FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Pentagon: Iraqi, Coalition Forces Will Retake Ramadi
By Terri Moon Cronk
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2015 – Iraqi security forces and coalition partners will retake the Iraqi city of Ramadi, now “largely under control” of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant extremists since yesterday, Pentagon spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren told reporters today.
The colonel said it’s important to not over interpret ISIL’s gain in a single city when Iraqi forces are engaged in offensive operations across the “breadth and depth” of a large nation.
“To read too much into this is a mistake,” Warren said. “This is one fight, one episode, in which Iraqi Security Forces were not able to prevail –- today.”
While ISIL was able to gain the upper hand in Ramadi, “what this means for our strategy is simply that we -- the coalition and Iraqi partners -- now have to go back and retake Ramadi,” Warren said.
Ebbs, Flows Expected in Fight
Defense Department officials have always said there would be ebbs and flows in Iraq’s fight against ISIL, he said, adding that “it’s a difficult, complex, bloody fight, and there will be victories and setbacks.”
Iraq and coalition forces will retake Ramadi, Warren said, “In the same way we are slowly but surely retaking others parts of Iraq with Iraqi ground forces, combined with coalition air power.”
While noting that it is too soon to determine how ISIL gained control over Ramadi yesterday, ISIL forces apparently generated enough combat power to cause Iraqi security forces to reposition out of Ramadi, he said.
Ramadi Environment is Challenging
“Ramadi is an urban environment, one of the toughest to fight in,” Warren said. “It is an environment that limits the ability of air power, so that creates unique challenges.”
Because the ISF have cleared areas of ISIL forces, he noted that Iraq’s capabilities are “slowly but surely” improving.
Some 7,000 ISF members are trained and another 3,000 to 4,000 are in the training pipeline, which will make a difference, the colonel said.
The strategy to defeat ISIL is working, Warren said.
He added, “We believe the Iraqi Security forces, along with coalition air power, will defeat ISIL.”
Monday, May 18, 2015
USDA WILL GRANT UP TO $7.5 MILLION FOR TECH TO STOP SNAP TRAFFICKING
FROM: USDA TECHNOLOGY
USDA Announces New Technology Grants to Combat SNAP Recipient Trafficking
Release No.
FNS 0006-15
Contact:
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2015 – Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced that up to $7.5 million in technology grants is available to combat recipient benefit abuse and trafficking in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The final date to apply for this funding, which was made possible by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (i.e., the “Farm Bill”), is July 18, 2015.
“Safeguarding the integrity of SNAP is a top priority for USDA,” Concannon said. “That commitment includes ensuring that state government agencies administering SNAP are able to employ the most modern technology to track and root out benefit abuse by recipients.”
SNAP law and regulations require state and local agencies administering the program to maintain fraud prevention efforts and investigate program violations by SNAP recipients. While it occurs relatively infrequently, USDA recognizes that program fraud undermines public confidence in government and jeopardizes the ability of SNAP to serve the tens of millions of struggling families who need it the most, Concannon said.
Competitive grants announced today are designed to deploy new technology, or modernize existing technology that monitors and tracks investigation outcomes of individuals suspected of intentional program violations – with an emphasis on trafficking, the sale of benefits for cash.
These grants will build on prior USDA initiatives to support on-the-ground efforts to improve outcomes in the prevention, detection, and prosecution of recipient trafficking. USDA awarded just over $5 million in grants to seven states on September 30, 2014 to improve the effectiveness of integrity monitoring efforts and increase the number of investigations of recipients suspected of trafficking SNAP benefits.
SNAP administering agencies in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for the grants, which are not to exceed three years. USDA expects to award three grants under this Request for Application by Sept. 30, 2015.
USDA's Food and Nutrition Service administers 15 nutrition assistance programs.
USDA Announces New Technology Grants to Combat SNAP Recipient Trafficking
Release No.
FNS 0006-15
Contact:
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2015 – Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced that up to $7.5 million in technology grants is available to combat recipient benefit abuse and trafficking in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The final date to apply for this funding, which was made possible by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (i.e., the “Farm Bill”), is July 18, 2015.
“Safeguarding the integrity of SNAP is a top priority for USDA,” Concannon said. “That commitment includes ensuring that state government agencies administering SNAP are able to employ the most modern technology to track and root out benefit abuse by recipients.”
SNAP law and regulations require state and local agencies administering the program to maintain fraud prevention efforts and investigate program violations by SNAP recipients. While it occurs relatively infrequently, USDA recognizes that program fraud undermines public confidence in government and jeopardizes the ability of SNAP to serve the tens of millions of struggling families who need it the most, Concannon said.
Competitive grants announced today are designed to deploy new technology, or modernize existing technology that monitors and tracks investigation outcomes of individuals suspected of intentional program violations – with an emphasis on trafficking, the sale of benefits for cash.
These grants will build on prior USDA initiatives to support on-the-ground efforts to improve outcomes in the prevention, detection, and prosecution of recipient trafficking. USDA awarded just over $5 million in grants to seven states on September 30, 2014 to improve the effectiveness of integrity monitoring efforts and increase the number of investigations of recipients suspected of trafficking SNAP benefits.
SNAP administering agencies in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands are eligible to apply for the grants, which are not to exceed three years. USDA expects to award three grants under this Request for Application by Sept. 30, 2015.
USDA's Food and Nutrition Service administers 15 nutrition assistance programs.
ISIL TACTICAL UNITS AND STAGING AREAS TARGETED FOR AIRSTRIKES
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Airstrikes Target ISIL Tactical Units, Staging Areas
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 17, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Bomber, attack and fighter aircraft conducted eight airstrikes in Syria:
-- Near Hasakah, six airstrikes struck one large and two small ISIL tactical units, destroying six ISIL fighting positions, four ISIL vehicles, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL armored vehicle, an ISIL motorcycle and an ISIL excavator.
-- Near Kobani, two airstrikes destroyed two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL VBIED and an ISIL building.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 18 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Bayji, four airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units, destroying six ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL excavator.
-- Near Fallujah, three airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units, destroying two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL building and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
-- Near Mosul, two airstrikes struck two ISIL staging areas.
-- Near Ramadi, seven airstrikes struck one large and five small ISIL tactical units and an ISIL IED facility, destroying four ISIL resupply structures, three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL buildings, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL VBIED and an ISIL motorcycle.
-- Near Sinjar, one airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL building and an ISIL VBIED.
-- Near Tal Afar, one airstrike destroyed two ISIL heavy machine guns and two ISIL buildings.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Airstrikes Target ISIL Tactical Units, Staging Areas
From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 17, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Airstrikes in Syria
Bomber, attack and fighter aircraft conducted eight airstrikes in Syria:
-- Near Hasakah, six airstrikes struck one large and two small ISIL tactical units, destroying six ISIL fighting positions, four ISIL vehicles, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL armored vehicle, an ISIL motorcycle and an ISIL excavator.
-- Near Kobani, two airstrikes destroyed two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL VBIED and an ISIL building.
Airstrikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 18 airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:
-- Near Bayji, four airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units, destroying six ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL excavator.
-- Near Fallujah, three airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units, destroying two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL building and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
-- Near Mosul, two airstrikes struck two ISIL staging areas.
-- Near Ramadi, seven airstrikes struck one large and five small ISIL tactical units and an ISIL IED facility, destroying four ISIL resupply structures, three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL buildings, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL VBIED and an ISIL motorcycle.
-- Near Sinjar, one airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL building and an ISIL VBIED.
-- Near Tal Afar, one airstrike destroyed two ISIL heavy machine guns and two ISIL buildings.
Part of Operation Inherent Resolve
The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.
Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
CONSUMERS SCAMMED BY CACTUS JUICE TO RECEIVE CHECKS
FROM: U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Returns $3 Million to Consumers in Cactus Juice Scam
The Federal Trade Commission is mailing almost 500,000 checks totaling approximately $3 million to consumers who lost money to diet supplement marketers who made unsupported claims that their cactus-based fruit drink, Nopalea, would treat a variety of health problems.
In July 2014, the FTC settled charges against TriVita Inc. for using unsupported product claims to deceive consumers, including infomercials with testimonials from consumers who received a commission for selling its products.
Consumers who receive the checks from the FTC’s refund administrator for this matter, Gilardi & Co. LLC, should deposit or cash them within 60 days of the mailing date. The FTC never requires consumers to pay money or to provide information before refund checks can be cashed. The amount will vary based upon the amount of each consumer’s loss.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
FTC Returns $3 Million to Consumers in Cactus Juice Scam
The Federal Trade Commission is mailing almost 500,000 checks totaling approximately $3 million to consumers who lost money to diet supplement marketers who made unsupported claims that their cactus-based fruit drink, Nopalea, would treat a variety of health problems.
In July 2014, the FTC settled charges against TriVita Inc. for using unsupported product claims to deceive consumers, including infomercials with testimonials from consumers who received a commission for selling its products.
Consumers who receive the checks from the FTC’s refund administrator for this matter, Gilardi & Co. LLC, should deposit or cash them within 60 days of the mailing date. The FTC never requires consumers to pay money or to provide information before refund checks can be cashed. The amount will vary based upon the amount of each consumer’s loss.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
SHRINKING ECOSYSTEM CAUSES MORE "HOTSPOTS"
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
As Massachusetts ecosystems shrink, hard-working "hotspots" emerge
Researchers call hotspots valuable, but say their growing numbers might be cause for concern
All land is not created equal. Some ecosystems do triple-duty in the benefits they provide society.
Massachusetts forests, for example, filter public drinking water, provide habitat for threatened species and store carbon to combat climate change.
Hotspots: hardest-working ecosystems
Ecologists single out the hardest-working ecosystems--called "hotspots"--for their exceptional value.
Results of a study published this week in the Journal of Applied Ecology show that the number of hotspots has increased in Massachusetts over the past decade, with more and more popping up in metro Boston.
But, the authors of the paper say, more hotspots may not be a good thing.
Jonathan Thompson, an ecologist at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Harvard Forest Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site and co-author of the paper, says that the increasing number of hotspots signals a degradation of other ecosystems across the state.
"Over the past 10 years, urban development has increased by more than 6 percent, at the expense of forests and agricultural lands," Thompson says.
"When we lose intact forests, we lose stable flows of clean water, climate regulation, recreational opportunities and wildlife habitat. The remaining forest is left to pick up the slack."
The result is more hotspots that do the work of larger forests.
Emerging ecosystems
Meghan Blumstein of Harvard University, lead author of the paper, notes that hotspots are valuable and worth saving.
But, she adds, "an increase in their number reflects an ongoing division of the natural landscape into smaller units, which are expected to produce the same number of services with less."
Saran Twombly, lead program director for the NSF LTER program--which funded the research through NSF's Division of Environmental Biology--says that the study takes a broad view to show that exploitation of land affects a wide range of services we expect the natural environment to provide.
"Humans have used the land for millennia to satisfy particular needs," Twombly says.
Satellite mapping
Using satellite maps, the team tracked changes in land cover, such as forest clearing for agriculture or development, across Massachusetts from 2001 to 2011.
In each 30-meter square on the map grid (about the size of two basketball courts), the scientists used computer models to assess which benefits each ecosystem could provide and how those benefits changed over time.
The researchers found that some benefits, such as providing habitats for wildlife, declined state-wide over the study period.
But other benefits, including carbon sequestration and outdoor recreation, increased. Intact forests are growing rapidly and more land is being conserved.
Study scale important
For some benefits, the scale of the analysis made a big difference, Blumstein says.
When analyzed at a local scale, an area of forest in the state's Quabbin Reservoir may look less like a hotspot than it does a local park.
But when examined at a regional scale, the continuous forest area around the Quabbin Reservoir provides clean drinking water for millions of Massachusetts residents.
"The sustained delivery of benefits from nature requires an approach that considers conservation at multiple scales," Blumstein says.
In other words, the researchers say, we need to be able to see the forest, not just the trees.
-- Cheryl Dybas, NSF
-- Clarisse Hart, NSF Harvard Forest
Investigators
David Foster
Related Institutions/Organizations
Harvard University
As Massachusetts ecosystems shrink, hard-working "hotspots" emerge
Researchers call hotspots valuable, but say their growing numbers might be cause for concern
All land is not created equal. Some ecosystems do triple-duty in the benefits they provide society.
Massachusetts forests, for example, filter public drinking water, provide habitat for threatened species and store carbon to combat climate change.
Hotspots: hardest-working ecosystems
Ecologists single out the hardest-working ecosystems--called "hotspots"--for their exceptional value.
Results of a study published this week in the Journal of Applied Ecology show that the number of hotspots has increased in Massachusetts over the past decade, with more and more popping up in metro Boston.
But, the authors of the paper say, more hotspots may not be a good thing.
Jonathan Thompson, an ecologist at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Harvard Forest Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site and co-author of the paper, says that the increasing number of hotspots signals a degradation of other ecosystems across the state.
"Over the past 10 years, urban development has increased by more than 6 percent, at the expense of forests and agricultural lands," Thompson says.
"When we lose intact forests, we lose stable flows of clean water, climate regulation, recreational opportunities and wildlife habitat. The remaining forest is left to pick up the slack."
The result is more hotspots that do the work of larger forests.
Emerging ecosystems
Meghan Blumstein of Harvard University, lead author of the paper, notes that hotspots are valuable and worth saving.
But, she adds, "an increase in their number reflects an ongoing division of the natural landscape into smaller units, which are expected to produce the same number of services with less."
Saran Twombly, lead program director for the NSF LTER program--which funded the research through NSF's Division of Environmental Biology--says that the study takes a broad view to show that exploitation of land affects a wide range of services we expect the natural environment to provide.
"Humans have used the land for millennia to satisfy particular needs," Twombly says.
Satellite mapping
Using satellite maps, the team tracked changes in land cover, such as forest clearing for agriculture or development, across Massachusetts from 2001 to 2011.
In each 30-meter square on the map grid (about the size of two basketball courts), the scientists used computer models to assess which benefits each ecosystem could provide and how those benefits changed over time.
The researchers found that some benefits, such as providing habitats for wildlife, declined state-wide over the study period.
But other benefits, including carbon sequestration and outdoor recreation, increased. Intact forests are growing rapidly and more land is being conserved.
Study scale important
For some benefits, the scale of the analysis made a big difference, Blumstein says.
When analyzed at a local scale, an area of forest in the state's Quabbin Reservoir may look less like a hotspot than it does a local park.
But when examined at a regional scale, the continuous forest area around the Quabbin Reservoir provides clean drinking water for millions of Massachusetts residents.
"The sustained delivery of benefits from nature requires an approach that considers conservation at multiple scales," Blumstein says.
In other words, the researchers say, we need to be able to see the forest, not just the trees.
-- Cheryl Dybas, NSF
-- Clarisse Hart, NSF Harvard Forest
Investigators
David Foster
Related Institutions/Organizations
Harvard University
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT SAYS SCHOOL-BASED BULLYING DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
MAY 15, 2015
New Data Show a Decline in School-based Bullying
MAY 15, 2015
Contact: Press Office
New data indicate the first significant decrease in school-based bullying since the federal government began collecting that data in 2005, suggesting that efforts at the federal, state and local levels to prevent bullying may be paying off. According to new data from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the reported prevalence of bullying among students ages 12 to 18 dropped to 22 percent after remaining stubbornly around 28 percent for the past decade.
"As schools become safer, students are better able to thrive academically and socially," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "The Department, along with our federal partners and others, has been deeply involved in the fight against bullying in our nation's schools. Even though we've come a long way over the past few years in educating the public about the health and educational impacts that bullying can have on students, we still have more work to do to ensure the safety of our nation's children."
"The report brings welcome news," U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell said. "Parents, teachers, health providers, community members and young people are clearly making a difference by taking action and sending the message that bullying is not acceptable. We will continue to do our part at HHS to help ensure every child has the opportunity to live, learn and grow in a community free of bullying."
In 2011, the President and First Lady hosted the first White House Conference on Bullying Prevention where they called for a united effort to address bullying. As the President declared then, "Bullying can have destructive consequences for our young people. And it's not something we have to accept. As parents and students; teachers and communities, we can take steps that will help prevent bullying and create a climate in our schools in which all of our children can feel safe." To address the scourge of bullying, the federal government has implemented a suite of executive and public-private partnerships that are helping move to move the needle and reduce incidences of bullying.
In 2013, about 22 percent of students ages 12 to 18 reported being bullied at school during the school year. According to NCES data, this percentage was lower than the percentage reported in every prior survey year since 2005 (when it ranged from 28 to 32 percent). Similarly, lower percentages of students reporting being bullied in 2013 were observed across some student characteristics. For example, in 2013 about 24 percent of female students reported being bullied at school, compared with 29 to 33 percent in prior survey years. While girls ages 12 to 18 tend to report being bullied more than males the same age, the data shows that the pattern of reduced rates over time for males was similar. In 2013, females also reported being cyberbullied more than males. Nine percent of females reported that they were cyberbullied compared with 5 percent of males. The data comes from the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, which asks a nationally representative sample of students ages 12—18 if they had been bullied at school.
There are three types of bullying: physical, relational (or social) and verbal. Bullying of any type can occur anywhere and to any student. Research shows that students who are bullied are more likely to struggle in school and skip class. They are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, be depressed, and are at higher risk of suicide.
Since 2010, the Education Department has taken actions to combat bullying and cyberbullying. The Department's efforts include:
Issuing four Dear Colleague Letters on harassment and bullying, gay-straight alliances, and bullying of students with disabilities
Adding a requirement to the Civil Rights Data Collection that public elementary and secondary schools report incidents of harassment based on religion and sexual orientation, in addition to harassment based on sex, race, color, national origin, and disability
Working collaboratively with the Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention, an interagency working group charged with coordinating federal efforts on bullying prevention
Helping to develop a uniform definition of bullying
Hosting four bullying prevention summits
Creating training modules on bullying for school bus drivers and classroom teachers
Producing the "Indicators of School Crime and Safety," which includes an indicator on bullying and cyberbullying in schools
Supporting the work of the Stopbullying.gov website, which is managed by HHS
Hosting webinars on cyberbullying, sexting, sextortion, and more
Spearheading the Asian American Pacific Islanders Bullying Prevention Taskforce to explore the unique circumstances faced by AAPI students, including linguistic, cultural and religious issues.
MAY 15, 2015
New Data Show a Decline in School-based Bullying
MAY 15, 2015
Contact: Press Office
New data indicate the first significant decrease in school-based bullying since the federal government began collecting that data in 2005, suggesting that efforts at the federal, state and local levels to prevent bullying may be paying off. According to new data from the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the reported prevalence of bullying among students ages 12 to 18 dropped to 22 percent after remaining stubbornly around 28 percent for the past decade.
"As schools become safer, students are better able to thrive academically and socially," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said. "The Department, along with our federal partners and others, has been deeply involved in the fight against bullying in our nation's schools. Even though we've come a long way over the past few years in educating the public about the health and educational impacts that bullying can have on students, we still have more work to do to ensure the safety of our nation's children."
"The report brings welcome news," U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell said. "Parents, teachers, health providers, community members and young people are clearly making a difference by taking action and sending the message that bullying is not acceptable. We will continue to do our part at HHS to help ensure every child has the opportunity to live, learn and grow in a community free of bullying."
In 2011, the President and First Lady hosted the first White House Conference on Bullying Prevention where they called for a united effort to address bullying. As the President declared then, "Bullying can have destructive consequences for our young people. And it's not something we have to accept. As parents and students; teachers and communities, we can take steps that will help prevent bullying and create a climate in our schools in which all of our children can feel safe." To address the scourge of bullying, the federal government has implemented a suite of executive and public-private partnerships that are helping move to move the needle and reduce incidences of bullying.
In 2013, about 22 percent of students ages 12 to 18 reported being bullied at school during the school year. According to NCES data, this percentage was lower than the percentage reported in every prior survey year since 2005 (when it ranged from 28 to 32 percent). Similarly, lower percentages of students reporting being bullied in 2013 were observed across some student characteristics. For example, in 2013 about 24 percent of female students reported being bullied at school, compared with 29 to 33 percent in prior survey years. While girls ages 12 to 18 tend to report being bullied more than males the same age, the data shows that the pattern of reduced rates over time for males was similar. In 2013, females also reported being cyberbullied more than males. Nine percent of females reported that they were cyberbullied compared with 5 percent of males. The data comes from the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey, which asks a nationally representative sample of students ages 12—18 if they had been bullied at school.
There are three types of bullying: physical, relational (or social) and verbal. Bullying of any type can occur anywhere and to any student. Research shows that students who are bullied are more likely to struggle in school and skip class. They are more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, be depressed, and are at higher risk of suicide.
Since 2010, the Education Department has taken actions to combat bullying and cyberbullying. The Department's efforts include:
Issuing four Dear Colleague Letters on harassment and bullying, gay-straight alliances, and bullying of students with disabilities
Adding a requirement to the Civil Rights Data Collection that public elementary and secondary schools report incidents of harassment based on religion and sexual orientation, in addition to harassment based on sex, race, color, national origin, and disability
Working collaboratively with the Federal Partners in Bullying Prevention, an interagency working group charged with coordinating federal efforts on bullying prevention
Helping to develop a uniform definition of bullying
Hosting four bullying prevention summits
Creating training modules on bullying for school bus drivers and classroom teachers
Producing the "Indicators of School Crime and Safety," which includes an indicator on bullying and cyberbullying in schools
Supporting the work of the Stopbullying.gov website, which is managed by HHS
Hosting webinars on cyberbullying, sexting, sextortion, and more
Spearheading the Asian American Pacific Islanders Bullying Prevention Taskforce to explore the unique circumstances faced by AAPI students, including linguistic, cultural and religious issues.
Sunday, May 17, 2015
VP BIDEN MAKES STATEMENT ON INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST HOMOPHOBIA AND TRANSPHOBIA
FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
May 17, 2015
Statement by the Vice President on the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia
My father taught me the simple notion that everyone, everywhere is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. When it comes to LGBT people, that simple proposition has been painfully difficult to accomplish over the years. But in the last decade, thanks to the astounding bravery of the LGBT community and those who have championed their cause, the United States has made remarkable progress toward the ultimate goal of equality in law and in life. Our progress remains incomplete, but the momentum has shifted in the right direction.
Progress has also been made in many places around the world. But in too many places, life for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals is actually getting worse. In too many places, LGBT community members face violence with impunity, mistreatment by police, the denial of healthcare, or religious condemnation and social isolation.
The best mechanism to confront this hatred is to speak up in favor of universal human rights. Supportive voices must be heard. Today and every day, let us continue to defend the rights of LGBT people, whether from nearby cities or far-off villages. We cannot rest until everyone receives the dignity, respect, and equal treatment under the law that all people deserve.
May 17, 2015
Statement by the Vice President on the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia
My father taught me the simple notion that everyone, everywhere is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. When it comes to LGBT people, that simple proposition has been painfully difficult to accomplish over the years. But in the last decade, thanks to the astounding bravery of the LGBT community and those who have championed their cause, the United States has made remarkable progress toward the ultimate goal of equality in law and in life. Our progress remains incomplete, but the momentum has shifted in the right direction.
Progress has also been made in many places around the world. But in too many places, life for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals is actually getting worse. In too many places, LGBT community members face violence with impunity, mistreatment by police, the denial of healthcare, or religious condemnation and social isolation.
The best mechanism to confront this hatred is to speak up in favor of universal human rights. Supportive voices must be heard. Today and every day, let us continue to defend the rights of LGBT people, whether from nearby cities or far-off villages. We cannot rest until everyone receives the dignity, respect, and equal treatment under the law that all people deserve.
SIX MARINES IDENTIFIED FROM HUEY HELICOPTER CRASH IN NEPAL
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Marines Killed in Nepal Helo Crash Identified, Recovered
From Joint Task Force 505 News Releases
KATHMANDU, Nepal, May 17, 2015 – Joint Task Force 505 officials today identified the six U.S. Marines who were killed along with two Nepalese soldiers when their UH-1Y Huey helicopter went down in the mountains of Nepal May 12.
The fallen Marines are:
-- Capt. Dustin R. Lukasiewicz, a UH-1Y pilot with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Nebraska;
-- Capt. Christopher L. Norgren, a UH-1Y pilot with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Kansas;
-- Sgt. Ward M. Johnson, IV, a UH-1Y helicopter crew chief with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Florida;
-- Sgt. Eric M. Seaman, a UH-1Y helicopter crew chief with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of California;
-- Cpl. Sara A. Medina, a combat photographer with Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Okinawa, Japan, and a native of Illinois; and
-- Lance Cpl. Jacob A. Hug, a combat videographer with Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Okinawa, Japan, and a native of Arizona.
Recovery Effort
Today at approximately 10:00 a.m. Nepal Standard Time, Nepalese soldiers and service members from Joint Task Force 505 safely recovered the fallen U.S. and Nepalese service members to the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal.
The soldiers and Marines were honorably received at TIA and will be transported to the appropriate medical facilities to be properly identified by mortuary affairs personnel.
JTF 505 Commander Marine Corps Lt. Gen John E. Wissler thanked the people of Nepal and the Nepalese armed forces for their selfless dedication in the search and recovery of the fallen service members.
"I am honored to serve alongside the Nepalese soldiers and to call them my friends" he said.
"You never hesitated in the joint effort to bring our brothers home. Everyone united -- the soldiers hiking through hazardous terrain, the pilots flying in uncertain weather conditions and the Nepalese special forces standing watch over our Marines on a mountainside at night,” Wissler said. “We honor our fallen comrades through our unselfish support to each other in this time of grief."
The fallen service members were "courageous, selfless individuals dedicated to the international Humanitarian Aid mission here in Nepal whose memories will live on through the lives they touched during this disaster relief operation and in their previous service to their countries," he said.
JTF 505 arrived in Nepal April 29 to conduct humanitarian aid and disaster relief operations following the April 25 magnitude-7.8 earthquake. The helicopter crashed about 8 miles north of Charikot, Nepal, while supporting casualty evacuations following a second earthquake of magnitude 7.3 that occurred May 12.
Marines Killed in Nepal Helo Crash Identified, Recovered
From Joint Task Force 505 News Releases
KATHMANDU, Nepal, May 17, 2015 – Joint Task Force 505 officials today identified the six U.S. Marines who were killed along with two Nepalese soldiers when their UH-1Y Huey helicopter went down in the mountains of Nepal May 12.
The fallen Marines are:
-- Capt. Dustin R. Lukasiewicz, a UH-1Y pilot with Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Nebraska;
-- Capt. Christopher L. Norgren, a UH-1Y pilot with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Kansas;
-- Sgt. Ward M. Johnson, IV, a UH-1Y helicopter crew chief with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of Florida;
-- Sgt. Eric M. Seaman, a UH-1Y helicopter crew chief with HMLA-469, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Camp Pendleton, California, and a native of California;
-- Cpl. Sara A. Medina, a combat photographer with Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Okinawa, Japan, and a native of Illinois; and
-- Lance Cpl. Jacob A. Hug, a combat videographer with Marine Corps Installations Pacific, Okinawa, Japan, and a native of Arizona.
Recovery Effort
Today at approximately 10:00 a.m. Nepal Standard Time, Nepalese soldiers and service members from Joint Task Force 505 safely recovered the fallen U.S. and Nepalese service members to the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal.
The soldiers and Marines were honorably received at TIA and will be transported to the appropriate medical facilities to be properly identified by mortuary affairs personnel.
JTF 505 Commander Marine Corps Lt. Gen John E. Wissler thanked the people of Nepal and the Nepalese armed forces for their selfless dedication in the search and recovery of the fallen service members.
"I am honored to serve alongside the Nepalese soldiers and to call them my friends" he said.
"You never hesitated in the joint effort to bring our brothers home. Everyone united -- the soldiers hiking through hazardous terrain, the pilots flying in uncertain weather conditions and the Nepalese special forces standing watch over our Marines on a mountainside at night,” Wissler said. “We honor our fallen comrades through our unselfish support to each other in this time of grief."
The fallen service members were "courageous, selfless individuals dedicated to the international Humanitarian Aid mission here in Nepal whose memories will live on through the lives they touched during this disaster relief operation and in their previous service to their countries," he said.
JTF 505 arrived in Nepal April 29 to conduct humanitarian aid and disaster relief operations following the April 25 magnitude-7.8 earthquake. The helicopter crashed about 8 miles north of Charikot, Nepal, while supporting casualty evacuations following a second earthquake of magnitude 7.3 that occurred May 12.
REMARKS: SECRETARY KERRY AND CHINESE PRESIDENT JINPING
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks Before Meeting With Chinese President Xi Jinping
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Great Hall of the People
Beijing, China
May 17, 2015
PRESIDENT XI: (Via interpreter) Secretary Kerry, welcome to China. I understand that you are leaving China this afternoon, but still I have to extend a big, warm welcome to you here to Beijing. Your visit happens at an important time for both sides to conduct timely communication regarding this relationship. And Mr. Secretary, I understand that during your tenure in the Senate and in your current capacity as the Secretary of State of the United States, you are both committed to growing China-U.S. relationship. I wish to express my appreciation for what you have done.
In my view, China-U.S. relationship has remained stable on the whole. When President Obama visited China last November, the two of us had in-depth exchanges and discussions, and we reached an important agreement on growing China-U.S. relationship. On my part, I look forward to my visit to the United States in the coming September this year upon the invitation of President Obama. I look forward to continuing to grow this relationship with President Obama and bring China-U.S. relationship to a new height along the track of a new model of major country relationship between our two countries.
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, Mr. President, thank you very much for your welcome. Let me especially begin by saying that I know you and your team aren’t normally here on a weekend and especially on Sunday. I know your entire team and you personally made a very special exception in order to be able to work out my schedule, and I want to express my deep appreciation to you for doing that. I also want to thank your team for the excellent discussions we had yesterday in-depth. We particularly laid out the agenda for your summit with President Obama, which we are very much looking forward to.
Remarks Before Meeting With Chinese President Xi Jinping
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Great Hall of the People
Beijing, China
May 17, 2015
PRESIDENT XI: (Via interpreter) Secretary Kerry, welcome to China. I understand that you are leaving China this afternoon, but still I have to extend a big, warm welcome to you here to Beijing. Your visit happens at an important time for both sides to conduct timely communication regarding this relationship. And Mr. Secretary, I understand that during your tenure in the Senate and in your current capacity as the Secretary of State of the United States, you are both committed to growing China-U.S. relationship. I wish to express my appreciation for what you have done.
In my view, China-U.S. relationship has remained stable on the whole. When President Obama visited China last November, the two of us had in-depth exchanges and discussions, and we reached an important agreement on growing China-U.S. relationship. On my part, I look forward to my visit to the United States in the coming September this year upon the invitation of President Obama. I look forward to continuing to grow this relationship with President Obama and bring China-U.S. relationship to a new height along the track of a new model of major country relationship between our two countries.
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, Mr. President, thank you very much for your welcome. Let me especially begin by saying that I know you and your team aren’t normally here on a weekend and especially on Sunday. I know your entire team and you personally made a very special exception in order to be able to work out my schedule, and I want to express my deep appreciation to you for doing that. I also want to thank your team for the excellent discussions we had yesterday in-depth. We particularly laid out the agenda for your summit with President Obama, which we are very much looking forward to.
DOD LAB DAY AND NEW WARFIGHTER TECH
Right: Air Force 1st Lt. Caroline Kurtz, a human factors engineer with the Air Force Research Laboratory, briefs Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work on wearable technology systems as he tours exhibits during DoD Lab Day at the Pentagon, May 14, 2015. At center is behavioral scientist Air Force 2nd Lt. Anthony Eastin. DoD photo by Glenn Fawcett.
First DoD Lab Day Shows Off Warfighter Technology
By Cheryl Pellerin
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, May 14, 2015 – Robots, medical advances, high-tech versions of warfighter tools and more were on display today at the Pentagon during the Defense Department’s first “Lab Day.”
Some of the department’s top officials also were there, including Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work and Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Frank Kendall, who hosted the event.
The event began this morning, with dozens of booths lining the roads and sidewalks in the Pentagon’s center courtyard and the south parking area. The booths held exhibits highlighting the research and development work of Army, Navy and Air Force laboratories and medical scientists.
Kendall said today’s Lab Day is the first in an ongoing outreach campaign that ties together science and technology efforts across the defense research and engineering enterprise.
Three Big Reasons
“We're gathered here today for three big reasons,” Kendall told an audience that included service members, DoD employees, members of Congress, local science and technology high-school students, media and special guests.
“We wanted to show the groundbreaking work going on at DoD labs, recognize the best of the best, and showcase the specific projects and demonstrations that we're working on in the world of science and technology,” he said.
Kendall said the department has thousands of scientists working at DoD labs in 22 states, producing things such as the Internet, the Global Positioning System, car and truck back-up sensors, Ebola virus disease containment, a mobile capability for destroying chemical material stockpiles, night-vision goggles, emergency-room best practices, and more.
“What we see today is innovation in the foreground,” Kendall said.
Depending on Technology
The department and its warfighters depend on so many different technology areas, and in those areas the United States must be stay ahead of everyone else, he added.
In Kendall’s tour of the exhibits, he saw aerospace technology, safer helmets and other personal protection gear, and advances in autonomy such as the Navy's unmanned jet ski; the Marine Corps’ semi-autonomous robots for reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition; and the Air Force's remotely piloted “Vigilant Spirit.”
“All these things and many more allow our warfighters to have the cutting-edge capabilities they really need,” Kendall said, “and laboratory innovation is at the forefront of that.”
In his remarks, Work welcomed Lab Day participants on behalf of Defense Secretary Ash Carter, who is at Camp David, Maryland, today meeting with members of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Special Welcome
“He wanted me to extend his personal thanks for all of you for coming out today, and his personal thanks for everything that you do,” Work said, adding a special welcome for the local high-school STEM -- science, technology, engineering and math -- students.
“You represent the next generation of scientists and engineers,” Work told them. “You’re going to help out the country no matter what, but we hope that after seeing some of the things here today you might at least contemplate coming into the Department of Defense and helping us solve many of the problems we're facing.”
Even more exciting than the advanced technology he saw today were the young people who demonstrated and explained the technology, Work said.
Warfighting Edge
“They represent the best that our country has to offer,” the deputy secretary added. “They help give our service members a warfighting edge and they help keep our country and all of our citizens safe.”
During his tour of the exhibits, Work said he saw advanced armor, new night-vision devices and lifesaving medical instruments, all demonstrating the leading edge of technology.
“You represent the best of about 38,000 scientists and engineers in more than 60 DoD labs across the country, he added, noting that the scientists “work hard every day to ensure that we retain our technological superiority, to prepare us for an uncertain future and accelerate capabilities that we need to get into the hands of our warfighters.”
Work added, “I firmly believe as does Secretary Carter that we must continue to innovate to protect our country.”
Scalable Quantum Network
Work recognized a combined team of scientists and engineers from the Army, Air Force and Navy research labs, who won a $45 million award to the Joint U.S. Service Laboratories to develop the first U.S prototype of a scalable quantum network with memory.
The three-year award is funded by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering’s Applied Research for the Advancement of S&T Priorities, or ARAP, program.
Quantum-physics-based computing could increase by a billion-fold computing capability critical to accelerating the building-blocks for game-changing capabilities in command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, called C4ISR, according to the award document.
The service research labs are collaborating to demonstrate the feasibility of the fully integrated quantum-memory technology.
Focus on Emerging Technologies
“One hundred years ago quantum mechanics was discovered and our understanding of it has developed over the last decade,” Work explained. “It’s the foundation of almost all of our modern technology, and this team is trying to figure out how to encrypt and then transmit information across long-range military networks for the warfighter in a provably secure and robust fashion.”
Kendall, who announced the winners of the award during his comments, said that under the ARAP program, the department focuses on emerging technologies that could impact future operational capabilities.
ZURICH BANK REACHES AGREEMENT WITH U.S. DOJ UNDER SWISS BANK PROGRAM
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 15, 2015
Finter Bank Zurich AG Reaches Resolution under Department of Justice Swiss Bank Program
The Department of Justice announced today that Finter Bank Zurich AG (Finter), located in Zurich, Switzerland, reached a resolution under the department’s Swiss Bank Program.
The Swiss Bank Program, which was announced on Aug. 29, 2013, provides a path for Swiss banks to resolve potential criminal liabilities in the United States. Swiss banks eligible to enter the program were required to advise the department by Dec. 31, 2013, that they had reason to believe that they had committed tax-related criminal offenses in connection with undeclared U.S.-related accounts. Banks already under criminal investigation related to their Swiss-banking activities and all individuals were expressly excluded from the program.
Under the program, banks are required to:
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; and
Pay appropriate penalties.
Banks meeting all of the above requirements are eligible for a non-prosecution agreement.
According to the terms of the non-prosecution agreement signed today, Finter agrees to cooperate in any related criminal or civil proceedings, demonstrate its implementation of controls to stop misconduct involving undeclared U.S. accounts and pay a $5.414 million penalty in return for the department’s agreement not to prosecute Finter for tax-related criminal offenses.
Finter was founded in 1958 in Chiasso, Switzerland, and has a branch office in Lugano, Switzerland. Since Aug. 1, 2008, Finter has maintained 283 U.S.-related accounts with an aggregate maximum balance of approximately $235 million.
Since its establishment and continuing through at least October 2011, Finter, through its managers, employees and others, aided and assisted U.S. clients in opening and maintaining undeclared accounts in Switzerland and concealing the assets and income they held in these accounts from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). After August 2008, when Swiss bank UBS AG publicly announced that it was the target of a criminal investigation by U.S. tax authorities, Finter accepted accounts from U.S. persons exiting other Swiss banks.
Finter provided services that allowed U.S. clients to eliminate the paper trail associated with the undeclared assets and income, including “hold mail” services and numbered and coded accounts. In addition, Finter assisted clients in using sham entities as nominee beneficial owners of undeclared accounts, solicited Forms W-8BEN that falsely stated under penalties of perjury that the sham entities beneficially owned the assets in the undeclared accounts, and provided cash cards and credits cards linked to the undeclared accounts.
In resolving its criminal liabilities under the program, Finter encouraged U.S. accountholders to come into tax compliance and participate in the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program. While Finter’s U.S. accountholders who have not yet declared their accounts to the IRS may still be eligible to participate in the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, the price of such disclosure has increased.
Most U.S. taxpayers who enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program to resolve undeclared offshore accounts will pay a penalty equal to 27.5 percent of the high value of the accounts. On Aug. 4, 2014, the IRS increased the penalty to 50 percent if, at the time the taxpayer initiated their disclosure, either a foreign financial institution at which the taxpayer had an account or a facilitator who helped the taxpayer establish or maintain an offshore arrangement had been publicly identified as being under investigation, the recipient of a John Doe summons or cooperating with a government investigation, including the execution of a deferred prosecution agreement or non-prosecution agreement. With today’s announcement of Finter’s non-prosecution agreement, its noncompliant U.S. accountholders must now pay that 50 percent penalty to the IRS if they wish to enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Tax Division thanked the IRS and in particular, IRS-Criminal Investigation and IRS’s Large Business and International Division for their substantial assistance, as well as Senior Litigation Counsel John E. Sullivan and Trial Attorney Mark Kotila of the Tax Division, who served as counsel on this matter, and Senior Counsel for International Tax Matters and Coordinator of the Swiss Bank Program Thomas J. Sawyer of the Tax Division.
Friday, May 15, 2015
Finter Bank Zurich AG Reaches Resolution under Department of Justice Swiss Bank Program
The Department of Justice announced today that Finter Bank Zurich AG (Finter), located in Zurich, Switzerland, reached a resolution under the department’s Swiss Bank Program.
The Swiss Bank Program, which was announced on Aug. 29, 2013, provides a path for Swiss banks to resolve potential criminal liabilities in the United States. Swiss banks eligible to enter the program were required to advise the department by Dec. 31, 2013, that they had reason to believe that they had committed tax-related criminal offenses in connection with undeclared U.S.-related accounts. Banks already under criminal investigation related to their Swiss-banking activities and all individuals were expressly excluded from the program.
Under the program, banks are required to:
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; and
Pay appropriate penalties.
Banks meeting all of the above requirements are eligible for a non-prosecution agreement.
According to the terms of the non-prosecution agreement signed today, Finter agrees to cooperate in any related criminal or civil proceedings, demonstrate its implementation of controls to stop misconduct involving undeclared U.S. accounts and pay a $5.414 million penalty in return for the department’s agreement not to prosecute Finter for tax-related criminal offenses.
Finter was founded in 1958 in Chiasso, Switzerland, and has a branch office in Lugano, Switzerland. Since Aug. 1, 2008, Finter has maintained 283 U.S.-related accounts with an aggregate maximum balance of approximately $235 million.
Since its establishment and continuing through at least October 2011, Finter, through its managers, employees and others, aided and assisted U.S. clients in opening and maintaining undeclared accounts in Switzerland and concealing the assets and income they held in these accounts from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). After August 2008, when Swiss bank UBS AG publicly announced that it was the target of a criminal investigation by U.S. tax authorities, Finter accepted accounts from U.S. persons exiting other Swiss banks.
Finter provided services that allowed U.S. clients to eliminate the paper trail associated with the undeclared assets and income, including “hold mail” services and numbered and coded accounts. In addition, Finter assisted clients in using sham entities as nominee beneficial owners of undeclared accounts, solicited Forms W-8BEN that falsely stated under penalties of perjury that the sham entities beneficially owned the assets in the undeclared accounts, and provided cash cards and credits cards linked to the undeclared accounts.
In resolving its criminal liabilities under the program, Finter encouraged U.S. accountholders to come into tax compliance and participate in the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program. While Finter’s U.S. accountholders who have not yet declared their accounts to the IRS may still be eligible to participate in the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, the price of such disclosure has increased.
Most U.S. taxpayers who enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program to resolve undeclared offshore accounts will pay a penalty equal to 27.5 percent of the high value of the accounts. On Aug. 4, 2014, the IRS increased the penalty to 50 percent if, at the time the taxpayer initiated their disclosure, either a foreign financial institution at which the taxpayer had an account or a facilitator who helped the taxpayer establish or maintain an offshore arrangement had been publicly identified as being under investigation, the recipient of a John Doe summons or cooperating with a government investigation, including the execution of a deferred prosecution agreement or non-prosecution agreement. With today’s announcement of Finter’s non-prosecution agreement, its noncompliant U.S. accountholders must now pay that 50 percent penalty to the IRS if they wish to enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the Tax Division thanked the IRS and in particular, IRS-Criminal Investigation and IRS’s Large Business and International Division for their substantial assistance, as well as Senior Litigation Counsel John E. Sullivan and Trial Attorney Mark Kotila of the Tax Division, who served as counsel on this matter, and Senior Counsel for International Tax Matters and Coordinator of the Swiss Bank Program Thomas J. Sawyer of the Tax Division.
PHOTOBUCKET.COM BREACHED; TWO MEN ARRESTED
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 8, 2015
Two Men Who Breached Photobucket.com Indicted and Arrested on Conspiracy and Fraud Related Charges
Two men have been arrested after breaching the computer services of Colorado based Photobucket, a company that operates an image and video hosting website, announced U.S. Attorney John Walsh for the District of Colorado and Special Agent in Charge Thomas Ravenelle for the Denver Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Brandon Bourret, 39, of Colorado Springs, Colorado and Athanasios Andrianakis, 26, of Sunnyvale, California, were arrested today without incident at their homes. Both made initial appearances today, where they were advised of their rights and the charges pending against them.
According to the indictment, beginning on July 12, 2012 and continuing through July 1, 2014, Bourret and Andrianakis knowingly conspired to commit acts and offenses against the United States, namely computer fraud and abuse, access device fraud, identification document fraud and wire fraud. The indictment further alleges that there was interdependence among the members of the conspiracy.
The purpose of the conspiracy was for the conspirators to enrich themselves by selling passwords and unauthorized access to private and password protected information, images and videos on the Internet and by selling private and password protected information, images and videos that the conspirators obtained from the Internet.
The conspirators developed, marketed and sold a software application called Photofucket, which allowed viewers to circumvent the privacy settings of the image and video hosting website at Photobucket.com and to access and copy users private and password protected information, images and videos without authorization. The conspirators used Photofucket to obtain guest passwords to access users’ password protected albums. They also transferred, or caused to be transferred, guest passwords to others who paid to use the Photofucket application.
“It is not safe to hide behind your computer, breach corporate servers and line your own pockets by victimizing those who have a right to protected privacy on the internet,” said U.S. Attorney Walsh. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is keenly focused on prosecuting those people for their theft -- and for the wanton harm they do to innocent internet users.”
“Unauthorized access into a secure computer system is a serious federal crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Ravenelle. “The arrest of Brandon Bourret and his co-conspirator reflects the FBI’s commitment to investigate those who undertake activities such as this with the intent to harm a company and its customers.”
The investigation regarding the breach and who’s albums were accessed is ongoing. For those who want to follow the status of this case, visit http://www.justice.gov/largecases – and then select “Photobucket.” In addition, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI commend Photobucket for their cooperation from the inception of the investigation – and thanked them for their continued assistance as both the investigation and prosecution moves forward.
Bourret and Andrianakis both face one count of conspiracy, which carries a penalty of not more than five years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine. They each face one count of computer fraud, aid and abet, which also carries a penalty of not more than five years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine. Finally, they each face two counts of access device fraud, which carries a penalty of not more than ten years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine, per count.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Tonini.
The charges contained in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Friday, May 8, 2015
Two Men Who Breached Photobucket.com Indicted and Arrested on Conspiracy and Fraud Related Charges
Two men have been arrested after breaching the computer services of Colorado based Photobucket, a company that operates an image and video hosting website, announced U.S. Attorney John Walsh for the District of Colorado and Special Agent in Charge Thomas Ravenelle for the Denver Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Brandon Bourret, 39, of Colorado Springs, Colorado and Athanasios Andrianakis, 26, of Sunnyvale, California, were arrested today without incident at their homes. Both made initial appearances today, where they were advised of their rights and the charges pending against them.
According to the indictment, beginning on July 12, 2012 and continuing through July 1, 2014, Bourret and Andrianakis knowingly conspired to commit acts and offenses against the United States, namely computer fraud and abuse, access device fraud, identification document fraud and wire fraud. The indictment further alleges that there was interdependence among the members of the conspiracy.
The purpose of the conspiracy was for the conspirators to enrich themselves by selling passwords and unauthorized access to private and password protected information, images and videos on the Internet and by selling private and password protected information, images and videos that the conspirators obtained from the Internet.
The conspirators developed, marketed and sold a software application called Photofucket, which allowed viewers to circumvent the privacy settings of the image and video hosting website at Photobucket.com and to access and copy users private and password protected information, images and videos without authorization. The conspirators used Photofucket to obtain guest passwords to access users’ password protected albums. They also transferred, or caused to be transferred, guest passwords to others who paid to use the Photofucket application.
“It is not safe to hide behind your computer, breach corporate servers and line your own pockets by victimizing those who have a right to protected privacy on the internet,” said U.S. Attorney Walsh. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is keenly focused on prosecuting those people for their theft -- and for the wanton harm they do to innocent internet users.”
“Unauthorized access into a secure computer system is a serious federal crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Ravenelle. “The arrest of Brandon Bourret and his co-conspirator reflects the FBI’s commitment to investigate those who undertake activities such as this with the intent to harm a company and its customers.”
The investigation regarding the breach and who’s albums were accessed is ongoing. For those who want to follow the status of this case, visit http://www.justice.gov/largecases – and then select “Photobucket.” In addition, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI commend Photobucket for their cooperation from the inception of the investigation – and thanked them for their continued assistance as both the investigation and prosecution moves forward.
Bourret and Andrianakis both face one count of conspiracy, which carries a penalty of not more than five years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine. They each face one count of computer fraud, aid and abet, which also carries a penalty of not more than five years in federal prison and up to a $250,000 fine. Finally, they each face two counts of access device fraud, which carries a penalty of not more than ten years in federal prison, and up to a $250,000 fine, per count.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Tonini.
The charges contained in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
NSF FUNDS SPACETEC'S PREPARATION OF NEXT GEN SPACECRAFT TECHNICIANS
FROM: U.S. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Who will do the technical jobs needed to fuel a commercial spacecraft industry?
With NSF funding, SpaceTEC is preparing the next generation of spacecraft technicians
For more than 100 years, humans have been buying airline tickets to the next best destination. Soon, that destination could be space, and space technology companies are working hard to have the first commercial spacecraft in the air.
To be space ready, they need aerospace technicians with the right credentials, and one center is situated to provide them.
SpaceTEC National Resource Center for Aerospace Technical Education is at the front end of preparing a technician workforce for this new commercial space travel.
SpaceTEC, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) since 2002 through the Advanced Technological Education program, provides resources and nationally recognized certifications for aerospace technology. It offers assessment tools and performance-based certifications to its 18 college partners, according to SpaceTEC managing director Steven Kane.
"The commercial space companies now are like the aviation industry was back in the 1920's, opening doors for entrepreneurs like Bill Boeing to take an aircraft, stretch it, put some seats in it and start carrying people," Kane said.
SpaceTEC saw a drop in enrollment when NASA's Space Shuttle program ended in 2011, but the industry underwent some retuning, according to Kane.
"Companies are starting to recognize that the curriculum that was created through SpaceTEC fits their needs for those technicians to start doing that work again," Kane said. SpaceTEC has certified about 425 technicians for this industry, according to Kane.
Educating a qualified workforce is part of keeping the U.S. globally competitive in this industry, according to NSF's lead program director Celeste Carter of the Advanced Technological Education program.
Creating SpaceTEC
SpaceTEC began as a way to create a national certification program that all companies would recognize. Earlier, companies conducted their own training and certification process. This meant that a technician starting a contract at a new company would have to go through training again and start at zero, no matter his or her experience.
Brian Madgett, a SpaceTEC certified examiner, has worked in the aerospace industry for over 30 years and knows how essential certifications are, he said.
"It was difficult to get into the industry because there were no standardized certifications for this type of work," Madgett said.
After being certified, Madgett said, the technical certification gave him an edge over other applicants. "Employers need to see the proof of your training and experience," Madgett said.
Partnering with educators and employers
The center works with colleges, companies, government agencies and the military to ensure that the curriculum SpaceTEC created is accepted at the educator and employer levels, according to Kane.
Educators and industry representatives have a seat at the table, Kane said, when the decisions are about the curriculum.
Some colleges like Eastern Shore Community College look to SpaceTEC to guide their program and curriculum, according to Assistant Professor of Electronics and Computer Technology John Floyd.
"As a national resource center, with decades of experience relating to the shuttle program and other high profile Aerospace ventures, the partnership gives us access to information and standards that we do not have locally," Floyd said.
Eastern Shore Community College partnered with SpaceTEC in 2011 to prepare students for the aerospace industry and for job opportunities at the close-by NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Floyd said.
Government agencies like NASA make the SpaceTEC certificate a requirement in their employee contracts.
"The industry collaborations are essential to ensure that educators are producing the graduates that industry values," Carter said.
Mechanical Engineering Technician Kevin McLain took the SpaceTEC exam at Thomas Nelson Community College as a requirement for his NASA contract.
"I think they made it a requirement to ensure that I had sufficient knowledge of the aerospace industry and could prove to them that [I'm] serious about [my] career field," McLain said.
SpaceTEC expands to other industries
Before SpaceTEC experienced a resurgence in certifications, the center saw an opportunity to apply the same skill sets required in their certification program in other industries, such as the automobile, airline and energy industries.
So NSF granted SpaceTEC a supplement in 2009 to create CertTEC, which offers performance-based, national certifications for technical training beyond aerospace technology. It includes certifications for Basic Electricity & Electronics, Aviation Structures, Aviation Mechanical Assembly and Basic Composites. CertTEC has certified almost 1200 technicians, according to Kane.
Like SpaceTEC, this program helps students enter and move up in their industry, according to CertTEC examiner and Senior Instructor Kenny Payton of the Francis Tuttle Technology Center.
"Being in the aviation field for over 40 years, the training and testing baseline insures the employee has the skills that the employer is seeking," Payton said, "making for an easier transition into productive employment."
A new project for veterans
SpaceTEC's newest project is VetTEC, a one-stop shop to help veterans apply the skills they learned in the military to industry jobs.
"When they come out of the military, there's nothing really that provides industry a guide to what this person knows," Kane said.
The military use skill codes, according to Kane, but they don't translate well to job postings' qualifications. VetTEC would be a tool that would let veterans input their skill code, find the certifications that fit their skills and see the jobs available for that skill set.
The project is a work in progress, but could give veterans a way into the commercial space industry, among others.
Beyond national certification, an ongoing dialogue with industry is key to SpaceTEC's success.
"The benefit of a national certification is that no matter what college teaches the information, everybody has to meet this national standard," Kane said. "In order to ensure that there's a home for these certified technicians that are created, the industry has to be involved."
-- Kierstyn Schneck
-- Maria C. Zacharias,
Investigators
Steven Kane
Albert Koller
Tad Montgomery
Patricia Taylor
Michael Reynolds
William Fletcher
Related Institutions/Organizations
Eastern Florida State College
Locations
Cocoa , Florida
Who will do the technical jobs needed to fuel a commercial spacecraft industry?
With NSF funding, SpaceTEC is preparing the next generation of spacecraft technicians
For more than 100 years, humans have been buying airline tickets to the next best destination. Soon, that destination could be space, and space technology companies are working hard to have the first commercial spacecraft in the air.
To be space ready, they need aerospace technicians with the right credentials, and one center is situated to provide them.
SpaceTEC National Resource Center for Aerospace Technical Education is at the front end of preparing a technician workforce for this new commercial space travel.
SpaceTEC, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) since 2002 through the Advanced Technological Education program, provides resources and nationally recognized certifications for aerospace technology. It offers assessment tools and performance-based certifications to its 18 college partners, according to SpaceTEC managing director Steven Kane.
"The commercial space companies now are like the aviation industry was back in the 1920's, opening doors for entrepreneurs like Bill Boeing to take an aircraft, stretch it, put some seats in it and start carrying people," Kane said.
SpaceTEC saw a drop in enrollment when NASA's Space Shuttle program ended in 2011, but the industry underwent some retuning, according to Kane.
"Companies are starting to recognize that the curriculum that was created through SpaceTEC fits their needs for those technicians to start doing that work again," Kane said. SpaceTEC has certified about 425 technicians for this industry, according to Kane.
Educating a qualified workforce is part of keeping the U.S. globally competitive in this industry, according to NSF's lead program director Celeste Carter of the Advanced Technological Education program.
Creating SpaceTEC
SpaceTEC began as a way to create a national certification program that all companies would recognize. Earlier, companies conducted their own training and certification process. This meant that a technician starting a contract at a new company would have to go through training again and start at zero, no matter his or her experience.
Brian Madgett, a SpaceTEC certified examiner, has worked in the aerospace industry for over 30 years and knows how essential certifications are, he said.
"It was difficult to get into the industry because there were no standardized certifications for this type of work," Madgett said.
After being certified, Madgett said, the technical certification gave him an edge over other applicants. "Employers need to see the proof of your training and experience," Madgett said.
Partnering with educators and employers
The center works with colleges, companies, government agencies and the military to ensure that the curriculum SpaceTEC created is accepted at the educator and employer levels, according to Kane.
Educators and industry representatives have a seat at the table, Kane said, when the decisions are about the curriculum.
Some colleges like Eastern Shore Community College look to SpaceTEC to guide their program and curriculum, according to Assistant Professor of Electronics and Computer Technology John Floyd.
"As a national resource center, with decades of experience relating to the shuttle program and other high profile Aerospace ventures, the partnership gives us access to information and standards that we do not have locally," Floyd said.
Eastern Shore Community College partnered with SpaceTEC in 2011 to prepare students for the aerospace industry and for job opportunities at the close-by NASA Wallops Flight Facility, Floyd said.
Government agencies like NASA make the SpaceTEC certificate a requirement in their employee contracts.
"The industry collaborations are essential to ensure that educators are producing the graduates that industry values," Carter said.
Mechanical Engineering Technician Kevin McLain took the SpaceTEC exam at Thomas Nelson Community College as a requirement for his NASA contract.
"I think they made it a requirement to ensure that I had sufficient knowledge of the aerospace industry and could prove to them that [I'm] serious about [my] career field," McLain said.
SpaceTEC expands to other industries
Before SpaceTEC experienced a resurgence in certifications, the center saw an opportunity to apply the same skill sets required in their certification program in other industries, such as the automobile, airline and energy industries.
So NSF granted SpaceTEC a supplement in 2009 to create CertTEC, which offers performance-based, national certifications for technical training beyond aerospace technology. It includes certifications for Basic Electricity & Electronics, Aviation Structures, Aviation Mechanical Assembly and Basic Composites. CertTEC has certified almost 1200 technicians, according to Kane.
Like SpaceTEC, this program helps students enter and move up in their industry, according to CertTEC examiner and Senior Instructor Kenny Payton of the Francis Tuttle Technology Center.
"Being in the aviation field for over 40 years, the training and testing baseline insures the employee has the skills that the employer is seeking," Payton said, "making for an easier transition into productive employment."
A new project for veterans
SpaceTEC's newest project is VetTEC, a one-stop shop to help veterans apply the skills they learned in the military to industry jobs.
"When they come out of the military, there's nothing really that provides industry a guide to what this person knows," Kane said.
The military use skill codes, according to Kane, but they don't translate well to job postings' qualifications. VetTEC would be a tool that would let veterans input their skill code, find the certifications that fit their skills and see the jobs available for that skill set.
The project is a work in progress, but could give veterans a way into the commercial space industry, among others.
Beyond national certification, an ongoing dialogue with industry is key to SpaceTEC's success.
"The benefit of a national certification is that no matter what college teaches the information, everybody has to meet this national standard," Kane said. "In order to ensure that there's a home for these certified technicians that are created, the industry has to be involved."
-- Kierstyn Schneck
-- Maria C. Zacharias,
Investigators
Steven Kane
Albert Koller
Tad Montgomery
Patricia Taylor
Michael Reynolds
William Fletcher
Related Institutions/Organizations
Eastern Florida State College
Locations
Cocoa , Florida
JUDGE ORDERS COMPANY TO STOP SALE OF CERTAIN HIGH-POWERED MAGNETS
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Judge Orders Injunction to Stop Sale of Dangerous Magnets
A federal judge today ordered a Colorado company to stop selling hazardous high-powered magnets that had been the subject of a product recall by their manufacturer as part of an agreement with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the Justice Department announced. U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello of the District of Colorado found that Zen Magnets LLC and its owner, Shihan Qu, were violating the Consumer Product Safety Act by selling magnets that were purchased from a New Jersey company shortly before the magnets were recalled.
Last week, the department filed a complaint seeking injunctive relief and civil penalties against Zen Magnets and Qu.
The complaint alleged that Zen Magnets purchased 917,000 tiny, high-powered magnets from a New Jersey firm one week before that firm signed an agreement with the CPSC to recall the magnets. Once the magnets were recalled, their sale by any party was prohibited. Nonetheless, despite repeated warnings by the CPSC, Qu’s Denver-based company continued to sell the magnets.
The magnets are sold in sets and generally marketed as desk toys. When swallowed by children or teens, the magnets clamp together and can cause serious internal injuries.
“The Department of Justice will continue to work with the Consumer Product Safety Commission to enforce our consumer protection laws and protect consumers from dangerous products,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Efforts to evade the law and sell products that have already been recalled will not be tolerated.”
In issuing the preliminary injunction, Judge Arguello found a substantial likelihood that the defendants had violated the Consumer Product Safety Act and a cognizable danger of recurring violations in the future. The ruling said that Zen Magnets “has essentially turned its pledge to continue to defy the CPSC into a marketing campaign” and has “openly vowed” not to stop selling the recalled magnets absent an injunction. Thursday’s ruling followed a three-hour evidentiary hearing on Monday in Denver.
“Zen Magnets insisted on selling a dangerous product to the public, even after repeatedly being warned to stop by the Consumer Product Safety Commission,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh of the District of Colorado. “The magnets in this case can cause serious harm to people – particularly to children – if swallowed, by causing rips in the digestive system leading to grave infection. Given the company’s refusal to stop selling the product, this office, working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, did not hesitate to seek a court order to protect the public. Today’s order is a victory for public safety, and for the safety of young children.”
Zen Magnets is separately challenging a rule issued by the CPSC that went into effect April 1, but was temporarily stayed until April 20. The rule requires magnets or magnet sets to be large enough so that they cannot be swallowed or weak enough so they are unlikely to clamp together if ingested.
In issuing that rule, the CPSC noted the risk of injury that the rule addresses. When a person ingests more than one magnet from a magnet set, there is potential for damage to intestinal tissue. The magnets are attracted to each other in the digestive system, damaging the tissue that becomes trapped between the magnets. In several incidents, surgery was required to remove magnets that children had swallowed.
The rule, which Zen Magnets is challenging before the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, applies only prospectively. The preliminary injunction issued by Judge Arguello applies to the 917,000 tiny magnets that Zen Magnets acquired in July 2014, shortly before the manufacturer agreed to recall the magnets, and all other magnets that were commingled with the recalled magnets.
The case is being handled by Trial Attorney Patrick Jasperse of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Mendelson of the District of Colorado.
ABANDONED URANIUM MINES ON NAVAJO NATION TO BE EVALUATED FOR CLEANUP
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 1, 2015
U.S. Will Pay $13.2 Million for Cleanup Evaluation of 16 Abandoned Uranium Mines on the Navajo Nation
In a settlement agreement with the Navajo Nation, the U.S. will place $13.2 million into an environmental response trust to pay for the evaluations of 16 priority abandoned uranium mines located across Navajo lands. The investigation of these sites is a necessary step before final cleanup decisions can be made. The work to be conducted is subject to the approval of the Navajo Nation as the lead agency and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the supporting agency.
“This agreement is part of the Justice Department’s increased focus on environmental and health concerns in Indian country as well as the commitment of the Obama Administration to fairly resolve the historic grievances of American Indian tribes and build a healthier future for their people,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The site evaluations focus on the mines that pose the most significant hazards and will form a foundation for their final cleanup. In partnership with our sister federal agencies, we will also continue our work to address the legacy of uranium mining on Navajo lands, including ongoing discussions with the Navajo Nation.”
“EPA is proud to help implement this historic settlement,” said Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld for EPA for the Pacific Southwest. “It dovetails with our ongoing activities as we work together to make real progress on the environmental legacy of uranium mining on the Navajo Nation.”
The Navajo Nation encompasses more than 27,000 square miles within Utah, New Mexico and Arizona in the Four Corners area. The unique geology of the region makes the Navajo Nation rich in uranium, a radioactive ore in high demand after the development of atomic power and weapons at the close of World War II. Approximately four million tons of uranium ore were extracted during mining operations within the Navajo Nation from 1944 to 1986. The federal government, through the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), was the sole purchaser of uranium until 1966, when commercial sales of uranium began. The AEC continued to purchase ore until 1970. The last uranium mine on the Navajo Nation shut down in 1986. Many Navajo people worked in and near the mines, often living and raising families in close proximity to the mines and mills.
Since 2008, a number of federal agencies including EPA, the Department of Energy, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of the Interior, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Indian Health Service have been collaborating to address uranium contamination on the Navajo Nation. The federal government has invested more than $100 million to address abandoned uranium mines on Navajo lands. EPA has remediated 34 homes, provided safe drinking water to 1,825 families, conducted field screening at 521 mines, compiled a list of 46 “priority mines” for cleanup and performed stabilization or cleanup work at nine mines. This settlement agreement resolves the claims of the Navajo Nation pertaining to costs of evaluations at 16 of the 46 priority mines for which no viable responsible private party has been identified.
In April 2014, the Justice Department and EPA announced in a separate matter that approximately $985 million of a multi-billion dollar settlement of litigation against subsidiaries of Anadarko Petroleum Corp. will be paid to EPA to fund the clean-up of approximately 50 abandoned uranium mines in and around the Navajo Nation, where radioactive waste remains from Kerr-McGee mining operations.
Friday, May 1, 2015
U.S. Will Pay $13.2 Million for Cleanup Evaluation of 16 Abandoned Uranium Mines on the Navajo Nation
In a settlement agreement with the Navajo Nation, the U.S. will place $13.2 million into an environmental response trust to pay for the evaluations of 16 priority abandoned uranium mines located across Navajo lands. The investigation of these sites is a necessary step before final cleanup decisions can be made. The work to be conducted is subject to the approval of the Navajo Nation as the lead agency and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the supporting agency.
“This agreement is part of the Justice Department’s increased focus on environmental and health concerns in Indian country as well as the commitment of the Obama Administration to fairly resolve the historic grievances of American Indian tribes and build a healthier future for their people,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The site evaluations focus on the mines that pose the most significant hazards and will form a foundation for their final cleanup. In partnership with our sister federal agencies, we will also continue our work to address the legacy of uranium mining on Navajo lands, including ongoing discussions with the Navajo Nation.”
“EPA is proud to help implement this historic settlement,” said Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld for EPA for the Pacific Southwest. “It dovetails with our ongoing activities as we work together to make real progress on the environmental legacy of uranium mining on the Navajo Nation.”
The Navajo Nation encompasses more than 27,000 square miles within Utah, New Mexico and Arizona in the Four Corners area. The unique geology of the region makes the Navajo Nation rich in uranium, a radioactive ore in high demand after the development of atomic power and weapons at the close of World War II. Approximately four million tons of uranium ore were extracted during mining operations within the Navajo Nation from 1944 to 1986. The federal government, through the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), was the sole purchaser of uranium until 1966, when commercial sales of uranium began. The AEC continued to purchase ore until 1970. The last uranium mine on the Navajo Nation shut down in 1986. Many Navajo people worked in and near the mines, often living and raising families in close proximity to the mines and mills.
Since 2008, a number of federal agencies including EPA, the Department of Energy, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Department of the Interior, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Indian Health Service have been collaborating to address uranium contamination on the Navajo Nation. The federal government has invested more than $100 million to address abandoned uranium mines on Navajo lands. EPA has remediated 34 homes, provided safe drinking water to 1,825 families, conducted field screening at 521 mines, compiled a list of 46 “priority mines” for cleanup and performed stabilization or cleanup work at nine mines. This settlement agreement resolves the claims of the Navajo Nation pertaining to costs of evaluations at 16 of the 46 priority mines for which no viable responsible private party has been identified.
In April 2014, the Justice Department and EPA announced in a separate matter that approximately $985 million of a multi-billion dollar settlement of litigation against subsidiaries of Anadarko Petroleum Corp. will be paid to EPA to fund the clean-up of approximately 50 abandoned uranium mines in and around the Navajo Nation, where radioactive waste remains from Kerr-McGee mining operations.
SEC CHARGES LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY WITH VIOLATING PRICING RULES REGARDING VARIABLE INSURANCE CONTRACTS
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Charges Nationwide Life Insurance Company With Pricing Violations
05/14/2015 11:30 AM EDT
Nationwide agreed to settle the charges and pay an $8 million penalty.
Pricing rules for mutual fund shares require an investment company to compute the value of its shares at least once daily at a specific time set by its board of directors and disclosed to investors. According to the SEC’s order instituting a settled administrative proceeding, Nationwide’s prospectuses stated that mutual fund orders received before 4 p.m. at its home office in Columbus, Ohio, would receive the current day’s price. Orders received after 4 p.m. would receive the next day’s price.
An SEC investigation found that when regular postage mail became available for retrieval early each morning from its P.O. boxes, Nationwide arranged for the pickup and delivery of mail directed to other business units but intentionally delayed the retrieval of mail related to its variable contracts business. Therefore, in spite of receiving customer orders and other variable contract mail in its P.O. boxes at least several hours before the 4 p.m. cut-off time, Nationwide sought to avoid its requirement to process the orders contained in this mail using the current day’s price by ensuring this mail wasn’t delivered to its offices until after 4 p.m. Meanwhile, Nationwide did arrange for prompt pickup and delivery of U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail or Priority Express Mail that enabled contract owners to track an order’s time of delivery to the P.O. boxes. Those orders were assigned the current day’s price.
“For more than a 15-year period, Nationwide intentionally delayed the delivery of untracked mail containing orders from customers and processed them at the next day’s prices in violation of the law,” said Sharon B. Binger, Director of the SEC’s Philadelphia Regional Office.
The SEC’s order finds that Nationwide instructed the post office to divide mail directed to the P.O. Box for its variable contract business from mail directed to P.O. boxes for other lines of business and maintain it in separate areas of the post office loading dock. Nationwide typically hired a private courier to collect and deliver the mail from the loading dock to its offices. Nationwide arranged for its courier to travel to the post office at 3 a.m., 5 a.m., and 7 a.m. each business day to retrieve mail for the other lines of business, but specifically instructed the courier not to retrieve variable contract mail at these times. Nationwide instead instructed the courier to deliver variable contract mail no earlier than 4:01 p.m. in order to deem it received when it arrived “in the building.” If the courier arrived in Nationwide’s parking lot before 4 p.m., the instructions were to wait until 4:01 p.m. to enter the building. Therefore, some couriers intentionally delayed their arrival time at Nationwide by stopping to purchase meals or fuel. By contrast, priority mail related to the variable contract business was promptly retrieved by the courier and processed by Nationwide before 4 p.m. for pricing at the current day’s price.
The SEC’s order further finds that Nationwide employees complained to post office staff when portions of the variable contract mail were inadvertently mixed together with the other mail and therefore delivered to Nationwide’s offices before 4 p.m. After one such incident, Nationwide requested a meeting with the post office and stressed that it needed “late delivery” of variable contract mail “due to regulations that require Nationwide to process any mail received by 4 p.m. the same day.”
Nationwide consented to the entry of the SEC’s order finding that the firm willfully violated Rule 22c-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Nationwide neither admits nor denies the findings, and must cease and desist from committing future violations of the rule and pay the $8 million penalty.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Lisa M. Candera and supervised by Brendan P. McGlynn with assistance from examination staff in the Philadelphia Regional Office. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
COMMUNIQUE TO COMBAT KIDNAPPING FOR RANSOM
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Counter-terrorism: Second Meeting of the Counter-ISIL Finance Group Issues Communique to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom
05/14/2015 05:27 PM EDT
Second Meeting of the Counter-ISIL Finance Group Issues Communique to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
May 14, 2015
Co-led by Italy, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, 25 Coalition Members Met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Agreed on Policies to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom.
The Counter-ISIL Finance Group (CIFG), which met on May 7 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, announced today the issuance of a Communiqué rejecting the payment or facilitation of ransoms to ISIL in line with relevant U.N. Security Council Resolutions. Representatives from 25 countries and several multilateral organizations met to continue their work to combat ISIL’s sources of financing, including the dangerous and ongoing problem of kidnapping for ransom.
The Communiqué issued rejects the payment or facilitation of ransoms to ISIL, so as to deny ISIL an important source of funds and remove a key incentive for ISIL to engage in further kidnapping or hostage-taking activities. The Communiqué also encourages private sector partners to adopt or to follow relevant guidelines and best practices for preventing and responding to ISIL kidnappings without paying ransoms. The CIFG is committed to remaining engaged with private sector entities and individuals to ensure they are aware of the full range of risks faced by staff operating in high-threat environments.
The Communiqué was developed at the May 7 meeting of the CIFG in Jeddah. In that meeting, the CIFG discussed the steps taken by its members and by the international community more broadly to undermine ISIL’s criminal financial activities. The CIFG also exchanged information on ISIL exploitation of banks and exchange houses, and shared best practices for safeguarding the financial sector. The Group discussed the latest trends in ISIL’s exploitation and smuggling of energy resources and cultural property. A number of concrete international countermeasures to disrupt these illicit trade flows were discussed. The CIFG also examined potential financial linkages between ISIL and its foreign affiliates.
The CIFG was established as part of the counter-ISIL Coalition effort to enhance coordination among international partners on lines of effort to defeat ISIL agreed by Coalition ministers and representatives on December 3, 2014 in Brussels. The CIFG will continue to meet regularly to consult on efforts to counter ISIL’s financial activities and economic sustainment. The next meeting of the CIFG is scheduled to take place in the United States in September 2015.
Counter-terrorism: Second Meeting of the Counter-ISIL Finance Group Issues Communique to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom
05/14/2015 05:27 PM EDT
Second Meeting of the Counter-ISIL Finance Group Issues Communique to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom
Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
May 14, 2015
Co-led by Italy, Saudi Arabia, and the United States, 25 Coalition Members Met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Agreed on Policies to Combat Kidnapping for Ransom.
The Counter-ISIL Finance Group (CIFG), which met on May 7 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, announced today the issuance of a Communiqué rejecting the payment or facilitation of ransoms to ISIL in line with relevant U.N. Security Council Resolutions. Representatives from 25 countries and several multilateral organizations met to continue their work to combat ISIL’s sources of financing, including the dangerous and ongoing problem of kidnapping for ransom.
The Communiqué issued rejects the payment or facilitation of ransoms to ISIL, so as to deny ISIL an important source of funds and remove a key incentive for ISIL to engage in further kidnapping or hostage-taking activities. The Communiqué also encourages private sector partners to adopt or to follow relevant guidelines and best practices for preventing and responding to ISIL kidnappings without paying ransoms. The CIFG is committed to remaining engaged with private sector entities and individuals to ensure they are aware of the full range of risks faced by staff operating in high-threat environments.
The Communiqué was developed at the May 7 meeting of the CIFG in Jeddah. In that meeting, the CIFG discussed the steps taken by its members and by the international community more broadly to undermine ISIL’s criminal financial activities. The CIFG also exchanged information on ISIL exploitation of banks and exchange houses, and shared best practices for safeguarding the financial sector. The Group discussed the latest trends in ISIL’s exploitation and smuggling of energy resources and cultural property. A number of concrete international countermeasures to disrupt these illicit trade flows were discussed. The CIFG also examined potential financial linkages between ISIL and its foreign affiliates.
The CIFG was established as part of the counter-ISIL Coalition effort to enhance coordination among international partners on lines of effort to defeat ISIL agreed by Coalition ministers and representatives on December 3, 2014 in Brussels. The CIFG will continue to meet regularly to consult on efforts to counter ISIL’s financial activities and economic sustainment. The next meeting of the CIFG is scheduled to take place in the United States in September 2015.
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS ON NORWAY'S NATIONAL DAY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
On the Occasion of Norway's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
May 14, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Norway on your Constitution Day on May 17.
Norway is a stronghold of tolerance and progress. After the anti-Semitic attacks in Paris and Copenhagen this past winter, the world mourned. And in Norway more than one thousand young people formed a “ring of peace” around a synagogue in Oslo to ensure its walls survived the night unharmed. That is the kind of courage and solidarity that inspires the world.
The United States and Norway are natural Allies and partners in advancing our shared interests. From the fight against ISIL, support for democracy in Ukraine and our countries’ engagement in the South Sudan peace process, we are united by the values enshrined in our constitutions. I very much enjoy my frequent conversations with Foreign Minister Brende as we collaborate on global challenges, most recently during his April visit to Washington, D.C.
Whenever I meet a Norwegian, I fondly remember the time I lived in Norway as a teenager. I hope to return to experience your warm hospitality again. As you celebrate with family and friends, I wish all Norwegian people peace and prosperity in the coming year.
Gratulerer med dagen, Norge!
On the Occasion of Norway's National Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
May 14, 2015
On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Norway on your Constitution Day on May 17.
Norway is a stronghold of tolerance and progress. After the anti-Semitic attacks in Paris and Copenhagen this past winter, the world mourned. And in Norway more than one thousand young people formed a “ring of peace” around a synagogue in Oslo to ensure its walls survived the night unharmed. That is the kind of courage and solidarity that inspires the world.
The United States and Norway are natural Allies and partners in advancing our shared interests. From the fight against ISIL, support for democracy in Ukraine and our countries’ engagement in the South Sudan peace process, we are united by the values enshrined in our constitutions. I very much enjoy my frequent conversations with Foreign Minister Brende as we collaborate on global challenges, most recently during his April visit to Washington, D.C.
Whenever I meet a Norwegian, I fondly remember the time I lived in Norway as a teenager. I hope to return to experience your warm hospitality again. As you celebrate with family and friends, I wish all Norwegian people peace and prosperity in the coming year.
Gratulerer med dagen, Norge!
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