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“ABLE” ACCOUNTS VERSUS SPECIAL NEEDS TRUSTS
The federal ABLE Act, was signed into law by President Obama on December 19, 2014, (Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014 (Pub L 113-295, 128 Stat 4010). The federal ABLE act allows a state to establish and operate a qualified ABLE program under which an IRC §529A savings account, similar to a §529 savings account, may be established by individuals who became disabled before age 26 to receive nondeductible contributions up to the gift tax annual exclusion, although this limitation is applied to all contributors on an aggregate basis.
An ABLE Act account is supposed to be designed to secure funding for disability-related expenses on behalf of designated beneficiaries with disabilities that will supplement, but not supplant, benefits provided through private insurance, the applicable state Medicaid program, SSI, the beneficiary's employment, and other sources. Therefore, only certain expenses are allowed to be paid from an ABLE account.
These expenses are referred to as "qualified disability expenses," which mean any expense related to the designated beneficiary as a result of living a life with disabilities, including education, housing, transportation, employment training, assistive technology, health care expenses, and financial management. IRC §529A(e)(5).
Unlike regular a §529 savings accounts, tax-free distributions from the account are not limited to qualified higher education expenses but also can be made for "qualified disability expenses" including education, housing, transportation, and other expenses. Under an uncodified provision of the legislation, amounts in excess of $100,000 in an ABLE account are counted as resources of the disabled individual for purposes of eligibility for SSI and traditional needs-based Medi-Cal.
On October 11, 2015, Governor Brown signed state legislation that put into effect the federal ABLE) Act of 2014. Californians should aware of the potential advantages of an ABLE account over a special needs trust (SNT) (see below comparison).
The salient feature of an ABLE account is that it will allow family members and others to contribute funds that will not be counted as a resource for commonly used means-tested public benefit programs, including Medi-Cal and SSI.
The California ABLE Act allows people with disabilities, with an age of onset up to 26 years old, to create the account. Contributions to an ABLE account are not tax deductible and income earned in an ABLE account is not taxed. A person who is not a recipient of SSI and/or SSDI but still meets the age of onset disability requirement may still be eligible to open an ABLE account if he or she meets SSI criteria on significant functional limitations. The person does not need to be under the age of 26 to be eligible for an ABLE account; he or she could be over 26 as long as he or she has documentation of disability that indicates age of onset before the age of 26. See IRC §529A(e)(1). The ABLE Act limits the opportunity to one ABLE account per eligible individual. IRC §529A(b)(1)(B).
There are important limitations with regard to an ABLE account (see IRC §529A):
The maximum annual contribution limit, from all sources, is the amount of the annual federal gift tax exclusion, which is currently $14,000 (the amount of the annual federal gift tax exclusion in 2018).
Earnings on the account are not taxable.
Only individuals who became disabled prior to age 26 can establish an account.
An eligible individual is limited to only one account.
Distributions are tax-free as long as they are used to pay Qualified Disability Expenses as defined by IRS regulations.
Distributions are taxed (plus 10 percent penalty) if they are used to pay for non-qualified disability expenses.
On the death of the ABLE account beneficiary, any assets remaining in the account must first be used to pay back the State Medicaid agency before going to heirs.
The total limit over time that may be made to an ABLE account is subject to the maximum amount allowed in a State's 529 Plan program (in California the limit is $475,000).
For individuals with disabilities who are recipients of SSI or Medi-Cal, the ABLE Act sets further limitations:
The first $100,000 in an ABLE account is exempted from the SSI and Medi-Cal $2000 individual resource limit.
If an ABLE account exceeds $100,000, the beneficiary would be suspended from eligibility for SSI benefits and no longer receive that monthly income. However, the beneficiary would continue to be eligible for Medi-Cal.
SPECIAL NEEDS TRUST (SNT) VS. ABLE: WHICH IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
The benefits and disadvantages of the ABLE and the SNT will differ for each person/family, depending on the individual's circumstances.
The Special Needs Trust (SNT) - What is it?
Essentially, the Special Needs Trust (SNT) - which is established by placing funds and other assets under the control of a trustee - is a legal document that is designed solely for the financial protection of an individual with a disability. Until the ABLE Act became law it was the only legal way to save money without sacrificing eligibility for government benefits. It is also important to note that the funds in the special needs trust supplement but do not supplant government benefits. In other words, the special needs trust is designed to provide financial assistance for any care above and beyond what the government provides.
There are a number of ways in which the Special Needs Trust can be funded, either during the lifetime of the grantor, or upon their death. The trust allows family members to gift assets and leave inheritances or life insurances to a person with special needs without disqualifying him or her from government benefits.
There are three distinct types of Special Needs Trusts: third party/supplemental trusts, first party/pay-back or self-settled/d(4)(A) trusts, or pooled Special Needs Trusts. Most Special Needs Trusts are third party/supplemental special needs trusts, unless the assets were originally in the beneficiaries' name or there are not enough assets to pay the fees to establish the third party special needs trust.
The important thing to remember when trying to decide between the ABLE Account and the Special Needs trust is that both of these savings vehicles are intended to work the same way: to give individuals with disabilities the ability to save without losing their means-based assets. The personal financial situation of the individual will determine which option is the most beneficial.
The Special Needs Trust Versus the ABLE Account
To begin, the SNT is costly and complicated to establish; if designed incorrectly, the SNT can actually render the beneficiary (individual with a disability) ineligible for the benefits.
In addition to this, picking the correct SNT form is very important - for example, the pooled SNT (often chosen to minimize the management fees) has a payback provision either to the state for Medicaid expenditures or to the non-profit. The First Party - also known as a Medicaid Pay Back trust - contains a payback provision for state Medicaid only. Only the third party form does not have any pay back provisions.
Also, a (d)(4)(A) SNT cannot be established for an individual age 65 and over [see 42 USC §1396p(d)(4)(A)]. Although a pooled Special Needs Trust does not have an age requirement for establishing it [see 42 USC §1396p(d)(4)(C)], transferring assets into it for an individual age 65 and over will trigger an SSI eligibility penalty and may trigger a Medi-Cal eligibility penalty.
A penalty may likewise be applied for an individual age 65 or over who transfers funds into an ABLE account. Although that individual may have become disabled before age 26, and therefore qualified to establish an ABLE account, transferring assets to the ABLE account will likely result in a penalty if the individual is age 65 or older.
The ABLE Account is undoubtedly easier to establish than the SNT; the funds can grow tax free within the account, and it is less costly. Additionally, an individual with special needs can manage this account him/herself.
On the negative side, the ABLE Account beneficiary must have had the disability before the age of 26; this eliminates anyone who sustained an injury or became disabled after that age. The contribution limit for the ABLE Account is $14,000 per year in 2018, up to a limit of $100,000. Anything over this limit will disqualify an individual from Social Security Insurance.
As well, all ABLE accounts will have a Medicaid payback provision, meaning that if the beneficiary dies, the funds in the ABLE account will be used to pay Medicaid for services rendered during the lifetime of the beneficiary before being released to family members.
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May 10 th 2012 Comments Off on Not All Animals Are Equal
Not All Animals Are Equal
It’s easy and sometimes entertaining to note the negative or bizarre aspects of the major international law publishers but ultimately it is more interesting to identify areas of achievement. Far from the only one, but one such example is the work and evolution of what is now Bloomsbury Professional, based in the UK but increasingly recognisable around the world.
For me at least, it’s hard not to admire the business and the people involved in it, though I have to admit to a bias, though not an interest, in its favour. I consider a number of the people in the business to be friends and/or former colleagues and some of them I have selected, employed and promoted in other places, in recognition of their obvious worth. I’m proud to note that I have never seen any intelligent reason to remove any of them from their posts as to do so would clearly have been detrimental to the businesses for which they worked. It is pleasing to see Bloomsbury Professional as the current home for such a collection of talent and commitment.
Bloomsbury Professional is a relatively new law and tax publisher, until recently known as Tottel Publishing. This itself was not so long ago a phoenix from the ashes of a larger body of publishing assets thought at the time to be surplus to requirement at Lexis Nexis UK and sold to forward-looking senior managers who established the new business. Tottel grew and flourished for a few years until it was time for a trade sale, when Bloomsbury Publishing saw the benefits of investing in professional, academic and subscription-based markets.
One suspects that the investment decision was not a foregone conclusion as it had not been the first time that Bloomsbury had sought to enter the market. Indeed, Chancery Law Publishing had been set up in 1990 with its financial backing. Chancery Law did not flourish, despite the acknowledged quality of much of its output and in 1992 it was sold to Wiley. Nor did it achieve success there, its assets finally being sold on. No doubt it is a tribute to the Tottel management and staff that Bloomsbury was able to perceive sufficient difference to envisage that the new acquisition would not go the same way as the earlier investment. Nor, I’m sure, would the parent company believe that it had or has any wizard’s wand to wave over its children to guarantee success.
Hardly great wisdom is needed to understand, to some extent at least, why Bloomsbury Professional looks like a great publishing business. After all, it got off to a racing start with some astonishing assets from Lexis Nexis, among them an especially strong tax portfolio which, subsequently evolved, is making a huge competitive impression in the market. In fact, they have recently dislodged CCH as the chosen supplier of one of the key tax books, as a member benefit, to all the members of the UK’s Association of Taxation Technicians. Additionally, there are many distinguished ex-Lexis Nexis titles such as, randomly selected, Mediators on Mediation: leading mediator perspectives on the practice of commercial mediation, edited by Chris Newmark and Anthony Monaghan, Mediator Skills and Techniques: Triangle of Influence by Laurence Boulle and Miryana Nesic, Fransman’s British Nationality Law and Clinical Negligence by Charles Lewis. In truth, the list is extremely long and embraces, additionally, key Irish and Scottish titles. I believe that plans are now afoot to bring to fruition the results of its strategic planning for ebooks.
As an observer of Bloomsbury Professional and its competitors, one does not see or need to see genius in operation. Indeed they quite modestly refer to themselves as “a traditional, but cutting-edge publisher of high quality books and information services for lawyers, accountants and business professionals”. Rather, it is easier to identify intelligence, sound judgement, consistency, commitment and commercial attitude as critical features. Every new decision does not have to be explosive in character but instead indicative of an understanding of and empathy with markets, both following and directing market evolution.
In fact, of their recently launched online tax law service, www.bloomsburytax.com, I commented in an article, “What makes the new service worth noting is not rocket science technology or really cutting-edge functionality but price and simplicity, combined with an unashamed resemblance to the book idiom in its presentation – a smart move, it might be suggested, in an e-book era”. It was of the service in question that a most distinguished Canadian lawyer commented to me, upon learning about it “this is like an early Christmas present”. For their efforts, they were nominated for the prizes of Ingram Digital Publishing Award and Academic and Professional Publisher of the Year in the Independent Publishers Guild Independent Publishing Awards 2012, with Hart Publishing being similarly and deservedly recognised.
Modesty is refreshing to me in an era of grand boasts usually followed by never admitted failure. This extends to ways of doing business, such as accepting that one cannot do everything well by oneself and sometimes there is a need for partnership and joint ventures to achieve best results. Indeed, very early in its existence, Tottel was happy to partner with CCH UK in electronic content licensing, in order to achieve outcomes that would have been difficult alone. That arrangement has since some to an end. Now, however, in a dynamic arrangement, they partner with another legal publishing entrepreneur, Practical Law Company, to provide content online to PLC customers.
Another partnership, this time in relation to UK and International accounting and auditing content, has recently been established with PricewaterhouseCoopers, the PWC arrangement having previously been with CCH UK. No doubt, the desire and ability to make such deals will help establish Bloomsbury Professional more strongly, additionally in the accounting publishing market, as well as in law and tax. To achieve visibility and effectiveness at these levels would, I am certain, be difficult without a particular and open attitude of mind.
Rewards come with effort and it is not surprising that in 2011 Bloomsbury Professional won the British and Irish Association of Law Librarians’ Supplier of the Year Award. It seems that the methodology and good service, perhaps in a sea of mediocrity, pays off. Of course, it’s not for me to know and if I did to discuss here the extent to which this transfers to profits but I like to think that that is the case. What I do see, when I meet my Bloomsbury Professional friends, is a group of ambitious but happy and contented enthusiasts who believe they are winning.
For some of the other major information providers, certainly those in the UK and, I would hope, excluding Bloomberg Law/BNA, I think they should watch and learn from the likes of Bloomsbury Professional, PLC and Justis Publishing. There are certainly areas in which they could improve and do better but the younger innovators are taking the prizes and becoming positioned in the number 2 or 3 slots in particular market segments, though perhaps becoming simply candidates for acquisition and emasculation, as one might hope will not be the case in relation to the acquisition in the USA of Law360.
Equally, to avoid self-delusion, it should not be forgotten that Bloomsbury Professional is itself part of a quoted company and the smaller ones are often inclined to mimic the activities of their larger peers. No personal judgment on the views expressed, of course, but I wonder if their thinking is in line with or at a distance from those of the other end of the professional publishing spectrum, http://tomglocer.com/blogs/sample_weblog/archive/2012/02/04/2852.aspx, balanced against http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/business/business-news/reed-chief-engstroms-3m-package-7562508.html. Other informed commentators, however, hold opinions on such matters, http://practicesource.com/house-of-butter/tom-glocer-educates-us-on-marx-and-adam-smith.
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Nin v. Luzerne County
KARELIZ NIN, Plaintiff,
LUZERNE COUNTY and LUZERNE COUNTY CHILDREN AND YOUTH SERVICES, Defendants.
MARIANI, JUDGE
I. Introduction and Procedural History
The above-captioned action was filed by Plaintiff, Kareliz Nin, asserting a single Section 1983 claim against Defendants Luzerne County and Luzerne County Children and Youth Services ("LCCYS") for their alleged involvement in the administration of Plaintiffs deceased child's estate. Pending before the Court is Defendants' Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs Second Amended Complaint. (Doc. 57).
Nin filed a Writ of Summons in the Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County on October 21, 2016, naming Luzerne County and LCCYS as Defendants. (Doc. 1-1). On April 20, 2017, Nin filed her Complaint in state court, alleging a single count of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 violation and naming only LCCYS as a defendant. (Id.) LCCYS removed the action to this Court (Doc. 1) and moved to dismiss pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) (Doc. 3). On August 25, 2017, Nin filed a motion for leave to amend the Complaint to add Luzerne County as a defendant, without adding any new claims or substantive allegations. (Doc. 19). This Court granted Nin's Motion to Amend (Doc. 28) and Defendants filed a second motion to dismiss after the Amended Complaint was filed (Doc. 32). On August 3, 2018, this Court granted Defendants' Motion to Dismiss the Amended Complaint and granted Nin leave to amend her complaint. (Doc. 52). On August 24, 2018, Nin filed a Second Amended Complaint (Doc. 53), and on September 26, 2018, Defendants filed a Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs Second Amended Complaint (Doc. 57). For reasons that follow, Defendants' motion will be granted, without prejudice and with leave to Plaintiff to file a Third Amended Complaint.
II. Factual Allegations
Plaintiffs Second Amended Complaint (Doc. 53) alleges the following facts which, for the purposes of resolving Defendants' Motion to Dismiss, the Court takes as true:
Kareliz Nin gave birth to her daughter, Cecilia Nin, on May 21, 2012. (Id. at ¶ 2). On December 28, 2012, after becoming unresponsive, Cecilia was taken by ambulance to the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital. (Id. at ¶ 10). After conducting various diagnostic tests, the Hospital discharged Cecilia back to the care of her mother. (Id. at ¶ 11). About a week later, Cecilia was again unresponsive and taken to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center. (Id. at ¶ 12.) Based on the results of the diagnostic tests performed during that second visit, LCCYS petitioned the state court for dependency of Cecilia and Plaintiffs other two children, Reina and Faviyan, alleging suspected abuse. (Id. at ¶ 13). The state court granted LCCYS's petition and directed that Plaintiffs children be removed from Plaintiffs care and placed into foster care. (Doc. 53, at ¶ 14). On January 7, 2013, while still an inpatient at Geisinger hospital, Cecilia died. (Id. at ¶ 15). The court then issued an order finding Cecilia as not dependent because she was deceased. (Id. at ¶ 16). According to Cecilia's Autopsy Report, Cecilia died due to blunt force trauma to the head, and separately suffered multiple healing bilateral rib fractures and forearm fractures. (Id. at ¶ 18). The death of Cecilia triggered a criminal investigation by the Luzerne County District Attorney's office, the status of which is still unknown at this time. (Id. at ¶¶ 24, 27).
Nearly two years later, on October 29, 2014, Plaintiff received a "Representative Notice of Estate Administration Pursuant to Pa. O.C. Rule 5.6" regarding the Estate of Cecilia Nin (the "Representative Notice"), which was prepared and issued by two lawyers ("Estate Counsel") and named a third lawyer as administrator of the estate. (Id. at ¶¶ 29-31). Plaintiff alleges that she had no participation in and was never made aware of the administration of her daughter's Estate, and that she cannot access Cecilia's estate files because the files are sealed. (Doc. 53, at ¶¶ 33-37). Plaintiff further alleges that prior to the opening of her daughter's estate, Estate Counsel were not legally privy to the confidential information contained within her and her daughter's CYS files. (Id. at ¶ 39). Thus, any dissemination of that information was "illegal and unauthorized" and "the only way" the Estate Counsel could have ascertained the information necessary to open the Estate was through CYS's illegal and unauthorized dissemination of information. (Id. at ¶ 41).
On August 10, 2015, Cecilia's estate representative filed a medical malpractice suit against various defendants, including Kareliz Nin. (Id. at ¶¶ 42, 43). Plaintiff alleges that "the sole reason for the Estate Counsel to open the Estate of Cecilia was to file the Complaint" and that "the only way Estate counsel could have come across the information necessary to prepare and file the [medical malpractice suit's] Complaint and continue to litigate the lawsuit would have been through illegal and unauthorized information disseminated through representatives of [LCCYS]." (Id. at ¶¶ 44, 46). Plaintiff further alleges that "CYS has thrown road blocks at every chance they had through various delays" (Id. at ¶ 49), and that she has still not regained custody of her other two daughters who remain in foster care (Doc. 53, at ¶ 54).
The medical malpractice Complaint includes "very specific and detailed information," with regard to Cecilia's medical information, her treatment during her Emergency Room visits, and the autopsy report. (Id. at ¶¶ 65-67). The information disclosed is "highly confidential and protected by various County, State and Federal Rules and Regulations." (Id. at ¶ 68). Additionally, Nin never gave any of the information to the Estate Counsel or Representative, the information was not publicly accessible, and the only way the information could be accessed would be via Court Order or with Plaintiff's authorization. (Id. at ¶¶ 69-72). As a result, Plaintiff alleges that LCCYS failed to implement any policies or procedures to ensure compliance with Federal and State law, and consequently, by illegally releasing said information, infringed upon Plaintiff's Constitutional right to privacy. (Id. at ¶¶ 78-87, 94).
Plaintiff alleges that Defendants, "while acting under color of state law, unlawfully, intentionally, unreasonably, maliciously, with deliberate indifference and/or with reckless indifference to [Plaintiffs] civil rights, violated 42 U.S.C.A. § 1983 and deprived the [Plaintiff] of her rights and privileges guaranteed under the Constitution of the United States and laws...by acting as follows:"
a. Violating various Child Protective Services laws;
b. Attempting to cover up, minimize and ignore the illegal activities of their employees, agents, and servants;
c. Releasing confidential information regarding Kareliz and Cecilia's CYS file to individuals with absolutely no legal standing to have access to said ...


New company excites former GE manager
Rubber & Plastics News Correspondent
Lake Erie Rubber's facility in Erie, Pa.
ERIE, Pa.—It was two years ago that Jon Meighan, then an executive and plant manager with General Electric, began having serious thoughts about owning and managing his own business.
Little did he know that by August 2017 he would own one that operates in an industry he had no direct experience with.
Regardless, Meighan is now the owner and president of Lake Erie Rubber & Manufacturing, an Erie-based custom rubber molding and manufacturing company that is more than 20 years old. It's an aspirational move for the Erie-area resident, who combined two former companies—Skully Enterprises and Lake Erie Rubber Works—into one. His enterprise places an emphasis on using lean principles to drive continued improvement in safety, quality, delivery and cost for its customers.
That strategic move does make the transition an ideal fit, Meighan says, even though he had no previous experience in the rubber manufacturing industry.
"At General Electric I had worked in the supply chain area with a focus on welding. To be honest with you, though, the rubber business was a new one for me," Meighan said. "But I was looking for a business to acquire in (the Erie area) because the cost of doing business is low and there is a long (history) of successful manufacturing and (employee) know-how here."
Jon Meighan
Meighan, a former GE Transportation plant manager, officially took over the business on Aug. 1, 2017, less than a week after the birth of his second child. The decision came as a surprise to friends and colleagues. After all, Meighan invested his life savings at a time when many manufacturing firms in Pennsylvania have struggled.
So he researched a number of family-owned businesses in the Erie area that were either for sale or did not have a specific succession plan. A handful were considered as options. The more he looked the more he considered the Skully/Lake Erie Rubber Works combination largely because of the inherent knowledge that the company's 10 employees brought and the strong brand they had built in the industry.
Lake Erie Rubber Works traditionally had been focused in the rail and mining industries, and already had been selling to GE's Transportation business. The company also currently serves the oil and gas and construction industries. With 24,000 square feet of manufacturing space, Meighan realized that the potential and capabilities for further growth were extensive. His own experience in business development, sourcing, international sales and other disciplines gave him a number of ideas for how that growth could be achieved.
"I do believe that the marina, agricultural and safety industries look like great opportunities for us," Meighan said. "The business was completely run by professionals who have a level of expertise that I will never have, but combined with my background it was the right fit. I also wanted to own the building myself and the one here is in great condition, so there's no (immediate) investments needed in the facility."
Acquisition discussions began in February 2017 and the final deal was in place by the late summer. Meighan believes that Lake Erie Rubber & Manufacturing can double both its revenue and employees within the first five years—and again five years later. He is confident of success in part because of the trend of more companies understanding the intrinsic costs of setting up operations overseas, particularly in China where costs have risen in recent years.
Custom rubber components produced by Lake Erie Rubber.
In addition to growing the business and increasing profitability, Meighan decided to share the success with his employees. As a result, he's instituted profit-sharing so his manufacturing and back office team members will benefit if Meighan's strategic plan succeeds.
All employees from the former companies remained with Meighan after the acquisition.
The ability to meet revenue goals will hinge on Lake Erie Rubber's capability to diversify its offerings for other industries. Meighan has developed a plan to help the company get there, and he will handle the business development efforts to start, with the hope that as the company grows he will hire an executive to run sales.
"It will be helpful for me to really take on the business development end because it will allow me to do a more effective job at managing the new processes we need to implement," he said. "As we grow, we can hire more experts who can (specialize) in certain skills."
Meighan believes that with efficient practices, strong customer service and the low overhead in the Erie region, his company can compete with other manufacturers around the globe.
"Owning a business is something I have always wanted to do since I was younger," said Meighan, who grew up in Texas and Wisconsin and attended college at Clarkson University in upstate New York. "Maybe a few people thought I was crazy. But I have a plan and more control of my own career and my future."


Library Search Results
Your search found :
4665 Timeline Entries
The Year We Were Famous
By Carole Estby Dagg Ages 12 and up Hardcover, 250 pages ISBN 978 0 618 99983 5 $16.99
"They Are All Red Out Here": Socialist Politics in the Pacific Northwest
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Twice a Pioneer: A Life on the Frontier
By F.H. McKay Birchouse Publishing, Norwich, Vermont Paperback 208 pages Illustrations and timeline ISBN-10: 0982467605 ISBN-13: 978-0982467602
Warship Under Sail: The USS Decatur in the Pacific Northwest
By Lorraine McConaghy University of Washington Press, Seattle Hardcover, 344 pages 53 illustrations, 5 maps, notes, bibliography, and index ISBN: 978-0-295-98955-6
When Logging Was Logging: 100 Years of Big Timber in Southwest Washington
By Karen Bertroch, Donna Gatens-Klint, Jim LeMonds, and Bryan Penttila The Donning Company Publishers, Virginia Beach, Virginia Hardcover, 176 pages Color and black-and-white photographs, index ISBN 9...
Women's Votes, Women's Voices: The Campaign for Equal Rights in Washington
By Shanna StevensonWashington State Historical Society, 2009Paperback, 114 pagesIllustrations, footnotes, bibliography, indexISBN: 978-0-917048-74-6 $24.95
Yankee on Puget Sound: Pioneer Dispatches of Edward Jay Allen, 1852-1855
By Karen L. Johnson & Dennis M. Larsen Paperback, 208 pages Photographs, maps, notes, bibliography, index Washington State University Press, 2013 ISBN 978-0-87422-315-6 $29.95
Boone, George (b. ca. 1844) and Florence (Ritchie) Boone (b. 1859) of Neptune Beach, Lummi Reservation
George and Florence (Ritchie) Boone and their family had the original allotment at Neptune Beach on the Lummi Reservation. This history of the family was contributed by Cheryl Metcalf.
Boone, William E. (1830-1921)
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Borst, Kate (1855-1938)
Kate Kanim Borst was a Native American woman who was the third wife of Snoqualmie Valley settler Jeremiah Borst. During her lifetime, she witnessed the transformation of the valley from prairies and I...
Bothell -- Thumbnail History
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Bothell Library, King County Library System
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Bowen, Betty (1918-1977)
Betty Bowen was assistant director of the Seattle Art Museum, a civic activist on behalf of the arts and historic preservation, and an indefatigable promoter of Seattle artists. Two days before her de...
Boxing for Combat and Entertainment During and After World War I
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Boyce, Lucinda Elizabeth Stewart (1836-1916)
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Bracero Program: Crossing the Border to a New Life by History Day Award Winner Cameron Holt
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Bracken, Robert (1841?-1906)
Robert "Bob" Bracken was the first non-Indian to settle permanently in what soon became Asotin County. He arrived late in 1861 when the area was still part of an Indian reservation. Bracken engaged i...
Brackett, George (1842-1927)
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In-laws set ablaze woman over domestic dispute in Gujranwala
10:15 AM, 29 Mar, 2017
Gujranwala (Staff Report): A woman received severe burn injuries after she was allegedly set ablaze by her husband's mother and sister today (Wednesday).
The victim's mother-in-law and sister-in-law doused her with petrol before setting her ablaze over a domestic dispute.
Initially, the woman was shifted to District Hospital Gujranwala in critical condition and was transferred to Lahore for further treatment after receiving first aid at District Hospital Gujranwala
Doctors said that fifty percent of her body was burnt.
According to Saddar police, the woman who was a resident of Bassivila got married in 2015. The household had frequent domestic disputes.
Police said that a case has been registered against the women suspected of being involved in the incident.
Tagged laws set ablaze woman domestic dispute gujranwala
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Posted by SJNR on Friday, August 14, 2009
After seven warm-up fixtures (eight if you choose to include the kick-around at Dukinfield Town) it's time for the real stuff to begin.
Forty two plus games where there's something riding on almost every result. Over 63 hours of potentially nerve destroying football in which heroes will rise and fall, joy will battle it out with misery for our emotions and everybody is always the mythical 'one game' away from something - be it a big cup tie, a play-off spot or even administration.
Unlike the proverbial box of chocolates which actually comes with a sheet detailing what each piece of confectionery is, you really don't know what you're going to get to next in football.
The question that's bothering me though is this. Despite all of the above, why do I feel so enormously uninterested about the new season?
Seriously, this isn't a 'look at me, look at me' Julie Birchill-esque attention seeking claim - I really cannot call up a single ounce of excitement for what may be about to come. To all intents and purposes, it might as well be an unending list of friendly matches stretching out before us for all the enthusiasm I can muster. Nine months of matches for which the only feelings I can generate are similar to those reserved for end of season matches between two sides abandoned in mid-table obscurity - neither of whom I support.
If I could represent my feelings with a visual image it would be a shrug.
Regular readers of the blog (you merry few) will know that my fervour for football has been, let's say, 'damp' over the course of the friendlies. Although to be truthful that is usually the case with me for pre-season games but the encroaching dawn of a new season usually sees the bounce in me return. This time however things are different. No excitement, no nothing.
It's weird because even though our final game of last season was a defeat, I left the Manchester Premier Cup Final at Boundary Park on a high. The defeat meant nothing, I was simply proud to be a Mossley supporter. A little over three months later and it's all change.
It could be that it's football as a whole I'm falling out of love with. Match of the Day is no longer a must watch and I barely tune in to see live games on the television any more. International matches, Champions League games, FA Cup ties... I can't remember the last time I actually sat down with the intention of watching any of them. May be it's this that's largely affecting the enjoyment I've had watching my home town team for over twenty years.
What I do know for a fact is that the events at Seel Park early this summer are partly to blame for my indifference. I don't really want to re-open what are still relatively fresh wounds but I reached a stage of total ambivalence.
I know, I'm "not a true fan" (and frankly that nonsense is another contributory reason for my apathy) for thinking such a thing but a third consecutive summer comprising of rumour, uncertainty and being made to feel like a mushroom was one off-season too many for me. It dawned on me that there are other more important things in life for me to worry about (money, a job that could soon be an ex-job) than the continuing trials and tribulations of Mossley AFC, and I realised that I'd probably be better off focusing on them instead.
I'm not diminishing the actions of others here, far from it. Kudos to those who stood up and were counted when the crunch came and rallied to keep the club alive. Being the member of the committee, a steward on match days or someone who puts up the netting isn't for me but I have enormous respect for those who choose to do it.
Why have I told you all this? I've no idea really. I was kind of hoping that it would help explain why I haven't been posting ten to the dozen as usual on the forum. Why some of the forthcoming match reports may be a little more downbeat than usual or why there might not be quite so many reports from away games this year - even the neutral ones I normally see when I can't get to see Mossley.
However I think it has been more of a cathartic experience for me than anything else; the chance to get something off my chest that's been bothering me for a while. Who knows? Now my thoughts are out in the open, like love or a demand from HMR&C for unpaid taxes, maybe the excitement of a new season will arrive suddenly and unexpectedly.
If it's going to I wish it would hurry up and do so or else the next nine months could feel like nine years.
Nik @ Oops said...
I think you're on to something with the knock-on effect theory. There comes a point when you wonder why the hell you bother, when those you put your trust in by handing over admission money, beer money, programme money, to run the club continue to let you down. Maybe it's just us being naive? Has football always been like this, and we just never noticed?
SJNR said...
I think it always has been like this.
That said my problem isn't a question of trust (though it possibly could be if I look deep enough) but more one of tiredness and awareness.
There's an Oz analogy in here somewhere too in that I've seen behind the curtain and things are never going to be quite the same again.
Whether any of that makes any sense though?
Cammell Laird 2 - 1 Mossley
Remember, Remember The Fourth Of November
Mossley 1 - 4 Colwyn Bay
A Site Not To Behold
Garforth Town 0 - 1 Mossley
Everybody's Entitled To One Of Them
Kidsgrove Athletic 3 - 1 Mossley
Mossley 6 - 3 Springhead
Glossop North End 0 - 2 Mossley


Tag Archives: US NCAA Round of 64
Philippines, Sports, television, United States
Despite Airing March Madness, US NCAA Remains Out of BTV’s Equation
December 6, 2016 ralphierce2006-07 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball season, 2007 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four, 2007 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship, 2007 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, 2007 US NCAA March Madness, 2012-13 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball season, 2013 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four, 2013 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship, 2013 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, 2013 US NCAA March Madness, 2013-14 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball season, 2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Final Four, 2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship, 2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, 2016 US NCAA March Madness, 2016-17 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball season, 2017 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four, 2017 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship, 2017 US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament, 2017 US NCAA March Madness, ACC, Atlantic Coast Conference, Basketball in the Philippines, Basketball TV, Big 12, Big 12 Conference, Creighton Bluejays, FIBA, FIBA rules, Fox Sports Asia, Fox Sports Philippines, Kobe Paras, March Madness, March Madness on Basketball TV, March Madness on Solar Sports, National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Philippines, PAC-12, PAC-12 Conference, Solar Entertainment, Solar Sports, Sports Illustrated Asia, Sports Illustrated Philippines, UAAP, University Athletic Association of the Philippines, US college basketball in the Philippines, US NCAA basketball in the Philippines, US NCAA basketball rules, US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, US NCAA Elite Eight, US NCAA First Four, US NCAA March Madness, US NCAA on Basketball TV, US NCAA on FOX Sports Philippines, US NCAA on Solar Sports, US NCAA on Sports Illustrated Asia, US NCAA Round of 32, US NCAA Round of 64, US NCAA Sweet Sixteen Leave a comment
Creighton star Kobe Paras may be making waves in the U.S. NCAA, but the league’s lack of popularity in his home country continues to be a problem. (Photo credit: Fox Sports Asia)
It is obvious that U.S. college basketball will never get the respect it deserves from Filipino hoop fans.
Such is the case for the U.S. NCAA men’s basketball tournament. While top conference tournaments such as the ACC, PAC-12 and the Big 12 air regularly on the FOX Sports family of networks and Sports Illustrated Asia, one network in the Philippines is noticeably absent.
The network in question is Solar Entertainment’s Basketball TV, who back in April aired the U.S. NCAA Final Four and Championship games alongside Solar Sports. Unfortunately, the network’s emphasis on the more popular NBA once again put into question their commitment to air next year’s March Madness, let alone the entire U.S. NCAA season.
The last time BTV actually aired regular season U.S. NCAA basketball games was back in the 2012-13 season. This was also the last time the network aired March Madness prior to last April.
The history between the U.S. NCAA and Basketball TV date back to the fledgling network’s first season in 2006-07. Back then, the network was home to several popular conference tournaments, and they also aired a select number of March Madness games as well.
Unfortunately, U.S. college basketball failed to make an imprint in the consciousness of Filipino hoop fans. Unlike the UAAP or the Filipino NCAA where its rules are based on FIBA’s template (hence a faster style of play), the U.S. NCAA employs a unique set of rules such as 20-minute halves, 30 or 35-second shot clocks, and one-and-one free throw situations.
It also did not help that U.S. college basketball players are essentially obscure names. The fact is, for Filipino hoop fans, they will only gain popularity if they were drafted in the NBA and play well there.
That said, BTV’s decision to drop the U.S. NCAA coverage back in the 2013-14 season was the right choice considering its lack of popularity here. While it did manage to air the Final Four in April, it was done out of necessity since no other network was committed enough to air.
Although Creighton’s Kobe Paras is trying to lift the profile of U.S. NCAA basketball in the Philippines, one thing is clear. U.S. NCAA hoops will never become as popular as the NBA here, and that’s a painful fact.
NCAA March Madness Belatedly Returns to Solar Sports, BTV
March 30, 2016 ralphierce2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Final Four, 2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball National Championship, 2016 US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, 2016 US NCAA March Madness, ABS-CBN Sports, Basketball TV, Fox Sports Philippines, Holy Week 2016, March Madness, March Madness on Basketball TV, March Madness on Solar Sports, North Carolina Tar Heels, Oklahoma Sooners, Solar Entertainment, Solar Sports, Sports5, Syracuse Orange, UAAP, UAAP Season 78, US NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament, US NCAA Elite Eight, US NCAA First Four, US NCAA March Madness, US NCAA on Basketball TV, US NCAA on Solar Sports, US NCAA Round of 32, US NCAA Round of 64, US NCAA Sweet Sixteen, Villanova Wildcats 8 Comments
There will be US NCAA March Madness in the Philippines after all.
This weekend, Solar Sports and Basketball TV will join forces to cover Sunday’s Final Four and Tuesday’s National Championship of the US NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament. Sunday’s games are as follows:
Villanova vs. Oklahoma (6:00 a.m. live on Solar Sports and Basketball TV)
Syracuse vs. North Carolina (8:45 a.m. live on Solar Sports and 10:30 a.m. delayed broadcast on Basketball TV)
The winners of the above games will face off in Tuesday’s National Championship. It will take place at 8:00 a.m. live on Solar Sports and Basketball TV.
This marks the return of the NCAA tournament to the Solar networks for the first time since 2013. Unfortunately, the return of March Madness to Solar was somewhat belated, due to a lack of interest from various networks.
Sports5, the rightsholder of the last two US NCAA March Madness tournaments, decided to back out owing to cost-cutting measures and the yearly observance of Holy Week. Fox Sports Philippines, who covers conference college tournaments, also did not express interest, and neither did ABS-CBN Sports due to its focus on the UAAP.
With no other options, Solar Sports decided to step in, but their involvement came way too late. As a result, they missed out covering the preliminaries, from the First Four to the Elite Eight.
Still, as far as Solar is concerned, it’s better late than never. After all, March Madness is considered a must-watch event, even if a few Filipinos religiously follow the tournament.
It remains to be seen whether or not Solar will be willing to cover another year or two of March Madness. But hopefully, once they express interest again, the coverage won’t be just the Final Four and the National Championship, but also the First Four, the rounds of 64 and 32, the Sweet Sixteen and the Elite Eight, for the full March Madness experience.


RMC Student Kathy Urffer Wins Two Awards for Documentary
Congratulations to AUNE Resource Management and Conservation student Kathy Urffer, who has won two awards for her public-service documentary, “Understanding Brattleboro’s Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade.”
Kathy and the Town of Brattleboro were named co-recipients of the New England Water Environment Association’s (NEWEA) Paul Keough award for excellence in public relations. Additionally, her video won first prize in the category of Issues and Political Process from the Alliance for Community Media Northeast.
In 2009, as a practicum student, Kathy worked with the engineering firm chosen by the Town of Brattleboro to coordinate and oversee major upgrades to the town’s wastewater treatment plant. She made the documentary as the chief component of a public outreach initiative to educate residents about the need for the project prior to a town meeting vote on a referendum for a multimillion-dollar bond issue.
Kathy had no previous experience as a filmmaker, but created the video as a volunteer with Brattleboro Community Television (BCTV), a public access station, using its equipment and editing software. The film consists of interviews and footage, as well as clips from a 2002 town video about the history of wastewater in Brattleboro.
“It isn’t complicated. It’s pretty straightforward,” she said. “I included as much information as possible to make it transparent so everyone could understand the need to upgrade the treatment plant. It’s an expensive project and affects all residents connected to the sewer system.”
The documentary was aired often on BCTV, and Kathy regularly provided updates about the project on the Town of Brattleboro’s Web site.
“By the time we got to the vote, everyone was pretty receptive to it. The bond vote passed. It was very close to unanimous,” she said.
For her achievement, Kathy received the ACM award at the 12th annual Alliance for Community Media Northeast Region Fall Film Festival on November 13 in Concord, New Hampshire. In late January 2011, she and Steve Barrett of the Brattleboro Public Works Department will be presented with the Paul Keough Award for excellence in public relations at the NEWEA Annual Conference and Exhibition in Boston.
Kathy, who completed her master’s project on storm water analysis of the Brattleboro Co-op redevelopment site, hopes to graduate from AUNE in November 2010. She plans to focus on water advocacy.
AUNE congratulates Kathy for her superlative work.
View Kathy’s documentary here.
About the Paul Keough Award
This award was established in 1994 in memory of Paul Keough, in recognition of his leadership and efforts to communicate to the public the need to protect the water environment. Mr. Keough was a reporter for The Patriot Ledger in Quincy, MA, prior to joining the regional office of the Environmental Protection Agency where he started as a public affairs officer and worked his way up to regional administrator. The award is given for excellence in public relations.


Miles of glass panels being installed for The Q Arena Transformation Project
Updated Jan 22, 2019; Posted Jan 22, 2019
Miles of glass panels being installed at The Q Arena Transformation Project
By John Pana, cleveland.com
Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena is undergoing a $185 million makeover which will make way for, among other things, the 2022 NBA All Star Game.
If you haven’t seen the architectural renderings, a new 42,530 square foot addition with an exterior glass facade will wrap around the north and east sides of the building along Huron Road and East 6th Street.
Ark Transportation Ltd. of Middleburg Heights was contracted to receive, warehouse and transport the 1,475 glass panels to the construction site. An Ark representative confirmed that they received nearly 1.3 million pounds of cargo from 33 full ocean containers. Each container has 39,000 pounds, including the glass panels and the wooden crates protecting them.
With the glass panels ranging from 8 to 13 feet long, it would be safe to say that the total length of the panels lined up back-to-back would be well over 2 miles long. That would be a glass path stretching from Quicken Loans Arena to Cleveland’s Steelyard Commons south of Tremont.
A recent update from The Q Transformation Project’s website noted that the project will add 77,000 square feet of glass to the exterior of the arena.
The video above includes renderings of how The Q will look when the project is completed.


Esther Bialas
Scenery and Costume Designer
Designer Esther Bialas collaborates frequently with director Barrie Kosky.
Her collaborations as a stage and costume designer with director Barrie Kosky include Strindberg’s A Dream Play (Deutsche Theater Berlin), Strauss’s The Silent Woman (Bavarian State Opera), as well as Ball im Savoy, Seven Songs/The Seven Deadly Sins, West Side Story and The Magic Flute (Komische Oper Berlin).
She also has a longstanding collaboration with director Nicolas Stemann, designing costumes for his productions of Hamlet (Schauspiel Hannover), Jelinek’s The Work (Burgtheater, Vienna) and Schiller’s The Robbers (Thalia Theater, Hamburg). Together with director Christiane Pohle, she founded the women’s theater company LaborLavache, presented at the Schauspielhaus Zürich.
She has designed stage and costume designs for the Basel Theater, Vienna Burgtheater and the Deutsche Theater Berlin, for opera productions in Lucerne and Basel, as well as for film. Other design credits include The Tales of Hoffmann (Bregenzer Festspiele, directed by Stefan Herheim); Eötvös’s Three Sisters (Vienna State Opera); costumes for La Cenerentola (Oslo Opera, directed by Stefan Herheim); and costumes for La Traviata (Theater Basel, directed by Daniel Kramer).
Esther Bialas studied costume design in Hamburg. Since 2004 she has taught costume design at the Lerchenfeld University in Hamburg.


WE ARE NPTP
The Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA) is the main government entity responsible for provision of social safety nets in Lebanon. It provides social services to specific categories of vulnerable groups, primarily through its Social Development Centers (SDCs). The MOSA has placed poverty alleviation as one of its main priorities and established the National Poverty Targeting Program (NPTP) in 2011 as the first poverty-targeted social assistance program for the poorest and most vulnerable Lebanese families. The MOSA has also placed the reform, reinforcement, and capacitation of its social development centers (SDCs) among its priorities to enable them to fulfill their mandated roles, including relief work such as in the case of the Syrian refugee crisis. The SDCs provide social services and promote integrated development at the individual, household and community levels. Finally, the MOSA is committed to the reform of its community development programs through the adoption of an effective and transparent mechanism for the allocation of financial support to communities and community-based organizations.
The NPTP is managed by the MOSA and the Presidency of the Council of Ministers (PCM). It is the first poverty-targeted social assistance program in Lebanon with the objective to “provide social assistance to the poorest and most vulnerable Lebanese households based on transparent criteria that assess each household’s eligibility to receive assistance, given available public resources”. The NPTP is based on a proxy-means testing (PMT) targeting mechanism and is implemented through approximately 500 social workers and inspectors operating at the level of 115 SDCs. The social workers/inspectors have been trained to implement the targeting method and collect needed household information that is verified and processed using an automated management information system.
To date, the NPTP social assistance (the basket of benefits) consists of the following: (i) comprehensive health coverage for beneficiaries in public and private hospitals through the waiver of 10-15 percent copayments for hospitalization; (ii) coverage of chronic disease prescription medications; and (iii) registration fee waivers and free books for students in primary and secondary public schools; (iv) food baskets for eligible households. In 2012, the Council of Ministers allocated US$28 million for the financing of the social assistance, demonstrating its commitment to the NPTP. By May 2014, more than 140,000 households (580,000 individuals) had applied to the program, and approximately 100,000 households (460,000 individuals) were deemed eligible to receive the benefits.
Going forward, in response to rising poverty levels in communities hosting refugees and in order to help mitigate tensions between the refugee and Lebanese communities, the GOL plans to enhance the package of social assistance provided through the NPTP by including food assistance via the electronic card food voucher system, currently being implemented by the World Food Programme (WFP) in Lebanon for more than 670,000 Syrian refugees. The food basket benefit previously distributed by the NPTP has been discontinued and replaced with the e-card food voucher. In addition, primary health care services, through the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), will be included in the package of benefits eligible under the NPTP. The GOL will also expand the coverage of the NPTP to include additional beneficiaries.


Defending champions book place in World Wheelchair Curling Championships final
Defending champions Russia booked their place in the gold medal match of the World Wheelchair Curling Championships after beating Norway in the play-offs at the Eizentrun Luzern in Lucerne.
Both teams had completed the round robin phase of the competition with a record of seven wins and two defeats, although the Russian team began with the advantage of having overcome their rivals 3-1.
Norway’s quartet of Jostein Stordahl, Ole Fredrik Syversen, Sissel Loechen and Jan-Erik Hansen began the more impressively of the two teams as they opened up a 2-0 lead, by scoring points in the second and third ends.
However, the momentum of the contest shifted considerably after the Russians scored two in the fourth end and were then able to open up a two-point advantage by the sixth.
Despite beginning the final end at 4-3 behind, the Norwegian team had a chance to secure the win due to having three stones in the house, but Russia’s skip Andrey Smirnov was able to hold his nerve and score a point to win his team the contest 5-3.
“The game was tough and nervous that's why we are still feeling nervous
“But it's very good for us that we were able to gather strength, to control and fix our mistakes.
“Of course, now we will prepare ourselves for tomorrow’s game.
“The last end brought a lot of tension and the last stone was our last hope, I was concentrating just on this stone and I'm happy that I did my best and we won.”
Norway will now be forced to win their semi-final clash to join Russia in the gold medal match, with South Korea also vying for the spot.
Norway will now need to beat South Korea in the semi-finals to keep their hopes alive ©World Curling
The South Korean team were able to come from behind to beat Switzerland in the third and fourth place match.
Their victory hinged upon the seventh end, where they were able to score three points and they moved into the lead for the first time.
Although Switzerland scored a point to force an extra end, South Korea used the last stone advantage to good effect to score two points and claim a 6-4 win.
Canada were able to avoid joining Finland in World Wheelchair Curling Championship Division B after they overcame Germany 6-3 in their final group match, which took place earlier in the day.
It forced Germany to meet Slovakia in a relegation playoff, with the former cruising to a 7-2 win, which preserved their place in the top level competition.
February 2016: Russia qualify for knock-out phase at World Wheelchair Curling Championships
February 2016: Switzerland and Norway seal playoff spots at World Wheelchair Curling Championships
February 2016: Norway continue 100 per cent record at World Wheelchair Curling Championships to close on semi-final spot
February 2016: Swiss remain unbeaten at home World Wheelchair Curling Championships
February 2016: Norway make it three wins from three at World Wheelchair Curling Championships


Tom Unveils His Plan To Revitalize The Middle Class >
A New National Public Service Plan
From the founding of our nation, Americans have pledged to lend a hand to the mutual betterment of society and to fully engage in shared civic life. This ethos of service and shared responsibility is the beating heart of our democratic experiment.
The ways we serve are many: more than 1 million individuals have served in rural and urban communities across the nation through AmeriCorps since its founding twenty-five years ago; nearly 250,000 have served abroad in the Peace Corps. Today, there are more than 2.4 million servicemen and women serving in our armed forces and reserves. They, alongside 18.2 million military veterans, embody the highest ideals of service to country. We owe our utmost respect and gratitude to these men and women who have served, both here at home and abroad, at war and at peace, in the armed forces and in national service.
For the last several years, I have worked hand in hand with young people to mobilize their participation in our democracy. From my conversations with these young Americans, I have learned about their personal aspirations and concerns for our country. They care deeply about the future of our nation, especially during this time of ideological division when trust in our democratic institutions is at a historic low and our political leadership is failing them. Young Americans believe strongly in the promise of America, understand the enormity of the challenges facing our country and our planet, and want to use their energy and intellect to make a difference.
President Kennedy’s resounding call to civic action over 50 years ago still resonates, “And so my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” JFK asked that we put country ahead of self and reminded Americans of all ages that an investment of their time, talent, and optimism can help solve pressing challenges in our country and around the globe. It is time to again renew, as we have done before, our commitment to public service.
MY COMMITMENT TO SERVICE
I enthusiastically accept the Serve America Together Presidential Challenge, backed by a coalition of prominent Americans and civil and military service organizations, to make public service a priority of my campaign and my Administration.
Within 100 days of my inauguration, I pledge to place public service at the heart of my administration by adopting a “New National Public Service Plan.” This plan will provide more opportunities for Americans, especially young Americans from diverse backgrounds and geographic regions, to unite and take action around a common civic purpose — public service.
“NEW NATIONAL PUBLIC SERVICE PLAN”
As President, I will execute on the following plan to expand our commitment to national public service and to unleash the collective power of each individual in this nation — regardless of age or background — to give back. In doing so:
We will realize the largest peacetime expansion of national public service in the history of our nation by investing $50 billion and expanding supported service opportunities to 1 million positions by 2025.
We will work with public and private partners to address challenges in public health, poverty reduction, the opioid crisis, the criminal justice system, education, climate change, aging with dignity, conservation, and other urgent local needs in thousands of communities, urban and rural, in America and abroad.
We will reinvigorate the spirit of service that has been a hallmark of our democracy since its founding by providing invaluable educational, career, and social opportunities for service driven people from every zip code, every age, every background, and every legal residency status.
We will again honor service as a core American value, the foundation upon which our democracy stands.
This challenge will not be easy, but we know it will reap rewards. National service programs have strong bipartisan support.
Service opportunities return nearly $4 to the economy for every $1 invested.
They strengthen communities and help meet real, unmet needs.
Alumni of service programs stay engaged in our democracy:
They vote at a higher rate than their peers and remain engaged in public life, no matter where their careers take them.
It is time to return power to the American people and rekindle the ethos of public service at scale. Let us build the opportunities — particularly for young people across our nation — that will enable them to give their full selves to this great work.
Within my first 100 days in office, I will:
Elevate national public service to a cabinet-level priority by establishing a new National and Community Service Agency
With a $50 billion in new Federal investment, I will fortify national service efforts by elevating the work being done by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to a cabinet-level priority and resourcing it to meet national needs.
CNCS is the federal department that administers most of our national public service programs — for example, AmeriCorps and Senior Corps. The CNCS’ mission is to “improve lives, strengthen communities, and foster civic engagement through service and volunteering”. Through a grantmaking process, CNCS supports AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs across the country. Other critical public service programs such as the Peace Corps and FEMA Corps are housed and administered in different parts of the federal government. Despite strong bipartisan Congressional support for all these programs, the Trump Administration has repeatedly tried to eliminate them and/or significantly reduce their budgets.
To advance national public service as an integral component of the American civic tradition, I will:
Elevate CNCS as a cabinet level agency — the National and Community Service Agency. Headed by the National and Community Service Director, this new Agency will continue to administer its current mix of national public service programs but also actively engage with other federal departments to ensure strong coordination and integration of public service programs across the federal government.
Increase the investment in national public service programs by at least $50 billion to implement the various provisions of this New National Public Service Plan, including making grants to public and private sector entities, faith-based and non-profit groups, and philanthropic organizations to develop and implement innovative public service programs in urban and rural communities, Native American communities, and regions with high rates of poverty. I will also increase grant funding available to Peace Corps members to develop special project activities in the communities in which they are serving.
Pass an Updated Serve America Act
Ten years ago, President Obama signed the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. This act reauthorized and expanded the national service programs administered by CNCS which were originally enacted under President Clinton in 1994. It is time to once again update the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. I will:
Pass an updated Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act. This legislation would establish the National and Community Service Agency; significantly increase the number of Americans participating in national public service programs; institute new and expand existing public service programs; define performance metrics; and delineate new educational and living allowance benefits.
Grow National Public Service to 1,000,000 Participants In 5 Years
The three main federal public service programs that anchor the national public service landscape are AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and the Peace Corps. Each of these programs enjoy widespread public and Congressional support as well as deliver strong economic returns per taxpayer dollar invested.
AmeriCorps — was founded in 1994 as a way for Americans to serve their community. 75,000 members each year work in nonprofits, schools, and faith-based organizations. The activities they undertake run the gamut from working with veterans to find them jobs, to fighting the opioid epidemic and disaster relief. Over 1 million Americans have participated in the AmeriCorps program. \
Senior Corps is a voluntary service program for individuals over the age of 55. Seniors can use their work experience to provide volunteer services through three programs: Foster Grandparent Program that pairs up volunteers with children with exceptional needs. The Senior Companion Program helps seniors live independent lives. Volunteers help with simple tasks like grocery shopping, to ease the burden of the person they are assisting. Finally, the RSVP Program is a program that takes advantage of the wide variety of skills volunteers possess. They perform such diverse activities like disaster response, neighborhood watch and youth mentoring.
Peace Corps — The Peace Corps was established by President John F. Kennedy in 1961 and, since its inception, more than 235,000 Americans have joined the Peace Corps, serving in over 140 foreign countries. There are currently about 7,000 Peace Corps volunteers. These volunteers live in the communities and work alongside the people they serve, providing technical assistance on social programs and economic development projects. They mainly work across six sectors: health, the environment, community economic development, agriculture, youth in development and education.
Every year thousands of candidates interested in public service are unable to participate and my plan will help ensure that all who want to serve can do so. I will:
Expand national public service participation to 1,000,000 participants over five years. This includes increases in existing programs such as AmeriCorps and the Peace Corps but also creating new programs including my proposed Civilian Climate Corps, supporting the March for our Lives’ Safety Corps, and many other meaningful programs that will tackle the numerous unmet challenges facing communities throughout America.
Recruit Americans of all ages, religions, genders, racial and ethnic backgrounds, educational strata, and zip codes to participate in this bold expansion of national public service. Focus attention and outreach on recruiting opportunity youth, high school and college students, college graduates including those from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), immigrant communities, advanced degree recipients, Native Americans, and urban and rural Americans.
Enhance the ability of nonprofits, faith-based organizations, local and state governments, schools, and other public and private service organizations to access talent and resources from national service programs, particularly in underserved communities, to build a pipeline of meaningful, responsive service opportunities where they are most needed.
Create a Civilian Climate Corps to Lead on Climate Solutions
The people closest to the problems understand the solutions that will work best in their communities. My Justice Centered Climate Plan will lift up local voices and build a Civilian Climate Corps — a combined service, training, and job creation effort — to implement tailored solutions specific to the needs of individual communities. I will:
Empower 100,000 community public servants each year to help achieve the ambitious goals of the Justice Centered Climate Plan. Corps members will work with local leaders to develop and implement plans focused on how best to address climate impacts in their communities. One of the central missions of the Corps will be to organize an inclusive and democratic process in communities that are particularly vulnerable to climate change, have suffered the effects of environmental racism, and have historically experienced underinvestment.
Increase Program Living Allowances and Greatly Expand Education Benefits
Today, national public service program participants generally serve 1 to 2 years, receive a modest living allowance, and receive other benefits depending on their specific service program. Additionally, participants are generally able to have their student loans deferred and receive an educational award upon completion of their program service: the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award.
The living stipend and benefit structure for national public service participation varies greatly depending on the type of program, years of service, and whether you are a full or part-time participant. My plan will make national public service accessible to all who want to serve and reward participants with increased living allowances and strong educational awards. I will:
Enhance the living stipend and offer a housing allowance. Providing a living stipend more aligned with the geographic regions in which participants serve as well as relocation and housing allowances will enable more low-income participants to serve.
Create the Five to Pay Four Educational Benefit. Under this benefit, for each year of service, up to five years, service members can reduce their student loan debt or earn financial credits to apply to future education, including community college, technical training or apprentice programs, four-year college, or professional and graduate school. Participants serving a total of five years would see all their student loan debt forgiven, roughly equivalent to the tuition cost of a public in-state college or university.
Exempt stipends and educational benefits from taxation. Particularly for low-income populations — and those unable to access financial support from family or networks — paying taxes on a stipend provides an undue financial burden and undermines the opportunity afforded by these awards.
Designate National Public Service Ambassadors who have completed a 5-Year Service Commitment. Allowing participants the option of serving longer than currently allowed — up to 5 years — will provide a number of meaningful benefits to both the program and the participant including: better service delivery gained from more experienced participants, greater opportunities for professional growth and upward mobility, and an ability to fully cover the cost of technical or higher education. In addition to the educational benefits delineated above, National Public Service Ambassadors would receive a $10,000 cash award, bonus points in federal hiring processes, increased assistance with job placement and career counseling, and other long-term benefits.
Establish the Public Service Gap Year Educational Award. For high school graduates or college students in the midst of their studies, this education benefit would allow them to take a gap year to participate in a public service program. The gap year education award would allow participants to earn $10,000 towards college tuition or a certificate program.
Develop Complementary Public Service Programs Within the Federal Government
An overarching goal of the newly established National and Community Service Agency will be to develop complementary national public service programs within federal government agencies and more partnerships with non-governmental entities. For example, the FEMA Corps, within the Federal Emergency Management Agency, works alongside FEMA personnel and helps with disaster recovery. These complementary activities do not replace the operational expertise of civil service personnel but help to complement the current service delivery system as well as provide future career opportunity pipeline. They also demonstrate and reinforce the value of the hard work done by public servants in all areas of government everyday and can demonstrate to young people the value and rewards of a public service career. I will:
Identify and secure national public service opportunities within government departments to complement their missions with an emphasis placed on finding opportunities that focus on pressing economic and social challenges such as assisting veterans and military families, closing the education achievement gap, fostering science and technology education, protecting our natural resources, expanding access to health care, and developing economic opportunity.
Empower career public servants by enhancing civic education that highlights their valuable work
Empower agencies that do research to design gateway programs into STEM/STEAM fields for individuals interested in the sciences.
Everyone Should Be Able to Serve: Establishing Uniform Program Eligibility Requirements
Generally, participant eligibility requirements for national public service programs vary depending on the program, especially in regards to citizenship status. Individuals with various immigration statuses are part of the fabric of America and fulfill many of the workforce needs in our economy. Persons holding citizenship or legal residency classifications should be allowed to serve in any domestic national public service program. I will:
Establish uniform program eligibility requirements regarding citizenship and legal residency status across all domestic national public service programs. Residents of all legal immigration statuses — U.S. citizen, U.S. national, legal permanent resident, temporary protected status, or deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) status— should have the opportunity to serve through these programs. Immigrant communities provide valuable cultural perspectives and expertise that add to our shared ethos of service and should be included in our domestic national public service programs.
Strengthen the National Public Service Partnership Network
The programs that deliver our national public service programs are a network of public and private sector entities, nonprofits, and philanthropic organizations. To achieve the goals outlined in this plan, the scope and breadth of this network must be bolstered with greater resources and entrusted with more operational capabilities.
Develop an outreach campaign to expand the number of employers participating in the EONS program and create a more comprehensive database of public service alumni to connect to potential employers.
Build a robust peer-to-peer network to connect public service alumni to local volunteer opportunities, strong professional and community networks, as well as stand up a Public Service Reserve that could be called into action if additional trained community members are needed to help respond to an emergency or disaster.
Increase grant funding to colleges and universities for students to participate in service-learning and volunteer projects.
Enlist more higher education institutions to participate in the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award Matching Program.
Provide additional funding to expand academic research on the economic and social benefits of public service and student volunteerism.
Initiate outreach and public awareness campaigns to recruit college students to participate in national public service programs, placing a particular emphasis on recruiting schools and service members from HBCUs and MSIs.
Work with high schools, colleges and universities to provide educational, workforce training, and career advancement opportunities for national public service alumni.
Work with colleges and universities to increase financial pledges and other in-kind support for service members.
Work with institutions of higher learning to grant academic credit and other related educational considerations for AmeriCorps and Peace Corps alumni. For example, qualifying graduate school credit for specific types of work experience.
Uphold and Honor America’s Commitment to Those Who Have Served
My New National Public Service Plan focuses almost exclusively on non-military service, however, it is critically important to recognize that one of the highest forms of public service is embodied in the men and women in our Armed Forces that are serving with honor and distinction. There are roughly 2.4 million military personnel serving on Active Duty, in the National Guard, or in the Reserve components of the United States military. Additionally, there are approximately 18.2 million military veterans in the United States. These men and women deserve our respect, our gratitude, and the solemn pledge from their Commander in Chief that America will never waver in its commitment to them.
At their side stand the million alumni from the AmeriCorps program and the nearly 250,000 alumni of the Peace Corps. As these programs are expanded under my New National Public Service Plan, it is critical that we also acknowledge and respect their service to our nation, be it domestically or abroad.
In 2017, the National Commission on National and Public Service was created to review all aspects of public service, both civilian and military. The Commission is reviewing the selective service registration process and looking for ways to increase public service.
The Commission released an interim report in 2018 and will release a final report in 2020. I look forward to the Commission’s final report and integrating its findings into this plan’s development. I will:
Honor the time and talent given by those who have served on the Commission and initiate a public awareness campaign to highlight their work and the work of those who serve.
Incorporate the recommendations from this report on military and non-military public service into my New National Public Service Plan and its implementation.
We must reinvigorate JFK’s call for everyday Americans to do what Washington won’t do: to work collaboratively in service to transform the lives of our fellow Americans and people from around our planet in need.
I look forward to putting this plan into action as the next President of the United States and strengthening our civic bonds through public service as we repair the damage Trump has wrought on our communities.
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