and security. With 73 weekly employment magazines in 70 markets nationwide, an award-winning national on-line job board, and more than 185 job fairs, The Employment Guide and EmploymentGuide.com will help meet an employer’s hourly worker recruitment needs. To learn more about The Employment Guide and EmploymentGuide.com (www.EmploymentGuide.com), please contact Andrea Rizzo at 1-800-871-0800, ext. 3507.
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Vol VI Issue 8 IN THIS ISSUE:
 Remember to go to CapWiz to see if your Senators voted in favor of the Specter-Harkin Amendment. Thank them for their support and urge them to continue supporting the restoration of funding for the Workforce Investment Act and Employment Services during the upcoming appropriations deliberations.
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