ALEC's Rich States Poor States Report is IRRESPONSIBLE!

Awhile back - I put out a request for someone to debunk the American Legislative Exchange council report "Rich States Poor States".

Tonight while I was surfing I found this on the Progressive States Network webpage- which I copy in it's entirety because it is very important.  (That is my red bolding in the article.)

Questions Raised About Corporate Front Group's State Economic Rankings

Fine Print Shows ALEC Uses "Corporate Wish List" to Rate States, Ignoring Middle Class

New York, NY - Today, as the controversial American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) releases their annual rankings of outlooks for all 50 state economies, questions are being raised about the criteria used by the shadowy group. A new examination of the criteria used in past "Rich States, Poor States" reports published by ALEC in partnership with the infamous supply-side economist Arthur Laffer reveals rankings that are based on adherence to the policy wishes of huge corporations and that disregard the middle class entirely.

"At a time when the economic security of the middle class is in peril, these rankings based on a corporate wish list of anti-middle class policies could not be more divorced from reality," said Ann Pratt, Executive Director of Progressive States Network. "To ALEC and their CEO friends, a state with a low minimum wage, one in where there are fewer jobs, or one in which millionaires don’t pay their fair share in taxes is considered 'richer' than one which pursues policies that actually ensure the economic security of the middle class. After seven straight months of job losses in the state and local government sector, with teachers, firefighters, and policeman losing their jobs every single day, the criteria used by ALEC to assess states' economic health are not only wrong – they are irresponsible."

ALEC, the publisher of "Rich States, Poor States," is a controversial organization reported to be a venue for allowing corporations to write and pass state legislation that benefits their own bottom lines. In October 2010, reports emerged that ALEC and the Corrections Corporation of America were intimately involved in the writing and passage of Arizona's SB1070 to increase detention rates and benefit the private prison industry.

According to last year’s ALEC-Laffer rankings, the group uses the following criteria to rank a particular states' economic outlook. Many economists have noted that state policies like a fair minimum wage, progressive tax systems, and the right of private businesses to enter into a contract with their employees do not hinder states, but rather help state economies become more prosperous for all.

Why is it so important???

Because everytime, EVERYTIME you see the Rich States Poor States report quoted in a newspaper article - you have got to comment against it.  Please cut and paste and use and reuse the information from Progressive States Network.

Right now - if you Google ALEC - you will find that most of the entries are about state rankings - as given to the states by the ALEC Rich States Poor States report.  The Rich States Poor States report is the ONLY thing ALEC has going for it right now - let's cut is to shreds in the media.

HERE IS YOUR AMMUNITION to cut those newspaper articles and editorials apart - PLEASE USE IT regularly and often.

When it comes to ALEC - it is always what is best for the corporations and not what is best for the citizens of a state.

In Addition
I would recommend that you read this article about ALEC's ATTACK ON THE MIDDLE CLASS

Link to it here:   Spotlight Shines on ALEC's Anti-Middles Class Agenda

ALEC members and those affiliated with ALEC in any manner

MUST NOT BE RE-ELECTED.

Without state and federal legislators ALEC will cease to exist and it will implode.

For more information on ALEC –

Please read this or this or this

or this series of six articles.

This is what ALEC is About  - An Interview with Mark Pocan about the ALEC Annual Meeting.

And watch this news video  from North Carolina on how other ALEC "model legislation" is going to screw the citizens of North Carolina - legislation introduced by ALEC legislators.

Do your own act of education!
Send the links shown above to friends and family and educate them about ALEC.