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and home visits. Sessions cover issues like hygiene, the importance of boiling water, breast feeding and vaccinations. People also learn about health problems like worms and diarrhoea, and first aid for emergencies like broken bones, burns and snake bites. Find |
an ultralight aircraft, has been shifted this fall to a more westerly route because of concerns about pilot and bird safety. The route, from the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge in central Wisconsin to a closed area of the Chassahowitzka National |
Wildlife Refuge on the west coast of Florida, will bring the birds through parts of the Tri-State. It will take the birds the entire length of Illinois and across Western Kentucky, with overnight stops in Wayne County, Ill., and Union |
County, Ky. “The route was shifted west because the easterly route was pretty scary,” said Liz Condie, director of communications for Operation Migration, the group that works to ensure the birds’ survival. “Going over the Cumberland Ridge, there was no |
place to set down to retrieve a bird if there had been a problem,” she said. Officials hope, too, for better weather along the westerly route by picking up more favorable winds. “For the safety of the birds, we cannot |
divulge the exact location of each stopover other than down to the county level,” Condie said. “At each stop, the birds will be housed overnight in portable pens to protect them from predators and to keep them far away from |
human contact.” While the stopover locations are kept secret, Operation Migration officials try to schedule gathering sites for local residents to catch a glimpse of the birds as they lift off to continue their southerly trek. “A few days before |
for a more specific date and time. The whooping crane chicks that take part in the reintroduction project are hatched at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Laurel, Md. There, imprinting begins with the chicks still inside |
their eggs being exposed to ultralight aircraft sounds. Once hatched, the young chicks are reared in total isolation from humans. To ensure the impressionable cranes remain wild, each handler and pilot wears a crane puppet on one arm that can |
dispense food, or by example, show the young chicks how to forage as would their real mother. At 45 days of age, the young birds are transported by air, in individual containers, to the reintroduction area at the Necedah National |
Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin. Because of differing age ranges, the birds usually are moved in three shipments and housed at three separate locations within a closed area of the refuge. Over the summer, the Operation Rescue crew of pilots, biologists, |
veterinarians and interns conditions the birds to follow the aircraft, which, along with its pilot, has been accepted as a surrogate parent. Once the birds’ dominance structure has been established and their endurance is sufficient, the migration begins, typically in |
October. Using four ultralight aircraft, Operation Migration’s pilots, along with a ground crew consisting of biologists, handlers, veterinarians and drivers, cover up to 200 miles a day, depending on weather conditions. This year’s migration to Florida has been scheduled to |
begin Oct. 17. The shortest migration has taken 48 days to complete. The longest, 97 days, was recorded last year. Because of destruction of habitat and overhunting, whooping cranes were on the verge of extinction in the 1940s when their |
population was reduced to only 15 birds. Since falling under the protection of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, the only naturally occurring population of migrating whooping cranes has grown to more than 200 birds. Named for their loud and |
penetrating unison calls, whooping cranes live and breed in wetland areas where they feed on crabs, clams, frogs and aquatic plants. An adult whooping crane stands 5 feet tall, with a white body, black wing tips and a red crest |
on its head. Anyone encountering a whooping crane in the wild is asked to avoid approaching it, staying back at least 600 feet. In all cases, officials ask that people remain concealed and not speak loudly enough for the birds |
to hear them. Especially during the migration, residents are warned not to trespass on private property in an attempt to view the cranes. (c) 2008 Evansville Courier & Press. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved. |
among the wider population. They sought refuge either in the city, in government buildings, schools or churches and subsequently in makeshift camps, or else with families or friends in rural districts. The causes included political rivalries and land disputes dating back to the struggle for independence from Indonesia,... |
"easterners" and "westerners", and also chronic poverty and the lack of prospects of the youth population. In 2008, around 30,000 IDPs were still in the camps, and the government distributed cash compensation to people agreeing to leave. Partly due to the lack of available land, the government only supported IDPs |
returning home. During 2010, a last group of 1,000 IDPs received the compensation and the last transitional shelters were closed. Most land and property disputes involving returnees were usually resolved locally, with squatters often agreeing to leave in exchange for some of the IDPs' compensation money; but cases invo... |
ownership claims could not be resolved in the absence of a national framework. A new land law has been drafted, but some civil society organisations have highlighted the potential of further conflict, as the law does not enable people who have moved into homes abandoned since December 1998 to gain |
secure ownership. The UN introduced the cluster system in 2009, even though the humanitarian crisis was already over and most agencies had turned to development activities. In 2010, UNDP and the government conducted programmes in which both returnees and receiving communities participated to identify their shared prior... |
The Federal Budget and Appropriations Process The budget and appropriations process are the steps through which the U.S. decides annual spending. Learn about these inter-related process. Federal Budget Process Step 1: President’s Budget Request The budget process begins with the president’s submission to Congress of th... |
budget must be submitted by the first Monday in February. The president’s proposal does not have the force of law, but includes detailed spending levels for all programs. Though only input to the budget process, it generally sets the tone for the process in three ways: - It reveals the president’s beliefs about how muc... |
spend (not only in the coming fiscal year, but also in the following five years or more) as well as how much it should tax. - It sets the president’s priorities for spending, such as how the president would like to fund issues including education, defense, and health. - It suggests changes to spending and tax policies.... |
is formally written up by the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and it usually includes thousands of pages of supporting information, such as historical tables of past budget statistics. Step 2: Congressional Action The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 directs that, following the submission of the pr... |
from the Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan body) create the budget resolution. A budget resolution serves as the general framework within which Congress will make its decisions about specific spending and taxing levels. Budget resolutions are concurrent congressional resolutions — they do not have the force of... |
provide funding to any organization or program, but establish the structure of the budget. To create a budget resolution, the Budget Committees gather reports and hold public hearings to question administration officials about the budget as a means of gaining input. They also receive “views and estimates” from congress... |
particular area of focus. This information usually takes the form of letters submitted to the chairman and ranking member of the Budget Committee within 6 weeks of the president’s budget proposal; these letters provide the Budget Committees with general direction and advice. Each Budget Committee then compiles all of t... |
a series of meetings called “markup” sessions; these sessions allow for discussion and consideration of the information, while committee members may offer their own input into the budget framework being created. Upon completion of the markups, the Budget Committee will present its budget resolution to its respective ho... |
requires the full Senate to consider the budget resolution by April 1 each year. The House and Senate independently proceed to debate, offer amendments, and vote upon their respective budget resolutions; amendments may be enacted by a majority vote. The House and Senate pass budget resolutions that differ from each oth... |
a conference committee that meets to resolve differences and formulate a single budget resolution. The committee sends this version back to the House and Senate as a conference report. Both chambers consider the report, and once they have agreed to it through a majority vote (which they generally do, without making cha... |
effect. This is supposed to happen by April 15, but the process often takes longer to complete. Step 3: The Budget Resolution — A Closer Look The budget resolution is a crucial component of the budget process because it lays out the plan for spending and taxes for the following fiscal year. While the president’s budget... |
the budget resolution simply consists of a set of numbers dictating the specific amounts of money that Congress is permitted to spend in each of the 20 “budget functions” or “functional allocations,” categories of spending including transportation, agriculture, and health. Thus, the budget resolution does not set the a... |
on Appropriations — see the Appropriations Process), but rather sets targets. The budget resolution also distributes among the congressional committees the total spending figures that it has laid out for each budget function. The budget resolution lists these figures in a table called the 302(a) allocation. Within the ... |
appropriate (spend) the money, either through discretionary or mandatory spending: Discretionary spending refers to the funds allocated each year in the annual appropriations bills that are set by Congress for the purpose that it chooses. RESULTS Global focuses most of its efforts upon influencing discretionary spendin... |
Spending and the Appropriations Process, for more information. The discretionary budget accounts for about one-third of the federal government’s total spending. Money in this category of spending is generally used for such programs as housing, education, and foreign aid. The president and Congress must act each year to... |
Committees determine the discretionary spending levels for the programs funded by the federal government on an annual basis. Mandatory spending is enacted by law and does not depend on any annual appropriations bill. This type of spending makes up two-thirds of the total federal budget per year. It mostly includes enti... |
the rules set forth by them. When Congress creates a program, such as Medicaid, it determines who will be eligible to receive financial benefits under the program, often determined by such criteria as age or income. Congress then estimates the number of people each year that will be eligible for the program, using this... |
the program. The president and Congress can change the level of mandatory spending for a program by altering the criteria for eligibility or the formula for payment. However, the government does not need to take action annually to ensure that the program continues to be funded. The committees that set policy and the ma... |
of entitlement programs are called Authorizing Committees. Measuring Federal Spending: The government measures the amount of money it spends each year in two ways: budget authority and outlays. Budget authority (BA) refers to the amount of money that Congress will authorize the government to spend on certain activities... |
spends in any given year. For instance, a bill could be passed that appropriates $75 million to build a hospital — this $75 million is provided in budget authority. However, the hospital may take several years to build and therefore, the money would not all be spent in the year during which it was originally appropriat... |
outlays would not be used until the following year or more, when the hospital is built. Note: In addition to setting spending levels, the budget resolution determines how much money the government will collect in revenue (the income of the government from taxation and other sources) for the following five years. The di... |
whether there will be a surplus or a deficit, for which the budget resolution sets target levels as well; these targets are detailed in the “budget aggregates” section of the resolution. Step 4: Discretionary Spending and the Appropriations Process After the plan for the budget has been laid out in the president’s budg... |
process — whereby money is finally distributed through appropriations bills — must take effect. Appropriations bills provide the funding that governmental programs such as national defense, education, homeland security, and foreign aid need to continue their activities. Thus, while the budget resolution has set goals f... |
process is considered discretionary spending. Appropriations bills are created by the House and the Senate Appropriations Committee under the general direction of the budget resolution. There are 12 appropriations bills considered annually in the Committees on Appropriations for FY 2008 (this number can change from yea... |
each of which has the responsibility of developing one appropriations bill. The Appropriations Committee determines its spending levels for its appropriations bills based upon the 302(a) allocation it receives from the budget resolution (the budget resolution divides the money it is appropriating to each of the 20 budg... |
limit of the funding level allotted to the appropriations bills. The 302(a) allocation is mandated in Section 302(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 also includes a Section 302(b), termed the 302(b) sub-allocation. Under this section, the House and Senate Appropriations Com... |
its programs; i.e., it must sub-allocate the money it has received in the 302(a) allocation. View the sub-allocations for the appropriations process of FY 2010. Subcommittees on Appropriations Set Funding Levels for the 12 Appropriations Bills When the subcommittees have received directions about the total amount of mo... |
letters. The chairman and ranking minority member use these letters to determine funding levels for the agencies under their subcommittee’s jurisdiction. The subcommittee proceeds to vote upon these levels. When its members have come to an agreement, the subcommittee sends these bills to its Appropriations Committee (e... |
discuss, consider, and offer amendments (alterations) to the bill. Appropriations Committees Send Bills to Full Chambers (the House or the Senate) Once the Appropriations Committee has completed its work upon a bill, this legislation must be sent to its full chamber, either the Senate or the House. Traditionally, the c... |
Therefore, the Appropriations Committee will present the appropriations bill along with its report to the House of Representatives for floor consideration. The Budget Act of 1974 sets June 10 of each year as a target date to have completed the House Appropriations Committee’s work on its appropriations bills; however, ... |
June, finishing all or most of the bills by July or by the annual recess in August (the Senate’s Committee on Appropriations works to follow the same timetable). When the appropriations bill is “on the floor,” representatives debate the bill and offer amendments after hearing opening statements from the chair and the r... |
the bill applies. After the bill is passed in the House, it is sent to the Senate, which also considers the bill and amendments it wishes to make. Once the Senate has made its changes, a conference committee must be formed to reconcile the differences between the House and the Senate versions of the bill. These negotia... |
between the chair and ranking minority members of the full Appropriations Committees, as well as the members of the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the bill. Upon reaching an agreement, the bill is once again sent to the chambers, both of which generally accept the conference report. Congress Sends Reconciled Appro... |
president may: - approve the bill by signing it so that it becomes a law - veto (or strike down) the bill - take no action for ten days; if Congress is in session, it automatically becomes a law; if Congress has adjourned its second session, the bill has been “pocket-vetoed” and dies. Should the president veto the bill... |
can attempt to override the veto (which would enable the bill to become a law) with at least a two-thirds majority vote by a quorum, i.e., a minimum number of members that need to be present in order for Congress to do business. Congress must pass and the president must sign every appropriations bill before October 1, ... |
start of the federal fiscal year. Often, Congress and the president are unable to complete action on every bill before this date. Thus, a continuing resolution (CR) must take effect. A continuing resolution will continue to fund the appropriations bills from the previous year as a temporary solution, so that funding is... |
agency. [Emergency] Supplemental Appropriations Bills At times, the government must respond to an unanticipated circumstance that arises during the middle of a fiscal year and requires funding. In this case, a supplemental appropriations bill (or an emergency supplemental appropriations bill) is employed. For example, ... |
Hurricane Katrina. These emergency supplemental spending bills were once a rarity but have now become much more common, especially since the U.S. military invasion of Iraq. Many criticize these spending bills, as they have grown dramatically in size and often include money for unrelated programs that do not appear urge... |
emergency, spending; and because they reduce transparency of the overall budget process. Omnibus Appropriations Bills At the end of the legislative cycle, the Appropriations Committee may decide to consolidate several appropriations bills into one, which is known as an omnibus appropriations bill. The committee will ge... |
bills by October 1, perhaps due to disagreements among Congressmen or to a large amount of work being done on another spending bill. Federal Appropriations Process The appropriations process is critical to the creation of a budget in Congress each year — it provides the money! Specifically, there are 12 annual appropri... |
keep programs and agencies of the government running; each is considered by a different appropriations subcommittee. By working to influence these bills, RESULTS can influence the funding of the programs related to our issues of focus. The steps that RESULTS takes to influence the appropriations process are illustrated... |
Operations Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005. January through May: Appropriations Bills are Considered by the Appropriations Subcommittees RESULTS’ work began immediately in January 2004, when the House and Senate Appropriations Committees began consideration of the following year’s budget (FY 2005). The pr... |
used to create a budget resolution (a blueprint for government spending levels). From January through May, the appropriations committees compiled their own requests for the funding levels of the twelve appropriations bills, using input from civil society. The appropriations committees then finalized these funding level... |
money to be allocated to each committee (called “302(a) allocations”). Once the Committees on Appropriations receive their overall spending level, the “302(b) sub-allocations” then direct the chairmen of the Appropriations Committees to decide how much each of their twelve subcommittees should receive. These twelve sub... |
appropriations bills. Funding for basic education is included in the appropriations bill of the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Affairs (“Foreign Ops”). First, the House Foreign Ops Subcommittee would consider funding requests for basic education. Therefore, RESULTS urged members of this subcommi... |
member (the key decision-makers). Wish list letters allow members to weigh-in on their key funding priorities. We asked our grassroots volunteers to meet with or write letters to their members of Congress on the subcommittee, passing along a draft wish list letter provided by RESULTS staff that included our requests. W... |
will consider input not only from their subcommittee members but also from those congressmen not on their subcommittee. Therefore, RESULTS also asked all of its grassroots volunteers to meet with or write to their members of Congress, urging their member to send a letter to the chairman or ranking minority member to br... |
not called “wish lists,” since the congressmen are not part of the subcommittee itself). Depending on the representative that writes, these letters can be of great importance to the chairman and ranking member, and they can reinforce the requests made by subcommittee members. Another way for members of Congress to expr... |
name to a congressional sign-on letter. RESULTS generates sign-on letters to be sent to key decision-makers, for instance, of the Committee on Appropriations or one of its subcommittees. In general, our best chance to influence legislation is at this stage, when it is being considered by a subcommittee of appropriation... |
to Full House and Senate The State, Foreign Operations, and Related Affairs Subcommittee completed its work and set the funding level request for Basic Education at $400 million. The subcommittee then sent the bill to the full Committee on Appropriations. During this stage, RESULTS re-emphasized our requests to the cha... |
determine final appropriations levels among the different foreign affairs accounts and programs (though the Committee on Appropriations and the full House usually do not change the subcommittee’s recommended funding level). The Committee on Appropriations passed the Basic Education funding request, and the bill was sen... |
the Committee on Appropriations, the House approved the subcommittee’s $400 million funding level request for Basic Education. The bill was then considered in the Senate by its Committee on Appropriations, specifically its Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Affairs (“Foreign Ops”). RESULTS next work... |
Basic Education funding than the amount requested by the House. After June 30, But Before October 1: Conference Committee Reconciles Both Versions of the Bill, and It Is Sent To the President for Final Approval After consideration by the Senate Appropriations Committees and subsequently the full Senate, the Senate set ... |
A conference committee was then formed to reconcile the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. At this point, RESULTS again went to members of both chambers, asking the House to continue to support the $400 million it had originally requested while also asking the Senate to support $400 million ... |
level of funding than the Senate). Ultimately, the conference committee settled on the House’s request of $400 million for Basic Education funding; this was a great success, since the funding level was set at the higher House level. The conference committee sent the final version back to both the House and the Senate f... |
presented to and signed by the president. What is the Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill? The Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill is perhaps the most relevant appropriations bill for our global work to end hunger and poverty. This bill is considered in the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related A... |
UNICEF, microfinance programs, and other foreign assistance activities. Within the Foreign Ops Appropriations Bill, Basic Education and microenterprise are funded under the Development Assistance Account (DA), while most of our health programs are funded within the Child Survival and Health Programs Fund.* RESULTS also... |
Education, and Related Agencies (“Labor HHS”) because domestic TB programs are funded through this subcommittee’s appropriations bill; for FY 2008, President Bush requested money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria in this bill as well (the Global Fund is usually funded through the Foreign Ops subcommitt... |
Programs Fund (CSH) are two of the many accounts within a bill to which money is allotted to support specific programs. Another such example is the Economic Support Fund (ESF). Visit our Skills Center to learn more about how RESULTS influences the legislative process. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Introdu... |
Budget, United States Senate, The Congressional Budget Process: An Explanation (pdf). The U.S. Government Printing Office, Citizen’s Guide to the Federal Budget: Fiscal Year 2001 (pdf). CRS Report for Congress, The Congressional Appropriations Process: An Introduction (pdf). |
Out of Egypt Found In: Mourning & Bereavement, Torah Portion: Parashah, Passover Shared by Tamar Stern | Poem "G-d will surely remember you, and then you must carry up my bones out of here with you" (Exodus 13:19) Now it |
is time to depart from the Egypt of daily life into a moment of question and promise; We bring you with us to the seder table the way Moses hoisted up Joseph's bones and carried them to the promised land. |
We carry you now, in memories, on our journey as we buy gefilte fish and change the dishes as we set the tablecloth and we warm up the chicken soup as we wonder if there is enough food and not |
to forget the boiled eggs. We carry you now who carried us, when we were little, with your arms who supported us with love, we carry you now as you become the story we will retell the way we carry |
Graffiti Vandalism in Riverside Winners were recognized at a City Council meeting on May 21, 2013. View the winning Poster Contest entries HERE. View the winning Video Contest entries HERE. Take Back the Wall The City of Riverside spends more than $1.3 million each year for Graffiti abatement. In addition, money is spe... |
remove graffiti from their properties. Nationwide, the American public spends nearly $12 billion each year to fight graffiti. What is Graffiti? Graffiti consists of inscriptions, slogans and drawings scratched, scribbled or painted on a wall or other public or private surface. Today, graffiti is a sign of urban decay. ... |
Crime,” together with George L. Kelling, a research fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government Harvard, first introduced the world to the Broken Window Theory. The theory contends that if a broken window is left unfixed it can quickly encourage more crime and vandalism to the neighborhood because it sends a mes... |
broken window theory. Once graffiti shows up somewhere, if left untreated, generally more graffiti follows. Graffiti has become everyone’s eyesore and everyone’s problem. It generates fear of neighborhood crime and instability. It is costly, destructive, lowers property values and sends a message that people of the com... |
where the cost of clean-up equates to $400 or more, is punishable as a felony. Graffiti is not art; it is vandalism and criminal. Parents may be liable for up to $25,000 for each graffiti incident pursuant to Civil Code 1714.1. |
Wind Energy Technology photo of Judith Gap Wind Project by Pat Judge Harnessing the wind for our power is cost-competitive today. The region has a good start in develooping wind projects, but we could be doing much more with very |
little effort. Download this Wind fact sheet here. (536kB PDF file) As the above table shows, the Pacific Northwest has the potential to generate over 137,000 aMW of electricity from wind power. This is enough to provide nearly four times |
the current electricity consumption in the region. The majority of the region’s potential wind resources are in Montana, which alone has enough potential wind resources to supply one quarter of the electricity needs of the United States.2 Nearly 2,300 MW |
of nameplate wind power capacity is currently generated at Northwest wind farms and projects currently in development could triple that figure over the next several years.3 Texas leads the United States in wind development with over 4,350 MW of currently |
installed capacity each. California, has nearly 2,500 MW of installed capacity and Colorado, Minnesota, and Iowa are also making rapid investments in wind power, with over 1,000 MW currently in service in each state.4 Between 2001 and 2007, the U.S. |
wind generating capacity expanded at a remarkable rate of 49% per year on average. By the end of 2007, the U.S. had over 16,800 MW of wind capacity online, enough to power over 1.5 million homes for the entire year!5 |
However, Europe currently remains far ahead of the U.S. in wind development, with 56,535 MW of wind capacity online as of the end of 2007.6 Advances in technology and increased experience have made wind power competitive with many traditional sources |
of electricity, especially when factoring in risk factors for traditional generation resources such as fuel volatility and future environmental regulation. The price of wind-generated electricity has decreased approximately 90% from the early 1980s; modern wind farms now generally have levelized |
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