Category: Paul Ziobro
Senate Bill Forgives Loans for Early Childhood Educators
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – NEON Head Start teacher Wendy Hilliard, 35, juggles raising three children, working full-time and earning an associate’s degree in early childhood education at Norwalk Community College, where, she said, her tuition is subsidized through federal financial aid.
Hilliard, a Norwalk resident, said she would not hesitate to take advantage of a program that would expand the funds available to forgive a percentage of federal loans to early childhood educators nationwide from $1 million to $25 million through a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate last week.
“If I could do that, then I’d definitely jump on the opportunity,” Hilliard said in a phone interview Thursday.
Introduced by Sens. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and Mike DeWine (R-Ohio), the Paul Wellstone Early Educator Loan Forgiveness Act, named after the late Minnesota senator, would aim to keep early childhood educators and childcare providers in the field longer. The bill applies to educators pursuing associate’s degrees in early childhood education and pre-school teachers working toward or having already received bachelor’s degrees.
“These are not typically high-paying professions, but their value is immeasurable,” Dodd said. “By offering incentives to enter into these careers, we can not only attract more qualified people to the profession but also provide better early learning experiences to millions of children.”
Congress has found that early childcare providers earn on average $7.86 an hour or $16,350 a year, according to the bill. Low income causes a turnover of up to 31 percent a year in some childcare programs, which affects the quality of the program and causes anxiety in children, the bill said.
Elaine Liberto, director of the four Norwalk Head Start programs, said Wednesday that teachers in her program earn more than the national average because the cost of living is higher in Norwalk. Assistant teachers who have completed a nine-credit program earn $9.50 an hour while teachers with a two-year associate’s degree earn $14.70.
The bill, which precedes the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act scheduled for later this congressional session, also hopes to keep educators pursuing higher degrees in early childcare education rather than moving to more lucrative positions, according to Adele Robinson, senior director of public policy and communications at the National Association for the Education of Young Children. The NAEYC worked closely on the bill with DeWine, Dodd and, before his death last fall, Wellstone.
“It’s a move in the right direction that says we need early childhood educators and that we want to help them at the federal level to keep them in this field,” Robinson said.
Under the bill, 20 percent of loans would be forgiven after the second year in early childhood education and up to 30 percent for the fourth and fifth years., Loan forgiveness would be on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Liberto said any program that helped her staff obtain degrees would help the program reach its goal of at least half of Head Start teachers nationwide having associate’s degrees in early childhood education by 2004.
“We need to have people with associate’s degrees, and if they have to pay for it on their own, then we’d like to give them the incentive that they would be reimbursed,” Liberto said.
Congressional findings show that high-quality early childhood education correlates with better language development, math abilities and social skills. Workers with higher degrees improve the quality of childcare, which “helps children grow and thrive,” according to the bill.
Amendments to the Higher Education Act in 1998 began a $1 million loan forgiveness program for early childcare providers that went into effect in 2001 and 2002, according to a Congressional Research Service report – extending a program previously reserved for K-12 teachers.
This is the second legislation Dodd has introduced that would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965. A bill introduced last month would increase the maximum amount students could receive from the federal Pell Grant program.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Shays’ Committee Assignments Finalized
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Rep. Christopher Shays (R-4th) has added two committee assignments to his workload: the vice chairmanship of the House Budget Committee and membership on the new Select Committee on Homeland Security.
“I am grateful for these opportunities to serve and energized by the task ahead for us,” Shays said in a statement Wednesday. “We have no higher priorities than fighting the war on terrorism and getting our economy moving again, and I look forward to working to address those critical issues over the next two years.”
Shays plans to use his new leadership position on the Budget Committee, where he had served from 1991 to 2001, to help reinvigorate the nation’s economy, which will in turn get Connecticut’s economy back on track, according to Betsy Hawkings, his chief of staff.
“Helping Connecticut’s economy is one of the most important things he can do in the next two years,” Hawkings said. “With his position on the Budget Committee, he’s in a position to help craft policies that will help our economy grow and help Connecticut’s economy grow in the process.”
Shays also serves as vice chairman of the House Government Reform Committee and as a member of the Financial Services Committee. Although four committee assignments make his days hectic, Hawkings said, Shays is handling it well.
“He’s energized, he’s excited and there’s never a dull moment here,” Hawkings said.
Shays has chaired the Government Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations, which has changed its name over the years, since 1998. He will combine his expertise in national security issues with his seats on the Financial Services and Budget Committees to tackle the two key issues facing America, Hawkings said – the faltering economy and the war on terrorism. The Homeland Security Committee will focus on the new Homeland Security Department and terrorism issues..
“These are areas where Chris has worked for a number of years, and he sees it as a great opportunity to focus on two areas where he has spent a great deal of time in the past and feels there’s a critical need to focus for our nation and the future,” Hawkings said.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), who appointed Shays to his committee assignments, said Shays’ knowledge would add a new viewpoint to combat the country’s economic and national security problems.
“Chris Shays’ experience and expertise in both the areas of the budget and national security will add an important perspective as we focus on creating jobs, growing our economy and winning the war on terror,” Hastert said in a statement Wednesday.
In January, Shays was passed over for the Government Reform Committee chairmanship despite being its most senior Republican. Shays, one of two primary House sponsors of last year’s landmark campaign finance reform law, said last month that he understood he was being punished for his actions but felt he was given a fair chance to present his case for the chairmanship, which went to Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.).
Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-5) feels Shays will still be influential on campaign finance reform issues, although his failure to be appointed to the chairmanship will hamper his effectiveness in the House, her press secretary, Brian Schubert, said. Both Johnson and Shays are members of the Republican Main Street Partnership, a coalition of moderate House Republicans.
“If anything, his influence will only grow in Congress as he gains seniority,” Schubert said, “and he will continue to provide his expertise on homeland security and the budget process for the nation.”
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Pepperidge Farm to Receive Federal Money to Help Dislocated Workers
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Pepperidge Farm Inc. will receive $258,000 in federal grants to help workers who will lose their jobs when the company begins moving its bakery from Norwalk to Bloomfield in late March, a spokeswoman for the company said Wednesday.
The grants will provide services such as résumé development, worker retraining, basic skills training, job search assistance and English as a Second Language classes for workers who will not relocate to the new bakery, said Nan Redmond, director of corporate and brand communications. She said that as many of two-thirds of the 337 employees at the Norwalk bakery will move the 80 miles to the Bloomfield facility and that all employees were offered the opportunity to move.
“We are very pleased to receive these grants because it will allow us to ensure our workers are able to transition to a new job with little or no difficulty,” Redmond said.
The U.S. Department of Labor gave $1.2 million on Feb. 6 to the Connecticut Department of Labor to help more than 312 laid-off workers from two companies in the eastern part of the state and from four manufacturing companies—including Pepperidge Farm--in southwest Connecticut, according to a press release from the state agency.
“The awarding of this grant is a welcome news not only for those directly affected by the closing of these companies but for the state as a whole,” State Labor Commissioner Shaun B. Cashman said. “It shows that partnerships can accomplish great things when they join together to work for a common goal.”
National emergency grants are awarded after a state submits a request and the grant guidelines have been met, according to the U.S. Labor Department. Redmond said Pepperidge Farm made its request last May.
The employee assistance programs will begin when the first stage of the move to the $72 million, 260,000-square-foot Bloomfield bakery starts on March 31, Redmond said. The Norwalk bakery, which is moving to the larger facility to meet what the company describes as a growing demand for baked goods, will relocate one production line at a time so that it can maintain operations at both bakeries until the move is completed in July, as currently scheduled.
The office of Rep. Christopher Shays (R-4th) helped track the grant through the application process and made sure it would be processed before the relocation began, according to chief of staff Betsy Hawkings.
“We made sure it stayed on the radar screen, got proper review and was treated with the attention it deserves,” Hawkings said.
The Norwalk bakery, opened in 1947, is the oldest of Pepperidge Farm’s eight in the United States. The company’s corporate offices, which employ 320, will remain at the Norwalk location, according to Redmond.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Shays Honored as Champion of Public Interest
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Rep. Christopher Shays (R-4th) was one of five congressional Republicans recognized this week by the State Public Interest Research Groups for their work on environmental issues and consumer protection.
“I am grateful to receive this award and appreciate the efforts of PIRG and other groups that have a positive impact in the public policy process,” Shays said.
In an interview Wednesday, he said he supports the groups’ typically liberal positions because they represent the concerns of his constituents.
“I vote with the Republican Party when I think they are right and vote against them when I think it’s not right. And the same holds true for PIRG,” Shays said.
Thirty members of Congress were honored with Public Interest Champion awards to celebrate the PIRGs’ 30th anniversary, according to the group. This was the first time the non-profit, nonpartisan group recognized key allies with these awards.
Connecticut PIRG field organizer Kelly Benkert, who presented Shays with a plaque in his office Wednesday, said Shays earned the award based on his pro-environment voting record – specifically for fighting to make sure the government does not subsidize polluting industries and to protect waterways from mining pollution.
“As a moderate Republican, it’s a good way to encourage him to keep fighting for the public interest and sort of buck the trend of the current administration to do otherwise,” Benkert said.
Shays and Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ) introduced legislation Wednesday that would prohibit dumping industrial waste into rivers and streams, a practice the Bush administration is seeking through changes in the Clean Water Act regulations last May, according to Shays’ office. Their legislation, the Clean Water Protection Act of 2003, would protect the definition of “fill material” in the Clean Water Act from being expanded to include mining wastes and other pollutants.
Benkert said ConnPIRG also commended Shays for voting last year against an energy bill that contained provisions for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) – a vote, she said, where Shays crossed party lines “to support the public interest.”
Shays joined nine Republican colleagues in sending a letter to House Budget Committee Chairman Jim Nussle (R-Iowa) Jan. 31 opposing inserting language in the fiscal year 2004 budget that would indirectly allow ANWR drilling.
“We should be focusing on achieving greater fuel efficiency and on developing prudent and lasting alternative fuel energies rather than risk irreparable damage to the wilderness of one of North America’s most precious frontiers,” Shays said in a Jan. 31 statement.
ConnPIRG, according to Benkert, is dedicated to fighting for the public interest and currently has about 10,000 members statewide. This fall, the state group will hold a reception to celebrate its 30th anniversary.
Organizers from the state PIRGs were in Washington this week for a national conference.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Dodd Introduces Bill to Expand Job Leave
By Paul Ziobro
Washington – Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) introduced legislation Wednesday that would qualify 240,000 more Connecticut workers for leaves of absences under his proposed Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act.
Brian Petranella, president of Local 371, United Food Commercial Workers in Westport, said he respects the underlying ideas of family values in the original Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and looks forward to seeing more workers taking days off to care for themselves or a family member.
“The fear of losing your job is the biggest fear in the world, and I think this just puts to rest some people who are concerned about whether or not they have to opt to take care of somebody or take care of themselves,” Petranella said.
Ten years ago Wednesday, Dodd stood alongside President Bill Clinton as he signed into law the FMLA, which made employees eligible for 12 weeks of unpaid leave with job protection, he said. More than 35 million Americans have taken leave under the act, and Dodd said he wants to expand the program to include an additional 13 million workers.
“I’m here today to use this as a launching pad, as well as to take this concept of family medical leave to another level that we think it should be going,” Dodd said at a news conference in the Capitol.
Under his proposal, employees working for companies with 25 or more workers—rather than 50 or more under the original act--would become eligible for leaves, according to Dodd’s office. It also would provide leaves of absence for employees suffering domestic violence and for workers caring for family members who are addressing domestic violence problems or its effects.
The bill would create a $400 million pilot program to help states design ways to offer six weeks of partial or full paid leave, which would count toward the FMLA-allowed 12 weeks, for eligible employees.
Opponents of the original legislation said that before Congress considers expanding FMLA, it should address what they describe as a loophole concerning how serious a health condition must be to qualify an employee for medical leave.
One such opponent, Deanna Gelak, executive director of the Virginia-based FMLA Technical Corrections Coalition, said the Labor Department issued two conflicting reports on whether the common cold, flu and non-migraine headaches qualified.
“We would just be hopeful that instead of expanding the act at this point that some practical changes could be made so that it effectively serves the workers it was designed to protect,” Gelak said.
Petranella said that about 10 percent of the 13,000 workers in Connecticut, Western Massachusetts and Vermont that his union represents use FMLA to take time off for medical or family reasons. He said no employers have criticized the law for harming business.
“I have never heard from one employer saying that it’s burdensome and that it hurts the company,” Petranella said. “That tells you about how good it is.”
Dodd said his colleagues in Congress take extensive leaves of absence from their duties to spend time with a family member dealing with a medical problem, and other citizens should be able to do likewise without fear of repercussion from their employer.
“If they didn’t take off to be with them, the political indictment would probably cost them their seats,” he said. “It is politically unacceptable for a Democrat or Republican to abandon their families during times like these. Why should the standard be any different for the average citizen?”
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Conn. Not Alone in Budget Gaps
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Connecticut’s not alone in facing a projected budget gap for this fiscal year and next. Nearly three-quarters of the states reported budget gaps midway through fiscal year 2003, with Connecticut spending expected to fall $650 million short of revenue estimates, according to a report Tuesday by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The Constitution State also expects its budget gap to increase to $1.7 billion in fiscal 2004, according to the report. Oklahoma state Sen. Angela Monson, the NCSL’s president, said the federal government needs to provide billions of dollars in assistance to fulfill its commitments to programs such as the No Child Left Behind Act, election reform and special education programs.
“We don’t think the budget proposed by the president goes far enough,” she said. “Flexibility alone will not meet those needs.”
The report said a faltering national economy, a plummeting stock market, soaring health care costs and contractions in manufacturing have destabilized state budgets, putting them “under siege.”
Nearly three-fifths of states have imposed across-the-board budget cuts, including Connecticut, which sliced $27.9 million for fiscal 2003 from its general expenditure fund, the report said.
Connecticut is also one of eight states that have eliminated state jobs. Gov. John Rowland, a Republican, already has laid off 2,800 employees for 2003 and is likely to eliminate 1,000 more this fiscal year, according to the report.
John Stiver, associate professor of economics at the University of Connecticut at Stamford, said either raising taxes or cutting state services are the two options to consider to remedy the budget shortfalls, although he has not seen the specifics of the budgets.
But if the problem stems from the slowdown in the economy, he said, Connecticut residents need not worry.
“People shouldn’t worry if a good portion of the shortfall is because of the economic slowdown, to the extent that the slowdown’s not going to be permanent,” Stiver said.
Stiver said that if the economy picks up later this year, which he said is likely, states may see a spike in revenue, which would cut into the budget gap. Nevertheless, Connecticut, like most states, is required by its constitution to produce a balanced budget each year.
Connecticut also joins more than half the states in having no tax increase proposals on the table to alleviate their budget woes, the report stated.
The report did not take into account President Bush’s proposed budget for fiscal 2004 and did not consider how a war in Iraq would affect state budgets.
NSCL, a bipartisan organization that serves state legislatures, issued the report based on information collected through surveys from state fiscal directors in the past month.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Indian Point Meltdown Could Wreak Havoc on Area
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Radiation from a nuclear meltdown at the Indian Point power plant in Westchester County, N.Y., could cause damage throughout Fairfield County, according to a new report commissioned by New York state, Norwalk-area emergency response personnel said Thursday that on the basis of the new report, Indian Point’s response plan should be revised to incorporate all areas that could suffer from an accident or an attack on the plant.
“No plan is in effect [for the Norwalk region] because we always basically followed the standard in place that we’re outside the 10-mile radius,” Glenn Iannaccone, deputy director of emergency management for Norwalk, said.
The new report, by James Lee Witt Associates, a crisis consulting firm, analyzed the emergency plans of the Indian Point plant and found them to be insufficient.
The response plan covered only a 10-mile radius around the Indian Point plant, located in Buchanan, N.Y. But the Witt report said that areas up to 50 miles away could be exposed to unacceptable doses of radiation in the event of a nuclear release.
Norwalk falls just inside a 30-mile radius of the Indian Point plant.
If a nuclear meltdown occurred and a cloud of radiation settled on Norwalk, Iannaccone said, the safest thing would be to have people stay indoors and treat the area like a vast contamination spill.
“Without seeing the report, though, then I don’t know what’s the case, and until we can confirm that, we can’t really make any changes,” Iannaccone, who also serves as Norwalk’s fire marshal, said.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Gov. George Pataki (R-N.Y.), Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said hundreds of thousands of Connecticut citizens could be in danger as a result of Indian Point’s inadequate nuclear emergency response plan. He called on the governor to support a temporary shutdown of Indian Point “in the interest of public safety.”
“In the event of a nuclear emergency, people will choose to evacuate an area far greater than 10 miles from Indian Point, possibly including a significant portion of Connecticut,” Blumenthal, a Democrat, wrote.
According to the Witt report, Indian Point’s emergency response plan does not contain a written agreement with Connecticut emergency response organizations about how to respond to a nuclear disaster, nor does it have procedures for alerting and mobilizing Connecticut emergency personnel.
On Wednesday, the Federal Emergency Management Association refused to withdraw its approval of Indian Point’s current response plan, rejecting a petition signed by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.). The petition asked FEMA to rescind its recommendation to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that Indian Point’s plan be accepted, which is a requirement for a nuclear plant’s license.
An estimated 11.8 million people live within 50 miles of Indian Point, far more than around any of the nation’s other nuclear power plants, according to the Associated Press.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Dodd Vows to Preserve Head Start Funding
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) Wednesday vowed to preserve federal funding for the national Head Start program and resist a push by Republicans to move it to another federal department
At the Neon Head Start in Norwalk, director Elaine Liberto said the four local programs, which serve 290 children from 3 to 5 years old in a full-day program, would welcome Dodd’s bid to retain the funds..
“It will provide for additional working parents a place to put their kids in school,” Liberto said Wednesday. “The dollars they provide us are necessary to serve all the families we work with.”
Liberto said the four Norwalk Head Start facilities receive $1.3 million a year in federal funds to run their programs, which provide services to low-income children and families in the areas of health, education, social services and parent involvement. According to the National Head Start Association (NHSA), Connecticut had 7,356 children enrolled in 29 programs in 2001.
“We want to ensure other programs of Head Start are maintained. We want it be a complete package for families and keep the levels of administration low to keep the costs down,” Liberto said.
Last week, Dodd’s proposed legislation to boost funds for Head Start by about $200 million failed. However, the Senate adopted a modified version of his amendment that would leave the 35-year-old program immune from the 2.9 percent across-the-board budget cuts imposed on domestic programs, according to Dodd.
Liberto said that without the amendment to prevent cuts, Head Start would operate with $63 million less than in 2002 and that 23,000 children nationwide could not participate.
Speaking to over 300 Head Start teachers, parents, directors and volunteers in a Senate caucus room, Dodd said: “I will work hard to retain funding for Head Start. And I urge you all to work with me to ensure that our commitment to school readiness for our nation’s poorest children remains strong,”
NHSA members were in Washington to rally for their version of the program’s reauthorization, which includes preventing attempts to slash funding and relocate the group to the Department of Education from the Department of Health and Human Services. Head Start organizers want a $1 billion increase in the program to serve every eligible child.
Dodd said shifting the program to the Education Department would be problematic because the program is not just about educating young children.
“I often argue that Head Start is a stealth health program – making sure that low-income children have their immunizations, access to health coverage and developmental screenings to ensure that they are developing as they should,” Dodd said.
Rep. Christopher Shays (R-4th) said after Wednesday’s meeting that he also supported Head Start.
“Early childhood is a critical time for children to develop the physical, emotional, social and cognitive skills they will need for the rest of their lives. A child who enters school without these skills runs a significant risk of starting behind and staying behind,” Shays said. “Head Start is one of the best investments we can make in our country's future”
Dodd, the senior Democrat on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee’s Subcommittee on Children and Families, has earned praise over the years from Head Start backers, and today’s audience showed their appreciation. Before he spoke, 25 children from a Washington, D.C., program sang a song about friendship in both English and Spanish.
“We once named Sen. Dodd our senator of the decade, but we should have named him senator of the century,” Sarah Greene, NHSA president and CEO, said.
Liberto said she was equally pleased with Dodd’s efforts. “We’re happy he’s trying to preserve our funding and we’re trying to keep the families informed of what’s happening,” she said.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
Conn. Congressional Delegation Partisan in Response to President’s Address
By Paul Ziobro
WASHINGTON – The responses of Connecticut’s delegation to President Bush’s State of the Union speech last night fell on opposing sides of the partisan fence, with the Democratic senators faulting some of Bush’s policies and Rep. Christopher Shays (R-4th) pledging support.
Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.), although critical of much of the speech, said that the president strengthened the case against Iraq in terms Bush had not previously used.
“I thought the president really began to make an effective case in a way he hasn’t done before as to why Saddam is a threat to the security of his neighbors in the world and why if he doesn’t disarm, the UN should lead an international effort to disarm him,” Lieberman said in a conference call with reporters following the speech.
Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) said in a written statement that while he commends the actions Bush has taken since the terrorist attacks, he was not yet convinced with the charges brought against Iraq.
“I commend him for speaking forcefully about Iraq in his speech, but he needs to continue to lay out in a clear, concise and concrete fashion both the specifics of the threat and our long term goals,” Dodd said.
Disagreeing with Bush’s declaration that “the course of this nation does not depend on the decision of others,” Dodd said a persuasive argument must be presented on the Iraqi issue before the United States takes unilateral action.
Shays, meanwhile, said in a statement before the address that he supported Bush’s plans on confronting a volatile situation in Iraq and in tackling downfalls in the nation’s economy.
“The President has made clear he intends to prevent Saddam Hussein from gaining access to nuclear weapons; to fight terrorism at home abroad; and to promote a bold economic plan designed to create jobs and get our economy moving again,” Shays said.
“We need to confront the challenges our country is facing, both at home and abroad, with resolve, confidence and a bipartisan spirit,” Shays said.
“I didn’t feel the energy that you would’ve expected with the State of the Union but I think it was a very measured speech and he focused on what he needed to” – on the economy and on national and international security, Shays said in an interview after the speech.
On Bush’s proposal to help solve the economic problems with his $674 billion tax cut, Lieberman said gashes in the country’s expenditures would further hamper the economy.
“He gave us more of the same stuff that hasn’t worked for two years,” Lieberman said. “About the only way that Bush’s economic policies have grown in the country is in the debt.”
Dodd also lashed out at the president’s economic package, criticizing it for not solving the immediate problems many Americans face.
“Instead of helping families gain affordable health care and good schools, the Administration is squeezing resources for students, the elderly and the uninsured to pay for a tax cut primarily for the most affluent – and doing it by digging us into a massive economic hole of national debt,” Dodd said.
Dodd said while the president spoke of a need for bipartisanship, he must show a commitment to work with both parties through his actions.
“Only then can we make progress on the many pressing and immediate challenges that lay ahead for out people and our nation,” he said.
Published in The Hour, in Connecticut.
