Brother Can You Spare Two Million Jobs? Emergency Jobs Bill Proposed

Responding to the continuing massive jobs deficit,Chicago Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky proposed to create 2 million jobs,introducing the “Emergency Jobs to Restore the American Dream Act.” Surrounded by Chicago JwJ coalition leaders and other groups,Schakowsky declared:

“Unlike the long disproven claims that more tax breaks for wealthy corporations will lead to more employment,I have a bill that will actually work. How can we guarantee this bill will get 2 million people back to work? By hiring them!”

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The proposal,which could be more than paid for by taxing millionaires or financial speculation,establishes:

1) School Improvement Corps – Creates 400,000 construction and 250,000 maintenance jobs through new funding to public school districts for needed school rehabilitation improvements ($100 billion)

2) Park Improvement Corps – Creates 100,000 jobs for youth between the ages of 16 and 25 through new funding to the Department of the Interior and the USDA Forest Service’s Public Lands Corps Act. Conservation projects on public lands include restoration and rehabilitation of natural,cultural,historic,archaeological,recreational and scenic resources. ($400 million)

3) Student Jobs Corps – Creates 250,000 more part-time,work study jobs for eligible college students through new funding for the Federal Work Study Program. ($850 million)

4) Neighborhood Heroes Corps –

1. Teachers:Direct funding to states to hire,re-hire,and prevent lay-offs of 300,000 teachers. ($40 billion)
2. Cops:New funding to hire 40,000 police officers. ($10 billion)
3. Firefighters:New funding to hire 12,000 firefighters. ($2.4 billion)

5) Health Corps –Grants to hire at least 40,000 health care providers,including physicians,nurse practitioners,physician assistants,nurses,and health care workers to expand access in underserved rural and urban areas. ($8 billion)

6) Community Corps – Creation of a new Community Corps that will create 750,000 jobs to do needed work in our communities,including energy audits and conservation upgrades,recycling and reclamation of reusable materials,urban land reclamation and addressing blight,including foreclosure and disaster-affected areas,rural conservation work,public property maintenance and beautification,housing rehabilitation,and new housing construction. ($60 billion)