CAPAC Chair Statement on Republican Tax Bill

CAPAC Chair Statement on Republican Tax Bill

Washington, DC – Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, a tax bill that slashes tax rates on corporations and eliminates deductions used by individuals, like the deduction for state and local taxes (SALT) and the deduction for interest on student loans. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), a member of the House Ways & Means Committee and Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), released the following statement:

“Instead of the tax reform we were promised, this Republican tax bill is just a massive tax cut for corporate interests paid for by the middle class, those we were supposed to be helping. First, Republicans eliminate the State and Local Tax deduction, which is currently used by millions of households – including many Asian American and Pacific Islander families who live in states like California and New York – to prevent their hard earned dollars from being taxed twice. Next, the bill rips away critical benefits that help our students to pay for their college education by ending the student loan interest deduction and the Lifetime Learning Credit that helps students afford graduate school. It even pays for the corporate tax cuts by taxing graduate students on the tuition assistance they receive for working for their schools. This bill even pinches students when they’re still in elementary school by taxing their teachers who claim a deduction for the school supplies they pay for out of their own paychecks.

“These are just some of the ways middle class Americans are asked to pay for corporate tax cuts. All in the name of trickle down economics, a theory that has been repeatedly tried and shown not to work. This was a wasted opportunity to do the right thing for our economy. As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, I offered amendments to improve this bill for the middle class by reinstating the estate tax, expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and allowing teachers to deduct out-of-pocket expenses for school supplies. But all were met with unanimous Republican opposition. Instead of true tax reform that would help families achieve the American Dream, Republicans have chosen to hand a massive debt to our children, while stripping away deductions and tax help that many struggling families depend on.”

Boston Public Schools and the American Heart Association Kick Off Initiative to Train District's 17,000 High-School Students in Lifesaving Skills

Boston Public Schools and the American Heart Association Kick Off Initiative to Train District's 17,000 High-School Students in Lifesaving Skills

Hands-only CPR kits will be distributed to all BPS High Schools

BOSTON — Thursday, Nov. 16, 2017 — The American Heart Association (AHA) today recognized the Boston Public Schools (BPS) for its implementing “Hands-Only CPR” curriculum for the district’s nearly 17,000 high school students during an event at Madison Park Technical Vocational High School where a physical-education class received a 30-minute training session in the lifesaving skills. “Thanks to the generous support of the American Heart Association and its funders, we are making it a priority to teach our high school students hands-only CPR as part of the health-related fitness component of their physical-education classes,” said BPS Superintendent Tommy Chang. “We are really excited that we are giving our schools the tools to turn students into potential lifesavers in their communities.” The AHA, through funding provided by the Amos Fleischer Foundation, Bruins Foundation, ARC Light and PriceWaterhouseCoopers, is providing BPS a total of 47 CPR-In-School Bags and 280 CPR Anytime Kits to be used to train students and other members of their school communities. The training bags and kits, which include “MiniAnne” CPR mannequins and instructional DVDs, are valued at more than $41,000. “The American Heart Association is creating a generation of lifesavers by making sure students learn CPR before they graduate,” said Jay Blackwell, executive director and vice president of development of the American Heart Association. “Schools prepare students with essential life skills, and CPR skills are among the most critical life skills—and lifesaving skills—that make our communities safer, year after year. We are proud to partner with the Boston Public Schools to ensure that the city’s youth are empowered to help save lives.” All BPS 9-12th grade students, as well as some 8th grade students, will be trained annually in CPR during physical-education class as part of their school’s health and fitness curriculum. To date 45 teachers at 25 schools have already received training and kits. According to the AHA, more than 326,000 people experience cardiac arrest outside of a hospital each year, and about 90 percent of those victims die, often because bystanders don’t know how to start CPR or are afraid they’ll do something wrong. CPR, especially if performed immediately, can double or triple a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival. Hands-Only CPR, recommended for use on teens and adults, requires less training than conventional CPR (with mouth-to-mouth breaths) and has been shown to be as effective as conventional CPR in the first few minutes of a sudden, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. “Having BPS high schools train our students in CPR will provide our young adults the ability to know what to do during those precious few minutes after someone suffers sudden cardiac arrest,” said Amalio Nieves, BPS Assistant Superintendent of Social Emotional Learning and Wellness. “This knowledge can empower students to take ownership of a situation and help possibly save the life of a parent, relative, friend or even a complete stranger.”

UNLICENSED FOR-PROFIT NURSING SCHOOL TO PAY RESTITUTION TO STUDENTS AFTER MISREPRESENTING ITS TRAINING PROGRAMS

UNLICENSED FOR-PROFIT NURSING SCHOOL TO PAY RESTITUTION TO STUDENTS AFTER MISREPRESENTING ITS TRAINING PROGRAMS

Consent Judgment Bars Hosanna College of Health from Holding Classes in Massachusetts

BOSTON – A for-profit nursing school must pay restitution and is permanently barred from holding classes in Massachusetts after operating without a license and misrepresenting its training programs to dozens of local students, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.

Under the consent judgment, entered in Suffolk Superior Court, the Florida-based school – Hosanna College of Health, Inc. – will pay $190,000 in restitution for eligible students who attended between 2013 and 2015, and cannot collect any outstanding tuition payments from students who took in-person classes in Massachusetts.

            In February 2016, the AG’s Office sued Hosanna, along with its founding executive, Jackson Augustin, and one of its former officers, Michelle Desarmes, for making a series of misrepresentations to students from the Boston area’s Haitian community who were seeking to take nursing classes in Massachusetts. According to the complaint, the classes were held in greater Boston and the students were not properly prepared for their nursing examinations. 

            “Students in Massachusetts with dreams to become nurses were targeted by this school and misled into taking unlicensed and low-quality courses in order to generate a profit,” AG Healey said. “This settlement will bring critical funds back to students from the Haitian community who invested in this program but were never given the education they were promised.”

            In July 2016, the Court entered an order, preventing Hosanna from recruiting students for its nursing program and continuing with classes in Massachusetts. 

Dozens of Hosanna’s former students who attended these classes in Massachusetts are expected to be eligible for settlement payments. The AG’s Office will be reaching out to affected students with more information. Former Hosanna students who are looking for more information or assistance should call AG Healey’s Student Loan Assistance Unit Hotline at 1-888-830-6277.

AG Healey has taken a series of actions against predatory for-profit schools and made securing student loan relief a top priority. AG Healey has brought enforcement actions against student debt relief companies and filed lawsuits against ITT Tech, Corinthian, and American Career Institute alleging unfair and deceptive practices. 

AG Healey’s Office also reached settlements worth more than $8 million withKaplan Career Institute, Lincoln Tech, ACS Education Services, Sullivan & Cogliano, and Salter College. 

This case was handled by the staff of the AG’s Insurance and Financial Services Division, including Tiffany Bartz, Tim Hoitink, Claire Masinton, David Lim, Lilia DuBois, Katherine Hurley, Michael Beaulieu, Erica Harmon and Jasmine Jean-Louis, as well as Anthony Crespi of the Civil Investigations Division.

CAPAC Demands Passage of Clean Dream Act Before the End of the Year

CAPAC Demands Passage of Clean Dream Act Before the End of the Year

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) met with Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Dreamers and held a press conference to urge the passage of a clean DREAM Act before Congress adjourns in December. Over 120 AAPI undocumented youth and advocates from all across the country participated in today’s convening, which included the largest number of AAPI Dreamers to ever gather at the U.S. Capitol. Congresswoman Judy Chu (CA-27), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, released the following statement:

“I was so moved to hear from dozens of Asian American and Pacific Islander Dreamers during their historic gathering on Capitol Hill today to urge the passage of a clean DREAM Act. President Trump’s cruel decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program has left the lives of nearly 800,000 Dreamers in limbo, including over 130,000 AAPI Dreamers from countries like South Korea, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, and China who were brought to the United States as children through no fault of their own and who call this country their home.  Our nation’s Dreamers are Americans in every single way except on paper, and it is unconscionable to force these young Americans to go back into the shadows and face deportation to countries that they do not even know.

“Since its founding, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus has been at the forefront of ensuring that AAPIs are included in federal legislation and policy discussions, especially when it comes to immigration.  And CAPAC Members are committed to finding a permanent legislative fix to enshrine DACA protections immediately.  Our caucus stands in solidarity with AAPI Dreamers and demands that Congress pass a clean Dream Act before the end of the year.

“We know that if the bipartisan, bicameral DREAM Act were brought to the floor today, it would have the votes to pass. CAPAC urges Republican leadership to allow us to vote on this bill and pass a clean DREAM Act immediately.”

Baker-Polito Administration Announces Seven Communities to Participate in Residential Clean Heating and Cooling Program

Baker-Polito Administration Announces Seven Communities to Participate in Residential Clean Heating and Cooling Program

Program Will Lower Costs of Renewable Thermal Technologies

BOSTON – The Baker-Polito Administration today announced the selection of seven communities to participate in the first round of the HeatSmart Mass initiative, a community-based education and group purchasing program for clean heating and cooling technologies. The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) selected Bolton, Carlisle, Concord, Great Barrington, Harvard, Lincoln, and Nantucket to participate in the program. HeatSmart Mass uses a group purchasing model to support the installation of air-source heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps, modern wood heating, and solar hot water.

“Massachusetts is a national leader on clean energy, and this program provides another great opportunity for residents to install innovative technologies and save money,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “The Commonwealth continues to progress toward our greenhouse gas reduction goals and this program provides the additional benefit of reduced costs for residents while helping minimize carbon emissions from the heating sector.”

“The HeatSmart Mass program leverages partnerships between community volunteers, municipal and state government officials, and installers to deliver cost-saving solutions for Massachusetts residents,” said Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito. “We are proud to partner with these communities and private companies to bring clean heating and cooling to residents across the state at affordable rates.”   

“Innovative heating and cooling technologies represent the next generation of clean energy, and can help residents save money on their heating bills,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Matthew Beaton. “Reducing greenhouse gas emissions while driving down consumer costs is top priority of the Baker-Polito Administration, and these grants are another important step forward in those efforts.”

Energy used for heating contributes to approximately 30% of the Commonwealth’s greenhouse gas emissions. In the average Massachusetts home, 75% of the energy used is for space and water heating. These costs are a significant burden for the half of the homes in Massachusetts that heat with traditional heating sources such as oil, electricity, and propane.

The program is modeled on the successful Solarize Mass program, which provides participating residents with an average of twenty percent savings compared to average state prices to adopt solar photovoltaic systems. Since its launch in 2011, 63 cities and towns have participated in Solarize Mass, leading to the contracting of more than 3,200 new small-scale installations at homes and businesses resulting in 21.6 megawatts of contracted solar electric capacity.

“The Baker-Polito Administration is committed to lowering the cost of renewable energy for all residents and increasing access and awareness to Massachusetts’ renewable thermal programs,” said Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Judith Judson. “Paired with the upcoming launch of the Commonwealth’s amended Alterative Portfolio Standard, the HeatSmart Mass program will contribute to lower energy usage, costs, and emissions statewide.”

“By leveraging a group purchasing model we can help residents access cost-effective heating and cooling technology,” said MassCEC CEO Steve Pike. “The heating and cooling sector represents an enormous opportunity to cut greenhouse gas emissions and costs, and the HeatSmart program can help unlock those savings for our communities.”

The participating communities will offer the following technologies to residents:

• Bolton and Harvard: Air-source heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps
• Carlisle, Concord, and Lincoln: Air-source heat pumps, ground-source heat pumps and modern wood heat
• Great Barrington: Air-source heat pumps
• Nantucket: Air-source heat pumps and solar hot water

“I am thrilled to learn that Great Barrington is participating in this program. Bringing air-source heat pumps to town will not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve local air quality, it will help folks save money,” said State Representative William Pignatelli (D-Lenox), House Chair of the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture. “I am proud to represent the people of Great Barrington and to get to work with the Baker-Polito Administration on programs that will make a real difference to constituents and the environment, in the Berkshires and across the Commonwealth.”

“Massachusetts is a national leader in clean energy and this is a way to create cost-effective and energy-efficient heating, cooling and water heating for homes and businesses in Great Barrington,” said State Senator Adam G. Hinds (D- Pittsfield).“Congratulations to Great Barrington for being chosen to partner with MassCEC in this first round of the new HeatSmart program.”

“As the state Representative for Bolton, I’m proud of our town’s longstanding commitment to energy efficiency and the conservation of our environment,” said State Representative Kate Hogan (D-Stow). “By participating in the HeatSmart Mass initiative Bolton will be able to team up with our neighbors in Harvard to encourage the adoption of clean heating technology in our communities, furthering local efforts to improve heating efficiency, lower costs, and support the state’s goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

“I am thrilled that Lincoln was chosen to participate in the first round of the HeatSmart Mass initiative, which will bring clean heating and cooling to residents at affordable costs,”  said State Representative Thomas Stanley (D-Waltham). “Massachusetts is a leader in greenhouse gas reduction and I am excited that Lincoln residents will be among the first to participate in this important program.”

“Nantucket's unique geography requires a commitment to sustainable living and clean energy production,” said State Representative Dylan Fernandes (D-Falmouth). “I want to thank the Administration for their support of our island community in advancing cost effective renewable energy on island.”

“I am encouraged by the Baker-Polito Administration’s commitment to bringing clean-energy initiatives to our far-flung corners of the Commonwealth,” said State Senator Julian Cyr (D-Truro). “These cost-saving and innovative technologies will offer residents of Nantucket an opportunity to cut down on energy costs while decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. Programs like HeatSmart allow communities thirty miles out in the Atlantic Ocean to access the same clean energy technologies as the rest of the state.”

HeatSmart Mass is a partnership between MassCEC DOER, funded by Alternative Compliance Payments from retail electricity suppliers that do not otherwise meet their full Massachusetts Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) and Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (APS) obligations.

Residents of the participating communities can visit www.masscec.com/heatsmartfor more information.

MNN Urges House Members to Vote Against Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

MNN Urges House Members to Vote Against Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

MNN: H.R. 1 would have a devastating effect on Massachusetts nonprofits and communities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 15, 2017 - The Massachusetts Nonprofit Network (MNN), the Commonwealth's nonprofit association representing 800 nonprofit members in every region of the state, today sent letters to the entire Massachusetts congressional delegation urging them to vote against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (H.R. 1).

"As drafted, this bill will reduce charitable giving, eliminate a long-standing law prohibiting charities from engaging in partisan politics, and will impose new taxes on the sector," said Jim Klocke, CEO of MNN. "This bill will have a devastating impact on the Commonwealth's nonprofit community and the people and causes they serve."

In calling for the Massachusetts congressional delegation to oppose H.R. 1, MNN joins a growing chorus of opposition to the House bill, including the National Council of Nonprofits, Independent Sector, and the Council on Foundations.

Governor Charlie Baker Appoints New State Police Superintendent

Governor Charlie Baker Appoints New State Police Superintendent

Colonel Kerry Gilpin to take command of 2,100 Massachusetts State Police Troopers and 540 civilian staff 

Governor Charlie Baker swears in Colonel Kerry Gilpin with Lt. Governor Karyn Polito.

For high-resolution, click here.

BOSTON— Today, Governor Charlie Baker announced the appointment of Colonel Kerry Gilpin to serve as Superintendent and Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police (MSP). A 23-year veteran of the State Police, Colonel Gilpin most recently served as Deputy Division Commander of the Division of Standards and Training. Her appointment is effective today.

“It is the mission of the Massachusetts State Police to keep the Commonwealth safe and I have the utmost confidence that Colonel Gilpin will excel as the leader of our tremendous police force,” said Governor Charlie Baker. “Colonel Gilpin brings decades of experience and knowledge to her post, with a deep understanding of the state police force at every level. I thank Colonel Gilpin for her dedication and willingness to serve the Commonwealth in this important position, and look forward to working with her to protect our communities.”

“Colonel Gilpin became a trooper for the right reasons, because she wanted to help victims of crime and has showed leadership in each position she has been asked to take on in the State Police,” said Secretary of Public Safety and Security Daniel Bennett. “I am confident that she will be a great colonel because of the tremendous dedication she has shown over the course of her career.”

“Whether working to protect public safety from internal threats such as the terrible scourge of opioids or from those seeking to attack us from outside our borders, the role of the Massachusetts has never been more important than it is today,” said Colonel Kerry Gilpin. “I am honored to lead this great organization forward and look forward to carrying out this vital mission in close collaboration with our local and federal partners.”

About Colonel Kerry Gilpin:

Colonel Kerry Gilpin joined the Massachusetts State Police in 1994 and most recently served as Deputy Division Commander for the Division of Standards and Training where she was responsible for the coordination of all training for the 83rd Recruit Training Troop, State Police Municipal Association and Special State Police Officers, including training for Massachusetts’ federal, state and local partners.  A 1994 State Police Academy graduate, Gilpin has extensive experience within the Department, having served in the Crime Scene Services Section as a Trooper and Sergeant, and as a Lieutenant in the Division of Field Services, the Staff Inspections Section, and the Harassment Investigation Unit. She was promoted to Captain in the Division of Standards and Training in May 2016 and then promoted to Major within the Division in November 2016. A resident of Hampden, Colonel Gilpin earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Western New England College in Springfield. From December 2016 to June 2017, she attended the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative at Harvard University where her team project was focused on reducing deaths caused by the opioid epidemic.