The Gov Hub Newsletter: April 29, 2024

Welcome to The Gov Hub Newsletter by Girl and the Gov®. This weekly pop of politics is designed to share action items, resources, & quick links to civic engagement tools & topics. Find a typo? Congrats, today is your lucky day.

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THE ACTION ITEMS

Get ‘em done from your phone

ACTION 1 – GUNS IN SCHOOLS

The Ask: Tell your reps that you don’t support arming teachers.

The Action: Sign this petition.

The Background: On team GOP there’s been a push to solve school shootings by arming teachers. The push in Tennessee has resulted in a new law that allows teachers and school staff to carry handguns in classrooms + school grounds. Iowa passed a similar bill, and other states have been considering arming teachers too, despite the dangers and issues in doing so.

ACTION 2 – PLASTIC INCINERATION POLLUTION

The Ask: Tell Congress to protect communities from plastic incineration pollution.

The Action: Hit send on this note.

The Background: A rebrand is a classic trick of many trades, including lobbyists that are trying to convince Congress that ‘chemical recycling’ is a form of recycling. In reality, it’s just burning plastic and releasing chemicals into the air - yum. Incinerating plastic is what it is, and it’s something we don’t want in general, nor to breathe in.

ACTION 3 – VOTING

The Ask: Register to vote.

The Action: Get the 411 on how you can register in your state via Vote 411.

The Background: Take it off your to-do list and get it done. Being registered to vote is half the battle. Get ahead of it and make sure your voice [and vote] is heard up and down the ballot.

Looking for more action items? Check our library of past Gov Hub’s.

FULL SEND…TO A FRIEND

Just about guaranteed to make it to the group chat

• The infamous annual nerd prom, i.e. the White House Correspondents Dinner [WHCD] was hosted and roasted by none other than SNL’s Colin Jost. The man with the mic got a lot in – bringing Staten Island, court sketch artists, age, and Matt Gaetz together for a series of jokes that actually hit [even with the prez himself], unlike when Joe Koy tried to be funny at the Golden Globes. As for the fits and OOTDs, this review of the best and worst menswear onsite is the type of red carpet review we live for.

• Also an annual hoot and a half, Politico’s ‘Thirsties’ awards are liiiive, sharing who they dub to be the top 10 thirstiest reps in DC. TBH, ten doesn’t seem like enough – if there’s a petition to make this the top twenty next share, someone hit us up. TYSM.

• TikTok TMI culture has had many people asking ‘can we bring back having secrets?’ It’s clear that South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem did not get that memo, after word spread that her new book includes a story about her killing her family’s dog. If she didn’t decide to include that story in her own book, you’d almost think a rival challenger for Trump’s VP slot had leaked it…but no.

• Just like NH Governor Chris Sununu, former AG Bill Barr has cemented his new reputation as a flip-flopper after endorsing Trump following his year+ shit-talking Trump tour. Trump’s ‘thank you note’ i.e. social media post on it reminds us of a middle school ‘diss of’ from the ‘your mama’ days. If only Trump had pursued a career in comedy instead…

• ICYMI Kim Kardashian was at the White House last week to discuss criminal justice reform with VP Harris and a group of recently pardoned individuals during Second Chance Month.

BOOKMARK IT

Don’t lose the link

NWS HEAT RISK MAP: As we zoom toward summer, this new tool from NOAA and the CDC is a must. It’s an interactive map that’s designed to tell you the seven-day heat forecast for a given area, sharing whether heat will be nada, to minor, to off the damn charts. It’ll literally tell you if it’s getting too hot in here, and to hit the road jack out of an area where it’s too hot to be safe. Bookmark it here.  

IRS WHERE’S MY REFUND? TOOL: Finding this tool for all is courtesy of the IRS creating a Shrek-themed IG post, and we love that for us. The tool lets you check the status of your tax refund quick as can be. Bookmark it here.

GOOD NEWS BEARS

Positive political wins [yes, those do exist]

FTC SAYS HIT THE ROAD TO NONCOMPETE AGREEMENTS: In a huge win for workers and consumers, the FTC voted to ban non-compete agreements, which have prevented workers from being able to…

• Accept or apply for higher paying jobs within their industry

• Accept or apply for jobs within their industry that have better benefits

• Accept or apply for positions in their industry that would advance their job title and careers

If you’re unfamiliar with non-competes, it’s probably the one piece of gov lingo that sounds like its actual name. It’s an agreement drafted by an employer and signed by an employee, that prevents the employee from being able to leave that company and work for another that their employer dubs ‘competitive.’ Similarly, they can bar the employee from starting their own company in what they consider the same industry. The agreements can range in depth, from baring employment at competitors based on location [ex: can’t work as a bank teller anywhere else in the state], industry type, position, etc.  The agreements also typically have a timeline associated with them. These agreements not only have an impact on the workers, but also on consumers. For example, as explained by Lina Khan [Chair of the FTC], in a rural healthcare market, if there are only two hospitals to work at, and the worker can’t move to the other, they will leave the area/state to acquire a better job. That only leaves the consumer with fewer options. 

The rule itself will impact about 18% of workers who’ve signed non-competes, which according to The Hill is an approximate 30 million people. On the ‘specifics’ end, the rule will ban all noncompetes. For companies that have had them in place, they’ll be required to let those currently and previously employed by them know they are no longer active. Overall, the rule, once in place, is expected to raise wages, create churn in the economy, lower healthcare expenses, boost career advancement, and increase business creation. The rule is set to go into effect this summer.

FCC RESTORES NET NEUTRALITY: It’s been a busy few days for government agencies that begin with an F, including the Federal Communications Commission [FCC]. The FCC voted to restore net neutrality or rules rather that bar broadband internet providers from favoring certain sites/platforms over others. In other words, they can’t slow your service down should you use the product of a competitor. It also means they can’t require customers to pay more to get around the slowed or blocked service. For the backstory, these rules generally speaking were OG put into place under Obama, and then the FCC under Trump repealed them, and now here we are in the age of Biden with the rules being restored. Why is this a win? According to the FCC, it would protect consumers, along with these benefits.

$1 BILLION+ GOING TO FUND WATER & SANITATION ON TRIBAL LANDS INFRASTRUCTURE: Shoutout Bipartisan Infrastructure law, shoutout Inflation Reduction Act, because both are contributing to over $1 billion in funding to built and improve water and sanitation infrastructure on tribal lands. Announced as part of the Biden-Harris Admin's ‘America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge’ to create policies that conserve, reconnect, and restore freshwater, this piece of the comprehensive plans aims to solve for the fact that more than half of tribal households don’t have either clean water or adequate sanitation, according to the White House. In addition to the funding, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Indian Health Services [IHS] and the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation [BOR] signed what’s known as a ‘Memorandum of Understanding [MOU]’ to put the pedal to the metal on getting Tribal water projects up, running, and completed.

70K JOBS TO RESULT FROM CHIPS & SCIENCE ACT + PRELIM. AGREEMENT WITH MICRON: An agreement and investment made possible by the CHIPS and Science Act, Micron and the Department of Commerce have announced a preliminary agreement that will bring the construction of two domestic semiconductor fabrication plants [known as Fabs – who knew??] to fruition. One of the two to-be-built plants will be located in Syracuse, New York and the other in Boise, Idaho. Combined these plants will create an estimated 70,000 jobs, including 20,000 in construction. The investment, which will be paired with Micron’s $125 billion investment in both states, aims to shore up domestic chip manufacturing capabilities – ensuring that those little tidbits of tech that power everything from fridges, to EVs, and so much more, are accessible here, where they were invented. In the same vein, the dollars are a part of a goal by the Biden-Harris Administration to increase good paying, union jobs, to invest in the middle class, and to enable the US to economically compete with China.

HGW LISTENS

Hit play on these pods

• The before and after of this sitch is as predicted – the precursor to DeSantis’s immigration bill turned the law, as covered in this episode of GATG with Mi Vecino’s Devon Murphy-Anderson and the impact it’s having now as covered by NPR.

• How’d the Governor of PA [Shapiro] meet his wife? He shares the story on this episode of Between Us Girlies.

• What’s life like as a first lady? What challenges do they face? On this episode of Mo News, The Interview, author of new book, ‘American Woman: The Transformation of the Modern First Lady,’ Katie Rogers, shares her insights.

GET #VIRAL

Go viral

What content trends and social media marketing concepts work for political accounts? Find out weekly with #VIRAL, The Newsletter. The go-to resource for campaigns, electeds, and orgs across the Dem sphere, the newsletter provides the blueprint for winning social media content on today’s most important platforms. Give your team time back in their day, and your channels an upgrade.

BACK ON OUR BILLSHIT

Bills, bills, bills

FEDERAL: A bipartisan bill, the Fire Weather Development Act of 2023 has found its way back into play, and into this very newsletter. The bill, if passed, as best described by the CBO [Congressional Budget Office], “would authorize appropriations for federal agencies to develop and improve fire weather forecasts, establish committees to research wildfires, and develop recommendations for disseminating fire warnings.” In other words, put dollars toward figuring out ways to get ahead of wildfires. How much would it all cost? Find out. 

MICHIGAN: This multi-pack of bills was designed to make child care accessible for all, in Michigan. Hittin’ the floor via a Dem state reps and senators, the package includes legislation that would create a working parents tax credit, modernize licensing requirements for providers, streamline and expand access to child care subsidies, and invest in child care via grants.

KEY READS

Important stories from around the USA

• The Guardian: He led a strike at Kellogg’s. Now he’s aiming for a Nebraska Senate seat

• Politico: Beating cancer used to be bipartisan. What happened?

• AP: A Hawaii military family avoids tap water at home. They’re among those suing over 2021 jet fuel leak

ATLAS

Stories from around the globe

• Politico: Scotland’s leader Humza Housaf quits

• AP: Mexican journalist is slain south of Mexico City, spurring outrage among colleagues

• Rolling Stone: Iranian Rapper Toomaj Salehi Sentenced to Death for Songs Critical of Government

BEFORE YOU GO….