Senator Mary Landrieu: News Articles

Interior Needs 30% Boost in Budget to Speed Gulf Drilling, Landrieu Says

Mon, 07 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0600

The U.S. Interior Department, which oversees drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, should get a 30 percent boost in its 2012 budget to speed processing of oil-exploration permits, said Senator Mary Landrieu, a Democrat from Louisiana.

“The office needs to be scaled up in order to accomplish what we need to accomplish,” she said yesterday in an interview in Washington. “It has been historically understaffed and underfunded.”

President Barack Obama will present his proposal for the 2012 fiscal year budget on Feb. 14. Landrieu said she doesn’t have information on what will be in the president’s proposal.

Almost four months after the U.S. lifted a ban on deep- water exploration, drilling remains stalled because energy companies haven’t proved to regulators they have ships and equipment ready to handle catastrophic blowouts. BP Plc’s disaster in April killed 11 and led to the worst U.S. offshore oil spill.

Obama has singled out energy industry by proposing to eliminating tax breaks for oil and natural-gas producers, Landrieu told reporters yesterday.

“It continues to be a puzzlement to me to why this administration continues to target the oil and gas industry,” she said. “If the whole entire tax code goes under review, then of course this should be under review, too.”

Obama is seeking to fund an 85 percent increase in renewable-energy investments by scrapping taxpayer subsidies to oil and gas producers. The cuts, which Obama says would be absorbed by the profit-rich industry, follow his attempt a year ago to scrap about $3.6 billion a year in fossil-fuel subsidies. That proposal never gained support in Congress.

Senator Mark Begich, an Alaska Democrat, doesn’t expect Obama’s proposal on the energy-industry taxes to pass this year either, he said in a separate interview in Washington yesterday.

Sen. Mary Landrieu plans to seek fourth Senate term

Sat, 05 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0600

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., held a fundraiser last week at the Capitol Hill eatery Bistro Bis, apparently for a 2014 re-election campaign.

Though there have been whispers that Landrieu would step down after completing her third term in January 2015, she recently said she is planning to run again. "I have served happily for 14 years and intend to serve another term or two should that be the people's wish," Landrieu said. "I am very comfortable with my centrist record of accomplishment and look forward to continuing to serve Louisiana and working on issues important to the state like our coastal recovery, championing small businesses, and advocating for education reform."

Landrieu, whose biggest margin of victory was her six-point victory over State Treasurer John Kennedy in 2008, faces a more conservative and Republican state, though her approval ratings remain over 50 percent. With the party switch last week of Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell to the Republican Party, Landrieu is the only state-wide elected Democratic politician.

Affordable Housing and the Gulf

Thu, 03 Feb 2011 00:00:00 -0600

The gulf states are still living with the destruction wrought by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which swept away more than 70,000 units of affordable rental housing.

Fewer than a third of those units, which are crucial to housing the poor, the elderly and the disabled, have been rebuilt. The 5,000 or so that are still on the drawing board might never be constructed unless Congress extends a program that encourages businesses to invest in housing by providing them offsets for tax liabilities.

Congress tried to remedy the problem late last year by passing a one-year extension of the program. But investors insist that they need another 18 months to get the deals done, the units built and the tenants in place. If the projects come in late, the tax credits become invalid.

Congress allotted more than $300 million in credits to the gulf states after Katrina and Rita, requiring that the projects be ready for tenants by the end of 2010. The credits sold well while the economy was thriving. But demand fell off during the recession when corporate investors had small tax liabilities.

The appetite for tax credits has picked up, but investors are still shying away from the gulf out of fear that any credits they purchase might expire before they can be used. Unable to raise capital, some developers have walked away from projects that seemed certain to get built before the onset of the recession.

A Senate bill introduced by Mary Landrieu, a Democrat of Louisiana, with the support of several Republicans, would extend the program for an additional year. The bill, which still needs a sponsor in the House, deserves to pass as swiftly as possible. Without it, the gulf states are unlikely to get the housing they need.

Sen. Mary Landrieu to lead entrepreneurship roundtable

Sat, 22 Jan 2011 00:00:00 -0600

Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., chairman of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, hosts a roundtable discussion Thursday on encouraging entrepreneurship in economically disadvantaged, rural and traditionally under-served areas.

Also next week, Michelle Obama delivers the keynote address Tuesday at the "National Mentoring Summit." The Obama administration is promoting the positive role adults can play by mentoring young people, and is encouraging companies to get actively involved by making their employees available to mentor students at nearby schools.

On Thursday, the co-chairs of the White House Oil Spill Commission give their first congressional testimony since the release of their final report on the BP disaster. In the morning, the co-chairs, former Sen. Bob Graham, D-Fla., and William Reilly, the former Environmental Protection Agency head under President George H.W. Bush, testify before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. That afternoon, the pair head to the other side of the Capitol to testify before the House Natural Resources Committee.

GO Zone fight not yet over, Landrieu and Vitter say

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0600

Louisiana Sens. Mary Landrieu and David Vitter failed Wednesday to add a two-year extension of a hurricane recovery program to the compromise tax-cut package approved by the Senate, but said the fight is not yet over.

The Gulf Opportunity Zone tax credit program is seen as critical to completing mixed-income housing in New Orleans and other communities. The tax package compromise includes a one-year extension, but the senators said a second year is needed so that as many as 5,000 planned Gulf Coast housing units, most in southern Louisiana, do not fall short of completion.

Landrieu, a Democrat, and Vitter, a Republican, said they did win a commitment from two influential senators to try to bring the extension to a vote early in 2011.

Landrieu and Vitter joined on the Senate floor Wednesday to push for the extension, but couldn't move past objections by Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., who opposed any last-minute changes in the $858 billion extension of Bush-era tax cuts he helped negotiate. That measure, which includes a one-year extension of expanded unemployment benefits, passed 81-19 with support from Landrieu and Vitter.

During their unusual joint appeal, Landrieu and Vitter, who have had an acrimonious relationship since Vitter was elected to the Senate in 2004, agreed the one-year extension of the housing tax credits included in the legislation isn't sufficient to complete housing projects critical to the region's post-Katrina recovery. The projects were stalled by the collapse of private financing markets, they said, and need a two-year extension to qualify for tens of millions of dollars in federal tax credits.

During a discussion on the Senate floor, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Kyl, the lead GOP negotiator on the legislation to extend the Bush tax cuts, said they will support the GO Zone extension in the next Congress. Both said the extension could be included in a bill making technical corrections in the giant tax bill, a common practice after any complex legislation is enacted.

"I will work with the senators from the Finance Committee, our committee, when we bring up the legislation next year to do our very best to make sure the provision is included so that we can help these people who really desperately need housing in Louisiana," Baucus said.

"I also share the confidence of the chairman of the Finance Committee that we will find an appropriate tax bill early in 2011 to include this change, which I think we all view as a technical change that will allow this special financing to be used as Congress intended," Kyl said.

Landrieu had planned to offer an amendment Wednesday that would have included the two-year extension in the $858 billion tax bill. But it would have required the unanimous consent of all senators, and she was informed Kyl would object.

"We fought to the last minute to make this fix in the Senate, and we still have hope to get it fixed in the House, but I did receive a strong commitment from Chairman Baucus and Sen. Kyl to get the date extended early in 2011," Landrieu said. "The extension is critical to the people of the Gulf Coast, to our cities and to all the businesses that are depending on a full economic recovery from the storms of 2005."

Vitter said he joined Landrieu "in stressing the importance of the second year of a GO Zone extension and look forward to continuing to work with all of these folks in getting that done absolutely as soon as possible in 2011."

While pleased that Baucus and Kyl agreed to support the two-year extension in 2001, Landrieu said it is hard to understand why the Senate would approve $800 million in extensions of the Gulf Opportunity Zone provisions enacted after Hurricane Katrina to spur redevelopment along the Gulf Coast, and leave out the "all important" second year of the housing tax credits.

Included in the tax bill passed by the Senate Wednesday is a one-year extension of the 50 percent bonus depreciation for businesses rebuilding in hurricane-affected communities but not a second-year of extensions for the housing tax credit

The tax bill also would extend by two years the rehabilitation credit for historic buildings damaged by the hurricanes.

Matt Morrin, New Orleans development director for Enterprise Community Partners, said the shorter extension raises problems for his organization's plans to develop 568 mixed-income units with tax credits from the GO Zone program at the Lafitte housing development.

Of those, 134 are near completion, and will be completed well within the one-year extension included in the compromise tax bill, he said. But the remaining 424 units will take longer than one year to complete, Morrin said.

Redevelopment of the B.W. Cooper project would also be threatened if the deadline isn't extended, according to the Housing Authority of New Orleans.

In all, about 2,800 units in New Orleans, Chalmette, Marrero, Terrytown, Covington, Hammond, Houma and Lake Charles are at risk if the deadline for getting projects into use isn't extended beyond the one year duration in the tax compromise legislation.

Opposition to Obama tax deal brings Sen. Mary Landrieu together with an unlikely ally

Fri, 10 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0600

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., one of the Senate's most liberal members, got a boost Friday from Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, one of the Senate's most conservative Democrats, as he conducted a lengthy mini-filibuster against the tax cut package negotiated between Republicans and President Barack Obama.

"Everybody knows that on many issues her views and my views are different, but on this issue I think we are speaking for the overwhelming majority of the people, not just in Louisiana and Vermont, but all over the country who can't understand why we give tax breaks to billionaires when the deficits are so high," Sanders said.

Landrieu, who has surprisingly emerged as one of her party's leading opponents of the tax legislation, helped spell Sanders during his 8½ hour talkathon against the tax package. Landrieu said she is still looking to hear from her constituents before deciding how to vote, but she said Sanders is absolutely right that it is morally indefensible to add $50 billion to the deficit so people earning over $1 million can continue to get the tax cuts provided them in the 2001 Bush tax cut legislation.

"We have men and women in the military," Landrieu said. "Do you know what their COLA (cost of living adjustment) is going to be this year? Only 1.4 percent. ... Did anyone over there (in the Obama-GOP deal) when they raised their hands, when they said let's put the millionaires in, did you all not think about this?

"We could have taken that money and given it to them for a one-year bonus. They most certainly deserve it. They are coming back without eyes, legs, leaving some of their limbs in Iraq and Afghanistan. Did anybody over there think about that?"

Landrieu acknowledged, as did Sanders, that they often are on opposite sides on major issues. For example, Landrieu voted for the original Bush tax cuts in 2001 while Sanders, a self-described socialist who caucuses with Democrats, opposed them. Landrieu voted with the Chamber of Commerce, which represents big businesses, 72 percent of the time in 2009, compared to 17 percent for Sanders.

Landrieu said she's hearing from constituents who are about 50-50 on whether she should vote for the tax package, negotiated between President Obama and GOP congressional leaders. It's due on the Senate floor Monday.

But, she said the "overwhelming majority" of people calling into her office don't want the tax breaks extended to millionaires.

Landrieu said her office is even hearing people who describe themselves as millionaires and say they don't need a continued tax cut. "Use the money for something else, I'm doing fine. I count my blessings," is the message Landrieu said she's getting.

Landrieu said she has to decide, though, whether opposing the tax compromise could jeopardize continued tax breaks for lower- and middle-income families "who really need them,'' as well as the continuation of extended unemployment benefits she said is "so critical" with the unemployment rate still high.

Sanders' filibuster became an instant hit on the Internet Friday, at one point crashing the senator's website, which was streaming his lengthy talk.

"You can call what I am doing today whatever you want, you can call it a filibuster, you can call it a very long speech," he wrote on his website. "I'm not here to set any great records or to make a spectacle. I am simply here today to take as long as I can to explain to the American people the fact we have got to do a lot better than this agreement provides."

Sanders finally stopped talking about 7 p.m. Washington time.

Still, the tax cut agreement appeared to be gaining momentum, with Senate leaders fairly confident they can get the bill passed next week. The House, where the Democratic caucus voted to oppose the measure without changes, is more problematic.

Former President Bill Clinton gave his approval of the deal Friday. So did Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.

"It's a lot easier to deal in hypotheticals than it is to deal with the Senate as it is," Kerry said. "We don't have 60 senators who oppose the Bush tax policies the way I do, and the way Barack Obama and Joe Biden do, so how do you wrestle with that? Are you willing to say no to unemployment insurance if this is the only way to get it?" The truth is, the president got a lot of things here we've been fighting for that we haven't yet been able to win any other way."

Landrieu to block OMB nominee unless oil drilling ban lifted

Thu, 23 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0500

A Gulf Coast Democrat is vowing to block Senate confirmation of President Obama's budget director until the administration agrees to lift or ease a federal freeze on deepwater oil-and-gas drilling.

Sen. Mary Landrieu's (D-La.) hold on Jacob Lew, Obama's widely praised pick to run the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), marks a dramatic political escalation of her battle against the temporary drilling ban, imposed as a safety measure after the BP oil spill.
And it reflects a broader frustration among Gulf Coast lawmakers at what they call economically devastating limits on drilling.

"Due to the administration's unwillingness to reverse or modify its policies that have halted all deepwater and nearly all shallow-water energy exploration, I cannot in good conscience allow this nomination to proceed until I receive a commitment from Mr. Lew, the president or another senior economic adviser to reverse these policies, which have been so detrimental to working families across the Gulf Coast," Landrieu wrote in a letter Thursday to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

Though she praised Lew's expertise, Landrieu also said he "lacked sufficient concern for the host of economic challenges confronting the Gulf Coast."

Landrieu's threat comes as the White House economic team already is in flux and as administration officials gear up to craft fiscal 2012 budget plans. OMB Director Peter Orszag, whom Lew would replace, left at the end of July. Christina Romer, the former head of the Council of Economic Advisers, has departed, and Larry Summers, the president's top economic adviser, is leaving after the midterm elections.

The White House countered Landrieu's hold with a call for prompt Senate action.

"Jack Lew has received overwhelming, bipartisan support from senators across the spectrum in both committees. Especially during this critical time in our economy and in our fiscal situation, the Senate should move quickly to vote on his confirmation before it recesses at the end of the month," said Kenneth Baer, OMB's communications director.

A Reid spokeswoman declined to comment on Landrieu's action.

Only hours before Landrieu's threat, the Senate Budget Committee cleared Lew's nomination with a near-unanimous recommendation. The vote was 22-1, with only Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) opposed.

Lew has won praise from members of both parties since Obama nominated him in July. He earned a reputation for working across the aisle during his first stint as OMB director in the Clinton administration. During his tenure, Lew turned around a budget deficit and oversaw three consecutive years of budget surpluses.

Lew's nomination won unanimous support from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee earlier in the week.

Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) said he's hoping for a Senate floor vote on Lew's nomination before lawmakers leave to campaign before the Nov. 2 elections.

A six-month ban on deepwater drilling projects is slated to last through November, though administration officials have said it may be relaxed earlier. The Interior Department has also slowed approvals for shallow-water drilling permits - not covered by the ban - as it implements new safety standards.

Many Republicans, Gulf Coast lawmakers from both parties and the oil industry contend that the drilling limits are harming the region's oil-tethered economy.

"I cannot support further action on Mr. Lew's nomination to be a key economic adviser to the president until I am convinced that the president and his administration understand the detrimental impacts that the actual and de facto moratoria continue to have on the Gulf Coast," Landrieu wrote to Reid.

A Commerce Department analysis last week found that the impact of the deepwater ban has been milder than feared. The study projected that up to 12,000 jobs will be temporarily lost, though Landrieu and other critics of the ban say the number may be far higher.

That figure is lower than earlier administration estimates of up to roughly 23,000 jobs.

Landrieu's action won quick praise from a recently formed industry group pushing to speed up permits for shallow-water projects.

"Today, Sen. Landrieu has again recognized the importance of putting the Gulf back to work when she demanded that the declared deepwater and de facto shallow-water moratorium be lifted and that permits for new wells begin to flow," said Jim Noe, who leads the Shallow Water Energy Security Coalition. "I hope that this renewed plea to the administration will help us find a breakthrough in our quest for a solution to get shallow rigs back to work."

Sen. Mary Landrieu hailed at milestone in effort to help small businesses

Tue, 14 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Senate Democrats, led by Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, and with a decisive assist from two Republicans not seeking re-election, ended debate Tuesday on a bill to extend loans and tax breaks to small businesses, clearing the way for Senate approval of the measure that backers predict will create a half million new jobs.

"Today's vote brings us one step closer to ending the months-long partisan blockade of a small business jobs bill that was written by both Democrats and Republicans," said President Barack Obama after the 61-37 vote to invoke cloture. "This is a bill that would cut taxes and help provide loans to millions of small-business owners who create most of the new jobs in this country. It is fully paid-for, it won't add to the deficit, and small businesses across the country have been waiting for Washington to act on this bill for far too long."

"I am grateful to Senators (Harry) Reid, (Max) Baucus and (Mary) Landrieu for their leadership on this issue as well as the two Republican senators (George Voinovich of Ohio and George LeMieux of Florida) who put partisanship aside and joined Democrats in overcoming this filibuster," the president said. The House has already passed its version.

The vote was a huge personal victory for Landrieu, who chairs the Senate Small Business Committee and had been evangelizing on behalf of the bill on the floor for months. Her fellow Democrats heaped praise on her after the vote for what Majority Leader Reid, D-Nev., described as her "diligent persistence. She just never gives up."

But the victory, which will come to a fruition with Senate passage of the measure either this week or the beginning of next, was shadowed by a failed effort to use the bill to change what all sides seem to believe is a burdensome tax provision in the health-care overhaul legislation, and by what appeared to be a sidestep by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce away from what Landrieu took to be its support for her bill.

Landrieu's office said they had a letter to members of the Senate from the Chamber making clear its backing for the legislation, while the Chamber said it had a letter to members of the Senate making clear that while it likes provisions in the bill that would encourage investment and improve access to capital, in the words of Chamber spokeswoman Blair Latoff, "we didn't support or oppose it."

It turns out that they are both referring to the same, somewhat ambiguous July 23 letter from R. Bruce Josten, executive vice president for government affairs with the Chamber, in which the chambers committed their support for the legislation "after fair consideration of Senate amendments," chiefly one to support repeal of new 1099 reporting requirements that came into law as part of the health-care bill.

For Landrieu, the Senate did give "fair consideration" to two amendments to change the 1099 provision, though both failed. She pledged on the Senate floor Tuesday to file separate legislation to fix what she said was plainly a "mistake" in the health-care bill that requires businesses to file 1099 tax forms identifying anyone they paid $600 or more to for goods or merchandise in a year. She said the problem could be fixed before the provision goes into effect.

"We have a year and a half to fix 1099; we have no more time to help small businesses," said Landrieu, acknowledging, "Chamber of Commerce, I know you're watching, I've heard you."

But, in his statement after the vote, Josten said, "today the Senate obstructed a measure that would've prevented an avalanche of new paperwork for small-business owners."

Bringing the 1099 grievance to bear on the small-business bill was seen by some Democrats as a Republican stalling tactic, and it may have succeeded in giving the Chamber reason, or cover, to back away from a bill that has come to take on a highly partisan edge in the run-up to the mid-term elections.

Landrieu had taken pleasure touting the support from business groups for her legislation.

"This is a small-business measure championed by myself and others and has the backing of some of the Republican Party's most reliable allies in the business world, including the United States Chamber of Commerce and the National Federation of Independent Business," she said on the Senate floor at the end of July.

But on Tuesday, the NFIB, like the Chamber, seemed reticent to commit on the underlying bill, instead focusing its fire on the failure of the Senate to pass an amendment by Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., to repeal the 1099 provision while cutting spending for a new prevention and public health fund to pay for the expected revenue losses.

"Today the Senate had an opportunity to repeal a huge paperwork burden for all small businesses, but once again, politics trumped helping small business," said Susan Eckerly, senior vice president of the NFIB.

Landrieu voted against the Johanns' amendment and another by Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., that would have modified the 1099 requirement and paid for it with new taxes on the oil and gas industry.

Sen. David Vitter, R-La, dismissed the bill as "typical Obama economic policy: start a mini-bailout program using $30 billion from the taxpayer and at the same time increase taxes on many small businesses by not extending the current rates. We need less government intervention, bailouts, and tax increases, not more."

Landrieu: $20 billion from BP might not be enough

Sun, 20 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0500

The $20 billion BP will pay into an escrow account to fund claims to victims of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill might not be enough, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) suggested.

The account, which the company agreed to create under pressure from President Barack Obama and his administration, is a good start, though, said Landrieu.

"Well, we're hoping that's enough, but frankly, I'm not sure," the Louisiana Democrat said Saturday on NPR. "I haven't seen any data from either BP or the White House, nor from any Gulf coast states, to indicate that number is going to be sufficient."

"But at least we can begin with it, and then go forward," she added.

The sizable fund hasn't been without controversy. Republicans have criticized Obama for the pressure he put on the company to set up the account. A conservative leader in the House called it a "Chicago-style political shakedown," while Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), a top committee member, drew heavy criticism for apologizing to BP's CEO for the pressure the company faced to set up the fund.

Analysts have also expressed worry that BP's obligations to the fund, along with billions more it may have to pay out, might bankrupt the company. While BP is seen as having the financial wherewithal to afford the $20 billion fund, it's not clear what additional payouts might mean for the company's health.

Landrieu said it was most important to ensure that the claims process was working well in order to ensure timely payouts to victims of the spill, rather than the sie and scope of the fund.

She also said that BP was the last company in the world that her constituents, who are among the hardest-hit by the impacts of the ecological disaster, want to see go bankrupt.

"I saw a poll the other day that said that 79 percent of the people in the country don't really care if BP goes bankrupt. Now I can understand that, because everyone's very angry with BP, including myself and everyone I represent," Landrieu explained. "But, believe me, the last company that the people of Louisiana want to see go bankrupt right now is BP. They need to stay in business long enough to pay us what they owe us, and clean up this environmental degradation."

Sen. Mary Landrieu urges Barack Obama to accelerate oil revenue sharing

Tue, 15 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., today urged President Barack Obama to use his speech tonight on the Gulf oil spill to seek accelerated revenue sharing from offshore oil and gas development to help Louisiana restore its wetlands and marshes.

Obama will deliver his nationally televised speech at 7 p.m. CDT.

"Tonight's speech is the perfect opportunity to deliver this powerful message to the Gulf Coast and nation," Landrieu said in her letter to the president.

Landrieu has introduced legislation that would accelerate revenue sharing for coastal states, from 2017, as provided for in 2006 energy legislation, and make it take effect immediately. That would give Louisiana and other coastal states 37.5 percent of revenues collected from the new leases.

Landrieu's office estimates that the legislation would generate about an extra $100 million a year through 2017. That's far less than earlier estimates, which were based on projections for far more oil and gas leases.

But the lower estimates may make it easier to get her proposal through Congress, given the concerns about growing federal deficits.

There was no immediate comment from The White House. Garret Graves, who heads Gov. Bobby Jindal's Office of Coastal Activities, said ideally the state would get a share of all oil collected off the state's coast, just as states with land production get compensated. He said that would generate $1.7 billion to $2.8 billion a year immediately and, under the state's constitution, the money would all go to coastal sustainability and resiliency efforts.

"Sen. Landrieu's efforts to establish parity with how royalties are treated onshore are long overdue and good policy," Graves said.

Previously, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has testified that the administration would work with Landrieu on the revenue sharing issue, though he didn't provide any firm commitments.

A White House official laid out what she expects the president to discuss from his Oval Office speech, which he'll deliver after a two-day visit to Gulf Coast communities in Florida, Alabama and Mississippi:

-- Obama will lay out how we will deal with the oil that has leaked and what must be done to both cleanup now and ultimately restore the Gulf
-- Second, he will outline the steps being taken to help and protect those suffering economically as a result of this disaster, particularly in the claims process
-- Third, the president will outline the changes he believes are necessary to ensure that a disaster such as this never happens again
-- Finally, Obama will discuss what the nation's fundamental energy approach must be going forward to reduce its dependence on oil and fossil fuels.

Mary Landrieu warns of economic disaster, but Salazar not budging on drilling ban

Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Warning that a moratorium on deepwater drilling could bring more economic ruin to the Gulf Coast than the ongoing oil spill itself, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., on Wednesday pleaded with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to reconsider the six-month "pause" on exploratory drilling.

"On behalf of the people I represent, I am asking: Can you give any time certain that we can get our people back to work?" Landrieu asked at a hearing of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Salazar said it is possible that a commission being named by the president to investigate the causes and lessons of the Deepwater Horizon blowout and the oil spill that followed could reach conclusions before its six-month mandate that would enable the administration to end the moratorium sooner, but he was making no promises.

"This could be devastating to our state and to the Gulf Coast," said Landrieu, warning that if the moratorium "lasts much longer than a few months, it could potentially wreak economic havoc on this region that exceeds the havoc wreaked" by the oil spill, the worst in American history.

Rattling off the names of companies that would find themselves in desperate straits with an extended hiatus in deepwater drilling, Landrieu asked Salazar if "the oil-services companies have to either go out of business or take bankruptcy or lay off classes of workers, are you going to ask BP to pick up their salaries and to make them whole?"

"Yes, we will," Salazar said.

mary-landrieu-hearings.JPGThe Associated Press'On behalf of the people I represent, I am asking: Can you give any time certain that we can get our people back to work?' U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu asked Wednesday.

BP has not responded to questions about whether those in the offshore industry harmed by a moratorium would be among those who could make what it considers "legitimate claims" for lost wages, and some legal experts have expressed skepticism that BP could be held responsible for such claims.

Landrieu also questioned Salazar about the letter she received Tuesday signed by eight of the 15 experts that the Interior Department had consulted in preparing the 30-day review of the Deepwater Horizon accident that included Salazar's call for a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling.

In the letter, those experts said that although "we broadly agree with the detailed recommendations in the report and compliment the Department of Interior for its efforts ... we do not agree with the six-month blanket moratorium on floating drilling."

The moratorium, which they said was "added after the final review and was never agreed to by the contributors," would, they warned, "have an immediate and long-term economic effect," but "will not contribute measurably to increased safety."

Salazar said that while "the experts provided recommendations, and I appreciated them ... it was my decision to issue the moratorium."

The Energy Committee hearing, on what members noted was day 51 of the Gulf oil disaster, was one of more than 30 that have been held since the fatal rig explosion April 20 led to an environmental catastrophe that has gripped the nation's attention.

At the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., clashed with panel Democrats on how to hold oil companies liable for damage caused by spills.

Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., said Vitter's proposal, which would create an unlimited cap on damages for the BP spill, probably wouldn't pass "legal muster" because it deals with only a single company.

Vitter responded that he would be happy to work with Menendez on technical changes in his plan, though he said he thought his proposal, requiring the secretary of interior to renegotiate the Deepwater Horizon permit to provide for unlimited liability, would survive legal challenge.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., the Environment and Public Works Committee chairwoman, said Vitter, who like her is up for re-election this year, seems willing to ensure compensation for victims of the current Gulf spill, but not willing to do the same for victims of future spills in other communities.

Vitter sarcastically apologized "for having the gall" to offer legislation to address the "immediate" problem at hand, the Louisiana spill.

The Environment and Public Works Committee's debate about liability caps was lively. Sen. Christopher Bond, R-Mo., said Democratic proposals for either a $10 billion cap, or an unlimited one, would prove so expensive as to leave only the largest or foreign-owned companies able to compete, knocking out the smaller competitors.

But Menendez said small companies could still compete, provided they have sound plans for oil development.

"This is not a question of small versus big companies," Menendez said. "This is about safe versus unsafe companies."

Capt. Michael Frenette, president of the Venice Charter Boat and Guide Association, expressed little confidence BP would fairly compensate the charter boat operators, fishers or others who have lost their livelihoods because of the spill.

Ken Murchison, a law professor at Louisiana State University, said caps on liability, such as the current $75 million limit, have the "unconscious effect of discouraging some additional safety and environmental protections."

At yet another oil spill hearing, of the House Science and Technology Committee, actor Kevin Costner offered what he called a "partial solution": skimmers capable of separating oil from water. He's been promoting his equipment to the oil industry and government for 20 years, without much interest, Costner testified.

"We are all at fault here," he said. "It's just too easy to blame BP. What I can provide is a technology that is available immediately, a technology that will allow rigs to resume operation and to put people back to work. Every day we wait to deploy we lose more wildlife, coral reefs and our way of life."

Bold Steps to Aid the Gulf Coast

Wed, 26 May 2010 00:00:00 -0500

In the last four and a half years Gulf Coast residents have endured destruction from four major hurricanes, including a manmade flood that brought a major metropolitan area to its knees. After each storm, with great resolve, genuine volunteer support and government help, families and businesses on our working coast picked up the pieces and bravely faced the long road to recovery.

Yet today, Gulf Coast communities find themselves in the eye of another storm, as our open wetlands face incursion from vast plumes of oil that are gushing uncontrollably from the Deepwater Horizon, 50 miles off our shore and in 5,000 feet of water. Once again, barrier islands that used to serve as a first line of defense against these elements are too fragile and eroded to fulfill their role. And, the outer wetlands that have diminished in size and health provide less of a protective buffer.

Scientists estimate that Louisiana loses coastal marshland the size of a football field every 38 minutes. Decades of underinvestment and mismanagement have turned the mighty Mississippi Delta into one of the nation's most pronounced ecological challenges. The oil spill that is beginning to tar our marshes and estuaries is attacking an ecosystem that is already very vulnerable.

Beyond the immediate specter of approaching oil, this weakened marsh allows salt water to penetrate more deeply every day, killing vegetation and destroying habitat deep within the wetland. Once vegetation dies, the natural eroding forces of the ocean quickly churn the soil into open water, further destroying what is left of Louisiana's natural buffer against storm surge. This leaves our coastal communities and cities at ever greater risk and peril.

Amid the flurry of lawsuits and government investigations into what caused this terrible accident, Congress can, and has to, provide immediate help to reverse the dire situation affecting this important coastal area and thousands of Gulf Coast businesses that call it home. Our first real opportunity comes as the Senate considers the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill this week. While the $118 million aid package requested by the Obama Administration is a good start, the following is a commonsense blueprint for a more comprehensive response that helps meet the short-term and long-term challenges facing the Gulf Coast region:

Accelerated Revenue Sharing: In 2006, Congress passed the Domenici-Landrieu Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, which for the first time allowed four Gulf states to share in federal revenue from energy produced off its shores. To get coastal communities the funds they need to invest in boom, bolster barrier islands, restore wetlands and provide enhanced flood protection, Congress should accelerate revenue sharing for Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas to begin immediately instead of in 2017. Coastal states should be treated as respected partners, recognizing the painful reality that they share disproportionate risk from developing these essential federal resources. This revenue stream, which since 1920 has benefit interior states that host onshore oil and gas production, should be available to coastal states today to shield and protect our coastline.

Release Coastal Impact Assistance Grants: Congress should expedite the delivery of Coastal Impact Assistance Program funds that are already appropriated for Louisiana and other Gulf Coast states, but are being held up by bureaucratic red tape at the Minerals Management Service. This program has distributed only 25 percent of the $1 billion that Congress set aside in the 2005 Energy Policy Act. Freeing up these monies would help limit oil damage to fish and wildlife by allowing marine and coastal ecosystem rehabilitation projects to move forward.

Claims Assistance: Fishermen, shrimpers, oystermen, and other independent coastal business owners often lack the resources necessary to prepare a claim that accurately accounts for their damages. By authorizing $20 million for the Economic Development Administration, Congress can get grants into the hands of qualified non-profit organizations that provide technical assistance to business owners attempting to navigate the claims process. This help will mitigate instances where BP claims adjusters and attorneys may deny legitimate claims that are improperly documented.

Disaster Loan Relief: To help bridge the time until BP claims are settled, the federal government recently announced that low-interest Small Business Administration (SBA) disaster loans are available for small businesses affected by the spill. While this assistance may be helpful for some businesses, almost 12,000 Gulf Coast businesses still have SBA disaster loans from Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Ike and Gustav. At no cost to taxpayers, Congress can inject immediate capital back into these businesses by allowing SBA to forgive up to $15,000 in interest payments over three years on outstanding disaster loans. Congress should also allow new loans to utilize BP claim payments as collateral.

It was almost five years ago that businesses along the Gulf Coast -- from Mobile to Galveston -- came close to losing everything. Nets were destroyed, hulls shattered, hotels closed and restaurants boarded up. Now, with thousands of barrels of oil being released into waters off our coast each day, Congress has the opportunity to assist these families, businesses and communities that are in danger of being foreclosed on by yet another disaster. With a few bold steps, the federal government can reassure them that they will not have to face the sea of uncertainty alone.

La. lawmakers say BP response not enough

Sun, 02 May 2010 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON, May 2 (UPI) -- Two Democratic members of Congress from Louisiana said Sunday BP's response to the oil rig disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has been inadequate so far.

"Everything's at stake. This is catastrophic," U.S. Rep. Charlie Melancon said during a joint appearance on CBS's "Face the Nation" with U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu.

"... I think as a general body moving forward, they have not moved as quickly and as expeditiously as we would have liked them. They feel that they're moving forward at a good clip. A good clip to them, for us, Senator Landrieu and I, is not fast enough and is not been effective enough."

Landrieu said not only have the oil company's efforts been less than what's needed, the same is true for the response by state and federal governments.

"... Obviously, it's not enough on any part, not at the federal, the state or BP, and we have all have to do better," she said.

Landrieu said a dome containment structure that is still six to eight days from being put in place to try to stop the oil leaking from the ocean floor, should have been ready months ago, in event of an emergency.

She also advocated drilling two relief wells, not just one.

"... I think the government is forcing BP, and I hope this is the case, to drill two wells, hopefully one of them will get there," Landrieu said. "And these are very expensive to do but they've got to do it."

Louisiana lawmakers: BP, feds should be ready to pay

Sun, 02 May 2010 00:00:00 -0500

In the wake of the Gulf of Mexico’s catastrophic oil spill, Louisiana lawmakers made clear Sunday that they expect their constituents to be compensated for the expected damage.

Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) said on CBS’s "Face The Nation" that the federal government and BP, who leased the oil rig responsible for the spill, need to be prepared to step in with funds so Louisiana can recover.

Melancon said he has already written a letter to the National Marine Fisheries Services saying the agency should prepare to allocate monies to the fishermen affected by the oil spill.

“This is about saving what makes their living. This is about the area that they've all grown up in and grown to love and make their living from it,” Melancon said. “So it's important to them that they save it.”

Landrieu said the oil company responsible for the spill will be faced with determined lawmakers who want to see their constituents compensated for their losses.

“BP has tremendous liability,” Landrieu said. “Our delegation is going to be very strong in making sure anyone who was affected is fully compensated.”

Sen. Mary Landrieu, Obama officials assess oil spill

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) is meeting Friday in Louisiana with top Obama administration officials to survey the damage from a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and discuss how the federal government can help contain the damage.

Landrieu will join Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson in a flyover of the area. Then the four will brief the media at 1:30 p.m. local time.

The senator from Lousiana has been one of the chamber's most vocal proponents of offshore drilling and continued to defend her position on the floor Thursday, even as she acknowledged the tragic nature of the spill.

“No one has ever claimed, including myself, who's an unabashed proponent of the industry, that drilling is risk free. The people of my home state of Louisiana know these risks better than anyone, both to the safety of the rig workers and to the environment itself," Landrieu said. “We must react to this disaster in a measured, but right, way. We must apply the lessons of past tragedies to this one, so we can make the best and wisest decisions that will instruct us about how to move forward. I don't believe we can react in fear. I don't believe that we should retreat."

As of late Thursday, 70 response vessels had been dispatched to the scene and 65,000 gallons of dispersant have been deployed — an additional 110,000 gallons of the chemical are available to combat the spill.

Landrieu's event today with top administration officials comes on the heels of Thursday's announcement that Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) has summoned the heads of BP and four other oil companies to testify before his energy committee about the spill and its repercussions.

“From the health of our economy to the health of our environment, it’s time for the American public to hear from the oil companies,” Markey said. “Their opinions and answers on the issues of energy policy are vital given the push in Congress to construct a comprehensive energy independence strategy for our nation.”

'Race to the Top' selections challenged by Sen. Mary Landrieu

Wed, 14 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Stung by Louisiana's failure to win Race to the Top money in the first round of financing, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., challenged Education Secretary Arne Duncan on the department's criteria for awarding the money, suggesting Wednesday that it overvalued buy-in from every school district and every union.

"This is a battle, this is not a waltz," Landrieu told Duncan, describing education overhaul as a difficult fight against entrenched interests that cannot be expected to begin with anything like unanimous support.

"Nothing in our application was watered down," Landrieu told Duncan at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the Education Department's 2011 budget. "If you push to get everyone there (to agree), you will give us no choice but to water down."

Landrieu told Duncan that she was not alone among members of Congress who were not pleased by the results of the first round of Race to the Top funding, in which the Education Department in late March awarded the first $600 million to only two states: Tennessee and Delaware.

"I think many members that are driving this reform effort are absolutely taken aback by the posture of this department," said Landrieu, who said the state's failure to make the cut in the first round was particularly jarring given all the praise Duncan and the administration had heaped on the education reform effort in Louisiana.

"Louisiana has done an extraordinary job in very, very difficult circumstances of driving reform and has made huge progress and I know there was real disappointment that the state didn't win in the first round," Duncan said. "I absolutely urge the state to come back and come back strong in the second round. A huge amount of money -- $3.4 (billion) to $3.5 billion -- is going to go out in the second round," which he said will be divided among 10 to 15 states in September.

The state's application had the support of 28 of the 70 school districts in the state, representing just less than half of all students in the state, but more than half of poor and minority students. It also had the backing of the Louisiana Federation of Teachers, the Associated Professional Educators of Louisiana, and the Louisiana Association of Principals, but not the Louisiana Association of Educators, the state affiliate of the National Education Association.

"She's right, you know," Louisiana state Superintendent of Schools Paul Pastorek said of Landrieu's critique. "I'd love to get everyone on board, but I've got the Louisiana Association of Educators out there saying I'm trying to destroy public education. You know they just don't want a change and they don't have any solutions to bring to the table."

Joyce Haynes, president of the Louisiana Association of Educators, replied that any flaw in the state applications rests not with her union but with Pastorek, who she said is pursuing "another failed reform" effort that is over-reliant on standardized testing and on the input of Teach for America and others in the Recovery School District instead of bringing union teachers to the table to collaborate.

Landrieu told Duncan that the Obama administration ought to be fully funding Teach for America's request for $50 million in 2011. Teach for America received $21 million this year, but the president's budget calls for replacing direct funding with a competitive grant program, which Kerci Marcello Stroud, spokeswoman for Teach for America, said would not allow the organization to plan and grow at the pace it would like.

"It's harder today to get into Teach for America than it is to get into Harvard Law School," said Landrieu, who described Teach for America as having "accomplished more than all of us together in getting qualified teachers into the classroom."

Landrieu visits orphanage in Haiti

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0500

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu is speaking out about the plight of orphans in Haiti.

On Monday, the Louisiana Democrat visited the hurricane-stricken nation and went to the Rose-Mina de Diegue Orphanage in Port-au-Prince, the capital. The orphanage was damaged in the Jan. 12 earthquake.

Landrieu has pushed the federal government to do more to help Americans adopt Haitian orphans and she has called on Congress to set up a special office in the State Department to push for more adoptions of orphans worldwide.

On Tuesday, she joins U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida and Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas for an education roundtable discussion and a visit to St. Terese's Child Friendly Space and God's Littlest Angels Orphanage.

Senate bill would extend chemical security rules

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

WASHINGTON, DC, Feb. 8 – Four members of the US Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee introduced bipartisan legislation to extend by 5 years existing federal regulations on chemical plant security.

Refiners and petrochemical plant operators have expressed concern that proposals for new chemical plant security requirements ignore a program that has not been fully implemented while attempting to indirectly impose new environmental regulations.

Sens. Susan M. Collins (R-Me.), Mary L. Landrieu (D-La.), Mark L. Pryor (D-Ark.), and George V. Voinovich (R-Ohio) said their bill, S. 2996, would give the US Department of Homeland Security sufficient time to fully implement standards that it developed in 2007.

Collins, the bill’s primary sponsor and the committee’s ranking minority member, praised DHS for its work in developing a comprehensive chemical security program.

“This industry is vital to our country’s economy and important to advancements and innovations, but it can also be a dangerous threat in the event of a terrorist attack,” she said. “That is why it is critical that we enable [DHS] to continue this important work. The legislation passed by the House of Representatives would unwisely bring this progress to a screeching halt.”

In her floor statement introducing the bill, Collins said DHS’s Chemical Facilities Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) establish 18 risk-based performance standards covering items such as securing the perimeter and critical targets, controlling access, deterring theft of potentially dangerous chemicals, and preventing internal sabotage.

“CFATS, however, does not dictate specific security measures,” she continued. “Instead, the law allows chemical facilities the flexibility to choose the security measures or programs that the owner or operator of the facilities decides would best address the particular facility and its security risks, so long as these security measures satisfy the department’s 18 performance standards.”

Phased implementation
She said since 2007 DHS has hired and trained more than 100 chemical facility field inspectors and headquarters employees and hopes to employ 260 more by the end of fiscal 2010. DHS also has received more than $200 million to date to support CFATS, she indicated.

Collins explained that to determine which facilities posed the highest risks, DHS first required chemical plants possessing certain threshold quantities of specified chemicals to complete an online security assessment called “top-screen.” Based on this assessment and any other available information, DHS then determined whether a facility presented a high security risk level and preliminarily divided such plants into four tiers of escalating risk.

While all covered facilities must satisfy DHS’s performance standards, security measures sufficient to meet them are more robust in higher tiers, Collins said. For plants that qualified as “preliminarily high risk,” DHS required preparation and submission of security vulnerability assessments that enabled the department to more accurately identify each plant’s risk and assign final risk tier rankings. Based on those rankings, facilities must develop site security plans and submit to inspections or audits to ensure compliance, the senator said.

DHS employees involved in CFATS have processed a tremendous amount of information in relatively short time, she noted. “According to the department, since establishing CFATS, it has reviewed almost 38,000 Top-Screen submissions and notified more than 7,000 facilities of their high-risk designations and preliminary tiers,” she said.

As of December, however, CFATS covered only 6,000 facilities, according to Collins. “Some facilities closed; others made material modifications that altered their risk profile,” she said. “Of those remaining, the department has assigned final tiers to almost 3,000, including all of the facilities in Tiers 1 and 2, and is now reviewing their site security plans.”

‘Swap horses’
DHS has received generally positive reviews as it has implemented CFATS in partnership with the private sector, and the program has been praised as a model for security-based regulation, she continued. “Notwithstanding the department’s success in the program and the considerable costs that facilities have incurred in complying with it, some now want to ‘swap horses in midstream’ by radically overhauling the law,” said Collins, adding that a bill the House passed in November would dramatically alter CFATS’s nature and stop its progress dead in its tracks.

She and the bill’s three co-sponsors were particularly critical of the House measure’s provision requiring the use of inherently safer technology (IST) in CFATS Tier 1 and 2 plants. “IST is an approach to process engineering involving the use of less dangerous chemicals, less energetic reaction conditions, or reduced chemical inventories,” Collins said. “It is not, however, a security measure. And because there is no precise methodology by which to measure whether one technology is safer than another, an IST mandate may actually increase or unacceptably transfer the risk to other points in the chemical process or elsewhere on the supply chain.”

Forcing chemical plants to implement IST could wreak economic havoc on some facilities and affect availability of several commonly used end products, she warned. A mandatory IST program could encourage chemical companies to move their operations overseas, she added.

“To be clear, some owners and operators of chemical facilities will want to use IST. But the decision to implement [it] should be that of the owner or operator, not a Washington bureaucrat,” Collins said. “In fact, the evidence is quite compelling that many chemical facilities, based on an assessment of many complex factors, have already taken steps to avoid the use, storage, and handling of extremely dangerous chemicals in favor of safer alternative processes. [DHS’s] own data indicate that nearly 1,000 facilities voluntarily adopted safer alternative processes.”

The House bill also includes provisions directing the US Homeland Security Secretary to establish new risk-based performance standards and allowing third-party lawsuits against DHS over CFATS’s implementation, she said. S. 2996, in contrast, would not only continue work already under way but also establish a voluntary chemical security training program for federal, state, and local governments; chemical industry employees; and government and non-government responders, and a voluntary program to test these capabilities, Collins said.

Two victories for Landrieu

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

After celebrating "one of the greatest weekends in the history of New Orleans," Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) was losing her voice Monday.

Not only did her beloved Saints win the Super Bowl, but she was still celebrating with her brother, Mitch, the newly elected mayor of New Orleans.

“It was a huge weekend,” Landrieu said in a telephone interview with POLITICO. “I’m just a little hoarse. But my happiness will make up for my hoarseness.”

“The margin of victory ... was beyond what any of us had imagined,” she said of her brother’s victory. “Now we have a great quarterback in city hall. Not just in the dome.”

Both Landrieus received multiple offers to fly to Miami to watch the Super Bowl, but they "decided we wanted to be in the city with our extended family,” the senator said.

At game time, more than 60 family members gathered at Landrieu’s younger brother’s home, which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and rebuilt exactly how it had been before the storm. The home, she said, “has become a symbol in our family.”

After the big win, the family filed into the street for an impromptu parade and lit fireworks, the senator said.

Landrieu said she would be at the airport to greet the Saints when they flew home.

Monroe Fire Department to get $176,000 in funding, Landrieu announces

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., announced Friday that the Monroe Fire Department has been awarded $176,000 by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The Monroe Fire Department will use the funding to enhance the new fire station’s exhaust systems.

“A healthy and safe community starts with providing our first responders all the necessary equipment and resources to carry out their jobs,” Landrieu said in a prepared statement. “In Monroe, that starts with a new fire station. These FEMA grants that I was proud to support will greatly increase the safety of the city of Monroe, reducing response time during emergencies and better protecting the citizens in the community.”

Last fall, Sen. Landrieu wrote a letter in support of this grant being awarded to the Monroe Fire Department. The source capture exhaust systems that will be purchased with grant funds will help to clear the diesel fumes out of the fire stations.

Senate bill aims to boost small business contracting

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

Civilian agencies might soon be required to set aside a percentage of funds from multiple-award, multiagency contracting vehicles for small businesses.

The provision, included in the 2010 Small Business Contracting Improvements Act introduced by Sens. Mary Landrieu, D-La., and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, on Thursday, would require agencies to reserve for small firms a yet undetermined portion of orders placed against federal supply schedule, multiple-award and other governmentwide acquisition contracts. The Office of Management and Budget's administrator for the Office of Federal Procurement Policy would be responsible for writing guidelines to implement the change.

The measure also depends on a variety of tactics to put large and small contractors on a level playing field. For example, it would take the biggest swipe to date at contract bundling -- a maneuver in which several small and common procurements are combined into one large acquisition. Bundled contracts generally are out of reach for small businesses.

Before bundling any contract worth more than $2 million, agencies would have to conduct market research, identify alternative contracting approaches, and justify that the consolidation is necessary and would save taxpayers substantial money. In addition, agencies would be required to publicly disclose all bundling decisions.

The bill would not apply to Defense Department contracts, which made up the majority of the government's $523 billion in contract spending in fiscal 2009. Much of the language has been introduced before, but failed to garner significant support.

Still, Landrieu and Snowe said the legislation would help the government meet its obligations to small businesses. For the past three years, federal agencies have fallen slightly short of the governmentwide goal of awarding 23 percent of all contract dollars to small firms. And, while small firms captured a bigger dollar amount in fiscal 2008 than in 2007, they still earned a smaller share of total contracting dollars.

"By increasing contracts to small businesses by just 1 percent, we can create more than 100,000 new jobs -- and today, we need those jobs more than ever," Landrieu noted.

Snowe said she is "confident that this legislation will result in the changes necessary to reduce fraud and waste while paving the way for the federal government to maximize the use of America's innovative small businesses in the contracting arena."

The bill also would establish a joint venture and teaming center at the Small Business Administration that would, on a pilot basis, provide technical support and grant funding to associations and businesses interested in joining together to bid on larger contracts.

The act appropriates $5 million in grants annually through fiscal 2015, but SBA would be forced to use its existing staff to run the new Center for Small Business Teaming, according to a Senate source familiar with the bill.

SBA declined to comment on the bill.

In addition, the legislation would end SBA's Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program. Established in 1988, the initiative assesses the ability of small businesses to compete successfully in certain industry categories without set-asides. It also uses targeted goaling and management techniques to enhance small businesses participation in 10 other industry categories.

Snowe reportedly asked for the repeal, but her office did not respond to a request for comment on the program.

Other provisions in the act would:

Establish guidelines for reviewing and evaluating subcontractor participation on prime contracts.
Mandate speedier payments to small business subcontractors that have successfully completed work on behalf of the prime contractor. The government would be able to withhold funds from contractors that fail to pay their subcontractors.
Direct OFPP to issue guidelines on how employees can purchase more goods from small businesses with government-issued credit cards.
Require agencies to include meeting small business contracting goals in the performance evaluation of contracting and program personnel.
Develop training programs for contracting and enforcement personnel based on small business size standards.
Call for SBA to conduct a detailed review of the size standards for small businesses and make appropriate changes.
Establish a presumption of loss to the government when a large business performs a small business contract.
Require the Government Accountability Office to study the effectiveness of SBA's mentor-protégé program.

Landrieu pushes for more aid for Haitian orphans

Mon, 01 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0600

WASHINGTON - Sen. Mary Landrieu joined other lawmakers Tuesday to press for better coordination between the U.S. and Haiti to help orphaned Haitian children find new homes.

“American hearts are open. Their homes are open to children who have lost everything,” said Landrieu, a Democrat.

A bipartisan group of about 40 lawmakers is calling for the federal government to reduce bureaucratic red tape so more Haitian children can be adopted by families here. The lawmakers also urged passage of a bill proposed by Landrieu that would set up an office within the State Department to help orphans in other countries.

Lawmakers also called for federal officials to provide more security for orphans waiting to leave Haiti and join families in the United States. They also pressed for more help for thousands of orphans who will be left in Haiti.

“We need a strategy to deal with it,” said Sen. Christopher Bond, R-Mo.

Landrieu said the United Nations estimated there were 300,000 orphans in Haiti before the earthquake, and that number has surely grown.

The earthquake in Haiti killed more than 100,000 people and left many children without parents.

Landrieu, a long-time advocate of adoptions, said the children should be placed in homes, not orphanages. The first priority is to place them with family members, if possible, she said.

“They don’t deserve life in an orphanage,” Landrieu said.

Lawmakers related the stories of several U.S. families who are waiting for Haitian children they have adopted. Landrieu pointed to a picture of twin boys whom David and Rebecca Erickson of Shreveport are in the process of adopting.

The Ericksons began working in 2003 to adopt the brothers, now 11.

“We’ve just been hoping and praying that it would work out. It just never did,” said Rebecca Erickson. She said one problem was verifying that both the boys’ parents were dead.

The couple was still waiting when the earthquake took place.

The Ericksons, who have three children, were relieved to learn the twins were safe, even though the second floor of their orphanage had collapsed. They were also excited about a recent announcement that federal homeland security officials would help push through adoptions that were underway before Jan. 12.

Since the earthquake, “the opportunity for these children to get adopted is quicker,” said Erickson. “It’s amazing that it’s happening. I’m excited about the possibility of getting them home.”

Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida blamed much of the adoption delays on red tape made worse by the disaster.

“Bureaucracy does get in the way,” he said.

Landrieu said Haitian officials may be ill-equipped to deal with orphaned children, and the U.S. shouldn’t wait for them to take the initiative.

“We’ll be waiting for the next 50 years,” she said. But she acknowledged that most of the bureaucratic delays originate in the U.S.

Landrieu said the U.S. and Haitian governments should work together to speed the adoption process.

“Give these children a chance to live... with families who will love them and nurture them as their own,” she said.

Children's needs shouldn't fall through the cracks during a disaster

Fri, 25 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0600

SENS. MARY LANDRIEU (D-La.) and Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) introduced a bill this month that seeks to ensure that the needs of children are met in the event of disaster. Ensuring children's well-being requires special consideration that until now has been an afterthought.

The first three sections of the Child Safety, Care and Education Continuity Act would provide an array of financial assistance to schools and students from pre-kindergarten through college in the event of an emergency. There would be tuition reimbursement for displaced students. Funding would be provided to school districts that take in students from disaster areas. College loan requirements could be waived or modified for students or schools. And many rules regarding child care and Head Start would be waived in an effort to hold the safety net in place. These provisions would kick in only if 10 percent or more of students enrolled in public or private elementary school in the affected state were displaced for more than 60 days after a presidentially declared disaster.

Probably most important is a provision on emergency planning for child-care centers. We were alarmed to learn from a report by Save the Children in June that 29 states, including Virginia, don't require licensed child-care facilities and schools to have both evacuation and reunification plans. In our area, only Maryland has both. The District mandates only an evacuation plan. This legislation would require federally funded child-care centers to develop emergency plans for evacuation, reunification and special needs. With 67 million children under the age of 18 in schools or child-care centers across the country on any given day, this is vital.

The legislation acts on many of the recommendations issued by the National Commission on Children and Disasters in September. The body was established by Congress in 2008 to look at the gaps in planning, response and recovery related to children that were exposed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The commission has succeed in getting the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reimburse local and state governments for the costs of training, planning and purchasing equipment for children. In addition, shelter designs and supply lists have been changed. Areas will now be designated for families with children and will be furnished with diapers, formula, cribs, baby wipes and other essentials.

The Landrieu-Alexander bill shows that more needs to be done. We hope Congress will move on this quickly in the new year. Emergency preparedness won't be complete without thinking of children.

SBA extends pilot loan program for small business exporters

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0600

The Small Business Administration has extended its Export Express pilot loan program for another year.

The pilot had been scheduled to end Dec. 31, 2009. Through the program, small business exporters and lenders benefit from a streamlined approval process for loans of up to $250,000. The number of Export Express loans doubled this year, and the SBA wants more time to analyze and refine the program.

Exports by small businesses grew to $475 billion in 2007, up 58 percent from 2002, according to the Commerce Department. The 250,000 small businesses that export account for nearly 30 percent of all U.S. exports.

Legislation introduced Dec. 9 by Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., would increase the limit on Export Express loans to $500,000. The bill would increase the maximum size of conventional SBA trade loans from $2 million to $5 million.

The Small Business Export Enhancement and International Trade Act also would increase the number of SBA export finance specialists and direct the SBA to hire an associate administrator to carry out its trade programs.

"This bipartisan legislation will ensure that small businesses seeking to export their goods and services will have access to the resources they need to successfully expand into foreign markets," said Landrieu, who chairs the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee.

Snowe and Landrieu also introduced legislation that would create an assistant U.S. trade representative for small business, who would ensure that the interests of small firms are represented in trade negotiations and U.S. trade policy.

Landrieu supports health-care bill

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0600

WASHINGTON — In a critical move for passage of the U.S. Senate health-care overhaul, Louisiana U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu said Tuesday that she will support the bill.

Landrieu, a moderate, was considered one of a handful of Democratic senators whose backing was necessary if a bill is to be passed. Although she still wants to see a report on the final costs of the measure, the package has her endorsement, Landrieu said.

“I’m ready,” Landrieu said.

Landrieu’s decision comes at a time when U.S. Senate leaders are still trying to corral the 60 votes needed to pass the legislation. On Tuesday, they also gained the support of Independent U.S. Sen. Joe Leiberman, of Connecticut.

Leiberman threatened to hold out if a proposal to allow people 55 and older to buy into Medicare were included. Landrieu had opposed the measure because it contained a public option — the government-run insurance program — that was removed.

The announcements left Democratic U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, of Nebraska, as the lone holdout. Nelson wants to continue to allow insurance companies to be exempt from anti-trust laws. He also wants to increase restrictions on abortion coverage.

Last week, Landrieu joined with nine other moderates and liberals in negotiating an alternative that includes expanding Medicaid, the insurance program for the poor, and creating a system that calls for the agency that administers federal employee health benefits to oversee a new system of national health insurance plans.

“While many of us expressed cost and bureaucracy concerns about early drafts of the health-care reform legislation, it is clear that the product the Senate is debating is a dramatic improvement,” Landrieu said.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada is hoping to get the bill passed by Christmas. Democrats met Tuesday with President Barack Obama, who said the senators were “on the precipice” of a historic accomplishment that has vexed presidents and Congress for generations.

If approved, an estimated 30 million uninsured Americans would get coverage, Democrats estimate.

“I told my former colleagues today … that we simply cannot allow differences over individual elements of this plan to prevent us from meeting our responsibility to solve a longstanding and urgent problem for the American people,” Obama said after the meeting.

The Senate bill contains a proposal to create insurance “exchanges” through which consumers could shop for policies. In addition, hundreds of billions in subsidies will be dedicated to defray the costs of insurance for families of four with incomes of up to $88,200 a year.

The legislation in its current form blends private and public approaches, expands coverage, and increases choice and competition, Landrieu said. Landrieu said even without the public option, 900,000 Louisiana residents who do not now receive coverage could get it. Another 558,000 could qualify for a subsidy to help them afford coverage, she said.

“The bill is greatly improved from the time it came over from the House,” Landrieu said.

Landrieu, who chairs the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, also said small businesses will be aided through available tax credits to make premiums for employees more affordable.

“These are monumental gains that will help restore fiscal responsibility to a system that has run amok with waste, fraud and abuse,” Landrieu said. “While there is some work to do, I am confident that we have found enough common ground for the Senate to seize this historic opportunity.”

Also on Tuesday, the U.S. Senate blocked an amendment that would have allowed prescription drugs to be imported from Canada and elsewhere. The 51-48 vote that needed 60 was a particular setback for Republican U.S. Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana, who campaigned on the issue in 2004.

Vitter, who co-sponsored the amendment, took the Senate floor Tuesday calling on colleagues to support it.

“Every year, Americans spend hundreds of billions of dollars on prescription drugs and every year, prescription prices have continued to skyrocket,” Vitter said. “Americans should not have to choose between their life-saving medicine and other basic needs like food or other bills.”

Many amendment opponents raised concerns that the practice would increase the safety risks of Americans. Landrieu voted against the amendment. Though she said lifting the restriction would lower prices, Landrieu feared opposition to the proposal would sink the passage of the health-care bill.

“Normally I would support it,” Landrieu said. “But it will take down the bill.”

The U.S. House approved its version of the bill earlier this fall, and final negotiations between the two houses would follow a vote in the Senate.

The legislation would be financed by about $460 billion in cuts in projected Medicare payments to health-care providers over a decade. It also includes higher payroll taxes on individuals making more than $250,000 annually and higher taxes on high-cost insurance policies, drugmakers, medical device makers and others.