Columnists
Transportation
Tug-of-War
It's time to get past the ideological fight and start having some reasoned conversation about where and when private investment makes sense.
Falling Bridges
As aging infrastructure becomes harder to ignore, governments look for new ways to finance solutions.
The Nation
Deal Reached on Farm Bill, but Veto Vowed
Washington Post
House and Senate negotiators reached final agreement on a new farm bill that would spend close to $300 billion on nutrition, conservation, energy and farm subsidy programs over the next five years, but administration officials immediately announced that President Bush will veto it. The speedy reaction from the executive branch put the spotlight on congressional Republicans, many of whom support the legislation.
The Nation
Prospects Murky for Foreclosure Bill
CQ Today
The House sent the Senate sweeping legislation aimed at slowing the pace of foreclosures and stimulating the real estate market. The Senate has charted a more conservative course, passing a narrower version in April. Add to that a White House veto threat, and the legislation’s prospects are murky.
Posted Thursday, May 8
The Nation
Oil Firms to Pay $423 Million in MTBE Cleanup
New York Times
Some of the nation’s largest oil companies have agreed to pay about $423 million to settle a lawsuit brought by more than a hundred public water providers in 16 states claiming that water has been contaminated by methyl tertiary butyl ether, a popular gasoline additive. Under the terms of the deal, the companies also agreed to pay 70 percent of the future MTBE cleanup costs over the next 30 years.
The Nation
Feds Acknowledge Hospital Shortcomings in Disasters
Washington Post
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt acknowledged gaps in the capability of U.S. hospitals to deal with a mass-casualty terrorist attack or other disaster, but they said a congressional effort to block pending Medicaid cuts will not fix the problem and that lawmakers could target funds at the shortcomings more directly.
The Wilmington, N.C., Region
Region to Be Testbed for Digital-TV Switch
USA Today
Residents of the Wilmington region will soon become laboratory rats in the nation's transition to digital TV. The Federal Communications Commission plans to make the greater Wilmington area a test market to work out any bugs before the nation goes all-digital on Feb. 17. The region's four commercial broadcasters agreeing to turn off their analog signals and broadcast only in digital starting Sept. 8.
Cable Exec: Switch May Be Tougher in Smaller Markets Des Moines Register
The changeover to digital television could be particularly rough in smaller TV markets, a top executive with Iowa's biggest cable operation warned Congress, saying disputes could erupt between broadcast stations and cable operators.
Posted Wednesday, May 7
The Nation
EPA Unlikely to Limit Rocket-Fuel Ingredient in Water
Sacramento Bee
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency probably won't follow California in ridding drinking water of a rocket-fuel chemical that has contaminated supplies in dozens of communities around the country, a top agency official said. Federal inaction on regulating perchlorate has left the Pentagon, NASA and defense contractors free to negotiate levels of cleanup with government agencies.
The Nation
Lawmaker Seeks Better Health Care for Detained Immigrants
New York Times
The head of a congressional subcommittee looking into complaints of inadequate medical care in immigration detention has introduced legislation to set mandatory standards for care and to require that all deaths be reported to the Justice Department and Congress. “This should not be part of the debate about illegal immigration,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California said of her bill.
The Nation
Demand Heavy for Border-Crossing Cards, Licenses
Washington Technology
Hundreds of thousands of Americans have applied for new border-crossing identification cards that will serve as alternatives to passports at the borders with Canada and Mexico. Thousands also have applied for hybrid driver’s licenses/border cards being issued by Washington State in conjunction with the Homeland Security Department. Arizona, New York and Vermont also are working on enhanced licenses.
Posted Tuesday, May 6
The Nation
Fed Chairman Backs Foreclosure Intervention
Los Angeles Times
As the House prepared to take aggressive steps to stem the wave of home foreclosures, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke endorsed the need for federal intervention, saying that letting markets take their own course could "destabilize communities, reduce the property values of nearby homes and lower municipal tax revenues."
Are Fannie and Freddie at Risk? New York Times
Federal officials have increasingly relied on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to keep the housing market afloat. But with mortgage defaults and foreclosures rising, Bush administration officials, regulators and lawmakers are nervously asking whether these two companies will soon need saving themselves.
The Nation
Deadline Pushed Back for Port Security Cards
Federal Computer Week
The Homeland Security Department has pushed back the deadline for implementation of its secure credential for port and maritime workers by seven months, giving states until April 15, 2009, to roll out the Transportation Worker Identification Credential. Demand has doubled over initial estimates, with the U.S. Coast Guard estimating that as many as 1.5 million workers could require the cards.
Secure-Card Counterfeiting Technology at Issue Government Computer News
As DHS prepares to issue millions of biometric credentials to various categories of citizens, legal residents, visa holders and government employees, a simmering controversy over a key anti-counterfeiting technology is heating up.
Posted Monday, May 5
The Nation
States Seek Power to Rein in Private Medicare Plans
New York Times
State officials say they will soon ask Congress for more power to regulate the marketing of private Medicare insurance plans because they are still receiving complaints of high-pressure sales tactics that have led some beneficiaries to sign up for unsuitable policies. States can regulate insurance agents and brokers, but they generally cannot regulate the insurance companies that offer such plans.
Arizona
Uranium-Mining Claims Skyrocket Near Canyon
Los Angeles Times
Thanks to renewed interest in nuclear power, the United States is on the verge of a uranium mining boom, and nowhere is the hurry to stake claims more pronounced than in the districts flanking the Grand Canyon. On public lands within five miles of Grand Canyon National Park, there are now more than 1,100 uranium claims, compared with just 10 in January 2003, according to the Department of the Interior.