WASHINGTON  – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Wednesday that this is the last time Congress will go through the ordeal of passing an expensive, unpaid-for war spending bill. It may also be one of the more difficult.

The House, with almost no Republican support, on Tuesday barely approved a $106 billion emergency spending measure that includes $80 billion to sustain military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through this budget year ending Sept. 30.

Republicans supported the war funds but objected to other parts of the bill, particularly $5 billion to open up a U.S. line of credit for an International Monetary Fund loan program for poorer countries hit by the world recession.

The war spending bill sailed through the Senate on a 86-3 vote last month, but passage of the House-Senate compromise worked out last week will be more of a challenge.

Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H. is expected to raise a point of order against a provision inserted in the compromise providing $1 billion for a “cash for clunkers” program that gives consumers government rebates when they trade in old vehicles for more fuel efficient models.

And Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is upset that the final version removed a ban, backed by Graham and Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., on releasing photos depicting U.S. troops abusing detainees. President Barack Obama sent Congress a letter pledging that he would stop any attempt to release the photos, but Graham’s office said he wants more assurances and a vote on the issue before it goes to court next month.

It takes 60 votes in the Senate both to waive a point of order and to proceed to legislation over the objections of a senator.

Reid, citing the lack of Republican support in the House, said “it’ll be interesting to see what happens here. Are my Republican colleagues going to join with us to fund the troops? I hope so.”

He also said this would be “the last time we’ll have to do this because President Obama is honest with his budgeting.”

Every year since the Sept. 11 attacks Congress has passed emergency spending bills to finance the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and enhance security programs. Because these bills are off-budget – not included in annual budget considerations – they are not paid for and add to the national debt. If the current bill is enacted, the total spending for these “supplementals” since 2001 will approach $1 trillion, with about 70 percent going to Iraq.

Obama, who is seeking to wind down military operations in Iraq while bolstering military forces in Afghanistan, has pledged to fund all war operations through the regular defense budget. He has asked for $130 billion in the new fiscal year starting Oct. 1.

The spending bill also includes $10.4 billion for economic and other assistance to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Middle East and other countries, and $7.7 billion for pandemic flu preparations. It has $534 million for some 185,000 service members who have had their enlistments involuntarily extended since Sept. 11, 2001. They will receive $500 for every month they were held under stop-loss orders.

The House on Tuesday brought to the floor the first of 12 appropriations, or spending, bills that it must pass to run the federal government during the 2010 fiscal year. It immediately ran into trouble.

Appropriations bill are traditionally debated under a process that gives the minority free rein to offer amendments. But after Republicans proposed more than 100 amendments and would not agree to time limits on debate on a $64.4 billion measure funding law enforcement, science and census programs, Democrats temporarily pulled the bill so they could tighten the amendment procedure.

“If this continues, we will not finish appropriations bills before August” and there will be no time for other priorities such as health care and energy reform, said Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wis.

But Rep. Jerry Lewis of California, top Republican on the committee, said it appeared that the intent of Democrats “is to change the rules of the game in the middle of the first inning and shut the minority out of the legislative process altogether.”

Lewis will be allowed to offer an amendment that would prohibit funding for any attempt by the Obama administration to shut down the detainee facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. That amendment
would strengthen a provision already in the bill rejecting the administration’s request for $60 million for the Justice Department to carry out the closing of the facility.

The war spending bill also states that no money can be used for closing the detention facility this fiscal year. It also prohibits current detainees from being transferred to the United States except to be prosecuted and only after Congress receives a plan detailing risks involved.

The war funding bill is H.R. 2346. The appropriations bill is H.R. 2847.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — An information session about the Town of Chapel Hill’s pilot program for publicly funded local elections will take place Wednesday.

WASHINGTON – Musicians Josh Groban, Wynton Marsalis and Linda Ronstadt are pressing Congress for more public funding for the arts.

The three were among arts advocates who testified before a House subcommittee Tuesday. Ronstadt tells the subcommittee she’s dismayed when school children can’t sing a song as simple as “Happy Birthday” in the correct pitch.

Funding for the National Endowment for the Arts was slashed in the mid-1990s and has yet to return to a its high of $176 million in 1992.

This year, the federal stimulus package would add $50 million to the $155 million the agency is receiving from Congress. But supporters worry about how the NEA will fare in years when there’s no infusion of stimulus dollars. They say 10,000 arts jobs are at risk this year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Vice President Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Chu Thursday announced North Carolina will receive $207,943,536 in weatherization and energy efficiency funding – including $131,954,536 for the Weatherization Assistance Program and $75,989,000 for the State Energy Program.

This is part of a nationwide investment announced today of nearly $8 billion under the President’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – an investment that will put about 87,000 Americans to work.

“This energy efficiency funding for states is an important investment in making America more energy independent, creating a cleaner economy and creating more jobs for the 21st century that can’t be outsourced,” said Vice President Biden.

The funding will support weatherization of homes, including adding more insulation, sealing leaks and modernizing heating and air conditioning equipment, which will pay for itself many times over.

“Even as we seize the enormous potential of clean energy sources like wind and solar, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act makes a major investment in energy efficiency, which is the most cost effective route to energy independence,” Chu said.

The Weatherization Assistance Program will allow an average investment of up to $6,500 per home in energy efficiency upgrades and will be available for families making up to 200% of the federal poverty level – or about $44,000 a year for a family of four.

The State Energy Program funding will be available for rebates to consumers for home energy audits or other energy saving improvements; development of renewable energy projects for clean electricity generation and alternative fuels; promotion of Energy Star products; efficiency upgrades for state and local government buildings; and other innovative state efforts to help save families money on their energy bills.

The DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program allows low-income families to reduce their energy bills by making their homes more energy efficient, reducing heating bills by an average of 32  percent and overall energy bills by hundreds of dollars per year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman G. K. Butterfield said that federal stimulus package directs more than $2.7 million into policing efforts across his district.

“Local law enforcement has certainly felt the squeeze of tightening state and local budget problems,” Butterfield said. “This funding will help bridge some of the gaps and keep police officers on the job.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 included a total of $4 billion for state and local law enforcement. The largest portion – $2 billion – was set aside for the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) formula grant program. Additionally, $225 million was also set aside for Byrne competitive grants.

Butterfield said that North Carolina will receive more than $56.3 million in formula funding.

The Byrne JAG Program is a partnership among federal, state and local governments to create safer communities. The JAG was created in 2004 by Congress to streamline justice funding and grant administration. JAG allows states, tribes, and local governments to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based on their own local needs and conditions.

Grants may be used to provide personnel, equipment, training, technical assistance, and information systems for more widespread apprehension, prosecution, adjudication, detention, and rehabilitation of offenders who violate such state and local laws. Grants also may be used to provide assistance (other than compensation) to victims of these offenders.

The funds were distributed according to a formula calculated by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics. Under the law, 60% of each state’s allocation is awarded to the state and 40% must be sent to local government.

The following cities, towns and counties that are part of the First Congressional District were awarded formula funding through the JAG program:

AHOSKIE                                          $20,305
BEAUFORT COUNTY                     $62,042
BERTIE COUNTY                            $10,904
CRAVEN COUNTY                         $81,595
EDENTON TOWN                            $14,101
EDGECOMBE COUNTY                 $40,046
ELIZABETH CITY                           $75,767
FARMVILLE                                     $21,245
GOLDSBORO                                   $181,427
GRANVILLE COUNTY                  $46,438
GREENE COUNTY                          $31,021
GREENVILLE                                  $340,669
HALIFAX COUNTY                        $59,410
HAVELOCK                                     $33,653
HENDERSON                                   $93,064
HERTFORD COUNTY                     $24,065
JONES COUNTY                              $13,913
KINSTON CITY                                $153,226
LA GRANGE                                    $17,297
LENOIR COUNTY                           $68,435
MARTIN COUNTY                          $25,757
NASH COUNTY                               $38,354
NEW BERN                                       $86,483
NORTHAMPTON COUNTY           $23,313
OXFORD                                           $65,051
PASQUOTANK COUNTY              $22,937
PITT COUNTY                                  $149,654
PLYMOUTH                                      $41,550
ROANOKE RAPIDS                        $59,410
ROCKY MOUNT                              $326,381
SCOTLAND NECK                          $19,741
TARBORO                                         $28,577
VANCE COUNTY                            $48,882
WARREN COUNTY                        $20,869
WASHINGTON                                $40,234
WAYNE COUNTY                           $90,432
WILLIAMSTON                               $35,157
WILSON                                            $164,318
WILSON COUNTY                          $47,942
Total                                          $2,723,665

Winston-Salem Journal
The General Assembly’s aggressive spending this decade may cost North Carolina college students important financial aid in coming years.

That is the assessment of Treasurer Janet Cowell, and her calculations look pretty sound.

After the recession early in this decade, legislators raced to catch up on all the spending they’d missed. They freed money for new spending by shifting it among accounts.

One switch took scholarship money out of the General Fund for use elsewhere. Then the scholarship programs were restored with principal from the state’s Escheats Fund, The Associated Press reported.

The Escheats Fund is a repository for money about which North Carolina residents have forgotten. Two common sources are insurance policies that were never cashed and utility deposits that were left behind.
The fund now contains $584 million, and the state constitution says its proceeds must be used to help needy students attend public colleges. But that balance will fall quickly, Cowell said recently, because the General Assembly has been using its principal.

During this fiscal year, the Escheats Fund is expected to provide $210 million in financial aid, some $60 million of that going toward the state’s new EARN Scholars initiative. Low-income students in that program get $4,000 annual grants that, along with other funding, often allow them to graduate from college debt free. It is very possible that every dime involved in the legislature’s money switch went to very worthwhile causes. EARN is a laudable program that, by helping low-income youngsters to attend college, will prove a long-term investment winner for North Carolina.

But sound long-term investments are not built upon spending plans that involve the figurative eating of one’s seed corn. That is what the state is doing here by taking principal from the Escheats Fund. If the fund drops as much as Cowell predicts, it will contain only $83 million in 2011. That will end an awful lot of financial aid.

House Speaker Joe Hackney reacted to Cowell’s warnings by telling the AP that the legislature has the entire legislative session to figure out what to do with scholarships. But “we’ll think of something” is not a reassuring answer when the numbers are so compelling.

That’s especially true when we see record numbers of families applying for financial aid, when the College Foundation of North Carolina reports that parents are withdrawing college savings for non-college reasons and when enrollment at the state’s public universities and community colleges are all rising rapidly.
When the General Assembly figures out what to do, one component should be the return to the policy of using only earnings, and not principal, from the Escheats Fund. To do otherwise is foolish.

HEADLINES:

- Top NC House committee leaders unchanged compared to last session
- Five House members named majority whips
- Legislators told $90M needed next year for university, community college enrollment

THE BRIEF:

HOUSE COMMITTEES: Leaders on the two most powerful committees in the North Carolina House are the same compared to two years ago. Speaker Joe Hackney rolled out committee assignments for the chamber Wednesday. The eight chief budget-writers and four Finance Committee leaders are identical to those in the 2007-08 session. So are the chairs for the chamber’s three judiciary panels.

HOUSE WHIPS: House Democrats have named five lawmakers to serve as majority whips for the next two years. Reps. Larry Hall of Durham County and Bruce Goforth of Buncombe County have received the titles in addition to whips from the 2007-08 session – Reps. Larry Bell of Sampson County, Jean Farmer-Butterfield of Wilson County and Deborah Ross of Wake County. Whips ensure party members
are present for important votes and are aware of House Democratic leadership positions on bills.

HIGHER EDUCATION: The General Assembly will need to find more than $90 million to pay for expected enrollment increases next fall on University of North Carolina and community college campuses next fall. The amount was released at another budget briefing, this time on higher education. Legislative fiscal analysts told lawmakers that enrollment at UNC system campuses are expected to grow by more than 12,000 students over the next two years. Community colleges are projected to see enrollment rise by 13,000 students next year alone.

UNC CAMPAIGNING: A campaign finance reform group says two political action committee linked to the state’s leading public research universities have given $1 million to state political candidates since 2005. Democracy North Carolina says the Citizens for Higher Education PAC – associated with boosters of the University of North Carolina – has given more than $900,000 of that amount. The University Development Coalition PAC, which is linked to N.C. State University supporters, gave $100,000 during the latest two-year election cycle. Democracy North Carolina put out the information after a bill was filed to attempt to repeal a law that allows university athletic booster clubs to pay the scholarships of out-of-state athletes at the in-state tuition rate.

Introduced in the House:
- H123, to direct the state Supreme Court, when it is reviewing whether a death sentence is fair an proportionate in a capital murder case, to compare each case with cases that share similar facts, including cases where juries recommended life imprisonment and death. Sponsor: Rep. Rick Glazier, D-Cumberland.
- H124, would allow a judge to decide whether extraordinary circumstances justified paying more than the standard rate to defense attorneys representing indigent defendants. Sponsor: Rep. Tim Moore, R-Cleveland
- H126, to eliminate the statewide limit of 100 charter schools. Sponsors: Reps. Jim Gulley, R-Mecklenberg, and Marilyn Avilla, R-Wake.
- H129, would create the crime of habitual misdemeanor larceny and classify the offense as a low-level felony. Sponsor: Rep. Tim Moore, R-Cleveland.
- H134, would make it a felony to assault any state or local officer or employee on the job. Sponsor: Rep. Russell Tucker, D-Duplin.
- H135, would allow broadband service providers to offer voice-grade telephone service outside its defined territory if the telephone service is an add-on to its broadband package. Several sponsors.
- H136, to expand the state Transportation Deparment’s authority to acquire rights-of-way to extend fiber-optic cable. Several sponsors.
- H137, would rule out execution for murderers who were found during a pre-trial hearing to suffer from severe mental illness. Sponsor: Rep. Verla Insko, D-Orange.

Introduced in the Senate:
- S130, would require that identification numbers be prominently displayed inside each elevator so passengers who may become trapped inside can report the number to rescuers. Sen. Don Vaughan, D-Guilford.
- S131, to add an additional 24-hour jail sentence to DWI convictions if the driver’s blood alcohol content was 0.20 percent or higher. Sponsor: Sen. Don Vaughan, D-Guilford.
- S135, would require mopeds to be registered with DMV and operators to be insured. Sponsor: Sen. Tony Rand, D-Cumberland.
- S137, would allow in-state tuition rates to universities or community colleages to persist for dependents of a member of the armed services killed while on active duty. Sponsor: Sen. Neal Hunt, R-Wake.
- S138, would classify Salvia Divinorum, a type of Mexican sage plant that can produce psychodelic effects, a Schedule I controlled substance alongside heroin and codeine. Sponsor: Sen. Bill Purcell, D-Scotland.
- S140, to make it a felony for a person named in a domestic violence court order to trespass at a safe house or shelter. Sponsor: Sen. John Snow, D-Cherokee.
- S150, to advance the date of the next presidential primary election from May to February 2012. Sponsor: Sen. Andrew Brock, R-Davie.
- S155, to prohibit illegal aliens from attending community colleges. Sponsor: Sen. Phil Berger, R-Rockingham.
- S161, to block the North Carolina Medical Board or other medical regulatory board from disciplining physicians taking part in state executions. Sponsor: Sen. Phil Berger, R-Rockingham.

AROUND THE STATEHOUSE:

- The North Carolina Biotechnology Center, which received $15.4 million in state funding this year, touted its achievements to legislators during a presentation. The center was created 25 years ago to promote a cluster of industries that includes drug-development and production companies, agricultural chemicals and plant advances, medical devices, and research and testing labs. The center also has been giving grants or loans to seed 118 growing companies over the past decade.

ON THE AGENDA:

- The Legislature plans to honor the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on its 100th anniversary with a joint resolution of congratulations. The country’s oldest civil rights organization was founded in New York City on Feb. 12, 1909.

OVERHEARD:

“We have a dummy in the Senate today.” – Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton said jokingly in noting there was a CPR dummy on the Senate floor as part of a demonstration for the Legislature’s “Heart Health Day.”

WASHINGTON – Barack Obama, who rewrote the book on presidential fundraising, amassed more than $745 million during his marathon campaign, more than twice the amount obtained by his rival, Republican John McCain.In his latest finance report, Obama reported raising $104 million in more than five weeks immediately before and after Election Day. It was his second biggest fundraising period and a fitting coda to a successful presidential bid that shattered fundraising records.

In the end, Obama still had $30 million left over. Overall, Obama exceeded the combined finances of the two major parties’ nominees four years ago. George W. Bush and John Kerry pulled in a total of $653 million in the 2004 primary and general election campaigns, including federal public financing money.

Obama’s prowess at attracting money, one of the many characteristics that defined his campaign, could well spell the end of a 30-year experiment in public financing of presidential contests.

After initially vowing to take public funds if McCain did, Obama became the first presidential candidate since the campaign finance reforms of the 1970s to raise private donations during the general election.

The final numbers underscore how pivotal the two candidates’ strategies were for funding their general election campaigns: McCain accepted $84 million in taxpayer money through the public financing system; Obama gambled that he could raise far more from private money.

The two campaigns spent identical amounts in June, $25.6 million each. But from there the numbers diverged widely in September and October when the Obama financial juggernaut swamped McCain. By the end, the Democrat was outspending his rival four to one. The reports submitted by the campaigns on Thursday covered the period from Oct. 15 to Nov. 24.

McCain relied heavily on the Republican National Committee to help narrow the financial discrepancy. But even with the party resources Obama had a vast money advantage.

The party committee couldn’t escape one of its most awkward moments of the campaign. After spending nearly $150,000 on clothing and accessories for McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin in September, the party reported spending more than $23,000 in additional accessories in the latest finance document. The spending ranged from $4,384 at Saks Fifth Ave. to $2,130 at Nieman Marcus to small purchases at Wal-Mart and CVS.

Party spokesman Alex Conant said Thursday that the expenditures listed in the party’s October and December reports “were the result of coordinated expenditures at the campaign’s direction.”

“Accessories have been returned, inventoried, and will be appropriately dispersed to various charities,” Conant said.

The RNC reported raising $75 million during the latest reporting period. Overall this year, the party committee raised $322 million.

It ended with $13.5 million cash on hand. The Democratic National Committee reported raising $36.5 million in its latest filing, for a total of $186 million for the year. The party had $8.7 million cash on hand, but it also reported owing $5 million on a line of credit.

Obama’s campaign said nearly 4 million donors contributed to his campaign.

But while Obama has made much of his large number of donors, the nonpartisan Campaign Finance Institute found that Obama collected about 26 percent of his total haul from people who gave less than $200 – about the same as President George W. Bush did in his 2004 campaign.

And like other campaigns, Obama’s relied for nearly half of its fundraising on big donors, those who gave $1,000 or more, a finding that “should make one think twice before describing small donors as the financial engine of the Obama campaign,” the institute reported.

Obama reported having nearly $30 million in the bank at the end of the reporting period and nearly $600,000 in debts. McCain reported $4 million in the bank, nearly $5 million in debts and $1 million owed to the campaign committee. McCain also filed a report for a compliance fund, used to cover expenses associated with his acceptance of public funds. He reported $25 million left over in that account.

WASHINGTON – When the Republican Party decided to coordinate expenses with John McCain’s presidential campaign, who knew it would be color coordinated.

The Republican National Committee spent about $150,000 on clothing, hair styling, makeup and other “campaign accessories” in September for the McCain campaign after Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin joined the ticket as his running mate.

The McCain campaign now says the clothing will go to a “charitable purpose” after the campaign.

The expenses include $75,062 spent at Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis Minn., and $41,850 in St. Louis in early September. The committee also reported spending $4,100 for makeup and hair consulting. The expenses were first reported by Politico.com.
 
“With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it’s remarkable that we’re spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses,” said McCain spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt, who has been traveling with Palin. “It was always the intent that the clothing go to a charitable purpose after the campaign.”

In 2007, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards sparked Internet derision and jokes from late-night TV comics after his campaign for the party’s nomination paid for two $400 haircuts by a stylist from Beverly Hills, Calif. His campaign said the bill was paid by the campaign by mistake and that Edwards would reimburse the campaign.

The RNC has been helping the McCain campaign financially now that McCain is locked into spending only $84 million for the fall campaign under his agreement to accept public financing. Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee, chose not to participate in the public system and raised a whopping $150 million in September.

The RNC is allowed to spend up to $19 million in “coordinated expenses” with the campaign. In September, it spent a a total of $4.4 million. The clothing and styling was part of that, but most was spent on postage for campaign mailings.

So why did the RNC and not McCain’s committee pay for the accessories?

Federal campaign finance law prohibits the use of candidate campaign funds for personal use, including clothes. But a quirk in the law has no such restriction on the use of party money for such expenses.