Public Policy
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from public policy organizations whose goal it is to influence the debate Washington.
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Innovative Virtual Reception and Placement Program Serves Thousands in First 7 Months
NEW YORK, Oct. 28 [Category: International] -- The International Rescue Committee issued the following news release:
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is pleased to announce a significant milestone in the journey of our pioneering Virtual Reception and Placement (VR&P) program. Since its inception in March 2024, the VR&P program has broadened the scope of U.S. refugee resettlement services by providing resettlement support through virtual means, complementing existing in-person efforts. This initiative enhances the overall capacity of the resettlement network, offering vital support to
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NEW YORK, Oct. 28 [Category: International] -- The International Rescue Committee issued the following news release:
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is pleased to announce a significant milestone in the journey of our pioneering Virtual Reception and Placement (VR&P) program. Since its inception in March 2024, the VR&P program has broadened the scope of U.S. refugee resettlement services by providing resettlement support through virtual means, complementing existing in-person efforts. This initiative enhances the overall capacity of the resettlement network, offering vital support torefugees and Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders who face logistical and geographical barriers in accessing services. To date, IRC has successfully assisted 2,299 new arrivals through VR&P, demonstrating both the increasing demand for virtual services and the program's ability to rapidly scale up in response to the needs of refugees.
The success of the VR&P program has also contributed to the broader U.S. resettlement efforts to welcome 100,034 refugees and 31,072 SIV holders in fiscal year 2024--the highest number in three decades. This achievement is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the entire refugee resettlement network, including our 29 IRC program offices across the nation. This accomplishment would not have been possible without the crucial support provided by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, as well as the dedicated assistance of refugees' friends and families in the United States.
Hans Van de Weerd, Senior Vice President of Resettlement, Asylum, and Integration at the International Rescue Committee, said: "The Virtual Reception and Placement (VR&P) program is a key innovation that meets the needs of today's U.S. resettlement program and complements traditional resettlement programs across the nation. During the first few months of the program, more than 4,000 refugees and SIVs who may have otherwise faced barriers to service were provided with assistance in rebuilding their lives in America. IRC provided assistance to more than 2,000 of these people. "Globally, there are over 120 million people displaced a number that has doubled in the past ten years. Continued bold innovations like VR&P will allow for the U.S. resettlement program to meet the needs of this critical moment."
Sarah Cross, Deputy Assistant Secretary for U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, said: "PRM welcomes this partnership to re-design Reception and Placement and re-imagine our approach to resettlement. As we face unprecedented levels of displacement worldwide, virtual R&P has been instrumental in building U.S. capacity to provide refuge to those who are fleeing persecution and violence."
As we celebrate this milestone, we are reminded of the power of innovation and the impact of collaboration in addressing complex humanitarian challenges. The IRC remains committed to delivering quality case management and support for refugees through virtual services in the coming year.
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Original text here: https://www.rescue.org/press-release/innovative-virtual-reception-and-placement-program-serves-thousands-first-7-months
FFRF announces 2025 law student essay contest
MADISON, Wisconsin, Oct. 28 [Category: Religion] -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is excited to announce the 2025 Diane and Stephen Uhl Memorial Essay Competition for Law School Students, with a top prize of $4,000!
Law school students will be asked to respond to recent Supreme Court decisions that allow religious organizations to participate in government funding programs. Additionally, students will then analyze how anti-discrimination laws cannot be enforced against religious schools receiving public funds.
FFRF
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MADISON, Wisconsin, Oct. 28 [Category: Religion] -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is excited to announce the 2025 Diane and Stephen Uhl Memorial Essay Competition for Law School Students, with a top prize of $4,000!
Law school students will be asked to respond to recent Supreme Court decisions that allow religious organizations to participate in government funding programs. Additionally, students will then analyze how anti-discrimination laws cannot be enforced against religious schools receiving public funds.
FFRFwill award cash prizes to the top three essayists ($4,000, $3,000, $2,000) and optional honorable mentions ($500), if so deserving. All eligible entrants will also receive a one-year complimentary student membership to FFRF, which includes a digital version of 10 issues of Freethought Today.
Essays will be completely blinded to avoid unintentional bias. A selection of FFRF attorneys will be on the review panel.
The contest is open to all ongoing law school students attending a North American law school. Students will remain eligible to enter even if they are to graduate from law school by spring or summer of 2025. You remain eligible if you graduated law school in December 2024. You are not eligible to enter if you will be starting law school for the first time in the fall of 2025. You may not reenter if FFRF has already awarded you for a law student essay.
Essay must be no longer than 1,500 words (not including footnotes), double spaced, standard margins, and font size 11 to 14 point. Include page numbers and the title of your essay on each page. Choose your own title. Indicate word length at end of essay. To apply, go to: ffrf.us/essay
The deadline for entry is Jan. 27, 2025. For full rules and eligibility requirements, or to enter the contest, click here.
"Young Gen Z attorneys will pave the way," says FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor. "With a rogue court going unchecked, the future of law needs students willing to stand up for true religious liberty and the separation of state and church."
The Freedom From Religion Foundation strongly encourages law students to enter the contest.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is the country's largest freethought organization, with 40,000 nonreligious members and several chapters all across the country.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-announces-2025-law-student-essay-contest/
FFRF Denver billboard calls to Stop Project 2025
MADISON, Wisconsin, Oct. 28 [Category: Religion] -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has put up a billboard in the heart of downtown Denver warning "Keep freedom alive Stop Project 2025."
The billboard, one of several FFRF has placed with this timely message, recently went up at 1950 Lincoln Street and will be on display through Nov. 3. It is part of the national state/church watchdog's campaign against a threatening Christian nationalist-authoritarian scheme to upend democracy.
The brainchild of Heritage Foundation
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MADISON, Wisconsin, Oct. 28 [Category: Religion] -- The Freedom From Religion Foundation issued the following news release:
The Freedom From Religion Foundation has put up a billboard in the heart of downtown Denver warning "Keep freedom alive Stop Project 2025."
The billboard, one of several FFRF has placed with this timely message, recently went up at 1950 Lincoln Street and will be on display through Nov. 3. It is part of the national state/church watchdog's campaign against a threatening Christian nationalist-authoritarian scheme to upend democracy.
The brainchild of Heritage Foundationplus 100 affiliated groups, the 922-page Project 2025 playbook broadly would gut federal checks and balances and consolidate all power in the White House, ending the independence of the Justice Department. It calls for enforcing the zombie 1873 law known as The Comstock Act, which could criminalize abortion and contraception nationwide and launch other attacks on medication abortion.
Regarding the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, Project 2025 would:
* Infuse "the pursuit of Blessedness" into every level of government. (Page 13)
* Dismantle nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ-plus Americans. (Page 333, 375 and 548)
* Mandate a "biblically based" definition of marriage and family. (Pages 477-482)
* Dismantle civil rights protections in the name of "religious liberty," providing a license to discriminate. (Page 494)
* Allow religious employers to discriminate against employees based on beliefs. (Page 586)
* Turn the Department of Health and Human Services into the "Department of Life." (Page 489)
* Gut overtime laws, while establishing Sunday as "the Sabbath" and forcing employers to pay overtime on Sunday. because "God ordained the Sabbath as a day of rest." (Page 589)
Its attacks on science and climate change mitigation include weakening or defunding the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and other climate change conventions and ending the Environmental Protection Agency's focus on climate change in favor of drilling and privatizing public lands, gutting the Endangered Species Act, weakening the Clean Air Act and much more.
U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman of California has been spearheading the congressional Stop Project 2025 Task Force, which has sought fruitlessly to get the Heritage Foundation to hand over the secret adjunct to Project 2025, known as the "fourth pillar." This lays out the schemes to enact Project 2025 in the first 180 days.
"What we do know about Project 2025 is far scarier than any Halloween ghoul," says Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president.
FFRF has a voter awareness page calling attention to the growing threat of Christian nationalism at ffrf.org/vote.
FFRF has endorsed Amendment 79 to enshrine abortion rights in the Colorado state Constitution. Its related advocacy arm, FFRF Action Fund, has donated $5,000 to Project the Right to Abortion in Colorado and to the nine other groups around the country that have successfully placed abortion rights initiatives on the ballot.
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is the largest national association of freethinkers, representing atheists, agnostics, and others who form their opinions about religion based on reason, rather than faith, tradition or authority. It has 40,000 members across every state and the District of Columbia and several chapters nationwide, including more than 1,300 active members in Colorado, with chapters in Denver and Colorado Springs.
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Original text here: https://ffrf.org/news/releases/ffrf-denver-billboard-calls-to-stop-project-2025/
CodePink: Disrupted! Sen. Tammy Baldwin is Disrupted at Rally For Supporting Genocide
LOS ANGELES, California, Oct. 28 -- CodePink, a grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end U.S.-funded wars and occupations, to challenge militarism globally, issued the following news release on Oct. 26, 2024:
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CODEPINK Members Disrupt Senator Baldwin; Demand She Sign Sanders' Resolution to Block Military Sale to Israel
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Madison, WI -- CODEPINK Madison and Madison for a World BEYOND War disrupted Senator Tammy Baldwin's GOTV Bus Tour rally today in Madison, urging her to align with constituent demands and sign Senator Bernie Sanders' Resolution of Disapproval, which
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LOS ANGELES, California, Oct. 28 -- CodePink, a grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end U.S.-funded wars and occupations, to challenge militarism globally, issued the following news release on Oct. 26, 2024:
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CODEPINK Members Disrupt Senator Baldwin; Demand She Sign Sanders' Resolution to Block Military Sale to Israel
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Madison, WI -- CODEPINK Madison and Madison for a World BEYOND War disrupted Senator Tammy Baldwin's GOTV Bus Tour rally today in Madison, urging her to align with constituent demands and sign Senator Bernie Sanders' Resolution of Disapproval, whichaims to block a proposed U.S. foreign military sale to Israel. Madison Rafah Sister City Project members also held a protest along the sidewalk of Baldwin's event.
Pro-Palestine activists interrupted Baldwin's rally, highlighting her continued inaction amid escalating violence in Gaza and the West Bank. CODEPINK member Shahayra led the call to action, directly demanding Baldwin to, "Stop arming Israel, sign Bernie's resolution." This comes in response to the ongoing humanitarian crisis and violence in the region, calling for U.S. accountability under international law.
"Each time Israel crosses a red line, the U.S. responds by increasing military aid, signaling unconditional support despite mounting civilian casualties," said CODEPINK in a statement. "Our elected officials have an obligation to uphold human rights and halt support for actions that undermine peace and security. We will never relent on pressuring officials touting their progressiveness as the best option for America to not be two-sided when it comes to allocating our tax money towards improving communities at home and upholding human rights in Palestine."
The activists call on Senator Baldwin to support Sanders' resolution to block further military aid, asserting that U.S. weapons are fueling humanitarian violations. By halting arms sales, activists say Congress can send a clear message that the U.S. will not support Israel's war crimes and civilian targeting in Gaza, the West Bank, and beyond.
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Original text here: https://www.codepink.org/baldwindisrupt1026
[Category: Sociological]
CareQuest Issues Fact Sheet Entitled 'The Hour of Need - Productivity Time Lost Due to Urgent Oral Health Needs'
BOSTON, Massachusetts, Oct. 28 -- CareQuest Institute for Oral Health issued the following fact sheet in January, 2024:
Here are excerpts:
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Adults in the United States (US) Lose More than 243 Million Work or School Hours Annually for Their Own and Others' Oral Health Problems
Oral health problems -- including oral pain -- significantly affect the person experiencing them. Individuals with oral pain (pain anywhere in the oral cavity) often change how and what they eat, sleep poorly, and have difficulty concentrating.
Individuals with lower incomes, without dental insurance, and with less
... Show Full Article
BOSTON, Massachusetts, Oct. 28 -- CareQuest Institute for Oral Health issued the following fact sheet in January, 2024:
Here are excerpts:
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Adults in the United States (US) Lose More than 243 Million Work or School Hours Annually for Their Own and Others' Oral Health Problems
Oral health problems -- including oral pain -- significantly affect the person experiencing them. Individuals with oral pain (pain anywhere in the oral cavity) often change how and what they eat, sleep poorly, and have difficulty concentrating.
Individuals with lower incomes, without dental insurance, and with lesseducation are more likely to experience a greater impact on their daily activities due to oral health problems and unplanned dental visits. Adults with oral pain and untreated tooth decay are significantly more likely to experience a decrease in productivity. Lost productivity time due to untreated dental disease costs the US an estimated $45 billion each year.
Through its annual, nationally representative State of Oral Health Equity in America (SOHEA) survey, CareQuest Institute for Oral Health(R) surveyed 5,240 adult health care consumers in January-February 2023 inquiring whether they had missed work or school (identified in this report as "productivity time" or "productive hours") due to their own oral pain (please see the Methodology section for survey question details). In a separate question, respondents were asked if they missed productivity time due to their own unexpected dental visits in the past year. Parents were also asked in a single question whether they missed productivity time due to their children's oral pain or unexpected dental visits. In a separate question, caregivers were asked about losing productivity time due to oral pain or unplanned dental visits of adults in their care who lived with them during the past year. Respondents who reported losing productivity time were also asked to estimate how many productive hours they had lost due to their own or others' oral health problems in the past year. Estimates based on these survey results suggest that adults lose a substantial number of productive hours due to both their own dental issues and the dental problems of others in their care.
[Category: Dentistry]
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View full report: https://www.carequest.org/system/files/CareQuest_Institute_The-Hour-of-Need_FINAL.pdf
Biden-Harris Administration's New ERA Award for Connexus Energy Will Boost Clean Energy Future for Minnesota
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 [Category: Environment] -- The Sierra Club issued the following news release:
Ramsey, MINNESOTA The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that Connexus Energy will move forward in the Biden-Harris Administration's Empowering Rural America Program (New ERA) award process to procure new clean energy investments throughout rural Minnesota and South Dakota. Connexus is the largest electric cooperative in Minnesota, serving over 130,000 members.
Connexus Energy's New ERA award will procure over 227 megawatts of renewable resources including hydro, solar, and wind energy,
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 [Category: Environment] -- The Sierra Club issued the following news release:
Ramsey, MINNESOTA The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that Connexus Energy will move forward in the Biden-Harris Administration's Empowering Rural America Program (New ERA) award process to procure new clean energy investments throughout rural Minnesota and South Dakota. Connexus is the largest electric cooperative in Minnesota, serving over 130,000 members.
Connexus Energy's New ERA award will procure over 227 megawatts of renewable resources including hydro, solar, and wind energy,as well as 20 megawatts of battery energy storage throughout rural communities. The new clean energy projects will be a significant investment for Minnesota, powering nearly 80,000 homes every year, creating up to 370 short and long term jobs, and reducing Connexus customers' energy bills by 25% over the next 20 years. Additionally, the clean energy investments will cut carbon emissions by over 1.1 million tons each year the equivalent of taking 250,000 gasoline-powered cars off the road annually.
The USDA will be investing nearly $1 billion in grants and loans for six newly-selected cooperatives to build 1.75 gigawatts of clean energy for rural communities nationwide reducing at least 6.4 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually. Since September, the USDA has announced over $8.3 billion in funding for twenty-two selectees through the New ERA program. This funding will allow these leading electric cooperatives to tap low cost clean energy, improving affordability and resilience, and lowering costs for their members. The projects awarded will create good-paying jobs and benefit one in five rural Americans.
"We applaud the Biden-Harris Administration and electric cooperatives for partnering together on clean energy investments across the country. Connexus has put together a creative, forward-thinking path for a clean energy future that's reliable and cost-effective for its customers. Through this award, the New ERA program is supporting innovative approaches to clean energy that will expand economic opportunities and create a better future for Minnesota communities," said Jenna Yeakle, Central Region Campaign Manager, Beyond Coal Campaign at Sierra Club.
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Original text here: https://www.sierraclub.org//press-releases/2024/10/biden-harris-administration-s-new-era-award-connexus-energy-will-boost-clean
American Friends Service Committee: We Need an Arms Embargo on Israel, Not a War With Iran
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, Oct. 28 -- The American Friends Service Committee issued the following agency statement on Oct. 26, 2024:
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At dawn on October 26, Israel launched airstrikes at the Islamic Republic of Iran, targeting military positions in Teheran, Khuzestan, and Ilam provinces. These direct military attack on Iranian territory represent another significant escalation in Israel's widening war in the region. They are happening in the context of a decades-long Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory, an ongoing genocide towards the Palestinians in Gaza, months of Israeli
... Show Full Article
PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania, Oct. 28 -- The American Friends Service Committee issued the following agency statement on Oct. 26, 2024:
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At dawn on October 26, Israel launched airstrikes at the Islamic Republic of Iran, targeting military positions in Teheran, Khuzestan, and Ilam provinces. These direct military attack on Iranian territory represent another significant escalation in Israel's widening war in the region. They are happening in the context of a decades-long Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory, an ongoing genocide towards the Palestinians in Gaza, months of Israeliairstrikes on Syria and Yemen, and the expansion of war into Lebanon.
The Biden Administration continues to affirm its unequivocal support for Israel and is bolstering its military presence in the region. They continue to send weapons to Israel, allowing Israel to act with impunity.
We are calling on the Biden Administration and Congress to:
* Institute an immediate arms embargo on Israel and secure a permanent cease-fire in Gaza and the region.
* Commit to NO direct U.S. military engagement, additional troops, airstrikes, or other military actions. Instead, engage in direct diplomacy with Iran with the aim of de-escalation in the region.
* Abide by U.S. and international laws and norms to prevent further atrocities and erosion of the existing international system of protection.
It is only through these concrete actions that the U.S. can prevent rather than provoke a wider war and avoid further death and destruction that will hurt all people in the region. Peace and security will never come through war and violence.
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The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes a world free of violence, inequality, and oppression. Guided by the Quaker belief in the divine light within each person, we nurture the seeds of change and the respect for human life to fundamentally transform our societies and institutions. We work with people and partners worldwide, of all faiths and backgrounds, to meet urgent community needs, challenge injustice, and build peace.
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Original text here: https://afsc.org/newsroom/we-need-arms-embargo-israel-not-war-iran
[Category: Sociological]