Senator Coons joins Shaheen, Portman in renewed effort on energy efficiency

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) is cosponsoring updated bipartisan legislation introduced Thursday by Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) to spur the use of energy-efficient technologies in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors of the economy.

The Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, also known as “Shaheen-Portman,” will strengthen building energy codes for homes and commercial real estate, incentivize the use of more efficient motors and transformers, and introduce energy-saving guidelines for the federal government, among other provisions. The updated bill builds on legislation cosponsored by Senator Coons and considered by the Senate in September 2013.

“Investing in energy efficiency is a simple way to create jobs, save money, and build a better future for our country,” Senator Coons said. “Older, energy-inefficient buildings cost our government and businesses millions every year in inflated energy bills. The Shaheen-Portman bill will help the federal government, communities, and industries across our nation realize the significant cost savings that come with energy-efficiency upgrades. I was frustrated to see progress on the original bill stall in the Senate last year, but I am even more encouraged by the updated legislation introduced this week. This bipartisan bill is an important signal to the private sector that energy efficiency is a critical policy priority that Democrats and Republicans can come together to support.”

The reintroduced Shaheen-Portman legislation uses a variety of low-cost tools to help energy users become more efficient while making the country’s largest energy user – the federal government – reduce its energy use through the use of energy-efficient technology. The deficit neutral bill incentivizes the use of efficiency technologies that are commercially available today, can be widely deployed across the country, and quickly pay for themselves through energy savings. The reintroduced bill incorporates an additional 10 bipartisan provisions that will help the United States transition to a more energy-efficient economy while driving economic growth and private sector job creation.

A study by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy estimates that Shaheen-Portman will create more than 190,000 jobs, save consumers $16.2 billion a year, and cut CO2 emissions and other air pollutants by the equivalent of taking 22 million cars off the road – all by 2030.

The new version of Shaheen-Portman is cosponsored by Senators Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), and John Hoeven (R-N.D.).

Senator Coons reintroduces updated bill to extend landmark energy efficiency programs

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) reintroduced updated legislation Thursday to strengthen and reauthorize the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) and State Energy Program (SEP), two of the federal government’s most successful and long-standing energy efficiency initiatives. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) joined as a cosponsor of the Senate bill while Representative Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives. The House and Senate bills update the Weatherization Enhancement, and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act, first introduced by Senators Coons, Collins, and Reed in June 2013, to consolidate the competitive innovation grants authorized by the bill into the WAP. The legislation would reauthorize both programs for five more years.

“Helping our communities save energy is a common-sense way to lower energy costs, help the environment, and boost our nation’s energy security,” Senator Coons said. “For decades, the Weatherization Assistance Program and State Energy Program have been a critical part of that effort, making cost-saving, energy-efficient technologies and practices available to millions of Americans. This bipartisan bill will ensure that both landmark programs can continue to benefit American families.”

For nearly 40 years, WAP has helped low-income families make cost-saving energy efficiency upgrades and SEP has leveraged federal investment with state and local funds to increase energy efficiency and develop alternative energy sources. Congressional authorization for both programs expired in September 2012.

The Weatherization Enhancement, and Local Energy Efficiency Investment and Accountability Act would:

• Reauthorize and extend the WAP and SEP through 2019;
• Develop a competitive, leveraged grant program for non-profits that have a track record of success to access the WAP; and
• Require minimum professional standards for WAP contractors and workers, and require an independent quality assurance program. 

The legislation has been endorsed by more than 25 organizations, including the National Association of State Energy Officials, National Association of State Community Service Programs, National Community Action Foundation, Business Council for Sustainable Energy, Alliance to Save Energy, American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, Energy Future Coalition, U.S. Green Buildings Council, Habitat for Humanity International, Rebuilding Together, Efficiency First, and the Natural Resources Defense Council. A complete list is available at http://www.coons.senate.gov/weatherization.

A PDF of the legislation can be downloaded here: http://1.usa.gov/1ftOeYK

Senator Coons hosts briefing on Children’s Advocacy Centers for child abuse victims

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), co-chairs of the Senate Law Enforcement Caucus convened a joint briefing Thursday with Congressmen Ted Poe (R-Texas) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.), co-chairs of the House Victims’ Rights Caucus, on the important role Children’s Advocacy Centers play in supporting law enforcement and victims of child abuse. Diane Klecan, Program Director for Client Services at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Delaware and a trained forensic interviewer, was among the expert panelists. 

“Children’s Advocacy Centers ensure that when tragedy strikes, we can deliver justice without harming the healing process,” said Senator Coons. “These centers bring everyone together under one roof – law enforcement, prosecutors, child service professionals, and trained forensic interviewers – to find out what happened in a way that allows the testimony to be used in court. Support for these centers through the Victim’s of Child Abuse Act represents the best of our federal commitment to targeted, effective, and essential assistance to state and local law enforcement, our communities, and our children.”

Diane Klecan, who has conducted more than 2,300 forensic interviews of children at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Delaware, shared how training and assistance funded by the Victims of Child Abuse Act has helped her to successfully and supportively communicate with child victims of neglect, physical and sexual abuse, and other serious crimes.

“The coordinated, multidisciplinary response used by the Children’s Advocacy Center of Delaware and Children’s Advocacy Centers across the United States leads to more efficient utilization of resources while improving our nation’s response to child abuse allegations,” said Diane Klecan, Program Director for Client Services and forensic interviewer at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Delaware. “Funding from the Victims of Child Abuse Act is critical to our mission to protect children, as the training and technical assistance provided through the Act improves the work of forensic interviewers and other frontline professionals throughout the U.S. Without the additional funding provided through VOCAA, states would not receive the support and training so critical to professionals in this field.”   

Children’s Advocacy Centers employ a multi-disciplinary team of trained professionals to conduct forensic interviews of children who have been victims of abuse. These interviews are designed to be admissible in court, preventing children from being re-traumatized by having to tell their stories multiple times. In 2012 alone, more than 286,000 children were served at over 800 Children’s Advocacy Centers across the United States, with over 197,000 cases reporting sexual abuse. Their use in child abuse cases saved, on average, more than $1,000 per case in court, child protection, and investigative fees. Delaware is home to three Children’s Advocacy Centers located in Wilmington, Dover, and Georgetown.  

Senators Coons and Blunt, along with Senators Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) and Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) introduced legislation in December 2013 to reauthorize and strengthen the Victims of Child Abuse Act. Read more about the bill here: http://1.usa.gov/1fjTb3o

“I am grateful to Diane and all of our panelists for joining today’s discussion and demonstrating the immense value of Children’s Advocacy Centers in our communities,” Senator Coons said.

Senators Carper and Coons urge end to unlimited secret spending in elections by tax-exempt groups

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons (both D-Del.) joined U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and 12 of their colleagues in calling on the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service to put an end to unlimited secret spending in elections by tax-exempt groups. Treasury and the IRS have been collecting comments in connection with a proposed rule change for 501(c)(4) social welfare groups announced in November.

“New IRS regulations must put an end to the use of 501(c)(4) status as a means of evading campaign finance disclosure requirements,” the senators wrote in a letter sent Thursday. “In particular, the new rules must make clear that it is impermissible for political operatives to create what are for all practical purposes PACs, obtain 501(c)(4) status for those PACs, and then spend essentially unlimited money to influence elections without disclosing their donors, as is now common practice.”

Current 501(c)(4) regulations allow groups to collect unlimited, undisclosed donations, and to engage in some political activity so long as their “primary” activities are geared toward “social welfare.” However, as the senators point out in their letter, “Treasury and the IRS have never clarified how much political intervention would violate the primary activity standard, nor have they clarified exactly what activities constitute political intervention.”

A number of these organizations appear to have taken advantage of this lack of clarity by abusing their non-profit status to raise and spend hundreds of millions of dollars for political purposes – all in secret, without disclosing their sources of funding.  In their letter, the Senators argue that these actions are “undermining the integrity of our elections.”

The senators go on to specifically call for:

• Limiting political activities by 501(c)(4) groups to five to fifteen percent of their total activities;
• Defining candidate-related political activity to include all expenditures that must be reported to the Federal Election Commission, including independent expenditures and electioneering communications.
• Ensuring that groups do not use shell companies and other pass-through organizations to evade the new rules. 
• Exempting activities that legitimately promote social welfare, such as nonpartisan voter registration drives, from the definition of candidate-related political activity.

The proposed rules would not limit political activities or speech by groups organized under a different tax-exempt portion of the Internal Revenue Code, Section 527.  Rather, the rules would limit the ability of groups to use Section 501(c)(4) to skirt existing laws regarding campaign spending disclosure.

Also signing the letter were U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). 

The letter can be downloaded here.

More than 50 employers will be hiring for hundreds of vacancies at next week’s Congressional job fair in New Castle County

WILMINGTON, Del. –U.S. Senators Tom Carper and Chris Coons, and U.S. Representative John Carney announced Wednesday that more than 70 employers will be seeking to fill hundreds of positions at the Friday, March 7 job fair. The fair, which runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington, is being organized with the help of Brandywine Counseling and Career Services. Organizations representing public and private sectors as well as the nonprofit community will be seeking qualified job candidates. 

The list of potential employers reflects Delaware’s diverse industries in New Castle County, ranging from healthcare, education to law enforcement to banking. Interested companies seeking to fill positions can contact Senator Coons’ office at 302-573-6345 or via email at workshop@coons.senate.gov.

Employers who will be attending this job fair include: 99.5 WJBR, A+ Cuts & Salon, AAA Mid Atlantic, Advanced Student Transportation, Aflac, Amazon, American Registry of Pathology, Applied Card Systems, Auto Wearhousing, Bank of America, Bayada Home Health Care, Christiana Care, Clarifi, Delaware Air National Guard, Delaware Army National Guard, DelDOT, Delaware Hospice, Delaware State Police, Delaware Transitions to Teaching, Department Of Homeland Security, Department Of Correction, Department of Labor, Diamond State Financial Group, Dover Downs, DoubleTree by Hilton Downtown, Energizer Personal Care, ESGR/ H2H,Game Stop, Goodwill of Delaware, Greater Wilmington Radio Association, Griswold Home Care, Home Instead Senior Care, Horizon Services, Interim Healthcare, ITWORKS, J & J Staffing Resources, JP Morgan Chase, Lowes, Metro Merchant Services, Mountaire Farms of Delaware, Wilmington Job Corp Center, New Castle County Police Department, New Castle County, New Castle County EMS, New York Life, Prince Telecom, Prominent Insurance, Saint Francis Life, Sallie Mae, State of Delaware, Synerfac Technical Staffing, University of Delaware Recruiting, University of Delaware, Professional & Continuing Studies, US Department of State, Waddell & Reed. Inc., Westin Riverfront & Embassy Suites Hotels, Wilmington Police Department, Wilmington University, WSFS Bank and Brandywine Counseling.

In addition to companies hiring to fill vacancies, job fair guests will have the opportunity to hear from author and motivational speaker S. Renee Smith at 11 a.m. in a talk called Create a Buzz: Grow Your Life and Career, and then from United States Office of Personnel Management representative about application strategies for federal jobs at 1 p.m.

Since 2011, the Congressional delegation has hosted 18 job fairs in Delaware, including five specifically for veterans.

Senator Coons applauds launch of new manufacturing innovation institutes

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), who leads the Manufacturing Jobs for America campaign in the Senate, praised President Obama’s launch Tuesday of two new manufacturing innovation institutes led by the Department of Defense. The institutes, headquartered in Detroit and Chicago, will serve as regional hubs, bringing together companies, universities, and federal agencies to bridge the gap between education and training, applied research, and product development. Senator Coons was invited to the White House today for the President’s announcement.

“American ingenuity and innovation are the keys to our nation’s manufacturing revival,” Senator Coons said. “To bridge the gap between innovative ideas and dynamic new industries, we need to get our most important stakeholders – our academic, commercial, and governmental institutions – working together toward a common goal. Manufacturing innovation institutes are a creative and cost-effective way to do just that, leveraging resources to accelerate innovation and grow our manufacturing sector. I look forward to following the progress of these exciting new hubs and hope the Senate will soon act on bipartisan legislation I cosponsored with Senators Brown and Blunt to further expand this initiative.”

The new manufacturing innovation institutes will be supported by a $140 million federal investment combined with more than $140 million in non-federal resources. Harnessing shared assets, the institutes grant consortium members, including small manufacturers, access to cutting-edge capabilities and equipment to design, test, and pilot new products and manufacturing processes. The Detroit hub will concentrate on lightweight and modern metals manufacturing while the Chicago hub will focus on digital manufacturing and design technologies.

Building off the success of a pilot institute headquartered in Youngstown, Ohio, the administration has launched three new institutes in 2014. Today, the President also announced a competition to select the next institute, one of four more he has pledged to establish this year, for a total of eight across the country. The Revitalize American Manufacturing and Innovation Act of 2013, a bipartisan bill cosponsored by Senator Coons, would support the creation of more institutes as part of a national network for manufacturing innovation. 

Since its debut in October, Manufacturing Jobs for America has grown to include 46 bills from 26 senators. Thirty-two of the bills have already been introduced — 14 with bipartisan support — around four principles: strengthening America’s 21st century workforce; opening markets abroad; creating the conditions necessary for growth; and expanding access to capital. 

More on Manufacturing Jobs for America can be found here: http://www.coons.senate.gov/manufacturing 

Senator Coons cosponsors bill to rein in NSA domestic surveillance programs

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) has cosponsored legislation that seeks to restore Americans’ privacy rights by ending the government’s warrantless bulk collection of phone records and requiring greater oversight, transparency, and accountability with respect to domestic surveillance authorities.

“From the founding of our nation, the warrant requirement has served as a fundamental check on government intrusion into the private sphere,” Senator Coons said. “Yet federal authorities are able, in the name of national security, to obtain vast amounts of information about U.S. citizens without providing cause for suspicion and without any meaningful opportunity for citizens to challenge that collection. In the months following revelations about the scope of government surveillance authorities, it has become increasingly clear that ongoing warrantless surveillance represents an unacceptable violation of Americans’ privacy rights. The USA FREEDOM Act would end this practice and reintroduce transparency and accountability into government surveillance activities. Americans expect and deserve a government that can keep our nation safe while respecting our most cherished privacy protections, and this bipartisan bill would take important steps toward restoring that balance.”

The USA FREEDOM Act would end the dragnet collection of Americans’ phone records under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act and ensure that other authorities cannot be used to justify similar dragnet collection. The bill also provides more safeguards for warrantless surveillance under the FISA Amendments Act.

Among other significant privacy and oversight provisions, the bill provides for the creation of a Special Advocate to focus on the protection of privacy rights and civil liberties before the FISA Court, and requires more detailed public reporting about the numbers and types of FISA orders that are issued.

The bill, which is led in the Senate by Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), has 21 bipartisan Senate cosponsors and more than 140 cosponsors in the House. The bill has been endorsed by a diverse array of groups ranging from the National Rifle Association to the American Civil Liberties Union.

In August 2013, Senator Coons cosponsored the FISA Court Reform Act of 2013, which would create an Office of the Special Advocate tasked with advocating in the FISA courts’ closed proceedings for legal interpretations that minimize the scope of intrusion into our privacy. He also cosponsored the FISA Accountability and Privacy Protection Act of 2013 to require the government to be more transparent in how it publicly reports on its surveillance activities. Both bills contain provisions included in the USA FREEDOM Act. Read more about them here: http://1.usa.gov/1j8UJ1L

Senate to vote this week on veterans benefits legislation cosponsored by Senator Coons

WASHINGTON – The Senate on Tuesday will vote on comprehensive legislation cosponsored by U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) to expand a wide range of veterans benefits and strengthen support for servicemembers and their families. The Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Pay Restoration Act includes numerous provisions supported by veterans organizations to improve health care options, secure access to benefits, eliminate backlogs, expand higher education and vocational training opportunities, and improve the delivery of care to military victims of sexual assault, among other measures.

“Our military is the greatest in the world because of the brave men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect us,” Senator Coons said. “It is our duty, in return, to ensure they receive the benefits they have earned and the resources they need to succeed here at home. Millions of veterans saw their compensation jeopardized by the reckless government shutdown last year, and thousands are still struggling to access the quality health care, educational, and employment assistance they are due. This legislation would make critical reforms to the VA system to improve access, secure benefits, and expand opportunity for servicemembers and their families. We owe it to our veterans to provide a support system worthy of their sacrifice, and this bill would make important progress toward achieving that goal.”

Last year’s government shutdown nearly prevented the VA from issuing disability compensation, pension, and education payments to millions of veterans. The Comprehensive Veterans Health and Benefits and Military Pay Restoration Act would ensure veterans receive consistent access to the benefits they have earned by providing advanced appropriations for mandatory accounts at the VA.

The bill would also help more than 11 million veterans not currently enrolled in VA health care participate by simplifying the enrollment process and allowing the VA to enter into 27 major medical facility leases in 18 states and Puerto Rico.

Other key provisions in the bill include:

• Expansion of access to VA health care – including complementary and alternative medicine – and dental care, in a cost-effective and equitable way.
• Ending the benefits backlog by supporting the VA’s ongoing efforts and making needed improvements to the claims system.
• In-state tuition assistance for post-9/11 veterans.
• Extension from five to ten years of unfettered access to VA health care for recently separated veterans to address their health care needs early.
• Reauthorization of provisions from the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011, including a two-year extension for the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program.
• Restoration of full cost-of-living adjustments for all military retirees.
• Provisions to improve the delivery of care and benefits to military victims of sexual assault.
• Reproductive health care for veterans who have suffered significant spinal cord, reproductive and urinary tract injuries and want to start a family.
• Provisions to enhance and improve the protections of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, which are of particular importance to members of the Reserve Components during periods of active military service.        

This legislation has been endorsed by virtually every veterans organization in the country including The American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA).

President Bill Clinton will deliver keynote remarks at Senator Coons’ Opportunity: Africa conference

WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons announced on Monday that former President Bill Clinton will deliver the keynote address at the third annual Opportunity: Africa conference on March 10 at the Chase Center in Wilmington.

“President Clinton has made an extraordinary impact on Africa and much of the developing world,” Senator Coons said. “It is my pleasure and true honor to welcome President Clinton to Delaware as the keynote speaker for the third annual Opportunity: Africa conference. His unique perspective and unrelenting commitment to improving global health, promoting economic opportunity and growth, empowering women and girls, and protecting the environment will make this year’s conference unforgettable.”

The Clinton Foundation invests heavily in programs to strengthen African health systems and expand access to lifesaving treatments; to provide African farmers with the tools they need to increase their incomes and strengthen their communities; and to address climate change by working to improve energy efficiency, reverse deforestation, and help cities to develop sustainably. While in the White House, President Clinton signed into law the landmark Africa Growth and Opportunity Act, which has supported the growth of an African middle class, reduced dependence on development assistance, and further opened African markets to American companies.

The Opportunity: Africa conference links Delaware businesses, faith communities and individuals with top experts on Africa, providing insight on trade opportunities and issues including human rights challenges, sustainable development, food security and global health.

The conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, March 10 at the Chase Center on the Riverfront in Wilmington. It is free and open to the public, but registration is required for admittance: http://www.coons.senate.gov/opportunityafrica/.

Media interested in being credentialed for President Clinton’s address must register here: http://www.coons.senate.gov/opportunityafrica/media

A PDF of the save-the-date for the conference can be downloaded here: http://www.coons.senate.gov/download/oppafrica2014-savethedate 

A high-resolution photo of President Clinton is available here: http://1.usa.gov/NzILE8

Photos from last year’s conference are available here: http://bit.ly/LQPZlV

Senator Coons condemns enactment of Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda

WILMINGTON, Del. – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs, issued the following statement Monday following Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s enactment of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. Among other things, the legislation makes homosexual acts punishable with life imprisonment, and requires Ugandan citizens to report people they know to be gay or to face criminal consequences.

“The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons are universal human rights and deserve to be respected around the world,” Senator Coons said. “The shameful Anti-Homosexuality Bill that President Museveni signed into law today goes far beyond discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and makes homosexual conduct punishable with life in prison. It promotes a climate of oppression and fear, and is an unconscionable violation of fundamental freedoms and universal standards for human rights.

“The enactment of this law is another sad chapter in a disturbing trend against personal freedom in Uganda, including crackdowns on independent media and political dissent. While I recognize and value Uganda’s leadership in promoting stability in the region, the United States must not stand by as democratic values and humanitarian principles are increasingly disregarded by Uganda’s political leadership. Promoting universal human rights, including freedom of speech, association, religion and press, must remain a fundamental component of our work as a nation. 

“As President Obama, Ambassador Rice, and I have repeatedly expressed to President Museveni, signing this bill into law will have implications for our nations’ relationship. Two years ago, President Obama announced that it would be the policy of the United States government to more closely tie our diplomatic and development efforts to human rights. America’s foreign policy can and should be led by its values, including the protection of basic human rights regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. 

“This law is a setback for human rights around the world and will endanger Uganda’s relationship with the United States. There should be consequences for such action, not just in Uganda, but also in Nigeria, Russia, and anywhere else in the world where LGBT rights and other human rights are being legally restricted. America’s rhetoric must now be met with action. For there to be no diplomatic or developmental consequence for the enactment of these laws would be to set a dangerous precedent for America’s foreign policy.”

While in Uganda in May 2012, Senator Coons met with President Museveni to urge him to comply with international standards for human rights. The Senator has spoken out against the legislation repeatedly since being named chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs.