HIGHLIGHTS

JUMP: EDUCATION | INFRASTRUCTURE | PUBLIC SERVICES | THE REST 

First, the Good News

1) National: What are the prospects for public banking in the United States? What are public banks anyway? There are goods and services that many people take for granted as private and, despite public options in other countries and a history of the post office performing such functions, banking is one of them. Donald Cohen, ITPI’s executive director, wrote about public banking when Saule Omarova, who wrote a paper proposing that the Federal Reserve offer consumer bank accounts, was nominated by President Biden to be Comptroller of the Currency. Recently, ITPI interviewed one of the foremost experts on public banking, Mark K. Cassell, a professor of political science at Kent State University, author of Banking on the State: the Political Economy of Public Savings Banks (Columbia University Press/Agenda Publishing. 2020). Check out the interview here.

There is opposition from private banks and their political clients, but some initiatives are making headway. there are a number of promising initiatives in California, Philadelphia, Washington State, Santa Fe, Vermont, Puerto Rico, and Massachusetts. Some of these initiatives, like the California Public Banking Act, will likely lead to some type of public bank in the next year or two, but they’ll likely be partnerships with community banks and credit unions. Most of the current initiatives remain in the early stages of development and underscore the power of the opposition. Another possibility is that Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), which have ballooned in numbers since Covid, currently have about 1500 and could transform into public banks in some form.

See also, Ellen Brown’s Banking on the People: Democratizing Money in the Digital Age.

2) National: The Biden administration has forgiven $4.5 billion in student debt for more than 60,000 local, state, federal, and tribal government workers and others in public service, Route Fifty reports. “The relief announced Thursday brings the total loan forgiveness approved by the Biden administration to more than $175 billion, including $74 billion for over 1 million borrowers through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which was established by Congress in 2007. That program ran into criticism in 2017 when the vast majority of applicants for loan forgiveness were denied. A report by the Government Accountability Office a year later blamed the Department of Education for not, among other things, making the rules clearer—an issue the agency corrected in 2022. Since then, the administration has been steadily granting waivers, including 35,000 in July. When Biden took office, just 7,000 borrowers had been granted relief over the previous four years.

AFSCME commented, “While the 1 millionth borrower to receive public service loan forgiveness marks a major turning point for the PSLF program, if Trump wins a second term, that’s all in jeopardy. Trump’s Project 2025 would eliminate the PSLF program. That would mean nearly 3.6 million public service workers who would’ve had their loans forgiven under PSLF would be on the hook for $250 billion in debt. And Project 2025 doesn’t stop there. It would destroy many of our other freedoms, like our union, our contracts and more.”

3) Maryland: Anne Arundel County Public Schools food and nutrition service workers are getting a $2,000 retention bonus. “Some employees received the first $1,000 installment of their bonuses on Wednesday, including those employed with AACPS last year. A second installment will hit their bank accounts on July 9, 2025, for workers who stay on for the rest of the current academic year. Employees who start working this year will get their first $1,000 bonus after three months. Retention bonuses for those employees will be based upon their length of service, with employees hired by Dec. 22, 2024, eligible for the full $1,000. This is the first retention bonus for food service staff, which the union said goes a long way.”

4) Oklahoma: Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Waltersis being sued by dozens of Oklahomans over his classroom Bible mandate that some critics have claimed is a backdoor plot to enrich former President Donald Trump. Local news station KOCO reports that 32 state residents, including teachers, parents, and even faith leaders, are asking the Oklahoma State Supreme Court to block Walters’ initiative, which it describes as an ‘extremist agenda that imposes his personal religious beliefs on other people’s children.’ One faith leader, the Rev. Lori Walke, said she was supporting the lawsuit because she believed spirituality is not something that can be imposed by the state.”

5) International/Think Tanks: The Center for Economic and Policy Research reports that fourteen members of Congress have written a letter to the International Monetary Fund calling on the institution to stop using privatization as a policy tool. “The IMF’s long record of imposing draconian austerity, privatization, and deregulation conditions on its loans has been nothing short of disastrous for workers around the world,’ said Alex Main, Director of International Policy at the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR). ‘Despite recent improvements in rhetoric, the fundamental austerity logic of IMF lending remains unchanged. For the wellbeing of working people everywhere—and to help get the global economy out of its current rut—the IMF must change its ways.’”

6) International/Mexico: By a unanimous vote, the Mexican congress has moved to end railway privatization, which has been in effect since the 1990s. “Because it is a constitutional reform, the bill now goes to state legislatures for ratification. At least 17 of Mexico’s 32 states must approve the reform for it to become law. [President Claudia] Sheinbaum championed the bill originally introduced in the Chamber of Deputies by her predecessor Andrés Manuel López Obrador, announcing during her campaign and again on Oct. 9 that she was preparing a public investment of 150 billion pesos (US $7.5 billion) to begin the construction of 3,000 kilometers of passenger train tracks during her six-year term.”

7) International/Sri Lanka: Aviation Week reports that Sri Lanka’s new president plans to scrap privatization of the country’s flag air carrier..

Education

8) National/Nevada: Writing in the UNLV Scarlet & Gray, Alex Gallegos says pay attention to school board races in November.  “In a particularly polarized election year where voters are being called on to “save our democracy” and with the November face down between presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump frequently likened to a battle of good versus evil, it is easy to forget some of the lower profile elections down-ballot. In Las Vegas, perhaps the most downplayed and misunderstood among these are the elections for Clark County School Board, the Nevada State Board of Education and the Nevada System of Higher Education. However, there is a case to be made not only for why UNLV students should tune in to these races but why they are some of the most qualified voices to do so.”

9) Kansas: The Johnson County Post has published responses by candidates to the following questions: “Kansas lawmakers in recent years have passed legislation that allows for open enrollment in public schools, as well as pushed measures that would expand a system of tax credits for families who send their children to private schools. Supporters of such moves say they give more freedom to families in making decisions about their child’s education. Opponents see them as threats that place new and unfair burdens on public schools. Where do you stand on such measures? Do you support moves like open enrollment and school vouchers? Why or why not?”

Coming up: “We will publish the candidates’ responses to the following question: According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, Kansas is one of 10 states that have not expanded Medicaid in the more than a decade since the Affordable Care Act took effect, and it has remained one of our readers’ top issues every election cycle since. Projections suggest expanding Medicaid would allow roughly 150,000 Kansans who can’t currently afford health coverage to be insured. Do you support expanding Medicaid in Kansas? Why or why not?”

10) Kentucky: In an email alert, Network for Public Education Action is urging Kentucky voters tovote NO on Amendment 2. Amendment 2 would change the Commonwealth’s constitution to allow charter schools and vouchers to open. Legislation to allow marketplace alternatives to public schools was passed but declared unconstitutional in the courts. We applaud the courts’ decisions and urge all in Kentucky to preserve their community’s public schools and vote NO on Amendment 2.” For more see here.

11) Ohio: Maritime Academy of Toledo is facing possible closure due to state report card issues. “Now, that grace period is over, making charter schools accountable to Ohio’s automatic closure law. That law requires that schools rated in Academic Emergency for at least two out of the previous three years be closed permanently.”

12) Texas: The Waco Tribune-Herald has a profile of Albert Hunter, running as a Democrat for the Texas House of Representatives from District 13. Hunter, running against a lavishly funded Republican candidate, is one of the key candidates to watch in the small number of races which, if they tip to Democratic, could stymie Gov. Greg Abbott’s plans to force a statewide school voucher system through the state legislature. An educator and grandson of a sharecropper, Hunter is clear on the danger of vouchers and the failure of lawmakers to adequately fund education. [Video, about 7 minutes]

13) Utah: Utah’s K-12 schools have experienced an historic drop in enrollment. “The overall number of kids attending traditional and charter K-12 schools in Utah has seen its biggest drop in a decade, new data shows. There are 4,873 fewer children attending public school this fall than there were at the start of the 2023-24 school year, amounting to an historic 0.7% drop. That figure accounts for both traditional and charter K-12 school students, because charters in Utah are public, though most are run independently of traditional school districts. Charter schools alone, however, have seen gains since the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, growing from 77,750 students enrolled at that time to 81,810 this fall — an increase of 4,060 students, or 5.22%.”

14) International/Canada: In letters to the editor of Saltwire, a publication covering the Canadian Maritimes, Susan Drain and Peggy Smith of Halifax refute efforts by the right-wing Canadian think tank, the Fraser Institute, that Canada needs more charter schools.

“Zwaagstra dismisses the argument that charter schools undermine and underfund the public school system, but of course they do,” writes Drain.  “Any funds that go to support a school that would otherwise be closed (like his example of Gwynne Valley, now with average attendance of 12 at each grade level) must be subtracted from the sum that goes from taxes to education, unless taxpayers—including those who are childless or whose children are long past school age—are going to accept an increase.

Smith writes, “Over many years of presenting and manipulating flawed data, advocates for school choice have been able to legally divert funds from public schools, have joined forces with the crusade-minded ideology of the religious right and have threatened the future of public education. It is important to keep in mind that the evidence against charter schools and vouchers is overwhelming. In line with the thinking of the present government of Alberta (never allow facts to get in the way) and with the assistance of questionable data gathered by the Fraser Institute, there is a headlong rush toward this educational abyss, led by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.”

Infrastructure

15) National: Writing in the Los Angeles Times, Stephen Trimble draws a sharp contrast between the two national tickets on the question of public lands. “One of my own answers to ‘what do you care about?’ is ‘public lands.’ I live in Utah, where state leaders are fiercely anti-federal-government. Public lands here need all the help they can get. All Americans share ownership of two-thirds of Utah’s great reaches of deserts and mountains. The state’s elected officials deeply resent this fact. They attack every conservation initiative and new national monument. Utah’s Legislature funds futile lawsuits, most recently an effort to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to hand over management of 18.5 million acres of ‘unappropriated’ federal lands to the state. Any lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management not within national parks, monuments or wilderness would disappear from the national public trust and be subject to the whims of the Legislature, with a Republican supermajority weighted toward land developers. Utah’s ruling party definitely knows how Harris and Trump differ in support for such privatization schemes. Democrats demonstrate consistent concern for our long-term future, for preserving biodiversity, for restraint in development. Republicans never relent in pushing for deregulation, unfettered growth and maximum profit.”

16) Connecticut: Where should the line be drawn on allowing small private businesses, such as restaurants, to operate on public waterfronts?” A New London case has posed the question. “The city and DEEP’s Land & Water Resources Division, which discouraged privatization of the Downtown Waterfront Park piers for any non-water-dependent structures, engaged in months of negotiations before reaching a compromise that allowed the restaurant to operate. Passero said the state’s prohibition on allowing businesses to operate on ‘public domains’ located over water is in stark contrast to other states’ rules. ‘You go to Massachusetts or Rhode Island where they don’t have those exceptions – where would Newport be if they couldn’t use their waterfront?’ he asked. ‘(The City Dock Restaurant and Oyster Bar) was the first time we had genuine commerce in that part of the city.’”

17) Pennsylvania:  There was heated debate at the Gloucester Town Council meeting last Wednesday over whether the town sewer system should be privatized. You have a choice of whether to find out what happened via a rather substantial (7,400 words) unedited AI-generated report, or watch the whole hourlong meeting on YouTube.

Anyway, this is from an edited version of the AI-generated report: “Concerns over transparency and the dissemination of information about the sale were a major focus of the discussion. Resident Dina Hendry emphasized the need for clearer communication, expressing that many residents were in the dark about the implications of the sale. She urged the council to provide more direct access to information, rather than requiring residents to search for it online. A council member responded that the necessary details were available on the township’s website. Hendry critiqued the council’s focus on the benefits of the sale without addressing potential drawbacks, particularly after the initial five years if the sale proceeds. This exchange underscored a gap in understanding and communication between the council and residents, with residents like Hendry pressing for more comprehensive and accessible information. The tension was further exacerbated by accusations of political bias, as some residents felt the issue of the sale should transcend political affiliations, focusing instead on community welfare.”

18) Puerto Rico: The tollways privatized after bankruptcy will sell tax-exempt bonds, The Bond Buyer reports. “The toll roads that will service the new debt were originally financed with municipal bonds that defaulted and were written down in Puerto Rico’s bankruptcy. Puerto Rico Tollroads, LLC, a subsidiary of Abertis Infraestucturas S.A., leased four highways from the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation Authority in December. (…) Since the federal government appointed the Oversight Board and approved a bankruptcy process for Puerto Rico bonds in the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act in 2016, other Puerto Rico private sector entities have sold private activity bonds. However, these are the first bonds that will be sold for infrastructure originally financed with government bonds that defaulted.” [Sub required]

19) Texas: High-end bond investors have apparently stampeded into a Houston investor conference, and the mayor is saying it smacks of pay-to-play and is demanding an investigation. “The mayor said he received calls from bond underwriting firms about sponsorships for Tuesday’s event with price tags ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 and a corresponding list of what those contributions would earn sponsors in terms of recognition, networking, and access. ‘This is nothing but the appearance of pay-to-play in Houston, Texas, done with city resources, city employees, and it’s damaged Houston,’ Whitmire told reporters at a city hall press conference, adding that Hollins ‘is a part of the selection team that chooses the underwriters.’ Bond firms already working with the city and others hoping to obtain bond business were ‘alarmed’ and raised concerns about violating Securities and Exchange Commission rules, according to the mayor, who said there had never been corporate sponsorships for Houston’s previous eight investor conferences.” [Sub required]

20) Wisconsin: A landfill in Superior that has been open for use by the public is to be made commercial-dumping only. “McNamara said there simply isn’t room anymore to accommodate separate dumping areas for commercial haulers and the public. That separation is needed to keep the public safe, McNamara said. (…) ‘We have to get rid of one, and we’re contractually obligated to keep taking commercial trucks,’ McNamara said. ‘That’s what keeps the doors open financially.’ Nearly 90% of the landfill’s budget is paid for by WLSSD, commercial hauling and city garbage services. There are alternatives the public can use, such as Core Advantage on Garfield Avenue in Superior, McNamara said. She said the company will still be able to drop off waste at the landfill. She said other options include WLSSD’s materials recovery center or other area waste haulers.

‘There is still another place for people to go with their stuff,’ McNamara said. ‘I don’t know about the rates they charge.’ (…)

“Core Advantage provides roll-off waste containers for pickup, and is a community waste and recycling center, according to its website. The city will still collect some recycled materials at the landfill that don’t require the public to go to the waste pile, including electronic waste, tires, mattresses, leaves and brush. (…) The Superior City Council approved an agreement Tuesday, Oct. 15, with NewGen Strategies and Solutions of Austin, Texas, to begin planning for the eventuality that the city’s waste will have to go elsewhere.”

21) International/Brazil: Brazil is moving ahead with a privatized container terminal at Port of Santos. “The Brazilian government has been trying to implement the project since 2019, during the administration of Jair Bolsonaro. With a growing container business at the Port of Santos, the new terminal would add much-needed capacity. However, after the current government of President Lula da Silva took office in 2023, it scrapped any plans to privatize the administrator of the Port of Santos. The new directive by MPor now wants this earlier model revised, with the government readying for its auction in 2025.”

Public Services

22) National: Vital weather information may be about to be privatized, NJ Spotlight News reports. “David Robinson, New Jersey’s state climatologist, has seen timely weather data save lives.” But now, “Such warning services have been in the crosshairs of some conservative efforts to privatize or even abolish them. One proposal in the now-infamous Project 2025 policy blueprint would break up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, a hub of weather and climate data that also houses the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center.

NOAA owns or operates 18 satellites along with thousands of ocean buoys, mobile observation platforms and coastal stations. (…) Project 2025, a sweeping 922-page document calling for wholesale changes to the federal government, has called that notion into debate. (…) Robinson didn’t discuss climate politics but did question how a private operation could match what NOAA does. ‘They couldn’t possibly do it and operate the satellites and operate all the weather models and gather and archive all the surface data,’ he said. ‘And we’re just talking forecasting, let alone archiving the nation’s climate history so we understand what climate has been in the past.’”

23) National: As predicted by many, the privatizing-Medicare “Advantage” industry is advantaging the industry rather than supposed beneficiaries. “October 15 marked the first day of open enrollment in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans – a time that will deliver chaos and confusion for many of the 34 million seniors who depend on these plans to pay their healthcare bills. It’s yet another reminder that Medicare wastes billions of dollars funneling public money to private companies that are primarily driven by profit-seeking. Last year, more MA members than expected used their benefits to get necessary medical care. One might assume that companies would expect beneficiaries to use health care services. But after years of making outsized profits, the insurance companies that own these plans are reacting to this by downsizing plans, cutting benefits, increasing copays, and raising prescription drug deductibles. In other words, Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are being penalized for using the health care that they pay for.”

But even worse may be on the way, especially for cancer patients. Writing in Common Dreams, Diljeet Singh says Project 2025 threatens the full privatization of Medicare—a death sentence for millions. “Unfortunately, Project 2025 would make this already difficult process even worse. By fully privatizing Medicare, this Heritage Foundation plan would shift even more power into the hands of corporate insurers, who prioritize profits over patient care. The result would be even narrower provider networks, more restrictive approvals for tests and treatments, and a system designed to delay or deny care to those who need it most. For patients, that means critical time lost—time that may mean more pain, more symptoms, and a decreased chance of being cured.”

24) National: RisMedia has an overview of what the market effects of a privatization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government housing finance agencies, could be. “The privatization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as they approach 16 years under federal conservatorship has been a hot topic of debate for years. Proponents argue going private would reduce the government’s role in the housing market and promote competition. On the other hand, critics warn it could lead to higher mortgage rates and increased risks to the financial system. (…) ‘There’s a big, huge question mark,’ Stork says of what life looks like after the GSEs leave conservatorship. ‘We haven’t done it, and we have not seen what the markets will do when mortgage-backed securities are guaranteed by a privately-owned corporation that ostensibly does not have any government backing or government guarantee.’”

25) Illinois: Unionized prison workers picketed the State of Illinois across the state last Thursday to call attention to safety issues and working conditions. “Union members said their jobs aren’t safe and are calling on the Illinois Department of Corrections to make improvements. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, known as AFSCME, represents more than 10,000 Illinois prison workers. Outside of the Centralia Correctional Center, a protest signals problems inside. ‘Safety Matters’ signs represent their message. Local union president Keith Kracht said, ‘In 21 years, I’ve never seen anything like this.’ Centralia Correctional Center is a medium security facility with about 1,100 inmates. ‘Something needs to be done,’ Kracht added. ‘Staffing in DOC is abysmal right now.’ Beyond staffing, Kracht worries about inmates’ access to narcotics or toxic substances. He believes the substances are coming in through mail or visitors.”

26) Maine: The Government Oversight Committee met in Augusta to consider looking into working conditions at two Maine psychiatric facilities. ““They’re exhausted, they’re tired, they’re frightened, and they’re worried about their personal safety. They’re worried about going home to their families,” answered Legislative Director of the AFSCME Council 93. In May of 2023, employees from Riverview Psychiatric Center in Augusta and Dorothea Dix in Bangor highlighted staffing issues and unsafe work environments, which included attacks on workers by patients. Over a year later, according to some state representatives, the problems remain the same. ‘In the process of that, some of the employees were able to come and make statements in front of the legislature. Unfortunately, we feel like we need to do more, conditions haven’t changed, and we want to give those workers the opportunity to speak and have their stories heard,’ said Maine State Representative Raegan LaRochelle.”

27) Wisconsin: In a special meeting, the Milwaukee Housing Authority advances a highly controversial privatization plan. “But the board still wants more information on how the Florida firm would operate. (…) Common Ground Southeastern Wisconsin and Council President José G. Pérez have opposed the board moving forward, citing the fact that the majority of the board’s seven seats are vacant or filled by members with expired terms. They’ve also raised concerns with the process, with Common Ground implicitly endorsing Milwaukee County to become the outside operator. But board members sidestepped those concerns Friday to address their own issues with the agreement itself. ‘There are a few things that give me pause,’ said VandeBerg. ‘Around the subcontractors [is issue] number one.’ She also wants to see tenant and landlord councils built into the agreement, as other housing authorities have implemented with outsourced management. CVR intends to hire a ‘minority-owned, woman-owned’ Arkansas firm as a subcontractor for 20% of the work.”

All the Rest

28) National: The spread of antibiotic-resistant germs is one of the greatest threats to public health, but Jakob Simmank, writing in Worldcrunch, says Big Pharma is refusing to take on the threat. “Some 40 million people will die from antibiotic-resistant germs in the next 25 years, according to the latest estimate. All reasonable experts agree: New medicines must be developed urgently, otherwise we will face the threat of living in a post-antibiotic era, an era in which people die from simple infections because doctors can no longer treat them. Yet although the problem and solutions are obvious, there are very few new antibiotics in the research pipelines of the big pharmaceutical companies. More and more companies are even closing down their antibiotics divisions. The reason? Antibiotics are not profitable.”

29) National: Guess what? A patent has been issued for “Methods, Systems, Articles of Manufacture and Apparatus to Privatize Consumer Data.”

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