U.S. environmental activists who are working to halt the production and use of fossil fuels could be required to register as foreign agents if Congress gets serious about enforcing an existing law.
There was some potential movement in that direction last October when Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, introduced legislation that would put some teeth into the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The law, which was first passed in 1938, calls for individuals and organizations to provide full disclosure when they are working to advance the public policy interests of a foreign government.
As the Washington Examinerhas reported, Grassley’s proposed legislation would close off an exemption that has allowed lobbyists for foreign interests to avoid registration while providing the U.S. attorney general with additional authority to conduct investigations.
While the media remains largely focused on ongoing investigations into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 campaign, the connection between Vladimir Putin’s government and U.S. environmental groups deserves more scrutiny.
Klein’s legal counsel dismisses such charges as “completely false and irresponsible.” But in a letter addressed to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, members of Congress document evidence pointing to a paperless money trail that flows from Russia into U.S. environmental groups through the Sea Change Foundation. The implication is that the Russians have been pouring tens of millions of dollars into willing environmental advocacy groups in an effort to spread propaganda directed against fracking in the U.S. and the technology that makes it possible, according to evidence presented in the letter.
Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, chairman of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and his colleagues have called on the U.S. Treasury Department to conduct an investigation into the allegations of Russian collusion with U.S. environmental groups. In response to a media inquiry I sent last year asking about the allegations, a U.S. Treasury spokesman said in an email message, “We respond as appropriate to Congressional inquiries, but wouldn’t comment publicly on an investigation.”
The motivation for Russian interference here is clear. As the congressional letter notes, American ingenuity in the oil and gas industry have significant geopolitical ramifications. Thanks to innovative extraction technologies such as hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling, the U.S. now has access to vast reserves of oil and gas previously held to be unrecoverable. The unexpected energy resource bonanza has dramatically shifted the dynamics of the economic and geopolitical landscape in America’s favor.
The U.S. is the top producer of natural gas in the world. In 2016, U.S. natural gas imports set a record low even though consumption has increased. In 3 of the first 5 months of 2017, U.S. natural gas exports were greater than imports — the growing trend points to the U.S. becoming a net exporter. This new commitment to natural gas means less expensive energy bills for consumers as well as economic, environmental, and national security benefits for the country as a whole. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that the fracking boom has created 2.7 million jobs, with an estimated additional 3.5 million projected by 2035.
From a foreign policy perspective, the U.S. can now export liquefied natural gas to parts of Europe that have been dependent on Putin’s government for their gas. This weakens Putin and puts the U.S. in a stronger position to exert influence. Up until now, periodic disputes with Russia have resulted in economic bullying tactics from Moscow that include wintertime threats to close pipelines supplying oil and natural gas. Those days may be over now that American natural gas development is poised to impact Russia and its Gazprom oil company.
However, an international campaign known as “Keep It in the Ground” has been pushing an anti-fossil fuel agenda that advances Russia’s geopolitical interests at the expense of the U.S. and America’s allies. The campaign claims support from more than 400 organizations
across the globe, with a sizable percentage operating inside the U.S. The campaign is opposed not just to the extraction of fossil fuels, but to any fossil fuel-related project including pipelines, rail transportation, refineries, and energy exploration.
These groups include Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, 350.org, the Center for Biological Diversity, WildEarth Guardians, the Rainforest Action Network, Earthworks, and the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, to name just a few.
Some of the larger environmental advocacy groups in the U.S., such as the Natural Resources Defense Council and the League of Conservation Voters, don’t appear on the list of 400, yet do support the same anti-fossil policy aims and draw from the same pool of financial supporters.
The common denominator here between many of these groups is the San Francisco-based Sea Change Foundation, which has been identified as the incubator for Russian funding of environmental groups. Another key player is the Energy Foundation, which is also based in San Francisco and appears to be an offshoot of the Sea Change Foundation.
If Grassley succeeds in bolstering the Foreign Agents Registration Act, a good starting point for an investigation would be with the “Keep It in the Ground” campaign members and with other environmental groups that support the campaign’s agenda.
While these groups are free to advocate for their preferred policies, they should not be permitted to posture as grassroots activists if they are in fact doing the bidding of foreign interests, to the detriment of average Americans who benefit from affordable and reliable sources of energy.
Hatch-Goodlatte Music Modernization Act to be Signed into Law
Washington, D.C.(H.R. 1551), bipartisan legislation that updates several key provisions of U.S. copyright law regarding music licensing. This consensus legislation is a product of the House Judiciary Committee’s comprehensive copyright review and was introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Vice Chairman Doug Collins (R-Ga.), Representative Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee Ranking Member Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), former House Judiciary Committee Chairman and current Science, Space, and Technology Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas), and Representative Ted Deutch (D-Fla.).
Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Nadler applauded today’s vote in the statements below.
Chairman Goodlatte: “Today’s House passage of the bipartisan Hatch-Goodlatte Music Modernization Act is a major victory for American music creators, music distributors, and the music listening public. This legislation, which modernizes our music copyright laws so music creators are fairly compensated for their works, finally brings our music laws into the digital age.
“I appreciate the hard work of the many House and Senate Judiciary Committee Members who came together on this legislative package. Music has such an immense impact on all of our daily lives and with this important legislation headed to the President’s desk, we will help ensure the sustainability of the evolving American music industry for decades to come.”
Ranking Member Nadler: “I am proud that the Music Modernization Act will now head to the President’s desk. This bill will update the law to better serve both creators and digital music providers. Virtually all of the major industry stakeholders came together to support this bill. I am particularly pleased that this bill includes several measures included in the Fair Play Fair Pay Act, which I introduced the last two Congresses. Under the leadership of Chairman Goodlatte, we have joined together on a bipartisan basis to modernize the music licensing system. We have seized this historic opportunity to resolve some longstanding inequities in the music marketplace by helping digital services more efficiently license and distribute musical works, while ensuring artists, songwriters, and other music creators receive fair market value for their work.”
Key Provisions of the Hatch-Goodlatte Music Modernization Act include:
Title I – Music Modernization Act
Reflects how modern digital music services operate by creating a blanket licensing system to quickly license and pay for musical work copyrights
Discourages music litigation that generates legal settlements in favor of simply ensuring that artists and copyright owners are paid in the first place without such litigation
Ends the flawed U.S. Copyright Office bulk notice of intent system that allows royalties to not be paid
Implements uniform rate setting standards to be used by the Copyright Royalty Board for all music services
Shifts the costs of the new licensing collective created by the bill to those who benefit from the collective – the licensees
Updates how certain rate court cases are assigned in the Southern District of New York
Title II — Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs, Service, and Important Contributions to Society (CLASSICS) Act
Provides that performers who recorded songs before 1972 can finally be paid for their works (currently, only performers who recorded songs after 1972 are paid for their works)
Title III — Allocation for Music Producers (AMP) Act
Ensures that record producers, sound engineers, and other creative professionals receive compensation for their work
Nothing about Corporate Shape Shifiting on the Royalties but that it is a matter for a different jurisdiction.
The Music Modernization Act was signed into law on Thursday by a clearly exuberant President Trump. "I've been reading about this for many years and never thought I'd be involved in it, but I got involved in it," he said of the historic legislation, which passed with unanimous support in both chambers of Congress after years of efforts by the music industry and lawmakers.
At the signing ceremony, Trump was surrounded by a smattering of supportive artists including Kid Rock, John Rich and Mike Love, along with the two Republican lawmakers whose names are officially attached to the law, Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah and Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia.
While Trump did thank members of the industry in attendance, he only mentioned one executive: Recording Academy Neil Portnow, whom he referred to as "big stuff." Short speeches were delivered by several of the artists, including Rock, Rich, Love and soul legend Sam Moore.
Here are the official reactions to the new law from key execs and organizations:
Mitch Glazier, RIAA president: "The Music Modernization Act is now the law of the land, and thousands of songwriters and artists are better for it. The result is a music market better founded on fair competition and fair pay. The enactment of this law demonstrates what music creators and digital services can do when we work together collaboratively to advance a mutually beneficial agenda. It's a great day for music. We hope fans across the country will join with us in celebration and PLAY IT LOUD."
David Israelite, NMPA president & CEO: "The Music Modernization Act is finally the law of the land. We are incredibly grateful for the Members of Congress who passed the MMA and the President for signing it. Songwriters have for too long labored without seeing fair rates and receiving all that they deserve, and for the first time in history, the music industry has partnered with the tech industry to fix these systemic problems. As we embark on supporting and helping build the critical structures within the MMA, we are humbled by the extraordinary progress propelled by compromise and the unprecedented political involvement of music creators. Today is about their future and this bill stands as a great statement on what can be done when we work together."
Neil Portnow, Recording Academy president and CEO: "As we celebrate the harmony and unity that got us here, we applaud the efforts of the thousands of performers, songwriters, and studio professionals who rallied for historic change to ensure all music creators are compensated fairly when their work is used by digital and satellite music services," he said in a statement. "We thank the members of Congress who championed this issue throughout the past several years to bring music law into the 21st century."
Elizabeth Matthews, ASCAP CEO: "Thanks to the unrelenting efforts of our ASCAP music creator and publisher members, industry partners and champions in Congress, a more sustainable future for songwriters is finally within reach. The MMA's unanimous passage in the House and Senate proves that the power of music is a great unifier. ASCAP is proud to have stood alongside creators, music publishers, and many more to make this dream a reality."
Paul Williams, ASCAP chairman of the board and president: "A young songwriter once wrote, ‘You give a little love and it all comes back to you; You’re gonna be remembered for the things that you say and do.’ Decades later, this could not be more true. Songwriters across this country now and in the future will remember those who fought so hard for the Music Modernization Act—both in Congress and across the music industry. On behalf of the music community, we are so thankful for the love and will return the favor with music for generations to come."
Mike O'Neill, BMI president and CEO: "This is truly a historic moment for the music industry, especially for the American songwriters and composers at its core, who will see significant and deserved benefit from this legislation. Passage of the Orrin G. Hatch-Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act was a hard-fought process that hinged on tremendous collaboration and unprecedented support among diverse stakeholders who ultimately united to safeguard the future of music. We are gratified by this extraordinary outcome that recognizes the essential contributions of creators and streamlines the use of their music across businesses. While BMI will keep advocating to protect the livelihood of music creators in the digital age, we thank Congress and the President for taking this important step in implementing the most meaningful music licensing reform in decades."
John Josephson, chairman/CEO of SESAC: "Today, President Trump signed the bi-partisan Hatch-Goodlatte Music Modernization Act (The MMA), which will finally bring music copyright laws into the digital age. We applaud everyone's hard work and tireless efforts on this legislation, especially the Senators who worked diligently to get the bill passed then adopted by the House. We're grateful for our committed songwriting and publishing community whose focus and passion have strengthened our industry for generations to come."
Michael Huppe, SoundExchange president and CEO: "With today's signing of the Music Modernization Act, we mark a historic accomplishment. But more importantly, we mark what it means. For creators, it means getting paid more fairly. For those who recorded music before 1972, it means assurance you'll get paid for your work. For songwriters, publishers and producers it means making the digital economy work for you. SoundExchange's 170,000-member community was a driving force in getting the bill from the halls of Congress to the White House. When the music industry speaks with one voice, Congress listens. I urge you to stay active because there is much more work to be done before we can truly say all music creators are treated fairly."
Michelle Lewis and Kay Hanley, Songwriters of North America (SONA) executive directors: "SONA and its membership of working songwriters would like to express heartfelt thanks to Congress and to our fellow music business stakeholders for accomplishing what everyone thought was impossible: Compromise, consensus, and passage of the Orrin G Hatch - Bob Goodlatte Music Modernization Act. As President Trump signs our bill into law, today marks another momentous event in the rich history of music and the people who create it."
Dina LaPolt, founder/owner, LaPolt Law: "Music’s unifying power helped opposing communities reach across party lines to pass the Music Modernization Act with unanimous congressional support. The President’s final signature now enshrines the MMA in U.S. law, protecting music creators for generations to come. I couldn’t be more proud of SONA and all the songwriters who engaged the entire music creator community to help get this over the line! Now the real work begins!"
Horacio Gutierrez, Spotify general counsel: "One of our core missions at Spotify is to enable a million artists to make a good living from what they love: creating and performing music. The Music Modernization Act is a huge step towards making that a reality, modernizing the outdated licensing system to suit the digital world we live in. The MMA will benefit the music community and create a more transparent and streamlined approach to music licensing and payment for artists."
Keith Kupferschmid, Copyright Alliance CEO: "The Copyright Alliance appreciates the President signing the MMA into law today, and commends and thanks members of Congress, numerous Copyright Alliance members, and friends of the music community for their support of this critical legislation. It's truly remarkable for any cause or bill to bring everyone together in a bipartisan fashion, especially a bill as complex and lengthy as this one. But that's just what happened with the Music Modernization Act. The willingness to compromise, and work with others who may have competing or different interests, in the singular effort to get this important copyright legislation passed was laudable and inspiring."
Michael Eames, Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP) president; Alisa Coleman, AIMP New York Executive Director; and John Ozier, AIMP Nashville Executive Director: "Today marks a historic step forward for independent music publishers, songwriters, and the entire music industry, as President Trump has signed the Hatch Goodlatte Music Modernization Act (MMA) into law. This marks the first significant federal legislation since 1998’s Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to address the needs of rights-holders in today’s online age. We can look forward to a variety of long-overdue reforms that will make it easier to negotiate for and collect fair royalty rates while also establishing once and for all that digital services must pay for the use of pre-1972 recordings. In addition, it ensures independent publishers and songwriters a seat at the table for the new mechanical licensing collective. The AIMP is committed to ensuring that the independent publishing community and songwriters are represented fairly in the implementation and enforcement of the MMA, and we look forward to working with our partners across the music and technology industries as we move ahead in this new era. We offer our sincere gratitude to David Israelite and his team at NMPA, to the NSAI and SONA, to Senator Orrin Hatch and Congressmen Bob Goodlatte and Doug Collins, and to all parties from all sides who fought to provide a balanced outcome for all involved."
James Donio, Music Business Association president: "The Music Business Association applauds and congratulates its members and valued partners across the industry on their extraordinary and unprecedented efforts to bring the groundbreaking Music Modernization Act to fruition. What an amazing achievement for creators and their commercial partners to have come together in solidarity, and joined with Congress, to make long overdue copyright reform a reality. This is the start of an exciting new era for the entire business of music. Bravo!"
Washington, D.C. – House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.)Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.), Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations Subcommittee Ranking Member Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), and Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet Subcommittee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) today introduced the USA Liberty Act (H.R. 3989). This bipartisan bill reforms and reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which is set to expire at the end of this year, to protect both national security and Americans’ civil liberties.
The USA Liberty Act preserves the core purpose of Section 702: the collection of communications by targeting non-U.S. persons located outside the U.S. in order to identify and thwart terrorist plots against our nation and our citizens. The bill also creates a new framework of protections and transparency requirements to ensure that the government’s use of Section 702 accords with principles enshrined in our Constitution that protect individual liberty. It provides new accountability measures to address the unmasking of U.S. persons’ identities and new reporting requirements on the number of U.S. persons who have been swept up in Section 702 collection. The bill also enhances national security by increasing penalties for those who leak classified information and calling on the intelligence agencies to share information with each other and with our allies to combat terrorism.
Below are statements from Judiciary Committee leaders on the introduction of the USA Liberty Act.
Ranking Member Conyers: “Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is essential to the intelligence community’s gathering of foreign intelligence and detecting threats to the homeland. Its reauthorization should include reforms that bring this authority better in line with our sense of privacy and due process. Indeed, we believe that it will only be possible to reauthorize Section 702 with such reforms in place. The bipartisan USA Liberty Act is designed to accomplish this goal.”
Chairman Goodlatte: “The USA Liberty Act protects Americans’ lives and their civil liberties. This bipartisan bill reauthorizes a critical national security tool that keeps Americans safe but also reforms it to protect Americans’ constitutional rights. It contains more accountability, transparency, and oversight so that the American people have confidence that our cherished liberties continue to be protected as the intelligence community keeps us safe from foreign enemies wishing to harm our nation and citizens. The bill also contains a number of measures to further enhance national security so that our country remains free and safe. I thank the many members who have worked on this bill for months and look forward to bringing it up in the House Judiciary Committee soon.”
Crime Subcommittee Chairman Sensenbrenner: “The USA Liberty Act is carefully crafted, bipartisan legislation that represents the type of common sense compromise that we desperately need in this country. It balances privacy and security concerns by requiring greater oversight, transparency, and accountability of the government’s surveillance powers while limiting the incidental collection of Americans’ communications and requiring a court order to query data. It also puts in place a critical six-year sunset provision, allowing Congress to respond appropriately to the ever-changing threats facing our nation. This is smart, forward-leaning legislation that I urge my colleagues to get behind.”
Crime Subcommittee Ranking Member Jackson Lee: “Collectively, what Democrats and Republicans have agreed on is a strategy that secures the homeland, while preserving cherished liberties that still make America the envy of the world.”
IP Subcommittee Ranking Member Nadler: “The USA Liberty Act is an attempt to strike the appropriate balance, as we did in the USA Freedom Act, of giving our intelligence agencies the tools they need to keep us safe while making sure individual liberty and privacy rights are better protected. For the first time, the bill institutes a requirement for a warrant—based on probable cause—for criminal investigators to query the information obtained by the 702 program. In addition, this legislation significantly curbs the amount of incidental information that can be searched, and, most importantly, institutes critical operational norms for the 702 program that make it more accountable, more transparent, and ultimately more effective in striking the critical balance between national security needs and the individual’s constitutional rights. I want to thank Chairman Goodlatte and Ranking Member Conyers for working in good faith on the USA Liberty Act, which goes a long way in reforming government surveillance under Section 702.”
Additional original cosponsors of the bill include Representatives Lamar Smith (R-Texas), Steve Chabot (R-Ohio), Doug Collins (R-Ga.), Mike Johnson (R-La.), John Rutherford (R-Fla.) Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), Ted Deutch (D-Fla.), and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.).
Background: FISA Section 702, which will expire on December 31, 2017, authorizes surveillance of the communications of non-U.S. persons located outside of the United States in order to protect national security. It reportedly contributes to a quarter of all National Security Agency surveillance and has been used on multiple occasions to detect and prevent horrific terrorist plots against our country. Although Congress designed this authority to target non-U.S. persons located outside of the United States, it is clear that Section 702 surveillance programs can and do incidentally collect information about U.S. persons when U.S. persons communicate with the foreign targets of Section 702 surveillance.
Three former aides of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton refused to testify at a House Oversight & Government Reform Committee hearing on her staff’s preservation of her email records. Former State Deparment Information Resource Management Adviser Bryan Pagliano did not attend the hearing after being issued a subpoena. Committee Chair Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) said there will be consequences for Mr. Pagliano failing to attend. In addition, two specialists from Platte River Networks, the company that maintained the server after it was moved to a data center in New Jersey, appeared at the hearing but asserted their Fifth Amendment privileges. Justin Cooper, who set up Hillary Clinton’s email on a private server, was questioned by the committee on the security issues surrounding Ms. Clinton’s private email account.
As some of you may well know, I consult the U.S. House Judiciary which means I have met lots of people in Washington, D.C.
And as some of you who personally know me, you know I will open my mouth anytime, anywhere, with the greatest of eloquence, in my elegant fashion, and rip holes in any stupid, fallacious statement regarding child abuse propaganda and its imperialistic morality parade.
My petition is to have U.S. Representative Lamar Smith, House Judiciary Chairman and U.S. Representative John Conyers, Jr, Judiciary Chairman Emeritus to send a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder requesting investigation of the States on Medicaid fraud in child welfare.
Of course, we all know who will be writing the letter. Me.
Unfortunately, there are Members of Congress who are stuck on broken record of revving up mandatory reporting of child abuse. You cannot report child abuse in child welfare because it is a conflict of interest. It is hard for a state to snitch on itself so legislation is going to have other snitch. This snitching panic for the smallest delusion of a transgression will lead to an increase of child rape in foster care, paid with Medicaid dollars.
This petition is to wake up the nation.
The only thing left to do is your signature.
Send this petition to your elected officials and administrators. Send it anyone with an email or a facebook account. You wanted a voice in Washington, well now you have it.
Greetings,
I just signed the following petition addressed to: Representatives Lamar Smith and John Conyers, Jr..
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In the wake of the Penn State child sexual abuse matter, the issues of fraud in child welfare must finally be addressed as the children were under the care of the state as foster children.
Under the shroud of confidentiality laws, the number of children who are murdered, raped, tortured and have committed suicide while in foster care go unreported. What is even more egregious is not the fact that these foster children have suffered were billed under Medicaid; it is the fact that there have never been national hearings on the matters of Medicaid fraud in child welfare.
Quintessentially, child welfare service providers are paid through Social Security to literally get away with murder and rape of children.
States do not maintain policies to refer Medicaid claims violations of law by its privatized Child Placing Agencies to the Medicaid Fraud Control Units, typically housed in the States Attorney General Office, due to the fact that the States Attorney General defends its privatized Child Placing Agencies under the grant of immunity.
Children in foster care are prescribed psychotropic drugs at an alarming rate because there is no enforcement oversight mechanism beyond the False Claims Act. As a result, children in foster care are improperly and unnecessarily overmedicated creating fraudulent claims for Medicaid cost reimbursements.
There have been a number of Corporate Integrity Agreements between the U.S. Department of Justice and major pharmaceutical corporations for "illegally and wrongfully" marketing psychotropic drugs, which were never FDA approved, to children; yet, in foster care, children continue to be medicated with these same drugs.
State child welfare contracts are not competitive by nature, creating breeding grounds for numerous antitrust violations which remain omitted from national discussions. Coupled with institutionalized patterns of practice in double-billing, phantom-billing (i.e. billing for non-existent, poor quality, or unnecessary services) and kiddy kickbacks (i.e. similar to physician kickbacks), and false statistical reporting of child abuse, you have the makings of Medicaid fraud in child welfare.
Most people have heard of Medicare fraud, and the campaign to stop it, but nobody knows about Medicaid fraud in child welfare. Medicaid fraud in child welfare is a multi-billion dollar industry which exists without any penalty.
Contrary to popular belief, the largest federal funding source in foster care is not Title IV-E, Title IV-A Emergency Assistance or Title XX of the federal Social Security Act, it is Title XIX (Medicaid) and the area that we are addressing is Targeted Case Management.
Targeted Case Management (TCM) is considered a “pay-as-you-go” program. This means, whenever there is a bill in child welfare, it will be paid, in full by the feds. Unlike Medicaid Federal Financial Participation (FFP), TCM in foster care and adoption is 100% covered which means the states do not pay any portion. Then, a portion of these funds was set aside to suspend regulation, called a moratoria, on TCM.
So, now we have a basic formula for the child welfare fraud:
TRANSLATION: It becomes financially beneficial for states to place children and keep them in foster care than to provide community-based services because there is no regulation of the legitimacy of TCM costs.
TCM funds exactly what it says, the management of cases from targeted populations. So what are targeted populations?
Targeted populations are children who are considered as “at-risk”, meaning the likelihood of them being in need of child welfare services is substantial because they meet the following criteria:
At or below the Federal Poverty Level
Minorities
Single parent homes (this includes divorced and widowed)
Sibling groups
Unemployed
Living in low-income neighborhoods
Special needs (education, medical, psychological)
Disabilities (caregivers and/or children)
Homeless
Lack of medical coverage
Victims of domestic violence
Children of undocumented immigrants
These are populations who have no access to legal recourse nor opportunity to redress grievance as confidentiality laws silence any whistleblower with threats of termination of parental rights.
To first properly understand Medicaid fraud in child welfare, we must conduct a forensic autopsy, meaning, it may only be examined after the billing has been submitted and costs reimbursed. The complexity of TCM child welfare fraud varies from state to state, and from child placing agency to child placing agency, but they exist, in a multitude of shapes and forms.
Concerns of the pervasiveness of these revenue-maximizing schemes have been federally expressed, but ignored by Congress.
Therefore, gentlemen, I strongly encourage you to send letter of request to the Attorney General Eric Holder to investigate Medicaid fraud in child welfare and for this honorable body to hold judiciary hearings to bring into public light the pilfering of the Social Security system under the guise of the child.
Smith and Conyers Introduce Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Venue Bill
Washington, D.C. -- House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) and Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) today introduced legislation to prevent forumshopping in chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization cases. TheChapter 11 Bankruptcy Venue Reform Act of 2011 (H.R.2533) requires corporations to file reorganization cases in the judicial district where they have their principal place of business or principal assets rather than in a far away district where they have no employees, assets or connection to the community.
Loopholes in the current law allowed Enron, a Houston-based corporation with 7,500 employees in Texas, and General Motors, whose principal assets are in Michigan, to leave their employees and creditors behind and file for bankruptcy in New York City, a venue known for being management-friendly. The bill would amend chapter 11 bankruptcy venue rules to require businesses to reorganize on their home turf to ensure maximum input from all affected stakeholders.
Chairman Smith: “Ten years ago, the discovery of Enron’s massive fraud perpetrated on its shareholders, creditors, and 7,500 Houston-based employees forced the company to file for bankruptcy. But rather than face the music in Texas, Enron filed a chapter 11 case thousands of miles away in New York City, a jurisdiction with a reputation in the bankruptcy community for being management-friendly.
“Venueshopping for sympathetic courts has become an all-too-common practice for large companies filing for bankruptcy. Unfortunately, it significantly disadvantages displaced employees, creditors and shareholders who should be able to participate in the reorganization negotiations. This legislation reforms the chapter 11 venue rules to prevent corporations from fleeing to friendly jurisdictions for bankruptcy, while leaving employees, creditors and other stakeholders without a voice in the negotiations.”
Ranking Member Conyers: “This long overdue legislation will help level the playing field between employees and management in corporate chapter 11 bankruptcy cases and restore fairness. Under current law, the very same management that drove the business into financial distress can retain control of the business by choosing to file the chapter 11 bankruptcy case in a management-friendly venue. This bill will limit bankruptcy filing venue options to where the principal place of business or assets of the debtor are located, which typically will be where most of the debtor’s employees are located. As a result, employees will now have a greater ability to protect their interests and to make their concerns known to the bankruptcy court without having to be forced to do so in distant venues.”
Courts, Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee Chairman Howard Coble (R-N.C.) and Ranking Member Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) joined as original cosponsors of H.R. 2533.
