Discussions of Merged City/County Services Taking Place Behind Closed Doors

I could have sworn that Mayor Slay and his advisors were saying that they wanted to plan the city's future along with "the people." Mayor Slay:

Over the spring and coming summer months, I plan to continue the conversations with City voters that began in the successful campaign for passage of Proposition E. And I will ask other city officials to join the discussion and to work with me on a systematic review of government - what we do, why we do it, and how much it costs.

And his Chief of Staff Jeff Rainford:

And the key here is the voters. The voters in the City and the County are going to have a say in how much they want us doing business together and I think they've got to be part of the conversation and be brought in to the conversation.

Yet, KMOX reports that meetings have been taking place behind closed doors, and that not even Aldermanic President Lewis Reed knew about them:

A top St. official says there needs to be some legal ‘sunlight’ cast on the continuing merger talks between St. Louis City and County, which have been taking place out of public view.

Aldermanic President Lewis Reed says he was shocked to learn in earlier news reports that city and county officials have been meeting to talk about dovetailing economic development, construction codes and healthcare. “I am not in the loop at all on any of this,” Reed said. “I found out in the news paper like everyone else.”

Reed requested that he and the comptroller be brought into the conversations "as a bare minimum:"

Reed says the Mayor’s office alone should not be at the table in the merger talks. He wants his office and the comptroller in on any future negotiations. “At minimum today, or as soon as possible, the Board of Estimate and Apportionment should get an update on what is going on,” Reed said. “And that would be the bare minimum.”

Rainford responded to the story on Twitter as follows:

But this seems to miss the point. I don't think peopler were criticizing the idea of meeting behind closed doors to plan a merger because what they really wanted was for the officials to meet behind closed doors and declare that there wouldn't be a merger. The point is that this should be a transparent and open process where citizens are given an opportunity to help shape the discussions rather than a group of suits meeting behind closed doors before bringing "The Answers" out on stone tablets to be voted on.

Community Organizations React to Koster's Cowardice

Statement:

Community Organizations Decry Attorney General Koster’s Brief as More Political Gamesmanship Around Health Care Law

Groups Point Out that Affordable Care Act is Benefitting Tens of Thousands of Missouri Seniors and Families.

Missouri Jobs with Justice, a coalition of more than 100 labor, community, faith and student organizations, expressed disappointment that Missouri’s Attorney General is contributing to the politicization of the Affordable Care Act.

Jobs with Justice and other community groups previously praised Attorney General Koster for staying out of politically-motivated lawsuits, despite pressure from Republican lawmakers urging Koster to sue the federal government.

“Attorney General Koster is late to this game,” said Amy Smoucha, health care organizer with Missouri Jobs with Justice, “and his action can only be seen as joining the political circus.” Smoucha points out that Missouri cannot join the Florida lawsuit because it is on appeal and Koster’s brief will have almost no impact on the case. “These games have high stakes for Missourians,” Smoucha maintains. “While Missourians are more concerned about jobs and while tens of thousands of Missouri seniors, small businesses and families are benefiting from the Affordable Care Act, Attorney General Koster just demonstrated he’s more interested in politics.”

Mary Clemons, a resident of Kirkwood and a senior citizen on Medicare, spoke about the law’s immediate benefits. “People with health insurance pay higher premiums to cover those who have none,” Clemons said. Clemons, who is a member of the group Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice, also expressed disappointment in Attorney General Koster’s decision to file an amicus brief in the Florida case. “We believe that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is the law of the land and should be upheld and implemented in its entirety. Missouri citizens are already enjoying the benefits of the law, and we support the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” Clemons stated.

Jobs with Justice cites the immediate benefits of the Affordable Care Act that lawsuits may put in jeopardy, including

• More than 82,000 senior citizens who are getting help with prescription drugs
• Nearly 3.3 million residents of Missouri with private insurance coverage who are now protected from lifetime limits placed on how much insurance companies will spend on their health care.
• 961,000 seniors in Missouri who have Medicare coverage would be forced to pay a co-pay to receive important preventive services, like mammograms and colonoscopies.
• 118 Employers receiving help from the Early Retiree Reinsurance ProgramThousands of Missourians who now have health insurance coverage because of the ACA provisions for children, young adults and people with pre-existing conditions.

Activist Hub Radio 4/10/2011

This week Adam and I interviewed Fifi and Sandra from the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC). We talked about the prospects for peace between Israel and Palestine, and the controversy over Marvin Casey, an Israeli Cultural Ambassador, and Wash U's Universal Beatz.



Also we are on itunes so please subscribe Activist Hub Radio on Itunes.

Links
St. Louis Palestine Solidarity Committee Website
St. Louis Palestine Solidarity Committee on Facebook
The Palestine Papers

Chris Koster Should be Primaried

Chris Koster has announced that he is supporting the Republican lawsuit against the Affordable Care Act:

After months of remaining publicly neutral on the issue, Koster, a Democrat, filed a friend of the court brief Monday in a federal case in Florida where several states have joined together to combat President Barack Obama's health care plan.

The attorney general's move against the health care mandate is sure to raise eyebrows among progressives, some who have been wary of Koster's party credentials since he defected from the GOP a year before running statewide.

Though he technically is not "joining" the lawsuit, but rather filing a "friend of the court" briefing, he is basically undermining the defining piece of legislation of the Democratic administration of the past two year: a change that was fought tooth and nail by greedy insurance companies who maximize profits at the expense of the American public. And Koster is doing so despite the fact that Republicans have made clear that they won't vote for him even if he flip flops.

I don't think the Democratic party should tolerate statewide officials undermining the party. I have no interest in voting for Koster after this pathetic pandering. I hope people who actually believe in the values of the Democratic party can find a good primary challenger who would at least give us a decent candidate to vote for in November 2012.

Birthday Wish: Raising Money for JwJ and ForwardSTL

Last year for my birthday, I raised $942 from 34 people for the amazing organization Missouri Jobs with Justice. My fundraising was in part a response to the intense media coverage provided to the tea party's anti-transit campaign despite the fact that the campaign only ever had 25 people at a rally and could only raise $750 for their cause .

This year, I'm doing something a little different, but related. First, I am again raising money for Missouri JwJ, because I still believe them to be the most effective group at strategically working for change that protects and improves the lives of working families. Here's what I wrote about them last year:

First of all, Missouri Jobs with Justice is an amazing group. They do not just fight against symptoms, but work to address the structural problems that lead to economic injustice in our society. They led the effort to raise the Missouri minimum wage back in 2006 and have defended it from right-wing attack in the state legislature every year since. They stopped Ward Connerly from even being able to get enough signatures to get an anti-Affirmative Action initiative on the ballot. They helped coordinate the Missouri push for health care reform. And they've trained thousands of people to organize for social change. Any money that goes to Missouri JwJ will be used strategically and thoughtfully to fight for a more just society.

This past year, JwJ played a crucial role in educating voters in St. Louis and Kansas City about the importance of the Earnings Tax and the disastrous consequences of eliminating it. They have also been working hard to protect the minimum wage, to protect workers' right to organize, and to fight against plans to put in place tax structures that primarily punish the poor and middle class while lowering taxes on the wealthy.

However, in addition to raising money for JwJ, I am also raising money this year to pay for facebook advertising costs for a new venture, ForwardSTL.org. ForwardSTL was created by local bloggers based on the idea that our local media does not give enough of a voice to progressives, activists, and people who are interested in using new approaches to move the region forward. The site serves as a vehicle for highlighting interesting news and analysis not only from mainstream media sources, but also from citizens who write about their own experiences with activism, who share their analyses of politics, or who take video and photos of local events. In short, it's a way of building up our own citizen's media that will help to give a voice to perspectives that are not adequately covered in the traditional media. It is not competition against the local media, but rather a way of filling the holes in the coverage (such as, for example, the fact that many in the local media ignored a 4,300 person pro-union rally several weeks ago). And, I think you will find, it is something that is available to benefit any local social justice organization or any activist, as the site is specifically designed to share the content that you create!

Anyway, I hope my friends and fellow fighters of the good fight can help pitch in to two endeavors that I believe can fundamentally change the St. Louis region for the better by clicking the donate button. The ability to effectively organize and the ability to effectively communicate are two necessary components of any movement designed to facilitate positive change. We have all of the talent, energy, and experience we need to make St. Louis better: we just need to do it.

Thank you for your consideration,

Adam

Shocker! Recipient of Sinquefield Donations Wants to Deprive Public Schools of Funding!

Great catch by Sean at FiredUp of some more craziness from State Senator Brian Nieves. Nieves is off his rocker as usual, so you should read the full post for pure entertainment value if nothing else, but the issue that set Nieves off is pretty interesting. Basically, Nieves has been threatening to block $200 million dollars in federal education funds for Missouri Schools. And, as pointed out by Union R-XI School Superintendent Steve Bryant, Nieves is also the recipient of campaign contributions from Missouri's favorite millionaire voucher evangelist Rex Sinquefield:

“His (Nieves) idea is that we need to work on federal spending, but I just don’t feel this type of political stunt is how we accomplish that,” said Bryant. “It seems likely that his philosophy centers around major contributors like Rex Sinquefield.”

And more:

“I certainly understand the point that Sen. Nieves is trying to make in curtailing federal spending, and I don’t think anyone disagrees that we need to make more changes at the federal level, and at the same time, I understand the financial needs of this state,” Bryant said.

“This money is being put out regardless. It is already in the pipeline. He certainly has the right to make a point, but that money won’t be sent back to the federal government — it will be redistributed to other states,” Bryant added. “It really puts a big hole in the already strained budget of Missouri.”

“That jobs bill was to plug a hole in the state education budget. I think it is a real detriment in out ability to serve kids,” Bryant said,

Another superintendent shared Bryant's views on the fillibuster:

“It really was on the verge on ridiculous, but this latest change of events appears to be good news for public school districts,” VanLeer said. “I understand the principle of the matter, but it’s at the expense of schoolchildren.”

Just another day of common sense and basic decency being trumped by dogmatic extremism built on the foundation of free-market mumbo-jumbo.

For an example of biased “journalism” see: Earnings Tax is tip of broader debate on city’s future by David Nichlaus of the Post Dispatch

Adam wrote on April 6 about the mayor of St. Louis planning for the demise of earnings tax despite the overwhelming support it received. . As any good journalist would, he pointed out that Rex Sinquefield's donations to the mayor raised the possibility of conflict of interest. Today David Nicklaus of the Post Dispatch took up the effort to repeal the earnings tax in opposition to the voters.
Mr. Nicklaus acknowledges that the voters overwhelmingly approved the tax. How could he do otherwise? However he asserts that the earnings tax is what prevents the city from being competitive. How did he arrive at such a conclusion? He based it on this statement by a contractor working for the Missouri Council for a Better Economy which is funded by Rex Sinquefield. So Randy Bauer, a man currently working for Rex Sinquefield, says
“We do a lot of work in a lot of cities, and I cannot think of another metro area where the suburb of 20,000 has a skyline like Clayton has. There is a reason all those companies have decided to go there.”Mr. Bauer does not say what the reason is but David Nicklaus assumes he means the earnings tax.
Maybe Mr. Bauer does not give a reason because like Mr. Nichols he has not studied the issue. Perhaps Mr.Bauer has standards of honesty and professionalism that preclude such a statement ? David Nicklaus is not burdened with such standards so he can say anything.
So if one wanted to honestly study such a phenomenon he or she might begin with some research before performing analysis.
How many cities have earnings taxes in the U.S.? answer 14 states and the district of Columbia a list encompassing hundreds of cities.

Has there ever been a documented scientific study that demonstrates that employers avoid such cities? In truth I do not know. Nor apparently does Mr. Nicklaus. Mayor Schoemehl did tell me personally that studies showed no correlation but I cannot speak from personal knowledge.
Of those how many like St. Louis have a competing burb like Clayton? Admittedly I have done no research but according to David Nicklaus's expert Randy Bauer, none. I will take him at his word.
How many cities that have a competing burbs like Clayton are a city which is also a county? If we assume that Mr. Bauer's assertion about no other city being like St. Louis, I would have to assume that St. Louis is the only city with only 72 square miles incorporated competing with its own county. (sloppy scholarship I admit but I make no claims)
Having dismissed Mr. Nicholas unsupported assertion that the earnings tax is THE reason lets go on with the rest of his article which is about the “excellent study “commissioned by Rex Sinquefield to explore how the replacing Earnings Tax can be accomplished.
According to David Nicklaus the study makes suggestions that will “anger powerful interest groups.” You know those interest groups, aka special interest, the people who unlike Rex Sinquefield and his toadies don't have the city's’ best interest at heart. The powerful interest groups include :

Homeowners : Nicklaus, Mayor Slay and Rex Sinquefield want to raise property taxes but those selfish homeowners may not think that is fair. The homeowners fear losing their homes, the renters higher rents and everyone fears paying a dispropotionate amount.

Small business owners and consumers: Rex Sinquefield et al want to raise sales taxes but those selfish business owners fear losing their businesses and the consumers skyrocketing prices or being forced to shop outside the city.

Hotel and entertainment industry: these selfish folks are concerned about scaring away tourist and conventions thus costing us millions in economic activity and thousands of jobs.
.
Not for Profits: The city’s largest employers feel that their not for profit status is deserved and that they should be rewarded for what they bring to the community not penalized. Evil Not for Profits.
Now I will say that Mr. Nicklaus makes one argument that may be valid. He says that a large reliance on one revenue source is not balanced. However I must ask; Is the earnings tax dependent on one revenue source or is every business is the city plus every business a city employee works in a fairly diverse source. Plus is 30% too great in one source?
The article ends “Just because something is difficult does not mean it is not worth pursuing. “ I must agree but is there any evidence that this change is worth pursuing? I mean besides the benefit to Rex Sinquefield?