District Connection - 5/7/18
VIBRANT BUSINESS GROWTH IN THE 7TH DISTRICT IS LEADING THE WAY IN GEORGIA
Every day that you have given me the great honor of walking into the United States Capitol to cast a vote on your behalf has been an absolute pleasure, but what’s even more powerful to me than standing in the temple of our Republic is when I have the opportunity to visit with and learn from the people in our community who make that Republic so strong.
Last week, I visited with four amazing, hometown businesses when I had the pleasure of meeting with the teams at Brightree in Lawrenceville, ProCare Prosthetics and Orthotics in Buford, Veritiv in Suwanee, and Metcam in Alpharetta. The common thread through all of these visits was how success lives in the 7th District and how important it is for the federal government to support businesses with limited regulation, how difficult it is to get great workers, and how important it is for employers to support their workers on the path to success. I want to thank each and every business leader and employee who took time out of their busy days to teach me more about how you're contributing to our community's growth and success.
Rep. Rob Woodall and Veritiv CEO Mary Laschinger at the company's headquarters in Suwanee
You probably won’t ever see their logo, but Veritiv in Suwanee has likely made the packaging for many products in your home or on your grocery store's shelves. They make specialized packaging solutions for all types of products, from mobile phones to large home appliances to food products, and their fleet of trucks is transporting those products all over Georgia and the surrounding states. From trade agreements to labor laws to highway programs, Veritiv is involved in every aspect of the production process and is bringing Georgia know-how to the southeastern U.S. And what’s more, Veritiv’s CEO, Mary Laschinger, is the only female Fortune 500 CEO in the Atlanta area. At a time when our society is focused on opening up opportunities for women and girls to succeed in formally closed business environments of all kinds, it’s especially heartening to see such a positive CEO like Mary who is committed to bringing a culture of success to Veritiv and the 7th District.
Rep. Rob Woodall and the executive team at Metcam in Alpharetta
Another company that likely flies under the radar for many of us – but it certainly should not – is Metcam in Alpharetta. If you’ve ever walked down the hallway in a hotel and noticed those little red fire alarm boxes on the wall, you very well might have been looking at a red steel box made right here in Forsyth County. Metcam does sheet metal fabrication, finishing, assembly, and logistics all from its plant in Alpharetta. And the people at Metcam are so good at what they do that they’ve received three awards in the past 5 months: 2018 Small Manufacturer of the Year from the State of Georgia, 2017 CommScope Supplier of the Year, and 2017 Small Manufacturer of the Year from Forsyth County. Walking through the Metcam facility is a humbling experience because you meet dozens of employees who have been working for the company for years, who have contributed to its success, and who are proud of their daily labor. Nothing could be more important to share with our children than the pride that comes from working for your family and achieving success together with your community.
Rep. Rob Woodall learns about Brightree's technological expertise in health care management in Lawrenceville
While it may seem like a stark departure from the machines and welding of Metcam’s metal manufacturing to Brightree’s high-tech workforce in Lawrenceville, I can tell you that the commitment of these corporate citizens to bettering our community and their customers and employees are identical. Brightree works with thousands of independent health care providers – specifically those who are providing home health care and home medical equipment – providing high-tech software to help them navigate the maze of Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance regulations. As we all get a little older and a little grayer, we see our family and friends needing more home health care and equipment, and as the home health industry grows, data solutions like the ones that Brightree offers will be more critical than ever before. The home health companies and medical equipment providers in the 7th District are committed to taking care of all of us when we need it, and the folks at Brightree are there to help take care of them, making certain that they’re getting paid on time, that they’re providing the appropriate care, and that we’re using 21st Century data technology to save taxpayers money.
Rep. Rob Woodall meets with prosthetic specialists and patients at ProCare
Finally, I want to talk about some people with huge hearts; the folks at ProCare Prosthetics and Orthotics in Suwanee. Stephen Shulte and his staff are literally making people whole again day after day. I met with a military veteran who lost part of his leg in a motor vehicle accident, and ProCare’s staff is working with him and the Augusta VA Medical Center to get him back on his feet and back to walking around the neighborhood with his wife and family. And I met with Mohamed Massaquoi, a former UGA and Cleveland Browns wide receiver who lost four fingers on his left hand in an ATV accident. Someone with the financial resources of Mr. Massaquoi could have gone almost anywhere for care, but he chose ProCare because of the personalized and high-tech care they could provide him. Prosthetic and orthotic care these days is far beyond one-size-fits-all artificial limbs. It’s about harnessing the technological expertise of students and professors at Georgia Tech to create cutting-edge, advanced limbs. It’s about providing families with the support they need to get their loved one back on his or her feet and moving again. It’s about serving the entire patient and listening to what he or she wants to accomplish in prosthetic rehabilitation. With so many of our brave young men and women who served us in the military needing prosthetic and orthotic care, I’m so proud to say that ProCare is stepping-up to serve them and our entire community.
APRIL JOBS REPORT SHOWS A BRIGHT FUTURE FOR AMERICA
You just read about all the tremendous success that our local businesses are having and how they are serving our community. But what almost every business I visited mentioned was how difficult it is for them to attract workers. And Friday’s April jobs report from the Department of Labor supports what our business leaders are seeing. With unemployment at 3.9% -- the lowest level since 2000 – it’s no surprise that it’s hard to find qualified employees. But the good news is that businesses, like the ones I visited, are competing for the employees in our area by providing higher wages, better retirement benefit packages, more flexible vacation and leave policies, and even more telecommuting and mobile work environments. The focus on creating a satisfied workforce is giving Americans more choices and better choices for employment than we’ve seen in a long time. I hope that the continued success we’ve seen in the job market, in large part thanks to the partnership between Congress and businesses during the victorious tax reform debate and our commitment to rolling back harmful regulations, will lead to even lower unemployment and better job opportunities in the future.
REJOICING IN THE POWER OF PRAYER
From the freedom of speech to the freedom to practice your own religion, the rights granted to each and every American citizen are not only the underpinnings of our great nation, but they also play a prominent role in our lives each and every day. We all know too well how easy it is to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives; from dropping the kids off at school to taking care of our sick and elderly loved ones, it’s easy to take the rights bestowed to us by our Creator through the Constitution for granted.
That's why I was honored to join our neighbors and community leaders last Thursday at the Forsyth County Day of Prayer, as it’s not every day that we – as a nation or even a community – take time out of our busy schedules to reflect on and value the freedoms that we hold near and dear to our hearts. I believe the power of prayer transcends political divisiveness, since, to our nation’s core, prayer remains such an important part of the fabric of who we are as Americans. Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservative, Christian, Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, or any other religious tradition, we are truly blessed to live in a country that recognizes and upholds our right to pray, rejoice, and practice the religion of our choosing. For that reason, I am pleased that President Trump signed an Executive Order to implement active measures to reinforce and expand the federal government’s support of our faith-based and community organizations that work to serve our communities so diligently. We must continue to protect and ensure the religious liberty of each and every American, and you can be sure that I will continue to do everything in my power at the federal level to do just that.
The Forsyth County Day of Prayer on May 3rd
LOCAL MORTGAGE LENDERS FOCUS ON HELPING GEORGIANS ACHIEVE THEIR AMERICAN DREAMS
I spent last Wednesday morning with the team at Southeast Mortgage in Duluth, the largest non-bank lender in Georgia. I'm proud of the work that folks in this industry do. After all, owning your own home is a hallmark of the American Dream, and with unemployment at an 18-year low and more Americans moving from welfare to work, achieving that piece of the American Dream seems more possible for more families with each passing day.
We had a chance to discuss what I've been working on in Congress, particularly those issues that matter most to their business and their customers. Our economy is growing, but of course there are still challenges that we're focused on solving. One of the challenges highlighted in my meeting was the epidemic of student loan debt that is stunting the financial growth of younger generations. We must address the student loan problem, but most importantly, we must also prevent the epidemic from spreading to future generations who will be entering high school and college in the near future. One of the initiatives I helped pass to do that was a bipartisan modernization of federal Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. Not everyone needs a liberal arts degree from a four year university; in fact, there are many career paths available straight out of high school or after a vocational program at a 2-year school or other credential program. From health care, to technology, to technical careers, there is a vast array of good-paying, in-demand jobs that need to be filled, and this legislation seeks to build a workforce pipeline by ensuring access and awareness of the opportunities available to current and future graduates looking for promising, stable careers.
I also provided an update on the status of legislation to drastically improve the Dodd-Frank financial services law, which carelessly lumped all kinds of service providers under one big regulatory tent. Passing the Financial CHOICE Act into law, which I hope the Senate will do soon, will represent the most significant, pro-jobs financial services reform effort in decades and will make mortgage lenders better able to focus on serving you and contributing to our community rather than struggling with federal paperwork.
I very much appreciate Southeast Mortgage inviting me out to spend the morning with them. If your business or organization would like to visit with me and share your experiences and ideas on how your government can better serve you, I hope you will give me a call.
CONSTITUENT SPOTLIGHT: PROTECTING PERSONAL DATA ONLINE
In the wake of recent high-profile data breaches at Equifax and Facebook, we have been reminded all too much of how vulnerable our personal information can be. As the Internet becomes more pervasive and connected to our everyday lives, the need to address data breaches and better protect our personal data becomes that much more pressing. Here is what just a couple of you have shared with me on the issue:
Kevin from Suwanee:
I am writing this in regards to the credit bureaus and credit protection. I think that it is ridiculous that a credit bureau makes consumers pay up to $25/month to protect their data, especially when cybersecurity breaches are happening left and right these days. Why should I have to pay someone to keep my information protected? It affects me if my identity gets stolen, not them. Being in the business of dealing with someone's personal information comes with a duty to protect said information. I am not exactly sure what can be done, but I refuse to sit here and think that I am the only one outraged by this issue.
Tennie from Norcross:
I am a resident in your district. In March, the public learned of yet another major privacy violation: Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm that supported President Trump's campaign, maintained copies of private data for about 50 million Facebook users without the majority of these users’ knowledge or consent.
The Cambridge Analytica scandal is not unique. Unauthorized access to personal data has been a running theme over the past year. The latest estimates show the Equifax data breach affected half of the U.S. population.
It’s time for the Congress to take a stand on unauthorized access to data -- whether that’s data obtained with authorization but shared and used in ways that exceed user permission, like Cambridge Analytica, or a breach where data is obtained without any consent at all, like Equifax. In the digital era, it is impossible to fully participate in society without sharing our personal information with third parties like Facebook. Congress needs to step in to protect consumers.
You can protect consumers by requiring companies like Facebook and Equifax to ensure meaningful notice and consent for data collection, retention, and sharing. You should also take steps to ensure these companies are adhering to the latest, state-of-the art security standards.
Additionally, as we saw with the Equifax breach, companies regularly used forced arbitration clauses, buried in fine print, which prevents consumers from being able to sue these companies when their trust has been violated. Congress should explicitly exempt cases addressing the failure to protect personal information from the Federal Arbitration Act to make sure consumers can have their day in court when their information is misused.
Please make consumer privacy a legislative priority. It’s time for Congress to return control of personal data to the people providing it -- the rightful owners.
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The Internet is a new frontier for Congress and for federal regulators--not because we don’t understand it, but because we want to ensure that the regulatory “light touch” that has allowed the Internet to flourish for decades doesn’t grow to strangle the Internet now that it is more mature. While technology has and always will evolve at a much faster pace than our laws, it is clear that American consumers of all walks of life feel more vulnerable today than before. That is why Congress has called on companies to come to Capitol Hill to explain to the American people and to reexamine the relationship between tech companies and their users.
Most notably, you may have seen the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s hearing with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerburg, in which he was asked to answer for the recent reports that Facebook had misused its users’ data by allowing other firms and developers to access their data without their consent. In addition to that hearing, the House Financial Services Committee has held several hearings on how to reform our current data security and breach notification standards, including one specifically to address the Equifax data breach. Outside of Congress, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has also opened an investigation into Facebook to see if the company violated a previous settlement requiring it to obtain permission before user data is shared.
In the aftermath of these breaches, we have already seen companies like Facebook and Equifax take steps to improve their security measures to ensure greater protection of consumers’ data, but as, Kevin and Tennie said, we must demand more of these companies moving forward. A number of legislative proposals have emerged since these hearings, and it is my expectation that Congress will work together with regulators and stakeholders to find the best way to ensure companies meet certain data protection standards and notify those affected by any breach. Regardless of any action by Congress or the federal government, one of the most effective ways to ensure your data is secure is to be vigilant and protect yourself. You can find more information on how to do so by visiting the FTC’s website HERE and OnGuardOnline.gov for additional tips and information.
Thank you for sharing your concerns with me so my colleagues and I can craft legislation that better serves you.
The last week has been full of so many great events and visits across the Seventh District and beyond, but certainly one of the highlights was our annual Service Academy Day, which once again, was a huge success! Every year that I’ve been in Congress, I have had the distinct honor of joining Senator Johnny Isakson, other Representatives from across the state, and of course the men and women from our great military in presenting Georgia’s Academy Day at Dobbins Air Reserve Base. It is one of the largest Academy Days in the country, and I’m proud to say we in the Seventh District have one of the largest classes of appointees year after year. This event is a great opportunity for young people to learn more about how they can serve their country while getting a world-class education. It’s an exciting time, and we mark the beginning of the process in this way every April. I always look forward to it because of the excitement I see in the eyes of all these future leaders in attendance, and I look forward to it because it reminds all of us that America’s best days are certainly still ahead! The level of integrity, character, intellect, and work-ethic required for an appointment one of the academies is daunting…and yet our communities are producing that kind of young person in abundance!
Rep. Rob Woodall speaks with one of the hundreds of families who attended Academy Day 2018 at Dobbins Air Reserve Base
If you know of any young people in your life who are interested in this path but didn’t attend Academy Day, that’s ok too, they can visit my webpage or call my local office at (770) 232-3032 with any questions. They can learn all about the requirements and deadlines for submitting 2018 applications there.
Here in Georgia and especially in the Seventh District, the name David Pollack is well-known. For many of us, we remember the Gwinnett County product as a fierce linebacker for the University of Georgia where he accrued accolades one after the other. For many others still, we know him as a college football analyst and commentator for ESPN. Now a new generation of young people is learning who David Pollack is, and it’s through his “EveryDay Counts” campaign, which recently made a stop at several Forsyth County schools. As a part of the program, participants are challenged to exercise every day as best they can. Especially as we age, we all know the value of regular exercise, but David is also using the opportunity to speak to kids in schools and communities across the region about far more than just exercise, and it sure makes me proud to see long-time members of our community giving back in such important ways. David often says you have two things you can always control: your attitude and your effort. I couldn’t agree more, and I’m appreciative of the role model he is, not just for young athletes, but all young people. If you’d like to participate or just follow the progress of the challenge, you can do so by using #EveryDayCountsGA on Instagram.
- Forsyth County News. Here's another look at former UGA player David Pollack motivating Forsyth County students
This week I’m taking all the good counsel that I received in Georgia last week back to Washington, D.C. In the Rules Committee, we’re moving forward on a number of measures that will boost economic growth, lower regulatory barriers, and help bring competition to the marketplace.
- S.J.Res. 57 is a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act that will stop a gross overreach of the Dodd-Frank Act. Dodd-Frank was meant to stop huge financial institutions from taking the out of control risks they took back in the early and mid-2000s, which eventually threw our entire financial system into chaos. Unfortunately, the previous presidential administration expanded the reach of Dodd-Frank to regulate car dealers and auto financing companies – two groups which had little to nothing to do with the financial system’s near collapse. Instead of allowing unnecessary regulations to continue, I’m happy that the Senate has working with the Trump Administration to bring forward this measure, and I’m looking forward to sending it to the President for his signature.
- H.R. 5645 ensures that the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice can work together in a more efficient manner to make certain that business mergers and acquisitions aren’t allowed to create uncompetitive monopolies. Monopolies harm consumers and eliminate the competition that is necessary in the market to keep prices in check. This bill will make sure that marketplaces are strong.
- H.R. 3053 is a much needed update of our nation’s nuclear waste management program. Those of us in Georgia know how important nuclear energy is, and with the continued development of power plants like the expansion at Plant Vogtle, which will serve nearly every 7th District family, we also know that the issue of properly disposing of nuclear waste is just as important. I look forward to working with my colleagues to move this bill across the House floor and to the Senate.
If you’d like to share your thoughts about these measures, or any of the other measures that the House will be considering this week – which you can find by visiting https://docs.house.gov/floor – I hope that you will do so by visiting my website or by emailing me at woodall@mail.house.gov.
Sincerely,
Rob Woodall
Member of Congress