In a smart opinion piece posted this week, Harry J. Holzer, professor of public policy at Georgetown University and a former chief economist at the U.S. Labor Department, says it’s time to stop trying to blame unions for what’s wrong with the economy:

Conservatives are attacking labor unions and President Barack Obama’s relationship with them. …. As an economist, I don’t always agree with America’s union movement, the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, and I wouldn’t argue that union actions are always beneficial or costless. But a sensible discussion requires a careful, dispassionate look at the theory and evidence on unions — rather than right-wing ideology and stereotypes dressed up as analysis.

Read the full article.

Via the Rachel Maddow Show blog comes this graph from Econbrowser:

From Maddow:

Consider three bills — two of them passed under budget reconciliation, the third heading for budget reconciliation. Each had an effect on the fiscal health of the nation, calculated by the Congressional Budget Office. The first two, the tax cuts pushed by President George W. Bush, blew a hole in the budget. The third, the Senate’s health reform bill? As you can see from the CBO projections, that’s a different story.

While the Senate is seeking agreement on jobs legislation, states will need to start reprogramming their unemployment insurance (UI) computers before the current federal benefit extensions and COBRA subsidies are scheduled to end on February 28.

Senate Majority Leader Reid attempted to get unanimous consent to move a stop-gap extension of the programs through March 7 while negotiations continue, but Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) objected.

Without timely congressional action, workers losing jobs after February 28 will only be eligible for 26 weeks of basic state benefits, and those participating in the federal extension programs will only be able to complete the extension in which they are participating, possibly losing months of assistance.

While most observers believe an extension ultimately will pass, the delay will cause mass confusion among the over 10 million unemployed workers receiving unemployment checks and cause states to spend unnecessary time and resources shutting down the extension software, responding to calls from UI claimants, and then starting up the programs again.

This message is from Chuck Loveless, AFSCME Director of Legislation.

Your job matters. Whether it’s clearing the roads of snow and ice, providing health care services, ensuring public safety, or simply working hard for our communities, the vital services that AFSCME members like you provide make our country happen.

And right now, these services — and our jobs — are on the chopping block as state and local governments face massive budget shortfalls. Unless Congress invests in states and communities, more than three million jobs will be lost by 2012 — including hundreds of thousands of public service jobs.

That’s why I hope you’ll add your name to our new Jobs Now petition: we need to fight for our jobs and fix the economy.

Economists on the left and right agree that investing in our jobs — the vital public services that AFSCME members provide — is one of the best ways to save and create jobs. Plus, every dollar invested in public services grows the economy by $1.41 — and that helps put all Americans back to work.

Please join thousands of other AFSCME members and add your name to our petition today: Urge Congress to support and fight for aid to state and local governments to save and create jobs.

The last thing we need right now is more layoffs. Investing in state and local governments is one of the most sure-fire ways to help our economy — and our country — recover from the worst recession in generations. As Congress and the President make jobs their number one priority over the coming months, it’s vital that the working families and public service employees who are on the front lines of this crisis make our voices heard. Please join us.

This message regarding President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address comes from AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee.

President Obama made it clear last night that he will fight for jobs. He knows that we cannot lose sight of the millions of working families who are still suffering from the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression. Too many Americans are out of work and too many jobs are at risk.

The President and Congress must act now or millions of Americans could lose their jobs in the months ahead. To this point, the President reminded the Democrats of their obligation to lead and served notice to Republicans that ‘just say no’ is not an option.

AFSCME agrees with the President that America needs to lay a foundation for long-term economic growth, and we continue to believe that providing affordable, quality health care for millions of additional Americans is not only the right thing to do, but is also a key to economic recovery.

We also agree that federal action is needed to keep our economy from slipping back into the ditch. Too many services in communities across the country are being cut to the bone. AFSCME members understand this first hand. Members like you are on the front lines of this crisis, trying to do more and more with less and less. State and local governments need help and they need it now.

AFSCME will fight for robust investment in vital public services. Indeed, investment in public services must be a part of federal jobs legislation. In the coming weeks and months, we will call you, our 1.6 million members, to lend your voice to our efforts to make this happen.

Americans struggle today with the disastrous results of unaccountable executives whose greed and irresponsible conduct created the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.  Too many CEOs and financial institutions put short-term profits ahead of the creation of long-term and sustainable wealth.  The foolish, short-sighted risk-taking by major financial institutions, at the expense of shareholders and the public, must never happen again.

President Obama laid out significant proposals last week for reforming the nation’s financial sector.  He addressed the failure of banks to fulfill their core mission of serving their customers, which led to the financial crisis.  The President proposed new fees on Wall Street to ensure the taxpayers get their money back, and had a strong message for banks that might object to these changes:

“And my resolve is only strengthened when I see a return to old practices at some of the very firms fighting reform; and when I see soaring profits and obscene bonuses at some of the very firms claiming that they can’t lend more to small business, they can’t keep credit card rates low, they can’t pay a fee to refund taxpayers for the bailout without passing on the cost to shareholders or customers – that’s the claims they’re making.  It’s exactly this kind of irresponsibility that makes clear reform is necessary.”

It’s high time for financial institutions to pay back the loan that the American people extended when the financial crisis hit.  The projected $100 billion that would be recovered would be very helpful in jump-starting the nation’s economic engine, keeping Americans in their homes and creating jobs.

It is time to fix the problems that sent our economy into a downward spiral that we are still trying to escape.  The President’s proposals are important steps to make financial institutions accountable and responsible. America must never again get into a situation where irresponsible conduct profits the banks while punishing the public.

Politics Daily looks at the effects of the so-called “Cadillac tax” included in the Senate health care bill. Originally intended as a way to finance reform by taxing the type of expensive benefit plans enjoyed by Wall Street executives, studies show it would hit a lot of middle-class Americans — and likely result in drastic cuts to health benefits.

Beth Umland, the research director for the Mercer employee benefits consulting firm which released a widely-read study on this tax last week, says the impact would be felt across the board.

“Plans that trigger the excise tax are not necessarily generous plans,” she said. “Small employers offer significantly less-generous plans than large employers, but just as many small employers are going to trigger the tax.” Plans for workers in dangerous professions, like steelworkers, also have higher-cost plans because they experience more work-related health problems.

Unlike the Senate bill, the plan passed by the House pays for health reform with a surtax on people making more than $500,000, and House Democrats like Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) are determined to remove the Cadillac tax when the legislation goes to conference committee.

A senior Democratic House aide said this week that the choice by the Senate to pay for health care reform with an excise tax that could hit middle-class workers, as opposed to the choice of the House to tax the highest earners, represents a fundamental philosophical difference between the two chambers that could endanger the entire bill if it is a part of the final conference report.

“It would be a mistake to assume that we’re just going to rubber-stamp what the Senate sends us,” Courtney said. “All of us are going to be on the ballot in 2010. It certainly raises a big, red flag for people who are going out be campaigning soon.”

Read the full story.

During a speech at the Brookings Institute Tuesday morning, President Barack Obama made it clear that restoring job growth and putting people back to work continues to be a top priority of his administration.

AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee praised the plan:

“President Obama set out a bold initiative today to put Americans back to work. The President outlined an ambitious plan to build on the proven success of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to protect and create jobs and build a strong and vibrant economy. President Obama understands that the loss of a job is more than a statistic, it is a human tragedy. That is why his commitment to extending unemployment and health insurance for those who are out-of-work is so important. I was also pleased to hear the President’s commitment to ensure that state and local governments get the help they need to save the jobs of workers who are providing essential public services during this deep economic crisis. We will be working to help President Obama win this crucial fight for America’s families and communities.”

Among Obama’s proposals:

• Extending relief to those hit hardest by the economic crisis, including unemployment insurance and COBRA benefits.
• Incentives to homeowners to invest in energy efficiency for their homes.
• Incentives to small businesses to help them hire new workers, as well as using funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Programs (TARP) to increase lending to small businesses.
• Aid to states ands localities to help them provide needed services.
• Boosting funding to infrastructure projects, including rail, water systems, broadband networks, clean energy projects and bridges.

Read the full text of President Obama’s remarks.

The AFL-CIO has launched a new TV ad that sends a clear message: “Pass Health Care. Don’t Tax Health Benefits.” The ad, which started running in key markets around the country over the weekend, emphasizes that taxing benefits will lead companies to cut benefits and will shift cost burdens to families that can’t afford it. It urges Congress to pass health care reform all Americans can afford.

The Senate’s health care bill would set a tax on health plans worth more than $8,500 per year for individuals and $23,000 per year for families. For workers in high-risk occupations, for retirees 55 or older and for residents in the 17 highest-cost states, the bill would tax plans worth more than $9,850 for individuals and $26,000 for families.

This would amount to an enormous tax on workers’ health care benefits, one that would grow rapidly, as insurers increase premiums by an equivalent amount. It would shift health care costs onto the backs of workers—including many of the most vulnerable workers—without bringing down the cost of health care.

Read more on the AFL-CIO blog.

As state and local governments slice and dice their budgets – making mincemeat of critical public services – it’s the poorest among us who bear the heaviest burden. That’s because working families and the unemployed depend on those services the most. Yet all kinds of public services (like libraries and social service agencies) are shrinking or being eliminated because of this economic and jobs crisis.

It doesn’t need to be that way. A new report, “Who Pays? A Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States” by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, suggests that the wealthiest among us are not carrying their fair share of the tax burden.

The reason, as the report points out, is that sales and property taxes take a bigger bite from low- and middle-income families than they do from the wealthy. For the rich, income taxes are more significant. But in states with either no income tax or flat income tax rates (including Florida, Washington and Illinois), the disparity is great. And it’s just unfair.

“The harsh reality is that most states require their poor and middle-income taxpayers to pay the most taxes as a share of income,” says Matthew Gardner, lead author of the report.

That’s why lawmakers seeking solutions to their budget crises need to spread the tax burden equitably. Those with the highest incomes should pay their fair share. This report points the way.

Want to know more? Download a fact sheet for your state. If you want to know how to use the report in your own tax reform efforts, please contact AFSCME’s Research and Collective Bargaining Services Department: (202) 429-1215.