FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Nature field trips go digital
Harvard researchers tame the next learning frontier with mobile phones, environmental probes and virtual reality
The buzz around the pond these days isn't coming from bees. It's coming from middle-school students on a data collection field trip to a local pond. But on this trip they've traded paper and pencil for mobile phones and environmental probes. With their smartphones, students access interactive media such as video, audio, 3-D models and animations to learn about the ecosystem they're visiting as well as answer specific and open-ended questions about their data collection activities. Their probes measure environmental variables that contribute to water quality.
This augmented reality experience is part of a pilot program called EcoMOBILE developed by researchers at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education (HGSE). Funded by NSF and Qualcomm's Wireless Reach Initiative, EcoMOBILE has two goals. The first is to learn how technology impacts learning and the second is to help students connect abstract science concepts learned in the classroom with real-world experiences.
"Technology in and of itself does nothing for learning, but it can be a catalyst," says the project's principal investigator, Christopher Dede, Timothy E. Wirth Professor in Learning Technologies at Harvard. "We're interested in why technology impacts learning as much as whether it does or not. We are always concerned with how effective we can make these technologies and what the limits are."
Augmenting reality
The EcoMOBILE curriculum includes a pre-trip classroom session, one or more field trips and follow-up class sessions. During the initial session, students learn about water quality variables such as pH, dissolved oxygen and turbidity. They also practice using the smartphones and measurement probes they'll use at the pond. During the field trip, students use the mobile phones to navigate to "hotspots" where they collect water samples. The phone software prompts students to make observations about the pond and its organisms; provides information about concepts such as dissolved oxygen; supplies step-by-step instructions for obtaining and testing a water sample; and delivers feedback on the just-completed measurement.
Back in the classroom, students share the observations they made at the pond. They compile their data, creating graphs and calculating the range and mean of each set of measurements. They then discuss their findings and explore why variations may have occurred.
During the EcoMOBILE experience, students proceed at their own pace, personalizing their experience. "This approach engages them to a different degree than other formats," says project co-director Amy Kamarainen, a limnologist (a scientist who studies inland waters). "Students take ownership of the data and experience a new level of responsibility for their work." She adds that the EcoMOBILE experience is like a mini-apprenticeship, allowing students to see science as a creative process. "It helps students enjoy what they're doing but also understand that ecology is a very analytic field."
The technology also helps students study the complex time and spatial scales characteristic of ecosystems. "Ecosystems can be hard to learn about because kids have a limited amount of time to study them," says Kamarainen.
While at the pond, students learn about change over decades by accessing a video that simulates a visitor from 1850 discussing the pond's history. Another activity allows students to view 3-D molecular simulations of ecosystem processes such as photosynthesis.
Simulating reality
EcoMOBILE complements EcoMUVE, a multi-user virtual environment for classrooms created five years ago by Dede and co-principal investigator Tina Grotzer, an associate professor of education at HGSE. "ECOMUVE is like a flight simulator. We can create experiences not found in nature," says Dede. "EcoMOBILE is like flying the plane. You can get very good in the simulator, but ultimately you want to get people to be effective in the real world."
In EcoMUVE students assume a specific role: Water chemist, naturalist, microscopic specialist or private investigator and for eight virtual days are responsible for monitoring and collecting data in their respective areas. Students work in teams to analyze the data and create a concept map that illustrates the cause and effect relationships found in the ecosystem.
Assessing reasoning patterns
EcoMUVE and EcoMOBILE offer an opportunity to assess how students approach situations requiring complex reasoning. "We can look at where kids go in EcoMUVE and what kinds of data they collect. We see that patterns of movement shift," explains Grotzer.
When students first enter the virtual pond their movements are random. After a fish kill, the initial movement patterns give way to more purposeful ones. The changes suggest that students' thinking has changed and they are attending to different features and data sources in the environment says Grotzer, who as director of the NSF-funded "Understandings of Consequence Project" for more than a decade has studied how students reason about complex causal patterns.
Refining the technology for the future
After several years of iterative design, EcoMUVE is available as a free download through a licensing arrangement with Harvard. EcoMOBILE, however, is still under development and available only for research purposes. Although the program, built on the FreshAiR platform, runs on both Android and iPhones, some of the 3-D simulations are only available using Androids.
"We want to be able to make EcoMOBILE customizable," says Shari Metcalf, project co-director. With time, the team anticipates creating a website that would include software templates teachers can download to tailor augmented reality scenarios to their own local ecosystems.
Seventh-grade teacher Allison Kugler has worked with the EcoMOBILE project for three semesters and thinks the technology is a good fit for middle school students. "They want to be challenged but not get frustrated," she says. In a comparison of EcoMUVE and traditional hands-on activities, Kugler found that students had an easier time understanding ecosystem concepts with EcoMUVE.
As applications software becomes more refined and mobile phones more sophisticated, Dede suggests student-directed learning tools like EcoMOBILE will become commonplace. "We can't just keep loading more topics into classroom learning. We need to focus on 24/7 learning," he says. "This is the next frontier."
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE HAGEL TESTIFIED BEFORE THE SENATE ON SYRIA
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Hagel Urges Congress to Support Military Action Against Syria
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 - Emphasizing the need to protect U.S. national security interests, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today he supports President Barack Obama's decision to seek congressional authorization for the use of force in Syria.
Hagel joined Secretary of State John F. Kerry and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in making the administration's case for the use of force in response to a large-scale sarin gas assault which the administration says was carried out by the Syrian government against its own people.
Explaining the rationale behind what he acknowledged was a difficult decision for the national security team, Hagel urged Congress to consider not only "the risks and consequences of action," but also the consequences of inaction.
Hagel reiterated the president's assertion that Syria's use of chemical weapons represents "a serious threat to America's national security interests and those of our closest allies." It poses a grave risk to partners along Syria's borders, including Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq, he said.
Even more concerning, he said, is the possibility that terrorist groups such as Hezbollah, which has forces in Syria supporting President Bashar Assad's regime, could acquire and use them.
"This risk of chemical weapons proliferation poses a direct threat to our friends and partners and to U.S. personnel in the region," Hagel said. "We cannot afford for Hezbollah or any terrorist group determined to strike the United States to have incentives to acquire or use chemical weapons."
Syria's actions risk eroding the nearly century-old international norm against the use of chemical weapons that has helped to protect the U.S. homeland and U.S. forces operating across the globe, the secretary said. Weakening that norm, he said, could embolden other regimes, such as North Korea, to acquire or use chemical weapons.
"Given these threats to our national security, the United States must demonstrate through our actions that the use of chemical weapons is unacceptable," Hagel said.
The military objectives in Syria would be "to hold the Assad regime accountable, degrade its ability to carry out these kinds of attacks and deter the regime from further use of chemical weapons," he said.
The Defense Department has developed military options to achieve these objectives and positioned U.S. assets throughout the region to successfully execute this mission, he reported. "We believe we can achieve them with a military action that would be limited in duration and scope," he told the Senate panel.
Hagel said he and Dempsey have assured Obama that U.S. forces will be ready to act whenever the president gives the order.
Meanwhile, officials are working with U.S. allies and partners, he said. "Key partners, including France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and [other] friends in the region have assured us of their strong support for U.S. action," he reported.
Hagel underscored that the military force would not be used to resolve the underlying conflict in Syria – an issue he said must be settled through a political solution by the Syrian people themselves. He noted that Kerry is leading international efforts to help the parties move toward a negotiated transition, and expressed a commitment to "doing more to assist the Syrian opposition."
Military actions being contemplated would be tailored specifically to the use of chemical weapons, he assured the panel. "Assad must be held accountable for using these weapons in defiance of the international community," he said.
In presenting the case for military action, Hagel urged the committee to recognize the consequences of not doing so.
"There are always risks in taking action, but there are also risks with inaction," he warned. "The Assad regime, under increasing pressure by the Syrian opposition, could feel empowered to carry out even more devastating chemical weapons attacks" that he recognized make no distinction between combatants and innocent civilians."
Refusing to act also would undermine the credibility of other U.S. security commitments, Hagel said, including Obama's commitment to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
"The word of the United States must mean something," the secretary said. "It is vital currency in foreign relations and international and allied commitments."
Noting that he, Kerry and Dempsey all have served in uniform, Hagel said they have witnessed the "ugly realities" of conflict up close. "But we also understand that America must protect its people and its national interests," he said. "That is our highest responsibility."
Hagel called the decision to use military force "the most difficult decision America's leaders can make," and urged vigorous congressional debate on the issue.
"All of those who are privileged to serve our nation have a responsibility to ask tough questions before that commitment is made," he said. "The American people must be assured that their leaders are acting according to U.S. national interests, with well-defined military objectives, and with an understanding of the risks and consequences involved."
Hagel Urges Congress to Support Military Action Against Syria
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 - Emphasizing the need to protect U.S. national security interests, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today he supports President Barack Obama's decision to seek congressional authorization for the use of force in Syria.
Hagel joined Secretary of State John F. Kerry and Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in making the administration's case for the use of force in response to a large-scale sarin gas assault which the administration says was carried out by the Syrian government against its own people.
Explaining the rationale behind what he acknowledged was a difficult decision for the national security team, Hagel urged Congress to consider not only "the risks and consequences of action," but also the consequences of inaction.
Hagel reiterated the president's assertion that Syria's use of chemical weapons represents "a serious threat to America's national security interests and those of our closest allies." It poses a grave risk to partners along Syria's borders, including Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon and Iraq, he said.
Even more concerning, he said, is the possibility that terrorist groups such as Hezbollah, which has forces in Syria supporting President Bashar Assad's regime, could acquire and use them.
"This risk of chemical weapons proliferation poses a direct threat to our friends and partners and to U.S. personnel in the region," Hagel said. "We cannot afford for Hezbollah or any terrorist group determined to strike the United States to have incentives to acquire or use chemical weapons."
Syria's actions risk eroding the nearly century-old international norm against the use of chemical weapons that has helped to protect the U.S. homeland and U.S. forces operating across the globe, the secretary said. Weakening that norm, he said, could embolden other regimes, such as North Korea, to acquire or use chemical weapons.
"Given these threats to our national security, the United States must demonstrate through our actions that the use of chemical weapons is unacceptable," Hagel said.
The military objectives in Syria would be "to hold the Assad regime accountable, degrade its ability to carry out these kinds of attacks and deter the regime from further use of chemical weapons," he said.
The Defense Department has developed military options to achieve these objectives and positioned U.S. assets throughout the region to successfully execute this mission, he reported. "We believe we can achieve them with a military action that would be limited in duration and scope," he told the Senate panel.
Hagel said he and Dempsey have assured Obama that U.S. forces will be ready to act whenever the president gives the order.
Meanwhile, officials are working with U.S. allies and partners, he said. "Key partners, including France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and [other] friends in the region have assured us of their strong support for U.S. action," he reported.
Hagel underscored that the military force would not be used to resolve the underlying conflict in Syria – an issue he said must be settled through a political solution by the Syrian people themselves. He noted that Kerry is leading international efforts to help the parties move toward a negotiated transition, and expressed a commitment to "doing more to assist the Syrian opposition."
Military actions being contemplated would be tailored specifically to the use of chemical weapons, he assured the panel. "Assad must be held accountable for using these weapons in defiance of the international community," he said.
In presenting the case for military action, Hagel urged the committee to recognize the consequences of not doing so.
"There are always risks in taking action, but there are also risks with inaction," he warned. "The Assad regime, under increasing pressure by the Syrian opposition, could feel empowered to carry out even more devastating chemical weapons attacks" that he recognized make no distinction between combatants and innocent civilians."
Refusing to act also would undermine the credibility of other U.S. security commitments, Hagel said, including Obama's commitment to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
"The word of the United States must mean something," the secretary said. "It is vital currency in foreign relations and international and allied commitments."
Noting that he, Kerry and Dempsey all have served in uniform, Hagel said they have witnessed the "ugly realities" of conflict up close. "But we also understand that America must protect its people and its national interests," he said. "That is our highest responsibility."
Hagel called the decision to use military force "the most difficult decision America's leaders can make," and urged vigorous congressional debate on the issue.
"All of those who are privileged to serve our nation have a responsibility to ask tough questions before that commitment is made," he said. "The American people must be assured that their leaders are acting according to U.S. national interests, with well-defined military objectives, and with an understanding of the risks and consequences involved."
READOUT: U.S. DEPUTY SECRETARY CARTER'S MEETING WITH NORWAY'S DEFENSE STATE SECRETARY THORSHAUG
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Readout of Deputy Secretary Carter's Meeting with Norway's Ministry of Defense State Secretary Eirik Thorshaug
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little provided the following readout:
"Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and Norwegian Ministry of Defense State Secretary Eirik Thorshaug met today at the Pentagon.
The two leaders exchanged views about the on-going violence in Syria. Deputy Secretary Carter reiterated the need for the international community to respond to the chemical weapon attacks that claimed innocent lives in Syria. They agreed on the importance of the norms surrounding the prohibition on the use of chemical weapons, and on the need for close consultation in the days ahead.
"Deputy Secretary Carter and State Secretary Thorshaug also discussed the positive developments in Afghanistan and the future of NATO post-2014. The two leaders underscored the need for enhanced focus on maintaining interoperability and readiness through training and exercises in the both the near and long term.
"The two leaders highlighted the close cooperation between the United States and Norway exemplified by current cooperation on the F-16 and the planned Norwegian procurement of the F-35. Deputy Secretary Carter and State Secretary Thorshaug also reaffirmed the continued cooperation in the Arctic as access and activity in the region increases.
Readout of Deputy Secretary Carter's Meeting with Norway's Ministry of Defense State Secretary Eirik Thorshaug
Pentagon Press Secretary George Little provided the following readout:
"Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter and Norwegian Ministry of Defense State Secretary Eirik Thorshaug met today at the Pentagon.
The two leaders exchanged views about the on-going violence in Syria. Deputy Secretary Carter reiterated the need for the international community to respond to the chemical weapon attacks that claimed innocent lives in Syria. They agreed on the importance of the norms surrounding the prohibition on the use of chemical weapons, and on the need for close consultation in the days ahead.
"Deputy Secretary Carter and State Secretary Thorshaug also discussed the positive developments in Afghanistan and the future of NATO post-2014. The two leaders underscored the need for enhanced focus on maintaining interoperability and readiness through training and exercises in the both the near and long term.
"The two leaders highlighted the close cooperation between the United States and Norway exemplified by current cooperation on the F-16 and the planned Norwegian procurement of the F-35. Deputy Secretary Carter and State Secretary Thorshaug also reaffirmed the continued cooperation in the Arctic as access and activity in the region increases.
DOL SAYS 1963 MARCH ON WASHINGTON CALLED FOR A HIGHER MINIMUM WAGE
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Myth: The main goal of the 1963 March on Washington was to eliminate racial discrimination.
Not true: While the march and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech in particular did call for racial equality and civil rights legislation, the event also had an economic component, including a call for a higher minimum wage. Organizers of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom also demanded a public works program and job training, and an end to discrimination in hiring, among other things.
Myth: The main goal of the 1963 March on Washington was to eliminate racial discrimination.
Not true: While the march and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech in particular did call for racial equality and civil rights legislation, the event also had an economic component, including a call for a higher minimum wage. Organizers of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom also demanded a public works program and job training, and an end to discrimination in hiring, among other things.
FORMER CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF CECO ENVIRONMENTAL CORP. CHARGED WITH INSIDER TRADING
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Charges Former Chairman and CEO of CECO Environmental Corp. and API Technologies Corp. with Insider Trading and Other Violations
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Phillip J. DeZwirek (DeZwirek), the former CEO, Chairman, and 10% beneficial owner of both CECO Environmental Corp. (CECO) and API Technologies Corp. (API), with insider trading on three separate occasions and engaging in hundreds of violations of the trade reporting and ownership disclosure rules of the federal securities laws. DeZwirek has agreed to settle the charges, without admitting or denying the allegations in the Commission's complaint, by, among other things, paying a total of over $1.5 million in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty. He also agreed to be barred from serving as an officer or director of a public company for five years.
The Commission's complaint, filed August 30, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that DeZwirek engaged in insider trading by purchasing CECO stock ahead of two press releases issued in March and October 2008 announcing new contract bookings. The Complaint further alleges that DeZwirek bought API stock before the company announced the acquisition of a privately held company in January 2011. The Complaint also alleges that DeZwirek failed to file amended Schedules 13D and Forms 4 and 5 disclosing 268 purchases and sales of CECO and API stock that he executed between 2008 and 2010.
DeZwirek has consented to the entry of a final judgment that permanently enjoins him from future violations of Sections 10(b), 13(d), and 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rules 10b-5, 13d-2, and 16a-3 thereunder. The final judgment also orders DeZwirek to pay disgorgement of $151,278, plus prejudgment interest of $11,714.50, a civil money penalty of $1,361,278, and imposes upon him a five-year officer-and-director bar.
The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
SEC Charges Former Chairman and CEO of CECO Environmental Corp. and API Technologies Corp. with Insider Trading and Other Violations
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Phillip J. DeZwirek (DeZwirek), the former CEO, Chairman, and 10% beneficial owner of both CECO Environmental Corp. (CECO) and API Technologies Corp. (API), with insider trading on three separate occasions and engaging in hundreds of violations of the trade reporting and ownership disclosure rules of the federal securities laws. DeZwirek has agreed to settle the charges, without admitting or denying the allegations in the Commission's complaint, by, among other things, paying a total of over $1.5 million in disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty. He also agreed to be barred from serving as an officer or director of a public company for five years.
The Commission's complaint, filed August 30, 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleges that DeZwirek engaged in insider trading by purchasing CECO stock ahead of two press releases issued in March and October 2008 announcing new contract bookings. The Complaint further alleges that DeZwirek bought API stock before the company announced the acquisition of a privately held company in January 2011. The Complaint also alleges that DeZwirek failed to file amended Schedules 13D and Forms 4 and 5 disclosing 268 purchases and sales of CECO and API stock that he executed between 2008 and 2010.
DeZwirek has consented to the entry of a final judgment that permanently enjoins him from future violations of Sections 10(b), 13(d), and 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rules 10b-5, 13d-2, and 16a-3 thereunder. The final judgment also orders DeZwirek to pay disgorgement of $151,278, plus prejudgment interest of $11,714.50, a civil money penalty of $1,361,278, and imposes upon him a five-year officer-and-director bar.
The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
AGENCIES COMMIT TO HELP VETERANS TRANSITION TO CIVILIAN LIFE
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Agencies Commit to Transition Assistance Program
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2013 - The Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Labor, Education, the Office of Personnel Management and the Small Business Administration codified their continued commitment to help transitioning service members be "career ready" for civilian life by signing a statement of intent on Aug. 15.
"This [statement of intent] puts our shared commitment to our service members in black and white," said Dr. Susan Kelly, principal director of DOD's Transition to Veterans Program office.
Each of the military services was represented during the formal signing of the statement of intent, said Francine Blackmon, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for force management integration.
The services have aggressively implemented the various components of the redesigned Transition Assistance Program, Blackmon said.
Working elbow-to-elbow with the various partnering agencies, the services are ensuring service members are provided all the necessary tools to make a successful transition to civilian life, she said.
"The [statement of intent] strengthens our resolve for a concerted interagency effort working toward this common goal," Blackmon added.
More than 250,000 service members separate from active duty each year, and they face numerous challenges as they transition to civilian life. The statement of intent is a milestone for the interagency effort to redesign the 1990s-era transition assistance program model and help service members meet those challenges. The signing shows that the redesigned TAP is not a short-term effort but a set of greatly improved transition services that the partners will sustain for the long-term.
"Even in this time of budget constraints, each of the interagency partners and the services will sustain the effort to implement the redesign of transition assistance," Kelly said. This includes staff at installations to provide face-to-face information and new skills, as well as a virtual curriculum to build the same career readiness skills for service members and reservists in isolated and geographically separated locations, she added.
The statement of intent also establishes the objectives for the new governance structure and the foundation of the new TAP Executive Council, comprised of DOD, VA and DOL co-chairs, as well as senior executives from SBA, OPM, ED and the military services. The new TAP Executive Council will steer the collaboration and partnership efforts through 2016 and implement and modify the redesigned program as needed to meet changing needs of transitioning service members through the years.
Over the last eighteen months, the DOD and VA have led the efforts of the Veterans Employment Initiative Task Force interagency partners and the White House Economic and Domestic Policy Council staffs in redesigning the Desert Storm-era Transition Assistance Program to better prepare service members for these challenges as they leave the military and become veterans.
The redesigned TAP provides training that will build skills to enable transitioning service members to meet career readiness standards established by DOD. The training, known as Transition GPS (goals, plans, success), is comprised of interlinked curriculum, services, and processes conducted by numerous partners -- DOD, the military services, VA, DOL, SBA, and OPM.
Interagency partner Department of Education and the National Guard Bureau continue to serve in valued consultative and advisory roles.
Advancing their work together, the agencies will cultivate an interagency partnership that builds upon mutual respect, cooperation and shared goals to successfully transition career ready service members to the civilian sector.
Agencies Commit to Transition Assistance Program
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2013 - The Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, Labor, Education, the Office of Personnel Management and the Small Business Administration codified their continued commitment to help transitioning service members be "career ready" for civilian life by signing a statement of intent on Aug. 15.
"This [statement of intent] puts our shared commitment to our service members in black and white," said Dr. Susan Kelly, principal director of DOD's Transition to Veterans Program office.
Each of the military services was represented during the formal signing of the statement of intent, said Francine Blackmon, deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for force management integration.
The services have aggressively implemented the various components of the redesigned Transition Assistance Program, Blackmon said.
Working elbow-to-elbow with the various partnering agencies, the services are ensuring service members are provided all the necessary tools to make a successful transition to civilian life, she said.
"The [statement of intent] strengthens our resolve for a concerted interagency effort working toward this common goal," Blackmon added.
More than 250,000 service members separate from active duty each year, and they face numerous challenges as they transition to civilian life. The statement of intent is a milestone for the interagency effort to redesign the 1990s-era transition assistance program model and help service members meet those challenges. The signing shows that the redesigned TAP is not a short-term effort but a set of greatly improved transition services that the partners will sustain for the long-term.
"Even in this time of budget constraints, each of the interagency partners and the services will sustain the effort to implement the redesign of transition assistance," Kelly said. This includes staff at installations to provide face-to-face information and new skills, as well as a virtual curriculum to build the same career readiness skills for service members and reservists in isolated and geographically separated locations, she added.
The statement of intent also establishes the objectives for the new governance structure and the foundation of the new TAP Executive Council, comprised of DOD, VA and DOL co-chairs, as well as senior executives from SBA, OPM, ED and the military services. The new TAP Executive Council will steer the collaboration and partnership efforts through 2016 and implement and modify the redesigned program as needed to meet changing needs of transitioning service members through the years.
Over the last eighteen months, the DOD and VA have led the efforts of the Veterans Employment Initiative Task Force interagency partners and the White House Economic and Domestic Policy Council staffs in redesigning the Desert Storm-era Transition Assistance Program to better prepare service members for these challenges as they leave the military and become veterans.
The redesigned TAP provides training that will build skills to enable transitioning service members to meet career readiness standards established by DOD. The training, known as Transition GPS (goals, plans, success), is comprised of interlinked curriculum, services, and processes conducted by numerous partners -- DOD, the military services, VA, DOL, SBA, and OPM.
Interagency partner Department of Education and the National Guard Bureau continue to serve in valued consultative and advisory roles.
Advancing their work together, the agencies will cultivate an interagency partnership that builds upon mutual respect, cooperation and shared goals to successfully transition career ready service members to the civilian sector.
DOD TOUTS THE AFRICAN PARTNERSHIP STATION PROGRAM
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| U.S. Marine Corps Africa Partnership Station Security Cooperation Task Force personnel embark from the Royal Netherlands Navy landing platform dock HNLMS Rotterdam in Rota, Spain, Aug. 30, 2013. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Travis S. Alston |
Partnership Station Promotes Security, Capacity in West Africa
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 - More than 90 U.S. Marines set sail this weekend for a three-month mission along the West African coast – but for the first time in the Africa Partnership Station program, it was aboard a Dutch navy ship, alongside their counterparts from Holland, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The international task force departed Rota, Spain, early Aug. 31, aboard HNLMS Rotterdam, a Royal Netherlands Navy landing platform, reported U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Charles Watkins, security cooperation task force officer in charge for African Partnership Station 13.
Through the next three months, the crew will visit Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon and Benin, exercising security techniques and tactics with host-nation militaries, Watkins told American Forces Press Service during a telephone interview as the crew prepared to leave Rota.
The combined military engagements stem from Africa Partnership Station, one of U.S. Africa Command's most successful programs. The international security cooperation initiative, established in 2007, aims to strengthen global maritime partnerships through training and shared activities.
The goal is to improve maritime safety and security along the Gulf of Guinea, Watkins explained. By building capacity among African partner nations, the mission increases their ability to strengthen their borders, control their territorial waters and crack down on illicit trafficking and other destabilizing activity.
Africa Partnership Station 13 includes a new dimension. Rotterdam, home ported in Den Helder, Netherlands, is supporting the mission under a companion capacity-building program called "African Winds." The ship's sailors will work with African partners to build capabilities in maritime activities such as visit, board, search and seizure; maritime operations center planning and execution; and small boat operations.
Meanwhile, the security cooperation task force will work with African ground forces to conduct amphibious landings and exchange best practices in jungle warfare, hand-to-hand combat, humanitarian assistance and noncombatant evacuations.
The 2nd Marine Division's 2nd Assault Amphibious Battalion from Camp Lejeune, N.C., is contributing the ground forces. The Marine Corps Reserve's Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 773, headquartered at Warner Robins Air Force Base, Ga., is providing two UH-1N Huey helicopters and crews for the mission.
Watkins called the opportunity to help build capacity among African partners while working hand-in-hand with other NATO forces "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" for the participants.
Some have never deployed before, and Watkins said he personally was looking forward to his first deployment in a noncombat role.
"The main, driving force is relationship building," he said. "We want to build relationships, not only among the NATO forces, but also among the African forces. So getting to work hand in hand with the Dutch, the Spanish and the Royal Marines is a huge thing."
Africa Partnership Station 13 provides a forum to increase interoperability as participants work through the challenges of different languages, equipment and standard operating procedures, he said.
For example, as a pilot, Watkins described the challenges of landing a U.S. helicopter aboard a Dutch ship. The crews practiced the procedures they and their Dutch hosts had worked through during a planning conference in Amsterdam before departing Rota, he reported.
For participants aboard Rotterdam as well as in Africa, the mission "is an opportunity for all the Marines to work side by side, working on [standard operating procedures], sharing with our partners and learning from each other and learning how we can work better together," Watkins said.
That understanding, he said, strengthens their ability to mutually respond to a future crisis, if required.
U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa welcomed the Rotterdam's contributions as an extension of Africa Partnership Station's international collaboration.
"We are thankful for the U.S.-Dutch partnership, as well as the involvement of the U.K. and Spanish Marines, and our African partners as we collaboratively seek to enhance the security environment in Africa," said Navy Capt. John B. Nowell Jr., deputy chief of staff for strategy, resources and plans. "African navies have made great strides to increase their maritime capabilities, and this iteration of APS sets the stage to further sharpen those skills."
Other participants shared Nowell's enthusiasm about the mission.
"The Royal Netherlands Navy recognizes the U.S. Africa Command APS program as the most effective way of gradually improving the West African maritime security environment," said Dutch Marine Corps Col. Frederik R. Swart, commander of Netherland Landing Forces participating in the mission. "Also, working with an international marine task force enhances interoperability among all coalition forces involved."
This year is the second time the Dutch Navy has contributed a major naval asset to Africa Partnership Station. HNLM Johan De Witt, a landing platform dock ship, participated in 2009.
"The U.K. sees this engagement as an excellent opportunity to contribute to the security of the West African maritime environment and to conduct some valuable cross training with African partners and members of the combined security cooperation task force," agreed Royal Marines Maj. Anthony Liva, officer in charge of the Royal Marines' Whisky Company of the 45 Commando aboard Rotterdam.
"Training will be progressive and focused," Liva said. "I have no doubt that every nation involved in this initiative will benefit immensely."
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY HAGEL ISSUES MESSAGE ON SUICIDE PREVENTION MONTH
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Message from Secretary Hagel on Suicide Prevention Month
The Department of Defense has no more important responsibility than supporting and protecting those who defend our country and that means we must do everything possible to prevent military suicide. As we observe Suicide Prevention Month, the entire DoD community – Service members, civilians, members of our families and leaders at every level – must demonstrate our collective resolve to prevent suicide, to promote greater knowledge of its causes and to encourage those in need to seek support. No one who serves this country in uniform should ever feel they have nowhere to turn.
The Department of Defense has invested more than $100 million into research on the diagnosis and treatment of depression, bipolar disorder and substance abuse, as well as interventions for relationship, financial and legal issues – all of which can be associated with suicide. We are working to reduce drug and alcohol abuse and we are steadily increasing the number of mental health professionals and peer support counselors. Effective suicide prevention training is critical to all these efforts and we are instructing our leaders on how to recognize the signs and symptoms of crisis and encourage service members to seek support. We are also reaching out to military families and the broader community to enlist their support in this cause.
Message from Secretary Hagel on Suicide Prevention Month
The Department of Defense has no more important responsibility than supporting and protecting those who defend our country and that means we must do everything possible to prevent military suicide. As we observe Suicide Prevention Month, the entire DoD community – Service members, civilians, members of our families and leaders at every level – must demonstrate our collective resolve to prevent suicide, to promote greater knowledge of its causes and to encourage those in need to seek support. No one who serves this country in uniform should ever feel they have nowhere to turn.
The Department of Defense has invested more than $100 million into research on the diagnosis and treatment of depression, bipolar disorder and substance abuse, as well as interventions for relationship, financial and legal issues – all of which can be associated with suicide. We are working to reduce drug and alcohol abuse and we are steadily increasing the number of mental health professionals and peer support counselors. Effective suicide prevention training is critical to all these efforts and we are instructing our leaders on how to recognize the signs and symptoms of crisis and encourage service members to seek support. We are also reaching out to military families and the broader community to enlist their support in this cause.
PRESIDENT, CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS MEET OVER RESPONSE TO SYRIA'S USE OF CHEMICAL WEAPONS
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
President Meets With Congressional Leaders on Syria Response
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 - President Barack Obama met with congressional leaders today and expressed confidence that lawmakers will authorize his plan to take action against the Assad regime for using chemical weapons against its own people.
The president said he thanked the leaders for approaching the issue of Syria "with the soberness and seriousness that it deserves."
Obama said he has "high confidence" that Syria used chemical weapons that killed thousands of people, including more than 400 children in direct violation of international norm against using them. "That poses a serious national security threat to the United States and to the region, and as a consequence, Assad and Syria need to be held accountable," he said.
The president said he has decided America should respond to the use of chemical weapons, but added that the response will be more effective and stronger "if we take action together as one nation."
Hearings in the Senate and House will allow the administration to present the evidence that chemical weapons were used and the opportunity to discuss why it is important to hold Bashar Assad to account, the president said.
Chemical weapons can be transferred to terror groups and other non-state actors, Obama said. "Unless we hold them into account," he added, "it also sends a message that international norms around issues like nuclear proliferation don't mean much."
Military plans for a U.S. response have been put in place and are proportional to the offense, the president said. Any U.S. response will be limited, and will "not involve boots on the ground," he added.
"This is a limited, proportional step that will send a clear message not only to the Assad regime, but also to other countries that may be interested in testing some of these international norms, that there are consequences," Obama said. "It gives us the ability to degrade Assad's capabilities when it comes to chemical weapons."
President Meets With Congressional Leaders on Syria Response
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 - President Barack Obama met with congressional leaders today and expressed confidence that lawmakers will authorize his plan to take action against the Assad regime for using chemical weapons against its own people.
The president said he thanked the leaders for approaching the issue of Syria "with the soberness and seriousness that it deserves."
Obama said he has "high confidence" that Syria used chemical weapons that killed thousands of people, including more than 400 children in direct violation of international norm against using them. "That poses a serious national security threat to the United States and to the region, and as a consequence, Assad and Syria need to be held accountable," he said.
The president said he has decided America should respond to the use of chemical weapons, but added that the response will be more effective and stronger "if we take action together as one nation."
Hearings in the Senate and House will allow the administration to present the evidence that chemical weapons were used and the opportunity to discuss why it is important to hold Bashar Assad to account, the president said.
Chemical weapons can be transferred to terror groups and other non-state actors, Obama said. "Unless we hold them into account," he added, "it also sends a message that international norms around issues like nuclear proliferation don't mean much."
Military plans for a U.S. response have been put in place and are proportional to the offense, the president said. Any U.S. response will be limited, and will "not involve boots on the ground," he added.
"This is a limited, proportional step that will send a clear message not only to the Assad regime, but also to other countries that may be interested in testing some of these international norms, that there are consequences," Obama said. "It gives us the ability to degrade Assad's capabilities when it comes to chemical weapons."
SEC CHARGES INVESTMENT ADVISORY FIRM WITH FAVORING CERTAIN CLIENTS
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges against a San Diego-based investment advisory firm and its president for allegedly steering winning trades to favored clients and lying about how certain money was being spent.
The SEC’s Enforcement Division alleges that J.S. Oliver Capital Management and Ian O. Mausner engaged in a cherry-picking scheme that awarded more profitable trades to hedge funds in which Mausner and his family had invested. Meanwhile they doled out less profitable trades to other clients, including a widow and a charitable foundation. The disfavored clients suffered approximately $10.7 million in harm.
The SEC’s Enforcement Division further alleges that Mausner and J.S. Oliver misused soft dollars, which are credits or rebates from a brokerage firm on commissions paid by clients for trades executed in the investment adviser’s client accounts. If appropriately disclosed, an investment adviser may retain the soft dollar credits to pay for expenses, including a limited category of brokerage and research services that benefit clients. However, Mausner and J.S. Oliver misappropriated more than $1.1 million in soft dollars for undisclosed purposes that in no way benefited clients, such as a payment to Mausner’s ex-wife related to their divorce.
“Mausner’s fraudulent schemes were a one-two punch that betrayed his clients and cost them millions of dollars,” said Marshall S. Sprung, Co-Chief of the SEC Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit. “Investment advisers must allocate trades and use soft dollars consistent with their fiduciary duty to put client interests first.”
The SEC also charged Douglas F. Drennan, a portfolio manager at J.S. Oliver, for his role in the soft dollar scheme.
According to the SEC’s order instituting administrative proceedings, Mausner engaged in the cherry-picking scheme from June 2008 to November 2009 by generally waiting to allocate trades until after the close of trading or the next day. This allowed Mausner to see which securities had appreciated or declined in value, and he gave the more favorably priced securities to the accounts of four J.S. Oliver hedge funds that contained investments from Mausner and his family. Mausner profited by more than $200,000 in fees earned from one of the hedge funds based on the boost in its performance from the winning trades he allocated. Mausner also marketed that same hedge fund to investors by touting the fund’s positive returns when in reality those returns merely resulted from the cherry-picking scheme.
According to the SEC’s order, the soft dollar scheme occurred from January 2009 to November 2011. Mausner and J.S. Oliver failed to disclose the following uses of soft dollars:
More than $300,000 that Mausner owed his ex-wife under their divorce agreement.
More than $300,000 in “rent” for J.S. Oliver to conduct business at Mausner’s home. Most of this amount was funneled to Mausner’s personal bank account.
Approximately $480,000 to Drennan’s company for outside research and analysis when in reality Drennan was an employee at J.S. Oliver.
Nearly $40,000 in maintenance and other fees on Mausner’s personal timeshare in New York City.
According to the SEC’s order, Drennan participated in the soft dollar scheme by submitting false information to support the misuse of soft dollar credits and approving some of the soft dollar payments to his own company.
The SEC’s order alleges that J.S. Oliver and Mausner willfully violated the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and asserts disclosure, compliance, and recordkeeping violations against them. The SEC’s order alleges that Drennan willfully aided, abetted, and caused J.S. Oliver’s fraud violations in the soft dollar scheme.
The SEC’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted by Ronnie Lasky and C. Dabney O’Riordan of the Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit in the Los Angeles Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be led by David Van Havermaat, John Bulgozdy, and Ms. Lasky. The examination of J.S. Oliver was conducted by Ashish Ward, Eric Lee, and Pristine Chan of the Los Angeles office’s investment adviser/investment company examination program.
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced charges against a San Diego-based investment advisory firm and its president for allegedly steering winning trades to favored clients and lying about how certain money was being spent.
The SEC’s Enforcement Division alleges that J.S. Oliver Capital Management and Ian O. Mausner engaged in a cherry-picking scheme that awarded more profitable trades to hedge funds in which Mausner and his family had invested. Meanwhile they doled out less profitable trades to other clients, including a widow and a charitable foundation. The disfavored clients suffered approximately $10.7 million in harm.
The SEC’s Enforcement Division further alleges that Mausner and J.S. Oliver misused soft dollars, which are credits or rebates from a brokerage firm on commissions paid by clients for trades executed in the investment adviser’s client accounts. If appropriately disclosed, an investment adviser may retain the soft dollar credits to pay for expenses, including a limited category of brokerage and research services that benefit clients. However, Mausner and J.S. Oliver misappropriated more than $1.1 million in soft dollars for undisclosed purposes that in no way benefited clients, such as a payment to Mausner’s ex-wife related to their divorce.
“Mausner’s fraudulent schemes were a one-two punch that betrayed his clients and cost them millions of dollars,” said Marshall S. Sprung, Co-Chief of the SEC Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit. “Investment advisers must allocate trades and use soft dollars consistent with their fiduciary duty to put client interests first.”
The SEC also charged Douglas F. Drennan, a portfolio manager at J.S. Oliver, for his role in the soft dollar scheme.
According to the SEC’s order instituting administrative proceedings, Mausner engaged in the cherry-picking scheme from June 2008 to November 2009 by generally waiting to allocate trades until after the close of trading or the next day. This allowed Mausner to see which securities had appreciated or declined in value, and he gave the more favorably priced securities to the accounts of four J.S. Oliver hedge funds that contained investments from Mausner and his family. Mausner profited by more than $200,000 in fees earned from one of the hedge funds based on the boost in its performance from the winning trades he allocated. Mausner also marketed that same hedge fund to investors by touting the fund’s positive returns when in reality those returns merely resulted from the cherry-picking scheme.
According to the SEC’s order, the soft dollar scheme occurred from January 2009 to November 2011. Mausner and J.S. Oliver failed to disclose the following uses of soft dollars:
More than $300,000 that Mausner owed his ex-wife under their divorce agreement.
More than $300,000 in “rent” for J.S. Oliver to conduct business at Mausner’s home. Most of this amount was funneled to Mausner’s personal bank account.
Approximately $480,000 to Drennan’s company for outside research and analysis when in reality Drennan was an employee at J.S. Oliver.
Nearly $40,000 in maintenance and other fees on Mausner’s personal timeshare in New York City.
According to the SEC’s order, Drennan participated in the soft dollar scheme by submitting false information to support the misuse of soft dollar credits and approving some of the soft dollar payments to his own company.
The SEC’s order alleges that J.S. Oliver and Mausner willfully violated the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws and asserts disclosure, compliance, and recordkeeping violations against them. The SEC’s order alleges that Drennan willfully aided, abetted, and caused J.S. Oliver’s fraud violations in the soft dollar scheme.
The SEC’s investigation, which is continuing, has been conducted by Ronnie Lasky and C. Dabney O’Riordan of the Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit in the Los Angeles Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be led by David Van Havermaat, John Bulgozdy, and Ms. Lasky. The examination of J.S. Oliver was conducted by Ashish Ward, Eric Lee, and Pristine Chan of the Los Angeles office’s investment adviser/investment company examination program.
PAIR ARRESTED FOR ROLES IN MURDER PLOT
FROM: U.S. MARSHALS SERVICE
Marshals Task Force Arrests Pair Wanted For Ordering Murder
Columbus, OH – U.S. Marshal Patrick Sedoti of the Southern District of Ohio announces the arrest of Clarissa Clark, 19, and Summer Kerley, 29, both of Pittsburgh. The pair was arrested early Thursday evening by the Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (SOFAST) on warrants issued by authorities in Pittsburgh. The two women face charges of criminal solicitation of homicide, conspiracy to commit homicide and terroristic threats all stemming from a March 2013 shooting in the Sheraden neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Kerley is also charged with aggravated assault.
In late March, Clark and Kerley were passengers on a ‘party bus’ in Southern Pittsburgh and became engaged in a verbal altercation with other passengers. It is alleged that Clark made several phone calls to arrange for two men, James Lawrence, 21 and Michael Lyons, 22, to assault the others involved in the fight. Eventually, Clark ordered the bus to pull over and Lawrence and Lyons emerged from a car with guns and began firing at the victim. Steven Lee, 21, of McKees Rocks, Pa. was killed.
After receiving a tip from the U.S. Marshals office in Pittsburgh, Columbus based Marshals and Task Force officers from SOFAST located both Clark and Kerley in a residence on Columbus’ east-side. The women were arrested without incident and are currently the Franklin County Corrections Center awaiting extradition to Pennsylvania for trial.
Columbus SOFAST is a fugitive focused, U.S. Marshals Service led task force consisting of local, state, and federal authorities including the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Delaware County Sheriff’s Office, Ohio Adult Parole Authority, Columbus Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, United States Secret Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Marshals Task Force Arrests Pair Wanted For Ordering Murder
Columbus, OH – U.S. Marshal Patrick Sedoti of the Southern District of Ohio announces the arrest of Clarissa Clark, 19, and Summer Kerley, 29, both of Pittsburgh. The pair was arrested early Thursday evening by the Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team (SOFAST) on warrants issued by authorities in Pittsburgh. The two women face charges of criminal solicitation of homicide, conspiracy to commit homicide and terroristic threats all stemming from a March 2013 shooting in the Sheraden neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Kerley is also charged with aggravated assault.
In late March, Clark and Kerley were passengers on a ‘party bus’ in Southern Pittsburgh and became engaged in a verbal altercation with other passengers. It is alleged that Clark made several phone calls to arrange for two men, James Lawrence, 21 and Michael Lyons, 22, to assault the others involved in the fight. Eventually, Clark ordered the bus to pull over and Lawrence and Lyons emerged from a car with guns and began firing at the victim. Steven Lee, 21, of McKees Rocks, Pa. was killed.
After receiving a tip from the U.S. Marshals office in Pittsburgh, Columbus based Marshals and Task Force officers from SOFAST located both Clark and Kerley in a residence on Columbus’ east-side. The women were arrested without incident and are currently the Franklin County Corrections Center awaiting extradition to Pennsylvania for trial.
Columbus SOFAST is a fugitive focused, U.S. Marshals Service led task force consisting of local, state, and federal authorities including the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Delaware County Sheriff’s Office, Ohio Adult Parole Authority, Columbus Police Department, Ohio State Highway Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, United States Secret Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
U.S., SWITZERLAND ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT ON TAX EVASION
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, August 29, 2013
United States and Switzerland Issue Joint Statement Regarding Tax Evasion Investigations
Switzerland Encourages Its Banks to Cooperate with New Program Which Will Require Significant Financial Penalties and Information Sharing from Banks That Aided Secret Account Holders
The Department of Justice today announced a program that will encourage Swiss banks to cooperate in the department’s ongoing investigations of the use of foreign bank accounts to commit tax evasion. The department also released a joint statement with the Swiss Federal Department of Finance, stating that Switzerland will encourage its banks to participate in the program.
“This program will significantly enhance the Justice Department's ongoing efforts to aggressively pursue those who attempt to evade the law by hiding their assets outside of the United States,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “In addition to strengthening our partnership with the Swiss government, the program’s requirement that Swiss banks provide detailed account information will improve our ability to bring tax dollars back to the U.S. treasury from across the globe.”
“This program will provide us with additional information to prosecute those who used secret offshore bank accounts and those here and abroad who established and facilitated the use of such accounts,” said Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole. “Now is the time for all U.S. taxpayers who hid behind Swiss bank secrecy laws or have undeclared offshore accounts in other foreign countries to come forward and resolve their outstanding tax issues with the United States.”
Under the program, which is available only to banks that are not currently under criminal investigation by the department for their offshore activities, participating Swiss banks will be required to:
· Agree to pay substantial penalties
· Make a complete disclosure of their cross-border activities
· Provide detailed information on an account-by-account basis for accounts in which U.S. taxpayers have a direct or indirect interest
· Cooperate in treaty requests for account information
· Provide detailed information as to other banks that transferred funds into secret accounts or that accepted funds when secret accounts were closed
· Agree to close accounts of account holders who fail to come into compliance with U.S. reporting obligations
Banks meeting all of the above requirements will be eligible for non-prosecution agreements. Banks currently under criminal investigation related to their Swiss banking activities, and all individuals, are expressly excluded from the program.
The program holds banks to a higher degree of responsibility for opening secret accounts after it became publicly known that the department was actively investigating offshore tax evasion in Switzerland. Under the penalty provisions of the program, banks seeking a non-prosecution agreement must agree to a penalty in an amount equal to 20 percent of the maximum aggregate dollar value of all non-disclosed U.S. accounts that were held by the bank on Aug.1, 2008. The penalty amount will increase to 30 percent for secret accounts that were opened after that date but before the end of February 2009 and to 50 percent for secret accounts opened later than that.
The program will significantly assist the department’s efforts to investigate and prosecute U.S. taxpayers who, when faced with the risk of detection, chose to move funds away from banks under investigation to banks that they believed might be better havens for tax secrecy. A key component of the program requires cooperating banks to provide information that will enable the United States to follow the money to other Swiss banks and to banks located in other countries.
The program also provides a path to resolution for Swiss banks that were not engaged in wrongful acts with U.S. taxpayers but nonetheless want a resolution of their status. Most banks in this category will be asked to provide an internal investigation report prepared by an independent examiner, as well as any additional information requested by the department. A smaller group of banks will be allowed to show that they met certain criteria for deemed-compliance under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). Banks in these two groups will be eligible to receive non-target letters.
The program is intended to enable every Swiss bank that is not already under criminal investigation to find a path to resolution. It also creates significant risks for individuals and banks that continue to fail to cooperate, including for those Swiss banks that facilitated U.S. tax evasion but fail to cooperate now, for all U.S. taxpayers who think that they can continue to hide income and assets in offshore banks, and for those advisors and others who facilitated these crimes.
Since 2009, the department has charged more than 30 banking professionals and 68 U.S. accountholders with violations arising from their offshore banking activities. Fifty-four U.S. taxpayers and four bankers and financial advisors have pled guilty, and five taxpayers have been convicted at trial. One Swiss bank entered into a deferred prosecution agreement, and a second Swiss bank was indicted and pleaded guilty. Currently, the department is actively investigating the Swiss-based activities of 14 financial institutions. The department’s enforcement activities are global and have also included public actions concerning activities in India, Luxembourg, Israel and the Caribbean.
The program does not address current or future investigations and pending cases concerning bank employees, financial advisors and other individuals. The department will address each of these cases only with the individual’s counsel, in a manner that gives consideration to the particular facts and circumstances of each case. In those cases in which indictments are pending, any resolution will also require addressing outstanding issues with the court. Counsel for banks currently under investigation, individuals who have been indicted, or bank employees who are concerned about whether they have potential criminal liability should contact the department’s Tax Division or the prosecutors handling their case if they wish to seek resolution.
The department notes that the joint statement with the Swiss Federal Department of Finance provides that if personal data are provided, they should only be used for purposes of law enforcement, which may include regulatory action, in the United States or as otherwise permitted by U.S. law. Additionally, the department has assured its Swiss counterparts that it understands that simply because the names of individuals are included in the information that it receives from a bank does not necessarily mean that any particular individual is or is not culpable of wrongdoing. The support that Switzerland has shown for this program may also help those banks already under investigation take some of the steps necessary to reach a resolution.
“Banks that come forward under the program that we have announced today have the opportunity to reach a resolution with the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division Kathryn Keneally. “The program will give us yet more information to pursue U.S. taxpayers who are continuing to hide their assets in offshore accounts, and creates significant risks for those Swiss banks that fail to come forward. We recognize and express our appreciation for Switzerland’s support of the program.”
“The program the Department of Justice announced today is another positive step forward in the U.S. government’s continuing efforts to combat offshore tax evasion,” said Danny Werfel, Acting Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. “On behalf of the IRS, I extend my appreciation to both the Justice Department and the Swiss government for developing a way forward that provides the United States with information that will be critical to the enforcement of our tax laws and will bring closure for Swiss banks that meet the requirements of the program.”
Thursday, August 29, 2013
United States and Switzerland Issue Joint Statement Regarding Tax Evasion Investigations
Switzerland Encourages Its Banks to Cooperate with New Program Which Will Require Significant Financial Penalties and Information Sharing from Banks That Aided Secret Account Holders
The Department of Justice today announced a program that will encourage Swiss banks to cooperate in the department’s ongoing investigations of the use of foreign bank accounts to commit tax evasion. The department also released a joint statement with the Swiss Federal Department of Finance, stating that Switzerland will encourage its banks to participate in the program.
“This program will significantly enhance the Justice Department's ongoing efforts to aggressively pursue those who attempt to evade the law by hiding their assets outside of the United States,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “In addition to strengthening our partnership with the Swiss government, the program’s requirement that Swiss banks provide detailed account information will improve our ability to bring tax dollars back to the U.S. treasury from across the globe.”
“This program will provide us with additional information to prosecute those who used secret offshore bank accounts and those here and abroad who established and facilitated the use of such accounts,” said Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole. “Now is the time for all U.S. taxpayers who hid behind Swiss bank secrecy laws or have undeclared offshore accounts in other foreign countries to come forward and resolve their outstanding tax issues with the United States.”
Under the program, which is available only to banks that are not currently under criminal investigation by the department for their offshore activities, participating Swiss banks will be required to:
· Agree to pay substantial penalties
· Make a complete disclosure of their cross-border activities
· Provide detailed information on an account-by-account basis for accounts in which U.S. taxpayers have a direct or indirect interest
· Cooperate in treaty requests for account information
· Provide detailed information as to other banks that transferred funds into secret accounts or that accepted funds when secret accounts were closed
· Agree to close accounts of account holders who fail to come into compliance with U.S. reporting obligations
Banks meeting all of the above requirements will be eligible for non-prosecution agreements. Banks currently under criminal investigation related to their Swiss banking activities, and all individuals, are expressly excluded from the program.
The program holds banks to a higher degree of responsibility for opening secret accounts after it became publicly known that the department was actively investigating offshore tax evasion in Switzerland. Under the penalty provisions of the program, banks seeking a non-prosecution agreement must agree to a penalty in an amount equal to 20 percent of the maximum aggregate dollar value of all non-disclosed U.S. accounts that were held by the bank on Aug.1, 2008. The penalty amount will increase to 30 percent for secret accounts that were opened after that date but before the end of February 2009 and to 50 percent for secret accounts opened later than that.
The program will significantly assist the department’s efforts to investigate and prosecute U.S. taxpayers who, when faced with the risk of detection, chose to move funds away from banks under investigation to banks that they believed might be better havens for tax secrecy. A key component of the program requires cooperating banks to provide information that will enable the United States to follow the money to other Swiss banks and to banks located in other countries.
The program also provides a path to resolution for Swiss banks that were not engaged in wrongful acts with U.S. taxpayers but nonetheless want a resolution of their status. Most banks in this category will be asked to provide an internal investigation report prepared by an independent examiner, as well as any additional information requested by the department. A smaller group of banks will be allowed to show that they met certain criteria for deemed-compliance under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). Banks in these two groups will be eligible to receive non-target letters.
The program is intended to enable every Swiss bank that is not already under criminal investigation to find a path to resolution. It also creates significant risks for individuals and banks that continue to fail to cooperate, including for those Swiss banks that facilitated U.S. tax evasion but fail to cooperate now, for all U.S. taxpayers who think that they can continue to hide income and assets in offshore banks, and for those advisors and others who facilitated these crimes.
Since 2009, the department has charged more than 30 banking professionals and 68 U.S. accountholders with violations arising from their offshore banking activities. Fifty-four U.S. taxpayers and four bankers and financial advisors have pled guilty, and five taxpayers have been convicted at trial. One Swiss bank entered into a deferred prosecution agreement, and a second Swiss bank was indicted and pleaded guilty. Currently, the department is actively investigating the Swiss-based activities of 14 financial institutions. The department’s enforcement activities are global and have also included public actions concerning activities in India, Luxembourg, Israel and the Caribbean.
The program does not address current or future investigations and pending cases concerning bank employees, financial advisors and other individuals. The department will address each of these cases only with the individual’s counsel, in a manner that gives consideration to the particular facts and circumstances of each case. In those cases in which indictments are pending, any resolution will also require addressing outstanding issues with the court. Counsel for banks currently under investigation, individuals who have been indicted, or bank employees who are concerned about whether they have potential criminal liability should contact the department’s Tax Division or the prosecutors handling their case if they wish to seek resolution.
The department notes that the joint statement with the Swiss Federal Department of Finance provides that if personal data are provided, they should only be used for purposes of law enforcement, which may include regulatory action, in the United States or as otherwise permitted by U.S. law. Additionally, the department has assured its Swiss counterparts that it understands that simply because the names of individuals are included in the information that it receives from a bank does not necessarily mean that any particular individual is or is not culpable of wrongdoing. The support that Switzerland has shown for this program may also help those banks already under investigation take some of the steps necessary to reach a resolution.
“Banks that come forward under the program that we have announced today have the opportunity to reach a resolution with the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division Kathryn Keneally. “The program will give us yet more information to pursue U.S. taxpayers who are continuing to hide their assets in offshore accounts, and creates significant risks for those Swiss banks that fail to come forward. We recognize and express our appreciation for Switzerland’s support of the program.”
“The program the Department of Justice announced today is another positive step forward in the U.S. government’s continuing efforts to combat offshore tax evasion,” said Danny Werfel, Acting Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. “On behalf of the IRS, I extend my appreciation to both the Justice Department and the Swiss government for developing a way forward that provides the United States with information that will be critical to the enforcement of our tax laws and will bring closure for Swiss banks that meet the requirements of the program.”
BUSINESSMAN PLEADS GUILTY IN BANKING CONSPIRACY CASE
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Thursday, August 29, 2013
California Businessman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Conceal Israeli Bank Accounts
Encino, Calif., Resident Is the Latest in a Series of Defendants Charged with Conspiring with Bankers to Hide Secret Israeli Bank Accounts
Aaron Cohen of Encino, Calif., pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to conspiracy to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) announced.
According to court documents, Cohen, a U.S. citizen, maintained undeclared bank accounts at two international banks headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel, identified in court documents as Bank A and Bank B. One of Cohen’s undeclared accounts was maintained at a branch of Bank A located in the Cayman Islands. The accounts were held in the names of nominees in order to keep them secret from the U.S. Government. In or about 2000, Cohen began using the funds in his undeclared account in the Cayman Islands as collateral for back-to-back loans obtained from another branch of Bank A located in Los Angeles. Cohen’s ownership of the funds in the Cayman Islands accounts was not identified in the loan records maintained at the Los Angeles branch, thus concealing the fact that he was borrowing his own money, paying tax-deductible interest on the loans and not reporting the interest income he was earning in the Cayman Islands on his U.S. tax returns.
According to the plea agreement, in or about 2009, Cohen transferred approximately $2 million from his Cayman Islands account at Bank A to a new offshore account at Bank B in Israel. Cohen then used the funds in the new account as collateral to obtain a back-to-back loan from the Los Angeles branch of Bank B. Cohen failed to report any income from the accounts on his individual income tax returns that were filed with the IRS. For tax years 2006 through 2009, Cohen failed to report interest income of approximately $238,000. The highest balance in the undeclared accounts was approximately $3,450,000.
“Today’s guilty plea is but the latest example that attempting to hide income and assets from the United States in offshore accounts is a bad gamble,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division Kathryn Keneally. “The Internal Revenue Service will find the hiding places and the Department of Justice will criminally prosecute these tax cheats, who face potential jail time, still owe the taxes due and may lose those hidden assets and more to severe civil penalties."
“Mr. Cohen is yet another taxpayer caught using anonymous offshore accounts to avoid paying his fair share of taxes,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Chief Richard Weber. “Through IRS-CI’s efforts, we are gaining access to more and more information on institutions and individuals involved in offshore tax fraud, and you can expect us to use all of our enforcement tools to fight offshore tax evasion.”
Cohen is the latest in a series of defendants charged in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California with failing to report income from undeclared accounts in Israel.
On March 29, 2013, Zvi Sperling of Beverly Hills, Calif., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with back-to-back loans obtained in Los Angeles at branches of Bank A and Bank B that were secured by funds in undeclared bank accounts in Israel. For tax years 2005 through 2008, Sperling failed to report income of approximately $381,563. The highest balance in Sperling’s undeclared accounts was approximately $4 million.
On May 21, 2013, Guity Kashfi of Los Angeles, Calif., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with back-to-back loans obtained from branches of Bank A and Bank B in Los Angeles that were secured by funds in undeclared bank accounts in Israel and Luxembourg. For tax years 2005 through 2011, Kashfi failed to report interest income of approximately $221,306. The highest balance in Kashfi’s undeclared accounts was approximately $2.5 million.
U.S. citizens and residents who have an interest in, or signature or other authority over, a financial account in a foreign country with assets in excess of $10,000 are required to disclose the existence of such account on Schedule B, Part III, of their individual income tax returns. Additionally, U.S. citizens and residents must file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Reports (FBAR) with the U.S. Treasury disclosing any financial account in a foreign country with assets in excess of $10,000 in which they have a financial interest, or over which they have signature or other authority.
Cohen faces a potential maximum prison term of five years and a maximum fine of $250,000. In addition, Cohen has agreed to pay a civil penalty to the IRS in the amount of 50 percent of the high balance of his undeclared accounts for failing to file FBARs.
Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and André Birotte Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California thanked special agents of IRS-CI, who investigated the case, and Tax Division Senior Litigation Counsel John E. Sullivan and Assistant Chief Elizabeth C. Hadden, who prosecuted these cases, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra A. Brown of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, who assisted with the prosecutions.
Thursday, August 29, 2013
California Businessman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Conceal Israeli Bank Accounts
Encino, Calif., Resident Is the Latest in a Series of Defendants Charged with Conspiring with Bankers to Hide Secret Israeli Bank Accounts
Aaron Cohen of Encino, Calif., pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to conspiracy to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) announced.
According to court documents, Cohen, a U.S. citizen, maintained undeclared bank accounts at two international banks headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel, identified in court documents as Bank A and Bank B. One of Cohen’s undeclared accounts was maintained at a branch of Bank A located in the Cayman Islands. The accounts were held in the names of nominees in order to keep them secret from the U.S. Government. In or about 2000, Cohen began using the funds in his undeclared account in the Cayman Islands as collateral for back-to-back loans obtained from another branch of Bank A located in Los Angeles. Cohen’s ownership of the funds in the Cayman Islands accounts was not identified in the loan records maintained at the Los Angeles branch, thus concealing the fact that he was borrowing his own money, paying tax-deductible interest on the loans and not reporting the interest income he was earning in the Cayman Islands on his U.S. tax returns.
According to the plea agreement, in or about 2009, Cohen transferred approximately $2 million from his Cayman Islands account at Bank A to a new offshore account at Bank B in Israel. Cohen then used the funds in the new account as collateral to obtain a back-to-back loan from the Los Angeles branch of Bank B. Cohen failed to report any income from the accounts on his individual income tax returns that were filed with the IRS. For tax years 2006 through 2009, Cohen failed to report interest income of approximately $238,000. The highest balance in the undeclared accounts was approximately $3,450,000.
“Today’s guilty plea is but the latest example that attempting to hide income and assets from the United States in offshore accounts is a bad gamble,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Tax Division Kathryn Keneally. “The Internal Revenue Service will find the hiding places and the Department of Justice will criminally prosecute these tax cheats, who face potential jail time, still owe the taxes due and may lose those hidden assets and more to severe civil penalties."
“Mr. Cohen is yet another taxpayer caught using anonymous offshore accounts to avoid paying his fair share of taxes,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Chief Richard Weber. “Through IRS-CI’s efforts, we are gaining access to more and more information on institutions and individuals involved in offshore tax fraud, and you can expect us to use all of our enforcement tools to fight offshore tax evasion.”
Cohen is the latest in a series of defendants charged in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California with failing to report income from undeclared accounts in Israel.
On March 29, 2013, Zvi Sperling of Beverly Hills, Calif., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with back-to-back loans obtained in Los Angeles at branches of Bank A and Bank B that were secured by funds in undeclared bank accounts in Israel. For tax years 2005 through 2008, Sperling failed to report income of approximately $381,563. The highest balance in Sperling’s undeclared accounts was approximately $4 million.
On May 21, 2013, Guity Kashfi of Los Angeles, Calif., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States in connection with back-to-back loans obtained from branches of Bank A and Bank B in Los Angeles that were secured by funds in undeclared bank accounts in Israel and Luxembourg. For tax years 2005 through 2011, Kashfi failed to report interest income of approximately $221,306. The highest balance in Kashfi’s undeclared accounts was approximately $2.5 million.
U.S. citizens and residents who have an interest in, or signature or other authority over, a financial account in a foreign country with assets in excess of $10,000 are required to disclose the existence of such account on Schedule B, Part III, of their individual income tax returns. Additionally, U.S. citizens and residents must file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Reports (FBAR) with the U.S. Treasury disclosing any financial account in a foreign country with assets in excess of $10,000 in which they have a financial interest, or over which they have signature or other authority.
Cohen faces a potential maximum prison term of five years and a maximum fine of $250,000. In addition, Cohen has agreed to pay a civil penalty to the IRS in the amount of 50 percent of the high balance of his undeclared accounts for failing to file FBARs.
Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and André Birotte Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California thanked special agents of IRS-CI, who investigated the case, and Tax Division Senior Litigation Counsel John E. Sullivan and Assistant Chief Elizabeth C. Hadden, who prosecuted these cases, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sandra A. Brown of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, who assisted with the prosecutions.
Monday, September 2, 2013
50TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATION OF THE VIETNAM WAR
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Army Launches 50th Anniversary Commemoration of Vietnam War
By J.D. Leipold
Army News Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2013 - The afternoon in the Pentagon auditorium on Aug. 28 was a time for reflection on a war that spanned 10 years and cost the country the lives of more than 58,000 young men and women. It was also an occasion to honor and thank nine Vietnam War veterans who'd served a total of 14 tours in-country and 225 years in uniform.
Kicking off the Pentagon's first event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the conflict, Army Lt. Gen. Raymond V. Mason, deputy chief of staff for logistics, opened the ceremony recalling personal memories as well as his broader experiences as a young American citizen.
"I was a young Army brat and it was difficult for me to watch my dad come back after his third tour in Vietnam and not get treated appropriately, at least in my mind," Mason said. "I was just a pretty young guy at that time, but I could feel that it wasn't right. It struck me, and I knew if I ever had the opportunity to make that right I would do the best I could.
"Today, we are recognizing nine of our patriots and their families who stood up to the test of their generation and their decade," he continued. "I think it's well overdue. Nothing is more important than pausing and reflecting on the sacrifices of what these great men and women did and those who gave their last full measure."
On March 8, 1965, America's ground war in Vietnam began when 3,500 Marines were deployed with the American public's support. By Christmas, nearly 200,000 soldiers, Marines, airmen and sailors were in the country. At war's end on April 30, 1975, nearly 3 million Americans had been on the ground, in the air and on rivers of Vietnam. More than 58,000 Americans lost their lives.
While the official 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War will be in 2015, the president and Congress requested the secretary of Defense to begin planning the Vietnam War commemoration in 2007.
The goal is to get more than 10,000 corporations, civic groups as well as government and community organizations to join as partners and help sponsor hometown events to honor Vietnam veterans, their families and those who were prisoners of war and missing in action.
To date, 4,921 commemorative partners have signed on, including Army logistics, or G-4, which became the first.
Following Mason's remarks, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John F. Campbell thanked him and his team for leading the way to celebrate the contributions of Vietnam veterans.
The son of an Air Force senior master sergeant, Campbell told of his years growing up on military bases around the world before attending West Point, and then recalled his first interaction with Vietnam veterans while a lieutenant in Germany.
"Both the battalion commanders were Vietnam veterans ... all the platoon sergeants, all the first sergeants, all the company commanders were Vietnam veterans," Campbell said. The vets, he said, instilled in him their hard-fought lessons-learned from Vietnam and wanted to make sure the young lieutenants and soldiers wouldn't make the same mistakes they had.
Retired Army Lt. Gen. Claude "Mick" Kicklighter serves as director of the U.S. Vietnam War Commemoration. During the Pentagon event he previewed the timeline of plans for honoring Vietnam veterans across the country over the next few years.
"Veterans of Valor," a 30-minute documentary with the nine honorees recalling humorous and somber anecdotes of their war experiences and interspersed with still photographs of themselves in Vietnam was also premiered.
Army Launches 50th Anniversary Commemoration of Vietnam War
By J.D. Leipold
Army News Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2013 - The afternoon in the Pentagon auditorium on Aug. 28 was a time for reflection on a war that spanned 10 years and cost the country the lives of more than 58,000 young men and women. It was also an occasion to honor and thank nine Vietnam War veterans who'd served a total of 14 tours in-country and 225 years in uniform.
Kicking off the Pentagon's first event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the conflict, Army Lt. Gen. Raymond V. Mason, deputy chief of staff for logistics, opened the ceremony recalling personal memories as well as his broader experiences as a young American citizen.
"I was a young Army brat and it was difficult for me to watch my dad come back after his third tour in Vietnam and not get treated appropriately, at least in my mind," Mason said. "I was just a pretty young guy at that time, but I could feel that it wasn't right. It struck me, and I knew if I ever had the opportunity to make that right I would do the best I could.
"Today, we are recognizing nine of our patriots and their families who stood up to the test of their generation and their decade," he continued. "I think it's well overdue. Nothing is more important than pausing and reflecting on the sacrifices of what these great men and women did and those who gave their last full measure."
On March 8, 1965, America's ground war in Vietnam began when 3,500 Marines were deployed with the American public's support. By Christmas, nearly 200,000 soldiers, Marines, airmen and sailors were in the country. At war's end on April 30, 1975, nearly 3 million Americans had been on the ground, in the air and on rivers of Vietnam. More than 58,000 Americans lost their lives.
While the official 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War will be in 2015, the president and Congress requested the secretary of Defense to begin planning the Vietnam War commemoration in 2007.
The goal is to get more than 10,000 corporations, civic groups as well as government and community organizations to join as partners and help sponsor hometown events to honor Vietnam veterans, their families and those who were prisoners of war and missing in action.
To date, 4,921 commemorative partners have signed on, including Army logistics, or G-4, which became the first.
Following Mason's remarks, Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John F. Campbell thanked him and his team for leading the way to celebrate the contributions of Vietnam veterans.
The son of an Air Force senior master sergeant, Campbell told of his years growing up on military bases around the world before attending West Point, and then recalled his first interaction with Vietnam veterans while a lieutenant in Germany.
"Both the battalion commanders were Vietnam veterans ... all the platoon sergeants, all the first sergeants, all the company commanders were Vietnam veterans," Campbell said. The vets, he said, instilled in him their hard-fought lessons-learned from Vietnam and wanted to make sure the young lieutenants and soldiers wouldn't make the same mistakes they had.
Retired Army Lt. Gen. Claude "Mick" Kicklighter serves as director of the U.S. Vietnam War Commemoration. During the Pentagon event he previewed the timeline of plans for honoring Vietnam veterans across the country over the next few years.
"Veterans of Valor," a 30-minute documentary with the nine honorees recalling humorous and somber anecdotes of their war experiences and interspersed with still photographs of themselves in Vietnam was also premiered.
U.S. LABOR SECRETARY PEREZ ISSUES LABOR DAY STATEMENT
FROM: U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT
Statement on Labor Day by Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez
WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez issued the following statement today to commemorate Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 2:
On Labor Day, we pay tribute and say thanks to the people who build our nation's strength, character and prosperity. American workers are the most industrious, the most capable and the most diligent in the world. There is no challenge they don't embrace, no hardship they can't overcome.
"Our grit and determination has been put to the test recently, as we've endured the most crippling recession in 80 years. But now we are turning the corner. In the past 41 months, we've created 7.3 million jobs. The auto industry, which was flat on its back a few years ago, is surging again. Unemployment is at its lowest level since 2008. And the economy continues to grow as we provide affordable health care for every American. But there's no question we can and must do more.
"Our common agenda must be jobs, jobs, jobs. Working together, we can unleash the economy's full potential, secure a better bargain for the middle class and expand opportunities for everyone.
"Over the past 100 years, one federal agency has been workers' strongest ally and fiercest advocate: the U.S. Department of Labor. Our job is to make the American Dream a reality for all. To do that, we are investing in higher education and working closely with employers to provide workers with the state-of-the-art skills they need to succeed in 21st century jobs. We're making sure workers come home safely to their families at the end of every day, partnering with responsible employers to ensure the most exacting standards on occupational safety and health. We're continuing our strong efforts and unparalleled commitment to protect workers' benefits, so they can retire with dignity and security. And we're fighting for an honest day's pay for an honest day's work. It's a moral and economic imperative that we raise the federal minimum wage. People who work full-time in America shouldn't live in poverty.
"On Labor Day, we reflect on the men and women whose heads, hearts and hands have made ours the strongest economy the world has ever known. To meet the challenges ahead, we must draw inspiration from their stories. We must emulate their strength and resilience. We must summon their dignity and their courage.
"As the first Labor Secretary of the department's second century, I have every confidence that, powered by the talent and determination of our workers, we will create more opportunity in the years ahead. Best wishes for a safe, healthy and prosperous Labor Day."
Statement on Labor Day by Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez
WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez issued the following statement today to commemorate Labor Day on Monday, Sept. 2:
On Labor Day, we pay tribute and say thanks to the people who build our nation's strength, character and prosperity. American workers are the most industrious, the most capable and the most diligent in the world. There is no challenge they don't embrace, no hardship they can't overcome.
"Our grit and determination has been put to the test recently, as we've endured the most crippling recession in 80 years. But now we are turning the corner. In the past 41 months, we've created 7.3 million jobs. The auto industry, which was flat on its back a few years ago, is surging again. Unemployment is at its lowest level since 2008. And the economy continues to grow as we provide affordable health care for every American. But there's no question we can and must do more.
"Our common agenda must be jobs, jobs, jobs. Working together, we can unleash the economy's full potential, secure a better bargain for the middle class and expand opportunities for everyone.
"Over the past 100 years, one federal agency has been workers' strongest ally and fiercest advocate: the U.S. Department of Labor. Our job is to make the American Dream a reality for all. To do that, we are investing in higher education and working closely with employers to provide workers with the state-of-the-art skills they need to succeed in 21st century jobs. We're making sure workers come home safely to their families at the end of every day, partnering with responsible employers to ensure the most exacting standards on occupational safety and health. We're continuing our strong efforts and unparalleled commitment to protect workers' benefits, so they can retire with dignity and security. And we're fighting for an honest day's pay for an honest day's work. It's a moral and economic imperative that we raise the federal minimum wage. People who work full-time in America shouldn't live in poverty.
"On Labor Day, we reflect on the men and women whose heads, hearts and hands have made ours the strongest economy the world has ever known. To meet the challenges ahead, we must draw inspiration from their stories. We must emulate their strength and resilience. We must summon their dignity and their courage.
"As the first Labor Secretary of the department's second century, I have every confidence that, powered by the talent and determination of our workers, we will create more opportunity in the years ahead. Best wishes for a safe, healthy and prosperous Labor Day."
THE PRESENCE OF THE NYPD IN AFGHANISTAN
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Face of Defense: NYPD Officer Serves in Afghanistan
By Marine Corps Cpl. Paul Peterson
2nd Marine Logistics Group
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, Aug. 30, 2013 - Before the War on Terror, the toppling of the oppressive Taliban regime in Afghanistan, or the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a young boy from the Bronx knew one thing: he wanted to help.
Marine Corps Sgt. Jonathan L. Vasquez was that boy in New York City. Today, Vasquez is a Marine Corps reservist currently serving with Combat Logistics Regiment 2, Regional Command-Southwest, in Helmand province, Afghanistan
"I've been that way since I was young," said Vasquez, who spent four years persistently applying to become a New York City police officer after joining the military at the age of 17.
"Both the career choices I made happen to help people. It's the best of both worlds, I say," he said.
While already committed to the idea of public service, the attacks on the World Trade Center changed things for the then-12-year-old Vasquez.
"I was in social studies class -- go figure, history," Vasquez recalled. "They actually brought the TV into the classroom and explained to us the World Trade Center was hit. At first they thought it was an accident, but then they told us it wasn't. I actually wish I was older, and I had joined right then."
As Americans paused to grieve and unite, he tightened his focus on the future. It was a five-year wait before he met the age requirements for military service and nearly a decade before he realized his dream of joining the New York City Police Department.
The wait and the right to wear the uniforms were worth it, Vasquez said.
"I don't want to sound corny. It's not like Superman or anything like that, but it feels good," he said. "New York is very patriotic. You get a lot of grace and a lot of thanks. It's an awesome feeling."
Not every day is easy. Both jobs come with separation from family, constant stress, and the burden of responsibility. Not all the right choices are clear, Vasquez said.
"You don't know," he said. "Sometimes you just have to make a decision and go with it. That's a trait of being a leader, especially in the Marine Corps where they grow you to become a leader."
Vasquez said he takes it all in stride. The strain is difficult, but it also forges bonds between him and his fellow service members and police officers. Still, the risks are palpable.
"When you put on that uniform for your shift, you don't know if you're coming home," Vasquez said. "You don't know if you'll [experience] a shooting or deliver a baby that day. It's very stressful, and it's every day of your life."
Vasquez balances the stress with an inherent optimism. Whether he's serving as a vehicle commander on a convoy in Afghanistan or working as a patrol officer out of the 47th Precinct, he's upbeat.
It's in his voice every day, a nasal-heavy New York accent even a Midwesterner could appreciate and a snicker-like smile to back it up. On patrol or drenched in sweat inside the sweltering gym at Camp Leatherneck, Vasquez keeps smiling, laughing and joking.
He's the kind of New Yorker who will interrupt the climax of a perfectly good movie to point out the setting is his city. He's got "attitude."
"Not in a bad way," Vasquez said. "I'm very respectful, and I'll respect anyone as long as they respect me."
Vasquez said his family back home worries about him, but their constant support is a source of strength. He said he finds contact with his daughter particularly uplifting.
"She puts a smile on my face," he said, completely dropping his shield of military toughness. "I can see it in her eyes [when we talk online] that she really misses me ... it feels good."
Vasquez also has deployed to South America, Asia, and Iraq. At every turn, he's brought his love for service with him.
"I'm grateful for all the things the military has done for me as well as the things I try to do for the military," Vasquez said. "It's the same thing for the police department. I'm glad I have a career back home I can go to and also help people."
Face of Defense: NYPD Officer Serves in Afghanistan
By Marine Corps Cpl. Paul Peterson
2nd Marine Logistics Group
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, Aug. 30, 2013 - Before the War on Terror, the toppling of the oppressive Taliban regime in Afghanistan, or the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, a young boy from the Bronx knew one thing: he wanted to help.
Marine Corps Sgt. Jonathan L. Vasquez was that boy in New York City. Today, Vasquez is a Marine Corps reservist currently serving with Combat Logistics Regiment 2, Regional Command-Southwest, in Helmand province, Afghanistan
"I've been that way since I was young," said Vasquez, who spent four years persistently applying to become a New York City police officer after joining the military at the age of 17.
"Both the career choices I made happen to help people. It's the best of both worlds, I say," he said.
While already committed to the idea of public service, the attacks on the World Trade Center changed things for the then-12-year-old Vasquez.
"I was in social studies class -- go figure, history," Vasquez recalled. "They actually brought the TV into the classroom and explained to us the World Trade Center was hit. At first they thought it was an accident, but then they told us it wasn't. I actually wish I was older, and I had joined right then."
As Americans paused to grieve and unite, he tightened his focus on the future. It was a five-year wait before he met the age requirements for military service and nearly a decade before he realized his dream of joining the New York City Police Department.
The wait and the right to wear the uniforms were worth it, Vasquez said.
"I don't want to sound corny. It's not like Superman or anything like that, but it feels good," he said. "New York is very patriotic. You get a lot of grace and a lot of thanks. It's an awesome feeling."
Not every day is easy. Both jobs come with separation from family, constant stress, and the burden of responsibility. Not all the right choices are clear, Vasquez said.
"You don't know," he said. "Sometimes you just have to make a decision and go with it. That's a trait of being a leader, especially in the Marine Corps where they grow you to become a leader."
Vasquez said he takes it all in stride. The strain is difficult, but it also forges bonds between him and his fellow service members and police officers. Still, the risks are palpable.
"When you put on that uniform for your shift, you don't know if you're coming home," Vasquez said. "You don't know if you'll [experience] a shooting or deliver a baby that day. It's very stressful, and it's every day of your life."
Vasquez balances the stress with an inherent optimism. Whether he's serving as a vehicle commander on a convoy in Afghanistan or working as a patrol officer out of the 47th Precinct, he's upbeat.
It's in his voice every day, a nasal-heavy New York accent even a Midwesterner could appreciate and a snicker-like smile to back it up. On patrol or drenched in sweat inside the sweltering gym at Camp Leatherneck, Vasquez keeps smiling, laughing and joking.
He's the kind of New Yorker who will interrupt the climax of a perfectly good movie to point out the setting is his city. He's got "attitude."
"Not in a bad way," Vasquez said. "I'm very respectful, and I'll respect anyone as long as they respect me."
Vasquez said his family back home worries about him, but their constant support is a source of strength. He said he finds contact with his daughter particularly uplifting.
"She puts a smile on my face," he said, completely dropping his shield of military toughness. "I can see it in her eyes [when we talk online] that she really misses me ... it feels good."
Vasquez also has deployed to South America, Asia, and Iraq. At every turn, he's brought his love for service with him.
"I'm grateful for all the things the military has done for me as well as the things I try to do for the military," Vasquez said. "It's the same thing for the police department. I'm glad I have a career back home I can go to and also help people."
BASEBALL TEAM PAYS BACK WAGES AND DAMAGES FOR VIOLATIONS OF THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
San Francisco Giants pay employees $545,000 in back wages, damages
US Labor Department finds clubhouse and administrative workers not paid properly
SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants baseball team paid $544,715 in back wages and liquidated damages to 74 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation determined that the Major League Baseball club failed to properly pay the workers over a three-year period. As a result of the investigation, MLB and the department are now working to ensure that all teams are aware of and adhere to the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Investigators with the department's Wage and Hour Division found violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act's minimum wage, overtime pay and record-keeping provisions. The violations affected a range of employees in the organization at the major and minor league levels, including clubhouse assistants and managers. San Francisco Baseball Associates LLC, the club's ownership group, has entered into an agreement with the department to ensure continued and future compliance with the FLSA.
"We are pleased that the Giants addressed this matter, and it is our hope that other Major League Baseball teams will take a close look at their pay practices to ensure they are in compliance with the law," said Laura Fortman, principal deputy administrator of the Wage and Hour Division. "MLB has agreed to work collaboratively with the department to ensure all MLB teams are in compliance with the FLSA."
Susana Blanco, director of the San Francisco District Office of the Wage and Hour Division, said the case underscores the importance of wage protections: "I am encouraged that the Giants acted to resolve this issue, but it was disappointing to learn that clubhouse workers providing services to high-paid sports stars weren't making enough to meet the basic requirements of minimum-wage law."
During the investigation, the department determined that clubhouse employees were working more hours than were recorded, under an employment agreement required by the club that established a flat rate of pay of $55 for working 5.5 hours per day. However, investigators found that the employees actually worked an average of 12 to 15 hours daily, and the workers received less than the hourly federal minimum wage of $7.25 and were also not paid overtime for hours exceeding 40 in a workweek.
Investigators found the club had improperly classified a number of employees as exempt from overtime pay, including clubhouse managers at the major and minor league levels and video operators at the team's major and minor league affiliates. The non-exempt employees were paid a straight salary and no overtime premium, as required based on their job duties. Additionally, the investigation determined that the club failed to pay overtime or incorrectly calculated overtime pay for administrative staff participating in the Giants' bonus program, in violation of the FLSA.
The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, as well as time and one-half their regular rates for hours worked over 40 per week. The law also requires employers to maintain accurate records of employees' wages, hours and other conditions of employment, and it prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who exercise their rights under the law. The FLSA provides that employers who violate the law are, as a general rule, liable to employees for back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. Liquidated damages are paid directly to the affected employees.
San Francisco Giants pay employees $545,000 in back wages, damages
US Labor Department finds clubhouse and administrative workers not paid properly
SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants baseball team paid $544,715 in back wages and liquidated damages to 74 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation determined that the Major League Baseball club failed to properly pay the workers over a three-year period. As a result of the investigation, MLB and the department are now working to ensure that all teams are aware of and adhere to the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Investigators with the department's Wage and Hour Division found violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act's minimum wage, overtime pay and record-keeping provisions. The violations affected a range of employees in the organization at the major and minor league levels, including clubhouse assistants and managers. San Francisco Baseball Associates LLC, the club's ownership group, has entered into an agreement with the department to ensure continued and future compliance with the FLSA.
"We are pleased that the Giants addressed this matter, and it is our hope that other Major League Baseball teams will take a close look at their pay practices to ensure they are in compliance with the law," said Laura Fortman, principal deputy administrator of the Wage and Hour Division. "MLB has agreed to work collaboratively with the department to ensure all MLB teams are in compliance with the FLSA."
Susana Blanco, director of the San Francisco District Office of the Wage and Hour Division, said the case underscores the importance of wage protections: "I am encouraged that the Giants acted to resolve this issue, but it was disappointing to learn that clubhouse workers providing services to high-paid sports stars weren't making enough to meet the basic requirements of minimum-wage law."
During the investigation, the department determined that clubhouse employees were working more hours than were recorded, under an employment agreement required by the club that established a flat rate of pay of $55 for working 5.5 hours per day. However, investigators found that the employees actually worked an average of 12 to 15 hours daily, and the workers received less than the hourly federal minimum wage of $7.25 and were also not paid overtime for hours exceeding 40 in a workweek.
Investigators found the club had improperly classified a number of employees as exempt from overtime pay, including clubhouse managers at the major and minor league levels and video operators at the team's major and minor league affiliates. The non-exempt employees were paid a straight salary and no overtime premium, as required based on their job duties. Additionally, the investigation determined that the club failed to pay overtime or incorrectly calculated overtime pay for administrative staff participating in the Giants' bonus program, in violation of the FLSA.
The FLSA requires that covered employees be paid at least the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, as well as time and one-half their regular rates for hours worked over 40 per week. The law also requires employers to maintain accurate records of employees' wages, hours and other conditions of employment, and it prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who exercise their rights under the law. The FLSA provides that employers who violate the law are, as a general rule, liable to employees for back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages. Liquidated damages are paid directly to the affected employees.
U.S. SIGNS MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH NIGERIA IN ATTEMPT TO ELIMINATE CROSS-BORDER FRAUD
FROM: FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Nigerian Consumer Protection and Criminal Enforcement Authorities
Memorandum Provides for Strong Cooperation on Cross-Border Fraud
The Federal Trade Commission signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with two Nigerian agencies to increase cooperation and communication in their joint efforts to stamp out cross-border fraud. Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Adebowale Adefuye, provided opening remarks for the MOU signing ceremony.
The MOU was signed by FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez; Director General Dupe Atoki, of Nigeria’s Consumer Protection Council (CPC); and Executive Chairman Ibrahim Lamorde, of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). It is the first FTC MOU of this kind to include a foreign criminal enforcement authority. The CPC addresses consumer complaints through investigations and enforcement; the EFCC is a criminal enforcement agency with authority to address consumer fraud and other financial crimes.
Cross-border scammers use fraudulent e-mails and other scams to bilk consumers all over the world, while undermining confidence in legitimate businesses,” said FTC Chairwoman Ramirez. “This MOU will help our agencies better protect consumers in both the U.S. and Nigeria.”
Director Atoki stated that “We fully support this collaboration on consumer and fraud matters, and have already detailed a senior CPC official to the FTC for a six-month staff exchange.” And Executive Chairman Lamorde noted that he “welcomes this partnership, which builds on our existing collaboration with the FTC and with U.S. criminal enforcement authorities.”
The MOU provides for a Joint Implementation Committee to identify concrete areas of collaboration, establish joint training programs and workshops, and provide assistance regarding specific cases and investigations. The MOU is a framework for voluntary cooperation and will not change existing laws in either country.
The FTC has already worked with the two Nigerian agencies on policy and enforcement matters in various fora, including the African Consumer Protection Dialogue, the International Mass Marketing Fraud Working Group, the London Action Plan (LAP, an anti-spam network), and the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network.
The Commission vote authorizing Chairwoman Ramirez to sign the MOU on behalf of the agency was 4-0.
As more U.S. companies and consumers do business overseas, more FTC work involves international cooperation. The Office of International Affairs serves both as an internal resource to Commission staff on international aspects of their work and as an official representative to numerous international organizations. In addition, the FTC cooperates with foreign authorities through formal and informal agreements. The FTC works with more than 100 foreign competition and consumer protection authorities around the world to promote sound policy approaches. For questions about the Office of International Affairs, send an e-mail to oia@ftc.gov. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases and the FTC International Monthly for the latest FTC news and resources.
FTC Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Nigerian Consumer Protection and Criminal Enforcement Authorities
Memorandum Provides for Strong Cooperation on Cross-Border Fraud
The Federal Trade Commission signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with two Nigerian agencies to increase cooperation and communication in their joint efforts to stamp out cross-border fraud. Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Ambassador Adebowale Adefuye, provided opening remarks for the MOU signing ceremony.
The MOU was signed by FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez; Director General Dupe Atoki, of Nigeria’s Consumer Protection Council (CPC); and Executive Chairman Ibrahim Lamorde, of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). It is the first FTC MOU of this kind to include a foreign criminal enforcement authority. The CPC addresses consumer complaints through investigations and enforcement; the EFCC is a criminal enforcement agency with authority to address consumer fraud and other financial crimes.
Cross-border scammers use fraudulent e-mails and other scams to bilk consumers all over the world, while undermining confidence in legitimate businesses,” said FTC Chairwoman Ramirez. “This MOU will help our agencies better protect consumers in both the U.S. and Nigeria.”
Director Atoki stated that “We fully support this collaboration on consumer and fraud matters, and have already detailed a senior CPC official to the FTC for a six-month staff exchange.” And Executive Chairman Lamorde noted that he “welcomes this partnership, which builds on our existing collaboration with the FTC and with U.S. criminal enforcement authorities.”
The MOU provides for a Joint Implementation Committee to identify concrete areas of collaboration, establish joint training programs and workshops, and provide assistance regarding specific cases and investigations. The MOU is a framework for voluntary cooperation and will not change existing laws in either country.
The FTC has already worked with the two Nigerian agencies on policy and enforcement matters in various fora, including the African Consumer Protection Dialogue, the International Mass Marketing Fraud Working Group, the London Action Plan (LAP, an anti-spam network), and the International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network.
The Commission vote authorizing Chairwoman Ramirez to sign the MOU on behalf of the agency was 4-0.
As more U.S. companies and consumers do business overseas, more FTC work involves international cooperation. The Office of International Affairs serves both as an internal resource to Commission staff on international aspects of their work and as an official representative to numerous international organizations. In addition, the FTC cooperates with foreign authorities through formal and informal agreements. The FTC works with more than 100 foreign competition and consumer protection authorities around the world to promote sound policy approaches. For questions about the Office of International Affairs, send an e-mail to oia@ftc.gov. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases and the FTC International Monthly for the latest FTC news and resources.
NAVY STUDY LOOKS TO FIND NEW MALARIA VACCINE
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Navy Study May Lead to Malaria Vaccine
Dana Crudo | Health.mil
August 29, 2013
The Navy made medical history with its release of promising research results that may lead the way to a much-needed malaria vaccine.
The breakthrough research published in the journal Science on Aug. 8 includes results of a human clinical trial of a malaria vaccine developed by the Navy Medical Research Center and federal and industry collaborators. The trial showed 100 percent protection against the disease.
“This is a historical moment in malaria vaccine research development,” said Capt. Judith Epstein, lead investigator of the trial at the Navy Medical Research Center. “For the first time, we and our collaborators have a malaria vaccine approach which has demonstrated the high-level vaccine efficacy required to protect our troops.”
This is no easy feat. The malaria parasite is incredibly complex, making it particularly difficult to develop a vaccine, researchers say.
The Defense Department has been dedicated to solving the malaria riddle since World War II because of its significant impact on U.S. military operations throughout history. Malaria continues to present major challenges to troops in tropical and subtropical regions of the world where it is rampant.
However, malaria is not a problem unique to the military. It is a major global health concern, with the World Health Organization reporting 216 million cases of malaria and an estimated 655,000 deaths in 2010.
Despite the significant need, there currently is no approved vaccine against malaria.
The latest research by the Navy provides hope that a vaccine soon will be available to effectively combat malaria within the military and beyond.
“I see the Navy paving the way to a vaccine which can be used within the next three- to four years for military personnel and for the millions of individuals suffering and dying from malaria worldwide,” Epstein said.
The vaccine used in the clinical trial was given at varied doses by intravenous injection to 40 volunteers from October 2011 to October 2012. Navy researchers played a key role in the design of the study, particularly the assessment of vaccine efficacy and volunteer follow up.
Navy Study May Lead to Malaria Vaccine
Dana Crudo | Health.mil
August 29, 2013
The Navy made medical history with its release of promising research results that may lead the way to a much-needed malaria vaccine.
The breakthrough research published in the journal Science on Aug. 8 includes results of a human clinical trial of a malaria vaccine developed by the Navy Medical Research Center and federal and industry collaborators. The trial showed 100 percent protection against the disease.
“This is a historical moment in malaria vaccine research development,” said Capt. Judith Epstein, lead investigator of the trial at the Navy Medical Research Center. “For the first time, we and our collaborators have a malaria vaccine approach which has demonstrated the high-level vaccine efficacy required to protect our troops.”
This is no easy feat. The malaria parasite is incredibly complex, making it particularly difficult to develop a vaccine, researchers say.
The Defense Department has been dedicated to solving the malaria riddle since World War II because of its significant impact on U.S. military operations throughout history. Malaria continues to present major challenges to troops in tropical and subtropical regions of the world where it is rampant.
However, malaria is not a problem unique to the military. It is a major global health concern, with the World Health Organization reporting 216 million cases of malaria and an estimated 655,000 deaths in 2010.
Despite the significant need, there currently is no approved vaccine against malaria.
The latest research by the Navy provides hope that a vaccine soon will be available to effectively combat malaria within the military and beyond.
“I see the Navy paving the way to a vaccine which can be used within the next three- to four years for military personnel and for the millions of individuals suffering and dying from malaria worldwide,” Epstein said.
The vaccine used in the clinical trial was given at varied doses by intravenous injection to 40 volunteers from October 2011 to October 2012. Navy researchers played a key role in the design of the study, particularly the assessment of vaccine efficacy and volunteer follow up.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
STATEMENT BY HHS SECRETARY SEBELIUS ON OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month 2013
A statement by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
This year, thousands of American women – our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, daughters, and friends – will die from ovarian cancer. During September, we observe National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month to recognize those who have died and recommit ourselves to helping the women who are fighting for their health.
Every year, more than 20,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which is the fifth leading cause of cancer death for women and accounts for more than 14,000 deaths a year.
The administration advances scientific research to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment. When ovarian cancer is found in its early stages, treatment is most effective, but, there is currently no proven method to screen for ovarian cancer in women.
That is why awareness is key to women’s survival. Ovarian cancer often does have signs and symptoms, so it is important to pay attention to your body –to be aware-- and know what is normal for you. If you have vaginal bleeding that is not normal for you, see a doctor right away. Also see your health care provider if you have any of the other signs that are not normal for you, such as pain in the pelvic or abdominal area or bloating, for two weeks or longer.
Know your risk factors. All women are at risk for ovarian cancer, but older women are more likely to get the disease than younger women. There are some factors that may increase your risk, including if you have genetic mutations called BRCA1 or BRCA2, have had certain cancers, breast,uterine,or have never given birth or have had trouble getting pregnant.
Having any of these symptoms or factors does not mean you have or will get ovarian cancer. But you should speak with your health care professional about your risk and whether you need genetic counseling and further examination.
The Affordable Care Act is making health care more accessible and providing important protections for women. Insurers must cover –at no out-of-pocket cost -- an annual well-woman visit, which is a good time for women to discuss their concerns about ovarian cancer with their health care provider. The law also guarantees coverage for genetic counseling and testing for certain women at high risk for ovarian cancer.
Women who are enrolled in Medicare part B can discuss any concerns at the annual wellness visit, which is available without part B coinsurance or satisfying the deductible. We also know that women-- and men -- without insurance are less likely to get the primary health care that they need to get healthy and to catch serious conditions like ovarian cancer in their early and more treatable stage. The good news is for millions of Americans who are uninsured or under-insured, new options for affordable, quality health insurance are around the corner.
In just a few weeks, every state will have an online Health Insurance Marketplace where people can find a plan that fits their budget and needs. Open enrollment starts October 1 for coverage that begins as soon as January 1, 2014. You can find information and updates at HealthCare.gov – and the Spanish-language version at CuidadoDeSalud.gov. Sign up now at either site for a personal account to begin the process.
Also, in 2014, the health law makes it illegal to deny coverage or charge more if a woman has ovarian cancer or other pre-existing condition.
Remember: Being aware of what’s normal for our bodies and having access to quality health care are vital weapons in the fight against ovarian cancer.
Learn more about the risks and symptoms of ovarian and other gynecologic cancers.
See the National Cancer Institute’s What You Need to Know About Ovarian Cancer booklet and check out the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Inside Knowledge: Get the Facts About Gynecologic Cancer campaign and read survivors’ personal stories.
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month 2013
A statement by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
This year, thousands of American women – our mothers, grandmothers, aunts, daughters, and friends – will die from ovarian cancer. During September, we observe National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month to recognize those who have died and recommit ourselves to helping the women who are fighting for their health.
Every year, more than 20,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which is the fifth leading cause of cancer death for women and accounts for more than 14,000 deaths a year.
The administration advances scientific research to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment. When ovarian cancer is found in its early stages, treatment is most effective, but, there is currently no proven method to screen for ovarian cancer in women.
That is why awareness is key to women’s survival. Ovarian cancer often does have signs and symptoms, so it is important to pay attention to your body –to be aware-- and know what is normal for you. If you have vaginal bleeding that is not normal for you, see a doctor right away. Also see your health care provider if you have any of the other signs that are not normal for you, such as pain in the pelvic or abdominal area or bloating, for two weeks or longer.
Know your risk factors. All women are at risk for ovarian cancer, but older women are more likely to get the disease than younger women. There are some factors that may increase your risk, including if you have genetic mutations called BRCA1 or BRCA2, have had certain cancers, breast,uterine,or have never given birth or have had trouble getting pregnant.
Having any of these symptoms or factors does not mean you have or will get ovarian cancer. But you should speak with your health care professional about your risk and whether you need genetic counseling and further examination.
The Affordable Care Act is making health care more accessible and providing important protections for women. Insurers must cover –at no out-of-pocket cost -- an annual well-woman visit, which is a good time for women to discuss their concerns about ovarian cancer with their health care provider. The law also guarantees coverage for genetic counseling and testing for certain women at high risk for ovarian cancer.
Women who are enrolled in Medicare part B can discuss any concerns at the annual wellness visit, which is available without part B coinsurance or satisfying the deductible. We also know that women-- and men -- without insurance are less likely to get the primary health care that they need to get healthy and to catch serious conditions like ovarian cancer in their early and more treatable stage. The good news is for millions of Americans who are uninsured or under-insured, new options for affordable, quality health insurance are around the corner.
In just a few weeks, every state will have an online Health Insurance Marketplace where people can find a plan that fits their budget and needs. Open enrollment starts October 1 for coverage that begins as soon as January 1, 2014. You can find information and updates at HealthCare.gov – and the Spanish-language version at CuidadoDeSalud.gov. Sign up now at either site for a personal account to begin the process.
Also, in 2014, the health law makes it illegal to deny coverage or charge more if a woman has ovarian cancer or other pre-existing condition.
Remember: Being aware of what’s normal for our bodies and having access to quality health care are vital weapons in the fight against ovarian cancer.
Learn more about the risks and symptoms of ovarian and other gynecologic cancers.
See the National Cancer Institute’s What You Need to Know About Ovarian Cancer booklet and check out the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Inside Knowledge: Get the Facts About Gynecologic Cancer campaign and read survivors’ personal stories.
RECREATION CENTERS FOR SERVICE MEMBERS, THEIR FAMILIES AND DOD CIVILIAN EMPLOYEES
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| The Hale Koa, on Honolulu's Waikiki Beach, offers tropical gardens, pools and authentic Hawaiian luaus and is the largest of four Armed Forces Recreation Centers operated by the Army. U.S. Army photo |
Recreation Centers Offer Value to Troops, Families
By Donna Miles
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 30, 2013 - Fans of the Armed Forces Recreation Centers can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that because the crown jewels of the military's morale, welfare and recreation programs are completely self-supporting, they're unaffected by defense budget cuts and undergoing capital improvements.
The AFRCs have served as centerpieces of the MWR program since the post-World War II era. They were initially established after the war in confiscated German facilities to provide recreational getaways for U.S. forces, Debbie Martin, the Army's chief of hospitality programs, told American Forces Press Service.
Today, the Army operates four AFRCs around the world for all the military services: the Edelweiss Lodge and Resort, in Garmisch, Germany; the Hale Koa Hotel, in Honolulu; Shades of Green, on the grounds of Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida; and Dragon Hill Lodge, in Seoul, South Korea.
The facilities serve military members and their families, military retirees, and Defense Department civilian employees. Last year alone, 1.7 million guests visited an AFRC, Martin reported.
Make no mistake about it: the AFRCs aren't simply military-run hotels like those found on many installations, she emphasized. They're luxury resorts that cater exclusively to military and Defense Department leisure travelers and their families.
Edelweiss, opened in 2004, is a world-class resort smack in the middle of the Bavarian Alps and Germany's premier ski and summer sports scene. The Hale Koa, on Honolulu's Waikiki Beach, offers an open door to paradise, complete with tropical gardens and pools and regular luaus. Shades of Green, the only AFRC in the continental United States, gives service members and families immediate access to the wonders of Disney World. The Dragon Hill offers an upscale escape in the Land of the Morning Calm, all steps from the excitement and intrigue of downtown Seoul.
All feature exclusive accommodations and fitness facilities, restaurants, lounges and activity desks that can keep guests running from morning to night when they're not simply kicking back and enjoying their surroundings.
"We look for the 'Wow' factor, as do most resorts," Martin said. "We want the military community, not only today, but into the future, to arrive at any one of these resorts and say, 'Wow. This is what the nation does for me and gives me the opportunity to be involved in.'"
For many AFRC guests, the initial attraction is the price. Unlike civilian resorts that must turn a profit to stay in business, AFRCs charge only what they need to cover operating expenses and facility improvements, Martin said. Not a penny of the direct funding comes from appropriated funds, so the facilities are largely sheltered from the budget cuts impacting the Defense Department.
Room rates are based on a sliding scale according to rank, with the most-junior guests paying the least $64 a night for a single room at the Dragon Hill, $79 at the Hale Koa, $86 at the Edelweiss and $95 for a 450-square-foot room that sleeps six at Shades of Green.
For higher-ranking guests, the same rooms go for more, and larger rooms are available at higher prices at some of the facilities to accommodate larger parties.
"The value for your dollar goes much farther at the AFRCs than it would in any resort that would be comparable," Martin said.
That's kept occupancy rates steady, typically at 90 percent or higher at the Hale Koa, Shades of Green and Dragon Hill facilities, she reported. The Edelweiss resort has experienced a recent drop, she said, reflecting force-structure changes in Europe but making it easier than ever before for guests to get a reservation.
While price may draws guests to the AFRCs, Martin said the quality of the accommodations and services provided continue to bring them back. Each resort offers everything service members might expect to find in a luxury resort: swimming pools, gardens, dining choices ranging from fast food to haute cuisine and access to a plethora of entertainment options.
Each facility also has a post exchange on site, a godsend, many guests say, that saves them a bundle when they're vacationing.
"AFRCS offer a blend of the military culture and a resort environment that military members find very, very appealing, not just in terms of price, but also because of the atmosphere," Martin said.
An ambitious recapitalization program is helping to ensure that atmosphere remains for years to come, she said. Shades of Green, for example, opened its expanded post exchange this spring. A major renovation is underway on one of its pools, featuring a "zero entry" ramp to meet the needs of guests in wheelchairs or with other physical limitations. Another pool, known as the "Mickey Pool," will be upgraded within the next year to 15 months to add new child-friendly features, Martin said.
Meanwhile, officials are considering a major renovation of the resort's original wing, which includes about half of its 583 rooms, Martin said.
The Hale Koa, which recently completed a $60-plus million facelift on its Ilima Tower, is in the conceptual stages for a similar effort on its original Maile Tower, she said. Once that's completed, all 817 guest rooms at the largest of the AFRC resorts will have a new face.
"The idea is that you refresh things before they become worn out in the eye of the users," Martin said. "We want to make sure our guests are greeted with something they view as current and fresh -- and that gives them the overall feeling, 'I am in a resort and I am being pampered.'"
Pampering, after all, is what the AFRCs are all about, she said. They offer an opportunity for military members and their families to relax, unwind and reconnect. The benefit, she said, is that they return to their homes and duty stations refreshed and ready to take on whatever challenges the military presents them.
Martin said there's little that makes her feel more satisfied than seeing a military parent and child spend quality time together at an AFRC.
"It is those innocent moments, those special moments that make a lasting impression," she said, not just on the child, but on the parent who will carry those memories to the next deployment.
"That is what we do," Martin said. "We help strengthen that bond that allows folks to get through the things that we as a nation ask them to get through."
HHS ANNOUNCES GUIDANCE ON DEFENSE OF MARRIAGE ACT COURT DECISION
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
August 29, 2013
HHS announces first guidance implementing Supreme Court’s decision on the Defense of Marriage Act
Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a memo clarifying that all beneficiaries in private Medicare plans have access to equal coverage when it comes to care in a nursing home where their spouse lives. This is the first guidance issued by HHS in response to the recent Supreme Court ruling, which held section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.
“HHS is working swiftly to implement the Supreme Court’s decision and maximize federal recognition of same-sex spouses in HHS programs,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “Today’s announcement is the first of many steps that we will be taking over the coming months to clarify the effects of the Supreme Court’s decision and to ensure that gay and lesbian married couples are treated equally under the law.”
“Today, Medicare is ensuring that all beneficiaries will have equal access to coverage in a nursing home where their spouse lives, regardless of their sexual orientation,” said Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. “Prior to this, a beneficiary in a same-sex marriage enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan did not have equal access to such coverage and, as a result, could have faced time away from his or her spouse or higher costs because of the way that marriage was defined for this purpose.”
Under current law, Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan are entitled to care in, among certain other skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), the SNF where their spouse resides (assuming that they have met the conditions for SNF coverage in the first place, and the SNF has agreed to the payment amounts and other terms that apply to a plan network SNF). Seniors with Medicare Advantage previously may have faced the choice of receiving coverage in a nursing home away from their same-sex spouse, or dis-enrolling from the Medicare Advantage plan which would have meant paying more out-of-pocket for care in the same nursing home as their same-sex spouse.
Today’s guidance clarifies that this guarantee of coverage applies equally to all married couples. The guidance specifically clarifies that this guarantee of coverage applies equally to couples who are in a legally recognized same-sex marriage, regardless of where they live.
August 29, 2013
HHS announces first guidance implementing Supreme Court’s decision on the Defense of Marriage Act
Today, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a memo clarifying that all beneficiaries in private Medicare plans have access to equal coverage when it comes to care in a nursing home where their spouse lives. This is the first guidance issued by HHS in response to the recent Supreme Court ruling, which held section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional.
“HHS is working swiftly to implement the Supreme Court’s decision and maximize federal recognition of same-sex spouses in HHS programs,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “Today’s announcement is the first of many steps that we will be taking over the coming months to clarify the effects of the Supreme Court’s decision and to ensure that gay and lesbian married couples are treated equally under the law.”
“Today, Medicare is ensuring that all beneficiaries will have equal access to coverage in a nursing home where their spouse lives, regardless of their sexual orientation,” said Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. “Prior to this, a beneficiary in a same-sex marriage enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan did not have equal access to such coverage and, as a result, could have faced time away from his or her spouse or higher costs because of the way that marriage was defined for this purpose.”
Under current law, Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan are entitled to care in, among certain other skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), the SNF where their spouse resides (assuming that they have met the conditions for SNF coverage in the first place, and the SNF has agreed to the payment amounts and other terms that apply to a plan network SNF). Seniors with Medicare Advantage previously may have faced the choice of receiving coverage in a nursing home away from their same-sex spouse, or dis-enrolling from the Medicare Advantage plan which would have meant paying more out-of-pocket for care in the same nursing home as their same-sex spouse.
Today’s guidance clarifies that this guarantee of coverage applies equally to all married couples. The guidance specifically clarifies that this guarantee of coverage applies equally to couples who are in a legally recognized same-sex marriage, regardless of where they live.
3 PLEAD GUILTY TO BRIBERY OF FOREIGN OFFICIALS, MONEY LAUNDERING AND CONSPIRACY TO OBSTRUCT JUSTICE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, August 30, 2013
Three Former Broker-dealer Employees Plead Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Bribery of Foreign Officials, Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice
Three employees of a New York-based U.S. broker-dealer have pleaded guilty for their roles in bribery schemes involving two state economic development banks in Venezuela.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York and Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos of the New York Office of the FBI made the announcement.
Ernesto Lujan, Jose Alejandro Hurtado and Tomas Alberto Clarke Bethancourt pleaded guilty in New York federal court to conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), to violate the Travel Act and to commit money laundering, as well as substantive counts of these offenses. These charges relate to a scheme to bribe a foreign official named Maria de los Angeles Gonzalez de Hernandez at Banco de Desarrollo Económico y Social de Venezuela (BANDES), a state economic development bank in Venezuela, in exchange for receiving trading business from BANDES. Lujan, Hurtado and Clarke each also pleaded guilty to an additional charge of conspiring to violate the FCPA in connection with a similar scheme to bribe a foreign official employed by Banfoandes (the “Banfoandes Foreign Official”), another state economic development bank in Venezuela, and to conspiring to obstruct an examination by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the New York-based broker-dealer (the “Broker-Dealer”) where all three defendants had worked, to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES.
Lujan, 50, and Clarke, 43, entered their guilty pleas yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge James C. Francis IV, and Hurtado, 38, pleaded guilty today, also before Judge Francis. The men each pleaded guilty to the same six offenses and face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each count except money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Sentencing for Lujan and Clarke is scheduled for Feb. 11, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe. Hurtado is scheduled for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Harold Baer Jr. on March 6, 2014.
According to the informations filed against Lujan, Hurtado and Clarke this week, the criminal complaints previously filed, and statements made during the plea proceedings, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado worked or were associated with the Broker-Dealer, principally through its Miami offices. In 2008, the Broker-Dealer established a group called the Global Markets Group, which included Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado, and which offered fixed income trading services to institutional clients.
One of the Broker-Dealer’s clients was BANDES, which operated under the direction of the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance. The Venezuelan government had a majority ownership interest in BANDES and provided it with substantial funding. Gonzalez was an official at BANDES and oversaw the development bank’s overseas trading activity. At her direction, BANDES conducted substantial trading through the Broker-Dealer. Most of the trades executed by the Broker-Dealer on behalf of BANDES involved fixed-income investments for which the Broker-Dealer charged the bank a mark-up on purchases and a mark-down on sales.
The Broker-Dealer also conducted business with Banfoandes, another state development bank in Venezuela that, along with its 2009 successor Banco Bicentenario, operated under the direction of the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance. Banfoandes acted as a financial agent of the Venezuelan government in order to promote economic and social development by, among other things, offering credit to low-income Venezuelans. The Banfoandes Foreign Official was responsible for some of Banfoandes’s foreign investments.
Court records state that from early 2009 through 2012, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado participated in a bribery scheme in which Gonzalez allegedly directed trading business she controlled at BANDES to the Broker-Dealer, and in return, agents and employees of the Broker-Dealer split the revenue the Broker-Dealer generated from this trading business with Gonzalez. During this time period, the Broker-Dealer generated over $60 million in mark-ups and mark-downs from trades with BANDES. Agents and employees of the Broker-Dealer, including Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado, devised a split with Gonzalez of the commissions paid by BANDES to the Broker-Dealer. Emails, account records and other documents collected from the Broker-Dealer and other sources reveal that Gonzalez allegedly received a substantial share of the revenue generated by the Broker-Dealer for BANDES-related trades. Specifically, Gonzalez allegedly received kickbacks and payments from Broker-Dealer agents and employees that were frequently in six-figure amounts.
To further conceal the scheme, the kickbacks to Gonzalez were often paid using intermediary corporations and offshore accounts that she held in Switzerland, among other places. For instance, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado used accounts they controlled in Switzerland to transfer funds to an account Gonzalez allegedly controlled in Switzerland. Additionally, Hurtado and his spouse received substantial compensation from the Broker-Dealer, portions of which Hurtado transferred to an account allegedly held by Gonzalez in Miami and to an account held by an associate of Gonzalez in Switzerland. Hurtado also sought and allegedly received reimbursement from Gonzalez for the U.S. income taxes he had paid on money that he used to make kickback payments to Gonzalez. Lujan and Clarke also derived substantial profit from their roles in the bribery scheme.
According to court records, beginning in or about November 2010, the SEC commenced a periodic examination of the Broker-Dealer, and from November 2010 through March 2011 the SEC’s examination staff made several visits to the Broker-Dealer’s offices in Manhattan. In early 2011, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado discussed their concern that the SEC was examining the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES and asking questions regarding certain emails and other information that the SEC examination staff had discovered. Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado agreed that they would take steps to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES, including deleting emails. Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado then, in fact, deleted emails. Additionally as part of this effort to obstruct the SEC examination, Clarke lied to SEC examination staff in response to an interview question about his relationship to an individual who had received purported foreign associate payments relating to BANDES.
In a related scheme, from 2008 through mid-2009, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado paid bribes to the Banfoandes Foreign Official, who, in exchange, directed Banfoandes trading business to the Broker-Dealer.
Gonzalez was charged in a criminal complaint and arrested on May 3, 2013, in connection with the BANDES bribery scheme. The charges against Gonzalez are merely accusations, and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI, with assistance from the SEC and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
Assistant Chief James Koukios and Trial Attorneys Maria Gonzalez Calvet and Aisling O’Shea of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry A. Chernoff and Jason H. Cowley of the Southern District of New York’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina Fornos is responsible for the forfeiture aspects of the case.
Friday, August 30, 2013
Three Former Broker-dealer Employees Plead Guilty in Manhattan Federal Court to Bribery of Foreign Officials, Money Laundering and Conspiracy to Obstruct Justice
Three employees of a New York-based U.S. broker-dealer have pleaded guilty for their roles in bribery schemes involving two state economic development banks in Venezuela.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York and Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos of the New York Office of the FBI made the announcement.
Ernesto Lujan, Jose Alejandro Hurtado and Tomas Alberto Clarke Bethancourt pleaded guilty in New York federal court to conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), to violate the Travel Act and to commit money laundering, as well as substantive counts of these offenses. These charges relate to a scheme to bribe a foreign official named Maria de los Angeles Gonzalez de Hernandez at Banco de Desarrollo Económico y Social de Venezuela (BANDES), a state economic development bank in Venezuela, in exchange for receiving trading business from BANDES. Lujan, Hurtado and Clarke each also pleaded guilty to an additional charge of conspiring to violate the FCPA in connection with a similar scheme to bribe a foreign official employed by Banfoandes (the “Banfoandes Foreign Official”), another state economic development bank in Venezuela, and to conspiring to obstruct an examination by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the New York-based broker-dealer (the “Broker-Dealer”) where all three defendants had worked, to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES.
Lujan, 50, and Clarke, 43, entered their guilty pleas yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge James C. Francis IV, and Hurtado, 38, pleaded guilty today, also before Judge Francis. The men each pleaded guilty to the same six offenses and face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on each count except money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Sentencing for Lujan and Clarke is scheduled for Feb. 11, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Gardephe. Hurtado is scheduled for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Harold Baer Jr. on March 6, 2014.
According to the informations filed against Lujan, Hurtado and Clarke this week, the criminal complaints previously filed, and statements made during the plea proceedings, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado worked or were associated with the Broker-Dealer, principally through its Miami offices. In 2008, the Broker-Dealer established a group called the Global Markets Group, which included Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado, and which offered fixed income trading services to institutional clients.
One of the Broker-Dealer’s clients was BANDES, which operated under the direction of the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance. The Venezuelan government had a majority ownership interest in BANDES and provided it with substantial funding. Gonzalez was an official at BANDES and oversaw the development bank’s overseas trading activity. At her direction, BANDES conducted substantial trading through the Broker-Dealer. Most of the trades executed by the Broker-Dealer on behalf of BANDES involved fixed-income investments for which the Broker-Dealer charged the bank a mark-up on purchases and a mark-down on sales.
The Broker-Dealer also conducted business with Banfoandes, another state development bank in Venezuela that, along with its 2009 successor Banco Bicentenario, operated under the direction of the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance. Banfoandes acted as a financial agent of the Venezuelan government in order to promote economic and social development by, among other things, offering credit to low-income Venezuelans. The Banfoandes Foreign Official was responsible for some of Banfoandes’s foreign investments.
Court records state that from early 2009 through 2012, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado participated in a bribery scheme in which Gonzalez allegedly directed trading business she controlled at BANDES to the Broker-Dealer, and in return, agents and employees of the Broker-Dealer split the revenue the Broker-Dealer generated from this trading business with Gonzalez. During this time period, the Broker-Dealer generated over $60 million in mark-ups and mark-downs from trades with BANDES. Agents and employees of the Broker-Dealer, including Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado, devised a split with Gonzalez of the commissions paid by BANDES to the Broker-Dealer. Emails, account records and other documents collected from the Broker-Dealer and other sources reveal that Gonzalez allegedly received a substantial share of the revenue generated by the Broker-Dealer for BANDES-related trades. Specifically, Gonzalez allegedly received kickbacks and payments from Broker-Dealer agents and employees that were frequently in six-figure amounts.
To further conceal the scheme, the kickbacks to Gonzalez were often paid using intermediary corporations and offshore accounts that she held in Switzerland, among other places. For instance, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado used accounts they controlled in Switzerland to transfer funds to an account Gonzalez allegedly controlled in Switzerland. Additionally, Hurtado and his spouse received substantial compensation from the Broker-Dealer, portions of which Hurtado transferred to an account allegedly held by Gonzalez in Miami and to an account held by an associate of Gonzalez in Switzerland. Hurtado also sought and allegedly received reimbursement from Gonzalez for the U.S. income taxes he had paid on money that he used to make kickback payments to Gonzalez. Lujan and Clarke also derived substantial profit from their roles in the bribery scheme.
According to court records, beginning in or about November 2010, the SEC commenced a periodic examination of the Broker-Dealer, and from November 2010 through March 2011 the SEC’s examination staff made several visits to the Broker-Dealer’s offices in Manhattan. In early 2011, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado discussed their concern that the SEC was examining the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES and asking questions regarding certain emails and other information that the SEC examination staff had discovered. Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado agreed that they would take steps to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES, including deleting emails. Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado then, in fact, deleted emails. Additionally as part of this effort to obstruct the SEC examination, Clarke lied to SEC examination staff in response to an interview question about his relationship to an individual who had received purported foreign associate payments relating to BANDES.
In a related scheme, from 2008 through mid-2009, Lujan, Clarke and Hurtado paid bribes to the Banfoandes Foreign Official, who, in exchange, directed Banfoandes trading business to the Broker-Dealer.
Gonzalez was charged in a criminal complaint and arrested on May 3, 2013, in connection with the BANDES bribery scheme. The charges against Gonzalez are merely accusations, and she is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI, with assistance from the SEC and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
Assistant Chief James Koukios and Trial Attorneys Maria Gonzalez Calvet and Aisling O’Shea of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry A. Chernoff and Jason H. Cowley of the Southern District of New York’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force are in charge of the prosecution. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina Fornos is responsible for the forfeiture aspects of the case.
USDA SAYS CHINA'S PROCESSED POULTRY FOOD SAFETY INSPECTION SYSTEM EQUIVALENT TO U.S.
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
FSIS Reaffirms Equivalence of China’s Poultry Processing System
WASHINGTON, August 30, 2013– The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) today re-affirms the equivalence of the food safety inspection system for processed poultry in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which was originally established in 2006. This will enable the PRC to certify plants to export processed poultry product to the United States.
Additional information on this topic may be found on the FSIS website:
Poultry Processing Inspection System Audit Report for the People’s Republic of China
Frequently Asked Questions
While the PRC received approval to export processed poultry products to the United States, the raw poultry used for these products must originate in the United States or Canada. As of this announcement, no companies in the PRC are certified to export processed poultry to the United States.
FSIS is currently auditing the PRC’s slaughter inspection system. At this time, no chickens raised or slaughtered in the PRC can be shipped to the United States.
FSIS utilizes a comprehensive, three-part system for both establishing initial equivalence and ensuring the ongoing equivalence of countries that export regulated products to the United States. A foreign country’s inspection system must ensure that establishments preparing poultry products for import into the Unites States comply with requirements equivalent to those in the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) and in FSIS regulations. Once a country’s inspection system is granted equivalence, FSIS conducts periodic verification reviews and audits of exporting establishments. In addition, products undergo re-inspection at U.S. ports-of-entry to check for proper certification, labeling, transportation damage and general condition. Selected shipments are subject to additional re-inspection procedures, including examinations for product defects and laboratory analyses to detect harmful chemical residues or pathogen testing appropriate for the products. FSIS performs increased import re-inspection activities for countries that are beginning to export product to the Unites States.
FSIS Reaffirms Equivalence of China’s Poultry Processing System
WASHINGTON, August 30, 2013– The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) today re-affirms the equivalence of the food safety inspection system for processed poultry in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which was originally established in 2006. This will enable the PRC to certify plants to export processed poultry product to the United States.
Additional information on this topic may be found on the FSIS website:
Poultry Processing Inspection System Audit Report for the People’s Republic of China
Frequently Asked Questions
While the PRC received approval to export processed poultry products to the United States, the raw poultry used for these products must originate in the United States or Canada. As of this announcement, no companies in the PRC are certified to export processed poultry to the United States.
FSIS is currently auditing the PRC’s slaughter inspection system. At this time, no chickens raised or slaughtered in the PRC can be shipped to the United States.
FSIS utilizes a comprehensive, three-part system for both establishing initial equivalence and ensuring the ongoing equivalence of countries that export regulated products to the United States. A foreign country’s inspection system must ensure that establishments preparing poultry products for import into the Unites States comply with requirements equivalent to those in the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) and in FSIS regulations. Once a country’s inspection system is granted equivalence, FSIS conducts periodic verification reviews and audits of exporting establishments. In addition, products undergo re-inspection at U.S. ports-of-entry to check for proper certification, labeling, transportation damage and general condition. Selected shipments are subject to additional re-inspection procedures, including examinations for product defects and laboratory analyses to detect harmful chemical residues or pathogen testing appropriate for the products. FSIS performs increased import re-inspection activities for countries that are beginning to export product to the Unites States.
SMART MATERIALS AND THE DESIGN OF EARTHQUAKE-RESISTANT BRIDGES
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Strong, elastic 'smart materials' aid design of earthquake-resistant bridges
Bridges are a main component of the transportation infrastructure as we know it today. There are no less than 575,000 highway bridges nationwide, and more than $5 billion are allocated yearly from the federal budget for bridge repairs.
Over the past couple of decades, increasing seismic activity around the world has been identified as an impending threat to the strength and well-being of our bridges. Earthquakes have caused bridge collapses in the U.S., Japan, Taiwan, China, Chile, Turkey, and elsewhere. Therefore, we need to find ways to minimize seismic effects on bridges, both by improving existing bridges and refining specifications and construction materials for future bridges.
A large majority of bridges are made of steel and concrete. While this combination is convenient and economical, steel-concrete bridges don't hold up as well in strong earthquakes (7.0 magnitude or higher). Conventional reinforced columns rely on the steel and concrete to dissipate energy during strong earthquakes, potentially creating permanent deformation and damage in the column and making the column unusable.
Under earthquake loading, engineers allow for damage in column hinges to dissipate energy and prevent total bridge collapse. While that practice is widely accepted, the effects of hinge damage can interfere with disaster recovery operations and have a major economic impact on the community.
With funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and using NSF's George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES), civil engineer M. Saiid Saiidi of the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and his colleagues have discovered a solution. They've identified several smart materials as alternatives to steel and concrete in bridges.
Shape memory alloys (SMAs) are unique in their ability to endure heavy strain and still return to their original state, either through heating or superelasticity. SMAs demonstrate an ability to re-center bridge columns, which minimizes the permanent tilt columns can experience after an earthquake.
Nickel titanium, or nitinol, the shape memory alloy tested in the UNR project, has a unique ability even amongst SMAs. While the majority of SMAs are only temperature-sensitive, meaning that they require a heat source to return to their original shape, Nitinol is also superelastic. This means that it can absorb the stress imposed by an earthquake and return to its original shape, which makes nitinol a particularly advantageous alternative to steel. In fact, the superelasticity of nickel titanium is between 10 to 30 times the elasticity of normal metals like steel.
Many of us know nickel titanium from our flexible prescription eyeglass frames. The material allows frames to easily return to their original shape after being bent in any direction. Nickel titanium's uses are extremely varied, with applications that range from medicine to heat engines, lifting devices and even novelty toys--and now, earthquake engineering.
To assess the performance of nickel-titanium reinforced concrete bridges, the researchers analyzed three types of bridge columns: traditional steel and concrete, nickel titanium and concrete, and nickel titanium and engineered cementitious composites (ECC), which include cement, sand, water, fiber and chemicals. First, they modeled and tested the columns in OpenSEES, an earthquake simulation program developed at the University of California, Berkeley. Finally, they assembled and tested the columns on the UNR NEES shake table.
To strengthen the concrete and prevent immediate failure in an earthquake, the researchers used the shake tables to test glass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer composites. Both composites substantially enhanced the reinforcing properties of concrete and the columns resisted strong earthquake forces with minor damage.
The results of both the modeling and shake table tests were extremely promising. The nickel titanium/ECC bridge columns outperformed the traditional steel and concrete bridge columns on all levels, limiting the amount of damage that the bridge would sustain under strong earthquakes.
While the initial cost of a typical bridge made of nickel titanium and ECC would be about 3 percent higher than the cost of a conventional bridge, the bridge's lifetime cost would decrease. Not only would the bridge require less repair, it would also be serviceable in the event of moderate and strong earthquakes. As a result, following a strong earthquake, the bridge would remain open to emergency vehicles and other traffic.
-- Misha Raffiee, California Institute of Technology
About the author: Misha Raffiee is a sophomore undergraduate at the California Institute of Technology, but she began work with UNR on the NSF/NEES 4-Span Bridge Project following her graduation from high school at age 15. As an undergraduate research fellow, Raffiee was given the opportunity to conduct her own complementary research, a feasibility study of copper-based shape memory alloys and ECC. Copper-based SMAs, such as copper-aluminum-beryllium (CuAlBe) are predicted to be more cost-effective than other shape memory alloys, such as nickel titanium. Using computer modeling and testing in the Open System for Earthquake Engineering Simulation with the results from the nickel titanium-reinforced concrete runs, Raffiee was able to assess the performance of a unique CuAlBe and ECC column. She presented her findings at NSF's Young Researcher's Symposium at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and later assisted in presentations of the nickel titanium-reinforced concrete column project at an NSF showcase event held at the United States Senate. Raffiee credits the experience as an NSF/NEES Undergraduate Research Fellow with helping her grow both as a researcher and as a scholar, solidifying her post-graduate aspirations.
Strong, elastic 'smart materials' aid design of earthquake-resistant bridges
Bridges are a main component of the transportation infrastructure as we know it today. There are no less than 575,000 highway bridges nationwide, and more than $5 billion are allocated yearly from the federal budget for bridge repairs.
Over the past couple of decades, increasing seismic activity around the world has been identified as an impending threat to the strength and well-being of our bridges. Earthquakes have caused bridge collapses in the U.S., Japan, Taiwan, China, Chile, Turkey, and elsewhere. Therefore, we need to find ways to minimize seismic effects on bridges, both by improving existing bridges and refining specifications and construction materials for future bridges.
A large majority of bridges are made of steel and concrete. While this combination is convenient and economical, steel-concrete bridges don't hold up as well in strong earthquakes (7.0 magnitude or higher). Conventional reinforced columns rely on the steel and concrete to dissipate energy during strong earthquakes, potentially creating permanent deformation and damage in the column and making the column unusable.
Under earthquake loading, engineers allow for damage in column hinges to dissipate energy and prevent total bridge collapse. While that practice is widely accepted, the effects of hinge damage can interfere with disaster recovery operations and have a major economic impact on the community.
With funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and using NSF's George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES), civil engineer M. Saiid Saiidi of the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and his colleagues have discovered a solution. They've identified several smart materials as alternatives to steel and concrete in bridges.
Shape memory alloys (SMAs) are unique in their ability to endure heavy strain and still return to their original state, either through heating or superelasticity. SMAs demonstrate an ability to re-center bridge columns, which minimizes the permanent tilt columns can experience after an earthquake.
Nickel titanium, or nitinol, the shape memory alloy tested in the UNR project, has a unique ability even amongst SMAs. While the majority of SMAs are only temperature-sensitive, meaning that they require a heat source to return to their original shape, Nitinol is also superelastic. This means that it can absorb the stress imposed by an earthquake and return to its original shape, which makes nitinol a particularly advantageous alternative to steel. In fact, the superelasticity of nickel titanium is between 10 to 30 times the elasticity of normal metals like steel.
Many of us know nickel titanium from our flexible prescription eyeglass frames. The material allows frames to easily return to their original shape after being bent in any direction. Nickel titanium's uses are extremely varied, with applications that range from medicine to heat engines, lifting devices and even novelty toys--and now, earthquake engineering.
To assess the performance of nickel-titanium reinforced concrete bridges, the researchers analyzed three types of bridge columns: traditional steel and concrete, nickel titanium and concrete, and nickel titanium and engineered cementitious composites (ECC), which include cement, sand, water, fiber and chemicals. First, they modeled and tested the columns in OpenSEES, an earthquake simulation program developed at the University of California, Berkeley. Finally, they assembled and tested the columns on the UNR NEES shake table.
To strengthen the concrete and prevent immediate failure in an earthquake, the researchers used the shake tables to test glass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer composites. Both composites substantially enhanced the reinforcing properties of concrete and the columns resisted strong earthquake forces with minor damage.
The results of both the modeling and shake table tests were extremely promising. The nickel titanium/ECC bridge columns outperformed the traditional steel and concrete bridge columns on all levels, limiting the amount of damage that the bridge would sustain under strong earthquakes.
While the initial cost of a typical bridge made of nickel titanium and ECC would be about 3 percent higher than the cost of a conventional bridge, the bridge's lifetime cost would decrease. Not only would the bridge require less repair, it would also be serviceable in the event of moderate and strong earthquakes. As a result, following a strong earthquake, the bridge would remain open to emergency vehicles and other traffic.
-- Misha Raffiee, California Institute of Technology
About the author: Misha Raffiee is a sophomore undergraduate at the California Institute of Technology, but she began work with UNR on the NSF/NEES 4-Span Bridge Project following her graduation from high school at age 15. As an undergraduate research fellow, Raffiee was given the opportunity to conduct her own complementary research, a feasibility study of copper-based shape memory alloys and ECC. Copper-based SMAs, such as copper-aluminum-beryllium (CuAlBe) are predicted to be more cost-effective than other shape memory alloys, such as nickel titanium. Using computer modeling and testing in the Open System for Earthquake Engineering Simulation with the results from the nickel titanium-reinforced concrete runs, Raffiee was able to assess the performance of a unique CuAlBe and ECC column. She presented her findings at NSF's Young Researcher's Symposium at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and later assisted in presentations of the nickel titanium-reinforced concrete column project at an NSF showcase event held at the United States Senate. Raffiee credits the experience as an NSF/NEES Undergraduate Research Fellow with helping her grow both as a researcher and as a scholar, solidifying her post-graduate aspirations.
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