When I was young, my parents were plagued by addiction and I had to live with my grandparents. I was 17 years old and was working for my grandfather’s landscaping company until I became a father. Unfortunately, I acted immaturely and decided to supplement my income with drug dealing. From 1999 to 2008, I was
Tag: Action Alert
Spring into Action and Support Goodwill’s Advocacy Efforts!
Even if you can't make it to Washington, D.C., for Goodwill's 10th annual Advocacy Day, there are other ways you can help.
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President’s "Skinny" Budget Trims More Than Fat
Few doubt that finding ways to save money in the Federal government's $3.5 trillion budget is possible. The real question is if the effort is a serious attempt to eliminate ineffective programs, rein in wasteful spending, and focus on those to truly have impact, or is it just a move to cut departments and agencies out of favor with whatever party is in the White House? Want to take action now? Tell your members of Congress what you believe in.
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Take Action: Welcome Your Lawmaker to the 115th
If you’ve been paying attention to the “whirlwind of policy activity that has Washington insiders scrambling to keep up,” you may be working to keep up with it all as well. In addition to the new administration in office, a new Congressional session — the 115th Congress — has begun.
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Encourage Congress to Protect Funding for Employment Programs
While many of you have been focused on turkey this past week, the Goodwill Industries International Government Relations team has focused on duck – lame duck, that is. Lawmakers briefly returned to Washington the week of November 14 before taking a recess for Thanksgiving. Now they are back and trying to wrap up priorities before adjourning. Any bills that don’t pass by the end of this Congress will have to be reintroduced during the new 115th Congress.
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Tick Tock, Tick Tock
Oh no, here we go again…maybe. Congress has once again brought our government to the verge of shutdown, not because there are wide differences over the spending levels, but rather over a host of unrelated policy issues best handled as stand-alone legislation than attached to annual spending bills.
FY 2016 Budget: Tell Congress to “Raise the Caps”
Yesterday, Congress passed H.R. 719, a continuing resolution (CR) that keeps the lights on in the federal government for another ten weeks. Since 2001, Congress has approved dozens of CRs, some just to keep the lights on in order to resolve a few issues in one or two appropriations bills, but at other times like yesterday because Congress hadn’t approved a single funding bill.
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Urge Congress to Support the Second Chance Reauthorization Act
I visited the Hudson County Jail in northern New Jersey. Twenty years later, I can still vividly remember the rhythmic sound of sturdy locks opening, followed by heavy doors slamming shut, and then the locks swinging back home. It was a deafening and consistent reminder to the residents of that institution that they were “inmates” who were very, very bad.
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Not Losing is the New Winning
Perhaps it can only be true in Washington, DC, that not losing is considered winning. In the face of mounting debt, a stubbornly high deficit, and an economy still struggling to grow fast enough to add enough jobs, Congress is keeping a tight grip on spending.
Urge Senators to Co-sponsor Bill to Help People with a Criminal Background
Last week, I received a phone call from Audrey, a woman in Wisconsin who was seeking help for her brother, Frank. He has recently been released from prison after serving a 20-year sentence and needs help finding a job. The harsh reality is that without support and resources, Frank’s chances of recidivating are overwhelming.
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