The ChamberPost

Update on Relief Aid in Myanmar

by Kitty Taylor

Current estimates put the number of displaced people at 1.5 million, but the number is expected to "rise to a massive total as assessments continue."  The death toll is expected to exceed 100,000 as hunger and disease spread throughout the region. Yesterday the military junta in Myanmar finally allowed the United States to deliver our first shipment of relief aid to the cyclone-stricken region. Two more U.S. aid shipments have been cleared for today.

However, reports continue that foreign aid supplies are being confiscated and humanitarian aid-worker visas are still being denied by the junta. Understandably, corporate donors are concerned about making contributions. BCLC interviewed various NGOs operating in Myanmar to ask them about their aid capabilities. Here's what they said:

BCLC: Should potential donors be concerned that aid they help fund will be confiscated?

Save the Children: No. Though Save the Children would like to get shipments in from the outside, we are buying our needed supplies in-country, which is preventing this issue. Relief aid bought by us in country has not been confiscated by the government.

United Nations Foundation: Working with the government of Myanmar presents a special diplomatic challenge, thus UN staff are playing a critical role in working in partnership with the government and are monitoring the shipment and delivery of aid to ensure it reaches the targeted people and communities as quickly as possible.

Donors to the UN Foundation should rest assured that projects will be carefully selected to ensure that they reach the intended beneficiaries.

World Vision: World Vision is fully cooperating with the authorities to secure all the required approvals which will allow humanitarian relief supplies into the country.

Read more of their answers.

Shareholder Activists "Non-Partisan"? Think Again.

by Glenn Spencer

In today’s Washington Post, Jeff Birnbaum writes about what he refers to as a “non-partisan” group called the Center for Political Accountability (CPA). This organization has been the lead advocate for shareholder resolutions requiring companies to disclose political contributions and trade association dues. 

CPA claims that its pursuit of disclosure resolutions is aimed solely at establishing “transparency and accountability” that can mitigate the alleged “risk” to shareholders of the business communities’ involvement in the political process.

But is CPA really non-partisan?  A bit of research into who runs CPA shows that the organization may have a particular interest in disclosure that goes beyond the noble pursuit of transparency.    

The head of the organization is Bruce Freed, who previously had been a top Democratic Hill staffer, including a stint as the chief investigator for the Senate Banking Committee.

John Richardson, who was co-director of CPA until he left in 2007, had previously worked for the Laborer’s International Union, the Carpenters Union and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

Daniel Lucas, who sits on CPA’s board, is the National Political Director of the 21st Century Democrats, and had served as the International Political Director for SEIU.

Shelley Alpern, another board member, is Vice President and Director of Social Research and Advocacy at Trillium Asset Management — widely known for its advocacy of left wing causes and a favorite investment manager for organized labor.

Given the background of these individuals, “non-partisan” is hardly the term that springs to mind.  One has to ask: is CPA interested in transparency for its own sake? Or is forcing companies to disclose political contributions just a means to steer those contributions towards a particular party?

Chamber May Seek Farm Subsidies

by Tom Myers

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is actively considering removing landscaping outside its Washington, D.C., headquarters and planting soybeans, corn, and cotton in order to secure farm subsidies from the federal government.

"With a $300 billion farm bill coming down the pike, it may be time to tear out the liriope," announced Chester Terry, the Chamber’s director of general services, who oversees the Chamber building and grounds.  "I’ve always enjoyed a bit of gardening, but this farm bill could really put the green in my 'green thumb.'"

Located at the corner of Connecticut Avenue and H Street, NW, the Chamber’s headquarters is known for its Corinthian columns more than the tulips, liriope and crape-myrtle that adorn the 1/10th of an acre of green space along the west side of the building. 

"The Chamber is a non-profit, but the subsidies are so good we may have to rethink our status," said Terry. 

The existing system of agricultural subsidies sends more than 70% of all subsidies to just six percent of farms. Today’s high farm prices offered Congress a chance to rein in these subsidies, but legislators are instead pushing a big spending increase in the farm bill that is currently before Congress.

"You might have thought subsidies would be cut given today's record crop prices, but Congress is boosting spending instead," said Terry.  "Clearly it's time to get a piece of the action."

Climate Change and Cap-and-Trade

by Kevin Ganster

In his climate change speech yesterday, John McCain proposed capping carbon emissions incrementally, with the goal of returning to 1990 emission levels by the year 2020 using a cap-and-trade program. He also sets a goal that by 2050, the country will reduce carbon emissions to a level 60% below that emitted in 1990. He also seemed to suggest import tariffs on carbon, but his aides later said that would be a misinterpretation of his remarks. Said McCain:

"I will not shirk the mantle of leadership that the United States bears. I will not permit eight long years to pass without serious action on serious challenges. I will not accept the same dead-end of failed diplomacy that claimed Kyoto. The United States will lead and will lead with a different approach -- an approach that speaks to the interests and obligations of every nation."

A Wall Street Journal editorial today called a cap-and-trade program the worst of all possible worlds.

“The problem is that once government creates an artificial scarcity of carbon, how the credits are allocated creates a huge new venue for political rent-seeking and more subsidies for favored industries. Some businesses will benefit more than others, in proportion to their lobbying influence and how well they're able to game the Beltway. Congress itself will probably take the largest revenue grab, offering itself a few more bites out of the economy and soaking politically unpopular businesses. Then there's the question of whether any of this will even reduce greenhouse gasses.”

Billions of Trade Benefits for Florida

by Brad Peck

Why we support Trade Month, the Billions:

• Florida exported $44.8 billion in manufactured goods to the world in 2007.
• In 2006, Florida agricultural exports were estimated at $1.7 billion, totaling 24% of agricultural revenue.
• Goods moving through Florida’s seaport gateways in 2006 were valued at nearly $73.5 billion.
• Goods moving through the state’s airport gateways were valued at over $34.8 billion.

The Jobs:

• 95% of the nearly 29,000 companies that exported goods in 2005 were small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees.
• In 2007, Florida-produced manufactured goods generated nearly 388,700 jobs for workers in Florida.
• There are 226,000 Florida workers employed by foreign companies.
• U.S. subsidiaries support 34,800 manufacturing jobs in Florida.

Manufacturing companies tend to have a strong "multiplier" effect on the economy—stimulating a substantial amount of activity and jobs in other sectors through their demand for inputs from other suppliers.

Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire, a U.S. subsidiary of a Japanese tire and rubber company, invested $44 million in a one million square foot distribution and logistics center on the northern portion of Cecil Commerce Center. The project is expected to create about 250 new jobs, resulting in an expected annual payroll of approximately $9.5 million.

The new facility is also expected to indirectly result in the creation of approximately 219 new jobs in the transportation and maritime sectors at JAXPORT.

Moving from Jacksonville to Tampa, Director of Trade Development Jim Pyburn at the Tampa Port Authority says:

"Total trade from all of the CAFTA Countries has increased 29% since the free trade agreement took effect. We are pleased with this result and support the passage of trade agreements as they open the gateway for trade."

Morning News - Alien Tort Edition

by James Sneeringer

The Supreme Court yesterday refused to hear an appeal by 33 major companies trying to stop $400 billion worth of lawsuits in an Alien Tort Statute case involving the apartheid era in South Africa. The Court said the case presented too many conflicts of interest to too many justices who hold stock in the involved companies. When lacking a quorum, the Supreme Court is required to affirm a lower court ruling that went against the companies, many of them major international corporations such as American Isuzu Motors, Ford, JPMorgan Chase, Honeywell International, GE, 3M, and Credit Suisse.

The Energy Department said yesterday that the United States has the ability to meet 20% of its electricity-generation needs with wind by 2030, enough to displace 50% of natural gas consumption and 18% of coal consumption. However, meeting that goal would require more improvements in turbine technology, cost reductions, new transmission lines, an expansion of the wind industry, and a fivefold increase in the pace of wind-turbine installation.

Tough times appear to be good for Wal-Mart, as the discount chain beat forecasts by earning $3 billion in the first quarter on the back of a 10% increase in sales.

Fortune magazine has an article about the financial state of XM, saying it is limping toward a final decision on the proposed merger. The article notes that with the deal in limbo, XM has watched as sales have stagnated, its costs to acquire subscribers have increased, and its debt level jump 12% in three months, to $1.6 billion. With its cash level down to $156 million, XM tapped $187 million from its $250 million credit line. The company is also facing a looming $400 million debt payment next year. Despite one million gross subscriber additions, the company managed to add only 303,000 net new users after subtracting all the people who canceled service. Meanwhile, Sirius says its net loss narrowed in the first quarter as revenue rose 33%.

Former Georgia Rep. Bob Barr has decided to run for president on the Libertarian ticket. Some Republicans fear he will drain votes away from McCain.

Meanwhile, a U.S. News and World Report columnist says Mike Huckabee is currently at the top of John McCain's short list for a running mate. The logic of picking Huckabee is that 1) he is a great campaigner and communicator who could shore up support in the South among social conservatives and appeal to working-class voters in the critical "Big 10" states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio, 2) Huckabee “everyman image” would play better than someone like Mitt Romney’s, and 3) even though economic conservatives wouldn’t like him, they have no place else go, so it likely wouldn’t hurt McCain.

The SEC Polices Business With Firm, but Fair, Hand

by Tom Donohue

The subprime mortgage crisis has many Americans wondering if regulators are exercising proper oversight of financial firms. One agency that has come under heavy criticism is the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). One of its major missions is policing the stock market.

Critics have accused the SEC of not going after corporate wrongdoers strongly enough. They point to a decline in the SEC's collection of corporate penalties and disgorgements (the forced surrendering of profits obtained by illegal or unethical acts) from 2006 to 2007. Some in the press have accused SEC Chairman Christopher Cox of being "soft" on business. A few U.S. senators have ordered the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the government's watchdog group, to look into the matter.

We're confident the GAO will find that the SEC has acted properly and is faithfully and rigorously fulfilling its mission of protecting investors. Why? Just look at the SEC's record.

During Chairman Cox's tenure, more than $3.5 billion has been returned to defrauded investors, and there are plans to return much of the additional $5 billion that has been collected in enforcement actions by the end of the year. In 2007, the Commission set a record for the number of corporate penalties imposed and brought the secondhighest number of enforcement actions ever.

To suggest that a one-year decline in corporate penalties is evidence that the SEC has gone soft on business is misleading and nearsighted. The GAO is likely to find that the drop can be attributed to a number of legitimate factors such as business cycles, economic factors, and, most importantly, recent improvements in corporate governance. The SEC should not be encouraged to search for dollars to prove how tough it is, regardless of whether companies actually did anything wrong.

While protecting investors should always be the SEC's top priority, let's not lose sight of its other key missions including maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets and facilitating capital formation. These goals are key to a strong, competitive economy, and lawmakers should focus on how well they are being met. We need strong capital markets to grow our economy and meet the financial security needs of our citizens.

No matter how many times critics accuse Chairman Cox of being overly "business friendly," the facts won't change. Chris Cox's SEC has been ambitious, firm, and fundamentally fair, but it certainly hasn't been soft on business.

Key Vote Letter Supporting H.R. 4008, the "Credit and Debit Card Receipt Clarification Act"

by James Sneeringer

The Chamber sent this key vote letter today to the Members of the House of Representatives. It strongly urges them to support H.R. 4008, the "Credit and Debit Card Receipt Clarification Act." From the letter:

H.R. 4008 makes a technical correction to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act ("FACTA") to free hundreds of businesses from potential exposure to massive statutory damages solely because of their past harmless failure to eliminate the expiration date from an otherwise FACTA compliant receipt.

Unlike the state laws after which this provision was modeled, FACTA incorporated a statutory damages clause that has resulted in the filing of more than 500 hundred class actions against companies that produced FACTA compliant receipts except for deleting the expiration date, an inadvertent omission that does not result in consumer harm.

The Chamber strongly urges you to protect companies of all sizes from being sued out of business by lawsuits that do not claim any consumer harm. Because of the importance of this legislation to the business community, the Chamber may consider votes on, or in relation to, this issue in our annual How They Voted scorecard.

Reading List - 12 May

by James Sneeringer

• Barack Obama looks to continue claiming the mantle by patching things up with Florida, who might be feeling a little electorally rejected by the Dems lately.
• Paul Krugman tries to pop the "oil bubble" speculation story by pointing out that there are fundamental issues of supply v. demand at play in the price run-up.
• The LA Times political blog speculates that Ron Paul supporters are working behind the scenes to disrupt the McCain coronation at the RNC convention in September.
• Your tax dollars at work: Wall Street Journal editorial page points out that every type of energy receives federal subsidies of some amount--but not equally.
• Finally, this news story demonstrates how saving gas might lead to road rage.

Paid Leave Might Sound Sweet, But Too Much Can Make You Sick

by Marc Freedman

Human Resource Executive Online today covers the issue of state laws that mandate extended paid leave for all employees. Proponents of mandating paid leave for family and/or medical issues like to suggest this will inspire loyalty and that good talented employees are more likely to stay with those employers who provide such a benefit. The flaw in this argument is that under laws like the one passed in New Jersey and proposed on the federal level, this benefit would be provided to all employees of a company that is covered. Employers would not have the ability to distinguish between those employees who are worthy of this benefit and those who are not.

Similarly, if most of the employers in a state are covered, there is no option for the employer to offer this or not, further diminishing the suggestion that employees will be loyal to an employer who provides this benefit. This sets up the ironic scenario where an employee who is inclined to misuse such a benefit will stay with that company, and the employee who will use it only as intended will get frustrated by other employees abusing the privilege and feel that his or her needs are not being met and move on.

Advocates for paid leave think they have numbers on their side because dangling a paid leave benefit in front of employees is like offering candy to children--who wouldn't want this? In the same way that parents need to make sure their kids do not eat too much candy because it has negative consequences, legislatures and governors should exercise some adult supervision and not jump for paid leave proposals that will ultimately be harmful to their businesses.