Category: Fall 2002 Newswire
Meehan Makes First Move to Stop Internet Tobacco Sales to Kids
By Randy Trick
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002–With the 107th Congress heading toward its conclusion, Rep. Martin T. Meehan introduced a bill Wednesday to curb online sales of tobacco to minors and to close tax loopholes costing states thousands of dollars each year.
“We don’t tolerate alcohol sales to minors, why should we tolerate tobacco sales to minors?” said Meehan, the Democrat from Lowell.
At issue is the lack of age verification with online tobacco sales. A survey of Internet smoke shops conducted in August by Meehan and Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly found no site that asked for proper age verification in the purchasing process.
Meehan’s bill aims to change that, by having a customer submit some form of identification that would then be compared to a federal database. Additionally, at the time of delivery the signer for the package will have to prove he or she is 18 or older.
According to Meehan, more than 200 virtual smoke shops have sprung up since he and Reilly conducted their first survey in 1999. Customers are drawn to the sites by offers of cheap cigarettes.
“Clearly this is a growing market that needs regulation,” Meehan said.
Another clause in Meehan’s bill seeks to improve enforcement of a law that requires online tobacco sites to provide states with names of customers.
For example, if a company in Illinois does not tell Massachusetts about state residents who purchased cartons of cigarettes, those customers do not pay the Massachusetts state tax. According to Meehan, Massachusetts and other states lose thousands of tax dollars each year because of state lack of enforcement. Meehan’s bill would put enforcement under control of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Also, attorneys general like Reilly would be able to file suit in federal court against online smoke shops in other states for noncompliance.
Meehan doubts his bill will see action during the lame duck session. But the sooner he introduces it, the sooner he can gather co-sponsors when he reintroduces it during the 108th Congress, he said.
Meehan recruited Rep. James V. Hansen, a Republican from Utah, as his bipartisan co-sponsor. But Hansen, representing the west side of Utah, will retire from Congress after the end of the session.
However, Hansen’s office said there are about 20 other Republicans in the informal congressional health and tobacco caucus who would be willing to co-sponsor the legislation next session.
Meehan said that his bill is likely to pass next year and that he has received much support from his district and from Massachusetts lawmakers. Additionally, within hours of his announcing the introduction of his bill, Meehan received support from the American Cancer Society and American Lung Association.
Reilly issued a statement of support for Meehan’s bill Wednesday, saying he “is supportive of Meehan’s efforts to protect youth and state revenue used for anti-smoking programs.”
Published in The Lawrence Eagle Tribune, in Massachusetts.
First Responders a Focus of Lame Duck Session for Tierney
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002--As the new Congress gets ready to move in, Rep. John Tierney, D-Salem, is set for a party leadership change and looks forward to resolving issues like distributing money to emergency "first responders," ensuring that people have adequate health insurance and increasing funds for higher-education Pell Grants-subjects he says are important not only to him but to his constituents along the North Shore.
"I have supported Nancy Pelosi from the beginning," Tierney said. Rep. Pelosi, of California's 8th District, was expected this week to win an election to become the new Democratic Leader in the House, succeeding Rep. Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri.
Pelosi is an effective new face who will help straighten out the party, he said.
"She's a strong leader…. She understands what needs to be done."
Tierney, a member on the House Committee on Government Reform, said that for years he has stressed the importance of first responders-the people working at the local level who are the first to respond to emergencies.
"We have repeatedly stressed the importance of getting the money out to them," he said in an interview Wednesday. "It's important to the communities."
In a July statement on the issue, Tierney said: "Whether the targets are ports, nuclear power plants, office buildings or landmarks, our local first responders need to know how they will receive intelligence communications and what resources they will have to help them act on this information in order to protect the American people."
Tierney said in Wednesday's interview that the money for the first responders has been appropriated but has not been "spent in any significant amounts."
Some other issues on Tierney's agenda include healthcare and education.
Pell Grant funds for college aid must be increased, said Tierney, who sits on the Education and the Workforce Committee. Families must have the opportunity to be able to afford a higher education, he said.
Tierney also plans to focus on retraining and educating people in the workforce. "We have to take care of people displaced by new technology or the economy," he said.
He added that health care will be another topic of concern for him in the new Congress. "We have to find a way to make sure people have adequate and affordable coverage," he said. The money is there, he said, but is not being managed and allocated very well.
Even though he is moving up in seniority, Tierney, who will begin his fourth term in January, said that he plans on staying with his committee assignments.
"We'll have to see what develops," he said. But being on these committees is "a good place to be" for his North Shore constituency.
Published in The Salem News, in Massachusetts.
Bishops’ Conference Results in New Rules
By Tia Carioli and Gregory Chisholm
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002--New Hampshire Bishop John McCormack says new rules adopted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will improve the way the church handles sex abuse cases. NHPR Correspondent Tia Carioli reports from Washington.
Under the new rules any credible allegation would be scrutinized in an investigation that could result in a Church Court hearing. If a cleric were found guilty he would be banned from practice and could be removed from office.
New Hampshire Bishop John McCormack says the new guidelines would let Bishops resolve cases that began decades ago.
Rome has given us the opportunity to remove the statute of limitations in these cases, which we didn't have before. Most of the reports we received, 95% of the reports we received, were about 10, 20, 30 years ago.
But some victims of abuse are concerned the confidential Church Court hearings would allow the church to cover up allegations. The rules will now be sent to the Vatican for approval.
For NHPR News, this is Tia Carioli in Washington.
Broadcast on New Hampshire Public Radio, in New Hampshire.
N.H. Delegation Cautious About Iraq Acceptance
By Max Heuer
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002--New Hampshire's congressional delegation reacted Wednesday with guarded optimism to Iraq's statement that it had accepted the United Nations resolution to allow unrestricted weapons inspections and was ready to admit inspectors.
"While it is encouraging that Saddam Hussein has accepted the proposal to
allow unrestricted inspections, the real test will come when Iraq is required to declare the status of all of its weapons programs and then to give inspectors unlimited access," Rep. John Sununu, R-01, said in a press release. "The real proof will be shown in their willingness to comply with all aspects of this resolution."
All four Granite State delegates echoed this statement. Sen. Judd Gregg, R-NH, emphasized strong distrust for the Iraqi leader.
Saddam Hussein, he said in a pres release, "has played games with inspectors before, and it is critical that we are vigilant and insist on unfettered access for the inspectors to all sites in Iraq. Saddam Hussein clearly threatens us with his weapons of mass destruction that could kill tens of thousands of Americans."
"I am cautiously optimistic that Iraq has taken this step to allow inspectors into the country and remain hopeful that military action can be avoided; however, we must not let this news deter our preparation and responsibility to ensure that his regime is disarmed," said Rep. Charlie Bass, R-02, in a press release.
Sen. Bob Smith, R-NH, said in a statement, "I remained concerned that Saddam Hussein will fully cooperate with weapons inspectors."
Inspectors are scheduled to leave for Iraq Monday.
Published in The Manchester Union Leader, in New Hampshire.
N.H. Delegation Backs Homeland Passage
By Max Heuer
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002--New Hampshire's congressional delegation Wednesday lauded the passage of a new version of the Homeland Security Act, based on a compromise between the White House and key senators earlier this week.
"The formation of a Department of Homeland Security will bring together agencies and programs to better assess, prevent, and respond to new threats posed by weapons of mass destruction and global terrorism," Rep. John Sununu, R-01, who was recently elected to the Senate, said in a press release.
"I am pleased that Congress and the White House were able to reach a
bipartisan agreement that will allow for the passage of legislation to create the Department of Homeland Security," recently re-elected Rep. Charlie Bass, R-02, said in a press release.
Both congressmen voted for the legislation, which passed ### to ###, Wednesday night.
The bill would create a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security with a $37 billion budget. Twenty-two federal agencies would be consolidated within the agency, including Border Patrol, Customs Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Immigration and Naturalization Services and the Coast Guard, according to a release from Sununu's office.
The agency will comprise four divisions: Border and Transportation Security, Emergency Preparedness and Response, Science and Technology, and Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection.
Both congressmen said the agency was crucial in protecting American lives in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
"As Congress reviewed the events leading up to September 11, there was a clear need for better communication and coordination of activities," Sununu said.
"By consolidating the confusing patchwork of government activities, this bill will help reduce duplication, end confusion about responsibilities, and provide focus, direction, and flexibility to help protect Americans from today's threats and the unknown threats of the future," Bass said.
The House had passed a version of the bill on July 26, but similar legislation was blocked in the Senate because of a labor dispute. Reports this week said three moderate senators - John Breaux, D-LA, Ben Nelson, D-NE, and Lincoln Chafee, R-RI - had worked out a compromise with GOP leadership and the White House on the bill.
The new provision makes the department inform union representatives of when it proposes any change in workplace rules . It provides a 30-day period for the union to respond, and if both sides cannot agree, the issue would be sent to Congress for review and a 30-day mediation process would be held. But if this process does not produce an agreement, the agency would still be allowed to continue with the change.
The Senate is expected to vote on the bill sometime next week.
Published in The Manchester Union Leader, in New Hampshire.
EIA Predicts Slightly Cheaper Oil Heating Costs
By Max Heuer
WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2002--The cost of heating a home this winter won't be quite as expensive as originally expected, but there will still be a much heavier financial burden than last winter on New Hampshire residents and others throughout the Northeast, the Energy Information Administration said in its November Short-Term Energy Outlook.
The EIA-part of the U.S. Department of Energy-last week lowered its estimated average household winter expenditure for oil heat by about $30, crediting the adjustment to a surprising jump in oil production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
EIA energy information specialist Jonathan Cogan said the production increase has made crude oil cheaper. This should in turn bring some moderate relief to oil heat customers in the Northeast, the EIA estimated.
"There has been talk of concerns in the market about possible military actions in the Middle East," Cogan said in a phone interview Wednesday. "The more fundamental factors of supply and demand seem to be more significant."
Oil heat customers make up 58 percent of New Hampshire's home heating market, according to the EIA, and natural gas users represent another 18 percent.
The EIA projection this month foresees expenditure increases over last winter of 40 percent in heating oil and 25 percent in natural gas. of
Last winter, the average Northeast customer paid $643 in oil heating during an unusually warm winter. This year, the EIA now estimates, it will cost the average homeowner $901. But that number is down from a $934 estimate in the Short-Term Outlook published last month. This year's estimates, despite being vastly higher than last winter, are not record breaking: two winters ago the average Northeast customer paid $999.
While the estimated decrease is "a step in the right direction" the cost is still going to be a "huge bite" out of homeowners' wallets, said Joe Broyles, energy program manager in the New Hampshire Governor's Office of Energy and Community Services.
New Hampshire has the lowest heating oil prices in New England, with an average of approximately $1.20 per gallon of oil, according to the most recent EIA weekly report.
But the price of oil heat in the Granite State has been increasing faster than the New England average, which is currently at about $1.25. The average price of a gallon of oil has climbed 2.1 cents since the first week in October in New Hampshire, one cent more than the New England average has risen.
The price of oil by the gallon in neighboring Vermont climbed just seven-tenths of a cent in the same period. Only Maine saw a larger increase, with its average increasing 3.9 cents.
Both Cogan and Broyles stressed that the accuracy of the estimates depends on the severity of this winter's weather.
"We have observed in October it was colder than we expected, but the rest of the forecast assumes we'll see so-called normal weather," Cogan said.
There is speculation that OPEC, in increasing its production, was motivated by the struggling world economy, which had driven down the number of consumers able to buy oil at exceedingly high prices, Broyles said. Other reports have hinted that some OPEC member countries could be cheating on their production quotas to produce more immediate cash.
"Nobody's really sure, but worldwide there is a lot of crude oil out there," Broyles said.
Published in The Manchester Union Leader, in New Hampshire.
Blumenthal Fights to Protect Kids
By Andrew Kosow
WASHINGTON, Nov. 12, 2002--Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal argued before the Supreme Court Wednesday that Connecticut's version of Megan's Law - which allows public access to the sex offender registry through the Internet and at state and local police stations - is constitutional.
The question before the court in Connecticut Dept. of Public Safety et al. v. John Doe et al. is whether convicted sex offenders have a due process (14th Amendment) right to a hearing before being listed in a public database as convicted sex offenders.
Blumenthal argued that they do not.
"They have had their due process hearing when they went to trial and were convicted beyond a reasonable doubt," he said. "All the registry does is list the truthful fact that the people on the list are convicted sex offenders."
Many of the justices seemed to agree with Blumenthal. They made more frequent comments and posed more pointed questions to Shelley Sadin, the lead attorney for Doe.
"I could give a person unlimited hearings and all the due process they want," said Justice Stephen Breyer. "But they still would be on the Website as a convicted sex offender."
"People on the ten-most-wanted list are in a better position than your clients," Justice Antonin Scalia joked to Sadin. "They have had no hearing and are still innocent. Your clients had their hearing."
The respondents contend that they are unfairly stigmatized for the rest of their lives.
"The state is saying that everyone on this list is a dangerous person," Sadin said in her opening remarks. " And these people should have a way [a hearing] to get off this list if they are deemed no longer dangerous."
Justice John Paul Stevens asked Sadin: "But what if the people of Connecticut don't trust these hearings and don't care what psychiatrists say? Don't they have a right to the information and then decide for themselves?"
Another argument the respondents made is that the most egregious violent offenders are lumped in with cases like that of an 18-year-old boy sleeping with a 15-year-old girl.
"All we are saying is this law encompasses too wide a variety of people," Philip Tegeler of the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union, which filed a brief on behalf of the defendants, said in an interview. "It is stigmatizing too many people that are not even considered dangerous."
Blumenthal said that Connecticut's Website has a disclaimer specifically stating it is merely a way to disseminate the information and not a predictor of future crimes.
Scalia agreed. "The Website only says these people may be dangerous, not that they are dangerous."
Rep. Chris Shays (R-4th) said in a phone interview that Connecticut citizens simply have a right to know.
"If you served time, it doesn't mean that the public does not have a right to know," he said. "The Website did not say you will do it in the future but that you were convicted in the past, and that person needs to make peace with the people he will live with."
The law was named for Megan Kanka, a 7-year-old New Jersey girl who was raped and killed in 1994 by her neighbor - a twice-convicted sex offender.
The registry has been unavailable to the Connecticut public since May 17, 2001, when the Website was taken down after a federal court ruled that sex offenders were denied their due process rights and not allowed to prove they did not belong on the list. A federal appeals court upheld the decision.
Sgt. Paul Vance, the commanding officer of the public information office in the Connecticut Department of Public Safety, said an average of more than 150,000 people visited the Website each month in a state with only 3.4 million residents "[Access to the information on sex offenders] was a peace of mind for neighborhoods. and some of that was removed."
He noted that while the public currently has no access to the sex offender registry, organizations like schools and youth groups can still run criminal checks on individuals if they pay a $25 fee to the state for each background check.
Underscoring the importance of the issues involved, Blumenthal arrived in Washington over the weekend to prepare for the oral arguments. His preparation included mock trials in front of "judges," including Theodore Olson, the solicitor general of the United States, who also argued today on behalf of Connecticut's Megan Law.
Andrew Vachss, a child-advocate lawyer who has written extensively on the subject in non-fiction and fiction, said in a phone interview that even if Blumenthal is victorious, the law will not protect children. "Megan's Law just gives people a false sense of security. It means that the judicial system doesn't keep these dangerous predators in prison. They will do it again."
This case is significant because, along with a similar case affecting Alaska that the Court heard today, it is the first time the Court has reviewed the constitutionality of Megan's Law . The Court should rule by June.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Senate Loss Strips Dems. of Powerful Positions
By Marty Toohey
WASHINGTON, Nov. 08, 2002--Tuesday's elections didn't just hand Senate control to Republicans. They also stripped Connecticut Democratic Sens. Christopher Dodd and Joseph Lieberman of their committee chairmanships, significantly reducing the clout of two of Congress's most influential lawmakers.
Lieberman chaired the Governmental Affairs Committee, and the presidential hopeful was able to use the position to press legislation while maintaining a high profile. But chairmanships go to members of the majority party-and voters turned to Republicans this year.
In losing his chairmanship, Lieberman also loses the power to decide when and where his committee will meet and what it will talk about. He also loses the power and visibility of running its hearings, some of which garner national attention, like those on the Enron crisis and on homeland security.
"Some hearings are very high profile," said John Fortier, a political analyst with the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute.
Dodd, who is occasionally mentioned as a future presidential candidate, chaired the Rules and Administration Committee, which allowed him to play a key role in reforms of election and campaign finance laws. He also played an important role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Rules subcommittee that deals with Central and South America.
The chairmanship losses will almost certainly result in budget and staff reductions for Lieberman and Dodd.
Both senators continued their silence Thursday about their party's losing the Senate. Lieberman would also not comment on how the chamber's new makeup could affect his efforts to eliminate or modify a piece of legislation that would allow President Bush to remove workers within a new Department of Homeland Security from union protection for purposes of national security.
Thus far, disagreement between Democrats and the White House over that authority has kept a homeland security bill from passing.
The White House has placed passage of that bill, as well as the federal budget, as the top priority of a lame-duck legislative session expected to start Tuesday.
"I want it done," Bush said Thursday. "I want it out of conference and to my desk."
Fortier said that Democrats will probably acquiesce to Bush's version of the bill. Not only will Republicans hold both chambers, but the election also provided "a sense of mandate" that will give Bush a "honeymoon period similar to that enjoyed by newly elected presidents to advance their agenda," Fortier said.
That probably means passage of a homeland security bill in short order, experts say.
"I don't think Democrats will lift a finger against it," Fortier said. "I think they'll roll over and hope the president offers a compromise."
Despite Republican control of both the chambers of Congress and the White House, the GOP won't run wild or unchecked with its agenda. It takes 60 votes to pass most legislation in the Senate, and Republicans will probably only hold 51 seats of Louisiana Democrat Mary Landrieu wins a runoff election Dec. 7.
"You need 60 votes to pass most anything," Fortier said.
Unlike the House, the Senate "is uniquely organized to allow substantial room for members of the minority party," with filibusters always possible, said Tom Mann, a political analyst with the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank.
But in addition to controlling the chairmanship, Republicans will also control the floor schedule and can decide which bills can come to the Senate floor for a vote. Republican control also could mean a wave of approvals for Bush's nomination of conservative judges, such as controversial nominee Priscilla Owen of Texas to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit.
Published in The New Britain Herald, in Connecticut.
Veterans’ Benefits May Lead to Fight Between Bush, Congress
article missing
Keene Native Endures Sniper Attacks
WASHINGTON, Nov. 07, 2002--"I know these people have been caught, but I can't help still thinking about it because one of the killings happened at my gas station," Elizabeth Hamshaw said of the recent sniper attacks in the Washington area. "There was no discrimination; all you had to be was a human being to be a target."
Twenty-four-year-old Hamshaw, who has lived in Washington for two years and works for the Council of Independent Colleges, fills her car at the Mobil station in the Aspen Hill section of Montgomery County, Md., where one of the sniper's first victims, cab driver Premkumar A. Walekar, was gunned down. The station is located near Silver Spring, Md., where Hamshaw regularly goes horseback riding.
As a Keene native, Hamshaw's first experience of living in a large city came when she moved to Washington after attending Sweet Briar College, near the Blue Ridge Mountains in rural Virginia.
Hamshaw said she first found out about the sniper killings from a friend who works in Rockville, Md., and initially thought the killings were a random spree and would end the first day. As they continued, though, Hamshaw said she made a point to fill her gas tank only in Washington because "she felt pretty safe in the city." She said that she is thankful the suspects were caught because one of her biggest fears as time went by between each killing was that "he would stop and we would never catch them."
Sniper suspects John Allen Muhammed, 41, and John Lee Malvo, 17, who have been linked to 14 area shootings as well as a mounting number of killings in other parts of the country, were brought into custody on Oct. 24. Until then, many Washington-area residents were shaken into altering their daily routines throughout the almost month-long reign of terror.
Despite having the mindset to go about their daily lives, Hamshaw said, her friends who live in Maryland and Virginia often came into Washington, where they would just "stay in and watch movies" or go to places that they knew would be crowded with people.
"It's so ironic because after 9/11, I was nervous to be in any big crowds or to go on the Metro, and now it was a completely opposite feeling," Hamshaw said.
While she is relieved the sniper has been caught, she can't help but still be nervous because of her surprise at the identity of the suspects, whom she had expected to be "monsters." "The two suspects were really unsettling because they looked like nice family people," she said.
She added that even though she was "put off by how the media made it into entertainment, the police department did a great job and really used all of their resources."
Although she never contemplated moving home during the sniper killings, Hamshaw said her parents, Douglas and Marianne, who have lived in Keene for more than 25 years and own Hamshaw Lumber and the Cheshire House, "were very worried and pretty nervous" about her living alone in Washington. She said she believes though that "wherever you are, you're at risk for certain dangers."
"I think it's made me realize it could happen anywhere, in any small town, which I didn't think before," Hamshaw said. "They [the snipers] almost went into rural areas on purpose."
Published in The Keene Sentinel, in New Hampshire.
