FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Charges Bank of America Entities with Material Misrepresentations and Omissions in Connection with an RMBS Offering
On August 6, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) filed a civil injunctive action against Bank of America, N.A. (“BANA”), Banc of America Mortgage Securities, Inc. (“BOAMS”), and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. f/k/a Banc of America Securities LLC (“BAS”) (collectively the “Bank of America Entities”). The Commission alleges that the Bank of America Entities made material misrepresentations and omissions in connection with the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities known as BOAMS 2008-A. Specifically, the complaint alleges that the Bank of America Entities failed to disclose the disproportionate concentration of wholesale loans (72% by unpaid principal balance) underlying BOAMS 2008-A as compared to prior BOAMS offerings. The complaint also alleges that the Bank of America Entities failed to disclose known risks associated with the high concentration of wholesale loans in BOAMS 2008-A including higher likelihood that the loans would be subject to material underwriting errors, become severely delinquent, fail early in the life of the loan, or prepay. The complaint further alleges that the Bank of America entities violated Regulation S-K and subpart Regulation AB of the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) by failing to disclose the material characteristics of the pool of loans underlying BOAMS 2008-A. The complaint also alleges that the Bank of America Entities made material misrepresentations and omissions in its public filings and in the loan tapes it provided to investors and rating agencies that the loans in BOAMS 2008-A complied with BANA’s underwriting standards when a material amount did not. Finally, the complaint alleges that BOAMS and BAS violated Section 5(b)(1) of the Securities Act by failing to file with the Commission certain loan tapes that it provided only to select investors.
The Commission’s complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, charges the Bank of America Entities with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. The complaint alleges that that each violated Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act. The complaint also alleges that BAS and BOAMS violated Section 5(b)(1) of the Securities Act. The complaint seeks against each of the Bank of America Entities a permanent injunction, disgorgement with prejudgment interest and civil monetary penalties pursuant Section 20(d) of the Securities Act.
The Commission would like to thank the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina for its substantial assistance in this matter.
Monday, August 12, 2013
THE CHANGES IN SEASONAL CARBON DIOXIDE LEVELS
FROM: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Seasonal carbon dioxide range expanding as more is added to Earth's atmosphere
Northern Hemisphere land-based ecosystems "taking deeper breaths," scientists find
Levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rise and fall each year as plants, through photosynthesis and respiration, take up the gas in spring and summer, and release it in fall and winter.
Now the range of that cycle is expanding as more carbon dioxide is emitted from burning fossil fuels and other human activities, according to a study led by scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO).
The findings come from a multi-year airborne survey of atmospheric chemistry called HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations, or HIPPO.
Results of the study are reported in a paper published online this week by the journal Science.
The National Science Foundation (NSF), along with the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Office of Naval Research funded the study.
"This research provides dramatic evidence of the significant influence the land-based biosphere can have on the amplitude [amount of change] in seasonal trends of carbon dioxide exchange," says Sylvia Edgerton, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.
Observations of atmospheric carbon dioxide made by aircraft at altitudes between 3 and 6 kilometers (10,000-20,000 feet) show that seasonal carbon dioxide variations have substantially changed during the last 50 years.
The amplitude increased by roughly 50 percent across high latitude regions north of 45° N, compared with previous aircraft observations from the late 1950s and early 1960s.
This means that more carbon is accumulating in forests and other vegetation and soils in the Northern Hemisphere during the summer, and more carbon is being released in the fall and winter, says study lead scientist Heather Graven of SIO.
It's not yet understood, she says, why the increase in seasonal amplitude of carbon dioxide concentration is so large, but it's a clear signal of widespread changes in northern ecosystems.
"The atmospheric carbon dioxide observations are important because they show the combined effect of ecological changes over large regions," says Graven.
"This reinforces ground-based studies that show that substantial changes are occurring as a result of rising carbon dioxide concentrations, warming temperatures and changing land management, including the expansion of forests in some regions and the poleward migration of ecosystems."
Adds Peter Milne, a program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, "We can easily measure the greenhouse gas budget from a single smokestack, but somewhat less well for a stand of trees. Knowing that for the entire planet is much more challenging.
"Taking advantage of the long-duration and high-altitude-profiling capabilities of the NSF Gulfstream V aircraft [also known as HIAPER], the HIPPO project was designed to take a 'snapshot' of the global troposphere [Earth's lowest atmospheric layer] to see whether we can explain and model greenhouse gas distribution."
In the study, the scientists compared the recent aircraft data with aircraft data gathered from 1958 to 1961 using U.S. Air Force weather reconnaissance flights.
The older data were analyzed by SIO geochemist Charles David Keeling, the father of Ralph Keeling, also an SIO scientist and a member of the research team.
These aircraft measurements were done at the time Charles Keeling was beginning continuous carbon dioxide measurements at Mauna Loa, Hawaii.
While the Mauna Loa measurements are now widely recognized as the "Keeling Curve," the early aircraft data were all-but-forgotten.
Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere have varied between 170 and 280 parts per million during the last 800,000 years.
When Charles Keeling began collecting data at Mauna Loa in 1958, the concentration had risen to about 315 parts per million.
In May, 2013, daily carbon dioxide measurements at Mauna Loa exceeded 400 parts per million--for the first time in human history.
Recent observations aboard the Gulfstream V were made during regular flights conducted during the HIPPO campaign, from 2009 to 2011.
The aircraft repeatedly ascended and descended from a few hundred meters to roughly 12 kilometers (40,000 feet) in the skies between the North Pole and Antarctica. The goal was constructing a unique snapshot of the chemical composition of the atmosphere.
Additional recent data comes from regular flights conducted by NOAA at a network of locations.
Increasing carbon dioxide amplitude since 1960 had already been observed at two ground-based stations: Mauna Loa and Barrow, Alaska.
Other stations operated by Scripps and NOAA only began measuring carbon dioxide in the 1970s to 1990s.
The aircraft-based observations uniquely show the large area in northern high latitudes where carbon dioxide amplitude increased strongly since 1960.
The exact reasons for the wider seasonal swings in carbon dioxide concentration remain to be determined, say the researchers.
Although plant activity can increase with warmer temperatures and higher carbon dioxide concentrations, the change in carbon dioxide amplitude over the last 50 years is larger than expected from these effects.
Carbon dioxide concentration has increased by 23 percent, and average temperature north of 30°N has increased by one degree C, since 1960.
Other factors may be changes in the amount of carbon in leaves, wood or roots; changes in the extent or species composition of ecosystems; or changes in the timing of plant photosynthesis and respiration.
Simulating complex processes in land-based ecosystems with models is a challenge, scientists have found.
The observed change in carbon dioxide amplitude is larger than that simulated by models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
While this underestimate does not call into question the response of climate to carbon dioxide concentration in the IPCC models, the researchers say, it does suggest that a better understanding of what happened during the last 50 years could improve projections of future ecosystem changes.
The bottom line, according to Graven, Ralph Keeling and colleagues, is that Northern ecosystems appear to be behaving differently than they did 50 years ago.
In addition to Graven and Ralph Keeling, Science paper co-authors include Stephen Piper, Lisa Welp and Jonathan Bent of SIO; Prabir Patra of the Research Institute for Global Change in Yokohama, Japan; Britton Stephens of NCAR; Steven Wofsy, Bruce Daube and Gregory Santoni of Harvard University; Colm Sweeney of NOAA and the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder; Pieter Tans of NOAA; John Kelley of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks and Eric Kort of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
Seasonal carbon dioxide range expanding as more is added to Earth's atmosphere
Northern Hemisphere land-based ecosystems "taking deeper breaths," scientists find
Levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rise and fall each year as plants, through photosynthesis and respiration, take up the gas in spring and summer, and release it in fall and winter.
Now the range of that cycle is expanding as more carbon dioxide is emitted from burning fossil fuels and other human activities, according to a study led by scientists at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO).
The findings come from a multi-year airborne survey of atmospheric chemistry called HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations, or HIPPO.
Results of the study are reported in a paper published online this week by the journal Science.
The National Science Foundation (NSF), along with the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Office of Naval Research funded the study.
"This research provides dramatic evidence of the significant influence the land-based biosphere can have on the amplitude [amount of change] in seasonal trends of carbon dioxide exchange," says Sylvia Edgerton, program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.
Observations of atmospheric carbon dioxide made by aircraft at altitudes between 3 and 6 kilometers (10,000-20,000 feet) show that seasonal carbon dioxide variations have substantially changed during the last 50 years.
The amplitude increased by roughly 50 percent across high latitude regions north of 45° N, compared with previous aircraft observations from the late 1950s and early 1960s.
This means that more carbon is accumulating in forests and other vegetation and soils in the Northern Hemisphere during the summer, and more carbon is being released in the fall and winter, says study lead scientist Heather Graven of SIO.
It's not yet understood, she says, why the increase in seasonal amplitude of carbon dioxide concentration is so large, but it's a clear signal of widespread changes in northern ecosystems.
"The atmospheric carbon dioxide observations are important because they show the combined effect of ecological changes over large regions," says Graven.
"This reinforces ground-based studies that show that substantial changes are occurring as a result of rising carbon dioxide concentrations, warming temperatures and changing land management, including the expansion of forests in some regions and the poleward migration of ecosystems."
Adds Peter Milne, a program director in NSF's Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, "We can easily measure the greenhouse gas budget from a single smokestack, but somewhat less well for a stand of trees. Knowing that for the entire planet is much more challenging.
"Taking advantage of the long-duration and high-altitude-profiling capabilities of the NSF Gulfstream V aircraft [also known as HIAPER], the HIPPO project was designed to take a 'snapshot' of the global troposphere [Earth's lowest atmospheric layer] to see whether we can explain and model greenhouse gas distribution."
In the study, the scientists compared the recent aircraft data with aircraft data gathered from 1958 to 1961 using U.S. Air Force weather reconnaissance flights.
The older data were analyzed by SIO geochemist Charles David Keeling, the father of Ralph Keeling, also an SIO scientist and a member of the research team.
These aircraft measurements were done at the time Charles Keeling was beginning continuous carbon dioxide measurements at Mauna Loa, Hawaii.
While the Mauna Loa measurements are now widely recognized as the "Keeling Curve," the early aircraft data were all-but-forgotten.
Carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere have varied between 170 and 280 parts per million during the last 800,000 years.
When Charles Keeling began collecting data at Mauna Loa in 1958, the concentration had risen to about 315 parts per million.
In May, 2013, daily carbon dioxide measurements at Mauna Loa exceeded 400 parts per million--for the first time in human history.
Recent observations aboard the Gulfstream V were made during regular flights conducted during the HIPPO campaign, from 2009 to 2011.
The aircraft repeatedly ascended and descended from a few hundred meters to roughly 12 kilometers (40,000 feet) in the skies between the North Pole and Antarctica. The goal was constructing a unique snapshot of the chemical composition of the atmosphere.
Additional recent data comes from regular flights conducted by NOAA at a network of locations.
Increasing carbon dioxide amplitude since 1960 had already been observed at two ground-based stations: Mauna Loa and Barrow, Alaska.
Other stations operated by Scripps and NOAA only began measuring carbon dioxide in the 1970s to 1990s.
The aircraft-based observations uniquely show the large area in northern high latitudes where carbon dioxide amplitude increased strongly since 1960.
The exact reasons for the wider seasonal swings in carbon dioxide concentration remain to be determined, say the researchers.
Although plant activity can increase with warmer temperatures and higher carbon dioxide concentrations, the change in carbon dioxide amplitude over the last 50 years is larger than expected from these effects.
Carbon dioxide concentration has increased by 23 percent, and average temperature north of 30°N has increased by one degree C, since 1960.
Other factors may be changes in the amount of carbon in leaves, wood or roots; changes in the extent or species composition of ecosystems; or changes in the timing of plant photosynthesis and respiration.
Simulating complex processes in land-based ecosystems with models is a challenge, scientists have found.
The observed change in carbon dioxide amplitude is larger than that simulated by models used by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
While this underestimate does not call into question the response of climate to carbon dioxide concentration in the IPCC models, the researchers say, it does suggest that a better understanding of what happened during the last 50 years could improve projections of future ecosystem changes.
The bottom line, according to Graven, Ralph Keeling and colleagues, is that Northern ecosystems appear to be behaving differently than they did 50 years ago.
In addition to Graven and Ralph Keeling, Science paper co-authors include Stephen Piper, Lisa Welp and Jonathan Bent of SIO; Prabir Patra of the Research Institute for Global Change in Yokohama, Japan; Britton Stephens of NCAR; Steven Wofsy, Bruce Daube and Gregory Santoni of Harvard University; Colm Sweeney of NOAA and the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder; Pieter Tans of NOAA; John Kelley of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks and Eric Kort of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
Sunday, August 11, 2013
U.S. CONDEMNS TERRORIST ATTACKS IN IRAQ
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
U.S. Condemns Terrorist Attacks in Iraq and Pledges to Help Combat al Qaeda
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Spokesperson, Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
August 10, 2013
The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms the cowardly attacks in Baghdad. These attacks were aimed at families celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday that marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The terrorists who committed these acts are enemies of Islam and a shared enemy of the United States, Iraq, and the international community.
The attacks today bear the hallmarks of similar suicide and vehicle bomb attacks in Iraq over the past ninety days. Most of these attacks have been perpetrated by al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). AQI is led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under Executive Order 13224. He is also listed at the United Nations Security Council 1267/1989 al-Qa'ida Sanctions Committee.
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, also known as Abu D'ua, is now based in Syria and has changed the name of AQI to the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS). He has taken personal credit for a series of terrorist attacks in Iraq since 2011, and most recently claimed credit for the operations against the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad, the suicide bombing assault on the Ministry of Justice, among other attacks against Iraqi Security Forces and Iraqi citizens going about their daily lives.
The United States has offered a $10 million reward for information that helps authorities kill or capture Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. This reward is second only to information leading to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the chief of Al Qaeda’s network, and symbolizes our ongoing commitment to helping our partners in the region eliminate this threat from their territory.
In this regard, the United States is prepared to work closely with the Iraqi Government to confront the threat posed by Al Qaeda in Iraq and other terrorist groups. We look forward to discussing bilateral cooperation in this and other areas, pursuant to the Strategic Framework Agreement between our two countries, during the upcoming visit of Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari next week in Washington.
Our deepest condolences go out to the victims of today's attacks and we hope for the quick recovery of those injured. The United States will stand with the Iraqi people as they work to overcome these horrific attacks perpetrated by a common enemy.
U.S. Condemns Terrorist Attacks in Iraq and Pledges to Help Combat al Qaeda
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Spokesperson, Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
August 10, 2013
The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms the cowardly attacks in Baghdad. These attacks were aimed at families celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday that marks the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The terrorists who committed these acts are enemies of Islam and a shared enemy of the United States, Iraq, and the international community.
The attacks today bear the hallmarks of similar suicide and vehicle bomb attacks in Iraq over the past ninety days. Most of these attacks have been perpetrated by al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). AQI is led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist under Executive Order 13224. He is also listed at the United Nations Security Council 1267/1989 al-Qa'ida Sanctions Committee.
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, also known as Abu D'ua, is now based in Syria and has changed the name of AQI to the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS). He has taken personal credit for a series of terrorist attacks in Iraq since 2011, and most recently claimed credit for the operations against the Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad, the suicide bombing assault on the Ministry of Justice, among other attacks against Iraqi Security Forces and Iraqi citizens going about their daily lives.
The United States has offered a $10 million reward for information that helps authorities kill or capture Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. This reward is second only to information leading to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the chief of Al Qaeda’s network, and symbolizes our ongoing commitment to helping our partners in the region eliminate this threat from their territory.
In this regard, the United States is prepared to work closely with the Iraqi Government to confront the threat posed by Al Qaeda in Iraq and other terrorist groups. We look forward to discussing bilateral cooperation in this and other areas, pursuant to the Strategic Framework Agreement between our two countries, during the upcoming visit of Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari next week in Washington.
Our deepest condolences go out to the victims of today's attacks and we hope for the quick recovery of those injured. The United States will stand with the Iraqi people as they work to overcome these horrific attacks perpetrated by a common enemy.
DEA TROUBLED OVER RELEASE OF DRUG TRAFFICKER CONNECTED TO MURDER OF DEA AGENT IN 1985
FROM: U.S. DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION
The Drug Enforcement Administration is deeply troubled to learn of the decision by a Mexican court to release infamous drug trafficker Rafael Caro-Quintero from a Mexican prison. Caro-Quintero had been serving a 40 year prison sentence in connection with the kidnapping, torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in February 1985. Caro-Quintero was the mastermind and organizer of this atrocious act. We are reminded every day of the ultimate sacrifice paid by Special Agent Camarena and DEA will vigorously continue its efforts to ensure Caro-Quintero faces charges in the United States for the crimes he committed.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is deeply troubled to learn of the decision by a Mexican court to release infamous drug trafficker Rafael Caro-Quintero from a Mexican prison. Caro-Quintero had been serving a 40 year prison sentence in connection with the kidnapping, torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in February 1985. Caro-Quintero was the mastermind and organizer of this atrocious act. We are reminded every day of the ultimate sacrifice paid by Special Agent Camarena and DEA will vigorously continue its efforts to ensure Caro-Quintero faces charges in the United States for the crimes he committed.
MAN SENTENCED FOR TAX EVASION FOR FAILING TO PAY TAXES ON MONETARY AWARD FROM EMPLOYMENT DISPUTE
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Former Sevierville, Tenn. Resident Convicted of Tax Evasion
The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Jimmie Duane Ross of Lehi, Utah, and formerly of Sevierville, Tenn., was convicted today of five counts of tax evasion following a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
According to the indictment and evidence produced at trial, Ross won a monetary award of approximately $840,000 in 1999 after arbitration of an employment dispute with a former employer. Ross thereafter failed to pay the full amount of his income tax due and owing for 1999 and evaded the tax by filing a false mortgage on his residence, filing a false lien on his vehicle, dealing extensively in cash and directing funds to an offshore account. In addition, from 2004 through 2007, Ross earned commission income for referring clients to a purported Nevis-based investment company and evaded his taxes by using nominees and other means.
Following the jury verdict, U.S. District Judge R. Leon Jordan ordered that Ross be detained and scheduled the sentencing for Jan. 14, 2014. On each of the five counts of conviction, Ross faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of IRS – Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Kevin Lombardi and Kimberly Shartar of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Former Sevierville, Tenn. Resident Convicted of Tax Evasion
The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Jimmie Duane Ross of Lehi, Utah, and formerly of Sevierville, Tenn., was convicted today of five counts of tax evasion following a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
According to the indictment and evidence produced at trial, Ross won a monetary award of approximately $840,000 in 1999 after arbitration of an employment dispute with a former employer. Ross thereafter failed to pay the full amount of his income tax due and owing for 1999 and evaded the tax by filing a false mortgage on his residence, filing a false lien on his vehicle, dealing extensively in cash and directing funds to an offshore account. In addition, from 2004 through 2007, Ross earned commission income for referring clients to a purported Nevis-based investment company and evaded his taxes by using nominees and other means.
Following the jury verdict, U.S. District Judge R. Leon Jordan ordered that Ross be detained and scheduled the sentencing for Jan. 14, 2014. On each of the five counts of conviction, Ross faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of IRS – Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Kevin Lombardi and Kimberly Shartar of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.
BUSINESSMAN SETTLES FALSE CLAIM ALLEGATIONS OF FRAUD INVOLVING THE E-RATE PROGRAM
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Texas Businessman Agrees to Settle False Claims Allegations Involving the E-Rate Program
Larry Lehmann of Giddings, Texas has agreed to pay $400,000 to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act in connection with the Federal Communications Commission’s E-rate Program, the Department of Justice announced today. The E-rate Program, created by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, subsidizes eligible equipment and services to make Internet access and internal networking more affordable for public schools and libraries. The Houston Independent School District (HISD) was one of the applicants that successfully sought and received E-rate subsidies from 2004 through 2006.
“The E-rate Program provides vital support for our nation’s students and schools,” said Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “We are committed to protecting the integrity of this important program, which helps our children connect to the digital world.”
“Our office is committed to protecting the integrity of government initiatives,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. “We will continue to work closely with the Department in cases such as this one to ensure the E-rate and other federal programs are free from fraudulent and deceitful claims.”
Lehmann functioned as the CEO and managing partner of Acclaim Professional Services (Acclaim), which partnered with other companies to provide E-rate funded equipment and services to HISD during this period. The United States contended that, in violation of E-rate competitive bidding requirements and HISD procurement rules, Lehmann provided gifts and loans to HISD employees, including tickets to sporting events and two loans totaling $66,750 to an HISD employee who was involved in the procurement and administration of HISD’s E-rate projects.
The United States also alleged that Lehmann helped devise a scheme in which HISD outsourced some of its employees to Acclaim, which allowed them to continue to work for HISD while passing the cost on to the E-rate Program. The United States further alleged that, with Lehmann’s approval, Acclaim hid the cost of these employees in its E-rate Program invoices by rolling them into the cost of eligible goods and services.
The settlement with Lehmann is part of a broader investigation by the United States of E-rate funding requests submitted by HISD and the Dallas Independent School District (DISD). The government previously recovered $16.25 million from Hewlett-Packard, $850,000 from HISD, and $750,000 from DISD. The government’s investigation was initiated, in part, by a qui tam or whistleblower lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act by Dave Richardson and Dave Gillis, who investigated allegations of improprieties based on Richardson’s experience bidding for contracts at HISD and DISD. The False Claims Act authorizes private parties to file suit for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the government’s recovery. The United States intervened in Richardson and Gillis’ lawsuit, and added Lehmann as a defendant.
“E-rate is one of the FCC’s biggest success stories, helping connect nearly every U.S. library and school to the Internet,” said Julie Veach, Chief of the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau. “We take any abuse of our rules seriously and thank the Department of Justice for their assistance in protecting the integrity of the E-rate Program for students, teachers, and libraries across the country. Today’s action is a signal to those interested in profiting at the expense of our nation’s schools and libraries: fraud doesn’t pay.”
This case was handled by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, and the FCC’s Office of the Inspector General and Office of the General Counsel.
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Texas Businessman Agrees to Settle False Claims Allegations Involving the E-Rate Program
Larry Lehmann of Giddings, Texas has agreed to pay $400,000 to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act in connection with the Federal Communications Commission’s E-rate Program, the Department of Justice announced today. The E-rate Program, created by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, subsidizes eligible equipment and services to make Internet access and internal networking more affordable for public schools and libraries. The Houston Independent School District (HISD) was one of the applicants that successfully sought and received E-rate subsidies from 2004 through 2006.
“The E-rate Program provides vital support for our nation’s students and schools,” said Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “We are committed to protecting the integrity of this important program, which helps our children connect to the digital world.”
“Our office is committed to protecting the integrity of government initiatives,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. “We will continue to work closely with the Department in cases such as this one to ensure the E-rate and other federal programs are free from fraudulent and deceitful claims.”
Lehmann functioned as the CEO and managing partner of Acclaim Professional Services (Acclaim), which partnered with other companies to provide E-rate funded equipment and services to HISD during this period. The United States contended that, in violation of E-rate competitive bidding requirements and HISD procurement rules, Lehmann provided gifts and loans to HISD employees, including tickets to sporting events and two loans totaling $66,750 to an HISD employee who was involved in the procurement and administration of HISD’s E-rate projects.
The United States also alleged that Lehmann helped devise a scheme in which HISD outsourced some of its employees to Acclaim, which allowed them to continue to work for HISD while passing the cost on to the E-rate Program. The United States further alleged that, with Lehmann’s approval, Acclaim hid the cost of these employees in its E-rate Program invoices by rolling them into the cost of eligible goods and services.
The settlement with Lehmann is part of a broader investigation by the United States of E-rate funding requests submitted by HISD and the Dallas Independent School District (DISD). The government previously recovered $16.25 million from Hewlett-Packard, $850,000 from HISD, and $750,000 from DISD. The government’s investigation was initiated, in part, by a qui tam or whistleblower lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act by Dave Richardson and Dave Gillis, who investigated allegations of improprieties based on Richardson’s experience bidding for contracts at HISD and DISD. The False Claims Act authorizes private parties to file suit for false claims on behalf of the United States and share in the government’s recovery. The United States intervened in Richardson and Gillis’ lawsuit, and added Lehmann as a defendant.
“E-rate is one of the FCC’s biggest success stories, helping connect nearly every U.S. library and school to the Internet,” said Julie Veach, Chief of the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau. “We take any abuse of our rules seriously and thank the Department of Justice for their assistance in protecting the integrity of the E-rate Program for students, teachers, and libraries across the country. Today’s action is a signal to those interested in profiting at the expense of our nation’s schools and libraries: fraud doesn’t pay.”
This case was handled by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, and the FCC’s Office of the Inspector General and Office of the General Counsel.
GENES BY THE NUMBERS
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| Photo: DNA. Credit: NIH/Wikimedia. |
Genomic and computational tools provide window to distant past
Out of the estimated 23,000 or more genes in the human genome, about 100 of them will differ--they will be present or not--between any two individuals. Genes lost or gained over time result from evolution and adaptation, as species respond through the years to their environment and other influences.
The availability of genomic sequences now allows scientists to study the presence or absence of whole genes among individuals and between species, and the impact of such changes for evolution.
Some individuals, for example, have a sharper sense of smell than others because they have more copies of olfactory receptor genes, which allow them to detect a wider range of odors. Others, especially those who live in societies with starchy diets, have more copies of the gene responsible for producing amylase, an enzyme in saliva that breaks down starch.
"There have been lots of changes, and we want to know which ones might have been involved in human adaptation," says Matthew Hahn, an associate professor of biology and informatics at Indiana University at Bloomington. "The comparison of whole genomes has revealed large and frequent changes in the size of gene families. Comparative genomic analyses allow us to identify large-scale patterns of change in gene families, and to make inferences regarding the role of natural selection in gene gain and loss."
Using computer models and available genomic data, Hahn studies the differences in genes among humans and other species, and compares them, in order to better understand the timeline of genetic changes and adaptation throughout our history. By developing computational and statistical tools to analyze whole genomes, Hahn and his team are learning new things about the evolution of gene regulation and gene families, human genomic history, and the evolution of phenotypically important genes.
"We can't go back in time, but we can use current species to get a pretty good estimate of what the ancestors looked like, and to get some ideas of what changes occurred and the order of these changes," he says.
The scientists are examining all the genes in the genome, and focusing on differences among species, such as chimpanzees and other primates compared to humans. "There's a 6 percent difference between humans and chimps in the genes they have," he says. "In the end, after 6 million years of being separate, we don't have exactly the same set of genes as chimps. How and when did those differences occur?"
Hahn is conducting his research under a National Science Foundation (NSF) Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award, which he received in 2009 as part of NSF's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding. The award supports junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education, and research within the context of the mission of their organization. He is receiving about $1 million over five years.
The work could have wide-ranging applications in diagnosing and treating diseases, since many illnesses and conditions arise from genetic mutations, including the duplication or loss of important genes.
"There is a lot of interest in trying to associate these changes to human diseases," Hahn says. "There are diseases that are caused when you lose or even gain a gene, not just affecting smell or the ability to digest starch. A lot of the genes that differ in copy number are genes involved in our immune response, and these are obvious candidates for the genetic changes underlying differences in disease susceptibility among individuals. By understanding normal variation in gene copy-number, we hope to be able to better recognize changes that may be detrimental to human health."
The researchers often start by examining the differences in the number of copies of different genes among individual humans.
"The 1,000 Genomes Project (an international research effort, launched in 2008, to establish the most detailed catalogue of human genetic variation) has allowed us to study the full genetic complement of genes in a wide variety of human populations, from all of the inhabited continents," he says. "We find differences between individuals within populations and among populations, largely recapitulating the known relationships among humans.
"But we also find population-specific changes in genes that have allowed us to adapt to our surroundings," he adds. "These changes have involved both the adaptive gain and adaptive loss of genes, and are associated with important phenotypic differences among individuals."
To understand the differences shared among all humans, and that distinguish us from our ancestors, the researchers then compare the full complement of genes to those of other primates, including chimpanzees, orangutans, macaques and marmosets.
"These comparisons, and similar ones to other new genomes that are being sequenced all the time, allow us to make strong inferences about what our common ancestral genome looked like, and, therefore, the changes that have occurred along the human lineage," he says.
Such genetic changes are highly likely to have been involved in human-specific adaptations, for example, humans' increased cranium size, according to Hahn.
"Having these genomic and computational tools gives us a window into the distant past that we otherwise would not have had," he says.
-- Marlene Cimons, National Science Foundation
Investigators
Saturday, August 10, 2013
CDC REPORTS OBESITY DECLINES AMONG LOW-INCOME PRESCHOOLERS IN SEVERAL STATES
FROM: CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
Obesity among low-income preschoolers declines in many states
Nineteen states and territories report decreases in obesity among this group
After decades of rising rates, obesity among low-income preschoolers declined slightly in 19 states and U.S. territories from 2008 through 2011, according to the latest Vital Signs report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The report found that Florida, Georgia, Missouri, New Jersey, South Dakota, and the U.S. Virgin Islands saw at least a one percentage point decrease in their rate of obesity. Twenty states and Puerto Rico held steady at their current rate. Obesity rates increased slightly in three states.
Previous research shows that about one in eight preschoolers is obese in the United States. Children are five times more likely to be overweight or obese as an adult if they are overweight or obese between the ages of three and five years.
“Although obesity remains epidemic, the tide has begun to turn for some kids in some states,” said CDC Director, Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “While the changes are small, for the first time in a generation they are going in the right direction. Obesity in early childhood increases the risk of serious health problems for life.”
“Today’s announcement reaffirms my belief that together, we are making a real difference in helping kids across the country get a healthier start to life,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “We know how essential it is to set our youngest children on a path towards a lifetime of healthy eating and physical activity, and more than 10,000 childcare programs participating in the Let’s Move! Child Care initiative are doing vitally important work on this front. Yet, while this announcement reflects important progress, we also know that there is tremendous work still to be done to support healthy futures for all our children.”
Obesity among low-income preschoolers declines in many states
Nineteen states and territories report decreases in obesity among this group
After decades of rising rates, obesity among low-income preschoolers declined slightly in 19 states and U.S. territories from 2008 through 2011, according to the latest Vital Signs report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The report found that Florida, Georgia, Missouri, New Jersey, South Dakota, and the U.S. Virgin Islands saw at least a one percentage point decrease in their rate of obesity. Twenty states and Puerto Rico held steady at their current rate. Obesity rates increased slightly in three states.
Previous research shows that about one in eight preschoolers is obese in the United States. Children are five times more likely to be overweight or obese as an adult if they are overweight or obese between the ages of three and five years.
“Although obesity remains epidemic, the tide has begun to turn for some kids in some states,” said CDC Director, Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “While the changes are small, for the first time in a generation they are going in the right direction. Obesity in early childhood increases the risk of serious health problems for life.”
“Today’s announcement reaffirms my belief that together, we are making a real difference in helping kids across the country get a healthier start to life,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “We know how essential it is to set our youngest children on a path towards a lifetime of healthy eating and physical activity, and more than 10,000 childcare programs participating in the Let’s Move! Child Care initiative are doing vitally important work on this front. Yet, while this announcement reflects important progress, we also know that there is tremendous work still to be done to support healthy futures for all our children.”
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