FROM: NASA
WASHINGTON -- "Following are excerpts from remarks given by NASA
Deputy Administrator Lori Garver at the arrival of the space shuttle
Discovery at Dulles International Airport on Tuesday, April 17:
"Discovery was the longest-serving veteran of NASA's space shuttle
fleet. Her maiden voyage was in 1984. She flew 39 missions, spent 365
days in space, orbited Earth 5,830 times and traveled 148,221,675
miles."
"The space shuttles’ 30-year history literally changed the world.
Their greatest accomplishment and purpose, now complete, was the
launch and construction of the ISS -- our science laboratory in space
and our foothold to the rest of the solar system. Like all great
accomplishments, these achievements came at a cost. When we lost the
Challenger and Columbia flights and their brave crews, we
re-dedicated ourselves to an even more meaningful and exciting
future."
"Today, NASA is following through on this commitment by building on
the successes of the past and learning from our failures. President
Obama has set us on a course that will tap into the innovative spirit
that has made this nation great. It will allow us to more fully
utilize the ISS and explore farther than ever before -- to an
asteroid and on to Mars. This shift will permit us to advance our
technology, open new markets and create more American jobs, making
our aerospace industry even more competitive and increasing our
economic and national security."
"To those who say our best exploration days are behind us, I must
disagree. While it is wonderful to reminisce about the past, NASA
continues to focus on the future. You need only admire the amazing
space shuttles and their accomplishments to realize the people,
organizations and nation that created them have only just begun.
Vehicles with names like Orion, Dragon and Dreamchaser are being
built all across the country today. They will continue and expand on
the space shuttle’s many accomplishments."
"It is an honor to deliver Discovery to the Smithsonian today to share
this national treasure with the nation -- telling not only the
stories of the past, but ushering in the promise of the future."
Friday, April 20, 2012
FOOD AND MAMMAL EVOLUTION
Scientists Trace Evolutionary History of What Mammals Eat
April 16, 2012
The feeding habits of mammals haven't always been what they are today, particularly for omnivores.
Some groups of mammals almost exclusively eat meat--take lions and tigers and other big cats as examples.
Other mammals such as deer, cows and antelope are predominantly plant-eaters, living on a diet of leaves, shoots, fruits and bark.
But particularly for omnivores that live on plant foods in addition to meat, the situation wasn't always that way, finds a new study by researchers working at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center in Durham, North Carolina.
The results appear today in the online edition of the journalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"The research links dietary strategy, a basic aspect of animal ecology, with macroevolutionary diversification of mammals," said George Gilchrist, program director in the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Environmental Biology, which funded the research.
"It's impressive that ecology has such a strong and clear influence on lineages stretching back millions of years. Darwin would be delighted with this paper."
Past research shows that animals with similar diets tend to share certain characteristics.
But this study is the first of its kind to look across all mammal groups, including omnivores, to reconstruct how evolutionary time changed mammal diets.
To do that, the researchers compiled previously published diet data for more than 1,500 species representing more than one third of mammals alive today, including primates, ungulates, bats, rabbits and rodents.
By mapping that data onto the mammal family tree, the researchers were able to trace backward in time and infer what the ancestors of each species most likely ate.
They found that while some groups of mammals maintained steady diets, others changed their feeding strategies over time.
Today's omnivores in particular--a group that includes primates, bears, dogs and foxes--came from ancestors that primarily ate plants, or animals, but not both, said paper co-author Samantha Price of the University of California Davis.
While omnivorous mammals weren't always that way, plant-eaters and meat-eaters have diversified within a more well-worn path.
Radical shifts were unlikely for these animals. Mammals that eat meat for a living, for example, didn't give up their taste for flesh without transitioning through an omnivorous stage first.
"Direct transitions from carnivory to herbivory were essentially nonexistent," said co-author Louise Roth of Duke University.
"It's an intuitive result because it takes very different kinds of equipment to have those kinds of diets."
"Plant- and animal-based foods require different digestive chemistries and different processing mechanisms in the mouth and stomach," said co-author Samantha Hopkins of the University of Oregon.
The kinds of teeth adapted for tearing and slicing meat are different than the large, flat-topped molars adapted for grinding nuts and roots.
"It makes sense that you couldn't easily transition from one to the other in one step," Price said.
The researchers also found that diet is linked to how fast mammals spawn new species.
As new species arise and others go extinct, the plant-eaters proliferate faster than their meat-eating counterparts, with omnivores lagging behind both groups.
"If there was an evolutionary race to evolve 100 species, it would take three times longer for omnivores compared to herbivores, and carnivores would be in the middle," Price said.
PHOTOS: WIKIMEDIA
REMARKS OF RETA JO LEWIS AT NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Subnational Partnerships in a Globalized World
Remarks Reta Jo Lewis
Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs The John D. O'Bryant African-American Institute, Northeastern University
Boston, MA
April 6, 2012
Good afternoon and thank you Richard for that very kind introduction.
I am delighted to have the opportunity to visit Northeastern University, a highly acclaimed institution well-known for experiential research opportunities with a global outlook.
I would like to take a moment to thank the John D. O’Bryant African-American Institute. Not just for hosting this afternoon’s event, but for your commitment to intellectually, culturally, and socially inspiring students of African descent toward excellence, success, and service. Under the inspired leadership of Dr. Richard O’Bryant, the Institute fosters a positive and inspiring learning environment.
Today, the world faces a unique set of challenges -- economic, environmental, social, and political – that require collaborative innovation and determination of our world’s best minds.
It is almost hard to imagine how much has happened in the last 18 months, from revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa, to renewed fears over economic default in Europe. The world has changed very quickly under our feet and before our eyes.
Over the last three years, the United States has ended one war, and we have begun to wind down another. We are affirming our place as a Pacific power. We are strengthening our alliance with our European and NATO partners. We are elevating the role of economics and development within U.S. diplomacy to help create jobs here at home and to advance our strategic interests around the world. And of course, we are reaching beyond governments to engage directly with people.
In this fast changing world, the Obama Administration is convinced of the need to seize this moment, to meet these challenges, and to lay the foundation for sustained global leadership in a rapidly changing world increasingly linked and transformed by new technologies. Only America has the reach, resources, and relationships to anchor a more peaceful and prosperous world.
At the same time, urbanization is occurring at an unprecedented rate, especially in Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Fifty-two percent of the earth’s population now lives in cities. Every week one million people move to cities. Continued rapid urbanization will lead to three billion new urban dwellers.
Global partnerships which put aside individual philosophies and focus on solutions are essential to solving these global challenges and to building a more stable and secure world.
As Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton has said, and as the United States has long maintained, U.S. foreign policy relationships will always be nation-to-nation. But the scope of what defines nation-to-nation conversations are shifting in the modern, more global, and more flattened economy – deeming city-to-city and state-to-state dialogues just as critical to the larger context of executing, implementing, and achieving a nation’s overarching diplomatic goals.
Building peer-to-peer relationships between state and local elected officials has a tremendous effect on foreign policy that often goes unrecognized. Still, building these relationships and encouraging this engagement at the subnational level has limitless potential.
Peer-to-peer relationships provide state and local leaders around the globe with an intimate glance into the American way of life, and more importantly, into our democratic institutions and system of governance. Even at a more basic but equally important level, these interactions develop trust – an attribute essential to developing strong bilateral ties.
Secretary Clinton has stated time and time again that 21st century global challenges require us to work with new partners to collaborate and innovate globally. At the Department of State, this has meant making a transition to 21st Century Statecraft, a strategy for creating partnerships for achieving modern diplomatic goals by engaging all the elements of our national power and leveraging all forms of our strength.
Two years ago, Secretary Clinton created the Office of Global Intergovernmental Affairs emphasizing the need to utilize local leaders as a key component in the much needed widespread and deep-rooted efforts to take on our world’s greatest challenges – a key part of that charge is empowering subnational officials to lead their states and communities to a stable and secure future.
My job is to realize Secretary Clinton’s vision by connecting what the Federal Government does best with what state and local governments are doing and can do, and what our successful private sector is doing and can do. We have launched partnerships with China, India, and Brazil to strengthen subnational economic and cultural networks.
So, just as Secretary Clinton engages in important bilateral discussions with her counterparts, such as the Minister of External Relations of Brazil, so too does our office engage in pivotal conversations on a range of issues with Brazilian mayors and governors.
I just returned from a 10-day visit to Brazil during which I sought opportunities for state-to-state cooperation around the 2014 World Cup matches, trade and security interests, Sister City relationships, and social inclusion programs. I have worked to expand the relationships between U.S. mayors and governors and their counterparts in Brazil. I have made several trips to Brazil to support this effort. In each of the twelve cities and states I have visited, I have been met with incredible enthusiasm.
Exchanges between Brazilian and U.S. subnational entities have become more numerous and robust in the past two years. We have worked with the governors of California, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, and other elected officials to connect with their fellow leaders in Brazil
While all of the Brazilian officials with whom I have met have expressed the desire to collaborate in various ways, the issue of education is raised consistently. The United States and Brazil strongly support the internationalization of higher education. Both nations truly are honoring the commitments established in the U.S.-Brazil Partnership on Education by working together to achieve the shared goals of President Obama’s 100,000 Strong for the Americas initiative and Brazilian President Rousseff’s Science Without Borders. I am committed to engaging subnational entities in this effort, and am proud that we can count on their leadership and expertise to help make these initiatives successful.
For example, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick led a delegation of university leaders to Brazil last year, where they established the TOP USA-Massachusetts Program, an initiative that will promote an academic exchange of faculty and students between several Brazilian and Massachusetts universities. I had the opportunity to meet with a delegation from CAPES (the Brazilian Federal Agency for the Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education) in Washington, DC last month during their Science Without Borders exchange. They made visits to various states a top priority. During her U.S. visit next week, President Rousseff plans to visit Massachusetts where she will meet with Governor Patrick and speak at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). When the United States and Brazil initiated the Partnership on Education, this is precisely what we had in mind.
These relationships truly strengthen the U.S.-Brazil bilateral partnership. As the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games approach, and as efforts are made to prepare our young citizens for the workforce and future leadership, the importance of subnational engagement between our nations becomes increasingly palpable.
The United States and Brazil signed in 2011 a memorandum of understanding to work together in preparation for these major global sporting events. In this agreement, we recalled our prior commitments from the Joint Action Plan to promote Ethnic and Racial Equality (JAPER) and the MOU for the advancement of women. We affirmed that we view these mega events as opportunities to tackle inequality and to advance economic opportunities to ensure citizens at every level of society benefit from those opportunities.
So, as we interact with state and local leaders in Brazil and around the world, we employ Secretary Clinton’s Economic Statecraft initiative which place economics and market forces at the center of U.S. foreign policy. Economic Statecraft harnesses global economic forces to advance America’s foreign policy and employs the tools of foreign policy to shore up our economic strength. In furtherance of the Secretary’s vision, our office has leveraged U.S. state and local officials in our economic strategy in China and India, among other nations.
For instance, we supported the establishment of the U.S. China Governors Forum in 2011. It has been reported that this dialogue fostered interactions that resulted in tangible U.S. job creation.
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal visited several Chinese cities and corporations in October 2011, including Sany Group, which has invested $60 million in Peachtree City, Georgia. Sany Group plans to invest $25 million more in the State of Georgia, and to hire 300 engineers over the next five years.
Similarly, North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue’s interactions with Chinese subnational leaders has reportedly led to an agreement between a Chinese and U.S. company that will create approximately 300 new jobs in North Carolina.
We collaborated with Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley on his historic trade mission to India in 2011. The mission resulted in opening new doors for the State of Maryland to create jobs, bolster trade and investments, and strengthen existing business relationships.
Two Indian companies plan investments in Maryland and eight Maryland businesses signed deals with Indian partners, with a combined total of nearly $60 million in business deals for the state and several additional deals worth millions still on the horizon.
While in India, Governor O’Malley met with a number of top Indian companies to promote Maryland as an ideal location for establishing U.S. operations. He signed an agreement in New Delhi with the Federation of India Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) to create an India-Maryland Center in Maryland to boost trade between the two regions.
In addition, Maryland signed an agreement with the U.S.-India Importers Council committing Maryland and India to boost imports and exports. During the first nine months of 2011, the Port of Baltimore saw $341 in trade to and from India compared with $229 million during the same timeframe in 2010 – a 49 percent increase.
Many of the agreements entered into between Maryland and India will be of direct benefit to India. For example, CyperPoint, a Maryland cyber security company signed a $10 million contract with New Delhi-based Appin Security Group to jointly develop security solutions for mobile phones. A $20-50 million deal agreed to by Amarex Clinical Research, a Maryland company, and Scalene Cybernetics Limited, an Indian company, will create jobs both in Maryland and India.
While we are committed to continue working with state and local officials to advance U.S. economic interests, we are at the same time collaborating with these leaders on the creation of a sustainable future.
Today, we face daunting global challenges and we look forward to discussing them at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20, in Rio de Janeiro in June. As we head toward an urbanized planet, we will have to build over the next 40 years, the same urban capacity as we have built over the past 4,000 years.
I believe we have the ability to meet all of these needs to build a sustainable future. We have the tools and the understanding, and we have the necessary commitment to global cooperation and collaboration. U.S. subnational leaders want to work with their foreign counterparts, with the private sector, investors, and clean technology to achieve global sustainability.
Rio+20 is about the future. The United States believes that Rio+20 should be a different kind of meeting, one that transforms the multilateral approach to sustainable development and incorporates its concepts across all sectors. It is our hope that Rio+20 will be truly inclusive of a broad collection of stakeholders, including state and local officials, civil society and the private sector.
States and cities do not face a choice between green and growth: they CAN and MUST pursue both. There is no “one-size-fits-all” model for implementing sustainability, and strategies will differ across regions as they do across countries. However, we firmly believe that local government leadership bears the fundamental responsibility to support urban sustainability.
Another fundamental message that the United States is bringing to Rio is the importance of good governance if we are to achieve a sustainable future. We need governance at all levels to be open and transparent, with robust channels for public participation, to better engage citizens and build new networks across all sectors of our societies.
So again, organizing subnational relationships promotes a deeper cultural exchange among nations, advances principles of openness, freedom, transparency and fairness in economic growth, and assists in the creation of a sustainable future.
In a 21st century world, there are no shortages of great partnerships, nor shortages of great ideas when we shore up our collective will to address the challenges we face.
By combining our strengths, we can more than double our impact to this subnational end. And the multiplier effect continues if we add philanthropies, businesses, NGOs, universities, and entrepreneurs. That’s the power of partnership at its best -- allowing us to achieve so much more together than we could apart.
As young people and the next generation who will inherit this globalized world, you possess the power to make change. You are indeed privileged to attend this fine university which affords you the opportunity to develop a global view, as well as the leadership skills to take grassroots action for peace, prosperity, and sustainability.
All over the world today our youth are taking up the batons of civic engagement and striving to build a world free of social ailments. They are springing up against dictatorships and occupying the excesses of corporate inequality; they are insisting upon a strong respect for our environment and challenging the status quo of bitter partisanship.
In order for the youth of today to truly be the leaders of tomorrow, in order for them to become effective advocates for inclusion and vanguards of social change, they would be well-advised to heed the teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. All of us must continue to make those around us aware that the path to social change demands an ethic of public service, a commitment to reconciliation, and a spirit of love and mutuality.
Only 26 years old when he began preaching the gospel of tolerance, Dr. King’s principles of understanding – even now – are vital to encouraging young minds to build a compassionate world that stands up against inequality, illiteracy, hunger, and poverty, for many generations to come.
I am here today to urge you to prepare yourselves to be effective global citizens by sharpening your international perspective. I thank you for being here today to participate in this discussion of U.S. global engagement. Learning a foreign language and studying abroad are two excellent ways to expand your world view.
Secretary Clinton strongly supports study abroad programs. In her 2009 New York University commencement speech, Secretary Clinton said, “…study abroad is like spring training for this century: It helps you develop the fundamentals, the teamwork, and the determination to succeed. And we want more American students to have that opportunity.”
At the State Department, we are committed to increasing the number and the diversity of students who study in this country, as well as our American students who study abroad. We need and welcome your participation in this effort.
For our part, we recognize that finding new ways to communicate and engage with you and the young citizens of the world is critical. After all, nearly half of the world’s population -- almost 3 billion people -- is under the age of 25. The State Department is committed to strengthening our bonds with youth – reaching them wherever they are around the globe, by using every tool at our command including new media. In fact, last fall I took a leap into the 21st century by joining Twitter. Follow me at @SSRGIA so that we can stay connected.
And with that, I am happy to take your questions.
DOJ VOLUNTEERS MARK EARTH DAY BY HELPING OUT AT MARVIN GAYE PARK
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Friday, April 20, 2012
Department of Justice Volunteers Mark Earth Day with Community Service at Marvin Gaye Park
Marking the ninth annual Earth Day Service Celebration today, Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West and Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno marked a day of service, commending volunteers from the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), Washington Parks & People and the DC Green Corps as they continue work on environmental restoration projects near the Community Greening Center in Marvin Gaye Park in Northeast Washington, D.C.
“As a nation, we have taken great strides since the first Earth Day more than 40 years ago, from the landmark environmental legislation of the 1970s to recent efforts to address greenhouse gas emissions,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West. “The story of Marvin Gaye Park’s renewal is an inspiration. Over the past decade, volunteers have removed countless tires and bags of garbage from this area, cleared and reopened miles of trail and streams, and planted thousands of native trees and shrubs. Earth Day provides an opportunity for us to reflect on and celebrate this progress, but it also reminds us that there is much left to be done.”
In her remarks, Assistant Attorney General Moreno said: “Today, on the second anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, we remember the 11 lives that were tragically lost. We also are reminded that our natural resources are precious and that we must continue to protect these resources and the communities across the nation who rely on them for their livelihood. The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously enforce the federal civil and criminal environmental and natural resources laws that protect our air, land and water from pollution and that preserve our natural resources for the use and enjoyment of generations to come.”
Assistant Attorney General Moreno also announced this morning the publication of ENRD’s Fiscal Year 2011 Accomplishments Report. The full report, which details the division’s work across the nation during FY2011, is posted at www.justice.gov/enrd/Current_topics.html . Among other things, the report details the civil and criminal enforcement of the nation’s environmental laws, resulting in immeasurable benefits for human health and the environment derived from significant reductions in emissions and discharges of harmful pollutants. Other results detailed in the report show:
· Over $625 million in civil and stipulated penalties, cost recoveries, natural resource damages and other civil monetary relief, including almost $420 million recovered for the Superfund.
· More than $10.9 billion in corrective measures through civil court orders and settlements – the highest injunctive relief in any fiscal year to date.
· 52 criminal cases against 77 defendants, obtaining nearly 53 years in confinement and over $31.2 million in criminal fines, restitution, community service funds and special assessments.
A core mission of the division is the strong enforcement of civil and criminal environmental laws to protect our nation’s air, land, water and natural resources. The division’s mission also includes vigorous defense of environmental, wildlife and natural resources laws and agency actions; effective stewardship of our public lands and natural resources; and careful and respectful management of the United States’ obligations to American Indian tribes and their members, including litigation to protect tribal sovereignty, rights and resources. Also in 2011, with colleagues in the Civil Division, ENRD attorneys continued to play an instrumental role in the litigation that followed the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
2012 will mark the ninth consecutive Earth Day service celebration at Marvin Gaye Park. ENRD has devoted over 5,500 hours of employee time to planting trees, removing trash, laying sod and gardening.
“It's a real honor to have ENRD staff back again this year,” said Washington Parks & People Director Steve Coleman. “Their inspiring dedication and hard work have helped these communities to create a beautiful lasting legacy of environmental reclamation, justice and opportunity for all in this stream valley.
The Community Greening Center is a neighborhood-based nursery for plants and trees as well as an environmental education resource center located near the intersection of 51st Street and Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave., N.E. ENRD volunteers broke ground on the Greening Center last year together with Washington Parks & People and volunteers from the DC Green Corps. This is the first native plant tree staging area in the city.
This year, ENRD volunteers were joined by graduates from the DC Green Corps urban forestry job training program. Tree planting will take place at a nearby public housing complex and on a hillside in the stream valley. Planting trees will provide shade for green space for residents and children who play in the area and more stormwater capture for the stream valley, which is part of the sub-watershed of the Anacostia River. Volunteers will also be adding irrigation systems to the Community Greening Center.
The DC Green Corps, based at the Marvin Gaye Community Greening Center in the Watts Branch sub-watershed of the Anacostia River, will provide a city-wide gateway to 50 different green career tracks in urban and community forestry and forest-based ecosystem and watershed restoration. Helping under-served sub-watershed communities across the city, the Green Corps job program will focus on environmental justice, sustainable native reforestation, riparian buffer planting, invasive removal and green controls of urban systems, such as storm and sewer flows. The Green Corps and Center will develop a referral system to help participants connect to jobs through a wide range of agencies, professional and trade associations, trades, professions and industries.
JUSTICE SAYS TRAINING IMPORTANT TO KEEP CHILDREN SAFE FROM INTERNET CRIMINALS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Training to Protect Children from Internet Crimes
April 19th, 2012
Posted by Tracy Russo
The following post appears courtesy of Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary Lou Leary of the Office of Justice Programs
Training investigators, prosecutors and law enforcement across America to keep our children safe is a critical part of our work at the Office of Justice Programs.
At our 2012 National Law Enforcement Training on Child Exploitation this week, we bring together many practitioners to address internet crimes against children—including law enforcement, prosecutors, forensic examiners, victim witness specialists, members from our Internet Crimes Against Children Task Forces—to learn about cutting-edge technology to stop internet crimes against children.
As the Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs, I have the honor of overseeing the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program. The program helps state and local law enforcement agencies develop task forces to effectively respond to cyber enticement and child pornography cases. These task forces recently arrested the 31,000th person suspected of committing a crime of child sexual exploitation.
We have been successful, but we cannot yet declare victory over these devastating crimes. Tomorrow’s technology will enable future crimes in ways we that are difficult to anticipate.
A few years ago, we had no idea that cell phones, with texting and internet surfing capabilities, would be in the hands of so many children. We didn’t know that electronic storage devices full of thousands of images and hours of video would become so tiny and inexpensive. We certainly didn’t know that video gaming would move from the family room to the Internet. And we don’t know what’s next.
Cutting-edge training is a vital tool in our fight against child exploitation so we can stay ahead of – or at least keep up with –advances in technology. We in the Justice Department know that funds for training and technical assistance are a sound investment—in fact, they are some of the best spent federal dollars for getting results effectively and efficiently.
Similarly, we can make no better investment than in our nation’s children. The Attorney General’s signature program, the Defending Childhood Initiative, was launched in 2010 to address a national crisis: the exposure of America’s children to violence as victims and as witnesses. Research tells us children’s exposure to violence is often associated with long-term physical, psychological, and emotional harm, and that children exposed to violence are at a higher risk of engaging in criminal behavior later in life.
The explosion of new technologies these days requires that we expand our knowledge and skills in order to stop these new kinds of crimes and bring the criminals to justice. Our communities rely on law enforcement to assist them in their times of need — and we are never more in need than when our children are in trouble.
GOVERNMENT REPORT SAYS COMPETITIVE BIDDING SAVES MEDICARE MONEY
FROM: DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
New report: Competitive bidding saving money for taxpayers and people with Medicare
April 18, 2012
Health care law expands second round, program will save up to $42.8 billion
People with Medicare are already saving money on durable medical equipment (DME) through the Medicare competitive bidding program, according to a report released today by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
According to the report, the program saved $202 million in its first year in nine metropolitan statistical areas – a reduction of 42 percent in costs and, as the program expands under the Affordable Care Act and earlier law, it could save up to $42.8 billion for taxpayers and beneficiaries over the next 10 years.
“Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, we can expand this successful example of health care reform to include more areas and achieve savings on a national level over the next few years. People with Medicare across the country will get the medical equipment they need to live their lives, while saving them and other taxpayers money in the process,” Secretary Sebelius said. “The law is already saving those with Medicare hundreds of dollars on their health care needs – from medical equipment to prescription drugs—and they will continue to save in the years to come.”
The report also released results that show, after extensive monitoring by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), there have been no negative effects on the health of people on Medicare or their access to needed supplies and services.
“Seniors, and people with disabilities on Medicare, are saving money thanks to our successful competitive bidding program," said CMS Acting Administrator Marilyn Tavenner. "By expanding this successful program, we will save tens of billions of dollars for beneficiaries and taxpayers over the next 10 years."
Key information in the report:
Seniors, and people with disabilities in Medicare, will directly save a projected $17.1 billion due to lower co-insurance for durable medical equipment and lower premiums for Medicare over the next decade, while taxpayers are projected to save an additional $25.7 billion through the Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund because of reduced prices.
In the first year of implementation in nine metropolitan statistical areas, through a combination of lower prices and fewer unnecessary services, the competitive bidding program saved Medicare $202 million.
Medicare beneficiaries in the nine areas had substantial reductions in their co-insurance for DME.
Last year alone, people with Medicare saved up to $105 on hospital beds, $168 on oxygen concentrators, and $140 on diabetic test strips.
A real-time claims monitoring system, set up to ensure that access to supplies was not compromised, has found that people on Medicare continue to have access to all necessary and appropriate items.
The Affordable Care Act expands Round 2 of the DME competitive bidding program from 70 to 91 metropolitan statistical areas across the country. CMS is evaluating bids from suppliers for the 91 areas. By 2016, all areas of the country will benefit from either the competitive bidding program or lower rates based on the competitively bid rates.
STORM SYSTEM SEEN FROM SATELLITE LIES ABOUT 190 MILES NORTH OF DARWIN, AUSTRALIA
This image of System 99P was captured on April 20, 2012 at 04:55 UTC (12:55 a.m. EDT) by the MODIS instrument onboard NASA's Aqua satellite. It was centered about 190 nautical miles north-northeast of Darwin, Australia and showed some areas of strong thunderstorms west of its center of circulation.
Credit: NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response
This image of System 99P was captured on April 20, 2012 at 04:55 UTC (12:55 a.m. EDT) by the MODIS instrument onboard NASA's Aqua satellite. It was centered about 190 nautical miles north-northeast of Darwin, Australia and showed some areas of strong thunderstorms west of its center of circulation.
Credit: NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid ResponseNASA Sees Slow-Developing System 99P Dogging Northern Australia
NASA satellites have been monitoring the slow-to-develop low pressure area called System 99P for four days as it lingers in the Arafura Sea, north Australia's Northern Territory. Satellite data indicates that System 99P is likely to continue struggling because of weak organization and nearby dry air.
System 99P was captured in an infrared image on April 20, 2012 at 04:55 UTC (12:55 a.m. EDT) by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument that flies onboard NASA's Aqua satellite. At that time, System 99P was centered about 190 nautical miles (218.6 miles/ 352 km) north-northeast of Darwin, Australia, near 9.9 South latitude and 132.6 East longitude. The western-most extent of System 99P was now entering the Timor Sea (located west of the Arafura Sea). In fact, today's (April 20) MODIS infrared imagery revealed that System 99P showed some areas of strong thunderstorms west of its center of circulation, over the eastern edge of the Timor Sea. However, those thunderstorms remain disorganized and the low-level circulation is weak.
The TRMM satellite, managed by NASA and JAXA also gathered data from struggling System 99P. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite passed over April 19 at 1142 UTC (7:42 a.m. EDT), and revealed curved banding of thunderstorms wrapping weakly into the center of the low. Total precipitable water products currently indicate there is sufficient moisture associated with the low, and that's the fuel for the tropical cyclone.
Even though there's a good amount of moisture available, dry air lingers nearby. Dry air can sap the life's blood (moisture) from a developing tropical cyclone. Satellite data shows dry air west of 130 East. In addition, an upper-air sounding from Darwin, Australia indicated dry air in its recent moisture profile.
The Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) is the entity that forecasts tropical cyclones in this part of the world and has been continuously gathering and analyzing data to determine if System 99P will further develop. JTWC cited surface observations from McCluer Island, which is located 65 nautical miles (74.8 miles/120.4 km) south-southeast of 99P's center. The island's weather observation noted northeasterly winds at 15-20 knots (17.3 - 23.0 mph / 27.7-37.0 kph). and sea level pressure near 1006 millibars.
Looking back, on April 19, System 99P was centered near 9.0S 132.8E, about 240 miles NE of Darwin, Australia and visible MODIS imagery from NASA's Terra satellite showed deep convection/t-storms flaring on western quadrant. At that time, maximum sustained winds were near 15 knots (17.3 mph/27.7 kph). On April 18 the MODIS image on NASA's Aqua satellite showed disorganized cloud cover as System 99P was still struggling. Its maximum sustained winds were 15 knots (17.3 mph/27.7 kph). When NASA passed over System 99P on the date of its birth, April 17, 2012, it was having a difficult time getting organized because of wind shear. It was located in the Arafura Sea, between northern Australia and Irian Jaya, Indonesia.
As of April 20, the forecasters at the JTWC said, "There is no significant model development due [in the next 24 hours] to the overall marginal environment and weak organization."
MILITARY WAREHOUSE PERSONNEL TAKE CARE OF THEIR BATTAION
Marine Corps Lance Cpls. Lud G. Romain, left, Lagrima C. Urista, center, and Brian A. Yanez take a break from supply warehouse duties at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Mark Stroud
Face of Defense: Warehouse Clerks Band Together
By Marine Corps Cpl. Mark Stroud
1st Marine Logistics Group
CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan, April 16, 2012 - Three Marines here make sure their fellow Marines have everything they need.
"Pretty much everything anyone has out here came through supply at one point," said Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Lud G. Romain, assistant warehouse chief, Combat Logistics Battalion 4, 1st Marine Logistics Group. "We have three lance corporals in the warehouse taking care of the entire battalion."
Once the supply warehouse meets the battalion's supply needs, CLB-4 provides direct combat logistics support to Regimental Combat Team 6.
Romain and one of the other supply warehouse clerks, Lance Cpl. Brian A. Yanez, began their journey together at the birthplace of many Marine Corps friendships -- military occupational school. Lance Cpl. Lagrima C. Urista, another supply warehouse clerk, joined the duo shortly afterward at their first duty station, Camp Foster, Marine Corps Base Camp Butler, Japan.
"Romain and I had already been a good team on Okinawa when we first met Urista, but when we did, we knew we had found someone who was going to be a great addition," Yanez said.
Their group bonded by day at work and explored Okinawa by night, taking advantage of the recreational and historical sites on the island, Urista said. Less than two years into their careers, their service has already taken them across thousands of miles, with stops in five countries on two continents.
"We first met in Japan, but since then we have been on training exercises or deployments in [South Korea], America, Kyrgyzstan and now Afghanistan," Yanez said.
Afghanistan's Helmand province is the most-recent stop for the supply Marines.
"I think we will look back at this deployment in 20 years as an opportunity that was given to us to rise to the challenge of taking on [noncommissioned officer] responsibilities as lance corporals," Yanez said. "[We] have always [had] responsibilities, but this is the first time we were given this level of responsibility. It is a good feeling knowing we are accomplishing the mission."
The Marines have learned to trust and rely on one another over the course of their friendship.
"It is always noticeable whenever one of us is out of the warehouse for training or convoys," Yanez said. "We have learned to rely on each other. When we are all here, everything thing runs perfectly smooth, but it becomes apparent how important each Marine is whenever one of us is gone."
The bonds formed during training have helped the Marines accomplish their mission, both individually and as a team. These bonds have given them experience beyond their rank.
"Each of them is capable of making their own decisions -- decisions that NCOs would normally make," said Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Drew McDonald, CLB-4's supply warehouse chief. "They make a good team, and it helps them every day."
Romain, a Newark, N.J., native, uses his natural tenacity to complete his duties as assistant warehouse chief, Yanez said.
Yanez, a Buena Park, Calif., native, is a fixture around the CLB-4 compound, spending time as the Defense Reutilization Management Office NCO, assisting with base improvement projects and managing the DRMO pit, where excess or broken equipment is taken for disposal or reuse.
The junior Marine in the warehouse, Urista, a Vernon, Texas, native, brings a positive attitude to the table, motivating her fellow Marines on even the longest days while working as roll-back clerk, Yanez said.
The trio intends to continue their friendship long after the deployment is over, carrying the bonds they forged with their fellow Marines with them for the rest of their lives, Urista said.
"We will probably try to stay in contact, but even if we don't, we will take what we learned from each other and pass it on to the next group of Marines," Yanez said.
4 ISAF MEMBERS DIE IN AFGHANISTAN HELICOPTER CREASH
FROM: AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
Afghanistan Helicopter Crash Claims 4 Service Members
Compiled from International Security Assistance Force Joint Command News Releases
WASHINGTON, April 20, 2012 - Four International Security Assistance Force service members died in a helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan yesterday, military officials reported.
The cause of the crash is under investigation, officials said.
In other Afghanistan news, the U.S. Army's 1st Infantry Division, known as the "Big Red One," took charge of military operations in eastern Afghanistan during a ceremony at Bagram Airfield yesterday, officials reported.
The division, which is home-based at Fort Riley, Kan., assumed command authority of Regional Command-East from the 1st Cavalry Division. The latter unit is returning to Fort Hood, Texas, after a successful year-long tour in Afghanistan.
Operating as Combined Joint Task Force-1, the 1st Infantry Division will command and control operations throughout RC-East, an area roughly the size of Virginia, including 14 provinces, 7.5 million Afghans and 450 kilometers of mountainous terrain along the border with Pakistan.
Army Maj. Gen. William C. Mayville, Jr., commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division and CJTF-1, provided remarks during the ceremony.
"Our mission over the next year is to maintain the momentum of this campaign, relentlessly pursuing insurgent networks, assisting Afghan efforts to assert sovereignty along the border, and accelerating the development" of Afghan national security forces, Mayville said.
Mayville's task force consists of more than 32,000 coalition troops, including five U.S. brigade combat teams as well as troops from nine NATO countries.
The division is appreciative of its partnership with Afghan security forces, Mayville said.
"The Afghan security forces are growing and maturing at a rapid rate," the general said. "Governance, combined with the growing security environment, has limited the Taliban's ability to exert their negative influence.
"Still, we know this is a tough fight," Mayville continued, "but it is a fight we will win, due to our strong partnership" with the Afghan security forces.
Mayville's team will work closely with civilian agencies. U.S. Ambassador Richard Olson, the coordinating director for development and economic affairs in Kabul, attended the ceremony and gave a brief interview about the future of the civilian-military partnership in RC-East.
"The model [civilian-military] integration here is unlike any we've seen before," Olson said. "The military's strides in security, along with its joint work with [Provincial Reconstruction Teams], have given us the ability to focus on governance and development here.
"We've contributed a lot to Afghanistan in the last 10 years," Olson added. "Now the challenge is to make sure the Afghan people have the capacity to continue these successes and projects after 2014."
Army Maj. Gen. William C. Mayville, Jr., commanding general of the 1st Infantry Division and CJTF-1, provided remarks during the ceremony.
"Our mission over the next year is to maintain the momentum of this campaign, relentlessly pursuing insurgent networks, assisting Afghan efforts to assert sovereignty along the border, and accelerating the development" of Afghan national security forces, Mayville said.
Mayville's task force consists of more than 32,000 coalition troops, including five U.S. brigade combat teams as well as troops from nine NATO countries.
The division is appreciative of its partnership with Afghan security forces, Mayville said.
"The Afghan security forces are growing and maturing at a rapid rate," the general said. "Governance, combined with the growing security environment, has limited the Taliban's ability to exert their negative influence.
"Still, we know this is a tough fight," Mayville continued, "but it is a fight we will win, due to our strong partnership" with the Afghan security forces.
Mayville's team will work closely with civilian agencies. U.S. Ambassador Richard Olson, the coordinating director for development and economic affairs in Kabul, attended the ceremony and gave a brief interview about the future of the civilian-military partnership in RC-East.
"The model [civilian-military] integration here is unlike any we've seen before," Olson said. "The military's strides in security, along with its joint work with [Provincial Reconstruction Teams], have given us the ability to focus on governance and development here.
"We've contributed a lot to Afghanistan in the last 10 years," Olson added. "Now the challenge is to make sure the Afghan people have the capacity to continue these successes and projects after 2014."
FATHER-SON HEDGE FUND MANAGERS CHARGED WITH MISLEADING INVESTORS
FROM: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C., April 20, 2012 – The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a Boston-based father-son duo of hedge fund managers and their firms with securities fraud for misleading investors about their investment strategy and past performance.
The SEC’s investigation found that Gabriel and Marco Bitran raised millions of dollars for their hedge funds through GMB Capital Management LLC and GMB Capital Partners LLC by falsely telling investors they had a lengthy track record of success based on actual trades using real money. In truth, the Bitrans knew the track record was based on back-tested hypothetical simulations. The Bitrans also misled investors in certain hedge funds to believe they used quantitative optimal pricing models devised by Gabriel Bitran to invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and other liquid securities. Instead, they merely invested the money almost entirely in other hedge funds. GMB Capital Management later provided false documents to SEC staff examining the firm’s claims in marketing materials of a successful track record.
The Bitrans agreed to be barred from the securities industry and pay a total of $4.8 million to settle the SEC’s charges.
“The Bitrans solicited investors by touting an impressive track record and a unique investment strategy, and they lied about both,” said David P. Bergers, Director of the SEC’s Boston Regional Office.
According to the SEC’s order instituting settled administrative proceedings, Gabriel Bitran founded GMB Capital Management in 2005 for the stated purpose of managing hedge funds using quantitative models he developed based on his academic optimal pricing research to trade primarily ETFs. He and his son Marco Bitran solicited potential investors with three primary selling points:
Very successful performance track records based on actual trades using real money from 1998 to the inception of the hedge funds.
The firm’s use of Gabriel Bitran’s proprietary optimal pricing model to trade ETFs.
Gabriel Bitran’s involvement as founder and portfolio manager of the funds.
The SEC’s order states that over a period of three years, the Bitrans raised more than $500 million for eight hedge funds and various managed accounts while making these misrepresentations to investors. In order to market the hedge funds, GMB Management and the Bitrans created performance track records beginning in January 1998 showing double-digit annualized return without any down years. They distributed these track records to potential investors in marketing materials, and told investors that they were based on actual trading with real money using Gabriel Bitran’s optimal pricing models. In reality, the Bitrans knew their representations were false and the track records were based on hypothetical historical investments. For two of their hedge funds, they created track records showing annualized returns of 16.2 percent and 11.7 percent with no down years, and told investors the returns were based on actual trading when in fact they were based on hypothetical historical allocations to hedge fund managers.
According to the SEC’s order, investors were misled to believe their money was being invested according to Gabriel Bitran’s unique quant strategy when in reality certain GMB hedge funds were merely investing predominantly in other hedge funds without his involvement. For example, investors in two GMB hedge funds were told that Gabriel Bitran spent 80 percent of his time managing the funds and was involved in reviewing trades in the funds on a daily basis. However, he actually had no role in the management of either fund. Both funds experienced a series of losses at the end of 2008, and GMB eventually dissolved them. When a possible financial fraud at the Petters Group Worldwide was reported in late September 2008, the two hedge funds’ investments in a fund that was entirely invested in the Petters Group became illiquid. However, GMB did not disclose to investors that it had been impacted by the Petters fraud, instead sending investors a letter stating that “a swap instrument that the Fund entered into seeking to realize a higher return on a portion of its uninvested cash” had become illiquid because “one of the parties underlying the swap instrument is currently experiencing a credit and liquidity crisis, in conjunction with other alleged factors.” Furthermore, the two GMB funds suffered significant losses in hedge funds that had invested with Bernard Madoff. These investments in funds that ultimately invested with the Petters Group and Madoff were made contrary to what GMB investors were told.
According to the SEC’s order, during an SEC examination of GMB Capital Management, the firm produced a document that the Bitrans claimed was a real-time record of Gabriel Bitran’s trades since 1998. In fact, the document was false and created solely for the purpose of responding to the SEC staff’s request for the books and records that supported GMB’s performance claims.
The GMB entities and the Bitrans neither admitted nor denied the SEC’s findings in settling the charges. They agreed to pay disgorgement of $4.3 million. Gabriel and Marco Bitran also agreed to pay $250,000 each in penalties and be barred from the securities industry, and the GMB entities will be censured. The SEC’s order requires the Bitrans and the GMB entities to cease and desist from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Sections 204, 206(1), 206(2) and 206(4) of the Advisers Act and Rules 204-2(a)(16) and 206(4)-8 thereunder.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Kerry Dakin, Kevin Kelcourse, and Kathleen Shields of the Boston Regional Office. Paul Prata, Elizabeth Ward, and Milton Pepin of the Boston Regional Office worked on the SEC’s examination. Stuart Jackson of the SEC’s Division of Risk, Strategy, and Financial Innovation assisted in the investigation.
U.S TREASURY ON WALL STREET REFORM
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Wall Street Reform for U.S. Department of the Treasury
As prepared for delivery
NEW YORK – Good afternoon. It is a privilege to address the International Section of the American Bar Association, and to be speaking about international regulatory reform. The subject matter is particularly timely given that the world’s finance ministers will gather in Washington, D.C. for the G-20 this weekend.
We have learned from recent events, including the financial crisis, that financial systems and markets around the world are more integrated than ever. Therefore, financial reforms around the globe must be consistent and convergent.
I will touch on three key priorities that were agreed upon by the G-20 – capital, resolution, and OTC derivatives – as well as insurance regulation.
We are transitioning now from regulatory design to implementation. We must acknowledge that the task is both difficult and complex. We must work together through the G-20 and the Financial Stability Board to make the new rules effective. We all share a common interest in a global financial system that is safe and resilient, and that supports growth.
The Importance of Reform
Let me begin by retreading familiar ground: the financial crisis revealed that the risks facing our system can be correlated and crosscutting, and that they can affect multiple firms, markets, and countries simultaneously. The crisis laid bare the fundamental weaknesses of the previous financial regulatory infrastructure.
To preserve financial stability, it became essential to establish a regulatory structure that could properly assess the financial system as a whole, not simply its component parts – a regulatory structure in which the failure of one firm, or problems in one corner of the system, would not risk bringing down the entire financial system. It was important to establish a modern regulatory framework that could keep pace with financial sector innovations, restore market discipline, and safeguard financial stability in both the United States and abroad. The United States has played a leading role in this global financial reform by enacting the Dodd-Frank Act.
Some have argued that these new rules and standards put U.S. financial firms at a competitive disadvantage. While we must always work towards having a level competitive playing field, I believe such arguments are misplaced.
First, by moving quickly, we in the United States have been able to lead from a position of strength in setting the international reform agenda.
Second, there is already evidence that our actions – both the immediate response to the crisis and permanent reforms under the Dodd-Frank Act – have bolstered the recovery of the U.S. financial system. Bank balance sheets are stronger. Tier 1 common equity at large bank holding companies has increased by more than 70 percent or by $560 billion since the first quarter of 2009. Additionally, at the four largest bank holding companies, for example, reliance on short-term wholesale financial debt has decreased from a peak of 36 percent of total assets in 2007 to 20 percent at the end of 2011. The firms’ liquidity positions are more robust and their funding sources are more reliable. Firms have significantly reduced leverage. Recent stress tests showed that the bank holding companies are better able to withstand significant shocks.
Third, I believe that consumers, investors, and businesses feel more secure when they deal with financial institutions that are well-regulated and transparent, because these attributes engender trust. Trust is essential for the financial system to perform its most basic functions, including credit intermediation. For many years, investors from all over the world have trusted the U.S. financial system. Regulation that is both strong and sensible is essential to continue that trust.
Over the past three years, we have made substantial progress in restoring this trust to our financial system and thereby improving financial stability. Long-term economic growth and credit intermediation are only sustainable under a model in which there is confidence in financial stability.
International Coordination
All of this being said, it is nevertheless important to remember that financial systems are interconnected and that risks both transcend and migrate across national borders. Therefore, we must work towards building a system where there is broad global agreement on the basic rules of the road.
Global coordination is important not only for maintaining a level playing field, but also for promoting financial stability. We can ill afford the risk of regulatory arbitrage. If riskier activities migrate unchecked to jurisdictions with inadequate rules and supervision, the threats that will emerge will have implications not just for the host country, but for the global financial system. The financial crisis exposed the failure of weak regulation.
Europe has taken important steps toward reform. The EU is working through its most extensive financial services reform. It has proposed or adopted around thirty reform measures, including almost all of the key measures agreed to by the G-20. The United States and the EU are aligned on the fundamental goals of regulatory reform, and are united by a shared view that it is necessary to complete at an international level the work that is underway. Treasury and U.S. regulatory agencies have worked closely with our counterparts in the European Commission and the European Supervisory Agencies to align our regulations more closely.
It is unlikely that we and our European counterparts will attain perfect alignment. But most of the differences between us are technical, not matters of principle. While we must work diligently to resolve our technical differences, we should not let them overshadow our shared commitment to reform. We must also see to it that other regions follow through on implementing reforms, particularly Asia, given the importance of financial centers like Hong Kong, Singapore, and Tokyo. The global financial system will continue to strengthen as a result of our efforts. Backtracking on reforms is not an option.
G-20 and the Joint Reform Agenda
The G-20 has been, and will continue to be, a key vehicle for coordinating our reform efforts. Since the first meetings of the G-20, and especially since the Pittsburgh meetings during the height of the financial crisis in 2009, the Group has worked to increase the strength and effectiveness of the international regulatory framework through a comprehensive agenda for reform. This agenda has been reaffirmed and further developed at each subsequent Summit. The Financial Stability Forum, which was expanded and strengthened as the Financial Stability Board (FSB) in 2009, has also played a key role in this process, with support from the global standard-setting bodies.
This year in the G-20, the United States is emphasizing progress on implementation in three key areas: capital, resolution, and OTC derivatives. Let me now turn to discussing these three priorities as well as international coordination around insurance, which will also be an area of focus in the coming year.
Capital
The crisis showed that financial institutions were not sufficiently capitalized to withstand significant market pressures. To maintain financial stability, taxpayers in countries across the globe had to provide capital support to financial institutions in order to prevent their failure. There was little question that, going forward, banks needed to be more resilient, with better quality capital buffers.
The international regulatory community acted with dispatch and urgency to achieve consensus on Basel 2.5 and Basel III capital standards. The new Basel capital standards provide a uniform definition of capital across jurisdictions, and it requires banks to hold significantly more and higher-quality capital. The reforms to the Basel Capital Standards also establish a mandatory leverage ratio and a liquidity coverage ratio.
More work remains with respect to the Basel Capital Standards. International agreement on standards must be followed with implementation by G-20 members. Moreover, important debates continue around issues such as liquidity run-off ratios and measurement of capital deductions. The Basel Committee is now working toward more consistent measurement of risk-weighted assets across jurisdictions.
While these points are relatively technical, it is important that the new rules be consistent not only in principle, but also in practice. Consistent cross-border application of capital standards is important to maintaining a level playing field.
Resolution
Strengthening cross-border resolution regimes is complicated. But it is a critically important topic.
The U.S. experience with Lehman Brothers showed the potentially devastating consequences to financial stability of the disorderly bankruptcy of a financial firm. Thus, the Dodd-Frank Act provides for orderly resolution of financial companies, including non-bank financial institutions. The FDIC and Federal Reserve have already adopted a number of rules pursuant to these new authorities, including a “living wills” rule that requires large bank holding companies and designated nonbank financial companies to prepare resolution plans. The largest bank holding companies will submit the first living wills in July.
The goal of international convergence was furthered this year when the G-20 endorsed the “Key Attributes of Effective Resolution Regimes for Financial Institutions.” This new international standard addresses such critical issues as the scope and independence of the resolution authority, the essential powers and authorities that a resolution authority must possess, and how jurisdictions can facilitate cross-border cooperation in resolutions of significant financial institutions. The Key Attributes provide guidelines for how jurisdictions should develop recovery and resolution plans for specific institutions and for assessing the resolvability of their institutions. This new international standard also sets forth the elements that countries should include in their resolution regimes while avoiding severe systemic consequences or taxpayer loss.
Therefore, much progress has already been made and even more will be completed by the end of this year: cross-border crisis management groups for the largest firms have been established, additional cross-border cooperation agreements will be put in place, and recovery and resolution plans are being developed.
Derivatives
The crisis also showed that we did not have a sufficient understanding of derivatives, which are an important means of interconnection between firms. The flaws attendant to this area of financial transactions were many: poor access to useful data such that, at critical times, neither supervisors nor counterparties knew who owed what to whom; poor risk management such that firms were not able to satisfy their contractual obligations with respect to collateral; and a generally fragmented and opaque market. It is common ground that the lack of oversight in the derivatives markets exacerbated the financial crisis.
The Dodd-Frank Act creates a comprehensive framework of regulation for the OTC derivatives markets. The elements of this framework include regulation of dealers, mandatory clearing, trading, and transparency. The framework established under the Dodd-Frank Act is consistent with that of the G-20. The CFTC and SEC are well into their rule-making process. Once again, the United States and the EU have closely cooperated in this area, and have adopted parallel approaches to important issues such as central clearing, trading platforms, and reporting to trade repositories.
While the reforms set forth a framework for on-exchange-traded derivatives, it is also important for us to make progress on establishing a global regime for margin for bespoke, un-cleared derivatives transactions. Both the United States and the EU support international work on global margin standards for trades that are not cleared through a central counterparty. Margin requirements are critical to promoting the safety and soundness of the dealers, and thereby lower risk in the financial system.
While we have made some progress, there is still much work to be done on derivatives, including completing the implementation efforts and meeting agreed G-20 timetables.
Insurance
Finally, I would like to turn to insurance regulation. Important strides have been made in this area. The Dodd-Frank Act created and placed within the Treasury Department the Federal Insurance Office (FIO). While FIO is not a regulator, it has broad responsibilities to monitor all aspects of the insurance industry and is the first federal office in this sector. Among its duties, FIO is charged with coordinating federal efforts and developing federal policy on prudential aspects of international insurance matters, including representing the United States in the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, or IAIS. Notably, FIO recently joined the Executive Committee of the IAIS.
FIO’s establishment coincides with the rapid internationalization of the insurance sector and work ongoing in various international regulatory bodies that will affect U.S.-based companies operating around the world. FIO’s international priorities include the IAIS initiative to create a common framework for the supervision of internationally active insurance groups, or ComFrame. FIO is also engaged in the IAIS work stream to develop a methodology that will identify globally significant insurance institutions, an assignment given to the IAIS by the Financial Stability Board. Finally, FIO is leading an insurance dialogue between the United States and the EU that aims to establish a platform for insurers based on both sides of the Atlantic to compete fairly and on a level playing field.
Conclusion
We must continue to work with our partners in the G-20 and the Financial Stability Board to ensure a consistent international financial reform agenda. It is not enough to mitigate risk within the United States. Reform must be global in nature.
But, financial reform cannot just respond to events of the past. It must be forward-looking and it must help lay the foundations for sustainable growth. Financial reform, embodied by responsible and robust regulation, is critical to establishing and maintaining confidence. Confidence is critical for long-term financial stability and growth.
Our past experience confirms our current judgment. In the decades following the Great Depression, the United States set the highest standards for disclosure and investor protection, the strongest protections for depositors, and sophisticated market rules. We did not lower our standards even when others might have. Financial regulation became a source of strength for our financial system and led to a period of significant growth and prosperity.
Today, as our predecessors did in the wake of the Great Depression, we also have the opportunity to restore trust in the global financial system through a smart regulatory framework that could support sustainable economic expansion.
Thank you.
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