Category: Ryan G. Murphy
Worcester Students May Carry the Budget Cut Burden
WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 – In the spring of 2001, Willimantic, Conn., high school senior Chris Marot knew he wanted to attend the College of the Holy Cross, but there was a problem: he had no way of financing his education.
At the time, the most viable alternative seemed to be to enroll at the University of Connecticut, which was less expensive and closer to his hometown. Mr. Marot said he had his heart set on Holy Cross but saw the reality of the situation.
“I knew I wouldn’t be able to afford Holy Cross,” he said.
But after finally being given enough financial aid to attend his first choice, Mr. Marot enrolled at Holy Cross.
It’s taken some creative financing – he said he paid the balance of last semester’s tuition from the money he made house painting over the summer – but in May, Mr. Marot is set to graduate from Holy Cross with a degree in history.
But for many other students, the financial burden of an education may only be getting heavier. Congress has proposed to cut several billion dollars from the federal student loan program in the coming months.
Last month, the House narrowly passed its version of the budget reconciliation bill, one of the main items on President Bush’s legislative agenda. The bill would cut approximately $50 billion in total spending, including $14.3 billion in federal student loan subsidies over the next five years.
The Senate bill, also passed last month, proposes to cut $35 billion in total spending, including $9 billion from the student loan program.
Reduced subsidies for lenders means that borrowers – the students – would absorb most of the burden in the long run. Since banks and other lenders will need a way to maintain their profits, student loan incentive programs may be discontinued, the loan terms may be much less appealing and higher-interest rates may become the norm.
According to the State Public Interest Research Groups’ Higher Education Project , the average federal student loan is about $17,500. A student who borrows this amount, under the new legislation, could pay up to $5,800 more in interest than he or she now pays over the life of the loan.
“In many cases, that’s tacking on a year or two to the loan,” said Luke Swarthout, the higher-education associate for the State Public Interest Research Groups – a citizen run, public-interest organization. “Students will experience these legislative changes in the years after graduation when they’re forced to make choices like starting a family or buying a home. It’s those economic and social consequences that make this bill outrageous.”
The bill passed by two votes in the House, 217-215. Every voting Democrat and 14 Republicans opposed the bill.
Opponents contended that the student loan cuts would force students to carry the burden through increased interest rates and various fees on their loans and would leave many students hard-pressed to afford an education.
“I’m horrified by what the Republicans are trying to do,” said Rep. James P. McGovern, D-Worcester. “These cuts are unacceptable. One of the keys to our economic viability is a well-educated work force. We should be making it easier for people to get an education, not harder.”
“If I had to choose one plan, I’d pick the Senate’s,” said Eileen O’ Leary, co-chairwoman of the government relations committee of the Massachusetts Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators . “Although the Senate bill does make changes that can cost students more money, most of the money comes out of bank and lender profits, which I’m not opposed to. The Senate bill isn’t perfect, but it’s a better option.”
The government offers three main student loans – the Perkins Loan, which has a 5 percent interest rate and is based exclusively on need; the Stafford Loan, a popular, variable-interest loan that may not exceed 8.25 percent and currently is at 4.7 percent; and the Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students, a higher-interest loan offered to parents of dependent undergraduates.
The Senate bill proposes a fixed interest rate of 6.8 percent for Stafford loans. The House bill proposes an 8.25 percent cap for students and 9 percent for parents
Unlike the House bill, the Senate bill would increase funds for Pell Grants, a form of federal aid that does not need to be paid back. Pell Grants are typically awarded to students whose families earn $20,000 a year or less.
According to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass, the Senate bill would bring about $120 million in additional Pell Grants to Massachusetts students over the next five years.
Lenders are particularly concerned that the Senate budget proposal would reduce federal subsidies paid to them even more steeply than the House bill would . Some lenders estimate a loss of as much as $15 billion over the next five years.
“The bill could lead to major changes in marketing patterns,” said John Dean, a representative of the Consumer Bankers Association. “Some smaller lenders may find it difficult to survive in the marketplace and major lenders may not market to community colleges or to institutions with students who are at a higher risk for default.”
The Republican leadership is pushing to work out the differences between the House and Senate bills before Christmas, although a complete resolution may not be reached until early in the new year.
Alexa Marrero, spokeswoman for the House Education and the Workforce Committee, said the House bill would increase student loan benefits. For example, she said, it would preserve the Stafford Loans’ variable interest rate, which should be to the advantage of the borrower over the long term.
Ms. Marrero also said that the bill would allow students to take out larger loans and pay reduced fees.
“The bill is actually reforming the student loan program,” she said. “We’re trying to improve opportunities for students, and we are demanding a greater efficiency from the programs. In the short term, students see an increase in the loan limits, and they can watch their fees go down. In the long term, students should know that [the government’s] investment in higher education is going to continue to rise.”
As for the $5,800 more in interest the average student is expected to pay on a loan, she said: “That number is misleading. There isn’t really a way to peg a number on what a student will pay overall because there are so many different factors involved. Opponents of the program have put forth misleading information and inaccurate descriptions of what the new program is intended to do.”
Some contend that the government is dumping its financial burden from the Iraq war and hurricane relief on the backs of lower- and middle-class students.
“Cutting student loans is a short-sided policy,” Mr. Swarthout of the State Public Interest Research Groups said. “I think there is a perception [in Congress] that they can cut these programs and there won’t be political consequences when it comes time to vote.”
In addition to cutting federal money for student loans, the Senate and House bills would dip into such programs as health care and food stamps.
“The bottom line is, we’re going to have tax cuts that will benefit the wealthy in this country,” Mr. McGovern said. “The rich and the oil companies are not sacrificing anything. By cutting student loans and food stamps and home heating oil and Medicaid, you’re not making America stronger, you are making it weaker.”
With several colleges in the Worcester area, many local students would be likely to feel the financial strain from the student aid cuts.
At Assumption College, 1,687 students, or about 80 percent of the student population, received federal aid in the past year, according to Karen Puntillo, the school’s financial aid director. The figure is even higher at Clark University, where about 90 percent of the student body receives some form of federal aid.
Alyssa Sunkin, a junior at Clark, said that the increased cost of education and the threat of increasing loan costs have deterred her from applying to graduate school.
The editor-in-chief of The Scarlet, Clark’s student newspaper, Ms. Sunkin plans on becoming a journalist but fears that an entry-level salary will not allow her to comfortably pay off her loans.
“I don’t expect to be making 50, 60, 70 thousand dollars right away,” she said. “If the loans increase, it’s going to be a tremendous strain on me and my family. A lot of my friends here are relying on their loans to stay at the university. College should be an institution that all people can attend, not just people that can afford it.”
At Worcester Polytechnic Institute 1,621 of the 2,806 students (58 percent) receive some form of federal aid.
At Holy Cross, 43 percent of the approximately 2,700 students receive federal aid, according to Lynne Myers, Holy Cross’ financial aid director.
” Students that receive financial aid are concerned,” Ms. Myers said. “The reality is that things like tuition and room and board are going up and financial aid is, at best, staying the same.”
Craig Lowell, a senior at Holy Cross, uses a $2,000 Stafford loan to help finance his education. With the potential rise in student loan costs, Lowell said, many students may not be able to attend the colleges they’d like to.
“Even before the increase, I’ve had friends who weren’t able to go to the college they wanted to because they didn’t get enough financial aid,” he said. “As a college student, you’re always strapped for money.”
At Worcester State College 2,004 students, or 37 percent of the 5,471 enrolled during the 2005 fall semester, received federal aid.
“For us, we have a large number of students who wouldn’t be able to go to college if they didn’t have financial aid,” said Worcester State College financial aid director Kaine Thompson. “The school is taking on more and more in scholarship aid because of such a great need.”
She added: “Most jobs require you to have at least a bachelor’s degree these days. [The government] is cutting people’s ability to give back to the economy.”
Student Debt Alert is a project of the State Public Interest Research Groups. On its Web site, www.studentalert.org , students have initiated a campaign addressing problems with student loan debt.
In the Web site’s “Student Debt Yearbook,” students from colleges across the country express their concern over their mounting debts. Jody (she didn’t give her full name), a prospective graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s class of 2008, writes that she expects her total loan debt will exceed $110,000.
“It is a raw deal,” she wrote in the on-line yearbook. “There’s no way that you can possible start out on a good foot when you are way over your head in debt.”
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Kennedy Criticizes Budget Cuts and Tax Cuts
WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 - Citing a Republican agenda that he said helps America's wealthiest, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., Monday criticized the expected budget cuts outlined in the House budget reduction bill and stressed the importance of helping low- and middle-income families in Massachusetts.
"This is a budget that is continuing to leave behind the needy families that today are paying the prices," said Mr. Kennedy during a teleconference with reporters. "[These cuts] are hurting families that are facing higher costs for heating and health bills."
Mr. Kennedy's remarks come amidst controversy over the House bill passed last month, which many Democrats and some moderate Republicans contend cuts too much into such programs as food stamps, child support, child care, Medicaid and education.
The bill cuts approximately $50 billion in total spending, including $700 million from food stamps, $5 billion from child support programs and $12 billion from Medicaid over the next five years. Additionally, the House bill would cut $14.3 from federal student loans.
The bill also calls for tax cuts that would benefit taxpayers who make more than $1 million per year. Additionally, the House bill offers tax cuts on corporate dividends and capital gains.
"Republicans want $95 million in tax cuts," Mr. Kennedy said. "This has a direct impact on children and working families."
The Senate's version of the bill, also passed last month, cuts around $35 billion in total spending over five years. The differences between the bills are expected to be worked out in the coming weeks, although a final draft may not emerge until some time early next year.
The House and Senate bills are part of a larger budget reconciliation meant to offset the cost of the Iraq war and hurricane relief.
"We are going to do everything we can to try and reduce oppression on needy families," Mr. Kennedy said. He called the upcoming week in Congress one of the most important of the year.
"This week, the stakes couldn't be higher for Massachusetts families facing record energy prices, soaring health care costs and rising tuition," Mr. Kennedy said in a statement. "America can do better than the wrong priorities of the White House and Republican leadership," Mr. Kennedy said. "The lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina have fallen on deaf ears and I believe it is immoral to pay for tax cuts for the wealthiest on the backs of America's working poor."
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Funding Would Assist Missing Child Program
WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 -A branch of "A Child Is Missing" may soon be established in Massachusetts' 1 st Congressional District.
The House recently approved $240,000 for the program, which assists law enforcement agencies during the first few hours after a child or elderly adult is reported missing. The money would be used to search for missing children and elderly, conduct child safety programs and assist law enforcement agencies throughout the 1 st district.
The money is included in the 2006 fiscal year Science, State, Justice and Commerce appropriations bill, which the House approved Nov. 9. The Senate must now pass the bill.
To locate a missing child or elderly adult, A Child Is Missing uses an advanced telephone computer system that sends an automated emergency message to residents and businesses in the area where the missing person was last seen. The computer can call about 1,000 locations per minute and give a description of the missing person and telephone numbers to call.
"This system, as tested by law enforcement, has the potential for saving those first few precious hours," said Rep. John Olver, D-Amherst, a member of the Appropriations Committee,. "This funding will go a long way--all towns and law enforcement agencies in the 1st Congressional District, as well as the rest of Massachusetts, will benefit from this program."
A Child Is Missing, a national nonprofit organization started in 1997, is branching its way across Massachusetts. The program has led to the recovery of missing persons in Abington, Brockton, Framingham, Kingston, Longmeadow and Pepperell .
In the past 44 months 126 recoveries have been recorded and verified by law enforcement officials nationwide, said Claudia Corrigan, vice president and national expansion director of the program.
The program assists in all types of missing cases - abductions, lost children, runaways, lost senior citizens and lost physically and mentally challenged persons.
The Molly Bish Institute for Child Health and Safety at Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner will conduct training for area residents about the program in the near future.
"We've been working with Congressman Olver in setting up meetings with A Child Is Missing representatives to learn more about what they need," said Lea Ann Erickson, director of community relations at the college. "The college will essentially serve as a subcontractor by facilitating the training."
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A Little More Sex Than You Might Expect
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 - A recent study reveals that sexual content on television is more widespread than ever and may be influencing teenagers' sexual behavior.
The study, conducted by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, was released Wednesday at a news conference with a panel of TV executives, federal regulators and health experts.
Examining a week's worth of programming from such outlets as ABC, CBS, Fox, PBS, Lifetime, TNT, USA and HBO, the study found that 70 percent of all shows include some sexual content - ranging from talk about sex to implied intercourse. The study also revealed that these shows average five such incidents of sexual content per hour.
"You might be wondering why in this digital era we are so concerned about something as, maybe, old-fashioned as television," said Vicky Rideout, Kaiser Family Foundation vice president. "The reason is that young people in our society spend more time watching television, by far, than they do with any other medium."
Studies show that adolescents watch television for an average of about three hours a day, a figure that concerns many parents and some legislators.
"When children are exposed to sex without consequences, they're more likely to have sex with consequences," said Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, a father of two young girls. "We don't teach our children that healthy relationships involve drunken, naked parties in a hot tub with strangers, but that's what they see when they turn on [MTV's] 'The Real World.' "
The Kaiser Foundation study also revealed that 14 percent of programs with at least one sexual reference include a reference to sexual risks or responsibilities, a growing trend in television programming.
"The shows that include at least a passing reference to such issues, while still relatively low, has increased significantly over the last seven years," Ms. Rideout said.
In recent years, television networks have accepted a fraction of the monitoring responsibility by adopting the TV rating system, promoting the V-Chip and running public service announcements to educate parents during prime-time television.
Ultimately, however, many network executives feel that broadcast television is not the sole influence on teenagers' lives and that it is the parents' responsibility to monitor their children.
"To isolate broadcast television as a cause of all this evil in the world is just wrong," said Tony Vinciquerra, president and CEO of Fox Networks Group. "If you take television out of the equation, other influences are still going to be there."
He added: "Parents do have the ability to lock out channels now on just about any cable system, and they can control what their families are able to watch."
The news conference participants also discussed a separate study of 12- to 17-year-olds conducted in 2004 by RAND that found increased exposure to sexual content on television accelerates the initiation of sexual activities, including intercourse.
"Relative to other factors, [watching sexual content] was as large or larger than any other of the factors we looked at," said Rebecca Collins, a behavioral scientist for RAND who conducted the study with her colleagues.
Collins said the only two factors, other than television content, correlating with a higher prevalence of sexual activity in adolescents were found among teens who lived in single-parent households or who described their friends as being mostly older than themselves.
The top 20 programs most viewed by teens, according to the Kaiser study, include a wide range of shows, such as "American Idol," "The Simpsons," "Desperate Housewives," "Family Guy," "The O.C.", "Survivor," "Lost," "7 th Heaven" and "America's Next Top Model."
Flood Damages Estimate Expected
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - An estimate of flood damage in Massachusetts should be available early next week, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.
Assessment teams from the Federal Emergency Management Agency are reviewing damages in the affected areas to determine the level of federal assistance that will be needed.
"This is a very unique situation," said Peter Judge, spokesperson for the Massachusetts agency. "We should have some more information in about a week or so to so ??? which counties will be available for assistance. We currently have federal assistance in Bristol County, just in case the [Whittendon Pond] Dam does break."
Mr. Judge said that his agency was still waiting to hear about a federal declaration of emergency in the affected counties.
"Once the areas are fully assessed, FEMA will have an 800 number that people can call," Mr. Judge said. "Callers can get a registration number and make an appointment to have an inspector come out."
Earlier this week, the Massachusetts members of Congress, including Sens. Edward M. Kennedy and John Kerry and Reps. John Olver, D-Amherst, James McGovern, D-Worcester, and Richard Neal, D-Springfield, sent a letter to President Bush supporting Gov. Mitt Romney's request for a disaster declaration for the entire state.
"Flooding has forced thousands of residents from their homes and caused widespread property damage," the letter read. "High winds pose an additional hazard of potentially uprooting trees, causing further damage. Already, 75 communities have reported serious flooding, including 30 which have undergone evacuations."
Heavy rainfall in the past week has made water levels in the 173-year-old Whittendon Pond Dam increasingly threatening. The possibility of a collapse has forced the evacuation of 2,000 residents and has closed numerous schools and businesses.
Officials have been working feverishly in the past day to pump water out of the pond at a rate of about 30,000 gallons per minute.
Antiquarian Society Gets $60k
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester has been awarded a $60,000 grant to help conserve its collection of more than two million 18 th and 19 th century newspapers.
The grant is part of a $14.9 million effort to preserve the nation's history and culture under Save America's Treasures, a public-private partnership between the National Park Service and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
"We're terrifically happy about this grant," said John Keenum, vice president for development of the Antiquarian Society. "Our collection is the premier collection in the world. This grant allows us to survey the whole collection and see what newspapers need special care."
Mr. Keenum said the grant would be used to help pay for internal laboratory services and for the society's efforts to make all of its newspapers available digitally.
"[Using the digital service], scholars and readers would be able to text-search for anything they want," Mr. Keenum said. "And readers won't have to handle the actual newspapers if they wish."
To be considered for a grant, the applicant must have demonstrated that its project is of national significance and has an urgent preservation need. In 2005, Save America's Treasures received 337 grant applications. The Worcester society was one of 61 to receive money.
"Historic preservation and conservation have such an important place in America," Laura Bush, honorary chair of the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, said in a press release. "Through these Save America's Treasures grants, and together with our Preserve America initiative, President Bush and I want to help every American -especially children -learn about our nation's heritage history and culture."
According to its Web site, the American Antiquarian Society is the third oldest historical society in the United States, founded in 1812 by Revolutionary War printer and patriot Isaiah Thomas. The society's collection contains 20 miles of shelves that hold more than three million items, including books, pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, periodicals, sheet music and graphic materials from 1640 to 1876.
Immigration Reformation
WASHINGTON, Oct. 19 - Legislation Sen. Edward M. Kennedy is co-sponsoring is intended to assist thousands of undocumented foreign workers in Massachusetts and strengthen the U.S. immigration system.
The bipartisan legislation, introduced in May by Mr. Kennedy and Sen. John McCain, R- Ariz., is aimed at strengthening border security, protecting against immigration fraud and giving visas to employed, illegal immigrants for six years. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has given the bill its strong support.
"Our national security and economic vitality are too important to pass half-way repairs that look and sound tough but offer no real solutions or protections," Mr. Kennedy said during a Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday. "We need sensible solutions, not feel-good empty gestures."
The legislation would allow illegal workers to apply for six-year work visas. After the six years, the workers could apply for a green card to seek citizenship and could remain in the United States while their application was being processed, usually an extensive procedure.
"The McCain-Kennedy bill is the perfect solution," said Randy Feldman, a Worcester immigration lawyer. "It's helping create opportunities that don't currently exist. It's incorporated the illegal immigration system into our legal immigration system."
Another bill, introduced by Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., would require that illegal workers return to their native countries before applying for temporary working visas.
Some in the businesses community have expressed concern over the Cornyn-Kyl bill, saying that it poses a threat to their work force.
Under the McCain-Kennedy legislation, workers applying for legal status would be required to pay a $2,000 fine in addition to any back taxes they owe. During the six years, they would need to stay employed and keep a clean criminal record.
"Our bills offer a genuine alternative -not an amnesty, not a free pass, not an automatic pardon," Mr. Kennedy said at the hearing. "We offer sensible plans to encourage unauthorized workers to come forward to receive work permits and earn legal status. They will pay a substantial fine and go through rigorous security and criminal background checks."
Kennedy added, "Those who want permanent legal status must pay all their back taxes, learn English, maintain a strong work record, stay out of trouble and wait their turn."
Worcester has a very diverse immigrant population, Mr. Feldman said. He noted that recent immigrants have come from such countries as Albania, Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Poland and Vietnam.
"Ghana and Brazil are the only two groups that are still coming in large numbers," Feldman said. "But there really hasn't been an opposition to immigration in Worcester because these folks are incorporating themselves into the culture."
According to David Rushford, the Worcester city clerk, at least 78 countries are represented by immigrants in Worcester.
A poll conducted in 2001 indicates that 41 percent of the 3,200 people who applied for marriage licenses in Worcester were born outside of the United States, including 175 from Brazil, 162 from Ghana and 109 from Vietnam.
Heating Bills Going Up
WASHINGTON, Oct. 13 - Household heating bills in the Northeast are expected to increase more than $300 this winter, an Energy Information Administration report said Wednesday.
The impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and a slightly colder weather forecast have increased the projected average heating expenditure per household in the northeast to $1,353 for natural gas and $1,607 for heating oil this winter.
Last winter, natural gas and heating oil expenditures were $1,029 and $1,237 respectively.
"Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico is still a big concern," said Jonathan Cogan, an energy information specialist at the agency. "The United States gets one-fifth of all its natural gas in the Gulf of Mexico and we're still missing 60 percent of [the Gulf's] production."
For the upcoming winter, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration has forecasted slightly cooler temperatures from last year based on heating degree days, which are a measure that help determine heating cost estimates, according to the Energy Information Administration, which is an agency of the U.S. Department of Energy.
"The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration projects a 0.4 percent colder winter in the lower 48 states, in terms of heating degree-days, relative to normal winter weather, which would be 3.2 percent colder than last winter," the Energy Information Administration said in its report.
"The weather is an area of uncertainty anytime you do a forecast," Cogan said. "In the Northeast, the report is that there is equal chance of having a higher or lower consumption rate, depending on the weather. It's a coin flip."
The report said that heating expenditures could vary significantly if colder or warmer temperatures prevail. If the weather is colder, households in the northeast could pay as much as $1,518 for natural gas and $1,929 for heating oil.
The report caused a quick response from several senators on Capitol Hill, who have been pressing the Bush Administration to increase funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program during the past few months.
The program helps lower-income, elderly and disabled residents pay their heating bills.
On Wednesday, Sens. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., and Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass, joined a group of bipartisan senators from the Northeast requesting additional funding, in a letter addressed to two Bush administration officials.
The letter, addressed to Mike Leavitt, secretary of Health and Human Services, and Joshua Bolten, director of the Office of Management and Budget, requested that the administration provide an additional $3.1 billion in emergency funding, a goal that several senators have been pursuing with no success in the last few weeks
While up to $5.1 billion can be spent on the program, the Senate is currently planning on spending $2.183 billion.
Last week, Mr. Kerry introduced an amendment to a defense spending bill in the Senate that would have increased the actual funding to the maximum, but the amendment failed after a procedural measure prevented the Senate from voting on it.
In Wednesday's letter, the senators expressed concern over the Energy Information Administration's report, citing it as a reason to increase funding for the program, which is also known as LIHEAP.
"To date, the [Bush] administration has indicated that it does not intend to seek additional funding for LIHEAP," the letter said. "As today's report from the Energy Information Administration pointed out, the warning has been issued. We can all foretell the next disaster facing American families.. We believe the answer is to provide $5.1 billion in LIHEAP assistance and we hope that you will work with us to secure this funding."
The letter also cited a National Energy Assistance survey of funding recipients, which said that 73 percent of recipients reported that they reduced expenses for household necessities because they did not have enough money to pay their energy bills and 24 percent of recipients reported having used their stove or oven to provide heat.
To qualify for the program, a household's gross income may not exceed 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. A family of four, for example, would have to have an income below $38,700 to qualify. In 2005, the average recipient received $318 in assistance.
Federal Grant to Help Prevent Housing Discrimination
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 - The Legal Assistance Corporation of Central Massachusetts has been awarded a $220,000 federal grant to help prevent discriminatory housing practices in Worcester County.
The grant, awarded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Fair Housing Initiatives Program, will pay for a staff of investigators to look into any unlawful housing practices in Worcester County that have victimized people because of race, religion, sex or disability.
"If people feel they've been victims of housing discrimination they can call our office and we can conduct an investigation and possibly refer the case to the appropriate authority," said Jonathan Mannina, the Legal Assistance Corporation's litigation director. "We're very happy that this grant allows us to further help people in Worcester."
The grant also will pay for an education program the Legal Assistance Corporation has initiated that will give landlords and tenants a clear overview of the law.
"In many cases, it's not that landlords are intentionally being discriminatory," Mannina said. "A lot of times, they are just not familiar with the law. Our education program helps narrow that gap."
Mannina estimates that the Legal Assistance Corporation receives about 100 complaints a year, mostly from potential tenants who have been denied the opportunity to lease property.
"Discrimination occurs when a potential tenant is denied property for a reason not related to their ability to pay," Mannina said. "It could be because a family has children and a landlord doesn't want to pay for deleading or it could be for something else like the tenant's race or religion or disability."
One of the most extreme cases of rental discrimination in Worcester County occurred during 2000, when a landlord refused to rent to single-mother tenants on the ground that they were living in sin.
"We're not saying that every landlord is being discriminatory," Mannina said. "But we want to increase tenants' and landlords' awareness of the possibility as well as educate them on the law."
In an effort to reach out to people already victimized by discrimination and to help deter further unlawful housing practices, the project staff will be distributing brochures in Worcester. The staff also will run workshops for residents who might be vulnerable to housing discrimination, including the homeless, elderly and disabled.
"I commend the Legal Assistance Corporation of Central Massachusetts and the city of Worcester for this impressive initiative to help victims of housing discrimination learn about their rights and obtain effective remedies," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., in a press release. "This timely federal grant is well-deserved and will enable this initiative to reach out to even more people who suffer unfairly from this shameful discrimination."
Kerry’s Amendment Shot Down
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 -The Senate late Wednesday night rejected a proposal that would have added $3.1 billion of emergency funding to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
While up to $5.1 billion can spent on the program, the Senate is currently only planning on spending $2.183 billion. Wednesday's proposal, an amendment to a defense spending bill, would have raised the actual funding to the maximum.
The program, known as LIHEAP for short, helps lower income, elderly and disabled residents pay their heating bills.
"The tight natural gas market and the devastating impact of the recent hurricanes have resulted in unusually high fuel price forecasts for the foreseeable future," Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., who sponsored the amendment, said during floor debate. "Rapidly rising energy costs hit low and fixed income individuals particularly hard. High prices force working families to choose warmth over other basic necessities."
To qualify for the program, a household's gross income may not exceed 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. A family of four, for example, would need to have an income below $38,700 to qualify. In 2005, the average recipient received $318 in assistance.
Mr. Kerry's amendment was thrown out after a procedural measure prevented the Senate from voting on it.
"By blocking the LIHEAP amendment on procedural vote, the Republican leadership has sent a terrible message to Americans because tonight politics was placed ahead of helping families," Mr. Kerry said in a press release. "It's the wrong choices in Washington that have put us in this energy crisis, and now it's politics as usual standing in the way of fixing this mess."
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., a cosponsor of the amendment, added in a press statement: "Congress needs to stand up for the millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet. We have the ability to tell the elderly, and the disabled, and many others that we¹ve heard them, and that we won¹t leave them shivering in the cold this winter."
The Energy Information Administration has projected the average price per gallon for heating oil this winter to be $2.42 while the projected price per thousand cubic feet for natural gas is $20.64.
However the Energy Information Administration published data Monday saying that the average current price of home heating oil for Massachusetts was $2.57 a gallon.
Last October the average cost for home heating oil in New England was $1.93 per gallon
"If we learned anything from the past months it's that we need to prepare for trouble ahead," Mr. Kerry added in his statement. "With the defeat of this amendment, we remain unprepared for what may be a long, cold and expensive winter for millions of American families."
On Thursday, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney planned to meet with Sen. Arlen Specter, R- Penn., in Washington to discuss a letter that Mr. Romney and Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm had sent requesting $1.276 billion of additional funds for the program. Specter chairs the Appropriations subcommittee that oversees the program.
The letter, signed by 28 other governors said that energy assistance "budgets will be further stretched as we attempt to meet the needs of hurricane evacuees, many of whom lost virtually everything in the storm. Additional funding will allow us to aid these newest residents and those who have traditionally relied on LIHEAP assistance."
Mr. Romney was optimistic about the meeting, said his press secretary, Julie Teer.
"The governor feels that Sen. Specter will have a sympathetic ear since he also represents a state in the northeast," Teer said. "Gov. Romney would like as much federal assistance as we can get but he recognizes that it may be a difficult process."
