WHITE HOUSE FACT SHEET ON JOB TRAINING TO BUILD THE MIDDLE CLASS

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

FACT SHEET - American Job Training Investments: Skills and Jobs to Build a Stronger Middle Class

American Job Training Investments:
Skills and Jobs to Build a Stronger Middle Class

To create new opportunities for all hard-working Americans to get ahead, the President has asked the Vice President to lead an initiative to help individuals get trained with skills businesses need now and then placed in good, middle class jobs. Training America’s workers with the skills they need for a good job can help middle class families feel more secure in their jobs and help American businesses grow our economy. But too many businesses can’t find skilled workers for jobs they want to fill, while too many people looking for a job may be ready to learn new skills but may not be certain that there’s a job waiting for them on the other end. Community colleges are one of the best ways to train workers with the skills they need for a job, and hands-on apprenticeships are one of the clearest paths to a good, secure middle class job. In fact, 87 percent of apprentices are employed after completing their programs and the average starting wage for apprenticeship graduates is over $50,000. 

Today, as part of this effort, the President and Vice President are announcing new federal investments using existing funds to support job-driven training, like apprenticeships, that will expand partnerships with industry, businesses, unions, community colleges, and training organizations to train workers in the skills they need. Employers, unions, and foundations are joining these efforts with new commitments to support job-driven training. These steps are part of President Obama’s commitment to make 2014 a year of action, acting with Congress when possible but also using his pen and his phone – calling on businesses, philanthropy, non-profits, states, and local communities to act. 

American Job Training Executive Actions

Partnering Local Businesses with Community Colleges to Put Americans Back to Work Through a Nearly $500 Million Job Training Competition. Today, the Department of Labor is releasing the application for partnerships of community colleges, employers and industry to develop training programs that are job-driven – that is – designed to respond to the demands of employers so people get placed in jobs. As part of a nearly $500 million competition, all grantees will be required to identify sectors with open jobs to fill, partner with the public workforce system and employers in that sector to address the skills needed for these open jobs, and create pathways from entry level positions to more advanced positions to ensure room for growth for employees with even the lowest starting skills levels. This program is a part of the Trade Adjustment Assistance and Community College and Career Training (TAA-CCCT) competitive grant program that has, over the last three years, supported community colleges preparing dislocated workers and other adults for jobs available in their regional economies. For the first time, this year’s funding will prioritize three key goals by providing larger grants to applicants who propose to address them:

• Scale In-Demand Job Training Across the Country through National Industry Partnerships. Grants will incentivize partnerships to include national entities - such as industry associations - that commit to help design and implement job training programs based on industry-recognized credentials, and replicate these with other education and training institutions across the country where industry also needs to hire workers with those skills.
• Advance Education & Training to Ensure a Seamless Progression from One Stepping Stone to Another. In order to make it easier for individuals to progress through their careers and build one degree on top of another, this competition prioritizes applicants that are increasing state-wide alignment of the training investments made by employers, educators and the workforce system. For example, communities will work to ensure accelerated degree paths and credentials that incorporate prior learning, provide credit based on demonstrated skills rather than seat time, and other innovative strategies that will pave the way for making college more affordable for adult workers and all kinds of students.
• Improve Statewide Employment and Education Data Integration and Use. In order to better assess the effectiveness of education and job training programs over time and continue to improve job placement rates, these grants encourage applications that commit States to further integrate their employment and education data systems. 

Deadline for applications is July 7th, and grants will be awarded to community colleges in every state.

Expanding Apprenticeships for Good Middle Class Jobs. The Department of Labor is making $100 million in existing H-1B funds available for American Apprenticeship Grants to reward partnerships that help more workers participate in apprenticeships. This competition will help more Americans access this proven path to employment and the middle class: 87 percent of apprentices are employed after completing their programs and the average starting wage for apprenticeship graduates is over $50,000.

The new American Apprenticeship Grants competition – which will be launched in the fall – will focus on partnerships between employers, labor organizations, training providers, community colleges, local and state governments, the workforce system, non-profits and faith-based organizations that:

• Launch apprenticeship models in new, high-growth fields: Many fast-growing occupations and industries with open positions, such as in information technology, high-tech services, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing, have an opportunity to adopt and adapt apprenticeship programs, to meet their skilled workforce needs.
• Align apprenticeships to pathways for further learning and career advancement:Apprenticeships that embed industry-recognized skills certifications or reward workplace learning with college credit provide an affordable educational pathway for those who need to earn while they learn, and apprenticeships linked to pre-apprenticeship programs can help more Americans access this training and get on an early pathway to a good career.
• Scale apprenticeship models that work: Across the country, there are pockets of excellence in apprenticeship, but all too often these successful models are unknown in other regions or to other employers. These grants will build from strength and invest in innovations and strategies to scale apprenticeships – including to market the value of apprenticeships, make them more attractive to women and other Americans who have been underrepresented, increase the return on investment for workers and, or build national and regional partnerships to expand apprenticeships.

Making Apprenticeships Work for More Americans. The Departments of Labor, Education, and Veteran Affairs are reforming their programs to enable the use of education benefits for apprenticeships:

• Streamlining GI Bill benefits for apprentices. Through a new partnership between the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Labor, employers now have a fast-track for their veteran employees to access their GI Bill benefits for registered apprenticeships, helping more than 9,000 veteran apprentices receive the benefits they have earned.
• Connecting apprentices with college credit. The Registered Apprenticeship College Consortium (RACC), a partnership among community colleges, national accreditors, employers, and major apprenticeship sponsors, will make it possible for apprenticeship graduates to earn credits that will transfer to any community college in the consortium they attend. Founding members include large state systems like Ohio and Wisconsin. Since it was launched last week by the Vice President, 33 more colleges and systems have started the process, including the state system of North Carolina, to join the consortium.

Business and Philanthropic Investments in Job-Driven Training 

Business, Union, and Non-Profit Efforts to Expand Apprenticeships: Today, the President and Vice President will recognize efforts by employers, unions, and training institutions to expand apprenticeships, helping more Americans access this proven path to employment and middle class earnings.

• The President’s Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP) is developing scalable apprenticeship models in high need advanced manufacturing. Spearheaded by AMP members Dow, Alcoa, and Siemens, a coalition of employers is partnering with community colleges in Northern California and in Southern Texas on apprenticeships in advanced manufacturing occupations – like welders who can fabricate equipment using high-performance alloys and technicians to maintain the complex equipment found in today’s factories. Led by South Central College in southern Minnesota, a coalition of 24 community colleges and employers is pioneering a statewide apprenticeship model in mechatronics. And Harper College, in suburban Chicago, is establishing an apprenticeship program linked to college credit for veterans in advanced manufacturing specialties, including logistics and supply chain management.  To scale these models and meet the demand for a projected 40,000 employees with advanced skills in machining, welding, and industrial maintenance over the next decade, coalition members will release a “How To” manual documenting concrete steps other employers, community colleges, training organizations and states can follow to replicate the model.
• The United Auto Workers, in partnership with employers such as Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, John Deere and many others, plans to add nearly 2,000 apprentices. The apprentices, who will be added in the next year, represent the largest expansion in the apprenticeship program in more than a decade and an example of employers and workers joining together to strengthen our workforce. Together, the Big Three domestic automakers, John Deere, and suppliers such as American Axle, International Automotive Components, Gerdau Special Steel, and Tower Automotive, among others will employ apprentices with starting annual wages between $40,000 and $60,000, presenting a solid path to the middle class.
• UPS will add 2,000 new apprentices, including drivers and apprentices in new programs like IT, operations, and automotive repair. Over the next five years, UPS is committed to expanding their existing apprenticeship program for drivers and to expand their apprenticeship programs to include apprentices in other growing fields such as information technology, operations, and automotive repair. This expansion builds on UPS’ longstanding commitment to apprenticeships and its historic partnership with the Teamsters.
• The SEIU Healthcare Northwest Training Partnership (Training Partnership), in partnership with its employers ResCare, Addus, Chesterfield, the State of Washington, and others, is expanding its novel apprenticeship program for home care aides to train 3,000 apprentices a year. The Training Partnership’s innovative online pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship program for home care aides in Washington state currently trains 300 apprentices a year for jobs as home care aides. The Training Partnership is pleased to announce that it and its employer and labor partners are expanding the program nationwide with a goal of reaching 3,000 apprentices a year within five years for fast-growing jobs in healthcare and, through new online technologies, scaling its other healthcare training programs to reach more than 10x more workers over five years.
• North America’s Building Trades Unions pledge to add 25,000 new apprentices over the next five years.  In addition to the more than $1 billion the Building Trades Unions invest annually in registered apprenticeship training for their members and employers, over the next five years, through new and emerging industry partnerships, North America’s Building Trades Unions will build on the strengths of their existing programs by adding 25,000 apprentices over the next five years.

Philanthropic and Non-Profit Support to Generate Stronger Community College-Industry Partnerships: Philanthropic and non-profit commitments to provide technical assistance and disseminate best practices for applications for the Job-Driven Training Grants, to support the goal of replicating successful programs across the nation.

• Philanthropic Support for Potential Applicants and Grantees. Six national foundations will join together to assist grantees to succeed. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Lumina Foundation, ACT Foundation, Joyce Foundation and Wadhwani Foundation will each make investments to develop strong partnerships among community colleges, employers, and industry associations that lead to the creation and adoption of industry-recognized credentials. The goal of technical assistance will focus on training and supporting awardees and their partners to develop strategies to scale their efforts, improve collection and sharing of data, and share proven practices and early successes to strengthen competency-based training and credentialing. Some of the foundations will also support convenings and other outreach to inform potential applicants about the program.
• Best Practices Website for Community Colleges and Employers to Develop Job-Driven Training Partnerships. Skills for America's Future (SAF) will launch a new website with strategies for community college applicants to develop strong partnerships needed to apply for and implement successful grants. SAF will work to source information from employers and community colleges who have been involved in previous rounds of TAA-CCCT as well as national resource organizations so that the site will stay updated with relevant information going forward.

Continuing to Call on Congress for Further Action

Expanding Apprenticeships and Investing in Community Colleges. Over 4 years, this fund would create competitive grants to partnerships of community colleges, industry and employers, to reform job training curricula and launch new programs to deliver skills for in-demand jobs and careers. This fund will help to spur the development and adoption of common, industry-recognized credentials and skill assessments to allow employers to more easily identify and hire qualified candidates. $2 billion will be set aside for an Apprenticeship Training Fund that would provide grants for comprehensive expansion strategies that can combine small incentives and guidance to employers with a statewide marketing effort to drive apprenticeship adoption as well as innovative regional consortia to create new apprenticeships and increase participation in existing apprenticeship programs. With support for comprehensive state strategies and regional innovations from Congress, we could double the number of U.S. Registered Apprenticeships within five years.

FDA APPROVES TANZEUM FOR TREATMENT OF TYPE 2 DIABETES

FROM:  U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION

FDA NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: April 15, 2014

Consumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDA

FDA approves Tanzeum to treat type 2 diabetes

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Tanzeum (albiglutide) subcutaneous injection to improve glycemic control, along with diet and exercise, in adults with type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes affects approximately 24 million people and accounts for more than 90 percent of diabetes cases diagnosed in the United States. Over time, high blood sugar levels can increase the risk for serious complications, including heart disease, blindness, and nerve and kidney damage.

"Tanzeum is a new treatment option for the millions of Americans living with type 2 diabetes," said Curtis Rosebraugh, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Office of Drug Evaluation II in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “It can be used alone or added to existing treatment regimens to control blood sugar levels in the overall management of diabetes.”

Tanzeum is a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist, a hormone that helps normalize blood sugar levels. The drug’s safety and effectiveness were evaluated in eight clinical trials involving more than 2,000 patients with type 2 diabetes. Patients participating in the trials showed an improvement in their HbA1c level (hemoglobin A1c or glycosylated hemoglobin, a measure of blood sugar control). 

Tanzeum has been studied as a stand-alone therapy and in combination with other type 2 diabetes therapies, including metformin, glimepiride, pioglitazone, and insulin. Tanzeum should not be used to treat people with type 1 diabetes; those who have increased ketones in their blood or urine (diabetic ketoacidosis); or as first-line therapy for patients who can’t be managed with diet and exercise.

Tanzeum has a Boxed Warning to warn that tumors of the thyroid gland (thyroid C-cell tumors) have been observed in rodent studies with some GLP-1 receptor agonists, but that it is unknown whether Tanzeum causes thyroid C-cell tumors, including a type of thyroid cancer called medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), in humans. Tanzeum should not be used in patients with a personal or family history of MTC or in patients with Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia syndrome type 2 (a disease where patients have tumors in more than one gland in their body and that predisposes them to MTC). 

The FDA is requiring the following post-marketing studies for Tanzeum:

• a clinical trial to evaluate dosing, efficacy, and safety in pediatric patients; 
• a medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) case registry of at least 15 years duration to identify any increase in MTC incidence related to Tanzeum;  
• a cardiovascular outcomes trial (CVOT) to evaluate the cardiovascular risk of Tanzeum in patients with high baseline risk of cardiovascular disease.

In clinical trials, the most common side effects observed in patients treated with Tanzeum were diarrhea, nausea, and injection site reactions. 
 
The FDA approved Tanzeum with a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (REMS), which consists of a communication plan to inform health care providers about the serious risks associated with Tanzeum.

Tanzeum is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, L.L.C., Wilmington, Del.

For more information:

• FDA Approved Drugs
• FDA: Drug Innovation
• FDA: Diabetes Information

The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.

U.S. SOLDIERS, AFGHAN ARMY SOLDIERS DURING CLEARING OPERATION IN MAIWAND DISTRICT OF AFGHANISTAN

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

A U.S. Army Special Forces soldier provides security during a clearing operation in Sorbaghal village in the Maiwand district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province, April 10, 2014. The soldier is assigned to Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force-Afghanistan. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Sara Waka.

U.S. soldiers and Afghan army commandos help wounded Afghan soldiers into a U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter while conducting a medical evacuation mission in Sorbaghal village in the Maiwand district of Afghanistan's Kandahar province, April 10, 2014. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Sara Waka.

USS BONHOMME RICHARD RESPONDS TO KOREAN PASSENGER SHP SINKING

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 265 stand ready on the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard, April 16, 2014. Sailors and Marines aboard Bonhomme Richard stand ready to render aid at the scene of a sinking ferry near the island of Jindo off South Korea’s southwestern coast. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Adam D. Wainwright.  

U.S. Ship Responds to Scene of Korean Ship Sinking
Navy News Service

SEOUL, South Korea, April 16, 2014 – The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard is responding to the scene after the passenger ship Sewol sank near the island of Jindo off South Korea’s southwestern coast.

The ship had more than 450 people aboard and was traveling from Incheon, South Korea, to Jeju island at the time of the incident.

Bonhomme Richard has established communications with the South Korean on-scene commander and is standing by to assist as required. The ship was on a routine patrol in waters west of the Korean Peninsula.

"When we were alerted to the accident, we immediately diverted to the scene to render assistance," said Navy Capt. Heidi C. Agle, commodore of U.S. Amphibious Squadron 11. "However, the efficiency of the Korean response eclipsed the immediate need for our assets. We are standing by to provide support as requested by the on-scene commander."

Bonhomme Richard is forward-deployed to Sasebo, Japan, as part of the U.S. 7th Fleet. With its embarked Marine expeditionary unit, the ship is capable of both combat and humanitarian operations.

DOD REPORT ON SEQUESTRATION IMPACT ESTIMATES

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

DOD Releases Report on Estimated Sequestration Impacts

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 15, 2014 – Defense Department officials today released a report that documents the cuts to military forces, modernization and readiness that will be required if defense budgets are held at sequester-levels in the years beyond fiscal year 2015.

The report fulfills a commitment made by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel “to provide details on the effects of these undesirable budget cuts,” officials said in a news release announcing the report.

The report says sequester level budgets would result in continued force-level cuts across the military services. The Army would be reduced to 420,000 active duty soldiers, along with 315,000 in the National Guard and 185,000 in the Army Reserve. The Marine Corps would drop to 175,000 active duty personnel. The Air Force would have to eliminate its entire fleet of KC-10 tankers and shrink its inventory of unmanned aerial vehicles. The Navy would be forced to mothball six destroyers and retire an aircraft carrier and its associated air wing, reducing the carrier fleet to 10, the report says.

Modernization also would be significantly slowed, according to the report. Compared to plans under the fiscal 2015 budget, the department would buy eight fewer ships in the years beyond fiscal 2016 -- including one fewer Virginia-class submarine and three fewer DDG-51 destroyers – and would delay delivery of the new carrier John F. Kennedy by two years.

The services would acquire 17 fewer joint strike fighters, five fewer KC-46 tankers, and six fewer P-8A aircraft, the report says, adding that many smaller weapons programs and funding for military construction also would see sharp cutbacks.

In addition, the report says, the Defense Department would invest about $66 billion less in procurement and research funding compared with levels planned in the fiscal 2015 budget.

The report notes that sequester-level budgets would worsen already-existing readiness shortfalls across the force and would delay needed training to prepare the joint force for full-spectrum operations.

Overall, the report says, sequester-level cuts would result in a military that is too small to fully meet the requirements of its strategy, thereby significantly increasing national security risks both in the short- and long-term.

“As Secretary Hagel has said, under sequester-level budgets, we would be gambling that our military will not be required to respond to multiple major contingencies at the same time,” officials said in the release announcing the report.

COMPANY MARKETING MYCAMINE WILL PAY$7.3 MILLION TO RESOLVE ALLEGATIONS OF FALSE CLAIMS ACT VIOLATION

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Astellas Pharma US Inc. to Pay $7.3 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Relating to Marketing of Drug Mycamine

Pharmaceutical company Astellas Pharma US Inc. will pay $7.3 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in connection with its marketing and promotion of the drug Mycamine for pediatric use, the Justice Department announced today.  Astellas Pharma US Inc., located in Northbrook, Ill., manufactures and sells pharmaceutical drugs, including Mycamine.

“The FDA’s drug approval process requires companies to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of their products,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “The Justice Department will hold accountable pharmaceutical companies that skirt these rules and seek to bill federal health care programs for uses of drugs that are not reimbursable.”

The settlement resolves allegations that, between 2005 and 2010, Astellas knowingly marketed and promoted the sale of Mycamine for pediatric use, which was not a medically accepted indication and, therefore, not covered by federal health care programs.  During this time period, the FDA approved Mycamine to treat adult patients suffering from serious and invasive infections caused by the fungus Candida, including infections in the esophagus, the blood and the abdomen, and to prevent Candida infections in adults undergoing stem cell transplants.  From 2005 through June 2013, however, Mycamine was not approved to treat pediatric patients for any use.      

As a result of today’s $7.3 million settlement, the federal government will receive $4.2 million, and state Medicaid programs will receive $3.1 million.

“The settlement in this case further demonstrates our commitment to hold responsible any pharmaceutical company that disregards the FDA drug approval process and promotes drugs for uses before they have been deemed safe and effective,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Zane David Memeger.  “It’s a message that should resonate with all drug companies: there are consequences for violating the False Claims Act and putting profit ahead of government safeguards.”

The allegations resolved by the settlement arose from a lawsuit filed by Frank Smith, a former Astellas sales representative, under the False Claims Act’s whistleblower provisions, which permit private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery.  Smith will receive $708,852.  

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.1 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

This case was a cooperative effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Civil Division of the Department of Justice and the Offices of the Inspectors General of the Department of Health and Human Services and Office of Personnel Management.  The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Smith v. Astellas Pharma, US Inc. et al., No. 10-999 (E.D. Pa.).

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S STATEMENT ON LEGISLATION TO FIX IMMIGRATION SYSTEM

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

Statement by the President

One year ago, the Senate introduced comprehensive bipartisan legislation to fix our broken immigration system. Both sides worked together to pass that bill with a strong bipartisan vote. The Senate’s commonsense agreement would grow the economy by $1.4 trillion and shrink the deficit by nearly $850 billion over the next two decades, while providing a tough but fair pathway to earned citizenship to bring 11 million undocumented individuals out of the shadows, modernizing our legal immigration system, continuing to strengthen border security, and holding employers accountable.  Simply put, it would boost our economy, strengthen our security, and live up to our most closely-held values as a society.

Unfortunately, Republicans in the House of Representatives have repeatedly failed to take action, seemingly preferring the status quo of a broken immigration system over meaningful reform. Instead of advancing commonsense reform and working to fix our immigration system, House Republicans have voted in favor of extreme measures like a punitive amendment to strip protections from “Dreamers”. The majority of Americans are ahead of House Republicans on this crucial issue and there is broad support for reform, including among Democrats and Republicans, labor and business, and faith and law enforcement leaders. We have a chance to strengthen our country while upholding our traditions as a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants, and I urge House Republicans to listen to the will of the American people and bring immigration reform to the House floor for a vote.

LISA MONACO'S REMARKS ON COUNTERING VIOLENT EXTREMISM

FROM:  THE WHITE HOUSE 

Remarks by Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism Lisa O. Monaco

As Prepared for Delivery
“Countering Violent Extremism and the Power of Community” 

Harvard Kennedy School Forum
Tuesday, April 15, 2014 

Thank you so much, Farah [Pandith], for your kind introduction, and for your service to our country as the first Special Representative to Muslim communities during your time at the State Department, and as a leading advocate for a community of voices to counter extremism. 

I want to thank everyone at the Harvard Kennedy School for doing so much to develop our future public servants and political leaders, and I’m honored to be with you today.  It’s an honor to be part of the great Forum tradition.  I’d like to thank my colleague Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, as well as Jeffery Brown from the Ten Point Coalition and Haris Tarin from the Muslim Public Affairs Council for joining me for what I am sure will be an excellent discussion.         

Of course, we’re here today because of a tragedy.  This morning I joined Vice President Biden at the memorial service marking the anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings – marking one year since we were shocked by those awful images at the finish line; one year since we lost Krystle Campbell, Lingzi Lu, eight-year-old Martin Richard and Officer Sean Collier – all innocent lives and all lost far too soon.  It’s been one year since we saw how Boston responds in the face of terrorism—with resilience and resolve and unbending strength. 

When the bombs went off, I had been President Obama’s chief advisor on homeland security and counterterrorism for just a few weeks.  It was a deeply personal introduction to the demands of this job.  I was raised a few miles from here—in Newton.  I went to high school in the shadow of Fenway Park and then made the long trek down Storrow Drive to come here for college.  Growing up, I spent every Patriot’s Day lining that marathon route – usually at the crest of Heartbreak Hill – cheering on the runners and taking part in a great Boston tradition.  And last year, my twin brother was there in the crowd, alongside thousands of other Bostonians.  It was not only an attack on the homeland; it was an attack on my hometown.   

We’ve faced violent expressions of extremism throughout our history, including 19 years ago this week in Oklahoma City.  And, sadly, we continue to face it, as we saw just two days ago in Overland Park, Kansas, when a gunman—allegedly a white supremacist with a long history of racist and anti-Semitic behavior—opened fire at a Jewish community center and retirement home, killing three.  And, while the American people continue to stand united against hatred and violence, the unfortunate truth is that extremist groups will continue targeting vulnerable populations in an effort to promote their murderous ideology.  

That’s why stemming domestic radicalization to violence has been a key element of our counterterrorism strategy from day one.  President Obama has been laser-focused on making sure we use all the elements of our national power to protect Americans, including developing the  first government-wide strategy to prevent violent extremism in the United States.  At the same time, we recognize that there are limits to what the federal government can do.  So we must rely on the partnership of those who are most familiar with the local risks, those who are in the best position to take action—local communities. 

Local communities are the most powerful asset we have in the struggle against violence and violent extremism.  We’ve crunched the data on this.  In the more than 80 percent of cases involving homegrown violent extremists, people in the community—whether peers or family members or authority figures or even strangers—had observed warning signs a person was becoming radicalized to violence.  But more than half of those community members downplayed or dismissed their observations without intervening.  So it’s not that the clues weren’t there, it’s that they weren’t understood well enough to be seen as the indicators of a serious problem. 

What kinds of behaviors are we talking about?  For the most part, they’re not related directly to plotting attacks.  They’re more subtle.  For instance, parents might see sudden personality changes in their children at home—becoming confrontational.  Religious leaders might notice unexpected clashes over ideological differences.  Teachers might hear a student expressing an interest in traveling to a conflict zone overseas.  Or friends might notice a new interest in watching or sharing violent material. 

The government is rarely in a position to observe these early signals, so we need to do more to help communities understand the warning signs, and then work together to intervene before an incident can occur, while always respecting our core commitment to protecting privacy and civil liberties.  During the past several years, that’s what we’ve attempted to do. 

We’ve built partnerships and expanded our engagement with communities across the nation, especially those that may be targeted by extremist groups.  We are working to improve our understanding of how and why people are drawn to violence.  And we have made it a priority to uphold and defend the qualities from which we draw strength—our openness, our diversity, and our respect for the equal rights of all Americans.

We know all too well that Muslim-American, Sikh-American, Arab-American communities and others, including Jewish-Americans, have been victimized by violence that is rooted in ignorance and prejudice, in suspicion and fear.  American Muslims and Americans of all faiths have enriched our way of life – contributing to our safety and security as patriotic service members, police, firefighters, first responders.  Violent extremism is not unique to any one faith.  And, as Americans, we reject violence regardless of our faith. 

Here in Massachusetts, over the past decade, government and law enforcement officials have built a dialogue to reinforce that shared commitment to non-violence and to build trust with a range of Boston-area communities.  The local U.S. Attorney’s office brings together representatives from federal agencies with community leaders, some of whom I just had the opportunity to meet.   I can tell you, the benefits go both ways.  Law enforcement is better able to understand the specific challenges these communities face, and community participants can bring their concerns directly to the government.  We all care about keeping our families and neighborhoods safe.  

These connections were critical in the chaotic days after the bombing – helping to minimize the potential for backlash against Muslim and Sikh communities.  In Malden, after a local Muslim woman was assaulted, purportedly in retribution for the bombings, the Department of Justice Community Relations Service worked with local officials to request additional security for the local mosque.  The Malden Chief of Police personally stood watch the first night.

Still, despite the broader security improvements we’ve put in place since 9/11, despite our outreach to reduce the risk of radicalization to violence, more work remains.  We need a comprehensive prevention model that allows us to work with communities and intervene with at-risk individuals before violent extremism takes root.  And we need to meet the evolving challenge, including terrorists’ use of the internet to recruit those who are most vulnerable to violent extremist ideologies, whether it be from neo-Nazis or groups like al-Qaeda.

So today, as we honor the memory of all those who were killed and injured one year ago, we recommit ourselves to building greater resilience into our communities to resist the pull of violent extremism.  We will continue to work closely with community leaders, local law enforcement and partners outside government who work with at-risk populations every day.  Faith leaders, school teachers, police chiefs – and especially mothers and fathers and families – will always be the best positioned to identify individuals in a community who might be susceptible to radical messages and violence—and to help them resist hateful ideologies.  So we must do more to connect those leaders to resources they need to be part of a comprehensive approach.  Let me just briefly describe a few of the steps we’re taking along those lines. 

First, the Department of Homeland Security is building partnerships with key cities across the country to establish a locally-based envoy dedicated to coordinating government engagement on the threat of homegrown violent extremism.  Piloted in Los Angeles, this effort has already helped focus our resources and strategic efforts by streamlining federal, state, and local outreach.  And tonight I’m proud to announce that the next such DHS envoy will be based in Boston. 

Second, DHS is also going to make more resources available to officials countering violent extremism in their communities.  Every year, DHS offers hundreds of millions of dollars in grant money to local law enforcement to bolster homeland security at the municipal and county level.  Now, in addition to preparing to respond to an attack once it’s happened, state and local officials can apply for these grants to explicitly develop models for preventing violent extremism in their communities, drawing on the expertise of social service providers, education administrators, mental health professionals, and religious leaders. 

Finally, I want to mention the expertise developing right in your backyard.  With support from the Department of Justice, the Children’s Hospital of Boston is studying why some Somali refugees embrace violent extremism, while others move towards gangs and crime and still others channel their energies into non-violent activism.  The answers to these kinds of questions will be essential to developing more effective models of intervention. 

And here at Harvard, the Berkman Center is establishing a new research network dedicated to understanding and ultimately preventing radicalization to violence on the internet.  Hate speech and extremism take on complex new dimensions and dangers when conducted online, and this will be a valuable asset as we strive to identify more effective ways to intervene and to address violent extremism in the internet age.   

During the past year, Boston has been a crucible for our nation-wide efforts to counter violent extremism and enhance our focus on resilience.  The bombings brought into sharp relief what we have been doing well and where we still need to hone our efforts.  The programs that are operating here set the example for cities across the nations.  And—as a Boston-girl, I say this with absolutely no surprise—the strength of the people of Boston made it wicked clear that this city and this country cannot be intimidated by the ideologies of hatred and violence that poison the hearts of a few disturbed individuals.  We reject that thinking.  And when people gather next Monday—in numbers as great and as proud as ever—to celebrate the running of the 118^thBoston Marathon, it will also show that we reject the fear terrorism seeks to breed.  It will show the true depth of what it means to be Boston Strong.  Thank you. 

TOTAL ECLIPSE OF THE BLOOD RED MOON

FROM:  NASA

The United States was in a prime orbital position and time of day to view the eclipse on April 15, 2014. Depending on local weather conditions, the public got a spectacular view looking into the sky as the moon's appearance changed from bright orange to blood red to dark brown and perhaps gray. The eclipse is a phenomenon that occurs when the Earth, moon and sun are in perfect alignment, blanketing the moon in the Earth's shadow. The United States will not be able to witness a full lunar eclipse in its entirety again until 2019. This image was taken in San Jose, Calif.  Image Credit: NASA Ames Research Center/Brian Day.

LANL PROVIDING FUNDS TO BUSINESS INCUBATOR FOR PURCHASE OF CYTOMETER

Right:  Photo Caption: Modern flow cytometers were invented at Los Alamos National Laboratory and can be used to count and sort individual cells from a stream of liquid. (Photo courtesy of Los Alamos National Laboratory)

FROM:  LOS ALAMOS NATIONAL LABORATORY

Santa Fe Business Incubator Nets Big Boost from Los Alamos Lab

BioScience Lab receives funding for cell-sorting machine

LOS ALAMOS, N.M., April 15, 2014—Los Alamos National Laboratory is providing funding to the Santa Fe Business Incubator BioScience Laboratory for the purchase of a commercial flow cytometer—a technology originally developed at Los Alamos and then later successfully commercialized by a Santa Fe company. The SFBI BioScience Lab is holding its open house today.

“The commercialization of flow cytometry is a true success for our sponsor, the National Institutes of Health, and it is a story that Los Alamos is proud to have played a part,” said David Pesiri, leader of the Richard P. Feynman Center for Innovation (FCI), the Laboratory’s technology transfer organization. “It’s fitting that the technology is coming back home to help boost the high-tech economy in the region. Not only did flow cytometers revolutionize the Human Genome Project, but this technology from the national laboratories is saving lives and delivering value to the marketplace.”

The Laboratory, through FCI, is providing $10,000 to SFBI for the purchase of an Attune flow cytometer. The SFBI is a not-for-profit economic development organization created in 1997 to support regional entrepreneurs with light manufacturing and laboratory space. The SFBI BioScience Laboratory is the region’s only shared facility providing state-of-the-art resources to entrepreneurs. The flow cytometer will provide an invaluable resource for start-up companies specializing in life-sciences applications, biotech and bio-medical devices.

In 2006, Los Alamos National Laboratory spun out a private company to commercialize a portable, low cost flow cytometer. This product was the culmination of more than four decades of programmatic research and development in the area of cytometry and cell sorting.

Los Alamos was a pioneer of flow cytometry. In the mid-1960s, physicist Mack Fulwyler married a cutting-edge cell-sorting system with fledgling ink-jet printing technology to create the modern flow cytometer. This platform gives researchers the ability to sort cells of different sizes and has been the standard in medical and biopharmaceutical industries to study and treat diseases such as cancer, AIDS, genetic disorders and other maladies.

“Los Alamos takes its responsibility to support and encourage private innovation very seriously,” said Pesiri. “We live in a complex and competitive world. Los Alamos understands working with private companies to develop resources and technologies that we can use to help fulfill our national-security mission is an important part of our Laboratory. Just as flow cytometry has evolved over the past 50 years, our approach to transferring technology to and from the private sector is evolving as well, and Los Alamos’s Feynman Center for Innovation aims to be part of how the U.S. gets it right.”

ASSOCIATE AG WEST WELCOMES 700 NEW CITIZENS

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Associate Attorney General Tony West Delivers Remarks at USCIS Naturalization Ceremony

~ Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Thank you, Sarah [Taylor], for that kind introduction and for all that you and your colleagues have done to bring us together today.  I am so honored to be a part of this special occasion and to be among the first to congratulate the 700 men and women here on becoming our nation’s newest citizens.  Witnessing the call of countries and your oath of allegiance made me proud and grateful:  proud of this country which is now as much yours as it is mine; and grateful for the rich legacies you all bring to your new citizenship from your own corners of the world -- legacies that will make this a stronger, more vibrant, and better America.

By taking that oath, you are now, in about every way, on equal footing with your fellow citizens who were born in the United States.  Except there’s one difference that you might say gives you the edge -- you had to pass that exam.  You know what I’m talking about -- that naturalization exam, and some of those questions are not easy.  So you get some extra bragging rights.

But you know that becoming an American citizen is more than signing a paper or even passing an exam.  Being an American means that every day, you have the opportunity to embody the spirit of individual liberty and commitment to community that defines this country.

We are a nation not bound together by a shared race, or a single ethnicity, or a state-sanctioned religious faith.

The United States of America, our country, is bound together by a set of promises we make to ourselves and each other.  Freedom.  Equality.  Democracy.

You see, the United States is more than a place on the map -- it’s an idea; the idea that you are free to control your own destiny, for yourselves and your family; the idea that you are part of something larger than yourselves; that you have a chapter to write in the great story of our nation; the idea that no matter where you came from, or who your ancestors are, how you worship or what you look like, you have a role in shaping our shared future.

This is what people mean when they talk about "the American Experience."  And while it's not perfect, and sometimes reflects struggle and strife and sliding backward, it's an experience that is always unfolding, always reaching, always aspiring to become better.  And everyday, the dream of America is made more real and more perfect by its citizens, which now includes each of you.

Each of you has an important responsibility in helping to make real the promise of America.  That means staying informed and voicing your opinions; it means voting and serving on a jury if you’re called.  It means becoming active in your communities and contributing your talents to help your neighborhoods, your towns, and your country.  It means respecting different viewpoints and cultures, and educating your children to do the same.  It means recognizing that through our diversity comes strength, and that those common aspirations that bind us together are stronger than those differences which separate us.


Even before you took the oath today, many of you were living these ideals.  Each of you brings with you a unique set of talents that will enrich this country.  You are students and soldiers; teachers and parents; artists and engineers.  You own businesses, heal patients, construct buildings and raise families.

Some of you are new citizens like Corporal Jorge Luis Cuji Villacis , who came here from Ecuador when he was eleven years old, went to school, and then joined the U.S. Marine Corps because he wanted to make his family proud, serve this country, and become a better person.

Some of you have crossed the globe to get here, coming from countries like Afghanistan, South Africa, Brazil, Russia, India, China, Sri Lanka, and Japan.

Some of you have been our neighbors for generations, coming from Canada and Mexico.


And all of you represent the vast diversity that is America.


So wherever you come from, whatever your native tongue, familiar food or personal custom, I want you to know that today is a new beginning for you, for your families, and for America.  We are proud of you; we are happy for you; and we welcome you as fellow citizens embarked on this bold experiment in a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
And just in case you forget this anniversary, today is April 15 -- usually the day Americans pay their taxes.  So on this day in the years ahead, I hope you will smile as you remember this moment, the day you became an American citizen -- and then, of course, don’t forget to do your taxes.


Congratulations to you all, and thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share this incredible moment with you and your families.

DOD PLANS TO ISSUE 24 RESEARCH AWARDS TOTALING $167 MILLION

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Release No: NR-184-14

April 14, 2014

DOD to Award $167 Million in Research Funding

The Department of Defense (DOD) today announced plans to issue 24 awards totaling $167 million over the next five years to academic institutions to perform multidisciplinary basic research. The Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program supports research conducted by teams of investigators that intersect more than one traditional science and engineering discipline in order to accelerate research progress.

The Army Research Office, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and the Office of Naval Research solicited proposals in 24 topics important to DOD and the military services. Initially, 361 white papers were received, 88 of which were selected for more detailed proposals. The awards were selected based on a merit review by a panel of experts and are subject to successful negotiation between the institution and DOD. The awards announced today are for a five year period subject to availability of appropriations and satisfactory research progress.
The highly competitive MURI program complements other DOD basic research efforts which fund traditional, single-investigator university, industry and department laboratory grants, by supporting multidisciplinary teams with larger and longer-term awards, in carefully chosen research topics identified for their potential for significant and sustained progress. Like single-investigator awards, MURI awards provide strong support for the education and training of graduate students in cutting edge research. Based on the proposals selected in the fiscal 2014 competition, a total of 64 academic institutions are expected to participate in these 24 research efforts.

For more than 25 years, DOD’s MURI program has resulted in significant capabilities for our military forces and opened up entirely new lines of research. Examples include advances in laser frequency combs that have become the gold standard in frequency control for precision in navigation and targeting; atomic and molecular self-assembly projects that have opened new possibilities for nano-manufacturing; and the field of spintronics emerged from a MURI award on magnetic materials and devices research.

AG HOLDER WANTS MONEY APPROVED FOR TRAINING LAW OFFICERS TO HANDLE 'ACTIVE SHOOTER' SITUATIONS

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Following Mass Shooting Incidents, Attorney General Holder Urges Congress to Approve $15 Million to Train Law Enforcement Officers for 'Active Shooter' Situations

Following the recent tragedies at a Jewish Community Center outside of Kansas City and at Ft. Hood, Attorney General Eric Holder urged Congress Tuesday to approve $15 million in funding for active shooter training for law enforcement officers to ensure they have the tools they need to effectively respond to threats, protect themselves, and save innocent lives.

“In the face of this urgent and growing threat – when the lives of innocent people are at stake – those who stand on the front lines need our full and unwavering support," Holder said in a video message posted on the Justice Department's website. "This critical funding would help the Justice Department ensure that America’s police officers have the tools and guidance they need to effectively respond to active shooter incidents whenever and wherever they arise."

“Over the last decade, the Justice Department and the FBI have helped provide cutting-edge active shooter training to 50,000 front-line officers.  In the video message, Holder said continuing this training is critical since the patrol officers who arrive first on the scene are increasingly being relied on to respond directly to active shooters rather than wait for SWAT teams.”

The complete text of the Attorney General’s video message is below:

“Between 2000 and 2008, the United States experienced an average of approximately five active shooter incidents every year.  Since 2009, this annual average has roughly tripled.  Earlier this month, Fort Hood suffered the second mass shooting that community has experienced in just five years.  And in a separate incident over the weekend, a gunman opened fire at a Jewish Community Center just outside of Kansas City.

“The Justice Department has concluded that federal hate crimes charges are appropriate in this case, and in the months ahead, we will do everything in our power to ensure that justice is served for every victim.

“But each of these tragic events is a heartbreaking reminder that mass shootings are all too common.  And they have become increasingly deadly.

“As a nation, we must confront this alarming rise and all of its underlying causes – honestly, factually, and without regard for political consequence.  We must deal with these incidents whenever they happen – but, just as importantly, we must prevent them whenever we can.

“Today’s Department of Justice committed to doing just that.  We’re more determined than ever to prevent mass shootings.  The FBI’s Behavioral Threat Assessment Center, which supports state, local and campus safety stakeholders, has worked diligently to respond to a nearly 200 percent increase in requests for assistance in the last year, and to help detect and mitigate potential active shooter situations.

“But we must also be prepared to respond quickly and effectively to active shooter incidents if and when they do occur.  And in today’s world, the first response must often be led not by SWAT teams or specialized police units – but by the very first patrol officers to arrive on the scene.

“That’s why all law enforcement officers must have the best equipment and most up-to-date training to confront these situations – to stop active shooters in their tracks, to protect themselves, and to save innocent lives.

“Over the last decade, the Justice Department and the FBI have helped provide cutting-edge active shooter training to 50,000 front-line officers, more than 7,000 on-scene commanders, and over 3,000 local, state, and federal agency heads.  This vital work must continue – but to provide training, we need adequate funding.

“Today, I am urging Congress to approve President Obama’s request for $15 million for active shooter training and other officer safety initiatives.  This critical funding would help the Justice Department ensure that America’s police officers have the tools and guidance they need to effectively respond to active shooter incidents whenever and wherever they arise.

“Every day, America’s federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials perform their duties with integrity, courage, and extraordinary valor.  In the face of this urgent and growing threat – when the lives of innocent people are at stake – those who stand on the front lines need our full and unwavering support.  The safety of the American people demands it.  And the men, women, and children whose lives are impacted by active shooters every year deserve nothing less.”

JUDGE IN 9-11 CASE LOOKS AT DEFENSE CLAIM

FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

Military Commission Judge Mulls Probe of Defense Claim

By Terri Moon Cronk

American Forces Press Service

FORT MEADE, Md., April 15, 2014 – The judge in the military commission proceedings for five suspects in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States called for a recess today to prepare an order allowing defense attorneys time to determine whether current or past defense team members were contacted by a government agency.

The proceedings began yesterday at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and a satellite feed here allows reporters unable to travel to Cuba to cover the case.

Court recessed today at about 11 a.m. when the judge, Army Col. James Pohl, said he will issue the order later today.

The order follows the defense team’s request this morning for an investigation after one of the defense attorneys disclosed yesterday that the FBI questioned a member of his team about the suspects.

Pohl told defense attorneys they have until 5 p.m. tomorrow to submit a request if they want the court to subpoena witnesses from agencies that have contacted past or existing defense members. Any information the defense teams find will be disclosed only to the lead defense counsel for each team, Pohl ordered.
“The lead counsel will use his or her professional judgment in bringing the issue to the judge,” explained Army Lt. Col. J. Todd Breasseale, a Defense Department spokesman.

The court order is to avoid a conflict with any nondisclosure agreement an agency might have required a member of the defense team to file, Breasseale said.
Pohl is considering a court investigation on agencies that contacted defense team members, based on requests from defense team members in today’s proceedings. Because of those requests, the judge told the defense teams to determine which witnesses they believe they need. As yet, there is no indication the judge will proceed with an investigation.

James Harrington, attorney for defendant Ramzi Binalshibh, told the court at the start of yesterday’s hearing that the FBI contacted one of his team members for information. He did not say why FBI agents recently questioned his defense team member, but said the individual handled classified evidence.

The four-day hearing was set to examine whether Binalshibh is mentally capable to stand trial. Court proceedings will resume April 17, Pohl said.

CONCERN REMAINS OVER INCREASED VIOLENCE IN UKRAINE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

U.S., NATO Remain Concerned About Situation in Ukraine

By Jim Garamone

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 15, 2014 – The United States is concerned about reports of increased violence in Ukraine, and continues to call on Russia to de-escalate the situation, Pentagon officials said today.

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen echoed the U.S. concern during a media availability in Luxembourg today.

There has been no substantial change in the number or composition of the Russian forces on Ukraine’s eastern and southern borders, Army Col. Steve Warren, a Defense Department spokesman, told reporters at the Pentagon.

“The Russians continue to have tens of thousands of troops arrayed along the Ukrainian border,” he said, “and again I would like to reiterate that we have repeatedly called on the Russians to withdraw those troops from the border and help de-escalate the situation in Ukraine.”

Ukrainian troops are moving to flush pro-Russian militias from cities in the eastern part of the country. In a call with President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he is not interfering in Ukraine, and that U.S. contentions that Russia is interfering are based on erroneous information.

“The American government is under no illusions that the Russian government continues to array its troops along the Ukrainian border,” Warren said. White House spokesman Jay Carney said the evidence is compelling that Russia is supporting these efforts to destabilize Ukraine.

The United States continues to support Ukraine, Warren said, and U.S. officials have conducted defense consultations with Ukraine recently. The consultations did not address current operations, he added. The senior Defense Department representative at the talks was Evelyn Farkas, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia.

Rasmussen said NATO is concerned about the continued violence by small groups of separatists, and Russia’s continued military pressure on Ukraine’s borders. “I call on Russia to de-escalate the crisis, to pull back its troops from Ukraine’s borders, to stop de-stabilizing the situation in Ukraine, and make clear that it doesn’t support the violent actions of pro-Russian separatists,” the secretary general said.

“Russia should stop being part of the problem, and start being part of the solution,” he added.

The NATO chief said the alliance is considering further steps to strengthen collective defense. This could include appropriate deployments, he said.

U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTRACTS FOR APRIL 14, 2014

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT 

CONTRACTS

AIR FORCE

AECOM Technical Services Inc., Los Angeles, Calif., (FA8903-14-D-0001); Baker-Stanley-Cardno Joint Venture, Moon Townside, Pa., (FA8903-14-D-0002); OTIE-RS&H Joint Venture, Milwaukee, Wis., (FA8903-14-D-0004); Parsons Brinkckerhoff-FSB-H&A Joint Venture, Houston, Texas, (FA8903-14-D- 0005); Parsons Government Services Inc., San Antonio, Texas, (FA8903-14-D-0006), and LEIDOS Inc. (formerly SAIC), McLean, Va., (FA8903-14-D-0007) have been awarded a $950,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for architect-engineering services to support military construction (MILCON), military family housing (MFH), and sustainment, restoration and modernization (SRM) programs worldwide. The work includes efforts to perform Title I, Title II, and other A-E services to administer, coordinate, and technically support the Air Force Civil Engineer's MILCON, MFH (to include military housing privatization initiatives, SRM program areas, and other areas of essential support worldwide. These programs could include work in various government installations in the United States, at various overseas government locations, at government territorial possessions, at Defense Logistics Agency fuel facilities worldwide, and at other worldwide locations of interest to the government that could include contingency operation, remote, austere and/or hostile locations. Work is expected to be complete by April 2021. This award is the result of a qualifications-based selection process in accordance with FAR 36.6 and the Brooks Act, Public Law 92-582 electronically through Federal Business Opportunities and 82 offers were received. Fiscal 2014 funds from a variety of types (Environmental Restoration Account/Environmental Compliance, Base Realignment and Closure, MFH, and operations and maintenance) in the amount of $3,000 are being obligated for the first task order for each of the contractors. 722 ESS/PKB, Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, is the contracting activity.

Booz Allen Hamilton, McLean, Va. (FA8075-14-D-0002); Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio (FA8075-14-D-0003); Jacobs Technology Inc., Tullahoma, Tenn. (FA8075-14-D-0004); MacAulay-Brown Inc., Dayton, Ohio (FA8075-14-D-0005); MRI Global, Kansas City, Mo. (FA8075-14-D-0006); National Security Information Associates, Chantilly, Va. (FA8075-14-D-0007); Strategic Analysis Inc., Arlington, Va. (FA8075-14-D-0008); Leidos Inc., Reston, Va. (FA8075-14-D-0009); Scitor Corp., Colorado Springs, Colo. (FA8075-14-D-0010); TASC Inc., Andover, Md. (FA8014-14-D-0011); URS Federal Services Inc., Germantown, Md. (FA8075-14-D-0012); and Wyle Laboratories Inc., Houston, Texas (FA8075-14-D-0013) have been awarded a maximum $900,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee, firm-fixed-price, multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for Homeland Defense and Security Technical Area Tasks (HD TATs). The HD TATs multiple-award IDIQ contracts will provide research, development, test and evaluation, and advisory and assistance services related to research and development efforts for TATs within the chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense, homeland defense and security, critical infrastructure protection, weapons of mass destruction, biometrics, medical, cultural studies and alternative energy focus areas. Location of performance will be cited on individual task orders. Generally, work will be performed at government facilities, and the period of performance is five years. The ordering period is a one year basic period with four one-year option periods with work expected to be completed by April 2019 if all option periods are exercised. Individual task orders, obligating fiscal 2014 research and development funds, will be issued against the basic contracts, in order to meet the minimum order guarantee. The multiple-award contracts were competitively procured by full and open competition along with a small business reservation via the Federal Business Opportunities website with 13 offers received. The Air Force Installation Contracting Agency, Offutt Air Force Base, Neb., is the contracting activity.

Jacobs Government Services Co., Oak Ridge, Tenn. (FA8903-14-D-0023); MWH-Cardno TEC Baker-A Joint Venture, San Antonio, Texas (FA8903-14-D-0024); and Zapata Inc., Charlotte, N.C. (FA8903-14-D-0025), have been awarded a $500,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for architect-engineering services to include environmental projects consisting of planning and programming, restoration, quality (compliance and pollution prevention), and conservation as required by the Air Force Civil Engineering Center. These programs could include work in various government installations in the United States, at various overseas government locations, at government territorial possessions, at Defense Logistics Agency fuel facilities worldwide, and at other worldwide locations of interest to the government that could include contingency operation, remote, austere and/or hostile locations. Work is expected to be complete by April 2021. This award is the result of a qualifications-based selection process in accordance with FAR 36.6 and the Brooks Act, Public Law 92-582 electronically through Federal Business Opportunities and 37 offers were received. Fiscal 2014 funds from a variety of types (Environmental Restoration Account/Environmental Compliance, Base Realignment and Closure, MFH, and operations and maintenance) in the amount of $3,000 are being obligated for the first task order for each of the contractors. 722 ESS/PKB, Joint Base San Antonio, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, is the contracting activity.

NAVY

Baldi Bros. Inc.,* Beaumont, Calif. (N62473-14-D-0043); Coffman Specialties Inc., San Diego, Calif. (N62473-14-D-0044); Flatiron West Inc., San Marcos, Calif. (N62473-14-D-0045); Granite Construction Co., Watsonville, Calif. (N62473-14-D-0046); Kiewit Infrastructure West, Co., Vancouver, Wash. (N62473-14-D-0047); and Reyes Construction Inc., Pomona, Calif. (N62473-14-D-0048); are each being awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity multiple-award construction contract for airfield paving and heavy duty paving projects at various locations within the Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Southwest area of responsibility (AOR). The maximum dollar value including the base period and four option years for all six contracts combined is $99,000,000. Types of projects may include, but are not limited to: paving of airfield runway, taxiway, apron, and support areas for aircraft; and heavy duty paving of areas intended for heavy military and other heavy operational vehicles and equipment. No task orders are being issued at this time. Work on these contracts will be performed within the NAVFAC Southwest AOR including, but not limited to, California (80 percent), Arizona (16 percent), Nevada (1 percent), Utah (1 percent), Colorado (1 percent), and New Mexico (1 percent). The terms of the contracts are not to exceed 60 months, with an expected completion date of April 2019. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $30,000 are being obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured as full and open unrestricted procurement with a Historically Underutilized Business Zone price evaluation preference in accordance with FAR 52.219-4 and one reserve for small business via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website with 20 proposals received. The reserve was met by award to Baldi Bros. Inc. These six contractors may compete for task orders under the terms and conditions of the awarded contracts. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Southwest, San Diego, Calif., is the contracting activity.

BCF Solutions Inc., Arlington, Va. (N65236-14-D-4151); Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Va. (N65236-14-D-4152); Bowhead Science and Technology LLC, Alexandria, Va. (N65236-14-D-4153); CommIT Enterprises Inc.,* Hughesville, Md. (N65236-14-D-4154); Deloitte Consulting LLP, Alexandria, Va. (N65236-14-D-4155); TASC Inc., Andover, Mass. (N65236-14-D-4156); and Whitney, Bradley and Brown Inc., Reston, Va. (N65236-14-D-4157), are each being awarded an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, firm-fixed-price, with provisions for cost-plus-fixed-fee task orders, performance based multiple award contract. The cumulative, estimated ceiling value of the base year is $83,333,333. The contracts are for the procurement of program management and financial management support services including non-inherently governmental services to perform analyses and research. These contracts include options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative ceiling value of these contracts to an estimated $250,000,000. This contract action merely establishes a potential ceiling value and does not obligate the Navy to fund to the ceiling. Work will be performed worldwide. Work is expected to be completed by April 2015. If all options are exercised, work could continue until April 2017. SPAWAR Systems Center Atlantic Navy working capital funds in the amount of $15,000 will be obligated at the time of award as the minimum guarantee and will be split among the seven awardees; these funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract action establishes a potential ceiling value, in which funds are obligated on individual task orders for efforts that fall within the core competency areas. The multiple award contracts were competitively procured by full and open competition via the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center e-Commerce Central website and the Federal Business Opportunities website, with 12 offers received. Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Atlantic, Charleston, S.C., is the contracting activity.

iRobot Corp., Bedford, Mass., is being awarded a $59,220,496 modification to previously awarded contract (N00174-11-D-0013) for the procurement of Man Transportable Robotic System (MTRS) production systems, depot level repair parts, spare kits, depot repair services, parts supply, training, engineering enhancements, configuration management, and approved accessories. The MTRS is a small robotic vehicle used by explosive ordnance disposal technicians to conduct remote reconnaissance, render safe, and/or dispose of explosive devices. Work will be performed in Bedford, Mass., and is expected to be completed by April 2015. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $720,500 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technology Division, Indian Head, Md., is the contracting activity.

Whitman, Requardt & Associates LLP, Baltimore, Md., is being awarded a maximum amount $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity architect-engineering contract with for multi-discipline architect-engineering services in support of projects primarily in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The work to be performed provides for the following engineering and design services, but is not limited to building construction and addition of special projects and military construction facilities, general building renovation work, development of design-bid-build packages, development of design-build request for proposal packages, conducting life safety code studies, interior space planning/design studies, engineering and design site work, paving, landscaping, communications, fire protection, energy conservation systems, utilities and facility planning. Task order 0001 is being awarded at $157,886 for survey of sanitary and storm drain systems in Building 77L at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, Philadelphia, Pa. Work for this task order is expected to be completed by August 2014. All work will be performed at various Navy and Marine Corps facilities and other government facilities throughout the Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic area of responsibility including, but not limited to, New Jersey (34 percent), New York (33 percent), and Pennsylvania (33 percent). The term of the contract is not to exceed 60 months with an expected completion date of April 2019. Fiscal 2014 Navy working capital fund contract funds in the amount of $157,886 are obligated on this award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Future task orders will be primarily funded by operation and maintenance, Navy. This contract was competitively procured via the Navy Electronic Commerce Online website, with 18 proposals received. The Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Mid-Atlantic Northeast, Integrated Product Team, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity (N40085-14-D-5205).
Insitu Inc., Bingen, Wash., is being awarded $10,222,289 for firm-fixed-price delivery order 0015 against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-12-G-0008) for interim contractor services in support of the RQ-21A Unmanned Aircraft System, including all requirements necessary to support the system at the organizational level during planned and surge flight operations. Services include integrated logistics support, program planning and management support, field service technical support, data reporting, and hardware to maintain the RQ-21 production configuration during initial fielding. Work will be performed at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, N.C. (80 percent) and Bingen, Wash. (20 percent), and is expected to be completed in April 2015. Fiscal 2014 procurement, Marine Corps funds in the amount of $10,222,289 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY

Golden Manufacturing Co., Inc.,* Golden, Miss., has been awarded a maximum $54,873,720 modification (P00102) exercising the first option period on a one-year base contract (SPM1C1-13-D-1047) with four one-year option periods for various Permethrin Army combat uniform coats. This is a firm-fixed-price contract. Locations of performance are Mississippi and Georgia with an April 16, 2015 performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2015 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa. (Awarded April 9, 2014)

Dental Health Products,* New Franken, Wis., has been awarded a maximum $38,436,832 modification (P00002) exercising the second option period on a one-year base contract (SPM2DE-12-D-7459) with four one-year option periods for distribution of general dental supplies. This is a fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. Location of performance is Wisconsin with an April 27, 2015 performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2015 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa.

MedImmune Biologics Inc., Gaithersburg, Md., has been awarded a maximum $23,274,000 modification (P00101) exercising the first option period on a one-year base contract (SPM2D0-13-D-0006) with one one-year option period for intranasal influenza vaccine spray. This is a firm-fixed-price contract. Locations of performance are Maryland and Pennsylvania with a June 26, 2015 performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2015 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa.

ARMY

Allison Transmission Inc., Indianapolis, Ind., was awarded a $51,444,025 modification (P00026) to multi-year contract W56HZV-08-D-0159 to acquire 99 X1100-3B transmissions for M1A2 Abrams tanks. Work will be performed in Indianapolis, Ind. Estimated completion date is Sept. 30, 2015. Fiscal 2013 other procurement funds in the amount of $11,349,458 were obligated at the time of the award. Army Contracting Command, Warren, Mich., is the contracting activity.

WASHINGTON HEADQUARTERS SERVICES

LEIDOS, Reston, Va., is being awarded a $7,294,064 modification (18) to firm-fixed-price contract (HQ0034-11-F-0080) to provide mission support services for court room and case preparation. Services required are linguistic, translation, transcription support, court reporters, and expert witnesses for commission hearings. Work will be performed in Washington, D.C., with an expected completion date of April 14, 2016. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $7,294,064 are being obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured, with one proposal received. Washington Headquarters Services, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity.

*Small Business

SECRETARY KERRY'S STATEMENT ON ANNIVERSARY OF BOSTON TERRORIST BOMBING

Statement on One Year Anniversary of the Boston Marathon Bombing

Press Statement

John Kerry
Secretary of State

Washington, DC

April 15, 2014

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I was thousands of miles from home when the bombs went off at the Boston marathon, but even from the glow of the television screen it was a sickening kick to the gut to see those familiar streets turned into a war zone in an instant. The very place where I had once cheered my own daughter on to the finish line became a blood-soaked scene from a war. Steps from Copley Square, perfect strangers bore victims to safety; police shielded downed runners; and doctors mended the injured around the clock. I will never forget the phone calls in the days that followed, hearing friends tell me about grandchildren, husbands and wives, struggling for life itself or fighting to save their limbs. Today, my thoughts and prayers remain with those we lost and those still struggling to recover, and today we give thanks for the grace and grit of so many who defied the odds to walk and even run again on new legs.

The horrors of Patriots’ Day 2013 reminded all of us of the worst and the best that mankind has to offer. It taught everyone exactly what the City of Boston was made of, a backbone of steel that runs through our city. But it also reminded us of a humanity that really is universal. And across the globe, people everywhere closed ranks and paid tribute. In London, a week later, marathon runners wore black ribbons on their bibs. In Toronto black signs printed with “04.15.13” lined the streets. Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa had crossed the finish line on Boylston Street two hours before chaos reigned. I met him months later in Addis Abbas where he vowed to give his medal back in solidarity with the victims. Lelisa was true to his word and returned to Boston that summer, medal in hand. And with 6,000 other triumphant runners, he ran 10K through Boston Commons and along Commonwealth Avenue. In Ethiopia, Lelisa told me that “sport should never be used as a battleground.”

Later this month, as runners once again take their mark in the Boston dawn, we will all be reminded that courage and empathy triumphed. That sports are not a battlefield, but an act of community, and that the bravery of police officers, firefighters, medics, runners, and bystanders turned heroes, made the phrase “Boston Strong” meaningful from Massachusetts to Europe to the Horn of Africa.

MAN SENTENCED FOR TRYING TO HIRE KKK TO KILL AFRICAN-AMERICAN NEIGHBOR

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Monday, April 14, 2014

Alabama Man Sentenced for Attempting to Hire Ku Klux Klan to Kill Neighbor

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance for the Northern District of Alabama and FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard D. Shwein Jr. announced that a Talladega County, Ala., man was sentenced in federal court today for attempting to hire members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) to murder an African-American neighbor

Allen Wayne Densen Morgan, 29, of Munford, Ala., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Karon O. Bowdre on Oct. 24, 2013, to one count of using and causing someone else to use interstate facilities and travel with the intent to commit a murder-for-hire.  At today’s sentencing hearing, Judge Bowdre sentenced Morgan to serve 72 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Morgan previously admitted that in August 2013, he attempted to hire members of the KKK to murder his neighbor.  According to Morgan’s plea agreement, on Aug. 22, 2013, Morgan spoke on the phone with an undercover FBI agent, who identified himself as a KKK member.  The men arranged to meet three days later at an Oxford, Ala., motel to discuss payment for the murder.  In that phone conversation, Morgan used a racial slur to describe the man he wanted killed and bragged that he had just fired several shots toward the man to intimidate him.  Morgan also described, in detail, how he wanted the man to be “hung from a tree like a deer and gutted,” to have body parts cut off and to “die a slow, painful death.”  On August 25, Morgan met with FBI agents posing as members of the KKK.  Morgan offered a watch, a necklace and a gun as payment for the murder and gave explicit directions for the man’s torture and murder.

“The defendant attempted to have his neighbor tortured and murdered by the KKK,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Samuels.  “Today’s sentence demonstrates that the Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute those who act on their racial hatred by seeking to inflict such acts of violence on others.”

“Mr. Morgan detailed his calculated desire to end his neighbor's life through the most brutal and heinous means,” said U.S. Attorney Vance. “Today's sentence reinforces that vigilantism is not acceptable in our society and we will prosecute that crime.”