Archive for January, 2016
General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Thurs., Jan. 14, 2016
ALERT!! MARKELL, CHAMBER AND LONGHURST GIVE MIDDLE FINGER TO DELAWAREANS:
HB 235, the so-called Delaware Competes Bill, is the first bill the House will consider this year. What’s amazing, well, not amazing, but typical of the primordial ooze behind this, is that the bill will be considered under Motion to Suspend Rules. Here’s why. Even though the bill cleared the House Revenue & Taxation Committee, the bill was reassigned to the House Appropriations Committee (the committee is comprised of the House members of the Joint Finance Committee). That’s because the bill has a significant cost. Such bills are typically not considered until/unless JFC does the fiscal legerdemain. In this case, even though the bill will have a significant annual cost, the House will try to bypass the budgetary process. Since the bill wouldn’t even take effect until January of 2017, rushing this through serves no purpose other than to satisfy the Chamber and its millionaire minions. This is a transfer of wealth from ordinary citizens to the politically-connected corporate overlords, pure and simple. We’ll pay somehow, just wait. Last days of June when they hope that no one is watching. Hey, whaddayawant from Markell, Longhurst and their (wait for it) ilk? Call your state reps!
What’s not on the House Agenda under Motion to Suspend Rules is HB 50–the Opt-Out Bill. As opposed to HB 235, doing this under MTSR is legit. The bill has been through the committee process, was passed (twice) by the House, and it’s a veto override, not consideration of new legislation. Now, maybe the House will entertain a motion from the floor, maybe Speaker Pete won’t, but it sure as hell should be considered. Has the cynicism of Pistol Pete and Vindictive Val become so great that they can ignore the will of the members of the chamber? We’ll see.
Filed Under: PoliticalAds/email/subjectlines/Rubio/yourenotthebossofme
Marco is getting a little bossy. Also – I’ve been meaning to get a picture of the Trump signs on 13 near Willy Farms, but keep forgetting. If you see any Delaware or national Ads that are great, good, bad, or terrible – send them in.
Del State News Reports – State considering McGuiness’ Lt Gov eligibility
(by Matt Bittle) DOVER — The Delaware Department of Elections is investigating whether lieutenant governor candidate Kathy McGuiness meets the state’s residency requirement. The Delaware Constitution requires the lieutenant governor to be a resident of the state for 12 years, the last six of which must be consecutively before the election. At issue is the […]
General Assembly Post-Game Wrap-Up/Pre-Game Show: Weds., Jan. 13, 2016
We have two bills that somebody wants fast-tracked in January:
HB 240 (Longhurst) ‘establishes the Statewide Afterschool Initiative Learning Program. The Program will provide grants to public schools, that qualify as Title I schools, to develop afterschool engagement of students that will provide extended learning, homework assistance, enrichment, and nutrition.’ Sounds good. There is, however, no funding mechanism mentioned in the bill. Nor does the bill, for reasons I cannot understand, require a fiscal note. So, how are they gonna pay for the program? Will it be paid for from the Mortgage Settlement Funds? If not, what are you defunding in order to fund this? We may or may not find out sooner rather than later. Bill’s scheduled to be considered during today’s House Education Committee. BTW, here’s my uninformed guess as to what’s happening here: Sponsors can claim that this is merely ‘enabling’ legislation and that the funding mechanism will be determined by JFC. Which, of course, is totally disingenuous. You don’t need enabling legislation if the JFC funds such a program and establishes the criteria in the epilog language. But that would bypass touchy-feely brochure fluff. Someone, please prove me wrong.
HB 235 (Longhurst), the ‘Delaware Competes Act‘, allegedly ‘reforms Delaware’s business tax code to incentivize job creation and investment in Delaware, to make Delaware’s tax structure more competitive with other states, and to support small businesses by making tax compliance less burdensome. The principal change in the Act is to remove disincentives for companies to create Delaware jobs and invest in Delaware property that currently exists in how income is apportioned to Delaware for purposes of the corporate income tax’. In other words, tweaking the formula to remove inequities that create disincentives to job creation. Fine. Here’s what they didn’t tell you. This is not some revenue-neutral tweaking. Nope. There is a fiscal note attached to this bill, and here are the projected costs to the state’s coffers:
Fiscal Year 2017 $ 8,200,000
Fiscal Year 2018 $17,600,000
Fiscal Year 2019 $22,900,000
So, let’s be honest here. It’s yet another sop to business with not even a projection as to how many jobs will be created due to the removal of alleged disincentives. And this is annual revenue loss.
Virginia GOP Bill Would Result In School Children Having To Show Their Genitals – Not. Kidding.
Yesterday I wrote about a North Carolina A state law requiring that doctors who perform an abortion after the 16th week of pregnancy supply an ultrasound to state officials. If you thought that was creepy, take a look at Virginia.
Wednesday Open Thread [1.13.2016]
![Wednesday Open Thread [1.13.2016]](http://delawareliberal.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/DL.Open_.Thread.Gray_-240x180.png "Wednesday Open Thread [1.13.2016]")
Steve Benen says the public liked what they heard last night.
For all the mindless chatter about “making America great again,” last night was an opportunity to hear a leader make a powerful case that such talk is unnecessary – because America is already great.
There is a risk that a president delivering a hopeful, optimistic message will seem out of touch, but there’s early evidence that Americans were impressed with what they heard last night. CNN released an overnight poll that found 53% had a “very positive” reaction to the State of the Union address, while another 20% had a somewhat positive reaction. A 68% majority said the policies Obama proposed “would move the country in the right direction.”
Results like these come with important caveats – many of the president’s critics simply don’t tune in – but it nevertheless suggests the hopeful rhetoric landed on fertile soil.
SOTU – Who was the President talking to about bipartisanship?
My hobby horse is in splinters from having been ridden to death. I’ve railed against John Carney giving aid and comfort to the radicalized doomsday cult know as the GOP long after I was able to do so, and be funny at the same time. So…was the President talking to me last night? Let’s see…
2/3rds of DE Delegation Favors Allowing the CDC to Study Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue
You did it DL community. Coons and Carper are now on the record. The only recalcitrant member of the delegation is the Governor Elect, who may have reasoned out that being on the record in favor of something like this may disturb the last two remaining Dixiecrats in western Sussex.
Tuesday Open Thread [1.12.2016]
![Tuesday Open Thread [1.12.2016]](http://delawareliberal.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/DL.Open_.Thread.White_-240x180.png "Tuesday Open Thread [1.12.2016]")
Hillary Clinton “proposed a 4 percent surtax on the highest-earning Americans, as she seeks to boost taxes for the wealthiest Americans,” Politico reports.
“The proposal, which she announced in Iowa, would raise an estimated $150 billion over a decade, a Clinton aide said, and comes after the Democratic front-runner said that she would build on the so-called Buffett Rule that seeks to ensure that the middle class doesn’t pay a higher tax rate than top earners.”
Hillary Clinton is responded to some new closer than she likes poll numbers, and is moving left. That is why, while I will not vote for Bernie, I like him in the race.
Fetus Pictures Being Sent To Government Officials
Of all the slippery slope arguments this one actually has merit. RALEIGH, N.C. — A state law requiring that doctors who perform an abortion after the 16th week of pregnancy supply an ultrasound to state officials has sparked a new and bitter front in the war over abortion here, with stakes that are both personal […]
Last Night’s Brown & Black Forum in Iowa
Clinton, O’Malley and Sanders take the stage live from Iowa to discuss where they stand on the issues that matter to young, diverse America. Including: social justice, immigration, education, health care, and the economy. The Forum is moderated by FUSION anchors Jorge Ramos and Alicia Menendez as well as FUSION contributor Akilah Hughes and New York Magazine Writer-at-Large Rembert Browne.
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