FROM: U.S. TREASURY DEPARTMENT
Treasury Designates Senior Al-Qa’ida Official and Terrorist Training Center Supporting Lashkar-E Tayyiba and the Taliban
Designations Include First Sanctions Against a Madrassa Used to Train Taliban Fighters
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated Umar Siddique Kathio Azmarai (Azmarai), a senior Al-Qa’ida official, and Jamia Taleem-Ul-Quran-Wal-Hadith Madrassa, also known as the Ganj Madrassa, a school in Peshawar that serves as a training center and facilitates funding for al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban. The activities of the Ganj Madrassa exemplify how terrorist groups, such as al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban, subvert seemingly legitimate institutions, such as religious schools, to divert charitable donations meant for education to support violent acts. Today’s action is the first designation of a madrassa that is being abused by terrorist organizations. This action does not generally target madrassas, which often play an essential role in improving literacy and providing humanitarian and developmental aid in many areas of the world, including Pakistan.
“Today’s action strikes at the heart of the financial and logistical support network that abuses charitable donations and provides essential services for various terrorist groups including al-Qa’ida, Lashkar-e Tayyiba, and the Taliban. These networks provide the fighters, training, and supplies for these terrorist groups to carry out their acts of violence against coalition forces and civilians alike,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David S. Cohen. “We will continue to work with our partners around the world to dismantle these terrorist networks, especially those that try to conceal their sinister activities behind critical community organizations like madrassas.”
During his long tenure with al-Qa’ida, Azmarai has held a number of important positions. He is al-Qa’ida’s leader in Sindh and Balochistan provinces, Pakistan, and has been a significant financial facilitator for the group, moving hundreds of thousands of dollars in support of its leadership and operations. Azmarai has also acted as a courier for al-Qa’ida officials and has managed logistics for family members of senior al-Qa’ida leadership, including Usama bin Laden.
Treasury today also designated the Ganj Madrassa in Peshawar, Pakistan, which is controlled by designated al-Qa’ida facilitator Fazeel-A-Tul Shaykh Abu Mohammed Ameen Al-Peshawari, also known as Shaykh Aminullah. Shaykh Aminullah was designated by both the United States and United Nations (UN) in 2009 for providing material support to al-Qa’ida and the Taliban.
The Ganj Madrassa serves as a terrorist training center where students, under the guise of religious studies, have been radicalized to conduct terrorist and insurgent activities. In some cases, students were trained to become bomb manufacturers and suicide bombers. Shaykh Aminullah has directed donations provided for the school to terrorist groups such as the Taliban, which use the money to fund the ongoing violence in Afghanistan.
The Ganj Madrassa was designated today pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, which targets terrorist and their supporters, for being controlled by Shaykh Aminullah and for providing financial and material support to Lashkar-e Tayyiba and the Taliban. Azmarai was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 for acting on behalf of al-Qa’ida.
As a result of today’s designation, any assets these entities may have under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from doing business with them.
Umar Siddique Kathio Azmarai
In addition to his financial activities on behalf of al-Qa’ida, Azmarai has been active in multiple other facilitation duties for al-Qa’ida. As of early 2012, Azmarai facilitated the procurement of secure areas in Pakistan for al-Qa’ida to house militants and store vehicles. Azmarai has frequently acted as a courier within Pakistan for al-Qa’ida leaders and other al-Qa’ida facilitators. As of early 2003, Azmarai was a courier between al-Qa’ida cells in Pakistan and the Persian Gulf and, as of late 2002, was a courier for senior al-Qa’ida operational planner Khalid Shaykh Muhammad.
Azmarai's facilitation duties on behalf of al-Qa’ida have also included providing logistical support to al-Qa’ida members and their families. As of 2011, Azmarai assisted al-Qa’ida's administrative manager with managing the care of important al-Qa’ida members' families, including facilitating their finances, housing, and medical care. In 1999, Azmarai assisted in making logistical arrangements for al-Qa’ida members and their families in Karachi, Pakistan. Azmarai was also specifically responsible for providing support to members of now-deceased al-Qa’ida leader Usama bin Laden's family. Bin Laden's son-in-law selected Azmarai in late 1999 to look after bin Laden's family and, in mid-2000, Azmarai began working directly for bin Laden's family, facilitating their travel, lodging, and medical needs. From late 2001 through early 2002, Azmarai was responsible for bin Laden's family members in Karachi. In mid-2002, Azmarai worked for bin Laden's son, now-deceased Saad bin Laden.
Ganj Madrassa
Under Shaykh Aminullah’s leadership, the Ganj Madrassa has trained and harbored Taliban fighters who have subsequently been dispatched to Afghanistan. As recently as early 2013, Shaykh Aminullah was recruiting for Lashkar-e Tayyiba at the Ganj Madrassa and, as of late 2012, was hosting al-Qa’ida operatives there.
Shaykh Aminullah has provided assistance, including funding and recruits, to al-Qaida. In addition, he directs donations received by the Ganj Madrassa to jihadist fighters battling coalition forces in Afghanistan and also uses the money to train madrassa students to become Taliban fighters. Shaykh Aminullah frequently travels to the Gulf to obtain charity donations on the madrassa’s behalf.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL AND CHINA'S MINISTER OF NATIONAL DEFENSE GENERAL WANQUAN
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Presenter: : Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and China's Minister of National Defence General Chang Wanquan
Department of Defense Press Briefing with Secretary Hagel and Gen. Chang from the Pentagon
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: Good afternoon. Today, I'm pleased to welcome Minister of Defence General Chang to the Pentagon. We just finished a very productive meeting, where I restated that the United States is committed to building a positive and constructive relationship with China. The China-U.S. relationship is important for stability and security in the Asia Pacific and achieving security and prosperity for our two nations in the 21st century.
One of the themes we emphasized today was that a sustained, substantive military-to-military relationship is an important pillar for this strong bilateral relationship. The United States welcomes and supports the rise of a prosperous and responsible China that help solve regional and global problems.
Our goal is to build trust between our militaries through cooperation. The United States has invited for the first time the PLA navy to join our largest multilateral naval exercise, RIMPAC, that will take place next year. This morning, General Chang and I have affirmed that we will continue expanding our defense exchanges and joint exercises. Earlier this summer, for the first time, Chinese midshipmen joined in a multinational exchange program at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis.
Today, our Military Maritime Consultative Agreement Working Group is meeting in Hawaii to discuss humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. And this weekend, our navies will conduct another counter-piracy exercise in the Gulf of Aden, building on the first-ever joint counter-piracy exercise we held last year.
General Chang brought up two of the initiatives that President Xi proposed to President Obama at their summit in June, one, a way to notify each other of major military activities, and, two, rules of behavior for military air and naval activities.
I welcomed this discussion and noticed that the transparency that we've had is important to reducing the risk of miscalculation and avoiding unintended tensions or conflicts. Our staffs are exploring those initiatives and will continue discussing them.
General Chang and I have also both welcomed this recent establishment of the new U.S.-China cyber working group as a venue for addressing issues of mutual concern in the area of cyber. We discussed a number of regional security issues, as well, including North Korea, the East China Sea, the South China Sea, and I reaffirmed longstanding U.S. policies on these issues.
With respect to competing maritime claims, I noted that while the United States does not take a position on sovereignty in these cases, we do have an interest in these claims being resolved peacefully, without coercion. The general and I affirmed the importance of maintaining open channels of communication, and we agreed that it's important to continue high-level visits, such as, as you all are aware, General Dempsey's visit to China earlier this year.
General Odierno and General Welsh will visit China later this year, and PLA Navy Commander Admiral Wu will visit the United States. Today, General Dempsey also offered to host his counterpart, PLA General Fang, for a visit to the United States next year.
In our meeting this morning, General Chang invited me to visit China next year, and I enthusiastically accepted. I look forward to seeing him again at next week's ASEAN defense ministers meeting in Brunei, as part of my trip to Southeast Asia. I'll also visit Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines on this trip.
Now I'll ask General Chang for his comments before we take questions from all of you. Thank you very much. Thank you.
GENERAL CHANG WANQUAN (through translator): Friends from the press, good afternoon. At the invitation of Secretary Hagel, I am leading this senior military delegation from the People's Liberation Army to visit the United States, bringing the friendship from the Chinese people and the Chinese military. The purpose of my visit is to implement the important consensus reached by President Xi Jinping and President Obama of building a new model of major country relationship based on mutual respect and win-win cooperation, to further increase mutual understanding, to enhance mutual trust, to promote mutual cooperation, and to push forward the sound and stable development of our national and military relations.
In the -- in the past few days, we visited U.S. PACOM, U.S. NORTHCOM, and NORAD. We were well received and experienced warm hospitality from the American people and from the officers and soldiers of the U.S. military. Here let me say thank you on behalf of all my colleagues.
This morning, Secretary Hagel and I had a candid and deepened exchange of views over our national and military relations, international and regional security issues, and other issues of common concerns. We reached five agreements.
Firstly, we both agreed that our military-to-military relationship is an important component of our overall bilateral relations and that the current military relationship is gaining a good momentum. We both agreed to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two presidents during their Sunnylands summit to work together to strengthen our military relationship and attempt to elevate it to a new height.
Secondly, we both agreed to continue to strengthen our high-level visits, deepen our consultations and dialogues in order to increase our mutual trust. Specifically, the U.S. welcomes the visit by the PLA chief of general staff in 2014. China welcomes the visit by U.S. secretary of defense and chief of naval operations in 2014.
Secretary Hagel and I agreed to set up an exchange mechanism between the PLA Strategic Planning Department and J5 Strategic, Plans and Policy, U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. We also agreed to take use of mechanisms, such as defense consultative talks, military maritime consultative agreements, to actively explore a notification mechanism for major military activities and continue to study the rules of behavior on military air and maritime activities.
Thirdly, we both believe that the Chinese and the U.S. militaries are carrying an increasingly important responsibility in maintaining peace and stability in the Asia Pacific region. Both sides agreed to play a constructive role in regional affairs, promoting the positive interaction between the two militaries in this region. We also agreed to strengthen coordination and cooperation under Asia Pacific multilateral security dialogues, mechanisms, and frameworks. China will participate in the Ring of Pacific exercise in 2014, as invited.
Fourthly, we're in agreement that the two militaries share wide common interests and foundation for cooperation in nontraditional security areas. We both agreed to further enhance exchanges and cooperation in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, counterterrorism, anti-piracy, and peacekeeping. We both confirmed to conduct the first China-U.S. humanitarian assistance and disaster relief exercise with active force in Hawaii this November. We also agreed to have an exploratory discussion on logistics issues in support of nontraditional security missions later this year.
Fifthly, we both agreed to further deepen military archives cooperation, setting up a military archives cooperation mechanism in which both sides can build upon the existing cooperation of the PLA assist in U.S. to search those missing in actions and strengthen a two-way exchange of related military archives and materials.
At present, the China-U.S. relationship is in a new historical era. Building a new model of China-U.S. military relationship can help us to increase strategic trust to reduce strategic risks and to maintain world peace and regional stability. China is ready to work with the U.S. to seriously implemented our presidents' important consensus, to -- to raise our military-to-military relationship to a new height by strengthening our dialogue, communication, and practical cooperation, and by properly handle our disputes and differences.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Thanks.
GEORGE LITTLE: We'll now move to questions. There will be two per side. And we'll pause for translation after each question. And we'll start with Bob Burns of the Associated Press.
Q: Thank you. General Chang, a question for you. The U.S. has spoken quite a lot recently about pivoting to Asia. I'm wondering if you see justification for a larger U.S. military presence in the Asia Pacific. Do you see evidence of that yet? And do you think it's helpful or harmful that the U.S. is trying to increase its influence in the region?
A question for Secretary Hagel on Egypt, in light of the violence there in recent days. You had quite a series of contacts with General Al-Sisi in recent days. Given what transpired over the last several days, do you feel that your message fell on deaf ears? And also, what's the way ahead, in your view? Do you need to cut off military-to-military relations? Do you stop arms transfers? And do you -- are you concerned about the safety of U.S. military personnel in the Sinai, where there's been a lot of violence lately? Thank you.
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Regarding the U.S.-Asia Pacific rebalancing strategy, I would like to first make a point by quoting the chairman of the People's Republic of China. President Xi used to say that the Pacific is wide enough to accommodate both two great countries, China and United States.
It's always the Chinese position to welcome the U.S. to play a constructive role in the Asia Pacific. And we also noted the U.S. statement many times, that the U.S. rebalancing strategy is a comprehensive one, incorporating areas such as economics and social and also including military.
It is also worth to be noted that certain Asia Pacific nations have noted that the military aspect has been highlighted in this comprehensive strategy, including to strengthen the military deployment in the region, enhancing the U.S. alignments in this region by conducting military cooperations and military -- joint military exercises.
We also noticed that the frequency and intensity of such kind of joint military exercises are increasing upon the recent time. From certain degree, this kind of intensified military activities further complicated the situation in the region.
China is a peace-loving nation. And we hope that this strategy does not target a specific country in the region. And the development of China is not only conducive to our own country, to the entire region, but also to United States. Being together with all the Asia Pacific countries, regional countries, including United States, it is a common aspiration of all of the countries that we wish to have peace in the region. Therefore, it is our hope that this rebalancing strategy is a constructive one that could help the peace and stability in the region.
And on the other hand, we would like to have this rebalancing strategy balanced on different countries, as well, because the essence of rebalancing is -- is balance. It would be a -- it would be a balancing strategy if such kind of factors are taken into consideration. What is the most important is China is ready to work with the United States to maintain the regional peace and stability.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Bob, yes, I have had many phone calls with General Al-Sisi over the last five weeks, but so has all of our national security team been involved in working with the Egyptians on dealing with this -- this issue. I say that because we've all consistently framed the same message.
As President Obama said last week, the violence must end, national emergency lifted. The interim government of Egypt must get back to an inclusive approach to reconciliation in Egypt. All of us have consistently said that.
The United States has a longstanding relationship with Egypt that's based on our respect for the people of Egypt, the country of Egypt. We have interests, clearly, in the Middle East, interests that include hopefully a development of some progress toward an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. So we continue to work with the Egyptian interim government, as well as the Egyptian military.
Yes, we are concerned about our people, Americans, all Americans in Egypt. Protection of Americans in Egypt, not just only our diplomats, but all Americans, is of the highest priority. And we all -- all the American government officials, including American military, have been working very closely with the Egyptian military and police to assure the security and protection of Americans in Egypt, and we'll continue to do that.
Q: Are you concerning reducing that -- the peacekeeping force?
SEC. HAGEL: As President Obama has said, we're reviewing every aspect of our relationship with Egypt. Thank you.
(UNKNOWN): Now Xinhua News Agency, please.
Q (through translator): My question goes to General Chang. General Chang, you just mentioned for many times about the meeting between President Xi Jinping and President Obama and that the two presidents agreed to build a new model of bilateral relationship. And at the same time, President Xi proposed to build a new model of military relationship in accordance to the new model bilateral relationship. So my question is, what is actually the concept of this new model of military relationship?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Thank you for your question. As we all know that President Xi summarized in three points the new model of this major country relationship between China and the United States, no confrontation, no antagonism, and respect each other towards win-win cooperation.
We believe as a new model of military relationship in accordance with the new model of bilateral relations, there are some is and some isn't in this concept. Firstly, it is a relationship in which both sides respect the other side. It is not a relationship dominated by either side alone.
Both sides respect the others' vital interests and major concerns, pay attention to the others' comfort level, not forcefully imposing one's will onto the other, or not gaining one's own interests at the expense of interests of the other.
Secondly, it is a relationship of cooperation and win-win. It is not a relationship of zero-sum game or antagonism. Both sides work hard to expand our mutual interests and areas of cooperation to take measures to effectively manage our fractions and risks towards the ultimate goal of cooperation and win-win to avoid the recidivist trap.
Thirdly, it's a relationship of mutual trust. It is not a relationship of mutual suspicion. Both sides view each other's strategic intention in objective manner to push forward those mechanisms that help mutual trust to refrain from words and actions that could pose negative effect upon mutual trust, not to make unwarranted accusations and to reduce misperception and miscalculations.
Fourthly, it is a relationship featuring exchanges and cooperation in many areas. It is not a relationship that is imbalanced and only focused on few areas for cooperation. A healthy and mature military-to-military relationship should be a comprehensive one, instead of an imbalanced one. In order to build a new model of military relationship, we need more substantive exchanges in wider areas and more practical cooperation in more diversified forms.
Finally, it is a relationship of openness and inclusiveness. It is not a relationship of exclusiveness or selfishness. While working to ensure the stability of China-U.S. relationship, it is imperative to work with other international community members to strengthen communication, coordination and cooperation, to maintain strategic balance and stability of the world, and in particular of Asia Pacific region.
I'm not sure if I've made my point clear or not. Thank you.
MR. LITTLE: We'll turn now to Jim Miklaszewski of NBC News.
(LAUGHTER)
Q: It easily translates. For General Chang, you spoke today of mutual trust, yet there are persistent reports that the Chinese government and military have launched cyber attacks against U.S. government targets and interests. What -- what is your response to those reports?
And given the fact that this cyber working group has been put together, what steps are the Chinese willing to take to restore the kind of faith and confidence between the Chinese and the U.S. on that front and reduce the potential threat for any cyber warfare?
And for you, Mr. Secretary, despite the persistent pleas from the U.S. government, your own personal efforts, the bloodshed today in Egypt continues. In what appears to be a further blow to democracy, there are reports the government is prepared to release the convicted former president Hosni Mubarak from prison and additional reports that the Saudis have pledged to make up any shortfalls that the Egyptians may run into if the U.S. cuts back any further aid.
And -- and one housekeeping measure. Is the U.S. prepared to cancel or at least postpone the shipment of Apache attack helicopters to Egypt?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Actually, complete -- trying to complete our extra missions regarding answering questions. As we all know that cyber is a completely new domain, and cyber security has been a worldwide difficulty.
It is always the Chinese government's position to take peaceful use of cyberspace. We oppose of having any kind of arms race in the cyber domain, and we oppose of taking use of information and technology to conduct any kind of operation and hostility towards another party in the cyber domain. And we oppose of taking advantage of the information -- the technological advantage to weaken other parties' sovereign control in this -- in this domain. And we are opposed of taking any kind of double standard in this domain.
China is one of the primary victims from hacker attacks in the world. We are faced to severe threats coming from those cyber attacks. The Chinese government consistently oppose and cracks down the cyber crimes according to our laws. And the Chinese military has never supported any form of hacker activities.
Regarding how to solve the cyber security issue, I believe it requires the common exploration and cooperation between China and United States, rather than ungrounded accusation or suspicion. I believe that Secretary Hagel touched upon this issue in his -- in his remarks that we will work to cooperate to try to solve this issue.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Jim, three parts to the question. I don't know about a Mubarak report. I'm not aware of it. I can't help you.
Saudi Arabia. As you know, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait announced a couple weeks ago that they committed to a considerable amount of assistance to Egypt. The specifics of your question regarding Saudi Arabia, I -- I don't know about those specifics.
Your question regarding cancellation of Apache helicopters or other parts, as I said to Bob, we're reviewing all aspects of our relationship.
Q: But given all that, Mr. Secretary, is the U.S. powerless to effect any change, to bring an end to the bloodshed in Egypt right now And why not answer the calls from Capitol Hill in particular now, just pull all the aid out, if they're not cooperating or don't appear to be cooperating at any level?
SEC. HAGEL: Well, first, there's not a consistent call from Capitol Hill one way or the other, as you know, on this issue. But more to the point, we have serious interests in Egypt and that part of the world. This is a very complicated problem. We continue to work with all the parties to try to help as much as we can facilitate a reconciliation, a stop of the violence.
Our ability to influence the outcome in Egypt is limited. It's up to the Egyptian people. And they are a large, great, sovereign nation. And it will be their responsibility to sort -- to sort this out. All nations are limited in their influence in another nation's internal issues. I don't think the United States is without influence, but that has to be a collaborative effort focused on what the Egyptian people want, supporting the Egyptian people. And we believe, as I've said, the president's said, Secretary Kerry has said, Ambassador Patterson, Deputy Secretary of State Burns, that should come as an inclusive, open, democratic process, allowing all people to have a role in the future of their country. Thank you.
TRANSLATOR: Do want that translated, sir, for the benefit of the Chinese minister?
SEC. HAGEL: He did that exactly right.
(LAUGHTER)
Thank you. I didn't realize I spoke that long. I'm sorry, Jim.
(UNKNOWN) (through translator): Now last question from (inaudible)
Q (through translator): I have two questions respectively for General Chang and Secretary Hagel. For General Chang, how do you see the current Asia Pacific security situation? And how do you see the interaction between PLA and the U.S. military in the Asia Pacific?
And to Secretary Hagel, would you like to elaborate a little bit on how -- what substantive steps should the U.S. take in building such kind of new model of relationship?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): I understand our friends from the -- press friends' concern about the Asia Pacific security situation. It is also one of our major concerns, because the regional security situation is closely linked to the overall peace and stability -- stability in the world.
And I have several points to make. Firstly, the current situation in Asia Pacific is generally stable, but there remains some hot spots and sensitive issues. Some hot issues are heating, while some other sensitive issues are getting more even sensitive. Improper handling of these issues could lead to a severe impact on the overall security situation in the region.
Secondly, the Chinese people always have their love on peace. China always is a staunch defender of the peace and stability in the Asia Pacific. We always insist that related disputes be solved through dialogue and negotiation. However, no one should fantasize that China would barter away our core interests. And no one should underestimate our will and determination in defending our territory, sovereignty, and maritime rights.
Thirdly, the Asia Pacific is our common homeland. Nations big or small, strong or weak, should make positive and constructive efforts for promoting regional peace and stability. Any action that leads to trouble or provocation, any action -- unwanted action out of the self-interest or further complicates or magnifies the situation would be highly irresponsible and will not lead to a favorable result.
And as just as I mentioned before, that we believe peace is the essence of Pacific, which means the Ocean of Peace in Chinese, or the essence of rebalance is balance. For any country to make a strategic readjustment, it is imperative to take regional peace and stability in mind and is important to balance the security concerns of different -- different regional countries.
The Asia Pacific is a region where the interests of China and United States intertwine the most and where China and United States interact most frequently. The two countries enjoy huge space and potential for cooperation in this region. The People's Liberation Army is ready to work with the U.S. military by strengthening our communication, coordination, and cooperation to pay more concerted contribution to the regional peace, stability, and prosperity. Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: As to your question regarding new models for our two countries, specifically military-to-military relationships, let me begin this way. I think it's fundamental to the efforts that are underway, as General Chang and I have both noted, and President Xi and President Obama noted, to develop relationships, avenues of opportunity for transparency, for understanding each other's intentions far better than we have in the past.
To carry forward the facilitation of those efforts require institutions, institutions of common interests, like what General Chang talked about this morning in his opening statement, as well as some of the specific items that I addressed, working groups for every general area of challenge, senior-level leadership exchanges, which I noted a number in my remarks, as did General Chang, those are the forms that you build in order to address the great challenges and issues and differences between our countries. And that's what we're doing.
Thank you.
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Thank you all.
MR. LITTLE: Thank you, everyone.
Presenter: : Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and China's Minister of National Defence General Chang Wanquan
Department of Defense Press Briefing with Secretary Hagel and Gen. Chang from the Pentagon
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE CHUCK HAGEL: Good afternoon. Today, I'm pleased to welcome Minister of Defence General Chang to the Pentagon. We just finished a very productive meeting, where I restated that the United States is committed to building a positive and constructive relationship with China. The China-U.S. relationship is important for stability and security in the Asia Pacific and achieving security and prosperity for our two nations in the 21st century.
One of the themes we emphasized today was that a sustained, substantive military-to-military relationship is an important pillar for this strong bilateral relationship. The United States welcomes and supports the rise of a prosperous and responsible China that help solve regional and global problems.
Our goal is to build trust between our militaries through cooperation. The United States has invited for the first time the PLA navy to join our largest multilateral naval exercise, RIMPAC, that will take place next year. This morning, General Chang and I have affirmed that we will continue expanding our defense exchanges and joint exercises. Earlier this summer, for the first time, Chinese midshipmen joined in a multinational exchange program at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis.
Today, our Military Maritime Consultative Agreement Working Group is meeting in Hawaii to discuss humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. And this weekend, our navies will conduct another counter-piracy exercise in the Gulf of Aden, building on the first-ever joint counter-piracy exercise we held last year.
General Chang brought up two of the initiatives that President Xi proposed to President Obama at their summit in June, one, a way to notify each other of major military activities, and, two, rules of behavior for military air and naval activities.
I welcomed this discussion and noticed that the transparency that we've had is important to reducing the risk of miscalculation and avoiding unintended tensions or conflicts. Our staffs are exploring those initiatives and will continue discussing them.
General Chang and I have also both welcomed this recent establishment of the new U.S.-China cyber working group as a venue for addressing issues of mutual concern in the area of cyber. We discussed a number of regional security issues, as well, including North Korea, the East China Sea, the South China Sea, and I reaffirmed longstanding U.S. policies on these issues.
With respect to competing maritime claims, I noted that while the United States does not take a position on sovereignty in these cases, we do have an interest in these claims being resolved peacefully, without coercion. The general and I affirmed the importance of maintaining open channels of communication, and we agreed that it's important to continue high-level visits, such as, as you all are aware, General Dempsey's visit to China earlier this year.
General Odierno and General Welsh will visit China later this year, and PLA Navy Commander Admiral Wu will visit the United States. Today, General Dempsey also offered to host his counterpart, PLA General Fang, for a visit to the United States next year.
In our meeting this morning, General Chang invited me to visit China next year, and I enthusiastically accepted. I look forward to seeing him again at next week's ASEAN defense ministers meeting in Brunei, as part of my trip to Southeast Asia. I'll also visit Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines on this trip.
Now I'll ask General Chang for his comments before we take questions from all of you. Thank you very much. Thank you.
GENERAL CHANG WANQUAN (through translator): Friends from the press, good afternoon. At the invitation of Secretary Hagel, I am leading this senior military delegation from the People's Liberation Army to visit the United States, bringing the friendship from the Chinese people and the Chinese military. The purpose of my visit is to implement the important consensus reached by President Xi Jinping and President Obama of building a new model of major country relationship based on mutual respect and win-win cooperation, to further increase mutual understanding, to enhance mutual trust, to promote mutual cooperation, and to push forward the sound and stable development of our national and military relations.
In the -- in the past few days, we visited U.S. PACOM, U.S. NORTHCOM, and NORAD. We were well received and experienced warm hospitality from the American people and from the officers and soldiers of the U.S. military. Here let me say thank you on behalf of all my colleagues.
This morning, Secretary Hagel and I had a candid and deepened exchange of views over our national and military relations, international and regional security issues, and other issues of common concerns. We reached five agreements.
Firstly, we both agreed that our military-to-military relationship is an important component of our overall bilateral relations and that the current military relationship is gaining a good momentum. We both agreed to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two presidents during their Sunnylands summit to work together to strengthen our military relationship and attempt to elevate it to a new height.
Secondly, we both agreed to continue to strengthen our high-level visits, deepen our consultations and dialogues in order to increase our mutual trust. Specifically, the U.S. welcomes the visit by the PLA chief of general staff in 2014. China welcomes the visit by U.S. secretary of defense and chief of naval operations in 2014.
Secretary Hagel and I agreed to set up an exchange mechanism between the PLA Strategic Planning Department and J5 Strategic, Plans and Policy, U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. We also agreed to take use of mechanisms, such as defense consultative talks, military maritime consultative agreements, to actively explore a notification mechanism for major military activities and continue to study the rules of behavior on military air and maritime activities.
Thirdly, we both believe that the Chinese and the U.S. militaries are carrying an increasingly important responsibility in maintaining peace and stability in the Asia Pacific region. Both sides agreed to play a constructive role in regional affairs, promoting the positive interaction between the two militaries in this region. We also agreed to strengthen coordination and cooperation under Asia Pacific multilateral security dialogues, mechanisms, and frameworks. China will participate in the Ring of Pacific exercise in 2014, as invited.
Fourthly, we're in agreement that the two militaries share wide common interests and foundation for cooperation in nontraditional security areas. We both agreed to further enhance exchanges and cooperation in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, counterterrorism, anti-piracy, and peacekeeping. We both confirmed to conduct the first China-U.S. humanitarian assistance and disaster relief exercise with active force in Hawaii this November. We also agreed to have an exploratory discussion on logistics issues in support of nontraditional security missions later this year.
Fifthly, we both agreed to further deepen military archives cooperation, setting up a military archives cooperation mechanism in which both sides can build upon the existing cooperation of the PLA assist in U.S. to search those missing in actions and strengthen a two-way exchange of related military archives and materials.
At present, the China-U.S. relationship is in a new historical era. Building a new model of China-U.S. military relationship can help us to increase strategic trust to reduce strategic risks and to maintain world peace and regional stability. China is ready to work with the U.S. to seriously implemented our presidents' important consensus, to -- to raise our military-to-military relationship to a new height by strengthening our dialogue, communication, and practical cooperation, and by properly handle our disputes and differences.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Thanks.
GEORGE LITTLE: We'll now move to questions. There will be two per side. And we'll pause for translation after each question. And we'll start with Bob Burns of the Associated Press.
Q: Thank you. General Chang, a question for you. The U.S. has spoken quite a lot recently about pivoting to Asia. I'm wondering if you see justification for a larger U.S. military presence in the Asia Pacific. Do you see evidence of that yet? And do you think it's helpful or harmful that the U.S. is trying to increase its influence in the region?
A question for Secretary Hagel on Egypt, in light of the violence there in recent days. You had quite a series of contacts with General Al-Sisi in recent days. Given what transpired over the last several days, do you feel that your message fell on deaf ears? And also, what's the way ahead, in your view? Do you need to cut off military-to-military relations? Do you stop arms transfers? And do you -- are you concerned about the safety of U.S. military personnel in the Sinai, where there's been a lot of violence lately? Thank you.
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Regarding the U.S.-Asia Pacific rebalancing strategy, I would like to first make a point by quoting the chairman of the People's Republic of China. President Xi used to say that the Pacific is wide enough to accommodate both two great countries, China and United States.
It's always the Chinese position to welcome the U.S. to play a constructive role in the Asia Pacific. And we also noted the U.S. statement many times, that the U.S. rebalancing strategy is a comprehensive one, incorporating areas such as economics and social and also including military.
It is also worth to be noted that certain Asia Pacific nations have noted that the military aspect has been highlighted in this comprehensive strategy, including to strengthen the military deployment in the region, enhancing the U.S. alignments in this region by conducting military cooperations and military -- joint military exercises.
We also noticed that the frequency and intensity of such kind of joint military exercises are increasing upon the recent time. From certain degree, this kind of intensified military activities further complicated the situation in the region.
China is a peace-loving nation. And we hope that this strategy does not target a specific country in the region. And the development of China is not only conducive to our own country, to the entire region, but also to United States. Being together with all the Asia Pacific countries, regional countries, including United States, it is a common aspiration of all of the countries that we wish to have peace in the region. Therefore, it is our hope that this rebalancing strategy is a constructive one that could help the peace and stability in the region.
And on the other hand, we would like to have this rebalancing strategy balanced on different countries, as well, because the essence of rebalancing is -- is balance. It would be a -- it would be a balancing strategy if such kind of factors are taken into consideration. What is the most important is China is ready to work with the United States to maintain the regional peace and stability.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Bob, yes, I have had many phone calls with General Al-Sisi over the last five weeks, but so has all of our national security team been involved in working with the Egyptians on dealing with this -- this issue. I say that because we've all consistently framed the same message.
As President Obama said last week, the violence must end, national emergency lifted. The interim government of Egypt must get back to an inclusive approach to reconciliation in Egypt. All of us have consistently said that.
The United States has a longstanding relationship with Egypt that's based on our respect for the people of Egypt, the country of Egypt. We have interests, clearly, in the Middle East, interests that include hopefully a development of some progress toward an Israeli-Palestinian settlement. So we continue to work with the Egyptian interim government, as well as the Egyptian military.
Yes, we are concerned about our people, Americans, all Americans in Egypt. Protection of Americans in Egypt, not just only our diplomats, but all Americans, is of the highest priority. And we all -- all the American government officials, including American military, have been working very closely with the Egyptian military and police to assure the security and protection of Americans in Egypt, and we'll continue to do that.
Q: Are you concerning reducing that -- the peacekeeping force?
SEC. HAGEL: As President Obama has said, we're reviewing every aspect of our relationship with Egypt. Thank you.
(UNKNOWN): Now Xinhua News Agency, please.
Q (through translator): My question goes to General Chang. General Chang, you just mentioned for many times about the meeting between President Xi Jinping and President Obama and that the two presidents agreed to build a new model of bilateral relationship. And at the same time, President Xi proposed to build a new model of military relationship in accordance to the new model bilateral relationship. So my question is, what is actually the concept of this new model of military relationship?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Thank you for your question. As we all know that President Xi summarized in three points the new model of this major country relationship between China and the United States, no confrontation, no antagonism, and respect each other towards win-win cooperation.
We believe as a new model of military relationship in accordance with the new model of bilateral relations, there are some is and some isn't in this concept. Firstly, it is a relationship in which both sides respect the other side. It is not a relationship dominated by either side alone.
Both sides respect the others' vital interests and major concerns, pay attention to the others' comfort level, not forcefully imposing one's will onto the other, or not gaining one's own interests at the expense of interests of the other.
Secondly, it is a relationship of cooperation and win-win. It is not a relationship of zero-sum game or antagonism. Both sides work hard to expand our mutual interests and areas of cooperation to take measures to effectively manage our fractions and risks towards the ultimate goal of cooperation and win-win to avoid the recidivist trap.
Thirdly, it's a relationship of mutual trust. It is not a relationship of mutual suspicion. Both sides view each other's strategic intention in objective manner to push forward those mechanisms that help mutual trust to refrain from words and actions that could pose negative effect upon mutual trust, not to make unwarranted accusations and to reduce misperception and miscalculations.
Fourthly, it is a relationship featuring exchanges and cooperation in many areas. It is not a relationship that is imbalanced and only focused on few areas for cooperation. A healthy and mature military-to-military relationship should be a comprehensive one, instead of an imbalanced one. In order to build a new model of military relationship, we need more substantive exchanges in wider areas and more practical cooperation in more diversified forms.
Finally, it is a relationship of openness and inclusiveness. It is not a relationship of exclusiveness or selfishness. While working to ensure the stability of China-U.S. relationship, it is imperative to work with other international community members to strengthen communication, coordination and cooperation, to maintain strategic balance and stability of the world, and in particular of Asia Pacific region.
I'm not sure if I've made my point clear or not. Thank you.
MR. LITTLE: We'll turn now to Jim Miklaszewski of NBC News.
(LAUGHTER)
Q: It easily translates. For General Chang, you spoke today of mutual trust, yet there are persistent reports that the Chinese government and military have launched cyber attacks against U.S. government targets and interests. What -- what is your response to those reports?
And given the fact that this cyber working group has been put together, what steps are the Chinese willing to take to restore the kind of faith and confidence between the Chinese and the U.S. on that front and reduce the potential threat for any cyber warfare?
And for you, Mr. Secretary, despite the persistent pleas from the U.S. government, your own personal efforts, the bloodshed today in Egypt continues. In what appears to be a further blow to democracy, there are reports the government is prepared to release the convicted former president Hosni Mubarak from prison and additional reports that the Saudis have pledged to make up any shortfalls that the Egyptians may run into if the U.S. cuts back any further aid.
And -- and one housekeeping measure. Is the U.S. prepared to cancel or at least postpone the shipment of Apache attack helicopters to Egypt?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Actually, complete -- trying to complete our extra missions regarding answering questions. As we all know that cyber is a completely new domain, and cyber security has been a worldwide difficulty.
It is always the Chinese government's position to take peaceful use of cyberspace. We oppose of having any kind of arms race in the cyber domain, and we oppose of taking use of information and technology to conduct any kind of operation and hostility towards another party in the cyber domain. And we oppose of taking advantage of the information -- the technological advantage to weaken other parties' sovereign control in this -- in this domain. And we are opposed of taking any kind of double standard in this domain.
China is one of the primary victims from hacker attacks in the world. We are faced to severe threats coming from those cyber attacks. The Chinese government consistently oppose and cracks down the cyber crimes according to our laws. And the Chinese military has never supported any form of hacker activities.
Regarding how to solve the cyber security issue, I believe it requires the common exploration and cooperation between China and United States, rather than ungrounded accusation or suspicion. I believe that Secretary Hagel touched upon this issue in his -- in his remarks that we will work to cooperate to try to solve this issue.
Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Jim, three parts to the question. I don't know about a Mubarak report. I'm not aware of it. I can't help you.
Saudi Arabia. As you know, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait announced a couple weeks ago that they committed to a considerable amount of assistance to Egypt. The specifics of your question regarding Saudi Arabia, I -- I don't know about those specifics.
Your question regarding cancellation of Apache helicopters or other parts, as I said to Bob, we're reviewing all aspects of our relationship.
Q: But given all that, Mr. Secretary, is the U.S. powerless to effect any change, to bring an end to the bloodshed in Egypt right now And why not answer the calls from Capitol Hill in particular now, just pull all the aid out, if they're not cooperating or don't appear to be cooperating at any level?
SEC. HAGEL: Well, first, there's not a consistent call from Capitol Hill one way or the other, as you know, on this issue. But more to the point, we have serious interests in Egypt and that part of the world. This is a very complicated problem. We continue to work with all the parties to try to help as much as we can facilitate a reconciliation, a stop of the violence.
Our ability to influence the outcome in Egypt is limited. It's up to the Egyptian people. And they are a large, great, sovereign nation. And it will be their responsibility to sort -- to sort this out. All nations are limited in their influence in another nation's internal issues. I don't think the United States is without influence, but that has to be a collaborative effort focused on what the Egyptian people want, supporting the Egyptian people. And we believe, as I've said, the president's said, Secretary Kerry has said, Ambassador Patterson, Deputy Secretary of State Burns, that should come as an inclusive, open, democratic process, allowing all people to have a role in the future of their country. Thank you.
TRANSLATOR: Do want that translated, sir, for the benefit of the Chinese minister?
SEC. HAGEL: He did that exactly right.
(LAUGHTER)
Thank you. I didn't realize I spoke that long. I'm sorry, Jim.
(UNKNOWN) (through translator): Now last question from (inaudible)
Q (through translator): I have two questions respectively for General Chang and Secretary Hagel. For General Chang, how do you see the current Asia Pacific security situation? And how do you see the interaction between PLA and the U.S. military in the Asia Pacific?
And to Secretary Hagel, would you like to elaborate a little bit on how -- what substantive steps should the U.S. take in building such kind of new model of relationship?
GEN. CHANG (through translator): I understand our friends from the -- press friends' concern about the Asia Pacific security situation. It is also one of our major concerns, because the regional security situation is closely linked to the overall peace and stability -- stability in the world.
And I have several points to make. Firstly, the current situation in Asia Pacific is generally stable, but there remains some hot spots and sensitive issues. Some hot issues are heating, while some other sensitive issues are getting more even sensitive. Improper handling of these issues could lead to a severe impact on the overall security situation in the region.
Secondly, the Chinese people always have their love on peace. China always is a staunch defender of the peace and stability in the Asia Pacific. We always insist that related disputes be solved through dialogue and negotiation. However, no one should fantasize that China would barter away our core interests. And no one should underestimate our will and determination in defending our territory, sovereignty, and maritime rights.
Thirdly, the Asia Pacific is our common homeland. Nations big or small, strong or weak, should make positive and constructive efforts for promoting regional peace and stability. Any action that leads to trouble or provocation, any action -- unwanted action out of the self-interest or further complicates or magnifies the situation would be highly irresponsible and will not lead to a favorable result.
And as just as I mentioned before, that we believe peace is the essence of Pacific, which means the Ocean of Peace in Chinese, or the essence of rebalance is balance. For any country to make a strategic readjustment, it is imperative to take regional peace and stability in mind and is important to balance the security concerns of different -- different regional countries.
The Asia Pacific is a region where the interests of China and United States intertwine the most and where China and United States interact most frequently. The two countries enjoy huge space and potential for cooperation in this region. The People's Liberation Army is ready to work with the U.S. military by strengthening our communication, coordination, and cooperation to pay more concerted contribution to the regional peace, stability, and prosperity. Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: As to your question regarding new models for our two countries, specifically military-to-military relationships, let me begin this way. I think it's fundamental to the efforts that are underway, as General Chang and I have both noted, and President Xi and President Obama noted, to develop relationships, avenues of opportunity for transparency, for understanding each other's intentions far better than we have in the past.
To carry forward the facilitation of those efforts require institutions, institutions of common interests, like what General Chang talked about this morning in his opening statement, as well as some of the specific items that I addressed, working groups for every general area of challenge, senior-level leadership exchanges, which I noted a number in my remarks, as did General Chang, those are the forms that you build in order to address the great challenges and issues and differences between our countries. And that's what we're doing.
Thank you.
GEN. CHANG (through translator): Thank you.
SEC. HAGEL: Thank you all.
MR. LITTLE: Thank you, everyone.
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S REMARKS ON WORLD HUMANITARIAN DAY 2013
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
World Humanitarian Day 2013
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
August 19, 2013
This is an important day for all of us to pause and join with our colleagues in honoring the committed staff who work to save the lives of others, often at great risk to their own. World Humanitarian Day is a commemoration of their sacrifice and a sober reminder that our work is far from done.
My family is a foreign service family. We saw what my Dad committed his life to doing in dangerous places and we saw what my mother did to fill in for two parents the times when he was away. I’ve had sisters work at the United Nations and go off to faraway places to help kids in desperate situations. So I know a little on a personal level about the unsung heroes, the humanitarian workers who volunteer to serve on the front lines of some of the world’s most dangerous places. From Algeria to Afghanistan, from Somalia to South Sudan, many have been killed or kidnapped in the line of duty. They show up in places no one else wants to go and they save lives. They literally build safer cities, help children get an education, provide health care in rural communities. The needs are truly global in scale, and so too is our response. Just think about what these incredible people are doing today. For over two years, the brave people of Syria have endured tremendous hardship in one of the largest humanitarian crises in decades. More than 100,000 men, women and children have been killed and 6 million displaced both within and across Syria’s borders. Through these dark days, more than 20 first responders from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, 11 UN staff and others from our NGO partners have been killed while providing much-needed aid in Syria.
In the Sahel, the United States supports the distribution of food and water to the insecure, vulnerable and displaced as a result of regional drought and the crisis in Northern Mali. In Sudan and South Sudan, we provide healthcare, sanitation and protection to millions uprooted from their homes by violence. And in Colombia, Haiti and Ecuador, aid workers deliver emergency assistance to internally displaced persons and refugees.
In a world growing more—not less—interconnected, when our common humanity is threatened, aid workers will be there—this day and every day the world over.
World Humanitarian Day 2013
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
August 19, 2013
This is an important day for all of us to pause and join with our colleagues in honoring the committed staff who work to save the lives of others, often at great risk to their own. World Humanitarian Day is a commemoration of their sacrifice and a sober reminder that our work is far from done.
My family is a foreign service family. We saw what my Dad committed his life to doing in dangerous places and we saw what my mother did to fill in for two parents the times when he was away. I’ve had sisters work at the United Nations and go off to faraway places to help kids in desperate situations. So I know a little on a personal level about the unsung heroes, the humanitarian workers who volunteer to serve on the front lines of some of the world’s most dangerous places. From Algeria to Afghanistan, from Somalia to South Sudan, many have been killed or kidnapped in the line of duty. They show up in places no one else wants to go and they save lives. They literally build safer cities, help children get an education, provide health care in rural communities. The needs are truly global in scale, and so too is our response. Just think about what these incredible people are doing today. For over two years, the brave people of Syria have endured tremendous hardship in one of the largest humanitarian crises in decades. More than 100,000 men, women and children have been killed and 6 million displaced both within and across Syria’s borders. Through these dark days, more than 20 first responders from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, 11 UN staff and others from our NGO partners have been killed while providing much-needed aid in Syria.
In the Sahel, the United States supports the distribution of food and water to the insecure, vulnerable and displaced as a result of regional drought and the crisis in Northern Mali. In Sudan and South Sudan, we provide healthcare, sanitation and protection to millions uprooted from their homes by violence. And in Colombia, Haiti and Ecuador, aid workers deliver emergency assistance to internally displaced persons and refugees.
In a world growing more—not less—interconnected, when our common humanity is threatened, aid workers will be there—this day and every day the world over.
14 MORE CHARGED IN ONGOING BRIBERY AND FRAUD INVESTIGATIONS INVOLVING THE MILITARY
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, August 16, 2013
Fourteen More Army National Guard Recruiters and Soldiers Charged in Ongoing Bribery and Fraud Investigation
To Date, 25 Individuals Charged in San Antonio and Houston Areas
Fourteen current and former recruiters and soldiers of the U.S. Army National Guard have been charged in the Southern District of Texas for engaging in a multi-year scheme to defraud the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
The cases against all 14 defendants arise from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses. To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 11 of whom have pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP). The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to Army National Guard soldiers who referred others to join the Army National Guard. Through this program, a participating soldier could receive up to $3,000 in bonus payments for referring another individual to join. Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account. To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.
In an indictment unsealed today in its entirety, Michael Rambaran, 50, of Pearland, Texas; and Edia Antoine, 27, Ernest A. Millien III, 49, and Christopher D. Renfro, 25, all of Houston, were charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, between February 2008 and August 2011, Rambaran was a National Guard recruiter and Antoine, Millien and Renfro were recruiting assistants in G-RAP. Rambaran allegedly provided the names, addresses and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers to Antoine, Millien and Renfro so they could claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonus payments by falsely claiming they were responsible for referring those potential soldiers to join the military. The indictment alleges Antoine, Millien and Renfro paid kickbacks to Rambaran by providing a portion of the fraudulent bonus payments.
In a separate indictment unsealed on Aug. 9, 2013, Zaunmine O. Duncan, 37, of Austin, Texas, was charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and witness tampering. According to court documents, between February 2008 and August 2010, Duncan, an Army National Guard recruiter, allegedly provided the personal identifiers of potential soldiers to four co-conspirators, identified as Recruiting Assistants 1 through 4, who used the personal identifiers to claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses through their G-RAP accounts. According to the indictment, Recruiting Assistants 1 through 4 paid kickbacks to Duncan by providing a portion of the fraudulent proceeds. The indictment also alleges Duncan and Recruiting Assistant 1, without permission or lawful authority, used the identity of a potential soldier to set up a G-RAP account through which Duncan and Recruiting Assistant 1 received additional fraudulent bonus payments. The indictment also charges Duncan with witness tampering, alleging Duncan instructed a witness, identified in the indictment as Recruiting Assistant 1, to make certain false exculpatory statements to federal law enforcement officers.
In another related but separate indictment also unsealed on Aug. 9, 2013, Jammie T. Martin, 36, and Michelle H. Davis, 32, both of Katy, Texas; and Danielle V. Applin, 27, of Harker Heights, Texas, were charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to the indictment, from February 2009 through April 2011, Martin served as an Army National Guard recruiter and Applin and Davis served as recruiting assistants with the G-RAP. According to court documents, Martin allegedly provided the personal identifiers of potential soldiers to Applin and Davis so they could claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonus payments by falsely claiming they were responsible for referring the potential soldiers to join the military. The indictment alleges Applin and Davis paid kickbacks to Martin by providing a portion of the fraudulent bonus payments.
In addition, in the last three weeks, Melanie D. Moraida, 33, of Pearland, Texas; Elisha M. Ceja, 26, of Barboursville, W.Va.; Kimberly N. Hartgraves, 28, of League City, Texas; Lashae C. Hawkins, 27, of San Antonio; Annika S. Chambers, 27, of Houston; and Vanessa Phillips, 35, of Houston, were all charged in separate criminal informations with one count of conspiracy and one count of bribery.
A conviction for bribery carries as possible punishment a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. Witness tampering and wire fraud, upon conviction, could each result in a maximum of 20 years imprisonment, while a conviction for the conspiracy charge carries a five-year maximum sentence. If convicted of aggravated identity theft, a defendant will also have to serve a mandatory penalty of two years in prison, which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed. All charges also carry a possible $250,000 maximum fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.
A criminal indictment or information is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
The cases are being investigated by special agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit. Trial Attorneys Edward J. Loya Jr., Brian A. Lichter, Sean F. Mulryne and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
Friday, August 16, 2013
Fourteen More Army National Guard Recruiters and Soldiers Charged in Ongoing Bribery and Fraud Investigation
To Date, 25 Individuals Charged in San Antonio and Houston Areas
Fourteen current and former recruiters and soldiers of the U.S. Army National Guard have been charged in the Southern District of Texas for engaging in a multi-year scheme to defraud the U.S. Army National Guard Bureau, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.
The cases against all 14 defendants arise from an investigation involving allegations that former and current military recruiters and U.S. soldiers in the San Antonio and Houston areas engaged in a wide-ranging corruption scheme to illegally obtain fraudulent recruiting bonuses. To date, the investigation has led to charges against 25 individuals, 11 of whom have pleaded guilty.
According to court documents, in approximately September 2005, the National Guard Bureau entered into a contract with Document and Packaging Broker Inc. (Docupak) to administer the Guard Recruiting Assistance Program (G-RAP). The G-RAP was a recruiting program that offered monetary incentives to Army National Guard soldiers who referred others to join the Army National Guard. Through this program, a participating soldier could receive up to $3,000 in bonus payments for referring another individual to join. Based on certain milestones achieved by the referred soldier, a participating soldier would receive payment through direct deposit into the participating soldier’s designated bank account. To participate in the program, soldiers were required to create online recruiting assistant accounts.
In an indictment unsealed today in its entirety, Michael Rambaran, 50, of Pearland, Texas; and Edia Antoine, 27, Ernest A. Millien III, 49, and Christopher D. Renfro, 25, all of Houston, were charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, between February 2008 and August 2011, Rambaran was a National Guard recruiter and Antoine, Millien and Renfro were recruiting assistants in G-RAP. Rambaran allegedly provided the names, addresses and Social Security numbers of potential soldiers to Antoine, Millien and Renfro so they could claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonus payments by falsely claiming they were responsible for referring those potential soldiers to join the military. The indictment alleges Antoine, Millien and Renfro paid kickbacks to Rambaran by providing a portion of the fraudulent bonus payments.
In a separate indictment unsealed on Aug. 9, 2013, Zaunmine O. Duncan, 37, of Austin, Texas, was charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and witness tampering. According to court documents, between February 2008 and August 2010, Duncan, an Army National Guard recruiter, allegedly provided the personal identifiers of potential soldiers to four co-conspirators, identified as Recruiting Assistants 1 through 4, who used the personal identifiers to claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonuses through their G-RAP accounts. According to the indictment, Recruiting Assistants 1 through 4 paid kickbacks to Duncan by providing a portion of the fraudulent proceeds. The indictment also alleges Duncan and Recruiting Assistant 1, without permission or lawful authority, used the identity of a potential soldier to set up a G-RAP account through which Duncan and Recruiting Assistant 1 received additional fraudulent bonus payments. The indictment also charges Duncan with witness tampering, alleging Duncan instructed a witness, identified in the indictment as Recruiting Assistant 1, to make certain false exculpatory statements to federal law enforcement officers.
In another related but separate indictment also unsealed on Aug. 9, 2013, Jammie T. Martin, 36, and Michelle H. Davis, 32, both of Katy, Texas; and Danielle V. Applin, 27, of Harker Heights, Texas, were charged with conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to the indictment, from February 2009 through April 2011, Martin served as an Army National Guard recruiter and Applin and Davis served as recruiting assistants with the G-RAP. According to court documents, Martin allegedly provided the personal identifiers of potential soldiers to Applin and Davis so they could claim fraudulent recruiting referral bonus payments by falsely claiming they were responsible for referring the potential soldiers to join the military. The indictment alleges Applin and Davis paid kickbacks to Martin by providing a portion of the fraudulent bonus payments.
In addition, in the last three weeks, Melanie D. Moraida, 33, of Pearland, Texas; Elisha M. Ceja, 26, of Barboursville, W.Va.; Kimberly N. Hartgraves, 28, of League City, Texas; Lashae C. Hawkins, 27, of San Antonio; Annika S. Chambers, 27, of Houston; and Vanessa Phillips, 35, of Houston, were all charged in separate criminal informations with one count of conspiracy and one count of bribery.
A conviction for bribery carries as possible punishment a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. Witness tampering and wire fraud, upon conviction, could each result in a maximum of 20 years imprisonment, while a conviction for the conspiracy charge carries a five-year maximum sentence. If convicted of aggravated identity theft, a defendant will also have to serve a mandatory penalty of two years in prison, which must be served consecutively to any other sentence imposed. All charges also carry a possible $250,000 maximum fine or twice the pecuniary gain or loss.
A criminal indictment or information is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.
The cases are being investigated by special agents from the San Antonio Fraud Resident Agency of Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit. Trial Attorneys Edward J. Loya Jr., Brian A. Lichter, Sean F. Mulryne and Mark J. Cipolletti of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pearson of the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
HEALTH CARE COMPANY OWNERS SENTENCED FOR ROLES IN $17.1 MILLION FRAUD
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Operators of Louisiana Home Health Company Sentenced for $17.1 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
The owner of South Louisiana Home Health Care Inc. and the director of nursing for the Louisiana home health agency were sentenced today for their roles in a Medicare fraud scheme involving the payment of kickbacks and the falsification of documents.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Walt Green of the Middle District of Louisiana; Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Dallas Region of the HHS Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG); Special Agent in Charge Michael Anderson of the FBI’s New Orleans Division; and Louisiana State Attorney General James Buddy Caldwell made the announcement.
Louis T. Age Jr., 64, owned and operated South Louisiana Home Health Care and operated this company along with his former wife, Verna Age, 60, who served as the company’s director of nursing. Louis Age and Verna Age, both of Slidell, La., were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to 180 months and 60 months in prison, respectively, and ordered to forfeit $9.2 million and pay $17.1 in restitution.
After a jury trial in March 2013, Louis Age and Verna Age each were convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Louis Age also was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay or receive illegal health care kickbacks. Verna Age previously was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay or receive illegal health care kickbacks after a jury trial in October 2012.
According to evidence presented at trial, Louis Age and Verna Age paid kickbacks to patient recruiters to obtain Medicare beneficiary information. Nurses, including registered nurse Verna Age, then falsified qualification documents to make it appear that these beneficiaries qualified for home health services. The evidence also showed that Louis Age hired and paid kickbacks to medical doctors to sign fraudulent referrals and certifications for home health services that were not medically necessary. Louis Age and Verna Age then used the Medicare beneficiary information and false documents to bill Medicare for the medically unnecessary home health services. From 2005 through 2011, Medicare paid South Louisiana Home Health Care approximately $17.1 million based on these fraudulent home health care claims.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Louisiana State Attorney General’s Office and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys David M. Maria and Abigail B. Taylor of the Fraud Section, with assistance from Trial Attorney Arunabha Bhoumik.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Operators of Louisiana Home Health Company Sentenced for $17.1 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme
The owner of South Louisiana Home Health Care Inc. and the director of nursing for the Louisiana home health agency were sentenced today for their roles in a Medicare fraud scheme involving the payment of kickbacks and the falsification of documents.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Criminal Division; Acting U.S. Attorney Walt Green of the Middle District of Louisiana; Special Agent in Charge Mike Fields of the Dallas Region of the HHS Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG); Special Agent in Charge Michael Anderson of the FBI’s New Orleans Division; and Louisiana State Attorney General James Buddy Caldwell made the announcement.
Louis T. Age Jr., 64, owned and operated South Louisiana Home Health Care and operated this company along with his former wife, Verna Age, 60, who served as the company’s director of nursing. Louis Age and Verna Age, both of Slidell, La., were sentenced today by U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to 180 months and 60 months in prison, respectively, and ordered to forfeit $9.2 million and pay $17.1 in restitution.
After a jury trial in March 2013, Louis Age and Verna Age each were convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, and Louis Age also was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay or receive illegal health care kickbacks. Verna Age previously was convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay or receive illegal health care kickbacks after a jury trial in October 2012.
According to evidence presented at trial, Louis Age and Verna Age paid kickbacks to patient recruiters to obtain Medicare beneficiary information. Nurses, including registered nurse Verna Age, then falsified qualification documents to make it appear that these beneficiaries qualified for home health services. The evidence also showed that Louis Age hired and paid kickbacks to medical doctors to sign fraudulent referrals and certifications for home health services that were not medically necessary. Louis Age and Verna Age then used the Medicare beneficiary information and false documents to bill Medicare for the medically unnecessary home health services. From 2005 through 2011, Medicare paid South Louisiana Home Health Care approximately $17.1 million based on these fraudulent home health care claims.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Louisiana State Attorney General’s Office and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys David M. Maria and Abigail B. Taylor of the Fraud Section, with assistance from Trial Attorney Arunabha Bhoumik.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
NSF SAYS SEA LEVEL AFFECTED BY FLOODS IN AUSTRALIA
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| The city of Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, shown in a satellite photo, was completely inundated by the floods. |
Global sea level rise temporarily dampened by 2010-11 Australia floods
Three atmospheric patterns came together above the Indian and Pacific Oceans in 2010 and 2011. When they did, they drove so much precipitation over Australia that the world's ocean levels dropped measurably.
Unlike other continents, the soils and topography of Australia prevent almost all its precipitation from flowing into the ocean.
The 2010-11 event temporarily halted a long-term trend of rising sea levels caused by higher temperatures and melting ice sheets, according to a team of researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colo., and other institutions.
Now that the atmosphere's circulation has returned to its previous patterns, the seas are again rising.
These results will appear next month in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, published by the American Geophysical Union.
Co-authors of the paper are affiliated with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Colorado at Boulder.
The research was funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), which sponsors NCAR, and by NASA.
"The scientists conclude that the Outback region in Australia played a crucial role in trapping a large amount of rainfall when widespread floods occurred over the continent," says Anjuli Bamzai, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.
"It's a beautiful illustration of how complicated our climate system is," says NCAR scientist John Fasullo, lead scientist on the project.
"The smallest continent in the world can affect sea level worldwide. Its influence is so strong that it can temporarily overcome the background trend of rising sea levels we see with climate change."
As the climate warms, the world's oceans have been rising in recent decades by just over three millimeters annually.
This is partly because heat causes water to expand, and partly because runoff from retreating glaciers and ice sheets is making its way into the oceans.
But for an 18-month period beginning in 2010, the oceans mysteriously dropped by about seven millimeters, more than offsetting the annual rise.
Fasullo and co-authors published research results last year demonstrating that the reason was related to the increased rainfall over tropical continents.
They also showed that the drop coincided with the atmospheric oscillation known as La Niña, which cooled tropical surface waters in the eastern Pacific and suppressed rainfall there--while enhancing it over portions of the tropical Pacific, Africa, South America and Australia.
However, an analysis of the historical record showed that past La Niña events only rarely accompanied such a pronounced drop in sea level.
Using a combination of satellite instruments and other tools, the new study finds that the picture in 2010-11 was uniquely complex.
In addition to La Nina, a rare combination of two other semi-cyclic climate modes came together. They drove such large amounts of rain over Australia that the continent received almost one foot (300 millimeters) of rain more than average.
The initial effects of La Niña were to cool surface waters in the eastern Pacific Ocean and push moisture to the west.
A climate pattern known as the Southern Annular Mode then coaxed the moisture into Australia's interior, causing widespread flooding across the continent.
Later in the event, high levels of moisture from the Indian Ocean driven by what's known as the Indian Ocean Dipole collided with La Niña-borne moisture in the Pacific, pushing even more moisture into the continent's interior.
These influences spurred one of the wettest periods in Australia's recorded history.
Australia's vast interior, called the Outback, is ringed by coastal mountains and is often quite dry.
Because of the low-lying nature of the continent's eastern interior, and the lack of river runoff in its western dry environment, most of the heavy rainfall of 2010-11 remained inland rather than flowing to the oceans.
While some of it evaporated in the desert sun, much of it sank into the dry, granular soil of the Western Plateau or filled the Lake Eyre basin in the east.
"No other continent has this combination of atmospheric set-up and topography," Fasullo says. "Only in Australia could the atmosphere carry such heavy tropical rains to such a large area, only to have those rains fail to make their way to the ocean."
For example, the Great Basin in the southwestern United States could trap water much like Australia--but atmospheric patterns don't transport such a large amount of moisture from the ocean to that arid region.
To conduct the research, the scientists turned to three observing instrument systems:
· NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites, which make detailed measurements of Earth's gravity field. The satellites enable scientists to monitor changes in the mass of continents.
· The Argo global array of 3,000 free-drifting floats that measure the temperature and salinity of the upper 6,000 feet of the world's oceans.
· Satellite-based altimeters that are continuously calibrated against a network of tide gauges. Scientists subtract seasonal and other variations to closely estimate global sea level changes.
Using these instruments, the researchers found that the land mass in Australia and, to a lesser extent, South America began to increase in 2010 as the continents experienced heavy and persistent rain.
At the same time, sea levels began to drop.
Since 2011, when the atmospheric patterns shifted out of their unusual combination, sea levels have been rising at a faster pace of about 10 millimeters per year.
Scientists are uncertain how often the three atmospheric events come together to cause such heavy rains over Australia.
Fasullo believes there may have been a similar event in 1973-74, which was another time of record flooding.
But modern observing instruments did not exist then, making it impossible to determine what took place in the atmosphere and whether it affected sea level rise.
"Luckily we've got great observations now," Fasullo says. "We need to maintain these observing platforms to understand our climate system."
-NSF-
Monday, August 19, 2013
MICHIGAN HOME HEALTH AGENCY OWNER PLEADS GUILTY IN MEDICARE FRAUD SCHEME
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Michigan Physical Therapist and Home Health Agency Owner Pleads Guilty for Role in Medicare Fraud Scheme
A greater Detroit-area physical therapist who was also an owner of a home health agency pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a $22 million home health care fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley III of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation made the announcement.
Hemal Bhagat, 32, of Troy, Mich., pleaded guilty on Aug. 14, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Bernard A. Friedman in the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. At sentencing, scheduled for Nov. 12, 2013, Bhagat faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to information contained in plea documents, Bhagat admitted that from approximately May 2009 through October 2011, he conspired with others to commit health care fraud through billing Medicare for home health care services that were not actually rendered and/or not medically necessary. A licensed physical therapist, Bhagat began working in June 2009 for Troy-based Prestige Home Health Services Inc., a home health agency owned by alleged co-conspirators. In approximately August 2009, he and other co-conspirators became owners of Royal Home Health Care Inc., a home health agency also located in Troy.
Bhagat admitted that his co-conspirators at Prestige and Royal paid kickbacks to patient recruiters to obtain the information of Medicare beneficiaries, which the co-conspirators then used to bill Medicare for services that were not provided to these beneficiaries and/or were not medically necessary. He and his co-conspirators then created fictitious therapy files appearing to document physical therapy services provided to Medicare beneficiaries, when in fact no such services had been provided and/or were not medically necessary. Bhagat’s role in creating the fictitious therapy files was to sign documents – including physical therapy evaluations, supervisory patient visits, and patient discharge forms – indicating that he and others had provided physical therapy services to particular Medicare beneficiaries, when in fact they had not. Bhagat admitted to knowing that the documents he falsified would be used to support false claims to Medicare by his co-conspirators at Prestige and Royal. He submitted or caused the submission of claims to Medicare for services that were not medically necessary and/or not provided, which in turn caused Medicare to pay approximately $4,767,359.03.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and IRS Criminal Investigation and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Niall M. O’Donnell, Deputy Chief Charles E. Duross, and Trial Attorney James McDonald of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Michigan Physical Therapist and Home Health Agency Owner Pleads Guilty for Role in Medicare Fraud Scheme
A greater Detroit-area physical therapist who was also an owner of a home health agency pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a $22 million home health care fraud scheme.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade, Special Agent in Charge Robert D. Foley III of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Chicago Regional Office, and Special Agent in Charge Erick Martinez of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation made the announcement.
Hemal Bhagat, 32, of Troy, Mich., pleaded guilty on Aug. 14, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Bernard A. Friedman in the Eastern District of Michigan to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. At sentencing, scheduled for Nov. 12, 2013, Bhagat faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to information contained in plea documents, Bhagat admitted that from approximately May 2009 through October 2011, he conspired with others to commit health care fraud through billing Medicare for home health care services that were not actually rendered and/or not medically necessary. A licensed physical therapist, Bhagat began working in June 2009 for Troy-based Prestige Home Health Services Inc., a home health agency owned by alleged co-conspirators. In approximately August 2009, he and other co-conspirators became owners of Royal Home Health Care Inc., a home health agency also located in Troy.
Bhagat admitted that his co-conspirators at Prestige and Royal paid kickbacks to patient recruiters to obtain the information of Medicare beneficiaries, which the co-conspirators then used to bill Medicare for services that were not provided to these beneficiaries and/or were not medically necessary. He and his co-conspirators then created fictitious therapy files appearing to document physical therapy services provided to Medicare beneficiaries, when in fact no such services had been provided and/or were not medically necessary. Bhagat’s role in creating the fictitious therapy files was to sign documents – including physical therapy evaluations, supervisory patient visits, and patient discharge forms – indicating that he and others had provided physical therapy services to particular Medicare beneficiaries, when in fact they had not. Bhagat admitted to knowing that the documents he falsified would be used to support false claims to Medicare by his co-conspirators at Prestige and Royal. He submitted or caused the submission of claims to Medicare for services that were not medically necessary and/or not provided, which in turn caused Medicare to pay approximately $4,767,359.03.
This case was investigated by the FBI, HHS-OIG and IRS Criminal Investigation and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Niall M. O’Donnell, Deputy Chief Charles E. Duross, and Trial Attorney James McDonald of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,500 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
U.S. SENDS BEST WISHES TO PEOPLE ON AFGHANISTAN ON THEIR INDEPENDENCE DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Afghanistan's Independence Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
August 18, 2013
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I send best wishes to the government and people of Afghanistan as you celebrate your Independence Day on August 19.
I have been to Afghanistan many times and seen firsthand the enduring partnership between our countries, which is founded on mutual respect and common interests. I have seen the people of Afghanistan work to build a peaceful, prosperous and unified nation that respects the rights of women and minorities in every fabric of society. The United States is committed to working with you and supporting the efforts necessary to achieve this goal and sustaining the gains that have been made.
There has been inspiring progress across Afghanistan in many sectors, including health care, media, education, women’s rights, trade and commerce. During the past year alone, the Afghan people have also taken significant steps to prepare for the coming security and political transitions, from the milestone event on June 18 that marked Afghan forces taking the lead for security across the country to the new electoral laws that set the stage for the coming 2014 elections. At the same time, Afghans continue to build their economy by working toward WTO accession, attracting private sector investment and developing their natural resources.
This progress is creating a better life for all Afghans. As you celebrate your independence, the United States shares your commitment to a strong and sovereign Afghanistan where Afghans enjoy security, peace, prosperity, and dignity for generations to come.
Afghanistan's Independence Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
August 18, 2013
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I send best wishes to the government and people of Afghanistan as you celebrate your Independence Day on August 19.
I have been to Afghanistan many times and seen firsthand the enduring partnership between our countries, which is founded on mutual respect and common interests. I have seen the people of Afghanistan work to build a peaceful, prosperous and unified nation that respects the rights of women and minorities in every fabric of society. The United States is committed to working with you and supporting the efforts necessary to achieve this goal and sustaining the gains that have been made.
There has been inspiring progress across Afghanistan in many sectors, including health care, media, education, women’s rights, trade and commerce. During the past year alone, the Afghan people have also taken significant steps to prepare for the coming security and political transitions, from the milestone event on June 18 that marked Afghan forces taking the lead for security across the country to the new electoral laws that set the stage for the coming 2014 elections. At the same time, Afghans continue to build their economy by working toward WTO accession, attracting private sector investment and developing their natural resources.
This progress is creating a better life for all Afghans. As you celebrate your independence, the United States shares your commitment to a strong and sovereign Afghanistan where Afghans enjoy security, peace, prosperity, and dignity for generations to come.
TWO SENTENCED TO PRISON IN ASBESTOS VIOLATIONS CASE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Two Idaho Men Sentenced to Prison for Asbestos Violations
Waterline Renovation Project Led to $3,980,000 Cleanup
Bradley Eberhart, 51, of Garden Valley, Idaho, and Douglas Greiner, 53, of Eagle, Idaho, were sentenced this week in federal court for violating the asbestos work practice standards of the Clean Air Act, announced Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Wendy J. Olson, U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho.
U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Eberhart on Monday to six months in prison plus six months of home confinement, followed by six months of supervised release, 200 hours of community service, and restitution of $3.98 million, in joint and several liability. Greiner was also sentenced to six months in prison and six months of home confinement, to be followed by six months of supervised release. The amount of restitution by Greiner will be the subject of further briefing by the parties.
Both defendants previously pleaded guilty on Feb. 26, 2013.
Boise-based Owyhee Construction Inc., was the successful bidder on a $2.1 million waterline renovation project in Orofino, Idaho, a rural community in north central Idaho. Greiner was the project superintendent and Eberhart was the onsite supervisor of the project. The contract documents warned Owyhee Construction that the company may encounter up to 5,000 linear feet of cement asbestos pipe (CAP) during the renovation. CAP is a non-friable form of asbestos that is encapsulated in a cement matrix. When the CAP is broken or crushed by heavy equipment or subjected to cutting and grinding by machinery it becomes subject to regulation because of the threat to public health from airborne fibers.
Eberhart and Greiner failed to properly supervise the renovation. Eberhart supervised employees who were not properly trained in asbestos work and were not properly outfitted with protective gear while cutting CAP with saws. While working in the trenches to replace pipe, workers would remove CAP from the trenches, crush it and then place it back in the trenches. Large quantities of CAP were also removed from the trenches and ended up as fill material on sixteen properties around Orofino. Greiner pleaded guilty to orchestrating one of the disposals. The EPA cleanup cost just under $4 million.
“These prison sentences reflect the serious consequences of the failure of these defendants to comply with EPA’s regulations that protect public health from asbestos, a human carcinogen,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Such criminal acts endanger workers and the community and can, as demonstrated here, cost the federal government millions of dollars to cleanup. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute these crimes.”
“This case demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement and the Department of Justice to ensure the health of our residents,” said U.S. Attorney Olson. “Threats to the environment and to public health may not be readily apparent from a construction project. Renovation projects like these often generate dust with fine asbestos particles that may have the potential to cause serious health and environmental problems if safety precautions are not taken. The full extent of injury from airborne asbestos may not be noticed or diagnosed for years. It is important that companies, their foremen and their operators comply with environmental laws to avoid serious harm.”
“These two Defendants carelessly subjected Orofino residents to asbestos exposure,” said Tyler Amon, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division in Seattle. “In the course of their enterprise, they also created sixteen separate asbestos disposal sites that threatened the community, jeopardized workers and cost taxpayers $4 million to cleanup. Today’s sentence sends a clear message: if you risk people’s lives to save time and money, you will pay the price.”
The case was investigated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D. Marc Haws from the District of Idaho and Senior Trial Attorney J. Ronald Sutcliffe of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Two Idaho Men Sentenced to Prison for Asbestos Violations
Waterline Renovation Project Led to $3,980,000 Cleanup
Bradley Eberhart, 51, of Garden Valley, Idaho, and Douglas Greiner, 53, of Eagle, Idaho, were sentenced this week in federal court for violating the asbestos work practice standards of the Clean Air Act, announced Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Wendy J. Olson, U.S. Attorney for the District of Idaho.
U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Eberhart on Monday to six months in prison plus six months of home confinement, followed by six months of supervised release, 200 hours of community service, and restitution of $3.98 million, in joint and several liability. Greiner was also sentenced to six months in prison and six months of home confinement, to be followed by six months of supervised release. The amount of restitution by Greiner will be the subject of further briefing by the parties.
Both defendants previously pleaded guilty on Feb. 26, 2013.
Boise-based Owyhee Construction Inc., was the successful bidder on a $2.1 million waterline renovation project in Orofino, Idaho, a rural community in north central Idaho. Greiner was the project superintendent and Eberhart was the onsite supervisor of the project. The contract documents warned Owyhee Construction that the company may encounter up to 5,000 linear feet of cement asbestos pipe (CAP) during the renovation. CAP is a non-friable form of asbestos that is encapsulated in a cement matrix. When the CAP is broken or crushed by heavy equipment or subjected to cutting and grinding by machinery it becomes subject to regulation because of the threat to public health from airborne fibers.
Eberhart and Greiner failed to properly supervise the renovation. Eberhart supervised employees who were not properly trained in asbestos work and were not properly outfitted with protective gear while cutting CAP with saws. While working in the trenches to replace pipe, workers would remove CAP from the trenches, crush it and then place it back in the trenches. Large quantities of CAP were also removed from the trenches and ended up as fill material on sixteen properties around Orofino. Greiner pleaded guilty to orchestrating one of the disposals. The EPA cleanup cost just under $4 million.
“These prison sentences reflect the serious consequences of the failure of these defendants to comply with EPA’s regulations that protect public health from asbestos, a human carcinogen,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Such criminal acts endanger workers and the community and can, as demonstrated here, cost the federal government millions of dollars to cleanup. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute these crimes.”
“This case demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement and the Department of Justice to ensure the health of our residents,” said U.S. Attorney Olson. “Threats to the environment and to public health may not be readily apparent from a construction project. Renovation projects like these often generate dust with fine asbestos particles that may have the potential to cause serious health and environmental problems if safety precautions are not taken. The full extent of injury from airborne asbestos may not be noticed or diagnosed for years. It is important that companies, their foremen and their operators comply with environmental laws to avoid serious harm.”
“These two Defendants carelessly subjected Orofino residents to asbestos exposure,” said Tyler Amon, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division in Seattle. “In the course of their enterprise, they also created sixteen separate asbestos disposal sites that threatened the community, jeopardized workers and cost taxpayers $4 million to cleanup. Today’s sentence sends a clear message: if you risk people’s lives to save time and money, you will pay the price.”
The case was investigated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney D. Marc Haws from the District of Idaho and Senior Trial Attorney J. Ronald Sutcliffe of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.
MAN INDICTED IN CONNECTION WITH JAMAICAN LOTTERY FRAUD
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Individual Arrested in Florida in Connection with a Lottery Scam in Jamaica
A Jamaican citizen charged in connection with the operation of a fraudulent lottery was arrested Tuesday in Orlando, Fla., following his indictment by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Aug. 9, 2012, the Justice Department, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Marshals Service announced today. Oneike Mickhale Barnett was arrested based on charges that he and his co-conspirators ran a lottery scam in Jamaica that fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to cover fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. The indictment unsealed with Barnett’s arrest forms part of the government’s crackdown on fraudulent lottery scams based in Jamaica.
Beginning in October 2008, Barnett and his co-conspirators are alleged to have contacted victims in the U.S., announced that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using Voice Over Internet Protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barnett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“Lottery scams that target older Americans, such as the one alleged here, are the most pernicious kind of fraud – often swindling seniors out of their life savings,” said Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department will continue to combat these schemes and bring those responsible to justice.”
“The alleged lottery scheme in this case is most vile because it targeted the elderly, one of the most vulnerable members in our society,” said Wifredo Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “While the scam was based in Jamaica, it targeted victims in the United States, including South Florida. We will continue to pursue and prosecute those responsible for these illegal schemes in an effort to bring those responsible to justice and protect those in our society.”
Barnett was charged with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. If convicted, he faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution.
“This arrest highlights the joint effort between U.S. and Jamaican law enforcement to prosecute those who prey on our nation’s senior citizens,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge for the Miami Division Ronald Verrochio. “The mission of the Postal Inspection Service is to protect consumers by ensuring the nation’s mail system is not used as a tool for fraud.”
Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in Miami Alysa D. Erichs added, “These individuals are preying on some of the most vulnerable members in our communities. We will continue to work with our partners in Jamaica and other law enforcement agencies to put these criminal enterprises out of business.”
Acting U.S. Marshal Neil DeSousa said, “The U.S. Marshals Service in the Southern District of Florida, along with the Jamaica Foreign Field Office and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, remain committed to locating and apprehending criminals who defraud elderly Americans. We will continue to work with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Department of Homeland Security on the JOLT task force in the ongoing effort to combat lottery fraud targeting some of our most vulnerable citizens.”
U.S. Attorney Ferrer and Assistant Attorney General Delery both commended the investigative efforts of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service and Jamaica’s Major Organized Crime and Anti-Corruption Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani and Consumer Protection Branch, Civil Division attorneys Jeffrey Steger and Kathryn Drenning.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Individual Arrested in Florida in Connection with a Lottery Scam in Jamaica
A Jamaican citizen charged in connection with the operation of a fraudulent lottery was arrested Tuesday in Orlando, Fla., following his indictment by a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Aug. 9, 2012, the Justice Department, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Marshals Service announced today. Oneike Mickhale Barnett was arrested based on charges that he and his co-conspirators ran a lottery scam in Jamaica that fraudulently induced elderly victims in the United States to send them thousands of dollars to cover fees for lottery winnings that victims had not in fact won. The indictment unsealed with Barnett’s arrest forms part of the government’s crackdown on fraudulent lottery scams based in Jamaica.
Beginning in October 2008, Barnett and his co-conspirators are alleged to have contacted victims in the U.S., announced that the victims had won cash and prizes and persuaded the victims to send them thousands of dollars in fees to release the money. The victims never received cash or prizes. The defendant and his co-conspirators allegedly made calls from Jamaica using Voice Over Internet Protocol technology that allowed them to use a telephone number with a U.S. area code. According to the indictment, Barnett convinced victims to send money to middlemen in South Florida, who forwarded the money to Jamaica.
“Lottery scams that target older Americans, such as the one alleged here, are the most pernicious kind of fraud – often swindling seniors out of their life savings,” said Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department will continue to combat these schemes and bring those responsible to justice.”
“The alleged lottery scheme in this case is most vile because it targeted the elderly, one of the most vulnerable members in our society,” said Wifredo Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “While the scam was based in Jamaica, it targeted victims in the United States, including South Florida. We will continue to pursue and prosecute those responsible for these illegal schemes in an effort to bring those responsible to justice and protect those in our society.”
Barnett was charged with conspiracy and 37 counts of wire fraud, and with committing these offenses via telemarketing. If convicted, he faces a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years per count, a possible fine and mandatory restitution.
“This arrest highlights the joint effort between U.S. and Jamaican law enforcement to prosecute those who prey on our nation’s senior citizens,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge for the Miami Division Ronald Verrochio. “The mission of the Postal Inspection Service is to protect consumers by ensuring the nation’s mail system is not used as a tool for fraud.”
Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations in Miami Alysa D. Erichs added, “These individuals are preying on some of the most vulnerable members in our communities. We will continue to work with our partners in Jamaica and other law enforcement agencies to put these criminal enterprises out of business.”
Acting U.S. Marshal Neil DeSousa said, “The U.S. Marshals Service in the Southern District of Florida, along with the Jamaica Foreign Field Office and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, remain committed to locating and apprehending criminals who defraud elderly Americans. We will continue to work with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Department of Homeland Security on the JOLT task force in the ongoing effort to combat lottery fraud targeting some of our most vulnerable citizens.”
U.S. Attorney Ferrer and Assistant Attorney General Delery both commended the investigative efforts of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Marshals Service and Jamaica’s Major Organized Crime and Anti-Corruption Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha Mitrani and Consumer Protection Branch, Civil Division attorneys Jeffrey Steger and Kathryn Drenning.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
DOJ SETTLES FAIR HOUSING LAWSUIT WITH HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Homeowners Association and Property Management Company in Fair Housing Lawsuit Involving Occupancy Limits
The Justice Department announced today that the Townhomes of Kings Lake HOA Inc. (HOA) and Vanguard Management Group Inc. have agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The lawsuit alleged that the HOA adopted and both defendants enforced occupancy limits that discriminated against families with children at the Townhomes of Kings Lake, a 249-townhome community in Gibsonton, Fla.
Under the proposed consent decree, which must still be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the defendants will pay $45,000 to the family that initiated the original complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), $85,000 into a victim fund to compensate other aggrieved families, and $20,000 to the United States as a civil penalty. In addition, the proposed consent decree prohibits the defendants from discriminating in the future against families with children and requires the defendants to receive training on the requirements of the FHA. In January 2013, while the lawsuit was pending, the HOA modified its occupancy limits to permit four occupants in 2-bedroom townhomes, six occupants in 3-bedroom townhomes, and eight occupants in 4-bedroom townhomes.
“The Fair Housing Act ensures that families with children are not denied their housing rights based on discriminatory occupancy policies,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce fair housing laws that protect the rights of families with children.”
The lawsuit, filed in October 2012, arose from a complaint filed with HUD by a family with six children that was living at the Townhomes of Kings Lake. After the family moved into their 4-bedroom townhome, the defendants indicated there was a problem with the number of people living in the home and threatened to evict the family. The family eventually moved out of the Kings Lake community. After HUD investigated the complaint, it issued a charge of discrimination and referred the matter to the Justice Department. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants violated the family’s rights, that the restrictive occupancy policies discriminated against other families with children, and that the defendants engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination or denied rights protected by the FHA to a group of persons.
“Twenty-plus years of HUD guidance and cases have put housing providers on notice that occupancy standards which unfairly limit or exclude families with children violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Bryan Greene, HUD’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “HUD and the Department of Justice are committed to making sure that all people have equal access to the housing for which they financially qualify.”
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Homeowners Association and Property Management Company in Fair Housing Lawsuit Involving Occupancy Limits
The Justice Department announced today that the Townhomes of Kings Lake HOA Inc. (HOA) and Vanguard Management Group Inc. have agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The lawsuit alleged that the HOA adopted and both defendants enforced occupancy limits that discriminated against families with children at the Townhomes of Kings Lake, a 249-townhome community in Gibsonton, Fla.
Under the proposed consent decree, which must still be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the defendants will pay $45,000 to the family that initiated the original complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), $85,000 into a victim fund to compensate other aggrieved families, and $20,000 to the United States as a civil penalty. In addition, the proposed consent decree prohibits the defendants from discriminating in the future against families with children and requires the defendants to receive training on the requirements of the FHA. In January 2013, while the lawsuit was pending, the HOA modified its occupancy limits to permit four occupants in 2-bedroom townhomes, six occupants in 3-bedroom townhomes, and eight occupants in 4-bedroom townhomes.
“The Fair Housing Act ensures that families with children are not denied their housing rights based on discriminatory occupancy policies,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce fair housing laws that protect the rights of families with children.”
The lawsuit, filed in October 2012, arose from a complaint filed with HUD by a family with six children that was living at the Townhomes of Kings Lake. After the family moved into their 4-bedroom townhome, the defendants indicated there was a problem with the number of people living in the home and threatened to evict the family. The family eventually moved out of the Kings Lake community. After HUD investigated the complaint, it issued a charge of discrimination and referred the matter to the Justice Department. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants violated the family’s rights, that the restrictive occupancy policies discriminated against other families with children, and that the defendants engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination or denied rights protected by the FHA to a group of persons.
“Twenty-plus years of HUD guidance and cases have put housing providers on notice that occupancy standards which unfairly limit or exclude families with children violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Bryan Greene, HUD’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “HUD and the Department of Justice are committed to making sure that all people have equal access to the housing for which they financially qualify.”
THERAPEUTIC MEDICINES AND TECHNOLOGY
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
From fundamental science to Innovation Corps: Technology to develop new therapeutic medicines
In medical diagnostics, clinicians often use positron emission technology (PET), a nuclear medicine imaging technology that sends an active molecule containing a radioactive tag--almost like a GPS system--that is designed to hone in on specific parts of the body.
These molecules are specific to certain conditions. For example, abnormally growing tissue will take up large amounts of glucose, so PET scans often use a glucose analog with a radioactive tag to pinpoint a suspected tumor.
Until recently, however, compounds that are known biomarkers for certain diseases had been very difficult to label with radioactive tags, limiting their value for detecting these diseases, for example, L-DOPA, which is taken up by the brain. "Because the technology to put the isotope on the molecule efficiently did not exist, we just couldn't use these compounds," says Stephen DiMagno, professor of chemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
But DiMagno and his research team have found a way to add radioactive tags to L-DOPA, and dopamine, an advance that increases the potential for speeding up the diagnosis of certain pediatric cancers, cardiac disease, and such neurological disorders as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Moreover, "it opens the way to make new compounds as well as 'label' those compounds that had been difficult to label," DiMagno says.
These compounds, with their radioactive tracers, are 6-[18F]-Fluorodopamine (6-[18F], a promising imaging biomarker of neuroblastoma, a serious and often fatal childhood cancer, and pheochromocytoma, a rare tumor of the adrenal gland, and 6-[18F]-L-DOPA, which has potential as a biomarker in patients with Parkinson's disease.
DiMagno and his colleagues, using a specific chemical reaction, developed a process that modifies L-DOPA in a way that allows the radioactive tag to be more easily attached. "The actual reaction we used has been known for a long time, but it was difficult to use effectively because there were fundamental things about the chemistry we did not understand," he says. "It took three or four years, but we fixed the problems that prevented them from being used."
The scientists make "precursor" molecules, that is, the compounds that ultimately will become imaging agents, that are designed to combine rapidly and efficiently with [18F]-fluoride, in a sterile glass reactor, according to DiMagno.
"After heating the mixture under a special set of conditions, the [18F]-fluoride displaces an ancillary portion of the precursor, yielding the fluorinated compound," he says. "Then we quickly purify the compound for use in imaging studies."
DiMagno's lab had long focused on the process of putting fluorine into molecules, but a sabbatical he took seven years ago, when he had time to reflect more deeply about his science, convinced him to work on this particular project.
"I got into science because I wanted to have an impact," he says. "I was doing fundamental work, but I wanted to do more to make a difference in the world. So when I came back, we took an inventory on the possible ways this problem could be solved, to figure out these chemical reactions and the routes for putting the label onto these drugs."
In the fall of 2011, DiMagno was among the first group of scientists to receive a $50,000 National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) award, which supports a set of activities and programs that prepare scientists and engineers to extend their focus beyond the laboratory into the commercial world.
Such results may be translated through I-Corps into technologies with near-term benefits for the economy and society. It is a public-private partnership program that teaches grantees to identify valuable product opportunities that can emerge from academic research, and offers entrepreneurship training to student participants.
Last February, DiMagno co-founded Ground Fluor Pharmaceuticals, a company that now manufactures the precursor molecules, those materials destined to be tagged with radioactive isotopes. The company also has received an NSF $180,000 Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) award.
"This new chemistry can be used to increase the efficiency and reduce production costs per dose for many existing PET agents," he says. "We believe this technology can also be used to make new PET agents that will assist drug companies in their efforts to develop new therapeutic drugs."
DiMagno worked with his former doctoral student Kiel Neumann, now an employee of the new company, who helped establish a collaboration with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, an internationally recognized pediatric treatment and research facility in Memphis. St. Jude's is interested in using radiotracers prepared through this technology to image pediatric cancers.
Interestingly, the research initially grew from an NSF basic science grant of $420,000, awarded in July 2007, that focused on the behavior of salts in liquids such as gasoline.
"That's where the chemistry came from, even though it seems like a pretty far cry from what we are doing now," DiMagno says. "But it's not. It was a logical extension of a basic science proposal."
The researchers formed the new company "to allow physicians to image patients with cancer and diseases such as Alzheimer's better than they could before," he says, adding that he now feels he is making the impact he sought. "I look forward to the day when I can shake some parents' hands because I played role in saving their child's life," he says.
-- Marlene Cimons, National Science Foundation
From fundamental science to Innovation Corps: Technology to develop new therapeutic medicines
In medical diagnostics, clinicians often use positron emission technology (PET), a nuclear medicine imaging technology that sends an active molecule containing a radioactive tag--almost like a GPS system--that is designed to hone in on specific parts of the body.
These molecules are specific to certain conditions. For example, abnormally growing tissue will take up large amounts of glucose, so PET scans often use a glucose analog with a radioactive tag to pinpoint a suspected tumor.
Until recently, however, compounds that are known biomarkers for certain diseases had been very difficult to label with radioactive tags, limiting their value for detecting these diseases, for example, L-DOPA, which is taken up by the brain. "Because the technology to put the isotope on the molecule efficiently did not exist, we just couldn't use these compounds," says Stephen DiMagno, professor of chemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
But DiMagno and his research team have found a way to add radioactive tags to L-DOPA, and dopamine, an advance that increases the potential for speeding up the diagnosis of certain pediatric cancers, cardiac disease, and such neurological disorders as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Moreover, "it opens the way to make new compounds as well as 'label' those compounds that had been difficult to label," DiMagno says.
These compounds, with their radioactive tracers, are 6-[18F]-Fluorodopamine (6-[18F], a promising imaging biomarker of neuroblastoma, a serious and often fatal childhood cancer, and pheochromocytoma, a rare tumor of the adrenal gland, and 6-[18F]-L-DOPA, which has potential as a biomarker in patients with Parkinson's disease.
DiMagno and his colleagues, using a specific chemical reaction, developed a process that modifies L-DOPA in a way that allows the radioactive tag to be more easily attached. "The actual reaction we used has been known for a long time, but it was difficult to use effectively because there were fundamental things about the chemistry we did not understand," he says. "It took three or four years, but we fixed the problems that prevented them from being used."
The scientists make "precursor" molecules, that is, the compounds that ultimately will become imaging agents, that are designed to combine rapidly and efficiently with [18F]-fluoride, in a sterile glass reactor, according to DiMagno.
"After heating the mixture under a special set of conditions, the [18F]-fluoride displaces an ancillary portion of the precursor, yielding the fluorinated compound," he says. "Then we quickly purify the compound for use in imaging studies."
DiMagno's lab had long focused on the process of putting fluorine into molecules, but a sabbatical he took seven years ago, when he had time to reflect more deeply about his science, convinced him to work on this particular project.
"I got into science because I wanted to have an impact," he says. "I was doing fundamental work, but I wanted to do more to make a difference in the world. So when I came back, we took an inventory on the possible ways this problem could be solved, to figure out these chemical reactions and the routes for putting the label onto these drugs."
In the fall of 2011, DiMagno was among the first group of scientists to receive a $50,000 National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) award, which supports a set of activities and programs that prepare scientists and engineers to extend their focus beyond the laboratory into the commercial world.
Such results may be translated through I-Corps into technologies with near-term benefits for the economy and society. It is a public-private partnership program that teaches grantees to identify valuable product opportunities that can emerge from academic research, and offers entrepreneurship training to student participants.
Last February, DiMagno co-founded Ground Fluor Pharmaceuticals, a company that now manufactures the precursor molecules, those materials destined to be tagged with radioactive isotopes. The company also has received an NSF $180,000 Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) award.
"This new chemistry can be used to increase the efficiency and reduce production costs per dose for many existing PET agents," he says. "We believe this technology can also be used to make new PET agents that will assist drug companies in their efforts to develop new therapeutic drugs."
DiMagno worked with his former doctoral student Kiel Neumann, now an employee of the new company, who helped establish a collaboration with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, an internationally recognized pediatric treatment and research facility in Memphis. St. Jude's is interested in using radiotracers prepared through this technology to image pediatric cancers.
Interestingly, the research initially grew from an NSF basic science grant of $420,000, awarded in July 2007, that focused on the behavior of salts in liquids such as gasoline.
"That's where the chemistry came from, even though it seems like a pretty far cry from what we are doing now," DiMagno says. "But it's not. It was a logical extension of a basic science proposal."
The researchers formed the new company "to allow physicians to image patients with cancer and diseases such as Alzheimer's better than they could before," he says, adding that he now feels he is making the impact he sought. "I look forward to the day when I can shake some parents' hands because I played role in saving their child's life," he says.
-- Marlene Cimons, National Science Foundation
Sunday, August 18, 2013
DOJ FILES LAWSUIT TO ENFORCE EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS OF MILITARY RESERVE MEMBER
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Justice Department Files Lawsuit in Delaware Against Regal Contractors LLC Et Al., to Enforce the Employment Rights of Air Force Reserve Member
The Justice Department and U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware Charles M. Oberly III announced today the filing of a lawsuit alleging that Regal Contractors LLC, Regal Builders LLC and Noble Pond Homes willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by terminating U.S. Air Force Reserve Member Lon Fluman following his return from required military training with his reserve unit.
Fluman is a Senior Airman with the U.S. Air Force Reserve serving with the 712th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Dover Air Force Base. According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for Delaware, Fluman was scheduled for reserve military duty to begin on Sept. 3, 2012 but was rescheduled on short notice to start one day later. Subsequently, Fluman served weekend reserve duty in early December of 2012. Following his second duty, the defendants terminated Fluman from his position as a maintenance technician. Although Fluman satisfied USERRA’s notification requirements before departing for his military leaves, according to the complaint, the defendants terminated Fluman anyway, claiming the notice provided was not sufficient.
USERRA explicitly protects the rights of members of the uniformed services to retain their employment following absences due to military service obligations. “Congress enacted USERRA to protect our men and women in uniform from experiencing this kind of injustice,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing federal laws that protect the employment rights of our servicemembers.”
“Members of the Air Force Reserve sacrifice time away from their jobs to serve their country,” said U.S. Attorney Oberly. “USERRA ensures that they are not discriminated against and that their employment rights are protected.”
This case stems from a referral by the U.S. Department of Labor following an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service. The case is being handled by the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, who work collaboratively with the Department of Labor to protect the jobs and benefits of National Guard and Reserve servicemembers upon their return to civilian life.
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
Justice Department Files Lawsuit in Delaware Against Regal Contractors LLC Et Al., to Enforce the Employment Rights of Air Force Reserve Member
The Justice Department and U.S. Attorney for the District of Delaware Charles M. Oberly III announced today the filing of a lawsuit alleging that Regal Contractors LLC, Regal Builders LLC and Noble Pond Homes willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by terminating U.S. Air Force Reserve Member Lon Fluman following his return from required military training with his reserve unit.
Fluman is a Senior Airman with the U.S. Air Force Reserve serving with the 712th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Dover Air Force Base. According to the complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for Delaware, Fluman was scheduled for reserve military duty to begin on Sept. 3, 2012 but was rescheduled on short notice to start one day later. Subsequently, Fluman served weekend reserve duty in early December of 2012. Following his second duty, the defendants terminated Fluman from his position as a maintenance technician. Although Fluman satisfied USERRA’s notification requirements before departing for his military leaves, according to the complaint, the defendants terminated Fluman anyway, claiming the notice provided was not sufficient.
USERRA explicitly protects the rights of members of the uniformed services to retain their employment following absences due to military service obligations. “Congress enacted USERRA to protect our men and women in uniform from experiencing this kind of injustice,” said Jocelyn Samuels, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing federal laws that protect the employment rights of our servicemembers.”
“Members of the Air Force Reserve sacrifice time away from their jobs to serve their country,” said U.S. Attorney Oberly. “USERRA ensures that they are not discriminated against and that their employment rights are protected.”
This case stems from a referral by the U.S. Department of Labor following an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service. The case is being handled by the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware, who work collaboratively with the Department of Labor to protect the jobs and benefits of National Guard and Reserve servicemembers upon their return to civilian life.
FORMER LIQUOR STORE OWNER PLEADS GUILTY TO SELLING CUTTING AGENTS TO DRUG DEALERS
FROM: DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Former Owner of Liquor Store Pleads Guilty to Tax Crime and Selling Cutting Agents to Local Drug Dealers
Southfield, Mich., resident Bashar Saroki pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return and selling drug paraphernalia, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to court documents, Saroki controlled and operated Golden Star Party Store, a liquor store that was located in Detroit. From 2007 through 2011, Saroki sold more than $1 million worth of a variety of cutting agents to local narcotics dealers out of Golden Star Party Store and from his residence. The cutting agents were substances used by narcotics dealers to dilute the potency and increase the quantity of the narcotics sold to customers. Despite the significant proceeds from the sale of cutting agents, Saroki reported very little income on his false tax return for 2009.
Saroki faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison, one year of supervised release and a $250,000 fine on each count. U.S. District Judge Robert H. Cleland set sentencing for Dec. 17, 2013.
Kathryn Keneally, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division, commended the efforts of special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated this case, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Kenneth C. Vert and Yael T. Epstein, who prosecuted the case.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Former Owner of Liquor Store Pleads Guilty to Tax Crime and Selling Cutting Agents to Local Drug Dealers
Southfield, Mich., resident Bashar Saroki pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return and selling drug paraphernalia, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to court documents, Saroki controlled and operated Golden Star Party Store, a liquor store that was located in Detroit. From 2007 through 2011, Saroki sold more than $1 million worth of a variety of cutting agents to local narcotics dealers out of Golden Star Party Store and from his residence. The cutting agents were substances used by narcotics dealers to dilute the potency and increase the quantity of the narcotics sold to customers. Despite the significant proceeds from the sale of cutting agents, Saroki reported very little income on his false tax return for 2009.
Saroki faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison, one year of supervised release and a $250,000 fine on each count. U.S. District Judge Robert H. Cleland set sentencing for Dec. 17, 2013.
Kathryn Keneally, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division, commended the efforts of special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated this case, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Kenneth C. Vert and Yael T. Epstein, who prosecuted the case.
GSA SAYS 'CITY PAIR PROGRAM' SAVES GOVERNMENT BILLIONS
FROM: U.S. GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
City Pair Program Saves Billions for Federal Agencies
Air travel program leverages government’s buying power to save over $2 billion annually
August 16, 2013
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. General Services Administration announced the award of its cost-saving air travel contracts for 2014, which will save taxpayers approximately $2.2 billion a year. Under GSA’s City Pair Program, airfare rates for the federal government’s official travel are pre-negotiated and offer up to 59 percent off of commercial airfare for the federal workforce. In addition to offering considerable discounts, the City Pair Program allows the federal government additional flexibility in how it books air travel.
“GSA’s mission is to help federal agencies save money, and that includes getting the best price for government travelers," said Tom Sharpe, Jr. Commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service. "By leveraging the government’s buying power, we are able to help federal agencies reduce travel costs and save billions of taxpayer dollars.”
GSA’s data-driven analytical approach to managing the program and negotiating with the carriers is driving greater cost savings and performance for the City Pair Program and the overall rates for 2014 are consistently below corporate benchmark rates in all top markets.
In 2014, the City Pair Program is expanding its reach, increasing available routes by 25 percent to more than 6,300 destinations. Average one-way ticket prices for domestic flights have dropped four percent and international rates have dropped seven percent. Additionally, non-stop flights have been expanded by 20 percent to 1,887 routes.
For the upcoming year, the City Pair Program retained all of the same benefits which contribute to greater savings, beyond ticket cost, for government. The program gives federal travelers the flexibility to book one- way, multi-leg, and round-trip airfare at the lowest cost possible, while retaining the ability to adjust or cancel flights at no additional cost to the government.
Another positive trend for federal travelers is that many secondary markets that were not awarded in 2013, because lower commercial fares were readily available, were awarded and will be available in 2014. Following the 2013 decision to not award the secondary markets, instead directing federal travelers to the lower commercially-available rates, the airlines came back to GSA with competitive pricing in those markets this year, allowing for travelers to book lowest rates and receive the benefits associated with booking through City Pairs.
Ten major U.S. carriers were awarded contracts. When awarding City Pair contracts to airlines, GSA considers a number of criteria, including availability of non-stop service, total number of flights, flight availability, average elapsed flight time, availability of jet service, and price of service. The program also offers dual fare markets to provide flexibility for immediate travel and discounted fares for booking flights early. The 2014 rates will become effective October 1, 2013.
City Pair Program Saves Billions for Federal Agencies
Air travel program leverages government’s buying power to save over $2 billion annually
August 16, 2013
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. General Services Administration announced the award of its cost-saving air travel contracts for 2014, which will save taxpayers approximately $2.2 billion a year. Under GSA’s City Pair Program, airfare rates for the federal government’s official travel are pre-negotiated and offer up to 59 percent off of commercial airfare for the federal workforce. In addition to offering considerable discounts, the City Pair Program allows the federal government additional flexibility in how it books air travel.
“GSA’s mission is to help federal agencies save money, and that includes getting the best price for government travelers," said Tom Sharpe, Jr. Commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service. "By leveraging the government’s buying power, we are able to help federal agencies reduce travel costs and save billions of taxpayer dollars.”
GSA’s data-driven analytical approach to managing the program and negotiating with the carriers is driving greater cost savings and performance for the City Pair Program and the overall rates for 2014 are consistently below corporate benchmark rates in all top markets.
In 2014, the City Pair Program is expanding its reach, increasing available routes by 25 percent to more than 6,300 destinations. Average one-way ticket prices for domestic flights have dropped four percent and international rates have dropped seven percent. Additionally, non-stop flights have been expanded by 20 percent to 1,887 routes.
For the upcoming year, the City Pair Program retained all of the same benefits which contribute to greater savings, beyond ticket cost, for government. The program gives federal travelers the flexibility to book one- way, multi-leg, and round-trip airfare at the lowest cost possible, while retaining the ability to adjust or cancel flights at no additional cost to the government.
Another positive trend for federal travelers is that many secondary markets that were not awarded in 2013, because lower commercial fares were readily available, were awarded and will be available in 2014. Following the 2013 decision to not award the secondary markets, instead directing federal travelers to the lower commercially-available rates, the airlines came back to GSA with competitive pricing in those markets this year, allowing for travelers to book lowest rates and receive the benefits associated with booking through City Pairs.
Ten major U.S. carriers were awarded contracts. When awarding City Pair contracts to airlines, GSA considers a number of criteria, including availability of non-stop service, total number of flights, flight availability, average elapsed flight time, availability of jet service, and price of service. The program also offers dual fare markets to provide flexibility for immediate travel and discounted fares for booking flights early. The 2014 rates will become effective October 1, 2013.
12 PACIFIC WOMEN LEADERS TO ATTEND CLIMATE CHANGE PROGRAM
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Women Leaders from Pacific Participate in U.S. Program on Climate Change
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
August 16, 2013
From August 18 – 28, 2013, twelve women climate leaders from across the Pacific region will visit Washington, D.C., Pensacola, Florida, and Honolulu, Hawaii to meet with policymakers, scientists, and innovators to share their experiences and to learn about U.S. efforts to combat climate change. This exchange, a joint initiative of the Secretary's Office of Global Women's Issues and Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, advances the Rarotonga Partnership for the Advancement of Pacific Island Women and broader U.S. efforts to support the critical role of women around the world in combating climate change. It also builds on a 2012 International Visitors Leadership Program of women climate leaders.
In Washington, the group will meet with senior officials from the Department of State, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Energy; participate in a roundtable discussion with non-governmental organizations and a panel with World Bank experts on climate change; and receive training in social media at George Washington University.
In Pensacola and Honolulu, the participants will engage in a series of meetings and site visits to learn more about topics related to climate change, ranging from disaster risk management and emergency operations to environmental conservation to innovative renewable energy technologies. In Pensacola, the participants will learn more about life in the United States by engaging with local residents during home hospitality visits.
Representing the Cook Islands, Fiji, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, these climate leaders will share practical skills and ideas learned with counterparts upon returning home.
Women Leaders from Pacific Participate in U.S. Program on Climate Change
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
August 16, 2013
From August 18 – 28, 2013, twelve women climate leaders from across the Pacific region will visit Washington, D.C., Pensacola, Florida, and Honolulu, Hawaii to meet with policymakers, scientists, and innovators to share their experiences and to learn about U.S. efforts to combat climate change. This exchange, a joint initiative of the Secretary's Office of Global Women's Issues and Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, advances the Rarotonga Partnership for the Advancement of Pacific Island Women and broader U.S. efforts to support the critical role of women around the world in combating climate change. It also builds on a 2012 International Visitors Leadership Program of women climate leaders.
In Washington, the group will meet with senior officials from the Department of State, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Energy; participate in a roundtable discussion with non-governmental organizations and a panel with World Bank experts on climate change; and receive training in social media at George Washington University.
In Pensacola and Honolulu, the participants will engage in a series of meetings and site visits to learn more about topics related to climate change, ranging from disaster risk management and emergency operations to environmental conservation to innovative renewable energy technologies. In Pensacola, the participants will learn more about life in the United States by engaging with local residents during home hospitality visits.
Representing the Cook Islands, Fiji, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, these climate leaders will share practical skills and ideas learned with counterparts upon returning home.
SAVING MILITARY MORALE, WELFARE AND RECREATION UNDER TIGHTENING BUDGETS
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Officials Strive to Protect MWR Programs Amid Budget Cuts
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 21, 2013 - Committed to preserving quality-of-life offerings despite ever-tighter budgets, military morale, welfare and recreation officials are scaling back in some areas as they introduce innovative approaches to delivering services and programs.
Military fitness centers, swimming pools, lodging facilities and outdoor recreation offices might sound to some like a footnote among competing budget requirements. But Ed Miles, DOD's MWR policy director, and his counterparts across the military services see a close connection to military readiness.
"We have a direct impact on the readiness and retention and resilience of the troops and their families," Miles told American Forces Press Service. "When you have a healthy and fit force, it has absolute national security implications -- in terms of stress reduction, physical and emotional health and esprit de corps.
Congress has long agreed, authorizing funds since 1989 to cover 85 percent of programs with the most direct link to readiness: fitness centers, community centers and library programs, among them, Miles explained.
Amenities such as arts-and-crafts centers, outdoor recreation centers and youth programs that are less directly tied to readiness receive a lower authorization of 65 percent.
Meanwhile, "nice-to-have" offerings such as military golf courses, bowling alleys, campgrounds, food and beverage services and similar services generally must be self-supporting, with user fees covering all costs and overhead.
A variety of factors has thrown this formula off kilter, Miles said. With increased privatization, almost three-quarters of military families now live off installations and tap services and programs in their communities. Many, like their civilian neighbors, have fewer spare dollars to spend on recreation. And with sequestration putting a big dent in already-reduced MWR budgets, the military services find themselves struggling to provide quality-of-life programs and services to their members.
It all converges after 11 years of war -- at a time when safe, affordable options for military members and their families to blow off steam are more important than ever, said Bob Vogt, the Army's division chief for soldier and community recreation.
"If we didn't have the programs offered on an installation for a soldier or his family, they would have to go find a release somewhere else," he said. "We have a safe, controlled environment on our installations, and we can offer a reduced fee for a lot of programs to help them release some of that pent-up stress and frustration.
"So our goal is to try not to reduce or eliminate any services and to try to maintain the current level of services," Vogt said.
In some cases, that has required the Army to borrow from nonappropriated-fund activities to keep fitness centers and other appropriated activities running.
"But we can only do that for so long, because it puts our funding under a lot of strain," Vogt said. "Over the short term, it allows you to maintain your services. But if you start diverting funds from self-sustaining activities for an extended period of time, you lose your ability to recapitalize. When the roof on the club collapses or the freezer blows up, you don't have the funds you need to recapitalize."
Across the services, officials are looking at other ways to keep MWR programs viable.
They're beginning to scale back operating hours at fitness centers to the Defense Department-mandated 90 hours per week. Patrons increasingly find themselves being asked to pay nominal fees for aerobics and other fitness classes taught by paid staffers. Library hours at many installations have been reduced to 40 hours a week. Most bases now operate just one pool to reduce lifeguard salaries and other overhead costs. Outdoor recreation centers are considering charging rental fees for skis and other equipment, rather than the smaller maintenance fee charged in the past. Concerts and other special entertainment have been scaled back or cancelled altogether.
Volunteers, long the backbone of many MWR services and programs, are putting in more time in fitness centers, family support centers and libraries as well as on intramural fields to cover personnel shortfalls.
"It would be a lot tougher for our staff to deliver the quantity and quality of programs they do without those volunteers," Miles said. "And with sequestration, we find that we are depending on them more than ever. Without our volunteers, we would be in a world of hurt."
The decisions to reduce or eliminate services have been tough, Vogt acknowledged.
"With sequestration and the loss of appropriated fund support to continue many of our programs, we are going to have to increase user fees, reduce hours or possibly eliminate services," he said. "But we are doing everything in our power not to let that happen."
As decisions are made, the emphasis remains on readiness, officials emphasized.
The Navy, for example, has put fitness, libraries and the Liberty Program that serves single sailors at the top of its list, reported Lorraine Seidel, Navy recreation program manager.
"Those programs are pretty important to have," she said. "So by curtailing other programs somewhat, but not down to the bone, we are allowing some flexibility to retain those things that we really need to have on the base."
Based on extensive surveys, the Air Force identified fitness, appropriated-fund dining facilities, youth and child care services, outdoor programs and libraries as its most important offerings, said Michael Bensen, the Air Force Personnel Center's deputy director of services.
In some cases, the services are trying new innovations to keep popular programs running.
The Air Force, for example, is testing a pilot program at six bases that gives qualified users 24/7 access to fitness centers, even after the paid staff has left for the day. Based on the results, the initiative could be expanded to more bases, Bensen explained.
The Navy is revamping its community recreation program to bundle services and programs at one location, Seidel reported. A waterfront recreational area at Naval Base San Diego serves as a model, combining outdoor recreation services and the ticket booth for local tours and attractions under one roof, served by a central front desk. Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, initiated a similar concept, consolidating MWR activities under one overall manager.
New partnerships are helping to keep services going despite budget cuts. In some cases, military patrons now get free or low-cost access to community or commercial services and programs that their installations no longer offer.
For example, Joint Base Andrews in Maryland established a partnership with a popular private-sector company that teaches rappelling, kayaking and other outdoor activities to military patrons. That saves the Air Force the cost of hiring its own instructors while ensuring "a quality experience at a reduced cost," Bensen said.
In other cases, installations are opening their doors to outside patrons. Many Army posts invite local swim teams to their pools and high school golf clubs to their golf courses. One particularly successful arrangement between the Presidio of Monterey and the city of Monterey, Calif., provides free maintenance services on the post's sports fields in exchange for city use of those fields based on availability, Vogt reported.
"We are generating income, working with our partners outside the gate, and offering programs we might not otherwise be able to offer," he said. "We are trying to be creative and tie into municipalities outside the gate, many of them in the same situation we are. So it is a perfect time for us to partner with everybody."
That mindset must continue to sustain morale, welfare and recreation programs through the current budget crunch, officials said. The result, they said, will have a direct impact on military readiness.
"We think MWR makes for an overall healthy living experience," Seidel said. "If we don't take a step back and take care of ourselves, we lose the ability to function and be at our best. That underlies everything MWR strives to provide, so [service members] can live a healthy life and be ready for the job."
Officials Strive to Protect MWR Programs Amid Budget Cuts
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 21, 2013 - Committed to preserving quality-of-life offerings despite ever-tighter budgets, military morale, welfare and recreation officials are scaling back in some areas as they introduce innovative approaches to delivering services and programs.
Military fitness centers, swimming pools, lodging facilities and outdoor recreation offices might sound to some like a footnote among competing budget requirements. But Ed Miles, DOD's MWR policy director, and his counterparts across the military services see a close connection to military readiness.
"We have a direct impact on the readiness and retention and resilience of the troops and their families," Miles told American Forces Press Service. "When you have a healthy and fit force, it has absolute national security implications -- in terms of stress reduction, physical and emotional health and esprit de corps.
Congress has long agreed, authorizing funds since 1989 to cover 85 percent of programs with the most direct link to readiness: fitness centers, community centers and library programs, among them, Miles explained.
Amenities such as arts-and-crafts centers, outdoor recreation centers and youth programs that are less directly tied to readiness receive a lower authorization of 65 percent.
Meanwhile, "nice-to-have" offerings such as military golf courses, bowling alleys, campgrounds, food and beverage services and similar services generally must be self-supporting, with user fees covering all costs and overhead.
A variety of factors has thrown this formula off kilter, Miles said. With increased privatization, almost three-quarters of military families now live off installations and tap services and programs in their communities. Many, like their civilian neighbors, have fewer spare dollars to spend on recreation. And with sequestration putting a big dent in already-reduced MWR budgets, the military services find themselves struggling to provide quality-of-life programs and services to their members.
It all converges after 11 years of war -- at a time when safe, affordable options for military members and their families to blow off steam are more important than ever, said Bob Vogt, the Army's division chief for soldier and community recreation.
"If we didn't have the programs offered on an installation for a soldier or his family, they would have to go find a release somewhere else," he said. "We have a safe, controlled environment on our installations, and we can offer a reduced fee for a lot of programs to help them release some of that pent-up stress and frustration.
"So our goal is to try not to reduce or eliminate any services and to try to maintain the current level of services," Vogt said.
In some cases, that has required the Army to borrow from nonappropriated-fund activities to keep fitness centers and other appropriated activities running.
"But we can only do that for so long, because it puts our funding under a lot of strain," Vogt said. "Over the short term, it allows you to maintain your services. But if you start diverting funds from self-sustaining activities for an extended period of time, you lose your ability to recapitalize. When the roof on the club collapses or the freezer blows up, you don't have the funds you need to recapitalize."
Across the services, officials are looking at other ways to keep MWR programs viable.
They're beginning to scale back operating hours at fitness centers to the Defense Department-mandated 90 hours per week. Patrons increasingly find themselves being asked to pay nominal fees for aerobics and other fitness classes taught by paid staffers. Library hours at many installations have been reduced to 40 hours a week. Most bases now operate just one pool to reduce lifeguard salaries and other overhead costs. Outdoor recreation centers are considering charging rental fees for skis and other equipment, rather than the smaller maintenance fee charged in the past. Concerts and other special entertainment have been scaled back or cancelled altogether.
Volunteers, long the backbone of many MWR services and programs, are putting in more time in fitness centers, family support centers and libraries as well as on intramural fields to cover personnel shortfalls.
"It would be a lot tougher for our staff to deliver the quantity and quality of programs they do without those volunteers," Miles said. "And with sequestration, we find that we are depending on them more than ever. Without our volunteers, we would be in a world of hurt."
The decisions to reduce or eliminate services have been tough, Vogt acknowledged.
"With sequestration and the loss of appropriated fund support to continue many of our programs, we are going to have to increase user fees, reduce hours or possibly eliminate services," he said. "But we are doing everything in our power not to let that happen."
As decisions are made, the emphasis remains on readiness, officials emphasized.
The Navy, for example, has put fitness, libraries and the Liberty Program that serves single sailors at the top of its list, reported Lorraine Seidel, Navy recreation program manager.
"Those programs are pretty important to have," she said. "So by curtailing other programs somewhat, but not down to the bone, we are allowing some flexibility to retain those things that we really need to have on the base."
Based on extensive surveys, the Air Force identified fitness, appropriated-fund dining facilities, youth and child care services, outdoor programs and libraries as its most important offerings, said Michael Bensen, the Air Force Personnel Center's deputy director of services.
In some cases, the services are trying new innovations to keep popular programs running.
The Air Force, for example, is testing a pilot program at six bases that gives qualified users 24/7 access to fitness centers, even after the paid staff has left for the day. Based on the results, the initiative could be expanded to more bases, Bensen explained.
The Navy is revamping its community recreation program to bundle services and programs at one location, Seidel reported. A waterfront recreational area at Naval Base San Diego serves as a model, combining outdoor recreation services and the ticket booth for local tours and attractions under one roof, served by a central front desk. Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, initiated a similar concept, consolidating MWR activities under one overall manager.
New partnerships are helping to keep services going despite budget cuts. In some cases, military patrons now get free or low-cost access to community or commercial services and programs that their installations no longer offer.
For example, Joint Base Andrews in Maryland established a partnership with a popular private-sector company that teaches rappelling, kayaking and other outdoor activities to military patrons. That saves the Air Force the cost of hiring its own instructors while ensuring "a quality experience at a reduced cost," Bensen said.
In other cases, installations are opening their doors to outside patrons. Many Army posts invite local swim teams to their pools and high school golf clubs to their golf courses. One particularly successful arrangement between the Presidio of Monterey and the city of Monterey, Calif., provides free maintenance services on the post's sports fields in exchange for city use of those fields based on availability, Vogt reported.
"We are generating income, working with our partners outside the gate, and offering programs we might not otherwise be able to offer," he said. "We are trying to be creative and tie into municipalities outside the gate, many of them in the same situation we are. So it is a perfect time for us to partner with everybody."
That mindset must continue to sustain morale, welfare and recreation programs through the current budget crunch, officials said. The result, they said, will have a direct impact on military readiness.
"We think MWR makes for an overall healthy living experience," Seidel said. "If we don't take a step back and take care of ourselves, we lose the ability to function and be at our best. That underlies everything MWR strives to provide, so [service members] can live a healthy life and be ready for the job."
LABOR DEPARTMENT AWARDS GRANT MONEY FOR HURRICANE SANDY RECOVERY IN R.I.
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
US Department of Labor awards grant increment to continue Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts in Rhode Island
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $500,000 National Emergency Grant increment to assist Rhode Island with continued cleanup and recovery efforts following the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy.
"Rhode Island is still cleaning up beaches and other public lands damaged by Hurricane Sandy," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Eric M. Seleznow. "This additional funding will provide much needed cleanup assistance while also providing temporary work for those in need of employment."
On Nov. 3, 2012, the Federal Emergency Management Agency initially declared the Rhode Island counties of Bristol, Newport and Washington as eligible for FEMA's Public Assistance Program. FEMA subsequently declared Kent County as eligible for the program. More information on designated disaster areas in Rhode Island is available from FEMA at http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4089/designated-areas.
The department approved a grant for up to $1.5 million on Nov. 6, 2012, with $500,000 released initially. The department awarded a $500,000 grant increment in May 2013. This latest funding increment brings the total awarded to $1.5 million.
National Emergency Grants are part of the secretary of labor's discretionary fund and are awarded based on a state's ability to meet specific guidelines.
US Department of Labor awards grant increment to continue Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts in Rhode Island
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $500,000 National Emergency Grant increment to assist Rhode Island with continued cleanup and recovery efforts following the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy.
"Rhode Island is still cleaning up beaches and other public lands damaged by Hurricane Sandy," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Eric M. Seleznow. "This additional funding will provide much needed cleanup assistance while also providing temporary work for those in need of employment."
On Nov. 3, 2012, the Federal Emergency Management Agency initially declared the Rhode Island counties of Bristol, Newport and Washington as eligible for FEMA's Public Assistance Program. FEMA subsequently declared Kent County as eligible for the program. More information on designated disaster areas in Rhode Island is available from FEMA at http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4089/designated-areas.
The department approved a grant for up to $1.5 million on Nov. 6, 2012, with $500,000 released initially. The department awarded a $500,000 grant increment in May 2013. This latest funding increment brings the total awarded to $1.5 million.
National Emergency Grants are part of the secretary of labor's discretionary fund and are awarded based on a state's ability to meet specific guidelines.
ASSEMBLY OF THE JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE
 |
| A crane in a clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., lowers a test mass simulator (center of frame) onto the Ambient Optical Assembly Stand or AOAS to ensure it can support the James Webb Space Telescope's Optical Telescope Element during its assembly. Image Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn |
Dropping in on a James Webb Space Telescope Clean Room Test
The James Webb Space Telescope is a large space telescope, optimized for infrared wavelengths. It is scheduled for launch later in this decade. Webb will find the first galaxies that formed in the early Universe, connecting the Big Bang to our own Milky Way galaxy. Webb will peer through dusty clouds to see stars forming planetary systems, connecting the Milky Way to our own solar system. Webb's instruments will be designed to work primarily in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum, with some capability in the visible range.
Webb will have a large mirror, 6.5 meters (21.3 feet) in diameter, and a sunshield the size of a tennis court. The mirror and sunshade won't fit into a rocket fully open, so both will be folded and open once Webb is in outer space. Webb will reside in an orbit about 1.5 million km (1 million miles) from Earth at the second Lagrange point.
The James Webb Space Telescope was named after a former NASA administrator.
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