SB 3 will increase the minimum wage in California to $13 by July 1, 2017 [$11 on January 1, 2016]. This bill also includes an innovative provision which adjusts the minimum wage indexed to inflation beginning January 1, 2019. SB 3 (Leno) is currently in the Labor and Employment Committee and has a hearing on July 8th.

Senate Democrats Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell voted yes for fast track authorization of of the TPP trade agreement, betraying organized labor in one of the most union dense states in the nation. The TPP will very likely pass once negotiated by President Obama and corporate lobbyists. Ask the nation's largest representative of organized labor to never again endorse either Senator for any public office again unless they vote down the TPP itself when the time comes!

The Trans-Pacific Partnership will negatively hurt all but the super rich and large corporations. They will not even let the people see it before it is voted on. NOT COOL!

The costs for groceries, transportation, and housing are going up. Wages are stagnant. If we don't increase wages for everyone, then we should invest in higher education. If we as a society expect these lower wage jobs to be filled, then we should pay people enough to live.

I know many workers who can barely get by in this great state. They need to be able to pay for just basic needs, like food and rent. This would allow them to do that. So many employed Oregonians barely get by with the minimum wage, some have to live with parents and many need food stamp assistance just to keep food on the table. Lets make Oregon a place with fair wages for fair work.

Last year, it was Burger King. Now, it's Monsanto. The agribusiness giant Monsanto is considering a plan to buy Syngenta, a European agrochemical company. (1) The move would allow it to declare itself a foreign company for tax purposes. If Monsanto does indeed renounce their status as a U.S- based company, it will mean they will be taxed at a much lower rate than American-based companies, in a scheme that is referred to as "corporate inversion." The crazy thing is, they don't actually have to move their CEO or any of their central offices, they can just claim on paper to be headquartered in the UK, much in the way that Burger King is now, on paper a Canadian company. It would also allow Monsanto to permanently avoid paying taxes on the $4.4 billion of profits it has reported as holding offshore. According to the Center for Effective Government, "Monsanto could owe as much as $1.5 billion in U.S. taxes on these offshore profits, an amount that could be permanently avoided if the new company engages in complex legal and tax transactions following an inversion." (2) We can't let big corporations continue to dodge taxes with high-paid tax lawyers -- everyone should play by the same rules. How can we invest in education or job growth if large, profitable companies are scheming to avoid paying their fair share? We hear a lot of talk about how Congress wants to help the middle class. Well, they can start by stopping the biggest companies from playing a rigged game and passing the Stop Corporate Inversions Act right now, which would save us $34 billion over the next decade. (3) Sen. Bill Nelson has supported closing the inversion loophole in the past, but he is not on record in support of the version of the bill. If enough people weigh in, I'm confident we can add him as a supporter. 1. http://goo.gl/eEMZqV 2. http://goo.gl/BjGSaq 3. http://goo.gl/psrmNp

Last year, it was Burger King. Now, it's Monsanto. The agribusiness giant Monsanto is considering a plan to buy Syngenta, a European agrochemical company. (1) The move would allow it to declare itself a foreign company for tax purposes. If Monsanto does indeed renounce their status as a U.S- based company, it will mean they will be taxed at a much lower rate than American-based companies, in a scheme that is referred to as "corporate inversion." The crazy thing is, they don't actually have to move their CEO or any of their central offices, they can just claim on paper to be headquartered in the UK, much in the way that Burger King is now, on paper a Canadian company. It would also allow Monsanto to permanently avoid paying taxes on the $4.4 billion of profits it has reported as holding offshore. According to the Center for Effective Government, "Monsanto could owe as much as $1.5 billion in U.S. taxes on these offshore profits, an amount that could be permanently avoided if the new company engages in complex legal and tax transactions following an inversion." (2) We can't let big corporations continue to dodge taxes with high-paid tax lawyers -- everyone should play by the same rules. How can we invest in education or job growth if large, profitable companies are scheming to avoid paying their fair share? We hear a lot of talk about how Congress wants to help the middle class. Well, they can start by stopping the biggest companies from playing a rigged game and passing the Stop Corporate Inversions Act right now, which would save us $34 billion over the next decade. (3) Sen. Ron Wyden has supported closing the inversion loophole in the past, but he is not on record in support of the version of the bill. If enough people weigh in, I'm confident we can add him as a supporter. 1. http://goo.gl/eEMZqV 2. http://goo.gl/BjGSaq 3. http://goo.gl/psrmNp

Americans should not have to pay their hard-earned tax dollars to wealthy multinational corporations to conduct business activity abroad. Eliminating the Ex-Im Bank has garnered public support from across the political spectrum, but the largest and most powerful multinational corporations and institutions, such as Boeing and the Chamber of Commerce, have continued to pressure Congress to uphold the subsidies and preserve the status quo. For lawmakers looking to eliminate waste and get our fiscal house in order, the Export-Import Bank should be at the top of the list. With the bank’s charter expiration date set for June 30th, Congress simply needs to do nothing. We need to make sure Congress makes the right choice to let the Export-Import Bank expire, and act in the public interest. (1) http://reut.rs/1umaXLf, http://1.usa.gov/1INucEl

My husband and I were hoping to move closer to Chicago in order to have better success in finding additional jobs as well as saving money on traveling. Over the past few months, rentals we have looked at either in the newspaper or online have skyrocketed. Tiny apartments, with few amenities and allowances for pets such as cats, are more than the rent we pay currently for a reasonably-sized home. This petition is for hard-working, fixed income persons and their families to rally the local and state government to force landlords to lower rents and cap the rents in consideration to those who rent and are not section 8 candidates.

Paid sick days help keep families financially secure, workplaces and communities healthy and strong, and businesses and the economy productive. A study conducted by our very own University of Pittsburgh found that allowing all employees access to paid sick days would reduce influenza infections in the workplace. More than 20 other cites or states, including Philadelphia, have adopted paid sick day laws. It’s time to add Pittsburgh to the list!

On the night of Monday June 15, The Hill reported: [1] "House GOP leaders are punting on voting again on President Obama's trade agenda, possibly until the end of July. After Friday's failed vote to pass aid for workers displaced by trade deals, known as Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) set up a process allowing the House to conduct a do-over of the vote by Tuesday. But Obama and GOP leadership aren't yet in a position where TAA is any more likely to pass. So the House Rules Committee on Monday night attached a provision to a "rule" governing parameters for debate on the intelligence authorization bill that extends the possibility for the chamber to vote on TAA again to July 30." Pro-fast track forces in the House are admitting that they are defeated for now. Thank the House for defeating fast track on Friday by signing our petition. References: 1. http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/245070-house-gop-punts-on-trade

I have heard many stories of senior citizens who are on fixed incomes being saddled with student loan debt which has been hounding them for decades due to high interest and other fees being piled on to the original loan. I myself have had student loans. The original amount I borrowed was 65 thousand. The amount I owe now is over 150 thousand dollars after twenty years of payments. I will be making so little in retirement, I fear the student loan payment will take away money I will need for basic needs.