George Miller Blog

Rep. Miller's Telephone Town Hall - Listen to the Call

2009-11-05T17:45:42Z

On Tue, November 3rd Rep. George Miller held a telephone town hall to answer constituent's questions about the Affordable Health Care for America Act.

Audio of the call is here:

Stones' Phones Rep. George Miller Telephone Town Hall Recording_11.3.09.mp3

To participate in future town hall meetings, stay tuned to georgemiller.house.gov.

Congressman George Miller talks Healthcare with Congressman John Tierney

2009-11-05T17:19:45Z

Congressman George Miller talks Healthcare with Congressman John Tierney of Massachusetts. To see their full conversation, click here.

Expedited CARD Reform bill passes Congress

2009-11-04T23:23:42Z

Today Rep. George Miller voted to advance critical reforms that would protect consumers from the abusive practices of the credit card industry.

The Expedited CARD Reform for Consumers Act moves up the effective date for critical credit card reforms to immediately following the President�s signing this bill into law.

The CARD Act, passed by Congress earlier this year, implements tougher regulations on the credit card industry and empowers American consumers by providing them with the necessary tools to manage their own credit.

Rep. Miller Statement on Goldstone Resolution

2009-11-04T16:17:10Z

Honorable George Miller of California
In the House of Representatives
November 3, 2009
Regarding H. Res 867,
Concerning the Goldstone Report.

Madam Speaker, regrettably, I rise in opposition to H. Res. 867, a resolution condemning the recently issued �Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict,� commonly known as the Goldstone Report.

I do not believe that the House should be asked to vote on this resolution when it has not come before the Committee on Foreign Affairs for even one hearing and was brought to the House with little notice under procedures typically reserved for non-controversial legislation. Given the subject matter of this resolution and the diverse range of views expressed on it from many organizations and individuals, including individuals in my own congressional district, I do not believe this resolution can be described as non-controversial.

The military conflict in the Gaza Strip last winter resulted in devastating consequences to innocent Israeli and Palestinian civilians. It is critical that the international community evaluate the events of last December and January in a factual, unbiased manner. To this end, I am pleased that H. Res. 867 recognizes the numerous problems in the original resolution passed by the United Nations Human Rights Council authorizing the Goldstone Report, as that original resolution wrongly singled out alleged Israeli abuses and ignored the harm caused by Hamas� rocket and mortar attacks on the Israeli people.

However, I have serious reservations about other aspects of H. Res. 867.

No congressional hearings have been held on H. Res. 867 or the Goldstone Report. On an issue of such importance, Congress must do its due diligence and ensure that we have a full understanding of the facts before being asked to vote to condemn the report and its authors.

Furthermore, I am concerned that H. Res. 867 implicitly criticizes the Goldstone Report because of the initial Human Rights Council resolution. Justice Richard Goldstone, who oversaw the Goldstone Report, is a distinguished jurist with a long record of support for human rights. Most notably, Justice Goldstone was a prominent critic of the abhorrent apartheid regime in South Africa. As H. Res. 867 notes, to his credit, Justice Goldstone extended the original mandate for the Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict to include an evaluation of Hamas� rocket attacks on civilians in southern Israel, among other issues.

Regardless of one�s ultimate evaluation of the report, it is important to recognize the changes that Justice Goldstone was able to make to it and evaluate his report on its own merits.

I fully support efforts to provide clarity, honesty and accuracy to the debate about the conflict in Gaza, just as do many of my constituents who have contacted me this week urging me to oppose this resolution. Hastily voting on a resolution to condemn this report without the ability to properly evaluate its findings does not serve this purpose.

Also, I do not believe that this resolution aids the important effort of achieving a two-state solution to help end the ever-present violence and strife in the region. President Obama has taken admirable steps to bring the two sides to the negotiating table, after years of neglect under the Bush Administration. Yet, this resolution today does not aid the Administration in that effort or further the peace process. In fact, I believe this resolution undermines the ability of the United States to further push both sides toward serious peace negotiations.

The House can play a constructive role in promoting peace and understanding in the Middle East and I look forward to supporting such efforts. Regrettably, due to the concerns I have stated above about specific aspects of this resolution and the process under which it has been brought to the House, I must oppose the resolution.

Students from Leadership High School in Richmond, CA visit with Congressman George Miller in Washington, DC

2009-11-03T19:37:27Z

Leadership High School is a public charter school in Richmond, CA. Of the approximately 350 students currently enrolled, about 85% come from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds and roughly 95% are minorities. The main focus of Leadership High School is to prepare 100% of their students for college. The five students pictured above, Fabiola Ochoa (jr.), Mitzi Perez (soph.), Lucia Barboza-Mariscal (jr.), Jeanette Paola Munoz (jr.), and Christian Chavez (jr.) were selected as winners of a school-wide essay contest and underwent rigorous interviews to be selected for a group trip to Washington, DC. During their trip, they visited the White House, Library of Congress, and the Capitol. Congressman George Miller sat down with these students to answer their questions about education, reforms they would like to see in the 7th Congressional District, and what challenges the Congressman faces in his job. Their discussion was broadcast live from the Congressman's office via a laptop to the rest of Leadership High School students who were watching in Richmond.

NY Times on the House Health Care Bill

2009-10-30T15:59:01Z

The NY Times on the Affordable Health Care for America Act:

October 30, 2009
Editorial
The House Health Reform Bill

The Senate should pay attention to the health care reform bill unveiled on Thursday by House Democratic leaders. The bill would greatly expand coverage of the uninsured while reducing budget deficits over the next decade and probably beyond. It includes a public option that is weaker than we would like, but it still deserves to be approved by the House.

The coverage expansions would carry a net cost to the federal government of $894 billion over the next decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Yet the bill would generate enough revenue from new taxes and from savings in Medicare to offset that cost and reduce the deficit by $104 billion over the course of the decade.

The chief source of tax revenue would be a surcharge on the portion of annual income above $1 million for couples and $500,000 for individuals. The wealthy prospered enormously from tax cuts under the Bush administration. It is fitting that they pay a heavy share of the cost of health care reform.

The bill requires employers, except for small businesses, to offer health coverage to their workers and pay a substantial share of the premiums or face a big penalty. That would be a useful prod to make insurance more available and affordable to employees.

The bill would meet President Obama�s insistence that health care reform not add to the deficit � provided Congress holds firm on slowing the growth rate of payments to health care providers serving Medicare. Of special importance, the trend line for deficits would be heading down toward the end of the decade, suggesting that it would continue on down thereafter. This is a fiscally prudent bill, not a reckless dash toward ever-higher deficits as Republicans contend.

(To make ends meet, the Democrats dropped a costly fix for the unrealistic formula used to reimburse doctors under Medicare. That will be tackled in separate legislation, and ought to be paid for with new revenue.)

Under this bill, the number of uninsured would plummet. Since Congress is determined to exclude illegal immigrants, the salient fact is that by 2019, the bill would provide insurance to 96 percent of all nonelderly citizens and legal residents, leaving about 12 million of them uninsured. It would achieve this feat by making a lot more people eligible for Medicaid, a program for the poor, and by helping tens of millions of low- and moderate-income people buy policies on new insurance exchanges, in which private plans and possibly a public plan would compete for people who lack employer-provided insurance or work in small companies.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi wanted a strong, money-saving public option that would pay hospitals and doctors based on Medicare rates, but she could not win over enough conservative Democrats. Her fallback is to have the secretary of health and human services negotiate rates with health care providers as private insurers do.

The Congressional Budget Office considers this so weak that it might attract only 6 million of an estimated 30 million people buying insurance on the exchanges in 2019. Its premiums might exceed the average private plan, in part because the sickest people might migrate to the public plan.

Still, the House bill has a lot of provisions for consumers to like. It would require insurers to allow young people through age 26 to remain on their parents� policies. It would provide immediate help to people who have been uninsured for several months or denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions. It would speed elimination of a gap in drug coverage for Medicare beneficiaries (the so-called doughnut hole) and would give the government power to negotiate drug prices on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries, a promising way to reduce costs.

The bill would take a long stride toward universal coverage while remaining fiscally responsible. Senate leaders should try to do as well.

George on MSNBC discussing health care reform

2009-10-30T15:29:45Z

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Sign up for Telephone Town Hall

2009-10-29T16:56:51Z

Thank you for your interest in Rep. George Miller's telephone town hall. The sign-up is now closed.

Audio of the call will be posted on georgemiller.house.gov on Wednesday, Nov 4th.

You can also email george.miller@mail.house.gov with your health care questions.

Thank you.

Richmond Courthouse renamed for Judge Carroll

2009-10-26T17:18:36Z

Photo courtesy of Globe Newspapers.

Rep. George Miller and Judge George Carroll at the renaming ceremony of the Richmond Courthouse. The courthouse was renamed in honor of Judge Carroll, the first African American Judge to be appointed in Contra Costa County.

40 year celebration at the Mt. Diablo Peace Center

2009-10-19T16:05:39Z

This month the Mt Diablo Peace and Justice Center celebrates their 40th anniversary. In honor of their many achievements over the year, Rep. Miller entered this statement into the permanent Congressional Record:

Recognition of Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center
40th Anniversary

---

EXTENSION OF REMARKS BY HON. GEORGE MILLER OF CALIFORNIA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 14, 2009

MADAME SPEAKER, I rise to recognize the Mt. Diablo Peace & Justice Center, an invaluable institution in the San Francisco Bay Area that will be celebrating its 40th Anniversary on October 19, 2009.

Founded in 1969 by the late Andy Baltzo, the Mount Diablo Peace and Justice Center was initially known to most residents of Contra Costa County as simply, �The Peace Center.� Its goal was to provide residents of the East Bay with a voice against the escalating war in Vietnam as well as a focal point for issues of social justice.

After our troops returned from Southeast Asia, members of the Peace Center recognized that the quest for peace and justice is never ending. The Center turned its attention to issues of nuclear arms reduction, military disarmament, and avoidance of U.S. entanglement in the conflicts in Central America.

Instrumental in the early development of the Peace Center was the work of a core group of committed peace activists including Arne Westerback , Louise Clark, and Sheila Pedersen.
Over the years, the Center expanded its focus to include a wide range of programs that addressed raising peaceful children and race awareness. The larger community continued to have a voice through the Peace Center and has benefited from organized non-violent protests against military conflicts, including most recently the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. These protests take the form of peace marches, demonstrations, and a unique war memorial known as The Crosses of Lafayette. Much national and even international attention was focused on the local community when multi-denominational memorials were erected on a highly visible hillside � one for each American military service member who has died in the current conflicts. It�s a silent but powerful reminder to all who pass by of the human toll of war.

The Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center also provides inspirational classes in non-violence that continue to benefit the community as a whole. With its access to nationally known speakers, educational forums, and film series, the Center is able to promote peace and justice through a variety of mediums. Students, parents and teachers have access to a wide range of programs that include the Art and Writing Challenge and Youth in the Military, a counseling service for young people on national service alternatives to the military. Through local food collection and distribution, The Center also addresses the needs of the poor living in our local community.
As our world becomes seemingly smaller, the Peace Center is once again broadening its program. Currently, plans are underway for an International Peace Youth Camp which will bring outstanding teen leaders from around the world to the Center. Once at camp, they will have the opportunity to get to know each other and learn new methods of co-existence through cultural exchange.

Today, dedicated Peace Center leaders such as Barbara and Ed Tonningsen and Bob Hanson continue to bring the lessons of non-violence to our community and beyond.

I applaud the Mt. Diablo Peace and Justice Center for its strong, principled, and ongoing voice on the issues of peace and justice and I am proud to bring this organization to the attention of my colleagues. Congratulations to past and present members who have kept the Center viable and dynamic throughout the decades. As you celebrate 40 Years of Peacemaking, I wish you continued success.

Tibetan Refugee Assistance Act

2009-10-19T15:33:25Z

Rep. George Miller meets with His Holiness the Dalai Lama on October 6th in the U.S. Capitol. The Dalai Lama was presented with the Tom Lantos Human Rights Prize for his human rights work and messages of peace and non-violence.

Rep. George Miller previously met with His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala when Miller traveled to India last year with a congressional delegation led by Speaker Pelosi. During that trip, the Dalai Lama made a personal plea to the members, asking them to help Tibetan refugees living in exile.

Miller and Rep. James Sensenbrenner introduced H.R. 1340 to provide 3,000 qualified Tibetans with immigrant visas over the course of three years. The legislation is an expression of American support for the well-being of the Tibetan exile community and its effort to find a peaceful solution for Tibet. It will help greatly in the effort to relieve overburdened settlements in India and Nepal, while giving thousands of Tibetans the chance to flourish in Tibetan-American communities across our great nation.

In the 50 years since the Dalai Lama was forced to flee Tibet, some 150,000 Tibetans have followed him into to exile. The number keeps growing as thousands traditionally come over the Himalayas every year. The Tibetan communities in India and Nepal face many challenges, including the task of absorbing and accommodating new refugees. The infrastructure in these settlements is wearing out, and the absorptive capacity for services and jobs cannot keep up with the demands.

Health Care Reform and what it means for you

2009-09-14T20:10:37Z

Recording of Telephone Community Meeting

2009-08-17T20:36:59Z

Listen to an audio recording of Rep. George Miller's Telephone Community meeting held on July 31 2009 below.

Click to play

Audio from Rep. Miller's other community meetings will be posted as it becomes available.

NY Times says Health Care bill "worth fighting for"

2009-07-16T15:42:34Z

July 16, 2009
Editorial
A Strong Health Reform Bill

While the Senate continues to struggle over its approach to health care reform, House Democratic leaders have unveiled a bill that would go a long way toward solving the nation�s health insurance problems without driving up the deficit. It is already drawing fierce opposition from business groups and many Republicans. This is a bill worth fighting for.

The bill would require virtually all Americans to carry health insurance or pay a penalty. And it would require all but the smallest businesses to provide health insurance for their workers or pay a substantial fee. It would also expand Medicaid to cover many more poor people, and it would create new exchanges through which millions of middle-class Americans could buy health insurance with the help of government subsidies. The result would be near-universal coverage at a surprisingly manageable cost to the federal government.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that by 2015, 97 percent of all residents, excluding illegal immigrants, would have health insurance. The price tag for this near-universal coverage was pegged by the budget office at just more than $1 trillion over 10 years � at the low-end of the estimates we�ve heard in recent weeks.

The legislation would pay for half that cost by reducing spending on Medicare, a staple of all reform plans. It would pay for the other half by raising $544 billion over the next decade with a graduated income surtax on the wealthiest Americans: families with adjusted gross incomes exceeding $350,000 and individuals making more than $280,000.

Predictably, the idea of raising taxes this way has critics outraged, with some charging that it is unfair to require a small sliver of the population to bear the brunt of the cost.

The wealthy have benefited greatly from Bush-era tax cuts, and their incomes have risen disproportionately in recent years. It seems proper that they should contribute heavily to an effort that is vital to hard-pressed Americans and to the long-term health of the economy.

The legislation also includes some sound ideas for slowing the inexorable rise in health care costs. Such savings are also essential for the nation�s economic health. It adjusts Medicare reimbursements to encourage health care providers to improve productivity, reduce costly hospital readmissions and spend more time on primary care that can head off the need for costly specialists. It expands prevention and wellness activities.

And it establishes a center to compare the effectiveness of various drugs, devices and procedures. Unfortunately, it prohibits the government from requiring public or private insurers to set reimbursement policies based on the findings. These steps may not produce big savings quickly but could lower costs in future years.

The bill makes a mockery of Republican claims that the Democrats are pushing a hugely costly government takeover of medicine.

This bill is clearly not hugely costly. It would expand the government�s role in financing and regulating coverage but would also bolster private coverage. It would increase employer-based coverage, mostly by requiring employers to participate. And it would send more clients to the private insurance industry. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that perhaps 10 million people might enroll in a new public plan, while twice that number might enroll in competing private policies.

The Senate health committee has approved, by a party-line vote, a bill that in many respects parallels the House bill. The Senate Finance Committee, hoping to win over Republicans and conservative Democrats, is balking at a public plan and raising taxes on the wealthy. If there is a deal to be had, it is worth discussing. But the House has set a clear standard for health care reform: It must cover all Americans without driving up the deficit.

Miller calls for fix of student loan system

2009-07-15T15:20:21Z

Fix loan system for a stronger future
Published in Politico
By: Rep. George Miller
July 15, 2009 04:46 AM EST

This summer, millions of students will sit down with their families to figure out how to pay for college. They will unwittingly enter into a financial lending system that is badly broken � and not benefiting them as intended.

However, if Congress and President Barack Obama are successful, this system is about to undergo a major change.

The college financing system that was supposed to ensure all students access to college is dangerously out of control, for three reasons.

First, tuition has skyrocketed and shows no signs of abating.

Second, the roller-coaster credit markets have put the federally guaranteed student loan program, which for years has originated almost three-quarters of all federal college loans, on life support.

And third, Pell Grants and other aid that a generation ago offered students about half of their tuition costs today cover only about 30 percent.

Continue reading Fix loan system for a stronger future ...