Back during the stimulus debate, one of the items that was pared back in order to get the overall package under an arbitrary $800 billion price tag was fiscal aid to states and local governments. $40 billion that would have gone to help states weather the economic downturn was lopped off of the bill to placate moderate senators.

As it turns out — and as many economists said at the time — this was not a very good idea. A new report from the Pew Center on the States warns of “fiscal peril” in 10 states which, if unaddressed, will hamper the nation’s economic recovery:

These states’ budget troubles can have dramatic consequences for their residents: higher taxes, layoffs or furloughs of state workers, longer waits for public services, more crowded classrooms, higher college tuition and less support for the poor or unemployed. But they also pose challenges for the country as a whole. The 10 states account for more than a third of America’s population and economic output. And actions taken by state governments to balance their budgets — such as tax increases and drastic spending cuts — can slow down the nation’s economic recovery.

“The problems are evident from coast to coast,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Economy.com. “Without more help to state and local governments, the resulting budget cuts will become a very significant drag on the economy.” The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that state budget shortfalls could mean that nearly a million jobs to disappear in the next year:

Presuming they will get no more fiscal relief, states will have to take steps to eliminate deficits for state fiscal year 2011 that will likely take nearly a full percentage point off the Gross Domestic Product. That, in turn, could cost the economy 900,000 jobs next year…Deficits for the current state fiscal year, not all of which states have closed, total more than 25 percent of state general fund budgets, making these the largest shortfalls on record.

As Derek Thompson wrote, those protesting more state aid “must recognize what that entails: hundreds of thousands of state employees joining the ranks of unemployment, and unemployment benefits. Q3 was great, but this thing isn’t close to being over.” And these employees are teachers, police officers, and health care workers — not the kind of employees that it’s easy to make do with less of.

The administration announced today that it is planning a “jobs summit” for December, with Obama calling high unemployment one of the administration’s “great challenges.” If the administration is serious about policies aimed at stemming job loss, more aid to states should certainly be on the table.

One of the worst abuses in the international labor markets is the use of child labor. The most recent report on the issue by the International Labor Organization found that as of 2004 more than 218 million children were engaged in illegal work, as defined by international treaties. It’s estimated that 126 million of these children were engaged in hazardous work such as “mining or handling chemicals.”

In order to combat the issue, the Senate Finance Committee has included sections in S.1631, the Customs Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Reauthorization Act of 2009, that would ban the importation of goods made “with convict labor, forced labor, or indentured labor under penal sanctions.” Such a measure by the world’s largest importer would strike a crucial blow against the use of child and slave labor.

Business groups and their lobbyists, however, are not taking kindly to the measures. The D.C.-based business newsletter “Inside U.S. Trade” reports that business groups are “worried” about the effects of such a provision, and they expect to see industry lobbyists and foreign governments profiting from child labor to form an “ad hoc” coalition to oppose it:

Business groups are worried by the potential effects of provisions banning the import of all goods made with convict labor, forced labor, or forced or indentured child labor that were included in a customs bill sponsored by Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking Member Charles Grassley (R-IA)

Business sources say this reporting requirement could cause DHS to more actively seek out imported products made with child labor, forced labor or convict labor. [...]

Sources conceded that this was a sensitive issue because industry groups do not want to be seen as opposing strict measures guarding against human rights abuses. However, one source did expect a push from lobbyists closer to the finance committee mark-up of the bill, and speculated that U.S. industry groups and foreign governments could form ad hoc coalitions to help send a united message.

MSNBC host Rachel Maddow covered the story last night. Addressing the business interests opposing the measure directly, she said, “You think that child labor and slave labor and forced convict labor are cheap and therefore cool with you? Go ahead, make your case. I would love to hear it …. you child labor-endorsing, pro-slavery freaks.” Watch it:

(HT: Openleft)

On April 20th, President Obama nominated Patricia Smith to the post of Department of Labor Solicitor, the number three spot within DoL and the department’s top law enforcement post. But, nearly seven months later, Smith’s nomination still has not come to the Senate floor for a vote, in part because, in early October, Sen. Mike Enzi (R-WY) placed a hold on it.

Already, one of Obama’s DoL nominees, Lorelei Boylan, withdrew her nomination after a lengthy wait for a confirmation vote. But it’s imperative that Smith’s nomination be brought to the floor and that she get confirmed.

As Solicitor, Smith would be responsible for enforcing all of the nation’s workplace laws, and overseeing the office representing the agency in all enforcement actions. And such actions are clearly necessary, as 16 people die at work every day from employer negligence in America, while 68 percent of low-wage workers report that they have been the victim of wage violations. All told, the typical low-wage worker victimized by wage theft sees an overall 15 percent reduction in pay annually.

Under the Bush administration’s corporate-friendly Labor Department, the solicitor’s office sat on its hands and failed to enforce even the most flagrant labor violations. And Enzi seems to be trying to maintain the status quo. As Thomas Frank wrote, Enzi is coming after Smith “because she is an effective and innovative labor bureaucrat.” Is Enzi motivated by “the dread possibility of a Labor Department that works?” Frank asked. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka agreed, saying that those in Congress who are holding up the nominees are doing so simply “because they don’t want those positions filled.”

The New York Times has called Smith “one of the nation’s foremost labor commissioners because of her vigorous efforts to crack down on minimum wage and overtime violations at businesses including restaurants, supermarkets, car washes and racetracks.” During her time with the New York State Labor Department, where she is labor commissioner, Smith helped win more than $20 million in back pay for thousands of low-wage workers, including a record $2.3 million settlement with the owner of Ollie’s Noodle Shop and Grill chain in Manhattan.

As David Madland and Karla Walter pointed out, “too often penalties [for labor law violations] are easily reduced or levied for low amounts, and the solicitor’s office has minimized civil and criminal liability for the worst violators.” Smith can change that, if only her nomination could come to a vote.