KANSAS REFINERY WILL SPEND MILLIONS TO CLEAN UP ITS ACT

The following excerpt is from an EPA e-mail:

The following excerpt is from the EPA website:

“WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Coffeyville Resources Refining & Marketing (CRRM) has agreed to pay a civil penalty of more than $970,000 and invest more than $4.25 million on new pollution controls and $6.5 million in operating costs to resolve alleged violations of air, superfund and community right-to-know laws at its Coffeyville, Kan. refinery. The settlement will benefit the environment and human health by requiring new and upgraded pollution controls, more stringent emission limits, and more aggressive leak-detection and repair practices to reduce emissions from refinery equipment and process units. Sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx), two pollutants emitted from refineries, can cause respiratory problems like asthma and are significant contributors to acid rain, smog and haze.

“The Clean Air Act is designed to protect people’s health from emissions of harmful pollutants,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Today’s settlement will protect residents living near the facility and ensure that the necessary pollution controls are installed to protect the residents of southeastern Kansas in the future.”

“This settlement puts CRRM on a level playing field with the more than 100 petroleum refineries that have agreed to implement aggressive pollution control measures, thereby reducing the threats posed by harmful emissions to area residents,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, assistant attorney general for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. “The agreement reaffirms our commitment to ensure that the petroleum refining industry complies with the nation’s Clean Air Act.”

The settlement resolves alleged violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA), Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), and Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA).Coffeyville allegedly made modifications to its refinery that increased emissions without first obtaining pre-construction permits and installing required pollution control equipment. The CAA requires major sources of air pollution to obtain such permits before making changes that would result in a significant emissions increase of any pollutant. The settlement also resolves violations in which CRRM failed to timely notify state and local emergency responders of releases of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide from the refinery, as required by the CERCLA and EPCRA.

Once fully implemented, the pollution controls required by the settlement will annually reduce an estimated 200 tons of NOx emissions and more than 110 tons of SO2 emissions. The settlement will also reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, carbon monoxide and other pollutants that affect air quality. CRRM has also agreed to perform a voluntary environmental project at the refinery valued at more than $1.2 million. The project will benefit the environment and surrounding communities by reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds and hydrogen sulfide, reducing the frequency of future acid gas flaring incidents, and conserve 15 million gallons of water each year that would previously have come from the Verdigris River.

The settlement with CRRM is the 30th under an EPA initiative to improve compliance among petroleum refiners and to reduce significant amounts of air pollution from refineries nationwide through comprehensive, company-wide settlements. The first of EPA’s settlements was reached in 2000, and with today’s settlement, 107 refineries operating in 32 states and territories – more than 90 percent of the total refining capacity in the United States – are under judicially enforceable agreements to significantly reduce emissions of pollutants. As a result of the settlement agreements, refiners have agreed to invest more than $6 billion in new pollution controls designed to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and other pollutants by more than 360,000 tons per year.

CRRM’s refinery has the capacity to refine more than 115,000 barrels of crude oil per day, producing gasoline, diesel fuels, and propane.

The State of Kansas has joined in the settlement and will receive a portion of the civil penalty.

The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and court approval.”

U.S. JORDAN JOINT FORUM ON ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNICAL COOPERATION

The following excerpt is from a U.S. State Department e-mail:

“Communique of the U.S.-Jordan Joint Forum on Environmental Technical Cooperation
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
March 6, 2012
Below is the text of a Joint Communiqué issued following the Third Meeting of the United States – Jordan Joint Forum on Environmental Technical Cooperation held in Amman, Jordan, on March 4, 2012.
Begin Text:
The United States – Jordan Joint Forum on Environmental Technical Cooperation (“Joint Forum”) met today in Amman, Jordan. Our two governments announced the establishment of the Joint Forum in 2000 when we issued our Joint Statement on Environmental Technical Cooperation (Joint Statement) in association with the U.S. Jordan Free Trade Agreement.

We are pleased to convene this Joint Forum in Amman. We are happy to report that we are making significant progress toward achieving the goal we identified almost 12 years ago in our Joint Statement to "advance environmental protection in Jordan.”
We are especially pleased at the opportunity today’s meeting provided for members of the public both to hear about the ways in which the United States and Jordan are cooperating to preserve and protect Jordan’s environment and to ask questions about and provide input on our current and future work program. The entire meeting was open to the public and exemplified our commitment to transparent, democratic, and participatory processes.
We were pleased to hear reports today detailing the status of cooperative environmental projects. Representatives from Jordan’s Ministry of Environment and Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Interior, the U.S. Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development described a range of projects they are implementing in Jordan that benefit Jordan’s environment and its people. We are impressed with the breadth and scope of these cooperative activities.

Finally, we signed a new Work Program that lays out a road map for environmental cooperation between the United States and Jordan through 2013. In this new Work Program, we express our intention to focus our cooperation on creating green jobs and other economic opportunities that promote green growth and sustainable development. Under this organizing principle, we identify four priority areas for cooperation: (1) institutional and policy strengthening for effective implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, including natural resource-related laws; (2) biodiversity conservation and improved management of protected areas and other ecologically important ecosystems; (3) improved private sector environmental performance; and (4) environmental education, transparency, and public participation in environmental decision-making and enforcement.

Today, the United States and Jordan reaffirmed our strong commitment to work together to preserve and protect the environment. Our cooperative environmental work tangibly demonstrates that economic growth and environmental protection are mutually supportive.”

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE LEON PANETTA SAYS IRAN BIGGEST LOOSER WHEN ASSAD FALLS

The following excerpt is from the Department of Defense American Forces Press Service website e-mail:

"Iran Will Be Biggest Loser When Assad Falls, Panetta Says

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, March 7, 2012 - Iran will be the biggest loser when Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime falls, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta told the Senate Armed Services Committee today.

Panetta and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified before the committee on the situation in Syria this morning.

The Syrian people want what the people of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya have – a chance at freedom and a democratic future, the secretary said. Assad and his people are indiscriminately killing those pushing for peaceful change in the nation. The fighting in the country is causing a humanitarian crisis of the first order, and thousands of Syrians are fleeing from the country to Jordan, Iraq and Turkey.

A stable Syria is vital to the Middle East and the world, Panetta said. "But perhaps most notably, Syria is a pivotal country for Iran," the secretary said. "Syria is Iran's only state ally in the region and is crucial to Iran's efforts to support those militants throughout the region who threaten Israel and threaten regional stability."

The unrest in Syria already has weakened Iran's position in the Middle East, and it will be further weakened if the regime falls, the secretary said. "As groups such as Hamas distance themselves from the Assad regime, Iran is quickly becoming the Assad regime's lone backer," he added. "This shows the world the hypocrisy of Tehran."

Panetta told the senators that the United States is on the side of the Syrian people. "They must know that the international community has not underestimated either their suffering or their impatience," he said. "We all wish there was a clear and unambiguous way forward to directly influence the events in Syria. That, unfortunately, is not the case."

The only clear path is for the international community to act as one against the regime, the secretary said.

Dempsey told the panel that Syria's internal convulsions are having consequences. In addition to the refugee problem, the general said, "we also need to be alert to the movement of extremists and other hostile actors seeking to exploit the situation."

"And we need to be especially alert to the fate of Syria's chemical and biological weapons," the chairman added. "They must stay exactly where they are."

The U.S. military role to date has been limited to sharing information with regional partners, Dempsey said. "But, should we be called on to help secure U.S. interests in other ways, we will be ready," he told the senators. "We maintain an agile regional and global posture. We have solid military relationships with every country on Syria's borders."

And the military is prepared to provide U.S. government leaders with options, Dempsey said. "All options will be judged in terms of their suitability, their feasibility and their acceptability," he added. "We have a further responsibility to articulate risk and the potential implications for our other global commitments."

Panetta told the senators that unilateral U.S. action in Syria does not make sense.

"As secretary of defense, before I recommend that we put our sons and daughters in uniform in harm's way, I've got to make very sure that we know what the mission is," he said. "I've got to make very sure that we know whether we can achieve that mission, at what price, and whether or not it'll make matters better or worse. Those are the considerations that I have to engage in."

The United States needs to build the same type of coalition that worked in Libya, Dempsey said.

The senators asked Dempsey specifically about an air campaign over Syria. "We've demonstrated the capability to penetrate air defense systems for a discrete purpose and a very limited amount of time," he said. "We still have that capability." To conduct a sustained campaign, the U.S. military would have to suppress Syria's air defense.

"In closed session, we do have an estimate based on gaming and modeling of how long it would take to do that, given the density and the sophistication of their air defense system," Dempsey said. "But it would be an extended period of time, and a great number of aircraft."

Such an air campaign would be led by the United States, at least initially, Dempsey said, noting that only U.S. forces have the electronic warfare capabilities to take down those defenses."

CLIMATE CHANGE AND SNOW ON MT. WASHINGTON

The picture (right) and excerpt below are from the National Science Foundation website:

“The Snows of Mount Washington
Climate and environmental change in the U.S. northeast corridor
March 2, 2012

Kilimanjaro is a snow-covered mountain 19,710 feet high, and is said to be the highest mountain in Africa. Close to the western summit there is the dried and frozen carcass of a leopard. No one has explained what the leopard was seeking at that altitude.
---Ernest Hemingway, The Snows of Kilimanjaro

It's March, but a big snow has fallen in the U.S. Northeast for perhaps the first time this winter.
What's going on in traditional New England "snow towns" like Boston, Burlington and Brattleboro--and atop New Hampshire's famed Mount Washington, which is often snow-covered through July?
Is this seemingly snowless winter a blip on the radar screen, or a harbinger of things to come?
What will Earth's climate be like in a century, a decade or or sooner? And what will it be like where you live, if you're in Massachusetts, Vermont or other Northeastern states?
Or in Africa?

National Science Foundation- (NSF) funded scientists are working to find answers.
NSF recently awarded 29 grants to study the consequences of climate variability and change.
The grants were made through the interagency Decadal and Regional Climate Prediction Using Earth System Models (EaSM) program, co-funded by NSF, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy.

"The EaSM projects will expand the limits of our understanding of Earth's climate system," says Tim Killeen, NSF assistant director for Geosciences.

"They will lead to better ways of predicting climate change. The knowledge being developed will result in improved, science-based decision-making about our common future."
The consequences of climate variability and change are more immediate and profound than previously anticipated, scientists believe.

Prolonged droughts; increasing stresses on natural and managed ecosystems; loss of agricultural and forest productivity; degraded ocean and permafrost habitats; global sea-level rise and the rapid retreat of ice sheets and glaciers; and changes in ocean currents have shown that climate variability and change may have significant effects on decade and shorter time scales.

The effects, researchers have found, for humans and other animals, plants and physical systems such as the oceans may be far-reaching.

EaSM awardees such as scientist Charles J. Vorosmarty of the City University of New York and colleagues are studying the alterations taking place in the U.S. Northeast.
"This region reflects many of the changes across the nation's landscapes and watersheds," says Vorosmarty. "Because of its long history of development, it provides a unique lens to look at options for managing large-scale natural systems."

From early settlement to deforestation and land-clearing, to industrialization, urbanization and mega-city growth, and to post-industrialization, the region has been transformed.
"Such human actions will continue," says Vorosmarty, "and likely be more difficult to manage in a rapidly changing climate and environment.

"We will have major challenges trying to balance such needs as improving energy efficiency, maintaining water quality and deciding how best to manage the billions of dollars that will be needed for civil and private infrastructure."

Because the atmosphere, land and aquatic systems, rivers and streams, and the ocean are closely linked through water and biogeochemical cycles, change to one has the potential for system-wide feedbacks and unintended consequences.
"Scientists' current ability to understand human-environment interactions on a regional basis--and across several decades--is limited," Vorosmarty says, "as are tools for environmental planners to formulate sound decisions."
The EaSM team is working to develop a Northeast Regional Earth System Model that improves the ability to forecast implications of planning decisions on the region's environment, energy use and economy through the 21st century.

"The model will be the first to integrate the human causes of decadal climate change with land and aquatic ecosystems, and with the ‘ecosystem services' they provide to all of us, as well as with socioeconomic effects and management and policy decisions," says Elizabeth Blood, program director in NSF's Biological Sciences Directorate, which supports Vorosmarty's award.

The EaSM grants are also funded by NSF's Directorates for Geosciences, Mathematical & Physical Sciences, Computer & Information Science & Engineering, and Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences and its Office of Cyberinfrastructure and Office of Polar Programs.

"The research will provide new insights," says Blood, "into the complex links among human and ecological systems and critical Earth processes operating on decadal and regional scales."

The model is being used to test whether there are significant consequences of worldwide and nationwide human decisions on the northeastern region's environment.
"We hope that our research will be a major step forward in understanding the state of large, interacting human and natural systems, with results that can be used to inform policy decisions," says Vorosmarty.
To look forward, however, one must first look back.

As a first step, the colonial hydrology of the northeastern U.S. has been reconstructed by Vorosmarty and other geoscientists, biological scientists and social scientists.
Their findings, which extend to the year 1600, are a new way of uncovering the past.
Throughout American history, water resources have played an integral role in shaping patterns of human settlement and networks of biological and economic exchange.
The scientists divided their study area into three geographic and socio-political sub-regions: New England, the Middle Colonies and the Chesapeake.

They then looked at the ways in which variables such as soil, vegetation and climate combined with socio-political factors to influence each sub-region's hydrologic environment.
In New England, for example, close-knit religious communities with strong central governments concentrated their economic efforts on fur-trading and timber extraction.
The Chesapeake region, on the other hand, was settled largely by young, unskilled men who cleared trees and planted tobacco fencerow-to-fencerow. Their efforts caused extensive erosion, which dramatically altered rivers.

The Middle Colonies were characterized by diverse social, cultural and religious traditions, and by feudal-style estate agriculture.

These past activities need to be integrated into today's analyses of land-cover change and climate change, says Vorosmarty. "The key lesson is that the effect of decisions made long ago lasted for hundreds of years. The future will hold the same."

New information from the Northeast Regional Earth System Model will allow researchers like Vorosmarty to diagnose the health of the regional environment, including its climate.
"What direction that's heading," says Vorosmarty, "is a weathervane for us as well. If we want to change where it's pointing, the time is now."

Whether on New Hampshire's Mount Washington or Africa's Mount Kilimanjaro, whither the snows go, so, too, may we.”

SEC SAYS INVESTMENT ADVISER USED INVESTOR MONEY TO BUY MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR PROPERTY

The following excerpt is from the SEC website:

SEC Obtains Asset Freeze Against Long Island Investment Adviser Charged with Defrauding Investors
“Washington, D.C., March 6, 2012 – The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced it has charged a New York-based investment adviser with defrauding investors in five offshore funds and using some of their money to buy himself a multi-million dollar beach resort property on Long Island.

The SEC alleges that Brian Raymond Callahan of Old Westbury, N.Y., raised more than $74 million from at least two dozen investors since 2005, promising them their money would be invested in liquid assets. Instead, Callahan diverted investor money to his brother-in-law’s beach resort project that was facing foreclosure, and in return received unsecured, illiquid promissory notes. Callahan also used investor funds to pay other investors and make a down payment on the $3.35 million unit he purchased at his brother-in-law’s real estate project.

According to the SEC’s complaint filed yesterday in federal court in Islip, N.Y., Callahan operated the five funds through his investment advisory firms Horizon Global Advisors Ltd. and Horizon Global Advisors LLC. He used the promissory notes to hide his misuse of investor funds. The promissory notes overstated the amount of money diverted to the real estate project. For instance, in 2011, Callahan received $14.5 million in promissory notes in exchange for only $3.3 million he provided to his brother-in-law. The inflated promissory notes allowed Callahan to overstate the amount of assets he was managing and inflate his management fees by 800 percent or more.

“Callahan misled investors in his funds with false promises, and he enriched himself at their expense when he diverted fund assets for his personal use and pocketed inflated management fees,” said Antonia Chion, Associate Director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.

According to the SEC’s complaint, Callahan refused to testify in the SEC’s investigation and recently informed investors about the investigation, but gave false assurances that no laws had been broken. Callahan also misled investors by not disclosing that in 2009, the Financial Regulatory Industry Authority barred him from associating with any FINRA member.

The SEC charges Callahan and his advisory firms with violating federal antifraud laws, specifically Sections 17(a)(1), (2) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5(a), (b) and (c) thereunder, and Sections 206(1), 206(2) and 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Rule 206(4)-8 thereunder. The SEC is seeking preliminary and permanent injunctions against Callahan and his firms, return of ill-gotten gains with interest, and financial penalties.
At the SEC’s request, and after a court hearing yesterday, the court granted a temporary restraining order freezing the assets of Callahan and his advisory firms, enjoining them from violating the antifraud provisions, and granting other emergency relief.

The SEC’s investigation has been conducted by Holly Pal, Linda French, Osman Handoo, Ann Rosenfield, Natalie Lentz and Lisa Deitch of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. The SEC’s litigation is being led by Dean Conway.

The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the British Virgin Islands Financial Services Commission and the Bermuda Monetary Authority.”

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE PANNETTA SAYS U.S. ISRAELI RELATIONSHIP GROWS STRONGER

Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta delivers remarks at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., March 6, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo

The following picture and excerpt are from a U.S. Department of Defense American Forces Press Service e-mail:


“Panetta: U.S.-Israel Partnership Will Become Closer
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, March 6, 2012 - Defense cooperation between the U.S. and Israel is already close, and it will get closer as both countries face the threats of the future, Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said today.

Panetta spoke to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee here and said the United States and Israel will work closely together in the face of the dangers that confront both countries.

"The security bonds between Israel and the United States will only grow as America goes through a historic turning point after a decade of war," he said.

In fact, defense cooperation will grow even with U.S. defense budget reductions. Panetta delivered "an ironclad pledge" that the United States will provide whatever support is necessary so Israel maintains military superiority over any state or coalition of states, as well as non-state actors, in the region.

"Israel is surrounded by neighbors that have waged wars against it," he said. "The Israeli people have been subjected to rocket attacks, to terrorism, and they live in a world where larger nations have threatened to wipe them off the map."

Supporting Israel is the right thing to do and isin America's best interests, Panetta said.
"We have no better ally in this critical region of the world," he said. "A strong Israel deters potential aggressors. A strong Israel sends a message to the region and to the world that America will not waver in defense of our allies."

The U.S. has increased security assistance to Israel substantially. This year, the budget calls for $31 billion in assistance to the nation, up from $2.5 billion in fiscal 2009.
"This is part of a 10-year, $30 billion commitment to Israel's security," Panetta said. "Over and above this commitment, the President has committed more than $650 million in DOD funding for Israeli missile defense."

The U.S. is working with Israel to develop an anti-missile system to address the threat from all levels. The system will deal with short-range defense to counter the continued threat of rocket barrages from Gaza. The United States provided more than $200 million for the Iron Dome rocket defense system.

"Iron Dome is fielded, it is operational, and this new system has already saved the lives of Israeli civilians with over 30 real world successful hit-to-kill intercepts in 2011," Panetta said.

The two nations are also working on medium range missile defense, developing David's Sling, and upper tier ballistic missile defense with the Arrow-3 system.
"We are also working to upgrade Israel's Patriot missile system and batteries," he said. "We are committed to moving forward with all of these systems and more -- because as the Prime Minister told me -- these missile shields do not start wars, they prevent wars."
The secretary noted the Israeli air force will receive the world's most sophisticated warplane -- the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

"The F-35 is the future of tactical aviation for the United States military, and providing Israel with this advanced fighter makes it the only country in the Middle East with a true fifth-generation fighter capacity, upholding Israel's edge not just now but for many years to come," the secretary said.
The two militaries will not only share equipment, but also operational concepts. U.S. and Israeli service members will build greater capability and improve partnership through realistic exercises, joint training and personnel exchanges, Panetta said.
"Each year, U.S. and Israeli forces take part in numerous exercises," he said. One example is missile defense exercise Austere Challenge that this year will include more than 3,000 U.S. troops.

"This kind of cooperation is mutually beneficial to both the United States and Israel. It has made both of our militaries stronger," Panetta said.
The secretary pointed out that cooperation is not just a one-way street. It was an Israeli company that met the call to help protect American soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan by surging production of up-armor kits for Humvees and mine-resistant vehicles.

"The kits were made in an Israeli kibbutz, and they saved the lives of our men and women in uniform," Panetta said.

FORMER VA OFFICIAL AND WIFE SENTENCED FOR CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD VA, SBA

The following excerpt is from the Department of Justice Antitrust website:

"WASHINGTON — The former associate director of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Consolidated Mail Outpatient Pharmacy in Hines, Ill., his wife and their temporary staffing company were sentenced today for their participation in a conspiracy to defraud the VA and the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Department of Justice announced.

William J. Brandt, the associate director of the VA facility from 1996 until April 2007, his wife, Esperanza A. Brandt, and Pronto Staffing Inc. were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Chicago by Judge Milton I. Shadur. William Brandt was sentenced to serve 60 months in prison and Esperanza Brandt was sentenced to serve 24 months of probation. The Brandts and Pronto Staffing were also sentenced to pay $400,000 in restitution jointly and severally.

On May 9, 2009, the Brandts and Pronto each pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. William Brandt also pleaded guilty to one charge of wire fraud, which deprived the VA and the public of his honest services. The Outpatient Pharmacy in Hines, one of seven regional VA mail-out pharmacies, currently processes and sends out more than 90,000 prescriptions each day to veterans.

The Brandts and Pronto admitted to conspiring with others to commit wire fraud in a scheme to fraudulently allow Pronto to provide temporary pharmacists to the Outpatient Pharmacy where William Brandt worked and supervised pharmacists. Pronto was created by the Brandts in 2000 to provide pharmacists to the Hines Outpatient Pharmacy. The company later sought SBA certification as a woman-owned, minority-owned small disadvantaged business and 8(a) Program participant. As part of the conspiracy, the Brandts agreed to allow another company to fraudulently use Pronto's SBA status to bid on contracts set aside for SBA and 8(a) participants.

William Brandt also pleaded guilty to wire fraud for making materially false misrepresentations to the VA and other government officials and hiding his involvement with Pronto. Brandt claimed that Pronto was solely managed by his wife in order to avoid conflict of interest laws governing federal employees. During the course of the scheme, William Brandt, working with others, secretly agreed that the billing rates charged to the VA for certain pharmacists provided by Pronto should be increased. Between 2000 and 2007, the Brandts and other co-conspirators used Pronto to bill the VA for more than $8 million in services to the Hines Outpatient Pharmacy facility. The department said that this conduct deprived the VA and the public of Brandt's honest service.

Four individuals and one company have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced in this investigation. On June 30, 2008, Joel M. Gostolmelsky, the former director of the VA facility, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and to accepting illegal gratuities in connection with awarding staffing and supply contracts, including contracts for temporary pharmacists. On Oct. 7, 2010, Gostolmelsky was sentenced to serve five months in prison and to pay $49,484 in restitution. On Aug. 13, 2009, Stephanie D. Blackmon and a temporary staffing company she owned, Patriot Services Inc., pleaded guilty to making a false statement to the SBA. On Sept. 28, 2010, Blackmon was sentenced to pay a $3,000 criminal fine and Patriot was sentenced to pay a $5,000 criminal fine.

The investigation of unlawful conduct concerning the VA's Consolidated Mail Outpatient Pharmacies was conducted jointly by the Department of Justice Antitrust Division's Chicago Field Office and the VA's Office of Inspector General. The SBA's Office of Inspector General, the Department of Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the U.S. Secret Service assisted in the investigation.”

ASSISTANT AG PEREZ TALKS BULLYING ON ANOKA-HENNEPIN CONFERENCE CALL

The following excerpt is from the U.S. Department of Justice website:

“Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez Speaks on Anoka-Hennepin Conference Call~ Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Good Morning.   Joining me today is Russlynn Ali, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the Department of Education, and Greg Brooker, Civil Chief at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Minnesota.   Greg and Russlynn have been great partners in this effort to enforce the civil rights of students to attend schools free from bullying and harassment.

Education is a great equalizer.   Yet, students cannot learn if they are afraid to go to school.  Students cannot learn if they are being harassed and threatened.   Students cannot learn if they are not free to be themselves.   Students cannot learn if they feel that school administrators can’t and don’t protect them.

Bullying cannot be a rite of passage in our nation’s schools.   Instead, our schools must be safe and nurturing environments that promote learning and full participation by all students.   As a parent of three students in public school, I realize how important it is for children to be free from fear so that they can learn and thrive in school every day.

This case is about ensuring equal educational opportunity for all students in the Anoka-Hennepin school District.   The Departments of Justice and Education, together with six student plaintiffs and the Anoka-Hennepin School District, filed a proposed Consent Decree last night that resolves claims of sex-based harassment in middle and high schools in the district by creating a safe, nurturing learning environment for everyone.   The departments investigated a complaint that the learning environment in the schools was unsafe and unwelcoming for students who did not conform to gender stereotypes.   In Anoka-Hennepin, students were afraid to go to school because they were repeatedly harassed.   Some students faced threats, physical violence, derogatory language and other forms of harassment on a daily basis.   As a result, some students stopped attending school for periods of time, dropped out or contemplated or attempted suicide.   Across the District, students lost their will to learn.

The consent decree follows an extensive joint investigation by the departments.   Our attorneys interviewed over 60 individuals, including current and former students, parents, teachers and district staff and administrators, and reviewed 7,000 pages of documents.

The consent decree is a comprehensive blueprint for sustainable reform that will enhance the district’s policies, training and other efforts to ensure that every student in the district is free from sex-based harassment. The consent decree will build on the district’s existing anti-harassment efforts to help to create an environment where all students feel safe in school, are free from harassment, and can be themselves.

Under the proposed consent decree the district will:
Retain an expert consultant in the area of sex-based harassment to review the district’s policies and procedures concerning harassment;
Develop and implement a comprehensive plan for preventing and addressing student-on-student sex-based harassment at the middle and high schools;
Enhance and improve its training of faculty, staff, and students on sex-based harassment;
Hire or appoint a Title IX Coordinator to ensure proper implementation of the district’s sex-based harassment policies and procedures and district compliance with Title IX;
Retain an expert consultant in the area of mental health to address the needs of students who are victims of harassment;
Improve its system for maintaining records of investigations and responding to allegations of harassment;
Conduct ongoing monitoring and evaluations of its anti-harassment efforts; and
Submit annual compliance reports to the departments.

The district has been very cooperative with our investigation and throughout our negotiations.  The district has been taking steps to address the harassment and concerns about the learning environment in its schools.   Last month, the district adopted a Respectful Learning Environment Curriculum policy, which sets forth the district’s commitment to affirm the dignity and self worth of all students regardless of their background.   This was a very important step forward in the effort to establish a safe, inclusive and nurturing learning environment for all students.  We will continue to work with the district to assist with implementation of the consent decree.   We will monitor compliance with the consent decree for the next five years to sustain a culture change and promote a supportive learning environment.  Culture changes takes time, but I am confident it is already happening in Anoka-Hennepin and will continue to happen.

Through our consent decree, it is our hope that Anoka-Hennepin, Minnesota’s largest school district educating nearly 40,000 students in 37 schools, will become a model for other school districts in its efforts to address sex-based and other types of prohibited harassment.

I also want to thank the students and others who came forward in this case.   Their courage and insights were invaluable.   As Margaret Mead said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” A group of courageous students have indeed changed the world.    The decree explicitly provides for opportunities for student involvement and input into the district’s ongoing anti-harassment efforts.

This administration is committed to combating harassment and bullying.   Where we see barriers to educational opportunities, we work aggressively to break down those barriers.  In Tehachapi, Calif., following the death of Seth Walsh, a gay student who took his own life, we worked with Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights on an agreement with the school district to amend its policies and provide training to address and prevent sex-based harassment.      At South Philadelphia High School, we engaged in a comprehensive consent decree to address the severe and pervasive harassment of Asian American students.   And in Owatonna, Minn., we entered a settlement agreement to resolve an investigation into the racial and national origin harassment and disproportionate discipline of Somali-American students at Owatonna High School.   Last year, the Department of Education produced a comprehensive guidance on bullying.  We will use every tool in our law enforcement arsenal to ensure that all students have access to equal educational opportunity.

We look forward to working with the district to ensure that all its students are able to learn in a safe and supportive environment."

EXPORT-IMPORT BANK EXPANDS PRESENCE TO FOUR MAJOR U.S. CITIES

The following excerpt is from a Export-Import Bank e-mail:

EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES TO ESTABLISH FULL-TIME PRESENCE IN ATLANTA, DETROIT, MINNEAPOLIS, SEATTLE
Financing for U.S. exporters with focus on small business    

 

Detroit, Mich. – Today at the Detroit Economic Club, Fred P. Hochberg, the chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank), announced that Ex-Im Bank will establish a new full-time presence in four U.S. cities by this summer. Bank staff, which are currently being recruited for the new positions, will be based in Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, and Seattle. This will provide local small business exporters with enhanced access to Ex-Im Bank products and services. 

“Ex-Im Bank wants to provide small businesses access to export financing for their export sales,” said Chairman Hochberg. “Exports are a true bright spot in our economic recovery, and having additional field staff in four cities will help ensure that more U.S. businesses are reaching international markets.” 

“More Michigan exports mean more Michigan jobs,” said U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, a member of the President’s Export Council under both Presidents Bush and Obama. “Helping Michigan small businesses reach new markets is absolutely one of the best ways to strengthen our economy. There is still a lot of work to be done, but with our auto industry coming back, Detroit welcoming the country’s first-ever satellite patent office and now this new export center, good news is happening in Michigan."

“Last month, I joined President Obama during his visit to Everett when he highlighted the importance of the Export-Import Bank,” said Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn. “We welcome their new office in our city, the opening of which is evidence of Seattle’s resilient economic force in our region. With more than 95 percent of the world's consumers living outside the United States, it is vital that Washington businesses - both large and small - explore international markets.”

“Growing local jobs by expanding exports is one of our key regional economic development strategies,” said Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak. “Before now, the Export-Import Bank was the only member of the Federal export team that we were missing here in Minneapolis–Saint Paul. We asked the Obama Administration to fill that gap, and they listened. Now expert advisors on export financing tools and export order insurance will be right here for easy access by Minneapolis–Saint Paul companies. Exports support more than 117,000 jobs in our region, and the Export-Import Bank full-time presence in Minneapolis will only help us grow that number.” 

About Ex-Im Bank:

Ex-Im Bank is an independent federal agency that helps create and maintain U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. In the past five years, Ex-Im Bank has earned for U.S. taxpayers $1.9 billion above the cost of operations. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees, export-credit insurance and financing to help foreign buyers purchase U.S. goods and services.

Ex-Im Bank approved $32.7 billion in total authorizations in FY 2011 -- an all-time Ex-Im record. This total includes more than $6 billion directly supporting small-business export sales -- also an Ex-Im record. Ex-Im Bank's total authorizations are supporting an estimated $41 billion in U.S. export sales and approximately 290,000 American jobs in communities across the country."  

ASSISTANT SECRETARY JEFFREY FELTMAN ADDRESSES CRISIS IN SYRIA

The following excerpt is from a State Department e-mail:

Syria: The Crisis and Its Implications
TestimonyJeffrey D. Feltman
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Near Eastern AffairsWashington, DC
March 1, 2012
ASSISTANT SECRETARY FELTMAN: Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Kerry, Ranking Member Lugar, distinguished members of the committee, thank you for holding this important hearing.

I appeared before your regional subcommittee in November to discuss the crisis in Syria. And since that time, our European friends have joined us in sanctioning the Central Bank of Syria, impeding the financing of the regime's brutal crackdown. The E.U. has completed its implementation of its embargo on oil purchases from Syria, halting a third of Bashar's government revenues.

The Arab League suspended Syria's membership, with many Arab states downgrading diplomatic relations and freezing Syrian bank accounts. The Arab League put forth a political transition plan for Syria. Over 137 countries -- excuse me -- supported a UN General Assembly resolution condemning the Syrian regime's violence and supporting the Arab League transition plan.

More than 60 countries and institutions met in Tunis as Friends of the Syrian People to endorse the Arab transition plan, to demand an immediate end to the violence, and to commit to practical steps to address the Syrian crisis. The Syrian opposition in Tunis articulated a clear, credible transition plan and addressed minority fears directly and convincingly.

We announced $10 million in immediate humanitarian assistance, with millions more from other countries. The UN, the Arab League have appointed a joint high-profile envoy, Kofi Annan, with a mandate from the Arab League initiative and the UN General Assembly resolution. And just this morning, the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva overwhelmingly passed a strong resolution, which is the council's fourth, essentially describing the situation in Syria as a manmade humanitarian disaster. And we all know the identity of the man responsible for that disaster.

Now, these are just some of the examples of regional and international resolve. But nevertheless, as both of you have described, we've also seen that the Assad regime has intensified its vicious campaign of attacks against the Syrian people. The situation is, frankly, horrific, including indiscriminate artillery fire against entire neighborhoods, and today's reports from Homs are truly alarming.

Large numbers of Syrians are living every day under siege, deprived of basic necessities including food, clean water and medical supplies. Women and children are wounded and dying for lack of treatment. Innocent people are detained and tortured, and their families left to fear the worst.

Yet, despite the regime's brutality, the people of Syria demonstrate enormous courage. Their determination to continue protesting for their rights, mostly still peaceful protests, is an inspiration and a testimony to the human spirit.

Now, as assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs watching the upheavals in the Arab world, I'm humble enough to say that we don't know for sure when the tipping point, the breaking point will come in Syria. But it will come.
The demise of the Assad regime is inevitable. It's important that the tipping point for the regime be reached quickly, because the longer the regime assaults the Syrian people, the greater the chances of all-out war in a failed state.

All of the elements of U.S. policy towards Syria are channeled toward accelerating the arrival of that tipping point. As I referred to at the start, through the Friends of the Syrian People group, we are translating international consensus into action.

We are galvanizing international partners to implement more effective sanctions and to deepen the regime's isolation. We're supporting the Arab League's and now the UN General Assembly's call for an immediate transition in Syria. We're moving ahead with humanitarian assistance for the Syrian people, demanding that attacks cease and access be granted. And we're engaging with the Syrian opposition on their vision for Syria's future, a proud and democratic Syria that upholds the rights and responsibilities of all of its citizens regardless of their religion, their gender or their ethnicity.

Now, together, we're working to persuade frightened communities inside Syria that their interests are best served by helping to build that better Syria, not by casting their lot with a losing regime, a corrupt and abusive regime which has been a malignant blight in the Middle East for far too long. The goal of the opposition and the Friends of the Syrian People alike is as follows: a Syrian-led political transition to democratic government based on the rule of law and the will of the people with protection of minority rights.
I would like to close my opening statement by echoing this committee's praise of my fellow witness and friend, Ambassador Robert Ford.

Ambassador Ford's courageous actions on the ground in Syria these past months have been a great credit to him, to the foreign service, and to the United States. He repeatedly put himself in harm's way to make it clear that the United States stands with the people of Syria and their dream of a better future. And I want to thank this committee for its leadership in supporting his confirmation.

FORMER CHAIRMAN STANFORD INTERNATIONAL BANK CONVICTED IN $7 BILLION FRAUD SCHEME

The following excerpt is from the Department of Justice website:

Tuesday, March 6, 2012
"Allen Stanford Convicted in Houston for Orchestrating $7 Billion Investment Fraud Scheme
WASHINGTON – A Houston federal jury today convicted Robert Allen Stanford, the former Board of Directors Chairman of Stanford International Bank (SIB), for orchestrating a 20-year investment fraud scheme in which he misappropriated $7 billion from SIB to finance his personal businesses.

The guilty verdict was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas; FBI Assistant Director Kevin Perkins of the Criminal Investigative Division; Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Employee Benefits Security Administration Phyllis C. Borzi; Chief Postal Inspector Guy J. Cottrell; Special Agent in Charge Lucy Cruz of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI).

Following a six-week trial before U.S. District Judge David Hittner, and approximately three days of deliberation, the jury found Stanford guilty on 13 of 14 counts in the indictment.

Stanford, 61, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, four counts of wire fraud, five counts of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to obstruct a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation, one count of obstruction of an SEC investigation and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.  The jury found Stanford not guilty on one count of wire fraud.

At sentencing, Stanford faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for the count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, each count of wire and mail fraud, and the count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and five years for the count of conspiracy to obstruct an SEC investigation and the count of obstruction of an SEC investigation.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Houston Field Office, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the IRS-CI and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration.  The case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief William Stellmach of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Costa of the Southern District of Texas and Trial Attorney Andrew Warren of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.”

HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS CHAIRMAN INTRODUCES LEGISLATION TO CURB CHINA'S TRADE ADVANTAGES

The following excerpt is from Congressman Dave Camp's website:

"Combating China’s Trade Unfair Practices
Last week, Congressman Camp joined several members of the Ways and Means Committee, including Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-Royal Oak), in introducing legislation to protect American consumers, workers and job creators from unfair trade practices by China.  “This legislation preserves our ability to fight unfair subsidies granted by countries like China that injure our industries, cost U.S. jobs, and distort the market. Distorting trade policies are deeply troubling and cannot be allowed to stand."

Congressman Camp also led the committee in a hearing on the president's trade policy agenda and the future of U.S. trade negotiations with U.S. Trade Ambassador Ron Kirk. At the hearing, Camp urged Ambassador Kirk to take a more proactive stance in enforcing U.S. rights in regard to unfair and illegal Chinese trade practices, “There are too many problems with China that continue to put our workers and our businesses at a disadvantage – from indigenous innovation policies to subsidies to intellectual property theft to currency undervaluation – just to mention a few. We must push China on every front, and the Administration must ensure that China’s commitments are fully implemented.” 

U.S. SPOKESPERSON SAYS IRAN HELPING TO KEEP ASSAD REGIME IN POWER

The following excerpt is from the Department of Defense American Forces Press Service: "Mattis Explains Challenges in Syrian Situation By Donna Miles American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, March 6, 2012 - As al-Qaida takes advantage of the unrest in Syria, Iran is working desperately to keep Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime in power to support its own agenda, the U.S. Central Command commander told Congress today. "The longer this goes on, the more potential there is for al-Qaida and for basically a full-scale civil war," Marine Corps Gen. James N. Mattis told the Senate Armed Services. Mattis noted signs of al-Qaida's role in the Syrian opposition, particularly in carrying out "rather spectacular [improvised explosive device] attacks." Meanwhile, Iran has flown in weapons and experts in what Mattis called "a full-throated effort ... to keep Assad there and oppressing his own people." "They're providing the kind of weapons that are being used right now to suppress the opposition," he said. This includes eavesdropping capability to identify opposition networks and "experts in oppressing." "They're pretty well schooled. They know how to oppress their own people in Tehran," Mattis said. "They've flown them into Damascus to help Assad do the same thing." Mattis noted that the fall of Assad's regime also would be a huge blow to Iran. "It'll be the biggest strategic setback for Iran in 20 years when Assad falls," he told the Senate panel. The general made clear that the question is a matter of "not if, but when he is going to go." Mattis said it's hard to say how long Assad will stay in power if current conditions persist with no external intervention. "He's going to be there for some time because I think he will continue to employ heavier and heavier weapons on his people," he said. "I think it will get worse before it gets better." Assad is gaining physical momentum on the battlefield and "clearly achieving what he wants to achieve," he said. But at the same time, "he's creating more enemies," Mattis said, fueling international pressure against him. Asked directly by a senator, the general declined to discuss in the open hearing whether the White House had directed him to prepare contingency plans to assist the Syrian opposition. He acknowledged, however, that an international effort like the one that helped Libyan rebels bring down Muammar Ghaddafi's regime would be much more challenging in Syria. In addition to Iran's support, the Russians have provided "very advanced integrated air defense capabilities – missiles, radars that sort of thing – that would make imposition of any no-fly zone challenging if we were to go in that direction," he said. Mattis and Navy Adm. William H. McRaven, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, agreed on the possible unintended consequences of providing arms to the rebels. "I think we'd have to do our best to determine who we're providing the arms to and follow the physician's oath of 'First do no harm' to make certain what we're doing is actually going to reduce the scale of violence, ultimately," Mattis said. "I think it's always prudent to find out who your allies are and who your enemy is," agreed McRaven."

CDC WARNS OF DEADLY BACTERIA IMPACTING PATIENTS

The following excerpt is from the Centers For Disease Control website:

"Life-threatening germ poses threat across medical facilities
CDC highlights steps to prevent spread of deadly C. difficile bacteria, which impacts patients in nursing homes and outpatient care, not just hospitals

Infections from Clostridium difficile (C. difficile), a bacteria that causes diarrhea and other health issues, is a patient safety concern in all types of medical facilities, not just hospitals as traditionally thought, according to a new Vital Signs report today from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Â While many health care-associated infections, such as bloodstream infections, declined in the past decade, C. difficileinfection rates and deaths climbed to historic highs.

“C. difficile harms patients just about everywhere medical care is given,” said CDC Director Thomas R. Frieden, M.D., M.P.H.  “Illness and death linked to this deadly disease do not have to happen. Patient lives can be saved when health care providers follow the 6 Steps to Prevention, which include key infection control and smart antibiotic prescribing recommendations.”

C. difficile is linked to about 14,000 U.S. deaths every year. Those most at risk are people who take antibiotics and also receive care in any medical setting. Almost half of infections occur in people younger than 65, but more than 90 percent of deaths occur in people 65 and older. Previously released estimates based on billing data show that the number of U.S. hospital stays related to C. difficile remains at historically high levels of about 337,000 annually, adding at least $1 billion in extra costs to the health care system. However, the Vital Signsreport shows that these hospital estimates may only represent one part of C. difficile’s overall impact.

According to Vital Signs, 94 percent of C. difficile infections are related to medical care. About 25 percent of C. difficile infections first show symptoms in hospital patients; 75 percent first show in nursing home patients or in people recently cared for in doctor’s offices and clinics. Â

Although the proportion of infection onset is lower in hospitals, these facilities remain at the core of prevention since many patients with C. difficile infections are transferred to hospitals for care, raising risk of spread within the facility.  The Vital Signs report shows that half of C. difficile infections diagnosed at hospitals were already present at the time the patient was admitted (present on admission), usually after getting care in other facilities. The other half were related to care given in the hospital where the infection was diagnosed.

The report highlights three programs showing early success in reducing C. difficile infection rates in hospitals.  Seventy-one hospitals in Illinois, Massachusetts, and New York decreased C. difficileinfections by 20 percent in less than two years by following infection control recommendations.  These promising results follow similar efforts in England, a nation that dropped C. difficile infections by more than 50 percent during a recent three-year period.Â

“C. difficile infections are usually a regional problem since patients transfer back and forth between facilities, allowing the disease to spread,” said L. Clifford McDonald, M.D., CDC medical epidemiologist and lead author of the study. “Health departments have the ability to work with many types of health care facilities, and have a unique opportunity to coordinate local, comprehensive prevention programs to reduce the occurrence of these infections.”

Patients get C. difficile infections most often within a few months of taking antibiotics and also receiving medical care. Antibiotics are lifesaving medicines that stop infections, but they also destroy the body’s good bacteria for several months.  During this time, patients can get sick from C. difficile picked up from contaminated surfaces or spread from a health care provider’s hands. Infection risk generally increases with age; children are at lower risk for C. difficile infection. Identifying C. difficile infection early and stopping its spread to other people can save lives.Â
Patients can help stop C. difficile by:

- Taking antibiotics only as prescribed by your doctor. Antibiotics can be lifesaving medicines.Â
- Telling your doctor if you have been on antibiotics and get diarrhea within a few months.
- Washing your hands after using the bathroom.
- Trying to use a separate bathroom if you have diarrhea, or being sure the bathroom is cleaned well if someone with diarrhea has used it.

CDC Vital Signs is a report that appears on the first Tuesday of the month as part of the CDC journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). Vital Signs is designed to provide the latest data and information on key health indicators – cancer prevention, obesity, tobacco use, alcohol use, prescription drug overdose, HIV/AIDS, motor vehicle passenger safety, health care–associated infections, cardiovascular health, teen pregnancy, access to health care, and food safety.

CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU TAKES COMPLAINTS ABOUT STUDENT LOANS

The following excerpt is from the Department of Education website:

"Washington, D.C. — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is now accepting complaints from borrowers having difficulties with their private student loans. The CFPB will assist all borrowers experiencing problems taking out a private student loan, repaying their private student loan, or managing a student loan that has gone into default and may have been referred to a debt collector.

"The ability to work hard and better yourself through education is part of what makes this country so great," said Richard Cordray, Director of the CFPB. "But getting a higher education can mean taking on significant debt—a big decision with a lot of consequences. The CFPB is now the one-stop federal agency where all private student loan borrowers can ask questions, get information, and file a complaint about this important market."

Student loans have now surpassed credit cards as the largest source of unsecured consumer debt. Millions of students turn to private loans to pay for college when scholarships and federal student loans do not cover the full costs. But unlike federal student loans, private student loans do not generally have the same borrower protections such as military deferments, discharges upon death, or income-based repayment plans.

Until recently, private student lenders have only been regulated by a patchwork of state and federal authorities. Prior to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, there was no federal supervisory program over nonbanks that issued student loans. That authority has now been given to the CFPB. Among its reforms, the law created a private student loan ombudsman to assist borrowers and review complaints. The ombudsman, Rohit Chopra, is also responsible for examining the complaints in order to develop recommendations to Congress and other federal government agencies.

Consumers can get help from the CFPB on student loans in a variety of ways including by the Bureau website, telephone, mail, and fax. Consumers can file complaints about any kind of student loan. While the CFPB will alone manage the private student loan complaints, the CFPB will work closely with the Department of Education to route complaints that fall under their purview as the overseer of federal student loans. The agencies executed a memorandum of understanding to ensure close coordination. Examples of federal loans include Direct loans, Stafford loans, Perkins loans, and PLUS loans.

Among the complaints that the Bureau anticipates receiving:

• Difficulties making full payment;
• Confusing advertising or marketing terms;
• Billing disputes;
• Deferment and forbearance issues; and
• Debt collection and credit reporting problems.

Working with the Department of Education, the CFPB released a Know Before You Owe "Financial Aid Shopping Sheet," which is a draft of important financial aid information that colleges could provide to students and their families, including information about monthly debt payment levels after graduation. The CFPB also launched a Student Debt Repayment Assistant, an interactive tool which tens of thousands of Americans have already used to help navigate their repayment options on student loans.

In November, the Bureau published a Notice in the Federal Register to ask students, lenders, servicers, schools, and other members of the public to share their experiences with the private student loan market. The Bureau received thousands of comments from consumers, industry, and the higher education community, which will be analyzed as part of a report to Congress on the private student loan market, to be released later this year.

The CFPB has been taking complaints in categories of consumer financial products and services since launching on July 21, 2011. The Bureau started by taking credit card complaints. In December, the Bureau expanded and began taking complaints on mortgages and other home loans. And, on March 1, the Bureau began taking complaints on checking accounts.

The Bureau expects financial institutions to respond to complaints within 15 days with the steps they have or plan to take, and expects complaints to be closed in 60 days. Consumers are given a tracking number after submitting a complaint and can check the status of their complaint by logging on to the CFPB website. Each complaint will be processed individually and consumers will have the option to dispute the lender's resolution.

The Bureau sent a letter this week to more than 6,000 university officials across the country notifying them of the new complaint system, so they can direct students and alumni to get help with their student loans."

ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR FINANCIAL MARKETS MARY MILLER SPEAKS

The following excerpt is from a Department of Treasury e-mail:

Remarks by Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets Mary Miller at the Annual Washington Conference of the Institute Of International Bankers (IIB)
“As prepared for delivery
 WASHINGTON - Good morning and welcome to Washington. I welcome the chance to meet with a group that is focused on the perspectives of the international banking community in the United States.  As the Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets at the Treasury Department, I am part of the Office of Domestic Finance.  But as this group knows well, our financial markets are global and interconnected.  In my work at Treasury, I deal with the international nature of our markets every day. Two of my main responsibilities are managing the U.S. Government’s debt issuance and helping implement the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.  While both of these roles have fairly obvious connections to global financial markets, they are also more closely connected to each other than you might think. The financial crisis and its aftermath took a heavy toll on our nation’s economy and our fiscal situation.  Millions of jobs were destroyed, countless families have lost their homes, and billions of dollars of Americans’ savings were wiped out. We had no choice but to take aggressive steps to stabilize financial markets and help restart economic growth.  And at the same time, the fallout from the crisis caused tax receipts to go down while payments for programs like unemployment insurance were going up. To pay for these measures, we had to issue more debt.  Although government borrowing peaked two years ago and deficits are coming down relative to GDP, our debt is still growing and economic growth remains moderate.  Interest rates remain at historically low levels and have helped keep the costs of responding to the crisis much lower than they otherwise might have been. But interest rates won’t stay this low forever, and the long-term fiscal trend in the U.S. is unsustainable.  As one of the officials responsible for our debt issuance, I know that American workers, families, homeowners and entrepreneurs can’t afford another crisis. And the government can’t either.  Fortunately, in the wake of the crisis, the President asked Congress to pass the reforms our outdated financial regulatory system needed, before memories of the crisis faded.  Congress’s response, the Dodd-Frank Act, put in place a number of important measures to strengthen and modernize the safeguards for our financial system. Much of the basic framework of these reforms is already coming into effect.  The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has finalized rules for winding down large firms that fail through an orderly bankruptcy-like process that will help limit the fallout from their failure. Had this “resolution authority” been in place in 2008, we would have had much more effective tools to mitigate the financial crisis.  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is up and running and undertaking initiatives for better disclosure to consumers.  Regulators are deploying new authority and greater enforcement resources on a more coordinated basis to go after fraud and unfair practices.  The majority of the new initiatives for reducing risk and improving the transparency of the previously unregulated derivatives markets have been proposed and more rules are being finalized with each passing month.  2012 should bring much more clarity to firms adjusting for these changes. As a result of the reforms we have been putting into place, the financial system is getting stronger and safer.  Financial institutions are better capitalized, less leveraged, and more liquid, which reduces systemic risks.  Some of these changes have already been required, some anticipate Basel III, and some simply reflect caution after the financial crisis. But the gains we have made will erode over time if we are not able to complete the work that is underway. Given the stark reality presented by our fiscal situation, the deep and widespread damage that the crisis inflicted, and the continuing uncertainty in markets overseas, we must be careful not to succumb to a collective amnesia about how close we came to a complete financial collapse less than four years ago.  As Secretary Geithner wrote in the Wall Street Journal on Friday, “Remember the crisis when you hear complaints about financial reform – complaints about limits on risk-taking or requirements for transparency or disclosure.” But as we continue moving forward, rest assured that we are not just trying to get reforms done so that we can check a box.  We are focused on getting the reforms right so that they reduce risk, improve transparency and help restore market discipline in our system, while preserving the best features of our markets and the competitiveness of our financial institutions.        We aren’t just looking at individual rules in isolation.  Partly through the efforts of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, we are also beginning to look at the way rules interact with each other and assess their combined impact across the financial system.  We want to be careful to get the balance right—building a more stable financial system, with better protections for consumers and investors, while allowing for healthy financial innovation in support of economic growth. *** Usually when I talk about progress on financial regulatory reform, I focus on the reforms we are putting in place at home and only have the opportunity to briefly discuss the importance of establishing strong and comparable standards and safeguards throughout the world.  But given this audience, I would like to switch that around today and focus more on some of the international aspects of our reform efforts. While regulations are adopted at the national level, markets are global and difficult cross-border issues are bound to arise.  This is complex terrain, and we must work hard to align our national frameworks and develop high-quality international standards.  We should strengthen international coordination and always keep in mind our collective goals to protect the safety and soundness of our markets; to achieve a level playing field globally; and to realize the economic benefits of global finance. To protect our economy from risks that arise outside the United States, and to provide a fair and level playing field for U.S. firms, we need comparable international standards.  And it’s important to realize the benefits of setting high standards, not just in terms of reducing risks and promoting financial stability but also in terms of attracting investors and capital. Before I came to Treasury, I worked for 26 years as an investor and manager of clients’ assets.  As an investor in global fixed income assets I did not look for the least regulated markets, with the lowest transparency, the weakest investor protections, and the greatest risks.  I looked for opportunities with expectations of reasonable returns, with appropriate disclosures, and with strong legal and financial protections for the safety of the investments.  Whether acting directly as investors or advising your clients, I expect that many of you share this view.     Comparable standards are particularly important in the reforms that toughen rules on capital, margin, liquidity and leverage, as well as in the global derivatives markets.  In these areas we are working to discourage other nations from applying softer rules to their institutions that could create systemic risks for the global financial system.  Specific challenges include:

aligning the developing derivative regimes around the world;
preventing attempts to soften the national application of new capital rules;
and designing the rules for resolution of large global financial institutions whose operations cross national borders.
        Aligning the substance of the rules as much as possible is not enough, however. It’s also important to align the timing as much as possible, to avoid leaving gaps that present risks to financial stability in the interim as well as creating competitive advantages for institutions in jurisdictions that are not as far along the path of reform.  There’s a delicate balance between leading with strong regulatory reform proposals in the U.S. and striving for timely adoption of comparable measures in other jurisdictions. Also, in certain areas, U.S. reforms are tougher or just different from the rules forthcoming in other markets, so we need to figure out sensible ways to apply those rules to the foreign operations of U.S. firms and the U.S. operations of foreign firms.  This is very complicated, and another example of where we need a clearly articulated consistent approach across the U.S. regulatory agencies. The Volcker rule provides a good example of an area where the U.S. is pursuing reforms to reduce risk and conflicts of interest, but where most other nations have not followed.  As you likely know, the comment period for the notice of proposed rulemaking to implement the Volcker rule recently closed for four of the five rule-writing agencies.  Treasury is not writing the Volcker rule but the Secretary, as Chairperson of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, does have a specific statutory role as the coordinator of that process for the five agencies that are charged with implementing it. More than 16,000 comments have been submitted in response to the proposed rule. Although the vast majority of those comments are identical form letters, there are still hundreds of unique comment letters, some of which run over a hundred pages in length.  As you know, the Institute of International Bankers (IIB) submitted a comment letter, and dozens of other commenters have weighed in on a variety of issues relating to the international implications of the proposed rule. A number of the issues that IIB raised in its comment letter are reflected in other letters that we received from individual market participants and foreign governments as well.  Some of these issues include – but are certainly not limited to:
the treatment of foreign government securities;

the definition of activities that are conducted solely outside of the United States;
the treatment of foreign funds that are comparable to U.S. mutual funds; and
the compliance and reporting requirements that would apply to institutions.
 
We welcome this input, view it as an essential part of the process, and firmly believe that the final rule will benefit from the additional information, perspectives, and insights we receive through the comment process. Getting the Volcker rule right is an important issue for the safety of our financial markets and for preserving their liquidity and efficiency.  It’s important to separate risky proprietary trading activity from the federal safety net.  But as a former investor, including during the financial crisis, I also appreciate the role of market-making and know the importance of deep, liquid markets.  It is essential to have buyers who are willing to step up and buy a position, particularly during times of market stress. The statutory language of the Volcker Rule recognizes the importance of striking that balance, and so does the study issued by the Financial Stability Oversight Council last January.  We are equally committed to achieving the right balance in the final rule.  Along with the rule-writing agencies, Treasury is actively reviewing the comments, absorbing the valuable information they provide, and beginning to consider the best ways to address them as we coordinate the process for finalizing the rules. *** While the Treasury Secretary has a specific statutory role in coordinating the Volcker rule, Treasury is not a rule-writer for many parts of financial regulatory reform. We still have some important responsibilities either through coordination or direct assignments.  I would like to provide two examples where we are engaged in activities of interest to foreign institutions. One area where the Dodd-Frank Act does give Treasury specific responsibility is for a decision regarding foreign exchange swaps and forwards.  This is also an area where a common international approach is important, because the foreign exchange market, by its very nature, is a global one. Treasury has issued a Notice of Proposed Determination that central clearing and exchange-trading requirements would not apply to foreign exchange swaps and forwards.  Consistent with the statutory factors, the proposed determination is based on an assessment that the unique characteristics and existing oversight of the foreign exchange swaps and forwards market already reflect many of Dodd-Frank’s objectives for derivatives reform, including high levels of transparency and strong settlement practices. As with the Volcker rule and all rulemaking processes, we are carefully considering the comments we received in response to the proposed determination, but have not made a final determination.  We are also closely monitoring the evolution of   foreign exchange market structure, especially with regard to reporting.  We are very interested, for example, in the global trade repository that is being set up to provide more insight and transparency into the foreign exchange market. This issue is a good example of how there are multiple ways for regulators and industry participants to work together to improve the financial system.  The private sector doesn’t have to wait on regulators and governments to act to implement reforms that could reduce risks, improve returns, increase transparency to market participants, and strengthen financial institutions.  As industry continues to develop the global FX trade repository, we are closely watching to see what kind of information the trade repository will provide publicly. We believe it is possible to provide detailed market information without compromising confidentiality.  Industry has a chance to collectively decide whether it will make useful information available on a timely basis.  Finally, because the foreign exchange market is a global market, having a global trade repository should be very beneficial to both market participants and regulators.  Both should be able to benefit from consolidating information in a single location. Another important initiative that we are working on to promote international consistency and that should benefit both regulators and market participants,  is the development of a global standard for identifying parties to financial transactions: a legal entity identifier, or LEI.  If legal entity identifiers had been in place during the financial crisis, regulators, policymakers, and market participants would have had a much better understanding of exposures and interconnectedness across financial institutions.  Precise identification of counterparties would have helped wind down complex, troubled institutions.  In the near future, the LEI initiative should lead to more accurate data collection at a lower cost.  Specifically, it should allow you to report to regulators with the same data you use in your management information and risk-management systems, and to run those systems better. The LEI initiative continues to move forward globally with significant coordination among domestic and international regulators and financial trade associations. U.S. and global regulators will soon build its use into their reporting systems. We are confident that this effort will enhance the effectiveness of oversight tools for regulators and provide substantial risk management benefits to the market. *** These two very practical examples of public-private collaboration illustrate ways that we can work together to strengthen the global financial marketplace.  I believe we share common interests in safe, strong, and competitive financial markets, not just in the United States but throughout the world.  We have made progress on a number of fronts, but much remains to be done.  We will continue to remain focused on implementing reform as quickly as practical to provide not only clarity and certainty, but more importantly, the measures we need to keep our financial system the safest and strongest in the world.Thank you very much for your time and attention, and I look forward to taking a few of your questions.”