October 06, 2009

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki has announced that 19 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico will share more than $17 million in grants to community groups to create 1,155 beds for homeless Veterans this year. "These grants will aid our efforts to eliminate homelessness among those who have served in uniform," said Secretary Shinseki. "Our partnerships with community-based organizations provide safe, transitional housing while these Veterans leverage VA's health care and other benefits to return to productive lives." A key tool in VA's drive to eliminate homelessness among Veterans, the grants helped VA reduce the number of Veterans who are homeless on a typical night last year by 15 percent to about 131,000 Veterans. In other programs, VA provides health care to 100,000 homeless Veterans, compensation and assistance in obtaining foreclosed homes and excess federal property, including clothes, footwear, blankets and other items. Full release.

After initially designating US$1 million to provide assistance to the thousands of people on the island of Sumatra affected by two successive earthquakes last week, Plan is expanding its response program to an estimated US$2.8 million, incorporating planning for early recovery activities to follow on-going immediate relief efforts Plan's director of disasters and humanitarian response, Roger Yates, said: "Our priority right now is to meet the needs of the many children and their families affected by the two earthquakes. Plan is especially concerned for the safety of children who have been displaced from their homes. Following last week's earthquakes in Indonesia, the National Disaster Management Agency has confirmed the deaths of 608 people, with an additional 434 missing, 738 displaced, and over 2,400 injured. The number of casualties is expected to increase as thousands of people are still feared to be trapped under rubble. To date, over 88,000 homes have been confirmed to have been severely damaged by the quakes. Full release.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi presented the first Lantos Human Rights Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama this morning in the Capitol Visitor Center. Named for the late Congressman and human rights activist Tom Lantos, the Lantos Human Rights Prize is intended to raise awareness about human rights violations and honor the brave individuals who are committed to fighting for human rights throughout the world. Below are the Speaker's remarks. "Thank you, Katrina [Lantos Swett], for bringing us all together today on this very special occasion and for continuing your father's work for justice around the world. Many of us came together a generation ago when Tom Lantos invited us to join His Holiness the Dalai Lama at the Capitol of the United States. He invited His Holiness, and it was the first time His Holiness would visit the Capitol. But, as Tom always told us then, it was his invitation, but it was his wife Annette's idea. Tom and Annette shared a passionate commitment to this man of peace and to his work. Thank you, Annette, for continuing to shine a bright light on the dark corners of oppression throughout the world. Full release.

Ethnic Americans have a far better image of the $787 billion stimulus package than their white counterparts, with 84 percent of African Americans saying it was "a good thing" for the country, while only 45 percent of white adults agree with that statement, according to a recent poll commissioned by New America Media (NAM). In total, the poll conducted by Bendixen & Associates found that more than two-thirds of Hispanics, African Americans, Asian Americans and Native Americans said the legislation was a "good thing" for their families and communities. And most Americans have a positive outlook about the future. More than three-fifths of adults from all ethnic and racial groups were optimistic that their personal financial situation will improve over the next year. Full release.

Consumer Watchdog called on Congress to reject legislation allowing the Treasury Department to use international agreements to override state insurance laws, including those requiring insurers to hold enough money to pay all claims. The proposal is under consideration in the U.S. House Financial Services Committee today. "State insurance regulators made sure that insurance companies had enough money in the bank to pay policyholder claims and weather the financial storm. Congress should not give a political appointee the power to take away that authority on behalf of foreign insurance companies," said Carmen Balber, Washington Director for Consumer Watchdog. "This bill promotes insurance deregulation as Congress should be strengthening financial service sector regulation." Full release.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) joined President Obama today in underscoring the administration's commitment to serving every American worker, including the 54 million people across the nation living with disabilities. "No artificial barriers should prevent individuals from reaching their potential in the workplace and contributing their skills to our nation," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. As part of its efforts, in early 2010, ODEP will collaborate with other agencies to sponsor and organize a day-long federal government-wide job fair for people with disabilities. At this event, ODEP, the Office of Personnel Management, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Defense's Computer and Electronic Accommodations Program will provide workshops on the Schedule A hiring authority, the right to the provision of reasonable accommodations, and information on assistive and communications technology. Full release.

Even as the U.S. economy has exhibited signs of stability in recent months, financial professionals have not seen solid evidence that business conditions have turned the corner. The vast majority of attendees to the annual conference of the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) believe the U.S. economy remains in a recession, despite indications of economic growth in the third quarter. Their uncertain outlook for near-term business conditions parallels expectations that their organizations will not resume hiring or capital spending, which they had halted over the past year, according to an on-site survey conducted yesterday. Full release.

Banks and credit unions collected nearly $24 billion in overdraft fees last year, an increase of 35 percent from just two years earlier, a new study by the Center for Responsible Lending shows. [See the full report at http://www.responsiblelending.org/overdraft-loans/research-analysis/crl-overdraft-explosion.pdf.] The explosion in overdraft charges has drained the wallet of as many as 51 million Americans whose accounts become overdrawn annually. It is particularly harmful to financially vulnerable families already hit hard by the recession. "Banks and credit unions have become so sophisticated in driving up overdrafts that Americans now pay more in overdraft fees every year than they do for books, cereal, or fresh vegetables," said CRL senior researcher Leslie Parrish. "These billions of dollars drained from consumers each year represent lost opportunities for families to save for a rainy day or buy necessary goods and services that could help spark the economy." Full release.

A new national survey shows the economic downturn is taking a toll on the mental health of Americans. Individuals who are unemployed are four times as likely as those with jobs to report symptoms consistent with severe mental illness. Americans who experienced involuntary changes in their employment status, such as pay cuts or reduced hours, also are twice as likely to have these symptoms, even though they are employed full time. The survey was conducted for Mental Health America and the National Alliance on Mental Illness in collaboration with the Depression is Real Coalition. The results come from telephone interviews of 1,002 adults nationwide from September 17-20. The release of the findings coincides with Mental Illness Awareness Week (from October 4 to 10) and National Depression Screening Day, which takes place this Thursday, October 8. Full release.

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