No images? Click here Welcome back to this week's edition of the Washington Weekly newsletter - bringing you the latest and greatest policy updates from Washington, D.C.GCCA Launches Second Grassroots Campaign to Protect Members from Tax Increases Proposed in the American Jobs Plan On April 16, 2021, GCCA launched our second grassroots campaign to combat potential tax increases in President Biden’s American Jobs Plan. While GCCA is supportive of investments in infrastructure, raising taxes on the nation’s essential businesses in the middle of a pandemic is not the right policy direction. Read more HERE. Take action HERE. Read the National Association of Manufacturers study HERE. Department of the Treasury Releases the Made in America Tax Plan ReportThis report describes President Biden’s Made in America tax plan, which claims to make American companies and workers more competitive by eliminating incentives to offshore investment, substantially reducing profit shifting, countering tax competition on corporate rates, and providing tax preferences for clean energy production. Read more HERE. Read the full report HERE. President Biden Releases First Budget RequestOn Friday, April 9, 2021 President Biden released his first budget, which called on Congress to provide $769 billion for non-defense programs and $753 billion in national defense funding for the upcoming fiscal year. That amounts to a 16 percent increase over current funding levels for domestic programs — bringing that total to 3.3 percent of GDP — while providing just a 1.7 percent increase for the military. Read more HERE. Read the full budget request HERE. President Biden to Tap California Workplace Safety Chief to Head the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)The White House intends to nominate Doug Parker to lead OSHA as the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. Parker is currently chief of the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health and previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy at DOL’s Mine Safety and Health Administration. In addition, Parker was a key architect of the controversial COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) in California, which placed dozens burdensome mandates on employers that often conflicted with current science. GCCA Hosts Monthly COVID Webinar SeriesOn Thursday, April 15, 2021, GCCA hosted our monthly COVID-19 Webinar Series. As developments continue to unfold in response to the spread of COVID-19, we know many in the cold chain industry have questions about implications in the workplace, government actions and funding options to help bolster your businesses. If you missed this month’s webinar series, watch the recap HERE. Call to Action: Nominate a Cold Chain Champion Do you have a colleague who you believe performs exceptional work and deserves special recognition? We are highlighting our members and their achievements on social media. Nominate yourself, your company, or your colleague for a chance to be spotlighted as a #ColdChainChampion! Submit nominations, a short explanation, and a photo to Rachael Oury at roury@gcca.org. GCCA Launches Advocacy CenterGCCA has launched a new Advocacy Center as part of the association’s expanded advocacy efforts. This new platform will enable GCCA members to engage with their elected officials to promote and protect the industry. All GCCA members are encouraged to SUBSCRIBE to the new Advocacy Center program to receive the latest on policy developments and grassroots campaigns. Advocacy Fund Established to Support Enhanced ServicesGCCA has established a new strategic initiative, the Advocacy Fund, to expand our advocacy efforts on behalf of our industry. This Advocacy Fund will support our increased efforts to promote and protect the cold chain. Members are urged to consider making financial contributions to support these expanded advocacy efforts. To learn more about the Fund or about how you can contribute click here or please contact Lowell Randel. |