Three Union Presidents write to Senator Reid and Representative Pelosi

demanding an “equitable fix” for Obamacare

The presidents of three international unions, IBT, UFCW and UNITE-HERE,
have sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority
Leader Nancy Pelosi expressing deep concern over the impact Obamacare will
have on workers.  

The full text of their letter follows.

Dear Leader Reid and Leader Pelosi:

When you and the President sought our support for the Affordable Care Act
(ACA), you pledged that if we liked the health plans we have now, we could
keep them. Sadly, that promise is under threat. Right now, unless you and
the Obama Administration enact an equitable fix, the ACA will shatter not
only our hard-earned health benefits, but destroy the foundation of the 40
hour work week that is the backbone of the American middle class.

Like millions of other Americans, our members are front-line workers in
the American economy. We have been strong supporters of the notion that
all Americans should have access to quality, affordable health care. We
have also been strong supporters of you. In campaign after campaign we
have put boots on the ground, gone door-to-door to get out the vote, run
phone banks and raised money to secure this vision.

Now this vision has come back to haunt us.

Continue reading Unions Demand Democrats Fix Affordable Care Act →

July 17, 2013 11:53 pm

Public be damned in Cecil Township

The idea that the state Department of Environmental Protection, under the Corbett administration, works primarily for the benefit of the people of Pennsylvania took another hit last week when it became clear that the DEP has no interest in hearing the questions and comments of those who live near the Worstell impoundment in Cecil Township.

The impoundment, for those who haven’t been following the story, is operated by Range Resources and has been a point of contention since the first of this year, when township officials wrote to the DEP to allege that the company failed to obtain proper approvals for the original use and construction of the impoundment, which is a repository for gas-drilling wastewater.

Some township officials say that even though drilling of wells has been completed near the site of the impoundment, trucks continue to bring in fracking water from other locations. Andy Schrader, vice chairman of the township supervisors, says a counter on the road indicates that a truck is coming into or out of the impoundment every 18 minutes. Yet Range has indicated that the site is used sparingly.

One would think that six months would be more than enough time to get to the bottom of this, to satisfy the concerns of township officials and answer the questions of those who live near the operation. One would be wrong.

Initially, there was a move by some supervisors to have a private meeting with the DEP about the Worstell site and other drilling-related matters, but when word of that proposed behind-closed-doors gathering created a backlash, the session was scrapped and there was hope that a public meeting would result. But the DEP is now making it crystal clear that it has no interest in an open discussion of the issues.

The agency says it will instead have a “conference” with township supervisors, select “officials,” and, according to Schrader, “other guests that have a direct interest.” We would assume that residents of the township who have environmental, traffic and other concerns related to Worstell would have a “direct interest.” The DEP, clearly, does not.

Continue reading DEP Allows Range Resources Illegal Dump in Cecil Township →