2008-01-10 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Collective Bargaining on Hold For Now In December, NLC successfully defeated efforts in the Senate to attach mandatory collective bargaining legislation to the Farm Bill, H.R. 2419. Early in the year, the House passed legislation that would require state and local governments to enter into collective bargaining agreements with public safety employee unions and essentially "federalize" the traditional employment relationship between local governments and their respective public safety employees. On Dec. 13, in response to opposition from NLC, other public interest groups, state municipal leagues, and others -- without a vote -- Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) withdrew the amendment that would have added the mandatory collective bargaining language to the Farm Bill (H.R.2419). During Sen. Reid's floor speech, he expressed his intention to take up the legislation in the future. NLC will continue to oppose the legislation on the grounds that it interferes with states laws, violates federalism principles, and may be unconstitutional. (Neil Bomberg, bomberg@nlc.org, 202.626.3042) Permanent Ban on Internet Taxes Defeated Faced with the expiration of the Internet Tax Freedom Act (ITFA), members of Congress introduced several bills that would have made the ITFA permanent. The ITFA, or "Internet Tax Moratorium," prohibits state and local governments from taxing "Internet access" charges. As an alternative to legislation that was gaining momentum, NLC and several of its state and local partners pushed for a temporary extension of the ITFA, rather than the permanent one favored by many in the business community. Congress and the President eventually rejected a permanent moratorium and enacted the Internet Tax Freedom Act Amendments Act of 2007, H.R. 3678, which extended the ITFA for seven years, clarified the definition of Internet access and retained the grandfather protections for states and local governments that taxed "Internet access" prior to 1998. (Christina Fletcher Loftus, loftus@nlc.org, 202.626.3173) Repeal of the Three Percent Withholding Requirement Still Possible NLC lobbied in support of two efforts by Congress to delay from 2011 to 2012 the implementation of a new unfunded mandate that requires federal, state, and local governments, who spend more than $100 million on goods and services, to withhold three percent of all payments to contractors and vendors and to remit those monies to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Although the legislation did not pass, House leaders continue to support the delay and are likely to move this legislation in 2008. NLC will continue to lobby for the repeal of this onerous requirement that would force local governments to become collection agents for the IRS. (Christina Fletcher Loftus, loftus@nlc.org, 202.626.3173) Oral Arguments in Video Franchise Lawsuit Scheduled for February th After NLC successfully defeated attempts in the 109 Congress to pass a national cable