OLYMPIA, Wash. - The U.S. Senate wants to keep it; the U.S. House wants to eliminate it. And despite this uncertainty, AmeriCorps is going strong in Washington.

Today (Friday) in Seattle, 1,000 people take their oaths and begin a year of community service. Modeled after the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s, AmeriCorps pays people a living allowance of $1,100 a month and offers college tuition assistance after their year of service.

Bill Basl is executive director of the Washington Commission for National and Community Service, the state agency that administers AmeriCorps in Washington. For every opening, he says, there are seven applicants - many of them veterans.

"And I think part of this is due to the downturn in the economy. So, AmeriCorps is providing an opportunity for folks to make a sincere contribution, to step up and serve the country at a time when the country needs them the most - which is right now."

He says AmeriCorps funding has been threatened before, making it difficult to plan from year to year.

This year's new members range in age from 17 to 83. They'll tutor in low-income schools, do stream restoration and conservation projects, work at food banks and more, across the state. For the younger AmeriCorps members, it's a chance to check out a career and build work references. But at any age, Basl is convinced the year of service makes people better citizens.

"The long-term investment is, doing a year of national service changes people forever. They're more giving. I think there's a broader sense of compassion and understanding. It allows folks to see life with different perspectives. That is so important."

Those who want to cut the program's funding in Congress say volunteers can do community service work. Basl thinks they're missing the point.

"If we would say, 'Well, you can do this, but you're not going to get a living allowance,' - well, then who would be able to do that? Perhaps only people who have some kind of other support system or are people of means, who could take a year off and do that. But providing a living allowance provides all Americans an opportunity to step up and make a contribution."

Washington has the second-highest number of AmeriCorps members in the nation, at about 1,600. Only California has more.

The oath ceremony for new members is Fri., Oct. 21, 10:00 a.m., in the Fisher Pavilion at Seattle Center. There is more information about AmeriCorps online, at www.ofm.wa.gov/servewa/.




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Even in a stable economy, consumers in Wisconsin and elsewhere still express pessimism and advocates said a key federal agency working on issues like unfair business practices cannot risk losing resources needed to help consumers.

To avoid a government shutdown, Congress has to approve a new federal budget by month's end. Over the summer, House Republicans floated cuts in certain areas, including a 27% funding cut for the Federal Trade Commission.

Erin Witte, director of consumer protection for the Consumer Federation of America, said the timing could not be worse for such a move.

"We've seen people talk a lot about feeling like their costs are increased in lots of ways," Witte pointed out. "The FTC's work is really aimed at trying to lower a lot of those costs, to bring some fairness back to the process."

Last month, the agency co-hosted the first meeting of a task force about whether companies are price-gouging and the effect on consumers. GOP leaders on the Appropriations Committee said they want a financial services bill prioritizing combating terrorism-money activity, maintaining the integrity of financial markets and spurring small business growth.

Witte contends the FTC has made progress in standing up for consumers with great efficiency. She pointed to the proposed "click to cancel" rule, which would remove barriers for people worried about recurring charges for an unwanted subscription for a service or product.

"That would make it as easy for someone to cancel a subscription as it is to sign up for it," Witte explained. "That proposal has gotten thousands of comments from consumers about how much time they are wasting on things like unnecessary subscriptions."

The state-level organization Opportunity Wisconsin has also cited concerns about consumer protections being gutted. It called on Congress to pass clean funding bills without extreme provisions it said would "hurt Wisconsin families." It is unclear if any of the budget ideas floated over the past several months will find their way into a final spending plan.

Congress is back from recess and lawmakers are hearing from producers about getting a new Farm Bill passed with the latest deadline looming.

North Dakota farmers were among those who traveled to Washington, D.C., to demand progress. More than two dozen North Dakota Farmers Union members were part of a large contingent getting face-to-face time with federal lawmakers this week.

The Farm Bill, last updated in 2018, needs to be reauthorized by the end of the month or elements of the current version will expire.

Bob Kuylen, a farmer from the western half of the state, said the uncertainty comes as small-to-mid-sized producers face the prospect of dwindling profits.

"Inputs are awful high and we're down there in prices quite a ways," Kuylen pointed out.

A glut of crops and other products on the market are resulting in smaller financial returns for the farmers who grow them. The Union said a stronger safety net in a new Farm Bill could make losses easier to absorb. However, with the fall election approaching and a federal budget also needing a vote, complications are mounting in getting the agricultural policy reauthorized.

The Farm Bill also funds key initiatives to address hunger relief like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Kuylen noted it shows the sweeping policy touches a lot of facets within the food production system, affecting many Americans.

"Eighty-two percent of the Farm Bill is nutrition," Kuylen explained. "Farmers get a very small part of the Farm Bill. You know, it covers things like conservation programs."

The statistic he cited is reported by the Congressional Research Service. Union voices said the urgency comes as farmers also deal with rising machinery costs and corporate consolidation within agriculture. Last fall, Congress approved a one-year extension of the Farm Bill, prompting fears lawmakers would again let negotiations drag on until the last minute.

West Virginia lawmakers will convene for a Special Session on Sept. 30, with the state's child care crisis, proposed income tax cuts and supplemental appropriations on the agenda.

The Mountain State's spending on child care is much lower than neighboring states and has steadily declined over the past decade, according to the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy. It is estimated the parents of around 26,000 children currently lack affordable child care options.

Gov. Jim Justice is reiterating his push for child care tax credits.

"Absolutely try to get our tax break across the finish line with child care," Justice urged. "There's supplemental appropriations that need to be done, and we need to get the money out the door."

Previous bills proposing a child care tax credit for households with incomes less than $65,000 a year have stalled in the Legislature. The Biden administration has said the state needs to contribute between $20 million and $30 million to keep a federal subsidy program afloat for the next year, to direct money to child care centers, making costs more affordable for families.

The governor is also proposing another 5% income tax cut.

"We need another tax break," Justice contended. "I'm very, very hopeful and optimistic that we're going to be able to get it through."

According to state data, tax revenue collections for August were lower than expected at around $403 million and down from last August, when $410 million in tax revenue was collected.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.