October 29, 2009

Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert M. Groves will visit a Baltimore High School to launch the 2010 "Census in Schools" program and discuss educational activities that examine the importance of the 2010 Census. The program, "2010 Census: It's About Us," gives schools a wide range of free, optional, standards-based lesson plans on subjects related to the census, ranging from math to social studies. The program is designed for students in kindergarten through 12th grade and will reach all 118,000 schools and 56 million students nationwide. Full release.

The U.S. Supreme Court will soon release its decision on Citizens United v. FEC, a case that could decide the role of corporate campaign contributions in our political system. Common Cause has released a new report highlighting the potential implications on our elections if the high court decides to undo decades of campaign finance precedents. "Americans know the problem is bad today and getting worse every election cycle," said Nick Nyhart, president and CEO of Public Campaign. "The current pay-to-play political system is already a battle between David and Goliath, with big moneyed campaign coffers dwarfing the pool of small dollar donors. This report shows that the outcome of this case could put Goliath's big money strength on steroids." In its decision, the Supreme Court could give corporations an additional tool to influence elections. The fear of additional corporate spending in elections will result in candidates for Congress spending more time dialing for dollars. Full release.

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) issued the following statement regarding today's announcement by the House leadership of healthcare reform legislation that would include a new government-run health plan: The 39 independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies strongly support passing bipartisan comprehensive healthcare reform this year that will expand access to affordable coverage and rein in costs for everyone. We agree with the goal of the legislation to cover all Americans. While we are still reviewing the legislation, we are very disappointed that many of the provisions in the "Affordable Health Care for America Act" unveiled today would undermine the very policy objectives we collectively hope to achieve. The proposed creation of a new government-run health plan -- which could be open to everyone through the new federal exchange beginning 2015 -- would jeopardize affordability and access to coverage for the 160 million people who receive their benefits through their employers today. The bill also would undermine affordability by allowing people to wait until they are sick to buy coverage, setting higher minimum benefit packages than people commonly purchase today, and placing an unfair burden on younger people by restricting age discounts. Full release.

Echo Justice, a coalition of national and local organizations launched a multi-media counter to the right-wing's echo chamber. StopTheWitchHunt.org is a newly formed multimedia watch dog portal that will use social media and mobile communications to take a grassroots stand and "call out" the mischaracterizations and hate speech that has been going on for too long. "History has taught that bad things happen when good people are silent," says Makani Themba- Nixon, Executive Director of The Praxis Project and a member of the Echo Justice coalition. "StoptheWitchHunt.org allows us to confront these scare tactics and make our voices heard." The website is designed to give voice to the millions of Americans who believe it is time for talk-show hosts and elected officials to stop stoking the racial anxieties of the fringes of America. Full release.

The apartment market is showing signs of improvement, according to the National Multi Housing Council's latest Quarterly Survey of Apartment Market Conditions. The survey showed increased sales activity and improvements in the availability of debt and equity capital compared with three months ago. The Sales Volume Index hit its highest level in four years, while the Equity and Debt Financing Indexes were the highest in three years. Only one index--the one measuring market tightness (vacancies and rent levels)--remained below 50 (index numbers below 50 indicate worsening conditions), but it also showed improvement over the prior quarter, rising from 20 to 31. "The broad improvements in sales volume and debt and equity financing suggest the transactions market may finally be thawing," noted NMHC Chief Economist Mark Obrinsky. "Nearly half (45 percent) of respondents indicated that the gap between what sellers are asking for and what buyers are offering--the bid-ask spread--has narrowed." Full release.

Bread for the World President Rev. David Beckmann today urged members of the House Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health to make ending hunger, child and maternal health, and a reformed U.S. foreign aid system with an empowered, distinct development voice their top priorities. Beckmann, co-chair of the Modernizing Foreign Assistance Network (MFAN), testified this morning during a hearing in Congress. He said that over the past two years, there has been a dramatic increase in hunger as food and fuel prices rose and the global recession pushed millions of people into extreme poverty. "I am heartened that the Obama administration recognizes that in addition to addressing emergency needs, we must also focus on creating long-term sustainable solutions to ending hunger and poverty," he said. Beckmann expressed his strong support for the U.S. Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative, calling it "a tremendous first step toward a global initiative that rallies the support of governments and people around the world." He praised the principles of the initiative, which form a blueprint for broader reform of U.S. foreign assistance. The principles include country-led plans, enhanced strategic coordination, and transparent and accountable evaluation systems. Full release.

While the public has made accommodations for 54.4 million people with disabilities, many researchers regularly exclude people who cannot read, hear or write from participating in their research projects. That's about to change. The Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing (FPB) at Case Western Reserve University will develop research tools and strategies to include individuals with vision and hearing impairments in future research. Shirley Moore, Edward J. and Louise Mellen Professor of Nursing and director of the National Institutes of Health-funded Center for Self-Management Research (SMART Center) at FPB, is the lead investigator for the two-year, nearly $400,000 National Institute for Nursing Research-funded project, "Full Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities (FIND) in Self-Management Research." She will work with co-investigator Ann Williams, National Institute of Health-supported postdoctoral fellow, who has been working on a health-related research project with blind diabetics. Full release.

States vary widely in where they set their student proficiency standards in 4th and 8th grade reading and mathematics, according to a new report released today by the National Center for Education Statistics. The report compares proficiency standards of states using the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) as the common metric. "The study gives policymakers, educators and parents a way to view state proficiency standards using a common yardstick," said John Q. Easton, Director of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). "It shows that a student seen as proficient in one state might be seen as not proficient in another." The report, Mapping State Proficiency Standards onto NAEP Scales: 2005-2007, uses NAEP to provide context for understanding the relative stringency of state standards given that each state has its own assessment system and standards for proficiency. The study compared the range of state standards in both 2005 and 2007 and measured changes in the rigor of state proficiency standards when new state standards were set after key aspects of the state assessment system changed. Full release.

Americans today are getting the message that Internet safety and security is critical to their daily lives but many still need to employ safer cyber hygiene, according to the 2009 National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA)-Symantec Online Safety Study, released by the NCSA and Symantec (Nasdaq: SYMC), makers of Norton security software. The study results show that 85 percent of Americans feel they are most responsible for keeping their computers secure, and 40 percent feel that individual computer users are most responsible for keeping the entire Internet secure. Yet, some of their online behaviors limit their ability to protect their valuable information and data. Only 27 percent of Americans make an electronic backup of their critical files on a weekly basis. More than 55 percent backup their files less often than once a month. Couple those findings with the fact that the use of computers to store personal data such as photos (76 percent), music (60 percent), banking information (39 percent) and tax returns (30 percent) continues to steadily rise, computer users face potential significant losses of valuable information. Full release.

Leaders from the Black AIDS Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) met recently to finalize the details of a four and one-half year grant to fund the Institute's African American HIV University (AAHU) Community Mobilization College. The AAHU Community Mobilization College is a comprehensive training and internship fellowship program aimed at strengthening organizational and individual capacity to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Black communities. The program is designed to decrease stigma and misperception and increase the engagement of the Black community in HIV prevention and treatment services. This is achieved through leadership development and information transfer among key stakeholders. Full release.

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