More than 75,000 people have written to the Department of Labor (DOL) in response to its proposed changes to overtime standards -- the most mail the agency has received on any similar issue in at least a decade, according to the Washington Post. DOL’s proposed changes, issued March 31, 2003, would significantly alter current overtime rules -- stripping eight million workers of their right to time-and-a-half pay for hours worked beyond 40 in a single week, according to a recent analysis by the Economic Policy Institute.

Last week the Senate confirmed Joshua Bolten as the new Director of the Office of Management and Budget. His confirmation hearing before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee was on Wednesday, June 25. The Committee reported his nomination out unanimously by voice vote on Thursday, and the full Senate voted to confirm him later that same day without any debate. The Senate’s speed demonstrates that, while some Senators may disagree with his viewpoints, there were no serious questions about Bolten’s qualifications for the position.

Should religious organizations that receive federal funds for public social service programs be allowed to use religious criteria in hiring staff to carry out those programs? This controversial issue has appeared in several bills in the House of Representatives since being dropped from the CARE Act, passed by the Senate in the spring. On June 25th, the 62nd anniversary of President Franklin Roosevelt’s groundbreaking Executive Order banning hiring discrimination by defense contractors, Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) introduced H.R.

The Bush Budget for FY 2004 proposes major funding changes, including block grants, for a number of low-income programs like Medicaid and the State Child Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Section 8 Housing Vouchers, Unemployment Insurance, Head Start, Child Welfare and Job Training. The House has begun considering block granting Head Start and Job Training programs. This means that states would get a block of money, sometimes guaranteed for a fixed number of years, to administer programs with less federal oversight. Low-income families and children will lose any entitlement to a minimum federally set safety net that expands when more people are in need. While the safety net is slowing being eroded, block grants would speed up the process. Also, under TANF reauthorization, we expect the "superwaiver" to be revived again – this provision basically unties federal regulations, allowing state governors to waive federal rules in programs including food stamps, public housing, homelessness programs, childcare, job training and adult education.