FREEDOMWORKS 07/09/2015

1. Carrying cash is not a crime: DEA stole $44,000 from a law-abiding entrepreneur - by Jason Pye
Vu Do, the owner of two nail salons in New York City, was traveling through John F. Kennedy International Airport in February on his way to California with nearly $44,000 in cash he had saved over a period of 20 years. He intended to loan the money to his two brothers who fell on tough times. Similar to the story of Charles Clarke, as Do was about to board his flight, a DEA agent, according to TechDirt, seized the cash under the suspicion that it was connected to illicit drug activity.
While there are regulations in place that require travelers entering the United States to report cash amounts over $10,000 to Customs agents, which was the subject of a recent Washington Post story, there is no prohibition or reporting requirements for carrying large sums of cash in domestic travel. In short, carrying large sums of cash is not a crime, though it certainly has become risky because of overzealous law enforcement agents. Read More here...

2. Greece: Incompetence, Deceit and Overspending Devastates Country - by Ted Abram
Pity the people of Greece; years of government overspending and deceit has created chaos, destruction and immense human suffering. Greece recently voted for a national referendum against the demands of their creditors...and the chaos, destruction and human suffering will undoubtedly continue.
This Greek tragedy has four major governance lessons, and an important lesson for America, especially young Americans.
Referendum:
A national referendum is a ridiculous means to determine financial and political policies. How can the general public appreciate the complete political, social, and financial implications of their “yes” or “no” vote? They can’t. As H.L. Mencken wrote: *Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance. Read more here... 

3. The Need for Accountability in Education Policy - by Logan Albright
Accountability is one of those words that seems to crop up again and again in education policy. Everybody seems to agree that more accountability is a good thing, but as usual, it’s easy for people with different interpretations of the same word to talk past each other.
The accountability I want to talk about isn’t student accountability - a phrase that is typically used as code for “more testing.” Instead, I’m interested in accountability to the people making education policy, a group that has emerged largely unscathed from their numerous collective blunders. Read more here...
4. 9.12 Grassroots Summit


5. Insurers are seeking huge premium increases because of ObamaCare's unbalanced risk pools - by Jason Pye
Health insurance companies are signaling huge health insurance premium increases ahead of the 2016 open enrollment period. This is due to the droves of older and sicker consumers who signed up for coverage on the ObamaCare Exchanges, according to a report from The New York Times. Requests submitted by insurance are approved by state regulators, such as state insurance commissioners, but the proposed rates reflect a higher utilization of healthcare than expected.
Rate increases vary by state and health plans offered. Oregon has already announced premium increases between 8 percent and nearly 38 percent for a 40-year-old on a Silver plan purchased through the federal Exchange (the state shuttered its state Exchange after an epically disastrous launch). Most increases for this type of plan in Oregon are in the double digits. Read more here...
6. Supreme Court Takes Case Challenging Public-Sector Union Fees - by Michael Greibrok
On their last day in session this term, the Supreme Court justices agreed to hear the case Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association. The plaintiffs are challenging the public-sector “agency shop” arrangements that were validated by the Supreme Court decision Abood v. Detroit Board of Education in 1977.
The case is seen as an avenue to allow the Court to overturn its Abood decision. While the Court does not often overturn its previous decisions, the Abood decision is seen as ripe for review. Just last year, in Harris v. Quinn, the Court ruled that the First Amendment prohibited the collection of agency fees from the plaintiffs and hinted that they would be willing to go further if the right case came before them. Read more here... 
7. Liberty Beats: The Unconventional Generation

8. Cost-savings should be a priority in any Senate justice reform deal8 - by Jason Pye

Several Senate Judiciary Committee members are working on compromise legislation that would combine elements of a prison and reentry reform bill, the CORRECTIONS Act, and a sentencing reform bill, theSmarter Sentencing Act. The committee acted on prison and sentencing reforms, separately, in the last Congress, but neither proposal made it to the Senate floor for a vote.
The CORRECTIONS Act, sponsored by Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.),focuses on prison and reentry reforms designed to reduce the likelihood of an offender entering back into the system. Modeled after reforms implemented in Texas and Rhode Island, the bill requires regular risk assessments of eligible nonviolent offenders and classification of whether they are low-, medium- or high-risk of reoffending. Those who complete programs designed to lower their chances of reoffending can earn time credits that will allow them to serve up to 25 percent of their remaining sentence under community supervision. Read more here...
Iris Somberg
Press Secretary, FreedomWorks