Joe Manchin III on Jobs Democratic Jr Senator; previously Governor

Raise minimum wage from $7.25/hr to $10.10

Joe Manchin (D): Yes. Supported 2014 bill to increase from $7.25 hour to $10.10 hour.

Patrick Morrisey (R): Unknown.

Increase small business access to credit.

State Small Business Credit Initiative, which would strengthen innovative state programs that support small business lending. In our states, these programs are facing increased demand, yet the budgetary pressures we face have limited their ability to fill the credit gap left by the financial crisis. These innovative programs include those that augment collateral values for small businesses and manufacturers who have seen them decline as a result of the financial crisis, capital access programs that contribute to loan loss reserves that allow banks to expand credit to more businesses, and loan guarantee and other programs that help share risk with lenders that are willing to extend credit to viable small businesses, manufacturers and farms that are crucial to a strong recovery. By supporting these programs, the State Small Business Credit Initiative would leverage Federal funds several times over to enable billions in new lending to small businesses that can support new job creation. We urge you to take immediate action to increase small business lending in the United States. While our nation`s economy continues to recover from this great recession, small businesses in our states continue to struggle to gain access to the credit they need to create jobs. We believe federal action is necessary to remedy this issue.

We strongly support a comprehensive package being considered that would include expanding the size of Small Business Administration loans and temporarily extending successful Recovery Act provisions reducing fees and raising guarantees for SBA loans, enacting tax incentives for small business investment, and a proposal for a $30 billion Small Business Lending Fund that would provide community banks with capital and incentives to increase lending to small businesses.

In addition, we especially want to convey our support for a new proposal for a

Sponsored bill for strengthening union organizing.

H.R.842 & S.420: Protecting the Right to Organize Act: This bill expands various labor protections related to employees` rights to organize and collectively bargain in the workplace:

1. revises the definitions of employee, supervisor, and employer to broaden the scope of individuals covered by the fair labor standards;
2. permits labor organizations to encourage participation of union members in strikes initiated by employees represented by a different labor organization (i.e., secondary strikes); and
3. prohibits employers from bringing claims against unions that conduct such secondary strikes.

Biden Administration in SUPPORT: The Administration strongly supports The PRO Act. America was not built by Wall Street. It was built by the middle class, and unions built the middle class. Unions put power in the hands of workers. H.R. 842 would strengthen and protect workers` right to form a union by assessing penalties on employers who violate workers` right to organize.

Rep. Mo Brooks in OPPOSITION: H.R. 842 [is] a radical union bill that tramples the rights of citizens by forcing them to enter into union servitude, including:

• Overturns right-to-work laws in 27 states, thereby forcing citizens, against their will, to pay millions of dollars in dues to labor unions.
• Denies citizens` rights to vote by secret ballot on whether to join a union by imposing a biased `card-check` scheme.
• Deprives individuals of entrepreneurial opportunities. The PRO Act would eliminate the franchise industry and sharing economy as we know them.