GA legislature launches Working Families Caucus
Many state legislatures have Black Caucuses and Women's Caucuses. But what about a caucus dedicated to helping working people?
Atlanta Progressive News reports that Georgia now has a Working Families Caucus to fill this vacuum:
They've hammered out a legislative agenda, starting with SB 13, a bill to raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour by January 1, 2008 (the bill was killed in committee this year, but the caucus is "not giving up.")
The caucus has also promised to lead the charge against attempts by the Republican-led legislature to scale back PeachCare (pdf), the state's program that provides health care for 308,000 low-income children, and another GOP-backed bill to overturn a 2004 ban on payday lending.
Atlanta Progressive News reports that Georgia now has a Working Families Caucus to fill this vacuum:
The Georgia Working Families Caucus (WFC) is the Georgia General Assembly’s newest legislative caucus, having officially formed this session “in order to develop and promote legislation and policies that invest in workers, families, and communities" ...To my knowledge, the caucus is the first of its kind in the South.
The Caucus is composed of over 20 members from around the state and meets every Thursday at noon during the Legislative Session to outline Caucus positions, discuss issues, and hear briefings from experts and advocates. The Caucus is also working closely with the Atlanta/North Georgia AFL-CIO and the labor community in Georgia.
“We do not have any Republican members yet but we have opened the invitation to all members,” [said] Rep. Brian Thomas (D-Lilburn), a Caucus Co-chair.
They've hammered out a legislative agenda, starting with SB 13, a bill to raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour by January 1, 2008 (the bill was killed in committee this year, but the caucus is "not giving up.")
The caucus has also promised to lead the charge against attempts by the Republican-led legislature to scale back PeachCare (pdf), the state's program that provides health care for 308,000 low-income children, and another GOP-backed bill to overturn a 2004 ban on payday lending.
Labels: Georgia, Work and Community
1 Comments:
How fascinating! How progressive and positive!
Hello, North Carolina legislature???
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