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Labor & Economy
"R" Is for Recovery: 23,400 Jobs Coming to LA Metro
By Maria Elena Durazo and Denny Zane
(This feature first appeared on the Huffington Post.)
While Washington, D.C. has been stuck in what amounts to a partisan traffic jam on the 405 at rush hour, unresponsive and unwilling to rebuild our national economy and infrastructure, we took matters into our own hands in Los Angeles.
In November of 2008 business, labor and environmental organizations of Los Angeles County worked together to sponsor Measure R, a half-cent sales tax increase to fund transportation projects throughout the county. When voters overwhelmingly approved Measure R, they may have been looking primarily for solutions to traffic congestion and air pollution, but they succeeded in approving nearly $40 billion over 30 years to create hundreds of thousands of jobs as well as an economic stimulus for Los Angeles.
In addition, Mayor Villaraigosa is working hard to convince the federal government to create a program of low-interest financing for Measure R's transit program to accelerate the implementation of those projects over 10 years, rather than 30 years. This proposal is part of a larger plan to create a national infrastructure bank, supported by the Obama administration. Imagine what it could do for Los Angeles!
Joseph Benjamin, a 42-year-old electrician journeyman and father, is out-of-work and struggling to pay his mortgage while he waits for a project to break ground. Jason Lopez, a student at WINTER Charter High School, will soon graduate and wants to become an apprentice iron worker to begin his career in the construction trades. These are just two people among thousands of unemployed construction workers and youth in Los Angeles who are ready to put on their hard hats tomorrow to build a better transportation system.
And for the rest of us, we'll be getting out of our cars to ride more rail and bus lines. Our region's prosperity will be enhanced by improved mobility, economic efficiency and a healthier environment.
But will this prosperity be fair? Will the workforce building this expanded system have the opportunity to attain middle class jobs and security for their families that has for decades characterized the American dream? Also, will the jobs created by Measure R benefit our high unemployment communities?
Last week, the Los Angeles Metro Board of Directors took steps towards answering these questions. They unanimously passed a Construction Careers Policy that will cover 17 transit projects worth over $6.2 billion and create more than 23,400 good middle-class career jobs over the next five years in Los Angeles County. Over the next 30 years, the policy could cover up to $72 billion in projects, including Measure R projects, and create 270,000 good construction careers.
This policy is the most significant policy of its kind nationwide to create thousands of good jobs while investing in much needed transportation infrastructure. Put simply, the policy sets out the terms of workforce employment that must be agreed to by all Metro contractors before they receive a contract to build Measure R projects and before they hire anyone. This policy has been proven by the LAUSD, the City of Los Angeles and the Port of L.A. to ensure on time and on budget projects that also create good construction jobs.
The Construction Career Policy will also ensure that 40 percent of the work hours on Metro construction projects will be performed by workers from areas affected by high poverty and unemployment.
In Los Angeles County our unemployment rate is 11.8 percent, down from a high of 13.4 percent in July 2010. Among construction workers the unemployment problem is much more severe, with unemployment rates up to 40 percent!
All economists agree, we will not see the end of this recession — the worst since the Great Depression — until we invest in our infrastructure. This will allow our construction workers to get back to work. In Los Angeles, we have figured a way to get out of the recession, get Americans working again and fight income inequality. Los Angeles can become a model for what is possible across the rest of the country.
Measure R coupled with a Construction Career Policy is the single best thing we can do to get these workers back to work and their families once again provided with the income and security they need.
We will be a stronger, more competitive, more prosperous Los Angeles County because of the investments the public has voted to make with Measure R. We will have reduced our congestion, cleaned our air, improved public health, and ensured our workforce is treated with respect and dignity.
What more could we ask for? We are already in the prime location at the crossroads of a new world economy. And, we already have the best weather.
Maria Elena Durazo is executive secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO.
Denny Zane is the executive director of Move L.A.
Labor & Economy
Video: Rising Rents Force a Choice Between Eating or Shelter
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 15 million American households experienced food insecurity at some point in 2017.
Labor & Economy
Why Many Millennials Still Live at Home
For in-depth analysis of millennials' economic dilemma, read Eric Pape's latest "Priced Out" report.
Labor & Economy
Is Goldman Sachs' New Fund Really Just Greenwashing Stocks?
Critics are questioning the motives behind a banking giant's socially responsible investment strategy.
Even as Goldman Sachs markets itself as a champion of social responsibility, it is helping CEOs block key environmental and social justice reforms proposed by their shareholders.
Co-published by The Guardian
When Goldman Sachs and billionaire Paul Tudor Jones announced a partnership three months ago to help socially conscious investors support "just business behavior," they promised that their new index fund would generate solid returns for savers while directing their investment dollars towards truly humane companies.
"Capitalism should be a positive force for change," said Jones in a press release announcing the fund, which is designed to track an index of socially responsible companies identified by his nonprofit JUST Capital. "Its future will be driven by a new definition of corporate success that is aligned with the values and priorities of the public."
Socially responsible investing (SRI) offers
Wall Street an image makeover in a time of growing public distrust in the financial system.
The partnership comes as pension funds, university endowments and other institutional investors increasingly seek to put their financial weight behind ethical and sustainable corporate behavior — and as Goldman Sachs tries to shed its reputation as a "vampire squid." So far, the rebrand seems to be working: The JUST fund debuted in June to rave reviews from the financial press and ended its first day of trading with over $250 million in assets, making its launch one of the most successful in recent history.
However, a Capital & Main review of corporate documents shows that some of JUST's largest investments are in fossil fuel firms that have been sued for suppressing global climate research, Wall Street behemoths fined for defrauding investors, a social media platform accused of helping rig elections and a tech industry giant criticized for paying its workers starvation wages.
Moreover, proxy voting records reveal that even as Goldman Sachs now markets itself as a champion of social responsibility, the firm has been using its existing stakes in many JUST fund companies to help CEOs block key environmental and social justice reforms proposed by their shareholders. Those initiatives range from gender pay gap and diversity initiatives to corporate governance reforms; from efforts to increase lobbying transparency to prohibitions on doing business with companies tied to genocide and other human rights violations.
Meanwhile, in the months before JUST fund's launch, Goldman was slammed for blocking a human rights resolution at its own company — and one of Goldman's key lobbying groups in Washington was working to shape Republican legislation that would make it far more difficult for shareholders to file environmental, human rights and other socially minded initiatives in the future.
"You shouldn't be able to, with a straight face, invest in the Dakota Access Pipeline with your left hand, and with your right hand tell people that you're doing responsible investing," Lisa Lindsley, Capital Markets Advisor for the shareholder advocacy group SumOfUs, told Capital & Main. "The compartmentalization is very hypocritical."
Through a spokesperson, Goldman Sachs declined to comment on the process by which its equity funds vote on shareholder proposals, and how that process may differ with the JUST fund — which, as a newly launched fund, has not yet participated in proxy voting for any of the companies in which it holds stock.
"Ethically Motivated Versus a More Greenwashing Approach"
Goldman's new fund spotlights socially responsible investing (SRI) — a financial strategy that represents Wall Street's more affirmative answer to negative or exclusionary "screening" tactics like divestment from fossil fuel producers and tobacco firms.
While a recent directive by the Trump administration has been viewed by some experts as an effort to limit SRI strategies, the market for such investments remains strong. According to the Forum for Sustainable and Responsible Investment, U.S.-based assets managed using SRI strategies more than doubled to $8.7 trillion between 2012 and 2016, and now account for more than one in five dollars under professional management in the country.
Goldman's hostility toward many SRI initiatives is illustrated by its votes on resolutions at the companies now in its JUST fund.
The rise in SRI investment comes amid questions about whether corporate boards are adequately evaluating environmental and social justice concerns when they look at their company's long-term financial prospects. PwC's 2017 survey of corporate officials found "that directors are clearly out of step with investor priorities in some critical areas" and the report added that "one of these areas is environmental issues."
High-profile initiatives like the JUST fund are a chance for the industry to tout its eagerness, as Goldman Sachs executive Timothy O'Neill put it in a press release, to "[allow] investment to flow toward a more sustainable and equitable future, while seeking to generate attractive returns for investors."
The trend has given Wall Street an opportunity for an image makeover in a time of growing public distrust in the financial system: According to a Gallup poll conducted last month, fewer than half of Americans under 30 report having a positive view of capitalism, a 12-point drop in just the past two years.
For some activists and investors, though, the rapid expansion of the market for SRI-branded financial products has raised concerns about greenwashing — the practice by which companies market themselves as socially or environmentally responsible without actually adopting business practices that meet those goals.
"Putting the word 'ethical' or 'sustainable' in the name of a fund does not make it so," said a report by British investment advisory firm Castlefield, whose recent reports documented how some environmental funds include investments in fossil fuel firms. "It is increasingly important to differentiate between those funds genuinely responding to customer demand for a sustainable approach and those which use terms like ethical, Socially Responsible Investment or stewardship in their name but include companies such as British American Tobacco or Shell in their key holdings."
Goldman's Record on Socially Responsible Investing
Amid surging interest in SRI funds, Goldman's JUST U.S. Large Cap Equity ETF aims to convince investors that the company is serious about injecting a spirit of ethics and morality into its financial strategies. To that end, the fund says it directs money only into companies that are ranked highly by JUST Capital.
The 426 companies featured in the JUST index were selected on the basis of their performance across seven different criteria, including labor practices, customer service and environmental impacts. Goldman itself ranks in the top tenth of the JUST rankings, despite the company being attacked for supporting the fossil fuel industry and also being fined $5 billion in 2016 by the Department of Justice for "serious misconduct in falsely assuring investors that securities it sold were backed by sound mortgages, when it knew that they were full of mortgages that were likely to fail."
Whether Goldman's new JUST fund represents a step in a larger shift towards socially responsible investment remains to be seen. Baruch College's Jared Peifer says that one way to judge a firm's commitment to social responsibility is to watch how it deals with resolutions brought by shareholders, whereby investors attempt to force management to adopt socially responsible policies.
"There is variance to the degree that SRI funds are ethically motivated versus a more greenwashing approach," Peifer told Capital & Main. "Is the fund dialoguing with management? Issuing shareholder proxy votes, voting on others? If so, that seems like a more ethically motivated fund to me, because they are exerting additional effort many other funds do not bother with."
In recent years, Goldman executives have been fighting off SRI resolutions at their own company, including initiatives that have asked management to more transparently disclose their political lobbying and create a human rights committee to review the company's policies regarding doing business with governments engaged in censorship and repression. Only three months before Goldman announced the JUST fund, Goldman successfully pressed the Securities and Exchange Commission to bless its move to block shareholders from voting on a resolution asking the company to honor indigenous peoples' rights.
"The company's extraordinary no action request shows the notable lengths that the Company is willing to go, and to stretch credulity, in order to prevent its directors from shouldering fiduciary obligations on indigenous and human rights," wrote shareholder proponents at the time.
Last year, Goldman was lauded by Share Action, an SRI activist group, for switching its position and using its holdings to support a series of climate-change-related shareholder initiatives. In its proxy voting guidelines, Goldman says it will generally vote for proposals asking companies to report on "policies, initiatives and oversight mechanisms related to environmental sustainability, or how the company may be impacted by climate change."
However, those guidelines do not make the same commitment when it comes to initiatives requiring companies to actually reduce their carbon emissions. The guidelines also say the company will generally vote against "proposals requesting increased disclosure of a company's policies with respect to political contributions." The company further says it will vote to remove representatives of employees or organized labor from a company's board if they are overseeing company audits or executive compensation, and if there is no legal requirement for them to be in that position.
Goldman Votes Against Resolutions at JUST Fund Companies
Goldman's hostility toward many SRI initiatives is illustrated by its votes on resolutions at the companies now in its JUST fund.
For example, there is Chevron Corporation, which ranks as the JUST fund's 17th-largest holding as it faces accusations that it is trying to intimidate environmentalists and avoid cleaning up pollution in the Amazon rainforest.
In May, the oil giant's shareholders were asked to vote on a slate of seven proposals, including a requirement for the company's board to nominate a director with environmental experience; the preparation of a report on transitioning to a low-carbon business model; increased transparency relating to lobbying activities; and stronger prohibitions on Chevron's interests overseas from doing business with governments that are complicit in genocide or crimes against humanity.
As shareholders in Chevron, 14 different Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) funds voted on these proposals. The majority of funds voted in support of just one, a request for the company to prepare a report on its efforts to minimize methane emissions. In every other case, the funds unanimously or overwhelmingly opposed the proposals.
Proxy-voting records from dozens of shareholder meetings reviewed by Capital & Main show a similar pattern. In rare cases, Goldman funds did vote in favor of some shareholder reforms, including the preparation of a report on the gender pay gap at Facebook and Google. At several pharmaceutical companies, including AbbVie, Amgen and Eli Lilly, Goldman funds supported increased accountability for executives regarding high drug prices.
Such votes, however, were few and far between. Of the 10 companies that make up the largest share of Goldman's JUST fund, eight considered shareholder-proposed reforms that were overwhelmingly opposed by Goldman-managed funds at their most recent annual meetings. The proposals included prohibitions on offshore tax avoidance schemes, increased transparency on lobbying activities and requirements that companies appoint an independent board chair — a governance model that advocates say leads to more responsible corporate behavior. The remaining two companies, Microsoft and Visa, did not consider any shareholder proposals.
At JPMorgan, the recipient of JUST's fourth-largest investment, Goldman funds voted unanimously against a requirement for the company to release a report on its investments in PetroChina, a firm that activists accuse of helping to fund crimes against humanity due to its ongoing business relationships with oppressive regimes in Syria and Sudan. Goldman made that move despite its own proxy voting guidelines saying the company would "generally vote for proposals requesting a report on company or company supplier labor and/or human rights standards and policies, or on the impact of its operations on society."
Eighteen of the 19 Goldman funds with shares in JPMorgan also voted against an effort to prohibit the accelerated vesting of awards for executives who enter government service, a practice often criticized for fueling the revolving door between Wall Street and financial regulators.
A shareholder proposal to the board of pharmaceutical manufacturer Johnson & Johnson, expressing concern that the company's compensation practices "may insulate senior executives from legal risks" relating to the opioids crisis, recommended that opioid-related litigation costs be factored into executive pay. All 16 Goldman funds with stock in Johnson & Johnson voted to defeat the proposal.
Goldman asserts that its fund is designed to invest in firms that rank well in JUST Capital's ratings. But even that assertion is not what it seems.
Because the index features companies ranked in the top half of their respective industries, it includes dozens of firms in sectors like energy and financial services that score poorly overall. For example, the fund invests in both National Oilwell Varco, a drilling equipment firm, and Entergy, a Louisiana utility, despite the fact that the companies rank 626th and 676th, respectively, among the 875 companies evaluated by JUST Capital.
"Every industry is represented at approximately the same weight as [in] the Russell 1000," said JUST Capital's Hernando Cortina, referring to the best-known index fund tracking the largest publicly traded companies. Cortina added that the JUST fund is designed to feature responsible companies "while providing diversified equity exposure to every industry."
Lisa Lindsley of SumOfUs said the situation spotlights how socially responsible investing is seen on Wall Street not as a values-based cause, but as yet another way to trick investors into believing that the investment industry has reformed itself a decade after the financial crisis.
"The reason they're going into this is that there's money there. It's all driven by greed," she said. "It's pretty easy to do some greenwashing and call yourself a responsible investment manager."
As Goldman now markets its JUST fund, it remains unclear whether the company will change its proxy voting or its posture towards shareholder resolutions in general. Those resolutions, though, could be more rare, if congressional Republicans pass their legislation that would make it more difficult for shareholder resolutions to qualify for a vote. Federal records show that the American Bankers Association — which lists Goldman Sachs as a member — has been lobbying on that bill, which critics say could undermine the SRI movement.
"Shareholder proposals play an important role in ensuring that owners get a say in how their companies are run, and in setting the broader agenda across the market," wrote Dimitri Zagoroff of the shareholder advisory firm Glass Lewis. "Making it harder for shareholder proposals to be resubmitted from year to year would make it that much harder for proponents to refine their ideas and build a coalition of support. This often takes several years, both to generate interest in the underlying topic, and to convince other shareholders that the specific proposal offers the appropriate means of addressing the topic."
Copyright Capital & Main
Labor & Economy
Medi-Cal Home-Delivers a New Prescription: Healthy Meals
California's Medically Tailored Meals pilot program could lead the medical industry, and especially insurers, to include nutrition as part of overall health care.
One study showed that patients who received three medically tailored meals per day had a
50 percent lower rate of hospitalization.
A $6 million Medi-Cal pilot program launched in April may demonstrate what many in the health care field have reported anecdotally: That tailored nutrition can improve health for chronically ill patients and lower medical costs. The three-year Medically Tailored Meals (MTM) pilot provides free curated, low-sodium meals brought through in-home visits for 1,000 patients who suffer from congestive heart failure — a group with some of the highest rates of hospital readmissions.
Meals will be delivered by registered dietitians from six California nonprofits in the Food is Medicine Coalition: Project Angel Food (Los Angeles County) Project Open Hand (San Francisco), Ceres Community Project (Sonoma County), Mama's Kitchen (San Diego), Food For Thought (North Bay Area) and Health Trust (San Jose). The funding was included in Senate Bill 97, a budget bill approved in June 2017 by the California Senate.
The program is already showing results, according to Richard Ayoub, CEO of Project Angel Food. Ayoub points to three out of four clients who have avoided a hospital stay during the pilot's first 30 days. In a YouTube video, one of Project Angel Food's pilot study patients, Candice, explains how she's already enjoying better health through three daily prepared meals.
"For years," Ayoub says, "we've known that what we do here helps people live longer and happier, and now we're seeing results that are quantitative. We can see health care systems saying, If it was good for congestive heart failure maybe it will be good for renal disease, maybe it will help keep people off dialysis."
The Medi-Cal pilot is modeled off a small 2013 study led by Philadelphia-based nonprofit MANNA (Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance). That study showed that patients who received three medically tailored meals per day had a 50 percent lower rate of hospitalization and 37 percent shorter stays for those who went to the hospital, compared to a control group. On average, patients had a 31 percent reduction in health care costs, which equaled $13,000 per month per patient.
Sue Daugherty, MANNA's CEO, said four companies that administer Medicaid in southeastern Pennsylvania have signed contracts with MANNA to deliver specially tailored meals for selected patients with diabetes and cancer, and she's hoping that the California study will lead her state's Medicaid agency to include medically tailored meals as part of treatment.
"The big barrier is getting folks to realize we're not talking about just food," Daugherty said. "When people hear 'food' they start shutting down and thinking 'entitlement,' and forever. What we're doing is something that a health care provider will prescribe."
Daugherty added that food is often an afterthought among medical providers, and that when a diet is prescribed, little thought is given to how patients will access that food and pay for it. With the exception of the four Pennsylvania providers, food is not included in any medical plans.
Richard Seidman, M.D., chief medical officer of L.A. Care Health Plan, one of the public agencies that administers Medicaid insurance in L.A. County, said he hopes that if the pilot program is as successful as the MANNA study suggests, California lawmakers will expand it.
"With nearly 13 million people receiving Medi-Cal benefits, it's not a giant leap to suggest that food insecurity is a barrier to good health for many, not just those with chronic conditions," Seidman wrote in an email.
Seidman and other supporters say if the pilot is as successful as they expect, it could lead the medical industry, and especially insurers, to include nutrition as part of overall health care.
Copyright Capital & Main
Los Angeles' Burdened Renters
For more information, read Jessica Goodheart's story on squeezed Los Angeles tenants, "The Rent's Getting Too Damn High!"
Labor & Economy
Do Incarcerated Firefighters Deserve a Path to Employment?
Since 1983 six inmate firefighters have died while working on fire containment. Today they are paid $2 per day — and an extra $1 when fighting active fires.
California estimates that the Conservation Camp inmate-training program saves state taxpayers up to $100 million per year through firefighting and responses to other emergencies.
As California's wildfire season grows ever longer and more intense, the state has relied heavily on thousands of prisoners, including women, to battle blazes alongside approximately 6,000 professional full-time and seasonal firefighters. Prisoner advocates, however, point out that these inmates' criminal records prevent them from working as firefighters almost anywhere in California after their release.
Critics of the inmate program also say prisoners risking their lives to battle dozens of fires every year should get more out of the program than their current $2 per day and the additional $1 they receive whenever fighting active fires. The state's Cal Fire firefighters earn between $3,273 and $4,137 per month, plus benefits, not counting overtime, according to a Cal Fire spokesperson. California has been using inmate firefighters since World War II, when the workforce for Cal Fire was depleted.
Approximately 3,700 inmates work at fire camps and about 2,600 of those are qualified to work on the front lines of active fires.
When Laura Weigand applied to California's Conservation Camp, the program that trains inmates to fight wildfires, she knew it would be an uphill battle, literally. She was 43 when she joined the camp in 2009, twice the age of most of the women in pre-camp endurance trainings. One endurance test – hiking two miles straight uphill in 45 minutes – felled plenty of younger women, but Weigand was the first to the top of the hill, which meant she had her choice of camps to complete her trainings. She picked Malibu.
Two weeks after she completed training, she was working alongside Cal Fire firefighters to put out the Crown Fire, earning a fraction of what professional firefighters made for the same amount of risk. But she said she didn't feel exploited because she went into the program to get away from the prison grounds.
"The days flew by, because there were different experiences. Even though it was not good pay it was better than you get in prison," she said. But a foot injury threatened her limited freedom.
"I was hiking on a broken metatarsal bone for two years and was afraid to tell them about it because I didn't want to get kicked out of the program."
Weigand eventually became a "swamper" or trainer of other incarcerated firefighters. She estimated that she trained about 300 women before she left prison in 2012.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), cooperating with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) and the Los Angeles County Fire Department, operate 44 conservation camps across the state, including three female camps. Camp populations range from 80 to 160 inmates working and learning in minimum-security facilities, supervised by correctional staff. When they're working on an active fire, Cal Fire staff supervise them.
CDCR says approximately 30 percent of applicants who volunteer for the program successfully complete the curriculum. Not all inmates are eligible. Those who have committed more serious crimes, such as arson, rape or other sex offenses are disqualified.
Overall, there are approximately 3,700 inmates working at fire camps and approximately 2,600 of those are qualified to work on the front lines of active fires, according to CDCR. As of August 31 there were just over 1,100 inmate firefighters across 123 crews deployed to the Carr, Mendocino Complex, Hirz, Cooks, Cherae, Stone, Cache and Holy Fires.
After being released in 2011, Weigand didn't apply to be a professional firefighter because she was above most fire departments' threshold age. But Weigand, who now works at Social Model Recovery Systems, a substance abuse and mental health nonprofit, says even if she were younger, she probably couldn't have gotten such a job, because most local and county firefighting jobs require an emergency medical technician (EMT) license, and most former inmates, even those convicted of lower level felonies, can't obtain that.
In an email, a Cal Fire spokesperson said the department doesn't require an EMT license for employment, but admitted that many fire departments throughout the state have at least the expectation of an EMT license for employment.
Such a barrier doesn't make sense to Romarilyn Ralston, who was imprisoned 23 years and served as a fire camp swamper and clerk for Cal Fire while incarcerated. Now, as a member of the Los Angeles chapter of the California Coalition for Women Prisoners, and program coordinator for Project Rebound at California State University, Fullerton, she's advocating for raising state employment opportunities for former inmates who made it through the Conservation Camp program.
Ralston told Capital & Main that, even though the program offers valuable training, the lack of EMT training at the camps, as well as the seeming prohibition against hiring former felons for many firefighting jobs statewide, amounts to "an exploitation of prison labor."
"They should be paid at least the minimum wage, which is $15 in L.A. County," Ralston added. "They're putting their lives on the line and saving California hundreds of millions a year."
The CDCR has estimated that the Conservation Camp program saves California taxpayers between $90 million and $100 million per year through firefighting and responses to other emergencies. Those who make it through the program, when not fighting active fires, may also be asked to clear firebreaks, maintain parks and clear fallen trees and debris. Since 1983 six inmate firefighters have died while working on fire containment, according to CDCR.
Recently California has taken steps to ease restrictions on former felons, though none of the measures would mandate local emergency medical services authorities to allow them to earn EMT licenses.
As part of the 2018 budget bill, Governor Jerry Brown expanded employment opportunities for former inmate firefighters through the Ventura Conservation Camp (VCC), in Ventura County. The program is for parolees only, and the first group of 20 is set to begin training this fall.
An omnibus safety bill, AB 1812, approved by Governor Brown in June, would allow graduates of approved fire camp training to apply for lower-level emergency medical responder (EMR) licenses, though not for EMT licenses.
California's legislature is taking other small steps toward lowering the employment bar for incarcerated firefighters and other ex-cons seeking professional employment.
Assembly Bill 2293, in its original version would have, with certain conditions, prevented the authority licensing paramedics and EMTs from denying certification to anyone with a criminal record. But faced with strong opposition from the Emergency Medical Services Administrators Association of California, and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, who said hiring those with criminal histories could pose a public safety risk, AB 2293 was amended down to a data reporting bill, according to California Assemblywoman Eloise Gómez Reyes (D-San Bernardino), who assisted in crafting both versions of the bill.
"We decided to address a glaring deficiency, which is the lack of data [on who is being denied jobs]," Gómez Reyes said of AB 2293, which now heads to an uncertain future on the governor's desk.
Today, Gómez Reyes added, the state only has anecdotal data on many former prisoners being denied EMT certification or jobs based on their criminal past, but no hard numbers yet. "We're trying to see in what circumstances are people being given these licenses, and what we suspect are the majority of circumstances of people being denied because of past offenses. Whatever decision we make in the future is going to be based on accurate data."
Another bill, AB 2138, authored by Assemblymen Evan Low (D-San Jose) and David Chiu (D-San Francisco), would ease licensing restrictions for former inmates in a variety of occupations, but not firefighters. That's still an important step, according to David Fathi, director of the American Civil Liberties Union National Prison Project, because its passage could remove some "arbitrary" barriers to employment.
"In many states there are over 100 occupations that former prisoners can't pursue," Fathi said. "One of the best predictors of successful reentry is securing and keeping stable employment. And yet as a society we go out of our way to make it difficult for prisoners to get a job when they get out. This is especially absurd when the prisoner has learned the skill in prison."
Fathi points to a neighboring state, Arizona, which last year eased restrictions on ex-cons from becoming professional firefighters, as well as to a study from Arizona State University, which showed that states with larger employment barriers for felons have higher recidivism rates.
"Employment disqualification for former prisoners should be the rare exception," Fathi said, "and it should be based on an individualized assessment of the risk posed by the particular person — not simply upon a criminal conviction."
Copyright Capital & Main
Labor & Economy
Ohio, NJ and California Pension Funds Invested $885 Million in Hedge Fund That Controls National Enquirer Parent
Co-published by MapLight and Fast Company
Under Republican governors, two states pumped hundreds of millions of dollars of pension cash into a high-risk hedge fund that took control of the National Enquirer's parent company, American Media Inc.
Co-published by MapLight and Fast Company
During the last five years, taxpayers in New Jersey, Ohio and California have owned large financial stakes in the owner of the media company that allegedly helped the Trump campaign bury negative stories, according to documents reviewed by Capital & Main and MapLight.
Under Republican governors, New Jersey and Ohio committed at least $650 million of pension cash into Chatham Asset Management, a high-risk hedge fund that has taken control of the National Enquirer's parent company, American Media Inc., which is at the center of the federal investigation into President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign. California's pension fund also has a $235 million stake in a Chatham fund.
The hedge fund is run by Anthony Melchiorre, a GOP donor who reportedly met with the president and AMI CEO David Pecker at the White House soon after Trump took office. Melchiorre and his wife have donated more than $100,000 to Republican candidates and party committees since 2010.
Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen, recently pleaded guilty to breaking campaign finance laws stemming from payments he made to women to hide affairs with the former reality TV star and real estate magnate. AMI executives helped Cohen purchase stories that could have hurt Trump's presidential bid, according to the Wall Street Journal.
AMI has denied it helped Trump's campaign, although Pecker was recently granted immunity as part of the Cohen probe. Former FEC commissioner Trevor Potter, the head of the nonprofit Campaign Legal Center, last week said the situation "presents a serious legal problem for AMI." If those legal troubles end up depressing the market value of AMI, teachers, firefighters, cops and other public employees also could potentially suffer losses at a time when their pension funds are already facing shortfalls.
A New Jersey Treasury Department spokesperson said in an email that its Division of Investment "is in regular contact with its investment partners regarding underlying portfolio companies and provides feedback when appropriate. While DOI plays no role in the management of a fund's portfolio companies, it expects the funds to invest in good businesses with strong management teams that follow all applicable laws."
"I am personally appalled by the Enquirer being an accessory to Cohen's criminal behavior on behalf of the candidate," said Tom Bruno, a state union representative who is the chairman of the pension's board of trustees and serves on New Jersey's State Investment Council, which oversees the pension system's investments.
"If the allegations are true, I would vote and argue for full divestiture," he said. "I cannot talk on behalf of the entire SIC, but I will be doing everything in my power to convince a majority to vote the same way."
Chatham did not respond to questions about how exposed taxpayers and pension systems might be to AMI and any financial consequences of its legal entanglements. A spokesman for the Ohio pension system said Thursday that the state asked for its money to be withdrawn from the Chatham fund in 2015; the money was redeemed in 2017.
"State officials are well-positioned and duty-bound to investigate allegations of potential wrongdoing in hedge fund portfolios," said former Securities and Exchange Commission attorney Edward Siedle.
In 2013, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's administration moved $300 million of pension cash into the Chatham Fund, LP, which has owned a stake in AMI, according to SEC records. Last year, barely three months before Christie left office, his administration steered another $200 million to another Chatham vehicle.
In 2013 and 2014, an Ohio pension system partially controlled by Gov. John Kasich's appointees committed $150 million to Chatham. The hedge fund finalized its deal to buy an ownership stake in AMI in the summer of 2014.
The Christie administration's shift of $500 million into Chatham makes New Jersey retirees a substantial investor in the hedge fund, which manages $3.2 billion in assets, according to state records. Those records show the original $500 million investments are now worth as much as $692 million.
Best known for its lurid Enquirer headlines ("Aliens Are Living in My Toilet"), AMI has been beset by a difficult environment for print publications. Chatham has warned that its investments are risky and that a client "may lose its entire investment in a troubled company." In early 2018, private equity giant Blackstone removed Chatham from one of its major investment funds.
Along with the public pension funds, four other private pension funds — including those for Ford and Toyota Motors employees — have had investments with Chatham, according to financial research firm Preqin.
AMI represents a large portion of Chatham's portfolio. Internal hedge fund records from late 2017 show that AMI investments comprised 23 percent of the Chatham Asset Partners High Yield Fund's portfolio. The hedge fund also has officials who serve as directors at AMI.
Attorney Jay Youngdahl, a former Harvard researcher who has served as a steelworkers pension trustee, said state officials may be able to take action to try to protect retiree investments.
"There are often clauses in agreements between pension funds and hedge funds that give states certain rights and recourse if they believe retirees' money has been invested in companies engaging in criminal activity," he said.
This story has been updated from its original version.
Labor & Economy
Los Angeles Tenants: The Rent's Getting Too Damn High!
A local dispute over evictions highlights the emergence of a tenants movement that is pushing back against rapacious landlords and a nationwide housing affordability crisis.
California tenants are taking their grievances to local governments, to courtrooms
and to the ballot box.
The ad on Redfin
The ad on Redfin's website suggested a "wonderful" opportunity for an investor: a 25-unit building in a "NO RENT CONTROL AREA" of Los Angeles County. But it also obliquely warned of impending peril for the inhabitants: "[D]rive by only, tenants are unaware of the sale."
On October 2016, the tenants of a complex on East 61st Street, in an unincorporated area of South Los Angeles County, received a letter informing them that the two-story stucco building, built in 1925, had a new owner.
What happened next suggests the lack of protections afforded the state's low-income renters, particularly those residing in neglected and deteriorating housing. But the tenants' response also highlights the emergence of a movement that is pushing back against rapacious landlords and a nationwide housing affordability crisis that cuts across income levels, but hits the country's poorest residents hardest.
In California, tenants are taking their grievances to local governments, to courtrooms and, in November, to the ballot box, where voters will decide a controversial measure that could give municipalities more latitude to regulate rents.
Jose Nuñez, 62, was one of about a dozen tenants in the 61st St. building in Florence-Firestone—one of the county's most densely populated neighborhoods—to receive an eviction notice, according to Silvia Marroquin, an organizer with Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE), a Los Angeles-based non-profit that is working with the tenants.
At one property, a desiccated rat was visible in the exposed laths of one of the building's archways. Water dripped from the ceiling of an empty apartment that had been gutted.
Nuñez says he was puzzled to be given 60 days to vacate the apartment he has lived in with his wife, Juanita Rodriguez, for 20 years. "I was asking myself Why? because I always paid my rent on time," he says.
Nuñez suspects that the building's owner was unhappy that tenants had begun to demand repairs in response to being asked to pay for parking and utilities. "The owner shouldn't have been so unfair with us. He should have come to us and let us know that he wanted to raise rents," said Nuñez through an interpreter. He added that he would have kept quiet about repairs and agreed to modest rent increases.
Marroquin thinks the owner has other motives, as well: finding new tenants who will pay higher rents.
On a mid-August visit to the property, a desiccated rat was visible in the exposed laths of one of the building's archways. Water dripped from the ceiling of an empty apartment that had been gutted. The unit's former tenant, Monica Gomez, a 49-year-old seamstress, remembered being woken in the middle of the night more than a year ago by water dripping on her head. (She and her two sons have since moved out of the apartment and in with a friend.)
Los Angeles County has not had a rent control policy for its unincorporated areas since Ronald Reagan was president.
The building's owner, 3 Peacocks, is a limited partnership with ties to Swami International, a 40-year-old property management company with which it shares the same address in the city of Gardena. As of September 2017, the building was being managed by Torrance-based Crystal Property Management, according to a letter sent to tenants.
A group of about 20 tenants plan to file a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court early this week and will name all three entities as defendants, according to Grant Riley, the tenants' attorney, who claims the owner and property managers have been negligent in maintaining the building.
Monica Mittal, who works for Swami International and is listed as a signatory for the corporate general partner of 3 Peacocks LP, did not respond to a request for comment, nor did Crystal Property Management.
Several tenants have left in response to the eviction notice, but others – like Nuñez – have remained, turning down $1,500 if they agree to vacate the building by the end of July, according to Marroquin, who says it is not enough money to allow them to find housing in the area.
L.A. County supervisors are getting pressure from landlords, who argue that rent control will make the housing crisis worse by providing a disincentive for new investment in housing.
Jose Nuñez is in visible pain as he paces an immaculate room that holds the couple's bed, couch and a folding table. He left his job at a plastics factory five years ago after injuring his back. He's looked at apartments in the area and has been dismayed by rents that range from $1,000 to $1,200 per month. The $668 monthly rent he says he now pays eats up a sizable chunk of his $975 monthly disability payment.
But even as Nuñez gets ready to do battle in court, he has joined an effort to affect policy at the local level. His eyes light up as he shows me a hand-made sign. In Spanish, it reads, "Here in the County of L.A. Firestone and Florence: We want a stop to the high rents. Now!"
Stopping or slowing Los Angeles County's rising rents will take some work. The county has not had a rent control policy for its unincorporated areas since Ronald Reagan was president. But Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors members Sheila Kuehl and Hilda Solis moved the ball forward on rent regulation in May of last year, the same month that a group of tenants from gentrifying East Los Angeles marched to the board's Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration auditorium in support of rent control. The supervisors voted to establish a "Tenant Protection Working Group" of real estate professionals, tenant lawyers and social service providers, which has been meeting since early January to hammer out recommendations.
In its final report, dated August 15, the working group recommended by a 7 to 2 vote (with one abstention) that the county adopt a rent stabilization policy that would limit allowable rent increases for certain multifamily apartment buildings in unincorporated parts of the county. There are more than 93,000 rental units in unincorporated Los Angeles County, according to a report by the county's chief executive office.
The working group also recommended the establishment of "Just Cause" eviction protections, which limit the reasons tenants can be evicted from their apartments. Such a policy would be most applicable to the predicament that the East 61st Street tenants now face, says Dagan Bayliss, SAJE's organizing director.
If supervisors are feeling the heat from tenant groups in East and South Los Angeles, they are also getting pressure from landlords, who argue that rent control will make the housing crisis worse by providing a disincentive for new investment in housing. (Rent control proponents counter that there is no evidence that rent stabilization laws—which typically exempt new construction—have that effect.)
A sign of the landlords' sway might be found in the board's recent decision to delay a vote on an interim rent cap proposed by Kuehl and Solis. Concerned that rents were beginning to "spiral upward" while the working group met over a period of months, the two county supervisors had introduced a stop-gap motion in late June to direct staff to draft a six-month ordinance to limit rent hikes to three percent. That vote was scheduled for late July but never took place, to the disappointment of East 61st Street tenants who staged a brief protest in the supervisors' auditorium. The California Apartment Association had put out a call to action on its website in late June to rally opposition to the proposal.
When asked in mid-August about the temporary rent cap, supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who represents the Florence-Firestone neighborhood, told Capital & Main in an email that, while he understood "the pressures are particularly acute for tenants," he "would like the opportunity to be informed by the working group's perspective before taking up any elements of this agenda." Board meetings will resume after Labor Day.
This local activity is part of a larger battle swirling around a state ballot measure, Proposition 10, which would repeal the Costa-Hawkins Act, a 23-year-old law that restricts rent control policies from being applied to buildings constructed after 1995, and to multifamily dwellings.
That ballot initiative has also drawn opposition from real estate interests, which have raised more than $20 million to defeat the measure, and more than $12 million in support — the vast majority from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
Not all the East 61st Street tenants are joining the lawsuit or activities surrounding a proposed county rent stabilization ordinance.
Less than a year ago Judien Langshaw, who is 33, moved into one of the building's remodeled apartments that includes a fresh coat of paint and new-looking countertops, although a flimsily constructed sink cabinet door hangs on by a single hinge.
Langshaw squats down to show me how she's fending off rodents with glue traps and an empty water bottle wrapped in duct tape that she uses to plug a hole under her sink. Her 4-year-old daughter is absorbed in play with two action figures from the Incredibles movie.
She pays a monthly rent of $983, significantly more than Nuñez. But the owner, after all, operates "like any business," she says.
Langshaw recognizes her luck at having housing at all. "From here, you're going into homelessness," she says.
Copyright Capital & Main
Labor & Economy
Home, Shared Home: Renters Watch as Their Buildings Become Apartels
The displacement of renters by large-scale operators who turn apartment buildings into de facto hotels has hit urban areas like Greater Los Angeles hard.
Apartment Renter: Short-term guests begin lining up around 11 a.m., spilling out onto the street as other guests check out.
Home-sharing. This cozy phrase once conjured images of a homeowner generously opening up a room to out-of-towners—while the fee charged by the owner helped him with mortgage payments. Or perhaps we pictured an apartment dweller who left for the weekend and made a little extra cash letting someone else use the premises.
But the present reality of home-sharing is not so cozy for single-family residential neighborhoods, where out-of-town guests may feel no social pressure to allow the neighbors a peaceful night's sleep or to not trash the rental home.
To see today's home-sharing up close, visit the Ellison Suites in coastal Venice, just a block from the famed Venice Boardwalk. Built in 1913 and covered with gigantic murals of Jim Morrison, Marilyn Monroe, John Hurt and Lana Del Rey, it boasts 58 units—but only 12 apartments are occupied by permanent tenants, according to one resident.
"We used to have neighbors for 20 years—now we have them for 20 hours."
Beyond the Ellison's courtyard, people bump wheeled suitcases up the building's front steps and, on Fridays, signs advertise the night's upcoming party. It might offer a fire dancer, but most parties will at least include free beer and wine — and music that reverberates up through the courtyard.
"We used to have neighbors for 20 years—now we have them for 20 hours," said Bruce Kijewski, one of the remaining tenants, who has lived here since 1977. In the summer, he said, guests begin lining up around 11 a.m., spilling out onto Paloma Avenue as other guests check out.
An online search for The Ellison Suites yields a number of home-sharing and lodging platforms—Booking.com and Expedia among them–advertising its amenities as a short-term beachside rental. The building's own website promotes it as a vacation destination, extolling Jonas Never's murals as "Venice Masterpieces."
The displacement of tenants by large-scale operators who turn their buildings into de facto hotels hit hard in urban areas like Greater Los Angeles, which is plagued by a nearly three percent rental vacancy rate.
While mom and pop are in on some of the home-sharing, today its booming business model most benefits commercial operators who can make more on short-term rentals (STRs) than on permanent residents.
STRs are promoted by a slew of home-sharing platforms, including Airbnb, now valued at $31 billion as it moves toward being publicly traded; and HomeAway and subsidiary VRBO, valued around $3 billion in 2015. The platforms profit by collecting a percentage on every rental offered on their sites by home-sharers.
Local municipalities are scrambling to figure out and ameliorate STR impacts on their neighborhoods and housing stock. In May, a Los Angeles City Council measure was sent to the city attorney's office for language changes and is expected to go before the city planning commission in September. The proposed ordinance would set up a permitting system for short-term rentals and establish a 120-day yearly limit for home-sharing. Two nuisance violations—enforced by a city agency—could get an operator's permit revoked.
The Ellison Suites, zoned as a rent-stabilized apartment building, in effect operates as a hotel.
The lowest nightly rate listed on the website is $149. That apartment, when rented to vacationers, could yield $4,470 monthly.
With the Ellison's current rent-stabilized protections, it's hard to straight-up evict someone, but there are ways of persuading them to flee their apartments to make them available for tourists and other visitors.
Michael and Susanne Detto, Ellison residents for 14 years, rented their apartment for $2,000 a month before they moved out in May. All-night parties in the courtyard below their apartment made it impossible to sleep—both work 12-hour shifts as nurses. "It was so loud we couldn't even talk to each other," Susanne Detto said.
Breakdowns in maintenance–power outages, faulty plumbing, leaking ceilings—plus an altercation with management during one of the raucous parties were all part of what the Dettos claim drove them out.
"Especially in summer, he makes three times the money if he rents out every day," Michael Detto said of the Ellison's landlord.
Kijewski and other Ellison tenants say landlord investment goes into creating a hotel entertainment experience rather than supporting habitable apartments. Residents have filed dozens of complaints with the city against building owner Lance Jay Robbins' Paloma Partnership LLC, citing bad plumbing, inadequate water supply, construction without permits and change of use/occupancy without a building permit. (Multiple attempts to get a response from Robbins for this story were unsuccessful.)
Michael spoke wistfully of a community where neighbors once shared poetry readings, art discussions and fundraisers in the courtyard now occupied by high-octane weekend parties.
The company appealed the building's status to Los Angeles' Building and Safety Commission, arguing that short-term rentals should be allowed because the city's initial certificate of occupancy designating the Ellison a residential apartment was in error and that the building is a hotel.
The company lost. Another appeal is headed for the city planning department.
Meanwhile the Ellison continues to advertise online as a hotel.
With today's lucrative rates of return, it's easy to see why, for large-scale operators, short-term stays make for a more attractive business model than permanent housing. Customers staying for a few nights might do some hating online, but won't be there to press on long-playing maintenance issues.
Tenants at the Metropolitan in Hollywood experience the same push-out climate as Ellison residents, according to Susan Hunter, a case worker with the LA Tenants Union, which is part of a coalition that includes representatives from Los Angeles' hotel industry, labor unions and community groups.
Hunter counts a dozen permanent residents remaining in the sleek, 12-story high-rise that boasts sweeping views of Hollywood and sits within walking distance of Hollywood Boulevard sites.
The website for Apartments.com says there are no apartments presently available.
Zoned as a residential building, the 52-unit Sunset Boulevard property owned by the Harridge Development Group is advertised online as an "apartel." Tenants approached for this story didn't want to speak, they said, for fear of retaliation, but they have complained to Hunter of loud parties, with fighting in the halls and kicked-in doors.
Apart from creating chaotic conditions for tenants sharing space with STRs, the home-sharing model leaves an even larger social footprint. The incentive for large-scale operators everywhere to acquire units—including entire homes — and move them off the permanent housing market places upward price pressure on housing.
From Seattle to New Orleans to Barcelona and beyond, housing advocates are assessing the effects of short-term rentals on housing markets and figuring out how to respond.
In New York City, short-term rentals have resulted in a loss of as many as 13,500 rental housing units, according to a January 2018 report from the School of Urban Planning at McGill University. (The study was commissioned by a labor group opposed to home-sharing.) New York has passed legislation requiring registration and other monitoring measures.
A 2015 San Francisco Board of Supervisors Budget and Legislative Analyst report estimated that Airbnb short-term rentals alone had removed between 925 and 1,960 units from the city's housing market. These, along with 8,000 units already being used for short-term rentals, add up to an 11 percent reduction in rental housing.
Like other cities, San Francisco has aimed to define and enforce the number of nights STRs are permitted. Studies based on data from insideairbnb.com show that, in Los Angeles, renting out a property as a short-term rental for 83 nights or more annually produces more profit than the property could earn as a long-term rental.
In San Francisco, the cradle of Airbnb and adjacent to tech hubs, municipal leaders face an affordable housing shortage and a vacancy rate below three percent, and have established a registration process for short-term rental hosts. Regulations set a cap of 90 days per year for hosts that don't live on the property. Violators are subject to stiff fines.
Seattle, headquarters of several tech giants, took an approach that attacks the short-term rental issue as part of the affordable housing problem. The city defines a short-term rental as a maximum stay of 29 nights and sets up a licensing system.
Using a wider lens on the affordable housing crunch, the city council in May approved an "Amazon tax" that charges the larger employers such as Groupon and Amazon $275 per worker annually to support housing and homeless services. (The city council repealed the tax in August.) Seattle comes in third, behind only New York and Los Angeles, in the numbers of homeless, while boasting only a fraction of those cities' total populations.
Joan Ling, an urban policy analyst who has worked in affordable housing and mixed-use development for over 30 years, supports short-term rental regulation but sees it as only a piece of the larger question of creating affordable housing to support working families. Los Angeles, she said, "has a ways to go . . . Anything is better than nothing. What [regulation] can do is reduce the harm that can be done [by] removing units. The affordability crisis is so pervasive, so deep—we need a huge number of policies to address the crisis."
Michael and Susanne Detto are happy living in their new apartment in Santa Monica—no all-night parties, the plumbing works and it's a 10-minute walk to work. But before the Ellison got pieced out for short term-rentals, the couple also liked their Venice home.
Michael spoke wistfully of the community where neighbors once shared poetry readings, art discussions and fundraisers in the courtyard now occupied by high-octane weekend parties.
Susanne likes where the couple landed, but reflected on the overall cost as tenants got pushed out by the STR model.
"We lost a lot. We lost a lot of our neighbors. We're still kind of recovering."
Copyright Capital & Main
Labor & Economy
California Protects Low-Income Access to Farmers Markets
Food deserts and food swamps have limited poor people's ability to obtain fresh produce. Allowing SNAP use at farmers markets ensures that the markets are accessible to low-income people and are not the sole domain of the rich and well-off suburbanites.
This story first appeared in The American Prospect. Capital & Main is co-publishing it in partnership with the Prospect.
Last month, a complex government contracting decision created tumult in the farmers market world by threatening the ability of nearly 2,000 markets across the country to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as food stamps. However, thanks to a resilient state program, only one of those markets was in California.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture runs a program in which private contractors provide software and Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) processing equipment to farmers markets. But as the Prospect reported last month, the federal government abruptly changed its contract, forcing one major software company to announce it was going out of business during prime market season. The nonprofit Farmers Market Coalition began to crowdfund for markets to buy new equipment, and the National Association of Farmers Market Nutrition Programs and the state of New York hashed out plans to fund the software company, Novo Dia, so it could continue to operate for the rest of the summer season.
Through it all, however, farmers markets in California remained almost entirely insulated from this problem. In some states, farmers markets can choose a state program instead of the federal one to help pay for SNAP/EBT processing equipment, as this equipment can be expensive for farmers markets that often operate on slim budgets. While some states with their own equipment programs provide a limited amount of funding, California's program pays all associated costs and fees for such transactions and provides free equipment to all approved markets. Nearly all of the state's markets choose to work with the state program, which is run by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS).
Ever since EBT gained popularity two decades ago, California has been committed to making farmers markets accessible to people who use SNAP benefits to buy groceries, says Carle Brinkman, the food and farming program director at the Ecology Center, a sustainability nonprofit in Berkeley. In 2003, as paper food stamps were becoming obsolete in favor of EBT software, CDSS funded a project with the Ecology Center to pilot wireless point-of-sale devices that helped cement SNAP/EBT access at farmers markets. Since 2008, California has negotiated with its statewide EBT-processing vendor to include such equipment in the vendor contract itself.
"This mean[s] that the individual farmers market vendors or managers [do] not have to research which terminal to purchase, worry about coming up with the money for the terminal, or have to learn how to set it up on their own," Michael Weston, CDSS's deputy director of public affairs and outreach, told The American Prospect in an email. "The free wireless terminals have supported the farmers markets and direct farmers and have proven to be a real success in California," he says.
There are 588 farmers markets, individual farmers and community-supported agriculture projects that accept California's SNAP benefit, CalFresh. In 2017 alone, more than $4 million in CalFresh benefits were redeemed through farmers and farmers markets.
The free equipment, says Brinkman, is just a "regular old card reader" that she and colleagues refer to as "the brick" because of its clunkiness and its durability. Brinkman and the Ecology Center provide guidance and resources to farmers markets, such as assistance in applying for approval to accept SNAP, as well as connecting them with CDSS's equipment program.
A history of crop subsidies for the ingredients in processed food has long made unhealthy foods both cheap and widely available, and food deserts and food swamps have limited poor people's access to fresh produce. Allowing SNAP use at markets is key to ensuring that markets are accessible to low-income people and are not bastions of the rich and well-off suburbanites, as is commonly perceived.
California's state equipment program "has been incredibly successful in taking a major step to make sure that farmers markets are for all people," says Brinkman. Many markets nationwide, including hundreds in California, offer incentive programs that can double the value of a shopper's SNAP benefit at the market, increasing the amount of produce they can put in their shopping bags. California's Market Match program, which the Ecology Center manages, has served hundreds of thousands of shoppers since it began in 2009. According to a 2013 survey, the vast majority of low-income people reported that such incentive programs helped draw them to their farmers market. Brinkman says that these programs are one way to draw farmers markets to low-income communities, too.
California's program is "allowing greater access to the farmers markets as a community resource," says Brinkman. Entire communities can participate in "a sort of alternative local food system" where both farmers and the local community benefit. Many markets offer activities, Brinkman points out, like Zumba or reading programs for kids. More than a collection of healthy food stands, they can become community gathering spaces. But for that to happen, markets need to be supported with the resources to operate.
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Audi A3 Brake Line Replacement Cost
Know what price you should pay to get your vehicle fixed.
What is a brake hose?
Brake lines are reinforced rubber tubes that are made to withstand extreme hydraulic pressure and heat. They link the brake caliper to the rigid metal brake lines from the master cylinder, and must be flexible to allow the front wheels to turn.
How does the brake hose work?
Failure of a brake line will result in a soft brake pedal, possible leaking brake fluid, and loss of braking force on one side of the vehicle, causing the vehicle to drift to one side while braking.
Find a Certified Mechanic
What are the symptoms related to a bad brake hose?
When a brake line has failed, the driver may notice a sharp loss in braking power, the vehicle pulling to one side while braking, the brake pedal feeling soft, or a complete loss in braking power. In the event of a brake line bursting, the brakes will not "pump up" when the brake pedal is actuated repeatedly. Instead, the brake pedal will feel lighter with every push.
Can I drive with a brake hose problem?
It is not safe to operate any vehicle with any braking problem. If there is any sign that the brakes are not performing as originally intended, the vehicle should immediately be placed out of service, and repaired.
How often do brake hoses need to be replaced?
Brake lines fail due to age more than mileage, and typically vehicle's needing brake line replacement have passed the 100,000 mile mark.
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How are brake hose issues diagnosed?
When inspecting the brakes, the servicing technician will notice cracking in the brake line, and when the brakes are applied, the brake line will swell under hydraulic pressure. The brake line may also be leaking brake fluid.
How is a brake hose replaced?
Disconnecting the brake line, and connecting the new line will take only moments, however the brake system must be flushed to remove any contaminants or debris left by the deteriorated brake line. Lastly, the system must be bled of air to ensure the brakes operate as intended.
RepairPal Recommendations for brake hose issues
When replacing one brake line, the other(s) must be inspected and replaced if damage is present. We recommend using high quality or OEM brake lines.
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subset: commoncrawl


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The Perks of Being a WallflowerRSS
Movie Description(Click Here To Hide)
Emma Watson stars in this romantic drama film written and directed by Stephen Chbosky. The story revolves around an introverted freshman named Charlie as he copes with his mental issues while trying to find a place to belong. He's eventually taken under the wing of two seniors who do their best to welcome him into the real world. Also starring a handful of hot Hollywood actors and actresses including Kate Walsh, Dylan McDermott, Nina Dobrev, Paul Rudd, Mae Whitman & Melanie Lynskey.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower Reviews
2012-10-02 17:42
Movie Review: "The Perks of Being a Wallflower"
-- Rating: PG-13
Length: 103 minutes
No fan sites added yet


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If it ain't broke, just tweak it.
If it ain't broke, just tweak it.
That's the message from this year's Cape Fear Fair & Expo, which opens Friday on the grounds of the Wilmington International Airport.
The midway, the entertainment, the agricultural exhibits, the prices - they're all virtually unchanged from 2012.
The only significant difference is that the fair now starts on a Friday and ends on a Sunday, Nov. 1-10. Skip Watkins, fair manager, said the public has clamored for an extra Sunday, so the fair board traded its opening Thursday night, which is Halloween this year, for a second Sunday afternoon.
The "walk around" rate, which excludes rides, is still $5 from Monday through Thursday, and regular admission is $20, although advance tickets are readily available for $15.
Here are some of the highlights of the fair this year:
Animal costume contest: The fair missed Halloween this year, but that won't stop the animal costume contest. See the dressed-up livestock 7 p.m. Nov. 2 in the livestock tent.
Cheerleading competition: Catch all the tumbles, stunts and acrobatics as area cheerleaders strut their stuff at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5.
Preschool day: From 9 a.m.-noon, Nov. 6, the fair transforms into a tyke's wonderland. Stage shows include performances by firemen, puppets, Molly the Molar and Elmo. All the children's rides will be open, a snack will be served and the kids leave with a goody bag.
Hansen's Spectacular: This high-flying family features acrobatic roller skating, juggling and trampolining.
Extreme Illusions & Escapes: Josh Knotts has performed internationally, displaying a mix of illusions, escapes and comedy. Some have been knows to call Knotts the "Houdini of West Virginia," which is a compliment, we're told.
Old McNally's Pig Derby: Local athletes take to the short track for a frenzy of rubbing hides and turning left. The focus is on the pigs, but some other animals might make appearances as well.
Midway: Powers Great American Midways trucks its rides straight from the N.C. Agricultural Fair in Raleigh to the Cape Fear Fair & Expo. A new ride this year is Stampede. It's a double Ferris wheel that faces the midway. A new children's ride this year is the Gold Rush Express train. And the most popular rides from years past will return, including Genesis and Alien Abduction.
Several riders were injured on the Vortex ride at the fair in Raleigh last week, but that ride won't be making its way to Wilmington.
Food: Deep fried Oreos, Italian sausage, funnel cakes, cotton candy ... what more could you ask for?
Midnight Madness: The midway is open until 2 a.m. on Friday nights for those who like some late-night fun, even after catching a high school football game.
Livestock exhibits: What's a fair without farm animals? Unfair, maybe? Well, the Cape Fear Fair & Expo does have livestock - sheep, goats, chickens, cows, etc. The exhibits are open until 10 p.m. on fair days.
Chainsaw woodcarving: Hear the buzz of the chainsaw and watch the sawdust pile up as Rick Cox turns a stump into a bear or a log into a bench.
Mike Voorheis: 343-2205
What: Cape Fear Fair and Expo
When: Nov. 1-10
Where: Wilmington International Airport
Tickets: $20 at the gate, $15 in advance, $5 walk around ticket (Monday-Thursday only)
Details: Tickets may be purchased in advance at area Scotchman stores through Oct. 31. More info online at CapeFearFair.com.
Nov. 1: 5 p.m.-2 a.m.
Nov. 2: Noon-midnight
Nov. 3: 1-11 p.m.
Nov. 4-7: 5-11 p.m.
Nov. 8: 5 p.m.-2 a.m.
Nov. 9: Noon-midnight
Nov. 10: 1-11 p.m.


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BETHANY BEACH, Del. (AP) — The Coast Guard says a crew member jumped from a tanker to his death off the coast of Delaware after a stabbing that left a man dead and another person injured.
The Daily Times of Salisbury, Maryland (http://tinyurl.com/ms6mjho reports the violence happened late Thursday off Bethany Beach, in international waters.
The newspaper quoted Coast Guard officials as saying that the people involved were foreign nationals. Hong Kong authorities and the U.S. State Department are investigating.
Coast Guard spokesman Nick Ameen says authorities responded to a report of a stabbing aboard the Hong Kong-based Genco Challenger early Friday. Two people were flown to hospitals with stab wounds, and one later died.
The body of the crew member was found Friday afternoon, less than a mile from the vessel.
Information from: The Daily Times of Salisbury, Md., http://www.delmarvanow.com/


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Ms. Washington purchased a Win for Life ticket for the November 30, 2013 drawing. That ticket won her the top prize of $1,000 a week for the rest of her life.
Imagine receiving $1,000 per week for the rest of your life. Ahmed Rahman of Virginia Beach doesn't need to imagine - it happened.
find more winners


text:
San Jose State had a near perfect season.
San Jose State had a near perfect season.
The right coach. The right players. The right breaks.
And when that happens for a program not accustomed to sustained success, change happens. The Spartans are no different. After engineering one of the best comeback stories in 2012, coach Mike MacIntyre bolted for Colorado after three seasons in the Silicon Valley. The Spartans went from 1-12 in MacIntyre's first season to 10-2 this season, earning a Top 25 ranking and a berth in the Military Bowl against Bowling Green at noon today on ESPN.
Three Stockton products, all from Edison High, have been along for the rags-to-riches story, and two of them, sophomore defensive lineman Foloi Vae and senior running back Josh Brown, will be on the field today at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., the former home of the Washington Redskins. The third, freshman linebacker Hector Roach, did not make the trip for unspecified reasons. The trio did their part to help the Spartans achieve their best record since 1987, when they went 10-2 under coach Claude Gilbert, and make their first bowl appearance since the 2006 New Mexico Bowl under coach Dick Tomey. San Jose State's only losses this season were to No. 8 Stanford (20-17), which plays Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, and Utah State (49-27), which beat Toledo 41-15 on Dec. 15 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
Defensive coordinator Kent Baer has been San Jose State's interim head coach since MacIntyre announced he was leaving Dec. 10. The No. 24 Spartans hired San Diego coach Ron Caragher to take over the program after today's game. Caragher will choose his coaching staff, likely meaning Baer and other assistants from MacIntyre's regime will need to find new jobs.
MacIntyre instilled discipline and accountability, and recruited athletes many programs passed over. He developed a team that bonded quickly, anxious to prove what it could do.
"His passion about the game," was what Roach said impressed him most about MacIntyre. "He's real passionate about the game. He cares a lot about the sport and he cares about the players, too."
Roach started the season third on the depth chart at linebacker, though he saw significant playing time and was listed as the first-string linebacker after Derek Muaava suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 4. Roach started in two of the final three games and assisted on seven tackles.
Vae will start today in the absence of defensive tackle Anthony Larceval, who entered the hospital Dec. 15 with a serious illness, according to San Jose State athletics media relations director Lawrence Fan. Vae has played in 11 games this season and made five tackles, including two unassisted.
MacIntyre recruited Vae while other programs didn't show much interest in the 6-foot-3, 278-pound tackle. Vae played in 11 games as a reserve in 2010 and redshirted last season. He came into this season believing it could be special.
"Before the season we all worked hard," Vae said. "Everybody came together and matured together instead of being individuals. We care for each other more than we did in the past."
In some ways, MacIntyre became an authority figure to Vae, whose father, Foloi, died when Vae was 11 years old.
"It was hard because I was young," Vae said. "But as I got older, I used it as motivation."
Brown walked-on at San Jose State and has been a valuable member of the team primarily as a scout player. This year, he was awarded a scholarship and was named the Spartans' offensive scout team player of the year.
"It was a testament to all of my hard work in college and walking on to the program," Brown said. "That's something that everyone wants to earn, so your mom doesn't have to pay for schooling."
Like Vae, Brown lost his father, though Brown was a junior in high school when his dad, pastor Harry Brown, passed away. His mother, Mary, currently is battling an illness. Brown didn't want to go into specifics about her condition.
"She's a fighter," he said.
And so is her son, who had to find a way to pay for his education until he received a scholarship from MacIntyre this semester. The youngest of six kids in his family, the 5-7, 180-pound Brown has earned his spot on the football team by portraying the opposing team's best small running back in order to prepare the starters in practice, while rarely seeing playing time in games. Brown just completed his degree in communications with a minor in sociology and will walk with his classmates this spring.
"My mom always asks me, 'Baby, are you going to graduate?' " Brown said. "And I say, 'Yes, mom, and you're going to see me walk.' "
San Jose State hopes Caragher builds on the foundation MacIntyre created. The Spartans are slated to return eight offensive starters and six on defense. They are on a roll, having won six in a row, 10 of their past 11, and 12 of their past 14 dating to the end of last season.
"Everyone who plays in a collegiate program wants to play in a season like this," Brown said. "I was here when the program wasn't too good, so to see that turnaround has been incredible."
Contact sports editor Bob Highfill at (209) 546-8282 or email@example.com.


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Hooksett man arrested for threatening friend with knife
September 15. 2013 9:46PM
HOOKSETT — A Hooksett man was arrested Sunday after police say he displayed a knife during a confrontation.
Hooksett police were called to 8 Whitehall Terrace at 4:17 p.m. Sunday on a report of two men arguing, with one displaying a knife. Upon arrival police separated the two, then located and seized a 4-inch butterfly knife in the garage.
Hooksett police say Matthew Jackson, 23, of Hooksett displayed the butterfly knife in a threatening manner towards the victim, who they described as a longtime friend, while telling him that he needed to leave. No injuries were reported during the argument.
Jackson was arrested and charged with criminal threatening, a class "B" felony. He was released on $7,000 personal recognizance, with arraignment in the Sixth Circuit Court in Hooksett scheduled for Oct. 9.


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by mconnell » Fri May 14, 2010 8:17 pm
Aaron Johnson wrote:ARTICLE: DAYS OF FREE FOURTEENER CLIMBING MAY BE ENDING
"This may be precedent setting..."
Colorado Springs Gazette
by Aaron Johnson » Fri May 14, 2010 11:25 pm
...making it seem like more of a money making scheme than an attempt to preserve the area.
by autoblock » Wed May 19, 2010 4:10 pm
by mconnell » Wed May 19, 2010 6:36 pm
autoblock wrote:Rainier -- $30 Shasta -- $20 Every other Sierra 14er -- $15. Culebra -- $100!
by seano » Wed May 19, 2010 7:04 pm
autoblock wrote:Since I finished my CO 14ers, I've been bagging California's. What a different experience! Last July on Tyndall and Split I had the whole mountain to myself for each entire summit day, hiking through utterly pristine terrain. Paying a fee and getting a permit is a small price to pay to keep the mountains like that forever.
by Aaron Johnson » Sun May 23, 2010 6:08 pm
by Aaron Johnson » Sun May 23, 2010 6:24 pm
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests


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FLYERS _ After a clumsy first period in which they were back on their heels, the Flyers regrouped and outplayed Chicago for a good portion of the last 40 minutes Monday night.
Why, then, were they on the wrong end of a 2-1 final, one that gave the Blackhawks a two-games-to-none lead in the Stanley Cup Finals?
Antti Niemi.
Simply put, Niemi stole the game.
Niemi made 32 saves, including 15 in the second period and 14 in the third period.
In the final 20 minutes, the Flyers outshot the Hawks, 15-4, but managed just one goal despite several point-blank chances.
"We just have to bear down a little bit stronger on the net and get the puck up," captain Mike Richards said.
Niemi allowed a total of seven goals in the sereies against San Jose. All seven were scored from the waist up.
"Honestly, I don't think we tested him enough," center Danny Briere said. "I thought we made him look good with outside shots way too often."
That may have been the case early in the game, but not in the final period, when the Flyers swarmed the net.
Which begs the question: Where was that desperation early in the game?
The Flyers, coming off a 6-5 loss in Game 1, lost the game by not setting the tone early. They had just three shots in an awful first period.
"We all talked about tightening up defensively, but tightening up defensively doesn't mean no forecheck and no offense," Briere said of the opening period. "I thought we sat back on our heels a little too much."
If they plan on hosting the first Cup parade in 35 years, the Flyers need to seize the moment. For three periods.
"We need to play for 60 minutes like we played in the third period," defenseman Chris Pronger said.
"We're not leaving Chicago feeling we can't win," Briere said. "Both games, I thought a bounce here or there going our way and this series could be tied, 1-1. We're down 2-0 and we can't change that … Just like the Boston series, we've got to move forward. We have to find a way to create our own bounces now."
"I'm not sure we should be frustrated," coach Peter Laviolette said. "I don't think we got outplayed…We probably outshot them and outchanced them."
They just didn't outscore them. For that, they have to give credit to Niemi, Chicago's unassuming rookie.
But they also have to blame themselves for not playing with urgency right from the start.


text:
Good winemakers need to know how to communicate wine to consumers. In this episode we test their ability to communicate the basic characteristics of wine or wine region to the average wine buyer.
There are no upcoming air times for this episode.
Funding for The Winemakers is provided in part by:


text:
Atlassian Sourcetree is a free Git and Mercurial client for Windows.
Atlassian Sourcetree is a free Git and Mercurial client for Mac.
News plugin for django-cms 2.x
This plugin provides a simple news feature for django-cms 2.0 and newer and and tries to keep it as simple as possible without extras like tagging or categories but while providing a news feed and menu integration.
- Install django-cms (if you haven't done so already)
- Run pip install cmsplugin-news or download this package and run python setup.py install or add it in some other way to your current PYTHON_PATH
- Add 'cmsplugin_news' to INSTALLED_APPS
- If you're using South execute python manage.py migrate, Otherwise run python manage.py syncdb within your project directory.
- In order to integrate the news-plugin with your website, create a page and add the news application (and optionally the news menu) to it by modifying the relevant "advanced settings" of it.
Last tested with
- django-cms-2.2
- django: 1.3.1
- 0.4 (unreleased):
- Probably a new maintainer
- RSS/Atom feed
- CMS menu integration
- Upgrade to django-cms 2.2
- ...
- 0.3:
- Moved to beta phase
- Tested with django-cms 2.0 final
- 0.2b:
- Various bug fixes
- 0.2a/0.1a5:
- Adds excerpt to news model


text:
Chapel sets cantata, cookout
June 26. 2013 6:23PM
ELLSWORTH — The Chapel of St. John of the Mountain will meet at 3 p.m. Sunday, July 7 under the direction of Pastor Ray Hahn. The choir of the Wentworth Congregational Church will present a cantata, "The Name Of Jesus." A potluck cookout will follow the service at the home of Judy and Bing Rodgers on Ellsworth Hill Road, Campton. Bring a dish to share.
On July 14, the guest speaker will be the Rev. Robert P. Farah, pastor of the Center Harbor Christian Church. Refreshments and fellowship will follow.
The Chapel is non-denominational, and is open to all. It is located 4 ½ miles up Ellsworth Hill Road from the intersection of Routes 3 and 49 (Campton Exit 28 off I-93).
Phone Pastor Ray Hahn at 536-4308 for information.


text:
MOSCOW (AP) — The Interfax news agency says Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered troops participating in military exercises in western Russia near the Ukraine border to return to their permanent bases.
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Interfax early Tuesday that Putin had ordered the troops to return to their usual stations. Putin issued the order almost a week after Russia began massive exercises involving most military units in western Russia, stoking fears that the Kremlin might use the troops to seize territory in pro-Russian areas of eastern Ukraine.
Russian troops said to be 16,000 strong tightened their stranglehold on Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula over the weekend, openly defying calls by the U.S. and European Union to withdraw from the region.


text:
by gelir
DECEMBER 22 When Ted invited me to join his family for Christmas, I was thrilled. The Johnsons' Christmas party had become legendary to me. In a word, Ted told me, it was debauchery. They invite the whole neighborhood to their enormous estate, and all bets are off. Ted's described drunkenness and se


text:
It can be hard to choose between chatting with monkeys, climbing volcanoes or picking a banana straight from the tree. The locals are incredibly welcoming and you'll find new friends at every turn.
Discover the best of Nicaragua and Costa Rica on an all-encompassing adventure,...
An overlooked gem in Central America, Nicaragua offers some enticing contrasts. Find...
Ride across the many and varied landscapes of Central America on a cycling tour of...
Ride across the many and varied landscapes of Central America on a cycling tour of...
One of the greatest perks of group travel is having ready-made friends to explore...
Starting in Antigua, Guatemala and finishing in San Jose, Costa Rica, the trip...
Whether you've always wanted to get off the beaten track in Romania, watch the...
One of the most refreshing aspects of Leon is how it truly feels like a city of...
Defined by lakes and volcanoes, abuzz with coffee harvests and influenced by the...
Quite possibly the most laid-back and accessible city in Central America, Granada...
Move over Mexico, your neighbours have some pretty sensational tastebud pleasers...
Australia: Not required
Belgium: Not required
Canada: Not required
Germany: Not required
Ireland: Not required
Netherlands: Not required
New Zealand: Not required
South Africa: Not required
Switzerland: Not required
United Kingdom: Not required
USA: Not required
Please note that although a visa is not required, holders of British, US, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, and most EU passports are now required to pay US$10 for a tourist card on arrival.
Tipping isn't expected in Nicaragua but if you've received good service consider a 10% tip. Some high-end restaurants may include a service charge on your bill.
There are plenty of internet cafes available in the main towns.
Reception is good in most coastal and urban areas. Ensure you have global roaming activated with your carrier if you wish to use your phone.
It's likely that you'll encounter different types of toilets while travelling in Nicaragua. Western-style flushable toilets are commonly found in high-end resorts, hotels and restaurants, while squat toilets are common in rural areas and homes. Be prepared by carrying your own supply of toilet paper and soap, as these aren't always provided.
Bottle of soft drink = 20 NIO
Beer in a bar or restaurant = 25 NIO
Simple lunch = 75 NIO
Three-course meal = 150 NIO
Short taxi ride = 50 NIO
Drinking tap water in Nicaragua isn't recommended. For environmental reasons, try to avoid buying bottled water. Fill a reusable water bottle or canteen with filtered water. It's also advisable to avoid ice in drinks and peel fruit and vegetables before eating.
Credit cards are widely accepted.
There's good access to ATMs in nearly all towns and cities.
Absolutely. All passengers travelling with Intrepid are required to purchase travel insurance before the start of your trip. Your travel insurance details will be recorded by your leader on the first day of the trip. Due to the varying nature, availability and cost of health care around the world, travel insurance is very much an essential and necessary part of every journey.
For more information on insurance, please go to: Travel Insurance
Please note these dates are for 2017. For a current list of public holidays in Nicaragua go to: http://www.worldtravelguide.net/nicaragua/public-holidays
Intrepid is committed to travelling in a way that is respectful of local people, their culture, local economies and the environment. It's important to remember that what may be acceptable behaviour, dress and language in your own country, may not be appropriate in another. Please keep this in mind while travelling.
1. Be considerate of Nicaragua's customs, traditions, religion and culture.
2. For environmental reasons, try to avoid buying bottled water. Fill a reusable water bottle or canteen with filtered water instead.
3. Always dispose of litter thoughtfully, including cigarette butts.
4. When bargaining at markets, stay calm, be reasonable and keep a smile on your face. It's meant to be fun!
5. Learn some local language and don't be afraid to use it - simple greetings will help break the ice.
6. Shop for locally made products. Supporting local artisans helps keep traditional crafts alive.
7. Refrain from supporting businesses that exploit or abuse endangered animals.
8. Please ask and receive permission before taking photos of people, including children.
9. When on community visits or homestays, refrain from giving gifts or money to locals.


text:
March 11. 2014 11:00AM
Nashua school members' letter prompts an apology
NASHUA - Six members of the Board of Education apologized Monday night for signing an open letter of support for the Nashua Teacher's Union and its request to the state Dept. of Education for a two-year delay in the Common Core–based assessment tests, scheduled to begin in the spring of 2015.
According to city attorney Stephen Bennett, the letter, which was written by David Murotake and signed by Kim Muise, William Mosher, Sandra Ziehm, Elizabeth Van Twuyver, Dotty Oden and former board member Jack Kelley, "violated the spirit of the right to know law."
Although the letter was circulated through email and members never met to discuss it, the six members represent a quorum of the board. Other board members were not given the chance to review the letter.
Bennet warned board members that the letter also may have violated their own bylaws which require any board actions to be taken in public. He also said the state could order the board to refrain from any similar actions in the future.


text:
How To: Create a Contemporary Color Accent
Title: Contemporary Accent to Mid-Century Modern
Name: David & Christina
Time: 4 hours
Cost: $65
David & Christina prove that those funky bulkheads can be put to good use to help define a space and add character (paint does amazing things!). Click above for the pics and head below for all the instructions. Give David & Christina a THUMBS UP if you find this project helpful....
paint (Behr: Shy Violet)
1. photographed the space and used PhotoShop to try different colors on the wall
2. approximated the desired color and got similar paint chips
3. moved the furniture, marked up the space, and painted
4. put everything back and re-organized a bit
Give David & Christina a THUMBS UP if you find this project helpful....


text:
Seitokai YakuindomoWed,Sep 19,2018
Seitokai Yakuindomo chapter 489
You're reading Seitokai Yakuindomo chapter 489 at Manga24.net.
Please use the Bookmark button to get notifications about the latest chapters next time when you come visit Manga24. You can use the F11 button to read manga in full-screen(PC only). It will be so grateful if you let Mangakakalot be your favorite manga site. We hope you'll come join us and become a manga reader in this community!
Have a nice day!
You just finished reading chapter 489 of Seitokai Yakuindomo online free. The Bookmark button is a very simple way to get notifications when your favorite manga have new updates. It's very useful to anyone who loves reading manga online. Let's us guide you to find your best manga to read. And if you find any errors, let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible!
Related chapter:Seitokai Yakuindomo - chapter 489
Next(→): chapter 490
Prev(←): chapter 488
Seitokai Yakuindomo manga summary: I applied here since it's a close walk from my house. But it's really full of girls, huh? In this 4-koma series Tsuda Takatoshi is a new student in the recently gender-integrated high school. He's asked to join the student council as the vice president. Thus begins his days as the only normal boy among 3 female student council officers...


text:
Versiones Antiguas de DVD Decrypter 188.8.131.52
SO Antiguos Compatibles
Sponsored Links
DVD Decrypter 188.8.131.52 (773.04 KB)
46 scans reported this version clean
Sponsored Links
- Windows ME
- Windows 2000
- Windows XP
- Windows Vista
- Implemented proper XP / 2003 Autoplay functionality
- Implemented a second/third level of I/O Debug mode
- Implemented code for reading info from ADIP (DVD+R / +RW)
- Increased maximum buffer size to 128 MB
- Improved…
DVD Decrypter is a software application that can create backup disc images of the DVD-Video structure of DVDs. It can be used to image any DVD, but is especially useful for decrypting copy-protected movies. The program can also record images to disc. CSS decrypting software (such as DVD Decrypter, AnyDVD, Smartripper and DVD Shrink) allows a region-specific DVD to be copied as an all-region DVD. It also removes Macrovision, Content Scrambling System (CSS), region codes, and user operation prohibition.
Actualizaciones : DVD Decrypter Actualizaciones
Did You Know?
You can copy protected (encrypted) DVDs to your hard drive with DVD Decrypter. Once you've installed this small application, you'll see that it's very easy to use. Just insert the DVD into your optical unit and the program will automatically detect the content.


text:
Miley Cyrus & Liam Hemsworth: Surfboard Shopping Sweeties
Miley Cyrus shows off her toned tummy as she shops with fiance actor Liam Hemsworth on Monday afternoon (January 7) in Beverly Hills, Calif.
The twosome were seen picking up a few goodies, including a brand-new surfboard from a shop.
PHOTOS: Check out the latest pics of Miley Cyrus
In the past week, Miley has been showing her new puppy, Bean, a lot of love on Twitter.
"I can't handle this. U know I'm a complete crazy dog lady so you could imagine what's happening to me right now," she wrote.
15+ pics inside…
Posted to: Liam Hemsworth, Miley Cyrus