Tuesday, October 28, 2014

The Full Employment Act at 35: America's Unfinished Business

By John Conyers, Jr.
U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
For the first time since the start of the Great Recession, the unemployment rate is below 6 percent. America has experienced 55 consecutive months of net job creation, resulting in the addition of 10.3 million new jobs.
Look beneath these surface-level statistics, however, and you'll still find massive unused human potential and unnecessary suffering. Nearly 19 million people across the nation are still searching for full-time work. The unemployment rates for African-Americans and young Americans remain in the double digits. The percentage of Americans in the workforce remains below pre-recession levels because millions of people who want jobs have become too discouraged to continue to seek employment. If these jobless Americans were counted in official statistics, the unemployment rate would be upwards of 9.6 percent.
The federal government has not only a moral obligation to address the ongoing jobs crisis -- it has a legal mandate. Today marks the 35th anniversary of the Humphrey Hawkins Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act, a law that requires federal policies to be directed toward the attainment of full employment. The law is in effect today, yet Congress continues to shirk its responsibilities to ensure that people are working.
The Humphrey-Hawkins Act, named after the law's authors, the late Senator Hubert Humphrey and the late Representative Augustus Hawkins, was a turning point in American public policy because it first established the principle that the federal government should serve as an "employer of last resort." The bill set specific targets for employment and authorized the use of a broad range of fiscal and monetary tools to achieve them.
While private sector hiring is the ideal, the Humphrey-Hawkins Act commits the government to step in when workers are idle and public needs -- like roads, schools, bridges, health centers, and scientific research -- go unmet. The cost of inaction is simply too great: unemployment means serious damage to Americans' health (by causing anxiety and lost insurance coverage), homes and neighborhoods (through foreclosures and increased crime), and lifelong career prospects (because of atrophied skills and discrimination against the long-term unemployed). When we create jobs -- whether through private investment or federal action--businesses have more customers able to buy more goods and services and the overall economy prospers. When there are more jobs available, lower-income and moderate-income workers can bargain for higher wages.
There are cost-effective policies Congress should pass right now to live up to the law it passed 35 years ago. Specifically, Congress should pass the new 21st-century Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment and Training Act (H.R. 1000) to create the means to hire people to make necessary upgrades to our infrastructure, healthcare, and education systems. Another excellent option is the updated and upgraded version of President Obama's American Jobs Act (H.R. 2821). Even if Republican leadership disagrees with these proposals to put Americans back to work, they should show respect for the suffering of unemployed Americans and their families by allowing them to receive a fair up-or-down vote.
If the Republican-controlled Congress continues to obstruct critical job creation initiatives, President Obama should build on his "year of action" to use the authority granted to him by the Humphrey-Hawkins Act to promote action for the unemployed wherever possible. I stand ready to assist President Obama in building Congressional support for an agenda that fulfills the promise of Humphrey-Hawkins.
Thirty-five years after the enactment of the Full Employment law, America remains far from the realizing the vision of a Full Employment society. We have both a moral obligation and a legal mandate to get to work.
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Thursday, October 23, 2014

CONYERS AND UN OFFICIALS JOIN “LISTENING PANEL” ON THE NEED FOR ACCESS TO DRINKING WATER IN THE CITY OF DETROIT


DETROIT- On Sunday, October 19, 2014, Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) was a panelist at a town hall meeting attended by two officials with the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, Leilani Farha, special rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, and Catarina de Albuquerque, special rapporteur on the human right to water and sanitation.

During the town hall meeting, the U.N. officials listened to testimonies from individuals who are experiencing shutoffs and met with local elected officials. At a press conference on Monday, the U.N. officials called for cessation of water shutoffs in Detroit, citing the act violates international human rights law and poses a risk to public health.

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“With its location on the Great Lakes and extensive sanitation systems, Detroit should have access to plentiful and inexpensive water.  Yet, due to an overzealous and wrongheaded approach to cost-cutting, many Detroiters have been denied access to this essential resource,” said Rep. John Conyers.  “In addition to strong advocacy to local officials in defense of water rights, I am continuing to make the case to state and federal officials that resources from Michigan’s multimillion Hardest Hit Fund should be invested in upgrades to our water system.  In the 21st Century, in the wealthiest nation on earth, no one should go without safe, clean, public water.”

Conyers added, “I applaud Maureen Taylor of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and others for holding this important hearing on the devastating consequences of water shutoffs for Detroit residents.  I am so pleased that the hearing,presented to a full house at Wayne County Community College’s downtown campus, garnered major media attention and helped drive a national conversation regarding access to water.  As the United Nations Special Rapporteur noted, denying access to water to those who are unable to pay is a violation of international human rights law and could cause a regional public health crisis that could impact the most vulnerable among us, particularly infants and seniors.” 
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REP. CONYERS STATEMENT ON DHS PLAN TO REQUIRE PASSENGERS FROM LIBERIA, SIERRA LEONE, AND GUINEA TO ENTER THROUGH AIRPORTS WITH ENHANCED SCREENING


WASHINGTON – Today, House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) released the following statement after the Department of Homeland Security announced a new temporary plan to require passengers originating from Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea to enter the United States through one of five designated airports enhanced with Ebola-screening measures (located in Washington, Atlanta, New York City, Newark and Chicago):
U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“The Department of Homeland Security’s decision to direct passengers traveling to the U.S. from Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea to enter the country through one of five designated airports with enhanced, Ebola-specific screening is a sensible precautionary measure that helps address public concerns and helps deter spreading of the disease.



“As agreed upon by experts in both the public health and transportation communities, issuing a blanket travel ban would not only be counterproductive, but it would also irresponsibly impede getting much-needed supplies and relief to the countries that need it most.”
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Tuesday, October 21, 2014

REPS. JOHN CONYERS AND YVETE CLARKE APPLAUD THE EXPEDITION OF THE HAITI FAMILY REUNIFICATION PROGRAM

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman John Conyers (D-Mich.), Ranking Member of the Committee on the Judiciary, and Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (NY-09), lauded the Department of Homeland Security for moving forward with implementation of the Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program in 2015, which will expedite the reunification of Haitian families and support safe and legal migration from Haiti to the United States.

Starting in early 2015, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services will offer certain eligible Haitian beneficiaries of previously approved family-based immigrant visa petitions, who are currently in Haiti, an opportunity to come to the United States about two years before their immigrant visa priority dates become current.  Families who are eligible will receive a written notice from the National Visa Center.

“The decision by the Department of Homeland Security to implement a Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program will benefit everyone," said Congressman Conyers.  "Families who would otherwise be unnecessarily separated for years while awaiting the availability of an immigrant visa soon will be allowed to wait together.  Communities here and in Haiti will be strengthened.  And as Haiti continues to rebuild from the earthquake that devastated the country in 2010, this program will allow greater remittances to be sent back to fund critically needed recovery efforts."

“I want to commend the Department of Homeland Security on the development of this program, which will allow for the reunification of families that have been separated – in some instances for many years.  The continued failure of Congress to enact – or even to debate – comprehensive immigration reform continues to separate parents from their children and husbands from their wives.  The wait must end.  I am hopeful that this program will form the basis for a broader policy that will allow families from around the world to avoid unnecessary delays in reuniting here in the United States,” said Congresswoman Clarke.

The Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program builds upon the Cuban Family Reunification Parole Program, which was established in 2007 under the Bush Administration.  Members of Congress, editorial boards, and faith leaders have urged the Administration to adopt a similar program for Haitian families since 2010.
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Wednesday, October 15, 2014

CONGRESSMAN JOHN CONYERS AND SENATOR GRASSLEY QUESTION NEW PRACTICE DENYING RECORDS TO DOJ INSPECTOR GENERAL

WASHINGTON – House and Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Members John Conyers, Jr. and Chuck Grassley are raising questions about a new practice by the Justice Department denying certain records to the department’s Inspector General. 

During testimony before the House Judiciary Committee in September, the Inspector General for the Department of Justice, Michael Horowitz, raised concerns about the FBI’s refusal to provide certain documents, such as grand jury records and material witness warrant information.  The Inspector General sought these records to determine whether the Department had violated the civil liberties and civil rights of individuals detained in national security investigations following September 11.  In addition, the Inspector General also sought records as part of the review of Operation Fast and Furious.  The Department’s refusal to provide records immediately as required by law wastes months in bureaucratic roadblocks and frustrates the independent oversight Congress created Inspectors General to provide.  Prior to 2010, the FBI and other agencies in the Justice Department routinely provided similar information to the Inspector General’s office.

Conyers and Grassley, who both voted for the original Inspector General Act, wrote in a letter to Acting Assistant Attorney General Karl Thompson, “In order to carry out audits and investigations with the independence mandated by the (Inspector General) Act, Inspectors General must have unfettered access to records of the Departments they oversee.”

Conyers and Grassley acknowledged that an Inspector General inquiry can be prevented under the law in certain limited circumstances, but they emphasized in their letter that the Attorney General is required to explain in writing to both the Inspector General and Congress why the Inspector General’s work should be impeded despite the Inspector General Act’s guarantee of access to all agency records. 

“The current practice is the opposite of the procedure dictated by the statute and unnecessarily delays the work of the Inspector General.  More importantly, it circumvents the oversight authority with regard to such disputes, which Congress explicitly reserved for itself through the reporting requirement,” Conyers and Grassley wrote.
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Thursday, October 9, 2014

HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE SEEKS ANSWERS ON SERIES OF SECRET SERVICE FAILURES

WASHINGTON – Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member John Conyers (D-Mich.), and House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wisc.) and Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-Va.) sent a letter to Acting Secret Service Director Joseph Clancy seeking answers to over a dozen questions regarding a series of security breaches that occurred at the White House complex and during official travel. The House Judiciary Committee, which has primary jurisdiction over the Secret Service, including its critical role in protecting the President and the White House complex, will hold both public and classified hearings in November to examine ongoing issues at the agency.

In preparation for the hearings, Chairman Goodlatte, Ranking Member Conyers, Crime Subcommittee Chairman Sensenbrenner, and Crime Subcommittee Ranking Member Scott write:
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Sunday, October 5, 2014

Delay in Executive Action on Immigration Does Not Change GOP Culpability on Immigration Reform

By John Conyers, Jr.
U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
In the wake of the president's announcement that executive action on immigration will be delayed by several months, it is important that we not lose track of the fact that it was the House Republicans who not only blocked immigration reform, but passed several anti-immigrant bills that would cause devastating harm to immigrants.
Shortly after the 2012 election, the Republican National Committee wrote that unless the Republican party "embrace[s] and champion[s] comprehensive immigration reform . . . [its] appeal will continue to shrink to its core constituencies only." Speaker Boehner seemingly agreed, declaring that a "comprehensive approach [to immigration reform] is long overdue." On August 1, 2014, in the dead of the night, the House GOP officially rejected that advice and reversed course, passing two of the most anti-immigrant measures in recent memory. In doing so, they made it abundantly clear that the only path forward on immigration policy at this time is through executive action.
We feared as far back as August 2013 -- when House Republicans withdrew from a bipartisan House effort to draft a comprehensive immigration reform bill -- that real legislative reform was dead for the 113th Congress. Those fears were confirmed this summer, when Speaker Boehner told the president and members of his conference that no immigration reform bill would be allowed a vote on the House floor. Instead, Speaker Boehner and the House GOP used a humanitarian crisis endangering the lives of children in Central America as an excuse to advance legislation that would eliminate due process protections from all unaccompanied children fleeing persecution and abuse; deport hundreds of thousands of "DREAMers"; and deny protections to immigrant victims of sex trafficking and domestic abuse.
The bills were drafted to appease the extreme right wing of the House GOP. Even Rep. Steve King (R-IA) boasted that the language passed by the House was "like I ordered it off the menu." H.R. 5230, nominally designed to increase funding for the border crisis, included a rider that would endanger the lives of unaccompanied children facing persecution or trafficking. Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) defended the measure by saying that it merely "tweak[ed]" a 2008 anti-trafficking law to "treat apprehended minors from Central America in the same expedited but humane fashion that we treat apprehended minors from Mexico and Canada." If true, such a bill would have been dangerous enough -- we know from the United Nations Refugee Agency that because of the diminished protections that unaccompanied Mexican children receive upon apprehension, child trafficking victims are returned to their traffickers and child victims of persecution and abuse are returned to face grave danger. But H.R. 5230 would do far more than that. The bill would subject all unaccompanied children - not just Central American children -- to even more cursory and insufficient procedural protections than those which apply currently to unaccompanied Mexican and Canadian children.
Under current law, an unaccompanied Mexican or Canadian child may withdraw her application for admission and return voluntarily to her country only after an immigration officer determines that the child can make an independent decision to withdraw such an application. This requirement prevents the return of very young children who lack the capacity to make an independent decision, as well as children with an impaired cognitive capacity.
H.R. 5230 would entirely eliminate this critical provision by striking section 235(a)(2)(A)(iii) of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008. The decision to eliminate this basic procedural protection is exacerbated by another statutory change contained in the Republican bill. Whereas current law limits when an unaccompanied Mexican child may be permitted to withdraw her application for admission and "voluntarily return" to Mexico in lieu of being placed in removal proceedings, H.R. 5230 ignores the voluntary nature of the return by converting a "may" into a "shall." Under the bill, if a Border Patrol agent were to conclude (typically in a cursory, 10-minute interview conducted in public) that an unaccompanied child would face neither persecution nor trafficking upon return to her home country, that agent "shall" return the child to her home country. Capacity to make an independent decision to withdraw an application for admission and the willingness to withdraw such an application both become irrelevant when unaccompanied children who fail a cursory border screening are subject to mandatory repatriation. This change would make Border Patrol agents the judges and the jurors for tens of thousands of vulnerable children.
The dire warning of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on the eve of the House vote could not have been more clear: the Republican bill "would make crippling changes to current U.S. trafficking victim protection law that we fear would send these vulnerable children, and others in the future who have fled trauma, exploitation, and violence, back into harm's way, likely resulting in continued degradation, injury, and death for many of them."
The House Republicans also passed a second bill, H.R. 5272, which the bill's sponsor, Rep. Marcia Blackburn (R-TN), claimed merely "tie[s] the President's hands as to future executive actions that he might take to expand amnesty to illegal entrants into this country" and "freeze[s] DACA." Again, such a bill would have been bad enough, cementing in place an immigration system that everyone knows to be broken and that fails to meet the needs of American families, businesses, and communities. In truth, the Republican bill would prevent Dreamers who already have received protection from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program from being able to renew their status, thereby condemning them once more to deportation. Moreover, the bill would reduce protections under current law for immigrant victims of sex trafficking and domestic abuse.
The bill would do this by prohibiting the federal government from using Federal funds or resources "to consider or adjudicate any new or previously denied application of any alien requesting consideration of deferred action for childhood arrivals." Because deferred action is a discretionary protection from removal to which beneficiaries have no claim as of right, an application to renew deferred action is essentially a new application for deferred action. Prohibiting the use of funds or resources to consider or adjudicate new applications under DACA would end the DACA renewal process. Although some Republican supporters of the bill tried to be coy about this aspect of the bill, the text of the bill was clear. In fact, Rep. Blackburn's communications director reportedly confirmed for the Associated Press that the bill "would prevent people who currently have DACA from renewing."
Equally dangerous, H.R. 5272 would prohibit the use of Federal funds or resources to grant work authorization to any person who "was not lawfully admitted into the United States . . . and is not in lawful status in the United States on the date of the enactment of this Act." Going far beyond the purported purpose of the bill, this provision would have the effect of denying work authorization to crime and trafficking victims who assist law enforcement and other immigrants eligible for certain forms of relief (including Cuban parolees). Even worse, by denying the ability of battered immigrant spouses who have left their abusers and successfully self-petitioned for an immigrant visa the ability to work for the many months it may take for a visa number to become available, the bill would undermine a basic premise of the Violence Against Women Act - that victims of domestic violence should be empowered to leave dangerous and abusive situations. This change would prevent countless battered immigrant spouses from ever leaving their abusers, and would drive others right back into their hands.
Rather than heeding the party's own advice following the 2012 election, these mean-spirited bills demonstrate a return to the GOP's history of supporting anti-immigrant measures. In 1994, Republicans backed the now infamous California Proposition 187, which sought to prohibit many immigrants from accessing health care, public education, and other social services. In the mid-1990s and again in 2011 after taking control of the House of Representatives, House Republicans pushed language to limit birthright citizenship protections guaranteed under the 14th Amendment. When Senate Democrats and Republicans joined together in the 109th Congress to pass sensible comprehensive immigration reform legislation, the Republican-controlled House pushed legislation to make felons out of immigrant families that resulted in massive protests in cities all over the United States. And when Senate Democrats and Republicans joined together last year to pass S. 744, a comprehensive immigration reform bill, House Judiciary Republicans advanced in Committee a different proposal to turn millions of undocumented immigrants into felons overnight.
If immigration hawks in the House GOP are permitted to take our broken immigration system hostage through sheer intransigence, it is American people, American businesses, American workers, and American families that will suffer. It is ultimately up to Congress to rewrite our immigration laws, but it is the responsibility of the president to identify opportunities under existing law to faithfully execute such laws in a manner that best serves the needs of the country. And the reality is that even under our broken immigration system, changes can and should be made to make our immigration enforcement efforts smarter and more humane and to improve avenues for legal immigration. Efforts to reform our broken immigration system did not begin last year. Many of us have been working to make our system fairer and more just for well over a decade. In the meantime, countless families have been torn apart, too many American children whose parent were deported have been placed in foster care, businesses have been denied necessary workers, and immigrant and American workers have been harmed by an economy that relies heavily upon millions of workers who are undocumented and easily exploited.

We had hoped that executive action by the president would have taken place sooner, given the House Republicans' obstructionism on immigration reform and the overriding national interest in updating our immigration system. But make no mistake, when the president acts, it will be because the GOP has made it abundantly clear there is only one viable path forward on immigration.
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Saturday, October 4, 2014

CONYERS: JOBS REPORT REPRESENTS PROGRESS, BUT AMERICA IS STILL FAR FROM FULL EMPLOYMENT

WASHINGTON - Today, Congressman John Conyers (MI-13), founder of the Congressional Full Employment Caucus, released the following statement after the Department of Labor released its jobs report for September 2014:
U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“Today’s jobs report represents real progress for the American people.  The economy added 248,000 new jobs, and the unemployment rate is now below 6% for the first time since July 2008.  Under President Obama’s leadership, we’ve experienced 55 consecutive months of private-sector job growth.
“While today’s headline unemployment numbers are clear evidence that we’re on the right track, other statistics reveal the need for strong and sustained action. The unemployment rates for African-Americans and young Americans are still in the double digits.  Nearly 19 million people across the country are still searching for full time work.  The percentage of Americans in the workforce remains below pre-recession levels because millions of people have become too discouraged to continue to seek work.  Wages have remained stagnant.  For these reasons, it is important to note that the official unemployment rate does not adequately reflect the lived experience of a large part of the population.
“The policy implications are clear:  The Federal Reserve must hold off on policy changes that deliberately slow the US economy.  Congress must listen to the clear majority of Americans and pass comprehensive legislation to create jobs and boost wages.  From the Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment and Training Act (HR 1000) to the updated and upgraded American Jobs Act (HR 2821), there is no shortage of proven and fully paid-for legislative options. 
“President Obama said it best in his speech yesterday at Northwestern University: ‘When the typical family isn’t bringing home any more than it did in 1997, then that means it’s harder for middle-class Americans to climb the ladder of success.’  It’s time to renew focus on achieving full employment, dignified work, and living wages for all Americans.”
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Thursday, October 2, 2014

CONYERS APPLAUDS ENACTMENT OF LAW TO FUND TESTING OF DNA SAMPLES TO SOLVE CRIMES


WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) applauded the enactment of the “Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2014” (H.R. 4323), which President Obama signed into law yesterday.  This law authorizes funding of nearly $194 million for each of Fiscal Years 2015-2019 for the Department of Justice to administer various grants, including the Debbie Smith DNA Backlog Grant Program, to assist state and local law enforcement agencies in solving rape and other violent crimes. 

The improved awareness that DNA evidence can aid in solving cases has resulted in law enforcement authorities collecting DNA samples in a wider range of cases and has increased demand for this testing, leading to backlogs of unanalyzed samples of DNA connected to crimes.  This law will provide for the continuation of programs which have been instrumental in addressing this backlog.

This Act is named in honor Debbie Smith, the survivor of a brutal rape who had to wait six years for her perpetrator to be identified and convicted due to delay in testing the DNA sample collected following her attack.  On April 7, 2014, prior to consideration of this bill by the House of Representatives, Congressman Conyers joined Debbie Smith and other Members of Congress in calling for reauthorization of this law, noting the success of the existing programs whose authorizations were expiring and the need to continue and expand them. 

Upon enactment of the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act of 2014, Congressman Conyers stated, 

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“I am pleased that we have been able to enact the Debbie Smith Reauthorization Act so that state and local law enforcement can enhance their efforts to reduce and hopefully eliminate the national DNA evidence backlog, and bring to justice the perpetrators of rape and other violent crimes.  I am particularly hopeful that this law will lead to the reduction of the backlog of unanalyzed rape kits in Detroit, a problem that our local officials have been working to address.”

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CONYERS APPLAUDS PRESIDENT’S COMMUNITY CHALLENGE TO BOOST OPPORTUNITY FOR MINORITY YOUTH

DETROIT—Today, President Obama announced the My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge, an effort to spur cities, counties, suburbs, rural municipalities, and tribal nations to implement an integrated cradle-to-college and career strategy aimed at improving life outcomes for young people, with special emphasis on boys and young men of color.  The new Community Challenge is a key component of the President’s My Brother’s Keeper initiative, which was announced in February and leverages public, private, and nonprofit resources to improve literacy, educational and career opportunities for youth.   Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) issued the following statement:

U.S. Representative
John Conoyers, Jr.
“I commend President Obama for his strong and steadfast commitment to closing the Opportunity Gap.   The Community Challenge builds on the findings of the White House’s My Brother’s Keeper Task Force, calling on local leaders to establish actionable plans to boost literacy, create employment opportunities, ensure high school graduation, reduce violent crime, and improve relations between youth and law enforcement.  The Community Challenge creates a framework for leveraging public and private investments to meet concrete objectives related to these priorities.   Today’s announcement represents an essential tool in the effort to close the school-to-prison pipeline. "

“I am especially pleased that the City of Detroit, MI, which I have the honor of representing in the US House of Representatives, has been designated as an “Early Acceptor” of the My Brother’s Keeper Community Challenge. Through this initiative, parents, educators, elected officials, philanthropies, and business leaders will empower the young people of our community to reach their full potential. "

“At a time when an estimated 5.8 million young Americans are neither in school nor working, we have an urgent obligation to create opportunity for young people.  This month, Senator Bernie Sanders and I introduced the Employ Young Americans Now Act (H.R. 5489) to provide $5.5 billion in grants to states and local governments to provide job opportunities to one million young Americans, and offer job training to hundreds of thousands more.  This is an important complement to the President’s prudent approach."

“I look forward to continuing my work with the Obama administration to ensure the success of the My Brother’s Keeper Initiative and the success of minority youth in Detroit and throughout the nation.”

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CONYERS HAILS NEWLY-ANNOUNCED FEDERAL EFFORTS TO ASSIST DETROIT IN FIGHTING CRIME

DETROIT - Today, Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (MI-13) hailed two announcements by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that will assist Detroit in fighting crime.  The Justice Department has announced the selection of five cities, including Detroit, as participants in the Violence Reduction Network (VRN).  Additionally, DOJ’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Office will announce the distribution of the COPS Hiring Program (CHP) grants to create and/or preserve law enforcement jobs.  Grants will be distributed to 212 different local law enforcement agencies across the country, which include ten in Michigan,  two of which are in the 13th Congressional District. 

U.S. Representative
John Conyers, Jr.
“I am pleased that the Justice Department is increasing its support for Detroit’s effort to make our communities safer.  Detroit’s participation in the Violence Reduction Network will identify new ways in which federal agencies and resources can assist the city in fighting crime,” said Rep. John Conyers, Jr.  “The COPS Program continues to provide assistance to state and local law enforcement agencies across the country, including Detroit.  I have long supported this program because it has proven to put more officers on the beat, thus resulting in job creation and safer streets.”

Through the Violence Reduction Network, the Justice Department will work in partnership with police chiefs, local partners of Detroit and the other four participating cities (Camden, NJ; Chicago, IL; Oakland/Richmond, CA; and Wilmington, DE) to develop effective approaches to reducing violence.  City leaders will have access to leading criminal justice researchers and practitioners and will exchange violence reduction best practices.  The work of the Violence Reduction Network starts today in Washington, DC at a Kickoff Summit which will include collaborative working sessions focused on analyzing each city’s violence challenges and discussing a variety of existing DOJ resources available to address the issues.  Violence Reduction Network cities will participate in regular collaborative sessions with each other and the federal partners through site visits, targeted training, technical assistance and, phone/video conferences with federal law enforcement officials and subject-matter experts.

The COPS Hiring Program provides funding to address the full-time sworn officer needs of state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies nationwide.  CHP grants go directly to law enforcement agencies to hire new and/or rehire career law enforcement officers in an effort to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.  Congressman Conyers has supported and worked to maintain the existence of the COPS Program since its inception in 1994.  Since that time, the program has funded the hiring of more than 123,000 state and local police officers and sheriff’s deputies in communities across America. 

Full list of COPS Hiring Program grants to be distributed in Michigan:

Agency Name                                 Officers Awarded                 Estimated Award Amount
Cadillac Police Department            1                                                             $125,000
Clare City Police                             1                                                            $125,000
Dearborn, City of                            4                                                            $500,000
Detroit Public Schools                    3                                                             $355,400

Department of Public Safety
Harper Woods Police Department  2                                                             $250,000
Lansing Police Department             5                                                             $625,000
Muskegon Heights, City of             1                                                            $125,000
Taylor Police Department               3                                                             $474,639
Waterford, Township of                 1                                                              $125,000
Westland, City of                            4                                                             $500,000



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