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Published: Jan. 05, 2005

Legislative Agenda 2005
by Raynard Jackson, BV Views columnist

 
Now that the Christmas holidays are behind us and most talk about the results of the presidential election are over, what are going to be the driving legislative issues facing us in 2005?

The two major issues coming from President Bush are going to be: Privatizing social security, and tort reform. Most people fail to realize the importance of these issues to all Americans, let alone the Black community.

Privatizing social security is a no brainer, especially for Blacks. In regards to amounts contributed and benefits received, social security is race and gender neutral. But we know that Blacks are more likely to have lower lifetime earnings, thereby benefiting from social security’s progressive structure. In other words, we receive more money than we pay into the system during our working years (this is true for every demographic except the wealthy). Proponents of privatizing, have a very simple argument. If you want to remain in the current system, you do nothing. If you are more willing to accept risk, you can opt-in with a certain percentage of your contributions going into a private investment account. Every study done on investment habits of minorities has shown that education and family income are better predictors of individual investment behavior than race. Individuals with less education and lower incomes tend to invest more conservatively than those with more education and higher incomes. So, this is an issue not about race, but about choice.

Tort reform. At his two day economic summit last month in Washington, DC, President Bush stated, "The cost of frivolous lawsuits in some cases make it prohibitively expensive for a small business to stay in business or for a doctor to practice medicine, in which case it means the health care costs of a job provider or job creator are escalating." These lawsuits cost the economy more than $250 billion a year, according to the president. Small businesses assume roughly 35%, or $88 billion, of those costs, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
According to Dan Danner, Senior Vice President of Public Policy for the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), “While small businesses are not immune to class-action or asbestos suits, they do not present as great a threat as the costs associated with medical malpractice. The cost and availability of healthcare is the issue we hear the most about from our small business members. Anything that could stabilize or slowdown the increase in the cost of healthcare would be gigantic.”
According to the General Accounting Office (GAO), states that capped damages for pain and suffering at $250,000, the President's proposed level, enjoyed slower growth of both malpractice insurance premiums and claims payments, as opposed to states without caps.

The tragedy is that the Black community will be involved in the public policy side of these debates on the margins, if at all.

Can anyone honestly tell me anything they have heard from the Congressional Black Caucus, National Medical Association (Black physicians), National Association of Black Certified Public Accountants (Black C.P.A.s), on any of these issues?

These groups and many others from our community are nowhere to be found in the market place of ideas. So, while President Bush and the Republican congress grapple with serious issues in a thoughtful manner; where are the Black think tanks, professional associations, and the academic groups in our community? Where are the groups who can move beyond traditional liberal orthodoxy and make compelling, intellectual, and common sense arguments to contribute to these debates?


Reach Raynard Jackson at raynardjackson@aol.com

Published: Jan. 05, 2005