Michael Swayze's Community Resources

Author: Michael Swayze

  • New Jersey Opportunity To Compete Act

    The following is a press release issued in support of the New Jersey “Opportunity to Compete Act”. The intent of the legislation, according to its sponsors, is “to improve the economic viability, health, and security of New Jersey communities and to assist people with conviction histories to reintegrate into the community and to provide for their families and themselves.”

    Press Release:
    Newark, NJ- April 26, 2013. Ban the Box NJ, a statewide grassroots campaign advocating for the passage of the New Jersey Opportunity to Compete Act, will host a rally on Wednesday, May 1, 2013 at 1:00 PM on the front steps of the State House in Trenton, New Jersey.

    The New Jersey Opportunity to Compete Act makes the job application process fairer for all New Jerseyans by moving inquiries into a candidate’s criminal background to after a candidate has been interviewed and offered a conditional offer of employment. It is estimated that 65 million Americans have some criminal record although most of that group never spent time in prison or jail and many of those are merely arrest records. By making the job process fairer, the legislation could increase public safety and decrease government spending on corrections by reducing the number of individuals cycling through the criminal justice system. The bill would also help the economy by giving more New Jerseyans the ability to earn an income, pay taxes and become consumers for New Jersey businesses.

    The sponsoring legislators of the Opportunity to Compete Act, Senator Sandra B. Cunningham and Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson-Coleman will speak at the rally along with Cornell William Brooks of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, Micah Khan of the Integrated Justice Alliance, representatives from Building One New Jersey and several others. Ban the Box NJ will also submit a petition with signatures from members of various New Jersey communities to the Law and Public Safety Committee, where the legislation is expected to make its first appearance in early May. The rally will show the wide community support for the legislation immediately before this important committee hearing.

    Cornell William Brooks, Esq. noted “The need to open quality employment opportunities to a broader spectrum of our communities is one of the major economic obstacles to recovery and growth in this country. For the hundreds of thousands of citizens of New Jersey with criminal records (most of which are minor and long ago), this rally declares: opportunity is not merely a patriotic word New Jerseyans say but rather a word we hear and experience– when you can compete for work fairly without favor or bias.

    For more information about the rally, please contact Ban the Box NJ’s Director of Communications, Brandon Holt, at brandon@bantheboxnj.com.

  • Quote Of The Week

    “And he [Barack] reminds me that we are playing a long game here and that change is hard, and change is slow, and it never happens all at once. But eventually we get there, we always do.”

    -First Lady Michelle Obama

    Published April 2, 2013 at https://www.facebook.com/pages/President-Barack-Obama-isnt-the-problem-Hes-the-solution/484775798234303.

  • The Great Switch to Paperless Benefits

    The following article appears in the March 2013 edition of the AARP Bulletin as written by Carole Fleck.

    Uncle Sam doesn’t mean to nag. But for nearly three years he has asked beneficiaries of Social Security, Veterans Affairs and other government programs to sign up by March 1, 2013, to get their monthly benefits electronically instead of by paper check.

    However, several million retirees and other recipients still haven’t made the switch. If you’re among them, you’ll still collect your monthly benefit by check. But until you sign up to have your benefit deposited directly into a bank or credit union account – or loaded onto a prepaid debit card, such as the government’s Direct Express or a privately issued card that meets requirements for loading government benefits – expect stern warnings.

    “No one’s payment will be interrupted,” says Treasury official Walt Henderson. But recipients who haven’t made the switch “will hear from Treasury via mail about their options for complying with the law.”

    Collecting payments electronically minimizes the risk for identity theft because there are no checks to be stolen from a mailbox. With benefits on a prepaid card, you can get cash withdrawals at a bank or make purchases.

    However, you may incur fees with a debit card. For example, with the Direct Express card, you get one free ATM withdrawal with each deposit to your card, but after that, you pay 90 cents each time you tap into your account.

    The government has a compelling reason to go paperless: It’ll save a whopping $1 billion over 10 years.

    To sign up for electronic payments, go to GoDirect.org or call 800-333-1795.