GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS UPDATE
Understanding the New Health Care
Legislation…
The Corning Area Chamber of Commerce
wishes to thank our special program guest
speakers:
James DeChene, US Chamber of Commerce
Margaret Moree, Business Council of New York
Kevin McGurgan, Excellus Blue Cross
And our generous sponsor for making this
program possible!
The timeline for the new health care
legislation passed by Congress and signed
into law recently sees many reforms go into
effect at various times throughout the
coming years with other aspects coming even
later. The various government agencies,
particularly the Department of Health and
Human Services and Internal Revenue Service,
will be working over the next several years
on drafting the regulations necessary to
implement the new laws.
** All businesses are encouraged to stay
tuned for announcements of future upcoming
health care regulation update roundtables
and advocacy programs with area industry
experts!
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Why should YOU attend advocacy
programs?
“When I need information
pertinent to my business, I turn
to the Corning Area Chamber of
Commerce. The recent Health Care
Legislation program was a
perfect example of the Chamber’s
ability to identify key issues
facing my business as well as
bringing in the right people to
help me understand what these
issues will mean. The Chamber
gives me clout as a small
business. Whether it’s education
or information, they’re an
important component to my
success as a small business.”
Michelle DeChant
Principal
Internos Initiatives, LLC
_______________________________________________
“As a small business owner, I
face the same business
challenges that you do day in
and day out … do I have a
choice to provide health
insurance for my employees … or
… what options do I have?
The Federal government has just
passed health care legislation
which will affect your business
lives and your personal lives
for years to come. In order to
plan for the future, we need to
learn more about the legislation
and how we can maximize and/or
minimize the impacts of the
regulations and their
timelines.”
Rick Maxa
Partner, Kenneth Crosby
Industrial Tool Supply
Owner, Bottles & Corks
2010 Corning Chamber Board Chair
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EMPLOYERS
AND FUTURE LEADERS ...
Leadership
Steuben is now accepting applications for
2010-2011!
For a
program description,
click here ...
For an
application,
click here ...
UNSHACKLE UPSTATE
Legislations Passed ... and not!
Last
week, both the Senate and Assembly left
Albany for the July 4th holiday weekend.
Their departure traditionally would mark the
conclusion of what has undoubtedly been one
of the most interesting and intense
sessions, but it is highly anticipated that
the legislature will return.
The legislative discourse was dominated by
stalwart polarization on many issues,
sometimes positions broke along traditional
party lines; others upstate -downstate;
rural - urban; labor- business or just
personalities.
A Number
of Bad Bills Have Passed:
A significant number of
bills that will adversely impact job
creators in the State of New York have
advanced in one house or the other including
but not limited to the following:
o Service Worker Prevailing Wage Mandates
(S.7096-A SCHNEIDERMAN / A.10257-A Gianaris)
This bill would amend the Labor Law to
extend wage mandate requirement to private
businesses. This legislation would amend the
definition of a public agency to include
electric and gas utilities. Ultimately the
legislation will translate into higher
energy cost for all consumer including
businesses, the elderly, schools, daycares,
local governments and hospitals
The bill passed the Senate 32-27 and the
Assembly 90-43. The bill now goes to the
Governor for approval or veto.
o New York State Workplace Bullying
(S.1823-B MORAHAN / A.5414-B Englebright)
This legislation would create a new private
cause of action for employees, this proposal
would create potential opportunities for
employees to embellish certain workplace
situations for personal financial gain by
claiming to have suffered from "bullying"
while at work.
The bill passed the Senate 45-16 and was
held in the Assembly Labor Committee.
o Restrictive Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Limits (S.4315-A THOMPSON / A.7572-A
Sweeney)
This legislation would require the
Department of Environmental Conservation to
impose restrictions on carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse emissions from any source,
including agriculture, manufacturing, power
generation, and fuel processing.
Passed Assembly 122-21, but has not passed
the Senate
o Independent Contractor Classification
(S.6194 FOLEY / A.8237-B John / S.5847-C
ONORATO / A.9706-B (Part SS))
These bills would have a severe impact on
the New York State construction industry, by
applying an unnecessary definition of an
independent contractor to the state's labor
law.
Passed Assembly 110-28, passed Senate 43-4
A Number of Bad Bills Have Not
Passed:
Unshackle Upstate
working in conjunction with many other
organizations such as the Corning Area
Chamber of commerce has to this date
prevented a significant number of bills that
will adversely impact job creators in the
State of New York from advancing in one
house or the other. They include the
following:
o IDA Labor Mandates (S.1241 THOMPSON /
A.3659 Hoyt)
This legislation would impose costly and
burdensome mandates to economic development
projects financed by Industrial Development
Agencies.
o Martin Act Expansion (S.5768
SCHNEIDERMAN / A.8646 Brodsky)
This bill would expand the power of the
Martin Act, which as a result, would
significantly jeopardize various components
of the state's business community. New York
is already one of the most regulated and
litigious states in the nation and further
expansion of this kind are not only
unnecessary, but untimely as well.
o Natural Gas Drilling Moratorium
(S.7592-A ADDABBO / A.10490-A Englebright)
If enacted, this bill would establish a
moratorium on conducting hydraulic
fracturing pending the issuance of a report
by the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA). The EPA has already concluded on more
than one occasion that hydraulic fracturing
- a 60-year-old technology - is safe.
o Farm Labor Mandates (S.2247-B ONORATO /
A.1867-B Nolan / S.7787 ONORATO)
This legislation would inappropriately
impose unsustainable wage mandates on
private farms and makes the false assumption
that these mandates will have no impact on
our New York farms. These wage mandates will
likely result in fewer jobs for New York
farm workers, as more of our food will be
produced in other states and other
countries.
o Paid Family Leave Mandate (S.5791
SAVINO / A.8742 Silver)
This legislation would mandate that all
employers provide a 12-week paid family
leave for its workforce, regardless of the
size of the business. A "one size fits all"
mandate of this nature does not adequately
factor in the wide range of employment
situations that are in place throughout New
York State.
o Private Environmental Citizen Suits
(S.1730B SCHNEIDERMAN / A.4272 Brodsky)
This legislation would allow private
"citizen suits" to be brought in response to
alleged violations of the Environmental
Conservation Law.
State Budget Ultimately Bad
for New York:
After months of
wrangling, public controversy and feuding
behind closed doors, lawmakers in Senate and
Assembly this week approved legislation that
largely completes work on a spending plan
for FY2010-2011. Although leaders pledge not
to support fees, increased spending, taxes
or borrowing the final agree upon budget
included all four. The current legislative
budget agreement raises additional revenues
totaling $954 million in FY2010-2011 and
$1.725 billion in FY2011-2012.
The revenue portion of the budget has not
been approved by the Senate and the Governor
has indicated that he is likely to veto it
even if the Senate does approve it. Further
negotiations on the revenue bill - how to
pay for the spending that has been approved
-- are likely. An untold story is that no
substantive budget bill passed the Assembly
with a veto proof majority.
YOUR HR FILES
This month’s topic is:
What an Employee Handbook Needs to
Include
Provided to you by Michael Lenzner
The Lenzner Solution
This month’s article will discuss the
Employee Handbook. For non-union workers,
the employee handbook is an essential
component of effective employee relations
and legal compliance. The information that
follows is not meant to be all inclusive,
but it is meant to provide you with the
basics to include when developing and
maintaining this valuable communication
tool.
To read more, click
here!
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HR QUICK TIP …
DOL puts burden on employers to
prove compliance
The Department of Labor (DOL)
recently announced a new program
called "Plan, Prevent, Protect,"
a strategy that puts the full
responsibility on the employer
to show the government you're in
compliance. Seth Harris, the
Labor Secretary said too many
business are playing a game of
"catch me if you can" and this
will no longer be accepted.
From the DOL website:
"In various ways, employers and
other regulated entities will be
asked to assemble plans, create
processes, and designate people
charged with achieving
compliance. They will be
required to implement these
plans and evaluate their
effectiveness in achieving
compliance. While the Labor
Department can be flexible about
which path is chosen to achieve
compliance, compliance will be
non-negotiable under the
"Plan/Prevent/Protect" system."
So far, no requirements have
been issued but it's a good idea
to get the background on the
campaign. Read "Plan, Prevent,
Protect: Anticipated DOL
Regulations Will Require
Employers to Demonstrate
Compliance with Federal
Employment Laws" by
clicking
here.
You can also find out more by
visiting the DOL's homepage by
clicking
here.
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The Mission of the Corning Area Chamber
of Commerce
The Corning Area Chamber of Commerce, a
501(c)6 corporation, advances the
business and community interests of the
region through advocacy, member services
and community enhancement.
