With State, Federal Regulators to Decide This Month on Hearings
in Mega -Energy Merger, Nation's Largest Union, SEIU, and PSE+G Workers
Join Forces With Consumer Groups to 'Fight the Power Grab'

TRENTON, N. We are here to
remind FERC that their first obligation is to serve the public -- and not to
simply rubber stamp requests by well-connected corporations ."
Mr. CAFTA will help promote economic growth and bolster democracy and the
rule of law.

org) comprises over 400 companies and associations
representing all major sectors of the economy with members in all 50 states
that have come together to support implementation of the CAFTA.

hemisphere nafta

Growing Coalition Opposing Exelon-PSEG Merger Launching Grassroots Lobbying Campaign to Call for Public Hearings

NJBPU has put out a schedule for
hearings later this summer. (http://www.-CAFTA goods a competitive edge, particularly with the elimination of
global quotas and increased competition from Asia. It incorporates binding commitments that each of the countries
will enforce its labor and environmental laws, as the Trade Act sought, as
well as the most robust labor and environment capacity-building mechanisms of
any U.
continues to support liberalized trade and will continue to negotiate and
implement agreements that expand trade and stimulate economic growth and
development.ecattrade .

php?ParentID=28
http://www.

criticisms jeopardize

"The public is forced to speculate about the content and impact of these
secret meetings because the conversations are not part of the public record,"
said Tyson Slocum, Research Director of Public Citizen's Energy Program.org)

The 1.8 million-member Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is the
nation's largest and fastest growing union. support and engagement in open international
markets. exports. fabric exports.

possess belo

org)

Public Citizen is a nonprofit, nonpartisan consumer rights organization
based in Washington, D. NJPIRG's mission is to deliver
persistent, result-oriented public interest activism that protects our
environment , encourages a fair, sustainable economy, and fosters responsive,
democratic government. We uncover threats to public health and well-being and
fight to end them, using the time-tested tools of investigative research,
media exposes, grassroots organizing, advocacy and litigation. (http://www.-Dominican Republic -Central America Free Trade
Agreement (CAFTA) and urged Congress to support the pact for the benefits it
would bring to the United States' economy and to the region. Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and
Nicaragua represent a very important and growing market for U.S . apparel
and yarn exports, and the second largest market for U. CAFTA
promotes labor and environmental standards as Congress directed in the Trade
Act of 2002. CAFTA will promote stability and the United States' own security
in a region that was damaged by violence and civil wars only two decades ago . McGraw concluded: "Approval of CAFTA will send a powerful message to
the rest of the world that regional and multilateral trade agreements should
be pursued, and will promise a more open and fairer system to promote commerce
among nations.

americas pillaging

org;

* statewide e-mail campaigns calling on the New Jersey Board of Public
Utilities (NJBPU) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to
hold open and accountable hearings and reliable and affordable energy
for New Jersey residents; and

* legal intervention in NJ Board of Public Utility proceedings .
"While the CEOs enjoy private access to government decisionmakers, the public
isn't yet assured that FERC will even hold a public hearing."

Background for Reporters

New Jersey Citizen Action is the state's largest independent citizen
watchdog coalition representing 60,000 family members and more than 100
affiliated labor, tenant, senior citizen, faith-based, environmental and
community organizations. Our Energy Program does extensive work
at the federal and state levels to promote energy policies that best protect
consumers.org)

industrialized freedoms

SEIU, with 28,000 members in the state, and Utility Workers Union of
America (UWUA) Local 601, which represents 1,350 PSE+G workers, are teaming up
with a consumer coalition led by Public Citizen, NJPIRG Law and Policy Center,
and NJ Citizen Action to oppose the proposed merger and call for open
hearings . There is a hearing June 22 by the NJBPU to decide
whether or not the companies will be forced to demonstrate a positive benefit
to state consumers from the deal. The groups are urging the NJBPU to reject
the merger if the companies do not demonstrate a positive benefit for state
consumers . worldwide
exports would increase by $1.S.S.

criticisms jeopardize

J.
"We want to pull the plug on the Exelon-PSEG merger to protect our member
consumers from higher energy costs," said Kevin Brown, President of SEIU NJ
State Council."
"With energy prices seeming to rise almost every day, New Jersey can ill-
afford to subsidize the kind of sweetheart deals that corporate executives
reap from giant mergers and acquisitions especially when, like this one, there
is still no evidence of actual, substantive benefits for ratepayers," said
Phyllis Salowe-Kaye, New Jersey Citizen Action's Executive Director . "This
PSE+G buy-out is a bad deal for any consumer who has to pay an electric bill,
from the person who wants to turn their lights on at home to our small
business owners and our largest industries -- and should be rejected at FERC
and by the BPU.FightthePowerGrab.C.S."

Business Roundtable (http://www.
Congress.

htm
http://wtoaction.

capitalist ftaa

"CAFTA will benefit the United States by opening markets for
manufacturing, services and agriculture, while at the same time, helping to
create a stronger, more stable hemisphere," said Mr.

They believe that free trade is organized, supported and likely only benefits financial capital, and not the people.

Thanks to those who have submitted to this category, and to websites for linking to it:
http://www.

belo economies

As the voice of New
Jersey 's electricity consumers, the state Board of Public Utilities should
reject Exelon's proposal," said Dena Mottola, Executive Director of NJPIRG Law
and Policy Center.
FERC will announce by the end of June whether or not it will hold hearings
on the merger. "CAFTA is more
than just another trade agreement -- it is the logical next step in America's
decades-long work to promote stability and democracy in the region, and it is
a symbol of continued U.S. Through unilateral
preference programs overwhelmingly approved on a bipartisan basis by Congress
since the 1980s, nearly 75 percent of CAFTA imports and 99 percent of CAFTA
agricultural products already enter the United States duty -free.

agreement criticisms

with over 17,000 dues-paying individual members in
Illinois, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.-Central America Trade, outlined six important
reasons that the business community is united in support of CAFTA:

1.
CAFTA will make trade with our neighbors a two-way street.S.

horizonte cafta

"SEIU is prepared to aggressively pursue our goal of open and
accountable hearings and reliable and affordable energy for New Jersey
residents. Exelon has pressured regulators to waive a full hearing to
expedite closing the $12 billion deal.S. support for global and hemispheric negotiations.

com/ericsquire/ftaa .

responsive hemisphere

If Exelon is allowed to swallow
up PSEG, they will have a stranglehold over electricity prices in the region,
leading to higher rates for New Jersey consumers.
(http://www. His testimony, on behalf of both organizations as well as the
Business Coalition for U.S.

noront.

pamphlet horizonte

The groups announced the launch today of
"Fight the Power Grab," a grassroots lobbying campaign to call for open and
accountable public hearings by state and federal regulators on the proposed
merger.org) is an association
of chief executive officers of leading corporations with a combined workforce
of more than 10 million employees in the United States and $4 trillion in
revenues.uscafta.

ftaa abolished

Local601. McGraw serves as Chairman of the Business Roundtable International
Trade + Investment Task Force and Chairman of the Emergency Committee for
American Trade.9 billion as a result of the CAFTA, more than
with any other recent FTA partner. CAFTA will sustain and expand textile and apparel partnerships and
competitiveness .com) was
founded more than three decades ago to promote economic growth through
expansionary trade and investment policies. Once those negotiations were completed, the Business
Coalition has worked to support the implementation of the CAFTA by the U.

htm

csis abolished

(http://www.citizen. Approval and implementation of CAFTA is vital to signaling continued
U.

pamphlet cafta

These secret meetings call into question the ability of FERC's unelected
government officials to provide sufficient independent oversight and protect
the public interest. (http://www. By implementing CAFTA,
Congress will signal to our trading partners and the world, that the U.

Mr.businessroundtable.

net/scsj/Issues/FTAA/ftaa_links.

freedoms catalyzed

NJCA works to protect and expand the rights of
individuals and families, and to ensure that government officials respond to
the needs of people rather than the interests of those with money and power.org)

New Jersey PIRG is a non-profit public interest advocacy organization
representing over 26,000 New Jersey residents.org)

Utility Workers Union of America (UWUA) Local 601 represents 1 ,350 PSE+G
workers, as well as employees of NJ Transit.

3. The CAFTA countries are the largest market for U.S.

horizonte criticisms

-Central America Trade
(http://www.

A Free Trade Area of the Americas is schedule to be finished by 2005, eliminating trade and investment
barriers on virtually all goods and services traded by member countries, reducing prices for consumers and creating new markets for producers throughout the hemisphere.

htm jeopardize

"
The coalition is launching a grassroots advocacy campaign that will
include:

* lobbying of elected officials at the state and federal level, including
the gubernatorial candidates;

* outreach and education to community members and state organizations;

* display and online advertising -- display ads ran today in the Newark
Star-Ledger and the Trenton Times sponsored by SEIU;

* direct mail;

* statewide phone-banking operations;

* a new website -- http://www.
CAFTA countries represent the second largest export market in Latin America,
and according to the U.

4.

The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) is the goal of a process initiated in December 1994, at the first Summit of the Americas, involving 34 Heads of State of the Western
Hemisphere.

nafta csis

Its 28,000 members in New Jersey
are city and municipal workers, interns and residents at hospitals, janitors,
homecare workers, nursing home workers, and the workers at Parsons who conduct
the annual inspections of cars for the state of NJ. CAFTA will open
their markets to our farm and industrial goods and our services by eliminating
high tariffs, tariff rate quotas and non-tariff barriers.

5.

csis capitalist

, The nation 's largest labor union,
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) announced today that it will join
forces with a growing consumer coalition opposing the proposed buy-out of PSEG
by Exelon Corporation of Chicago.
"New Jersey's consumers shouldn't buy Exelon's deal to create the largest ,
most powerful energy company in the nation.
Exelon and PSEG executives met privately with all four Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC) Commissioners in January of this year, just after
the companies publicly announced their intent to merge in December 2004.

U.S. Business Community Expresses Strong Support for CAFTA; Harold McGraw III Urges Congressional Approval in House Ways + Means Testimony

S.

6.S.

jeopardize csis

CAFTA
is critical to sustaining and expanding existing partnerships and to giving
U. The chief executives are committed to advocating public policies
that foster vigorous economic growth and a dynamic global economy.

ecologically criticisms

njcitizenaction.njpirg. International Trade Commission , U. CAFTA will level the playing field by opening markets for U.S. goods
and services, benefiting our workers and farmers. FTA.

The Emergency Committee for American Trade (http://www.

abolished htm

The groups released letters today to the New Jersey congressional
delegation and Senators outlining their opposition to the merger and urging
the elected officials to weigh in with the regulatory agencies and call for
hearings.seiunj. WASHINGTON, In testimony today before the House
Committee on Ways + Means, Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and CEO of
The McGraw-Hill Companies, outlined the important economic and foreign policy
implications of the U. McGraw.S. CAFTA promotes strong labor and environmental protections.S. The Business
Coalition was formed to support the negotiation of a comprehensive and high
standard agreement.

The opposition to FTAA believe free trade will jeopardize the integrity of non-industrialized and unique economies, ecologically significant regions , democracy and local citizen control, and communities of people who do not possess contemporary forms of wealth, opening them up to the pillaging by capitalist interests.

geocities.

geocities jeopardize

2.S. Today , the annual sales of ECAT
companies total $2 trillion, and the companies employ approximately five and a
half million people.

The Business Coalition for U.

org/phpLinks/index.

abolished catalyzed

---

- - kjjkjk

Loading...

(Note: These pages use the Atlas Content Safeguard System (ACSS) and require that Javascript is enabled for viewing.)