CRC Legislative Digest
Educate, Inform, and Engage UJC on public policy issues of interest to the Jewish community.

February 2008

LEGISLATIVE SUCCESSES

New Jersey passes Iran Divestment Law: New Jersey passed legislation to prohibit state pension money from being invested in companies that do business in Iran. Most American companies are already banned from doing business in Iran, but Gov. Jon Corzine signed a measure restricting the state from buying stock in international companies that do business with Iran. The move is intended to protest the country’s links to terrorism and its nuclear ambitions. Florida and California have similar laws. Max L. Kleinman, Executive Vice President of United Jewish Communities of MetroWest NJ, testified on behalf of the bill before the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. He was accompanied by Jim Daniels, chair of CRC’s Iran Task Force.

N.J. exempts non-profits from reporting political contributions (Pay-to-Play): Non-profits got swept up in legislation that was enacted amid ethics reform measures in New Jersey. Through efforts of the New Jersey State Association of Jewish Federations and a coalition of other non-profits, legislation was passed into law in New Jersey that specifies that political contribution disclosure requirements of the State Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) do not apply to non-profit entities and their board members and spouses. ELEC’s regulations would apply solely to for-profit organizations where the entity receives $50,000 or more in public contracts. The legislation addresses the fact that ELEC chose to include non-profits in the original reporting requirements, although the law was silent on it, and that created a burden and potential chilling effect on board members who make valuable contributions to society through their service on non-profit boards.

The Sudan Divestment & Accountability Act (SADA) signed into law: On Dec. 31, the Sudan Divestment & Accountability Act (SADA) was signed into law. SADA will support grass-roots efforts to withdraw funds, because of violence in its Darfur region, from companies doing business in Sudan. SADA will legally protect U.S. state and local governments, as well as mutual funds and private pension funds, who divest from companies involved in four Sudanese business sectors, including its oil industry. SADA will protect the rights of states to divest from foreign companies that conduct business with the Sudanese government and indirectly fund the genocide in Darfur. It also prohibits the U.S. government from entering into contracts with these companies. Further, it assures all Americans that they will not be financially complicit in the murder, rape, and displacement of millions of innocent people. As of January 2008, New Jersey has divested $2.6 billion from 17 companies doing business in Sudan, pursuant to legislation enacted in Trenton in 2005.

PENDING LEGISLATION

Israel
Support inclusion of Jewish refugees from Arab lands in peace negotiations: The issue of refugees is always central to discussion about the Arab-Israeli conflict. However, such deliberations are far from being comprehensive; the flight of Jews and other minorities from Arab lands is strikingly absent. The agenda solely focuses on a Palestinian refugees. A bill addressing this issue, H.RES. 185, will be marked up in early February in the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The legislation, co-sponsored by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), states in part that "any resolutions relating to the issue of Middle East refugees, and which include a reference to the required resolution of the Palestinian refugee issue, must also include a similarly explicit reference to the resolution of the issue of Jewish, Christian, and other refugees from Arab countries."

Take Action: Contact your Congressman and urge him or her to support passage of H.RES. 185 in the House Foreign Affairs Committee and when it comes to a floor vote. Please note that Representatives Donald Payne and Albio Sires sit on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and they should also be contacted directly.

• Click Here for a Backgrounder on Justice for Jews From Arab Countries: The Other Middle East Refugees

U.N. Human Rights Council votes 30-1 to condemn Israel for "grave violations": An emergency session on Jan. 23 of the U.N. Human Rights Council condemned Israel for "grave violations of the human and humanitarian rights of Palestinian civilians," "undermining" the peace process, "incessant and repeated Israeli military attacks," and causing "loss of life and injuries among Palestinian civilians, including women and children." The resolution, which made no mention of Hamas rocket attacks or their Israeli victims, was adopted 30-1 (Canada), with 15 abstentions from countries in the European Union and elsewhere. The U.N. Human Rights Council called for immediate international action to force Israel to allow fuel, food, medicine, and other essential items to be sent to the Gaza Strip, to reopen the border crossings, and to end its "grave violations" in the occupied Palestinian territory. The text, introduced by Syria in the name of the League of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference, also called on the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to report to the council at its next session on the progress made toward implementing the resolution. In addition, the U.N. and its partners launched their largest ever appeal to help the Palestinians, with $462 million being sought in 2008, making it the third biggest U.N. appeal in the world, after Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Iran
World powers agree on U.N. resolution on Iran: On Jan. 22, Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States met to discuss Iran’s disputed nuclear ambitions and reached an accord for a new U.N. Security Council resolution against Tehran. A senior U.S. official said the new resolution "increases the severity of the sanctions already in place and will also introduce new elements." The official added: "It extends the sanctions and it is a very swift reminder to the Iranians that the six powers are united." The group had agreed not to distribute the text before presenting it to the other 10 members of the Security Council.

Darfur
Darfur peacekeeping set back 6 months: U.N. peacekeeping forces lack the troops and equipment necessary to improve the situation in violence-wracked Darfur and will continue to be ineffective until mid-2008, the U.N. Undersecretary-General for peacekeeping Jean-Marie Guehenno informed the U.N. Security Council. In response, the U.N. officials are discussing with Ukraine and Russia ways of obtaining helicopters and other equipment while also considering pulling them away from other U.N. peacekeeping missions. Because of the warnings of "dire consequences" for Sudan, the U.N. will look at whether the African Union-United Nations peacekeeping mission, which took over this month, can provide even for its own security. In his assessment, Guehenno offered a grim outline of the council’s options and the many political and bureaucratic obstacles it faces. The AU-U.N. mission, the latest international effort to quell the widespread violence in western Sudan, has 9,000 soldiers and police officers, even though it is supposed to have 26,000.

Stop importing gum Arabic from the genocidal Government of Sudan Act: This purpose of the bill H.R. 3464 is to amend the Tariff Suspension and Trade Act of 2000 to repeal the exemption from sanction against the importation of gum Arabic from Sudan. Gum Arabic is a main ingredient used in many common products, including Coke and Pepsi. In 2000, the United States gum Arabic processing industry was already working with the United States Agency for International Development to develop alternative sources of gum Arabic in countries that were not subject to U.S. sanctions. An alternative solution must be implemented and the U.S. must enforce sanctions against Sudan that are comprehensive and without exemptions. The bill is currently pending in the House Ways and Means Committee.

Domestic
UJC appeals to Congress to temporarily increase critical Medicaid funds: As part of Congress’ economic stimulus package, which is being developed to respond to the economic downturn, the UJC Washington Action Office is urging members of Congress to include a temporary increase in the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) for Medicaid. FMAP is the rate that the federal government pays for each state’s Medicaid program. Administered by the states, the federal government matches state Medicaid dollars to serve the most vulnerable populations. Currently, state revenue is beginning to fall significantly at the same time that demands for social services have begun to rise. Nineteen states are already projecting a budget shortfall and the number is expected to rise sharply as governors release their 2009 budgets. By law, nearly every state (49 out of 50, including New Jersey) is required to have a balanced budget, and state legislatures will be making cuts to meet the requirement. Medicaid, the key healthcare entitlement program for many social services provided to millions of Americans by the Jewish community, is jointly financed by federal and state funds. As a result, the program is likely to be cut at the same time that it will face increased appeals for access due to economic distress.

Take Action: Contact your Senators by e-mail, phone, or fax and urge them to support efforts to insure that a temporary increase of the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) is included in the final economic stimulus legislation.

• Click here for a template letter on this issue.

Resolution on aiding the poor: On Jan. 22, the House approved H.Con.Res 198, "Expressing the sense of the Congress that the United States has a moral responsibility to meet the needs of those persons, groups and communities that are impoverished, disadvantaged or otherwise in poverty." On Jan. 23, the resolution was received in the Senate and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Americans with Disabilities Restoration Act of 2007 (ADA): The ADA (HR 3195/S.1881) is essential to protect people with disabilities from discrimination and to correct the rollback of civil rights that has occurred since the enactment of the American with Disabilities Act in 1990. The courts have narrowed the definition of disability to the point that the law often harms the very individuals it was designed to protect. The ADA Restoration Act would attempt to close loopholes in the ADA’s workplace provisions by clearly redefining the term "disability" to apply to any individual with a real or perceived physical or mental impairment. The definition of disability would insure that individuals with conditions such as epilepsy, diabetes, hearing loss, learning disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities who use ‘mitigating’ measures, such as prescription drugs, prosthetics, and hearing aids will be protected under the legislation. UJC Washington Action Office is seeking Congressional co-sponsors on this legislation.

Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act: The Senate is scheduled to debate amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act shortly. Several different versions of this bill are currently being discussed. These changes were prompted by the National Security Agency’s program that allowed for the electronic surveillance of Americans without a court-issued warrant. A temporary authorization of this program, known as the Protect America Act, is set to expire next month.

This Legislative Digest was compiled from information prepared by the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA), United Jewish Communities Washington Action Office, and AIPAC. The Legislative Digest is produced by the Community Relations Committee (CRC), the public affairs and public policy arm of United Jewish Communities (UJC) of MetroWest NJ, to present the breadth of issues being monitored by the organized Jewish community, though UJC has not taken a position on all of these matters. For more information visit the CRC advocacy pages of www.ujcnj.org.