Newly passed highway bill contains attack on worker pensions.

[pa28]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/15/us-usa-transportation-house-idUSKBN0FK2GT20140715?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews

(Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed a $10.9 billion extension of U.S. transportation funding through May 2015, a measure aimed at averting cutbacks in federal money for road, bridge and transit projects in August.

.................

The measure, paid for largely through revenue generated by pension accounting changes and higher customs user fees, passed on a 367-55 bipartisan vote. The Senate is expected to begin considering a similar, $10.8 billion measure with some alternate funding provisions in the coming days.

The accounting change they are using will allow corporations to under fund pensions until 2024 and simply pocket the money. The additional profit will be subject to tax providing the "pay for" in the house bill.

Of course after 2024 we will find pensions severely underfunded or insolvent. Corporations who took advantage of the ten year windfall will naturally blame greedy unions for the crisis and seek government bailouts.

"This road work made possible by underfunding pensions"

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/13/upshot/this-road-work-made-possible-by-underfunding-pensions.html?ref=business&_r=0

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025236279

[rsmith6621]

1. My Democratic Congressman Voted Aye

The only one in my state that voted NO was Jim McDermott.

[mstinamotorcity2]

2. Detroiters feel your

pain!!!

[Babel_17]

3. Hopefully our rep's are counting on the Senate bill to cross that out

Then, in reconciliation, some bearable compromise can be made. The R's will maybe have to be tossed a substitute. I'm thinking maybe this gimmick is there as a placeholder, and a face saver, so the R's can vote for a bill that will guarantee continued infrastructure work. For various reasons they lean towards opposing such funding.

Hopefully we haven't truly caved to this demand.

[pa28]

5. The senate has it's own proposal that would simply raise the gas tax.

Just tax users of the system and fix the shortfall with a simple bill. Problem solved.

What bothers me is the number of Democrats who voted in favor of the house bill with it's bizarre provision to undermine pensions. WTH is that doing in a highway bill anyway?

Republicans have created a poison pill similar to the postal accountability bill of 2006. In that case they required postal workers to fund the future health care expenses of employees who hadn't been born yet. Eight years later the postal service is in crisis under the weight of those demands and Republicans are saying it needs to be privatized.

Similar thing going on here I think.

[tk2kewl]

4. legalized theft

[woo me with science]

6. K&R

[ClarkeVII]

7. Can't raise the gasoline tax....

We gotta keep prices low so we can keep driving our over-sized gas guzzlers

[pa28]

9. Even the senate Republicans get it.

Raise the gas tax and make the people who use the system pick up the tab.

But hey; insanity, bad decisions and disaster seem to be our business now.

BTW welcome to DU

[lonestarnot]

8. So unlike piss chrispy, they're just going to steal them right out in the open. Representative

gubmnt at work.

[woo me with science]

10. kick

[SoCalDem]

11. Did we really expect more from our congress? They blew though the Boomer's pre-paid SS money

like a hot knife through butter... squandered a surplus left by Clinton.. they can only manage to name post offices & state rodents.. what a bunch of losers..