by AZ Free Enterprise Club | Jun 7, 2021 | Economy, Opinion
By the Free Enterprise Club |
“15 days to slow the spread.” Do you remember that? It was all the rage in the media in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. You’d hear it on news broadcasts. You’d see it in commercials. And you’d read it as you scrolled through the various social media platforms.
But it didn’t take long before those calls to “slow the spread,” became calls to “cancel everything.” And too many government leaders across the country bought into it by instituting huge lockdowns and other draconian measures.
Certainly, COVID was an issue that warranted some action, but it never should have included crushing small businesses or trampling on the rights of the people.
And yet, here we are more than a year later. The states with the most severe COVID restrictions are experiencing much slower economic recovery than those that fully reopened.
Blue states are struggling
California still has not reopened, despite being the first state to lockdown back in March 2020. Finally, after months of inconsistencies, confusing decisions, and hypocrisy from leaders like Governor Newsom, the state appears to be poised to fully reopen by mid-June.
But the outlook isn’t bright. Even with such extreme lockdowns and other measures, California still experienced a deadly surge from COVID. And along with that, its economy is in turmoil with one of the nation’s highest unemployment rates at 8.3%.
Not surprisingly, there’s been a mass exodus from the state, causing it to lose a seat in the House of Representatives. And those that have remained are so fed up that they are trying to recall their governor.
But California is not alone. In a recent report, Michigan has been named as the state with the slowest recovery. Even Governor Whitmer couldn’t help but acknowledge that her radical measures, which at one point included prohibiting citizens from visiting family and friends, couldn’t stop COVID.
And then there’s New York, where Governor Cuomo’s COVID failures have been well documented. Just like California, the state also lost a seat in the House of Representatives due to a significant decline in its population. New York City alone lost approximately 900,000 jobs with a current unemployment rate of 11.4%.
But how do these blue states compare to our own?
READ MORE >>>
by AZ Free News | Jun 2, 2021 | Economy, News
On Tuesday, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema was joined by Sen. John Cornyn of Texas on a tour of two facilities housing migrants in Tucson. Sinema and Cornyn will be in Texas today.
Sinema and Cornyn received a tour of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s “soft-sided facility” in Tucson, which is used to house migrants apprehended by Border Patrol.
Cornyn and Sinema then visited the Casa Alitas shelter. The senators received a briefing from Casa Alitas staff. Casa Alitas is operated by Catholic Community Services.
Cornyn, Sinema and U.S. Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28) and Tony Gonzales (R-TX-23) in April introduced The Bipartisan Border Solutions Act, their bipartisan, bicameral legislation to respond to the surge in migrants coming across our southern border.
The sponsors say the bill would “improve both the Department of Homeland Security’s and the Department of Justice’s capacity to manage migration influxes and adjudicate asylum claims in a timely manner, protect unaccompanied migrant children, reduce impact on local communities, ensure migrants are treated fairly and humanely, and ultimately deter those who do not have realistic asylum claims from placing themselves in danger by making the treacherous journey to our southern border.”
The Bipartisan Border Solutions Act:
- Establishes at least 4 regional processing centers in high-traffic Border Patrol sectors to properly handle the influx of migrants along the southwest border and improve interagency coordination.
- Creates pilot programs to facilitate fairer and more efficient credible fear determinations and asylum decisions, while ensuring fairness in proceedings through provisions to protect access to counsel, language translation services, and legal orientations.
- Establishes prioritized docketing of migrants’ immigration court cases during irregular migration influx events to deliver legal certainty for migrants., and disincentivize would-be migrants with weak asylum claims from making the treacherous journey to the southwest border.
- Expands legal orientation programming and translation services, and protects access to counsel for migrants.
- Implements new protections for unaccompanied migrant children released to sponsors in the United States, including regular follow-up and absolute bars on placement with persons convicted of certain crimes, such as sex offenders and child abusers.
- Increases staffing to better handle irregular migration influx events, including 150 new Immigration Judge teams, 300 asylum officers, ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations staff, ICE litigation teams, CBP officers, and Border Patrol processing coordinators.
- Improves DHS coordination with NGOs and local governments to prevent release of migrants into small communities that are poorly equipped to handle the influx of a large number of migrants.
- Improves DHS, DOJ, and HHS reporting to Congress to support future legislative efforts in areas in which bipartisan agreement does not yet exist.
The Bipartisan Border Solutions Act is supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Immigration Forum, National Border Patrol Council, American Business Immigration Coalition, Major Cities Chiefs Association, U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Evangelicals, Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, Niskanen Center, Mayor Luis Sifuentes of Eagle Pass, Texas, Texas Border Coalition, Border Trade Alliance, Texas Border Sheriff’s Coalition, Southwestern Border Sheriffs’ Coalition, Texas Association of Business, South Texans’ Property Rights Association, RGV Partnership, New American Economy, Americans for Prosperity and The LIBRE Initiative.
by AZ Free Enterprise Club | May 20, 2021 | Economy, Opinion
By the Free Enterprise Club |
If given the option between working full time or doing nothing but receiving the same or greater pay, which would you choose? Most people would choose the latter. And can you blame them? Why wake up early and work all day if the government will pay you to stay home and do nothing instead?
This is the current workforce environment in America, and it is having a detrimental impact on our economic recovery. The result? While the Biden administration was hoping to tout a million new jobs for the month of April, they ended with a paltry 266,000.
And we have seen this lag in job recovery all across the country. Restaurants have posted signs apologizing to customers for delays in service, noting that their employees refuse to come back to work. And some businesses have started offering cash simply for coming in for an interview.
Never let a crisis go to waste, right? Under the guise of a global pandemic, politicians shut down the economy, and then created a citizenry dependent on unemployment checks exceeding the wish list $15 minimum wage pushed by the likes of Bernie Sanders. How is a business, coming out of potentially months with no profit, supposed to compete with that?
It is completely unsustainable. States can’t afford it. The feds can’t afford it. And most importantly, small businesses can’t shoulder it any longer.
Fortunately, some states have moved in the right direction. South Carolina announced they will be ending the $300 federal unemployment supplemental payments. This comes after Montana announced the same, along with $1,200 stipends to Montanans who return to work.
>> READ MORE >>>
by AZ Free Enterprise Club | May 15, 2021 | Economy, Opinion
By the Free Enterprise Club |
Unions are in decline in America, and it’s no surprise as to why. Most do not offer any sort of value to the overwhelming majority of workers.
You would think they could take a hint. In 2017, workers at Nissan in Mississippi and Boeing in South Carolina rejected union representation by a wide margin. In 2019, Volkswagen employees in Tennessee voted against unionizing for the second time in recent years. And just last month, employees at an Amazon facility in Alabama largely rejected joining the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union.
So, what solution has labor unions come up with? Will they focus on bringing more value to members or potential members? Will their leadership stop supporting liberal and other far-left causes? Will they stop pushing socialist policies and politicians?
Nope. Their solution is to force American workers to join unions through legislation.
H.R. 842, also known as the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, would enact sweeping changes to the National Labor Relations Act. And it’s dangerous in 3 particular ways.
- The PRO Act repeals all state right-to-work laws. Currently, 27 states have right-to-work laws, including Arizona. These laws ensure workers can choose whether or not to join a union and pay for representation. The PRO Act would remove these laws, which could cause some workers to lose more of their wages and others to lose their jobs…
>> READ MORE >>>
by AZ Free News | May 14, 2021 | Economy, News
PHOENIX — Across the state, chambers of commerce are applauding Governor Doug Ducey’s decision that Arizona will no longer be taking the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation, and instead will offer one-time bonuses to returning workers, along with child care support, educational opportunities and rental assistance.
The announcement follows reports from employers that they are having trouble competing with the federal government’s unemployment payments, which are paying individuals more to stay home and not work than to find a job.
Arizona will stop taking the federal government’s pandemic unemployment benefits effective Saturday, July 10. Instead, the state will offer a $2,000 Back To Work bonus for eligible workers — with a goal of getting as many Arizonans as possible to rejoin the workforce by Labor Day, September 6, 2021.
Arizona will also provide support for unemployed individuals seeking to upskill their careers with adult education programs as well as additional child care opportunities.
“In Arizona, we’re going to use federal money to encourage people to work…instead of paying people not to work,” Governor Ducey said in a video.
“With ample supplies of the COVID-19 vaccine on hand and millions of Arizonans vaccinated, people feel safer and are finally returning to life in Arizona as we knew and loved it before,” said Ducey. “People are back in the office, restaurants are at full capacity and tourists are flocking to our state.”
“There is dignity in work. Ronald Reagan said the best social program is a job. I agree with that,” Ducey said.
“We have worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to ensure those who were displaced received the support they needed for themselves and their families,” said Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) Director Michael Wisehart. “Now that employers in all sectors are hiring, we’re ready to transition and enhance our assistance to families, job seekers and employers. We are committed to ensuring the long-term strength of Arizona’s economy to provide self-sufficiency for Arizona’s families.”
The Governor’s Back To Work program is garnering support from community and business leaders across the state:
“Governor Ducey is breaking down many of the barriers that prevent people from returning to work. Getting people funding for GED programs, community college, providing funding for childcare, and bonus money for their hard work is the hand up Arizonans need,” said Arizona Regional Economic Development Foundation Executive Director Mignonne Hollis.
“After last week’s disappointing federal jobs report, Arizona is implementing a common-sense, conservative plan to ensure we continue our state’s strong economic rebound,” said Prescott Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Sheri Heiney.
“Across Arizona, restaurants of all sizes are ready to hire new employees and expand their teams,” said Arizona Restaurant Association President and CEO Steve Chucri. “When it comes to the food and beverage industry, things are much different than they were a year ago. Millions are vaccinated, we know how to keep patrons and staff safe, and people are ready to eat at restaurants again. Restaurants need to ensure they have enough staff to meet the demand, but many are struggling to fill positions. I’m grateful to Governor Ducey for encouraging Arizonans to find new employment opportunities so we can get our restaurants fully staffed and continue to move the state’s economy forward.”
“We’re excited to welcome new team members and provide great jobs for Arizonans,” said Westroc Hospitality President and Chief Operating Officer Bill Nassikas. “After weathering the pandemic, we know Arizonans are looking for employment opportunities. We’re ready to hire, along with countless other businesses across the state.”
“Arizona’s tourism and hospitality industry is poised and eager to welcome visitors,” said Arizona Tourism and Lodging Association President and CEO Kim Grace Sabow. We are prepared to offer safe and unique experiences to both leisure and business travelers. An array of quality jobs are available for those seeking a rewarding industry career path — and we’re ready to hire today!”
by AZ Free News | May 14, 2021 | Economy, News
The American Legislative Exchange Council’s latest annual Rich States, Poor States report shows Arizona’s economic outlook ranking is slipping.
Of the 15 variables the report uses for its economic outlook ranking, Arizona received poor grades for its top marginal personal income tax rate (42), state minimum wage rate (44), and sales tax burden (45).
“While we slipped three places in the ranking, are no longer in the top ten, and are approaching what could be a crisis of competitiveness, hope still remains that we can correct course,” said Chad Heinrich, Arizona state director for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB).
“To help small businesses the State Legislature must focus on fixing the disparate tax treatment of commercial property, reforming Arizona’s individual income tax code with small businesses in mind, and making our unemployment insurance (UI) trust fund solvent without raising taxes on Main Street enterprises, the latter of which is not measured in the Rich States, Poor States report,” said Heinrich.
The NFIB poll released yesterday showed an increase in small business optimism over the previous month’s increase but keeping the small-business economy from soaring is the drag of record highs in unfilled job openings.
“Gov. Doug Ducey’s signing of liability protection legislation will help Arizona’s small businesses open with confidence as we return to pre-pandemic business operations, as will Arizona conforming with several small-business-focused tax provisions in the federal CARES Act. The two big questions Main Street entrepreneurs have are: Will they be hit with a double whammy if the legislature increases unemployment taxes while UI rates have also increased due to the pandemic and how deeply would a federal effort to raise the minimum-wage rate to $15 an hour affect their operations,” said Heinrich.
