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From: "Bill Lipton, WFP"
Subject: 2011 Working Families Party Candidate Questionnaire
[Local chapter due date-- Hudson Valley (Counties of Ulster, Dutchess, Delaware, Orange, and Sullivan): Wednesday, May 11th!...(TODAY, folks!)]
Dear Elected Officials, Candidates, and Campaign Staff:
It's that time of year again! Are you running for office or up for re-election? Would you like the Working Families Party endorsement?
We invite you to participate in our endorsement process by filling out a Candidate Questionnaire. They are available here:
http://www.workingfamiliesparty.org/2011/04/2011-candidate-questionnaire-is-up/ .
Note: all questionnaires must be completed online. Please refer to regional deadline at the bottom of this email.
Local leaders and staff will follow up with candidates selected for interview [Dutchess folks: May 20th!].
We hope to work together with you in 2011 to build a better New York.
Sincerely,
Bill Lipton
WFP Deputy Director
P.S. If you have technical problems filling out the questionnaire or general questions regarding our endorsement process, please email us at endorsements2011@votewfp.org.
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From: "Dan Cantor, WFP"
Subject: 14 days
Date: May 10, 2011 4:46 PM
14 days - That's how long we have until the special congressional election in NY-26. It's an eternity in politics.
We already told you that our endorsed candidate, Kathy Hochul, is within striking distance of victory. Two polls show her down by a few points, one shows her ahead. It's fluid and rapidly changing.
But the other side also knows it's close. Yesterday, Speaker John Boehner flew in from Washington and just moments ago we learned that Karl Rove has directed $650,000 into the district for the Republican. [1]
We don't need to compete dollar for dollar with Rove and his corporate backers. But we do need to get as much manpower as we can into the district. Our person-to-person grassroots campaign can beat Rove's TV commercials any day.
Can you chip in $10 so that we can send additional canvassers to NY-26?
https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/1306/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=4903
The WFP has proven time and time again that our energy at the doors is the difference that matters in a close election. The votes on our ballot line have delivered the margin of victory in dozens of races, including for two congressional races just last year. It's time for us to do it again.
Thanks to your help, we'll get out the vote from disaffected Democrats, labor Republicans, students, and independents who are sick of the Tea Party.
If we win this race, John Boehner and Paul Ryan and Karl Rove might start to rethink their plans to kill Medicare before the next election.
This is serious business. Please chip in $10 or whatever you can so that we can send reinforcements to beat Rove's candidate.
https://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/1306/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=4903
Thanks,
Dan Cantor
Executive Director, WFP
Sources:
1) http://www.capitaltonight.com/2011/05/crossroads-drops-650k-on-ny-26/
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From http://www.workingfamiliesparty.org/2011/04/2011-candidate-questionnaire-is-up/ ...
2011 Candidates for Public Office
INTRODUCTION
"The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievementŠ It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position."
- James Truslow Adams, Epic of America, 1935
When James Truslow Adams coined the phrase "American Dream" in 1935, it was the very height of the Great Depression, and the idea of this "Dream" must have struck many people as a mockery. Unemployment ravaged the nation. The poor and working class lived in a different country from the wealthy. Jim Crow racism was alive and well. Women had won the right to vote, but not much else. Hispanic-Americans and immigrants were second-class citizens. And the very notion that gays and lesbians deserved to be treated in non-discriminatory fashion would have been scoffed at if anyone had been so fearless as to suggest it.
Over the ensuing 75 years, American history was about making the Dream into a reality for more and more people. It hasn't been a straight path. There have been victories as well as defeats, but millions of people have participated in great social movements and have made progress for themselves and their children and grandchildren.
Today, that arc of progress no longer holds true. The wealthy are getting wealthier while the poor are gasping for air and the middle class is being squeezed out of existence. Young people who are lucky enough to go to college take on enormous student debt and then have trouble finding a job. Meanwhile, more than half of Americans have no retirement savings. The unions that once ensured a fair sharing of corporate profits have been weakened. And immigrants, for whom the Dream once shined most brightly, are finding a nation that is more scared than generous, more exclusive than inclusive.
Still, the idea of an American Dream where all, regardless of the circumstances of birth, can achieve "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" remains powerful. The Working Families Party believes that if we really view ourselves as "in this together," then we can continue to forge a society of opportunity, solidarity and responsibility. Building a more perfect union is a task that is never finished. We invite fellow New Yorkers, organizations and businesses, elected leaders and young people to join us in demanding that this great promise be renewed, this time truly for all.
2011 Candidates for Public Office
PART 1: WFP ACTION QUESTIONS
1. Defend Collective Bargaining:
It is critical that we stand in support of the fundamental democratic right of all workers in all sectors - manufacturing, service, government, farm, technical, construction, professional and otherwise - to join together as a group in order to improve their workplace conditions and wages. We know that collective bargaining rights are a key indicator of the health of democracies worldwide, and in this country it is no overstatement to assert that workers and unions built the middle class. As unions and the very idea of employee rights are under attack across the country, please pledge to introduce or support a resolution defending the right and importance of collective bargaining.
Additional Resources:
Robert Reich, "Why We Need Stronger Unions and How to Get Them.
Paul Krugman, "Wisconsin Power Play," New York Times.
Yes, I will introduce or support an existing resolution on collective bargaining.
2011 Candidates for Public Office
2. Make Voters More Important Than Donors in Elections:
In its Citizen United decision, the Supreme Court of the United States has come down on the side of unrestricted, undisclosed spending in elections by wealthy interests. We can't change that without a Constitutional Amendment. But we can establish a system of "Voter Owned Elections" in New York that will drastically improve our electoral system. Governor Cuomo announced his support for public financing of elections early this year. Public financing will reduce the time elected officials hamave to spend fundraising, and make voters, not donors, the central focus of our electoral process. It will also reinforce the American ideal that anyone can run for public office, no matter how much money they have or have access to. Please add your name to the letter below urging Governor Cuomo to push this crucial reform forward.
Additional Resources:
Richard Hasen, "Money Grubbers: The Supreme Court Kills Campaign Finance Reform".
Excerpt from Governor Andrew Cuomo's New NY Agenda, "Clean Up Albany: Make it Work".
Citizen Action of New York, "Voter Owned Elections".
Yes, please add my name to the above letter to Governor Cuomo.
2011 Candidates for Public Office
3. Create Jobs & Help Prevent Another Economic Crisis:
Mass unemployment in America remains a deep and corrosive problem. But we are not without ways to address it. Most economists who do not work for Wall Street firms favor a "financial speculation tax" that rewards long-term investing and penalizes the kind of short-term speculation that contributed to the Wall Street crash. Rep. John Conyers' "21st Century Full Employment and Training Act" would institute such a tax and invest the revenue in job creation and career training programs. Will you add your name to the following letter to the New York Delegation of Congress in support of the Conyers measure?
Additional Resources:
Rep. John Conyers, "The Humphrey-Hawkins 21st Centry Full Employment and Training Act."
Center for Economic and Policy Research, "Facts & Myths About a Financial Speculation Tax."
Center for Economic and Policy Research, "An Open Letter from Economists in Support of Financial Transfer Taxes."
Center for Economic and Policy Research, "Support for a Financial Transaction Tax."
Paul Krugman, "Taxing the Speculators," New York Times.
Yes, please add my name to the above letter in support of the 21st Century Full Employment and Training Act.
No, do not add my name to the letter.
4. Support Living Wages for All:
Passage of the state's first minimum wage law in 1933 was a proud moment for our state. It was our society's way of saying that all work has dignity, and all people deserve to be able to support themselves through their labor.
For decades, it was public policy that the minimum wage should be approximately 50% of the average weekly wage. If that were still true, the minimum wage would be $10.55/hour in many areas of the state, and above $9 in all areas of New York. It is currently $7.25. A raise in the minimum wage will help all working families, as well as local businesses, as there will be more money in local economies.
If you agree, please sign the letter below urging Governor Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Skelos and Assembly Speaker Silver to raise the minimum wage.
Additional Resources:
Kai Filion, "A Stealthy Stimulus: How Boosting the Minimum Wage is Helping to Support the Economy," Economic Policy Institute.
Kai Filion, "Minimum Wage Anniversary: Still Helping Millions of Workers Get By, but Just Barely," Economic Policy Institute.
John Schmitt and David Rosnick, "The Wage and Employment Impact of Minimum-Wage Laws in Three Cities," Center for Economic and Policy Research.
Yes, add my name to the letter urging Governor Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Skelos and Assembly Speaker Silver to raise the minimum wage.
5. Protect Retirement Security And Get Young Workers Into The Labor Force:
Social Security is not broken. Retiring at age 65 is not a luxury. Corporate executives might work flexibly and comfortably into their twilight years, but a waitress or a construction worker might not. Raising the retirement age hurts workers at the end of their careers, and prevents young workers from entering the workforce. In keeping with the American ideal that each generation should have it better than the last, we should eventually lower the retirement age. For now, please sign the attached letter to Senators Gillibrand and Schumer urging them to reject calls for a weakened or privatized Social Security, which has been one of the most successful anti-poverty programs in history.
Additional Resources:
Ezra Klein, "More on Raising the Retirement Age," The Washington Post.
MoveOn.org, "Top 5 Social Security Myths.
Robert Reich, "Budget Baloney: Why Social Security Isn't a Problem for 26 years, and the Best Way to Fix it Permanently."
Economic Opportunity Institute, "The Straight Facts on Social Security".
Yes, add my name to the letter to Senators Gillibrand & Schumer to protect Social Security.
6. Reproductive Choice and Economic Fairness:
The WFP views issues through a lens that includes both human rights and economic opportunity. We believe that the right of women (and families) to family planning and safe, legal abortion has a profound impact on an individual woman and her family's economic opportunity. We believe that attacks on health clinics such as Planned Parenthood that provide services to low-income and middle-income women are a direct attack on economic fairness for women. Do you agree with WFP's position to defend reproductive choice and women's health providers?
Additional Resources:
Karen Nelson, "House Leadership Launches an Assault on Women," Buffalo News.
Yes, I agree.
7. Extending the Benefits of Marriage to All Couples:
The state and federal government extend economic protections and benefits to married couples. No couple committed to each other should be denied these protections and benefits. The WFP seeks to end the exclusion of gays and lesbians from the institution of marriage. Do you support the freedom to marry for all couples?
Additional Resource:
The Post-Standard Editorial Board, "Love, Always: Same-Sex Couples Should Have the Right to Marry in New York," Post-Standard.
Yes, I support marriage equality.
8. Hold Banks Accountable:
If we learned one thing from the recent financial crisis, it is that bankers allowed greed to overpower common sense. JP Morgan Chase was among the worst offenders, and it's the New York bank with the largest portfolio of troubled mortgages. Chase must not be allowed to keep ill-gotten gains while families are losing their homes due to fraud. Public bodies at all levels of government in New York State should withdraw public moneys from Chase until such time as the bank negotiates, in good faith, with homeowner representatives to prevent foreclosures. The Village of Hempstead recently passed a resolution to do just that. Please introduce a similar resolution in your own governmental body.
Additional Resources:
New York Communities for Change, "Chase Bank - Fact Sheet".
Cara Buckley, "Hempstead, in Protest, is Severing Ties with Chase," New York Times.
Evan Nemeroff, "Chase Admits Overcharging, Foreclosing on Military Mortgages," National Mortgage News.
Yes, I pledge to introduce or support a resolution in my governmental body to withdraw public funds from Chase.
2011 Candidates for Public Office
9. Keep Drinking Water Safe:
We should not have to choose between clean water and economic development. The promoters of hydraulic fracturing in the Marcellus Shale -"hydrofracking" - are lobbying hard for a premature decision by the State that will permit this dangerous, irreversible process to be used in New York. The State cannot allow for hydrofracking without a clear-eyed look at the potential impacts, whether on waste water, traffic, the impact on other economic sectors, or possible threats to safe drinking water. We are not persuaded that the out-of-state gas drilling industry lobbying for drilling has New York's best interests at heart. Please sign the letter below calling on Governor Cuomo to order a comprehensive review of all environmental and public health aspects of this controversy before moving forward.
Additional Resources:
Ian Urbina, "Regulation Lax as Gas Wells' Tainted Water Hits Rivers," New York Times.
Editorial, "Natural Gas and Clean Water," New York Times.
10. Create Thousands of Green Jobs for New York:
The WFP and allies successfully lobbied the State Legislature to pass the nation's most ambitious residential retrofit program in 2009. Now underway, the program is a public-private partnership that can create jobs, lower utility bills, and reduce carbon emissions. Please sign the letter to the seven leading banks and investment firms in New York State that received Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds urging them to invest in the state's Residential Retrofit Investment Fund as part of their commitment to fighting climate change and creating a new industry in New York.
Green Jobs Letter to TARP Recipients
Additional Resources:
Editorial, "Act on Green Jobs Plan," Buffalo News.
Tom Zeller, Jr., "A Cheap Fix for Climate: Retrofitting," New York Times.
Post-Standard Editorial Board, "Green Jobs Bill a Bright Spot for Albany," Post-Standard.
Buffalo News Editorial Board, "Powering 'Green Jobs", Buffalo News.
Yes, add my name to the letter asking the largest TARP beneficiaries to invest in green jobs.
11. Protecting Family-Owned Businesses and Local Workers:
One of the biggest threats to strong local economies is the "low-road" business model pioneered by Wal-Mart. This low-wage, low-quality operating model reduces competition, destroys family-owned businesses, and depresses local labor markets. We support the enactment of Community Benefits Agreements for existing and future Wal-Marts and other large retailers to ensure that there is an explicit agreement on (1) a fair percentage of purchasing from small, locally-owned businesses, and (2) respect for the rights of American workers to organize a union and bargain collectively in the same way that Wal-Mart allows its workers to unionize in Latin America, Asia, and Europe. Do you support the WFP and others who are urging Wal-Mart and all the "big box" retailers to "travel the high road," support local businesses, and permit the exercise of long-established employee organizing rights?
Additional Resources:
Julie Davis, David Merriman, Lucia Samayoa, Brian Flanagan, Ron Baiman, and Joe Persky, "The Impact of an Urban Wal-Mart Store on Area Businesses: An Evaluation of One Chicago Neighborhood's Experience," Center for Urban Research and Learning at Loyola University Chicago.
12. Economic Development & Wage Standards:
New York spends hundreds of millions of dollars on economic development programs every year. The aim is a good one: to create and retain jobs in local communities in all 62 counties. But there is terribly inadequate oversight of how these precious economic development dollars are spent -- whether as direct subsidies or tax breaks -- and what they actually produce. Bitter experience teaches us that we must establish standards, meaning wage standards so that the jobs created pay the prevailing wage and do not undercut "high-road" employers or force working people to supplement low-wage jobs with public assistance, as well as full disclosure by companies on the number and quality of jobs retained or created. Will you support legislation that would set wage standards and enhance reporting requirement for all recipients of state economic development incentives?
Additional Resources:
Mike Fishman and Carol Kellerman, "Cuomo's Job is to Deliver Jobs." Albany Times Union.
T. William Lester and Ken Jacobs "Creating Good Jobs in Our Communities: How Higher Wage Standards Affect Economic Development and Employment." Center for American Progress.
Yes, I support such standards.
2011 Candidates for Public Office
13. Property Tax Relief/State Aid for Schools:
Across the state, low and middle-income families struggle with housing costs. Many homeowners, upstate and downstate, are paying more than ten percent of their income in property taxes alone. A "circuit breaker" limits a homeowner's property tax obligations to a percentage of his or her income, and is the most sensible way to deal with crushing property taxes. New York has a "circuit breaker" on the books, but it is inadequate. It should be made much more robust, even as this will require state funding to make up any lost revenue to schools and localities. We need proper funding of public schools and property tax relief via a circuit breaker, and it is not impossible to have both.
Additional Resources:
Fritz Mayer, "New York Property Tax Break Sought," River Reporter.
Frank Mauro, "Short Term Property Tax Relief and Long Term Tax Reform: An Omnibus Approach," Fiscal Policy Institute.
Daphne A. Kenyon, Adam H. Langley, and Bethany P. Paquin, "Property Tax Relief: The Case For Circuit Breakers," Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.
PART 2: HUDSON VALLEY REGIONAL QUESTIONS
1. Some municipalities in New York have adopted local "inclusionary zoning" laws that require developers to include at least 10% and in some cases as much as 20% affordable housing units (either for rental, homeownership, or both) that are integrated in sizable new residential developments (typically 10 or more units). These laws usually provide a "density bonus" of between 10% to 20% which allows the developer to build the required additional units without additional land cost(s). Will you support an inclusionary housing provision in your community to promote the creation of affordable housing opportunities with market rate development?
2. In August 2010, New York State enacted the Smart Growth Public Infrastructure Policy Act. Smart Growth is defined as "sensible, planned, efficient growth that integrates economic development and job creation with community quality-of-life by preserving and enhancing the built and natural environments and promoting social equity." Smart Growth encourages growth in developed areas with existing infrastructure to sustain it, particularly municipal centers, downtowns, "Main Streets", urban cores, hamlets, environmental justice areas, Brownfield Opportunity Areas, historic districts and older first-tier suburbs. The New York State Smart Growth Grant Program has targeted three geographic areas - the Adirondack Park, the Central Catskills (Route 28 corridor) and the Lower Hudson Valley regions - each with its own distinct growth management challenges and opportunities.
A) Do you support a smart growth agenda for infrastructure in your community?
B) What have you done or will you do to implement a smart growth agenda?
3. High energy costs and the growing concern that new development significantly impacts the environment have prompted the construction industry to build housing that is both sustainable and affordable. Some communities are promoting energy-efficient housing by employing a concept known as "net zero energy" - a term used to describe a building or home that has the capability of producing as much onsite power and energy as it consumes over the course of a year. To qualify as a net zero-energy development, the site must have a balance of energy needs supplied by renewable technology. The onsite technology must generate enough renewable energy to at least equal its annual energy use; as a result, energy bills are significantly reduced for residents. During a time when the cost of living is having a significant impact on American households, forward-thinking developers are building entire housing developments with onsite renewable energy technologies. Net zero affordable housing developments are expected to result in financial savings to residents and a long-term benefits to the environment.
Do you support the development of net zero energy affordable housing in your community?
4. If elected/reelected would you write an open letter to your State Senator and Assemblymember asking they support S.1777/A.6181 for the removal of Verizon's unsightly and even dangerous "Double Poles?"
5. For the past few years county and municipal governments have been faced with reduced tax revenue. The recession combined with the cutting of state and federal aide to local governments has only exacerbated already reduced budgets. County and municipal governments are faced with the difficult decision of either raising taxes or cutting vital services for the poor and working class. As an elected official how will you approach balancing your local budget?
6. Public funds designed to promote economic development in New York often fail to benefit residents in low-income communities suffering from high unemployment. Although they receive taxpayer dollars, these development projects rarely result in employment and training opportunities for individuals who need employment most: the chronically unemployed, those on public assistance, those with criminal records, and youth. The individuals employed by these projects often live outside of the area targeted for the economic development funds. If elected, would you work to adopt a local policy requiring that development projects that receive public subsidy (through grants, loans, tax breaks, or land disposition) hire and train local and low-income residents?
7. Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds are federal HUD funds allocated to cities and counties for community development projects. The goals of the grant are to provide decent housing, economic opportunity, and a suitable living environment for low and moderate income residents. HUD requires a minimal public participation process, but residents generally have little say in which projects are funded and who the jobs are targeted to. Will you create a Community Development Advisory Committee in your municipality made up of low and moderate income residents to oversee the spending of CDBG funds?
8. For many low-income Hudson Valley residents, public and subsidized housing is the only affordable housing option keeping families from being homeless. Within the Hudson Valley, several public housing developments have been privatized within the past few decades, leading to a drastic increase in rents and in some cases less maintenance and repairs. If elected, will you do everything in your power to preserve public and subsidized housing developments in your municipality?
9. For most Hudson Valley residents, owning a vehicle is the only adequate means of transportation. However, many others cannot afford to own and maintain a vehicle, and rely on public transportation, even in rural areas. These public transportation systems are often inadequate and prevent people from being able to access employment, schools, and other places to meet their basic needs. If elected, will you promote the expansion of public transportation services in your area?
If you still require assistance, then please contact Lise Rahdert: 718-222-3796 ext 250 or endorsements2011@votewfp.org.
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