Thursday, May 10, 2012
SECRETARY OF INTERIOR SALAZAR SPEAKS ON ENERGY PROJECTS
FROM: DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
President Obama has made it clear that our country needs an all-of-the-above strategy to develop American energy – energy that's cleaner, cheaper, and generates new jobs for Americans.
On Tuesday, we took another major step forward in President Obama's commitment to responsibly expand development of America's abundant natural gas resources by approving the Greater Natural Buttes gas development project in Utah.
This project, proposed by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, could produce more than six trillion cubic feet of natural gas over its life, support more than 4,000 American jobs during the different phases of development, and infuse millions of dollars into local Utah communities.
The project is a model for a balanced approach to energy development: by using innovative technologies and best practices, the project will limit new surface disturbance to just five percent of the area. And, as part of a landmark cooperative agreement with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, Anadarko will drill the 3,600 new wells while safeguarding air quality and ensuring the protection of critical wildlife habitat and outdoor recreation values.
Today's announcement exemplifies the kind of progress we are making as part of the Administration's all-of-the-above energy strategy. In 2011, U.S. natural gas production grew by more than 7 percent – the largest year-over-year increase in history. U.S. gas production is now at an all-time high and oil production is at an eight-year high. And America's dependence on foreign oil has gone down every single year since President Obama took office; we have cut net imports by ten percent – or a million barrels a day – in the last year alone.
But that's not all. Renewable energy production has nearly doubled over the last three years. And on public lands, we are well on our way to meeting the President's goal of permitting 10,000 megawatts of large-scale renewable power by the end of the year.
Earlier this week, in the sun-drenched southwest corner of Nevada, we "flipped the switch" on the first large-scale solar energy facility on U.S. public lands to deliver power to American consumers. The Enbridge Silver State North solar facility uses innovative photovoltaic technology to deliver clean energy to more than 10,000 homes and businesses across Nevada.
The 50-megawatt project generates electricity with no air emissions, no waste production, and no water use. The advanced process displaces about 42,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually – the equivalent of taking 8,000 cars off the road.
Prior to 2009, Interior had not authorized a single solar project on public lands. But today, the Silver State North project is one of 29 large-scale renewable energy projects that Interior has approved on public lands, including 16 solar projects, 5 wind farms, and 8 geothermal plants. If built by the companies, the facilities will provide more than 6,500 megawatts of power to communities across the West.
We need to keep this momentum going and help put America in control of its energy future. That's why President Obama has called on Congress to pass legislation that will extend the Production Tax Credit to support American jobs and manufacturing in the wind industry alongside an expansion of the 48C Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit that supports American-made clean energy manufacturing.
All of these trends show the gathering strength of America’s energy economy as we move forward with an all-of-the-above energy strategy.
Thank you,
Ken Salazar
Secretary of the Interior
PUBLIC LANDS IN NEVADA NOW HOST LARGE-SCALE SOLAR ENERGY PROJECT
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR
Salazar ‘Flips the Switch’ on First Large-Scale Solar Energy Project on Public Lands to Provide Power to the Grid
Nevada’s Silver State North Marks Milestone in Renewable Energy
PRIMM, Nevada – As part of President Obama’s all-of-the-above approach to energy, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar “flipped the switch” on the Enbridge Silver State North solar project, the first large-scale solar energy facility on U.S. public lands to deliver power to American consumers.
This milestone is in line with the administration’s broad commitment to expanding production of all sources of American made energy, including from renewable sources, such as wind and solar, which has doubled in the President’s first term, as well as domestic production of oil and gas resources, which have increased each year the President has been in office.
“This is a landmark day for solar energy and for the nation,” Salazar said at the dedication ceremony with state and company officials. “Silver State North was the first solar project we approved on public lands in Nevada and --18 months later -- the first of our priority projects to provide clean energy to the power grid. This is a model of industry and government working together to strengthen local economies, generating good jobs and affordable, reliable and sustainable power.”
The Interior Department has undertaken an unprecedented approach to permitting renewable energy on public lands. Prior to 2009, there were no solar energy projects permitted on public lands. Under Secretary Salazar and Bureau of Land Management Director Bob Abbey’s leadership, Interior has authorized 29 large-scale renewable energy projects on or involving public lands, including 16 solar facilities, 5 wind farms, and 8 geothermal plants. When completed, these projects will provide more than 6,500 megawatts of power to communities across the West, enough to power more than 2 million homes.
“Public lands provide Americans with vital mineral and agricultural resources, as well as recreational opportunities that help power local economies and generate jobs around the nation,” said Bob Abbey, Director of the Bureau of Land Management. “Today in Clark County, Nevada, we are adding solar energy to that public lands’ portfolio of benefits. This project symbolizes a new partnership between government and industry that can responsibly tap the immense renewable energy resources of this great state, provide clean, reliable power to homes and businesses, and open a new chapter in the beneficial use of our nation’s public lands.”
Located 40 miles south of Las Vegas, Nevada, Silver State North is a 50-megawatt plant that will use photovoltaic technology to generate enough power for about 9,000 Nevada homes. Developed by First Solar and owned by Enbridge, the project employed more than 380 construction workers during peak construction and 650 individuals over the course of the project. NV Energy has a power purchase agreement to sell the solar project’s electricity to the Nevada market.
By harnessing the area’s vast solar resources, the Silver State North facility generates electricity with no air emissions, no waste production, and no water use. The plant, using technology with the smallest carbon footprint of any PV solar system, displaces about 42,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually – the equivalent of taking 8,000 cars off the road. The project site is strategically located near a major transmission hub.
Constructed on 618 acres of public land managed by Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, the solar project underwent full environmental analysis and public review. The BLM worked closely with federal, state and local partners, members of the environmental and conservation community, and interested stakeholders to protect wildlife and advance this environmentally sound project. First Solar and the BLM worked in concert with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a relocation/translocation plan for desert tortoises found on the site. The BLM also required a natural color palette for painted structures and controlled night lighting, designed to reduce visual impacts on the local community.
The Bureau of Land Management oversees more than 2.5 million acres in Clark County, Nevada, including over 1.1 million acres managed for conservation. This includes over 709,000 acres of habitat the BLM has designated primarily for the conservation of the threatened desert tortoise.
NEW FEMA WATCH CENTER OPENS IN ATALANTA GEORGIA
FROM: FEMA
Atlanta, Ga., May 7, 2012 -- Administrator W. Craig Fugate visits Region IV for the opening and ribbon cutting of the new watch center. The Watch Center is the initial point of response to All-hazards events occurring in the Region and makes initial contact with States and other Federal agencies during significant events. Tim Burkitt/FEMA
THE CHEMISTRY MAGICIAN
Dr. Ron Furstenau during a chemistry magic presentation at the Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center in Colorado Springs, Colo., April 21, 2012. Furstenau is an instructor with the U.S. Air Force Academy's chemistry department. U.S. Air Force photo by Don Branum
Chemistry Whiz Uses Magic to Teach
By Don Branum
U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., May 9, 2012 - The first thing noticeable about Dr. Ron Furstenau is his apparel. One of his ties displays a bevy of chemical symbols. An American flag, a smiley face and periodic table [of elements] pins grace the lapels of his lab coat, along with a three-eyed fish on one of his pockets.
Furstenau, a chemistry instructor at the U.S. Air Force Academy here, is an enthusiastic person -- whether he's mentoring students in the academy's chemistry labs or performing instructive magic shows for young students in the local community.
The chemistry whiz said he became interested in science during grade school.
"Even as a little kid, I liked to try to understand why things work the way they do," said Furstenau, who grew up in Norfolk, Neb. "I don't think I knew it was science at the time. I just knew it was fun."
It took him a few more years, though, to discover which area of study interested him the most.
"It was my first science class in ninth grade," he recalled. "It was physical science, but mostly chemistry. Once I got into it in high school, I really liked it."
Furstenau went on to graduate from the Air Force Academy with a bachelor's degree in chemistry before earning a master's degree and doctorate at the University of Nebraska.
Between degrees, he served as a chemist at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., and taught here. He came back to the academy after finishing his doctorate and kept teaching even after he retired from active duty in 2006. He's been involved with the academy's chemistry department magic show the entire time.
Furstenau performed a magic show April 21 at Colorado's Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center as part of the park's observance of Earth Day. Children enthusiastically raised their hands every time he called for volunteers.
Those who were picked got to mix potions of all sorts, including one that switched from blue to gold seemingly in response to cheering from the audience.
The kids didn't care that it was a Briggs-Rauscher oscillating reaction or that it involved malonic acid, hydrogen peroxide and iodine. They just knew it was cool.
As they watched the beaker's liquid cycle through blue, gold and clear states, Furstenau explained the basics: the reaction that turned the solution gold also provided the ingredients needed to turn the solution blue and vice versa.
"I did my first tour here in '84," he added. "I've probably done at least 800 of them over the years."
Furstenau said he and other academy chemistry instructors have performed chemistry magic shows across the state of Colorado, mainly in the Pikes Peak region and the Denver area.
"We'll go to whoever happens to ask," he said. "As a department, we look at getting them interested in science as well as maybe getting them interested in attending the Air Force Academy."
One magic show in particular sticks out in Furstenau's mind more than any other. It was one that he performed for a child who was in the Cadet for a Day program and her family.
"She was recovering from cancer," said Furstenau, who survived prostate cancer in 2007. "There was something about the interaction with her and her family. I don't know exactly what it was, but it's something I'll remember for the rest of my life."
The academy's STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) initiative for young people also offers programs for Girl Scouts, and programs to give middle and high-school teachers hands-on access to the academy's laboratories. They have instruments that measure chemical compounds in almost any way imaginable, from using radio waves and powerful magnetic fields to changing the rotation of an atomic radius, to using x-rays to shear electrons from an atom's outer layers.
"Science is really fun!" Furstenau said. "At some point, someone tells kids science is hard, and that's just not true. Yes, science is work, and it involves a lot of math, but it should always be fun."
His love of chemistry shines in his work, said Air Force Col. Mike Van Valkenburg, the head of the academy's chemistry department.
"I've known Dr. Furstenau since 1991 when I was first assigned here to the department as a captain," Van Valkenburg said. "I've been very fortunate to observe, learn and work alongside this very brilliant educator. He communicates understanding and the 'why' of chemistry superbly to any group of captured listeners. He is no doubt one of the best chemistry educators in the country who can motivate anyone to be interested in the subject and material."
I SAW THREE SHIPS A SALING
The amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8), left, the amphibious transport dock ship USS New Orleans (LPD 18) and the amphibious dock landing ship USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) transit the Indian Ocean. The Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group is deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. U.S. Navy photo by Chief Mass Communication Specialist John Lill (Released) 120508-N-KD852-128
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION DUNCAN'S SURPRISE SCHOOL VISIT
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Secretary Duncan Makes Surprise Visit to Luke C. Moore High School in Honor of Teacher Appreciation Week
50 ED Staff to Participate in “ED Goes Back to School”
MAY 9, 2012
Editor's note: A school in your area is noted in the following release as part of Teacher Appreciation Week events organized by the U.S. Department of Education.
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan surprised teachers and staff of D.C.’s Luke C. Moore High School with an unexpected visit this morning during their Teacher Appreciation Week breakfast celebration.
Principal Azalia H. Speight, Assistant Principal Carlos Perkins, and Assistant Principal Rinaldo Murray gathered dozens of teachers and school support staff for the morning event to recognize their everyday hard work.
“I was honored to join Principal Speight in thanking Luke C. Moore staff for their commitment to education,” said Duncan. “The entire staff demonstrate a shared responsibility for helping children feel supported and have made significant accomplishments that improve students' chances of being successful in school and beyond. Their hard work is inspiring.”
Luke C. Moore High School is a local School Improvement Grant recipient that serves over 300 students, ages 17 to 21, who have dropped out or who have had difficulties in traditional school settings. Nearly 80 percent of the students served qualify for free or reduced price lunch.
As part of its school turnaround effort, Luke C. Moore has adopted an accelerated academic program with a focus on building critical thinking skills and project-based learning. Staff also support students through intervention teams that provide services both inside and outside of school. Support staff have conducted over 300 home visits in addition to holding several community gatherings to reinforce the value of education with students and parents. Since putting into place intervention efforts, Principal Speight has led the school toward significant improvements. Students have shown proficiency gains in both English Language Arts and Mathematics. Graduation and student attendance rates have increased while disciplinary referrals and suspensions have dropped.
The Wednesday morning stop-by marks Duncan’s second visit to Luke C. Moore. In November 2009, Duncan held a discussion at the school as part of a series of listening and learning events to gather input on education reform and the reauthorization of ESEA. More recently, Luke C. Moore teacher Rose Smith and senior Daquan Burley joined Duncan on a panel during America’s Promise Alliance 2012 “Building a Grad Nation” Summit.
In addition to Duncan’s surprise visit, dozens of Education Department staff are visiting schools today throughout the D.C. area and across the country as part of “ED Goes Back to School,” an organized effort of federal staff shadowing teachers. The shadowing visits will offer Department officials an inside look at teachers’ day-to-day work while also giving teachers the opportunity to discuss how federal policy, programs, and resources play a role in their classrooms. On Wednesday evening, teachers and Department staff participating in “ED Goes Back to School” will join Duncan for a debrief discussion to reflect on the experience.
From Wednesday through Friday, shadowing visits will take place in nearly 50 schools across 11 states and D.C. A list of participating schools follows.
Anacostia Senior High School in Washington, D.C.
Ballou Senior High School in Washington, D.C.
Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington, D.C.
Brightwood Elementary School in Washington, D.C.
Brookwood Elementary School in Leawood, Kan.
Capital City Public Charter School in Washington, D.C.
Center City PCS - Trinidad in Washington, D.C.
Charles Hart Middle School in Washington, D.C.
Chester Community Charter School in Chester, Pa.
Collegiate Academy Charter School in Littleton, Colo.
Curley K-8 School in Jamaica Plain, Mass.
DC Bilingual Charter School in Washington, D.C.
DC Scholars Stanton Elementary in Washington, D.C.
DePriest Elementary School in Chicago, Ill.
Drew Model School in Arlington, Va.
Everett Middle School in San Francisco, Cailf.
Glebe Elementary School in Arlington. Va.
Hearst Elementary in Washington, D.C.
Howard University Public Charter Middle School of Mathematics and Science in Washington, D.C.
Jackson Elementary School in Clayton County, Ga.
Kendall Demonstration Elementary School in Washington, D.C.
Kent Meredian Middle School in Kent, Wash.
Key Peninsula Middle School in Lakebay, Wash.
KIPP DC: Discover Academy in Washington, D.C.
KIPP DC: Key Academy in Washington, D.C.
Maya Angelou Public Charter School in Washington, D.C.
McKinley Elementary School in Arlington, Va.
McKinley Technology High School in Washington, D.C.
Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington, D.C.
Monticello Middle School in Shawnee, Kan.
FORMER DETROIT MAYOR KWAME M. KILPATRICK AND OTHER OFFICIALS CHARGED BY SEC WITH INFLUENCE PEDDLING SCHEME
FROM: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
May 9, 2012
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) today charged former Detroit mayor Kwame M. Kilpatrick, former city treasurer Jeffrey W. Beasley, and the investment adviser to the city’s public pension funds involved in a secret exchange of lavish gifts to peddle influence over the funds’ investment process.
The Commission’s complaint alleges that Kilpatrick and Beasley, who were trustees to the pension funds, solicited and received $125,000 worth of private jet travel and other perks paid for by MayfieldGentry Realty Advisors LLC, an investment adviser whose CEO Chauncey Mayfield was recommending to the trustees that the pension funds invest approximately $117 million in a real estate investment trust (REIT) controlled by the firm. Despite their fiduciary duties, neither Kilpatrick and Beasley nor Mayfield and his firm informed the boards of trustees about these trips and the conflicts of interest they presented. The funds ultimately voted to approve the REIT investment, and MayfieldGentry received millions of dollars in management fees.
According to the Commission’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, members of Kilpatrick’s administration began to exert pressure on Mayfield in early 2006 after he supported Kilpatrick’s opponent in his 2005 re-election and hired that candidate’s daughter at MayfieldGentry. The complaint alleges that Beasley met with Mayfield in February 2006 and told him he was “in the dog house” with Kilpatrick and offered to help him “clear the air.” Throughout 2007, Mayfield appeared before the boards of trustees for Detroit’s public pension funds recommending the REIT investment.
Meanwhile, the complaint alleges, MayfieldGentry began footing the bills for trips taken by Kilpatrick, Beasley and others that extended beyond business. In January 2007, Beasley demanded and Mayfield agreed to pay more than $3,000 for hotel rooms in Charlotte, N.C. for Beasley, Kilpatrick, and others. According to the complaint, Beasley told Mayfield that the reason for the trip was to inspect a building recently acquired by one of the pension funds, but in fact Beasley and Kilpatrick never inspected the building. Mayfield knew that Beasley and Kilpatrick never inspected the building, but did not ask any further questions about the matter.
According to the Commission’s complaint, the non-business travel continued:
In April 2007, MayfieldGentry paid for Kilpatrick, Beasley, and their associates to travel by private jet to Las Vegas, where they enjoyed luxury hotel accommodations, two concerts, three rounds of golf, meals, and massages. The Las Vegas trip cost more than $60,000.
In July 2007, MayfieldGentry paid more than $24,000 for a private jet to take Kilpatrick, Beasley’s son and others to Tallahassee, Fla., where Kilpatrick had a second home.
In October 2007, MayfieldGentry paid more than $34,000 for a private jet to fly Kilpatrick and his wife to and from Bermuda, and Kilpatrick’s father and his girlfriend back from Bermuda.
The Commission alleges that neither Kilpatrick nor Beasley nor Mayfield nor MayfieldGentry told anyone associated with the pension funds about any of the travel. The boards of trustees for the funds thus voted to invest approximately $117 million with Mayfield and his firm without the knowledge that they had supplied Kilpatrick, Beasley, and their associates with the extravagant travel and perks during the preceding 10 months.
The Commission’s complaint alleges that the defendants violated Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 10b-5(a), 10b-5(b) and 10b-5(c) thereunder. The Commission also alleges that MayfieldGentry and Chauncey Mayfield violated Sections 17(a)(1), 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933. In addition, the Commission charges that MayfieldGentry and Chauncey Mayfield violated Sections 206(1) and 206(2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Kilpatrick and Beasley aided and abetted those violations. The Commission seeks disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, penalties, and permanent injunctions, including an injunction against Kilpatrick and Beasley to prohibit them from participating in any decisions involving investments in securities by public pensions.
The Commission’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted jointly by the Chicago Regional Office led by Merri Jo Gillette and Timothy L. Warren, the Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit led by Bruce Karpati and Robert Kaplan, and the Municipal Securities and Public Pensions Unit led by Elaine C. Greenberg and Mark R. Zehner. The investigative attorneys are Brian D. Fagel, Rebecca R. Goldman and Eric A. Celauro, led by Assistant Directors Peter K.M. Chan and John J. Sikora, Jr. The Commission’s litigation will be led by Timothy S. Leiman and John E. Birkenheier.
SHANGHAI-BASED ACCOUNTING FIRM REFUSED TO TURN OVER AUDIT WORK PAPERS TO SEC
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C., May 9, 2012 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced an enforcement action against Shanghai-based Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu CPA Ltd. for its refusal to provide the agency with audit work papers related to a China-based company under investigation for potential accounting fraud against U.S. investors.
According to the SEC’s order instituting administrative proceedings against D&T Shanghai, the agency has been making extensive efforts for more than two years to obtain documents related to the firm’s work for the company, which issues U.S. securities registered with the SEC. The firm is charged with violating the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires foreign public accounting firms to provide audit work papers concerning U.S. issuers to the SEC upon request. D&T Shanghai has nonetheless failed to provide the documents, citing Chinese law as the reason for its refusal.
“As a voluntarily registered U.S. public accounting firm, D&T Shanghai cannot benefit from the financial and reputational rewards that come with auditing U.S. issuers without also meeting its U.S. legal obligations,” said Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “Foreign firms auditing U.S. issuers should not be permitted to shield themselves from regulatory scrutiny to the detriment of U.S. investors.”
Scott Friestad, Associate Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, added, “Without access to work papers of foreign public accounting firms, our investigators are unable to test the quality of the underlying audits and fulfill our responsibilities to investors.”
In a separate matter last year, the SEC filed a subpoena enforcement action against D&T Shanghai in federal court after the firm failed to produce documents in response to a subpoena related to an SEC investigation into possible fraud by one of its longtime clients, Longtop Financial Technologies Limited. The SEC later filed charges against Longtop for alleged reporting failures.
According to the SEC’s order in this latest enforcement action, D&T Shanghai is a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). In April 2010, SEC staff began seeking D&T Shanghai’s audit work papers related to its independent audit work for the client involved in an SEC investigation. The SEC served Deloitte LLP, the U.S. member firm, with a subpoena requesting various related documents. Counsel for Deloitte LLP informed the staff that the U.S. firm did not perform any audit work for the client and therefore did not possess the documents related to the subpoena.
According to the SEC’s order, in the SEC staff’s continuing quest for the audit work papers in D&T Shanghai’s possession, they were later informed by counsel for Deloitte’s global firm that the agency’s request for audit work papers had been specifically communicated to D&T Shanghai. Subsequently, the staff served D&T Shanghai with a request through Deloitte LLP for the audit work papers pursuant to Section 106 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. D&T Shanghai would not produce the relevant audit work papers because of its interpretation that it is prevented from doing so by Chinese law. SEC staff also has sought to obtain the relevant audit work papers through international sharing mechanisms, yet these efforts have been unsuccessful.
This is the first time the Commission has brought an enforcement action against a foreign audit firm failing to comply with a Section 106 request.
In the SEC’s order, the Enforcement Division alleges that D&T Shanghai willfully violated the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by failing to provide the SEC with the audit work papers. The administrative proceeding will be assigned to an Administrative Law Judge at the agency. The judge would determine the appropriate remedial sanctions if the judge finds in favor of the SEC staff.
CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE DAVE CAMP COMMENTS ON JOBS REPORT
The jobs report released last week showed the economy added just 115,000 jobs last month, with a jobless rate of 8.1 percent. However, with 12.5 million Americans still struggling to find work, the real news in the monthly jobs report was that more than 340,000 people stopped looking for work altogether and officially dropped out of the labor force. If these individuals, commonly referred to as the “invisible unemployed,” were in the official labor force, they would be counted as officially unemployed and raise the current unemployment rate to 11 percent. Congressman Dave Camp (R-Midland) knows that the best way to spur economic growth and job creation is to promote policies that ensure job creators have the freedom and flexibility to invest and hire, and that growth starts by demonstrating a bipartisan commitment to advancing pro-growth policies. He is working on reforming the complicated tax code, cutting red tape and empowering small businesses to use their resources as they see best – not as Washington dictates. To date, the House has passed 27 pro-growth jobs bills that are currently awaiting consideration in the Senate.
SUPERFUND'S NATIONAL PRIORITIES LIST ADDS MORE WASTE SITES
FROM: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
EPA Adds Three Hazardous Waste Sites to Superfund’s National Priorities List
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is adding three new hazardous waste sites that pose risks to people’s health and the environment to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites. EPA’s Superfund program investigates and cleans up the most complex, uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites in the country.
“Superfund cleanups take contaminated properties and make them safe places for people and the environment,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “They can also return these properties to communities for productive use, which translates into job creation, increased property values, enhanced local tax bases and improved quality of life.”
Since 1983, 1,664 sites have been listed on the NPL. Of these sites, 359 sites have been cleaned up, resulting in 1,305 sites currently on the NPL (including the three sites added today). There are 59 proposed sites awaiting final agency action.
Contaminants found at the sites include benzene, heavy metals, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and trichloroethylene (TCE).
The following three sites have been added to the National Priorities List:
• Jervis B. Webb Co. (former metal fabrication facility) in South Gate, Calif.;
• Southern Avenue Industrial Area (adhesive manufacturer) in South Gate, Calif.;
• Bremerton Gasworks (former gasworks facility) in Bremerton, Wash.
With all NPL sites, EPA works to identify companies or people responsible for the contamination at a site, and require them to conduct or pay for the clean up. For the newly listed sites without viable potentially responsible parties, EPA will investigate the full extent of the contamination before starting significant cleanup at the site. Therefore, it may be several years before significant EPA cleanup funding is required for these sites.
Federal Register notices and supporting documents for the sites: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
Information about how a site is listed on the NPL: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
Superfund sites in local communities: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
EPA Adds Three Hazardous Waste Sites to Superfund’s National Priorities List
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is adding three new hazardous waste sites that pose risks to people’s health and the environment to the National Priorities List (NPL) of Superfund sites. EPA’s Superfund program investigates and cleans up the most complex, uncontrolled or abandoned hazardous waste sites in the country.
“Superfund cleanups take contaminated properties and make them safe places for people and the environment,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “They can also return these properties to communities for productive use, which translates into job creation, increased property values, enhanced local tax bases and improved quality of life.”
Since 1983, 1,664 sites have been listed on the NPL. Of these sites, 359 sites have been cleaned up, resulting in 1,305 sites currently on the NPL (including the three sites added today). There are 59 proposed sites awaiting final agency action.
Contaminants found at the sites include benzene, heavy metals, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and trichloroethylene (TCE).
The following three sites have been added to the National Priorities List:
• Jervis B. Webb Co. (former metal fabrication facility) in South Gate, Calif.;
• Southern Avenue Industrial Area (adhesive manufacturer) in South Gate, Calif.;
• Bremerton Gasworks (former gasworks facility) in Bremerton, Wash.
With all NPL sites, EPA works to identify companies or people responsible for the contamination at a site, and require them to conduct or pay for the clean up. For the newly listed sites without viable potentially responsible parties, EPA will investigate the full extent of the contamination before starting significant cleanup at the site. Therefore, it may be several years before significant EPA cleanup funding is required for these sites.
Federal Register notices and supporting documents for the sites: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
Information about how a site is listed on the NPL: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
Superfund sites in local communities: http://www.epa.gov/superfund/
THE LAW OF THE SEA
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENTLaw of the Sea Symposium
As Delivered by Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, Washington, D.C., Wednesday, May 09, 2012
Thank you very much John, I really appreciate your kind introduction. Thank you for your commitment to public service and your great contribution to this country. All of us who have had the chance to serve with you have tremendous respect for your many years of service to our nation, both in uniform, as a leader in the Department of Defense, and of course in the United States Senate.
Good afternoon. It's a pleasure to be here today with Chairman Marty Dempsey, my pal, over there, in running the Department of Defense. You don't have to worry, that place is so damn big, there are so many people that they don't even know we're here right now. Eisenhower said that it was such a huge, complex building that you could walk in a Major and come out a General. David Brinkley had another good one, he said, that a lady went up to a guard in the Pentagon and said to the Guard, "Sir, can you help me, I'm about to deliver a baby." And the guard said, "Ma'am, you should not come into this building in that condition." And she said, "When I came into this building I wasn't in that condition." It's a big place
.
And it's a great privilege to have a chance to be here with all of you to discuss an issue that is of immense importance to this nation's prosperity, as well as our national security.
I want to commend Senator Warner, the Pew Charitable Trusts, Chuck Hagel, and the Atlantic Council for their leadership in support of this country's long overdue accession to the Law of the Sea Convention. Let me also acknowledge Senator Trent Lott, who I also had the pleasure of serving with in the House, and let me tell you, seeing him here in this room makes me feel a hell of a lot better about the possibility of ratification.
This afternoon, I'd also like to pay tribute to another statesman who has long supported the ratification of the Convention, Senator Dick Lugar. He is a friend, and a tremendous friend to national security, and a friend to our nation's ocean. This country has benefitted immensely from his many years of leadership in the Senate on foreign policy, and national security issues. He is in every sense of the word, a statesman. And these days as my former colleagues here all know, the most important thing is those who are willing to reach across and try to see if they can find solutions to the problems that confront this country. He often reached across the aisle to try to find consensus on the most challenging issues of our times and that's what leadership is all about.
Our country desperately needs that kind of bipartisan spirit and leadership that Dick Lugar embodies. I guess it would be a great tribute to Dick Lugar's distinguished career and what a great legacy it would be for him, if we were able to ratify the Convention on the Law of the Seas on his watch.
As many of you know, I've long been passionate about oceans policy, and the need to be able to work with and develop and protect our maritime resources for this country, ourselves, for our children and for future generations. My love for the oceans goes back to my own childhood along the California coast. My grandfather was actually in the Italian Merchant Marine, and sailed the oceans in great sailing ships of the day around the world, and fished off California and Alaska.
I was born and raised in Monterey, California, a fishing community made famous by John Steinbeck's books, particularlyCannery Row. The Central California coastline, I can say very objectively, is one of the most beautiful in the world, and it is. One of my proudest accomplishments as a member of Congress was establishing the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
President John Kennedy once said that our oceans are the "salt in our blood." And I think that's true. They are critical to the life of our nation. Critical to our health, our economy, critical to our recreation, our weather, our trade, and our security.
Recently, before I took the jobs in this administration, I had the honor to chair an Oceans Commission, and later co-chaired a Joint Oceans Commission Initiative with Admiral Jim Watkins – both commissions confirmed the importance of our oceans – but more importantly both strongly supported accession and ratification of the Law of the Sea Convention.
The time has come for the United States to have a seat at the table, to fully assert its role as a global leader, and accede to this important treaty. It is the bedrock legal instrument underpinning public order across the maritime domain. We are the only permanent member of the U.N. Security Council that is not a party to it. China, France, Russia, other countries, Germany, India, 161 countries have approved this treaty. We are the only industrialized country in the world that has not approved it.
This puts us at a distinct disadvantage, particularly when it comes to disputes over maritime rights and responsibilities when we have to engage with the 161 countries, including several rising powers, which are party to that treaty.
In years past, several Senate committees have examined the Convention and its various elements in hearings, and earlier Committee votes were approved by large bipartisan majorities.
Accession also has broad support among major U.S. industries. This is an important point. This is something that is not just supported by the diplomatic community or the environmental community. This is also supported by the business community. Companies that are dealing with offshore energy, shipbuilding, commercial shipping, communications companies, on and on and on. Industries that have to deal with our offshore resources. They need this treaty in order to be able to do their business and to effectively accomplish their goals. The same is true for national security.
You have already heard the importance that Chairman Marty Dempsey attaches to U.S. ratification of the treaty. His views are echoed by the senior leadership through the department of Defense: the Chief of Naval Operations, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, and the Coast Guard Commandant.
Let me take a few minutes and outline why I too believe that this Treaty is absolutely critical to U.S. national security, why it is time to move forward on this important issue, and why the longer we delay, the more we undermine our own national security interests.
The United States is at a strategic turning point after a decade of war. I've made that point time and time again. We're facing, obviously, the requirement that we reduce the Defense budget by $487 billion dollars over the next ten years, pursuant to the directions of the Congress and the Budget Control Act. This is one of the few times in our history as we begin to come down from a war and from a period of threats to our national security, the problem is that even as these wars recede, we face a range of security challenges that are continuing to threaten our national security.
We confront transnational threats like violent extremism, terrorism, the kind of things we've heard about just over these last few days, those threats continue; the destabilizing behavior of nations like Iran and North Korea, military modernization across the Asia-Pacific and turmoil across the Middle East and North Africa and elsewhere. At the same time, we are dealing with the changing nature of warfare, the proliferation of lethal weapons and lethal materials, and the growing threat of cyber intrusion and cyber attacks.
These real and growing challenges and the reality is that they are beyond the ability of any single nation to resolve alone. That is why a key part of our new defense strategy is to try to meet these challenges by modernizing our network of defense and innovative security partnerships—the kind that we have at NATO, the kind that we have elsewhere, different parts of the world—to try to develop those partnerships so that we can support a rules-based international order that promotes stability, that promotes security, and that promotes safety.
And that is also why the United States should be exerting a leadership role in the development and interpretation of the rules that determine legal certainty on the world's oceans.
Let me gives you some reasons why this treaty is essential to a strong national security.
First, as the world's pre-eminent maritime power, and we are, and we will remain so, this country with one of the largest coastlines and extended continental shelf in the world, we have more to gain from accession to the Convention than any other country because of the interest we have from our coastlines, from our oceans, and from our continental shelves. By moving off the sidelines, by sitting at the table of nations that have acceded to this treaty, we can defend our interests, we can lead the discussions, we will be able to influence those treaty bodies that develop and interpret the Law of the Sea. If we're not there, then they'll do it, and we won't have a voice.
In that way, we would ensure that our rights are not whittled away by the excessive claims and erroneous interpretations of others. And it would give us the credibility to support and promote the peaceful resolution of disputes within a rules-based order.
Second, by joining the Convention, we would protect our navigational freedoms and global access for our military our commercial ships, our aircraft, and our undersea fiber optic cables. As it currently stands, we are forced to assert our rights to freedom of navigation, asserting hopefully, through customary international law, which can change to our own detriment.
Treaty law remains the firmest legal foundation upon which to base our global presence, on, above, and below the seas. By joining the Convention, we would help lock in rules that are favorable to freedom of navigation and our own global mobility.
Third, accession would help lock-in a truly massive increase in our country's resource and economic jurisdiction, not only to 200 nautical miles off our coasts, but to a broad continental shelf beyond that zone.
Fourth, accession would ensure our ability to reap the benefits of the opening of the Arctic – a region of increasingly important maritime security and economic interest. We already see countries that are posturing for new shipping routes and natural resources as Arctic ice cover melts and recedes. The Convention is the only means for international recognition and acceptance of our extended continental shelf claims in the Arctic, and we are the only Arctic nation that is not party to the Convention.
Accession would also preserve our navigation and over-flight rights throughout the Arctic, and strengthen our arguments for freedom of navigation through the Northwest Passage and Northern Sea Route.
Finally, our new defense strategy emphasizes the strategically vital arc extending from the Western Pacific and East Asia into the Indian Ocean region and South Asia. Becoming a party to the Convention would strengthen our position in these key areas.
For example, numerous countries sit astride critical trade and supply routes and propose restrictions on access for military vessels in the Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf, and the South China Sea. The United States has long declared our interests and our respect for international law, for freedom of navigation, for the peaceful resolution of disputes. We have demonstrated our commitment to those interests through our consistent presence and engagement in these critical maritime regions.
By not acceding to the Convention, we give up the strongest legal footing for our actions. We potentially undercut our credibility in a number of Asia-focused multilateral venues – just as we're pushing for a rules-based order in the region and the peaceful resolution of maritime and territorial disputes. We're doing that in the South China Sea and elsewhere. How can we argue that other nations must abide by international rules when we haven't officially accepted those rules ourselves.
Another hot-spot is the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait remains a vital sea lane of communication to us and our partners, and we are determined to preserve freedom of transit there in the face of Iranian threats to impose a blockade. U.S. accession to the Convention would help strengthen worldwide transit passage rights under international law and isolate Iran as one of the few remaining non-parties to the Convention.
These are the key reasons for ratifying this treaty – reasons that are critical to our sovereignty, and to our national security. That's why I fail to understand the arguments on the other side of this issue.
For example, the opponents of accession have put forward the myth that the Law of the Sea Convention would force us to surrender U.S. sovereignty. Nothing could be further from the truth. Not since we acquired the lands of the American West and Alaska have we had such an opportunity to expand U.S. sovereignty.
There are some who claim that accession to the Convention will restrict our military's operations and activities, or limit our ability to collect intelligence in territorial seas. And again, quite simply, they are very wrong. The Convention in no way harms our intelligence collection activities or constrains our military operations, nor will our military activities be subject to review or scrutiny by any international court or tribunal.
On the contrary, U.S. accession to the Convention preserves our freedom of navigation and over-flight rights as bedrock treaty law – the firmest possible legal foundation for these activities.
America has always been and will always be, a maritime nation, since President Teddy Roosevelt dispatched the Great White Fleet in 1907 on its circumnavigation of the globe, we have been a global maritime power.
Our new defense strategy recognizes our return to our maritime roots, and the importance to our military of freedom of navigation and global mobility. We are making investments and force structure decisions to preserve that mobility.
Freedom of navigation is essential for any global power. But it applies to all maritime states – everywhere. And the Law of the Sea Convention helps ensure that this freedom is preserved and secured through reasoned, deliberate, international rules which are fully in accord with the freedom of navigation asserted by the United States around the world for decades.
It provides the stable, recognized legal regime we absolutely need to conduct our global operations today, tomorrow, and into the future.
Very frankly, this is not even a close call – the Law of the Sea Convention is supported by major U.S. industries, the Chamber of Commerce, our oil, energy, shipbuilding, shipping, and communications companies, fishing, and environmental organizations – along with past and present Republican and Democratic administrations and the entire national security leadership of the United States. We cannot afford to fail.
By finally acceding to the Convention, we will help make our nation more secure and more prosperous for generations to come. America is the strongest power in the world. We are strong because we play by the rules. Let us approve those rules, not ignore them, let us approve these rules and let us all commit today that for the sake of America, that for the sake of our national security, for the sake of our prosperity, and for the legacy of Dick Lugar, let's approve these rules by ratifying the Law of the Sea Convention.
Thank you very much.
MARKET TIMERS TIME HAS RUN OUT
FROM: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
May 8, 2012
Court Enters Final Judgments Against Defendants in Market Timing Case
The Commission announced that a Massachusetts federal court entered final judgments by consent against James Tambone and Robert Hussey, defendants in a case filed by the Commission on May 19, 2006. The Commission alleged in its complaint that from 1998 through 2003, Tambone and Hussey, two senior executives at Columbia Funds Distributor, Inc., the underwriter for the Columbia complex of mutual funds, allowed certain preferred customers to engage in frequent short-term trading in certain Columbia mutual funds in contravention of the prospectuses that represented that the funds did not permit, or were otherwise hostile to, market timing or other short-term or excessive trading.
Without admitting or denying the allegations in the Commission’s complaint, Hussey consented to a final judgment entered by the Court on April 13, 2012 and Tambone consented to a final judgment entered by the Court on May 7, 2012. The final judgment ordered Hussey to pay disgorgement in the amount of $37,500, plus prejudgment interest in the amount of $20,980, and a civil penalty of $75,000, for a total amount of $133,480. The final judgment ordered Tambone to pay disgorgement in the amount of $26,687, plus prejudgment interest in the amount of $15,344.38, and a civil penalty of $75,000, for a total amount of $117,031.38.
On March 19, 2012, the parties stipulated to dismiss the claim in the complaint alleging that Tambone and Hussey aided and abetted violations of Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The claim in the complaint alleging direct violations of Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 was dismissed earlier in the litigation.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
U.S. GOVERNMENT VS ABBOT LABS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole Speaks at Press Conference Regarding Settlement with Abbott Laboratories Washington, D.C. ~ Monday, May 7, 2012
Good afternoon. I’m pleased to join Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West, the United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia, Tim Heaphy, the Attorney General for the State of Virginia, Ken Cuccinelli, HHS Inspector General Daniel Levinson, IRS Criminal Investigation Chief Richard Weber, and Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Paul Sternal, to announce the latest developments in the administration’s continuing fight against health care fraud.
Every day, millions of Americans, young and old, take prescription medications with the assurance that their pills are safe and effective for the uses prescribed by their physicians. Laws enacted by Congress and the enforcement efforts of the Food and Drug Administration provide those important safeguards. The case we are announcing today is the latest in our efforts to bring the full weight of the Department of Justice down on those who, for the sake of profit, would undermine those safeguards.
This morning, Abbott Laboratories, a major health care company, pleaded guilty to a criminal charge of misbranding and agreed to pay a total of $1.5 billion to resolve criminal and civil liability for illegally marketing the prescription drug, Depakote, for uses that were never approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration.
For nearly a decade, Abbott marketed Depakote for a variety of unapproved uses, including the control of agitation and aggression in elderly dementia patients and the treatment of schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions. Abbott encouraged nursing homes to circumvent federal regulations designed to protect elderly residents from unnecessary drugs. And Abbott undermined the independence of pharmacists who serviced nursing homes by creating financial incentives for them to increase the use of Depakote in the nursing homes they serviced.
This resolution is a major accomplishment. The $1.5 billion that Abbott will pay is the second largest amount ever paid by a pharmaceutical company.
But this resolution is significant not just for its size. It is significant for what it says about this Administration’s coordinated efforts to protect the integrity of programs like Medicare and Medicaid, upon which millions of Americans rely every day. In May 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the creation of the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (known as HEAT) and renewed their commitment to fighting health care fraud as a Cabinet-level priority at both Departments. Since the creation of HEAT, the Department of Justice has recovered over $8.85 billion in settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture in health care fraud matters pursued under the False Claims Act and the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. And our Medicare Strike Forces have brought criminal charges against more than 800 defendants seeking to defraud Medicare. Just last week, a nationwide takedown by our Strike Forces resulted in charges against 107 individuals, including doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in Medicare fraud schemes.
As today’s announcement shows, we are committed to combating health care fraud in all its forms – from fly-by-night operations to some of the nation’s largest companies pursuing sophisticated schemes targeting government health care programs. Through HEAT, we will continue to marshal our forces in these efforts to protect American taxpayers and consumers against fraud, waste, and abuse.
Before I turn it over to the next speaker, I’d like to thank Tim Heaphy, the United States Attorney of the Western District of Virginia, and his office for their fine work on this impressive accomplishment, and for their long-standing dedication to making a lasting change in the health care industry. I know that Tim worked closely with the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in his state, and I extend my thanks to that office and Virginia Attorney General Cuccinelli, as well. This case illustrates how a federal-state partnership can produce real results for the American people.
I would also like to thank the dedicated attorneys in the Justice Department’s Civil Division – both in the Fraud Section and the Consumer Protection Branch – for their hard work on this case and their antifraud efforts across all sectors. I am grateful, too, for the work of our partners at the Department of Health and Human Services, and its Office of Inspector General, the Food and Drug Administration, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and our other federal and state law enforcement partners, who have made invaluable contributions to this effort.
Now, it’s my pleasure to introduce the Acting Associate Attorney General, Tony West.
LEAP FROG PARACHUTIST SALUTES LEAVING C-130 HERCULES AIRCRAFT
FROM: U.S. NAVY
Aircrew Survival Equipmentman 1st Class Thomas Kinn, assigned to the U.S. Navy parachute demonstration team, the Leap Frogs, salutes as he steps off the ramp of a C-130 Hercules aircraft assigned to the 139th Airlift Wing of Missouri Air National Guard during the Sound of Speed Air Show rehearsal at Rosecrans Memorial Airport. The Leap Frogs are based in San Diego and perform aerial parachute demonstrations in support of Naval Special Warfare and Navy recruiting. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Michelle Turner (Released)
GAY MARRIAGE SUPPORTED BY BAROK OBAMA
Photo: White House
NOTE: THE COLLINBRANDT GROUP OF WEBSITES HAS JUST RECEIVED THE FOLLOWING E-MAIL FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES PRESIDENT OBAMA
Today, I was asked a direct question and gave a direct answer:
I believe that same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.
I hope you'll take a moment to watch the conversation, consider it, and weigh in yourself on behalf of marriage equality:
http://my.barackobama.com/
I've always believed that gay and lesbian Americans should be treated fairly and equally. I was reluctant to use the term marriage because of the very powerful traditions it evokes. And I thought civil union laws that conferred legal rights upon gay and lesbian couples were a solution.
But over the course of several years I've talked to friends and family about this. I've thought about members of my staff in long-term, committed, same-sex relationships who are raising kids together. Through our efforts to end the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, I've gotten to know some of the gay and lesbian troops who are serving our country with honor and distinction.
What I've come to realize is that for loving, same-sex couples, the denial of marriage equality means that, in their eyes and the eyes of their children, they are still considered less than full citizens.
Even at my own dinner table, when I look at Sasha and Malia, who have friends whose parents are same-sex couples, I know it wouldn't dawn on them that their friends' parents should be treated differently.
So I decided it was time to affirm my personal belief that same-sex couples should be allowed to marry.
I respect the beliefs of others, and the right of religious institutions to act in accordance with their own doctrines. But I believe that in the eyes of the law, all Americans should be treated equally. And where states enact same-sex marriage, no federal act should invalidate them.
DANGERS OF PREDATORY LENDING
YOKOSUKA, Japan (April 4, 2012) Thanh Ly-Turnbull, a personal financial manager at the Fleet and Family Support Center at Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka, presents a class on creating a spending plan at the community readiness center. Five classes will be presented by the center this month as a part of Financial Literacy Month. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Andrew Ryan Smith/Released)
Know the Dangers of Predatory Lenders
By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Andrea Perez, Navy Personnel Command Public Affairs
MILLINGTON, Tenn. (NNS) -- With the high cost of the summer vacation season right around the corner, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) leaders remind Sailors to be wary of predatory lending practices.
According to Holly Petraeus, assistant director of the CFPB Office of Service Member Affairs, the number of service members affected by predatory lending acts is hard to measure.
"It can be embarrassing to go and tell somebody that you got ripped off," said Petraeus. "It's so common for Sailors to walk into [a financial counselor] with significant financial problems that unfortunately have gotten really severe by the time they walk in and ask to see a counselor."
Predatory loans are usually small, short-term arrangements designed to bridge cash-strapped borrowers until their next paycheck. However, they are expensive, high-interest loans that often cost $10 to $44 dollars per week per $100 dollars borrowed, plus fees. If a loan is not paid at the original payment due date and rolled-over multiple times, it can lead to a situation where most Sailors cannot pay off the loan.
Financial difficulties can threaten a service member's security clearance and career. Petraeus said addressing financial issues openly can work to a Sailor's advantage.
Petraeus recently met with Mid-South and Navy Personnel Command (NPC) leadership and spoke to Sailors about how to make informed consumer decisions.
She discussed the Military Lending Act, which provides some protection for active-duty service members, active National Guard or Reserve personnel, and their dependents against the type of predatory loans that are commonly found outside the gates of bases.
Petraeus said service members may appeal to predatory lenders because they have a guaranteed source of income.
"The Military Lending Act caps payday loans, auto title loans, and tax refund anticipation loans to military on active duty and their dependents at an annual rate of 36 percent," said Petraeus. "That sounds high, I know, but the average payday loan is actually about 390 percent."
The Military Lending Act defines payday loans as loans of closed-end credit, 91 days or less, and less than $2,000 dollars. It defines auto title loans as loans of closed-end credit that are 181 days or less.
"The problem...is that some folks have just changed the definition of their product enough to get outside of that law," said Petraeus. "So you'll see some sites online advertising that type of loan that will say right on there, 'we're not subject to the Military Lending Act because our loan is for more than 90 days.'"
Sailors experiencing financial challenges should notify their chain of command and work with their command financial specialist (CFS) to develop a budget and explore additional options such as military relief societies, eligibility for interest rate reductions and other relief.
TWO MEDICAID RECIPIENT STOLEN INFORMATION FRAUDSTERS GET 25 YEARS EACH
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Leaders of Multi-million Dollar Fraud Ring That Used Stolen Information of Medicaid Recipients Each Sentenced to Over 25 Years in Prison
Veronica Dale and Alchico Grant, who jointly ran a stolen identity refund fraud ring that attempted to defraud the United States of millions of dollars over several years, were sentenced to federal prison today, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced. Veronica Dale, of Montgomery, Ala., was sentenced to 334 months and Alchico Grant of Lowndes County, Ala., was sentenced to 310 months in prison. In addition, Dale and Grant were both ordered to pay over $2.8 million in restitution to the IRS.
In December 2010, Dale and Grant were originally indicted, along with three others, on various tax and tax-related charges including aggravated identity theft. Dale and Grant continued their tax refund fraud while on pretrial release and as a result, Grant was indicted again in April 2011, and Dale was later named in a superseding indictment in August 2011. Both were ordered detained following the second set of indictments and have remained in custody.
On Sept. 14, 2011, Grant pleaded guilty to a total of five charges from both indictments, including conspiracy, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. On Oct. 14, 2011, Dale pleaded guilty to a total of seven charges from both indictments, including conspiracy, filing false claims, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
According to the first indictment, the plea agreements and other court documents, beginning in 2009 and continuing through 2010, the defendants were part of a scheme that involved fraudulently obtaining tax refunds by filing false tax returns using stolen identities. Dale admitted that she filed over 500 fraudulent returns that sought at least $3,741,908 in tax refunds. These returns were filed using the names of Medicaid beneficiaries, whose personal information Dale obtained while earlier employed by a company that serviced Medicaid programs. Dale directed the refunds to different bank accounts that she and other co-conspirators controlled.
Also according to the first indictment, plea agreements and other court documents, Grant admitted that he opened bank accounts to receive some of the refunds and recruited others to do the same. One such recruit opened a bank account in the name of a business into which more than $1.3 million in fraudulently obtained tax refunds were deposited. Thereafter, Grant directed distribution of the proceeds which included having third parties cash checks drawn on the various accounts and remit the funds to him. Grant also instructed individuals to lie to law enforcement authorities when questioned about the checking account activities. Dale and Grant’s co-defendants – Laquanta Grant, Leroy Howard, and Isaac Dailey – have all pleaded guilty, as have two other co-conspirators, Wendy Delbridge and Betty Washington, who pleaded guilty to criminal informations.
The second indictment charged a conspiracy that involved Dale, Grant, Melinda Clayton, and Stephanie Adams. As court documents show, this conspiracy extended from January 2011 to April 2011, when federal agents executed a search warrant at Clayton’s house and arrested her. In her plea agreement, Dale admitted that this scheme involved a fraud loss of between $400,000 and $1 million. Dale admitted to providing Clayton with stolen identities in furtherance of the new scheme. Clayton stored these and other lists of stolen identities at her home. The tax refunds were directed to bank accounts and prepaid debit cards purchased by Dale and Grant. Dale, Grant, Clayton and Adams all pleaded guilty to their roles in the second scheme, as did Valerie Byrd, who pleaded guilty to a criminal information.
“The Justice Department remains committed to protecting Americans from thieves who would steal their identities and use them to commit refund fraud,” said Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Those who commit stolen identity refund fraud will be punished to the full extent of the law.”
"These sentences once again demonstrate the wide-spread and destructive nature of identity theft," observed George Beck, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. "I commend the IRS for their strict enforcement of these violations of federal laws. Our office remains dedicated to rooting out those evil wrongdoers who systematically steal taxpayers’ money."
“Identity theft is a despicable crime that victimizes honest taxpayers and causes immense hardship,” said Richard Weber, Chief, IRS Criminal Investigation. “This sentencing should serve as a strong warning to those considering similar conduct.”
The cases were investigated by Special Agents of the IRS - Criminal Investigation. Trial attorneys Jason H. Poole and Michael Boteler of the Tax Division are prosecuting the cases, with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and in particular Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd Brown and Jared Morris.
NATIONAL NURSES WEEK
Photo: Florence Nightingale
National Nurses Week is celebrated every year beginning May 6th and ending on May 12, Florence Nightingale’s birthday.
VA Nursing is a dynamic, diverse group of honored, respected, and compassionate professionals. VA is the leader in the creation of an organizational culture where excellence in nursing is valued as essential for quality health care to those who served America.
The VA nursing team is composed of Registered Nurses (RNs), Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurses (LPNs/LVNs), and nursing assistants.
VA Nursing provides the largest clinical training and cooperative education opportunities in association with undergraduate and graduate programs at numerous colleges and universities.
In the 1990s, VA provided clinical experiences to one out of every four professional nursing students in the country. VA nurses are highly valued members and leaders of the health care team, contributing their knowledge and expertise to the care of patients.
In addition to clinical care, VA Nursing is also a significant part of advancing research in VA and keeping up with the latest technological innovations. Nurse researchers help to promote inclusion of evidence into practice to provide quality care for Veterans.
PRESIDENT MEETS WITH KENTUCKY MEN'S WILDCATS BASKETBALL TEAM
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSEPresident Barack Obama welcomes the University of Kentucky men’s Wildcats basketball team to the East Room of the White House to celebrate their 2012 NCAA championship, May 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
Today, President Obama welcomed the University of Kentucky Wildcats to the White House to congratulate the team on its 2012 NCAA championship.
Although he didn’t have the Wildcats at the top of his bracket, the President said he “knew Kentucky was good.”
I had them in the championship game. But in the end, I thought, they got all these freshmen. These guys are too young. And keep in mind, at this time last year, three of the Wildcats’ five starters were still in high school. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist couldn’t even vote yet.
But let’s face it, sometimes talent trumps experience. And sometimes, a bunch of young players, even if they’re used to being big fishes in their ponds, even if they’ve never played together before, they can buy into a system, they understand the concept of team, and they do something special right away. And that’s exactly what happened in Kentucky.
And playing basketball isn't all the Wildcats are good at, President Obama said, and thanked the team for their community service:
And I want to congratulate them for doing their share of community service in the Lexington community -- from packing backpacks full of food for kids who don’t have enough, to raising money for tornado victims.
So these guys do it all. Everybody’s got to take a good look now, because a whole bunch of these guys are going on to the NBA. Who knows, one of them might end up here in Washington. We’ll take him
U.S. EUROPEAN COMMAND CONTINUES "ROBUST EXERCISE PROGRAM"
FROM: AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
An F-16 Fighting Falcon from the 480th Fighter Squadron takes off from Konya, Turkey, during Exercise Anatolian Falcon 2012, March 12, 2012. U.S. and Turkish air forces exercise air interdiction, attack, air superiority, defense suppression, airlift, air refueling and reconnaissance capabilities. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Benjamin Wilson
Eucom Exercises Adapt to Operational, Fiscal Environment
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
STUTTGART, Germany , May 9, 2012 - Budget tightening won't mean an end to U.S. European Command's robust exercise program, but it could bring big changes to the program that keeps U.S. and allied forces at the top of their game, Eucom officials here said.
U.S. participation dropped measurably over the past decade because forces were tied up in real-world events in the Middle East, he said. But as those forces return, he said, the exercise program will become key to maintaining their combat edge and the interoperability developed working on the ground, in the air and at sea.
"We do not want to lose this muscle that we have built with our partners," agreed Navy Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery, Eucom's deputy director of plans, policy and strategy.
Building on those hard-earned skills will be critical to sustaining NATO into the future, Martoglio said. "So we have to look toward ensuring interoperability of those forces and routinely training together so that if we have to conduct high-end operations, we have the ability to work together from a technical perspective, and the skills to work together from a training perspective," he said.
Throughout its history, Eucom has aligned its exercise program to changing geopolitical conditions and challenges, said Marine Corps Col. Edward Bligh, chief of the command's joint training, readiness and exercise division.
During the Cold War, exercises focused on a land battle in the Fulda Gap. After the Berlin Wall fell, they shifted toward building partnerships with new Eastern European democracies.
Then, after the 9/11 terror attacks, exercise planners moved into high gear to prepare U.S. and coalition forces for deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq.
Then, after the 9/11 terror attacks, exercise planners moved into high gear to prepare U.S. and coalition forces for deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq.
"The people who fight with us downrange are coming from our [combatant command area of responsibility]," Bligh said. "So to ensure they are capable and ready to go, our exercise program has been highly focused on International Security Assistance Force preparation."
Now, as Eucom continues to support that training mission, Bligh and his fellow planners are looking toward the next challenge. "How can we sustain that partnership capacity and build on it and go to that next tier, whatever that may be?" he said.
It's a question being asked within the context of looming budget cuts that will have a direct impact on the exercise program.
The simple answer would be to eliminate or scale back some of the command's 20-plus annual exercises. But Bligh said he sees another trend: more targeted engagements focused on specific capabilities and partners and directly in line with contingency plans.
That, he said, means basing scenarios not just on current threats, but also on emerging ones ranging from ballistic missiles to cyber-attacks.
Bligh also projected that some exercises will be combined, he said. This year, for example, Austere Challenge, an annual senior-level decision-making exercise, is being combined with Juniper Cobra, a combined air defense exercise between the United States and Israel.
Although doing so is a significant challenge for exercise planners -- who must build enough into the scenarios to keep all players engaged at both the tactical and strategic levels -- it stands to reduce costs and streamline planning efforts, the colonel explained.
Bligh said he also anticipates more regionally focused exercises and increased engagement with Turkey, Poland, Russia and Israel, nations specifically identified in the command's theater engagement plan.
The recent Anatolian Falcon 2012 exercise between U.S. and Turkish air forces, for example, was designed to test the two countries' military interoperability as they conducted a variety of air missions.
A new exercise for fiscal 2013, Saber Guardian, will bring together about 150 U.S. Army Europe soldiers and their Romanian counterparts as part of a broader effort to build partnerships in the Black Sea region.
Although the United States traditionally has sponsored exercises and invited other allies and partners to participate, Bligh said, U.S. forces will increasingly participate in other countries' exercises. This year, for example, U.S. Army Europe plans to send troops to a land-forces exercise hosted by Poland. As that program matures, Bligh envisions that U.S. Air Forces Europe also could participate.
"We are attending another nation's exercise at a fraction of the cost of us hosting our own," he said.
In another promising development, more partner nations are beginning to exercise together, independent of the United States. Bulgaria, for example, now hosts its own regional energy security exercise, Energy Flame, for its Balkan neighbors, using simulation capabilities the United States spent the past 10 to 15 years helping the Bulgarians build.
"They run it and do the whole show," Bligh said. "Not only do they have the capability to run a very sophisticated exercise out of their own simulation center, but they have graduated to a degree that they are able to share that capability in constructive ways with their Balkan neighbors. So that, to us, is a real success story."
Although sustaining partner-nation capacity will remain a command priority, Air Force Lt. Col. Phil Everitte, Eucom's exercise branch chief, said he expects the exercise program to also put increasing emphasis on putting contingency plans to practice.
"Since money is tight, we want to do things more smartly," he said. "That means being more focused on contingencies – basically our wartime tasking and our core missions. So we are trying to lead our program in that direction."
MARINE JOINED MARINE CORP OVER APPEAL OF STRICT STANDARDS
FROM: AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Marine Corps Cpl. Erica Adams went to a recruiter's office with a friend who planned to enlist. Her friend didn't enlist, but she did. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Chelsea Russell By Army Spc. Chelsea Russell
Regional Command Southwest
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan , May 7, 2012 - When Cpl. Erica Adams decided to join the Marine Corps, she knew she wanted to be a motor transportation mechanic.
"My dad would show me how to fix my own car," the Clinton, Ill., native said. "I was a tomboy. I did all the dirty work and the yard work."
Adams, who is attached to 1st Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group here, said she never planned on joining the Marine Corps until just before her Feb. 7, 2010, enlistment. Her best friend's brother was home on recruiter assistance duty, and Adams decided to tag along with them to the recruiting station. She didn't plan on signing up, she said, but her best friend did. But when they walked out of the recruiting station later that day, Adams had joined instead.
Her mother and sisters were stunned when they found out she had chosen to enlist in the Marine Corps. At first, they doubted her decision and asked her why she hadn't picked the Army, Air Force or the reserves. She replied that the Marine Corps' strict standards appealed to her.
When she made the decision to join the Marines, Adams said, her parents were on vacation and had no idea. They were quite shocked when, shortly after their return home, Adams nonchalantly placed the card she had received from the Marine recruiter on the table.
Pausing a moment to let them puzzle over the card, she said, she told them she had enlisted in the Marines and soon would be leaving for recruit training.
But it didn't take long for her parents to fully support her decision, she said. "By the time I went to boot camp, they were all behind me," she added. "They sent me a letter every day in boot camp." Adams received her eagle, globe and anchor on her 21st birthday.
She celebrated her 22nd birthday in the Vanuatu Islands while participating in a four-month Pacific Partnership humanitarian deployment. This year, Adams will celebrate her 23rd birthday in Afghanistan.
Adams' time in the Marine Corps thus far has taken her to exotic locales such as New Guinea, Australia and Hawaii. While she was growing up, she said, she wanted to travel but she didn't know if she'd ever actually be able to do so.
"They said I would see the world," she said, laughing. "That was one of the reasons I wanted to join."
Her experiences have taught her the world is a big place with many differences in culture, Adams said. "It's a whole other world," she said. "There's a lot of different people with a lot of different ways of living."
During her deployment, Adams said, she hopes to gain more experience as a Marine. She's already managed to pay off her credit card bills, and she said she wants to have a better understanding of why U.S. forces have deployed to Afghanistan.
"I just want to bring home the truth about what really goes on and what it's like to be here," she said.
It pleases her to know she's making her family proud by serving in the military.
"There's a whole other world out there besides the town that you grew up in," she said. "I feel like I'm more mature than [the people I grew up with]. I've seen and done so much already, and I'm only 22. I'm proud that I can make my parents proud."
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