February 02, 2010

Together with their legislative sponsors, the No Child Left Inside Coalition today cheered President Obama's budget as a historic moment, noting that environmental literacy has been included in the U.S. Department of Education budget for the very first time. "This budget takes an important step toward boosting environmental education in the classroom and giving more kids the opportunity to get out and learn about the natural world around them," said Senator Jack Reed (RI). "Environmental education can help raise student achievement in other core subjects like math and science. This is a smart investment in our children's future and the future of our planet." "The President's budget proposal is a terrific first step for environmental education," said Congressman John Sarbanes, author of the No Child Left Inside House legislation. "I look forward to working with the Administration to more fully incorporate environmental education into school curriculums across the country." Full release.

Atricure Inc., a medical device manufacturer, has agreed to pay the United States $3.76 million to resolve civil claims in connection with the alleged promotion of its surgical ablation devices, the Justice Department announced today. Surgical ablation devices use focused energy to create controlled lesions or scar tissue on a patient's heart or other organs. The settlement resolves allegations that the West Chester, Ohio-based company marketed its medical devices to treat atrial fibrillation (the most common cardiac arrhythmia or abnormal heart rhythm), a use that is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Atricure also allegedly promoted expensive heart surgery using the company's devices when less invasive alternatives were appropriate, advised hospitals to up-code surgical procedures using the company's devices to inflate Medicare reimbursement, and paid kickbacks to health care providers to use its devices. Full release.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today welcomed news that the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division will review the shooting death of a Detroit imam by FBI agents on October 28 in Dearborn. House Judiciary Chairman Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) announced the Justice Department review at a news conference earlier today in Detroit sponsored by CAIR's Michigan chapter (CAIR-MI) and attended by a coalition of civil rights groups. The news conference was scheduled following the release of autopsy results showing that Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah was shot at least 20 times, including once in the back, as well as being found handcuffed in the prone position. Full release.

The Campaign for High School Equity (CHSE), a coalition of civil rights organizations focused on high school education reform, applauds President Obama's request for a $3-4 billion increase in education spending, which reflects an understanding that there can be no economic recovery without a better educated citizenry. The increase represents a real opportunity to address the achievement gap plaguing America's high schools and keeping many of our young people from excelling in college and careers. CHSE is encouraged by the President's call for the reauthorization and funding of a strengthened Elementary and Secondary Education Act and his focus on college- and career-readiness for all students. Resources to extend the Race to the Top and Investing in Innovation Funds, increase School Turnaround Grants, and invest in the development and equitable distribution of strong teachers and school leaders also represent positive changes. Full release.

Deputy Associate Attorney General Karol V. Mason, Acting Director for the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) Catherine Pierce, and actress and advocate Mariska Hargitay addressed nearly 300 attendees today at the Services-Training-Officers-Prosecutors (STOP) Conference in San Francisco. The four-day conference, which began Sunday, brings together STOP grant administrators representing the offices of the governor, attorney general, or other state criminal justice agency from every state government and territory in the nation. Also in attendance are domestic violence and sexual assault coalition representatives from every state and territory. "The Justice Department is committed to working with federal, state, local and tribal partners to ensure that all communities -- particularly those that have been chronically neglected -- are given the resources and support they need," said Deputy Associate Attorney General Mason. Full release.

Bread for the World's analysis of the proposed FY 2011 U.S. budget indicates that the budget will ease some of the insecurity felt by low-income working families currently squeezed by stagnant wages, double-digit unemployment, and increasing expenses for food and other basic goods and services. "We applaud the president's commitment to programs that help low-income working families gain access to vital resources to help make ends meet, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC)," said Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World. "Tax credits for low-income working families are the focus of our 2010 Offering of Letters campaign." The White House's proposed budget makes permanent key expansions to the EITC and CTC, reduces the marriage penalty, increases the EITC benefit size for families with three or more children, and lowers the income threshold to $3,000 in the CTC. Full release.

Today, the American Federation of Government Employees and its National VA Council applauded the White House's proposed funding increases for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The White House's proposed fiscal year 2011 budget provides $57 billion in funding for the VA. For more than two decades, AFGE, which represents over 180,000 employees in the VA, has joined veterans' groups in calling for full funding of veterans' services. The release of this year's budget is an especially momentous occasion for veterans and its dedicated workforce. The FY 2011 budget marks the first two-year funding cycle for the VA health care system. For the first time in the history of the VA's budget, this year, the President's budget request includes health care funds for two years. Full release.

American Humane® Certified, a program of the American Humane Association that helps ensure the humane treatment of farm animals for food, responded today that the practice of tail docking dairy cows is not a humane practice and is disallowed in its standards. The response came following the airing of an ABC "Nightline" segment in which cows' tails were shown being removed without anesthesia. Consumers can support producers who don't employ this practice by purchasing only American Humane Certified dairy products. "The producers certified under the American Humane Certified program have committed to the humane treatment of their animals and are verified by an independent, third-party auditor," said Tim Amlaw, director of the American Humane Certified program. "Our standards state that the practice of tail docking is disallowed." Full release.

The images are all over the major media, untold thousands of Haitian children who were already orphans prior to the devastating earthquake which struck Haiti and thousands more who may have lost their parents in the aftermath of this catastrophic event. The newscasts have also been filled with images of scores of White Americans adopting Haitian children or seeking to do so. And, in some instances taking children out of the country illegally, as was the case with thirty-three Haitian children recently transported across the border to the Dominican Republic by members of a Church from the U.S. Haitian authorities arrested the group and charged them with child trafficking. Since the earthquake there has been a brewing debate and controversy in Black America over the adoption of Haitian children. On radio talk shows, callers have been asking: Are there any Haitian- owned orphanages in Haiti? Full release.

A landmark study released today from Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization, reports that more than 37 million people, one in eight Americans -- including 14 million children and nearly 3 million seniors -- receive emergency food each year through the nation's network of food banks and the agencies they serve. The findings represent a staggering 46 percent increase since the organization's previously released study in 2006. Hunger in America 2010 is the first research study to capture the significant connection between the recent economic downturn and an increased need for emergency food assistance. The number of children and adults in need of food as a result of experiencing food insecurity has significantly increased. More than one in three client households are experiencing very low food security—or hunger—a 54 percent increase in the number of households compared to four years ago. Full release.

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