Thursday, May 29, 2003

GDB reveals Rossello distributed funds improperly
Thursday, May 29th, 2003.

SAN JUAN (AP) – Government Development Bank (GDB) First Vice President Minia Gonzalez said former Gov. Pedro Rossello improperly distributed the funds from the tobacco industry settlement, which should have been assigned to the Children Trust Fund.
Gonzalez said in published reports that in 1999, Rossello gave $328 million to the Education Department, $60 million to PRISMA exploratory laboratory for children, and $409,232 to the Citizens League for Latin American Citizens [emphasis added].

None of the entities filed proposals for funds, had complete budget reports, or other certifications required by the Treasury Department.

Monday, May 19, 2003

Oh, by the way, I asked Boulet if my taxes were audited, could I have it done in ancient Aramaic since Jesus told us to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and as a practicing Christian, it would be nice to have that done in the same language my Lord actually used. Boulet replied that that was "an open question."

The endorsement would make Serrano the first Member of Congress to back the fiery street preacher, who is one of nine Democrats to declare for the 2004 presidential nomination thus far.

Serrano cast his support for Sharpton, who has carved out a niche at the left end of the field, as a means of helping to ensure that the reverend remains viable through the primaries.

This, he hopes, will force the other contenders to fight for backing from liberals who represent the most committed segment of voters in the party.

"I want the Democrats to be Democrats," Serrano said of the presidential field. "Without Sharpton, they start to talk like Republicans."

Friday, May 16, 2003

there is the expense. State-certified interpreters, most of whom speak Spanish or Navajo, are paid $30 an hour, said Fern Goodman, general counsel for the state Administrative Office of the Courts.

Another problem, [district attorney] Martinez said, is the possibility of mistranslation. She said in the past, both she and a Spanish-speaking judge have disagreed with an interpreter for a witness or a defendant.

Wednesday, May 14, 2003

One stumbling block to putting up warning signs in the [San Francisco] Bay Area was as prosaic as finding someone who could typeset Chinese, Cambodian, and Korean. In addition, the Cambodian translation turned out to be in the wrong dialect and thus completely offensive to its target audience.

Tuesday, May 13, 2003

Monday, May 12, 2003

In the course of its enforcement activities, [HHS] OCR has found that persons who lack proficiency in English frequently are unable to obtain basic knowledge of how to access various benefits and services for which they are eligible, such as the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Medicare, Medicaid or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) benefits, clinical research programs, or basic health care and social services. . . .
In order to ensure compliance with Title VI, recipient/covered entities must take steps to ensure that LEP persons who are eligible for their programs or services have meaningful access to the health and social service benefits that they provide. The most important step in meeting this obligation is for recipients of Federal financial assistance such as grants, contracts, and subcontracts to provide the language assistance necessary to ensure such access, at no cost to the LEP person (emphasis added).

Saturday, May 10, 2003

Friday, May 09, 2003

Wednesday, May 07, 2003