Category: Marty Toohey
Conn. Congressmen Disappointed With Session
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 17, 2002–Late Wednesday night the House voted to pack its bags, catch a red-eye home and kiss the rest of its legislative agenda goodbye until after the November elections.
It was a session with even more bipartisan bickering and finger pointing than usual, with Democrats blaming the lack of progress on the House Republican majority and Republicans blaming the lack of progress on the Democratic-controlled Senate.
House members leave with health care, prescription drug and economy-related bills unsigned, and with 11 of the 13 appropriations bills that make up the federal budget still not having made it through the final conference. The Iraq resolution, the election reform bill and the defense appropriations bill were among the few major pieces of legislation to make it out of Congress recently, and although Connecticut House members from both parties found silver linings, overall they found the legislative logjam ridiculous.
“In the bigger picture, I think the session was a colossal failure,” said Rep. Jim Maloney (D-5). “If you ask legislators what their number one job is, they’ll uniformly says ‘pass the 13 budget bills.’ ”
Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-6) blamed the Senate for the legislative woes.
“I am ashamed of the paralysis in the Senate,” she said. “Unlike any session in my 20 years, this session will not come to fruition until late November.”
Before adjourning, the House passed a stopgap spending bill to keep the government funded until Nov. 22, making a lame-duck session following the elections certain. Since early October Congress has funded the government on a week-to-week basis. Maloney said Congress will reconvene Nov. 12.
The House’s decision to adjourn came suddenly, and even 20 minutes beforehand members talked about legislative work they would do Thursday.
The House leaves with discussion of the military situation having hogged the spotlight, which irked Rep. John Larson (D-1).
“All in all, it’s been a very frustrating matter,” Larson said. “The only thing people talked about in Congress was Iraq. Meanwhile, people back home have their own security concerns: job security, pension security, economic security. There was a lot left undone, and I think voters are aware of it and share equal contempt. And I think it reflects on the entire Congress.”
Maloney and Johnson also took issue with the lack of resolution on domestic issues.
The House passed its prescription drug bill, written by Johnson, which would provide $350 billion in drug benefits. Health care officials have urged the reimbursements to offset rising costs and prevent providers from dropping out of the Medicare program.
But the prescription drug bill probably won’t make it to the Senate floor before adjournment, which is expected any time. It’s uncertain if the Senate will sign it into law in the lame-duck session.
“That means we’re going to have another year of campaigns promising a prescription drug plan without actually having a prescription drug plan,” Maloney said.
“I’m still hopeful the Senate will come to its senses and pass the bill,” Johnson said.
The three found positives, though.
Johnson said she’s proud of a passed bill she co-sponsored to help eliminate fatalities resulting from medical errors, as well a grant to the University of Connecticut for research to develop a vaccine providing near-universal protection to soldiers from animal-transmitted diseases.
Maloney said he’s pleased with passed legislation dealing with money laundering and corporate accountability. He said he was especially pleased with legislation that he wrote requiring intelligence to keep closer tabs on hawalas, Middle Eastern banking groups that transfer money through informal agreements. Federal security organizations have identified hawalas as a conduit for movement of terrorist money.
Maloney said he’s also pleased with an anti-shredding law he authored.
“Personally, I feel I had a very good year,” he said.
Larson said he was pleased with the work of the House Armed Services and Science committees, both of which he sits on. He said both committees worked in a partisan “hand-in-glove” manner to finish legislation.
But he said he wasn’t surprised that several bills from the committee never made it to the floor and that many economic issues never made it there, either.
“That was the goal” of the Republicans, Larson said. “To get a vote on Iraq and get out of town.”
Maloney agreed. “They didn’t wrap it up, they just walked away,” he said.
Johnson was on a plane soon after the vote, but Larson and Maloney spent the night in the nation’s capital.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Connecticut Laying Out Smallpox Plan
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 16, 2002--The Connecticut Public Health Department is nearly finished with a comprehensive smallpox vaccination and counter-bioterrorism plan, and full details should be announced by the second week of November, public health commissioner Dr. Joxel Garcia said Wednesday.
Use of smallpox in bioterrorism has concerned public health officials nationwide since the attacks of Sept. 11.
Garcia's plan includes a comprehensive education campaign and the means to vaccinate all of the state's 3.4 million residents within a 30-day period. Although most of the framework will be in place by mid-November, some key details, such as the number of immunizations and exact dates, are contingent on whether President Bush enacts a nationwide vaccination plan. Garcia said he's particularly eager to know if "mass vaccinations or only a limited amount" will be available from the federal government.
There is widespread speculation that Bush could implement the nationwide plan by December, but Garcia and other Connecticut medical workers said they haven't heard any more than rumors.
"None of us [in the hospitals] know for sure," said Louise-Marie Dembry, director of the epidemiology laboratory at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
Garcia had a guess, though.
"The federal government, through the Centers for Disease Control [and Prevention], is asking us to have a plan by December, so I would assume December is a good bet," Garcia said.
The CDC asked each state to present a comprehensive plan by December, and Garcia wanted Connecticut's plan finished early "to act as a template for other states. We have a lot of knowledge about the proper way to vaccinate. We want to share that."
Garcia has a statewide group of advisers, including public health, National Guard and law enforcement officials and emergency medical personnel, helping him craft the plan.
The plan would call for federal workers to administer a "first wave" of vaccinations to key medical personnel across the state. Garcia gave 100 to 250 as a rough number for the first wave, but the numbers are still far from certain, he said. People vaccinated would include core personnel from hospitals, such as lab technicians and emergency medical units. They would also receive immunization-related training.
The first wave would then be responsible for vaccinating about 10,000 selected people in the event of an outbreak, and those 10,000 in turn would be responsible for vaccinating the rest of the population.
Under the plan the entire state would be immunized within 30 days, Garcia said.
"It is comprehensive, and it should fit into any guidelines the [federal] government creates" if Bush implements a nationwide plan, he said.
The state health department's plan would incorporate the Yale-New Haven and Hartford Hospitals as "bases" in the event of bioterrorism. The bases would also help with things like training, technology and surveillance, Garcia said.
Individual "sentinel" healthcare workers across the state would also be trained to spot cases or potential outbreaks. An area's population density and number of at-risk workers will determine the number of its sentinels, Garcia said. The sentinel workers would not necessarily be among the first people immunized, he said.
The names of the sentinel providers will be kept secret for security reasons, Garcia said.
The plan would also include a statewide education campaign. Smallpox vaccinations must be carefully applied, and the state wants to ensure the vaccine is administered properly.
"This is not as simple as going to the shopping center for the flu," Garcia said.
The state's current outbreak plan is to isolate a diagnosed carrier, find and test individuals the carrier had contact with and work outward until all carriers have been located. A CDC team should arrive within a few hours of the first diagnosis and administer the vaccine, which is usually effective up to four days after contraction of the disease, Garcia said.
A smallpox vaccine hasn't been administered in the United States since 1972, and the disease was declared eradicated in 1980.
Previous vaccinations may provide limited protection, but probably wouldn't offer full protrection, Yale-New Haven's Dembry said.
About one-third of all smallpox cases in the 1960s were fatal, but Dembry said modern methods may reduce that percentage.
"Or it may not," she said. "We just don't know at this point."
The United States and Russia are known to possess small amounts of the virus, but defense experts fear terrorist organizations or enemy nations may acquire it.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Larson Iraq Resolution Fails
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 10, 2002--The Iraq resolution introduced by Rep. John Larson (D-1) failed Thursday, but the disappointed Congressman said the number of House members who voted for his version shows that the American public is "deeply" concerned about granting President Bush broad authority to wage war and about the strategy of pre-emptive action against Iraq.
Larson's version of the resolution failed by a vote of 155-270, while a compromise version blessed by both parties' leaders and the White House, granting Bush the authority to wage war without international support, if need be, passed 296-133.
"Let us hope the margins get the attention of the president," Larson said. "You can hope he'll act accordingly."
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-3), who on Monday came out in support of Larson's amendment and voted for it on Thursday, said the outcome wasn't surprising. "I think the vote was very reflective of the attitudes of the public and sends a strong message to the president," said DeLauro, who opposed the White House-approved version.
Larson was one of five sponsors of the so-called two-step amendment, whose principal sponsor was Democratic Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina. The amendment would have required Bush to come back to Congress to request war-waging authority if he could not gain approval from the U.N. Security Council. The approved version authorizes Bush to attack Iraq alone if he cannot form an international coalition.
Larson called the president's strategy of pre-emption a "radical departure from current foreign policy, and one that needed a longer and deeper thought process." He said his own resolution "struck the appropriate compromise."
Larson also praised the "courageous" vote by Rep. Jim Maloney (D-5) for Larson's amendment.
"Last week it seemed like I was the only one back home who thought this way," Larson said.
For Maloney, the key issue was the "second look" Larson's version required.
Maloney acknowledged it may not be possible to form a coalition, but said he worried that proceeding without one may jeopardize the support of Middle-Eastern countries like Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia for U.S. action against terrorism.
"I believe [Larson's] amendment is more prudent and would provide the chance, should it become necessary, for more discussion about the impact of acting unilaterally," Maloney said.
He also agreed with Larson that the strategy of pre-emption hasn't been discussed thoroughly enough, but said, "It doesn't need to be for the resolutions before us."
Before the final vote House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephart (D-Mo.), who along with the White House and Republican House leaders drafted the approved resolution, said on the House floor that discussions about pre-emption would continue.
Larson and Maloney, despite their objections to the final resolution, said Bush's softened rhetoric over the past weeks means it's likely he will pursue a multilateral solution before moving against Iraq alone.
"Three months ago the administration said they wouldn't reach out to the international community, and they did," Maloney said. "A month ago they said they wouldn't reach out to Congress, and they did. So I'm encouraged, and I hope very much they succeed" in creating a coalition.
Larson cautioned, though, that "the law is the law, and this law makes it clear what he'll be able to do."
House Republicans also said they trust the president not to rush into war with the authority granted him.
"I absolutely believe he will" exhaust every avenue of international cooperation before going to war, said Nancy Johnson (R-6), who voted against Larson's amendment and for the White House version.
"A two-step process doesn't send the message that our future is at stake," Johnson said. "The international community will act if we make it clear that we will if it doesn't. They want to act, and a one-step resolution puts the greatest pressure on them to."
Johnson wasn't the only Republican to trust the president to form an international coalition and do everything possible to protect American lives. A tearful House Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-Texas) said to a packed House floor before the final vote: "Mr. President, we are about to give you a great trust. We're about to trust to you the best we have. Treat them well, so they can come home."
The Senate was expected to vote on the Iraq resolution Thursday night or Friday. Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman has long made clear he would vote for the resolution endorsed by the White House, and Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd said he would also vote for it, although with misgivings about "the dangers that could result from granting the authority contained in this resolution."
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Conn. Gets Grant to Prevent Fraud Against Elderly
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 09, 2002--Connecticut Legal Services will be beefing up a little-known consumer protection and fraud hotline for seniors, thanks to a $375,000 grant from the federal Administration on Aging.
The hotline, currently staffed by one employee in CLS's Willimantic office, provides seniors quick access to legal advice and representation. The grant will be spread over three years, and CLS hopes to offer an expanded-service hotline by next April.
In addition to fraud response, the hotline will provide advice for dealing with debt, home ownership and other issues of concern to seniors, said Marvin Farbman, CLS's executive director.
"This is huge for us," Farbman said. "This will help us provide good legal information and advice and, when necessary, high-quality legal representation."
Such advice and representation was useful to an elderly fraud victim identified as JS in the grant application.
JS is an elderly woman prone to confusion, the application said. Last year, two door-to-door salesmen sold her what she thought was an $800 vacuum cleaner, even though she already owned a functional one, which they persuaded her to trade in as part of the deal.
It turned out the contract she signed for the vacuum required her to pay considerably more than $800.
JS contacted her local Agency on Aging, which provides advocates for the elderly. The advocate contacted CLS, which in turn contacted the vacuum company, got the contract rescinded and persuaded the company to pay the woman fair-market value for her old vacuum.
The hotline would provide such services on a regular basis.
"Senior citizens frequently face issues like these, particularly fraud from people preying on the elderly," said Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who has frequently listed fraud against the elderly as one of his prime concerns. "It's essential to provide means for senior citizens to protect themselves and protect their financial independence."
The grant will fund a collaborative effort between CLS, the Attorney General's office, the state Department of Consumer Protection, the Area Agency on Aging and the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut, which will aid in tracking down difficult-to-reach seniors. In addition to funding the hotline itself, the money will pay for CLS staff and Area Agency on Aging advocate staff training.
The hotline is intended for consumer protection, but if other underlying issues arise while CLS is interviewing a senior citizen, the legal services agency will provide counsel for those problems, as well.
"We'll treat these problems holistically," Farbman said.
It's the inclusive and "comprehensive nature of the program" that won the grant, said Edwin Walker, a spokesman for the Administration on Aging, a branch of the Health and Human Services Department..
"We ask for an emphasis on innovation, and we saw that in CSL's request," Walker said.
The grant is one of six given each year by Walker's agency. The grant money must be used specifically to create a hotline.
The current hotline number is 1-800 413-7796, but that number may change when the hotline is expanded, Farbman said.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Groups Laud Conn. Education
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 08, 2002--It's been a good couple of weeks for Connecticut's education system.
First, a private research group named Connecticut the smartest state in the country. Then a separate study of higher education gave the state's system high marks in four of five categories - marks rivaled only by Massachusetts, New Jersey and Illinois.
Not bad, even for the state with the first constitution and first newspaper. But not unexpected.
"The results of the reports are quite predictable," said Kathleen Lyons, a spokeswoman for the National Education Association. "Connecticut has been one of the best, if not the best, state for public education for nearly a decade."
The state has some of the strictest requirements for teachers, as well as the highest standards, Lyons said. The association's statistics rank Connecticut second nationally in average salary for public school teachers at $52,693 for 2000-01, and third in per student expenditures at $10,258.
That means the teachers are better, and they're willing to come to Connecticut because of the better money, Lyons said.
"They have no teacher shortage, and there's a reason for that," she said. "Connecticut has set the bar high."
Scott Morgan, president of Morgan Quitno Press, which compiled the smartest state report, said Connecticut came out ahead because it also fares well in the categories other than test scores.
"It isn't just about high school student test scores," Morgan said. "The award measures a broad array of educational factors," ranging from percentage of household income spent on public schooling to average class size to student test performances.
"Connecticut has a very solid record when it comes to education," he added.
The Northeast was well represented on the list, with Vermont ranked second, New Jersey fourth, Maine fifth, Massachusetts seventh and Rhode Island tenth.
Connecticut's K-12 system also earned high marks with the higher education study, which gave the state an A for college preparation.
The "report card," compiled by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education, gave these additional four grades:
*A- for the number of high school students who immediately attend college
*A- for the percentage of residents with a bachelor's degree
*B+ for the number of college students who finish school with a degree
*C- for affordability
Each state's report card also included supplemental, state-specific information. Connecticut's report focused on performance gaps between whites and minorities and rich and poor, and it highlighted the following statistic: 78 percent of white students take upper-level science courses, while 33 percent of black and Hispanic students took those courses.
Mikyung Ryu, a policy analyst who helped compile the report, said that performance gaps, both along ethnic and economic lines, are becoming the primary concern for the Center. She also pointed out the highest-earning 20 percent of the Connecticut families need only spend an average of 16 percent of their annual income to put a child through a four-year private college; the lowest-earning 20 percent, however, must spend 159 percent of the family income.
And that's after all financial aid is taken into account.
"So it's impossible for those low-income families to send children to school," Ryu said. "That shows how big the gap is."
The gap is a major concern for the state, said Tom Murphy, spokesman for the Department of Education. Theodore Sergi, commissioner of the department, has called the gap the issue of the next decade.
But the gap between minorities and whites is difficult to close in part because, while the performance of minority students is improving, white students in the state continue to improve as well, Murphy said.
"Without question the gap must be closed, but it's difficult because there's a moving target," Murphy said. "Our minority students have to improve at a faster rate."
In Connecticut, 30 percent of public K-12 school students are minorities, with 13 percent Hispanic and 13 percent black.
Forty-eight percent of New Britain public school students are Latino, and 65 percent of those students live in non-English speaking homes, according to Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters, which operates several Latino mentoring programs.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
CCSU Signs Anti-Intimidation Statement: UConn. Declines, says Statement Isn’t Enough
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 08, 2002--Three months after taking fire for facilitating a forum many felt favored Palestinians over Israelis, Central Connecticut State University's president signed a statement that appeared in a full-page advertisement in Monday's New York Times decrying intimidation on college campuses, particularly that directed at Jewish students.
Richard Judd, CCSU's president, is one of about 300 college and university presidents to sign the statement, which comes after a nationwide rash of anti-Semitic since January. Those incidents include vandalism of synagogues and an attack of a Jewish student at the University of California-Berkeley by a group of men who allegedly were praising Hitler.
"We want students to know that colleges are places that are safe and inclusive and protect free expression," Judd said in an interview Tuesday. "The statement made a lot of sense to me."
The statement was sponsored by six college presidents, led by Dartmouth president James Wright, and was organized by the American Jewish Committee, an advocacy group. The statement ran as a full-page ad on page A13 of Monday's Times.
The statement wasn't inclusive enough for several college presidents, however. Absent from the list of names was that of Philip Austin, president of the University of Connecticut-Storrs. Austin didn't learn of the statement until Tuesday morning, but wouldn't have signed it anyway because of concern for student groups not mentioned in the statement, particularly Arab and Islamic students, said Karen Grava, an Austin spokeswoman.
Austin "has sent out numerous letters to the community" about ensuring the safety of Jewish students, "but has reservations about signing something that isn't inclusive," Grava said.
Four of the five paragraphs in the statement didn't mention any group specifically. The fourth paragraph, however, reads: "In the past few months, students who are Jewish … have received death threats and threats of violence … creating an atmosphere of intimidation."
Austin isn't the only president with misgivings about the statement. Michael Crow, president of Arizona State University, declined to have his name included on the list because it refers only to Jewish students specifically. He contends that the statement should cover all groups that could be threatened.
Grava also pointed out that presidents of several prominent institutions, including Yale and Harvard, didn't add their names to the statement.
Judd, however, said that he would sign any statement endorsing students' rights.
"I think they have a right to that view, but I think that protecting any group at any time is the right thing, the morally correct thing, to do," Judd said. "If such a statement circulated for Palestinian students or other groups, I would sign that, too."
A press liaison for the American Jewish Committee said the phones were ringing "all morning" on Tuesday with requests from colleges for information about the statement.
Although many colleges don't track the number of Jewish students enrolled, because a person can be of Jewish faith without being of Jewish ethnicity, UConn and CCSU say they have active Jewish student populations.
Judd and CCSU took criticism in August, when Connecticut Jewish leaders charged that a Middle East teachers' training forum at CCSU was "hostile to Israel" and unbalanced. The forum featured several professors sympathetic to the Arab point of view.
Yossi Olmert, a former director of Israel's Government Press Office and an adviser to former Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir, lectured before two CCSU journalism classes Monday morning and offered an Israeli perspective on the conflict. School officials have denied bringing in Olmert to provide a counterbalance to the summer training forum.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Conn. Congressmen Bring Iraq Resolution, Evidence to Forefront
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 02, 2002--Talk of war escalated in Connecticut's congressional delegation on Wednesday, with Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman introducing a resolution on action against Iraq and Republican Rep. Chris Shays outlining evidence against the Middle Eastern country.
Lieberman's resolution is identical to one President Bush and House leadership agreed to earlier in the day. The senator predicted it would pass his chamber after about a week of formal debate, which will probably begin today (Thursday).
The resolution is close to what the White House sought. It grants Bush broad military power against Iraq but requires the president to exhaust all options before taking action, to notify Congress within 48 hours of a U.S. attack and to report to Congress on all matters related to Iraq every 60 days.
The resolution, co-sponsored by Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), John Warner (R-Va.) and Joseph Biden (D-Del.), also reaffirms the administration's policy of regime change in Iraq.
Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) lent cautious support to the bill, saying it would adequately limit the use of force and the need for international support.
In a Wednesday afternoon press conference, Shays (R-4), who chairs the House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Veterans Affairs and International Relations, outlined evidence against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and advocated military action against Iraq if it doesn't grant U.N. weapons inspectors unlimited access.
Shays said those contacting his office have been about 40-1 against pre-emptive action, but 34 committee hearings have persuaded him that Iraq presents an immediate threat. He said there's a "definite" connection between Hussein and terrorists, and the 70 families in his district who lost relatives in the Sept. 11 attacks heavily influence his views.
"It's difficult for Americans to think of pre-emption, but that's the necessary strategy," Shays said. "You don't just sit back and wait for the mushroom cloud."
Lieberman, an outspoken proponent since 1991 of ousting Saddam Hussein, said the United States should build an international coalition before taking action against Iraq, but he also was blunt about how the United States should proceed.
"If we show our willingness to lead, we will not go it alone," he said.
Shays criticized the White House for not declassifying more information, but laid out a thorough description of Iraq's weapons capabilities, saying that it already possesses biological and chemical weapons and could develop nuclear ones within six months of obtaining enriched uranium and plutonium.
All Hussein would need is a softball-size quantity of the radioactive substances to create an atomic bomb, and it would be possible for Hussein to smuggle a few bombs into U.S. cities and "blackmail" the country, Shays said.
He also said there are the equivalent of about 250 "softballs" around the world in hundreds of locations.
"There are antidotes … to chemical and biological weapons," Shays said. "There is no antidote to a nuclear explosion."
Lieberman, who has criticized Republicans for politicizing the homeland security debate before the election, said he thinks legislation establishing the department will pass the Senate soon after debate on the Iraq resolution concludes.
He also said the U.S. military could successfully conduct anti-terrorism actions while engaging Iraq.
"These are two serious threats, and they are interconnected," Lieberman said.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
New Britain to Get $3 Million for Low-Income Families
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Oct. 01, 2002--New Britain will receive a $3.15 million grant for low-income families from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the department announced Tuesday.
New Britain receives grants from the department on an annual basis. The money is used for construction of affordable housing and beautification of the city, among other things.
"It's something people don't necessarily know about, but it funds a lot of things," Mayor Lucian Pawlak said. "It's money that goes a long ways."
The $3.15 million is divided into three areas: $2.3 million for a community block grant, $751,000 to aid low-income families in purchasing homes and $80,000 for homeless and special-needs residents.
Community block grants are usually used for construction or rehabilitation of affordable housing, but also for things like parks and economic development.
The grant is part of $10 million that HUD has awarded to Connecticut. Norwalk, Meriden, Bristol and Waterbury also received grants. Waterbury received the most, at $4 million.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Federal Money to Conn. May Be Delayed
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Sept. 26, 2002--Connecticut groups waiting for federal funding may not know until November if they'll get their money, thanks to a complicated congressional logjam involving, in part, a House disagreement over education funding and the Senate's inability to pass a federal budget resolution.
Requests for Connecticut include renovation money for a Waterbury hospital, cash for a Norwich transportation center and continued funding for a New Britain water treatment plant.
The water treatment plant will probably get its continued funding, several Republicans said, and the Congressional delay probably won't significantly affect projects if they're passed, as it usually takes several months of red tape before the money becomes available.
Still, some congressmen have grown edgy as they wait to hear which items from their wish-list will make it into the 13 spending bills that fund government programs.
Freshman Rep. Robert Simmons (R-2), eager to show voters what he can bring home, is waiting to hear about a parking garage for downtown Vernon, the transportation center in Norwich and a program to aid home ownership in New London - but he may not know if he can tout them until after the elections.
And St. Mary's Hospital in Waterbury is waiting to see if a $2 million request by Rep. James Maloney (D-5) will go through. That money would pay for renovations to the hospital's emergency department, which was built 10 years ago to accommodate about 30 percent less action than it currently handles. .
The congressional delay involves a myriad of factors, including debate about Iraq and the Department of Homeland Security, and also a pair of related reasons: First, House Republicans are stuck in a disagreement about education funding; and second, the Senate hasn't passed its version of the federal budget, so House members don't know how much money they have to work with.
Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-6) said the disagreement about education funding will be resolved shortly and blamed the Senate's lack of a budget resolution for the holdup.
"The lack of a Senate budget resolution is the real monkey wrench in all this," she said. "If we had a number, we could do this tomorrow."
House Republicans haven't reached an agreement about spending for portions of the Labor, Health and Human Services appropriations bill), though. A group of about 30 moderate Republicans, like Johnson and Chris Shays (R-4), as well as House Democrats, say the bill is woefully underfunded.
Thus far a promise by House Republicans, who control the floor agenda, to conservative GOP members to approve Labor-HHS first has kept other appropriations bills from coming to the floor for a vote.
Labor-HHS is usually the most contentious of the 13 appropriations bills that make up federal government spending, and is usually dealt with last. It also usually ends up more expensive than lawmakers anticipate, and Republican leadership hoped dealing with Labor-HHS first would force Democrats to accept a more frugal bill.
With a tight economic outlook and significant military spending on the horizon, fiscally conservative Republicans felt Labor-HHS could easily include more spending than the government can afford, especially if the Senate hasn't passed its federal budget resolution.
Johnson and Shays have been working with party leaders on compromise Labor-HHS bill with more education spending, and they expect to introduce it within a few days. If they do, the other appropriations bills should pass in short order, and groups in Connecticut will know their money made it into the House version of the spending bills.
The House and Senate, as well as the President, must still agree before the spending bills are signed into law, though.
Eight appropriations bills had gone through committee markup as of Thursday morning.
Many Democrats are skeptical that Labor-HHS or other appropriations bills will come to the floor in the next few weeks, though. If those Democrats are right, it could be months before groups in Connecticut know if they'll receive federal money.
Some Democrats say the GOP leadership is blackmailing Congress by keeping other bills from a vote, and they doubt that the Republican leadership will allow a vote on Labor-HHS. They say the GOP fears a Democratic counterproposal with increased education spending.
"All we're asking is to let the bill come to the floor," said Dave Sirota, communications director for the House Appropriations Committee's Democratic members. "Let the vote speak for itself."
Congress will almost certainly recess in October until after the elections in early November, and if it does it will pass a so-called continuing resolution to keep federal spending at its current levels.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Latino Mentoring Program Receives $220 Grand
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Sept. 25, 2002--A New Britain mentoring organization has received a $220,000 grant from the Department of Justice to create a program for Latino students at three of the town's schools.
Nutmeg Big Brothers Big Sisters, which operates New Britain's Latino Initiative mentoring program, will use the grant to create a program for Latino children 6 to 14 years old, providing a few hours of mentoring a week.
Previous grants required Latino Initiative to target children 12 to 14 years old, and this is the first time Nutmeg has offered mentoring to younger Latino children. The Justice Department announced the grant last week.
Nutmeg program co-coordinator Susan McGann said the new program should further help in reaching New Britain's steadily increasing Latino population, adding, "There's definitely a need here."
Forty-eight percent of New Britain public school students are Latino, and 65 percent of those students live in non-English speaking homes, McGann said.
The new program will match children from Roosevelt Middle School, Smalley Academy and Smith Elementary with mentors to help with individual goals, like academic success, improved social skills and drug use prevention.
Teachers and social workers will nominate students for the program, and those students will go through an application process with their parents.
Nutmeg will mentor a minimum of 25 children, but McGann said she's hoping to take on more once planning is further along.
Nutmeg is also looking for mentors, who don't have to be Latino or speak fluent Spanish, to supplement student volunteers from Central Connecticut State University, McGann said.
The grant is part of $14 million administered by the Justice Department's Juvenile Mentoring Program, which the department estimates will serve 5,000 at-risk youths in 38 states.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
