March 2008
Governor Calls Special Session on Severance Tax on Natural Gas
Saying he has support from more than the 75 percent super-majority of state legislators needed, Governor Mike Beebe announced March 21 that he is calling the 86th General Assembly into a special legislative session beginning March 31 to increase the severance tax on natural gas in Arkansas. He expects the session to last three days.
Earlier this month, the State Chamber/AIA Executive Committee agreed to support the plan and congratulated the governor and representatives of the natural gas industry for reaching an agreement on the proposed tax increase that would primarily be used for road improvements.
Governor Will Emcee Congressional Dinner; Room Block Filling Fast
Participants in the State Chamber/AIA’s 49th Annual Washington Fly-In and Congressional Dinner can plan on a busy night on Monday, April 28, at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va.
The evening begins with a 6 p.m. reception and continues into the dinner hour at 7 p.m., with both events featuring ample chances for productive contact with members of our congressional delegation and their staffs. Governor Mike Beebe has agreed to serve as master of ceremonies for the dinner again this year.
The fun and tradition – along with excellent networking opportunities – continue after dinner in the Hospitality Suite, once again hosted by the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce Executives.
We will also visit with our senators and representatives and their staffs at their offices and at district dinners, luncheons and breakfasts April 27-29. Many Fly-In participants like to take advantage of the activities scheduled over these three days. However, if you have a limited schedule, we encourage you to consider attending just the reception and dinner.
Although the cut-off date to secure a room from the State Chamber/AIA block at the Crystal Gateway at the special discounted rate of $195 (single or double) isn't until Thursday, April 3, our block is selling out fast. Rooms are still available, but we suggest you make your hotel reservation ASAP!
All hotel reservations may be made directly by calling 703-920-3230 or 1-800-228-9290. Please make any/all revisions to your hotel reservations through the State Chamber/AIA office by calling Deb Mathis or Susie Marks at 501-372-2222. You can also click here to access the hotel and contact information on our Web site calendar. The registration form is also on our Web site.
Workers’ Comp Committee Will Meet in April
The State Chamber/AIA Workers’ Compensation Committee will meet at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, April 8, in the State Chamber/AIA’s Bob Lamb Conference Room at 1200 W. Capitol in Little Rock to discuss workers’ comp legislation for the 2009 legislative session and workers’ comp issues of interest to the business community. The initial meetings have begun between the State Chamber/AIA and AFL-CIO representatives. Co-Chairmen Lynn Tatum and Max Koonce will update the committee on these talks with labor.
Governor’s Quality Award and State Chamber/AIA Join Forces
The Governor’s Quality Award (GQA) and the State Chamber/AIA have formed a working partnership to use our collective programs and activities to continue building a better Arkansas. The outstanding GQA program provides opportunities for companies and organizations from all over the state to measure their progress in their journey of performance excellence.
It takes great commitment to remain focused to increase your company or organization’s effectiveness and to stay competitive. Utilizing this process can help you:
- Jump-start change initiatives,
- Energize improvement initiatives,
- Focus your organization on common goals,
- Assess performance against the competition, and
- Align your resources with your strategic objectives.
If you have never taken part, it only costs $750 for your company or organization to participate at the Challenge level. The only requirement at this level is to complete a three-page organizational profile and attend a seminar.
Another important factor in your organization is your employees. Providing volunteers to become Examiners for this process improvement program will benefit your organization in numerous ways. Not only do they receive valuable training and experience in understanding and applying the Criteria, they also develop analytical consensus-building skills that can be applied at your workplace.
Contact with other volunteers and the opportunity to assess leading organizations can keep employees current with best practices. The Examiners make an enormous contribution to our state and grow substantially both professionally and personally as a result.
This excellent training for our volunteer Examiners in the program is tuition free. However, for individuals who are interested in receiving the ASQ Certified training but cannot participate as an Examiner, tuition is $995 per person. For full details on your company’s participation in the GQA program or for information on Examiner training, click here to go the GQA Web site. You can click here to view the 2008 Intent to Apply Form or here to view a 2008 Board of Examiner Application.
The deadline for the intent to apply is April 4. If you have questions or would like to apply, please contact Sue Weatter, our GQA administrator, at 501-372-2222 or sweatter@arkansasstatechamber.com .
DHS Issues Supplemental Proposed Rule Regarding No-Match Letters
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on March 21 released a Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking for the No-Match Rule previously issued on August 15, 2007.
This rulemaking addresses three issues cited in a decision of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California enjoining the August 2007 No-Match Rule. This Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking provides a more detailed analysis of how DHS developed the No-Match policy and will help responsible employers ensure that they are not employing unauthorized workers.
"We are serious about immigration enforcement. The No-Match Rule is an important tool for cracking down on illegal hiring practices while providing honest employers with the guidance they need," said Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. "This supplement specifically addresses the three grounds on which the district court based its injunction. We have also filed an appeal and are pursuing these two paths simultaneously to get a resolution as quickly as possible."
The rule does not create new legal obligations for businesses. It simply outlines clear steps an employer may take in response to receiving a letter from the Social Security Administration indicating that an employee's name does not match the social security number on file. If the business follows the guidance in the No-Match Rule, comprising various actions to rectify the no-match within 90 days of receiving the letter, they will have a safe harbor from the no-match letter being used against them in an enforcement action.
The original No-Match Notice of Proposed Rule Making was published on June 14, 2006, and the comment period was open for 60 days. The department then incorporated the comments and issued a final rule on August 15, 2007. DHS is requesting public comment on the Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking for 30 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
House Bill Would Increase H-1B Visa Cap
PC World reported March 15 that Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) introduced the Innovation Employment Act, a bill that "would increase the cap in H-1B visas from 65,000 a year to 130,000 a year. In addition, there would be no cap on H-1B applications for foreign graduate students attending U.S. colleges and studying science, technology and related fields."
Furthermore, the bill "would increase the H-1B cap to 180,000 in 2010 to 2015 if the 130,000 cap is reached the year before." Microsoft "praised [the] bill," as Jack Krumholtz, management director of federal government affairs for Microsoft, said, it "would boost America's competitiveness by giving U.S. employers the flexibility they need to hire the best talent available to fill a severe shortage of qualified U.S. high-skilled workers."
And Bizjournals reported on March 17 that a recent study by the National Foundation for American Policy found that "large companies in the S&P 500 posted 140,000 job openings in January for people who have at least an undergraduate degree." This bolsters the argument that "demand for [H-1B] temporary work visas continues to far exceed the supply."
Still, Ron Hira, assistant professor of public policy at Rochester Institute of Technology, argues, "If there was a shortage, we'd be seeing very high wage increases in the IT job market." He says that firms "that receive H-1B visas are able to use loopholes in the program's prevailing wage requirements to pay visa holders less than what they would pay Americans."
In 2007, an "increase in the H-1B visa cap died ... along with comprehensive immigration reform." And while "prospects for congressional action this year are doubtful," Hira believes that "industry pressure for more H-1B visas is so strong there is 'always a chance' the cap will be raised."
Columnist Argues for Revitalizing Manufacturing
In a column in the Washington Post earlier this month, Susan Helper, a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research and an economics professor at Case Western Reserve University, wrote that the U.S. "manufacturing sector has been hammered" by job losses, but it "remains vital to our nation's economy."
The manufacturing sector "accounts for 12 percent of gross domestic product and over half of our national spending on research and development," she said. To revitalize struggling manufacturers, Helper suggests "manufacturing and service firms can use a 'high-road' production process that harnesses everyone's knowledge ... to achieve innovation."
Meanwhile, legislators should support "more investment in education, training, and research and development." Also, "broad access to health care would greatly benefit manufacturers," and "rebuilding our neglected infrastructure would create jobs while making the United States more competitive." Instead of "abandoning manufacturing, we could make the sector a showcase that leads the way toward higher productivity and better jobs in the economy as a whole," she wrote.
NAM Study Details High Costs of Emissions Legislation
The Associated Press reports that a study commissioned by the National Association of Manufacturers projects "$631 billion in costs by 2020 if Congress institutes a [greenhouse gas emissions] reduction program." Furthermore, if "mandatory reductions in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions" are enacted, "the economy would have 1.2 million to 1.4 million fewer jobs by 2020 than would otherwise be the case as the effects on coal and other industries outweigh new jobs tied to renewable energy."
John Engler, president of NAM, explained, "We end up driving jobs out of the country offshore, in effect trading relatively clean production here for relatively dirty production somewhere else and so you end up with I think a lose-lose proposition for the American worker and the global environment."
Additionally, according to the Miami Herald, the study "predicted the legislation intended to deal with global warming could cause" GDP "losses of $151 billion to $210 billion in 2020 and $631 billion to $669 billion per year in 2030." Meanwhile, losses in employment would measure "1.2 million to 1.8 million jobs in 2020 and three million to four million jobs in 2030," and electricity prices would rise "28 percent to 33 percent by 2020 and 101 percent to 129 percent by 2030."
Supply Chain Issues Plague Most Manufacturers, Columnist Writes
In a March 17 column in Industry Week, J. Paul Dittmann, director of corporate partnerships at the University of Tennessee, details common supply chain problems firms face. He writes that the "amazing similarity of supply chain problems means that companies can learn from each other despite the industry in which they compete."
Problems Dittmann identifies include: too much complexity, too much slow-moving and obsolete inventory, lack of supply chain strategy, and global issues and outsourcing problems. Firms are recognizing "that supply chain is the next big frontier of competition. Only by aggressively addressing challenges such as those listed above can they effectively compete in an increasingly intense global environment."
Furthermore, "recognizing and addressing issues such as those presented above can mean big savings." Dittmann cites a hard goods manufacturer that addressed its supply chain problems and "delivered $600 million in cash-flow improvement." Meanwhile, a "major boat manufacturer found that its distribution network needed to be restructured," and "found a $5-10 million savings in this area."
