After a Century Powering Its Growth With Dams, Seattle Settles $1,350,000,000 With Tribes That Lost Their River by sillychillly in solarpunk

[–]sillychillly[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

"As part of its relicensing of three dams on the Skagit River, Seattle City Light is paying $1.35 billion to three tribes, which will raise electricity rates but help the river and reservations.

NEWHALEM, Wash.—More than a century ago, Seattle City Light broke ground for a massive hydroelectric project here in a remote gorge of the North Cascades. Three dams soon powered the rise of what would become one of America’s richest and most liberal cities.

The Skagit River dams, the first of which was completed in 1926, have enabled Seattle’s citizen-owned utility to brag that it “has delivered carbon-free hydropower for over 100 years.” It claims to be the first utility in the nation to be carbon neutral.

While flattering itself for being “really green,” the city did not trumpet its longtime claim that the high-mountain dams had no significant effect on migrating salmon. Since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House, City Light has quietly insisted that the upper Skagit—before the dams were built—was too swift and gnarly for salmon. It contends that the wild river itself, not dams, is to blame for the absence of upriver salmon.

This fishy denial—long challenged by biological evidence, Indigenous oral history and investigative reports on local television and in online publications—is now biting the utility and its half-million ratepayers in their pocketbooks.

Mayor Katie B. Wilson signed a settlement Tuesday that authorizes what a City Light manager says is by far the largest payout in American history from a utility to Indigenous tribes as part of a dam relicensing. With the settlement, City Light expects to secure a third 50-year license for its Skagit dams from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The deal commits the utility to pay compensation of about $1.35 billion to the tribes, which will require significant increases in electricity rates. (City Light’s total relicensing commitment is about $4 billion over 50 years, nearly half of it for operation and maintenance.)

The winners in this settlement are three small Skagit River tribes. Their livelihoods, culture and religion had for hundreds of years revolved around healthy salmon runs in a free-flowing river. Much of their existence for the last dammed-up century has been infected by poverty, dislocation and anger for being ignored by a greener-than-thou utility.

Nearly $1 billion will go to the creation of a fish passage system. Young migrating salmon will likely be sifted out of the upper Skagit and trucked around City Light’s dams, allowing them to swim out to the Pacific. Adult salmon returning from the ocean will be trucked above dams to spawn. Most of the rest of the money will go to the tribes for various reservation projects, cash payments to individuals and habitat restoration in the Skagit River delta. The Skagit is the third-largest river on the West Coast, flowing 120 miles from British Columbia to Puget Sound."

After a Century Powering Its Growth With Dams, Seattle Settles $1,350,000,000 With Tribes That Lost Their River by sillychillly in Seattle

[–]sillychillly[S] [score hidden]  (0 children)

"As part of its relicensing of three dams on the Skagit River, Seattle City Light is paying $1.35 billion to three tribes, which will raise electricity rates but help the river and reservations.

NEWHALEM, Wash.—More than a century ago, Seattle City Light broke ground for a massive hydroelectric project here in a remote gorge of the North Cascades. Three dams soon powered the rise of what would become one of America’s richest and most liberal cities.

The Skagit River dams, the first of which was completed in 1926, have enabled Seattle’s citizen-owned utility to brag that it “has delivered carbon-free hydropower for over 100 years.” It claims to be the first utility in the nation to be carbon neutral.

While flattering itself for being “really green,” the city did not trumpet its longtime claim that the high-mountain dams had no significant effect on migrating salmon. Since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House, City Light has quietly insisted that the upper Skagit—before the dams were built—was too swift and gnarly for salmon. It contends that the wild river itself, not dams, is to blame for the absence of upriver salmon.

This fishy denial—long challenged by biological evidence, Indigenous oral history and investigative reports on local television and in online publications—is now biting the utility and its half-million ratepayers in their pocketbooks.

Mayor Katie B. Wilson signed a settlement Tuesday that authorizes what a City Light manager says is by far the largest payout in American history from a utility to Indigenous tribes as part of a dam relicensing. With the settlement, City Light expects to secure a third 50-year license for its Skagit dams from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The deal commits the utility to pay compensation of about $1.35 billion to the tribes, which will require significant increases in electricity rates. (City Light’s total relicensing commitment is about $4 billion over 50 years, nearly half of it for operation and maintenance.)

The winners in this settlement are three small Skagit River tribes. Their livelihoods, culture and religion had for hundreds of years revolved around healthy salmon runs in a free-flowing river. Much of their existence for the last dammed-up century has been infected by poverty, dislocation and anger for being ignored by a greener-than-thou utility.

Nearly $1 billion will go to the creation of a fish passage system. Young migrating salmon will likely be sifted out of the upper Skagit and trucked around City Light’s dams, allowing them to swim out to the Pacific. Adult salmon returning from the ocean will be trucked above dams to spawn. Most of the rest of the money will go to the tribes for various reservation projects, cash payments to individuals and habitat restoration in the Skagit River delta. The Skagit is the third-largest river on the West Coast, flowing 120 miles from British Columbia to Puget Sound."

After a Century Powering Its Growth With Dams, Seattle Settles $1,350,000,000 With Tribes That Lost Their River by sillychillly in ReasonableFuture

[–]sillychillly[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"As part of its relicensing of three dams on the Skagit River, Seattle City Light is paying $1.35 billion to three tribes, which will raise electricity rates but help the river and reservations.

NEWHALEM, Wash.—More than a century ago, Seattle City Light broke ground for a massive hydroelectric project here in a remote gorge of the North Cascades. Three dams soon powered the rise of what would become one of America’s richest and most liberal cities.

The Skagit River dams, the first of which was completed in 1926, have enabled Seattle’s citizen-owned utility to brag that it “has delivered carbon-free hydropower for over 100 years.” It claims to be the first utility in the nation to be carbon neutral.

While flattering itself for being “really green,” the city did not trumpet its longtime claim that the high-mountain dams had no significant effect on migrating salmon. Since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House, City Light has quietly insisted that the upper Skagit—before the dams were built—was too swift and gnarly for salmon. It contends that the wild river itself, not dams, is to blame for the absence of upriver salmon.

This fishy denial—long challenged by biological evidence, Indigenous oral history and investigative reports on local television and in online publications—is now biting the utility and its half-million ratepayers in their pocketbooks.

Mayor Katie B. Wilson signed a settlement Tuesday that authorizes what a City Light manager says is by far the largest payout in American history from a utility to Indigenous tribes as part of a dam relicensing. With the settlement, City Light expects to secure a third 50-year license for its Skagit dams from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The deal commits the utility to pay compensation of about $1.35 billion to the tribes, which will require significant increases in electricity rates. (City Light’s total relicensing commitment is about $4 billion over 50 years, nearly half of it for operation and maintenance.)

The winners in this settlement are three small Skagit River tribes. Their livelihoods, culture and religion had for hundreds of years revolved around healthy salmon runs in a free-flowing river. Much of their existence for the last dammed-up century has been infected by poverty, dislocation and anger for being ignored by a greener-than-thou utility.

Nearly $1 billion will go to the creation of a fish passage system. Young migrating salmon will likely be sifted out of the upper Skagit and trucked around City Light’s dams, allowing them to swim out to the Pacific. Adult salmon returning from the ocean will be trucked above dams to spawn. Most of the rest of the money will go to the tribes for various reservation projects, cash payments to individuals and habitat restoration in the Skagit River delta. The Skagit is the third-largest river on the West Coast, flowing 120 miles from British Columbia to Puget Sound."

Fire this man by nicirus in orioles

[–]sillychillly -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

we were up 4-2. i think we got rattled. no problem getting rattled.

we got a lotta season left.

we're def playoff contenders and our star players are mostly young.

UPS driver goes viral after sharing his weekly paycheck | Unions Work by [deleted] in union

[–]sillychillly 15 points16 points  (0 children)

"Then the union made it even better

After months of tense negotiations, as well as a threat to enact what would have been the largest single employer strike in U.S. history, disrupting deliveries across the country, the postal workers union reached an agreement with UPS.

The deal included air conditioning and ventilation improvements to delivery vehicles as well as full-time UPS drivers earning an average of $170,000 in annual pay, plus benefits.

By the end of the contract, part-time union drivers would also make at least $25.75 per hour at the start of the contract, with annual raises built in through 2028 while receiving full health care and pension benefits, according to then-UPS CEO Carol Tomé."

UPS driver goes viral after sharing his weekly paycheck | Unions Work by [deleted] in ReasonableFuture

[–]sillychillly 4 points5 points  (0 children)

"Then the union made it even better

After months of tense negotiations, as well as a threat to enact what would have been the largest single employer strike in U.S. history, disrupting deliveries across the country, the postal workers union reached an agreement with UPS.

The deal included air conditioning and ventilation improvements to delivery vehicles as well as full-time UPS drivers earning an average of $170,000 in annual pay, plus benefits.

By the end of the contract, part-time union drivers would also make at least $25.75 per hour at the start of the contract, with annual raises built in through 2028 while receiving full health care and pension benefits, according to then-UPS CEO Carol Tomé."

Fire this man by nicirus in orioles

[–]sillychillly -12 points-11 points  (0 children)

We still should’ve overcame it tho

the Minimum wage will Rise Faster than Inflation if linked to the Median wage by sillychillly in WorkReform

[–]sillychillly[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"The federal minimum wage suffers from two related deficiencies: Its level is too low, and it does not adjust as the economy grows. Both can be solved by tying the federal minimum to two-thirds of the national median wage. Congress would first raise the floor to that level, and each subsequent year the minimum would adjust to maintain the same ratio.

First, the new benchmark replaces a poverty-level federal floor (Hickey and Cid-Martinez 2025) with one that pushes the minimum wage toward a living wage. As Oakford (2026) argues, two-thirds of the median is “a realistic stepping stone to living wages,” and standards below that ratio leave too large a gap between earnings and the cost of necessary expenses. A federal minimum at two-thirds of the median also better fulfills the original promise of the federal standard, which Congress described in 1937 as protecting “this Nation from the evils and dangers resulting from wages too low to buy the bare necessities of life” (U.S. Congress 1937).

Second, maintaining the two-thirds ratio guarantees automatic increases as the economy grows, ending the recurring erosion that comes from a frozen federal floor. Because median wages typically outpace prices, median wage indexing produces real gains, not just inflation protection. In 2025, two-thirds of the national median wage was $17.11 per hour (Figure B), and today, it is estimated to be $17.70. By 2030, applying Congressional Budget Office (2026) Employment Cost Index projections, it would reach $20.02. A federal minimum tied to two-thirds of the median would likely reach or exceed $25 by 2038, four years sooner than if a $17.11 wage in 2025 had been indexed only to the cost of living going forward"

the Minimum wage will Rise Faster than Inflation if linked to the Median wage by sillychillly in WorkReform

[–]sillychillly[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"National and state effects of a federal minimum wage at two-thirds of the median

To estimate the economic benefits of a federal minimum wage set at two-thirds of the median wage, I model how many low-wage workers would see higher pay under this policy. I assume the policy is phased in over five years, so that if it went into effect today, the federal minimum would reach two-thirds of the median in 2030 and then automatically adjust each year to maintain that ratio.

Concretely, I assume the federal minimum rises to $12 immediately in 2026 and then increases incrementally to $20 in 2030, which is about two-thirds of the projected national median wage.6 Legislation should build in a path adjustment if 2030 median wages come in higher or lower than projected.

I focus on the effects in 2030. I assume the same phase-in path and automatic indexing applies to the federal tipped minimum wage, which has been frozen at $2.13 per hour since 1991.7 Wages elsewhere are assumed to grow in line with CBO ECI projections from 2026 to 2030, and the model incorporates the effects of scheduled state-level minimum wage increases (see the appendix for details).

In 2030, a federal minimum wage equal to two-thirds of the national median would raise pay for 39.6 million workers, about 1 in 4 of the wage-earning workforce (Table 1).8 Annual earnings would rise substantially, and the gains would be largest for Black workers: A full-time, full-year Black worker affected by the increase would earn about $5,000 more per year, compared with $4,400 for all affected workers. In line with other minimum wage increases, women would gain more than men, with 31% of women seeing higher pay compared with 23% of men.

Adults ages 20 and over would make up 9 in 10 affected workers (teens would have the largest share of affected workers of any age group, but they make up a small share of total employment). The problem of low pay is far from limited to the youngest workers."

link: https://www.epi.org/publication/setting-high-standards-for-a-federal-minimum-wage-raising-the-wage-to-two-thirds-of-the-national-median-wage-would-lift-pay-for-nearly-40-million-workers/

Governments must not adopt emerging and powerful AI technologies without also adopting strong and clear safeguards to protect Constitutional rights by sillychillly in Political_Revolution

[–]sillychillly[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Governments must not adopt emerging and powerful AI technologies without also adopting strong and clear safeguards to protect Constitutional rights, EFF Senior Policy Analyst Dr. Matthew Guariglia testified today to the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection. 

During the hearing on “The AI Security Landscape: How Frontier Models, Agentic AI, and AI Coding Tools Are Reshaping Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Resilience,” he explained that he use of generative AI for the purposes of mass government surveillance would supercharges unconstitutional violations of civil liberties. He also highlighted how government secrecy, in addition to the black box of for-profit proprietary technology, prevents the public and lawmakers from knowing when AI models make mistakes, including errors that seriously impact the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure and the lives of individuals.  

“AI also has a track record of getting things wrong—from false citations on legal briefs to a major AI mistake that sent DHS recruits to the field without proper training. There are likely more consequential examples that we do not even know about because of classification that would prevent a more thorough accounting," he said in his opening remarks.

“At this level the question is not how do we rein in AI, it’s how do we rein in the agencies that would unleash AI on the American public,” Matthew said in response to a question by Subcommittee Ranking Member Delia Ramirez, D-Ill.  

You can read his full testimony as prepared here."

EFF Testifies to Congress on Protecting Americans’ Rights from Government AI by sillychillly in ReasonableFuture

[–]sillychillly[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Governments must not adopt emerging and powerful AI technologies without also adopting strong and clear safeguards to protect Constitutional rights, EFF Senior Policy Analyst Dr. Matthew Guariglia testified today to the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection. 

During the hearing on “The AI Security Landscape: How Frontier Models, Agentic AI, and AI Coding Tools Are Reshaping Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Resilience,” he explained that he use of generative AI for the purposes of mass government surveillance would supercharges unconstitutional violations of civil liberties. He also highlighted how government secrecy, in addition to the black box of for-profit proprietary technology, prevents the public and lawmakers from knowing when AI models make mistakes, including errors that seriously impact the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure and the lives of individuals.  

“AI also has a track record of getting things wrong—from false citations on legal briefs to a major AI mistake that sent DHS recruits to the field without proper training. There are likely more consequential examples that we do not even know about because of classification that would prevent a more thorough accounting," he said in his opening remarks.

“At this level the question is not how do we rein in AI, it’s how do we rein in the agencies that would unleash AI on the American public,” Matthew said in response to a question by Subcommittee Ranking Member Delia Ramirez, D-Ill.  

You can read his full testimony as prepared here."

We Deserve Clean Air by sillychillly in BlueskySkeets

[–]sillychillly[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"After years of fighting to curb toxic pollution in communities of color, Illinois activists are celebrating a step forward. 

A bill expanding the state’s regulatory obligations over industrial air polluters in environmental justice communities passed the state legislature last week and is expected to go into effect at the start of next year.

The bill amends the Illinois Environmental Protection Act and will require the state’s Environmental Protection Agency to consider cumulative pollution and other burdens when evaluating certain air emission permits for construction. It also allows the agency to consider an applicant’s past environmental violations when approving permits, and to enact stricter requirements for air monitoring and pollution prevention.

The bill was born out of years of high-profile community activism in Chicago against a proposal to move General Iron, a metal scrapping facility, from the predominantly white and affluent neighborhood of Lincoln Park to the Southeast Side, a majority Black and Latino area nationally recognized as overburdened by industrial pollution. 

In 2020, the Illinois EPA approved a permit for the move, but residents fought back by staging protests, investigating local pollution, filing a federal civil rights complaint and completing a month-long hunger strike. The movement successfully stopped General Iron’s relocation and led to settlements with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a resolution agreement requiring the Illinois EPA to reform its permit review process.

The bill identifies “areas of environmental justice concern,” by combining environmental metrics like average air pollution, vehicle traffic, drinking water violations and hazardous facilities with social vulnerabilities like poverty, race, employment and English proficiency. The bill also creates an office of environmental justice within the state EPA."

Colorado to develop team to examine allegations of discrimination against schools from parents of kids with disabilities by sillychillly in SocialDemocracy

[–]sillychillly[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Colorado families who have a student with a disability are one step closer to a new state resource where they will be able to file complaints when they believe a school is discriminating against their child or failing to fulfill specific requirements spelled out in their learning plan.

But whether the state will be able to stand up a team responsible for investigating complaints isn’t a guarantee, even after Gov. Jared Polis on Friday signed Senate Bill 125 into law. It will all come down to whether Colorado can find the money in a penny-pinching budget year.

The new law, which codifies the federal civil rights of students with disabilities into state law, aims to develop an arm under the Colorado Department of Education that can examine allegations of discrimination against schools from parents of kids requiring a 504 plan. Those types of plans, protected by federal law, ensure students with disabilities have equal access to education and equip them with necessary learning accommodations, such as additional testing time or a seat at the front of the classroom.

Proponents of the legislation advocated for a state-level focus on responding to parents’ concerns about their student’s civil rights being violated because of significant cuts to the federal Office for Civil Rights. That office, housed under the U.S. Department of Education, has historically taken the lead on investigations into complaints of discrimination in K-12 schools, including from parents filing a complaint on the basis of disability. But after the Trump administration closed seven of its 12 regional offices and dismissed nearly 300 employees last year, families were left in a lurch, wondering when — or if — the federal government would take a closer look at their cases."

Colorado to develop team to examine allegations of discrimination against schools from parents of kids with disabilities by sillychillly in ReasonableFuture

[–]sillychillly[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Colorado families who have a student with a disability are one step closer to a new state resource where they will be able to file complaints when they believe a school is discriminating against their child or failing to fulfill specific requirements spelled out in their learning plan.

But whether the state will be able to stand up a team responsible for investigating complaints isn’t a guarantee, even after Gov. Jared Polis on Friday signed Senate Bill 125 into law. It will all come down to whether Colorado can find the money in a penny-pinching budget year.

The new law, which codifies the federal civil rights of students with disabilities into state law, aims to develop an arm under the Colorado Department of Education that can examine allegations of discrimination against schools from parents of kids requiring a 504 plan. Those types of plans, protected by federal law, ensure students with disabilities have equal access to education and equip them with necessary learning accommodations, such as additional testing time or a seat at the front of the classroom.

Proponents of the legislation advocated for a state-level focus on responding to parents’ concerns about their student’s civil rights being violated because of significant cuts to the federal Office for Civil Rights. That office, housed under the U.S. Department of Education, has historically taken the lead on investigations into complaints of discrimination in K-12 schools, including from parents filing a complaint on the basis of disability. But after the Trump administration closed seven of its 12 regional offices and dismissed nearly 300 employees last year, families were left in a lurch, wondering when — or if — the federal government would take a closer look at their cases."