Dear Dr. John: Thanks but no thanks

Sen./Dr./media star John Barrasso, Republican from Casper, is telling Pres. Obama that it's not too late to sit down and talk -- really talk -- about health care reform.

When you stop laughing, we can proceed.

Andrew Schenkel, Cowboy State Free Press Washington Correspondent, reported this on Tuesday:

“We need health care reform and to get costs down. I am willing to work with President Obama to improve health care and bring down costs,” Barrasso said.

If healthcare is to rise from the dead it will need some sort of Republican cooperation. Barrasso says its will be an incremental process. “Our goal is to get quality and affordable coverage by using a step by step process with each step accomplishing a number of things,” he said.

Barrasso said he is no fan of President Obama’s methods during healthcare debate thus far. “Americans have been locked out of the discussion and decisions,” said Barasso on what he has heard from constituents in recent meetings in Thermopolis and Sheridan.

As for Obama, Barasso says he hasn’t been willing to work across the aisle.

“His approach so far has been ‘my way or the highway.’ Senator Coburn and I have offered to go to the White House and go over the bill page-by-page and offer our perspective as doctors,” Barasso said. “He has refused to take us up on the offer.”

Barrasso and Coburn, a wacko right-wing Oklahoma Republican and member of the C Street Family, are the only doctors in the U.S. Senate.

That's scary enough. After all the Republican obstruction on health care, it's also laughable.

Now here's a quote that I can sink my teeth into:

“I like preventative care, there’s a little in the current bill but not enough. I like addressing mental health issues but there’s only a little in the bill. And none of it takes affect until 2018,” he said. “To me that’s too little too late. That bill is for totally government-centered healthcare not patient-centered.”

What we have now is insurance company-centered healthcare. Patient-centered? In a pig's eye.

More scary talk about global warming, water, Wyoming and the West

Batches of thoughtful people in the West are tackling the issue of climate change (see previous post). In Wyoming, the UW Ruckelshaus Institute of Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) just issued a 28-page report, "Assessing the Future of Wyoming's Water Resources: Adding Climate Change to the Equation."

First of all, the title says "Climate Change." That's pretty good for our very conservative state. Climatechangeclimatechangeclimatechange.

The report itself mentions "global warming," even saying that man has played a role in it. The report stops short of labeling the situation as man-made global warming or, as befitting the Equality State, human-caused global warming.

It's an easy read, chock full of facts, charts, graphs, pretty color photos and scary text. Here's an example of the latter:

"This report covers what we know and what we wish we knew about Wyoming and the West's changing climate and the various impacts on water resources," says Wyoming State Climatologist Steve Gray, the lead author and director of the Water Resources Data System at UW. "What we do know is that Wyoming's water resources are highly sensitive to climate change. This is because Wyoming is a relatively dry state, a headwaters state, and because we are so reliant on mountain snow, the main source of surface water for the entire year."

Gray explains that downstream states are somewhat buffered from the types of drought seen in the historical record: Dryness in one area can often be offset by wet conditions in another. In many cases, through compacts and decrees, water is stored upstream for these states.

Will there come a time when we throw these moldy old 19th-century water pacts out the window and just decide to keep our snowmelt? In the West, that would be tantamount to a declaration of war. I can see the headline now:

Wyomingites dam North Platte; Cornhuskers steamed

CHEYENNE -- Activists from Protect Our Wyoming Water (POWW) finished damming the North Platte on Tuesday where the river crosses into Nebraska southeast of Torrington.

"We threw all the Democrats we could find into the narrows," said POWW leader Bob Huntley. "Some water was still getting through, so we had to round up some Independents and even a few Libertarians. We got 'er done."

Speaking at a press conference in Lincoln, Nebraska Governor Jim Johnson fired a warning shot over Wyoming's bow. He actually fired a warning shot from his deer
rifle. It fell a few hundred miles short of the border.

He went on: "This will not stand. Tear down this dam, Mr. Huntley. Tear it down. And don't forget to administer CPR to the Libertarians."

Then all hell breaks loose. Imagine the chaos. The big question is: would Cheyenne use its nukes?

Perhaps it will never come to this.

But it looks grim.

The UW report concludes that "there is mounting evidence that the Earth is experiencing a warming trend," and, as a result, "any increase in temperature will increase the impact of drought just as population growth and other factors have greatly increased the West's vulnerability to water shortages."

Graphs and figures in the report illustrate datasets on past climates, including tree-ring studies in which scientists look at the widths of annual growth rings in trees to reconstruct a detailed history of ancient droughts. Based on these and other data, scientists can then create scenarios that enable them to examine how future climate change might influence water resources.

"If the dry periods of the 1700s were to return, there would be substantial consequences, and this makes climate change of any type a key factor to consider
as we plan for the future of Wyoming's water resources," Gray says.

"When it comes to our western water resources, there is no slack in the system," says Gray. "Managing for the combined effects of drought and warmer temperatures will be a key challenge in the future."

We're screwed. More severe drought, less snow, shrinking mountain glaciers, hordes of hungry pine beetles, and the traditional Republican-controlled legislature and the all-Republican Congressional delegation.

We're really screwed.

How the West Was Warmed --in lurid detail

Haven't read this book yet, but was drawn to the cover, which shows the devastation caused by the pine bark beetle. Scene on the cover looks like Colorado's Lake Granby. Also, one of the contributors is the very fine writer Laura Pritchett from Fort Collins.

See more at http://www.howthewestwaswarmed.com

Wheatland -- put those banners back up!

"Don't Ban NO PLACE FOR HATE banner" petition now up at http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/NoBanningTheBanner

Get more info about the drive to get the banners back up at Wheatland High School and Wheatland's West Elementary at Wheaterville.

See previous posts about the controversy below...

BoDeans release new CD April 6

This is great news for us BoDeans fans

Dems celebrate diversity at NTR banquet

Democrats will gather in Cheyenne on Saturday, Feb. 27, for the 2010 Nellie Tayloe Ross Banquet. Hear from Democratic Party leaders, the annual NTR Award winner, and special guest speakers to be named soon. Come rally with other Democrats as we celebrate diversity in politics during the Legislature's budget session.

Click here to register or to see more details. Festivities begin at 5:45 p.m. at the historic Plains Hotel in Cheyenne with a cocktail reception, followed by dinner at 7 p.m. Buy a table so you can sit with your friends, or come as you are and enjoy the evening with Democrats from every corner of Wyoming.

You can buy your tickets online at http://www.wyomingdemocrats.com/ or you can call WyoDems HQ at 1-800-SAY-DEMS to make reservations.

Letter from ADL yanks" No Place for Hate" campaign from Wheatland schools

Update to hummingbirdminds 1/22 post...

Found the text of this letter on the Boulderpride blog (thanks Boulder bloggers):

In a letter today to Platte County School Board members, Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Mountain States Regional Director Bruce H. DeBoskey said:

We write to express our outrage and dismay that your School Board voted to ban the display of No Place for Hate® banners at West Elementary School and Wheatland High School because they include the logo of the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado, a major sponsor of this free program. As a result of your decision, we are compelled to withdraw the No Place for Hate® program from the schools in
your District.

The No Place for Hate program is designed to teach young people the values of respect and inclusion for everyone in the school community, and we cannot continue to offer the program in your District if you will not permit the display of a banner (hard-earned by many dedicated students, teachers, and community members) that includes the words “gay and lesbian.” To continue our program in light of your decision would be the height of hypocrisy, turning a blind eye to intolerance and repudiating the principles of inclusivity and respect that our program teaches.

The No Place for Hate® program has been embraced by dozens of schools in Colorado and Wyoming as a successful way to make schools safer and more inclusive, by providing anti- bullying training and promoting respect for all students. At schools where this program has been implemented, attendance is up and disciplinary actions are down. Students have reported that they feel safer and more welcome at school because the students, teachers and community have worked together to make their schools respectful, and inclusive. The safer schools are, the more students will attend, and the more opportunities they will have to learn. It is a shame that your decision will impede the important progress that has already been made on these important issues.

As you heard at the School Board meeting on January 18, this program has been in effect for over a year at one of your schools and for several months at the other school. The Wheatland students who have participated have enthusiastically supported it, believe they have benefited from it, and want it to continue. It saddens us greatly that your decision will send a message to these students that adults in Platte County openly endorse bigotry against the gay and lesbian members of your community.

If you should change your position at any time and permit the banner to be displayed as designed, we would be happy to return our program to your schools.

Unless and until your position changes, however, we must reluctantly and immediately end the No Place for Hate® program at West Elementary and Wheatland High School.

UPDATE: Get more on the story at the excellent Wheaterville blog

ANOTHER UPDATE: Read the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle story and the very educational and entertaining comments (114 thus far) at http://www.wyomingnews.com/articles/2010/01/22/news/19local_01-22-10.txt

No place for "No Place for Hate" campaign in Wheatland

Everything was going along swimmingly in Wheatland. Both West Elementary and Wheatland H.S. had signed up for the "No Place for Hate" campaign, sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League. Posters like the one above were hung on the chimneys with care. Jews and Gentiles were engaging in peaceful coexistence. Lions were lying down with lambs, and dogs and cats were living together. Even the off-white citizens were getting along with the egg-shell white and slightly freckled denizens of Wheaterville.

Then something terrible happened. A concerned citizen noticed that one of the program's sponsors is (close your eyes) The Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado.

Uh oh. The program's goal "to organize schools to work together and develop projects that enhance the appreciation of diversity and foster harmony amongst diverse groups" was in jeopardy. The campaign also proposes "to empower schools to promote respect for individual and group differences while challenging prejudice and bigotry."

Here's what happened next, according to an AP article in the Billings Gazette:

Platte County School District 1 trustees voted 4-3 this week to reject a request to keep the Anti-Defamation League’s “No Place for Hate” banners at Wheatland High and West Elementary. District administrators removed the signs after parents and school board members raised concern because the banners list the Gay and Lesbian Fund for Colorado as a sponsor. Some students requested that the banners be replaced, but the board refused.

Wheatland, a southeast Wyoming town of about 3,300 residents, is "an ultraconservative community,” said school board member Lee Dunham.

“If this is the way one chooses, then they can lead this particular lifestyle, but I don’t believe it needs to be publicly displayed in a school,” Dunham said.

School board member Joe Fabian said he believes the Anti-Defamation League is pushing an “agenda that is pro-gay marriage” and that the community of Wheatland is not supportive of that.

“They wouldn’t want the organization, the Anti-Defamation League, dictating to their children that an alternate lifestyle is a normal lifestyle,” he said.

First of all, good job to the students who requested that the banners stay on the walls. They actually read the banners and absorbed the message. The school board gets an F for tolerance and diversity, but receives an "I" for irony.

Now for the rest of the story:

The district intended to allow the anti-discrimination campaign to continue, Superintendent Stuart Nelson said. But the Anti-Defamation League won’t allow the Wheatland schools to participate without the presence of the banners, said Bruce DeBoskey, mountain states regional director for the group.

The Anti-Defamation League “will no longer allow the program if it’s not being honored and used in its fullest intent,” he said.

DeBoskey said there are many Wheatland residents who support the anti-discrimination campaign, and he urged them to speak up.

“The (league) is extremely concerned that this whole program — which is designed to teach young people to respect the differences among us — has been derailed by people who appear to have biases,” he said.

Linda Burt of the Wyoming chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union also criticized the board’s decision, saying it’s “extraordinarily unfortunate and extraordinarily shortsighted.”

“Does that mean this is a place for hate?” she asked. “Does that mean this is a place for discrimination?”

Good questions, Linda.

West Elementary and Wheatland H.S. were two of the 25 schools participating in the 2009-2010 "No Place for Hate" campaign. The only other participating Wyoming school is Whiting H.S. in Laramie. No word yet whether the posters are still up over there.

Jam Haiti benefit Saturday in Denver

From the Flobots web site -- a rockin' Haiti benefit that goes all night.

Legislature to address "cottage foods"

The Casper Star-Tribune featured an article by Joan Barron this week about a little-known issue that will undoubtedly bubble to the surface during the legislative session.

It's all about something called "cottage foods." Those are foods prepared in a cottage (or even a house) and sold at the local farmer's market or community bazaar. These could be potentially hazardous dishes, such as Uncle Joe's chili or Aunt Sue's lasagna. Selling stuff such as veggies and fruits and jams and bread and honey is already O.K.

That's where this gets a little sticky.

This will be the third legislative session the council has addressed problems raised in bills sponsored by Rep. Sue Wallis, R-Recluse.

The first year the bill to exempt so-called cottage foods -- those prepared in home kitchens -- from regulation failed to get through the Legislature.

Last year a modified version did pass. As of July 1 it allows sales of home-produced foods such as jams, cookies and bread at farmers markets and roadside stands without inspection or licensing.

Wallis plans to introduce a bill for the budget session that opens Feb. 8 to expand the cottage food exemption.

Although they have not seen the bill, the council members said they expect it to be the same as the original bills introduced by Wallis before they were modified.

"It would make it wide open," said the council's chairman, Robert Harrington, director of the Casper-Natrona County Health Department.

God forbid we make anything "wide open" here in the libertarian great wide open. What happens when the local foods movement runs up against government food inspectors? We must have safe food. That's a given. But cottage businesses are local businesses making local delicacies. The money stays in the community, unlike the dough you spend in the Wal-Mart grocery section. How will these small businesses, the politician's favorite kind of business, thrive?

I'm glad the legislature will be considering Wallis's bill. Maybe it can help to define ways that local food purveyors can bring real food back to our tables.

I've got those globalized food blues

I've written often on the subject of local food and local art and local politics.

I have a "local" fixation.

But why not? What has globalization wrought? Banks too big to fail that do. Corporations that have been granted the same rights as citizens. Bought-off members of Congress. Far-flung wars fought at the behest of oil companies and foreign oil suppliers. Tasteless food in corporate grocery chains. Publishing conglomerates that publish only sure-fire blockbusters by celebs posing as authors (Sarah Palin, etc.).

All that and more.

I'm just jumping on a bandwagon that has its roots in the farms and villages of our grandfathers. A movement that looks to alternative energy and backyard gardens and the neighborhood quilter and the farmers' market. Nothing big -- and that's the point. Big is bad. Big is too big.

So I keep observing local ideas taking root. In Cheyenne, we have two outdoor farmers' markets and a winter market just getting started. We have at least two organic/sustainable growers in northern Colorado -- Wolf Moon Farms and Grant Farms -- promoting their "Community Shares" program in southeast Wyoming. The Northern Colorado Food Incubator provides a focus for all the growers in the CO/WY nexus. Backyard gardens are sprouting all over, including in my backyard. I'm not the farmer my grandfather was, but I don't face feast or famine as he did in Iowa. I can grow some of my own fruits and veggies, and get the rest through farmers' markets and on trips to Albertson's or Safeway. Were I able to grow my own coffee, I would. I can at least buy the fair trade variety at the store.

This would all seem like so much aging Baby Boomer/naive Gen-X nonsense if it weren't for the many people engaged in local sustainability. I never talk politics with the guy from Brush, Colorado, who sells sweet corn out of his truck bed on September Saturdays. But we do talk sweet corn, and we agree on that. Small-scale tomato growers speak a common language. We speak tomato. Not tow-mah-tow. It's ta-may-tow, or maybe ta-may-ter or, simply, may-ter. I listen to other tomato growers because they most know more than I ever will.

We do have a common enemy in this country's corporate food system. It's making us sick. Not literally, unless you count the occasional tainted spinach or bad beef outbreaks. But it's short-changing our precious bodily fluids through processed foods. That food is also shipped long distances to our stores, burning fossil fuels and polluting the air and contributing to global warming.

Today, in Cheyenne, I saw cantaloupe on sale. August and September are cantaloupe months. That's when Rocky Ford varieties from southern Colorado come our way. I'll eat other High Plains cantaloupe. But in January, Albertson's features cantaloupe from Chile. It's summer in Chile. Chileans are whooping it up at the beach and eating cantaloupe. But how much did it costs to bring the fruit to Cheyenne, where the only beach we're frequenting in January is in our memories?

I received word today that a group of artists are getting together to talk about putting studios in the abandoned Hynds Building downtown. The building on the city's main drag has been sitting vacant for years. Various businesses, including one hotel conglomerate, have talked about buying and renovating the place. But then the economy tanked. If we can get artists in there in the meantime, all the better. Artists creating and providing some after-hours life to downtown. If you're interested in this downtown project, contact Rebecca Barrett at rebecca.barrett3@mac.com.

None of this is going to happen overnight. We only at the beginning of the (dare I say it?) surge.

But, to get this globalization monkey off our backs, we have to start somewhere.

After today's SCOTUS ruling -- SAVE DEMOCRACY!

Go to Save Democracy and sign this petition:

Dear Friend,

This morning, five Supreme Court Justices stabbed at the heart of democracy, our electoral system.

They overturned over 100 years of statute and precedent, and declared that corporations can spend all the money that they want to buy elections. In fact, these five men in robes declared, they have a constitutional right to do so.

Now, we have to fight.

That’s why I just signed Rep. Alan Grayson's petition to support his "Save Our Democracy" legislative package, because we cannot have a government that is bought and paid for by huge multinational corporations. We need a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

I hope you'll join me.

For they are brown and without belief -- or WWJD?

We salute Jesus' General -- he is always on the job:

For they are brown and without belief

'Jesus Guns': Two More Countries Rethink Using Weapons with Secret Bible References - ABC News

This is one of the oddest things I've read all week. Trijicon, a Michigan defense contractor, makes gun sights for the U.S. Marines and U.S. Army that include Biblical references. I'm all for providing good gun sights to our military. I have nothing against Biblical references, as long as they're kept out of the hands (and mouths) of hypocrites such as Pat Robertson and Republican senators. But in a gun sight? Don't you think that our Muslim allies might have a little problem with that?

"It's wrong, it violates the Constitution, it violates a number of federal laws," said Michael "Mikey" Weinstein of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, an advocacy group that seeks to preserve the separation of church and state in the military.

"It allows the Mujahedeen, the Taliban, al Qaeda and the insurrectionists and jihadists to claim they're being shot by Jesus rifles," he said.

Weinstein, an attorney and former Air Force officer, said many members of his group who currently serve in the military have complained about the markings on the sights. He also claims they've told him that commanders have referred to weapons with the sights as "spiritually transformed firearm[s] of Jesus Christ."

He said coded biblical inscriptions play into the hands of "those who are calling this a Crusade."

Read the entire article at 'Jesus Guns': Two More Countries Rethink Using Weapons with Secret Bible References - ABC News

The hits just keep on coming

My Feedjit feed (see sidebar) keeps logging in hits for a two-year old post based on William Faulkner's quote: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” In it, I talk about the racism I experienced in 1960s Florida and what I saw during Obama's 2008 campaign in Wyoming. Racism is alive and well, I said in the summary.

I was wondering why it was showing up with such regularity. Then I recalled Martin Scorcese's acceptance speech tonight at the Golden Globes. He wrapped it up with the Faulkner quote. Since my post has been online for so long, it's at the top of the Google hit list. Near the top, anyway.

The post is especially relevant on the eve of the Martin Luther King, Jr., Day holiday.

To read the original: http://hummingbirdminds.blogspot.com/2008/03/for-faulkner-and-obama-past-isnt-past.html

Boulder museum stages "open wall" for artists

Saw this event promoted on Facebook. A twist on the open reading concept for writers and poets, although readings are sometimes followed by a book signing if any of us have books to sign. For this event, artists are invited to hang their work on the BMoCA's blank wall and then attendees bid on the art. The 50/50 split is also a great idea -- money for the museum AND the artists. I didn't see anything on the web site restricting entries to Colorado artists.

Here's more info from Elephant Journal:

Citizen Artists: If you would like to sell your piece, a silent auction will take place from 8-10 p.m. to raise money to support the museum… and to support you (a 50/50 split)!

Or, looking to purchase original, fine art? Our silent auction is a great way to support the museum and local artists, and uplift your walls.

Additionally, the museum’s upstairs gallery will feature elephantjournal.com’s selection of community artists. This specially curated space will also offer a grouping of eco-art pieces, complete with “do-it-yourself” tips for “greening” your studio.

The evening will include local music by Harper Phillips and her ukulele, as well as a cash bar. Admission is a $5 suggested donation.

Localarts. Localfunding. Localfun.

And, if we continue with the guidelines for local as locales within a 100-mile radius of Cheyenne, this probably counts. Boulder is 102 miles from Cheyenne. In some ways, "The Peoples Republic of Boulder" is a world away from home of the country's largest outdoor rodeo. In other ways, it's not. Artists and writers are always looking for new and interesting ways to market their work.

By the way, if you're looking for work by Wyoming artists, go to my WAC workplace blog at http://wyomingarts.blogspot.com/. On the right sidebar are links to the state's arts orgs, folk artists, visual artists, performers and writers.

BTW: Cheyenne artist Georgia Rowswell tipped me off to this Boulder event. See her art at http://www.artfulhand.org/.

Wyofile receives Knight Foundation grant

Wyofile is a great source for Wyoming news. It announced this today:

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced Jan. 13 that it has awarded the Lander Community Foundation a $122,000 grant for the Wyoming news and public policy website http://www.wyofile.com/ to expand coverage of critical state issues.

The award from the Knight Foundation Community Information Challenge program adds to the $135,000 pledged to WyoFile.com by other sources. Major contributors include the George B. Storer Foundation Inc. of Saratoga, Wy.; Christopher Findlater, a Florida-based philanthropist with ongoing business interests in Wyoming, and the estate of the late Casper oilman, state legislator and U.S. Ambassador Tom Stroock.

“To increase the availability of information on complex state issues, this grant will support WyoFile.com , which examines Wyoming public policy and politics,” the Knight Foundation announced in a press release. “WyoFile.com will increase its staff and reporting budget to further engage Wyoming’s residents, lawmakers, educators and business people through an independent, alternative source.”

The Knight Community Information Challenge is a five-year, $24-million initiative to help community and place-based foundations find creative ways to use new media and technology to keep residents informed and engaged.

In an effort to supplement and support traditional news coverage in the state, WyoFile.com stories are offered at no charge as a public service to all Wyoming media.

“One of our goals in the coming year is to make it easier for state newspapers to use our stories, by offering shorter versions of our in-depth investigative reports and features,” said WyoFile editor Rone Tempest of Lander. “We will also encourage newspapers and other media to seek out help in covering important policy issues in their communities. The Knight grant will be a big help in this regard.”

In July of this year, WyoFile.Com applied to the federal government for non-profit 501 (c) (3) status with the Internal Revenue Service.

WyoFile’s board of directors are Anne MacKinnon (Chairman), Casper, a Western water policy writer, educator and former executive editor of the Casper Star-Tribune; Randall T. Cox, Gillette, an oil and gas attorney and bird wildlife author; Christopher Findlater, Miami, Fla., internet entrepreneur, co-founder and former CEO of NetQuote, an online insurance company; Kathyrn Hogarty, Laramie, attorney and Director of External Relations and Special Assistant to the Dean, Univeristy of Wyoming School of Law; and Jonathan Weber, Missoula, Mont., Publisher and Editor in Chief, NewWest.net.

A "Kangaroo System" documented in "Juvenile Justice in Wyoming"

This trailer is from a documentary by Laramie's Chris Hume.

AAUW: Rep. Cynthia Lummis is a zero

The Wyoming Democratic Party sends this:

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) one of the nation’s top advocacy groups for education and equity on behalf of women and girls, has given failing marks to all three members of Wyoming’s congressional delegation. In an annual report analyzing the Congressional voting record for 2009, AAUW rated Rep. Cynthia Lummis with a 0% and both Senator Mike Enzi and Senator John Barrasso earned a rating of 13%, respectively.

The delegation’s poor performance on issues important to women is extremely distressing, according to Wyoming Democratic Party State Chair Leslie Petersen.

“This report drives home the point that on issues ranging from health reform to equal compensation, Rep. Lummis, Sen. Enzi and Sen. Barrasso are out of touch with the needs of Wyoming people,” Petersen said. “The rights of women, minorities and families are being shoved aside in favor of special interests, big business, and destructive partisanship. It especially saddens me that our lone female representative would continue to vote against her own gender.”

The AAUW’s scores were calculated based on support of issues that would address social inequalities, end discrimination, and support women and their families, among other considerations. This legislation, which received no support from any member of the Wyoming congressional delegation, included:

• Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 – Reopens the courtroom doors to further progress towards pay equity. Takes action on a 2007 court decision which required employees to file pay discrimination claims within 180 days of their employer’s last discriminatory decision and requires claims to be filed within 180 days of their last discriminatory paycheck.


• Paycheck Fairness Act – Strengthens the Equal Pay Act by empowering women to negotiate for equal pay, deters wage discrimination by strengthening penalties, and prohibits retaliation against workers who inquire about wage practices or disclose their wages. The bill also creates incentives for employers to follow the law and strengthens federal outreach and enforcement efforts.


• Healthy Families Act – Would provide accrued paid sick and safe days for employees and would require employers with at least 15 employees to guarantee workers seven days of paid sick leave annually. These days could be used for treatment, recovery, and activities necessary to deal with an incidence of domestic violence.


• Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act - Provides local law enforcement with resources to address hate-based violence and added perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability to the categories protected under federal hate crimes law.

Contribute to Clinton Foundation for Haiti earthquake relief