week ending Jul 1

Fed chair tries to project calm as financial problems continue to mount - The appearance and testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell before two congressional committees last week received little media coverage, as Powell sought to project an image of calm and control. But his remarks underscored the fact that the Fed is trying to tread a fine line on its monetary policy amid the eruption of major problems in the banking system because of interest rate hikes over the past year from near zero to above 5 percent. The chief target of the Fed’s interest rate hikes is the wage demands of the working class in the midst of what is, despite some reduction in recent months, the highest rate of inflation in four decades. In his opening remarks, Powell repeated the essential theme of all his comments and statements—that the demand for labour must be brought down by slowing the economy, possibly inducing a recession and thereby increasing the supply of labour. He noted that the labour market remained “very tight” despite evidence of a slowing in US economic growth. Nominal wage growth had shown “some signs of easing” and job vacancies had declined somewhat, he said. “While the jobs-to-workers gap has narrowed, labour demand still substantially exceeds the supply of available workers,” he explained. The Fed aims to close the gap by increasing the unemployment rate. While the Fed decided at its policy-making meeting earlier this month to “pause” its rate rises—Powell said there was no need to increase rates as rapidly as in the past—it indicated that it expects at least two more rate rises this year. The first may be carried out at its meeting next month. “Given how far we’ve come, it may make some sense to move rates higher, but to do so at a more moderate pace,” he told the House Financial Services Committee. Reporting on Powell’s remarks, the Wall Street Journal said: “Fed officials see a risk that their past rate increases, together with recent banking industry stresses, will eventually create a sharper-than-anticipated slowdown. They are trying to balance the risk that the economy proves more resilient than expected and inflation stays too high, requiring them to increase rates higher than otherwise.” Despite its so-called “dual mandate,” under which the Fed is charged with providing price stability and maximum employment, the Fed will not be deflected by rising jobless numbers. In fact, that is its goal—to increase the labour supply. Powell has, on numerous occasions, expressed his admiration for former Fed Chair Paul Volcker, whose high interest rate regime in the early 1980s produced the highest unemployment rates since the 1930s. The key concern of the Fed regarding interest rates is not the effect on jobs, but their impact on banks, particularly, at this stage, mid-sized banks. But there are dangers for the financial system more broadly, which had gorged itself on the essentially free money provided when the Fed set interest rates at record lows and bought up trillions of dollars of government debt under its quantitative easing program. Powell again insisted that the “US banking system is sound and resilient,” and the Fed, together with the Treasury and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), had taken “decisive action in March to protect the US economy and to strengthen public confidence in our banking system.” He was referring to the $23 billion bailout operation following the collapse of three significant banks in March and April—Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), Signature Bank and First Republic Bank. Their demise constituted the second, third and fourth largest bank failures in US financial history—hardly an expression of a system that is “sound and resilient.” Direct government intervention was carried out on the grounds that it was required to avert considerable risk of “systemic” crisis. While the three collapsed banks had their individual problems, their failure was rooted in the sharp rise in interest rates and represented the initial expression of deep problems in the banking and financial system as a whole.

Bank for International Settlements report charts a financial system in crisis - The annual report of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the global umbrella organisation of the world’s central banks, provided details of a world financial system wracked by deepening problems any one of which could set off a crisis on the scale of the 2008 crash or even greater.A key feature of the report is that in portraying the present situation it makes clear that measures taken by governments and central banks at one point in time, which appeared to be a rational response to overcome dangers to financial stability, only created the conditions for the eruption of even more severe turbulence.The report, which was issued at the weekend, begins: “The global economy has reached a critical and perilous juncture. Policymakers are facing a unique constellation of challenges. Each of them, taken in isolation, is not new; but their combination on a global scale is.”The report places at the centre of its analysis the combination of high inflation and rising financial vulnerabilities—unprecedented in the post-war period—resulting from the increase in debt, both public and private. These problems have emerged in the past but never together. In the 1970s and early 1980s high inflation was not accompanied by financial instability and when financial dangers developed, as in 2008, they occurred in a low-inflationary environment.The report noted that the “rather unique combination of high inflation and widespread financial vulnerabilities is not simply a bolt from the blue” and not just a product of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. The roots of the problems go deeper as “debt and financial fragilities do not appear overnight; they grow over time.”Pointing to these issues, it stated: “The challenges the global economy is now facing reflect in no small measures, a certain ‘growth illusion,’ born out of the unrealistic view of what macroeconomic stabilisation policies can achieve… The unintended result has been reliance on a de facto debt-fuelled growth model that has made the economic system more fragile and unable to generate robust and sustainable growth.”

Fed’s Favored Inflation Index, “Core PCE,” Stuck near 4.6% for Sixth Month, “Core Services” Stuck Near 38-Year High of 5.4% - Wolf Richter - The core PCE price index, which excludes food and energy products and is the inflation measure favored by the Fed, dipped in May to 4.62%, from April (4.68%), but was above March (4.61%), and was exactly where it had been in December (4.62%), and has essentially gotten stuck in this narrow range and gone sideways for the sixth month in a row. The Fed’s target is 2%: Month-to-month down trend, or not? On a month-to-month basis (green in the chart below), the core PCE price index has oscillated in a dizzying manner since 2021. The oscillations now appear to settle down somewhat. In May, it rose by 0.31%, a slightly smaller increase than in April (0.38%), but roughly the same as in March, and right back where it had been in October (0.31%), according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis today. Core PCE has been in this range of 0.3% to 0.4% for the fourth month in a row. The six-month average of Core PCE (red line in the chart below), which smoothens out the wild volatility and gives a better feel for the trend, was 0.38% in May, same as in November. You can see how it trended down through late 2022 and has then remained roughly in place since then. The six-month average of core PCE priced index in May of 0.38% translates into an annualized rate of 4.7%. Core services inflation (without energy services) rose by 5.4% in May, year-over-year, a hair lower than in April (5.5%), but same as in March (5.4%) and in December (5.4%). It has been stuck at roughly this level – the highest level in four decades – for the fifth month in a row: Month-over-month, services inflation appears to be cooling off a little. In May, the index rose by 0.3%, a smaller increase than in the prior months. In April it had spiked by 0.45%. The three-month average came in at 0.37% (red line), showing a three-month cooling period. But it remains very high. That three-month average of 0.37% is 4.5% annualized. But then, inflation is a weird thing. For the three months through October 2021, there were the same kind of hopeful downtrend of the three-month average, only to reverse and turn into a long uptrend. The game of inflation whack-a-mole. Prices of durable goods, which had been plunging, with negative month-to-month changes, rose again on a big spike in motor vehicle prices. The index for motor vehicles and parts spiked by 1.4% in May from April (18% annualized), after having spiked by 1.5% in April from March. So that’s not good. This spike might not last, but who knows, prices have done strange things over the past two years: The index for durable goods rose again month-to-month, after having been largely negative since last fall on a month-to-month basis. In May, it rose by 0.25% from April after the 0.20% increase in April from March. The drop in durable goods prices over the past 12 months – with actual negative readings – had been a big contributor to holding down core PCE inflation. What we saw over the past two months is that this episode of price plunges appears to have ended. In normal pre-pandemic times, the index for durable goods – manufactured goods that are intended to last a while – was negative year-over-year, driven by improvements in products (hedonic quality adjustments), manufacturing efficiencies, offshoring, and competition. After the huge year-over-year spike in durable goods prices in 2021 and the first half of 2022, the index now seems to be stabilizing at a positive rate, rising 0.7% in May, roughly the same over the past four months, rather than reverting to pre-pandemic negative rates: The PCE price index for gasoline and other energy goods plunged by 5.6% in May from April, and by 21.9% year-over-year. This plunge in energy prices pulled down the overall PCE price index. Food prices, after dipping month-to-month in March and April, rose a tad in May. This reduced the year-over-year increase further to 5.8%, the least bad increase since December 2021. The overall PCE price index, pulled down by the plunge in energy prices, rose by 3.8%, the lowest since April 2021. The overall PCE price index was below core PCE for the third month in a row, the result of the plunge in energy prices. Core PCE shows the underlying inflation trends beyond the volatile food and energy components.

Longer-Term Treasury Yields to Rise amid Flood of Issuance while Fed, Foreign Buyers, US Banks Unload. Short-Term Yields already Surged by Wolf Richter - Long-term Treasury yields have been far lower than short-term Treasury yields for a year, as the Fed pushed up its short-term policy rates, but the Treasury market has refused to play along, and long-term Treasury yields have been slow in following. But this phenomenon is now facing massive headwinds.Markets are going to have to absorb a flood of Treasury bills (Treasury securities with maturities of one year or less) in the coming months, estimated at something close to $1 trillion, as the Treasury is trying to refill its depleted checking account, the Treasury General Account, while also covering higher outflows and lower tax receipts (we discussed this most recently here). This has been teased in a series of Treasury department announcements that keep getting worse.The net new issuance will pull liquidity out of other markets and put upward pressure on short-term Treasury yields and on other interest rates, including for CDs, as more and more buyers need to be found to buy these bills, and higher yields will do that.We knew that. And it’s happening. Investors in bills and CDs are finally getting some yield, after 15 years of getting screwed.For example, today, the Treasury sold $162 billion in securities, of which $120 billion were Treasury bills with juicy yields:

• $58 billion in six-month bills at an investment yield of 5.45%
• $62 billion in three-month bills at an investment yield of 5.34%.
• $42 billion in two-year notes at a high yield of 4.67%, amid very strong demand. Longer-term yields are still far below short-term yields.

The Treasury department wants to refill the TGA account to where it reaches $600 billion by the end of September. Borrowing to refill it will have to cover a lot of spending, lower tax receipts, plus the extra portion needed to increase the cash balance.By the end of May, before the flood of new issuance started, there were $4.0 trillion in Treasury bills outstanding, about 16.4% of total marketable Treasury securities ($24.3 trillion at the time).With the flood of Treasury bills now being issued, their share will soon hit 20%, which is seen by the Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee as the upper limit for the US to fund deficits at the least possible cost to taxpayers, according to JPMorgan Chase, cited by Bloomberg.The Treasury will soon have to issue more longer-term debt (notes and bonds) by increasing the auction sizes, to keep the proportion of Treasury bills in its pile of total marketable securities from ballooning out of whack. To find buyers for this added debt, yields would have to rise. At the same time, some big buyers are unloading:

• Foreign buyers shed $140 billion in holdings in April compared to a year earlier, according to the Treasury Department’s TIC data.
• US banks shed $210 billion in Treasury securities and $332 billion in government-backed MBS in May compared to a year ago, according to Federal Reserve data. They’re struggling with unrealized losses from holdings that they’d bought when yields were ultra-low.
• The Fed has been unloading Treasury securities at a rate of $60 billion a month, month after month, as planned (its holdings of MBS are rolling off at a much slower pace):

It could result in a “demand vacuum” that would be resolved by higher yields for longer maturity securities, according to Bank of America, cited by Bloomberg. Yield solves all demand problems, and long-term yields have been much lower than shorter-term yields, with the 10-year Treasury currently at 3.71% The higher long-term yields needed to attract enough buyers to sell the onslaught of notes and bonds would steepen the yield curve and push other long-term rates higher, such as mortgage rates and the rates companies would have to pay to sell new bonds. This is of course precisely what the Fed wants to accomplish by hiking short-term policy rates and engaging in QT in order to throttle inflation back down. These policy measures have to translate into financial conditions – financial conditions need to tighten in order to get the magic done – but they remain amazingly loose. The markets refusal to play along so far has made the Fed’s job a lot more difficult. But as long-term yields rise to deal with the flood of issuance of notes and bonds begins later this year, the Fed might finally get some help from the bond market.

Q1 GDP Growth Revised Up to 2.0% Annual Rate -- From the BEA: Gross Domestic Product (Third Estimate), Corporate Profits (Revised Estimate), and GDP by Industry, First Quarter 2023: Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.0 percent in the first quarter of 2023, according to the "third" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter, real GDP increased 2.6 percent.The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for the "second" estimate issued last month. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was 1.3 percent. The updated estimates primarily reflected upward revisions to exports and consumer spending that were partly offset by downward revisions to nonresidential fixed investment and federal government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, were revised down (refer to "Updates to GDP"). The increase in real GDP in the first quarter reflected increases in consumer spending, exports, state and local government spending, federal government spending, and nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by decreases in private inventory investment and residential fixed investment. Here is a Comparison of Third and Second Estimates. PCE growth was revised up from 3.8% to 4.2%. Residential investment was revised up from -5.4% to -4.0%.

Q1 GDP Third Estimate: Real GDP at 2.0%, Stronger Than Expected - Real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 2.0% in Q1 2023, according to the third estimate. This is slower than the Q4 2022 GDP third estimate of 2.6% growth but faster than the initial estimate of 1.1% growth and the second estimate of 1.3% growth. Here is the opening text from the Bureau of Economic Analysis news release:The increase in real GDP in the first quarter reflected increases in consumer spending, exports, state and local government spending, federal government spending, and nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by decreases in private inventory investment and residential fixed investment. Imports increased. [Full Release] Real gross domestic product (GDP) measures how fast or slowly the economy is growing and measures the inflation-adjusted value of all goods and services produced by the economy. It is considered the broadest measure of economic activity and the primary indicator of an economy's health. The Bureaus of Economic Analysis (BEA) releases real GDP data on a monthly basis. There are 3 versions released a month apart, advance, second, and final, each incorporating data that was previously unavailable. Economists can use GDP to determine whether an economy is growing or experiencing a recession.Here is a look at quarterly GDP since Q2 1947. Prior to 1947, GDP was an annual calculation. To be more precise, the chart shows the annualized percentage change from the preceding quarter in real (inflation-adjusted) gross domestic product. We've also included recessions, which are determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). Also illustrated are the 3.18% average (arithmetic mean) and the 10-year moving average, currently at 2.42%.

First-quarter economic growth was actually 2%, up from 1.3% first reported in major GDP revision -- The U.S. economy showed much stronger-than-expected growth in the first quarter than previously thought, according to a big upward revision Thursday from the Commerce Department. Gross domestic product increased at a 2% annualized pace for the January-through-March period, up from the previous estimate of 1.3% and ahead of the 1.4% Dow Jones consensus forecast. This was the third and final estimate for Q1 GDP. The growth rate was 2.6% in the fourth quarter. The upward revision helps undercut widespread expectations that the U.S. is heading toward a recession. A separate economic report released Thursday showed layoffs running well below expectations, indicating that labor market strength has held up even in the face of the Federal Reserve's 10 interest rate hikes totaling 5 percentage points. According to a summary from the department's Bureau of Economic Analysis, the change came in large part because both consumer expenditures and exports were stronger than previously thought. Consumer spending, as gauged by personal consumption expenditures, rose 4.2%, the highest quarterly pace since the second quarter of 2021. At the same time, exports rose 7.8% after falling 3.7% in the fourth quarter of 2022. An 8.7% boost in the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment likely boosted the consumer spending numbers, said Scott Hoyt, senior director at Moody's Analytics. "Overall, however, the economy remains admirably resilient, and odds of a recession beginning this year are receding. But the coast is far from clear," he said. There also was some good news on the inflation front. Core PCE prices, which exclude food and energy, rose 4.9% in the period, a downward revision of 0.1 percentage point. The all-times price index increased 3.8%, unchanged from the last estimate. Federal Reserve policymakers most closely watch core PCE as an inflation indicator. Through a series of rate increases, the Fed is trying to get inflation back down to 2%. The rate hikes are targeted at slowing down an economy that in the summer of 2022 was generating inflation at the highest level since the early 1980s. One specific focus for the Fed has been the labor market. There currently are about 1.7 open positions for every available worker, and the tightness has resulted in a push higher for wages which generally have not kept pace with inflation. "Obviously, while the baseline forecast calls for the economy to skirt recession, risks are extremely high. It would take little to push the economy into recession," Hoyt said. A separate report Thursday from the Labor Department pointed showed that initial jobless claims fell to 239,000 for the week ended June 24. That was a decline of 26,000 from the previous week and well below the estimate for 264,000.

Waiting for the Promised Recession: Economic Growth even Stronger than Feared, Treasury Yields Spike by Wolf Richter - We’ve been on a recession watch here for well over a year, the most-promised and most highly anticipated recession ever. The Fed has jacked up interest rates to over 5% to slow down this circus, and we’ve been waiting for well over a year for this promised recession or soft landing or whatever, and instead we’re getting accelerated economic growth. This surprising – this higher than feared – economic growth is not so surprising, actually, as the trillions of dollars that were printed and handed out during the pandemic are still circulating around out there at every level, and along with sharply rising wages, are getting spent, and are still fueling inflation and economic growth. This higher than feared economic growth has shown up in all kinds of data, including today in the “third” estimate of GDP growth, released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. It’s based on more complete data than the prior two estimates. Today’s revision, since we’ve been waiting for that recession, is special. The GDP growth rate, adjusted for inflation – so “real GDP growth” – was raised to 2.0% annualized, much stronger than the market had feared, nearly double the growth rate of the first “advance” estimate (1.1%), and well above the second estimate (1.3%), on:

• Even stronger growth of consumer spending (our “drunken sailors”)
• Even stronger growth in government investment and consumption
• Less terrible trade deficit (“net exports”)
• Slightly smaller plunge of gross private domestic investment (buildings, machinery, etc.).

This 2% GDP growth is far above the Fed projection of 1% GDP growth for all of 2023, per its “Summary of Economic Projections” at its last meeting. These projections include the infamous dot plot where a large majority of participants see at least two additional rate hikes this year, if the economy and inflation wobble along as they expect. Alas, GDP growth so far has beaten those projections by a wide margin.In response to this stronger than feared economic growth, Treasury yields surged as bond prices fell in anticipation of “even higher for even longer”: The 10-year yield jumped 15 basis points to 3.86%, and the two-year yield spiked by 18 basis points to 4.89% at the moment, the highest since the last trading day before the official beginning of the banking crisis:I’ll just point at a few key items in today’s GDP data (all adjusted for inflation, so “real,” and annualized).Consumer spending on goods and services jumped by 4.2%, the fastest growth rate since the stimulus checks went out in Q1 2021. I’ve been saying for months that consumers are spending like drunken sailors. And they sure did in Q1. This chart shows the seasonally adjusted annual rate of consumer spending in inflation-adjusted dollars. You can see the jump in Q1:The Trade Deficit (“net exports”) in goods & services was less horrible, with exports rising faster at 7.8% (first estimate 4.8%), and with imports rising more slowly at 2.0% (first estimate 2.9%).Exports add to GDP, imports subtract from GDP (net exports = exports minus imports = trade deficit). The ridiculous trade deficit during the pandemic was caused by consumers spending their stimulus money on imported goods, while exports had slowed. This distortion has been unwinding, and that’s a good thing, and it subtracts less from GDP, and it’s still horrible: Government consumption and investment jumped by 5.0% (first estimate 4.7%), the third quarter in a row of increases, after five quarters of declines. This includes federal, state, and local governments, and they’re spending like drunken sailors too.At the federal level, spending jumped by 6.0%, with a big increase from non-defense spending (+10.5%). State and local spending jumped by 4.4%.Government consumption and investment does not include transfer payments and other direct payments to consumers (stimulus payments, unemployment payments, Social Security payments, etc.), which are counted in GDP when consumers and businesses spend or invest these payments from the government.

Janet Yellen sees path to cool inflation with healthy job market ---Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated her optimism about the U.S. economy, saying inflation can slow down without a slump in employment, even if growth cools. "Our economy has proven more resilient than many had thought," amid forecasts of recession, Yellen said in excerpts of remarks due to be delivered later Friday in New Orleans. "I continue to believe that there is a path to reducing inflation while maintaining a healthy labor market. Without downplaying the significant risks ahead, the evidence that we've seen so far suggests that we are on that path." Yellen said in an interview last week that she sees diminishing risk for the U.S. to fall into recession, and suggested that a slowdown in consumer spending may be the price to pay for finishing the campaign to contain inflation. "While there are parts of our economy that are slowing down, households are spending at a robust pace and businesses continue to invest," Yellen said in the excerpts, released by the Treasury Department. "Going forward, I expect the current strength of the labor market and robust household and business balance sheets to serve as a source of economic strength, even if our economy does cool a bit more as inflation falls." Federal Reserve officials have raised interest rates by 500 basis points in little more than a year and have signaled more tightening will be needed to rein in an inflation rate that's running higher than the Fed's 2% target. They've warned that returning inflation to the goal will likely require a period of below-trend growth and some softening of labor-market conditions. Yellen touted President Joe Biden's legislative achievements that stepped up investment in infrastructure, semiconductors and the green-energy transition. She is the latest administration official to do so, two days after the president delivered what the White House called a "cornerstone" address on his economic policy, "Bidenomics," with his office seeking to improve perceptions about his job performance before the 2024 election campaign gets into full swing. Yellen said the policies of Bidenomics are rooted in what she laid out early last year as "modern supply-side economics." The idea is to "prioritize investments in our workforce and its productivity – in order to raise the ceiling for what our economy can produce," Yellen said, highlighting how the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, and Inflation Reduction Act constitute "one of the most important economic investments" the U.S. has made to date.

Update on Four High Frequency Indicators - I stopped the weekly updates of high frequency indicators at the end of 2022. Here is a mid-year look at four indicators: The TSA is providing daily travel numbers.This data is as of June 25th. This data shows the 7-day average of daily total traveler throughput from the TSA for 2019 (Light Blue), 2020 (Black), 2021 (Blue), 2022 (Orange) and 2023 (Red). The dashed line is the percent of 2019 for the seven-day average. The 7-day average is at the same level as the same week in 2019 (100.5% of 2019). (Dashed line) Air travel - as a percent of 2019 - is tracking pre-pandemic levels. This data shows domestic box office for each week and the median for the years 2016 through 2019 (dashed light blue). The data is from BoxOfficeMojo through June 22nd. Movie ticket sales (dollars) are running close to the pre-pandemic levels. This graph shows the seasonal pattern for the hotel occupancy rate using the four-week average. The red line is for 2023, black is 2020, blue is the median, and dashed light blue is for 2022. Dashed purple is for 2018, the record year for hotel occupancy. This data is through June 17th. The occupancy rate was down 1,1% compared to the same week in 2022. The 4-week average of the occupancy rate is at the median rate for the period 2000 through 2022 (Blue). This graph, based on weekly data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows gasoline supplied compared to the same week of 2019. Gasoline supplied in 2023 is running about 5% below 2019 levels.

McCarthy confronts a spending mess that will test his speakership - Kevin McCarthy’s survival as speaker may depend on whether he pulls off a difficult summertime task: bridging the huge gap between his ultraconservatives and GOP centrists on government funding. So far, his efforts are falling short. The California Republican has to clear a dozen spending bills, altogether worth over $1 trillion, with near-total unanimity in the GOP — votes that even his allies say he doesn’t have right now. Then he’ll have to shift gears and cut another deal with the White House without triggering the first real attempt by the House GOP’s right flank to strip him of the speakership. McCarthy has embraced conservative demands in recent weeks, with appropriators setting spending levels below those he arranged with President Joe Biden. But despite major concessions from leadership, hardliners have already warned they aren’t sold on the funding bills. On the other side, McCarthy allies are doubtful that those conservatives will ever support a final spending deal that requires Biden’s and Senate Democrats’ support. Some centrists are growing tired of ultimatums from members they don’t see as team players. “We’ve got to figure out how we get 218 votes out of a pile of 222 Republicans. And that means we have to operate in a different fashion,” said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), a senior spending leader, summing up the challenge of packing bills with GOP goodies that may ultimately be stripped out. At the center of it all is Congress’ premiere parlor game: testing McCarthy’s hold on his gavel. If the House GOP can’t complete their ambitious lineup of spending bills, it will mark a failure of one of McCarthy’s biggest promises during the speaker’s race. And several Republicans are privately worried that they’re inevitably headed toward a high-drama government shutdown after the funding deadline Sept. 30. “My concern is ... we’re not there as a conference yet,” said Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.), who leads the conservative Republican Study Committee. Hern said he raised that exact point — the shortage of GOP votes to pass most of its own spending bills — during a recent meeting between McCarthy and the other representatives of House Republican factions, including the Freedom Caucus and moderates. He’s not the only one. Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), a member of the former group, recalled telling party leadership during a separate meeting that they would have a “very difficult time” getting enough GOP votes for spending bills under leadership’s current plan. That approach includes counting $115 billion in spending clawbacks as cuts to overall spending, despite conservative demands to consider that money separately from efforts to chop funding. “There is the spending level, which we need to reduce. And then there are policy riders to get Republican priorities in place in the funding of this government,” said Good, who described the GOP’s fiscal austerity push as “a very modest $130 billion cut.”

Senate Armed Services clears defense bill, dodging contentious House amendments --The Senate Armed Services Committee passed a draft version of the annual defense bill on Friday with little fanfare one day after the corresponding House panel cleared its own contentious version of the spending legislation.The Senate measure, passed 24-1 during a closed session this week, matches the $886 billion in total defense spending in the House bill and supports measures to give servicemembers the largest pay raise in two decades, bolster the U.S. posture in the Indo-Pacific region and deliver another $300 million in security assistance to Ukraine.Although one provision puts limitations and oversight on pay for officials working solely on promoting diversity in the Defense Department, Senate lawmakers avoided including the divisive amendments on culture wars that were advanced on the House side.Those amendments, forced through by House Republicans, led to hours of fighting with Democrats. They target diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and other programs on social and cultural topics they object to at the Pentagon. One amendment on the Senate side does require the Pentagon to write up a report on the “legality” and process of a new policy that reimburses servicemembers for travel costs when crossing state lines to seek an abortion. That policy has led Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) to hold up the nominations of more than 200 general and flag officers. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the panel’s chairman, called the legislation a bipartisan effort that “makes our country stronger and safer,” noting initiatives to address competition with China and Russia and adapt to changing technology, such as hypersonic missiles and artificial intelligence. The Senate bill meets President Biden’s budget request and the debt limit deal he reached with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) at the end of May to lower spending across federal agencies. While defense spending was largely unchanged from the deal, more hawkish Senate leaders complained the $886 billion lags behind inflation.

Pentagon announces $500 million in military aid for Ukraine. -The Pentagon will send more ammunition to Ukraine from its stockpiles, including Stinger and Patriot air-defense missiles,guided rockets for HIMARS launchers, and artillery ammunition, defense officials said on Tuesday.The package of aid, the 41st for Kyiv since August 2021, is worth approximately $500 million and addresses specific needs Ukrainian troops have in their counteroffensive against Russian forces, such as equipment for clearing minefields that have stymied ground advances and more Bradley and Stryker armored vehicles. The aid was announced in an email sent to reporters on Tuesday afternoon.In a briefing at the Pentagon shortly afterward, the Defense Department spokesman, Brig. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, described the matériel being sent as adding “important capabilities” that would contribute to Ukraine’s counteroffensive. He declined to address whether the 30 Bradleys and 25 Strykers being sent in the new tranche of aid were meant to replace earlier such vehicles damaged or destroyed in combat with Russian forces.“What I’m not going to do is battle damage assessment for the Russian military from the podium here, so I’m not going to get into Ukrainian capabilities and their status on the battlefield,” General Ryder said. “In the midst of combat, one can expect that equipment will be damaged, that equipment will be destroyed. It is a fight. And it is a hard fight.”“So by us providing additional armor, capabilities, additional ammunition additional breaching capabilities, that’s all meant to enable them to sustain this fight that they find themselves in,” he added.The list of items provided by the Pentagon includes more anti-armor missiles and rockets,air-launched missiles for attacking Russian air-defense sites, demolition equipment for “obstacle clearing” and mine-clearing equipment. General Ryder declined to address questions aboutthe aborted mutiny of Wagner Group forces in Russiaon Saturday in detail, calling it “an internal Russian matter.” No U.S. military forces were repositioned as a result of the turmoil, he said, nor did Lloyd J. Austin III, the U.S. secretary of defense, speak with his Russian counterpart over the weekend. “We’re going to stay focused on giving Ukraine what they need to be successful in defending their country and taking back sovereign territory,” the general said.

US Official Says Ukraine Has Lost 15% of Its Bradley Fighting Vehicles -Ukraine has lost over 15 percent of the Bradley fighting vehicles that the US has provided, a US military officialtold The New York Times in an article published on Monday.The article detailed how Ukraine was struggling to make gains in its counteroffensive that was launched about three weeks ago due to heavy minefields laid by Russian forces and other stiff resistance.The report reads: “The fierce resistance has taken a toll on Ukraine’s weaponry. The United States committed 113 Bradley fighting vehicles in March. At least 17 of them — more than 15 percent — have been damaged or destroyed in the fighting so far, the official said.”The US announced a new $325 million weapons package for Ukraine earlier this month that included 15 Bradley vehicles to replace ones that were damaged or destroyed in the first few days of the counteroffensive. Ukraine has also been losing German-made Leopard tanks and is seeking more from Berlin.The Times report also quoted an unnamed senior Biden administration official who said Ukraine’s struggles in its counteroffensive have been “sobering” for the US. “They’re behind schedule,” the official said.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said last week that the counteroffensive was going “slower than desired” but vowed his troops will fight on. “Some people believe this is a Hollywood movie and expect results now. It’s not,” he said.

Raytheon Calls in Retirees to Help Produce Stinger Missiles - Raytheon has called in retired engineers to help produce Stinger anti-aircraft missiles that the US has been providing Ukraine, Defense One reported on Thursday. Stingers are shoulder-fired missiles that were out of production for 20 years until the US started sending them to Ukraine when Russia first invaded last year, a policy led by a former Raytheon board member, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.According to the Pentagon, the US has provided Ukraine with over 1,700 Stinger missile systems to date.“Stinger’s been out of production for 20 years, and all of a sudden in the first 48 hours [of the war], it’s the star of the show and everybody wants more,” Wes Kremer, the president of Raytheon Missiles & Defense, said last week.Raytheon needs to produce the Stingers using blueprints drawn up during the Carter administration, as using more advanced production methods would require redesigning the weapon.“We were bringing back retired employees that are in their 70s … to teach our new employees how to actually build a Stinger,” Kremer said. “We’re pulling test equipment out of warehouses and blowing the spider webs off of them.”The US Army placed an order for Stingers in May 2022 to replace ones sent to Ukraine, but the Pentagon said they won’t be delivered until 2026. Kremer said it would take at least 30 months for the first missiles to be completed due to the time it will take to restart production.

Pentagon Says Cluster Bombs Would Be ‘Useful’ for Ukraine -A Pentagon official has told Congress that controversial cluster munitions Ukraine has been seeking from the US would be “useful” to Ukrainian forces on the battlefield.Cluster bombs scatter small submunitions over large areas, making them especially hazardous to civilians. Because of their indiscriminate nature, cluster munitions have been banned by more than 100 nations.But the US, Ukraine, and Russia are not parties to the treaty, known as the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Both sides in the current conflict in Ukraine have reportedly used cluster bombs, and Kyiv was using themagainst populated areas of Donestk in the Donbas war going back to 2014.Ukraine has been asking the US to send cluster munitions that are in Pentagon stockpiles, and the Biden administration has been under growing pressure from Republicans in Congress to oblige the request. Now, the Pentagon appears to have come out in favor of sending Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munition (DPICM), a cluster munition with several variants, including a 155mm artillery round.“Our military analysts have confirmed that DPICMs would be useful, especially against dug-in Russian positions on the battlefield,” Laura Cooper, deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia, told the House Armed Services Committee.According to POLITICO, senior Biden administration officials had previously said they were not sending cluster munitions to Ukraine but now are more ambiguous about the idea, signaling they are more open to providing the controversial bombs. A US official told POLITICO that, at this point, no decision has been made.

Lavrov Says Russia Investigating If Western Intelligence Agencies Played a Role in Prigozhin Mutiny - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday that Russian security services were investigating whether or not Western or Ukrainian intelligence agencies played a role in Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s two-day mutiny.When asked by RT if Russia had evidence of Western involvement, Lavrov said, “I work in a government ministry that is not engaged in gathering evidence of unlawful acts being committed, but we do have such agencies and, I assure you, they are already looking into it.” The Russian diplomat said Western intelligence likely wanted the mutiny to succeed and pointed to US media reports that said US intelligence knew Prigozhin was planning armed action against the Russian military establishment but did not make the information public.“In particular, CNN, if I remember correctly, reported that the US intelligence services knew for several days that a mutiny was in the works, but decided not to disclose that information to anyone, apparently in the hope that the mutiny would succeed,” Lavrov said.Lavrov pointed to another CNN report that said US officials expected Prigozhin to face more resistance and for the insurrection to be more violent. “We assessed it was going to be a great deal more violent and bloody,” an unnamed US official told CNN.Lavrov also told RT that the US signaled to Russia that it was not involved in Prigozhin’s uprising, a message that was delivered by US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy. Later on Monday, President Biden denied that the US played any role in the crisis and said that Washington had made that clear to Moscow.“By the way, when US Ambassador Tracy spoke with Russian officials yesterday, she sent some signals. These signals are probably not secret; they were primarily that the US had nothing to do with this, that the US is very hopeful that nuclear weapons will be okay, that American diplomats will not be harmed,” Lavrov said.Biden also denied that the US’s NATO allies were involved in the uprising. “They agree with me that we had to make sure we gave Putin no excuse … to blame this on the West, to blame this on NATO,” Biden said. “We made clear that we were not involved, that we had nothing to do with it. This was part of a struggle within the Russian system.”There’s been no sign that Secretary of State Antony Blinken has tried to contact Lavrov about the crisis. Instead, Blinken has been telling the media that the US expects more instability in Russia. “I think we’re in the midst of a moving picture. We haven’t seen the last act,” Blinken told CBS News on Sunday.

How To Plant Propaganda: “Putin has been weakened. Russia is crumbling.” Moon of Alabama -On Sunday the U.S.Secretary of State went on four morning shows to play the same distinct melody over and over again:

• Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Margaret Brennan of CBS Face the Nation: And it was a direct challenge to Putin’s authority. So this raises profound questions. It shows real cracks. We can’t speculate or know exactly where that’s going to go. We do know that Putin has a lot more to answer for in the weeks and months ahead. … These create more cracks in the Russian façade, and those cracks were already profound.Economically, militarily, its standing in the world – all of those things have been dramatically diminished by Putin’s aggression against Ukraine.He’s managed to bring Europe together. He’s managed to bring NATO together. He’s managed to get Europe to move off of Russian energy. He’s managed to alienate Ukrainians and unite Ukraine at the same time. So across the board this has been a strategic failure.
• Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Chuck Todd of NBC Meet The Press ... So I think we’ve seen more cracks emerge in the Russian facade. It is too soon to tell exactly where they go and when they get there. But certainly we have all sorts of new questions that Putin is going to have to address in the weeks and months ahead.
  This is just the latest chapter in a book of failure that Putin has written for himself and for Russia.Economically, militarily, its standing in the world – all of things have plummeted. We have a united NATO that’s stronger than ever before, a Europe that is weaning itself off of Russian energy, Ukraine that Putin has managed to alienate and unite at the same time. Now, with trouble brewing from within, this, as I said, just adds more questions that he has to find answers for.
• Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Dana Bash of CNN State of the Union We’ve seen this aggression against Ukraine become a strategic failure across the board. Russia is weaker economically, militarily. Its standing around the world has plummeted. It’s managed to get Europeans off of Russian energy. It’s managed to unite and strengthen NATO with new members and a stronger Alliance. It’s managed to alienate from Russia and unite together Ukraine in ways that it’s never been before. This is just an added chapter to a very, very bad book that Putin has written for Russia.
• Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Jonathan Karl of ABC This Week: But I think we can say this much: First, we’ve seen some very serious cracks emerge....But we’ve seen, I think, lots of different cracks that have emerged in the conduct of this aggression, because everything Putin has tried to accomplish, the opposite has happened. Russia is weaker economically. It’s weaker militarily. Its standing in the world has plummeted. It’s managed to strengthen and unite NATO. It’s managed to alienate and unite Ukrainians. It’s managed to get Europe off of dependence on Russian energy.

The very same (false) talking points, repeated over and over again, are a sure sign of lies and an organized propaganda campaign.For the record. Progozhin was all alone in his mutiny attempt. Not one element of the Russian government or civil society joint him in his ride. So where are the cracks? There are none. Also Russia's military is now larger and better equipped then before the war. Russia's economy is fine and growing. Its standing in the world has increased.But Blinken's propaganda works well because the U.S. media are trained to pick up any sheet of music an administration hands out and to sing its tune over and over again.I could quote dozens of participants in that game to make that point. But the Washington Posts has made it easier for me when it asked eight of its columnists to comment on the issues. All but one, a neocon who wants to see more action, repeat Blinken's message: "Putin has been weakened. Russia is crumbling."

Of COURSE Greta Met With Zelensky: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix – Caitlin Johnstone - Of course Greta Thunberg met with Zelensky. Of course she did. That was the only box left to check off in the most PR-intensive proxy war of all time. They got Bono. They got Mark Hamill and Sean Penn. They got appearances at the WEF, the New York Stock Exchange and the Grammys. They just needed Greta. As with 2016 and 2020, by far the largest US election interference in 2024 will come not from Russia or China but from American oligarchs and empire managers. This is treated as fine and normal, because American oligarchs and empire managers are the nation’s real government. US election interference is an inside job.We’ve been seeing this illustrated with RFK Jr’s censorship by Google-owned Youtube:We also saw it illustrated recently when Obama’s acting CIA director just casually admitted to using his intelligence onnections to orchestrate a blatant psyop to manipulate the 2020 election using false information, and literally nothing happened. It was just accepted as fine and normal.It’s only illegitimate election interference if unauthorized foreign powers do it or if ordinary Americans do it; when US oligarchs and empire managers do it it’s just the normal thing that’s supposed to happen.

Aging Iraq Invaders Keep Accidentally Saying ‘Iraq’ Instead Of ‘Ukraine’ – Caitlin Johnstone - President Biden accidentally referred to Putin’s war in “Iraq” when answering questions from the press, a year after former president George W Bush made the same gaffe. Both men played crucial roles in the push to invade Iraq.Asked on Wednesday whether the short-lived Prigozhin rebellion was a sign that Putin was weakening, Biden replied, “It’s hard to tell really. But he’s clearly losing the war in Iraq.”During the 2020 presidential race, Current Affairs’ Nathan J Robinson wrote the following about Biden’s pivotal role in manufacturing support for the Iraq invasion:In 2003, Biden was “a senator bullish about the push to war [in Iraq] who helped sell the Bush administration’s pitch to the American public,” who “voted for — and helped advance — the Bush agenda.” He was the war’s “most crucial” senate supporter. Biden repeated the myth that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, saying that “these weapons must be dislodged from Saddam Hussein, or Saddam Hussein must be dislodged from power.” The resulting war was one of the most deadly catastrophes in the history of U.S. foreign policy — the Iraqi death toll was in the hundreds of thousands or possibly even the millions, and 4,500 American troops died.That Biden’s decomposing brain would find the word “Iraq” when reaching for the word which means “nation that has been illegally invaded by an evil government” is positively Freudian.In May of last year during a speech in Dallas, George W Bush made a similar Freudian confession, saying, “The result is an absence of checks and balances in Russia, and the decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq. I mean, of Ukraine.”After correcting himself with a nervous chuckle, Bush broke the tension with the words, “Iraq too. Anyway.” He then quipped that he is 75 years old, leaning harder on his “Aw shucks gee willikers I’m such a goofball” persona than he ever has in his entire life.

New US diplomatic provocations fuel tensions with China - In the wake of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Beijing last week, the Biden administration, far from seeking to tone down its anti-China rhetoric and stabilise relations between the two countries, has upped the ante with new diplomatic provocations. Speaking to wealthy donors as part of this 2024 re-election campaign last Tuesday, Biden bluntly defended his decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon that drifted over US airspace in February, and branded Chinese President Xi Jinping as “a dictator” who was embarrassed by the incident. Without offering a shred of evidence, he declared that the “balloon” was loaded with “spy equipment.” Adding fuel to the fire, the US president told his audience not to worry about China because it “has real economic difficulties.” Biden’s comments came just hours after Blinken told MSNBC that the two countries should call put an end to the controversy over the balloon incident, saying it was a chapter that “should be closed.” Nominally at least, Blinken’s trip to China was aimed at easing the sharp tensions caused by Washington’s escalating confrontation with Beijing. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning declared that Biden’s remarks “go totally against facts and seriously violate diplomatic protocol, and severely infringe on China’s political dignity.” The White House, however, made clear that Biden had no intention of retracting his comments. Moreover, just days before, as he was leaving Beijing, Blinken stirred up further spying allegations against China. Asked during an interview with CBS whether he had raised allegations of Chinese intelligence gathering facilities in Cuba, he declared: “I did. I’m not going to characterise their response, but I told them that this is a serious concern for us.” Blinken said the US had taken steps in recent years to push back against Chinese spying in Latin America. “This is nothing new, but it is something of real concern. I was very clear about our concerns with China. But regardless of that, we’ve been going around to various places where we see this kind of activity, trying to put a stop to it,” he said. The previous week, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) claimed that China had initiated a “brash new geo-political challenge” to the US by reaching a secret agreement with the Cuban government to build a new electronic surveillance base on the island. It would “allow Chinese intelligence services to scoop up electronic communications throughout southeastern US, where many military bases are located, and monitor US ship traffic.” The WSJ article, entitled “Cuba to host secret Chinese spy base focusing on US,” has all the hallmarks of a provocative beat-up. Furthermore, a White House official effectively dismissed the report, saying: “This is an ongoing issue, and not a new development.” At the same time, however, the official continued to feed the story, declaring: “[China] conducted an upgrade of its intelligence collection facilities in Cuba in 2019. This is well-documented in the intelligence record.” Both China and Cuba have declared the allegations to be false.

Blinken Backs Biden Calling Xi a Dictator - Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday defended President Biden calling Chinese President Xi Jinping a “dictator.”Biden referred to Xi as a dictator just one day after Blinken met with the Chinese leader as part of a trip to Beijing to smooth relations. China was furious over Biden’s remark and lodged a formal complaint with the US ambassador in Beijing.“When it comes to China, we are going to do and say things that they don’t like,” Blinken said on CNN’s State of the Union when asked if Biden was wrong to call Xi a dictator. Blinken said China would also continue to “do and say things that we don’t like,” pointing to the rhetoric from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.At daily press briefings, representatives of the Chinese Foreign Ministry often harshly criticize US policy toward China but avoid personal insults directed at President Biden.When asked if he believes Xi is a dictator, Blinken replied, “The president speaks clearly. He speaks candidly. I have worked for him for more than 20 years, and he speaks for all of us.”During Blinken’s trip to Beijing, the two sides agreed to maintain dialogue, but no breakthroughs were made as the Biden administration is not changing course on major issues of concern for China, such as increasing US support for Taiwan.

Chinese spy balloon did not transmit data: Pentagon --The Chinese spy balloon the United States shot down over the Atlantic Ocean in February was built with some American-made parts, according to reports, though the Pentagon on Tuesday would not confirm the findings.The Wall Street Journal first reported that the aerial object was loaded with U.S.-made equipment to allow it to take photos and videos and collect other information while slowly making its way through U.S. airspace and over several sensitive military sites. U.S. officials told the outlet the information was based on preliminary findings in an investigation the U.S. government led. Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder would not offer any comment on potential U.S. components on the balloon but said defense officials are aware of previous cases where other countries’ militaries have used off-the-shelf American equipment such as drones. “That in of itself is not surprising in terms of the balloon and the capabilities it has,” he told reporters. He also asserted that — while the balloon did have intelligence collection capabilities — the U.S. has determined “it did not collect while it was transiting the United States.”

Pentagon Says Chinese Balloon Did Not Collect Data While Over US - The Pentagon said Thursday that the Chinese balloon that wound up over the US in February did not collect data while it flew over US territory.“We believe that it did not collect while it was transiting the United States or flying over the United States, and certainly the efforts that we made contributed, I’m sure,” said Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder.Ryder made the comments when asked about a Wall Street Journal report that said the balloon contained US-made equipment. “I don’t have any specifics to provide as it pertains to the [People’s Republic of China] high altitude balloon and any potential US components,” he said.For their part, Beijing has said the balloon was a civilian weather research device, while the Biden administration says it was a surveillance device. At this point, it has become clear that China did not intend to fly the balloon over the US, something President Biden recently acknowledged.“That wasn’t supposed to be going where it was. It was blown off course up through Alaska and then down through the United States,” Biden said.The Balloon incident caused a frenzy in Washington, causing Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a trip to China. Members of Congress demanded President Biden shoot down the balloon, which he eventually did when it was off the coast of South Carolina.Following the downing of the Chinese balloon, the US downed three unidentified objects using four $400,000 AIM-9X Sidewinder missiles. At least one was likely a small hobby balloon, known as a pico balloon, which can be purchased for as little as $12, depending on the type.The White House has acknowledged that the three objects could have been “totally benign.” President Biden said they were likely “balloons tied to private companies, recreational or research institutions, studying weather or conducting other scientific research.”

Republican lawmakers request postal service data on retailers' shipments from China (Reuters) – Republican leaders of two House committees are requesting United States Postal Service data on retailers’ goods shipped from China under an exemption in U.S. trade law that excludes some packages worth $800 or less from tariffs. The exemption, known as the de minimis rule, has earned growing scrutiny over the last few months from congressional leaders who say it unfairly benefits the China-founded retail companies Shein and its rival Temu, launched by parent PDD Holdings (PDD.O) in the United States in September. Neither company immediately responded to a request for comment from Reuters. Republican Reps. Mike Gallagher, chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and James Comer, who heads the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, sent a letter on Wednesday to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy asking for “documents, information, and data” related to goods from China shipped into the United States. The letter also asked specifically for all records and data related to de minimis shipments from fiscal 2021 and 2022. “Chinese companies can take advantage of the de minimis rule and ship products via commercial shipping companies, as well as the USPS, directly to U.S. consumers without paying duties and fees or subjecting their products to investigation by authorities,” the request reads. Gallagher’s select committee released a separate report earlier this week estimating that Shein and Temu accounted for more than 30% of all de minimis shipments sent to the United States. There are currently two bipartisan bills in Congress that take aim at the e-commerce companies by proposing a ban on e-commerce shipments from China and other non-market economies.

Justice Department says new Florida law restricting Chinese land ownership is unconstitutional -— The U.S. Department of Justice this week said a new law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that restricts some Chinese citizens from owning property in Florida violates federal law and the U.S. Constitution. DeSantis, who is seeking the Republican nomination for president, said in May that the measure helps Florida lead the way among states in protecting national security. But the DOJ said in a “statement of interest” filed in U. S. District Court in Tallahassee that the legislation, FL SB264 (23R), violates the federal Fair Housing Act and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. “These unlawful provisions will cause serious harm to people simply because of their national origin, contravene federal civil rights laws, undermine constitutional rights, and will not advance the State’s purported goal of increasing public safety,” the DOJ wrote. The new law takes effect July 1. The legal action by the department is just the latest skirmish between the Biden administration and DeSantis in recent years, but this marks the first significant conflict since DeSantis jumped into the race for president a month ago. There was no immediate response to a request for comment from the governor’s office or Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody. Nor were comments provided in response to a request from the state Department of Economic Opportunity or Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, both of which are named as defendants in the lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union. A Simpson spokesperson said the commissioner would allow his reply brief due to be filed in federal court by July 3 to speak for itself. DeSantis on the campaign trail has repeatedly warned that the Chinese represent one of the biggest threats against the U.S. and contended that Biden has been too weak in dealing with the communist country.

State Department failed to plan well enough for Afghanistan withdrawal, report finds - The Trump and Biden administrations made mistakes with their crisis management before and during American troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, a State Department report released Friday found.The 21-page report, requested by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, found the decisions of both “President [Donald] Trump and President [Joe] Biden to end the U.S. military mission posed significant challenges” for the State Department.Among contributing factors to the chaotic and violent withdrawal, the report found, were that the State Department wasn’t best prepared for the collapse of the Afghan government, “prolonged gaps in filling” senior positions overseas and difficulties staffing and running the department’s in-person crisis response due to the coronavirus pandemic.Overall, the department found that the U.S. needs to better plan for “worst-case scenarios,” rebuild the department’s crisis management capabilities and “ensure that senior officials hear the broadest possible range of views including those that challenge operating assumptions or question the wisdom of key policy decisions.” The report also found the department — and even the Taliban — underestimated how quickly the Afghan army and government would fall.

Letter Calls for Pentagon to ‘Make Amends’ for Killing Civilian in Syria Drone Strike -Twenty-one organizations have sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin calling for the Pentagon to conduct a transparent investigation into a May 3 drone strike that killed a civilian in northwest Syria’s Idlib province.When the strike was first launched, US Central Command claimed it killed a “senior al-Qaeda leader,” but there were immediate indications that a civilian was hit. Pentagon officials later told CNN that CENTCOM did not know who they killed when they made the claim.The victim of the drone strike turned out to be 56-year-old Lotfi Hassan Misto, a father of 10 who was killed while herding his sheep in the Idlib countryside. Relatives and neighbors said he had no affiliation with al-Qaeda or any militant group, and terrorism experts told The Washington Post there was no evidence that he did.The letter’s signatories include Amnesty International and the monitoring group Airwars, and they call on the Pentagon to conduct a “robust” investigation into the strike. The Pentagon has announced a probe into the incident, but previous investigations into strikes that killed civilians have claimed no wrongdoing and did not result in any accountability.The groups want the investigation to be transparent and released to the public. “We ask that you publicly release the full investigation and its findings. Public institutions can only be held to account when external parties, including the general public, can review and independently assess their actions,” the letter reads.The letter also calls for the US to “make amends” for the strike. “If the Department finds a civilian was killed, we ask that you provide acknowledgment and amends in consultation with his family or representatives, as envisioned by your new plan to improve civilian harm response,” the letter says.

Report: US Expressed Concern to Israel About Leaking Info on Iran Talks - Axios reported on Wednesday that White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan expressed concern to his Israeli counterpart about Israel leaking information to the press about the US and Iran holding indirect talks to reach an interim agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program.Iran has publicly confirmed that it held indirect talks with the US in Oman, but the Biden administration has not. The administration also denied reports that said that the US and Iran were close to an agreement for Tehran to reduce uranium enrichment levels in exchange for some sanctions relief and a potential prisoner swap.But Israeli officials were speaking openly about the potential agreement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Knesset lawmakers that the US and Iran were working on a “mini agreement.”Citing unnamed US and Israeli officials, the Axios report said Sullivan and Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi had a “tough call” last week about Israel leaking the information. An Israeli official said that Sullivan expressed frustration about Netanyahu’s remarks.The Biden administration has tried to stay quiet about the potential deal with Iran because Iran hawks in Congress, which included most Republicans and some Democrats, would oppose any agreement with the Islamic Republic, especially if it involves sanctions relief.A Western official previously told Reuters that one reason for Washington seeking an agreement with Tehran is to prevent an Israeli attack on Iran. Israeli officials are constantly threatening Iran over its nuclear program but are against any deals that would reduce its nuclear enrichment.Despite Israeli claims, there’s no sign that Iran is trying to build a nuclear weapon, something the Pentagon acknowledged in its Nuclear Posture Review that was issued last year. Iran is currently enriching some uranium at 60% but has never attempted enriching at the 90% level needed for weapons-grade.

Congress doubles down on explosive claims of illegal UFO retrieval programs -Asked June 26 about allegations of secret UFO retrieval and reverse-engineering programs, Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) made several stunning statements.In an exclusive interview, Rubio told NewsNation Washington correspondent Joe Khalil that multiple individuals with “very high clearances and high positions within our government” “have come forward to share” “first-hand” UFO-related claims “beyond the realm of what [the Senate Intelligence Committee] has ever dealt with.”Rubio’s comments provide context for a bipartisan provision adopted unanimously by the Senate Intelligence Committee, which would immediately halt funding for any secret government or contractor efforts to retrieve and reverse-engineer craft of “non-earth” or “exotic” origin.This extraordinary language added to the Senate version of the Intelligence authorization bill mirrors and adds significant credibility to a whistleblower’s recent, stunning allegations that a clandestine, decades-long effort to recover, analyze and exploit objects of “non-human” origin has been operating illegally without congressional oversight.Additionally, the bill instructs individuals with knowledge of such activities to disclose all relevant information and grants legal immunity if the information is reported appropriately within a defined timeframe. Moreover, nearly 20 pages of the legislation appear to directly address recent events by enhancing a raft of legal protections for whistleblowers while also permitting such individuals to contact Congress directly.Researcher and congressional expert Douglas Johnson first reported on and analyzed the remarkable bill language, which, if it passes the House, could become law this calendar year. Beyond the Senate Intelligence Committee, the powerful investigative body that oversees the nation’s intelligence agencies found the aforementioned whistleblower’s allegations — that secret UFO-related programs are illegally withheld from Congress — to be “credible and urgent.”Moreover, according to two reports, multiple military, intelligence and contractor officials corroborated claims that the U.S. government or private companies possess multiple craft of possible “non-human” origin. Importantly, this intelligence bill is not the first instance of Congress addressing the possible existence of surreptitious UFO retrieval and reverse engineering programs. The 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden last December, established robust whistleblower protections for individuals with knowledge of secret UFO programs engaged in “material retrieval, material analysis, reverse engineering [and] research and development.”

Senate Battle Brews Over Nuclear Regulator -- When President Barack Obama first named Jeff Baran to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2014, the Democratic majority in the Senate confirmed the former congressional staffer in a 52-40 vote. When President Donald Trump renominated the Democrat for another five-year term in 2018, the GOP-led Senate approved Baran by a simple voice tally. But President Joe Biden’s plan to give Baran a third stint on the federal body responsible for the world’s largest fleet of commercial reactors has already hit the rocks, as Republicans move to block a commissioner critics paint as an “obstructionist” with a record of voting for policies nuclear advocates say make it harder to keep existing plants open and more expensive, if not impossible, to deploy advanced next-generation atomic technologies.Last Friday, the Senate went on break for the next two weeks, all but guaranteeing that Baran’s current term ends on June 30 without a decision on whether he will rejoin the five-member board, creating a vacancy that could cause gridlock on some decisions and mark a return to the partisan feuds of a decade ago.“His votes and positions simply do not align with enabling the safe use of nuclear technologies that the NRC is expected to undertake in the coming years,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said in a June 14 statement announcing her plan to vote against Baran. “Throughout his past nomination processes, he has a history of telling the Committee he supports advanced nuclear, and then not doing so once in office.”The White House and the Democrats who control the Senate hope to reinstate Baran in a vote next month, casting the regulator as a sober-minded professional with an ear to the woes of those living in polluted or impoverished communities. The battle highlights growing tensions over nuclear energy in the United States, the country that built the world’s first full-scale fission power plant nearly seven decades ago but all but ceased expanding atomic energy in the 30 years since the Cold War ended.

US intelligence agency releases declassified Wuhan SARS-CoV-2 lab leak assessments - The director of the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on June 23 issued a declassified report on what US intelligence agencies know about potential links between the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.In early March, both houses of Congress passed a bill to declassify what US agencies found, following reports that two—the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Energy (DOE)—found with low confidence that a lab leak was the most likely source. Others, also with low confidence, said a jump from animals to humans was the most likely source.President Biden signed the bill on Mar 20, which ordered the ODNI to declassify the information within 90 days.Four agencies still lean toward the natural origin source, while the FBI and DOE still lean toward a lab leak, according to the Associated Press. Two others, including the Central Intelligence Agency, have not made assessments.Regarding reports of illnesses in WIV staff ahead of the unexplained pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan, the ODNI report said several people fell mildly ill in the fall of 2019, with a range of symptoms including colds and allergies, with symptoms not typically associated with COVID-19. Some had confirmed illnesses that weren't related to COVID. No hospitalizations were reported for conditions similar to COVID, though one lab employee may have been treated for a nonrespiratory condition.

Over $200 billion potentially lost to pandemic loan fraud: Watchdog -- Serial fraudsters, global cyber thieves and simple opportunists may have stolen more than $200 billion from two federal small business aid programs during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new watchdog report. The estimates from the U.S. Small Business Administration's inspector general suggest that fraud in the programs was more pervasive than has previously been reported. The report said that the SBA's haste to disburse small business aid at the onset of the pandemic were a key factor in one of the largest-ever grifts against the U.S. government. "There was an insufficient barrier against fraudsters accessing funds that should have been available for eligible business owners adversely affected by the pandemic," the inspector general wrote. The SBA, which administered the government's efforts to get funding to small businesses quickly, took issue with the report's findings. Bailey DeVries, the agency's acting associate administrator for capital access, said in the SBA's response that the review "contains serious flaws" and overstates the amount of funds lost from the Paycheck Protection Program and the Emergency Injury Disaster Loan program. DeVries also wrote that the report "only minimally acknowledges" the SBA's response to reports of fraud in the two programs. The inspector general's estimate that 33% of EIDL funding was potentially fraudulent does not match the SBA's current repayment data, DeVries wrote. The data shows that only 12% of the program's loans went to borrowers who are past due and yet to make payments, according to DeVries. The SBA inspector general's office relied on a process called "link analysis," which identifies trends in shared data attributes. Investigators zeroed in on 11 common indicators of potentially stolen money, including false bank account and employer identification numbers, complaints made to a COVID-19 fraud hotline and suspicious phone numbers. The report found that fraudsters potentially stole 17% of the funding from the two programs between March 2020 and the end of 2021. Last June, Department of Justice Inspector General Michael Horowitz estimated that at least 10% of both EIDL and PPP applicants may have obtained loans "that were inconsistent with income eligibility requirements." Tim McInnis, a lawyer representing PPP whistleblowers, suggested that the total amount of fraud from the two SBA programs "could be a lot more" than the inspector general's latest estimate.

GOP divided on first impeachment target - The growing zeal among House Republicans to launch impeachment proceedings has hit an early snag: There’s no agreement on which Biden administration figure to target. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) this week threw his support behind a possible impeachment inquiry into Attorney General Merrick Garland — just days after the GOP conference sparred internally over a resolution from Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) to impeach President Biden. And a possible Biden impeachment came on the heels of an announcement from House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.) that the panel would kick off the formal investigation of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas needed to proceed with an impeachment inquiry. Since the GOP takeover of the House, much of the impeachment energy has been focused on Mayorkas, with disagreements over the border fueling several impeachment resolutions in the weeks after lawmakers were sworn in. But a drop in border crossings in recent months has largely taken the issue out of the national headlines, while at the same time, new accusations surrounding the Justice Department’s handling of the investigation into Hunter Biden have heightened the GOP’s outrage at Garland. It was the latter issue that prompted this week’s surprise statement from McCarthy. “If the whistleblowers’ allegations are true, this will be a significant part of a larger impeachment inquiry into Merrick Garland’s weaponization of DOJ,” McCarthy wrote on Twitter. In May and June alone, lawmakers introduced 11 different impeachment resolutions for top Biden officials, five of them sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.). Aside from Biden, Garland and Mayorkas, Greene also has her sights on FBI Director Christopher Wray and Matthew Graves, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. But until recently, McCarthy in many respects had pumped the brakes on some of the conference’s loudest impeachment cheerleaders. He’s repeatedly said impeachment can’t be seen as a political endeavor and, as recently as Friday, said that any efforts have “got to reach the constitutional level of impeachment.”

Freedom Caucus takes key vote on Marjorie Taylor Greene’s future - House Freedom Caucus members took a momentous vote Friday on Marjorie Taylor Greene’s future with the group, according to three people familiar with the matter — but it’s not yet clear whether she’s been officially ejected.The right-flank group took up Greene’s status amid an internal push, first reported by POLITICO, to consider purging members who are inactive or at odds with the Freedom Caucus. Greene’s close alliance with Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and her accompanying criticism of colleagues in the group, has put her on the opposite side of a bloc that made its name opposing GOP leadership.While her formal status in the conservative group remains in limbo, the 8 a.m. Friday vote — which sources said ended with a consensus against her — points to, at least, continued strong anti-Greene sentiment.A spokesperson for Freedom Caucus Chair Scott Perry (R-Pa.) declined to comment on the group’s vote as well as the official status of Greene’s membership. Perry said in an interview last week that he had denied requests to remove members from the group of roughly 35 House Republicans. A spokesperson for Greene did not respond to a request for comment.The uncertainty that now shrouds Greene’s status is partly due to the tightly held bylaws that govern official Freedom Caucus decisions. Even before the Greene vote, members questioned whether the group’s rule that 80 percent of the Freedom Caucus must support any formal decision applies to all matters — or just legislation.Interviews for this story reflected lingering interest in trying to reconcile differences with Greene before any formal action is taken, and a suggestion that the chair or board could separately intervene to slow down any removal.Discussions about Greene’s Freedom Caucus status were simmering for weeks, and the Friday vote occurred shortly after a high-profile clash between her and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), a member of the conservative group’s board.Greene confronted Boebert on the House floor, calling the Coloradan “a little bitch” and claiming Boebert copied her on a measure aimed at quickly impeaching President Joe Biden. After the exchange was first reported in The Daily Beast, Greene confirmed the fight and doubled down, adding another pejorative..Should Greene ultimately exit the Freedom Caucus, it is likely to trigger a greater feud within the House GOP as conservatives wrestle over how closely to work with their own party leaders. McCarthy’s team is still struggling to quell an ongoing rebellion propelled by Freedom Caucus members.

Documents reveal Eric Adams sent migrants to Florida, Texas and China -— After lashing out at leading Republicans for busing asylum-seekers to Democrat-led cities, New York Mayor Eric Adams turned around and did something similar — sending dozens of migrants to red states like Florida and Texas. And Adams didn’t stop at the nation’s borders. Between April 2022 and April 2023, New York City spent around $50,000 to resettle 114 migrant households in cities around the U.S. and the globe, according to information obtained exclusively by POLITICO through a public information request. Some were sent to countries in South America — and one all the way to China. The most common destinations were Florida, which received 28 families, and Texas, which received 14. That represents a fraction of the nearly 79,000 migrants who entered the city since last spring, and is thousands fewer than Gov. Greg Abbott has sent out of Texas. But the fact that New York City paid for trips to Republican strongholds could further inflame national tensions on a subject that is sure to influence both Congressional races and President Joe Biden’s reelection bid. At the same time, Adams is in a tight spot: The migrant crisis is costing the city billions. And as pressure on its shelter system reaches a critical level, the mayor is trying every possible release valve from busing asylum-seekers to other destinations to housing them in former jails. In September, Adams condemned Texas Gov. Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for transporting migrants to New York City, calling it a stunt. At the time, Abbott had been sending buses of asylum-seekers to New York City — charters that have continued — while DeSantis sent planes of migrants to Martha’s Vineyard. “This was part of a political ploy and that’s what we need to understand,” Adams said during an appearance on MSNBC last fall.In May, Adams accused Abbott of targeting cities run by Black mayors — though buses also arrived in Philadelphia, run by a white mayor — with his busing program and said the Texas governor was refusing to coordinate with city officials.Abbott’s office said its busing program is designed to provide relief to Texas towns far smaller than New York that have been overrun, and that the mayor has touted New York City’s sanctuary status in the past.

Supreme Court takes aim at Mass v. EPA in immigration ruling - The Supreme Court has preserved a Biden administration immigration policy against legal attack from Republican-led states — and in doing so, cast doubt on the outcome of one of the most important environmental rulings in U.S. history. In an 8-1 ruling issued Friday, the high court found that Texas and Louisiana did not have the power to sue the federal government over enforcement guidelines on the arrest and removal of immigrants who have recently entered the country unlawfully or who are suspected of terrorism or dangerous crimes. The states contended that the Department of Homeland Security’s policy should be to make more arrests. But in the majority opinion for the court, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote that the states had failed to establish standing for their lawsuit — despite a landmark 2007 environmental ruling that said states enjoy “special solicitude” to protect their interests in court. “As part of their argument for standing, the States also point to Massachusetts v. EPA,” Kavanaugh wrote in a footnote. “Putting aside any disagreements that some may have with Massachusetts v. EPA, that decision does not control this case.” Kavanaugh, whose opinion was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and the court’s three liberal members, said the key distinction between the immigration case — United States v. Texas — and Massachusetts is that the environmental case focused on a “statutorily authorized petition for rulemaking,” rather than the federal government’s enforcement discretion. In Massachusetts, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that states could sue EPA to force the agency to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles. Those emissions, the court found, fit the Clean Air Act’s definition of an “air pollutant” that could “reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare.” The court also found in Massachusetts that states have special standing in court because of their need to protect their “quasi-sovereign interests.” Justice Samuel Alito penned a sole dissenting opinion in the immigration case, saying that he would have recognized the states’ rights to make their claim against the Biden administration. He rebuked Kavanaugh’s majority opinion for confining its discussion of Massachusetts to a footnote and accused his colleagues of treating Texas “less favorably” than the Bay State. Justice Neil Gorsuch, joined by Justices Clarence Thomas and Amy Coney Barrett, wrote a concurring opinion agreeing with the outcome of the majority decision on Biden’s immigration policy but criticizing Massachusetts’ idea of special treatment for states in court.

Conservative, liberal justices unite in rejecting North Carolina GOP election theory -- Three liberal and three conservative justices on Tuesday came together to reject a bid that would have given state legislatures broad authority over congressional maps and federal elections. Chief Justice John Roberts authored the majority opinion, joined by the court’s three liberal Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, as well as conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh filed a concurring opinion. Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented. The 6-3 decision rejects the so-called independent state legislature theory. North Carolina GOP lawmakers had appealed a lawsuit over the state’s congressional map and argued that the state’s Supreme Court couldn’t block the lines the lawmakers had drawn. Justices on both sides of the ideological spectrum also joined together in a 7-2 decision to vacate a Colorado man’s stalking conviction after he sent hundreds of online messages to musician Coles Whalen, which included messages telling Whalen to “die” and “f— off permanently.” The majority opinion, authored by Kagan, argued the conviction was made under the wrong legal standards, and that the man’s intent should have been considered — not merely how a reasonable person would have interpreted the statements.Sotomayor and Gorsuch agreed with vacating the conviction but disagreed in its ruling about true threats more broadly. Thomas and Coney Barrett dissented. The nation’s highest court is approaching its summer recess, and is expected to issue still more big decisions in the coming days.

Supreme Court crushes plan to scramble partisan map-making - The Supreme Court just turbo-charged the nationwide fight over gerrymandering.It is a rejection of the so-called independent state legislature theory, with the Supreme Court leaving a role for state courts to wade into the increasingly common battles over partisan gerrymandering. State courts have beenimmensely influential over congressional control over the last half-decade.The ruling ensures that state Supreme Courts will remain ultimate arbiters of partisan gerrymandering, and that they can rein in legislatures looking to use redistricting to eviscerate a minority party. Previously under the radar judicial contests will continue to see millions of dollars pour in to influence their outcomes.“There was this real movement into state courts after 2018,” said Marina Jenkins, executive director of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, referring to Democrats’ success in challenging Pennsylvania’s GOP-drawn map before a state court. “If anything, this is just ensuring that those fights can continue, and that a broader landscape of litigation can continue to be pursued.”Wisconsin Democrats are perhaps the most immediate winners of the decision. Liberals won a majority on their state Supreme Court for the first time in over a decade earlier this year. They are already plotting to use it to unravel what is perhaps the strongest GOP gerrymandering in the country. The independent state legislature theory threatened to upend those plans, so Democrats now have a clearer path to litigate those maps thanks to Tuesday’s ruling.It also has a major effect on a long-running fight in Ohio, where the state Supreme Court has repeatedly struck down GOP maps there as illegal gerrymanders. Ohio Republicans have asked the nation’s top court to intervene on similar grounds, but the court has not yet acted on their plea. Tuesday’s ruling means the fight will likely remain between the legislature and the state Supreme Court, which became more favorable to Republicans last year.Meanwhile, Democrats are pushing to have court-drawn lines thrown out in New York, where a particularly aggressive Democratic gerrymander could cost Republicans several seats. While that fight in state court is ongoing, there is no immediate ruling that would give Democrats the green light to immediately ignore their state judiciary.It will, however, have little effect in North Carolina, the state where Moore v. Harper originated. Republicans there, spearheaded by state House Speaker Tim Moore, asked the Supreme Court to restrain their state’s then-Democratic controlled high court from wading into a fight on partisan gerrymandering. But while awaiting a final ruling, Republicans won control of North Carolina’s Supreme Court, which overturned the previous court’s ruling. Republican lawmakers are expected to redraw the lines this summer, and are expected to heavily favor their party.

How the Supreme Court’s decision on election law could shut the door on future fake electors - The Supreme Court’s rejection of a controversial election theory may also have another huge political consequence for future presidential contests: It obliterated the dubious fake elector scheme that Donald Trump deployed in his failed attempt to seize a second term.That scheme relied on friendly state legislatures appointing “alternate” slates of pro-Trump presidential electors — even if state laws certified victory for Joe Biden. Backed by fringe theories crafted by attorneys like John Eastman, Trump contended that state legislatures could unilaterally reverse the outcome and override their own laws and constitutions to do so.Mainstream election lawyers on both sides of the aisle denounced the theory in the months after the 2020 election. But because no court had ever directly ruled on the theory, its proponents were able to describe it as a plausible, if untested, interpretation of constitutional law. Eastman himself, currently facing disbarment in California for his actions to subvert the election, has claimed that he was engaged in “good-faith” advocacy on an unsettled legal question.But by rejecting the so-called independent state legislature theory in Moore v. Harper on Tuesday, Chief Justice Roberts effectively extinguished it as a plausible path in 2024 and beyond. “It keeps the toothpaste in the tube, in the sense that the theories that would give state legislatures unvarnished power has been rejected,” said Ben Ginsberg, a prominent Republican elections attorney who loudly pushed back against Trump’s attempts in 2020 to overturn his loss. “State legislatures thinking that they can just, if they feel like it after an election, replace the popular will with a slate of electors is as gone as ‘there can’t be any review of redistricting plans.’”Tuesday’s opinion primarily revolves around an interpretation of the U.S. Constitution’s elections clause, which says that state legislatures can set rules for congressional elections in their states.Though some on the right have interpreted the clause as giving state legislatures total authority to write and rewrite election procedures, without any input from governors or state courts, the Supreme Court rejected that notion.

Obama says ‘fringe’ theory rejected by Supreme Court threatened to ‘upend our democracy’ -Former President Obama said the Supreme Court’s rejection of the “fringe” independent state legislatures theory Tuesday protects the country from a threat to “upend our democracy.”The court ruled 6-3 against an effort by North Carolina Republican lawmakers to declare that courts did not have the authority to block congressional maps put forward by state legislatures. The lawmakers argued that the U.S. Constitution gave the authority to regulate federal elections in state legislatures exclusively, so courts could not strike down the map that the North Carolina Legislature approved. But Chief Justice John Roberts disagreed, writing for the majority that the Constitution’s Elections Clause does not “insulate state legislatures from the ordinary exercise of state judicial review.” Obama praised the ruling and warned of the consequences if it had gone the other way in a pair of tweets. “Today, the Supreme Court rejected the fringe independent state legislature theory that threatened to upend our democracy and dismantle our system of checks and balances,” he wrote. “This ruling rejects the far-right theory that threatened to undermine our democracy, and makes clear that courts can continue defending voters’ rights—in North Carolina and in every state.”The Biden administration opposed the effort to declare that courts had no authority to review the maps, arguing it would “wreak havoc” on administering elections across the country. Roberts wrote that courts must still review legislatures’ actions within the “ordinary bounds” of judicial review. Justice Clarence Thomas dissented from the majority, arguing that the case should have been declared moot.

Supreme Court hands down blow to college affirmative action - The Supreme Court severely limited the use of race as a factor in college admissions, upending decades of affirmative action programs that U.S. institutions have used to select students from their applicant pools. The court’s six conservative justices invalidated Harvard’s and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s (UNC) admissions scheme by ruling it did not comply with the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection. “Both programs lack sufficiently focused and measurable objectives warranting the use of race, unavoidably employ race in a negative manner, involve racial stereotyping, and lack meaningful end points,” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority. “We have never permitted admissions programs to work in that way, and we will not do so today,” he continued. “At the same time, as all parties agree, nothing in this opinion should be construed as prohibiting universities from considering an applicant’s discussion of how race affected his or her life, be it through discrimination, inspiration, or otherwise.” In a rare occurrence, Justice Clarence Thomas read his concurring opinion from the bench. The court’s decision adds to a legal crusade by conservative legal strategist Edward Blum, who formed Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) and separately challenged the admission policies of Harvard and UNC nearly a decade ago. The Biden administration had backed the two schools before the justices. But after affirmative action at colleges survived multiple previous challenges at the Supreme Court, the bench’s increasingly conservative makeup has now handed down a major blow.

Read the Supreme Court's ruling against affirmative action - The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against affirmative action in higher education, striking down race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard and the University of North Carolina.The justices ruled the universities discriminated against white and Asian American applicants by using race-conscious admissions policies that benefited applicants from underrepresented backgrounds. Read the ruling here.

Biden on affirmative action decision: ‘This is not a normal court’ --President Biden on Thursday weighed in on the Supreme Court following its decision to upend affirmative action in college admissions, calling it “not normal.” “This is not a normal court,” the president said at the White House when asked whether thought the institution had gone “rogue.” The president later explained what he meant, saying in an interview with MSNBC that the Court “has done more to unravel basic rights and basic decisions than any Court in recent history.” “Take a look at how its ruled on a number of issues that have been precedent for 50, 60 years sometimes. And that’s what I meant by not normal,” the president added. “Across the board the vast majority of the American people don’t agree with majority of decisions the court is making.” The president opted not to respond to a question about whether there should be term limits for Supreme Court justices, an idea floated earlier in the week by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the former longtime House Speaker. Biden strongly disagreed with the court’s decision to strike affirmative action, which limited the use of race as a factor in college admissions. He later told MSNBC that there may be “too much harm” if they start the process of expanding the court, arguing that it could “politicize” it in a way “that is not healthy.” Earlier on Thursday, the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) said the court’s legitimacy is now in question, calling the decision “radical.”

Clarence Thomas, Ketanji Brown Jackson air sharp disagreement on race in America - The only two Black members of the Supreme Court — Justices Clarence Thomas and Ketanji Brown Jackson — openly traded barbs in their opinions Thursday as the high court dealt what may be a death blow to the use of race in college admissions.That they would disagree on the subject is hardly surprising. Thomas, the court’s longest serving justice and perhaps its most conservative member, rose to public prominence more than three decades ago as a strident critic of affirmative action. Jackson, the court’s newest justice, has long been a proponent of diversity efforts, and in one of the first cases she heard last fall,she made headlines for forcefully defending the idea that the Constitution allows — and even encourages — race-conscious policies to rectify the nation’s legacy of racial discrimination.. However, the acrimony in the back-and-forth between the pair is unusual for the Supreme Court. Much of their exchange on race in American society seemed particularly prickly and personal. Thomas, who headed the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission before being nominated to a federal appeals court and then the Supreme Court by President George H.W. Bush, devoted seven pages of his 58-page concurring opinion to critiquing Jackson’s dissent. He rebutted Jackson’s arguments in favor of race-conscious admissions and repudiated what he described as her grim outlook on racial equality in America. “As she sees things, we are all inexorably trapped in a fundamentally racist society, with the original sin of slavery and the historical subjugation of black Americans still determining our lives today,” wrote Thomas, 75, who in 1991 became the second Black person (after Thurgood Marshall) to be appointed to the high court. “The panacea, she counsels, is to unquestioningly accede to the view of elite experts and reallocate society’s riches by racial means as necessary to ‘level the playing field,’ all as judged by racial metrics. I strongly disagree.” Jackson’s 28-page dissent defended the use of race-conscious programs to ameliorate the pervasive, present-day effects of America’s history of state-sponsored racism. “Gulf-sized race-based gaps exist with respect to the health, wealth, and well-being of American citizens,” her dissent began. Allowing colleges to consider applicants’ race has “universal benefits” because it helps to close those gaps and thereby promotes equality, she wrote. And insisting that colleges and universities avoid using race in the admissions process would not erase those profound disparities, Jackson declared. “With let-them-eat-cake obliviousness, today, the majority pulls the ripcord and announces ‘colorblindness for all’ by legal fiat. But deeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life,” she wrote. Thomas — who mentioned his junior colleague by name 18 times in his opinion — assailed not only Jackson’s views on the subject but also her motivations. “Justice Jackson uses her broad observations about statistical relationships between race and select measures of health, wealth, and well-being to label all blacks as victims. Her desire to do so is unfathomable to me,” Thomas wrote. “I cannot deny the great accomplishments of black Americans, including those who succeeded despite long odds.” We have a new app. Download the upgraded version for iOS or Android. “Justice Jackson’s race-infused world view falls flat at each step. Individuals are the sum of their unique experiences, challenges, and accomplishments,” he added. “What matters is not the barriers they face, but how they choose to confront them. And their race is not to blame for everything — good or bad — that happens in their lives. A contrary, myopic world view based on individuals’ skin color to the total exclusion of their personal choices is nothing short of racial determinism.” Thomas also accused Jackson of ignoring the oppression of other groups, including Asian Americans and “white communities that have faced historic barriers.” Thomas wrote only for himself: No other justice joined his concurring opinion.

What’s next for college admissions after the end of affirmative action – - The Supreme Court’s gutting of affirmative action on Thursday has sparked a new drive among education groups, lawmakers and civil rights advocates who want to unravel other common practices for how applicants are admitted.Education and civil rights organizations could challenge standardized tests, which they say are barriers for underrepresented students. The leader of the anti-affirmative action movement, Edward Blum, has urged elite colleges to reconsider legacy admissions policies. And Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), ranking member of the House Education Committee, has called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to start investigating schools that use admissions requirements that he believes “have discriminatory impact.”“There are paths forward to ensure racial equity in higher education,” said David Hinojosa, an attorney with the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law who argued on behalf of a group of students opposed to the suit against University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “And we will pursue every avenue to hold universities accountable under federal civil rights laws, to reinstate a fair admissions process, where students’ identities are celebrated, not shunned.”The high court’s decision to end race-conscious admissions practices at Harvard University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill gives way to a number of legal targets and admissions hurdles that institutions will have to navigate as they aim to diversify campuses. Here are three:Blum, the head of Students for Fair Admissions which successfully sued Harvard and UNC, says he’s ready to challenge any school that may try to skirt the law.He threatened to “initiate litigation should universities defiantly flout this clear ruling and the dictates of Title VI and the Equal Protection Clause.” “The administrators of higher education must note: The law will not tolerate direct proxies for racial classifications,” Blum said in a statement. “For those in leadership positions at public and private universities, you have a legal obligation to follow the letter and the spirit of the law.”While Harvard and UNC expressed their disappointment with the Supreme Court’s decision, they recommitted to ensuring students with different backgrounds, perspectives and lived experiences are admitted to their campuses. Both institutions said they will be reviewing the high court’s opinion to ensure their admissions policies comply with the law.

Supreme Court kills Biden student loan debt relief plan — The Supreme Court on Friday invalidated President Joe Biden’s student loan debt relief plan, meaning the long-delayed proposal intended to implement a campaign trail promise will not go into effect. The justices, divided 6-3 on ideological lines, ruled in one of two cases that the program was an unlawful exercise of presidential power because it had not been explicitly approved by Congress. Biden said the ruling was disappointing and vowed to take additional steps to relieve the financial burden on those holding student loan debt."I will stop at nothing to find other ways to deliver relief to hard-working middle-class families," he said. "My administration will continue to work to bring the promise of higher education to every American."The court rejected the Biden administration’s arguments that the plan was lawful under a 2003 law called the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act, or HEROES Act. The law says the government can provide relief to recipients of student loans when there is a “national emergency,” allowing it to act to ensure people are not in “a worse position financially” as a result of the emergency.Chief Justice John Roberts said the HEROES Act language was not specific enough, writing that the court's precedent "requires that Congress speak clearly before a department secretary can unilaterally alter large sections of the American economy."The plan, which would have allowed eligible borrowers to cancel up to $20,000 in debt and would have cost more than $400 billion, has been blocked since the8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a temporary hold in October.About 43 million Americans would have been eligible to participate.The student loan proposal was important politically to Biden, as tackling student loan debt was a key pledge he made on the campaign trail in 2020 to energize younger voters.The ruling immediately puts pressure on the administration to find an alternative avenue to forgive student debt that could potentially withstand legal challenge.Biden said Friday that he would invoke the 1965 Higher Education Act, a different law than the one at issue in the Supreme Court cases, which some experts have said gives the Education Department broad authority, although that proposal could take time to implement.

Supreme Court strikes down Biden's student loan forgiveness plan - The Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Joe Biden's federal student loan forgiveness plan, denying tens of millions of Americans the chance to get up to $20,000 of their debt erased. The ruling, which matched expert predictions given the justices' conservative majority, is a massive blow to borrowers who were promised loan forgiveness by the Biden administration last summer. The 6-3 majority ruled that at least one of the GOP-led six states that challenged the loan relief program had the proper legal footing, known as standing, to do so. The high court said the president didn't have the authority to instruct his Education secretary to cancel such a large amount of consumer debt without authorization from Congress. "'Can the Secretary use his powers to abolish $430 billion in student loans, completely canceling loan balances for 20 million borrowers, as a pandemic winds down to its end?'" wrote Chief Justice John Roberts in the majority opinion for Biden v. Nebraska. "We can't believe the answer would be yes." Roberts also said the president's plan would cause harm to Missouri, as it would have reduced profits at the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, or MOHELA. "Under the Secretary's plan, roughly half of all federal borrowers would have their loans completely discharged," Roberts wrote. "MOHELA could no longer service those closed accounts, costing it, by Missouri's estimate, $44 million a year in fees...The plan's harm to MOHELA is also a harm to Missouri." Legal experts and advocates recently poked holes in the states' argument that Biden's plan would reduce MOHELA's bottom line. They pointed out that the lender's revenue was actually expected to rise because of some student loan servicers recently leaving the space and it picking up extra accounts. "I was surprised the court found Missouri had standing," said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz. "The debts of MOHELA are not the debts of the state. And MOEHLA is able to sue on its own, so why didn't it bring its own lawsuit?" In a statement Friday, Biden called the Supreme Court's decision wrong and accused Republicans of hypocrisy. "They had no problem with billions in pandemic-related loans to businesses — including hundreds of thousands and in some cases millions of dollars for their own businesses. And those loans were forgiven," Biden said. "But when it came to providing relief to millions of hard-working Americans, they did everything in their power to stop it." In a briefing Friday afternoon, Biden said his administration was looking for another avenue to deliver student debt relief. Consumer advocates slammed the ruling, and accused the court of bias. "Today's decision is an absolute betrayal to 40 million student loan borrowers counting on an impartial court to decide their financial future based upon the established rule of law," said Persis Yu, deputy executive director at the Student Borrower Protection Center, an advocacy group. Astra Taylor, co-founder of the Debt Collective, a union of debtors, called the decision "a travesty for debtors and for democracy." "Student loan cancelation is perfectly legal, and these baseless and bad-faith lawsuits should have been dismissed long ago," Taylor said. The U.S. Department of Education recently warned that the Covid pandemic left millions of borrowers in a worse off financial situation and that its relief was necessary to avoid a historic rise in delinquencies and defaults. Republicans celebrated the ruling. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., a Republican presidential contender, called the loan forgiveness plan an "illegal and immoral" bid to "transfer student debt to taxpayers." "If you take out a loan, you pay it back," Scott said in a statement. Conservative lawmakers recently passed legislation in the House and Senate to overturn the president's plan, criticizing the policy for forcing taxpayers to improve the personal finances of those who benefited from higher education. Around half of people in the U.S. don't hold a college degree, which research shows leads to greater earnings. Biden vetoed that legislation.

Student loans: Biden unveils Plan B after Supreme Court strikes down forgiveness --Just hours after the Supreme Court struck down the president's student loan forgiveness plan, the White House came back on Friday with several avenues to support borrowers.The Biden administration is seeking to provide debt relief under the Higher Education Act of 1965 and has initiated that regulatory process. Additionally, the Education Department is creating a temporary 12-month on-ramp repayment program that removes the threat of default if borrowers miss payments once they restart in October. Third, the administration finalized a new income-driven repayment plan that it called "the most affordable repayment plan in history." The goal is to ease some of the financial strain many borrowers face when it comes to their student loans and is a direct response to the Supreme Court's decision earlier Friday. "I believe the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down student debt relief was a mistake, it was wrong," President Joe Biden said Friday afternoon in a press briefing. "It will take longer, but it's the best path that remains," he added regarding the steps the administration is taking to provide debt relief. "We’re not going to waste any time on this." The Education Secretary on Friday initiated a rule-making process in an effort to open "an alternative path to debt relief for as many working and middle-class borrowers as possible" under the authority provided by the Higher Education Act, according to a White House factsheet. The Education Department on Friday issued a notice that announced a virtual public hearing on July 18 and asks for written comments from stakeholders. After the hearing, the department will finalize the issues that need to be addressed and hold negotiated rule-making sessions this fall. The White House factsheet did not make clear if the Biden administration is pursuing the same forgiveness plan parameters that the court struck down. Under that plan, the federal government planned to forgive $10,000 for individuals who made less than $125,000 and for households that earn less than $250,000. An additional $10,000 in forgiveness goes to those who received need-based Pell Grants. The White House press office did not immediately respond to an email to clarify the debt relief parameters it was pursuing under the Higher Education Act. The administration also unveiled a plan to help borrowers when they restart their paused payments in October. For 12 months, borrowers won't be penalized for late, missed, or partial payments. Borrowers don't have to take any action to qualify for the program. The payments will still be due and interest will still accrue during the 12 months, but the interest will not capitalize at the end of the on-ramp period. Borrowers who miss payments won't be reported to credit bureaus, won't be considered in default, and won't be referred to collection agencies for those payments. The administration encouraged borrowers who can afford to pay their payments to do so.

Constitutional cruelty: Democrats now oppose a democratic process on student loans -Jonathan Turley -“Disappointing and cruel.” Those words from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) after the Supreme Court’s rejection of the Biden administration’s loan forgiveness program may say more than the opinion itself. The court’s “cruelty” was in supporting Congress’s core constitutional power of the purse. Schumer’s disappointment in having to address and vote on the forgiveness of hundreds of billions of dollars in loans speaks volumes about the collapse of our constitutional values.The court’s decision on the merits of the case was hardly a surprise. President Biden was using the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act of 2003 to order the largest loan forgiveness program in U.S. history. The law is only a few pages long and was intended to assist military personnel deployed abroad in combat zones. The idea of using that law in order to avoid getting congressional approval for such a massive expenditure was laughable. The Office of Legal Counsel considered the theory and issued a memo stating that it would be unconstitutional. In his response to the court, Biden declared that “the hypocrisy is stunning” and that the court had “misinterpreted the Constitution.” However, during the last presidential campaign, Biden himself acknowledged that this effort would be unconstitutional. Chief Justice John Roberts even cited former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in the opinion forstating the obvious: “People think that the president of the United States has the power for debt forgiveness. He does not. He can postpone. He can delay. But he does not have that power. That has to be an act of Congress.”Biden, however, knew that there was no way Congress would approve the loan forgiveness. Many citizens objected that they decided to learn a trade rather than go to college, and no one is suggesting that they should be forgiven their debts. Others paid their student loans back and felt like they were the victims of a bait-and-switch.While many of us could not see any plausible way that this law could be used for such a clearly unintended purpose, University of California law professor Dalié Jiménez filed an amicus brief declaring that the HEROES Act “is as clear as sunlight” as a basis for forgiving federal student debt for nearly everyone.The justices failed to see the light. Instead, a 6-3 majority again declared that Biden was violating the Constitution and had to go to Congress. The same court that had just ruled overwhelmingly to support Biden’s immigration policies turned around and issued a devastating and detailed opinion as to why no such authority existed in this case.Ever accommodating, Biden is now saying that he will attempt to accomplish the same loan forgiveness by taking a “new path.” That path, of course, is not to the co-equal branch just down the street from where his lives. It is rather through a different statute, the Higher Education Act of 1965. The HEA, however, could be used only for a far more limited number of debt holders, and even this would raise new legal questions. The HEA was rejected previously because the HEROES Act was still viewed as a better avenue for the administration. All of this is meant to avoid the one option left to the president — going to Congress. After all, the last thing you want in the defense of democracy is to have an outbreak of democratic process.What is left, to paraphrase Schumer, is a cruel joke. But the ultimate joke is on the American people. Half of their representatives in Congress are struggling to make themselves (and those they represent) entirely irrelevant at this key moment. That is a constitutional debt that should not be forgiven.

Why Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote about babysitters in her student loan opinion — Justice Amy Coney Barrett, in a concurrence to Friday’s ruling striking down President Joe Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan, defended the Supreme Court conservative majority’s use of a controversial legal theory and – deploying analogies concerning babysitters and grocery store owners – laid out how she believed the doctrine should be used in the future. The so-called major questions doctrine says that executive branch agencies only have authority to take aggressive unilateral action of significant political or economic importance if Congress explicitly gives it such power. In the student loan case, the 6-3 conservative majority, including Barrett, concluded that the student loan law in question did not give the secretary of education the power to cancel broad swaths of loans. Barrett expounded on the utility of the doctrine by spelling out scenarios where, she writes, context is key to interpreting the limits of authority Congress has delegated to an agency. The grocer hypothetical concerned a store owner who typically keeps 200 apples on hand then instructs a clerk to “go to the orchard” to buy more apples. “Though this grant of apple-purchasing authority sounds unqualified, a reasonable clerk would know that there are limits,” she wrote. “For example, if the grocer usually keeps 200 apples on hand, the clerk does not have actual authority to buy 1,000 – the grocer would have spoken more directly if she meant to authorize such an out-of-the-ordinary purchase,” Barrett wrote. “A clerk who disregards context and stretches the words to their fullest will not have a job for long.” A second hypothetical centered on a babysitter who took the kids to an amusement park for the weekend, having been given a parent’s credit card and told: “Make sure the kids have fun.” “Emboldened, the concurring babysitter takes the kids on a road trip to an amusement park, where they spend two days on rollercoasters and one night in a hotel,” Barrett writes. But whether the babysitter misinterpreted the okay she got to use the parent’s credit card may depend on other obvious or even less obvious facts, Barrett said. “Was the babysitter’s trip consistent with the parent’s instruction? Maybe in a literal sense, because the instruction was open-ended. But was the trip consistent with a reasonable understanding of the parent’s instruction? Highly doubtful.” Barrett wrote that, under one set of contextual facts, the babysitter’s move would seem to overreach on an instruction that was meant for a trip to the “local ice cream parlor or movie theater, not on a multiday excursion to an out-of-town amusement park.” But under another set of circumstances – “maybe the parent left tickets to the amusement park on the counter” or perhaps the parent told there was $2,000 budgeted for weekend entertainment – the babysitter’s move to go the amusement park would seem a “reasonable” understanding on what the parent had approved, Barrett said. “If a parent were willing to greenlight a trip that big, we would expect much more clarity than a general instruction to ‘make sure the kids have fun,’” she wrote. “In my view, the major questions doctrine grows out of these same commonsense principles of communication,” Barrett wrote. “Just as we would expect a parent to give more than a general instruction if she intended to authorize a babysitter led getaway, we also ‘expect Congress to speak clearly if it wishes to assign to an agency decisions of vast ‘economic and political significance.’”

Supreme Court solidifies protections for workers who ask for religious accommodations - The Supreme Court on Thursday used the case of a Christian mail carrier who didn’t want to work Sundays to solidify protections for workers who ask for religious accommodations.In a unanimous decision the justices made clear that workers who ask for accommodations, such as taking the Sabbath off, should get them unless their employers show that doing so would result in “substantial increased costs” to the business.The court made clear that businesses must cite more than minor costs — so-called de minimis costs — to reject requests for religious accommodations at work. Unlike most cases before the court, both sides in the case had agreed businesses needed to show more.The case before the court involved a mail carrier in rural Pennsylvania. The man was told that as part of his job he’d need to start delivering Amazon packages on Sundays. He declined, saying his Sundays are for church and family. U.S. Postal Service officials initially tried to get substitutes for the man’s shifts, but they couldn’t always accommodate him. When he didn’t show, that meant more work for others. Ultimately, the man quit and sued for religious discrimination.The case is the latest religious confrontation the high court has been asked to referee. In recent years, the court’s 6-3 conservative majority has been particularly sensitive to the concerns of religious plaintiffs. Last year, the court split along ideological lines in ruling for a public high school football coach who wanted to pray on the field after games.Other recent religious cases have drawn wide agreement among the justices, such as upholding a cross-shaped monument on public grounds and ruling that Boston had violated the free speech rights of a conservative activist when it refused his request to fly a Christian flag on a City Hall flagpole.In the latest case, a federal law — Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 — requires employers to accommodate employees’ religious practices unless doing so would be an “undue hardship” for the business. But a 1977 Supreme Court case, Trans World Airlines v. Hardison, says in part that employers can deny religious accommodations to employees when they impose “more than a de minimis cost” on the business.

The wife of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito leased a plot of land to an oil and natural gas company while the judge was weakening the powers of the Environmental Protection Agency, report says -- In June 2022, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito filed a lease for a plot of land in Oklahoma which would give her partial revenue from any oil or gas obtained from the designated area, according to The Intercept. In the lease, Martha Ann Bomgardner Alito came to an agreement with Citizen Energy III — an oil and natural gas company — which would give her 3/16ths of the revenue generated from potential oil and gas sales if the plot that she inherited from her late father could produce any fossil fuels. There are thousands of oil and gas leases across Oklahoma, where the energy sector is a critical economic driver. And Citizen Energy III isn't part of any specific cases in front of the Supreme Court, so there doesn't appear to be a clear conflict of interest regarding Bomgardner Alito's land in Oklahoma. But the oil and gas lease troubles many environmentalists given Justice Alito's role in weakening the scope of the Environmental Protection Agency in several cases that have come before the court. Jeff Hauser, the founder and director of the Revolving Door Project, told The Intercept that there is a broader issue of what the land could reap financially — even if a company involved in a lease wasn't tied to a specific case in front of the court. "There need not be a specific case involving the drilling rights associated with a specific plot of land for Alito to understand what outcomes in environmental cases would buttress his family's net wealth," he told the outlet. "Alito does not have to come across like a drunken Paul Thomas Anderson character gleefully confessing to drinking our collective milkshakes in order to be a real life, run-of-the-mill political villain." In May, the Supreme Court limited the ability of the EPA to regulate wetlands in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, which will affect the agency's ability to enforce the Clean Water Act. The decision frustrated President Joe Biden and served as a major blow to environmentalists.

Alito Ruled to Curb EPA’s Power After His Wife Leased Land to Oil and Gas Firm - Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has ruled multiple times over the past year to slash climate regulations and aid the fossil fuel industry and developers — and new reporting finds that he may have an indirect personal financial stake in those rulings.As The Intercept reported on Monday, Samuel Alito’s wife Martha Ann Alito struck a deal with oil and gas company Citizen Energy III last year: She would lease the company a plot of land she inherited from her father, and in return, she would get a fraction of the sales of the oil and gas it would potentially extract from the land.The 160-acre plot is located in Grady County, Oklahoma, one of the most active counties in the U.S. for oil and gas production. As part of the agreement, dated June 27, 2022, Martha Ann Alito gets paid 3/16ths of the sales of the fossil fuels from the land.Later that same week, the Supreme Court issued a ruling in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that represented a major setback in the climate movement. Justice Alito joined the majority in the 6-3 decisionin which the Court ruled that the EPA doesn’t have the authority to implement limits on greenhouse gas emissions on power plants — a decision that climate groups decried as devastating and dangerous.On financial disclosures last year, the justice listed “mineral interests” valued between $100,001 and $250,000. As The Intercept notes, Samuel Alito has often recused himself from cases involving his investment portfolio, and Citizen Energy III isn’t currently involved in cases before the Supreme Court.Though there may not be a direct conflict of interest, however, the fact that the justice has a personal financial interest in the oil and gas industry and its ability to make profits without threat of regulation raises concerns over how he may rule in fossil fuel-related cases.“There need not be a specific case involving the drilling rights associated with a specific plot of land for Alito to understand what outcomes in environmental cases would buttress his family’s net wealth,” Revolving Door Project director and founder Jeff Hauser told The Intercept.“Alito does not have to come across like a drunken Paul Thomas Anderson character gleefully confessing to drinking our collective milkshakes in order to be a real life, run-of-the-mill political villain,” Hauser continued.Justice Alito is a longtime climate denier. In a speech at a conservative think tank’s event in 2017, he delivered a stunningly false speech in which he claimed that carbon dioxide isn’t a pollutant that’s harmful to life on earth — despite, of course, the gas’s major role in the climate crisis.“Carbon dioxide is not a pollutant. Carbon dioxide is not harmful to ordinary things, to human beings, or to animals, or to plants,” the justice said. “All of us are exhaling carbon dioxide right now.”

New recording shows Trump discussing ‘secret’ documents he did not declassify: report - A newly released audio recording obtained by CNN includes former President Trump discussing holding onto classified documents in a 2021 meeting in Bedminster, N.J.The recording, which first aired on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” on Monday night, offers new insights into a conversation that is a piece of evidence in special counsel Jack Smith’s indictment against Trump over mishandling classified documents and attempting to keep them from the government. According to the indictment, the conversation took place during an interview with an author and book publisher at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey on July 21, 2021. The two-minute recording suggests Trump was holding pieces of classified information about the Pentagon’s plans to attack Iran. The recording begins with Trump saying, “These are bad sick people,” while his staffer pointed to Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “Like when Milley is talking about, ‘Oh you’re going to try to do a coup.’ No, they were trying to do that before you even were sworn in,” the staffer said on the recording. Trump’s response was largely included in the indictment, but the audio also included Trump and his aides poking fun about the emails of Hillary Clinton. According to the indictment, the conversation included the author, a publisher and two members of Trump’s staff. “He said that I wanted to attack Iran, isn’t it amazing? I have a big pile of papers; this thing just came up. Look. This was him. They presented me this — this is off-the-record, but they presented me this. This was him. This was the Defense Department and him,” Trump said on the recording, as the sound of papers shuffling could be heard in the background. After Trump pointed out that the document was “highly confidential” and had “secret information,” one of his aides said, “Hillary would print that out all the time, you know. Her private emails.” The former president then said, “No, she’d send it to Anthony Weiner,” who is a former Democratic member of Congress representing New York. “I was just thinking, because we were talking about it. And you know, he said, ‘He wanted to attack Iran, and what…” Trump said before adding, “These are the papers.” Other lines from the conversation, including Trump saying the document was still classified, but “as president I could have declassified it,” were included in the indictment. In an additional part of the recording, Trump said, “It’s incredible” before asking someone to “bring some Cokes in please.”

In audio recording, Trump is heard discussing classified document he says he held onto - ABC News has obtained an audio recording of former President Donald Trump appearing to acknowledge he held onto a sensitive military document after leaving office -- but can no longer declassify it because he is no longer president. The contents of the recording, made during a July 21, 2021, meeting at Trump's Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, have been previously reported and are quoted in the Justice Department's 37-count indictment related to Trump's handling of classified documents after leaving office -- but the recording itself has never before been heard publicly. ABC News was able to confirm the authenticity of the recording from another source who has heard it.The meeting involved people who were helping Trump's former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, with his memoir, according to sources. Special counsel Jack Smith's team has spoken to the meeting's attendees, which included autobiographers for Meadows and at least two aides to Trump, sources tell ABC News. On the recording, Trump is heard attacking Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley and referencing a document that Trump claimed Milley had compiled."Well, with Milley -- uh, let me see that, I'll show you an example," Trump says on the recording. "He said that I wanted to attack Iran. Isn't that amazing? I have a big pile of papers, this thing just came up. Look. This was him. They presented me this -- this is off the record, but -- they presented me this. This was him. This was the Defense Department and him. We looked at some -- this was him. This wasn't done by me, this was him. All sorts of stuff -- pages long, look." "Wait a minute, let's see here. I just found, isn't that amazing?" Trump says. "This totally wins my case, you know. Except it is like, highly confidential. Secret. This is secret information. Look, look at this. This was done by the military and given to me. As president I could have declassified, but now I can't."

Exclusive: CNN obtains the tape of Trump's 2021 conversation about classified documents (audio embedded) — CNN has exclusively obtained the audio recording of the 2021 meeting in Bedminster, New Jersey, where President Donald Trump discusses holding secret documents he did not declassify. The recording, which first aired on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360,” includes new details from the conversation that is a critical piece of evidence in special counsel Jack Smith’s indictment of Trump over the mishandling of classified information, including a moment when Trump seems to indicate he was holding a secret Pentagon document with plans to attack Iran.“These are the papers,” Trump says in the audio recording, while he’s discussing the Pentagon attack plans, a quote that was not included in the indictment.In the two-minute audio recording, Trump and his aides also joke about Hillary Clinton’s emails after the former president says that the document was “secret information.”“Hillary would print that out all the time, you know. Her private emails,” Trump’s staffer said. “No, she’d send it to Anthony Weiner,” Trump responded, referring to the former Democratic congressman, prompting laughter in the room.Trump’s statements on the audio recording, saying “these are the papers” and referring to something he calls “highly confidential” and seems to be showing others in the room, could undercut the former president’s claims in aninterview last week with Fox News’ Bret Baier that he did not have any documents with him.“There was no document. That was a massive amount of papers and everything else talking about Iran and other things,” Trump said on Fox. “And it may have been held up or may not, but that was not a document. I didn’t have a document, per se. There was nothing to declassify. These were newspaper stories, magazine stories and articles.”Trump pleaded not guilty earlier this month to 37 counts related to the alleged mishandling of classified documents kept at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.The audio recording comes from a July 2021 interview Trump gave at his Bedminster resort for people working on the memoir of Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff. The special counsel’s indictment alleges that those in attendance – a writer, publisher and two of Trump’s staff members – were shown classified information about the plan of attack on Iran.

Former prosecutor on new Trump tape: ‘This is game over’ -- Former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann said “this is game over” for former President Trump in the classified and sensitive documents case against him after the release of the tape that appears to show Trump discussing documents he had in his possession. Weissmann told MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell on Monday that the public should remember that prosecutors for special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing the investigation, have had the tape of Trump discussing documents he did not declassify before it was publicized. He said Smith’s team has likely interviewed everyone who was in the room with Trump from the recording except the former president himself. He said this would allow prosecutors to have all accounts of what happened while Trump was speaking. “And so, the big picture here, I think for people is … this is game over if you are following the facts and the law,” Weissmann said. CNN was the first to publicly release the recording of Trump discussing the classified documents during a July 2021 meeting at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J. The conversation had been described in the indictment filed against Trump earlier this month. The discussion happened during an interview with an author and book publisher who were working on a memoir for former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, according to the indictment. Two Trump staffers were also present. On the recording, Trump is heard discussing pieces of classified information about a potential planned attack on Iran. Weissmann said Trump is not charged with dissemination of national defense information, only that he continued to possess it, but that could be proven, and the tape is “absolutely clear.” “This is a question now of simply: Will the government get a trial before the general election, will a jury actually follow the law and the facts and will the electorate follow the facts and care? That’s really what this is about,” he said.

Fox News host suggests Trump may have leaked audio in classified documents case -- Fox News host Steve Doocy suggested former President Trump may have been behind the leak of an audio recording showing Trump talking about his handling of classified documents.“You know what? If Trump thinks it’s an exoneration of him, perhaps somebody on his side actually did the leaking to CNN and Maggie Haberman,” Doocy said Tuesday morning.“That makes sense,” co-host Brian Kilmeade chimed in.“It does, actually,” Doocy said. “He’s admitting he’s got classified documents.” On the audio, published first by CNN, Trump is heard discussing classified documents and his disagreements on military policy toward Iran with America’s top general during his time in the White House.“He said that I wanted to attack Iran, isn’t it amazing?” Trump says on the recording, referring to Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley.“I have a big pile of papers; this thing just came up. Look. This was him. They presented me this — this is off-the-record, but they presented me this. This was him. This was the Defense Department and him.”Trump was federally indicted earlier this month in connection to his handling of classified documents. He said Monday night the audio is “actually an exoneration” and accused the Department of Justice of leaking the recording.“The Deranged Special Prosecutor, Jack Smith, working in conjunction with the DOJ & FBI, illegally leaked and ‘spun’ a tape and transcript of me which is actually an exoneration, rather than what they would have you believe,” he said in a post on Truth Social.

Poll: Kamala Harris sets record low for vice president net favorability | The Hill - Nearly half of the respondents have a negative view of Vice President Harris, according to a new NBC News survey. The poll, published on Monday, found that 49 percent of respondents have a negative opinion of Harris, while 32 percent of those surveyed have a positive opinion of the vice president. Harris received a net negative rating of -17, which is the lowest net negative rating for a vice president in the history of the poll. For example, In October 2019, 38 percent of respondents had a negative view of Harris’ predecessor, former Vice President Pence, while 34 percent of those surveyed had a positive view of the now Republican Presidential candidate, according to the poll. The poll comes as White House officials have been working with Harris to repair her image and bump up her polling numbers ahead of the 2024 election, according to Axios.

Trump tops Biden for first time in Morning Consult poll - Former President Trump took a 3-point lead over President Biden in a hypothetical head-to-head match-up ahead of the 2024 presidential election. In a Morning Consult poll published Tuesday, 44 percent of respondents said they’ll cast their support for Trump, while 41 percent of those said they would choose Biden. When asked about a hypothetical matchup between Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), 42 percent of respondents said they would support Biden, while only 40 percent of those surveyed cast their support for DeSantis. Asked who their second choice would be after Trump, 42 percent of registered GOP voters said they would support DeSantis. Meanwhile, 14 percent said their second choice is former Vice President Mike Pence, and 13 percent said entrepreneur turned presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would be their back-up choice, according to the poll. Among registered GOP voters whose first choice was DeSantis, 45 percent of said they would support Trump, while 15 percent said their second choice would be Pence and 14 percent chose Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.). Trump and DeSantis are seen as the two front-runners in the crowded field of Republican presidential candidates seeking their party’s nomination in 2024. Biden still holds a substantial lead on the Democratic side.

Supreme Court tosses Trump DC hotel records case - The Supreme Court will no longer hear a case on whether Democratic lawmakers should have been able to sue to obtain documents related to a Washington, D.C., hotel former President Trump owned during his presidency. Congressional members dismissed the lawsuit last month. After the high court last month agreed to hear the Biden Justice Department’s appeal in the case, Democrats dismissed the dispute in a lower court. Both sides then wrote to the justices agreeing that the Supreme Court should toss it as moot. In a brief, unsigned order Monday, the justices vacated the lower ruling and sent it back with instructions to dismiss the case. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the order, saying she would’ve instead used a different procedural mechanism to toss the case. The hotel documents had largely fallen out of the dispute as the lawmakers obtained most of them through other means. But the case was set to weigh how the minority party in Congress can scrutinize a presidential administration using a federal law known as the “Seven Member Rule.” The Justice Department had asked the justices to declare that the Democrats could not sue in court to enforce the rule, which allows any seven members of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability or any five members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee to ask for information within their purview from executive agencies. But after Democrats dismissed the case, the Justice Department said the Supreme Court should step away from hearing its appeal.

Prosecutors charge three men with insider trading scheme related to Trump’s media company - Federal prosecutors in New York charged three investors on Thursday with an insider trading scheme in which they allegedly made more than $22 million in illegal profits by acting on information about a plan to take former president Donald Trump’s media company public. The three men — Michael Shvartsman, Gerald Shvartsman and Bruce Garelick — were investors in a special purpose acquisition corporation called Digital World Acquisition Corporation, which had plans to take public Trump’s company Trump Media & Technology Group. As investors, they learned of the confidential plans for Trump’s media company and they were prohibited by non-disclosure agreements from disclosing or using the information to buy or sell securities, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday. The defendants used the information to buy millions of dollars of securities in the corporation “so that they could be in a position to profit after the merger was announced publicly,” according to the indictment. Prosecutors said in court papers that the defendants also disclosed the confidential information about the upcoming merger to their friends and employees, who bought tens of thousands of securities in the corporation. Prosecutors charged the men with one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and nine counts of securities fraud. The defendants are set to make their initial court appearances in the Southern District of Florida on Thursday afternoon, according to the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office.

Musk limits number of posts Twitter users can view per day - Twitter users will face new limitations on the number of tweets they can view per day, according to a tweet from the company’s billionaire owner Elon Musk on Saturday.“To address extreme levels of data scraping & system manipulation, we’ve applied the following temporary limits,” Musk tweeted, before announcingthat verified accounts would be limited to reading 6,000 posts per day, unverified accounts to 600 posts per day and new unverified accounts to 300 posts per day.Before Musk unveiled Twitter’s new policy, users were met with a message reading “rate limit exceeded,” when trying to view content. Enough users were confused by the alert that “#TwitterDown” was trending in the U.S. on Saturday morning.The announcement is the latest in a series of major changes for the social media company, including the appointment of a new CEO, Linda Yaccarino, who took over the role from Musk in June. Upon her appointment, Musk tweeted that Yaccarino would “focus primarily on business operations,” while he would stay focused on “product design & technology.”Musk also made waves last week as he appeared to agree to a fight against Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Musk on Friday tweeted“some chance fight happens in Colosseum,” after reports that Italy’s minister of culture reached out to the two tech giants offering to coordinate the fight at the historical site. Less than two hours after his initial tweet outlining the new rate limit policy and after much online outcry, Musk quote-tweeted his original announcement saying, “Rate limits increasing soon to 8000 for verified, 800 for unverified & 400 for new unverified.” He provided no timeframe or explanation for the adjustment.

Hunter Biden IRS whistleblower defends claims that counter DOJ statements - An IRS whistleblower is defending his claims that the U.S. attorney investigating Hunter Biden was blocked from bringing charges outside of Delaware and did not have full control of the case — which counters statements from multiple Justice Department officials. IRS investigator Gary Shapley told multiple outlets this week that the president’s son received preferential treatment in a case probing his failure to pay taxes that resulted in a plea agreement earlier this month. If the agreement is approved by a judge, Biden will not face jail time. Shapley has claimed the investigation was slow-walked by the office of U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss, a Trump appointee. “We have to make sure, as a special agent for IRS Criminal Investigation, that we treat every single person exactly the same,” Shapley told CBS News on Tuesday. “And that just simply didn’t happen here.” Shapley’s testimony, first given to the House Ways and Means Committee, has become a key basis for Republicans arguing the Justice Department improperly handled the case. Biden has since paid back taxes on more than $200,000 of income tax for the 2017 and 2018 tax years. But Shapley contends some of the most serious tax misconduct took place beforehand, with Biden owing a total of $2.2 million in taxes from 2014 through 2019. Shapely said he was told by Weiss’s office that the U.S. attorney was unable to bring charges in Washington, D.C., where Shapely said he believes they would have the strongest case. “There were really earth-shaking statements made by David Weiss that really brought to light some of my previous concerns. And the first one was that he is not the deciding person on whether or not charges are filed. It was just shocking to me,” Shapley said. “I documented exactly what happened. And it doesn’t seem to match what the attorney general or the U.S. attorney are saying today.”

House GOP committee chairs expand Hunter Biden tax probe - Three House committee chairs are expanding the GOP’s probe of alleged political interference in an investigation into Hunter Biden’s taxes, demanding that more than a dozen employees of the IRS, the Justice Department and Secret Service be made available for grilling by the panels“The Committees must obtain the first-hand testimony from these individuals to fully assess the serious allegations” made by a pair of IRS whistleblowers, Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-Mo.), Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday.Similar letters were sent to IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel and Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.“Please be aware that the Committees will resort to compulsory process to obtain the required testimony,” the lawmakers warned, asking that staffers from the three agencies work with committee staff to begin scheduling interviews as soon as possible, and no later than July 13.Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden’s son, made a plea deal with federal prosecutors earlier this month to settle an investigation into his failure to pay about $1 million in federal income taxes and his purchase of a handgun in 2018 while being a user of illegal drugs, a felony. Under the agreement, Hunter Biden will plead guilty to a pair of misdemeanor tax charges and the gun charges will be dropped if he completes two years of probation.Days later, Smith released testimony from two IRS whistleblowers who alleged a wide range of interference in the tax probe.The unnamed IRS investigator who initially opened the investigation and his supervisor, Gary Shapley, accused the Justice Department and the Delaware U.S. Attorney’s office of slow-walking the case, blocking enforcement actions by the IRS and tipping off Hunter Biden’s attorneys about actions related to the investigation.Chris Clark, an attorney for Hunter Biden, has denied there was any preferential treatment.

Hunter Biden's child will get some of his art as part of support settlement - Hunter Biden has settled his child support case in Arkansas, according to a court filing released Thursday.The settlement, announced in Arkansas state court, ends a bitter dispute between President Joe Biden’s younger son and Lunden Roberts, the mother of their 4-year-old child, over reducing his child support payments.The settlement ends the yearslong dispute between the younger Biden and Roberts, which started when Roberts filed a lawsuit in 2019 seeking child support and health care for her child, who she claimed was Biden’s. After a paternity test proved Biden was the child’s father, he agreed in 2020 to pay$20,000 a month in child support.Though it was unclear from the filing what the new payments will be, the president’s son will “assign to the child” some of his paintings, “which shall vary in size with a minimum size of 24x24.” The number of paintings along with the new amount for the child support payments were both redacted from the filing.Additionally, “the child shall select the painting which shall either be sent to the child” or to a gallery designated by Roberts, the filing says.The New York City gallery exhibiting Hunter Biden’s work in 2021 estimated his paintings to be worth between $75,000 and $500,000 apiece — numbers that previously raised concerns about the possibility that someone would buy the art as a way to curry favor with the Biden family. The younger Biden took up painting while recovering from drug and alcohol addiction.

US urges appeals court to uphold Ghislaine Maxwell's sex trafficking conviction (Reuters) -The U.S. government has urged an appeals court to uphold Ghislaine Maxwell's conviction and 20-year prison sentence for helping the disgraced late financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls. In a Thursday night filing with the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, federal prosecutors said none of Maxwell's legal arguments about the fairness of her trial held merit. "The government’s evidence at trial established that over the course of a decade, Maxwell facilitated and participated in the sexual abuse of multiple young girls," prosecutors said. Arthur Aidala, a lawyer for Maxwell, was not immediately available for comment outside business hours. Maxwell, 61, is behind bars in Tallahassee, Florida, after a Manhattan jury convicted her in December 2021 on five charges for recruiting and grooming four girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004. Epstein committed suicide at age 66 in August 2019 in a Manhattan jail cell, where he was awaiting trial for sex trafficking. Hundreds of women have said he abused them. In her appeal, Maxwell, the daughter of late British media mogul Robert Maxwell, accused prosecutors of making her a scapegoat because Epstein was dead and "public outrage" demanded that someone else absorb the blame. Her lawyers also offered several arguments for dismissing the case or granting a new trial. These included that Maxwell was immune from prosecution, prosecutors waited too long to charge her, and Epstein's 2007 non-prosecution agreement arising from alleged abuse at his Palm Beach, Florida mansion also immunized her. The lawyers also said one juror should have disclosed before trial that he had been sexually abused as a child. Maxwell's accusers have said she and Epstein at first made them feel welcome in their orbit, before Epstein began demanding sexualized massages. Others who were friendly with Epstein have seen their reputations tarred or ruined, among them Britain's Prince Andrew and former JPMorgan Chase executive and Barclays chief executive Jes Staley. JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank, which both had Epstein as a client, are paying a combined $365 million to Epstein's accusers over their work for him. The US Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a home, is also suing JPMorgan.

JPMorgan Is Alleged to Have Used Its Hedge Fund’s Private Jet to Engage in Sex-Trafficking for Jeffrey Epstein By Pam and Russ Martens - At a March 13 court hearing this year, prominent attorney, David Boies, argued in open court that the largest federally-insured bank in the United States, JPMorgan Chase – which has more than 5,000 Chase bank branches holding mom and pop savings from coast to coast – had used a private jet owned by the bank’s hedge fund, Highbridge Capital, to transport girls for Epstein’s sex trafficking operation.A January 13, 2023 amended complaint filed by Boies’ law firm, elaborated on the allegation as follows:“As another example of JP Morgan and [Jes] Staley’s benefit from assisting Epstein, a highly profitable deal for JP Morgan was the Highbridge acquisition.“In 2004, when Epstein’s sex trafficking and abuse operation was running at full speed, Epstein served up another big financial payday for JP Morgan.“Epstein was close friends with Glenn Dubin, the billionaire who ran Highbridge Capital Management.“Through Epstein’s connection, it has been reported that Staley arranged for JP Morgan to buy a majority stake in Dubin’s fund, which resulted in a sizeable profit for JP Morgan. This arrangement was profitable for both Staley and JPMorgan, further incentivizing JP Morgan to ignore the suspicious activity in Epstein’s accounts and to assist in his sex-trafficking venture.“For example, despite that Epstein was not FINRA-certified, Epstein was paid more than $15 million for his role in the Highbridge/JP Morgan deal.“Moreover, Highbridge, a wholly-owned subsidiary of JP Morgan, trafficked young women and girls on its own private jet from Florida to Epstein in New York as late as 2012.”This allegation is unique and explosive because it moves JPMorgan Chase from being just a cash facilitator for Epstein’s sex-trafficking of underage girls to engaging directlyin the sex-trafficking. Unfortunately, the American people may never get to see the evidence that proves or disproves that critical allegation because of a settlement in the case.

JPMorgan/Jeffrey Epstein Cases Are a Cross Between the Bank’s Chinese Princeling Scandal and Madoff Fraud, Using Sex with Minors as a Bribe - By Pam and Russ Martens ~ The tenure of Jamie Dimon as Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, the largest federally-insured bank in the United States and the largest trading casino on Wall Street, has copiously revealed the following: the bank is more than willing to look the other way at crime if it means an increase in assets, profits or business referrals.Each of those three ingredients were present in the bank’s decades long involvement with Bernie Madoff, with its Chinese Princeling scandal and in the unfolding details of its intimate relationship with child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.This reality may be difficult for the New York business press to acknowledge – since it has mostly covered Jamie Dimon as the grand statesman of Wall Street – but this is the hard reality nonetheless. Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal’s Khadeeja Safdar and David Benoit revealed the contents of a 22-page internal report that JPMorgan Chase had prepared in 2019 as a timeline of its relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. The bank was apparently attempting to assess its liability after Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019 by the Justice Department and charged with sex trafficking. (Epstein was found dead in his jail cell on August 10, 2019. The Medical Examiner ruled his death a suicide.)The 22-page internal report had been filed under seal with the federal district court in Manhattan that is hearing two lawsuits against the bank for aiding and abetting Epstein’s sex trafficking. Apparently, someone leaked the full contents of the report to the reporters. One paragraph of the Wall Street Journal article is particularly enlightening. It reads as follows:“The 2019 JPMorgan report said that Epstein had appeared to have forged close relationships with senior executives and government officials, including Dubai’s Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem and British politician Peter Mandelson. Epstein tried to connect these associates to Staley and the bank for business deals and international expansions.”The reference to “Staley” is to Jes Staley, a former executive of the bank who worked a few hundred feet from Dimon’s office, according to a deposition given by Dimon. Disturbing internal emails show that Staley was closely aligned with Epstein, even visiting him while he was serving his sentence for sex with a minor. Now consider the above paragraph in combination with what Virginia Giuffre has alleged in her prior lawsuits against Epstein: that, beginning when she was just 17 years old, Epstein and his girlfriend/procurer, Ghislaine Maxwell, arranged sexual encounters for Giuffre with royalty and powerful politicians. Prince Andrew settled monetary damages with Giuffre last year. To put it simply, Epstein was an asset gatherer, and profit gatherer, and new business gatherer for JPMorgan Chase. And he dangled sex with underage women as an inducement to get meetings and make connections. And that is why, despite Epstein’s conviction in 2008 for procuring sex with a minor, despite his forced registration as a life-long sex offender, and despite his settling of dozens of cases of sexual assault of minors, JPMorgan Chase retained him as a client from 1998 to 2013.

'Lots of smoke. Lots of questions': Internal emails show JPMorgan Chase execs worried about the bank's ties to Jeffrey Epstein. So why did it take so long to cut him loose? - In September 2004, JPMorgan announced an acquisition that would spark envy across Wall Street: A stake in $7 billion hedge fund giant Highbridge Capital Management. For those lucky enough to get into the exclusive club, hedge funds were the next frontier in investing. And Highbridge, then one of the fastest-growing hedge funds, boasted double-digit annual returns for much of its short life. Adding to the allure for Wall Street banks were the fat fees (often upward of 20%) that hedge funds were charging clients. Pretty soon, JPMorgan's rivals — from Morgan Stanley to Citigroup and the now defunct Lehman Brothers — were racing to pay top dollar to beef up their own hedge-fund offerings. The Highbridge deal was a triumph for JPMorgan and its chief executive, Jamie Dimon. And the man who helped broker the deal was Jeffrey Epstein, a mysterious "financier" known, if at all, for palling around with titans of industry and politics, from the Apollo founder Leon Black to Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. Epstein seemed to have money, but no one could say for sure what he did for a living. The press described him alternatively as a "financier," "asset manager," "property tycoon," or simply "mysterious New York billionaire," depending on whom you asked. There was an occasional mention of Epstein's penchant for "attractive young women," but nothing that might raise eyebrows. The Highbridge deal earned Epstein fees of $15 million for advising the fund, The Wall Street Journal would later reveal. It also solidified Epstein's relationship with Jes Staley, the head of JPMorgan's private banking business, who would be Epstein's principal contact at the bank until he was finally cut loose in 2013 and who once referred to Epstein as his "most cherished friend." Epstein helped the bank by sending business its way, court documents say, and Staley and others, it has since been alleged, both protected Epstein and enjoyed his company — even as JPMorgan executives raised alarm bells over Epstein's accounts multiple times. Fast-forward to today and Epstein's name is synonymous with sex abuse and the corrupting power of money. After years of scrutiny over the government's handling of his case, federal prosecutors charged Epstein in 2019 with sexually exploiting and trafficking dozens of underage girls. One month later, he was found dead in a Manhattan jail cell in what the city coroner ruled a suicide.Since Epstein's sex crimes first came to light in 2005, shortly after the Highbridge deal closed, the bank had many, many opportunities to ditch Epstein — including following his arrest on a prostitution charge in 2006, his guilty plea and jailing in 2008, in 2010 amid reports that Epstein was being probed for "child trafficking," and in 2011, when high-level JPMorgan compliance officials raised red flags internally. Instead, the bank made the decision again and again to stay with him. Epstein was allowed to get away with it for so long, the thinking goes, because he surrounded himself with rich and powerful people, some of whom helped Epstein, a former schoolteacher, get rich himself. Last week, JPMorgan agreed to pay $290 million to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by a woman who claims the bank ignored red flags about Epstein's sexual exploitation of young women — some of whom claim he flew them to his private island to have sex with him and other men — because he helped the bank make money. The bank is also being sued by the US Virgin Islands, where the "Island of Sin," as it's now called, was located.

JPMorgan Had a Secret Project that Is Now Spreading Its Scandalous Internal Emails with Sex Trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to News Outlets Worldwide By Pam and Russ Martens: ~ According to unsealed documents released this week by the U.S. Virgin Islands in its federal lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase over claims it facilitated Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking of underage girls for more than a decade, the largest bank in the United States has a lot of explaining to do to the American people – and potentially to the criminal division of the U.S. Justice Department. After Jeffrey Epstein was arrested by the U.S. Department of Justice on July 6, 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges, JPMorgan Chase – which had been Epstein’s banker from 1998 to 2013 – apparently decided to get a quick look at how much legal liability and reputational damage it might have if its labyrinthine client relationship and intimate and undisclosed business relationship with Epstein came to light.The “top of the house” at JPMorgan Chase ordered an internal investigation in 2019 which was code named “Project Jeep.” The JE stood for Jeffrey; the EP for Epstein. Jamie Dimon, the Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase, denied knowledge of Project Jeep in his deposition in the lawsuit in late May. An attorney for the Virgin Islands writes in a letter that there is documentation suggesting that Dimon is part of “top of the house.”Project Jeep included almost two dozen pages of internal emails between Epstein and a host of JPMorgan executives, its private client bankers and licensed brokers, stretching from 2008 when Epstein began serving his first jail term for soliciting a minor for sex, to 2013 when JPMorgan says it severed its client relationship with Epstein. According to news reports, JPMorgan’s business relationships with Epstein continued long past 2013.The emails are stomach-churning and humiliating for the U.S. banking system. They show a sex trafficker actually directing business strategies for JPMorgan’s investment bank and referring clients from around the world to JPMorgan Chase, including Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Peter Mandelson, Andrew Farkas, Boris Nikolic, science advisor to the Gates Foundation, Leon Black, former Chairman of Apollo Global Management, and many others.According to a letter filed with the court by Linda Singer, an attorney for the Virgin Islands, as of June 7 JPMorgan Chase had failed to produce internal documents referenced in Project Jeep that showed the full scope of Epstein’s client referrals to the bank and related business transactions – ostensibly that generated large fees for the bank.One thing is for certain, Epstein was getting paid in multiple ways for sending business deals and clients to JPMorgan. The full extent of those payments should, by law, be made public under reporting requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Senior Attorney Helped FTX Founder Misuse Customer Funds, Report Says – WSJ - FTX Chief Executive John J. Ray III released a report that alleged an unnamed senior lawyer assisted the crypto exchange’s founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, in misusing customer deposits. Unnamed lawyer in document appears to be crypto exchange’s former chief regulatory officer, Daniel Friedberg, people say.

FTX senior attorney 'helped Sam Bankman-Fried misuse customer funds by falsely telling bank that firm associated with crypto giant was a trading firm with substantial operation - but was in fact only a shell company' -A former senior attorney for collapsed crypto exchange FTX has been accused of helping disgraced founder Sam Bankman-Fried of misappropriating billions in client funds.FTX CEO John J. Ray III, who was brought on to oversee the company's bankruptcy, made the allegations in a report released on Monday, detailing staggering lapses in the handling of client funds.The report accused the former senior attorney and Bankman-Fried of lying to banks about the true purpose of a 'shell company' used to accept client deposits, and drafting 'sham' documents to deceive independent auditors.Though the attorney is not named in the report, the Wall Street Journal identified him as FTX's former chief regulatory officer, Daniel Friedberg, citing people familiar with the matter.Friedberg, who could not be immediately reached for comment, has not been criminally charged in the implosion of FTX, and has reportedly been cooperating with prosecutors. Federal prosecutors have alleged that Bankman-Fried stole billions of dollars in customer funds to plug losses at Alameda, buy luxury properties in the Bahamas, and splash out huge political donations. FTX, which filed for bankruptcy in November after Bankman-Fried resigned as CEO, has estimated that approximately $8.7 billion in customer assets were misappropriated from the exchange. Ray's latest report said his team of liquidators have recovered approximately $7 billion in assets that can be easily sold, adding that they anticipate additional recoveries. The report details extensive allegations regarding the conduct of 'a senior FTX Group attorney' identified only as 'Attorney-1', claiming the lawyer 'actively facilitated and covered up the FTX Group's commingling of customer and corporate funds.' The report describes how FTX had difficulty establishing relationships with banks to set up an account to accept customer deposits, and initially used accounts associated with Bankman-Fried's hedge fund, Alameda Research, for that purpose. When some US banks grew suspicious and began rejecting wire transfers to and from the Alameda accounts, FTX 'lied' to an unidentified US bank in order to open new accounts in the name of North Dimension, according to Ray. The attorney and other FTX execs falsely claimed that North Dimension was a crypto trading firm, when in fact, it was a shell company intended only to facilitate client deposits and withdrawals, according to the report.

FTX's new CEO claims company lied to banks for years about misuse of customer funds -FTX senior leaders lied to banks as far back as 2020 about the commingling and misuse of customer deposits, according to a report released Monday by CEO John J. Ray III. The defunct cryptocurrency exchange — which once serviced more than 1 million users — claimed to be "the vanguard of customer protection efforts in the crypto industry." However, Ray's report alleged this public-facing fidelity to investors was a "mirage," and that FTX co-founder and ex-CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, along with other senior executives, mixed customer deposits with corporate funds and "misused them with abandon." "Bankman-Fried, along with FTX.com's co-founder, Gary Wang, and Director of Engineering, Nishad Singh (the ‘FTX Senior Executives’), and others at their direction, used commingled customer and corporate funds for speculative trading, venture investments, and the purchase of many luxury properties, as well as for political and other donations designed to enhance their own power and influence," the report stated.At the time of FTX's collapse, the exchange owed customers nearly $8.7 billion, the report said. Ray alleged that an unnamed lawyer and Bankman-Fried lied to banks and auditors, executed false documents and moved the company from jurisdiction to jurisdiction "in a continual effort to enable and avoid detection of their wrongdoing." The Wall Street Journal identified the attorney as Daniel Friedberg, FTX's former chief regulatory officer. Friedberg has been cooperating with investigators and claims to have had no knowledge of the misuse of FTX customer deposits, the Journal reported.Representatives for Bankman-Fried did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Bankman-Fried, 31, faces 13 federal charges related to the collapse of FTX and defrauding of its customers. He has pleaded not guilty.The FTX founder capitalized on a rise in bitcoin and other digital assets to accumulate an estimated net worth of $26 billion and became an influential political and philanthropic donor before FTX declared bankruptcy in November.The cryptocurrency exchange collapsed after a rush of customer withdrawals following reports that it had merged assets with Alameda Research, Bankman-Fried's crypto-focused hedge fund. Federal prosecutors have accused Bankman-Fried of misleading FTX investors and lenders and stealing billions of dollars in customer funds to buy real estate, make political contributions through an illegal straw-donor scheme and make up for losses at Alameda. He is also charged with bribing Chinese officials.Three of FTX's top executives have pleaded guilty on federal charges and are now cooperating with investigators.

Judge Dunks on FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s Bid to Toss Most Criminal Charges - A federal judge has rejected Sam Bankman-Fried’s effort to dismiss most of the criminal charges against him, writing in an opinion on Tuesday that “the arguments are either moot or without merit.” The FTX founder argued that prosecutors overstepped in their 13-count indictment, either by improperly interpreting fraud statutes or by violating terms of an extradition agreement with the Bahamas, where the former billionaire was based prior to his December arrest.In his opinion, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan of Manhattan wrote that Bankman-Fried lacked standing to argue that the United States’ extradition treaty with the Bahamas had been violated. Kaplan added that some of Bankman-Fried’s legal analysis was simply “mistaken.”The 31-year-old was originally hit with an eight-count indictment in December. Prosecutors later added five more counts, which included allegations related to bank fraud along with claims that Bankman-Fried had tried to “bribe one or more Chinese government officials.”Earlier this month, the judge agreed to sever the five post-extradition counts into a separate trial due to concerns about whether extradition issues might delay the case.As detailed in Tuesday’s opinion, Bankman-Fried is accused of perpetrating a massive fraud at his crypto exchange, FTX, and his hedge fund, Alameda Research. The government has argued that he used billions of dollars in misappropriated funds “to support the operations and investments of FTX and Alameda; to fund speculative venture investments; to make charitable contributions; and to enrich himself.”Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty, is currently under home detention at his parents’ house in California. He has irked prosecutors and the judge on multiple occasions since his arrest, including in February, when he used a virtual private network to access the internet—stirring alarm over whether he was trying to circumvent oversight of his online activity. (Bankman-Fried said he was just trying to watch the Super Bowl.) The judge then placed additional restrictions on the terms of his confinement.Bankman-Fried’s first trial is expected to begin in the fall.

Coinbase, facing SEC lawsuit, says regulator lacks police power over crypto (Reuters) -Coinbase, the largest U.S. cryptocurrency platform, said it will ask a judge to dismiss the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit claiming it broke the law by failing to register its business. In a letter filed just before midnight on Wednesday in Manhattan federal court, Coinbase said the SEC has no authority to pursue civil claims because assets trading on its platform are not "investment contracts," and thus not securities. "The SEC can pursue its claims only if the tokens and staking services it has identified are 'securities,'" Coinbase said. "They are not." Spokespeople for the SEC did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday. The SEC sued Coinbase on June 6, saying it made billions of dollars acting as a middleman including by trading at least 13 crypto assets, or tokens, such as Solana, Cardano and Polygon that should have been registered as securities. Coinbase was also sued over a "staking" program where it pools crypto assets to support activity on the blockchain network, in exchange for "rewards" it provides customers after taking commissions for itself. The lawsuit was filed one day after the SEC sued Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, accusing it of inflating trading volumes, mishandling customer funds and lying about its operations. SEC Chair Gary Gensler has been trying to assert jurisdiction over the crypto industry, which he has said undermined investor trust in the U.S. capital markets. In a separate 177-page filing denying the SEC's substantive claims, Coinbase said it "welcomes regulation," but that the regulator was arbitrarily and without Congress' permission trying to fill the "regulatory gap" over crypto assets. "Agency enforcement authority is important but not boundless," it said. "The SEC's action here is beyond those bounds and unlawful." The case is SEC v Coinbase Inc et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 23-04738.

Germany to reject Binance's bid for a cryptocurrency licence - source(Reuters) -German regulators have told Binance they will not grant it a cryptocurrency custody licence, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said on Thursday, the latest in a string of setbacks for the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchange. Binance has come under pressure from regulators around the world. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this month sued Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao over what the regulator called a "web of deception" to evade U.S. laws. Binance denies the charges. The German regulator, BaFin, issued a statement declining to comment on individual companies due to confidentiality. Binance said it would not share details of conversations with regulators, but added: "We continue to work to comply with BaFin's requirements". It called it a "detailed and ongoing process" and said it was confident of having "the right team and measures in place to continue our discussions with regulators in Germany". Finance Forward first reported the news of the German licence. Problems have been mounting for Binance in recent weeks. Last week, Belgium's FSMA regulator ordered Binance to stop offering any virtual currency services in the country. France is also probing Binance, which has decided to quitthe Dutch market because it was unable to meet registration requirements to operate as a virtual asset service provider.

Binance's European banking partner to stop support from Sept – CoinDesk (Reuters)– Binance’s current banking partner for euro trasactions Paysafe Payment Solutions Ltd will stop supporting the cryptocurrency exchange from Sept. 25 onwards, CoinDesk reported on Wednesday.

BankThink: The SEC was right to call Binance's geofencing bluff | American Banker - Regardless of how one feels about the SEC's stance on digital assets, the allegations contained in the charges the agency has filed against Binance are severe. Among the most notable allegations is the charge that certain Binance employees orchestrated a complex scheme to obtain and retain high-value U.S.-based users on their unregistered international exchange, which violates both U.S. law and Binance's own publicly stated policies. When crypto exchanges use shadowy techniques to access U.S. markets, they undermine the viability of the U.S. as a base for legal, regulated digital assets. They unfairly siphon liquidity away from crypto platforms and other financial services providers that actually do invest the resources needed to protect end users. Americans are harmed as a result. To best serve U.S. citizens and investors, regulators need to be clear and provide guidance on how to comply: If a crypto platform doesn't want to comply with the U.S. requirements, that is their choice. However, they must then take proven, effective approaches to entirely avoid the U.S. market. Binance's alleged strategy to retain U.S. customers was two-pronged. Binance relied on easily circumventable IP address controls for their jurisdictional restrictions while incentivizing U.S. customers to use location-anonymizing technology to access their offshore platform. According to the SEC, Binance "[encouraged] U.S. customers to bypass … restrictions through the 'strategic treatment' of virtual private networks (VPNs) that would disguise their locations and thereby 'minimize [the] economic impact' of Binance's public proclamations that it was prohibiting U.S investors on the platform." Additionally, the SEC alleges that this strategy was driven by senior-level leadership, with Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao allegedly directing employees to "implement a plan to encourage customers to circumvent Binance's geographic blocking of U.S.-based IP addresses by using a VPN service to conceal their U.S. location." While the systemic encouragement of noncompliant practices is specific to the allegations against Binance, numerous companies in the crypto industry — even ones with smart compliance teams working in good faith — construct jurisdictional compliance programs with inadequate IP address technology. Internet Protocol (IP) addresses have been the status quo data point for user geolocation for four decades. However, IP is now obsolete for geographic compliance purposes. Not only is IP an inaccurate system — generally affiliated with data centers and not a device's location — but IP addresses can be easily manipulated by various cheap, easy-to-obtain and widely promoted tools, such as VPNs, proxies and fake location apps. The use of such applications to manipulate IP addresses is hardly a secret. In fact, Binance's plan to service U.S. customers was premised on the belief that U.S. users would naturally gravitate toward using location obfuscation technology to access offshore accounts. In many cases, Binance employees didn't even have to explicitly tell their customers to manipulate their IP addresses. According to the SEC's charges, Binance employees were instructed to "[i]nform [the] user that the reason why he/she can't use our www.binance.com is because his/her IP is detected as US IP; if user doesn't get the hint, indicate that IP is the sole reason why he/she can't use .com." If Binance's "hints" were not enough, a simple Google search for "How to access Binance.com from U.S." will give you numerous VPN recommendations. Given the allegations laid out in the SEC's legal action, it's clear that the SEC views IP location controls as inadequate for geofencing (the act of placing digital barriers around a restricted jurisdiction) and that any platform relying on such controls may be opening up their platform — wittingly or unwittingly — to unauthorized users.

New York is buying a supercomputer to understand and regulate AI - New York is seeking to procure a supercomputer to run artificial intelligence systems and gain a deeper understanding of the technology for more effective regulation. "When I say the DFS is looking at AI and machine learning, it's not limited to how we evaluate private sector use of those tools," said New York Department of Financial Services Superintendent Adrienne Harris at the Point Zero Forum for financial regulation in Zurich. She said the state is looking to obtain the hardware and hire professionals to run the programs. "My vision is for DFS and other regulators to become the regulator of the future, meaning that we are embracing reg tech to the public advantage, using data driven approaches that leverage data analytics to enhance our ability to predict and respond to events in the marketplace." Supercomputers have long been a mainstay of military and intelligence agencies, used for tasks ranging from cracking codes to designing nuclear weapons. They have many civilian uses as well, like predicting weather, creating new drugs and simulating the effect of crashes on auto designs. The supercomputer market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of about 9.5% from 2021 to 2026, fueled by increasing adoption of cloud computing and cloud technologies as well as the need to ingest larger datasets to train and operate AI, according to the World Economic Forum. Last year, International Business Machines Corp. launched Vela, its first AI-optimized, cloud-based supercomputer for researchers. "All of the major players in private tech and software are moving toward AI," said Harris. "That's no secret, but it would be a huge missed opportunity for regulators to not make use of these tools as well."

Cybercrime is digital banking's greatest threat, bankers say --Banks and credit unions continue to identify cybersecurity threats and fraud as the greatest challenges to their digital banking strategy, according to new research by American Banker.In the survey conducted in March and April, nearly 90% of the 200 banking professionals surveyed said cybersecurity threats are a "moderate" or "significant" challenge to their institutions' digital banking strategies, more than integrating legacy systems with new digital technologies (86%) and retaining and attracting skilled talent (77%).As such, bankers named security-related functions as two of the top three technologies for enabling digital banking, with 55% saying enhanced security and fraud mitigation were vital to their goals and 50% saying digital identity verification is critical. That far outpaced the importance rankings of many other digital services, including virtual assistants or chatbots (30%) and rapid application development (21%).To a substantial degree, cybersecurity and fraud mitigation also motivated banks to partner with fintechs over the past year. The top two functions on which bankers said they were "likely to turn to or partner with fintechs for help" were for peer-to-peer payments or money transfers and secure ID verification. For both, 45% of respondents said they were likely to seek out help from fintechs.Cybersecurity has occupied the front of digital bankers' minds for years, and major data breaches continue to afflict the industry. This month, at least 10 banks got caught up in a series of cyberattacks enabled by a vulnerability in file transfer service MoveIt.So-called supply chain attacks such as this latest series pose a particularly dire risk to banks; the security of bank data relies on these third parties to manage risk appropriately. Because that data includes consumers' information, regulators require banks to vet their partners' security systems, lest they be liable after a breach.American Bankers' recent research found that banks expect a large share of their spending in the coming year to go toward preventing data breaches, a continuation of previous spending trends. In another survey last year, American Banker found that more than 60% of financial services companies planned to increase their spending on cybersecurity by at least 10% over the coming year.

Warren to CFPB: Credit card late fees are a profit, not a deterrent — Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sought to debunk banks' arguments that they charge late fees as what she calls "tools of punishment," according to a letter sent by the Senate Banking Committee member to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In a letter obtained by American Banker, Warren urged CFPB Director Rohit Chopra to finalize the bureau's February proposal to slash credit card late fees to just $8 a month — a significant cut from the current statutory maximum of $41. She included in her letter comments from the ten largest credit card issuers — also obtained by American Banker — that her office received after she requested information on the amount issuers earned and spent on collecting the fees. In her letter to Chopra, Warren criticized the core arguments that credit card issuers have made in opposition to the CFPB proposal, saying the institutions have no evidence that late fees prevent late payments. Instead, the letter argues that the evidence indicates that issuers often earn significant revenue off late fees. Chopra should finalize the proposal "without making any changes that weaken it," Warren said."This proposed rule is necessary to protect American consumers from the predatory practices of greedy financial institutions and furthers the Biden Administration's efforts to root out junk fees," Warren said in the letter. In early May, Warren asked the ten largest credit card issuers — PNC, JPMorgan Chase, Capital One, Citigroup, Discover, Bank of America, American Express, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp and USAA — to give her data on how much each company makes off late fees each year and the total cost annually of collecting those fees. All ten issuers responded to Warren's request. According to Warren, those institutions "revealed their interest in maintaining exorbitant late fees as tools of punishment."

Credit unions and banks don't get along, but join forces against CFPB — Banks and credit unions rarely see eye-to-eye, so it was no surprise when Dan Berger, president and CEO of the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions, called out "greedy" bank executives responsible for recent bank failures. "In the past several months, we've seen the biggest bank failures since the 2008 financial crisis," Berger told 650 credit union executives Wednesday at the trade group's annual conference in Long Beach, California. "The causes can be traced to greedy, profit-seeking bank executives. They focused on chasing yields, taking in too many uninsured deposits and making investments that led to losses when interest rates rose. Although banking regulators did flag concerns over the past several years, not enough was done to mitigate these risks." Yet when it comes to legislative and regulatory battles, credit unions are closely aligned with banks in pushing back against two major issues that could severely impact financial institutions — efforts to reduce interchange "swipe fees" and to cut credit card late fees to just $8. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in particular has long been a target of banks outraged by CFPB Director Rohit Chopra's repeated assaults on so-called junk fees. Credit unions have jumped into the fray by pushing back hard against a CFPB plan that would cut credit card late fees to $8, down from $30. Berger said the plan would potentially force small credit unions out of the credit card market. "In financial services policy, the CFPB has been on a crusade for what it claims is consumer protection," Berger told credit union executives gathered in the sunny, seaside city 35 miles south of Los Angeles. "They'll force many credit unions to reconsider the products and services you offer, many of which are consequential to your members' financial success." NAFCU says credit unions would be severely impacted by the CFPB proposal, released in February, that aims to wipe out $9 billion a year in credit card late fees by eliminating annual inflation adjustments and a so-called safe harbor. As many as 85% of credit unions — some 2,670 entities that issue credit cards — also qualify as small businesses. For banks, that number is much smaller — just 451 institutions are considered small entities with assets of $850 million or less, as defined by the Small Business Administration. Ann Petros, NAFCU's vice president of regulatory affairs, said credit unions are confident that they have a strong legal argument against the CFPB because the agency failed to convene a small business review panel, a requirement for any major regulatory change that causes an economic impact of $100 million or more on small businesses, Petros said.

New bank capital requirements may move faster than the speed of regulation As federal regulators prepare to propose new capital standards this summer, a debate has emerged over their timing and potential impact on the real economyFederal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chair Martin Gruenberg both confirmed last week that a proposed rule for the final implementation of theBasel III international regulatory framework is imminent and signaled that it will include greater capital requirements for the country's largest banks.In response, bank advocacy groups and some lawmakers have argued that rolling out new requirements — especially those that increase capital obligations — will have a swift impact on bank balance sheets and their willingness to lend. Such a shift, they warn, could put further strain on an already weakening economy."The risk that capital requirements start to take effect and start to crimp lending activity at a time when we're facing economic headwinds is significant, in my opinion, and only continues to grow as the data makes itself evident," said Sean Campbell, chief economist and head of policy research at the Financial Services Forum, a trade group representing the largest banks in the country.Regulators waved off such concerns last week, noting that long-term regulatory concerns outweigh near-term economic uncertainties. Powell said banks will have "some years" to adjust to new policies, allowing them to do so with minimal disruption to their lending activities. Gruenberg said holding more capital could better position banks to support the economy in a downturn."History has proven that insufficient capital can lead to harmful economic results when banks are unable to provide financial services to households and businesses, as occurred during the 2008 financial crisis," Gruenberg said during a speech last week. "Ensuring adequate amounts of bank capital provides a long-term benefit to the economy by enabling banks to play a counter-cyclical role during an economic downturn rather than a pro-cyclical one."By the letter of the law, regulatory change is a slow process. Once the Fed, FDIC and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency release their proposal for the Basel III endgame sometime in the coming weeks, it will be open to months of public review and commentary. After that, regulators will spend several more months incorporating that feedback before releasing — and ultimately voting on — a final rule. Once adopted, the rule's requirements will likely be phased in gradually over several years.But, in practice, the adaptation process can play out much more quickly. A working paperpublished by the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland last year notes that many mid-sized banks changed their balance sheets to accommodate for the first installment of the Basel III framework years before they were required to by law — in some instances, changes were made before regulators finalized the language of the rule.

Credit Suisse AT1 wipeout is a headache for banks, says Vontobel - Switzerland's decision to wipe out $17 billion of Credit Suisse's so-called additional tier 1 debt as part of the government-brokered rescue of the troubled bank by UBS Group AG has made it a lot tougher for other Swiss lenders to issue those types of risky bonds, said a top Vontobel Holding AG executive. "The disadvantage is if we were to go out and do an AT1, it would be extremely difficult or it would be with very high margins," Thomas Heinzl, the Swiss bank's chief financial officer, said at Bloomberg's Future of Finance conference in Zurich. "It's a sensible instrument to be used," he said, "so this is something that we as banks are suffering from." Banks around the world have issued billions of dollars of AT1s, which are deeply subordinated bonds that are supposed to take losses if a lender runs into trouble and help avoid a repeat of the taxpayer-funded bailouts that followed the 2008 financial crisis. With markets mired in low interest rates in previous years, investors snapped up the notes that offered higher yields than less risky securities. "An investor who enjoyed the high coupons and who read the prospectus should have been aware that this could have happened," Yves Robert-Charrue, a top executive at Julius Baer, told Bloomberg's Francine Lacqua at the conference. "The problem was," he continued, particularly in Asia and the Middle East, "a lot of clients had invested in AT1s not being really conscious of the risk." "I think that triggered a lot of the negative perception that the Swiss financial center currently is suffering," said Charrue, who oversees operations in Switzerland, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. Banks in other jurisdictions have since issued such debt, yet Swiss lenders probably won't see a negative impact if it takes them longer because the AT1 portion of their overall reserves is limited, said Marni McManus, Citigroup's country officer for Switzerland. Such bonds are designed to be written off or convert to equity if a bank's capital levels plunge. But critics of the write-down argue it was an unfair and disproportionate move that put shareholders before bondholders, contrary to the conventions, and has triggered a spate of lawsuits against the Swiss banking regulator, the Financial Market Supervisory Authority, known as Finma.

Wall Street’s Most Dangerous Derivative Secrets Are Hiding in Plain Sight in a Regulator’s Report -By Pam and Russ Martens -On March 17, 2022, the Federal Reserve began its interest rate hiking cycle, which has, thus far, evolved into 10 consecutive rate hikes, making it the fastest rate increases in 40 years. The Fed’s actions to tame inflation included four consecutive interest rate hikes of an aggressive 75 basis point hike (three quarters of one percent) on June 16, July 28, September 22, and November 3 of last year.At that point, every trading veteran on Wall Street was scratching their head and asking themselves the same question: why aren’t we hearing about interest rate derivatives blowing up and taking down either a U.S. mega bank or its counterparty on the wrong side of the trade?According to the quarterly derivative reports released by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the regulator of national banks, as of December 31, 2021, four mega commercial banks held $118 trillion notional (face amount) of interest rate derivatives. That $118 trillion represented an astounding 91percent of all interest rate derivatives held by all commercial banks in the United States.Those four banks and their interest rate derivatives as of December 31, 2021 are as follows: JPMorgan Chase Bank, $45.47 trillion in interest rate derivatives; Goldman Sachs Bank USA with $34.24 trillion; Citigroup’s Citibank N.A. with $25.88 trillion; and Bank of America N.A. with $12.58 trillion.But here is where things really get interesting. (See Table 20 on page 25 of the OCC report.) As of December 31, 2021 – prior to the March 17, 2022 launch of the fastest Fed rate hikes in 40 years, those same four banks were holding a combined $18 trillionnotional in interest rate derivative contracts which had a maturity of more than five years. Exactly how does one get out of these contracts, or find a counterparty to hedge them with, once the Fed starts tightening and shows no signs of stopping? Did all four banks have a magical crystal ball and make bets in those 5+year contracts that interest rates would be skyrocketing?Of the four banks named above, Goldman Sachs Bank USA had the largest exposure to interest rate derivative contracts with a maturity of more than five years. Its exposure was $6.7 trillion notional.Goldman Sachs Bank USA now seems to be in a desperate bid to raise cash, using the Apple brand to seduce customers into a savings account paying a high rate of interest. (See our report: Apple Is Loaning Its Brand to the Great Vampire Squid to Offer FDIC-Insured Savings Accounts.)Adding to our curiosity as to how everybody landed on the correct side of the interest rate derivative trades during the fastest rate hikes in 40 years, is a chart in the most recent OCC derivatives report for the first quarter of this year. It shows how much commercial banks have charged off quarterly for derivative losses since 2000. Following the financial crisis of 2008, the charge-offs spiked to as high as $1.6 billion in 2011 but have been absolutely tame in the past two years. How is this possible? (See chart below from the OCC’s current report.)

This is the Bank Chart that Is Alarming Fed Insiders - By Pam and Russ Martens ~ Between March 10 and May 1 of this year, three of the largest bank failures in U.S. history occurred. On March 10 the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) seized Silicon Valley Bank after $42 billion in deposits had exited the bank the day prior with another $100 billion queued up to leave the next day – meaning it was possible for a federally-insured bank to lose 85 percent of its deposits in the span of 48 hours in the digital age. (For a closer look at what was going on at Silicon Valley Bank, see our report: Silicon Valley Bank Was a Wall Street IPO Pipeline in Drag as a Federally-Insured Bank; FHLB of San Francisco Was Quietly Bailing It Out.) Two more bank failures followed in short order: Signature Bank on March 12 and First Republic Bank on May 1. Both banks were experiencing bank runs as a result of a loss of confidence by their customers. First Republic Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, and Signature Bank were the second, third and fourth largest bank failures in U.S. history, respectively. (The largest failure was Washington Mutual during the financial crisis of 2008.) The Fed’s answer to this crisis of confidence was to allow JPMorgan Chase, officially the riskiest U.S. bank with a string of felonies, to buy the failed First Republic Bank. At the time, First Republic was the 14^th largest bank in the U.S. and JPMorgan Chase was the number 1 largest bank with $3.3 trillion in consolidated assets. (Is there any logic, whatsoever, in allowing the riskiest bank in the United States to get even larger? The only possible explanation is regulatory capture.) So here we are today. The banking crisis has pretty much disappeared from the headlines but the smoldering remnants of the crisis are very much still with us. The Federal Reserve has released a listing of the largest banks in the United States by assets as of March 31, 2023. We decided to check to see how much the 15 largest banks by assets have lost in market value in the past year and a half – from their closing price on December 31, 2021 to their closing price yesterday, June 26, 2023. Per the chart above, among the 15 largest banks, the following five banks have performed the worst in terms of share price declines since December 31, 2021: Truist Bank (ticker TFC), Citizens Bank (CFG), U.S. Bank (USB), PNC Bank (PNC), and Bank of America (BAC).

Banks take stress tests in stride, but regionals fare worse than others | American Banker — Large banks continue to be well positioned to withstand a severe recession, according to the results of the Federal Reserve's much-anticipated annual stress tests released Wednesday, but regional banks had some of the lowest minimum capital levels under the Fed's severely adverse scenario. Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michael Barr said in a statement that the results demonstrate that the banking sector is healthy and well capitalized, but he emphasized that the stress test is not a perfect indicator of how the industry might perform under any circumstances. "Today's results confirm that the banking system remains strong and resilient," Barr said. "At the same time, this stress test is only one way to measure that strength. We should remain humble about how risks can arise and continue our work to ensure that banks are resilient to a range of economic scenarios, market shocks and other stresses." While these were the Fed's first stress-test reports since three high-profile bank failures this spring, the central bank announced the scenarios before the banking crisis began. Even so, the stress tests are one of the most comprehensive snapshots of the health of large banks and into financial stability of the country since the crisis. All 23 banks assessed in this year's stress tests remained above their minimum capital requirements. Projected losses under the severely adverse scenario totaled $541 billion, the Fed said. Under that scenario, the common equity risk-based capital ratio of the banks tested fell by 2.3 percentage points to a minimum of 10.1%. But the banks that held the lowest post-stress capital minimums were regional banks — precisely the category of bank that has been under heightened scrutiny since the recent collapses of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and First Republic Bank.

Fed approves bank expansion despite claims of discriminatory practices The Federal Reserve Board of Governors approved the expansion of Texas bank despite concerns raised about potentially discriminatory practices at the company.The board unanimously approved Vantage Bank of Texas's application to open a branch in Houston, putting aside public comments about the bank's track record for lending to Black borrowers and small businesses in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. But one Fed governor said the episode raises questions about how the central bank deals with contested applications."I support the approval of this application," Gov. Michelle Bowman said in a written statement that accompanied the decision's announcement on Tuesday. "However, I believe that the Board should improve its approach to processing applications in cases where a member of the public has made an adverse comment, particularly when the recent supervisory record addresses the concerns raised and is consistent with approval."Bowman's comment is a rare example of a Fed official voicing their personal opinion about a board action. Typically, the organization prioritizes consensus in its decision-making.Vantage, which has $3.5 billion of consolidated assets and operates 22 branches in Texas, had applied for a new branch under section 9 of the Federal Reserve Act and the Fed's Regulation H. That process includes opening the application up to public comment.Two commenters raised issues with the bank's lending practices, according to the Fed. One said Vantage failed to provide small business and consumer loans to Black borrowers and businesses with less than $1 million of revenue in and around Dallas and Fort Worth. The commenter also said the bank did not loan money in census tracts with high minority or high poverty populations. The second commenter accused the bank of discriminatory marketing and lending practices against Black individuals and neighborhoods.

BankThink: No deposit insurance hikes without more social accountability for banks | American Banker -- "Banking is a confidence game," as Pershing Square CEO Bill Ackman put it recently, and confidence in the U.S. financial sector hasn't been this low in 15 years. The cascade of bank failures that began with Silicon Valley Bank in March has put governments under pressure to act. But act how, exactly? According to industry lobbyists, the answer should be to guarantee even more bank deposits than our government already does. Certainly, there is precedent for this response — federal deposit guarantees began in the wake of the 1929 stock market crash, and the cap was hiked most recently to $250,000 per depositor per bank in the throes of the 2008 Wall Street crash. The latter instance was explicitly included "as a political sweetener" to get the bank bailout passed during the financial crisis.Increasing the cap — whether through a permanent hike to $1 million, $2 million or even $10 million, as some in the business have suggested, or to infinity for a two-year period as midsize banks have formally requested — would dramatically boost a subsidy that is already incredibly valuable.Indeed, it's not just depositors who gain confidence from this system. Banks themselves benefit enormously. Deposits are typically the lowest-cost source of capital that banks have, and they leverage those funds to lend many times over, which is how they make their money. The government allows banks to stamp their product with a seal bearing the government's Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. logo, and a statement that deposits are insured up to $250,000, "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government."Insuring deposits is just one way in which the government supports the banking industry. The government charters banks and provides them access to additional funds through the Federal Reserve's discount window and other facilities. The government explicitly and implicitly encourages people to put their money in banks, including by conducting research on how to reduce the number of unbanked and underbanked people.This government-backed banking system results in millions of people putting their money in banks: FDIC deposit insurance covers more than 827 million accounts with more than $9.7 trillion in depositor funds. The banks that benefit from that insurance earned $263 billion in profits last year.Discussions of the idea of expanding the deposit insurance cap have mostly been fixated on depositor and business confidence. That focus omits vital public interest questions. In fact, the value of the subsidy has been the rationale — the quid pro quo — for requiring public policy outcomes from banks, including the Community Reinvestment Act, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act and other requirements that banks serve the public interest.So why then are the very same banks that are desperately seeking to increase deposit insurance — a tacit admission that their profits depend on government backing — fighting the government's efforts to improve data collection, ensure fair lending and enhance their community reinvestment requirements?Both the American Bankers Association and the Consumer Bankers Association are suing to block the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from combating racial discrimination. They have threatened lawsuits over the pending overhaul of CRA rules that haven't been updated since before most people even used email, let alone smartphones and mobile banking and algorithm-driven mortgage application portals. The ABA has even joined a preposterous new suit aimed at dismantling Section 1071, which requires banks to provide new data on the nature and terms of their lending to small businesses, before they are even implemented.Trade groups don't sue for their own gain, of course. They sue on behalf of their member banks — including the very same banks now hoping to harvest expanded government subsidies from this spring's sectoral crisis.

Warren: Regulators have taken the 'wrong lessons' from bank failures - Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said bank regulators and treasury officials "appear to be taking the wrong lessons" from a string of bank failures this spring and should be more hard-nosed when making guidelines for bank mergers and acquisitions in the future. In a letter to regulators Tuesday, Warren — who chairs the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Economic Policy — specifically called out Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen and Acting Comptroller of the Currency Micheal J. Hsu for being too permissive in allowing banks to merge. "Secretary Yellen and Acting Comptroller Hsu have recently indicated that they appear to be taking the wrong lessons from these bank failures, suggesting that they would like to see more bank consolidation," Warren wrote in the letter to top officials at the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Federal Reserve, the agencies that work with the Department of Justice to issue bank merger guidelines. "This would represent exactly the wrong approach." Warren's letter comes as regulators weigh updating their guidelines on bank mergers and acquisitions, which is expected to include more robust guidelines for assessing a deal's competitive effects. Warren raised questions over the timeline on tougher M&A guidelines the White House requested two years ago and the slow rollout of consumer protections outlined in post-2008 regulations. "Allowing additional bank consolidation would be a dereliction of your responsibilities, hurting American consumers and small businesses, betraying President Biden's commitment to promoting competition in the economy, and threatening the stability of the financial system and the economy," Warren said. She zeroed in on the Justice Department's decision to stop forcing banks to divest branches in mergers while asking when regulators would release a report on how bank competition is impacted by mergers, which federal banking agencies are required to include in an annual report to Congress. "I urge you to accelerate your work to update the bank merger review guidelines to put an end to regulators' practice of rubber stamping merger applications and strengthen the standards under which mergers are considered," she said, asking that the regulators respond to the questions outlined in the letter by July 10.

The next test: How much capital will banks return to shareholders? --Some of the banks that learned their stress-test results this week are set to start revealing their latest capital return plans on Friday afternoon. That group includes regional banks, which generally recorded lower capital levels under the Federal Reserve's severely stressed scenario than their big bank counterparts. While the stress test results provided insight into regulators' view on bank resilience, the capital return plans will offer a look at how banks, after receiving input from their regulators, see their own capital levels. Many regional banks stopped or curtailed their planned capital returns, including share buybacks, in recent years and have yet to fully resume them. "Banks are likely going to be told to keep the same cadence — no faster and no stronger," said Chris Marinac, director of research at Janney Montgomery Scott, a financial services investment firm. Regional banks had some of the lowest minimum capital levels this year under the Fed's severely adverse scenario, which called for an unemployment rate of 10% and a sharp decline in the value of assets, especially those related to real estate. Regulators and investors have been paying particular attention to regional banks since the spring collapse of three major regionals.. Several regional banks saw notable declines in their capital levels under the severely adverse scenario. Citizens Financial Group in Providence, Rhode Island, showed a post-stress common equity tier 1 capital ratio of 6.4%, down from 6.9% in last year's stress tests but still above the regulatory minimum of 4.5%. U.S. Bancorp in Minneapolis posted a capital ratio of 6.6%, down from 9.3% last year. Truist Financial's post-stress common equity tier 1 ratio was 6.7%, compared with 7.8% a year ago. "On their own, the results are relieving," analysts from Jefferies Group said in a note. But they added that the Fed's ongoing review of bank capital requirements, along with the implementation of the Basel III capital framework, make it hard to draw conclusions about capital return activity.Martin Gruenberg, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., said in a speech last week that regulators are considering whether to apply the forthcoming Basel III rule to banks with over $100 billion of assets.. The biggest U.S. banks typically have higher capital ratios than regional banks — in part because their classification as globally systemically important banks requires them to carry additional capital, Marinac said.

Capital buffers for regionals, big banks move in opposite directions -Three regional banks reported Friday that the amount of incremental capital they're required to hold will increase following recent regulatory stress tests, while four larger banks said they'll be allowed to hold smaller buffers.The announcements followed stress-test results from the Federal Reserve on Wednesday, which generally found that the nation's largest banks would fare better than midsize institutions in a severe economic downturn.Regional banks have been facing heightened scrutiny since the demise of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and First Republic Bank this spring. All three of those institutions had between $100 billion and $250 billion of assets before they failed.On Friday, Capital One Financial, Citizens Financial Group and Truist Financial all said that they expect their so-called stress capital buffers, which are set by their regulators, to increase this fall. None of the three announced changes to their plans for shareholder dividends and buybacks.The stress capital buffer, which is at least 2.5% of a bank's risk-weighted assets, gets added to a 4.5% capital requirement in order to calculate a bank's total common equity tier 1 capital requirement. The largest, systemically important global banks also get assessed a capital surcharge of at least 1%.John Woods, the chief financial officer at Citizens, said in a statement that the firm's company-run stress tests imply a significantly smaller capital drawdown than the Fed's models. The Fed has told Citizens that its preliminary stress capital buffer is 4.0%, up from 3.4% last year.Providence, Rhode Island-based Citizens did not comment on its plans with respect to issuing dividends. It said that as of June 30, it had $1.344 billion of remaining capacity under a previously authorized share repurchase program.Truist CEO William Rogers said in a statement that the bank got a roughly 30-basis point boost to its common equity tier 1 capital ratio from the sale of a minority stake in an insurance unit, which was completed after the start of this year's stress tests.Truist did not comment on any share buyback plans, but said that it plans to maintain its 52-cent per share dividend. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based company expects its stress capital buffer to rise from 2.5% to 2.9% this fall.

Treasury calls for climate scenario testing, more disclosures from insurers --The Treasury Department has called on state regulators to craft policies to identify and mitigate climate risks faced by the homeowners insurance industry. In a report released Tuesday morning, Treasury's Federal Insurance Office, or FIO, rolled out a 20-point action plan for addressing climate concerns. Most of the provisions were directed at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, or NAIC, the standard-setting organization for state insurance boards.The report calls for state regulators to require insurers to conduct risk modeling and scenario analysis related to various types of climate exposures. It also calls for increased disclosures around best practices and vulnerabilities, and enhanced efforts to educate consumers on the limitations of their policies.In a speech delivered Tuesday at an event hosted by the Brookings Institution, Assistant Treasury Secretary for Financial Institutions Graham Steele said addressing the emerging climate-related risks to the insurance industry is essential to protecting broader financial stability."Impacts on the insurance market can have potentially significant consequences for homeowners and their property values that we are seeing, which can spill over to other parts of the interconnected financial system," Steele said. "For example, financial institutions and investors hold assets like mortgages and securities that are directly or indirectly affected by insurance coverage."The report outlines three categories of supervisory and regulatory oversight for state insurers to focus on: prudential, to ensure individual insurers can meet the needs of their policyholders; macroprudential, to make sure groups of insurers are addressing sector-wide risks; and market conduct, aimed at issues of fairness.Steele said state insurers already have many tools at their disposal for handling these issues, but the report serves as a reminder of what those capabilities are and outlines potential new policy instruments that regulatory bodies might consider. These include incorporating climate readiness into accreditation standards and creating climate stress testing, similar to the initiative rolled out by the Federal Reserve earlier this year."All state insurance regulators should develop and adopt climate-related risk monitoring guidance appropriate for their markets, which should include expectations for insurers to incorporate climate-related risks into their annual financial planning, as well as their long- and short-term risk management processes," Steele said, noting that some states have already done this.

NCUA's climate-risk query sparks concern from credit unions -- In response to the National Credit Union Administration's call for insight on climate-related financial risks, credit union advocates, insurance experts and other professionals are urging federal regulators to avoid implementing a formal rule.The NCUA released its request for information in late April, polling executives and climate experts on the impact environmental changes have had on credit union operations in recent years. It also asked about effective strategies for both mitigating and measuring the risks they face in their respective communities. At the time of the RFI's deadline on Monday, the NCUA had received more than 40 comments.Todd Harper, chairman of the NCUA, said in an earlier interview with American Banker that the board was deliberate in its issuance of an RFI — rather than an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking — to underscore its focus on data prior to the addition of new or modified regulations."What credit unions do today in terms of lending, services and products is much more diverse and sophisticated than it was back in the days when credit unions were really just offering personal loans and loans for new appliances. … We need to recognize that credit unions are part of a broader financial services ecosystem and have a role to play in it," Harper said. The agency declined to comment further pending the end of the comment period and the review of stakeholder comments.

Insurers pull back as US climate catastrophes intensify The insurance industry is increasingly wary of the risks presented by climate and natural disasters, prompting major firms to scale back their presence in more vulnerable states. In June, Farmers Insurance announced in a company memo it will no longer write new property insurance policies in Florida, citing “catastrophe costs … at historically high levels.” Earlier in the month, AIG stopped issuing policies along the Sunshine State’s hurricane-vulnerable coastline.Those followed State Farm, California’s largest single homeowners’ insurer, which in May announced a moratorium on new policies in the state, blaming “rapidly growing catastrophe exposure.” The decision came after years of devastating wildfires have sent insurance rates in California skyrocketing. In testimony before the Senate Budget Committee in March, Eric Andersen, CEO of consulting firm Aon PLC, said that reinsurance companies, the firms that help insurers pay out costs, have also stepped back from high-risk areas, particularly those vulnerable to flooding and wildfires. “Just as the U.S. economy was overexposed to mortgage risk in 2008, the economy today is overexposed to climate risk,” he said. The industry is feeling the pinch beyond the East and West coasts, as well, according to Mark Friedlander, director of corporate communications at the Insurance Information Institute. He noted that dozens of firms have reduced their presence in Louisiana, including 50 that have stopped writing new policies in the state’s hurricane-prone parishes. “This isn’t just a story about Florida and California — all over the country there are insurers who are less willing to take risks,” from those along major rivers to areas vulnerable to tornadoes, said Benjamin Keys, an assistant professor of real estate at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.Louisiana, in particular, has gotten less attention than California and Florida, but the state’s insurance industry has been steamrolled by recent intense storm seasons. “Many smaller, undercapitalized insurers in Louisiana were not able to handle the volume of losses from the 2020-2021 hurricane season,” Friedlander said. The industry, which has historically taken a more reactive approach to disasters, is shifting its strategy as such events become harder to ignore, he added. “The industry’s taking the approach now of what’s called predict and prevent, meaning being proactive to address climate risk and make sure insurance coverage reflects that and make sure homes and business take preventative action,” Friedlander told The Hill. He noted that while Farmers made headlines, it’s the 15th insurer to stop writing new policies in Florida in the last 18 months. Although most of those companies have not pulled out of the state outright, he added, three have.

Regulators OK short-term accommodations for troubled CRE loans Federal regulators say banks should include short-term accommodations in their toolkits for dealing with distressed commercial real estate loans.The Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and National Credit Union Administration issued a joint statement on commercial real estate accommodations and workouts on Thursday. The missive updates guidance first released by the regulators in 2009, amid a rash of bank failures driven by — among other things — bad real estate loans.The statement notes that banks should step in to address distressed loans before lenders default or have to go through a so-called "workout" process, which can entail renewing or extending loan terms, extending additional credit or restructuring credit with or without concessions. The agencies noted that short-term modifications — which suspend, extend or defer repayment terms — can be an effective way to address issues before more significant accommodations are needed."These actions can mitigate long-term adverse effects on borrowers by allowing them to address the issues affecting repayment ability and are often in the best interest of financial institutions and their borrowers," the statement reads.The new policy statement also updates the 2009 guidance to incorporate accounting changes that have taken place during the intervening years, including requirements that banks estimate current expected credit losses for all their assets. It also gives examples for how loans should be classified and accounted for once they have entered a workout process. The inclusion of guidance around short-term accommodations and accounting best practices was the result of public commentary fielded by regulators since proposing rule changes last August. In total, the agencies received 22 comments from banking organizations and credit unions, state and national trade associations and individuals.Otherwise, the finalized guidelines are largely similar to the policy proposed more than a decade ago. The statement urges banks to engage with troubled commercial real estate borrowers early and have policies in place for dealing with accommodations in a safe and sound manner.

Nonbanks lost mortgage share but still dominated market in '22 Depositories gained ground in housing finance overall in 2022 — just as they did in the top 10 rankings for that year — but nonbanks remain the main players, new national statistics from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act confirm.Nonbanks controlled 60.2% of the one- to four-family market during the year but higher rates that eroded loan volumes and a wave of industry consolidation reduced their share from 63.9% a year earlier, increasing that of their depository counterparts to 39.8% from 36.4%.The share of the mortgage market held by nonbanks hasn't been this low since 2019, when it was 56.4%.Overall, the mortgage market contracted by 2.63%, according to the snapshot of numbers from the HMDA's national data set that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council released Thursday.The number of entities reporting into HMDA dropped to 4,338 from 4,460 and could fall further, depending on how much industry contraction is offset by new requirements that reduce the reporting threshold for banks regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.The new numbers released also show that the historically low share of purchase mortgages made to Black borrowers rose to 8.1% from 7.9% during 2022, when several Biden administration initiatives called for more equitable lending across racial and ethnic groups.Denial rates, however, remained particularly high for Black consumers trying to achieve homeownership at 16.4%, compared to 11.1% for Hispanic households, 9.2% for Asian consumers and 5.8% for white loan applicants.

U.S. regulator considers limiting big banks' borrowing from backstop lender --U.S. officials are considering limits on the ability of large lenders to use Federal Home Loan Banks as a financial backstop, part of a broader proposal to overhaul the system. The changes, which are being discussed as part of a sweeping review by an American regulator, would amount to the most dramatic reshaping of the $1.6 trillion system in decades. The Federal Housing Finance Agency may still adjust its plans before announcing the recommendations in the coming months, according to people familiar with the matter. Reining in big lenders' ability to borrow could also require congressional action. The FHLBs have emerged as a flash point after the institutions, which have implied support from the federal government, lent billions of dollars to Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and First Republic Bank before they collapsed earlier this year. Since their creation to boost home lending during the Great Depression, the FHLBs have morphed into a backstop for their members, while the system's role in housing finance has diminished. Each year, banks borrow hundreds of billions of dollars from 11 FHLBs scattered across the country without the same stigma of seeking help from the Federal Reserve. Supporters say the system serves as a safety net during crises and economic downturns, and it has been dubbed the lender of next-to-last resort — second in importance to the Fed's discount window. The FHFA started a review of the system in 2022. The effort has gathered more attention after the crisis this past March highlighted their expansive role. A report on the review is expected by the end of September, FHFA Director Sandra Thompson told lawmakers in May. She has said it will include recommendations to Congress and changes the regulator itself can make. "FHFA remains committed to releasing our report by the end of September, which will include recommendations addressing a range of topics." Adam Russell, a representative for the regulator, said in an email. Exactly how the lines could be drawn and which big banks it would apply to aren't immediately clear, said the people. Legislation passed in 1989 — in the wake of the Savings and Loan crisis — opened up access to the FHLBs to almost all banks and credit unions. Thompson and her deputy director, Joshua Stallings, are also expected to ask Congress to increase the percentage of profits that the FHLBs are required to devote to their affordable housing program, the people said.

Tenants say a 3-year ban on evictions kept them housed. Landlords say they’re drowning in debt — Retiree Pamela Haile has paid property taxes, insurance and other bills on a house she lets out in Oakland, but for more than three years her tenants have paid no rent thanks to one of the longest-lasting eviction bans in the country. The eviction moratorium in the San Francisco Bay Area city expires next month and Haile can’t wait. The 69-year-old estimates she is owed more than $60,000 in back rent, money she doubts she will ever see. Moreover, the tenants have trashed her house and it will cost tens of thousands of dollars to make it habitable, she says. “Dealing with this whole thing gets me so upset.” Eviction moratoriums were put in place across the U.S. at the start of the pandemic in 2020 to prevent displacement and curb the spread of the coronavirus. Most expired long ago, but not in Oakland or neighboring San Francisco and Berkeley, all places where rents and rates of homelessness are high. While it’s more common to see tenants converging on city halls in California to demand greater protections, in Oakland and surrounding Alameda County small-property landlords staged protests earlier this year demanding an end to the moratoriums. Many of the landlords were Black, like Haile, or Asian American, and they said the eviction bans had saddled them with debt and foreclosure worries while their tenants, who have jobs, live rent-free. They scolded elected leaders for allowing tenants to self-certify that their inability to pay was tied to the pandemic. Unlike large corporate landlords, these small-property owners said they didn’t have the means to evict, and were eaten up by worry. “There is nothing natural about being forced to house and have people live in your property for over three years and not pay,” said Michelle Hailey, who is also Black and owns a triplex where both her tenants stopped paying. “There is nothing natural, ethical or even humane about that.” Nationwide, eviction filings have come roaring back since the bans ended — to more than 50% higher than the pre-pandemic average in many cities, according to Princeton University’s Eviction Lab, which tracks filings in three dozen cities and 10 states. In California’s Alameda County, filings topped 500 in May, compared to 65 in April before the ban ended. That surpassed filings that averaged in the 300s before the pandemic in 2019. In Oakland, a city rich in Black history, some Black families who migrated from the South during World War II were able to purchase homes, despite redlining and other discriminatory practices by banks and government. But a recession and subprime mortgage crisis followed by rapidly rising home prices and gentrification pushed out many Black residents, and homelessness escalated.

Fannie and Freddie Serious Delinquencies in May: Single Family Declined, Multi-Family Increased - Single-family serious delinquencies continued to decline in May, however, multi-family serious delinquencies are now increasing.Freddie Mac reported that the Single-Family serious delinquency rate in May was 0.58%, down from 0.61% April. Freddie's rate is down year-over-year from 0.80% in May 2022. This is below the pre-pandemic lows. Freddie's serious delinquency rate peaked in February 2010 at 4.20% following the housing bubble and peaked at 3.17% in August 2020 during the pandemic.Fannie Mae reported that the Single-Family Serious Delinquency decreased to 0.56% in May from 0.58% in April. The serious delinquency rate is down from 0.87% in May 2022. This is below the pre-pandemic lows. The Fannie Mae serious delinquency rate peaked in February 2010 at 5.59% following the housing bubble and peaked at 3.32% in August 2020 during the pandemic.These are mortgage loans that are "three monthly payments or more past due or in foreclosure". Mortgages in forbearance are being counted as delinquent in this monthly report but are not reported to the credit bureaus.For Fannie, by vintage, for loans made in 2004 or earlier (1% of portfolio), 1.85% are seriously delinquent (down from 1.92% in April). For loans made in 2005 through 2008 (1% of portfolio), 2.95% are seriously delinquent (down from 3.07%).For recent loans, originated in 2009 through 2023 (98% of portfolio), 0.46% are seriously delinquent (down from 0.48%). So, Fannie is still working through a handful of poor performing loans from the bubble years.Freddie Mac reports that multi-family delinquencies increased to 0.20% in May, up from 0.07% in May 2022.This graph shows the Freddie multi-family serious delinquency rate since 2012. Rates were still high in 2012 following the housing bust and financial crisis.The multi-family rate increased following the pandemic and has increased recently as rent growth has slowed, vacancy rates have increased, and interest rates have increased sharply. This will be something to watch as rents soften.

CFPB fines ACI Worldwide $25 million for mortgage servicing error -- The Consumer Financial Protection Agency hit ACI Worldwide and its subsidiary ACI Payments with a $25 million fine Tuesday for illegally initiating withdrawals from borrower bank accounts totaling over $2.3 billion in April 2021. According to the government watchdog, the payment software company accidentally triggered "erroneous bill payment orders to be sent to consumers' banks for processing," while contractors conducted internal testing of Speedpay, a payment system ACI acquired from Western Union in 2019. This snafu impacted close to 500,000 borrowers with mortgages serviced by Mr. Cooper. Roughly 100 of those impacted incurred non-sufficient funds fees from their banks as a result of ACI's error, the mortgage servicer previously said. This error stemmed from the company's lack of security protocols and training and "caused substantial consumer harm including significant frustration, confusion, and monetary loss," the government watchdog's consent order read. "The CFPB's investigation found that ACI perpetrated the 2021 Mr. Cooper mortgage fiasco that impacted homeowners across the country," said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra in a written statement Tuesday. "While borrower accounts have now been fixed, we are penalizing ACI for its unlawful actions that created headaches for hundreds of thousands of borrowers." Per the CFPB's order, ACI contractors testing the company's electronic payment platform used data containing sensitive consumer information, contrary to ACI policy. Further, during its performance testing, ACI improperly sent several large files filled with Mr. Cooper's customer data into the ACH network, unlawfully initiating electronic mortgage payment transactions from homeowners' accounts. As a result, many borrowers unknowingly had multiple debits for monthly mortgage payments scheduled to hit their bank account on a single day. The Elkhorn, Nebraska-based company responded to the consent order by highlighting that "Speedpay was a recently acquired addition to ACI's portfolio, and the inadvertent transmission occurred shortly after the company assumed management of Speeday's legacy data environment." The company noted that it "consented to the issuance of the consent order without admitting any wrongdoing to avoid the expenses and distraction of litigation."

Marketing discrimination suit against Facebook gets a lifeline - A class action suit accusing social media giant Facebook of violating the Fair Housing Act was resuscitated by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in late June. It had been dismissed two years prior by the Northern District of California. The case, originally filed in 2019, argued the tech company's in-house advertising platform allowed real estate brokers and landlords to exclude certain buyers or renters from ever seeing their ads. Protected classes of consumers, including single mothers and disabled individuals, were allegedly impacted. The class, which is estimated to have over 50 members, is represented by Rosemarie Vargas, Jazmine Spencer, Kisha Skipper, Deillo Richards and Jenny Lin. Plaintiffs allege that Facebook's ad platform "allowed and/or facilitated omission of certain Facebook users based on their real or perceived personal characteristics, by purposefully and intentionally creating, developing, and/or using the "Exclude People" feature." Litigation was originally dismissed by the Northern District of California in 2021 based on the class's "failure to identify a concrete injury." Specifically, the court zeroed in on the notion that specific examples were not provided regarding what ads users could not see. However, the recent ruling in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals leaned on examples provided by representatives of the class, to argue that the case deserved a second chance. The court specifically noted Vargas' claim that there was a discrepancy in the housing ads she saw, being a disabled female of Hispanic descent and a single parent, compared to her caucasian friend who used the same criteria to search for said ads. "The district court faulted the complaint for not identifying specific ads that Plaintiff Vargas did not see. But Plaintiffs' very claim is that Facebook's practices concealed information from housing-seekers in protected classes," the courts decision read. "And nothing in the case law requires that a plaintiff identify specific ads that she could not see when she alleges that an ad-delivery algorithm restricted her access to housing ads in the first place."

MBA: Mortgage Applications Increased in Weekly Survey - From the MBA: Mortgage Applications Increase in Latest MBA Weekly Survey Mortgage applications increased 3.0 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending June 23, 2023. This week’s results include an adjustment for Juneteenth holiday. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 3.0 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier. On an unadjusted basis, the Index decreased 8 percent compared with the previous week. The Refinance Index increased 3 percent from the previous week and was 32 percent lower than the same week one year ago. The seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 3 percent from one week earlier. The unadjusted Purchase Index decreased 8 percent compared with the previous week and was 21 percent lower than the same week one year ago. “Mortgage rate changes varied across loan types last week, with the 30-year fixed rate increasing slightly to 6.75 percent. The spread between the jumbo and conforming rates widened to 16 basis points, the third week in a row that the jumbo rate was higher than the conforming rate. To put this into perspective, from May 2022 to May 2023, the jumbo rate averaged around 30 basis points less than the conforming rate,” “Purchase applications increased for the third consecutive week to the highest level of activity since early May but remained more than 20 percent lower than year ago levels. New home sales have been driving purchase activity in recent months as buyers look for options beyond the existing-home market. Existing-home sales continued to be held back by a lack of for-sale inventory as many potential sellers are holding on to their lower-rate mortgages....The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200 or less) increased to 6.75 percent from 6.73 percent, with points remaining at 0.64 (including the origination fee) for 80 percent loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans.The first graph shows the MBA mortgage purchase index.According to the MBA, purchase activity is down 21% year-over-year unadjusted. Red is a four-week average (blue is weekly). This is at the highest level since early May - but close to the lowest level since the mid-'90s!The second graph shows the refinance index since 1990.

Case-Shiller: National House Price Index Decreased 0.2% year-over-year in April S&P/Case-Shiller released the monthly Home Price Indices for April ("April" is a 3-month average of February, March and April closing prices). This release includes prices for 20 individual cities, two composite indices (for 10 cities and 20 cities) and the monthly National index. From S&P S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Index Continued Gains in April: The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a -0.2% annual decrease in April, down from a gain of 0.7% in the previous month. The 10-City Composite showed a decrease of -1.2%, down from the -0.7% decrease in the previous month. The 20-City Composite posted a -1.7% year-over-year loss, down from -1.1% in the previous month....Before seasonal adjustment, the U.S. National Index posted a 1.3% month-over-month increase in April, while the 10-City and 20-City Composites both posted increases of 1.7%.After seasonal adjustment, the U.S. National Index posted a month-over-month increase of 0.5%, while the 10-City Composite gained 1.0% and 20-City Composites posted an increase of 0.9%. “The ongoing recovery in home prices is broadly based. Before seasonal adjustments, prices rose in all 20 cities in April (as they had also done in March). Seasonally adjusted data showed rising prices in 19 cities in April (versus 14 in March). The first graph shows the nominal seasonally adjusted Composite 10, Composite 20 and National indices (the Composite 20 was started in January 2000).The Composite 10 index is up 0.5% in April (SA) and down 2.7% from the recent peak in June 2022.The Composite 20 index is up 1.0% (SA) in April and down 3.3% from the recent peak in June 2022.The National index is up 0.9% (SA) in April and is down 1.8% from the peak in June 2022. The second graph shows the year-over-year change in all three indices. The Composite 10 SA is down 1.2% year-over-year. The Composite 20 SA is down 1.7% year-over-year.The National index SA is down 0.2% year-over-year.Annual price changes were below expectations.

New Home Sales increase to 763,000 Annual Rate in May - The Census Bureau reports The Census Bureau reports New Home Sales in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) of 763 thousand. The previous three months were revised down slightly, combined. Sales of new single‐family houses in May 2023 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 763,000, according to estimates released jointly today by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 12.2 percent above the revised April rate of 680,000 and is 20.0 percent above the May 2022 estimate of 636,000. The first graph shows New Home Sales vs. recessions since 1963. The dashed line is the current sales rate. New home sales are above pre-pandemic levels. The second graph shows New Home Months of Supply. New Home Sales, Months of SupplyThe months of supply decreased in May to 6.7 months from 7.6 months in April. The all-time record high was 12.2 months of supply in January 2009. The all-time record low was 3.3 months in August 2020. This is above the top of the normal range (about 4 to 6 months of supply is normal). "The seasonally‐adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of May was 428,000. This represents a supply of 6.7 months at the current sales rate." Sales were well above expectations of 657 thousand SAAR, however, sales in the three previous months were revised down slightly, combined. I'll have more later today..

Las Vegas May 2023: Visitor Traffic Up 1.5% YoY; Convention Traffic up 16% YoY - Note: I like using Las Vegas as a measure of recovery for both leisure (visitors) and business (conventions). From the Las Vegas Visitor Authority: May 2023 Las Vegas Visitor Statistics: Supported by strong demand along with multiple weekend music festivals including the Lovers & Friends festival, Sick New World festival and the recurring Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) event, Las Vegas hosted approx. 3.5M visitors, 1.5% ahead of last May.Overall hotel occupancy reached 84.4% for the month (+1.8 pts YoY). Weekend occupancy was healthy at 93.2%, +1.3 pts YoY, and Midweek occupancy approached 81%, surpassing last May by 2.0 pts.Overall ADR exceeded $183, +4.3% from May 2022 while RevPAR neared $155, +6.6% YoYThe first graph shows visitor traffic for 2019 (Black), 2020 (light blue), 2021 (purple), 2022 (orange), and 2023 (red).Visitor traffic was down 5.2% compared to the same month in 2019. Visitor traffic was up 1.5% compared to last May.The second graph shows convention traffic.Convention traffic was down 12.8% compared to May 2019, and up 16.1% compared to May 2022.Note: There was almost no convention traffic from April 2020 through May 2021.

Personal Income increased 0.4% in May; Spending increased 0.1% - The BEA released the Personal Income and Outlays report for May: Personal income increased $91.2 billion (0.4 percent at a monthly rate) in May, according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Disposable personal income (DPI), personal income less personal current taxes, increased $86.7 billion (0.4 percent) and personal consumption expenditures (PCE) increased $18.9 billion (0.1 percent). The PCE price index increased 0.1 percent. Excluding food and energy, the PCE price index increased 0.3 percent. Real DPI increased 0.3 percent in May and real PCE decreased by less than 0.1 percent; goods decreased 0.4 percent and services increased 0.2 percent The May PCE price index increased 3.8 percent year-over-year (YoY), down from 4.3 percent YoY in April, and down from the recent peak of 7.0 percent in June 2022. The PCE price index, excluding food and energy, increased 4.6 percent YoY, down from 4.7 percent in April, and down from the recent peak of 5.4 percent in February 2022.The following graph shows real Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) through May 2023 (2012 dollars). The dashed red lines are the quarterly levels for real PCE. Personal income was at expectations, and PCE was slightly below expectations.Inflation was slightly below expectation. Using the two-month method to estimate Q2 real PCE growth, real PCE was increasing at a 0.7% annual rate in Q2 2023. (Using the mid-month method, real PCE was increasing at 0.8%). This suggests weak PCE growth in Q2.

Americans are hiding their credit card debt --One-third of Americans with credit card debt say no one else knows how much they owe, according to a new report.The nation’s credit card balance hovers around $1 trillion, and interest rates routinely top 20 percent. A typical American household now carries around $10,000 in card debt, by one recent WalletHub estimate. A rising share of cardholders carry a balance from one month to the next.And many consumers, it seems, would rather not share those facts.Two in 5 Americans think credit card debt is embarrassing, according to a new consumer credit card report from NerdWallet, the personal finance site.Credit card debt carries a growing stigma, polls suggest. An earlier NerdWallet survey found that one-third of married Americans with card debt haven’t told their spouse what they owe. In the new report, two-fifths of respondents said it would be all right to have a credit card a partner doesn’t know about.As interest rates fell to historic lows in recent years, homeowners refinanced mortgages with interest rates of 3 percent or 4 percent, a transaction that conferred bragging rights.By contrast, a consumer who takes on a new credit card in 2023 faces an average interest rateof 24 percent, according to LendingTree: nothing to brag about.“There can be shame tied to that,” said Melissa Lambarena, a credit card expert at NerdWallet.Multiple reports show American consumers sinking ever deeper into credit card debt. Rising card balances aren’t just about impulse buys: A survey by U.S. News & World Report found consumers using cards for unexpected expenses, medical emergencies and job loss.

DeSantis vetoes effort to allow higher rates on Florida consumer loans -- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed a bill that would have doubled the maximum interest rate that nonbank lenders can charge on large consumer loans in the Sunshine State. The measure would have allowed nonbank lenders to charge 36% on personal installment loans between $4,000 and $25,000. Under current law, the ceiling for those loans is 18%. "The increase in rates may result in additional consumer indebtedness and could exacerbate the pinch already being felt due to federal government-induced inflation," DeSantis wrote in a veto letter. The Center for Responsible Lending and various other nonprofit groups had urged DeSantis, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, to veto the bill. "We do not doubt that lenders will flock to Florida if you sign this bill into law since there are few states that allow lenders to charge borrowers 36% interest for loans up to $25,000," the groups said in the letter. "This is for good reason — it is a predatory rate to charge consumers and is morally reprehensible to do so." Under current Florida law, the rates that nonbank lenders can charge on installment loans are tiered. The maximum annual rate for balances of up to $3,000 is 30%, and the ceiling for balances of between $3,000 and $4,000 is 24%. The bill that DeSantis vetoed would have replaced the tiered rate structure with a blanket 36% cap.

Low Wages and Rising Cost of Living Are Driving More Into Homelessness as Government Tries to Hide Rather than Solve Problem - A common talking point about the homelessness crisis is that the majority of people living on the streets are drug addicts and/or mentally ill. New research in California – which has roughly a third of the country’s 582,000 homeless population – shows that while mental illness and addiction play a role, the main driver behind homelessness is the increasinging precariousness of the working poor.The study from UCSF’s Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative is one of the deepest dives into the state’s crisis, and it shows how the homeless population is getting older and is often the result of just one bad break. From the Los Angeles Times:“These are old people losing housing,” Dr. Margot Kushel told me. She’s the lead investigator on the study from UCSF’s Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative, done at the request of state health officials.“They basically were ticking along very poor, and sometime after the age of 50 something happened,” Kushel said. That something — divorce, a loved one dying, an illness, even a cutback in hours on the job — sparked a downward spiral and their lives “just blew up,” as Kushel puts it.Kushel and her team found that nearly half of single adults living on our streets are over the age of 50. And 7% of all homeless adults, single or in families, are over 65. And 41% of those older, single Californians had never been homeless — not one day in their lives — before the age of 50.The study also disproved the myth that people are flocking to California to live the good homeless life there. Most of the homeless people on California‘s streets are Californians who were simply priced out of housing. Is it any wonder that a new poll shows 4 in 10 residents of the state are considering heading for the exits?The problem is it’s a national issue. Americans are falling further and further behind as the cost of living rises and corporate profitshit record highs. The increase in homelessness (and deaths of the homeless) has also come during the Wall Street takeover of rental properties, creating rental behemoths that have increasingly been using information-sharing algorithms that simultaneously drive up evictions, rents, and vacancy rates.And nationwide research by the University of California, Riverside (UCR) published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that the death of 183,000 Americans aged 15 years old and above in 2019 could be attributed to poverty.Additionally, the ongoing pandemic is likely only exacerbating this trend. Research shows the life expectancy gap between rich and poor widening as the difference between work from home and “essential” workers takes its toll.The UCR study shows that poverty is the fourth leading cause of death in the US after heart disease, cancer, and smoking, and poverty remains a huge issue in the U.S., much more so than in other “developed” countries. More from Newsweek:

A Very Early Look at 2024 Cost-Of-Living Adjustments and Maximum Contribution Base -- The BLS reported on June 13th:The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) increased 3.6 percent over the last 12 months to an index level of 298.382 (1982-84=100). For the month, the index increased 0.2 percent prior to seasonal adjustment.CPI-W is the index that is used to calculate the Cost-Of-Living Adjustments (COLA). The calculation dates have changed over time (see Cost-of-Living Adjustments), but the current calculation uses the average CPI-W for the three months in Q3 (July, August, September) and compares to the average for the highest previous average of Q3 months. Note: this is not the headline CPI-U and is not seasonally adjusted (NSA). In 2022, the Q3 average of CPI-W was 291.901. The 2022 Q3 average was the highest Q3 average, so we only have to compare Q3 this year to last year.This graph shows CPI-W since January 2000. The red lines are the Q3 average of CPI-W for each year.Note: The year labeled is for the calculation, and the adjustment is effective for December of that year (received by beneficiaries in January of the following year).CPI-W was up 3.6% year-over-year in May, and although this is very early - we need the data for July, August and September - my very early guess is COLA will probably be close to 3% this year, the smallest increase since 1.3% in 2021.The contribution base will be adjusted using the National Average Wage Index. This is based on a one-year lag. The National Average Wage Index is not available for 2022 yet, wages increased solidly in 2022. If wages increased 5% in 2022, then the contribution base next year will increase to around $168,200 in 2024, from the current $160,200.Remember - this is a very early look. What matters is average CPI-W, NSA, for all three months in Q3 (July, August and September).

Flightmare stretches into its fifth day as more than 1,200 are canceled -The airline travel nightmare has not yet let up on the east coast as Newark and LaGuardia airports continue to experience percentage cancelations of outbound and incoming flights in the double digits.The chaos began over the weekend when storms began walloping the northeast and parts of the Midwest, causing mass delays and cancellations into and out of New York area airports.United Airlines alone has canceled more than 2,000 flights since Sunday, prompting a message from the company's CEO, John Kirby, that placed most of the blame on FAA staffing shortages.The mass debacle arrives about a week after Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg warned of forthcoming travel disruptions due to a July 1 5G service boost that US wireless companies plan to execute.In a late June interview with the Wall Street Journal, Buttigieg cited the 5G boost as a 'real risk' to air travels hoping for seamless experiences.'This represents one of the biggest - probably the biggest - foreseeable problem affecting performance this summer,' he said.Some passengers have endured especially hellish experiences attempting to reach their final destinations with all of their belongings in tow.One woman relayed to Insider that after her flight was canceled out of Newark, she drove and flew to New Orleans to sync back up with her baggage. She had been told by United Airlines that 'no one could retrieve their bags' even if they contained important medicine or equipment needed by passengers. The woman, Margo Osborne, said United put her bags on a flight to New Orleans, prompting her to drive to Charlotte, North Carolina, and get on a plane to Louisiana from there. But when she arrived, her bags weren't there.'Now, people are tweeting that bags are just sitting out at Newark! It's insanity!' she said.Videos and images across the internet have shown hordes of passengers lining up for hours attempting to retrieve their luggage - some have camped out, and many are at their wits' end with airline customer service operations.

Lordstown Motors files for bankruptcy and sues Taiwan's Foxconn - — Lordstown Motors filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday, put itself up for sale, and announced a lawsuit against Foxconn, accusing its biggest shareholder and former partner of setting out to “destroy” its business. The electric vehicle maker, which specializes in pick-up trucks, made a Chapter 11 filing in a Delaware court while simultaneously starting legal action against Foxconn. In a statement, the company said it was left with no choice after a high-profile tie-up with Foxconn,, one of the world’s biggest electronics manufacturers, fell apart. It accused the Taiwanese tech firm of fraud and failing to follow through on promises to invest in the company. “Despite our best efforts and earnest commitment to the partnership, Foxconn willfully and repeatedly failed to execute on the agreed-upon strategy, leaving us with Chapter 11 as the only viable option,” Lordstown CEO Edward Hightower said in the statement. “We will vigorously pursue our litigation claims against Foxconn accordingly.” In a statement to CNN, Foxconn dismissed the suit as meritless, saying Lordstown had made “false comments and malicious attacks.” Foxconn said it had been trying to have “constructive negotiations” with Lordstown to help “in finding a solution to its financial difficulties.” “However, during this time, [Lordstown] has continuously attempted to mislead the public and has been reluctant to perform the investment agreement between the two parties,” it said, without specifying how. “Foxconn originally hoped to continue discussions and reach a solution that could satisfy all stakeholders, without resorting to baseless legal actions, but so far the two parties have yet to reach a consensus,” it said, adding it reserved the right to pursue its own legal action.

DeSantis vetoes GOP-backed criminal justice reform bill - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has vetoed a GOP-backed criminal justice reform bill that passed with almost unanimous support in both houses of the Florida state Legislature. DeSantis issued the veto Tuesday and officially informed the Florida secretary of state but did not include his reasoning. The legislation, House Bill 605, would amend the Florida statute concerning the expungement of criminal history records, which currently prevents an individual from seeking an expungement if they previously have received a sealing or expungement, unless they were seeking an expungement of a record previously sealed for 10 years. The bill would add another exception for individuals who previously received an expungement for an offense that was committed while they were a minor. It would not apply to a minor who was charged as an adult. The statute concerns records including indictments, charging documents or other information. Individuals would not need to meet the requirement of the record being sealed for at least 10 years. The legislation was originally introduced by state Rep. David Smith (R). It passed in the state House by a vote of 107-2 and in the state Senate unanimously. The Hill has reached out to DeSantis and Smith’s offices for comment. The Tampa Bay Times reported that Smith said last month that he considers the expungement of criminal records to affect the workforce and would let people work “at the highest level they’re capable of.” He said he hoped it would help workforce shortages, and the people affected would be those who have not been convicted of any crime in Florida.

Three San Antonio police officers charged with murder after gunning down 46-year-old woman in her locked apartment - This past Friday three San Antonio, Texas, police officers, Sgt. Alfred Flores and officers Eleazar Alejandro and Nathaniel Villalobos were charged with murder in the killing of 46-year-old Melissa Perez. A mother of four and grandmother to two, Perez was shot multiple times by the three officers while locked inside of her apartment after 2:00 a.m. on June 23. A GoFundMe organized to help cover Perez’s funeral expenses notes, “she did not have life insurance and her children do not have the means to pay for her burial … please pray for her four children and relatives that she leaves behind.” In an attempt to cut off mass anger at the latest heinous police slaying, San Antonio police chief William McManus announced that the three officers who shot and killed Perez had been suspended without pay, charged with murder and taken into custody. According to Mapping Police Violence, Perez is one of at least 504 people who have been killed by police in America so far this year. As has been the case for the last decade, on average, US police kill three people a day and over 1,000 a year. Less than 2 percent of these killings result in any charges against police. The shooting of Perez was caught on multiple police body cameras, a portion of which was released during a Friday night press conference held less than 20 hours after the shooting. The heavily edited police body camera shows that none of the three cops who fired into Perez’s apartment were in danger at the time of the shooting. Instead, it appears that the police had grown impatient with the woman, who was obviously in the throes of severe mental crisis, and decided to escalate the situation in order to force a violent conclusion. Police claim that they were initially dispatched to the Southwest Side apartment complex because Perez had been cutting the wires of an external fire alarm system. Police documents assert that during initial questioning Perez told them she was cutting the wires because “the FBI was listening to her.” By 1:40 a.m., there were multiple police officers standing outside the patio of Perez’s first floor apartment. One cop leapt over the balcony railing and proceeded to rip out the screen on a window leading into Perez’s apartment. Perez is heard telling the police, “Don’t come in.” After police gathered themselves they attempted to break into Perez’s apartment again. A little after 2 a.m. a cop tried to break into the apartment through the window. As Perez approached him he pulled back and drew his gun and pointed at Perez, warning her, “You are going to get shot.” Perez, responded “Shoot me. You don’t have a warrant.” As a second cop leapt over the railing, a third cop, who appears to be Eleazar Alejandro, began shooting his pistol through the window into the apartment. After firing at least five shots at Perez there was a brief lull before Perez was heard yelling “Hey!” at which point another cop yelled “Back up!” followed by multiple gunshots through Perez’s glass patio door. A third cop is also seen firing through the window into Perez’s apartment. Within 10 seconds, three different cops fired over a dozen rounds into the apartment, killing Perez. The police affidavit claims that Perez was swinging a hammer at police when they attempted to break into the apartment through her patio door. The affidavit claims a cop suffered a minor arm injury when Perez allegedly threw a glass candle holder through the window. No guns were discovered inside the apartment and it does not appear, as of this writing, that anyone else was injured from the multiple bullets that were fired into the apartment complex.

Children face solitary confinement in cells at Illinois juvenile detention facility, ACLU says (AP) — Children as young as 11 are confined alone to cells the size of parking spaces up to 23 hours a day at a juvenile detention center in Southern Illinois, according to a lawsuit filed by ACLU of Illinois. Young people at the Franklin County Juvenile Detention Center in Benton must ask staff permission to flush the toilet, and they can go days or weeks without access to schoolwork. Black mold grows on the walls, according to the lawsuit filed Friday, and there are no mental health professionals employed at the facility. The lawsuit seeks a court order compelling the facility to improve conditions immediately, on the basis of deprivation of their rights under the 14th Amendment. “These are not conditions that anybody, let alone any child, should be subjected to,” said Kevin Fee, the lead lawyer on the case, describing the situation as “inhumane to the level of being unspeakable.” In general, the conditions of juvenile detention centers in the U.S. have been slowly improving in the last few decades thanks to research on the harms of solitary confinement, so this case is “especially frightening,” said clinical and forensic psychologist Apryl Alexander, who works with detained youth. “We’re supposed to be using the juvenile legal system for rehabilitation and not punishment. These are youth who are capable of change — we recognize that developmentally and personally. And so we should be treating them as such,” Alexander said. Fee added that the Franklin detention center is used to hold kids before they have been sentenced or found guilty by a court. “The idea that children would spend any portion of their childhood locked in solitary confinement is an egregious abuse,” Fee said. Solitary confinement is “extremely harmful for everybody who is locked up, but particularly for children spending that much time in a brightly lit room, unable to really sleep properly," Fee said. The practice has been banned for youth held by the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice since 2015, and on Friday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation making it illegal to use on “young detainees in detention centers for any purpose other than preventing immediate physical harm.” The law will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.

Deputy acquitted of all charges for failing to act during deadly Parkland school shooting - — A Florida sheriff’s deputy was acquitted Thursday of felony child neglect and other charges for failing to act during the 2018 Parkland school massacre, concluding the first trial in U.S. history of a law enforcement officer for conduct during an on-campus shooting. Former Broward County Deputy Scot Peterson wept as the verdicts were read. The jury had deliberated for 19 hours over four days. After court adjourned, Peterson, his family and friends rushed into a group hug as they whooped, hollered and cried. One of his supporters chased after lead prosecutor Chris Killoran and said something. Killoran turned and snapped at him, “Way to be a good winner,” and slapped him on the shoulder. Members of the prosecution team then nudged Killoran out of the courtroom. The campus deputy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Peterson had been charged with failing to confront shooter Nikolas Cruz during his six-minute attack inside the three-story 1200 classroom building on Feb. 14, 2018, that left 17 dead. He could have received nearly 100 years in prison, although a sentence even approaching that length would have been highly unlikely given the circumstances and his clean record. He also could have lost his $104,000 annual pension. Prosecutors, during their two-week presentation, called to the witness stand students, teachers and law enforcement officers who testified about the horror they experienced and how they knew where Cruz was. Some said they knew for certain that the shots were coming from the 1200 building. Prosecutors also called a training supervisor who testified Peterson did not follow protocols for confronting an active shooter.

Charter school lost case over skirts rule for girls, but debate over charter autonomy isn’t over - Bonnie Peltier was at her daughter’s kindergarten orientation in North Carolina when she learned all girls at the charter school must wear skirts. “I was stunned,” Peltier said. ”I’m looking around the room at the other parents and nobody seemed to mind. And I was like, ‘I can’t be the only one who thinks this is crazy.’” Peltier began researching the law that evening, embarking on a legal journey that spanned eight years and came to involve two other students and the American Civil Liberties Union. It ended Monday when the U.S. Supreme Court denied a request by Charter Day School to review its skirt requirement, which a lower court struck down last year. “Little girls don’t know how to sit like a lady,” Peltier said, adding that skirts were impractical for various school activities, including sitting on the floor during reading time. Charter Day School, which is in eastern North Carolina, had required girls to wear skirts, jumpers or skorts, except on gym days. Baker Mitchell, who founded the school, said in a statement he was disappointed by the Supreme Court’s denial. Mitchell warned that leaving in place the ruling against the dress code threatens charter schools’ autonomy, “subjecting them to the same rules, regulations, and political machinations that have crippled government-run school systems.” Mitchell said his charter schools, now called Classical Charter Schools of America, have been recognized as a “gap buster” for racial and income disparities in test scores through innovations and unique policies. Baker told The Associated Press in 2021 he founded a “school of choice” with a classical curriculum that was very traditional, promoting chivalry and respect. “We want boys to be boys and girls to be girls and have mutual respect for each other,” he said. “We want boys to carry the umbrella for girls and open doors for them … and we want to start teaching that in grammar school.” The Supreme Court let stand an appellate ruling that the dress code violated female students’ equal protection rights, while perpetuating stereotypes that had “potentially devastating consequences for young girls.”

'She just wants a friend': Families push for full school days for children with disabilities (AP) — One Thursday morning in May, instead of sitting at a desk in her sixth grade classroom in the Oregon mountains, Khloe Warne sat at a table in her mother’s bakery, doing her schoolwork on a laptop and watching her favorite clips of anime. Khloe, 12, loves drawing, writing and especially reading — in second grade, she was already reading at a sixth grade level. But she only goes to school one day a week for two hours. The district said she needed shorter school days last year when Khloe threw a desk and fought with students in outbursts her mother attributes to a failure to support her needs. Khloe, who has been diagnosed with autism, ADHD and an anxiety disorder, had no individualized education plan for her disability when she returned to in-person learning after the pandemic. Not being able to attend school regularly has saddened Khloe, stunted her education and isolated her from her peers, her mother says. It has also upended her family’s life. Her mother, Alyssa Warne, had to quit her job for a time in order to stay home with her. She described the fight to get her daughter back in the classroom as exhausting, stressful and sad. “She just wants a friend,” Alyssa Warne said. “It’s not asking much to send your kid to school for at least one whole day.” Across the U.S., advocates say, schools are removing students with disabilities from the classroom, often in response to challenging behavior, by sending them home or cutting back on the days they’re allowed to attend. Schools say the move can be necessary to keep students and teachers safe and prevent disturbances. But parents and advocates argue the shortened days, often referred to as informal removals, amount to discrimination and violations of students’ civil rights. Under federal law, it is illegal to bar a child from receiving the same education as their peers based on conditions stemming from their disability.

Texas Governor Abbott signs law authorizing school library censorship -In the latest of a series of anti-democratic attacks by Texas officials, on June 12 Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that bans public school libraries from purchasing books or other materials deemed to be “sexually explicit.” The law, hypocritically titled the READER Act, requires book vendors to assign ratings to books regarding the presence or depiction of sex. Abbott has touted the bill as part of his right-wing campaign to bolster his so-called “Parental Bill of Rights,” a euphemism for a host of measures to undermine public schools and the democratic rights of educators and students. Under the new law, materials rated as “sexually explicit” would be removed from school libraries. Any library material describing or portraying sexual behavior that is “patently offensive” and not part of the school curriculum would be given this rating. Books rated as “sexually relevant” to the curriculum would still require parental permission before students can access them from the library. The law defines “patently offensive” as sexual content that contradicts “current community standards of decency.” Critics of the law have noted that the language is vague and subjective. Ultimately, this empowers far-right groups to wield increasing control over book access. The law will create chaos for school librarians and book vendors alike, who will now have to comply with the new ratings system on the fly. The onus is on distributors to come up with ratings for the books they supply, and retroactively rate books they have previously sold. Costs to purchase books will increase, as vendors may have to hire additional staff or outside contractors to assign ratings. Moreover, vendors may opt to stop distributing to Texas altogether.

Federal judge blocks Florida from enforcing ban on minors attending drag shows - A federal judge in central Florida on Friday temporarily blocked the state from enforcing a new law banning minors from attending drag shows.The judge, Gregory Presnell, was acting on a request by the restaurant chain Hamburger Mary’s, which sued Florida last month claiming that the law was overly broad and put a chilling effect on the right to free speech under the First Amendment.Presnell, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, determined that while some people may find a drag performer reading a children’s book to a minor during a performance to be inappropriate, it doesn’t necessarily constitute an obscene performance. He also stated that current obscenity laws already “provide Defendant with the necessary authority to protect children from any constitutionally unprotected obscene exhibitions or shows.”Florida’s Republican-led Legislature passed the measure in April that bars minors from attending drag shows with “lewd” performances. Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is running for president, signed it into law in mid-May. The governor previously said such drag performances “sexualize” kids and has pushed for stricter restrictions around them.

Requiring parental permission for children’s AI use is shortsighted and harms education - Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) is prioritizing his Artificial Intelligence Shield for Kids (ASK) Act, which pursues the laudable goal of protecting children from harm. However, an overly broad definition of who is a child and a problematic definition of artificial intelligence (AI) need to be fixed. Recently, a significant amount of attention has been paid to artificial intelligence. Large language models, such as ChatGPT, have awoken the country to the technology through being able to write human-like language (albeit with issues like hallucinating articles and making false accusations). AI poses some problems. It has been used, by nefarious individuals, for criminal purposes, and some have — with great hyperbole — suggested that it might lead to human extinction. However, it has also generated significant good. It has helped develop a drug to combat dangerous bacteria. It can help farmers protect their crops from pests. It has written church sermons and can help place a drive-through order and with medical questions. It can help identify heart failure, improve dentistry, and help paralyzed humans regain mobility. It has even helped The Beatles finish a final song. Children, of course, need to be protected. Despite all the good things AI can do, not every AI system is appropriate for — or healthy for — children. Indeed, issues with AI use in social media and algorithms that encourage viewing to the extent that some call it addictive should require parental oversight. App and website developers who target youthful audiences need to provide parents with tools to help them guide, monitor and protect their children. Scott’s ACT law embodies two fundamental principles: parental permission and feature disablement. However, it considers everyone under 18 to be a child who needs to have this consent and targets numerous types of computing systems — beyond potentially harmful AI in social media (which is the presumed target of the law). The law is also so broad that it will likely harm computer science and digital citizenship education. The law applies — fully — to everyone under 18 years of age. It has no provisions for emancipated minors, 17-year-old military enlistees or officers, or bright students going to college at age 17 or earlier.

New York City educators begin voting on sellout contract -Voting has begun on the tentative agreement for approximately 115,000 New York City teachers and educational support staff, with balloting for most educators concluding by the last day of school on Tuesday. By calling a snap vote at the busy end of the school year, the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) has deliberately left educators with no time to study the details of the 38-page Memorandum of Agreement, the three side letters, and nine interim agreements that will become part of the contract if it passes. What is clear from the deal the UFT struck last week is that educators would be worse off financially by the end of the contract, receiving raises of just 3 percent for the first three years, followed by 3.25 and 3.5 percent in the subsequent two years, respectively. In just the first year of the contract, which is retroactive to the last contract expiration in 2022, due to inflation educators will have taken a 3.5 percent pay cut in real terms. The contract perpetuates poverty-level wages for many support staff, including paraprofessionals whose annual salary would range between $32,000 and $52,000 at the end of the contract term in 2026. What the proposed contract omits is just as significant. Last week, New York City’s Democratic mayor Eric Adams overrode objections from the City Comptroller to move forward with an attack on health care for retired teachers and other municipal workers, a consequence of vague commitments in the previous round of contracts for health care “savings.” The backroom deals by the UFT and other city unions to eliminate the current public health care plan in favor of private Medicare Advantage coverage will save the city $600 million a year while forcing retirees onto plans notorious for denying medically necessary procedures, overbilling, and fraud. Also absent from the tentative agreement are provisions for adequately funding schools, whose need has only grown as the devastating impact of the pandemic continues to loom large. In addition to rolling back anti-COVID mitigation measures, the city cut hundreds of millions of dollars from school budgets for the current school year, canceling arts programs, cutting back early childhood learning, and limiting summer program availability. The budget cuts prompted outrage from educators, parents, and students and triggered a political crisis as a majority of the City Council attempted to save face by belatedly denouncing the cuts they had voted to approve. The attack on schools is intensifying again as Mayor Adams and the City Council are currently negotiating a budget for the new fiscal year beginning July 1. Adams has proposed approximately $1 billion in further cuts to the Department of Education, part of a broader austerity program that will gut city services across the board. By rushing through the contract ratification vote three days prior to the deadline for the city budget, the UFT bureaucracy is seeking to prevent the contract struggle from merging into a broader fight to defend public education and other social services. Indeed, from sabotaging retiree health care and rolling back pandemic protections to enforcing what will be a massive real wage cut, at every turn the UFT has carried out the directives of the Mayor’s Office and the State House in Albany in opposition to the needs of educators and the student body of nearly one million.

Detroit teachers and students take their fight against layoffs to the auto plants -- On Thursday, June 22, the Michigan Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee organized a campaign during a shift change at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant just outside of Detroit. Members of the committee, including current and former teachers and paraprofessionals, distributed hundreds of leaflets to rank-and-file autoworkers and which called for the unity of educators and autoworkers in Detroit this summer in a common fight against layoffs and cuts. Contracts for all “Big Three” autoworkers at Stellantis, Ford and General Motors expire on September 14, and Warren Truck is one of several Stellantis plants (formerly Chrysler) which are set to go to “critical status” for 90 days starting July 5 in order to stockpile vehicles in anticipation of a strike. This means workers can be forced to work seven days a week and up to 12 hours a day. The Warren Truck Rank-and-File Committee is fighting against the imposition of “critical status” and calling for the building and the expansion of the network of rank-and-file committees in opposition to both management and pro company UAW apparatus. Meanwhile, contracts for thousands of teachers and other workers in the Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD), the largest school district in Michigan, will expire on June 30. The DPSCD school board is cutting hundreds of millions of dollars from the budget this year on behalf of the Democratic Party, which runs Detroit and which claims “there is no money” for education.

After years of betraying teachers’ struggles, AFT and NEA endorse Biden for reelection - Last Friday, the executive board of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the second largest teachers’ union in the US with 1.7 million members, officially announced their endorsement of the reelection of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the upcoming 2024 presidential elections. In a video tweet that day, Randi Weingarten, president of the AFT, stated, “President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris really care about people. They get the importance of workers having a voice and students having real opportunity. They are unabashedly pro-labor and pro-public education.” Weingarten turned off comments to her tweet, yet despite the censorship, teachers, workers, and parents expressed their opposition to the treacherous role of Biden and the unions in suppressing the interests of workers. One user noted, “What kind of corrupt union president endorses for president a man who made strikes illegal for RR workers? Working people deserve representation—Randi Weingarten is a traitor to teachers, students & all working people.” Indicating Biden’s failed campaign promise of student loan forgiveness, another user said, “How dare you make some propaganda nonsense like this. He has literally fulfilled NONE of his promises to teachers.” The AFT endorsement coincided with the formal endorsement of Biden-Harris by the pro-corporate AFL-CIO bureaucracy. The announcements came just in time for Biden’s first reelection campaign rally in Philadelphia Saturday, sponsored by the trade unions, and attended mostly by union bureaucrats. The National Education Association (NEA), the largest teachers’ union, with close to 3 million members, announced their endorsement for Biden back in April. Becky Pringle, president of the NEA, parroted the line of the union bureaucrats throughout Biden’s term as president, claiming the Biden administration “is the most pro-public education and pro-union administration in modern history.” That all the major trade union bureaucracies, including both national teacher unions representing close to 5 million members, have given their early endorsement of Biden is yet another indication of the deep ties between the trade union bureaucracies and the state. In this sense the mention of a “pro-union” administration has nothing to do with the interests of the working class but points to the Biden administration’s reliance on the union bureaucracies to carry out the wholesale attacks on workers’ wages and living standards.

Around 30,000 prisoners soon to be eligible for free college with Pell Grant expansion - Pell Grants eligibility is set to be extended to people in prison on July 1, ending a ban that prevented most incarcerated individuals from getting federal aid for school. The change has been in the making since 2020 when lawmakers voted to expand Pell Grant access to prisoners after such help was banned in 1994. An education department spokesperson said around 760,000 prisoners will be eligible for the Pell Grant, which is also increasing at the beginning of July to $7,395. Around 30,000 prisoners will be getting $130 million worth of aid per year to get their education while they are serving their sentences, the spokesperson said. “The expansion of the Second Chance Pell Experiment will allow for opportunities to study the best practices for implementing the reinstatement of Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated students, and will expand the geographic range of the programs,” the Department of Education said in April 2022. Prison education programs have long been promoted as ways to help incarcerated individuals get the educated they need to hold a job once their sentence is over and brings down reincarnation rates. However, the idea does face some pushback and is only accessible to prisoners who are held at facilities that are able to invest the time and space into a college program.

It’s almost time to resume student loan payments. Not doing so could cost you (AP) — After three years, the pandemic-era freeze on federal student loan payments will end this fall. It might seem tempting to just keep not making payments, but the consequences can be severe, including a hit to your credit score and exclusion from future aid and benefits.More than 40 million Americans will have to start making payments again under the terms of a debt ceiling deal approved by Congress, though many could see their balances reduced or erased if the Supreme Court allows President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan to go ahead. A decision is expected this week, though the court appeared ready to reject the plan.Student loan interest will start accruing on September 1 and payments will restart in October. That means tough decisions for many borrowers, especially those in already-difficult financial situations.Experts say that delinquency and bankruptcy should be options of last resort, and that deferment and forbearance — which pause payments, though interest may continue to accrue — are often better in the short term. Once the moratorium ends, borrowers who can’t or don’t pay risk delinquency and eventually default. That can badly hurt your credit rating and make you ineligible for additional aid and government benefits.If you’re struggling to pay, advisers first encourage you to check if you qualify for an income-driven repayment plan, which determines your payments by looking at your expenses. You can determine this by visiting the Federal Student Aid website. If you’ve worked for a government agency or a non-profit organization, you could also be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which forgives student debt after 10 years.

Janitor wipes out 20 years of ‘groundbreaking’ research RT - A cleaner unwittingly destroyed over 20 years of“groundbreaking” research by switching off a laboratory freezer in a US university that had been emitting an “annoying” alarm sound, it has been claimed in a lawsuit.The legal filing says that the janitor, who is not being sued in the lawsuit, tried to stop the repetitive beeping noise by switching off the freezer while working at the site in 2020. It is claiming damages in excess of $1 million from the cleaner’s employer, Daigle Cleaning Systems Inc., whom the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in upstate New York says failed to adequately train the contractor.“[The] defendant, by and through its negligent, careless, and/or reckless supervision and control of [the janitor], caused damage to certain cell structures, samples, and/or research in the Lab,”the university claims.The suit also states that sensitive samples contained in the freezer were required to be kept at precise temperatures, and that an alarm had begun to sound to notify staff of a small fluctuation. Scientists determined that the minute change in temperature was not enough to affect the samples.

“Will the Doctor See You?” More on the Crapification of US Medical Care -- Lucia Agajanian, a 25-year-old freelance film producer in Chicago, doesn’t have a specific primary care doctor, preferring the convenience of visiting a local clinic for flu shots or going online for video visits. “You say what you need, and there’s a 15-minute wait time,” she said, explaining how her appointments usually work. “I really liked that.”But Olga Lucia Torres, a 52-year-old who teaches narrative medicine classes at Columbia University in New York, misses her longtime primary care doctor, who kept tabs for two decades on her conditions, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, and made sure she was up to date on vaccines and screening tests. Two years ago, Torres received a letter informing her that he was changing to a “boutique practice” and would charge a retainer fee of $10,000 for her to stay on as a patient.“I felt really sad and abandoned,” Torres said. “This was my PCP. I was like, ‘Dude, I thought we were in this together!’”The two women reflect an ongoing reality: The primary care landscape is changing in ways that could shape patients’ access and quality of care now and for decades to come. A solid and enduring relationship with a primary care doctor — who knows a patient’s history and can monitor new problems — has long been regarded as the bedrock of a quality health care system. But investment in primary care in the U.S. lags that of other high-income countries, and America has a smaller share of primary care physicians than most of its European counterparts.An estimated one-third of all physicians in the U.S. are primary care doctors — who include family medicine physicians, general internists, and pediatricians — according to the Robert Graham Center, a research and analysis organization that studies primary care. Other researchers say the numbers are lower, with thePeterson-KFF Health System Tracker reporting only 12% of U.S. doctors are generalists, compared with 23% in Germany and as many as 45% in the Netherlands.That means it’s often hard to find a doctor and make an appointment that’s not weeks or months away.“This is a problem that has been simmering and now beginning to erupt in some communities at a boil. It’s hard to find that front door of the health system,” said Ann Greiner, president and CEO of the Primary Care Collaborative, a nonprofit membership organization.Today, a smaller percentage of physicians are entering the field than are practicing, suggesting that shortages will worsen over time.Interest has waned partly because, in the U.S., primary care yields lower salaries than other medical and surgical specialties.Some doctors now in practice also say they are burned out, facing cumbersome electronic health record systems and limits on appointment times, making it harder to get to know a patient and establish a relationship.

After Decades of Debate, FDA Moves to Regulate In-House Lab Tests - AFTER DECADES OF intense debate and stalled legislation, the Food and Drug Administration has taken a critical step in overseeing a vast category of lab tests that reach patients without any federal agency checking to ensure they work the way their makers claim.Among the tests that are not reviewed by the FDA: popular prenatal genetic screenings that ProPublica recently reported on, as well as certain cancer screenings and tests for rare diseases. Last Wednesday, a notice of the proposed rule was posted. This is the first concrete evidence that the FDA is preparing to apply its regulatory powers to these lab tests.“A modern oversight framework that is specifically tailored to assuring tests work is critical to position ourselves for the future — whether it is preparing for the next pandemic or realizing the full potential of diagnostic innovation,” an FDA press officer said in a statement to ProPublica.Peter Lurie, president and executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, applauded the move. “It’s exciting to see the agency taking concrete steps to address this long-standing hole in the public health safety net,” he said.The agency’s hands-off approach to lab-developed tests — which are designed, manufactured and used by a single lab — traced back to a time when they were deployed at a small scale. The idea was to spare hospital labs, for example, from the time, money and hassle of getting approval in Washington whenever they needed to create a simple test for their own patients.Nowadays, so-called LDTs are an enormous part of the health care system, including a number of high-stakes tests made by commercial companies. Because they aren’t registered with the federal government, nobody knows how many exist. A 2021 study by Pew Charitable Trusts estimates that 12,000 labs are likely to use such tests, many of which process thousands of patient samples each day. Currently, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reviews lab operations, but it doesn’t check whether the tests themselves are clinically valid.

Why Cancer Treatments Might Not Work Very Well for Older Adults - IN OCTOBER 2021, 84-year-old Jim Yeldell was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer. The first drug he tried disrupted his balance and coordination, so his doctor halved the dose to minimize these side effects. In addition, his physician recommended a course of treatment that included chemotherapy, radiation, and a drug targeting a specific genetic mutation. This combination can be extremely effective — at least in younger people — but it can also be “incredibly toxic” in older, frail people, said Elizabeth Kvale, a palliative care specialist at Baylor College of Medicine, and also Yeldell’s daughter-in-law.Older patients are often under-represented in clinical trials of new cancer treatments, including the one offered to Yeldell. As a result, he only learned of the potential for toxicity because his daughter-in-law had witnessed the treatment’s severe side effects in the older adults at her clinic.This dearth of age-specific data has profound implications for clinical care, as older adults are more likely than younger people to be diagnosed with cancer. In the U.S, approximately 42 percentof people with cancer are over the age of 70 — a number that’s poised to grow in the years to come — and yet they comprise less than a quarter of the people in clinical trials to test new cancer treatments. Those who do participate are often the healthiest of the aged, who may not have common age-related conditions such as diabetes or poor kidney or heart function, said Mina Sedrak, a medical oncologist and the director of the Cancer and Aging program and the University of California Los Angeles. For decades, clinical trials have tended to exclude older participants for reasons that range from concerns about pre-existing conditions and other medications to participants’ ability to travel to trial locations. As a result, clinicians have little way of being certain that approved cancer drugs will work as predicted in clinical trials for the people most likely to have cancer. This dearth of data means that older cancer patients must decide if they want to pursue a treatment that might yield fewer benefits — and cause more side effects — than it did for younger people in the clinical trial. This evidence gap extends across the spectrum of cancer treatments — from chemotherapy and radiation to immune checkpoint inhibitors — with sometimes dire results. Many forms of chemotherapy, for example, have proven to be more toxic in older adults, a discovery that came only after the drugs were approved for use in this population. “This is a huge problem,” Sedrak said. In an effort to minimize side effects, doctors will often tweak the dose or duration of medications that are given to older adults, but these physicians are doing this without any real guidance.

How Over Is Covid? Ian Welsh - The official Covid mortality numbers are down, and pretty significantly, in most countries. But we also aren’t testing as much and most countries aren’t collating and releasing figures as much either. For now, however, we have excess mortality numbers. So, a guy named Diego Bassani produced these two excess mortality charts for Canada.First, age 15-64. Second, 0-14. Compare the 2020 line for adults and children, then the 2021. In 2020 we protected kids, in 2021 we gave up and threw them to the wolves. I said at the time that the idea that kids were going to be just fine if we sent them back to school wholesale without ventilating and filtering schools was nonsense, and it was.Anyway, it sure doesn’t look like Covid is over, does it? And really, why would we think it would be over since we didn’t do anything to end it except say it was over and stop most of what was done to slow it down, from masking and isolation to widespread vaccination?I rather suspect most governments are gaslighting their populations. Lying. And step by step they will lie more by changing the excess death baseline (the UK is already on this) and so on.“No, this is how it’s always been.” Of course, not all deaths are directly Covid, but the excess are mostly because of Covid. If you get cancer and the hospitals are slammed and you don’t get care for months then die, it won’t show as “Covid”, but it’s because of Covid, or rather our response. In Canada I keep seeing stories about overworked hospitals and how emergency departments are having to shut down for the weekend or whatever. That basically never happened pre-Covid. Covid’s here. It’s still killing and Long Covid is still stalking the land. And we’re just pretending, like some “New Emperor’s Clothes” that it isn’tI don’t see how adding a semi-permanent pandemic and mass disabling to climate change and environmental collapse is anything but bad and complete malpractice by our ruling class, even given that they are the enemies of all humanity except themselves, since it’s going to hit them too.

CDC Data: Omicron Subvariant XBB.1.16, or ‘Arcturus,’ Causing 20% of New COVID-19 Infections The so-called arcturus strain of COVID-19 is responsible for about 1 in 5 new infections, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.XBB.1.16, or arcturus, was the variant identified in 20% of new COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks, the CDC estimates. The strain is slowly increasing across the U.S. as the dominant strain XBB.1.5 declines.The Food and Drug Administration last week directed vaccine manufacturers to update their vaccines to target XBB.1.5.“Based on the totality of the evidence, FDA has advised manufacturers who will be updating their COVID-19 vaccines, that they should develop vaccines with a monovalent XBB.1.5 composition,” the agency said in a statement.Moderna on Thursday announced that it asked the agency to authorize its candidate for the updated shot, which is expected to roll out in the fall.“We have been working diligently for months to build ample supply, with doses ready to ship in time for the fall vaccination season in the Northern Hemisphere,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in astatement.Pfizer and Novavax also have updated shots under development.But it’s possible that XBB.1.5 might not be the top strain come the fall, given that it’s on the decline. The FDA last week suggested that it could be arcturus instead.“The current trajectory of virus evolution suggests that XBB.1.16 could be dominant by fall 2023 but that XBB.2.3 and other XBB sublineages could also continue to increase in proportion as the virus evolves,” the agency wrote in a document published last week.Still, experts believe that the strains are similar enough that the vaccines will protect against both.

New COVID-19 variant on CDC's radar -- As COVID-19 variant XBB.1.5 declines in prominence, the CDC began tracking new omicron variants June 23, including XBB.1.5 descendant EU.1.1. In the U.S., 1.7 percent of COVID-19 infections are from EU.1.1, and in the Northwest region including Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and the Dakotas, the variant already accounts for 8.7 percent of cases. It is unclear which new variant will assume dominance as the CDC now lists 22 variants jockeying for control. Here are three things to know about COVID-19:

• 1. More hospitalizations and deaths are from reinfections, according to the CDC.
• 2. The FDA instructed vaccine makers to update their COVID-19 shot formulas to solely focus on the XBB variant, and Moderna filed its version for approval. As of June 24, XBB variants make up 96.1 percent of infections.
• 3. A declassified report from U.S. intelligence did not clarify whether the COVID-19 outbreak in fall 2019 spurred from a lab leak in Wuhan, China, or an animal-to-human transmission.

The report, which was written by the National Intelligence Officer for Weapons of Mass Destruction and Proliferation and coordinated with the intelligence community, concluded both hypotheses are "plausible.""We assess that some scientists at the [Wuhan Institute of Virology] have genetically engineered coronaviruses using common laboratory practices," the report said. "The [intelligence community] has no information, however, indicating that any WIV genetic engineering work has involved SARS-CoV-2, a close progenitor, or a backbone virus that is closely-related enough to have been the source of the pandemic."The intelligence community said it did not find a biosafety incident that could have prompted the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Energy Department and FBI said a lab incident is more likely.In contrast, the National Intelligence Council and four unnamed agencies said an infected animal was the most likely scenario for the first human infection. This hypothesis could not be confirmed; some researchers in Wuhan who became ill in fall 2019 had worked with animal respiratory viruses, but the intelligence community could not determine they "handled live viruses in the work they performed prior to falling ill."

Type A blood linked to higher rate of COVID infections -People with type A blood are likely more susceptible to COVID-19 infections, because the spike protein of the virus shows an affinity for blood group A cells, according to a new study in Blood.This is the strongest evidence to date to support the idea that blood types influence who is more likely to contract COVID-19.Moreover, the study shows the spike protein's affinity for type A cells may be amplified by the Omicron strain of the virus.The study looked at the receptor binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2, which facilitates host cell engagement. RBD is very similar to galectins, a family of carbohydrate binding proteins that can be studied in a lab setting.Blood group antigens are carbohydrates, so the authors compared the glycan binding specificity of the SARS-COV-2 RBD with galectins in blood cells from both type A and O. The SARS-CoV-2 virus showed a strong affinity for type A cells. Depending on what virus variant was used, a likelihood of infection increased by 25% to 50% compared to type O cells.Not only did each RBD recognize blood group A in a glycan array format, the authors explained mutations in variant strains of the virus can be found in regions of the RBD predicted to recognize glycans. Those changes enhanced blood group A binding, the authors said.

Study: Sperm counts decline even after mild COVID infections -- Men recently infected with COVID-19 have decreased sperm counts for more than 3 months following even mild infections, and the sperm they do produce is less able to swim, according to new findings presented today at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) in Denmark. The findings are intriguing because men produce new sperm every 2 or 3 months, and the findings are based on semen analyses taken after 100 days, suggesting COVID does long-term damage to the male reproductive tract. "We assumed that semen quality would improve once new sperm were being generated, but this was not the case. We do not know how long it might take for semen quality to be restored and it may be the case that COVID has caused permanent damage, even in men who suffered only a mild infection," Rocio Nunez-Calonge, MSc, PhD, a scientific advisor at the Scientific Reproduction Unit in Madrid, Spain, said in the news release. Nunez-Calonge was the lead researcher on the study. The study was based on findings from semen samples produced by men visiting six reproduction treatment centers in Spain between February 2020 and October 2022. Forty-five men participated in the study. All 45 provided a semen sample before there were sickened with COVID-19 infection classified as mild. Follow-up samples were taken 17 to 516 days after infection; the median time that elapsed between the pre- and post-COVID samples was 238 days. Semen volume decreased 20% between pre-and post-COVID samples (from 2.5 to 2 milliliters [mL]), and sperm counts fell 37.5%, from 160 to 100 million per mL of semen. The continuing effect of COVID infection on semen quality in this later period may be caused by permanent damage due to the virus, even in mild infection. Additionally sperm concentration, the number of live sperm in a sample, decreased 26.5%, from 68 to 50 million per mL of ejaculate. The total motility of sperm went down by 9.1%, from 49% to 45%, and numbers of live sperm decreased 5%, from 80% to 76%. The shape of sperm was not significantly changed.

Low incidence of bacterial infections found in infants with COVID, other viral diseases -- A single-center study in Canada found a low incidence of bacterial infections in infants with viral infections, including SARS-CoV-2, researchers reported today in JAMA Network Open.The study, conducted at McGill University Hospital in Montreal, sought to assess the prevalence of urinary tract infections (UTIs), bacteremia, and bacterial meningitis among febrile infants ages 8 to 60 days who were systematically tested for SARS-CoV-2 and non–SARS-CoV-2 infections. Studies have suggested that the presence of a respiratory virus in infants is associated with a decreased risk of these infections, but it's unclear whether the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 has changed this risk, and questions remain about how viral testing should guide laboratory evaluation and management.A total of 931 infants were included in the analysis (median age, 38 days; 58.8% male; 46% hospitalized). Viruses were detected in 611 infants (65.6%), including 163 (17.5%) with SARS-CoV-2. Overall, 107 infants (11.5%) had UTI, bacteremia, or bacterial meningitis, and 20 (2.2%) had invasive bacterial infections (IBIs; ie, bacteremia and bacterial meningitis collectively). The prevalence of UTI, bacteremia, and bacterial meningitis was lower among infants with non–SARS-CoV-2 viruses (7.8%) compared with those with no detectable virus (20.9%), and even lower in infants with SARS-CoV-2 (3.1%).All five infections in infants with SARS-CoV-2 were culture-confirmed UTIs. There were significantly fewer IBIs in both SARS-CoV-2 (0 of 163 infants) and non–SARS-CoV-2 groups (5 of 448 infants [1.11%]) compared with virus-negative infants (15 of 320 infants [4.69%]). All five IBIs in infants with non–SARS-CoV-2 viruses were bacteremia."These findings support AAP [American Academy of Pediatrics] recommendations that a confirmed non–SARS-CoV-2 virus should not affect the initial evaluation for young infants with fever," the study authors wrote. "However, findings demonstrating the very low risk of IBIs among infants with SARS-CoV-2 may assist clinicians individualize management and inform shared decision-making with parents, particularly when rapid COVID-19 testing results are known or available at the point of care."

Study links moderate, severe COVID-19 to chronic pain --A moderate or severe COVID-19 infection may be a risk factor for chronic pain, according to a study published late last week in PLOS One. Researchers from Upstate Medical University in New York led the analysis of data from 15,335 adult respondents to the 2021 National Health Interview Survey. They aimed to compare the odds of having chronic pain in the past 3 months among COVID-19 survivors who had no, mild, moderate, or severe symptoms during their infections and never-infected control participants. "Chronic pain is associated with an increase in depression, anxiety, and sleep disturbance," the researchers wrote. "It can impact daily living activities, reduce social engagement, and impact the ability to contribute to the workforce." Of all participants, 76.7% reported never having been infected with COVID-19, 10.7% had no or mild symptoms, and 12.6% had moderate or severe cases. Respondents reporting no or infrequent pain made up 80.3% of the sample, while 19.7% said they had chronic pain. Chronic pain was more prevalent in the moderate or severe group relative to the never-infected group (25.5% vs 19.4%). Both the adjusted model (odds ratio [OR], 1.28) and matched model (OR, 1.45) showed a higher likelihood of pain for those with moderate or severe COVID-19 than for the uninfected group. Participants with no or mild symptoms were less likely to report pain in the previous 3 months than the COVID-naïve group (OR, 0.81). Adjusted probabilities show that chronic pain was roughly 4 percentage points more likely among those with more symptoms during infection than among the never-infected group (20% vs 16%). "A moderate/highly symptomatic COVID-19 infection may be a new risk factor for chronic pain," the authors wrote. "As the absolute number of severe COVID-19 infections continues to rise, overall prevalence of chronic pain may also increase. While knowledge continues to unfold on long-haul symptoms, prevention of severe infections remains essential."

Paxlovid tied to 30% lower risk of severe COVID in patients with chronic conditions -Paxlovid was linked to a 30% lower risk of all-cause emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalization, and death among vaccinated, nonhospitalized COVID-19 patients with serious chronic conditions but didn't appear to benefit those with only asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or no serious underlying conditions, concludes a Harvard University–led study.For the observational study, published today in Clinical Infectious Diseases, researchers assessed outcomes among two groups of 2,547 COVID-19 patients aged 18 to 50 years.Participants had been vaccinated from December 2021 to July 2022, and the search was conducted in September. One group received Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir plus ritonavir), while the matched control group didn't.A total of 4.9% of Paxlovid recipients visited an ED, were hospitalized, or died in the first 30 days after COVID-19 onset, compared with 7.0% of controls (odds ratio [OR], 0.683), for a 30% reduction in relative risk. The number of patients needed to treat (NNT) to prevent one of these outcomes was 47.Subgroup analyses revealed significant associations between Paxlovid benefit and patients with cancer (NNT, 45), cardiovascular disease (30), and both conditions (16). But no benefit was observed for patients with only chronic lower respiratory disorders such as asthma or COPD or without serious underlying illnesses.Ten patients died, none of whom had received Paxlovid. There were no significant differences in rates of all-cause ED, clinic, or telehealth visits.Paxlovid recipients had lower rates of constitutional, cardiovascular, and respiratory symptoms than controls, while rates of gastrointestinal, nervous, and musculoskeletal symptoms and altered smell or taste were comparable in both groups.

US COVID markers stay low - The indicators the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) uses to track COVID activity remain low, according to yesterday's update. Nationally, hospital admission rates for COVID declined 5.3% over the past week, and deaths remained level. For hospitalizations, most counties remain in the green zone, except for a few in Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. Early indicators, which include emergency department (ED) visits for COVID and test positivity, also remain low. ED visits for the virus declined 0.3%, with the percentage of weekly ED visits for COVID at just 0.5%. Nationally, COVID test positivity is 4.3%, up 0.1% over the past week. Positivity was slightly higher in the CDC region that includes California, the lower Midwest states, and the region that mainly includes New York, New Jersey, and Puerto Rico.

Is liberal society making us ill? - As rates of Covid-19 infection started to dwindle, there came signs of a much stranger pandemic: long Covid and its host of long-term complications. You might think that, since men and older people suffer the most complications from the virus, most of those with long Covid would be older men. But this is not so. According to a US Census Bureau survey, women are almost twice as likely as men to report having it, while transgender people are significantly more likely to do so than all other groups. A German study, meanwhile, concluded “there is accumulating evidence that adolescent girls are at particular risk of prolonged symptoms”.Given that Covid tends to affect men more than women, why would long Covid affect women more than men? And given that Covid complications are extremely rare in the young, why would teenage girls be disproportionately affected by long Covid? Finally, given that we can’t accuse a virus of transphobia, why would long Covid affect transgender people most? The answer lies in the fact that long Covid is not a strictly physical phenomenon. A study of nearly two million people published inNature found that people who reported three or more symptoms of long Covid included: 4.9% of people confirmed to have had Covid, and 4% of people with no evidence of having had Covid. So, reporting the symptoms of long Covid is only moderately associated with a prior Covid infection. In fact, long Covid correlates about as much with mood disorders as with Covid itself. One study found that people prone to anxiety and depression before Covid infection were 45% more likely to develop long Covid after infection, and theNature study found that having anxiety and depression before getting Covid almost doubled the chances of reporting long Covid. But why exactly would mood disorders increase the likelihood of long Covid? Some experts have speculated that stress may affect the immune system’s response to Covid and lead to more serious infections. However, a Turkish study found no evidence that anxiety or depression alters the body’s immune response to the virus. A much likelier explanation could be that, since symptoms of mood disorders overlap with those of long Covid, people are mistaking psychological distress for the side-effects of viral infection.This is part of a broader phenomenon. Young people are reporting despair and distress at an unprecedented rate, and this mental health crisis is a symptom of a malfunctioning society — a society that is making people sick, by teaching them to feel sick. The tendency for people to misdiagnose their despair as a medical disorder can be observed far beyond reports of long Covid. Consider the surge in cases of gender dysphoria. Between 2012 and 2022, the number of adolescents referred to the NHS’s Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) increased by over 2000%. If the increase were simply due to decreasing stigma around being trans, it wouldn’t be mostly restricted to a single sex and age range, but it has been driven almost exclusively by young people and natal females. The group that’s disproportionately reporting gender dysphoria — adolescent girls — appears to be the same demographic as the group deemed in the German study to be disproportionately at risk of long Covid. This is also the group, besides trans people, deemed most at risk of mood disorders. So, again, it seems many young people, particularly girls, are confusing general distress for another illness. And it’s not just reports of gender dysphoria that have multiplied among young people. Increases have occurred for major depressive disorder, attention-deficit disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder,social anxiety disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and various eating disorders. It seems that young people, and their doctors, are viewing personal issues as medical disorders: we are living through a pathologisation pandemic.

US intelligence agency releases declassified Wuhan SARS-CoV-2 lab leak assessments - The director of the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on June 23 issued a declassified report on what US intelligence agencies know about potential links between the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.In early March, both houses of Congress passed a bill to declassify what US agencies found, following reports that two—the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Department of Energy (DOE)—found with low confidence that a lab leak was the most likely source. Others, also with low confidence, said a jump from animals to humans was the most likely source.President Biden signed the bill on Mar 20, which ordered the ODNI to declassify the information within 90 days.Four agencies still lean toward the natural origin source, while the FBI and DOE still lean toward a lab leak, according to the Associated Press. Two others, including the Central Intelligence Agency, have not made assessments.Regarding reports of illnesses in WIV staff ahead of the unexplained pneumonia outbreak in Wuhan, the ODNI report said several people fell mildly ill in the fall of 2019, with a range of symptoms including colds and allergies, with symptoms not typically associated with COVID-19. Some had confirmed illnesses that weren't related to COVID. No hospitalizations were reported for conditions similar to COVID, though one lab employee may have been treated for a nonrespiratory condition.

Wastewater sampling in Canada suggests COVID case rate 19 times higher than reported - At the peak of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant wave in Ontario, Canada, wastewater sampling conducted before the surge suggested that COVID-19 cases were 19 times higher than reported because of changes in clinical testing, according to a study published yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases. Researchers at the Regional Municipality of Peel, Ontario, led the study, which involved determining the relationship between the SARS-CoV-2 load in wastewater and COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations before the emergence of Omicron (September 2020 to November 2021) at two treatment plants in Peel. The team used these pre-Omicron correlations to estimate the incidence of COVID-19 cases amid the Omicron surge (November 2021 to June 2022). They collected wastewater samples from the treatment plants 3 to 5 days a week, for a total of 715 samples. In December 2021, during the Omicron BA.1 variant surge in Ontario, the province restricted clinical polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing to high-risk people, including hospitalized patients, healthcare workers providing direct patient care, and residents and staff in hospitals and congregate living settings. "Wastewater surveillance indicators become especially relevant when PCR testing eligibility changed or when clinical testing capacity was overwhelmed, resulting in an incomplete picture of local COVID-19 activity," the researchers wrote. The link between wastewater SARS-CoV-2 load and COVID-19 cases was strongest 1 day after sampling, while wastewater load and COVID-19 hospitalizations were most strongly correlated 4 days after sampling. At the peak wastewater SARS-CoV-2 load of wave 5 on January 11, 2022, 1,160 reported COVID-19 infections were reported, compared with a predicted 7,515 cases, representing a 6.5-fold difference. At the peak of wave 6 on April 21, 2022, the estimated versus reported COVID-19 cases differed 18.7-fold (3,170 vs 170, respectively). "The monitoring of wastewater in Peel has provided critical information about community transmission of COVID-19 that is independent of clinical testing availability and uptake," the authors wrote.

Matt Hancock says UK’s pandemic strategy was completely wrong - BBC - Ex-health secretary Matt Hancock has criticised the UK's pandemic planning before Covid hit, saying it was "completely wrong". He told the Covid Inquiry that planning was focused on the provision of body bags and how to bury the dead, rather than stopping the virus taking hold. He said he was "profoundly sorry" for each death. After giving evidence he approached some of the bereaved families, but they turned their backs on him as he left. The former health secretary, who answered questions from the inquiry on Tuesday, said he understood his apology might be difficult for families to accept, even though it was "honest and heartfelt". He added it was a "colossal" failure to assume the virus spreading could not be stopped. Under questioning from Hugo Keith KC, lead counsel to the Covid Inquiry, Mr Hancock stressed that the "attitude, the doctrine of the UK was to plan for the consequences of a disaster". He said the government was focused on different questions, such as "can we buy enough body bags?" and "where are we going to bury the dead?" "That was completely wrong," he added. Mr Keith asked Mr Hancock why, if he was so critical of the UK's approach to pandemic planning, it was not changed while he was health secretary. Mr Hancock said: "The only answer I can give is because I was assured that we had the best system in place in the world. "In hindsight, I wish I'd spent that short period of time [before the pandemic] changing the entire attitude to how we respond to a pandemic." When Mr Hancock praised workers across health and social care during the pandemic, Hugo Keith made the analogy: "Lions led by structural donkeys, Mr Hancock. Personally, everyone gave their all but the system was not fit for purpose, was it?" Mr Hancock replied: "That's absolutely right." The former health secretary added: "I bear responsibility for all the things that happened, not only in my department, but also the agencies that reported to me as secretary of state."

Cryptosporidiosis outbreak linked to college swimming pool - A collegiate swim meet was the setting for an outbreak of cryptosporidiosis after infected swimmers shared a pool while experiencing symptoms such as diarrhea, according to a study today in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Details from the outbreak highlight the transmissibility of Cryptosporidium parasites even in chlorinated pools. The investigation started when a Massachusetts college notified the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) that 19 of 50 members (38%) of the men's and women's swim teams had experienced diarrhea beginning 3 days after their return from a training trip to Puerto Rico earlier this year. Five and 6 days after returning from Puerto Rico, swimmers still experiencing diarrhea participated in two home meets against teams from New York and Rhode Island colleges. Stool samples from 19 infected Massachusetts swimmers were submitted to the MDPH, which showed 13 had positive test results for Cryptosporidium. The 13 patients ranged in age from 18 to 22 years, and 8 were men. The collegiate pool was closed immediately for deep cleaning and chlorination. No New York collegiate swimmers were infected, but two Rhode Island swimmers received positive stool Cryptosporidium test results 1 week after the swim meet. The potential exists for sustained Cryptosporidium transmission among competitive swimmers. "Although there was no evidence of subsequent transmission from the Rhode Island swimmers, because of the regular inter-collegiate competition and subsequent championship schedule, the potential exists for sustained Cryptosporidium transmission among competitive swimmers," the authors concluded.

Deadly Fungus Infections Rising Even as Doctors Keep Missing Them - by Yves Smith - A very good Wall Street Journal story tonight describes how dangerous and often fatal fungal infections have been increasing and describes some examples. This piece is much broader than some other mainstream media pieces on the rise of Candida auris in hospitals in recent years. Those stories depicted it as mainly a problem of stubborn pathogen which has gotten itself into more and more hospitals meets inadequate infection control and immune-weakened patients. But these pieces stressed that Candida auris wasn’t hazardous to those in rude good health. For instance, from Time in March: Candida auris infections have increased dramatically in the U.S. in recent years. In 2021, national cases reported by health care facilities increased by 95%, and from 2019 to 2021, 17 states reported their first case. With infections recorded in a total of 28 states and the District of Columbia, these numbers suggest that current disinfection and safety measures at care facilities may not be sufficient.Experts do not currently view C. auris as much of a threat to the wider population, since most healthy people are not at risk for severe infections, which tend to spread in hospital settings. But there are fears that it could someday evolve to become one. So the general public is told they don’t have to worry about a fungal infection with a a 30% to 60% fatality rate unless they wind up in a hospital, rehab center or a nursing home. Oddly, none of these articles I read on Candida auris mentioned Covid as taxing immune systems and potentially (more like probably) accelerating this bad trend. By contrast, a new article by CIDRAP fingers Covid as playing a significant rate in the recent rise in fungal infections:New data from a US hospital database show a significant increase in hospitalizations involving fungal infections from 2019 through 2021, driven primarily by COVID-19–associated infections, US researchers reported yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases.Using data from the Premier Healthcare Database, Special COVID-19 Release, researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) identified 59,212 fungal hospitalizations over the 3-year period. Rates of fungal hospitalizations (per 10,000 hospitalizations) increased from 22.3 in 2019 to 25.0 in 2020 and 26.8 in 2021, for an average annual change of 8.5%. Among the specific fungal pathogens that saw increases were Candida, Aspergillus, Coccidioides, and Histoplasma.Back to the more general alarm sounded in the Wall Street Journal story, Deadly Fungal Infections Confound Doctors—‘It’s Going to Get Worse’. The article buries what strikes me as a particularly important concern for patients, since these ailments can go undiagnosed until dangerously late, since prompt treatment is crucial: ” Delaying treatment of some fungal disease by just a day can double the risk of death, research shows.” It’s that there aren’t good tests for many of them… and on top of that, the tests are too often not run: The fungal disease Valley Fever causes one in three pneumonia cases contracted outside of hospitals in Arizona, yet patients with pneumonia symptoms are rarely tested for it, said Dr. Fariba Donovan, an associate professor of internal medicine at the University of Arizona. “We are telling patients to ask their doctor, ‘Do you think this could be Valley Fever?’ ” Donovan said. The article also describes how some dangerous fungal infections are not uncommon. It start with the case study of a woman who died of an initially not-named fungal infection, which they later reveal to be C. auris and then follows with one who was diagnosed late for Histoplasma, eventually was treated for it, but still has not cleared it and may lose an eye to it. And this lurid example: The CDC warned in May of a suspected fungal meningitis outbreak among people who underwent cosmetic procedures, including liposuction and breast augmentation, at two clinics in Mexico. . Four people have died. One, an otherwise healthy woman in her 30s, was hospitalized in Texas with a fever and meningitis symptoms shortly after visiting one of the clinics in March, according to the CDC’s Chiller. Tests for bacteria were negative, which should have prompted doctors to consider fungi, said Chiller, who reviewed her case. She was given antibiotics, briefly improved, then deteriorated, Chiller said. She wasn’t diagnosed with fungal meningitis until after her death.

New guidelines recommend antibiotic stewardship for preventing MRSA -A collection of experts from US medical organizations today released updated recommendations to help acute-care hospitals prevent one of the most common healthcare-associated infections (HAIs).Among the changes in the updated guidelines, to be published today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology(ICHE), is the elevation of antimicrobial stewardship to an "essential practice" for preventing infection with and transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA), a pathogen that causes roughly 10% of HAIs in US hospitals and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality.The previous version of the guidelines, published in 2014, had listed antimicrobial stewardship as an unresolved issue.The guidelines arrive in the wake of a COVID-19 pandemic-related rise in MRSA infections in US hospitals that reversed years of declines. MRSA bloodstream infections were one of several HAIs that increased during the pandemic as infection prevention and control staff and resources were diverted to COVID care. But prior to the pandemic, data from US hospitals showed that MRSA incidence declined by 18% from 2012 to 2017.A senior author says that history, and the evidence that informs the new guidelines, indicates hospitals can be successful at preventing the spread MRSA."We can get back to the pre-2020 rates and then do even better," David Calfee, MD, ICHE editor and an infectious disease specialist at Weill Cornell Medicine, said in a press release.Other essential activities carried over from the previous guidelines include implementing a MRSA monitoring program, conducting a MRSA risk assessment, promoting US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and World Health Organization recommendations for hand hygiene, ensuring proper cleaning and disinfection of equipment and the hospital environment, and educating patients and healthcare providers about MRSA.MRSA is a common HAI, because some hospital patients, particularly those with severe underlying illness who have undergone invasive procedures, are colonized with the pathogen, and a substantial proportion of those patients go on to develop a MRSA infection. Those patients also shed MRSA into the hospital environment, and the healthcare workers who care for those patients can spread it other patients.

Decolonization protocol tied to dramatically reduced MRSA in critically ill infants -A decolonization protocol normally used in older patients was associated with a sharp reduction in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in critically ill infants, providers at Children's Hospital New Orleans reported today at the annual conference of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).The protocol, which involved bathing infants in the hospital's intensive care units (ICUs) with an antiseptic wash and swabbing their nostrils with a topical antibiotic ointment, was implemented more than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, partly in response to a rise in MRSA cases. When compared with the pre-implementation period, cases of hospital-onset MRSA and MRSA bacteremia in the units fell by 41% and 54%, respectively. The lead presenter of the study says she believes the protocol, if implemented in other pediatric critical care settings, could achieve similar results. MRSA typically causes skin and other soft-tissue infections that can be treated with antibiotics, but it's a significant concern in critically ill young children. MRSA infections in pediatric and neonatal ICUs are associated with significant morbidity and mortality, particularly when the infection gets into the bloodstream. "We've noticed with our tiny patients, specifically our neonatal population, that if they get a MRSA infection, it spreads very quickly to becoming bacteremic," Schroeder said. When MRSA cases began to rise across the entire health system during the pandemic, Schroeder and her colleagues revisited the issue. For all patients 2 years and older, they implemented the protocol designed by the health system—a daily CHG bath and twice-daily use of a nasal antiseptic. In patients under 2, the protocol involved a daily CHG bath and 5 days of applying the topical antibiotic mupirocin in the nostrils (a common part of the body for Staph bacteria to colonize). The protocol was implemented on admission and then monthly thereafter. Despite an increase in admissions and patient-days during the post-intervention period (from 2,316 admissions and 15,765 patient-days pre-intervention to 2,778 admissions and 17,296 patient-days), the hospital-onset MRSA rate per 1,000 patient-days fell from 1.459 to 0.867—a 41% decline—while the hospital-onset MRSA bacteremia rate fell from 0.381 to 0.173—a 56% decline. In addition, the average length of stay fell from 6.8 to 6.2 days.

Review highlights impact of antibiotics on infant gut microbiome -- Conducted by researchers from the University of Amsterdam and the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia, the systematic review examined studies that reported on the effects of antibiotics on the gut microbiota of children under age 2 in LMICs and profiled resistance genes. Of 92 studies assessed, 10 met the eligibility criteria, all of which were randomized controlled trials comparing children who received antibiotics with those who received placebo.The studies were conducted in South Africa (1), Niger (4), Burkina Faso (3), India (1), and Malawi (1) and assessed a limited number of antibiotics, including cotrimoxazole (3 studies), azithromycin (9 studies), and amoxicillin (2 studies).Overall, the studies showed that the children who received antibiotics had reduced gut microbiome diversity and increased antibiotic-specific resistance gene abundance, particularly the children who received azithromycin, in whom macrolide resistance was seen as early as 5 days post-treatment and persisted for up to 6 months. Studies on children who participated in biannual mass azithromycin distribution, a strategy that has been used in several African countries, also had a greater abundance of non-macrolide resistance determinants.The authors say the findings are limited by the paucity of studies, and that several questions remain. Among them are whether depletion of commensal microbiota renders children more susceptible to infections, whether antibiotic use puts children at risk for infection with antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) pathogens, and whether disruption of the infant microbiome translates into short- and long-term health issues.

Over 25% of kids in low-income nations receive antibiotics from unqualified sources - An analysis of survey data from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) found that roughly 1 in 4 children under the age of 5 received antibiotics from unqualified sources, researchers reported yesterday in eClinical Medicine. To assess the proportion of antibiotics for children under 5 in LMICs that originated from unqualified sources (ie, without a prescription or medical supervision), researchers from Bangladesh used data from cross-sectional studies of the latest Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) datasets from 59 LMICs. DHS is a global survey conducted every 3 to 5 years in LMICs that includes women between ages 15 and 49 and children under 5 who live in residential households. Among the items covered by the survey are illness and antibiotic use in children under 5. The researchers identified 43,166 children under 5 who had taken an antibiotic for fever/cough 2 weeks prior to the survey, 74% of whom had obtained the antibiotic from a qualified source. The countries with the lowest percentage of antibiotics prescribed by qualified sources were Tanzania (22.4%), Bangladesh (23.7%), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (46.2%). The countries with the highest percentage of antibiotics prescribed by a qualified source were Malawi (99.9%), Mozambique (96.3%), and Cambodia (94.7%). In general, no subgroups were found to be especially high- or low-risk groups for taking antibiotics from qualified sources, but a higher percentage of children in rural areas (75%) received antibiotics from qualified sources compared with those in rural areas (72.2%), and the percentage of antibiotics received from qualified sources declined as the number of children under 5 in the household increased. The study authors suggest that lack of access to medical treatment and lack of knowledge about antimicrobial resistance and inappropriate antibiotic use may play a role in obtaining antibiotics from unqualified sources.

Review shows average mpox incubation period is 7 days, symptoms vary -A 21-study meta-analysis finds that the median incubation period for the global mpox outbreak that began last year is 7 days, symptoms vary widely, and immunocompromised people with HIV make up 36.1% of documented cases. The study is published in Archives of Virology.This clinical review comes more than 1 year after countries around the world began seeing mpox as a sexually transmitted infection in communities that had never before seen the virus.The studies included in the review described clinical presentation in 18,275 mpox cases. Most cases were caused by person-to-person transmission, and most infected men who have sex with men—the vast majority of patients—were young (30 to 40 years). Though the median incubation period—the time from exposure to symptom onset—was 7 days, the interquartile range was 3 to 21 days.The clinical manifestations of mpox infection were severe skin lesions on the palms, oral, and anogenital regions, as well as proctitis, penile edema, tonsillitis, ocular disease, myalgia, lethargy, and sore throat. Unlike previous outbreaks of mpox, most patients do not experience a preceding fever before developing blisters."Instead, the illness often starts with a rash that appears as papules or blisters, which can be painful or itchy and progresses through several stages, forming crusts before healing," the authors wrote. Asymptomatic cases were also documented, but the study authors didn't specify how common they were.Notably, the authors of the study said, hospitalizations, including admissions to intensive care units, have increased during the global outbreak. Among 84,470 cases reported since May of 2022, 80 deaths have been reported in 103 non-endemic countries.

Quick takes: US Cyclospora rise, more fungal meningitis deaths, Southern Hemisphere flu | CIDRAP

• Cyclospora infections acquired in the United States typically rise in the summer months, but the increase began in April, which is earlier than usual, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in arecent update. Typically, cases start rising in May, and it's too soon to say if there's a change in seasonality, the agency added. So far, 210 cyclosporiasis cases have been reported in 22 states, and 30 people have been hospitalized and no deaths have been reported. A common food source has yet to be identified. Past outbreaks were linked to fresh produce, such as cilantro, basil, snow peas, and raspberries. Earlier this year, federal officials were part of an investigation into 20 illnesses in Alabama and Georgia. Though investigators found a link to imported raw broccoli, they weren't able to identify a specific source or producer, and the outbreak appears to be over.
• Two more Americans have died in a fungal meningitis outbreak linked to spinal anesthesia administered at Mexican cosmetic surgery clinics, bringing the total to six, the CDC said in a recent update. Also, tests have confirmed the fungus in spinal tap samples from three more people, bringing the total to nine. The CDC's update lists 16 suspected cases, meaning people whose symptoms suggest the infection but whose lab results aren't known, and 10 probable cases, meaning spinal tap testing shows evidence of meningitis.
• With flu at low seasonal levels in the United States, the CDC on June 23 said it is watching activity in the Southern Hemisphere flu season, and so far there is no clear pattern, with a mixed picture that varies by country. Some nations, such as Chile, experienced an early start to the flu season, while others, such as Australia and Argentina, are having a typical flu season, with South Africa's activity listed as moderate. Though Mexico isn't in the Southern Hemisphere, it has experienced abnormally high activity in May and June. The CDC said Southern Hemisphere activity doesn't always predict what will happen in the Northern Hemisphere, but monitoring patterns can be helpful for preparedness. The main virus is 2009 H1N1, but some countries are reporting circulation of the H3N2 strain and the influenza B Victoria lineage.

Stomach Virus Spreads Through Cruise Ships at Fastest Pace in Years CDC has reported 13 norovirus outbreaks through first half of 2023 - Cruises are packed as more travelers choose long-delayed vacations at sea. The downside: Higher numbers of those passengers are getting sick.. The Viking Neptune experienced an outbreak of norovirus on a North Atlantic sailing that departed Iceland in early June. More than 100 passengers reported being ill during the cruise.

Researchers say bats in UK harbor novel coronaviruses -In Nature Communications researchers describe finding four species of circulating coronaviruses, including two novel ones, among 16 native bat species in the United Kingdom.Though none are currently capable of infecting humans, the viruses have similarities to those that cause COVID-19 and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome).The surveillance was done during regular conservationist work that involved collecting 48 fecal samples. Seventeen bat species live and breed in the United Kingdom. Among the samples collected from 16 species, two species of alphacoronaviruses were detected, one MERS-CoV–related coronavirus, and one sarbecovirus. SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, is a sarbecovirus.To see if any of the viruses could infect humans, the researchers then created "pseudoviruses," which carry whichever protein the virus uses to bind to host cells, but they cannot replicate. None of the pseudoviruses could infect human cells, they found. However, one of the sarbecoviruses found from the lesser horseshoe bat was able to bind to ACE2, the receptor that the SARS-CoV-2 virus uses to enter human cells, a press release explained. But the virus could enter human cells only in lab conditions, and would likely need further adaptations before it's a threat to human health."We found a high prevalence of genetic recombination amongst sarbecoviruses, particularly in the spike gene," the authors said, "Which may facilitate viral adaptations to overcome the genetic barrier for a zoonotic jump."

Quick takes: Dengue in Florida mosquitoes, polio in Africa, fungal meningitis deaths rise to 7 | CIDRAP

• Three mosquitoes out of more than 100 collected from Florida's Sarasota County—where four human cases were recently confirmed—were positive for the malaria parasite in testing at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), according to CBS News, which cited Sarasota County Mosquito Management Services. The finding was previously reported by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The mosquitoes that were positive were all from the same woodlot.
• Four African countries reported new polio cases this week, all involving vaccine-derived types, according to the latest weekly update from the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. The Democratic Republic of Congo reported four cases involving circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 1 (cVDPV1) and three that were due to circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2). Madagascar reported three cVDPV1 cases, and Nigeria and Zambia reported three and one cVDPV2 cases, respectively.
• In an update yesterday the CDC reported one more death in the fungal meningitis outbreak linked to epidural anesthesia given at two Mexican cosmetic surgery clinics, raising the total to seven. So far, nine cases have been confirmed by fungus detected in spinal tap samples. The CDC also lists 15 cases as suspected and 10 as probable.

Tropical diseases not linked to long COVID, but rate of prolonged symptoms high in Amazon Basin --Long COVID was reported in 64% of patients at 1 year, but it wasn't tied to a history of tropical diseases, including dengue, malaria, and Zika. A cohort study in the Amazon Basin suggests long-COVID symptoms—reported in almost two thirds of COVID-19 patients—may be more likely in people who reported COVID reinfections over a 1-year period, but not in those with a history of tropical diseases, including dengue, malaria, and Zika. The study was published yesterday inThe American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.The study was based on 12 months of follow-up of 1,371 patients with confined COVID-19 in Rio Branco, Acre, a municipality in the Brazilian Amazon Basin. Participants were followed up via telephone shortly after COVID-19 diagnosis and 12 months after. All participants reported a first infection from March 17 to August 26, 2020.The average age of participants was 39.7 pears, and 50.7% were female. The average number of symptoms reported in the acute phase of infection with COVID was nine, and 32 (2.3%) were reinfected with COVID-19 at least 90 days after their first infection.The authors noted that 877 (63.9%) participants reported symptoms related to COVID-19 at 12 months. Among those with long COVID, 43.5% said fatigue was their most significant symptom.Among all participants, 806 (58.8%) reported a history of tropical diseases, including dengue, malaria, Zika, chikungunya, leprosy, and visceral leishmaniasis.Female sex, non-White race, number of acute-phase symptoms, body mass index, and reinfection were independent predictors of long COVID, but not previous infection with tropical diseases.

Animal sedative xylazine in fentanyl is causing wounds and scrambling efforts to stop overdoses (AP) — A powerful animal sedative in the illicit drug supply is complicating the U.S. response to the opioid crisis, scrambling longstanding methods for reversing overdoses and treating addiction.Xylazine can cause severe skin wounds, but whether it is leading to more deaths — as suggested by officials in Washington — is not yet clear, according to health and law enforcement professionals on the front lines of efforts in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. In fact, early data suggests the drug may inadvertently be diluting the effects of fentanyl, the synthetic opioid behind most overdose deaths.There is broad agreement, however, that much more information is needed to understand xylazine’s impact, to craft ways of disrupting illegal supplies and to develop medicines to reverse its effects. “We don’t know whether xylazine is increasing the risk of overdose or reducing the risk of overdose,” “All we know is that there are a lot of people taking xylazine and a lot of them are dying, but it doesn’t mean that xylazine is doing it.”In almost all cases, xylazine — a drug for sedating horses and other animals — is added to fentanyl, the potent opioid that can be lethal even in small amounts. Some users say the combination, dubbed “tranq” or “tranq dope,” gives a longer-lasting high, more like heroin, which has largely been replaced by fentanyl in U.S. drug markets.Like other cutting agents, xylazine benefits dealers: It’s often cheaper and easier to get than fentanyl. Chinese websites sell a kilogram for $6 to $20, no prescription required. Chemicals used to produce fentanyl can cost $75 or more per kilogram. “Nobody asked for xylazine in the drug supply,” said Sarah Laurel, founder of Savage Sisters, a Philadelphia outreach group. “Before anybody knew it, the community was chemically dependent on it. So now, yes, people do seek it out.” Xylazine’s effects are easy to spot: users experience a lethargic, trance-like state and sometimes black out, exposing themselves to robbery or assault.“It’s a delayed reaction, I could be walking down the street, it’s 45 minutes later,” says Dominic Rodriguez, who is homeless and battling addiction. “Then I wake up, trying to piece together what happened.”

CDPHE and Montezuma County Public Health Department investigating and monitoring plague activity in southwest Colorado | Department of Public Health & Environment — The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment is working closely with the Montezuma County Public Health Department to investigate and monitor plague (Yersinia pestis) activity. At this time, public health officials have identified one human case of plague in Montezuma County in an adult. The exposure likely occurred on private property, and the investigation is ongoing. CDPHE and Montezuma County Public Health Department will provide additional information as it becomes available. The risk to the general public is low, but Coloradans can take steps to help protect themselves from plague, which is typically present in Colorado each year in infected fleas or animals. The first signs of illness typically include fever, headache, weakness, muscle aches, cough, shortness of breath, and chills. Sometimes people develop one or more swollen, painful lymph nodes (called buboes). Plague symptoms may be similar to those of the flu. However, symptoms of plague usually are more serious. Some people may cough up blood, feel sick to their stomach, throw up, or have stomach pains. Pneumonia can develop quickly after the first symptoms start. Because early plague symptoms may be similar to those of the flu, anyone with symptoms of the flu or pneumonic plague who may have been exposed to rodents or fleas should seek medical care right away. Several types of antibiotics are effective for treating the disease. Plague pneumonia can be transmitted from person to person through respiratory droplets during prolonged in-person contact. Plague is caused by bacteria (Yersinia pestis) that can be transmitted to humans by the bites of infected fleas or by direct contact with infected animals. Plague is frequently detected in rock squirrels, woodrats, and other species of ground squirrels and chipmunks. Prairie dogs are very susceptible to plague. Because they are active above ground, they serve as a visible alert that plague may be present if they suddenly disappear. If you see dead rodents in an area where you normally see active rodents, contact your local public health agency. Residents should not kill prairie dogs — if plague is present, this could increase the risk of transmission. Pets can also be infected with plague by infected fleas. The use of veterinary-approved flea control products is strongly advised. People can control the presence of wildlife and fleas around their homes to reduce their exposure and risk of contracting plague. Coloradans should:

• Avoid fleas. Protect pets with a veterinary approved flea treatment and keep them on a leash and out of wild rodent habitats.
• Stay out of areas where wild rodents live. If you enter areas inhabited by wild rodents, wear insect repellent and tuck your pant cuffs into your socks to prevent flea bites.
• Avoid all contact with wild rodents, including squirrels. Do not feed or handle them.
• Not touch sick or dead animals.
• Prevent rodent infestations around your house by clearing plants and materials away from outside walls, and reducing access to food items.
• Consult with a professional pest control company to treat the area around your home for fleas.
• Contact a veterinarian if your pet becomes ill with a high fever and/or an abscess (i.e. open sore) or swollen lymph nodes. Pets with plague can transmit the illness to humans.
• Ensure children are aware of these precautions and know to tell an adult if they have had contact with a wild animal or were bitten by fleas.

For more information, visit the department’s animal-related diseases webpage.

Texas reports first local malaria case since 1994 -The Texas Department of Health and Human Services (TDHHS) recently reported a locally acquired malaria infection, its first since 1994, which follows two similar cases reported in Florida.The patient is a Texas resident from Cameron County who spent time working outdoors and has no history of travel outside Texas or the United States, the TDHHS said in a statement. State and local health officials are following up and working to determine if others were exposed. Cameron County is on the southern tip of Texas on the Gulf of Mexico coast. It also borders Mexico. Health officials urged clinicians to routinely obtain a travel history and ask about time spent outdoors in people with flulike symptoms, body ache, headache, nausea, or vomiting. They also urged the public to take steps to avoid mosquito bites and to prevent mosquito-breeding sites, such as dumping standing water.

Brazil reports first H5N1 avian flu outbreak in poultry -Following Brazil's first detection of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian flu in wild birds in early May, the country has now reported its first outbreak involving poultry, a pattern that has played out in multiple countries as the virus continues its southward spread.The virus struck backyard chickens and ducks in the city of Serra in Espirito Santo state in southeastern Brazil, the same area where H5N1 first turned up in seabirds, Merco Press reported, citing agriculture officials. The detection didn't affect a commercial operation, so it doesn't diminish Brazil's trade status. The country is the world's largest poultry producer.Following the detection of H5N1 in 9 cat deaths in Poland, the country's chief veterinarian today announced several more detections in more cities, raising the total at least 16 in six cities, according to an official statement translated and posted by Avian Flu Diary, an infectious disease news blog.Tests are under way to further characterize the virus, after preliminary results suggested it was different from the one infecting wild birds in the nation. Also, the source of the virus infecting cats isn't clear, and a media report posted by FluTrackers, an infectious disease news message board, said two of the affected cats had been kept indoors. In US developments, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported 7 more H5N1 detections in wild birds, bringing the total to 7,105. They included terns, gadwalls, a gull, and a red-tailed hawk. Also, APHIS reported 2 more H5N1 detections in mammals, raising the total to 198. Both involved red foxes, one in Michigan and the other in Maine.

Polish officials probe H5N1 avian flu link to cat deaths -Over the past several days, infectious disease tracking sources have been closely following media reports from Poland of numerous cat deaths, and the country's chief veterinary officer has confirmed H5N1 avian influenza in several cats, but not the same one that has been infecting waterfowl in the region.According to Avian Flu Diary, an infectious disease news blog, and Flu Trackers, an infectious disease news message board, the media reports were initially anecdotal, describing cats with respiratory and neurological symptoms.On Jun 23, Poland’s chief veterinarian confirmed influenza in some of the cats and said more tests were under way, according to an official statement translated and posted by Avian Flu Diary. With H5N1 still circulating in birds with continuing isolated spillovers to mammals, the virus was among the suspected causes in the cats, which are among the species known to have contracted the virus.In a follow-up today, also posted on Avian Flu Diary, Poland's chief veterinarian said of 11 samples tested, 9 were positive for H5N1 and that the positive samples involved cats from three different cities: Poznan, Tri-Cities, and Lublin. Though further testing to characterize the virus is under way, preliminary results suggest the source isn't the H5N1 virus that has sickened gulls in recent weeks.More efforts are ongoing to collect more data and look for the source. In the meanwhile, health officials are urging cat owners to keep their pets indoors, prevent contact between cats and other wild animals, including birds, and to take other precautions, including keeping cats away from footwear worn outdoors.Health officials in several world regions are closely monitoring continuing reports of H5N1 spillovers to mammals, which have been reported from the Americas and Europe. The Eurasian H5N1 clade currently circulating in wild birds and poultry has a mutation that makes it more recognizable to mammal airway cells, including humans.Sporadic human infections have been reported in people who had close contact with poultry. Some were severe or fatal, but others were mild or asymptomatic, with some thought to represent environmental contamination rather than true infection.

Minnesota DNR lifts deer-feeding bans in 24 counties, enacts new bans in 5 -The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has lifted white-tailed deer-feeding and baiting bans in 24 counties and enacted bans in 5 new counties to focus restrictions on areas at greatest risk for the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD). Caused by infectious prions (misfolded proteins), CWD is a fatal neurodegenerative disease affecting cervids such as deer, elk, and moose. While CWD isn't known to infect humans, some experts fear it could jump species. "The DNR uses feeding and attractant bans as a tool to reduce unnatural crowding of deer and reduce the risk of exposure to CWD," DNR Big Game Program Coordinator Todd Froberg said in the department news release. "This approach limits CWD risk and helps reinforce the connection [that] feeding and using attractants have on the risk of spreading disease." Bans have been lifted in Aitkin, Carlton, Chisago, Clearwater, Douglas, Freeborn, Isanti, Kanabec, Koochiching, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Pennington, Pine, Pope, Ramsey, Red Lake, Roseau, Stearns, Steele, Todd, and Wadena counties. But bans are in effect in Beltrami (new), Carver (new), Cass, Crow Wing, Dakota, Dodge, Fillmore, Goodhue, Hennepin, Houston, Hubbard, Itasca (new), Le Sueur (new), Mower, Norman, Olmsted, Polk, Rice, Scott, Sibley (new), Wabasha, Washington, and Winona counties. "The DNR does not encourage the public to feed deer," the release said. "Residents interested in helping deer, especially during severe winter conditions, should focus efforts on improving habitat during the growing season to provide long-term food resources and shelter that deer can reliably find year-after-year."

US Honeybees Suffer Second Deadliest Season on Record - Jun 23, 2023 -- Figures published today reveal beekeepers in the U.S. lost an estimated 48% of their honey bee colonies in 2022-23. According to an annual survey that tracks the state of managed hives, this is the second highest death rate on record after 2020-21's 51%. Honey bees are crucial to our food supply, pollinating over 100 different crop types. As reported by Bee Informed, a national collaboration of leading research labs and universities in agricultural science, the most prominent cause of colony death reported by commercial beekeepers over the year was “varroa destructor” - a parasitic mite that attacks and feeds on honey bees. In the summer, 'Queen issues' were the second most common reason cited, followed by 'adverse weather'. According to the publication, "although the total number of honey bee colonies in the country has remained relatively stable over the last 20 years (~2.6 million colonies according to the USDA NASS Honey Reports), loss rates remain high". This puts beekeepers under "substantial pressure" to create new colonies each year.

Giant African land snail spotted in Florida, forcing quarantine in parts of county --Parts of Broward County, Florida, are under quarantine after a giant African land snail — described as "one of the most damaging snails in the world" — was detected this month, agriculture authorities said. Officials “confirmed the detection” of the snail in the Miramar area of Broward County on June 2 following a report to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.A quarantine area was established Tuesday from Pembroke Road and South University Drive south to NW 215th Street and east to SW 62nd Avenue, theagency said. A map shared by the department shows two specific treatment areas.Under the quarantine, it’s illegal to move the snail or plants, compost, soil or building materials through or from a quarantine area without a compliance agreement. The giant African land snail, which is illegal to import or have in the U.S. without a permit, consumes at least 500 different types of plants, according to the agriculture department. They can be devastating to Florida agriculture, as they “cause extensive damage to tropical and subtropical environments,” the agency said.The creatures also pose “serious health risk to humans” by carrying parasite rat lungwort, or meningitis in humans, the agriculture department said. . Properties in those areas will need 26 treatments and 19 months of "negative" surveys for the presence of the snails. The surveys will include one performed by a detector dog."These procedures are required to safeguard Florida’s agriculture industries and natural resources along with ensuring there are no international trade implications enforced due to the establishment of this detrimental pest," the agriculture department said.The giant African land snail has already been eradicated from Florida twice. First detected in 1969, it was eradicated in 1975. The snails were eradicated again in 2021 after a 2011 detection in Miami-Dade County, according to the agriculture department.

Skin disease in endangered killer whales concerns scientists - Scientists studying endangered southern resident killer whales have observed a strong increase in the prevalence of skin disease in this population.In a study titled, "Epidemiology of skin changes in endangered Southern Resident killer whales (Orcinus orca)," published in PLOS ONE, researchers document a steady increase in the occurrence of highly correlated gray patches and gray targets on the whales' skin from 2004 to 2016. Despite not knowing the underlying cause, the study's authors are concerned.After ruling out potential environmental factors, such as changes in water temperature or salinity, the authors hypothesize that the most plausible explanation is an infectious agent, and that increased occurrence of lesions may reflect a decrease in the ability of the whales' immune systems ability to combat disease. This could pose yet another significant threat to the health of a southern resident killer whale population already facing a litany of challenges.

We might have killed the only life we ever found on Mars - Life may have been discovered on Mars almost 50 years ago, but it could have been unintentionally destroyed. This theory arises from the ambiguous results of life detection experiments conducted by NASA's Viking landers in the mid-1970s. The Viking landers identified small amounts of chlorinated organics, initially believed to be contamination from Earth. However, subsequent missions have verified the presence of native organic compounds on Mars, although in a chlorinated form. Life on Mars could have adapted to the arid environment by existing within salt rocks and absorbing water directly from the atmosphere. The Viking experiments, which involved adding water to soil samples, might have overwhelmed these potential microbes, leading to their demise.

3M strikes $10.3B 'forever chemicals' deal - Chemical manufacturing giant 3M has reached a tentative $10.3 billion settlement with many of the nation’s water utilities as it seeks to resolve liability over “forever chemicals” contamination. The agreement announced Thursday afternoon would be payable over 13 years and would funnel money to cities, counties and other entities as they seek to address PFAS pollution. The deal would affect water utilities that service the “vast majority of Americans,” per the company’s own estimates — marking a major development as the Biden administration cracks down on the family of thousands of chemicals. The settlement would address “current and future drinking water claims” brought by water utilities, including those that make up a portion of the multidistrict litigation over aqueous film-forming foam that has been pending in Charleston, S.C. That trial has been among the most anticipated legal disputes around per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. In a statement, 3M Chair and CEO Mike Roman lauded the agreement as another milestone for the company as it seeks to move beyond PFAS. At the end of last year, 3M announced that it would exit manufacturing the chemicals within the next two years. The chemical corporation had ceased manufacturing the two most notorious compounds years ago, as backlash over their health risks first began to play out. “This is an important step forward for 3M, which builds on our actions that include our announced exit of PFOA and PFOS manufacturing more than 20 years ago, our more recent investments in state-of-the-art water filtration technology in our chemical manufacturing operations, and our announcement that we will exit all PFAS manufacturing by the end of 2025,” said Roman. The health impacts associated with PFAS have only been closely studied for a handful of compounds, while more than 10,000 make up the chemical family. But experts have widely voiced concerns that all of the compounds appear persistent in the environment and many accumulate in the body. Those that have been deeply scrutinized, particularly PFOA and PFOS, are linked to kidney and liver disease, reproductive issues and cancer. Despite its movements to escape trial, 3M asserted that the settlement is “not an admission of liability.” Up next, the agreement must be approved by a judge. If it is not, the company stated, it “is prepared to continue to defend itself in the litigation.”

3M Offers $10.3B Settlement Over PFAS Contamination in Water Systems – Now, How Do You Destroy a ‘Forever Chemical’? ---PFAS chemicals seemed like a good idea at first. As Teflon, they made pots easier to clean starting in the 1940s. They made jackets waterproof and carpets stain-resistant. Food wrappers, firefighting foam, even makeup seemed better with perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.Then tests started detecting PFAS in people’s blood.Today, PFAS are pervasive in soil, dust and drinking water around the world. Studies suggest they’re in 98% of Americans’ bodies, where they’ve been associated with health problems including thyroid disease, liver damage and kidney and testicular cancer. There are now over 9,000 types of PFAS. They’re often referred to as “forever chemicals” because the same properties that make them so useful also ensure they don’t break down in nature.Facing lawsuits over PFAS contamination, the industrial giant 3M, which has made PFAS for many uses for decades,announced a US$10.3 billion settlement with public water suppliers on June 22, 2023, to help pay for testing and treatment. The company admits no liability in the settlement, which requires court approval. Cleanup could cost many times that amount. But how do you capture and destroy a forever chemical? There are two main exposure pathways for PFAS to get into humans – drinking water and food consumption. PFAS can get into soil through land application of biosolids, that is, sludge from wastewater treatment, and can they leach out from landfills. If contaminated biosolids are applied to farm fields as fertilizer, PFAS can get into water and into crops and vegetables.For example, livestock can consume PFAS through the crops they eat and water they drink. There have been cases reported in Michigan, Maine and New Mexico of elevated levels of PFAS in beef and in dairy cows. How big the potential risk is to humans is still largely unknown. Scientists in our research group at Michigan State University are working on materials added to soil that could prevent plants from taking up PFAS, but it would leave PFAS in the soil.The problem is that these chemicals are everywhere, and there isno natural process in water or soil effective at breaking them down. The most common method of destroying PFAS is incineration, but most PFAS are remarkably resistant to being burned. That’s why they’re in firefighting foams. PFAS have multiple fluorine atoms attached to a carbon atom, and the bond between carbon and fluorine is one of the strongest. Normally to burn something, you have to break the bond, but fluorine resists breaking off from carbon. Most PFAS will break down completely at incineration temperatures around1,500 degrees Celsius (2,730 degrees Fahrenheit), but it’s energy intensive and suitable incinerators are scarce.

Canadian wildfire smoke pushes Chicago-area air quality to unhealthy levels --Smoke from wildfires in Canada pushed the air quality in the Chicago area to unhealthy levels on Tuesday. A huge swath of the Midwest — including parts of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin — was coated in smoke, as more than 450 fires continue burning in Canada. As of Tuesday afternoon, the air quality index in Chicago had reached “very unhealthy” levels, with residents recommended to avoid strenuous outdoor activities, keep outdoor activities short and consider moving physical activities indoors or rescheduling them. Chicago had the worst air quality of any major city in the world on Tuesday, followed by Minneapolis, Dubai, Detroit and Delhi, according to Swiss air quality tracker IQAir. Smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketed much of the eastern seaboard earlier this month, turning the skies in New York City an eerie orange color and pushing air quality levels in some areas into the “hazardous” category.

This is now Canada’s worst fire season in modern history as smoke fills skies - It’s been another mind-boggling stretch for fire in Canada, amid what has become the largest season in the modern record for the country,according to statistics compiled by the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center.In the seven days ending Sunday, more than 3.5 million acres (1.4 million hectares) burned, or 69 percent of an average full season in the country. This year’s tally of land burned is now up to 17.8 million acres (7.2 million hectares), surpassing the entire year of 1995 with 17.5 million acres (7.1 million hectares), for the biggest fire season in modern history for Canada.The peak of typical Canadian wildfire season still lies ahead.Under a sprawling heat dome in the east, conflagrations centered on Quebec unleashed their maddening fury, munching up boreal forest and delivering thick palls of smoke to those downwind — including those as far away as Europe. In Quebec alone, just shy of a million hectares has burned over the past week.A prevailing story of this fire season is that angry infernos are spread across the country. Typical seasons in Canada tend to focus on one area, often the west, when it comes to the biggest blazes. The coast-to-coast nature of the current activity has made the fight incredibly fraughtEarly last week, powerful and slow-moving upper-level low pressure delivered rare heavy snowfall to high elevations of Alberta and British Columbia, while also bringing much-needed rain and some flooding to the prairies to the east. Moving into the weekend that just ended, that low pressure and rainfall departed, replaced by higher temperatures and a resumption of smoke production.While the west saw what is destined to be a painfully brief respite, a heat dome of high pressure flexed over the country’s kindling to the east. Under that heat dome, the only weather other than hot and dry is the occasional thunderstorm that tends to deliver more lightning than rain, potentially sparking new fires.Given ideal conditions for fire, the region saw explosive growth in area burned over the past week. In Quebec, 2,444,488 (989,249 hectares) were added to the tally, while 361,245 acres (146,191 hectares) piled onto the total in Ontario.Those two provinces have now seen 6.7 million acres (2.7 million hectares) and growing go up in smoke, surpassing the average year in the whole country by more than a half-million hectares.As seen with recent smoke invasions in the Northeastern United States, and in other parts of the United States and Canada, the smoke produced by the boreal forest fires is incredibly dense and foreboding. Unlike many forest fires where flames tear through the tree crowns and move on, boreal forests burn as much at the ground level because of extensive flora as well as other biomasses like peat.

Canadian wildfire smoke lowers air quality from Midwest to East Coast - Dense smoke from wildfires burning in Canada continued to migrate eastward Wednesday, swinging around a low-pressure area spinning offshore on the East Coast. In its wake, a channel of thick surface smoke draped across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley, and increasingly over the Mid-Atlantic plus the Northeast.Detroit, Chicago, Minneapolis and Washington were among the cities with the worst air quality in the world Wednesday, according to IQAir. Unhealthy Code Red and Purple conditions stretched from eastern Iowa across Chicago and the lower Great Lakes region, then toward the Appalachian Mountains, according to AirNow.An exceptionally rare Code Maroon was recorded in Decatur, Ill., during the midday. This is the worst level on the scale and considered hazardous. Chippewa, Ohio, was also reporting Code Maroon conditions this afternoon. Other locations in southeast Michigan and southern Ontario reached Code Maroon briefly, as well, but have since seen air quality improve.Cities seeing Code Purple air quality Wednesday — very unhealthy with an increased health risk for the general public — included Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Indianapolis and Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Air quality alertsrelated to wildfire smoke were in effect for parts of 20 states, covering nearly a third of the American population.The alerts stretch from Iowa and Minnesota in the west to Massachusetts, Maryland, Delaware and North Carolina in the east. The New York City area joins the list, with an alert going into effect at midnight Wednesday night. “Unhealthy air will continue today due to Canadian wildfires,” the National Weather Service in Indianapolis tweeted. “Limit outdoor activity and avoid outdoor physical activities, especially those that are sensitive to smoke.” This round of Canadian wildfire smoke is perhaps a touch less intense than the one that swept across the Northeast in early June. Code Purple conditions Tuesday in and around Milwaukee had a similar air quality index (AQI) at 246 compared to New York at the peak of the last episode June 7, when Queens reached 254. Thus far, the daily value near Milwaukee is the highest in the United States from this batch. On June 7, Freemansburg in eastern Pennsylvania reached an AQI of 309 for the peak of that event. Additional Code Purples for a daily average occurred Wednesday, and several locations have topped an AQI of 301 on hourly observations, including a 311 AQI in eastern Ohio.

Cleveland, Ohio burning smell: Canadian wildfires causing burning smell in Ohio – Do you smell something burning outside? You’re not imagining it.FOX 8 meteorologists say a thick layer of smoke from the wildfires in Canada moved into the area from the Great Lakes Tuesday night. Thus, a smoky smell is now permeating the air across Northeast Ohio and the haze is expected to linger for a good portion of the week.See the Air Quality Index in your region on AirNow.gov. Read on for live updates on event cancellations, postponements and other changes due to Wednesday’s air conditions:

• 11:38 a.m.: The city of Lakewood has suspended trash and recycling collection for the rest of Wednesday. .
• 11:31 a.m.: Case Western Reserve University is handing out N95 masks from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, according to a notice sent to students, faculty and staff.
• 11:14 a.m.: The city of Solon closed outdoor pools on Wednesday, according to a tweet.
• 10:51 a.m.: The Cleveland Division of Recreation has suspended all outdoor programming scheduled for Wednesday, according to a spokesperson, including outdoor pools, playground programs including meals, spray basins and water parks and baseball programs.
• 10:19 a.m.: The Cleveland Division of Air Quality recommends that residents with heart or lung disease; older adults; children; and teens avoid outdoor activities “as much as possible” and stay inside with the windows closed. Those with heart disease or COPD should pay attention to symptoms including chest pain or tightness, fast heartbeat, shortness of breath or fatigue. Others should limit outdoor activities, especially strenuous ones.
• 9:36 a.m.: The city of Shaker Heights’ Public Works Department suspended all services on Wednesday “due to poor air quality and for the health and safety of employees,” reads a Wednesday morning tweet.
• 9:08 a.m.: The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has issued a statewide air quality advisory through the end of Wednesday. The state’s Air Quality Index is expected to range from “unhealthy for sensitive groups” to “very unhealthy.” All Ohioans may experience some health effects and they’re encouraged to stay indoors.
• 8:14 a.m.: Parma City School District moved Valley Forge High School’s marching band practice inside “due to the overwhelmingly bad air quality,” according to a Facebook post from Music Director Evan Campus.
• 7:30 a.m.: We could smell smoke from the parking lot at FOX 8 studios. Here is a look at the view from the FOX 8 Tower Cam in Parma at about 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday. You normally would see the city’s skyline, instead, we are seeing hazy conditions.

Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky under air quality alert Wednesday - Greater Cincinnati will be under an air quality alert Wednesday due to ongoing Canada wildfires, the Southwest Ohio Air Quality Agency announced.Effective at midnight until 11:59 p.m., counties on both sides of the Ohio River will be impacted: Butler, Clermont, Hamilton and Warren counties in Ohio; Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties in Kentucky; and Dearborn County in Indiana.Ozone and PM2.5, or fine, particulate matter, levels will be in the "unhealthy for sensitive groups" range on the air quality index. Sensitive groups include people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children, pregnant people, and those who spend a lot of time outdoors.The PM2.5 levels come as a result of wildfires blazing in swaths of eastern Canada that began in early June. Fires have produced a steering wind from north to south, sending smoke into the Northeast, Middle Atlantic and Ohio Valley, USA TODAY reports.The public is asked to keep outdoor activities light and short, consider moving all activities indoors, and go inside if you have symptoms.

Wildfire smoke live updates: Air quality alerts issued in 20 US states -Millions of Americans are on alert for unhealthy air quality as smoke from wildfires in neighboring Canada drifts to the United States.Wildfires have burned a record of more than 19.5 million acres across Canada so far this year, with no end in sight. There are nearly 500 active wildfires throughout the country and over 250 have been deemed out of control, according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center. The smoke has been making its way to the U.S. for more than a month.As of Wednesday morning, 20 U.S. states are under air quality alerts from Minnesota down to Georgia and as far north as western New York.Wildfire smoke from neighboring Canada is currently blanketing large swaths of the United States, from Iowa to western Pennsylvania to North Carolina and most everywhere in between. Only Chicago is getting a small reprieve on Wednesday morning due to a lake breeze, which isn't expected to last for long.Later on Wednesday, the smoke is expected to cover areas from Minnesota to Washington, D.C. and down to the Carolinas. By early Thursday morning, the smoke will be seen in Minneapolis, Chicago, Indianapolis, Atlanta and Pittsburgh. But by the afternoon, it will linger from Detroit to Atlanta and east to Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia.

Live updates: Chicago’s air quality index is the worst in the U.S. as Canada wildfire smoke lingers - Much of the American Midwest and Northeast faced unhealthy air alerts because smoke from Canada wildfires continued to blanket the region, while the Southern U.S. faced extremely dangerous heat, forecasters said.There were 127 million people under air quality alerts, and 79 million more under heat alerts about 7 p.m. ET, according to the NBC News Weather Unit.At least nine people died of heat-related illness in Webb County, Texas, which is where Laredo is, the medical examiner there said at a government hearing Monday morning. The Associated Press reported today that 11 people died; NBC News was not immediately able to reach the medical examiner after business hours. Chicagoans were under a second day of an air quality alert due to the smoke. It was rated as the worst major city in the world for air quality today by IQAir.com, a tracking service. Air quality alerts covered a large region from Minnesota and Iowa to Tennessee, New York, Connecticut and Washington, D.C., this evening, according to the National Weather Service. In Jackson, Mississippi, the heat index was 107 degrees today, according to the weather service. New Orleans had a heat index of 110 degrees. The heat index is what temperatures feel like to the human body when humidity is taken into account.The heat in far southern Texas yesterday was almost 10 degrees higher than in California’s notoriously hot Death Valley, according to the National Weather Service. Rio Grande Village, Texas, which is in Big Bend National Park, had a high observed temperature of 115 degrees yesterday — which was the highest recorded temperature in the U.S. — compared to 109 degrees at the Death Valley visitors center in Furnace Creek, it said.

Canada Fire Smoke May Affect Pollinating Corn - It's deja vu all over again when it comes to wildfire smoke filling the skies over the central U.S. in summer. For the second time in three seasons, haze from Canadian wildfires has blanketed Midwest skies. And that again raises the question of what impact -- if any -- smoky skies could have on developing crops. In 2021, the fire source was in the Western U.S., along with western and south-central Canada. This year, the main fire source is eastern Canada, mainly the forests of Quebec. Circulation around stationary high pressure in central Canada has carried that smoke into the central and eastern U.S. and turned Midwest skies into the dirtiest on Earth. Air quality bulletins have been numerous during the month of June across the Midwest and Northeast because of the smoky haze. A comment in the July 3, 2021, issue of the New Yorker magazine by Dhruv Khullar noted that "... the number of Americans who experience at least one day of 'extreme smoke' a year has increased twenty-seven-fold since 2006." The threat to human health from the thick haze is widely publicized, especially regarding the health impact on children. But what about crop health? Anything that might interfere with corn pollination is important. However, crop impact appears to be mixed, depending on the thickness of the hazy sky screen and how long it lasts. And there is even the potential for some benefit from the haze. Writing in the Journal of Geophysical Research in January 2020, environmental scientists Kyle Hemes of Stanford University, Joseph Verfaillie of the University of California-Berkeley and Dennis Baldocchi, also of UC-Berkeley, noted that haze can benefit plant leaves by scattering the incoming sunlight. The published article reads in part:"While we know that wildfire smoke has negative health impacts for humans, there is evidence that it could increase plant productivity. This occurs due to the way that smoke scatters incoming sunlight, allowing the sun's energy to reach further into dense plant canopies. ... We find that smoky conditions increased the efficiency by which these plant canopies photosynthesized, leading to productivity increases, depending on trade-offs with total light and other pollutants." One feature of the potential for crop damage from smoke appears to be the ozone content in the smoke. The Minnesota Extension Service notes this aspect in an online article titled "Managing Wildfire Smoke: Impacts to Crops and Workers" published in August 2021. Specifically, the article notes: "Plant stomata are pores on the leaf surface where gas exchange occurs, and while we've probably all learned that plants intake CO2 and exhale oxygen, other gases also enter plants through their stomata. When high concentrations of ozone are present in the atmosphere, it enters plants through their stomata, and can interfere with photosynthesis. These impacts can occur hundreds of miles from the area that's actively burning (Yue & Unger, 2018)." Midwest smoke is forecast to thin out during the latter part of this week. Uncertainty over whether this will be the end of smoky skies for the summer, and how much crop health was affected by what has gone on, will stay around through the end of the season -- truly a hazy outlook.

Air Quality Alert extended through Thursday for central Ohio — An Air Quality Alert has been extended through Thursday as smoke from the ongoing Canadian wildfires continues to create curtains of haze in the central Ohio area.Sensitive groups, such as people with respiratory diseases like asthma, should reduce prolonged or heavy outdoor exertion.Officials in Canada warned of worsening smoky air in the coming days after recent heavy rain failed to fall in areas of Quebec where the fires are most active.The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission says light winds from the south will allow the haze to linger over the Columbus area. On Friday, winds will help disperse some of the wildfire smoke, but MORPC says pollutant carryover from this week will carry over and keep Air Quality Index levels at an unhealthy level. The AQI scale is the Environmental Protection Agency’s index for reporting air quality and runs from 0 to 500. The higher the AQI value, the greater the health concern. When AQI levels reach above 100, air quality is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups. The MORPC then issues an Air Quality Alert. Tuesday’s rating on the AQI scale is 112 and the areas affected by the alert — Franklin, Delaware, Fairfield and Licking counties — are likely to experience particle pollution levels that are unhealthy for sensitive groups. The AQI level is expected to reach 164 on Wednesday. Who is impacted? Active children, the elderly, and people with asthma and COPD are more likely to suffer an increase in the number and severity of symptoms during an Air Quality Alert. To decrease the potential for health issues, sensitive groups are urged to limit their outdoor activity or plan outdoor activities for the morning. Those who are experiencing breathing difficulties should consult their doctor.

D.C. issues Code Red air quality due to Canada wildfires - Air quality in Washington, D.C., is worsening as a result of smoke from wildfires in Canada, causing the city to issue a Code Red alert Thursday morning.“This means very poor air quality is expected, which may be unhealthy for people with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens,” the city’s emergency alert system tweeted, an escalation after the city issued a Code Orange on Wednesday. Dense smoke moved across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley on Wednesday, increasingly spanning the mid-Atlantic and the Northeast. D.C. was among the cities currently with the worst air quality in the U.S. on Thursday, along with Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cincinnati, Chicago, Philadelphia and Baltimore,The New York Times reported.Wildfires raging across Canada have posed an issue for much of the continental United States over the past month, with D.C. issuing a Code Purple alert three weeks ago — indicating a slightly more severe air quality index than Code Red.Wearing a mask may help those with respiratory illnesses, the emergency alert system wrote, and people should consider rescheduling outdoor physical activities or moving them indoors. Choosing less strenuous activities, like walking instead of running, may also be safer.

Prepare for More Smoky Summers in the Midwest and Northeast - Inside Climate News—Parks, beaches and restaurants offering outdoor dining are typically booming here in the summer months after a long, frigid winter, but smoky skies have kept many residents indoors since Tuesday when Chicago’s air quality was briefly the worst in the world. Smoke from wildfires in Canada has blanketed parts of the Midwest and Great Lakes this week, with the highest particulate matter levels in parts of Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Iowa, according to air quality tracking by the Environmental Protection Agency. PM2.5, particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns—about 30 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair—is a mixture of solid and liquid particles in the air that can harm human health when inhaled.Climate experts say it is hard to tell if this will be something Midwesterners will have to deal with frequently, but this will likely not be the last time. “It’s something that we don’t see very often [in Chicago],” said Illinois state climatologist Trent Ford..Rising temperatures due to climate change have made wildfires more common and more intense worldwide, temporarily deteriorating air quality in areas surrounding the blazes and, occasionally, in regions far from the flames. This trend is evident in the western U.S., where wildfires have been burning more acres of land in recent years, but the circumstances that led to wildfire smoke from the Northeast into the Midwest are not typical. “In the past years, it was mainly the western part of Canada that has seen a lot of wildfires, now it looks like it can happen in the eastern part as well,” said Nicole Riemer, professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “The conditions may not be like this every year, but it’s probably going to happen again.”The dry atmospheric conditions that led to wildfires in Northeastern Canada are the same kind of conditions that blew the smoke into the U.S. Midwest and Northeast, Ford said.Air quality advisories were in effect across the region since Tuesday, with air quality index levels reaching “very unhealthy” in some areas. The haze is slowly flowing into the mid-Atlantic and Northeast, according to the EPA’s tracking of the smoke.The event follows smoke that enveloped the Northeast earlier this month. At the time, New York City briefly had the worst air quality of any city in the world, and it recorded the highest number of emergency room visits for asthma this year, with the Bronx especially hard hit by the haze, Inside Climate News reported.

Transatlantic smoke: Europe experiences significant impact of Canadian wildfires - Europe has experienced significant smoke transport from the intense wildfires that have been raging in Canada since May. The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) has been closely monitoring the situation, tracking active fire locations, fire radiative power, emissions, and forecasting the impacts of the resulting smoke on the atmosphere. The wildfires in Canada, which have been ongoing and intensifying since May, have generated record levels of emissions. These emissions have had a major impact on air quality, not only in Canada but also across the Atlantic in Europe. According to CAMS data, the fire radiative power (FRP) for Canada in the first three weeks of June was significantly higher than the 2003-2022 mean, with estimated carbon emissions exceeding 100 megatonnes for the month. The smoke from these wildfires reached Europe in the second week of June, and a significant episode of long-range smoke transport across the Atlantic has been forecast by CAMS since June 23. The main volume of smoke reached western Europe on June 26 and is predicted to continue moving further east until June 29. (canada smoke in spain june 27 2023 Image credit: NOAA-20/VIIRS. Acquired on June 27, 2023) As of June 26, there were 492 active fires across Canada, including 257 burning out of control. The wildfires in Quebec, which developed in early June, have received significant media attention due to their impact on air quality. Air quality in Montreal is currently ranked as the worst in the world, and millions across North America are being advised to wear high-grade masks outdoors due to the smoke. The intensity of the Quebec wildfires is reflected in CAMS fire radiative power (FRP) data for June, which are significantly higher than the 2003-2022 mean values for the same period. The CAMS wildfire carbon emissions estimates for Quebec for May-June are also high, at around 3.5 megatonnes, the highest since 2013.

Train carrying hazardous materials derails and bridge collapses into Montana river - A train carrying hazardous materials derailed and a bridge collapsed into a southern Montana river Saturday, sending rail cars into the water and prompting concerns about contamination. Some of those fears may have been allayed by evening as rail officials said two cars known to be carrying sodium hydro sulfate, which can burn, irritate and cause shortness of breath, had not entered the Yellowstone River below the failed bridge that used to span the waterway. There was no release of hazardous materials from those particular railcars, said Andy Garland, spokesperson for Montana Rail Link. But an unspecified number of other cars containing molten sulfur and asphalt had been "compromised," he said in a statement. Officials would continue to monitor the derailment site, he said. No injuries were reported, officials said. As many as eight cars had derailed, Columbus, Montana, Fire Chief Rich Cowger told NBC affiliate KULR of Billings. Billings said it would shut down city water system intakes fed by the Yellowstone River for the time any pollutant would need to pass and end up downstream, according to a statement. Billings, a city of nearly 110,000 people, has a clean supply of drinking water in its system, including storage tanks that are full, it said. Laurel, Montana, suspended its intake from the river and temporarily shut down its water treatment plant Saturday morning, but a few hours later it reconnected its supply and restarted treatment, officials said in a statement.. Water treatment plants in Yellowstone County were working as normal as officials monitored the river for any signs of contaminants, county officials said in a statement. The derailment and bridge collapse happened about 6 a.m. near the community of Reed Point, according to officials in Stillwater County, which abuts Yellowstone County. The bridge over the Yellowstone River was described as a rail bridge in the statement Saturday.

Montana train falls into Yellowstone River, leaking asphalt and molten sulfur -- A train trestle over the Yellowstone River in Montana collapsed on Saturday morning as a Montana Rail Link train was traveling over the bridge. Ten cars were derailed and eight fell into the river. Of those eight, three were carrying hot asphalt and four were carrying molten sulfur, all of which is now leaking into the river. The other two derailed cars contain the corrosive substance sodium hydro sulfate, but are reportedly not currently leaking, according to Montana Rail Link. There are so far no reported deaths or injuries as a result of the incident. The derailment occurred upstream of Montana’s largest city, Billings, and could potentially contaminate the water supply of the city’s nearly 120,000 residents. Local officials have shut down public access to the river, both for recreation and for fishing. The danger was enough to force water treatment facilities and irrigation districts in Billings and the neighboring towns of Laurel and Lockwood to close their head gates to the river for several hours and wait for the chemicals to pass into the Missouri River and ultimately, the Mississippi. However, tens of millions of people live along the banks of these two rivers, the first and second-longest in North America. Approximately 18 million people get their drinking water from the Mississippi River, and around 10 million from the Missouri. It is also not clear how much of the chemicals will reach into the surrounding areas. At the time of the crash, the river’s level was high as a result of recent storms, meaning that the contaminants were more diluted than they otherwise might have been. But that also means the extent to which they will spread is much farther, crossing over into wildlife habitats as well as potentially seeping into wells used by locals not connected to the region’s main water system. An immediate cause for the collapse of the trestle has yet to be determined, including whether a derailment caused it to collapse or if a collapsed trestle precipitated the derailment. The bridge’s point of failure, as well as several of the cars, are still partially or wholly underwater. Investigations are underway by the company, local and state transportation authorities, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency.

Cleanup continues after train carrying 'potential contaminants' derails into Yellowstone River in Montana - Cleanup is continuing at the site where a train carrying potentially hazardous materials derailed into the Yellowstone River in Montana, according to officials. The incident left multiple tankers in the Yellowstone River and decimated the railroad portion of the Yellowstone Twin River Bridges in Stillwater County, Montana. Officials have not indicated whether the derailment caused the bridge to collapse or whether the collapse precipitated the derailment. Three of the railcars that derailed were carrying hot asphalt, and four were carrying molten sulfur, KC Williams, the director of Emergency Management for Yellowstone County, told ABC News. Two impacted railcars were also carrying sodium hydro sulfate, a corrosive substance, but those substances did not enter the river, according to Montana Rail Link. The site work and remediation that began Saturday evening continued into Sunday, Montana Rail Link Public Information Officer Andy Garland said in a statement. Track repairs have been made, enabling access to begin cleanup of the affected cars, Garland said. Transloading of the sodium hydrosulfide car closest to the river was underway on Sunday morning, Garland said. The car remains safely out of the water and there has been no release involving this material. "We continue to closely monitor all releases involving molten sulfur and asphalt and mitigating any impacts to the site and surrounding area," Garland said. "Both of these substances harden and solidify quickly when interacting with water and modeling suggests that significant downstream movement of material is unlikely." Montana Rail said in an updated statement Sunday evening it's "aware of reports of globs of asphalt appearing down river that may be associated with the derailment and we will proactively investigate and sample this material."

Early testing shows no threats after train carrying hazardous materials falls into Yellowstone River --Early testing of water and air near part of the Yellowstone River did not show any threat to the public, state and federal officials said, after a train carrying hazardous material fell into the water Saturday. Several cars carrying hot asphalt and molten sulfur fell into the river early Saturday after a bridge near Columbus, Mont., collapsed. The cars remained in the river Sunday as crews tried to figure out how best to remove them amid significant damage, Stillwater County’s chief of emergency services, David Stamey, said. Stamey also said Sunday the amount of cargo that spilled still was not known, The Associated Press reported. Water quality testing by contractors for Montana Rail Link, the train’s operator, was being overseen by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “Water quality testing will continue until the cleanup is complete and at this time there are no known risks to the public drinking water,” said Kevin Stone, a spokesperson for the Montana Department of Environmental Quality. Stone also said preliminary water quality sampling did not show petroleum hydrocarbons, the AP noted, which would have come from the hot asphalt or molten sulfur. EPA contractors are monitoring air quality downwind of the collapsed bridge and Rich Mylott, a spokesperson for the regional EPA office, said so far toxic gases have not been detected. The Federal Railroad Administration is investigating the derailment.

Montana Train Derailment Raises Fears of Similar Disasters on Proposed Uinta Basin Railway -- A freight train derailment and the collapse of a bridge over the Yellowstone River in Montana on Saturday raised alarm as several cars carrying asphalt and molten sulfur tumbled into the river, prompting officials to take emergency measures at nearby water plants.The incident also brought to mind for some critics the Biden administration's plan to move forward with a railway project along the Colorado River—one that could place the drinking water of 40 million people at risk as trains transport crude oil from eastern Utah's Uinta Basin to national rail lines.The substances solidified quickly once exposed to the cold water in the Yellowstone River on Saturday, and Stillwater County emergency services chief David Stamey told The New York Times that the solidification could limit the potential harmful effects to the environment. Sulfur is commonly used as an insecticide, fungicide, and rodenticide, and is often used in fertilizers. As a precaution, water treatment plant officials in Yellowstone and Stillwater Counties temporarily shut down water intake until the material had flowed past Billings, which lies about an hour's drive east of the derailment site. Authorities also asked residents to conserve water. About 167,000 people live in Yellowstone County while roughly 9,000 people live in Stillwater.The freight train was operated by Montana Rail Link, whose spokesperson told the Times that two cars were also carrying sodium hydro sulfate, which can cause serious eye damage on exposure."Neither of these cars have entered the water and initial air quality assessments have been performed and confirmed that there is no release associated with the two cars," the railroad said in a statement.Ten cars in total derailed, the Times reported.Montana Rail Link said no one was injured in the accident.Robert Bea, a retired engineering professor at the University of California Berkeley, told the Associated Press that recent heavy rains may have played a role in the collapse of the bridge."The high water flow translates to high forces acting directly on the pier and, importantly, on the river bottom," Bea told the outlet. "You can have erosion or scour that removes support from the foundation. High forces translate to a high likelihood of a structural or foundation failure that could act as a trigger to initiate the accident."The cause of the derailment and collapse are being investigated.

Federal investigation reveals “controlled release and burn” that poisoned East Palestine was unnecessary - Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board were told that Norfolk Southern’s decision to vent and burn five train cars of toxic chemicals had not been necessary, a public hearing last week revealed.The “controlled release and burn” was carried out three days after the major derailment near the town of East Palestine, Ohio on February 3. This move, which contaminated the soil, ground water and atmosphere of the surrounding region with vinyl chloride and dioxins, and sent a huge black smoke cloud billowing into the sky, was justified at the time as needed to avert an imminent catastrophic explosion. That argument, questioned at the time by independent experts, has now been exposed as a lie. In early May, it was revealed that the company madethe decision to blow up the tank cars without consulting federal authorities.The revelation that the claim used to justify the decision was a lie from the start demonstrates that Norfolk Southern deliberately chose to poison the area in order to get its operations back up as soon as possible. Trains began running on the track shortly after the “release and burn,” once the accident site was cleared. Many members of the community strongly suspected from the start that Norfolk Southern made the decision to burn the five cars as the fastest way to reopen the tracks and get trains moving.Vinyl chloride is classified as a carcinogen known to cause liver and brain cancer and damage most other organs of the body. Tens of thousands of dead fish and other wildlife have been counted since the disaster. The byproducts of burning vinyl chloride produce dioxins, a class of highly toxic chemicals that can build up in the body over time.Since the derailment and the “controlled” burn, residents of East Palestine and surrounding communities have suffered from burning eyes, noses and throats, as well as nausea, headaches and stomach pains. The company has always insisted that the decision was made because they feared that one of the tanker cars that contained vinyl chloride was undergoing a chemical reaction, known as polymerization, that would cause the tankers to explode. But Paul Thomas, vice president of health, environment, safety and security at OxyVinyls, the manufacturer of the vinyl chloride, told the hearing that on three separate occasions they informed Norfolk Southern that it was their opinion that the chemical was not undergoing polymerization and that the tankers did not have to be detonated.In very careful and thorough testimony, Thomas explained that OxyVinyls informed Norfolk Southern that if the vinyl chloride was going through polymerization, then there would be clear evidence of the tank cars heating up, which there was not.The one tank car in question was showing a temperature of 135 degrees, which he explained was most likely caused by the fires from the other cars, and not the polymerization of the vinyl chloride. A chart presented by NTSB officials of temperature readings of the rail car shows that the car’s temperature was in fact declining and not rising.Second, Thomas explained that for polymerization to take place oxygen had to be present. He explained that the vinyl chloride is packed in such a way as to ensure less than two parts per million of oxygen within the tank cars. For the vinyl chloride to be exposed to oxygen would have meant that the cars had ruptured, which they had not.Lastly, Thomas pointed out that the cars had functioning pressure release valves, designed to relieve internal pressure, and that these valves had been working. This meant that when the cars heated up in the aftermath of the derailment, and as officials and their contractors repeatedly witnessed, the pressure release valves began flaring vinyl chloride out of the tankers. These valves, he said, are also designed to fully open if the tanker was getting too hot and in danger of exploding.

‘Really Big’: US Supreme Court Ruling Against Norfolk Southern Seen as Rebuke to Corporate Impunity -The U.S. Supreme Court rejected Norfolk Southern’s attempt to limit where companies can be sued.In a 5-4 opinion written by Justice Neil Gorsuch and joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Sonja Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, the high court ruled that Pennsylvania’s “consent-by-registration” law “requiring an out-of-state firm to answer in the commonwealth any suits against it in exchange for status as a registered foreign corporation and the benefits that entails” does not violate the due process clause of the 14th Amendment.The decision vacates an earlier judgment by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and remands the case. “This is really big,” Slate‘s Mark Joseph Stern tweeted. Big business lawyers are “going to be furious with this decision.”“This is big—and, in my view, good—because it allows states to exercise personal jurisdiction over corporations that do business within the state but are incorporated elsewhere, often in a jurisdiction that they deem more favorable to their interests,” Stern continued.“Pennsylvania requires out-of-state corporations to file paperwork consenting to appear in Pennsylvania courts as a condition of doing business within the state,” Stern added. “Gorsuch says: Nothing about that scheme violates due process.”In 2017, months after being diagnosed with colon cancer, former Norfolk Southern worker Robert Mallory filed a lawsuit alleging that his illness stemmed from workplace exposure to asbestos and other hazardous materials and that the rail carrier failed to provide safety equipment and other resources to ensure he was sufficiently protected on the job.Although he had never worked in Pennsylvania, Mallory filed his lawsuit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas because his attorneys were from the state and “he thought he would get the fairest access to justice there,” Ashley Keller, the lawyer representing him before the U.S. Supreme Court, toldThe Lever in February.As they explained at the time:Norfolk Southern asserts that being forced to defend the case in Pennsylvania would pose an undue burden, thereby violating its constitutional right to due process.Even though Norfolk Southern owns thousands of miles of track in the Keystone State, the Philadelphia county court sided with the railroad and dismissed the case. Mallory appealed, and the case wound its way through state and federal courts before landing at the U.S. Supreme Court last year. The American Association of Railroads (AAR), the rail industry’s largest lobby, filed a brief last September on behalf of Norfolk Southern. AAR and other powerful corporate lobbying groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the American Trucking Association sought to undermine the ability of workers and consumers to file lawsuits in the venue of their choosing. President Joe Biden’s administration, meanwhile, came under fireearlier this year when The Lever revealed that the U.S. Department of Justice had also filed a brief siding with the railroad giant behind the toxic derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. If Norfolk Southern had prevailed, it could have been easier for the profitable rail carrier to thwart pending and future lawsuits “on the grounds that they’re filed in the wrong venue,” The Leverreported, citing Scott Nelson, an attorney with the Public CitizenLitigation Group, which filed a brief backing Mallory. At particular risk would have been “lawsuits filed by residents exposed to hazardous chemicals as the result of accidents in other states,” including victims of air or water pollution stemming from the disaster in East Palestine, five miles west of the Pennsylvania state border.

Lawmakers aim to fix drought impacts across the West - In the wake of an unexpectedly wet spring that boosted reservoir levels across the West, congressional lawmakers are renewing their efforts to address persistent drought in the region. Oregon Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley on Wednesday reintroduced their “Water for Conservation and Farming Act.” The bill, identified as S. 963 in the previous Congress, would establish a $300 million fund at the Bureau of Reclamation for water recycling, efficiency and dam safety projects. The legislation would also authorize another $40 million to support water and conservation projects in disadvantaged communities. The proposal would approve $25 million for fish passage projects through 2029 via the Fisheries Restoration and Irrigation Mitigation Act. Those projects are located in California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington state. “On this first day of summer and at a time when the nation — especially Oregon and the entire West — is suffering increased droughts, when farmers and ranchers are asked to feed more with less water, and critical habitats are drying up, more must be done to align water availability with water needs,” Wyden said in a statement. Merkley highlighted the inclusion of S. 2020, the “Deschutes River Conservancy Reauthorization Act” in the bill he introduced Wednesday. That measure would provide up to $2 million in funding for 10 years for water quality and conservation projects. “Passing this bill will help ensure crucial investments for environmental protections are available and put safe water access within reach for everyone, regardless of where they live,” Merkley said in a statement.

SCOTUS deals water rights blow to Navajo Nation amid water access issues Experts and advocates say last week’s Supreme Court decision that the federal government is not required to secure water for the Navajo Nation will likely exacerbate the struggles faced by the community. About 30 percent of the Nation’s population does not have ready access to clean, reliable drinking water, according to the Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources. Meanwhile, the Environmental Protection Agency projects that about 15 percent don’t have access to at-home piped water. Without that assistance, it will be more difficult for the tribe to take advantage of federal infrastructure funding, said Heather Tanana, an assistant professor at the University of Utah’s College of Law. “That expertise that the federal government has — they could have come in and helped the nation identify, what are their water sources that are available, what are the quality issues,” said Tanana. The Navajo Nation reservation comprises about 170,000 people, many of whom lack access to clean water. In its ruling, the high court disagreed with the Nation’s argument that historic treaties include taking “affirmative steps” to secure water. “It makes it harder for us to secure our water rights,” Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren told The Hill. “It doesn’t say that we’re not going to get any. … [It just] puts up barriers for us.” …

'Unheard of' Marine Heatwave Off UK and Irish Coasts Poses Serious Threat - An unprecedented marine heatwave off the coasts of the UK and Ireland is posing a significant threat to marine species, with sea temperatures several degrees above normal, breaking records for late spring and early summer. The Guardian reports: The Met Office said global sea surface temperatures in April and May reached an all-time high for those months, according to records dating to 1850, with June also on course to hit record heat levels. The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has categorized parts of the North Sea as being in a category four marine heatwave, which is considered "extreme," with areas off the coast of England up to 5C above what is usual. The Met Office says temperatures are likely to remain high because of the emerging El Nino weather phenomenon. Daniela Schmidt, a professor of earth sciences at the University of Bristol, said: "The extreme and unprecedented temperatures show the power of the combination of human-induced warming and natural climate variability like El Nino. While marine heatwaves are found in warmer seas like the Mediterranean, such anomalous temperatures in this part of the north Atlantic are unheard of. They have been linked to less dust from the Sahara but also the North Atlantic climate variability, which will need further understanding to unravel. Heat, like on land, stresses marine organisms. In other parts of the world, we have seen several mass mortalities of marine plants and animals caused by ocean heatwave which have caused hundreds of millions of pounds of losses, in fisheries income, carbon storage, cultural values and habitat loss. As long as we are not dramatically cutting emissions, these heatwaves will continue to destroy our ecosystems. But as this is happening below the surface of the ocean, it will go unnoticed." Dr Dan Smale from the Marine Biological Association has been working on marine heatwaves for more than a decade and was surprised by the temperatures. He said: "I always thought they would never be ecologically impactful in the cool waters around UK and Ireland but this is unprecedented and possibly devastating. Current temperatures are way too high but not yet lethal for majority of species, although stressful for many ... If it carries on through summer we could see mass mortality of kelp, seagrass, fish and oysters." Piers Forster, a professor of climate physics at the University of Leeds, said: "Both Met Office and NOAA analyses of sea-surface temperature show temperatures are at their highest ever level -- and the average sea-surface temperature breached 21C for the first time in April. These high temperatures are mainly driven by unprecedented high rates of human-induced warming. Cleaning up sulphur from marine shipping fuels is probably adding to the greenhouse gas driven warming. The shift towards El Nino conditions is also adding to the heat. There is also evidence that there is less Saharan dust over the ocean this year. This normally reflects heat away from the ocean. So in all, oceans are being hit by a quadruple whammy -- it's a sign of things to come."

Saint Lucia’s export crisis deepens as Tropical Storm “Bret” destroys major crops - Bret hit the island on June 22, destroying over 75% of banana and plantain crops, equivalent to over 6 070 ha (15 000 acres). Despite being heavy with fruit and having shallow roots, these crops couldn’t stand against the high winds. Alfred Prospere, the Minister for Agriculture, expressed his concerns in a pre-Cabinet briefing on Monday, June 26, about the effect of the storm on the island’s ability to export these crops. In recent months, Saint Lucia has struggled to produce enough bananas to satisfy international demand. “This has dealt us a serious blow,” Prospere said. As per the minister, Saint Lucia has only managed to supply around half of the 15 000 boxes of bananas per week required for regional export. The storm also affected other fruits and vegetables, including avocados, mangoes, guavas, and plums. Every year, the island’s agricultural sector, and thereby the food supply, is threatened during the hurricane season. Early reports indicate that the weather system damaged over 16 ha (40 acres) of vegetables and destroyed at least 18 greenhouses. Over a hundred farmers have lost their means of subsistence. The minister stated, “This is to be expected at this time of year,” while promising that the government would do all it could to assist farmers. However, he warned that farmers should remain vigilant and take necessary precautions to protect their families and property.

Severe floods hit Chile, leaving 2 people dead, 6 missing and nearly 10 000 isolated - (video) Heavy rainfall has been affecting central-southern Chile, particularly Valparaíso, Santiago Metropolitan, O’Higgins, Maule, Ñuble, Biobío, and Araucanía regions since June 23, 2023, causing floods, casualties, and significant damage. According to the National Disaster Prevention and Response Service (SENAPRED), as of June 25, two people have died and six are missing. Roads have been cut in over 40 locations, leaving almost 10 000 people isolated. Approximately 2 700 homes have been damaged and 54 destroyed, displacing as many as 5 000 people. Interruptions to the power supply have affected around 15 000. Since the start of the severe weather on June 23, San José de Maipo in the Santiago Metropolitan Region recorded 126.4 mm (4.97 inches) of rain. Retiro in the Maule Region recorded 156.6 mm (6.16 inches), and Concepción in the Biobío Region recorded 97.6 mm (3.84 inches). High turbidity and an increase in the flow of the Maipo River in the Valparaiso Region have interrupted the drinking water supply to 53 000 people in the communes of San Antonio, Cartagena, El Quisco, El Tabo, and Algarrobo. In the Santiago Metropolitan Region, one person died in Peñalolén, SENAPRED reported. Homes have been damaged or destroyed and hundreds displaced by floods in El Monte, Melipilla, and Lo Espejo. In San José de Maipo, as many as 1 123 people were isolated. Rengo in the O’Higgins Region has suffered severe impacts, with 960 residents affected, 40 houses destroyed, and 200 with major damage. Around 400 people have been displaced and 100 homes damaged in Santa Crus. Hundreds of people were also displaced by floods in San Fernando and Peumo. Meanwhile, in the Maule Region, six people were reported missing in floods in the Ancoa Reservoir River, Callejón el Peumo sector in Linares. One of those missing is a member of the volunteer Fire Department who was providing support in rescue efforts at the time.

Extreme weather spells disaster for Chile’s beekeeping industry - Extreme weather events, including significant floods and wildfires, have wreaked havoc on Chile’s bee colonies, essential pollinators for the country’s vital avocado and almond crops. The events, described as the worst in a decade, have critically endangered a key component of the South American nation’s multi-billion-dollar food industry. Mario Flores, president of the National Beekeeping Movement (Monachi), expressed his concern over the issue, stating that over 3 000 beehives were affected just last week due to heavy rains in Chile’s south-central region. He highlighted the critical nature of the situation faced by the national beekeeping industry, stating, “We were affected by the fires and now the floods.” The bee population in Chile has suffered significantly in recent years due to drought. These bees play a crucial role in pollinating a vast number of the country’s export crops, including cherries, blueberries, and apples. These fruits are part of a multi-billion dollar food industry. Losses have escalated during the recent floods, as described by beekeeper Carlos Nunez. He reported that 300 of his 500 beehives were destroyed last week when the Cachapoal River overflowed in a province south of the capital, Santiago. “It was a total loss. What was saved we are going to see if it can be recovered,” he lamented, adding, “Everything is lost.” To provide financial assistance to farmers, particularly those in areas stretching from Santiago to the southern Biobio region, the government has declared an agricultural emergency. Nunez voiced the concerns of many, stating, “Whatever (help) we get will be welcome because we have been having problems in the beekeeping sector for a long time now, with the fires in the summer, the honey exportation, the fake honey competition.”

Deadly floods ravage southern Ghana, claiming at least 8 lives - (video) Heavy rainfall led to severe flooding across southern Ghana, particularly in the Western, Ashanti, and Greater Accra Regions, from June 21, 2023, resulting in widespread damage and at least 8 fatalities. The downpour began on June 21, affecting parts of Greater Accra, Western, and Ashanti Regions of Ghana. In Greater Accra, roads were blocked, causing severe traffic disruptions. Parts of Ga South Municipality were cut-off, and areas of Ga East Municipal District were also particularly badly affected. In the Western Region, approximately 50 homes in Ahanta West Municipal District were damaged due to the flooding on June 21. In the following days, the Bonsa River in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipal District overflowed, causing severe hardship for residents. Food, material possessions, and homes were damaged or destroyed, according to officials. Tragically, on June 24, three young people lost their lives while trying to cross the flooding Subri River in Daboase in the Wassa East District of the region. The Ashanti Region also suffered from heavy rainfall. Between June 21 and 22, four people died in flooding incidents in Atafoa, Sepaase, and Tafo. One of the victims died while attempting to recover the body of his brother who was swept away by floods in Atafoa. The heavy rain continued in the region, making conditions particularly treacherous near rivers. A government official tragically lost his life while trying to cross a flooded river in Kumasi on June 24. Earlier in the month, local officials in the Volta Region of Ghana reported that around 3 000 people were displaced in Keta Municipal District due to flooding that began around June 12, 2023.

2 killed during severe weather outbreak that spawned damaging Indianapolis-area tornado -- At least two people died and another three were injured after severe weather rampaged across the central United States on Sunday. According to the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center, there were more than 400 severe weather reports on Sunday, and the bulk of those were wind or hail damage. Dozens of homes were damaged, and thousands remained without power as of Monday morning. Martin County Emergency Management employee Monty Wolf confirmed to The New York Times that at least one person had died and another was injured after a tornado struck their home in Martin County on Sunday. Martin County is located roughly 105 miles south of Indianapolis. Officials pronounced the man inside the home dead at the scene, and the woman was taken to the hospital due to the injuries she sustained. Following a storm survey on Monday, the tornado was given a rating of EF2 with an estimated peak wind of 120 mph. The tornado was on the ground for 9.12 miles and reached a maximum width of 565 yards. The second fatality was reported in Atlanta. George Heery, 55, died after a tree fell on him while he was out walking his dog during a round of severe storms on Sunday evening, Atlanta News First reported. According to the news agency, Heery was one of Atlanta’s most recognized architectural and real estate executives. At least two others were injured in Jones County, Mississippi, which is southeast of Jackson, after a tree fell on a mobile home, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). Just outside of Indianapolis in Johnson County, Indiana, a large and violent tornado was spotted destroying several homes.At around 3:10 p.m. CDT, multiple videos posted on social media showed a tornado on the ground at the intersection of Interstate 69 and Indiana State Route 144 in Johnson County, according to the NWS.According to WTHR, a fire chief in Whiteland, Indiana, located in Johnson County, said multiple structures were damaged following the tornado. Johnson County Emergency Management said multiple homes were severely damaged or collapsed following the tornado, WTHR also reported. Video posted on Twitter by Cole Basey showed the walls of structures had caved in, and the roofs of multiple structures were destroyed in Greenwood, Indiana. Several trees were down and scattered across the area of the tornadic storm.Officials in Bargersville -- also located in Johnson County -- said 75 homes have moderate to severe damage, according to FOX 59 News. The first round of search and rescue from officials is complete, and no injuries have been reported.A storm survey conducted on Monday determined that this tornado was also an EF2, with estimated peak wind of 115 mph. The tornado stayed on the ground for 5.4 miles and was 200-400 yards wide. In southern Indiana, a confirmed tornado was reported in Crane at around 3:33 p.m. CDT by law enforcement. Debris was visible, according to NWS. Multiple trees were down on homes and cars in Crane, according to another NWS report.The tornado in Crane was given an EF1 rating after a storm survey on Monday. The peak wind was estimated to be 110 mph with a path length of 4.45 miles and a maximum width of 100 yards.Large hail was also reported across the state on Sunday. Hailstones the size of a baseball reportedly damaged the roof and siding of at least one home in Kirklin, Indiana. Tennis ball-size hail was reported elsewhere in the state including Spencer and Sheridan, Indiana. Although all of the reported tornadoes occurred in Indiana, severe weather affected areas from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast on Sunday. According to the SPC, there were over 400 wind reports and nearly 200 hail reports on Sunday.Heavy rain, gusty winds and hail led to widespread damage across Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Georgia.As of Monday morning, nearly 500,000 customers were without power from the Midwest to the Gulf Coast, according to PowerOutage.US. The majority of outages were located in Tennessee and Arkansas, which have more than 118,000 combined outages.In Tennessee, Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division (MLGW) warned customers that “extensive damage” across the city from Sunday’s storm will make power restoration times longer. The company said residents should be prepared for multiple days of power outages..The Shady Oak’s Trailer Park, which is located roughly 13 miles northeast of Memphis in Millington, Tennessee, was damaged during the storms on Sunday, FOX13 reported. Residents told the news station that trees were toppled over several trailers and blocked several park entrances.Additionally in Millington, two planes at the Millington airport were overturned, and the terminal sustained damage to the roof from the gusty winds on Sunday, according to the SPC. Photos shared by the Millington Fire Department on Twitter showed the overturned planes and damaged roof. According to AccuWeather Social Media Producer and Meteorologist Jesse Ferrell, 408 severe thunderstorm warnings were issued on Sunday. That is the most severe thunderstorm warnings issued on a June day since June 22, 2008, when 505 warnings were issued.

Indiana tornado damage: National Weather Service to assess damage --Teams from the National Weather Service will visit multiple Indiana counties Monday to survey damage from severe storms and tornadoes. The dangerous weather swept through central Indiana Sunday afternoon and evening, leading to tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings across the area. NWS later confirmed four tornados occurred in Indiana as a result of Sunday’s storms: one in Johnson County, two in Martin County and another in southwest Monroe County. The Monroe County tornado and the northern of the two tornadoes in Martin County have been classified as EF1, while the tornadoes in Johnson County and southern Martin County are EF2. The NWS survey teams were in Johnson County Monday. They’ll also visit Daviess, Martin and Monroe counties to assess damage and determine the track and severity of tornadoes that spawned during Sunday’s storms. The National Weather Service has confirmed that the Johnson County tornado was an EF2 that hit an estimated wind peak of 115 miles per hour that had a path length of over 5 miles. Damage was located across a three-mile stretch in the northern part of the county, according to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office. Officials said 75 homes suffered moderate to severe damage. The National Weather Service received multiple reports of large hail during the storm. Several roads were closed in the area, according to the sheriff’s office: Some homes could be without power for at least 48 hours, officials warned. The American Red Cross set up a shelter at Greenwood Middle School on Averitt Road. The damage comes months after the town of Whiteland took a “direct hit” during severe weather in early April. Johnson County homeowner Randell Lee lost his home, which he and his family had lived in since 1978, in the tornado. Now, Lee said he has just been looking around to see what is still salvageable. As the sirens went off Sunday, several Johnson County residents came outside to look around, only to run back in when they saw a tornado forming in the distance. The Monroe Fire Protection District confirmed a tornado touched down in the southwestern part of Monroe County during Sunday’s storms. On Monday, the National Weather Service confirmed the tornado as an EF1. The tornado, NWS said, reached max wind speeds of 100 mph and had a max width of 100 yards. It had a path length of over 1.5 miles. At least one person died after severe weather swept through Martin County Sunday night. Martin County EMA director Cameron Wolf said a tornado hit a home on Windom Road, killing one occupant and injuring another. Wolf said the storm “leveled” the home. The residence is located in a primarily rural area surrounded by multiple trees. Many nearby roads were impassible. One tornado, which NWS said caused the death, began in southern Martin County before crossing into Dubois County. That tornado, which was classified as an EF2, reached max wind speeds of 120 miles per hour with a max width of 565 yards and a path length of over 9 miles. The second tornado, NWS said, began in Daviess County before stretching through to northern Martin County. That tornado was an EF1 and reached max wind speeds of 100 mph. Residents reported large hail in the area, with one hailstone measuring three inches in diameter. In Daviess County, residents reported multiple trees down on homes and cars, along with a hailstorm that lasted several minutes, according to preliminary NWS reports.

Hundreds of East Coast flights canceled due to severe weather -Hundreds of East Coast flights have been canceled and more have been delayed Tuesday due to severe weather that has moved across the country. More than 850 flights within, coming into or coming out from the United States have been canceled, while nearly 1,800 have been delayed as of late morning. That includes more than 150 flights canceled and more than 60 delayed from Newark International Airport in New Jersey, more than 70 canceled and more than 40 delayed from LaGuardia Airport in New York and nearly 40 canceled and more than 70 delayed from Boston’s Logan Airport. The National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said in a post on its website on Tuesday that a front extending from the Great Lakes and mid-Atlantic to the Southeast will move toward the East Coast and stall overnight Tuesday. The Storm Prediction Center has issued a “marginal” risk of severe thunderstorms over parts of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic through Wednesday morning, but the threat of “excessive” rainfall will decrease somewhat on Wednesday. Several airports announced that they are being hit with flight disruptions on Tuesday because of weather, including Newark and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. JFK had 80 delays and more than 20 cancellations as of Tuesday morning, according to FlightAware. Strong storms have caused intense damage as they have moved across the country in recent days. At least three were killed and thousands lost power after the storms hit multiple states and spawned multiple tornadoes on Sunday.

Extreme heat will cost the US $1 billion in health care costs — this summer alone - Extreme heat — summertime temperatures and humidity that exceed the historical average — is being made more frequent and intense by climate change. In the first two weeks of June, a late-spring hot spell prompted schools in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Great Lakes areas to close or send students home early. A heat wave broke temperature records in Puerto Rico — the heat index, a measure of how temperatures feel to the human body, reached 125 degrees Fahrenheit on parts of the island. And extreme heat spurred deadly storms and power outages for hundreds of thousands of customers from Texas to Louisiana.All that heat is bad for human health and leads to a rise in hospitalizations for cardiovascular, kidney, and respiratory diseases, particularly among the urban poor, who often lack access to air conditioning and green spaces. Those hospitalizations will come with a hefty price tag. A new reportfrom the public policy research group Center for American Progress estimates extreme heat will create $1 billion in health care-related costs in the United States this summer. The analysis, provided exclusively to Grist, projects that excessive heat will spur nearly 235,000 emergency department visits and more than 56,000 hospital admissions for conditions related to increased body temperature across the country this summer. Steven Woolf and a cohort of academics, scientists, and doctors from Virginia Commonwealth University analyzed health insurance claims in Virginia during the 80 extreme heat days that occurred in the state, on average, every summer from 2016 and 2020. The claims were filed for emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and other medical care. They used that data to determine how many Virginians sought a doctor’s help during these heat waves compared to other days. The authors tallied up “heat-related illnesses,” defined as including heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke, as well as “heat-adjacent illness” — dehydration, rapid pulse, dizziness, or fainting. In Virginia, extreme heat spurred some 400 outpatient care visits for heat-related illness, 4,600 emergency room visits for heat-related or heat-adjacent illness, and 2,000 heat-related hospital admissions each summer. These are likely underestimates, the report’s authors noted, since many patients with higher body weight or organ diseases such as heart disease, for example, experience complications during heat waves that could be classified as heat-adjacent illnesses but are rarely formally diagnosed as such by their physicians. And many victims of extreme heat don’t seek medical care at all, which further obscures the true burden of heat-related illness. The authors extrapolated from Virginia’s data to reach the conclusion that extreme heat will inflate health care costs across the nation by $1 billion every summer for the foreseeable future, an estimate Woolf said will probably shift as the breadth of research on this topic expands. The authors also found that the burden of extreme heat will be shouldered unequally by Americans. The costs will be felt most acutely in low-income and historically marginalized communities, where access to cooling resources such as air conditioning is patchy and green spaces are scarce. “People who live in nice neighborhoods, who have air-conditioned homes and tree-lined streets with plenty of shade,” Woolf said, “are protected from the heat in a way that doesn’t occur in a different part of town where there’s not much shade and people are less likely to either have air conditioning and fans or to have the resources to pay the electrical bills.”

Seven states face extreme temperatures as Texas heat wave expands - Seven states in the southern U.S. are facing high temperatures as the heat wave sweeping Texas expands to surrounding areas. Heat advisories and excessive heat warnings now affect parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi, as well as parts of New Mexico and Arizona to the west,according to the National Weather Service (NWS). The heat wave, which has been raging in Texas for more than a week, is setting records in parts of the Lone Star State and is expected to strain its electric grid as temperatures climb past 100 degrees in some places.The NWS said Sunday afternoon that “oppressive heat” across the southern U.S. is “not going anywhere soon.”The temperature in Phoenix hit 111 degrees Sunday, which the local NWS reports is 5 degrees above normal for that date. The NWS in Albuquerque, N.M., also reported near-record tempsover the weekend.NWS branches in Texas have warned that the punishing temperatures can be dangerous, warning residents to “try and spend as little time outdoors as you can” because “even a short time could result in heat illnesses.” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has a disaster declaration in place as his state deals with the heat and with other extreme weather that has hit Texas in recent weeks, including heavy rainfall, flash flooding and tornadoes.

Record-breaking heat spreads across the U.S. South - A persistent and oppressive heat dome continues to produce dangerous heat and humidity across much of the U.S. South, breaking numerous all-time records in Texas. Over the past few days, Texas has seen record-breaking temperatures. On June 21, Del Rio recorded an all-time high of 46.1 °C (115 °F), Sonora reached 43.9 °C (111 °F), and Rocksprings hit 42.8 °C (109 °F). The extreme heat persisted over the following days, leading to more broken records. On June 24, Del Rio experienced its seventh consecutive day with high temperatures of 42.2 °C (108 °F) or more, breaking the previous record of five days set from July 10 to 14, 2020. On the same day, San Angelo and Cotula both recorded temperatures of 42.8 °C (109 °F), surpassing the previous record of 41.7 °C (107 °F) set in 2018 and 2022, respectively. Zapata and Del Rio also registered 42.2 °C (108 °F), breaking the previous record of 41.7 °C (107 °F) set in 1969 and 2018. The oppressive heat over parts of the south-central U.S. will continue in the days ahead as an anomalous upper-level ridge remains over northern Mexico and Texas. High temperatures on Sunday and Monday, June 25 and 26 are expected to range from the low 100s (37.7 °C +) in east Texas to the upper 100s and low 110s °F (40 °C – 43 °C) in west Texas and southeastern New Mexico. However, higher humidity closer to the Gulf Coast will lead to heat indices in the 43.9 – 46.1 °C (110 – 115 °F) range for much of east Texas. More daily record-tying or breaking high temperatures are possible, with record-tying or breaking warm lows providing no relief from the heat overnight. Anomalously warm temperatures will begin to spread into the Desert Southwest on Monday as the upper-level ridge builds northwestward, with highs over 43.3 °C (110 °F) forecast for southern Arizona.

Scorching heatwave claims 13 lives across Southeast US, strains power grid On June 28, 2023, an intense heatwave responsible for at least 13 deaths spread across the Southeast US, extending the reach of official warnings about hazardous temperatures. This comes as California anticipates its first significant heatwave of the year, and Texas faces record-high power demand due to the extreme conditions. The Southeast US, already grieving the loss of 13 lives to the unbearable heat in Texas and one in Louisiana, witnessed the extreme temperatures extending into Mississippi and Tennessee on June 28, 2023. The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued a warning for dangerous fires in parts of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah due to the dry, hot, and windy conditions. With temperatures expected to surpass 38 °C (100 °F) in many parts of the Southeast, and high humidity pushing heat index values over 46 °C (115 °F), the threat remains substantial. Persistent power outages, in the aftermath of the weekend storms in Arkansas, exacerbated the heat-related challenges for over 10 000 central-state residents. Among those lost to the heat was a 49-year-old man from Bossier City, found lifeless on a sidewalk in Shreveport, Louisiana, where temperatures had reached a peak of 36 °C (97 °F) on June 25—significantly higher than the usual for the date. The death of a 62-year-old woman in Keithville on June 21 was also attributed to the heat. The woman, found by her family, had been without electricity for several days due to severe storms, according to the Caddo Parish Coroner’s Office. Out of the Texas casualties, 11 occurred in Webb County, including Laredo. Victims aged between 60 and 80 years, many with underlying health conditions, fell prey to the unprecedented heat levels. Webb County Medical Examiner, Dr. Corinne Stern, shed light on the poverty factor, exacerbating the suffering. Many residents don’t have air conditioning, and some of those who do hesitate to use it due to cost concerns. Moreover, two Florida hikers lost their lives due to extreme heat at Big Bend National Park. The lethal temperatures, caused by a heat dome, strained the Texas power grid and set new record highs across parts of the state. On June 27, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which oversees roughly 90% of the state’s power grid, reported unofficial all-time and monthly record electricity demands. According to ERCOT, the power demand peaked at 80 828 megawatts, breaking the previous record of 76 681 megawatts set on June 23, 2022, and the all-time peak demand record of 80 148 megawatts set on July 20, 2022. However, the record-breaking statistics remain unofficial until the data can be finalized, which can take several days, stated an ERCOT spokesperson.

Heat waves like the one that's killed 14 in the southern US are becoming more frequent and enduring (AP) — Heat waves like the one that engulfed parts of parts of the South and Midwest and killed more than a dozen people are becoming more common, and experts say the extreme weather events, which claim more lives than hurricanes and tornadoes, will likely increase in the future.A heat dome that pressured the Texas power grid and killed 13 people there and another in Louisiana pushed eastward Thursday and was expected to be centered over the mid-South by the weekend. Heat index levels of up to 112 degrees (44 Celsius) were forecast in parts of Florida over the next few days.Eleven of the heat-related deaths in Texas occurred in Webb County, which includes Laredo. The dead ranged in age from 60 to 80 years old, and many had other health conditions, according to the county medical examiner. The other two fatalities were Florida residents who died while hiking in extreme heat at Big Bend National Park.Scientists and medical experts say such deaths caused by extreme heat will only increase in the U.S. each summer without more action to combat climate change that has pushed up temperatures, making people especially vulnerable in areas unaccustomed to warm weather.“Here in Boston we prepare for snowstorms. Now we need to learn how to prepare for heat,” said Dr. Gaurab Basu, a primary care physician and the director of education and policy at the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Planting more trees to increase shade in cities and investing in green technology like heat pumps for home cooling and heating could help, Basu said.Extreme heat already is the deadliest of all weather events in the United States, including hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires and flooding.“Heat waves are the deadliest because they affect such large areas and can go on for days or weeks,” said Joellen Russell, a climate scientist who teaches at the University of Arizona in Tucson and is currently on a Fulbright scholarship in Wellington, New Zealand. “And they catch people by surprise.”Phoenix, the hottest large city in America, faces an excessive heat warning headed into the weekend. Dangerously hot conditions are forecast from Saturday through Tuesday, including temperatures of 107-115 degrees (41.6-46.1 Celsius) across south-central Arizona.

Central US is now getting worst of the drought. Corn crops are stressed, rivers are running low (AP) — Mike Shane’s Illinois farm got a nice soaking on May 8, shortly after he planted his corn crop. Since then, rain has been hard to come by.. “My corn looks absolutely terrible right now.” Without substantial rain soon, “I just don’t see any hope for it,” he said. Heavy rain over the winter eased the drought in the West, but now the middle of the country is extraordinarily dry. Crops are stressed, rivers are running low, and cities and towns are anxiously hoping for a break in the weather.Experts say the drought in the central U.S. is the worst since at least 2012, and in some areas, is drawing comparisons to the 1988 drought that devastated corn, wheat and soybean crops. This year, although temperatures have been generally mild through the spring and early days of summer, rainfall has been sorely lacking.The U.S. Drought Monitor, operated by the federal government and the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, reports that nearly half of Kansas is in either extreme or exceptional drought condition — the highest drought designation. More than a quarter of Nebraska is in extreme drought, and 13% is in exceptional drought. Arid conditions permeate Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana, Missouri and Kentucky.The frequency and intensity of droughts and rainfall are increasing due to burning fossil fuels and other human activity that releases greenhouse gases, according to data from a pair of satellites used to measure changes in Earth’s water storage. The study was published in March in the journal Nature Water.Adam Hartman, a meteorologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center, said some parts of the central U.S. have been experiencing extreme drought since the winter. In other states, “flash droughts” have popped up over the past 2-3 months.“As a result you’ve see drastic losses in topsoil, subsoil moisture,” Hartman said. “We’ve seen ground water levels start to lower as well. We’ve seen stream flows start to decline.”

Texas electricity price surges amid record heat and demand - Texas businesses and utilities in danger of running short on electricity will have to pay big money to shore up their reserves. The cost to acquire advance power for 4 p.m. Monday — when demand begins to spike and solar production starts to diminish — hit nearly 50 times its usual price on Sunday, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). ERCOT expects demand to peak Monday afternoon at just shy of 83,000 megawatts — about 3 percent higher than the record that was set last year. The grid has just less than 6,000 megawatts in reserve capacity, according to ERCOT. When afternoon comes, those numbers can spike even more, according to an analysis from BloombergNEF. Last Tuesday afternoon, ERCOT averaged over $4,000 per megawatt hour in real-time trading — more than double the day-ahead prices. That’s nearly 100 times what prices were the previous week, before the heat wave began. The state agency “likely” paid power plants a billion dollars last Tuesday, BNEF found. And power customers — largely utilities and big industrial concerns — paid $1.7 billion that day. That price hike was supply as much as demand. While the state’s steadily increasing solar supply has helped offset the record load on ERCOT’s grid, West Texas wind turbines — stagnated by the mass of still, hot air hanging over Texas and Mexico — have been underproducing. Late Tuesday afternoon, as grid load peaked, the Texas wind fleet was unusually sluggish and was producing about a third less power than on an equivalent day in 2019, even though the state had fewer windmills then. The worst may lie ahead. “Peak demand days [in Texas] historically happen in July and August — meaning this past week could be a preview,” the BNEF authors noted.

Solar bails out Texas during heat wave, but trouble looms - Live by the sun, die by the sun. So it goes in Texas, where a surge in solar power generation is helping the state’s primary grid operator navigate an ongoing and stifling heat wave. Yet, in spite of the sun-powered boost, analysts say the state’s electric grid remains unprepared for a warming climate where intense heat waves will become more frequent and severe. The last few days have offered a preview of this hotter future. The current heat wave has shattered temperature records in many cities and reached as high as 118 degrees Fahrenheit along the Mexican border. The broiling conditions are expected to continue this week. “We learned that climate change isn’t messing around,” said Alison Silverstein, a Texas-based energy consultant who authored a high-profile Department of Energy report on the reliability of the country’s electric system in 2018. “This kind of heat dome and long-lasting extreme heat conditions are not anything we have seen before in Texas, and yet they are happening more and more often,” Silverstein added. “We cannot change our built infrastructure fast enough.” Texas’ grid has been at the center of national debate over the country’s transition to cleaner electricity sources, pitting the need to reduce planet-warming pollution against the necessity of keeping on the lights. A powerful winter storm in 2021 led to widespread power outages in much of Texas. Republicans and fossil fuel interests sought to blame renewables. Democrats and environmentalists pointed to failures at gas plants and the pipelines that serve them. The debate often has failed to reflect the real cause of the outages. Texas power plants and gas infrastructure are simply not winterized to withstand extreme cold, a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission report found. Power plants farther north fared much better, even though they experienced colder temperatures.

'Never occurred before': How the Arctic is sizzling Texas - The oppressive heat wave roasting Texas and Mexico is rekindling a scientific debate about the effects that Arctic climate change might have on weather patterns around the world.Many experts say that rapid warming in the Arctic — where temperatures are rising four times faster than the global average — may cause an increase in these kinds of long-lasting extreme weather events.It all comes down to the jet stream, a fast-flowing air current that wraps around the Northern Hemisphere. Many researchers theorize that rising temperatures in the Arctic are altering the atmosphere in ways that disrupt the jet stream’s flow, causing it to dip and meander up and down as it zooms around the globe. A wavier jet stream can cause heat waves, storms and other weather systems to get stuck in place, dragging out for days or weeks on end.That’s what has happened in Texas and Mexico this month. An unusual dip in the jet stream caused a persistent high-pressure weather system, known as a “heat dome,” to form over the region and trap hot air. It’s already baked the region with record-breaking heat for two weeks, and it’s expected to drag out for another week or so, likely creeping into neighboring states in the coming days. A number of factors likely influenced this event, including a brewing El Niño. But some scientists say these wobbly jet streams may happen more often as Arctic temperatures continue to soar.“This is exactly the type of pattern — that is, extremely wavy and thus persistent — that we expect to see more frequently as the Arctic warms now about four times faster than the globe as a whole,” said Jennifer Francis, a senior scientist at Woodwell Climate Research Center, in an email to E&E News. The Texas event already has clear connections to climate change thanks to the sheer intensity of its heat. Temperatures have soared as high as 118 degrees, just 2 degrees shy of the state’s all-time heat record.Some cities have tied or broken local records, including San Angelo at 114 degrees June 20 and Laredo at 115 degrees. And the heat index — a metric that accounts for both temperatures and humidity — has soared across the state, making temperatures feel well above 120 degrees in some places. Austin broke its all-time heat index record at 118 degrees Wednesday. And Corpus Christi hit a staggering heat index of 125 degrees. The heat is blistering, even for Texas. Yet it’s not just the temperatures that are causing mayhem. It’s also how long they’re dragging out — in a relatively unusual location for a heat dome during this time of the year. That’s due to this summer’s wonky jet stream. It has split into two branches in recent weeks, meandering in large, looping patterns over North America that can cause weather patterns to get stuck in place. The Texas heat dome isn’t the only one. There’s also a heat dome over Alberta and other parts of central Canada, and the jet stream helped drive wildfire smoke from Canada down into the eastern U.S. earlier this month.

Dangerous heat and humidity is smothering much of the South and Midwest As dangerous heat and humidity smothered parts of the South and Midwest on Thursday, local governments and charities worked to protect poor and elderly residents by opening cooling stations and delivering donated air conditioners. In Florida, where heat index levels of up to 112 degrees (44 Celsius) are forecast over the next several days, the Christian Service Center set up an “extreme heat cooling center” in Orlando for homeless people and others who don’t have access to air conditioning. “You or I complain about the heat or have to deal with it as we walk from our car to the grocery store or from our car to the air-conditioned office, but for the people we see here on campus, they wake up to that every day,” Bryan Hampton of the Christian Service Center told WESH-TV. The heat wave has contributed to at least 13 deaths in Texas and one in Louisiana. Forecasters said temperatures could rocket up to 20 degrees above average in some areas as a heat domethat has taxed the Texas power grid spread eastward.The National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning for parts of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee for Thursday and Friday. Less urgent heat advisories covered a wider area that included parts of Missouri, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois. The heat index, which indicates how hot it feels outdoors based on the temperature and relative humidity, was expected to reach 115 degrees (46 Celsius) in several cities. It was an added weather-related woe for some some Tennessee residents who still had no power after storms Sunday knocked down trees and power lines.

Texas grid operator can’t be sued over deadly winter storms - The Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday that the state’s main electric grid operator can’t be sued over damages related to blackouts during 2021’s deadly winter storm. In a 5-4 ruling, the state court granted the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) sovereign immunity, a designation that means it is an arm of the government and thus cannot be sued for acting in its official capacity. The decision reverses a lower court ruling, which found that ERCOT — a nonprofit corporation regulated by the state’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) — was not a government agency. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice Nathan Hecht wrote that ERCOT “operates under the direct control and oversight of the PUC, performs the governmental function of utilities regulation and it possesses the power to adopt and enforce rules pursuant to that rule.” Immunity, he added, “prevents the disruption of key governmental services, protects public funds and respects separation of powers principles.” The designation, he added, does not mean that ERCOT can’t be held accountable for its actions, but instead recognizes that the courts are not the “proper avenue for redress.” Future challenges to ERCOT will be handled by the PUC, which Hecht wrote could help ensure that short-paid market participants are repaid faster by avoiding lengthy lawsuits. The decision came out of a pair of cases. In the first, a group of electric generating companies known as Panda Power Funds sued ERCOT, alleging they took financial losses after investing in power plants based on inaccurate energy demand projections released by the grid operator. The second suit from CPS Energy, the municipal electric utility for San Antonio, alleged that ERCOT mismanaged power prices during 2021’s Winter Storm Uri, which led to $18 million in losses.

America’s Biggest Power Source Wasn’t Built for Extreme Weather -- Natural gas plants, now the top source of electricity in the US, are to blame for a disproportionate share of outages when the weather gets rough. In the 15 years since the American fracking boom unleashed a torrent of abundant, cheap and domestically available natural gas, the country has leaned into the fuel — and hard. Hundreds of new, state-of-the-art gas power plants have come online with tens of billions in Wall Street backing in what’s now the biggest gas-producing nation in the world. Given its reputation for low-cost, clean and stable generation, gas dethroned coal in 2016 as the US’s No. 1 source of electricity. This year, it will make up a record 41% of power production, more than solar, wind, hydro and coal combined. The grid’s newfound reliance on natural gas was for more than a decade hailed as a breakthrough. It’s now one of its biggest vulnerabilities.The so-called bridge fuel overtook coal in 2016 as country's No. 1 source. Although natural gas is often promoted as a “bridge fuel” to span the transition from coal power to renewable energy, the country’s vast network of gas plants, pipelines and the regulations that govern them was largely built without the realities of extreme weather in mind. Facilities aren’t uniformly winterized, and some rely on a single gas pipeline for supply. Many generators don’t have the ability to burn an alternate fuel or keep back-up gas on hand in case of emergencies. The US has the most sprawling and interconnected gas pipeline network in the world, stoking complacency that the fuel will always be there when needed. But increasingly it’s not, contributing to more than seven hours of power interruptions for US households on average in 2021, more than double the rate reported in 2013.Because the American gas system operates with just-in-time delivery in mind, it’s hard to adapt when a climate calamity hits, especially in winter. Eventually, the country will utilize less natural gas amid the shift to renewables, but it relies heavily on the fuel in the meantime. And since even the newest gas plants are at risk of becoming obsolete once the transition to clean energy is complete, it’s hard to get the support to build more pipelines and the other key infrastructure that’s needed to shore things up.That’s the takeaway from more than two dozen interviews with traders, regulators and power-plant operators, many of whom weren’t allowed to talk publicly because of $1.8 billion in pending fines for generators that failed this past winter on America’s biggest grid.“If you have assets that you can’t get fuel to, it’s useless,” said Thomas Coleman, executive director of Grid Security Project and a former adviser to North American Electric Reliability Corp. “We have a broken system, and it’s threatening our national security and it’s threatening our economic viability.”Just look at the grid operated by PJM Interconnection LLC. It’s the largest in the country with a reputation as one of its most reliable. And yet, in the days leading up to Christmas 2022, when a brutal cold snap hit much of the continental US, PJM’s system was pushed right to the edge of rolling blackouts.And gas was largely to blame.

Two floods hit different states. One area got less money. - Two of the worst U.S. floods in 2022 ravaged homes, destroyed businesses and forced residents to evacuate for weeks. But homeowners in Florida and Kentucky are getting wildly different payments from a federal flood insurance program crucial to rebuilding and recovery. Florida residents whose homes were flooded by Hurricane Ian in September have received far more money on average from the National Flood Insurance Program than eastern Kentucky residents hit by a historic deluge in July, an E&E News analysis shows. The average NFIP payment to Florida households is $91,000. In Kentucky, it’s $49,000. The disparity is due largely to factors other than the severity of the two storms or the amount of flood damage, E&E News found. Rather, it’s caused by factors including highly inaccurate government flood maps in Kentucky, the small number of Kentucky households that have NFIP insurance and the limited amount of coverage they bought. Experts said E&E News’ analysis points to longstanding problems with flood insurance in the United States and with the NFIP. Many inland residents like those in Kentucky face increasing flood risks in part from climate change but have no coverage or have coverage that is inadequate for rebuilding because they don’t understand their risk or can’t afford flood insurance. “If you don’t have flood insurance, it’s hard to recover,” said Craig Fugate, who ran the Federal Emergency Management Agency during the Obama administration. FEMA runs the NFIP, which insures 4.7 million properties and sells 90 percent of flood insurance policies in the U.S. Standard home insurance policies rarely cover flood damage. The dearth of flood insurance in the flooded Kentucky areas combined with the extremely low income levels have left many Kentucky residents struggling to rebuild and unable to return to their neighborhoods nearly a year after the disaster, said Eric Dixon, a senior researcher at the Ohio River Valley Institute who wrote a report on the financial difficulties. Many flood survivors now have no way to pay for cleanup and rebuilding, Dixon said. Other forms of state or federal assistance such as grants from FEMA or the Department of Housing and Urban Development are smaller and slower to arrive than payments from flood insurance, Dixon added. “My big worry is that we’re not going to rebuild fast enough,” said Dixon, a former resident of Knott County, Ky., which was declared a disaster area last July. “And even more people are going to have to move away or never come back. We’re going to lose so much of what made that place special.” FEMA did not dispute E&E News’ analysis and said it wants to make NFIP policies affordable, which potentially involves subsidizing premiums for lower-income households. “FEMA recognizes and shares concerns about flood insurance affordability for those who need it. Making flood insurance more affordable is a top priority for the agency,” David Maurstad, a FEMA assistant administrator and senior executive of the NFIP, said in a statement. “We will continue to work with Congress to examine all affordability options.”

Insurers pull back as US climate catastrophes intensify The insurance industry is increasingly wary of the risks presented by climate and natural disasters, prompting major firms to scale back their presence in more vulnerable states. In June, Farmers Insurance announced in a company memo it will no longer write new property insurance policies in Florida, citing “catastrophe costs … at historically high levels.” Earlier in the month, AIG stopped issuing policies along the Sunshine State’s hurricane-vulnerable coastline.Those followed State Farm, California’s largest single homeowners’ insurer, which in May announced a moratorium on new policies in the state, blaming “rapidly growing catastrophe exposure.” The decision came after years of devastating wildfires have sent insurance rates in California skyrocketing. In testimony before the Senate Budget Committee in March, Eric Andersen, CEO of consulting firm Aon PLC, said that reinsurance companies, the firms that help insurers pay out costs, have also stepped back from high-risk areas, particularly those vulnerable to flooding and wildfires. “Just as the U.S. economy was overexposed to mortgage risk in 2008, the economy today is overexposed to climate risk,” he said. The industry is feeling the pinch beyond the East and West coasts, as well, according to Mark Friedlander, director of corporate communications at the Insurance Information Institute. He noted that dozens of firms have reduced their presence in Louisiana, including 50 that have stopped writing new policies in the state’s hurricane-prone parishes. “This isn’t just a story about Florida and California — all over the country there are insurers who are less willing to take risks,” from those along major rivers to areas vulnerable to tornadoes, said Benjamin Keys, an assistant professor of real estate at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School.Louisiana, in particular, has gotten less attention than California and Florida, but the state’s insurance industry has been steamrolled by recent intense storm seasons. “Many smaller, undercapitalized insurers in Louisiana were not able to handle the volume of losses from the 2020-2021 hurricane season,” Friedlander said. The industry, which has historically taken a more reactive approach to disasters, is shifting its strategy as such events become harder to ignore, he added. “The industry’s taking the approach now of what’s called predict and prevent, meaning being proactive to address climate risk and make sure insurance coverage reflects that and make sure homes and business take preventative action,” Friedlander told The Hill. He noted that while Farmers made headlines, it’s the 15th insurer to stop writing new policies in Florida in the last 18 months. Although most of those companies have not pulled out of the state outright, he added, three have.

EU to consider blocking out Sun – Bloomberg – RT - The European Union is joining an international scheme to investigate whether major interventions in the Earth's natural processes, including deflecting some of the Sun's rays, can help mitigate climate change, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The agency cited a draft document that might be made public later this week, aimed at assessing the consequences of global warming on water and food scarcity, and the risks of them triggering new conflicts or mass migration waves.The paper will also feature plans to study atmospheric re-engineering technologies and the dangers associated with them.Such projects could range from reflecting a certain percentage of sunlight back into space to altering weather patterns, Bloomberg noted. The EU is seeking international discussions on the schemes and the potential to set down rules for this field. "The EU will support international efforts to assess comprehensively the risks and uncertainties of climate interventions, including solar radiation modification," says the document, which is still subject to change, according to Bloomberg. The paper acknowledges that such technologies "introduce new risks to people and ecosystems, while they could also increase power imbalances between nations, spark conflicts, and raise a myriad of ethical, legal, governance and political issues."Geo-engineering plans are being taken more seriously amid expectations that countries will fail in their goal to limit global warming to 1.5C (2.7F), Bloomberg noted, adding that the EU might embrace more radical options, such as spraying stratospheric aerosols to reduce the amount of sunlight reaching earth. Bloomberg also noted that critics of geo-engineering have warned that such methods might involve unforeseen side effects such as changes in rain patterns.

White House cautiously opens the door to study blocking sun's rays to slow global warming - The White House cautiously endorsed the idea of studying how to block sunlight from hitting Earth’s surface as a way to limit global warming in a congressionally mandated report that could help bring efforts once confined to science fiction into the realm of legitimate debate.The controversial concept known as solar radiation modification is a potentially effective response to fighting climate change, but one that could have unknown side effects stemming from altering the chemical makeup of the atmosphere, some scientists say.The White House report released late Friday indicates that the Biden administration is open to studying the possibility that altering sunlight might quickly cool the planet. But it added a degree of skepticism by noting that Congress has ordered the review, and the administration said it does not signal any new policy decisions related to a process that is sometimes referred to — or derided as — geoengineering.“A program of research into the scientific and societal implications of solar radiation modification (SRM) would enable better-informed decisions about the potential risks and benefits of SRM as a component of climate policy, alongside the foundational elements of greenhouse gas emissions mitigation and adaptation,” the White House report said. “SRM offers the possibility of cooling the planet significantly on a timescale of a few years.”Still, the White House said in a statement accompanying the report, “there are no plans underway to establish a comprehensive research program focused on solar radiation modification.”Skeptically or not, that the White House weighed in on solar experimentation at all is remarkable. The concept has created divisions among experts, with some saying it could be a last line of defense against runaway warming if nations fail to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, while others warn that it could result in an atmospheric substance dependency that, if stopped, could lead to abrupt increases in temperatures.“The fact that this report even exists is probably the most consequential component of this release,” said Shuchi Talati, the executive director of the Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering, a nonprofit that seeks to include developing countries in the debate over solar modification. “This report also signals that the U.S. government is supportive of well-governed research, including outdoor experimentation, which I think is quite significant.”The report, which was required by Congress in a policy report accompanying the 2022 appropriations bill, was released the same week that European Union leaders opened the door to international discussions of solar radiation modification. It also followed a call by more than 60 leading scientists to increase research on the topic.The 44-page document considers a few plausible ways to limit the amount of sunlight that hits Earth, all of which could have significant drawbacks. One method is to multiply the amount of aerosols in the stratosphere to reflect the sun’s rays away from the planet — a process that can occur naturally after a major volcanic eruption. Others include either increasing cloud cover over the oceans or reducing the amount of high-flying cirrus clouds, which reflect solar radiation back to Earth.

EU Warns Against Potential "Unintended Consequences" Of Geoengineering --An increasing number of climate alarmists who trust "global warming science" have pitched the idea of large-scale interventions such as solar engineering to reverse 'climate change.' They believe human activity is the sole reason for the Earth's increase in temperature and say large-scale intervention is immediately needed to stop the planet's destruction. Some have even called for fleets of planes to spray chemicals into the atmosphere to deflect the sun's rays as the world's last hope for survival. But not so fast. A report published by the European Commission on Thursday outlined the potential risks and "unintended consequences" of manipulating planetary systems to fight global warming. The commission warned:In the context of accelerated global warming, deliberate large-scale intervention in the Earth's natural systems (referred to as "geoengineering"), such as solar radiation modification, is attracting more attention. However, the risks, impacts and unintended consequences that these technologies pose are poorly understood, and necessary rules, procedures and institutions have not been developed. Some of these risks include:These technologies introduce new risks to people and ecosystems, while they could also increase power imbalances between nations, spark conflicts and raises a myriad of ethical, legal, governance and political issues. Meanwhile, scientists from Harvard University have called for "spraying tiny particles called sulfate aerosols into the atmosphere to reflect away sunlight." And MIT recently wrote, "Geoengineering might be our final and only option." Speaking to reporters this week, Frans Timmermans, the European Union climate policy chief, said, "Nobody should be conducting experiments alone with our shared planet" and "This should be discussed in the right forum, at the highest international level."

Mayon volcano eruption disrupts lives of over 22 000 students, Philippines - The eruption of Mayon Volcano has severely affected the mental and physical well-being of over 22,000 students in Albay, who were compelled to evacuate their homes, according to an announcement by Save the Children Philippines on June 24, 2023. The daily routines of more than 22 000 students from the Albay, Ligao, and Tabaco school divisions have been upended as the volcano continues to spew lava and debris, triggering rockfalls and earthquakes. Save the Children Philippines, an advocacy group, highlighted that the majority of the 28 emergency shelters are elementary and high school campuses, leading to a significant disruption in the education of these children. Many of the displaced students have been forced to attend classes in chapels, tents, and even under trees, according to earlier reports by government officials. Despite these challenging circumstances, modular instruction is being implemented, and classes will continue until the end of the academic year in July. However, the conditions in the cramped and unsanitary evacuation centers are causing psychological distress among the children. “Children are most vulnerable in disasters. Their world has been upended, their sense of stability shattered. Children are experiencing difficulty sleeping due to worries and fears. They are also suffering from respiratory illnesses,” said Alberto Muyot, chief executive officer of Save the Children Philippines. Muyot emphasized the need for specific support for children, balancing their immediate requirements with recognizing their long-term needs. The organization is working to establish temporary schools to provide a sense of normalcy and hope. In addition to this, Save the Children Philippines is providing psychosocial support through art intervention activities in three evacuation centers in Camalig town. The Mayon Volcano has been under alert Level 3 (increased tendency towards hazardous eruption) due to the continuous increase in its rockfall events. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported an increase in shallow volcanic earthquakes since June 24, 2023. The increased seismicity was accompanied by “a noticeable sharp jump in ground tilt on the southwest sector of the edifice that began on June 25, 2023.” At present, the steady-rate lava effusion from the summit crater and sporadic generation of rockfall and pyroclastic density currents or PDCs still persist.

DOE backs $9.2B loan for Ford EV batteries - The Energy Department’s loan office gave conditional backing Thursday for three electric vehicle battery plants being jointly planned by Ford Motor Co. and South Korea-based SK ON, in what could become the biggest single award from the office. If finalized, the $9.2 billion loan to BlueOval SK LLC (BOSK) would help fund two lithium-ion battery plants in Glendale, Ky., and a third in Stanton, Tenn. Batteries from those sites would be used to power future EV models from Ford and Lincoln, according to DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO). The amount is the largest single award ever made by LPO, although it issued a series of three loan guarantees for the Vogtle nuclear reactors in Georgia over a five-year period that added up to over $12 billion. It marks the second time Ford has received loan awards from LPO. The first — a $5.9 billion direct loan in 2009 to upgrade car factories in six states — was repaid in full last year, according to the office’s website. First announced in 2021, the three Kentucky and Tennessee battery factories are being built by BOSK — a 50-50 joint venture owned by Ford and SK ON — and could produce more than 120 gigawatt-hours’ worth of EV batteries per year, according to DOE. That is over double the entire battery production capacity in North America back in 2021, according to data from Argonne National Laboratory. “Major technology transitions have always been accelerated by collaboration between the public and private sectors,” said Dave Webb, Ford’s treasurer, in a statement. “The DOE’s foresight here will help do the same for the transition to zero-emissions transportation.” The conditional loan is the latest in a string of awards from LPO for battery and electric vehicle projects funded under the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program. Under the Biden administration, the ATVM program has finalized a $2.5 billion loan for battery plants being developed by a General Motors-LG Chem Ltd. joint venture, as well as a $102 million loan to a Louisiana graphite processing plant. Five other loan awards from the ATVM program remain active but have not been finalized. Overall, the three battery plants should support about 5,000 jobs during their construction and another 7,500 jobs in operations once they’re fully built, said LPO.

LG kicks off colossal ramp-up of US factories for EV and grid batteries -- South Korean manufacturer LG is drastically scaling up its U.S. production of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and the grid.The U.S. clean energy sector is transforming from an import-based industry to one that builds equipment domestically, bolstered by supportive policies in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. As Canary Media reported recently, U.S. battery manufacturing is on track to grow tenfold by 2027. But LG Energy Solution, one of the largest battery makers in the world, has already committed to factory construction that would increase its own U.S. production capacity by a factor of more than 55 by 2027.LG Energy Solution already operates 5 gigawatt-hours’ worth of battery production in Holland, Michigan, which it launched in 2013 to supply the Chevy Volt. But LG will quintuple production at that facility by 2025, while it also builds a new complex capable of making 43 gigawatt-hours’ worth of batteries per year in Queen Creek, Arizona, near Phoenix. The company will also build battery factories as joint ventures with electric vehicle companies: It’s working on a plant with 30 gigawatt-hours of capacity with Hyundai in Savannah, Georgia; one with 40 gigawatt-hours of capacity with Honda in Ohio; and a total of 140 gigawatt-hours of capacity with GM’s Ultium battery brand across sites in Ohio, Michigan and Tennessee (that Ohio site began initial production in the latter half of 2022). That makes LG an important participant in the Southeast’s emerging Battery Belt, as well as an investor in the traditional heart of the auto industry.

E-bike batteries are exploding, setting buildings on fire Everyone and their neighbor seemingly got an e-bike during the pandemic, but their surge in popularity has come with a nasty side effect: exploding batteriesthat spark deadly fires. The problem is especially evident in New York City, where on Sunday an e-bike battery sparked an hourslong blaze at a Bronx grocery store that injured seven.It’s the latest in a string of fires started by the lithium-ion batteries in electric bikes and scooters. They’ve caused at least 30 fires, 40 injuries, and two deaths in NYC this year as of Feb. 27, according to the New York Fire Department.Last year, they ignited 216 fires—double the amount of the year before—resulting in 147 injuries and six deaths. Lithium-ion batteries were the fourth leading cause of fire deaths in NYC last year, per the FDNY.The number of blazes has been rising in tandem with the number of e-bikes sold: The US imported over 1 million last year, a gear shift up from 880,000 in 2021 and 450,000 in 2020, according to the Light Electric Vehicle Association. Lithium-ion batteries are a Nobel-prize-winning invention that power everything from phones to computers to electric vehicles. These batteries are safe unless they’re faulty or damaged, and e-bikes and e-scooters are subject to a lot of hard use hauling commuters and delivery workers up and over NYC’s bridges. The batteries are also expensive (about $300 each), so low-quality and secondhand alternatives, which are more likely to be defective, have flooded the market.It’s unlikely an e-bike will spontaneously combust mid-ride beneath your butt. Instead, they become a hazard while in storage or when left unattended on a charger (where they overheat).The fires they cause are nightmarish: Lithium-ion battery fires can engulf a room in about 15 seconds, per the UL Fire Safety Research Institute. In addition, the toxic gases they release make them especially difficult to put out.

Fossil fuel consumption steady despite record growth in renewable energy --The consumption of fossil fuels remained steady despite record growth in the renewable energy sector. According to the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy, primary energy demand growth slowed in 2022 by increasing about 1.1 percent compared to its increase of 5.5 percent in 2021. The report noted that the energy sector shifted from demand around the COVID-19 pandemic to supply concerns from Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.“As the world emerged from the pandemic and its impact on demand, 2022 witnessed energy markets again in crisis, with the Ukraine conflict upending assumptions about supply around the world,” Energy Institute CEO Nick Wayth said in a statement. “That in turn precipitated a price crisis and profound cost-of-living pressures across many economies.” The report also found that oil, gas and coal products covered most of the energy demand even as renewable energy saw the highest increase ever. Coal held 35 percent of the share in the power sector, while gas hit about 23 percent of the share.The increase of renewable energy was bolstered by new solar and wind developments, and reached 14 percent of the total global electricity production, which was higher than nuclear energy, which had a 9 percent share of total electricity production. The report said that solar and wind notched a “record increase” of 266 gigawatts in 2022 and solar accounted for 72 percent of additional capacity.“We have seen further and ever more dangerous impacts of climate change across all continents. And despite broad consensus on the need to reach net-zero, global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions are still heading in the wrong direction,”

West Virginia bets on hydrogen in gamble to save coal plant - Pleasants Power Station in West Virginia. Pleasants Power Station in West Virginia. Carol M. Highsmith/Library of Congress/Wikipedia A little-known company that enjoys the backing of West Virginia’s top political leaders is in talks to turn one of the state’s largest coal plants into a clean energy behemoth. Omnis Global Technologies, a California-based firm, says it would convert Pleasants Power Station to run on hydrogen, eliminating a major source of planet-warming greenhouse gases. It says the hydrogen will come from a plant next door where Omnis plans to produce graphite, a highly sought mineral for electric vehicle batteries. The plan is as audacious as it is untested, underscoring both the promise and peril facing coal states as they look to new technologies to fill the gap left by a fading coal industry. West Virginia leaders eager to save Pleasants Power Station, a top buyer of the state’s coal, include Republican Gov. Jim Justice and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, who will face off next year in one of the country’s most-watched Senate races. The pair have embraced a residential construction and critical minerals venture that Omnis launched in the state during the last year. But analysts who study the electricity and critical minerals markets have raised doubts about the proposal, saying they’ve never heard of Omnis and question whether its plans are technically feasible. “This is a company that as far as we know has never run a coal plant, and they face the additional challenges of converting it in a way that appears unprecedented and untested,” said Seth Feaster, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis who raised concerns about Omnis’ plans in a note earlier this month. The think tank has criticized attempted coal plant rescues in other states. As the coal industry has contracted in recent years, states reliant on the fuel have turned to new clean energy technologies with little history of being implemented at commercial scale. In New Mexico, the city of Farmington backed a longshot plan to capture and store carbon at a retiring coal plant. The plan was ultimately abandoned after the plant shut down. Omnis says it is in negotiations to buy Pleasants Power Station from Energy Transition and Environmental Management, a Texas company that had bought the plant with the intention of demolishing it. The 1,300-megawatt coal plant shut down on June 1 after a concerted effort from West Virginia officials to keep it running.

Biden admin eyes $5B fossil fuel build-out in Puerto Rico - The Army Corps of Engineers plans to spend up to $5 billion on fossil fuel power plants and infrastructure repairs in Puerto Rico, a move the agency says will improve the territory’s troubled electric grid but that critics warn could derail the island’s clean energy transition. The Army Corps issued a notice last week seeking a contractor to fix existing power plants, electric transformers and cables and build new natural gas- and oil-fired generating units in Puerto Rico. The work has been authorized by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and will be funded by disaster relief money approved by the Biden administration after Hurricane Fiona last year, according to FEMA spokesperson Dasha Castillo. The announcement sparked backlash from environmental advocates who said the Army Corps’ plans could make Puerto Rico’s goal of 40 percent renewable energy by 2025 unattainable. Advocates have called for deploying rooftop solar and batteries to solve the territory’s longstanding grid challenges. “There’s really no justification for this additional fossil fuel generation. We have so much of it already,” said Ruth Santiago, a activist and environmental lawyer based in the territory who is also on the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council. “This is a scam.” Puerto Rico has long faced widespread and prolonged blackouts following major hurricanes and storms and generates the vast majority of its electricity from imported natural gas, coal and oil. After the entire island was again plunged into darkness last fall following Hurricane Fiona, President Joe Biden announced the establishment of a Puerto Rico Grid Recovery and Modernization Team to rebuild the territory’s power system using “clean, reliable, affordable power.” Cheri Pritchard, media operations chief at the Army Corps’ Savannah District, said that “land-based turbine-style generators” that can run on natural gas or diesel oil are ideal for “emergency power generation,” which is what the Army Corps is seeking through a contract. That’s because those types of generators can produce a large amount of electricity relative to their size and be deployed quickly, Pritchard said. The new generation units would provide baseload power, rather than only run when electricity demand is high, according to Castillo. “These types of units can typically run on either liquified natural gas or diesel, and the multi-fuel capability improves resiliency in meeting emergency power generation requirements,” Pritchard said in an email. “During an emergency response, temporary power generation could help limit or eliminate power outages on the island.”

EPA hears human toll of coal ash pollution U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials were met with photos and tearful stories of deceased loved ones at a national hearing in Chicago on Wednesday regarding the agency’s proposed new rules regulating coal ash. The proposed rules, released in May, would subject hundreds more coal ash dumps to federal regulations adopted in 2015. But scores of coal ash dumps would remain unregulated, leading residents and advocates to plead with the EPA to further expand the proposed rules and step up enforcement of existing rules. The environmental injustice of coal ash was clear at the hearing, as residents testified from Native American communities in New Mexico and Nevada, Latino communities in Midwestern cities, and Black communities in Alabama and Tennessee, among others. Multiple people told the EPA officials about their friends and family who had died or suffered from cancer or other illnesses they attribute to coal ash. The proposed rules would, for the first time, regulate coal ash ponds that were inactive as of 2015. But the rules would still exempt categories of dumps that speakers at the hearing called “arbitrary,” including repositories not in contact with water as of 2015, coal ash dumps at plants closed before 2015 that don’t have a currently regulated pond at the same site, and scattered coal ash used as structural fill. “Anecdotally we know such sites include playgrounds, schools, roads and other uses that humans regularly come into contact with,” Earthjustice deputy managing attorney Gavin Kearney said of sites where coal ash fill was used. He noted that there is no comprehensive data regarding coal ash ponds supposedly not in contact with liquid, but experts are sure companies will invoke that exception. Earthjustice and its partners, meanwhile, have identified more than 100 dumps on at least 48 sites that would meet the exception for closed ponds at active power plants without another regulated coal ash impoundment.

A rule that could help save coal miners' lives is mired in red tape --Gary Hairston worked as an electrician in an underground coal mine for almost 30 years. It was hard, often grimy work. When a big machine called a continuous miner dug into the hard earth, it kicked up all kinds of dust. Slowly, Hairston began to notice that daily tasks wiped him out. At night he woke up struggling for breath. He developed a nasty cough that worsened over time. During a routine health screening a few years ago, doctors noticed a spot on his lung. Their diagnosis was grim: coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, better known as black lung. Its progress is slow, but terminal. When Hairston was 48, he retired to look after his health and turned to organizing, so that future miners might work in safer conditions. Miners have always been at risk of black lung, but pulmonologists and medical researchers have seen a marked increase in recent years. The disease, while not genetic or contagious, often wends its way through families who work the mines. Hairston’s brother and father have it, too. He worked for decades before his diagnosis, but these days sees younger workers who don’t make it nearly that long.“These younger coal miners had been in the mine five years and some barely could breathe, they had to take breaths, even at talks,” Hairston said. Experts point to the increasing prevalence of crystalline silica in the mines as a cause of this change. Silica is often found in quartz, which is embedded deeply within the sandstone that surrounds coal. It is ground to fine dust and kicked into the air by the machines that cut coal from ground, then settles deeply in the lungs, scarring the tissue and making it increasingly difficult to breathe. As mining companies have exhausted high-quality seams of coal, they’ve increasingly turned to inferior veins with larger volumes of other minerals, making silica exposure more likely. Pulmonologists have called the increasing prevalence of coal workers’ pneumoconiosis an epidemic, which they’ve blamed in part on lax regulations, too little protective gear, and lack of safety training for miners. Researchers have found that as many as 1 in 5 miners in Central Appalachia may have black lung, and 1 in 20 have progressive massive fibrosis, the most advanced form of the disease, which is linked directly to silica exposure.Rumblings of an epidemic, and rising concern about silica exposure, have been underlined by data. A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released earlier this year found that not only are cases increasing, but mortality rates from black lung and other lung disease have steadily climbed among miners born after 1939, with mortality highest among the youngest miners. An American Thoracic Society study published last year, which involved many of the same researchers as the CDC study, linked increased silica exposure directly to the increase in black lung cases. A joint investigation by NPR and Frontline five years ago found thousands of instances in which miners were exposed to dangerous levels of silica. Calls for a stricter silica exposure standard followed, but still, nothing.Black lung patients and their advocates petitioned the Mine Safety and Health Administration for an updated silica rule in 2011, but it took until last year for the agency to propose an updated rule and send it to the Office of Management and Budget for review. By April, mine regulators had promised to deliver a draft of the proposal, which would then go through a lengthy public comment period and possible revisions before approval. But the rule is still with the OMB, and no one’s sure why it’s taking so long.

Coal ash sinkhole expands in Mooresville, contaminating stream while legal dispute delays cleanup - For the past three years, a sinkhole in a Mooresville parking lot has released coal ash into a tributary of Lake Norman, in part because of a legal impasse about who is responsible — the property owners or Duke Energy — for repairing the damage.The cause, says a lawyer for the property owners, is a pipe and culvert system, improperly installed 25 years ago, that “has now failed, spectacularly, and has caused a very deep sinkhole to develop and grow. This sinkhole threatens not only to swallow up one of our entity client’s business stores, but also private parking lots, private roads, and portions of NC Highway 150.”The one-acre parking lot at 190 West Plaza Drive — also known as NC Highway 150 — is currently owned by Christopher and Kim Medford and Tire Masters. However, the coal ash was buried on the property under a previous ownership. In 1994 and 1995, Terry Smith developed the tract and allowed Duke Energy to deposit nearly 55,000 cubic yards of ash from the Marshall Steam Station onto the future parking lot for use as structural fill.It was common – and legal – to use coal ash for this purpose at the time. Some coal ash fill sites were documented in land deeds, butthere are an unknown number of other locations where the material was buried. There is no notification requirement if the amount of ash is less than 1,000 cubic yards. Nor do state records document all of the old “legacy” sites — coal ash dumps from the 1950s, for example — when such activity was virtually unregulated.In 2018, the sinkhole began to form because a 100-yard corrugated metal pipe beneath the property and an adjacent lot collapsed after heavy rains. Engineering reports and state records show the pipe had been improperly installed at the same time – allegedly by a contractor who was widening NC 150 on behalf of the NC Department of Transportation.Now, facing several environmental violations and roughly $2 million in costs to remove and reinstall a new pipe and relocate the ash, the Medfords and their attorney are negotiating with Duke Energy and state regulators to solve a problem they didn’t cause. “Plainly, in our view, the failure of a metal pipe placed through a giant coal ash fill piping a year-round creek, considering Duke Energy’s expertise and close involvement, was to be expected as an eventuality by Duke Energy,” wrote Charles Grimes, the Medfords’ attorney, to Duke Energy.In response, Duke Energy has said it is not responsible for the ash contamination because the former property owner assumed responsibility for it — a liability recorded in the land deed and passed on to the Medfords. The utility also says it did not install the pipe.

Ex-GOP Ohio House speaker sentenced to 20 years for role in $60M bribery scheme; appeal expected (AP) — Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder was sentenced Thursday to 20 years in prison for his role in the largest corruption scandal in state history and taken immediately into custody, a judge declaring that “the court and the community’s patience with Larry Householder has expired.”The 64-year-old Republican tensed only slightly as U.S. District Judge Timothy Black meted out the punishment, the maximum under the law, and appeared somewhat disoriented as U.S. Marshals placed him in handcuffs. He glanced back briefly at his wife, Taundra, who exited the courtroom with his Perry County Ducks Unlimited ball cap folded in her hands. Ahead of his sentencing, Householder stood before Black to make a personal appeal for leniency, saying it was not himself that a harsh prison sentence would hurt most but his spouse of 40 years, his sons, grandchildren and friends. “I wasn’t power hungry. I went home,” he said of his departure from the Ohio House between speakerships. Householder told the judge that he and his wife had given “every ounce of energy we have to make life better for others.” In a blistering rebuke, Black threw back at Householder evidence counter to the family man image he had presented. He quoted Householder’s own statements, presented at trial, saying: “If you’re going to f—- with me, I’m going to f—- with your kids,” “we can f— with him later” and “f—- him ’til he’s dead.” Black called Householder “a bully with a lust for power” whose scheme marked an “assault on democracy, the betrayal of everyone in Ohio.” That included the Ohioans who donated to, campaigned for and voted for Householder, the judge said. “That wasn’t their way of just saying I like you or I support you. What they were saying is I’m choosing to trust you,” said Black. “They trusted you to do right by them, and you betrayed their trust.”

Environmental experts warn fracking on state lands in Ohio is dangerous, economically dubious - The Ohio Oil and Gas Land Management Commission heard from three environmentally-minded experts Wednesday skeptical of opening state lands to exploration. They argued the industry is downplaying risks and the strain on resources while offering an overly optimistic outlook. Silverio Caggiano spends a lot of time thinking about worst case scenarios. The retired Youngstown Fire battalion chief has nearly four decades of experience as a firefighter and spent more than 30 years dealing with hazardous materials. He argues the emergency response plans fracking companies offer are “paper tigers.” “They’ll list fire service is XYZ fire department,” Caggiano said. “They neglect to put in there that XYZ fire department is a volunteer fire department and it may be an extended response time before those people actually get there to help solve your problem.” He pointed to the Eisenbarth well fire and the Powhatan gas leak as two recent examples. In both cases, he said, the company had emergency response plans that checked all the boxes but fell apart when tested. Caggiano also criticized the lack of information companies make available to first responders. He showed a Material Safety Data Sheet, or MSDS, for a Halliburton chemical marketed as GasPerm 1000. In the row where it would normally have a unique ID number for the compound, instead it says “proprietary.”“They’re giving you information, but it’s useless,” And while he worries about the brand name chemicals companies put in, he’s also concerned about substances like radium that fracking pulls out of the ground. He described how a company that tried to clean that contaminated water went out of business. “You can get the suspended solids you can get some of the chemicals out with filtration just couldn’t seem to get the radium out,” Caggiano said. “So is there a recyclability of this water? No. Not with the radium in it, no way. Radium 226 has a half-life of 1,600 years.” Meanwhile, Ted Auch an environmental scientist with the FracTracker Alliance, contends fracking isn’t the commercial success story the industry often portrays. Auch acknowledges drillers can point to graphs showing year-over-year production increases. But that looks like a sugar rush when you consider what’s happening on a per-well basis, Auch argued. “The fracking revolution was promised to bring about 20 to 30 year plus lifespans for wells,” Auch explained. “But the truth is productivity falls off a cliff at an exponential rate at the tune of 85% declines from year one to year two. That’s what the data says. And then from year to year three, it’s even more by year five. We’re not even talking about production.” Oil and gas companies stay in the black by drilling more and more wells, but Auch noted they’re getting a lot of public support too.In particular, he brought up the cost of water — crucial to the hydraulic fracturing process. In 2012, the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District sold water at $9 per 1,000 gallons. But now, Auch said, a Tappan Lake deal has water going for just $3 per 1,000 gallons. Auch said the current rate represents only about 0.25% to 0.75% of operating costs. Adding in the average cost of fines only moves that needle to about 1%. “They don’t blink,” he said. “We don’t make them blink. They don’t blink when we don’t actually scold them.” Cheap water, light fines, access to public lands — in the end Auch contends it all amounts to a public subsidy for an industry “that was never a beacon of resource use efficiency.” Environmental scientist Randi Pokladnik argued the areas around well pads face death by a thousand cuts. In the literal sense, pipelines to service drilling operations reduce habitats by dicing up forested areas. But even small spills, she argued, can have significant impacts. “There was an actual study where they deliberately sprayed fracking fluid waste into an experimental forest in West Virginia,” she described. “And they showed that within 10 days, all the understory plants had died and then in less than a year all the tree species had succumbed.” Auch argued the commission can’t make an honest assessment of costs and benefits without taking all of that into account.

One Ohio family's fight could shape future farmland preservation efforts - The Statehouse News Bureau -Three generations of the Bailey family are working to clean out 9,000 bushels of corn kernels stored in their grain bin. But first, they’ve got to repair a piece of farm equipment: a bin sweep auger.Don Bailey tests the equipment. He smiles when he hears it give a roar.“We’re back in business. Won’t take long now,” he said. Twenty years ago, Don’s uncle, Arlo Renner, entrusted this land to Don and Patrick to keep in production. Renner donated it to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, or the ODA’s, agricultural easement program. It's a contract with the state that requires the around 230 acres to be used solely for agricultural production – protecting it as farmland forever.But, the Bailey family had to fight the state for the right to farm their land. Their recent court case could have big implications for farmland preservation across the state.Don said his uncle Renner saw Union County’s farmland slowly disappear over the course of his life. Renner wanted to protect the farm, 30 miles northwest of Columbus, from urban development.“I'm trying to live up to what he wants to do, and do what's best for the future of the farm,” Don said.That has proved difficult. Since the Bailey’s acquired the property, multiple companies have applied to put pipelines through parts of the land. The first two times, the ODA stepped in to put a stop to those requests. But, in 2019, the Baileys received a letter from Columbia Gas. It wanted to put a natural gas pipeline on the land, cutting through 13 miles of the farm.Patrick and his wife Whitney passed along the request to the ODA, expecting the same result as the first two pipeline requests. The ODA instead sided with Columbia Gas.“We made the mistake of trusting our government,” Patrick said. “We thought they'd do what was statutorily required and morally required, and they didn't do it.” The department contended that building a pipeline through the land wouldn’t be a violation of the easement. They supported Columbia Gas in its argument that the pipeline wouldn’t impact the ability to farm.The family disagreed.“We couldn't put up a livestock barn or a greenhouse, we couldn’t have fences, we couldn't have an orchard,” he said. “Lots of things that qualify as agriculture in the state of Ohio we would not be able to do on land that has a pipeline easement on it.”The Baileys decided to fight the decision in court. It was costly. They had to dip into the college funds of their five kids to afford it. But Patrick and Whitney felt like they had a huge obligation on their shoulders.“Every single easement that the ODA held would be in jeopardy. Because, if Columbia Gas had come through here, that would set a precedent that easements could have pipelines across them, even though they say that they can't.”In April, their efforts paid off: the Ohio Third District Court of Appeals ruled Columbia Gas couldn’t use Bailey's land. The next month, Columbia Gas officially abandoned their case.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy Tours Encino Utica Well Pad in Ohio - Marcellus Drilling News - Yesterday U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who is in Ohio for several days, toured Encino Energy’s Sanor Farm Well Pad near Damascus (Columbiana County), where Encino is drilling four Utica wells. McCarthy said this: “We just don’t want to be energy independent, we want to be dominant.” Love it! This is a home run by McCarthy, showing up to support shale energy in the Ohio Utica.

Injection rejection: Indiana County community pushes back against fracking residue well - As the Wanchisns sit on their back porch in Grant Township, Indiana County, something small and bright red peeks just over the treeline about a mile away. It’s the top of the injection well proposed in 2013 by Warren-based Pennsylvania General Energy. After a decade of legal battles — some of which are ongoing — Wanchisn and other residents got some welcome news last month: The energy company notified state environmental officials that they intend to plug the well. “They’re plugging it right now,” Wanchisn’s daughter and township supervisors Chair Stacy Long said of the Yanity well, located along Mill Run Road amidst a small community of less than 700 people. Part of a May 16 filing in a federal court case involving Grant Township included a notice that PGE intended to plug the well after gas was discovered leaking into the well during a routine inspection. Plugging work on the well began June 1, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection. Indiana County has a long history of resource extraction in the form of salt, coal, natural gas and timber. But when Long and others heard about PGE’s plan to seek permits for an injection well in 2013, they took action. “It was just a tiny little legal notice in the paper, about the EPA and this injection well permit,” said Wanchisn, 79. “One of the former township supervisors brought it to me, and I started doing some research.” Wanchisn didn’t like what she read about the wells, which accept the wastewater, brine and byproducts of unconventional drilling operations, releasing the fluid into porous underground rock formations, according to the EPA.. “We went to our local League of Women Voters because we wanted to appeal the permits for the well.” The residents group formed into the state-certified nonprofit East Run Hellbenders Society, and connected with another nonprofit, the Mercersburg-based Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund. CELDF staff convinced Wanchisn and the society that appealing the permits would not help them oppose the well. As a second-class township, Grant was beholden to the pre-existing laws of the state Township Code. So we began working to become a home-rule municipality in order to develop our own laws and not have to rely on the ‘cookie-cutter’ second-class township code.” After residents approved a ballot measure to institute a community bill of rights that prohibited injection wells, in 2014 PGE filed a lawsuit against them. In 2015, a federal judge invalidated parts of the ordinance because they violated the Second Class Township Code or were ruled unlawfully exclusionary. Three weeks later, the township’s residents approved a new home-rule charter by a 2-1 margin, changing the township’s form of government and reinstating the ban on injection wells. “The Home Rule Charter is rights-based. It’s only eight pages long,” Wanchisn said. “It did an end-run around the federal judge’s ruling, and it passed with 60% of the township supporting it.”

Pa. fracking fees come in at $279 million for 2022, PUC says - The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission announced Tuesday that it will be distributing nearly $279 million in fracking impact fees charged to shale gas drillers in 2022, a bump over $234 million collected in 2021.The lion’s share of the impact fees – established by Act 13 of 2012 – are paid either to counties and municipalities to offset the adverse impact of gas drilling and pipelines in their communities, or into the state’s Marcellus Legacy Fund, which the state uses to fund environmental and infrastructure projects.The increase in revenue for 2022 is driven primarily by the rise in natural gas prices last year, according to the PUC, as well as by new wells drilled.Pennsylvania’s fee is charged per well, but varies each year based on prices; the average natural gas price in 2022 was $6.64 per Metric Million British Thermal Units, as opposed to $3.84 in 2021, according to the PUC.Additionally, 574 new horizontal wells were drilled last year – although this is a decline in drilling relative to prior years, according to Department of Environmental Protection data tracked by the Independent Fiscal Office.This has accompanied a slowdown in Pennsylvania gas production overall, according to IFO and DEP numbers, despite a large number of unexplored gas leases outstanding.With the distribution of 2022 funds next month, the state will have handed out over $2.5 billion to local governments since the inception of the fee system 11 years ago, according to the PUC.Pennsylvania’s fee structure on drillers who extract natural gas and other chemicals by hydraulic fracturing – often called ‘fracking’ - has been a subject of debate, albeit not this budget year.
Former Gov. Tom Wolf repeatedly proposed changing the per-well fee to a true tax, charged by the volume of gas extracted. As far back as 2016, Wolf was projecting that a 6.5% fracking tax would bring in over a half a billion dollars annually while shifting the tax burden toward higher-intensity operators.But this change never made it through budget negotiations with the legislature, and current Gov. Josh Shapiro did not propose changing the fracking fee system in his budget request for the upcoming fiscal year.“Pennsylvania natural gas development has delivered national energy security, cleaner air, consumer and economic gains here at home and abroad,” David Callahan, president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, an industry trade group, said in a press release. “The impact tax is yet another example of how the industry supports better quality of life for all Pennsylvanians.”

How M-U NGLs Get Exported – ET's Mariner Pipelines & Marcus Hook - Marcellus Drilling News - NGLs, or natural gas liquids, are an essential revenue stream for Marcellus/Utica drillers in the “wet gas” regions of the play. Those regions are found in southwestern Pennsylvania, the northern panhandle of West Virginia, and eastern Ohio. There are several pipelines that flow M-U NGLs to other regions or to export facilities. Among them is Enterprise Products Partners’ 1,230-mile Appalachia to Texas Express (ATEX) pipeline to the Gulf Coast, and Kinder Morgan’s 270-mile Utica-to-Ontario-Pipeline-Access (UTOPIA) pipeline from Harrison County, Ohio, to Windsor in Canada’s Ontario province. However, most M-U NGLs travel through Energy Transfer’s Mariner East and West pipelines, with Mariner East flowing to the Marcus Hook export terminal near Philadelphia.

Keynote Speakers Announced For August 2023 Marcellus Shale Water Conference Include Susquehanna River Basin Commission-- Today, Oilfield Water Connection is pleased to announce that Andrew Dehoff P.E., Executive Director at the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, will deliver the opening keynote address at the 2nd Annual Marcellus Shale Water Business Update Conference on August 9, 2023.Mr. Dehoff will share thoughts on Appalachian water trends and sustainability in his remarks, kicking off a productive day of discussion and networking about water management by leading Appalachian natural gas producers and service providers.The Susquehanna River Basin Commission is an interstate agency that coordinates the management of water resources in the region. The mission of the Commission is to enhance public welfare through comprehensive planning, water supply allocation, and management of the water resources of the Susquehanna River Basin.As Executive Director at the Commission, Mr. Dehoff has a deep understanding of regional water trends, regulation, risks, and opportunities. The big picture perspective he shares will be valuable to conference attendees and a great way to begin the day.Following Mr. Dehoff’s remarks, Ryan Hassler, Senior Analyst at Rystad Energy, will deliver the event’s second keynote presentation, sharing data and forecasts on Northeast E&P trends. Attendees can expect to receive a data download on Northeast shale drilling, completion, and production themes as well as an outlook for what’s coming next that will impact the natural gas industry's water requirements in the Marcellus and Utica shale plays.From there, the agenda will move into a series of informative panel discussions featuring thought leaders from these companies and more:

- EQT Corporation
- Chesapeake Energy
- Gulfport Energy
- Diversified Production
- Equitrans Midstream

Panel topics will cover produced water regulatory trends, the future of regional water management, E&P perspectives on water management, sustainability, as well as the latest trends in treatment, disposal and logistics.

Marcellus-Utica Shale E&P Operator Majority To Speak At Appalachian Shale Water Conference In July -- The first Marcellus-Utica Shale Water Business Update conference will be held July 29th at the Pittsburgh Westin. Online registration is open here.At this event, the majority of northeastern shale gas producers (as measured by well completions activity) will share their views on water management.Specifically, E&P operator representatives from top producers that together comprise more than half of the total active frac crews working in the Marcellus Shale and Utica Shale natural gas plays will take the stage to discuss their latest thoughts and efforts in full-cycle shale water management.Some of the E&P companies that will have delegates speaking at the event include: EQT, Range Resources, Chesapeake, Southwestern Energy, Coterra, Gulfport, Repsol, and more…Joining these E&P speakers on stage will be thought leaders from midstream, service, transportation, advisory, and data firms rounding out a tremendous agenda and learning / networking opportunity.In addition to the excellent speaker lineup, some of the most highly respected firms in the Marcellus Shale / Utica Shale water business have joined the event as sponsors including: Gemini Shale Solutions, Energy Water Solutions, Keystone Clearwater Solutions, CORE Linepipe, DHI, CDX Energy Services, and CSR Services. Media partners and supporting organizations include Marcellus Drilling News, Shale Directories, and MUG. Link To Conference Website>

Opposition continues on proposed Yough river power plant A proposed natural gas-fueled power plant a few miles north of West Newton would pump more pollution into a region that already has poor air quality, environmentalists and activists said at a community meeting this week. More than 100 people attended the meeting organized by the Environmental Health Project of Pittsburgh, which detailed some of the concerns posed by residents about the plant proposed for Elizabeth Township. Invenergy of Chicago, through its subsidiary Allegheny Energy Center, wants to build a 639-megawatt power plant on 17 acres of farmland in Smithdale, across the Westmoreland County border from Collinsburg. Nathan Deron, an environmental data scientist for the Environmental Health Project of Pittsburgh, said the plant could spew more harmful pollutants such as nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds into an area where air has been impacted by plants such as U.S. Steel Corp.’s Clairton coke works and the Tenaska Westmoreland Generation Station natural gas-fueled power station in South Huntingdon. Invenergy has not responded to requests for comment on its proposed plant. “It’s not for our needs. How many power plants do we need,” former state Rep. David Levdansky of Forward Township said after the meeting. Levdansky was referring to Pennsylvania being the second-largest net supplier of total energy to other states, behind only Texas, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The power generated by Invenergy plant will be placed on the PJM Interconnection electrical grid for distribution to 13 states and Washington, D.C., said Levdansky, who served in the state House for 25 years before losing a reelection bid in 2010. Within the past decade, two plants along the Monongahela River in Washington County have been decommissioned — the former Duquesne Light Co. plant at Elrama and the former West Penn Power Co. Mitchell Generation Station near New Eagle. Scott Taylor, president of the Protect Elizabeth Township citizens group, said the group will appeal the township’s decision to rezone the proposed site from rural to light industrial. Environmental groups such the Clean Air Council, Mountain Watershed Association in Champion, Protect Elizabeth Township and Yough Communities C.A.R.E. (Conserving our Air, Rivers, Environment) in West Newton have joined forces in attempt to block approval for the plant and an appeal has been filed on the Allegheny County Health Department’s decision in October 2021 to issue Invenergy an installation permit, but not an operating permit.

11 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 19-25 | Marcellus Drilling News -New shale permits issued for Jun 19-25 in the Marcellus/Utica took another nosedive. There were 11 new permits issued last week, down from 21 the previous week. There’s just no denying that the trend in permits is generally down. Last week’s permit tally included 6 new permits in Pennsylvania, 2 new permits in Ohio (both permits in the Marcellus layer!), and 3 new permits in West Virginia. Olympus Energy scored the most new permits, with 4 issued in Allegheny County, PA. Southwestern Energy had the second most new permits, with 3 permits issued in Marshall County, WV. ALLEGHENY COUNTY | BELMONT COUNTY | BRADFORD COUNTY | CHESAPEAKE ENERGY | GULFPORT ENERGY | MARSHALL COUNTY |OLYMPUS/HUNTLEY & HUNTLEY | SOUTHWESTERN ENERGY

M-U Drillers Learn How to “Walk the Line” When/Not to Drill | Marcellus Drilling News - In the early days of the shale revolution, Marcellus/Utica drillers (all shale drillers) were incentivized by shareholders to drill at any cost. The philosophy was “drill baby drill,” believing pipelines would somehow get built to handle the increasing production volume. Over the past three years or so, since about the time the pandemic began, things have changed. Instead of “drill baby drill,” the rallying cry is now “curtail volumes,” “delay completions,” and “game-time decisions.” M-U producers have learned to “walk the line” of matching production with local demand, storage, and firm pipeline capacity.

Mountain Valley Pipeline gets final permit needed to resume construction - A final permit issued Friday may be enough to get the Mountain Valley Pipeline across the remaining rivers, streams and wetlands that have long blocked the project’s path to completion. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave its approval for construction through hundreds of water bodies in Southwest Virginia and West Virginia, as it was required to do by a recently passed federal law that fast-tracks the controversial project. Mountain Valley has previously said that it has completed more than half of the nearly 1,000 water body crossings along the pipeline’s 303-mile route. But on Friday, company spokeswoman Natalie Cox wrote in an email that there are “approximately 643 total water resources to be crossed, including water bodies and wetlands, some of which may be crossed more than once.” A number of factors — including multiple crossings of a single water body in some cases and a single crossing that includes multiple water bodies in others — make it difficult to come up with a precise number. But one thing seemed clear Friday: Mountain Valley now has approval to complete a natural gas pipeline delayed for more than four years by permitting complications and legal challenges. “This announcement that the Mountain Valley pipeline finally has all permits needed to resume construction is great news,” said U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, a champion of a project that starts in his home state. The $6.6 billion project was bailed out of its legal and permitting woes by a law, pushed by Manchin and passed by Congress three weeks ago, that includes a provision green-lighting the pipeline’s completion in broader legislation that suspended the federal debt ceiling and averted a disastrous government default.

They Fought a Pipeline on Their Land. Then Congress Got Involved – WSJ -Debt-ceiling law gave a green light to the Mountain Valley Pipeline backed by Sen. Joe Manchin. —Mary Beth Coffey has spent almost a decade trying to keep a natural-gas pipeline from cutting across her Southwest Virginia mountaintop property. Mary Beth Coffey points to the path of the Mountain Valley Pipeline project that she has fought for almost a decade and that will soon cut through her Southwest Virginia property.

'Out there rotting': Mountain Valley neighbors fear aging pipe - — The developer of the Mountain Valley pipeline now has a clear path to finishing the project. But it also has, literally, tons of aging pipe that has been sitting out in the elements for as long as six years. That’s a potential safety problem, according to experts, manufacturers, safety advocates and opponents of the pipeline. Sunlight and rain degrade the epoxy coating on the pipes that prevents corrosion. Damage to the coating increases the risk of ruptures and explosions. “There’s pipe sitting out there rotting,” said Roberta Bondurant of Bent Mountain, near Roanoke, one of the most outspoken opponents of the project known as MVP. She called the current situation “a promise of random explosion … somewhere along the 300 miles of this ticking pipe bomb.” Officials with Equitrans Midstream Corp., which is developing the 303-mile line, say not to worry. During the years of construction delays, their crews have been monitoring the pipe segments in the field and in pipe yards, and each one will be inspected and tested before being added. Pipe that fails, they say, will be replaced. “First and foremost, the safe construction and operation of the MVP project remains our top priority,” Natalie Cox, a spokesperson for the pipeline and Equitrans, said in an email. “The pipes will continue to be checked to identify any issues that need to be addressed prior to the pipe being placed into the ditch and backfilled.” Questions about the pipe come on top of landslide dangers inherent in building a long project across mountainous terrain. The pipe is to carry gas under 1,400 pounds of pressure up steep mountainsides and terrain prone to erosion. Equitrans has been cited by regulators for construction violations and sued by the state over hundreds of erosion-related problems. The safety of the pipe could be the new battleground for Mountain Valley now that President Joe Biden and Congress have cleared away the legal and regulatory stalemate that had jeopardized the project as part of a deal to raise the debt limit. Opponents say the pipe should be replaced or recoated in a secure facility before it gets put in the ground. That could add considerable expense and delays for a project already over budget and years behind schedule.

Federal regulators give permission for Mountain Valley Pipeline to restart construction - The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has approved permits allowing construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline to restart.The 300-mile pipeline is designed to move natural gas from West Virginia to Pittsylvania County. Construction began in 2018, but since then, a series of legal battles stalled the project. Recently, Congress voted to expedite construction, as part of negotiations on raising the debt ceiling.Congress included language in the Fiscal Responsibility Act to fast track the project, limit judicial review and order federal regulators to grant all permits within a few weeks.FERC cleared the way for construction to resume after the US Army Corps of Engineers issued a key permit Friday for water crossings.Pipeline opponents have challenged the constitutionality of the recent action by Congress, arguing it violates the separation of powers between the judicial and legislative branches of government. But a quick hearing isn’t guaranteed. MVP has asked the federal appeals court in Richmond to give it until July 10 to respond. So we could see work resume, before the court takes up that constitutional question.

Mountain Valley pipeline gets OK to resume construction -The lead agency overseeing construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline authorized work to resume Wednesday. As expected, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s order came after last week’s approval of the final permit needed by Mountain Valley, an approval by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to cross streams and wetlands in the pipeline’s path. Long delayed by legal challenges that cited its poor environmental track record, Mountain Valley was jump-started earlier this month when Congress passed a law that suspended the federal debt ceiling — and included a surprise provision declaring the project was in the national interest. Company spokeswoman Natalie Cox said crews will begin work “shortly” on the unfinished portions of the 303-mile pipeline. “Mountain Valley looks forward to flowing domestic natural gas this winter for the benefits of reliability and affordability in the form of lower natural gas prices for consumers,” Cox wrote in an email, “while also benefiting national energy security and helping to achieve state and national goals for lowering carbon emissions.” Pipeline opponents blasted a deal struck by President Joe Biden and Democratic leaders to push the pipeline to completion even while legal challenges were pending. “The Biden administration just green lit a reckless, unnecessary fossil fuel project during a deadly heat wave caused by climate change,” Russell Chisholm, the managing director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights coalition, said in a statement. “The gas from the pipeline is unnecessary, the permanent local jobs provided are minimal, the endangerment to precious species is irreversible, water sources will be polluted, and earthquake and landslide prone areas stand in its wake,” Chisholm said. “We are devastated but we will never give up on protecting our home.”

Company says Manchin-backed pipeline could bring fuel this winter after federal approval The controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline could carry natural gas as soon as this winter, the company behind it said after the pipeline secured federal approval. On Wednesday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued an order stating Mountain Valley is “authorized to proceed with all remaining construction associated with the project.” Natalie Cox, a spokesperson for Equitrans Midstream, one of the companies behind the pipeline, sent an emailed statement to The Hill on Thursday that said the vessel’s construction could be completed by the end of the year. “Mountain Valley looks forward to flowing domestic natural gas this winter,” the statement said. The Mountain Valley Pipeline would stretch across 303 miles and carry gas from West Virginia to Virginia. The latest order comes after the passage of a bill to lift the debt limit that also included language to approve “all authorizations, permits … and any other approvals or orders“ needed for the pipeline’s construction, effectively ensuring that it will be okayed. The commission cited the law in its order, stating that “all issued Federal authorizations for the Mountain Valley Pipeline Project have been ratified by Congress.” The vessel was backed by lawmakers from West Virginia including Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who was a key swing vote in the evenly divided Senate last year. Manchin, who could face a tough reelection fight in the state if he chooses to run again, last year made a deal with Democratic leaders to pass legislation approving the pipeline in exchange for his vote on the Democrats’ climate, tax and health care bill. Last year, his effort ultimately flopped as most Senate Republicans and some left-wing Democrats pushed back against the pipeline’s passage. But its approval was included in the bill raising the debt ceiling that President Biden signed earlier this month. Proponents of the pipeline say it would bolster the nation’s energy by transporting natural gas. Opponents have objected to the completion of more fossil fuel infrastructure, which they say will contribute to climate change, and have also raised concerns about local environmental impacts. Manchin, on Twitter, celebrated the latest development.

Fate of Mountain Valley Pipeline’s N.C. extension still unclear -While U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm defended the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline this week, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper raised concerns about its planned extension into the state. The 300-mile natural gas project through the Virginias may be best known as the priority of U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, the West Virginia Democrat who struck a deal with the White House to unblock its long-delayed permits as part of the recent debt ceiling law. Granholm, whose agency has no role in permitting pipelines, reiterated her earlier endorsement of the project on Monday, even when asked about recent reports that the project is only slated to run at 35% capacity. “The administration has supported the MVP on the grounds of energy security,” Granholm said, during a brief sit-down interview with reporters in Charlotte, part of her tour this week to promote federal clean energy initiatives. “We know that there’s a lot of opposition out there,” Granholm added. “This is the balance that the administration is trying to seek overall. We’ve spent the vast majority of time on the acceleration to clean [energy], while recognizing that there needs to be some fossil available for a period of time until we get to the goal of 100% clean energy.”Pipeline opponents continue to challenge the project, most recently in lawsuits filed this week arguing that Congress’ interference in executive branch permits is unconstitutional. But no matter what happens with the longer leg, its short extension into North Carolina remains in question. Proposed to stretch 40 miles through Rockingham and Alamance Counties, the Southgate project has drawn opposition from two local governments and numerous elected officials, many of them Republicans, who argue it interferes with private property rights and local tourism efforts. Slated to skirt the Haw River, cross the Dan River, and impact dozens of their tributaries, the pipeline extension has also been twice denied a necessary water quality permit from the state Department of Environmental Quality and has yet to reapply. Southgate also needs reapproval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission — permission that U.S. Reps. Kathy Manning and Valerie Foushee, both Democrats, urged the agency this week to reject. Asked about the project on Monday, Cooper focused on how new natural gas infrastructure could become obsolete in light of the state’s plan to transition to zero-carbon energy by midcentury.

From Fracking Well to Landfill: Tracing Plastic's Toxic Lifecycle -- Plastic is everywhere, and much of it spends just a few weeks, days, or moments fulfilling its intended purpose. Globally, 44% of it is used for packaging, tossed almost as soon as we get our hands on it. But plastic has a long life before it becomes a product on a shelf — and an even longer life after it’s tossed. Every step of this lifecycle takes a toll on our health, environment, and climate. Not only does plastic drive demand for fossil fuels; our oversupply of fracked gas is leading to yet more long-lived plastic. From beginning to end, these are the costs of plastic’s lifecycle. Making plastic is a huge contributor to climate change, as globally, more than90% of plastics come from fossil fuels. Moreover, making plastic involves high heat and lots of electricity — both generated using fossil fuels. In the U.S., the plastic lifecycle typically starts with natural gas processing or natural gas liquids. And the country’s natural gas largely comes from fracking. We’ve known for years that fracking is poorly regulated and dangerous, especially for those living closest to its operations. Researchers have linked fracking to a variety of health problems, including cancer. From poisoning drinking water, to causing earthquakes, to leaking climate-wrecking methane, fracking has endangered our communities for far too long. Processing crude oil produces naphtha, and processing natural gas results in natural gas liquids like ethane. Naphtha and ethane can then be “cracked” to produce ethylene, a main ingredient in many plastics, as well as other plastic building blocks. This cracking process depends on lots of steam or heat, typically generated by burning fossil fuels, which adds to plastic’s climate impact. Moreover, cracking releases huge amounts of climate pollutants and air pollutants, including smog-forming nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds. After cracking comes polymerizing — converting ethylene and other molecules into plastic polymers. This results in small plastic resin pellets, commonly called “nurdles.” Manufacturers then melt and shape those nurdles into plastic products; another energy-intensive process. Additionally, at this stage companies add fillers and additives, which can make up as much as 85% of the final product’s volume. Many of these additives are toxic; some even disrupt our hormones. They can also leak out of plastic as it ages, seeping into our food and the environment, where they accumulate over time. Hundreds of millions of tons of plastic enter our lives and our environment each year. And with time and use, that plastic gradually wears down, shedding little pieces. In fact, these microplastics* make up an estimated third of the plasticthat enters the environment. We now find microplastics literally everywhere: our oceans, our food, and even the air we breathe. Synthetic carpets shed plastic into the air inside our homes, and this plastic can accumulate in our lungs with every breath.

Sulfur smell covering northwest Indiana believed to be caused by BP Whiting Refinery – Indiana Public Radio --Severe weather caused BP’s Whiting Refinery to send more pollution into the air Sunday night. Local emergency management officials believe that could be what’s causing a sulfur smell in several counties in northwest Indiana.Officials in La Porte County first thought it was a gas leak, but the utility didn’t find any. And later nearby Porter County also started getting overwhelmed with 911 calls about the smell. Lance Bella directs the Porter County Emergency Management Agency. “It smelled like sulfur, didn’t smell like natural gas and almost smelled like an oily smell. So I started checking with our local industry,” he said. Power outages disrupted operations at the Whiting Refinery causing unplanned gas flaring. That’s where excess natural gas produced during oil refining is burned off into the atmosphere.Flares are supposed to reduce most of the pollutants in natural gas, but they can still release things like sulfur dioxide — which can harm your lungs and make breathing difficult, especially for people with lung conditions. Flaring can also release carbon dioxide and some methane — greenhouse gasses that contribute to climate change. BP has said the community is safe, but local health officials and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management haven’t confirmed that. The company said no injuries have been reported.Bella said once Porter County EMA learned about BP’s excess flares, it contacted IDEM and the local health department. He said so far, officials with northwest Indiana counties haven’t found any other evidence of industrial leaks or spills that could have caused the smell.In a statement Monday morning, BP said it was monitoring the situation and it expects it to resolve itself in a few hours.Last month, the refinery received the largest federal penalty ever imposed for industrial air pollution in U.S. history.

Cheniere And China’s ENN Energy Lock In 20-Year LNG Deal -- The United States largest producer of LNG, Cheniere Energy, has signed a long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG) sale and purchase agreement with China’s ENN Energy Holdings. ENN will purchase ~1.8M metric tons/year of LNG on a free-on-board basis at Henry Hub prices for a 20-year term, with deliveries to commence mid-2026 ramping up to 0.9 million tonne per annum (mtpa) in 2027. The deal is subject to the completion of Cheniere’s Sabine Pass project, which is being developed to include up to three liquefaction trains with an expected total production capacity of ~20M tons/year of LNG. Current;y, Sabine Pass has six fully operational liquefaction units aka ?“trains”, each capable of producing ~5 mtpa of LNG for an aggregate nominal production capacity of ~30 mtpa. Cheniere processes more than 4.7 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas into LNG. Sabine Pass has multiple pipeline connections to interstate and intrastate pipelines, and is located less than four nautical miles from the Gulf of Mexico thus providing easy access to seafaring vessels. Last week, Cheinere entered another long-term liquefied natural gas sale and purchase agreement with Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) that will see the Norwegian national oil company purchase 1.75M metric tons/year of LNG on a free-on-board basis for a purchase price indexed to the Henry Hub price, for a 15-year term.Last year, ENN signed a 13-year deal with Cheniere to purchase 900K metric tons/year, again based on Henry Hub prices.

Biden Seeks to Shield Taxpayers from Aging Offshore Oil Well Cleanup Costs -A new Biden administration plan for ensuring oil companies have enough money set aside to clean up old offshore platforms is being panned as a potential blow to domestic energy production as well as dozens of independent companies extracting crude from the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed rule advanced by the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management marks the latest attempt to ensure taxpayers aren’t on the hook to pay for more than $40 billion in estimated decommissioning expenses, even if current and past owners file for bankruptcy protection. The federal government has struggled for years to set financial assurance requirements for aging offshore oil and gas infrastructure that may date back to the 1950s and has passed through many hands since. The new plan would help insulate major oil companies from decommissioning costs tied to the leases they once owned — a potential benefit for BP Plc, Shell Plc and other companies that have sold long-ago-drilled assets in the Gulf of Mexico. Overall, the measure would force companies to earmark an extra $9.2 billion in financial assurance to cover decommissioning costs, up from about $3.3 billion today. Those requirements would be tied to company credit ratings and the value of reserves — with the bulk of the burden expected to fall on non-integrated developers that collectively produce more than a third of Gulf of Mexico oil and gas. Potentially affected companies include smaller firms such as Kosmos Energy Ltd., and Talos Energy Inc., as well as larger producers, such as Murphy Oil Corp. and Hess Corp. It’s not clear there is a sufficiently large market to obtain an extra $9.2 billion in additional bonding. Opponents of the approach also argue the requirements would siphon capital from new drilling and development.

US natgas futures drop 6% on less hot forecasts, technical selling (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures dropped about 6% to a one-week low on Wednesday on forecasts for slightly less hot weather next week than previously expected, technical selling and as the amount of gas flowing to liquefied natural gas export (LNG) remains low due to maintenance outages at several facilities. That price decline came despite a drop in output in recent weeks and forecasts for the weather to remain hotter-than-normal through mid-July, especially in Texas. Power demand in Texas set a new record peak on Tuesday and was expected to break that all-time high on Wednesday as a heat wave bakes the state, according to preliminary data from the state's grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). "Burgeoning Texas wind generation drove supply higher and actually reduced the call on power sector gas burns despite record temperatures - reflecting the growing importance of wind generation to ERCOT natural gas consumption," Extreme heat boosts the amount of gas generators burn to produce power for air conditioning, especially in Texas, which gets most of its electricity from gas-fired plants. . On its last day as the front-month, gas futures for July delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 16.0 cents, or 5.8%, to settle at $2.603 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their lowest close since June 21. That price drop, the biggest one-day percentage decline since late May, pushed the contract out of technically overbought territory for the first time in four days. August futures, which will soon be the front-month, were down about 12 cents to $2.67 per mmBtu. Data provider Refinitiv said average gas output in the U.S. Lower 48 states fell to 101.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in June from a record 102.5 bcfd in May. Meteorologists forecast that weather in the Lower 48 states would remain hotter than normal June 28-July 13. With hotter weather coming, Refinitiv forecast that U.S. gas demand, including exports, would rise from 97.2 bcfd this week to 102.7 bcfd next week. The forecast for next week was higher than Refinitiv's outlook on Tuesday. U.S. exports to Mexico rose to an average of 6.4 bcfd so far in June from 6.0 bcfd in May. That compares with a monthly record high of 6.5 bcfd in June 2021. Gas flows to the seven big U.S. LNG export plants fell to an average of 11.4 bcfd so far in June from 13.0 bcfd in May. That is well below the monthly record high of 14.0 bcfd in April due to maintenance at several facilities, including Cheniere Energy Inc's Sabine Pass in Louisiana and Corpus Christi in Texas.

Natural gas snaps 2-day loss on smaller-than-forecast storage build -- Natural gas prices rose on Thursday for the first time in three sessions after a smaller-than-expected storage build for last week helped steady a market that lost 8% of its value over just 48 hours. August gas, the most-active contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange’s Henry Hub, rose 3.3 cents, or 1.2%, to settle at $2.701 per mmBtu, or metric million British thermal units. The hub’s benchmark gas futures lost 18.8 cents over Tuesday and Wednesday on concerns about insipid demand for gas-driven cooling since the official start of the U.S. summer on June 21. Thursday’s rebound, however, came after the Energy Information Administration, or EIA, reported that U.S. gas storage rose by just 76 bcf, or billion cubic feet, during the week ended June 23. Weekly gas build comes just below forecast Industry analysts tracked by Investing.com had a consensus for a build of 83 bcf instead for the week. The 76-bcf injection into storage compared with the 81-bcf build seen during the same week a year ago and the five-year (2018-2022) average increase of 80 bcf. With the latest build, total gas held in inventory across the United States stood at 2.239 tcf, or trillion cubic feet. That was 25.3% above the same week a year ago and about 14.6% above the five-year average. It has been an interesting time for natural gas, with bulls managing to keep the market in the positive for most of the month despite the mixed heat trends across the country. With a gain of just over 18% for June, futures on the Henry Hub are headed for their best month in almost a year. The last time the market rallied more in a month was in July 2022, when it gained 46%.

US natgas prices up 4% to 17-week high on rising LNG feedgas, hot weather (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures gained about 4% to a 17-week high on Friday on a daily rise in the amount of gas flowing to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants, amid signs of lower U.S. inflation and forecasts for hotter-than-normal U.S. weather to continue through mid-July, especially in Texas. In Texas, power use remained high after setting a record on Tuesday as a heat wave continues to bake the state, according to the state's grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). Extreme heat boosts the amount of gas generators burn to produce power for air conditioning, especially in Texas, which gets most of its electricity from gas-fired plants. In 2022, about 49% of the state's power came from gas-fired plants, with most of the rest from wind (22%), coal (16%), nuclear (8%) and solar (4%), according to federal energy data. "A major factor at play today is the release of new inflation data suggesting that the (U.S.) Federal Reserve (Fed) may be less inclined to continue rate hikes than previously expected," analysts said, noting the rally began at 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT) after the U.S. Commerce Department released personal income data for May. The Commerce Department's report showed annual inflation rising last month at its slowest pace in more than two years. Signs of lower inflation could delay interest rate hikes by the Fed. Higher interest rates increase borrowing costs, which can slow the economy and reduce demand for energy. Front-month gas futures for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 9.7 cents, or 3.6%, to settle at $2.798 per million British thermal units, their highest close since March 3. For the week, the U.S. contract was up about 3%, putting it up for a fourth week in a row for the first time since April 2022. For the month, the U.S. contract was up about 23% after falling about 6% in May. For the quarter, the U.S. contract was up about 26% after dropping by a record 50% in the first quarter. Data provider Refinitiv said average gas output in the U.S. Lower 48 states fell to 101.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in June from a record 102.5 bcfd in May. On a daily basis, however, output was on track to rise 1.8 bcfd over the past three days to a preliminary two-week high of 102.0 bcfd on Friday.

Texas Oil and Gas Employment Growth in May Highest in 33 Years -- Data from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has shown that upstream oil and natural gas employment in the state surged by 6,900 jobs in May, the highest single month reported job growth in the 33 years of data available on TWC’s website, the Texas Oil & Gas Association (TXOGA) highlighted. The addition of these jobs in May brings the total upstream oil and natural gas job count in Texas above 200,000 for the first time in over three years, TXOGA noted. Single month-to-month data points typically reflect job market variations that even out over longer periods, such as three to six months, TXOGA added in its comment on the figures. “Texas remains a powerhouse of production and all sectors of our economy benefit from robust activity,” said Todd Staples, President of the Texas Oil & Gas Association. “These numbers reported for May are the highest in decades and push upstream employment numbers above the 200,000 mark for the first time since 2020. Despite a slowdown in rig count and concerns about the global economy, the world remains dependent on the tremendous resources produced every day by dedicated men and women in the oil patch,” he added. Since the Covid-low point of September of 2020, industry has added 49,000 Texas upstream jobs, TXOGA pointed out. At 206,000 upstream jobs, compared to the same month in the prior year, May 2023 jobs were up by 22,700, or 12.4 percent, over May of 2022, the organization said, adding that months with an increase in upstream oil and natural gas employment have outnumbered months with a decrease by 28 to 4. Oil and natural gas jobs pay among the highest wages in Texas with employers in oil and natural gas paying an average salary of approximately $115,000 in 2022, TXOGA highlighted. The Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association (TIPRO) previously noted that there were 13,779 active unique jobs postings for the Texas oil and natural gas industry in May, including 4,366 new job postings added during the month by companies. In comparison, the state of California had 5,100 unique job postings last month, followed by Louisiana (2,390), Oklahoma (2,037), and Pennsylvania (1,649), TIPRO revealed.

The wife of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito leased a plot of land to an oil and natural gas company while the judge was weakening the powers of the Environmental Protection Agency, report says -- In June 2022, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito filed a lease for a plot of land in Oklahoma which would give her partial revenue from any oil or gas obtained from the designated area, according to The Intercept. In the lease, Martha Ann Bomgardner Alito came to an agreement with Citizen Energy III — an oil and natural gas company — which would give her 3/16ths of the revenue generated from potential oil and gas sales if the plot that she inherited from her late father could produce any fossil fuels. There are thousands of oil and gas leases across Oklahoma, where the energy sector is a critical economic driver. And Citizen Energy III isn't part of any specific cases in front of the Supreme Court, so there doesn't appear to be a clear conflict of interest regarding Bomgardner Alito's land in Oklahoma. But the oil and gas lease troubles many environmentalists given Justice Alito's role in weakening the scope of the Environmental Protection Agency in several cases that have come before the court. Jeff Hauser, the founder and director of the Revolving Door Project, told The Intercept that there is a broader issue of what the land could reap financially — even if a company involved in a lease wasn't tied to a specific case in front of the court. "There need not be a specific case involving the drilling rights associated with a specific plot of land for Alito to understand what outcomes in environmental cases would buttress his family's net wealth," he told the outlet. "Alito does not have to come across like a drunken Paul Thomas Anderson character gleefully confessing to drinking our collective milkshakes in order to be a real life, run-of-the-mill political villain." In May, the Supreme Court limited the ability of the EPA to regulate wetlands in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, which will affect the agency's ability to enforce the Clean Water Act. The decision frustrated President Joe Biden and served as a major blow to environmentalists.

Alito Ruled to Curb EPA’s Power After His Wife Leased Land to Oil and Gas Firm - Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has ruled multiple times over the past year to slash climate regulations and aid the fossil fuel industry and developers — and new reporting finds that he may have an indirect personal financial stake in those rulings.As The Intercept reported on Monday, Samuel Alito’s wife Martha Ann Alito struck a deal with oil and gas company Citizen Energy III last year: She would lease the company a plot of land she inherited from her father, and in return, she would get a fraction of the sales of the oil and gas it would potentially extract from the land.The 160-acre plot is located in Grady County, Oklahoma, one of the most active counties in the U.S. for oil and gas production. As part of the agreement, dated June 27, 2022, Martha Ann Alito gets paid 3/16ths of the sales of the fossil fuels from the land.Later that same week, the Supreme Court issued a ruling in West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that represented a major setback in the climate movement. Justice Alito joined the majority in the 6-3 decisionin which the Court ruled that the EPA doesn’t have the authority to implement limits on greenhouse gas emissions on power plants — a decision that climate groups decried as devastating and dangerous.On financial disclosures last year, the justice listed “mineral interests” valued between $100,001 and $250,000. As The Intercept notes, Samuel Alito has often recused himself from cases involving his investment portfolio, and Citizen Energy III isn’t currently involved in cases before the Supreme Court.Though there may not be a direct conflict of interest, however, the fact that the justice has a personal financial interest in the oil and gas industry and its ability to make profits without threat of regulation raises concerns over how he may rule in fossil fuel-related cases.“There need not be a specific case involving the drilling rights associated with a specific plot of land for Alito to understand what outcomes in environmental cases would buttress his family’s net wealth,” Revolving Door Project director and founder Jeff Hauser told The Intercept.“Alito does not have to come across like a drunken Paul Thomas Anderson character gleefully confessing to drinking our collective milkshakes in order to be a real life, run-of-the-mill political villain,” Hauser continued.Justice Alito is a longtime climate denier. In a speech at a conservative think tank’s event in 2017, he delivered a stunningly false speech in which he claimed that carbon dioxide isn’t a pollutant that’s harmful to life on earth — despite, of course, the gas’s major role in the climate crisis.“Carbon dioxide is not a pollutant. Carbon dioxide is not harmful to ordinary things, to human beings, or to animals, or to plants,” the justice said. “All of us are exhaling carbon dioxide right now.”

New Mexico regulators fine oil producer $40 million for burning off vast amounts of natural gas (AP) — New Mexico oilfield and air quality regulators on Thursday announced unprecedented state fines against a Texas-based oil and natural gas producer on accusations that the company flouted local pollution reporting and control requirements by burning off vast amounts of natural gas in a prolific energy-production zone in the southeast of the state. The New Mexico Environment Department announced a $40.3 million penalty against Austin, Texas-based Ameredev, alleging the burning caused excessive emissions in 2019 and 2020 at five facilities in New Mexico’s Lea County near the town of Jal. Regulators raised concerns about the excess release of several pollutants linked to climate warming or known to cause serious health issues, including sulfur dioxide. The agency alleged that Ameredev mined oil and natural gas without any means of transporting the gas away via pipeline, as required by state law. The company instead is accused of burning off the natural gas in excess of limits or without authorization in 2019 and 2020 — with excess emissions equivalent to pollution that would come from heating 16,640 homes for a year, the agency said in a statement. The open-air burning, or “flaring,” of natural gas is often used as a control measure to avoid direct emissions into the atmosphere, with permit requirements to estimate burning. “They simply were not following what they had represented in their permits. ... They represented that they would capture 100% of their gas, send it to the sales pipeline,” said Cindy Hollenberg, compliance and enforcement section chief at the air quality bureau of the New Mexico Environment Department. Representatives for Ameredev and a parent company could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday by phone or email. Separately, state oilfield regulators issued a violation notice and proposed a $2.4 million penalty against Ameredev for a series of regulatory infractions at one of the company’s wells. It accused Ameredev of failing to file required production and natural gas waste reports. “Such reports are critical for operators to demonstrate compliance with (New Mexico) waste rules, which themselves are a key component of New Mexico’s climate change policy,” the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department said in a statement. “Other required reports were submitted but were unacceptably late.” Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department Secretary Sarah Cottrell Propst said her agency was pursuing the maximum penalty available.

Some oil field violations linger for years in Kern —Serious oil field violations flagged as many as four years ago by state regulators in Kern County remain unresolved, according to a new analysis of publicly available data that raises questions about California's commitment or ability to address leaky wells and other problems of concern to local communities. Data posted by the California Geologic Energy Management Division shows 14 violations cited by the agency in 2019 — petroleum leaks, spills, unauthorized releases and the like — are still active. Forty-nine more remain unsettled since 2020, along with 88 from 2021, an analysis by Los Angeles-based CJM Petroleum Consulting Inc. indicates. The totals do not include lesser citations for things like missing signage. Counting those, CJM found, the county total from 2019 alone rises to 223, excluding violations attributed to oil field operators that are either bankrupt or inactive. Industry representatives emphasize that violations are the exception for oil field operators that, as a whole, work closely with regulators to resolve leaks and other problems. But the data is a reminder of difficulties the state faces in ensuring compliance about a month after state and regional inspectors found methane leaking from 27 oil wells in the Arvin-Lamont area, or 40% of those tested. About half those leaks were repaired by their operators almost immediately. To address the rest, CalGEM issued notices of violations to two companies deemed responsible for wells that continued to emit methane, one of which has reportedly fixed both its leaks. The other, Los Gatos-based Sunray Petroleum Inc., has denied responsibility for the facilities because it no longer owns them, even as CalGEM insists the company is not relieved of its responsibility for them "until the wells are safely plugged and sealed to protect public health and the environment." Assemblywoman Jasmeet Bains, D-Bakersfield, raised concern about the well leaks earlier this month, telling Gov. Gavin Newsom in a June 9 letter their repair must become top priority for the sake of local residents worried about health and safety implications. She said by email Friday that notices of violations issued by CalGEM "are only useful if they cause violations to be corrected." "There are good actors and bad actors in every industry," Bains wrote, adding, "The bad actors are dragging their feet, refusing to take responsibility, and making excuse after excuse." "It is ridiculous that bad actors like Sunray can repeatedly ignore CalGEM's notices and warnings to fix their old oil wells, while at the same time, CalGEM is approving permits for them to drill new wells. ... We need the governor to give CalGEM clear direction that it is time to hold bad actors accountable for illegal pollution and willful noncompliance."

Saudi Arabia Could Slash Oil Supply To The U.S. - Saudi Arabia could be looking to slash crude oil shipments to the United States from next month to effect a tightening of the world’s most transparent oil market. As the Kingdom prepares to cut unilaterally 1 million barrels per day (bpd) from its crude oil production in July, its crude shipments to the west could be much more affected than exports to its primary market, Asia, which lacks transparent oil inventory reporting like the U.S. does, Bloomberg Opinion columnist Javier Blas argues. On several occasions in recent years, Saudi Arabia has significantly lowered crude shipments to the United States in attempts to tighten the U.S. market, which reports oil and products data on a weekly basis, unlike China and India, which rarely – if at all – report commercial or strategic oil stockpiles.Early this month, the OPEC+ producers decided to keep the current cuts until the end of 2024, but OPEC’s top producer, Saudi Arabia, said it would voluntarily reduce its production by 1 million bpd in July, to around 9 million bpd. The cut could be extended beyond July, Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said. The production level in July would be Saudi Arabia’s lowest since 2011, excluding the initial cuts after the Covid outbreak in 2020 and the lowered production after the attack on Aramco’s facilities in September 2019.Even after the production cut Saudi Arabia announced for July 2023, Aramco, the world’s largest crude oil exporter, reportedly assured at least five North Asian refiners they would get the full crude volumes they had asked for in July.

Gulf of Mexico Sees Piracy Increase -- The Gulf of Mexico saw an increase in piracy incidents in 2022 compared to 2021. That’s according to Dryad Global Analyst Andrea Peniche Cobo, who told Rigzone that these incidents mainly occurred within the Bay of Campeche. When asked why this trend occurred, Cobo said the Covid-19 period caused an increased level of insecurity within Mexico. “While this took many forms throughout Mexico, along the Gulf of Mexico this meant a decreased level of security personnel within Mexican waters and around platforms, a decline in socio-economic conditions, and increased arming of organized crime groups,” Cobo said. “Therefore, not only did a decline in socio-economic conditions likely drive an increase in piracy, but the lack of security personnel also expanded the opportunity to do so,” Cobo added. “While this has not greatly affected the actual drilling and output of oil, piracy incidents interrupt personnel and put their lives at risk,” Cobo continued. Increased attacks can affect the willingness of companies to operate within the Gulf of Mexico, affect personnel willing to work those platforms, and cause interruptions in the traffic of support vessels to platforms, the Dryad Global analyst told Rigzone. Looking at what’s happening this year, Cobo said, so far in 2023, there has been a sharp decrease in reported incidents of piracy. “Yet, it is highly likely that this absence of reporting does not mean absence of incidents,” Cobo warned. “This is an area that has always suffered from severe underreporting, especially when it comes to attacks on platforms or supply vessels,” Cobo added. “Although reports indicate that platforms have increased their security, it is unlikely this has yet had much effect on the rate of incidents as onshore root motivators for piracy activity have not been ameliorated,” Cobo continued. The Dryad Global analyst also stated that corruption levels in Mexico have not decreased. “Therefore, law-enforcement remain likely to exercise delayed responses and incomplete reporting,” Cobo said. “Nevertheless, as pirates within the Gulf of Mexico are likely associated with local crime groups rather than cartels and usually commit robberies of valuable equipment and materials, it remains unlikely that they will target tankers and much larger vessels,” Cobo added.

Europe’s LNG Imports Surpass Pipeline Gas Imports For First Time Ever Europe’s LNG imports rose last year to levels that surpassed its imports of natural gas via pipeline, according to new data from the Energy Institute. Europe scrambled last year to distance itself from Russian pipeline gas after Russia invaded Ukraine and threatened to cut off gas shipments to several European nations. As Bloomberg noted on Monday, the Energy Institute’s data also showed that global natural gas production was fairly stable last year compared to 2021 levels—so the fact that Europe’s LNG imports had overtaken its Russian nat gas imports via pipeline is of particular note. The Energy Institute’s data shows that Europe’s natural gas imports via pipeline in 2022 were 35% lower than the previous year, coming in at 150.8 bcm—most of which still came from Russia. Meanwhile, Europe’s LNG imports rose to more than 170 bcm. To achieve this level of LNG imports, Europe had to construct import terminals for LNG. Asia increased its imports of LNG also, while Russia’s overall share of the world’s nat gas pipeline exports fell to 29% last year, compared to about 43%, where it’s hovered for the last decade. Asia, however, isn’t too concerned about locking in long-term deals to secure LNG supplies—something Europe has been loathed to do as it sets its sights on cutting its emissions by 55% by 2030—and then net-zero by 2050. Asia has no such reservations, and therefore has a leg up on Europe when it comes to securing LNG supplies. This leg-up for Asia has caused some to question Europe’s energy positioning in the run up to next winter, particularly if it turns out to be a rather cold winter. Norway is now the single-largest gas supplier to Europe.

European Natural Gas Consumption Continues to Plummet - The European Union’s (EU) independent energy regulator reported the bloc’s natural gas consumption has continued to drop even as trade liquidity and imports from the United States are still on the rise. The EU’s gas consumption has dropped 20.3% year-to-date, according to the latest market report from the European Union Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER). ACER analysts wrote that the voluntary gas cuts industrial users made last year at the start of Europe’s energy crisis have continued despite improving supply stability. Consumption from Europe’s power sector has also declined, adding to the drop in demand. “Gas-fired power generation started to drop in November 2022 in view of improving renewable and nuclear production and lower electricity demand...

Turkey Forging Ahead With Plans for Natural Gas Hub Less Reliant on Russia Turkey is moving forward with plans for a regional LNG hub that could potentially exclude Russia as a partner. Reduced European gas demand, a recent offshore gas discovery and new liquefied natural gas supplies have helped reduce Russian pipeline imports – a sign that the Turkish government may have an alternative gas strategy. During the first five months of the year, Turkey received one LNG reload from Belgium and purchased cargoes originally destined for other European destinations from Norway, Trinidad & Tobago, and Mozambique, Kpler analyst Ana Subasic told NGI. Turkey imported 6.75 million tons (Mt) of the super-chilled fuel from ten countries from January to May, up from 5.44 Mt during the same period in 2022, according to Kpler data. The United States was the...

Eni chief executive says plan for pipeline to move gas to Cyprus 'part of our discussion' — The chief executive of energy company Eni said Tuesday that Cyprus-Israeli plans for a pipeline to move offshore natural gas from the two countries to Cyprus is “part of our discussion” with the Cypriot government. The gas would be processed for electricity generation and possible exportation. Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said after talks with Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides that any plan to develop gas deposits discovered off Cyprus’ southern coast “must have economic value.”Descalzi said talks focused primarily on Eni’s plans to drill by the end of the year an additional well in Block 6 — one of seven areas inside Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone where the Italian company along with partner Total of France hold licenses for hydrocarbon exploration.“We always support the government because they asked us, we work with them and clearly everything must have an economic value, but clearly we are working together. So it’s part of our discussion,” Descalzi said in response to an Associated Press question.Cyprus Energy Minister George Papanastasiou said talks also revolved around how quickly discovered gas deposits can be developed as part of the Cypriot-Israeli two-pronged plan.Eni views the pipeline project in combination with a processing plant to liquefy natural gas for export by ship “favorably,” Papanastasiou said, on condition that more deposits are discovered to make the construction of such infrastructure economically viable.The Cypriot energy minister said the plan is in two phases. The first foresees a pipeline to bring Israeli and Cypriot gas to the island nation for electricity generation to be consumed domestically with excess supply conveyed back to Israel via an undersea electricity cable.The second phase foresees construction of a plant to convert natural gas to liquid so it can be exported to Europe and elsewhere at a time when the continent seeks to diversify its supply in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.Papanastasiou said Cypriot authorities will meet again with Eni officials in the near future for a more in-depth discussion on expediting development plans.

Shell, BP line up to buy NT shale gas as fracking gets green light - Global energy majors BP and Shell are considering buying shale gas from the Northern Territory’s environmentally and culturally sensitive Beetaloo Basin within the next decade if an ambitious new gas export project goes ahead. Tamboran Resources, an ASX-listed junior gas developer, said on Friday that it had signed non-binding initial agreements with BP and Shell over the potential purchase of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from its proposed production project at Middle Arm. Tamboran owns assets in the Beetaloo Basin, believed to be one of the world’s biggest untapped gas reserves, and is preparing to begin drilling works as soon as next month. “BP and Shell are two of the world’s largest LNG portfolio trading and energy companies and provide important and credible counterparties for Tamboran to progress financing discussions to support the sanctioning of the NTLNG project, capable of producing up to 6.6 million tonnes per annum,” Tamboran chief executive Joel Riddle said. Tamboran is aiming for first gas from the Beetaloo Basin from as early as 2025, and a potential LNG export plant from 2030. The memoranda of understanding come after the NT government this year cleared the way for companies to resume fracking, a process involving injecting high-pressure fluid into bedrock to force the extraction of gas, after a moratorium was lifted five years ago. The move to develop what could be a vast new gas production sub-basin has been welcomed by the oil and gas sector, which says extra volumes of the fossil fuel will provide a lucrative economic opportunity for the nation and help shore up east-coast energy security later this decade, when the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) is bracing for an increased threat of domestic shortfalls. However, fracking plans in the region have met a wave of opposition from environmentalists who fear it will drive up Australia’s carbon footprint and add to the worsening climate crisis. Some traditional owners have also objected to fracking in the region amid concerns about its impacts on their ancestral waters and lands. In May, a coalition of 96 leading Australian scientists, co-ordinated by the Australia Institute think tank, published an open letter in national newspapers warning of the climate damage it could inflict.“Opening up new fossil fuel extraction projects of this scale is at odds with the government’s plan for net-zero by 2050,” said Matthew England, a professor at the University of New South Wales Climate Change Research Centre. Also on Friday, Tamboran told shareholders it had selected gas pipeline company APA Group to connect its Beetaloo Basin assets to the existing east-coast gas transmission network via the South West Queensland Pipeline, and to Tamboran’s proposed Middle Arm development.

Eastward gas flows stop on Yamal-Europe pipeline (Reuters) -Eastward natural gas flows on the Yamal-Europe pipeline to Poland from Germany stopped on Friday, data from operator Gascade showed. Exit flows at the Mallnow metering point on the German border fell to zero between 0600 and 0700 CET, from 1,030,135 kWh/h in the previous hour, the data showed.

Oil spill from Shell pipeline fouls farms and a river in a long-polluted part of Nigeria A new oil spill at a Shell facility in Nigeria has contaminated farmland and a river, upending livelihoods in the fishing and farming communities in part of the Niger Delta, which has long endured environmental pollution caused by the oil industry. The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, or NOSDRA, told The Associated Press that the spill came from the Trans-Niger Pipeline operated by Shell that crosses through communities in the Eleme area of Ogoniland, a region where the London-based energy giant has faced decadeslong local pushback to its oil exploration. The volume of oil spilled has not been determined, but activists have published images of polluted farmland, water surfaces blighted by oil sheens and dead fish mired in sticky crude. While spills are frequent in the region due to vandalism from oil thieves and a lack of maintenance to pipelines, according to the UN Environmental Programme, activists call this a “major one.” It is “one of the worst in the last 16 years in Ogoniland," said Fyneface Dumnamene, an environmental activist whose nonproft monitors spills in the Delta region. It began June 11. “It lasted for over a week, bursts into Okulu River — which adjoins other rivers and ultimately empties into the Atlantic Ocean — and affects several communities and displaces more than 300 fishers,” said Dumnamene of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre. He said tides have sent oil sheens about 10 kilometres (6 miles) further to creeks near the nation's oil business capital, Port Harcourt. Shell stopped production in Ogoniland more than 20 years ago amid deadly unrest from residents protesting environmental damage, but the Trans-Niger Pipeline still sends crude from oil fields in other areas through the region's communities to export terminals. The leak has been contained, but treating the fallout from the spill at farms and the Okulu River, which runs through communities, has stalled, NOSDRA Director General Idris Musa said. “Response has been delayed,” Musa said, blaming protesting residents. “But engagement is going on.” The apparent deadlock stems from mistrust and past grievances in the riverine and oil-abundant Niger Delta region, which is mostly home to minority ethnic groups who accuse the Nigerian government of marginalisation. Africa's largest economy overwhelmingly depends on the Niger Delta's oil resources for its earnings, but pollution from that production has denied residents access to clean water, hurt farming and fishing, and heightened the risk of violence, activists say. The communities “are very angry because of the destruction of their livelihoods resulting from the obsoleteness of Shell's equipment and are concerned the regulator and Shell will blame sabotage by the residents,” Dumnamene said. Often oil companies blame pipeline vandalism by oil thieves or aggrieved young people in affected communities for spills, which could allow the companies to avoid liability. London-based Shell said it is working with a joint investigatory team, consisting of regulators, Ogoniland residents and local authorities, to identify the cause and impact of the spill. Shell's response team “has been activated, subject to safety requirements, to mobilize to the site to take actions that may be necessary for the safety of environment, people and equipment,” a company statement said. NOSDRA confirmed the joint investigation, but a cause of the spill — whether sabotage or equipment failure — has not yet been revealed. Hundreds of farmers and fishermen who have been cut off from their livelihoods would insist on restoration of the environment and then compensation, Dumnamene said. At the request of the Nigerian government, the UN Environment Programme conducted an independent environmental assessment of Ogoniland, releasing a report in 2011 that criticised Shell and the Nigerian government for 50 years of pollution and recommended a comprehensive, billion-dollar cleanup.

Nigeria investigates Shell's Trans Niger pipeline spill (Reuters) - Nigerian authorities and Shell's local subsidiary were on Monday investigating the cause of a spill on the Trans Niger pipeline that lasted several days. The 180,000-barrel-per-day pipeline is one of two conduits to export Bonny Light crude. The spill at Eleme in Rivers state was detected on June 11 and four days later, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) confirmed it in a statement. Advertisement · Scroll to continue Environmental rights groups said the spill lasted a week before it was contained. A team comprising SPDC, Nigerian Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency and local communities were at the site on Monday to gather information, analyse data, examine physical evidence, and assess the causes of the leak, said Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre which monitors spills in the Niger Delta. A Shell spokesperson confirmed Monday's visit to the site. The investigation will determine the volume of oil spilt. Shell has over the years faced several legal battles over oil spills in the Niger Delta, a region blighted by pollution, conflict and corruption related to the oil and gas industry. The oil major blames most of the spills on pipeline vandalism and illegal tapping of crude. Thandile Chinyavanhu, Greenpeace Africa climate and energy campaigner, said the latest spill compounded Shell's record in one of Africa's leading oil producers.

New Oil Spill from Shell Pipeline Triggers Major Environmental Crisis in Niger Delta Nigeria's Niger Delta region, already plagued by long-standing environmental pollution caused by the oil industry, is facing further devastation as a new oil spill at a Shell facility contaminates farmland and a river. According to the reports, the spill originated from the Trans-Niger Pipeline operated by Shell, which passes through communities in the Eleme area of Ogoniland. Described by activists as a "major one," the spill has polluted water surfaces, damaged farmland, and resulted in the death of fish. While the precise volume of the oil spill is yet to be determined, the incident is deemed one of the worst in the last 16 years in Ogoniland. The spill began on June 11 and lasted for over a week, affecting multiple communities and displacing more than 300 fishermen, with the oil sheens resulting from the spill spreading for about 10 kilometers to creeks near Port Harcourt, Nigeria's oil business capital. Shell ceased production in Ogoniland over 20 years ago due to violent protests against environmental damage, but the Trans-Niger Pipeline still transports crude oil from other regions through these communities to export terminals. While the leak has been contained, the response to the fallout, including the cleanup of affected farms and the Okulu River, has been delayed due to mistrust and past grievances. The Niger Delta region, home to minority ethnic groups, has accused the Nigerian government of marginalization, with residents angry about the destruction of their livelihoods, which they attribute to the outdated equipment of Shell. Shell has initiated a joint investigation involving regulators, Ogoniland residents, and local authorities to identify the cause and impact of the spill. Meanwhile, a response team has been mobilized to take necessary actions for the safety of the environment, people, and equipment. However, the cause of the spill, whether sabotage or equipment failure, has not been revealed yet. The Niger Delta, which heavily relies on oil resources, has suffered severe pollution that has denied residents access to clean water, harmed farming and fishing activities, and increased the risk of violence, with a 2011 report by the U.N. Environment Program criticized Shell and the Nigerian government for 50 years of pollution, recommending a comprehensive billion-dollar cleanup. However, community protests and lawsuits by local activists have hindered the cleanup efforts, according to the government's claims. Local environmental activists, however, argue that the promised cleanup is a cover-up with no tangible impact.

Nigeria oil spill: Authorities investigate dayslong leak from a Shell pipeline in a region already blighted by pollution — Nigerian authorities and Shell’s local subsidiary were on Monday investigating the cause of an oil spill on the Trans Niger pipeline that lasted several days. The spill from the 180,000-barrel-a-day, which happened at Eleme in Rivers State in south Nigeria, was detected on June 11. Four days later it was confirmed by Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited in a statement. Environmental rights groups said the spill lasted a week before it was contained. Representatives from Shell, the Nigerian Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, and local communities were at the site on Monday to gather information, analyze data, examine physical evidence, and assess the causes of the leak, said Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, which monitors spills in the Niger Delta. A Shell spokesperson confirmed Monday’s visit to the site. Inhabitants of Nigeria's Niger Delta, Africa's largest oil-producing region face high poverty rates and a largely degraded environment, owing to hundreds of spills every year. The investigation will determine the volume of oil spilled. Shell has, over the years, faced several legal battles focused on oil spills in the Niger Delta, a region blighted by pollution, conflict and corruption related to the oil and gas industry. The oil major blames most of the spills on pipeline vandalism and illegal tapping of crude. Thandile Chinyavanhu, a climate and energy campaigner at Greenpeace Africa, said the latest spill compounded Shell’s record in one of Africa’s leading oil producing nations. “Shell must be held accountable and financially responsible for this spill and for its neocolonial role in causing climate loss and damage,” Chinyavanhu said. She added, “as we approach global climate talks, COP28, world leaders must be prepared to make polluters pay.”

2 major oil spills discovered in Rivers communities in one week - A nonprofit organization, Oilwatch Africa, yesterday, raised alarm over two major oil spills in Rivers communities within one week by an international oil company operating in the area. This was made known in a statement issued by Oilwatch Africa, where it lamented the devastation caused by the spills from oil pipelines crisscrossing the communities. The statement accused oil companies of not showing seriousness about the issue by ensuring their facilities are in good condition. The statement reads in part, “With two major oil spills within a week in Rivers State, Nigeria, it is obvious that the oil companies are yet to show seriousness about ensuring that their facilities are in good working conditions, it is quite alarming that rather than remediating the harms, more investments are being made to expand the areas of threat. “New investments in the fossil fuels sector and incessant new oil spills threaten to push the world into climate catastrophe and expose the wrong headed pathway taken by nations when they gather at COPs for climate negotiations. “One oil spill was reported from a pipeline owned by Shell in Eteo community on June 13 2023 while another occurred at Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State on Sunday, June 18 2023 in Oke-Olebo stream which is the only source of fresh water for the community.” The statement quoting the Director, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, HOMEF, and member of Oilwatch steering committee, Arc Nnimmo Bassey, saying, “We have always advocated for a cleaner environment and we charge the Hydrocarbons Pollution Remediation Project, HYPREP, to take into account the new oil spills that threaten to derail the ongoing cleanup process. “Steps should be taken to ensure accountability by offending parties”.

Aramco, TotalEnergies Award Contracts for $11B Saudi Petrochemicals Project - Saudi Arabian Oil Co. (Aramco) and TotalEnergies SE have awarded the rights for the building of an $11-billion petrochemicals complex in Saudi Arabia they tout as the Gulf’s biggest mixed-load steam cracker. The Amiral complex will be integrated with the SATORP refinery on the kingdom’s eastern coast to enable the already operational plant to convert off-gases and naphtha it produces, as well as ethane and natural gasoline from Aramco, to higher value chemicals, according to the announcement of the final investment decision December 15, 2022. It is targeted to start operation 2027. Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. has received the contract for “a mixed feed cracker and utilities, with a nameplate capacity of 1,650 kta [kilo tons per annum] of ethylene and related industrial gases, and utilities, flares and interconnecting systems that support main packages within the facilities”, the partners said in a press release Saturday. Another contract has gone to Maire Tecnimont SPA “for two polyethylene units using Advanced Dual Loop technology, with a nameplate capacity of 500 kta each, and the derivative units”. Sinopec Engineering Group Saudi Co. Ltd. has been picked for the complex’s tank farm, while Gulf Consolidated Contractors Co. has been signed for the transfer pipelines. Mohammed Ali Al-Suwailem Trading & Contracting Co. has been chosen for industrial support facilities. Mofarreh Marzouq Al Harbi & Partners Co. Ltd. will prepare the site, while Mobarak M. Al Salomi & Partners for Contracting Co. has been selected for temporary construction facilities. “Integrated with the SATORP existing refinery in Jubail, the new petrochemical complex will house the largest mixed-load steam cracker in the Gulf, with a capacity to produce 1.65 million tons of ethylene and other industrial gases per year”, the media statement said. Aramco and TotalEnergies expect the petrochemicals complex to support manufacturers of automotive parts, carbon fibers, detergents, drilling fluids, food additives and lubes, the partners. Some of the hydrogen that will be produced by the complex will also replace the methane used to fuel SATORP furnaces, according to a project profile on TotalEnergies’ website. The December announcement also noted, “In July 2022, SATORP was the first MENA [Middle East and North Africa region] refinery to be certified ISCC+, an international recognition towards its circular initiatives, such as the recycling of plastic and used cooking oil”. Aramco and its French partner project about 7,000 direct and indirect jobs to be offered for the project.

OPEC says oil demand will hit 110 million barrels per day in 2045— Global oil demand will rise to 110 million barrels a day in about 20 years, pushing the world's energy demand up by 23%, said OPEC on Monday. "Oil is irreplaceable for the foreseeable future," Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said while addressing the inaugural Energy Asia conference held in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. "In our worldwide outlook, we see global oil demand rising to 110 million barrels a day by 2045," he said, adding that oil will still comprise about 29% of the energy mix by then. hide content The forecast contradicts the International Energy Agency's predictions of annual demand growth thinning down from 2.4 million barrels per day in 2023 to 400,000 barrels per day in 2028. Two weeks ago, the IEA projected that global oil demand will increase 6% from 2022 to 105.7 million barrels per day in 2028 on the back of petrochemical and aviation sectors. OPEC's secretary general added that underinvestment in the oil industry will only challenge the viability of current energy systems and lead to an "energy chaos." From now till 2030, Al Ghais predicted another half a billion people will move to cities across the world as the global economy continues to expand. The world will need more oil — not less, he said. Gas hydro, nuclear hydrogen and biomass will expand. But it is clear that oil remains an integral part of the mix. Global growth is estimated to fall to a three-decade low of 2.2% a year between now and 2030, down from 2.6% for the period between 2011-2021, according to the World Bank. Al Ghais acknowledged that renewables will play a greater role in the world's energy mix going forward, and affirmed that some OPEC member countries are "already investing significantly" in the area. "We see global energy demand increasing by 23% through 2045," he said. "Gas hydro, nuclear hydrogen and biomass will expand. But it is clear that oil remains an integral part of the mix." Brent crude was trading about 0.92% higher at $74.53 during Asia's afternoon trade. West Texas Intermediate futures were up marginally by about 0.78%, trading at $69.70 per barrel.

Executives Predict Where WTI Oil Price Will End Up in 2023 -- Executives from 151 oil and gas firms have predicted where the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) price will end up this year as part of the latest Dallas Fed Energy Survey. When asked in the second quarter survey what they expected the WTI crude oil price to be at the end of 2023, the average survey response was $77.48 per barrel. The low forecast in the survey came in at $60 per barrel, while the high forecast came in at $100 per barrel. The price of WTI during the survey was $69.89 per barrel, the survey highlighted. In the previous first quarter Dallas Fed Energy Survey, which was released back in April, the average survey response to the same question, from executives from 145 oil and gas firms, was $79.64 per barrel. The low forecast in that survey was $50 per barrel and the high forecast came in at $160 per barrel. The WTI price during that survey was $68.51 per barrel, the first quarter Dallas Fed Energy Survey pointed out. In its latest short term energy outlook (STEO), which was released in June, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected that the West Texas Intermediate spot price would average $74.60 per barrel this year. The EIA projected in this STEO that the WTI spot average would come in at $74.16 per barrel in the second quarter of the year, $73.32 per barrel in the third quarter, and $74.97 per barrel in the fourth quarter. The WTI spot price averaged $94.91 per barrel in 2022, the EIA’s latest STEO highlighted. “We estimate West Texas Intermediate crude oil prices will average $83 per barrel over the three years from 2022 to 2024, while annual growth in U.S. crude oil production over the same period will average 0.4 million barrels per day,” the EIA said in its latest STEO. “That compares to average crude oil production growth of 1.1 million barrels per day during the three-year period from 2017 to 2019, when the WTI price averaged only $58 per barrel,” the EIA added. “The changing response to crude oil prices by U.S. producers may reflect a combination of the use of capital to increase dividends and repurchase shares instead of investing in new production, the effects of tighter labor markets and higher costs, and increased pressure on oilfield supply chains,” the EIA continued. The EIA’s previous STEO, which was released in May, projected that the WTI spot price would average $73.62 per barrel in 2023. In this STEO, the WTI spot average was projected to come in at $72.50 per barrel in the second quarter, and $73 per barrel in both the third and fourth quarters of 2023. A market report sent to Rigzone on June 27 showed that Standard Chartered expects WTI to come in at $88 per barrel in 2023. In another report sent to Rigzone on June 22, the Macquarie Macro Strategy team projected that WTI would average $75.37 per barrel in 2023. In a report sent to Rigzone back in May, BMI, a Fitch Solutions company, predicted that the WTI crude price would come in at $81 per barrel in 2023. Also in May, BofA Global Research highlighted in a report on U.S. oil and gas that it had a base case of $75 per barrel WTI.

China's Top Traders Set Oil Spinning in Middle East Play -- Two giants in China’s oil and refining sector have taken the biggest opposing positions in Middle East crude trading in years, transforming global cargo flows and puzzling oil traders the world over. Throughout this month, Dubai crude has fluctuated heavily, largely due to aggressive bidding and offering from the trading units of Chinese oil refiners, PetroChina Co and Sinopec. They’re respectively the nation’s biggest oil company and its top refiner. This has only intensified with time, overshadowing other players. Public clashes between China’s state-owned behemoths are uncommon, and in this instance the firms’ activity in the main Middle East oil price benchmark is particularly peculiar because both are big refiners who should, in theory, be eager to obtain crude as cheaply as possible. Instead, PetroChina’s Hong Kong entity has been bidding — and purchasing cargoes as a result of its bids — while Sinopec’s Unipec has been offering and selling shipments. Nobody replied to emails sent to PetroChina and Sinopec’s media departments seeking comment. This month, more than a thousand derivatives contracts have traded in the vital pricing window that sets the Dubai price — close to triple the monthly average in 2023 and the biggest volume for years. At least 10 other traders said the activity — surprising to all, given normal patterns for Chinese entities — made it harder to ascertain the true strength of the Middle East oil market, a pivotal part of the petroleum supply chain, as well as China’s state of recovery. The price of Dubai oil forms the basis of almost all exports from the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia. That means any strength or weakness in the price of the grade translates directly to the affordability of oil purchases from across the region, and how many barrels flow from elsewhere in the world to Asia. The surge has also likely helped to boost markets for oil that is similar to the types found in the Middle East. Norway’s Johan Sverdrup jumped by about $1 a barrel after Unipec purchased the grade. Traders said changes in global cargo flows might not have taken place without the spike in Chinese activity. In the futures market, Dubai is a far smaller contract than the likes of Brent and West Texas Intermediate. But in recent months Dubai open interest has picked up significantly — a sign of more position-taking. Window Shopping Normally, bids and offers on the Platts Dubai window are a reflection of companies’ view on the Middle East market. Traders can buy and sell partial contracts of Dubai crude on the window and get physical delivery of grades including Oman, Upper Zakum and Dubai after 20 transactions. Unipec is aggressively offering partial Dubai contracts, derivatives that when combined allow traders to sell full cargoes of oil from the region. So far the company has delivered 37 cargoes — or 18.5 million barrels — to various buyers. PetroChina HK has bought 11.5 million barrels. France’s TotalEnergies SE was previously the most active bidder, but has now been overtaken by PetroChina. Total has also been selling cargoes in a parallel North Sea pricing window for much of this month. Two Chinese giants previously went head-to-head in 2015 when a unit of China National United Oil Corp., parent company of PetroChina, bought 36 million barrels of Middle East Crude, mostly from Unipec. Platts, a unit of S&P Global which operates the Dubai pricing window, said the trading activity is the biggest since 2015 and that the buying and selling of cargoes has been between a broad range of market participants. It added that Dubai prices have been boosted by a host of factors including OPEC production cuts and official selling price increases from Saudi Arabia, citing traders. The impact of the trades on the rest of the world is already clear. In early-June, Unipec’s aggressive selling signaled the company was reluctant to buy big volumes from the Middle East. Instead, it purchased supplies from the North Sea and US, lifting the cost of some grades priced against the Brent benchmark. With Middle Eastern barrels now looking cheaper, it’s possible that Asian refiners may consider nominating less crude from Saudi Arabia next month, seeking more affordable alternative barrels instead, traders said. Cheaper spot cargoes have already prompted interest from China’s Rongsheng Petrochemical Co. and Taiwan’s Formosa Petrochemical Corp.,, underscoring the wide-reaching impact of the window battle.

Oil prices up on possible turmoil in Russia | Al Bawaba – Oil prices rose Monday in the wake of an aborted revolt by Russian mercenaries over the weekend on concerns over further disruption of the global oil supply chain, news agencies reported. Also Read Wagner forces leave Voronezh Wagner forces leave Voronezh Brent crude futures were up 0.8 percent, to $74.41 per barrel, by 7:25 a.m. GMT, according to Reuters. Whereas United States (US) West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 0.6 percent, settling at $69.44 per barrel. In the Asian market, both crudes gained up to 1.3 percent in early trades. Russia is a major oil producer and an ally of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). The coalition of OPEC members and non-member oil producers and exporters is often referred to as OPEC+. For years, US and Western sanctions on Russia have complicated the process of Russian oil exportation. However, more recently, in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war, tighter sanctioning has affected Russia’s ability to export oil directly. Russian exporters have been selling through intermediaries, such as India and other countries. The Russian national currency, the Ruble, also sank on Monday, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). It slipped to 87 to the dollar, reaching its lowest level since March last year, shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine Over the weekend, mercenary group Wagner launched a revolt against Russian President Vladimir Putin, which was quickly put to bed, with the intervention of Putin’s allies. Members of Wagner group prepare to pull out from the headquarters of the Southern Military District to return to their base in Rostov-on-Don late on June 24, 2023 – Source: Roman ROMOKHOV / AFP Concerns over further turmoil in Russia affecting the supply of Russian oil drove oil prices, according to Bloomberg. Weak economic data in China and other leading world economies, combined with rising interest rates, have effectively offset production cuts by OPEC+, preventing a strong surge in oil prices. Nonetheless, the challenge posed by the Wagner group raised questions about Putin’s grip on power. Consultancy Rystad Energy said in a note late on Sunday that it did not expect to see a significant increase in oil prices as a result of the "short-lived event", Reuters reported. "We do, however, believe that the geopolitical risk amid internal instability in Russia has increased," Rystad added. That said, oil prices lost a significant part of the gains from earlier, Bloomberg underscored. “This weekend’s developments will not be an immediate game changer,” Keshav Lohiya told Bloomberg, founder of consultant Oilytics. “Russia’s resilient oil production has been a big surprise and one of the significant bearish overhangs in the market,” he underlined West Texas Intermediate traded near $69 a barrel, while Brent futures were also little changed, according to Bloomberg’s latest on oil prices.

Oil, Equities Wobble After Russia's Military Insurrection -- New York Mercantile Exchange oil futures and Brent crude traded on the Intercontinental Exchange settled Monday's session with tepid gains. The moves came as investors assessed the fallout from an attempted military insurrection led by Evgeny Prigozhin, head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group, on political stability and oil supplies in one of the world's largest nuclear countries and suppliers of energy to global markets. Russia produces more than 10 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil or one in 10 barrels globally. Despite Western sanctions imposed on Moscow in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia exports roughly 80% of produced volumes, with countries like India, China and Turkey emerging as major buyers of Russian oil. Disruptions to those flows on the global market could trigger Asian buyers of Russian oil to compete with Western nations for supplies from other producers. Typically, geopolitical uncertainty in major oil-producing nations over the past 35 years -- ranging from civil unrest to coup attempts and changes of governments -- have, on average, added 8% to the price of oil in the immediate aftermath of the triggering event. In the days following Russia's invasion of its neighbor Ukraine, the international crude benchmark Brent contract surged more than 40% to $139 per barrel (bbl) on March 7, 2022. In this case, however, the market's reaction to the military insurrection has so far been muted, with investors apparently seeking more clarity on the events unfolding in Russia. So far, there have been no reports or data points suggesting that Russian oil production or refining capacity has been affected by the disturbances. Speaking at a government meeting this afternoon, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said the country's oil industry is operating normally and is preparing for the autumn and winter season, accumulating stocks, and carrying out necessary maintenance. On Friday night, Wagner Chief Prigozhin released a video where he accused Russia's senior leadership of corruption and incompetence and questioned the rationale behind the invasion of Ukraine, a direct challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The warlord, his voice seething with anger, said his men who numbered 25,000 would start moving from their base camps in eastern Ukraine toward Moscow. Stunned officials in Moscow scrambled to respond. Late on Friday, the Federal Security Service or FSB announced it had opened a criminal case against Prigozhin for "organizing an armed insurrection." The focal point of the insurrection quickly became Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia, the army's Southern Command Center, which oversees the war in Ukraine. By midday on Saturday, the column was heading through Voronezh region hours away from Moscow. However, on Saturday night, Prigozhin halted his march and reports of a deal brokered by Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko emerged. As of Monday afternoon, the criminal case against Prigozhin has resumed and Putin gave a televised address to the nation, condemning the insurrection and its leader. Prigozhin, for his part, released an audio message on Monday defending the "march of justice" as a popular protest against the war in Ukraine and corrupt officials. Unofficial polls in Russia suggest Prigozhin's popularity is quickly soaring among the public. The situation remains fluid. At settlement, NYMEX August West Texas Intermediate futures gained $0.21 to finish at $69.37 per bbl, and international crude benchmark Brent for August delivery advanced to $74.18 bbl. NYMEX July ULSD futures added $0.0317 to $2.4388 per gallon, and NYMEX July RBOB futures gained $0.0203 to $2.5375 per gallon.

Oil advances as China stimulus optimism filters across markets - Oil extended gains as commodities and stocks in Asia were swept up in optimism around the potential for China stimulus measures. West Texas Intermediate climbed near $70 a barrel after a choppy session on Monday following a short-lived uprising in Russia over the weekend. Chinese Premier Li Qiang said at a forum Tuesday the government would roll out more practical, effective measures to boost domestic demand, but those promises were largely reiterations of prior statements made by officials. Oil in New York remains on track for its first back-to-back quarterly loss since 2019, in part due to headwinds from China’s lackluster economic recovery and aggressive monetary tightening from the US Federal Reserve. Resilient Russian crude exports have added to the pressure on prices. Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned leaders of the Wagner mercenary group as “traitors,” although his comments did little to clarify the mystery of the weekend’s events or the fate of mutiny leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. Any prolonged turmoil would impact global oil markets. “The aborted mutiny fizzled,” said Vishnu Varathan, the Asia head of economics and strategy in Singapore, referring to the uprising in Russia. “But this has not expunged geopolitical risks, not by a long shot.”

Oil prices fall ahead of US stocks data - Markets - Oil prices slipped on Tuesday ahead of data shedding light on U.S. appetite for fuel during the summer driving season, with the Brent benchmark’s price structure indicating bulls are retreating. By 1143 GMT, Brent crude futures were down $1.36, or 1.8%, at $72.82 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fell $1.31, or 1.9%, to $68.06 a barrel, erasing earlier gains. Both contracts are trading broadly in the middle of a $10 a barrel range traced since early May. Oanda analyst Craig Erlam said prices were mainly at the mercy of “the ever-changing expectations for interest rates.” European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday that stubbornly high inflation will require the bank to avoid declaring an end to rate hikes. Higher rates can weigh on economic activity and thus oil demand. European equities were also down. U.S. inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute industry group is expected after 2000 GMT, followed by government data on Wednesday. A Reuters poll indicated U.S. inventories probably fell in the week to June 23. Brent’s six-month backwardation - a price structure whereby sooner-loading contracts trade above later-loading ones - is at its lowest since December and barely positive, indicating shrinking concern about supply crunches. For the two-month spread, the market is in shallow contango, the opposite price structure, indicating traders are factoring in a currently slightly oversupplied market. The oil market has shrugged off a clash between Moscow and Russian mercenary group Wagner which was averted on Saturday. Russian oil loadings have kept on schedule. “The latest geopolitical flare-up quickly pales into insignificance compared to persistent macroeconomic considerations,” This is the case despite Saudi Arabia’s pledge to slash output from July. Much depends on whether Chinese oil demand picks up in the second half. Premier Li Qiang said China will take steps to invigorate markets, without giving details.

The Market's Gains Were Limited by Signals that the European Central Bank is Not Done with Interest Rate Hikes - The oil market on Tuesday posted an outside trading day as the market’s gains were limited by signals that the European Central Bank is not done with interest rate hikes. The market breached its previous high and posted a high of $70.15 in overnight trading. However, it erased its gains and sold off to $67.73 in early morning trading. The market was pressured as European Central Bank President, Christine Lagarde, said that high inflation will require the bank to avoid declaring an end to rate hikes. The crude market traded sideways for much of the day as it awaited the release of the weekly petroleum stock reports. However, further selling ahead of the close pushed the market to a low of $67.55. The August WTI contract settled down $1.67 at $67.70 and the August Brent contract settled down $1.92 at $72.26. The WTI contract continued to trend lower in the post settlement period and posted a new low of $67.50. The product markets also retraced its previous losses and settled in negative territory, with the heating oil market settling down 3.98 cents at $2.3990 and the RB market settling down 2.07 cents at $2.5168. OPEC said it has not invited Guyana to become a member. OPEC has invited Guyana’s Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, to participate in the 8th International OPEC Seminar scheduled for July 5th-6th in Vienna. On Monday, The Wall Street Journal had reported that Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister, Abdulaziz bin Salman, and Haitham al-Ghais, OPEC's Secretary-General, had invited Guyana to join the group.Russia’s seaborne crude shipments fell by about 980,000 bpd to 2.55 million bpd in the week ending June 25th. Lower shipments were seen from all regions but the largest decline was seen in the Baltic region, where fewer than half the normal number of tankers were loaded at Primorsk.Goldman Sachs said interest rates are persistent headwind to oil time spreads. It estimates higher interest rates are reducing front-to-back time spreads by $8/barrel versus two years ago.Shell Plc’s 227,900 bpd Norco, Louisiana refinery is scheduled to resume normal operations by Thursday. The refinery’s production was shut on Saturday following a power outage caused by a malfunction at an Entergy Corp substation. A brief fire was triggered by the power outage.BP said operations were stabilized at its 435,000 bpd refinery in Whiting, Indiana after it experienced disruption caused by severe weather.Marathon’s Galveston Bay, Texas refinery is currently flaring.Citgo Petroleum Corp reported that operating conditions at its 167,500 bpd Corpus Christi, Texas East plant have made flaring necessary.Despite the announcement by Saudi energy minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman earlier this month that Saudi Arabia would reduce its crude output by an extra 1 million b/d for at least July under the latest OPEC+ agreement, Japan’s trade group Petroleum Association of Japan noted that Japanese refiners had not received any cuts from Saudi Arabia for their term crude nominations for July loading allocations. Platts is reporting that it appears refiners in South Korea and Taiwan were also receiving nominated full term volumes as well.

A Larger Than Expected Draw in Crude Stocks Offset Concerns Over Further Interest Rate Hikes Slowing Economic Growth and Global Oil Demand - The oil market traded higher as a larger than expected draw in crude stocks offset concerns over further interest rate hikes slowing economic growth and global oil demand. The market retraced some of Tuesday losses in overnight trading following the release of the API weekly petroleum report, which showed a draw of about 2.4 million barrels on the week. However, the market erased its gains as the market refocused on further interest rate hikes and slowing demand and sold off to a low of $67.05. The crude market later traded mostly sideways before it bounced higher and extended its gains to over $2 as it rallied to a high of $69.73 following the release of the EIA report, which showed a larger than expected draw of 9.603 million barrels on the week. The August WTI contract settled up $1.86 at $69.56 and the August Brent contract settled up $1.77 at $74.03. The product market also ended the session higher, with the heating oil market settling up 77 points at $2.4067 and the RB market settling up 8.66 cents at $2.6034. The EIA reported that U.S. crude oil stocks held at Cushing, Oklahoma increased by 1.209 million barrels to 43.2 million barrels, the highest level since June 2021. It also reported that U.S. crude stocks in the SPR fell by 1.4 million barrels on the week to 348.6 million barrels, the lowest level since August 1983. It also reported that U.S. refinery utilization in the Midwest increased last week to the highest level since July 2021. Refinery utilization in the Midwest increased to 97.1%. Meanwhile, product supplied of jet fuel increased to 1.94 million bpd, the highest level since December 2019. Oil traders' concerns have shifted from under-supply to over-supply, as expectations of weak economic growth outweigh Saudi Arabia's output cuts. For the first time since December, the six-month spread for Brent shows contracts for earlier loading are trading below those for later loading, a structure known as contango. This encourages traders to pay for storing oil so it can be sold at higher prices when supplies are expected to have declined. The same structure for the U.S. benchmark WTI crude oil contract fell into contango for the first time since March on Tuesday. JP Morgan said global oil demand will likely reach 106.9 million bpd in 2030, up 7.1 million bpd from 2022 levels. It sees oil supply increasing from 99.1 million bpd in 2022 to a peak of 104.5 million bpd in 2027 before falling back to 102.6 million bpd in 2030. IIR Energy reported that U.S. oil refiners are expected to shut in about 1,082,000 bpd of capacity in the week ending June 30th, cutting available refining capacity by 209,000 bpd. Offline capacity is expected to fall to 129,000 bpd in the week ending July 7th. Colonial Pipeline Co is allocating space for Cycle 39 on Line 1, its main gasoline line from Houston, Texas to Greensboro, North Carolina. The current allocation is for the pipeline segment north of Collins, Mississippi.

Oil Rebounds on Falling Inventory, Fading Recession Fears -- Oil futures nearest delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange and Brent crude traded on the Intercontinental Exchange settled Wednesday's session sharply higher. The gains followed inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showing domestic crude oil stockpiles declined by a massive 9.6 million barrels (bbl) last week in a sign that OPEC+ production cuts engineered by Saudi Arabia are tightening the global oil market. The 9.6-million-bbl crude draw was about nine times above market expectations and the largest weekly decline in domestic crude oil inventories since the beginning of the year. The outsized drop came despite a 1.4-million-bbl transfer of oil last week from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve and a sharp reduction in refinery run rates. U.S. refiners processed an average 16.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil, 215,000 bpd less than in the prior week. Demand for refined fuels also picked up slightly, with four-week average gasoline consumption in the United States jumping to the highest level since December 2021 at 9.3 million bpd. The bullish inventory report reignited buying interest in the oil complex driven by the outlook for a tighter physical oil market in the second half of the year. Following the OPEC+ announcement on June 4 to extend production cuts through the end 2024 joined with Saudi Arabia's decision to unilaterally cut output by 1 million bpd in July, some analysts forecast global oil inventories will begin gradually falling in each of the next five quarters, putting upward pressure on oil prices. At settlement, West Texas Intermediate August futures advanced $1.86 per bbl to $69.56 per bbl, and international crude benchmark Brent for August delivery gained $1.78 to $74.03 per bbl. The next-month delivery September Brent contract settled the session with a $0.21-per-bbl premium to the expiring contract, as Brent's backwardation along the forward curve continues to unwind. NYMEX RBOB July futures advanced $0.0866 to $2.6034 per gallon, with next-month August futures finishing the session at $2.4971 per gallon. NYMEX ULSD July contract edged higher to $2.4067 per gallon, and the August contract gained to $2.3948 per gallon. ICE Brent August, NYMEX RBOB and ULSD July futures expire the afternoon of Friday, June 30. Further supporting the oil complex was the latest macroeconomic data for the U.S. that showed the economy still has momentum heading into the second half of the year supported by improving consumer sentiment and continued demand for services. The consumer confidence index released by the Confidence Board came in stronger than expected in June, jumping to its highest level since January 2022, as both the present situation and expectations components rose. Meanwhile, U.S. durable goods orders climbed for the third straight month in May, up 1.7% from the prior month. The recent increase in orders might be a sign that manufacturers have found a bottom, at least temporarily, after slumping in 2022. Orders rise in an expanding economy and shrink in a contracting one. In reaction to better-than-expected data released this week, Goldman Sachs raised its U.S. economic growth estimate for the second quarter by 0.4% to 2.2%.

Oil Slips After EIA-Fueled Gains as Traders Gauge US Data - -- Following Wednesday's rally fueled by the outsized draw in U.S. commercial crude oil inventories, oil futures nearest delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange and Brent crude on the Intercontinental Exchange softened in morning trade Thursday as investors assessed stronger-than-expected U.S. macroeconomic indicators. Government data released this morning showed U.S. gross domestic product expanded 2% during the first three months of the year, far exceeding expectations for a 1.4% growth. U.S. Department of Commerce previously estimated first quarter GDP at 1.3%. "The updated estimate primarily reflected upward revisions to exports and consumer spending," said the department in a report, adding that this was partly offset by downward revisions in other areas such as non-residential fixed investment. The revision comes as the labor market in the United States remains extraordinarily tight heading into the second half of the year, with weekly unemployment claims showing little sign of layoffs picking up pace. In the week ending June 24, initial jobless claims came in at 239,000, a decrease of 26,000 from the previous week's revised figure. This is the first weekly drop in initial claims in the past six weeks. The consumer confidence index released earlier this week by the Conference Board also came in stronger than expected, jumping to its highest level since January 2022, as both the present situation and expectations components rose. Wednesday's inventory report released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration was mostly supportive for the oil complex, showing a massive drop in commercial crude oil inventories as exports surged to the second-strongest weekly pace on record. Further details of the report revealed commercial crude stocks plunged 9.6 million bbl in the week ending June 23 -- the largest weekly draw in commercial crude oil inventories so far this year. This leaves U.S. commercial crude stocks 9.2% or 38.1 million bbl above year-ago levels. The outsized crude draw offset modest builds to gasoline and distillate fuel oil, leading total commercial petroleum stocks 5.2 million bbl lower on the week. The outsized drop also came despite a 1.4-million-bbl transfer of oil last week from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve and a sharp reduction in refinery run rates. U.S. refiners processed an average 16.3 million bpd of crude oil, 215,000 bpd less than in the prior week. Demand for refined fuels also picked up slightly, with four-week average gasoline consumption in the United States jumping to the highest level since December 2021 at 9.3 million bpd. The bullish inventory report reignited buying interest in the oil complex driven by the narrative of a tighter physical oil market in the second half of the year. Following the OPEC+ announcement on June 4 to extend production cuts through the end 2024 joined with Saudi Arabia's decision to unilaterally cut output by 1 million bpd in July, some analysts forecast global oil inventories will begin gradually falling in each of the next five quarters, putting upward pressure on oil prices. Near 9 AM ET, West Texas Intermediate August futures traded near $69.63 bbl and international crude benchmark Brent for August delivery gained $0.12 to $74.17 bbl. The next-month delivery September Brent contract is trading at a $0.21 bbl premium to the expiring contract, as Brent's backwardation along the forward curve continues to unwind. NYMEX RBOB July futures slipped $0.0102 to $2.5932 gallon, with next-month August futures trading at $2.5932 gallon. NYMEX ULSD July contract edged higher to $2.4256 gallon, and the August contract gained to $2.4097 gallon. ICE Brent August, NYMEX RBOB and ULSD July futures expire Friday (6/30) afternoon.

Oil Rises in Choppy Trading on Mixed Signals - Oil inched higher in a choppy session as a traders weighed a hawkish rate outlook from central banks against positive signals from the world’s largest economy.US data on Thursday showed a resilient economy and jobs market, signaling potentially strong demand for crude. But the reports also raise the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will keep boosting interest rates. Fed Chair Jerome Powell added to the hawkish overhang on prices by saying that at least two interest-rate increases are likely necessary this year to keep bringing inflation lower.US benchmark crude is on track for its first back-to-back quarterly decline since 2019 on China’s lackluster economic recovery and the Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary tightening. Supply has also been plentiful, bolstered by resilient exports from Russia, despite sanctions.US crude inventories shrank by 9.6 million barrels last week, the largest drawdown in more than a month, according to the Energy Information Administration. Gasoline demand averaged over a four-week period surged to the highest since 2021.WTI for August delivery rose 30 cents to settle at $69.86 a barrel in New York. Brent for August settlement climbed 31 cents to $74.34 a barrel.

Oil nudges up as crude draw levels with rate hike fears -- Rate hikes are a clear and present danger to oil — market action showed Thursday even as crude prices rose a second day in a row after a large weekly drawdown in U.S. crude stocks that signaled an encouraging start to summer demand for travel. Crude prices spent a good part of the day in negative territory as Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell, in more comments during his European travels, showed the central bank’s determination in using rate hikes to subdue inflation running at more than twice its appetite. In the final two hours of trade, however, both U.S. crude and global oil benchmark Brent rebounded as market participants fell back on Monday’s bullish sentiment that rode on the crude draw for the week ended June 23. New York-traded West Texas Intermediate, or WTI, settled up 30 cents, or 0.4%, at $69.86 a barrel, adding to Wednesday’s 2.8% rally. London-traded Brent crude finished its New York session up 31 cents, or 0.4%, at $74.34 per barrel. In the previous day’s trade. Brent rallied 2.4%. Oil prices have had a disquieting June on worries about the economy, with WTI on course to finish up 0.9% after an 11% slump in May. Brent is headed for a 3% gain versus last month’s 9% drop. “The gradual consolidation that we're seeing in crude doesn't appear to be nearing an end, with the price simply fluctuating between the range highs and lows over the last couple of months,” “The uncertainty around inflation, interest rates, and therefore the economy may well be behind that as investors have frequently been caught out by just how stubborn price pressures have been and how much central banks will need to do in order to contain them. Until we get more clarity on that, this range trading may continue.” A panel discussion on Wednesday hosted by the European Central Bank and including the heads of the Federal Reserve, Bank of England and Bank of Japan, showed nearly all on board with higher interest rates. Fed Chair Powell followed that up on Thursday by telling a banking event in Madrid that the U.S. central bank was trying to find a level for rates that will restrain economic activity and inflation without causing unnecessary weakness. Latest U.S. gross domestic product data also showed more resilience than thought in the economy that could put more winds behind the Fed’s rate hike sails. U.S. GDP grew by an annualized 2% in the first quarter of this year, the Commerce Department said Thursday in a revelation likely to add to the Federal Reserve’s relief that its rate hikes had not weighed too much on growth. The Commerce Department’s prior growth estimate for the quarter was just 1.3%. The Fed has been seeking instead for a “soft landing” of the economy, which translates to slower but not negative GDP growth. The latest quarterly result indicates that the central bank might just get its wish. The Consumer Price Index, the broadest gauge for U.S. inflation, grew by 4% in the year to May, expanding at its slowest pace in more than two years. The Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge, meanwhile, grew by 4.4% in the year to April. Both are, however, at least twice above the Fed’s 2% target for annual inflation. The Fed, in response, has raised rates by 5% since the end of the coronavirus outbreak in March 2022, bringing them to a peak of 5.25%. The central bank’s next decision on rates will be on July 26. Many economists predict the Fed will add another quarter percentage point at that meeting, lifting rates to a peak of 5.5%, as it tries to further tame inflation.

Oil Gains as Markets See Cooling Inflation, Solid Services -- New York Mercantile Exchange oil futures and Brent crude traded on the Intercontinental Exchange settled the last trading day of June and second quarter with tepid gains spurred by expectations for a delayed slowdown in U.S. and Eurozone economies amid a gradual but slow downtrend in core inflation and better-than-anticipated performance of the services sectors at the end of the first half of 2023. The Personal Consumption Expenditures index -- the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, showed consumer prices last month rose at the slowest pace since April 2021. The stickiness of core inflation however hints at persistent price pressure. Headline PCE index eased to 3.8% year-on-year in May, a significant drop from 4.3% a month earlier, revealed data released this morning from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Much of the slowdown was due to a sharp drop in energy price prices, and food prices to a lesser extent. But core PCE, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, slowed only marginally to an annualized rate of 4.6% from 4.7% a month earlier, indicating that inflation remains stubbornly high in many areas. Fresh inflation data raises the question of how high the Fed will need to hike rates to tame inflation. The Federal Open Market Committee left the federal funds rate unchanged at a 5% to 5.25% target range following their June policy meeting. During the post-meeting news conference, however, Chairman Jerome Powell explained that the pause in rate hikes did not necessarily mean that they have reached the terminal rate. As of Friday, investors see an 85% chance of a 25-basis point hike in July and a nearly 50% chance of another hike in November. The latest economic data releases in the United States, Eurozone, and the United Kingdom have been consistent with the view that the global economy will either avoid a recession altogether or suffer a delayed slowdown unless there is an exogenous shock or a policy mistake from central banks. U.S. Gross Domestic Product confounded economists with a 2% annualized growth rate in the first quarter, far exceeding expectations for a 1.4% expansion. The U.S. and other major economies in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development inherited a tight post-pandemic labor market that, in turn, supports aggregate demand in the economy leading to sustained job gains. For context, the latest jobless claims in the United States showed no meaningful rise in layoffs despite expectations for the labor market to soften into the summer months. While speaking at the European Central Bank's Forum on Central Banking in Sitra, Portugal, this week, heads of all major central banks, including the Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, Bank of England, and ECB pushed back against a narrative of inevitable recession, citing resilient labor markets and consumer confidence. At settlement, West Texas Intermediate August futures advanced $0.78 bbl to $70.64 bbl and international crude benchmark Brent for August delivery expired at $74.90 bbl. The September Brent contract finished the session with a $0.51 bbl premium to the expiring contract. NYMEX RBOB July futures expired at $2.6340 gallon, adding $0.0163 on the session, with next-month August futures settling at $2.5449 gallon. NYMEX ULSD July contract expired at $2.4482 gallon, and the August contract increased to $2.4476 gallon.

Oil settles higher but posts fourth straight quarterly decline -Oil prices settled higher on Friday but posted their fourth straight quarterly loss as investors worried that sluggish global economic activity could crimp fuel demand. Benchmark Brent crude futures for August delivery which expires on Friday, settled up 56 cents, or 0.8 per cent, at $74.90. In the three months to the end of June, the contract finished down 6 per cent. US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) settled up 78 cents, or 1.1 per cent at $70.64 a barrel. It posted its second straight quarterly drop, down about 6.5 per cent in the latest three months. Prices have been under pressure from rising interest rates in key economies and a slower than expected recovery in Chinese manufacturing and consumption. Signs of strengthening US economic activity and sharp declines in US oil inventories last week offered some support. For the day, crude was bolstered by a US Commerce Department report showing annual inflation rising last month at its slowest pace in two years. Signs of moderating inflation "could hold the Federal Reserve off rising interest rates again," The market was also supported by upward revisions in demand for crude oil and refined products in the United States. Demand for crude and petroleum products fell slightly to 20.446 million bpd in April but remained seasonally strong, EIA data showed. Prices also drew support from Saudi Arabia's plans to cut output by a further 1 million barrels per day in July in addition to a broader OPEC+ deal to limit supply into 2024. "Despite the announcements of two fresh rounds of cuts from OPEC+/Saudi Arabia, crude prices have largely remained below $80 a barrel as the market has been driven less by fundamentals and more by macroeconomic concerns," HSBC analysts said in a note. "We think this will continue to be the case for part of the summer, although the deep deficit of around 2.3 million barrels forecast for 2H23 should help to spur some upwards price momentum." A Reuters survey of 37 economists and analysts showed oil prices will struggle for traction this year as global economic headwinds linger. US energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for a ninth week in a row for the first time since July 2020, energy services firm Baker Hughes said on Friday..

Iranian victims of chemical weapons suing Dutch manufacturers - The two companies, Melchemie (now Otjiaha) and Forafina Beleggingen (formerly KBS Holland), provided Iraq with chemicals between 1982 and 1984 while being aware that their products were being used to produce mustard gas, according to the five victims. Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant revealed that the corporations dispute the accusations and maintain that the chemicals were meant for use as agricultural pesticides. The previous owner of Melchemie, billionaire Hans Melchers, was required to appear in court in The Hague on June 22. Melchers is charged with actively taking part in the wartime delivery of 1,850 tons of thionyl chloride, a component of mustard gas, to Iraq. He rejected the charges, but in 1987, his company was punished with a fine and conditional closure for “intentionally” flouting a Dutch government embargo intended to stop the transfer of materials to Iraq that could be used to make weapons. In addition, KBS Holland is being sued for providing TDG to Iraq, which is another element required to make mustard gas. Attacks with mustard gas have caused long-lasting damage to the five complainants. Due to injury to their lungs, eyes, and skin, they have respiratory problems and incapacity. The victims’ attorney Liesbeth Zegveld stated that “these people’s lives were destroyed at the time,” adding that “these Dutch companies share a part of the responsibility for that.” Hundreds of Iranian soldiers and civilians were killed instantly and many more endured life-long years of misery as a result of the Iraqi army’s use of chemical weapons during the 1980–88 war.

Swedish Government Permits Quran-Burning Protest, Angering Turkey -The Swedish government permitted a Quran-burning protest that took place in Sweden on Wednesday, a move that angered Turkey and made it less likely that Ankara will approve Stockholm’s NATO membership before the Vilnius summit in July.Swedish police said the approval was done in accordance with the right of free speech. Only one man took part in the demonstration, burning a Quran near a mosque in Stockholm. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan condemned the protest. “It is unacceptable to allow these anti-Islamic actions under the pretext of freedom of expression. To turn a blind eye to such heinous acts is to be complicit in them,” he said.Fahrettin Altun, Turkey’s director of communications, said that those “who seek to become our allies in NATO, cannot tolerate or enable destructive behaviors of Islamophobic and xenophobic terrorists.”Earlier this year, Turkey postponed talks with Sweden over its NATO bid over a Quran-burning protest that was held in January.US and NATO officials have said they expect Sweden will be granted membership by July 11, when the Vilnius summit will begin. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has previously said it won’t happen, and the Quran-burning protest gives Ankara more reason not to meet the deadline.Turkey’s main gripe with Sweden is the country’s alleged support for the PKK, a Kurdish militant group Ankara considers a terrorist organization. In an effort to placate Turkey, Stockholm has passed a new anti-terror law and approved the extradition of a man who previously expressed support for the PKK.

Turkey Continues To Challenge Sweden’s NATO Membership -The saga of Sweden’s NATO accession is now likely entering its endgame. Having applied to join the military alliance together with Finland in the wake of Russian’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many initially expected a quick accession. But it has turned out to be more complicated than first anticipated. Turkey signaled that it needed to see progress from Helsinki — but notably Sweden — in areas such as fighting terrorism, the lifting of an arms embargo on Ankara, and fulfilling Turkish extradition requests. While the trio signed a memorandum of understanding on the sidelines of the NATO Madrid summit in June 2022, outlining what needed to be done by the Nordic duo in order to get Turkish ratification, the fact remains that, as NATO approaches the Vilnius summit in July, those issues still remain a year down the line. The prospects looked grim earlier this year when two different protests held in Sweden truly enraged Ankara. In one, Kurds hung upside down an effigy of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan near Stockholm’s city hall, while, in the other, a Swedish-Danish far-right politician and provocateur set fire to a copy of the Koran outside the Turkish Embassy in the Swedish capital. Given Sweden’s slow progress, Finland decided to decouple and enter alone, becoming NATO member number 31 in early April. Most NATO officials I have spoken to on background say that there were never really any issues with Finland, only Sweden. There also doesn’t appear to be much of an issue with Hungary, either. Budapest’s refusal so far to ratify Sweden’s membership is just solidarity with Turkey, according to the NATO officials I’ve spoken to. Budapest hasn’t actually made any concrete demands on Sweden other than a few complaints about Swedish politicians criticizing the country’s rule of law, and Hungary has indicated that it won’t be the last country to ratify Swedish membership. So, in the end, it will be about Stockholm and Ankara ironing out their differences, whether ahead of the Vilnius summit on July 11-12, during, or shortly afterwards. The smart money is that there will be a deal in Vilnius that will allow the Turkish parliament to ratify later in July before it goes into recess until October. “Erdogan likes to be in the limelight and, just like in Madrid in 2022, he will find a way to steal the show at the summit,” a NATO diplomat who isn’t authorized to speak on the record recently told me with a smile. Swedish and Turkish officials met in Ankara earlier in June, and it is possible that they will meet again in the days and weeks ahead of the summit. However, NATO officials have told me that there is little left to solve at this level and it is time for the countries’ political leaders to reach an agreement. There have been extraditions to Turkey, mostly Kurds on terrorism charges, although not as many as Turkey would like. “This is for the courts to decide, not the government” is a common refrain I hear from Swedish officials and diplomats. A Swedish arms embargo on Turkey has been lifted and, as of June 1, there has been new Swedish counterterrorism legislation that could potentially make it easier to hand over people from Sweden. While that won’t stop anti-Erdogan protests in Swedish cities, it could help prevent displaying at such events flags of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Turkey designates a terrorist group. Plus, events in which burning the Koran will occur are unlikely to get permission to go ahead in the future. The big question is whether that will be enough for Erdogan, who told NATO’s secretary-general in a phone call on June 25 that Sweden must stop protests by supporters of the PKK to get a green light on its NATO membership bid and that Sweden’s change of its terrorism law was “meaningless” while such protests continued. But if Ankara insists on seeing concrete results from the new counterterrorism law, this could potentially drag on for years. So, if the Swedish prime minister and the Turkish president can’t find a compromise in Vilnius, then it might be that they’ll need assistance, or intervention, from the NATO secretary-general or even the U.S. president.

Taiwan Reaffirms That It Will Fire on Chinese Warplanes If They Fly Within 12 Miles of Island - The Taiwanese military has reaffirmed that it will fire on Chinese warplanes and naval vessels if they come within 12 nautical miles of Taiwan’s coast, which marks the beginning of the island’s territorial waters and airspace.The warning came after eight Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) warplanes approached Taiwan’s contiguous zone, which extends 24 nautical miles off the island’s coast.“If the PLA side continues to ignore our warnings along the way and force their way into our territorial air space and seas, we will actively strike back to safeguard national security,” said Maj. Gen. Lin Wen-huang, the Taiwanese Defense Ministry’s combat planning director.China has been flying military aircraft closer to Taiwan in response to the island’s growing ties with the US. For example, the PLA used to rarely cross the median line, an unofficial barrier that separates the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. But Since then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) visited Taiwan in August 2022, PLA warplanes have regularly crossed the line. While China has been flying closer to Taiwan, the Taiwanese government has not reported PLA warplanes flying within the contiguous zone or coming close to its airspace. Taiwanese officials, including Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng, have previously warned that their military would fire on Chinese planes that come within 12 nautical miles of the island’s coast.

Putin Orders Reality Check – No Ukrainians Left on the Battlefield, No Sovereignty in Kiev --In brief statements issued late last week in Moscow – their significance missed in the western press — President Vladimir Putin ordered a reality check of Russia’s war strategy. He then answered himself by declaring the war will be over when no Ukrainian army will be left on the battlefield, nor NATO weapons.The Foreign Ministry answered by pointing out that Russia does not recognize there is a legal Ukrainian state because the reality is that the mutual recognition treaty between Russia and the Ukraine was cancelled by Presidents Petro Poroshenko and Vladimir Zelensky in 2018 and 2019.“We can conclude,” Putin said at the Security Council meeting on Thursday morning, “that they can certainly send in additional equipment, but the mobilisation reserve is not unlimited. And Ukraine’s Western allies really seem determined to fight with Russia to the last Ukrainian. At the same time, we must proceed from the fact that the enemy’s offensive potential has not been exhausted; they may have strategic reserves yet unused, and I ask you to keep this in mind when making fighting strategies. You need to proceed from reality.”Putin was following by a few hours the statement by the Foreign Ministry that Russia does not recognize the legal sovereignty of the regime in Kiev, and that following the cancellation of the treaty between the Ukraine and Russia in 2019, there will be no Ukrainian state left to sign an end-of-war agreement.At her weekly briefing of reporters, the ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova, was asked “when will Russia initiate a legal procedure to terminate the bilateral treaty with Ukraine on its sovereignty?” Zakharova answered: “The procedure for terminating the bilateral treaty with Ukraine on its sovereignty is hampered by the absence of such a treaty. In Article 1 of the Treaty on the Principles of Relations between the RSFSR and the Ukrainian SSR of November 19, 1990, the two republics recognised each other as ‘sovereign states.’ The 1990 treaty was then replaced by the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between the Russian Federation and Ukraine of May 31, 1997 (Article 39), which was denounced by Ukraine and terminated on April 1, 2019.”No army, no state. But the war will continue because it is the one between the US and the NATO powers and Russia. That too will have an ending, but longer.

Wagner Chief Attempts ‘Armed Insurrection’ in Russia: Kremlin -- The head of Russia’s Wagner private military firm, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has claimed to have captured a military facility in the Russian city of Rostov, after the mercenary chief accused government forces of attacking his fighters in Ukraine. The Kremlin has denied the allegations, instead labeling the move an “armed insurrection.”In a video shared on Prigozhin’s personal Telegram channel early on Saturday morning, he declared that his troops had taken Russia’s Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov, insisting there were “no problems” and that the base was “operating normally.”“All that’s being done is we are taking control to ensure assault aviation does not conduct strikes on us, and instead on Ukrainians,” he said. “Military objects in Rostov are under control, including the airfield. Planes that leave for battle [in Ukraine] are leaving nominally.”On Friday, Prigozhin claimed a Russian “missile attack” on a Wagner camp had left “many victims,” sharingfootage purporting to depict the aftermath of the strike. While the video appears to show the body of one dead soldier and multiple small fires in a wooded area, it includes little direct evidence of an attack.In another post, the Wagner head stated: “There are 25,000 of us and we are going to figure out why chaos is happening in the country,” suggesting he would advance on Rostov, a major city in Russia’s southwest. He argued his actions did not amount to a “military coup,” instead describing the move as a “march for justice.”Prigozhin has led an increasingly public war of words with the Russian government and military, repeatedly accusing officials of declining to supply the ammunition and gear needed to capture the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut (known as Artyomovsk in Russia). The town finally fell in May, after months of brutal fighting.Russian authorities have rejected Prigozhin’s charges outright, with the Defense Ministry stating they “do not correspond with reality” while deeming his claims an “informational provocation.” On Saturday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia’s prosecutor general, Igor Krasnov, had launched criminal proceedings against Prigozhin for an “attempt to organize an armed insurrection.”In a televised address, President Vladimir Putin later accused Prigozhin of a “betrayal of his country and people,” vowing to “react harshly” to the uprising.“Everything that weakens Russia should be thrown aside,” the leader said, adding that the military and police had received the “necessary orders” to deal with the “rebels.”The Defense Ministry also pleaded with Wagner troops to abandon “Prigozhin’s criminal gamble,” claiming that some mercs had “already understood their mistake” and asked to return to their deployment areas. It added that fighters were “tricked” into taking part in the rebellion, but went on to “guarantee everyone’s safety.”

Putin thanks nation for unity after aborted rebellion - Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked the nation on Monday for unity after an armed rebellion over the weekend was aborted less than 24 hours after it began. Earlier in the day, the mercenary chief defended his short-lived insurrection in a boastful statement. In his first appearance since the rebellion ended, Putin also thanked most of the mercenaries for not letting the situation deteriorate into “bloodshed.” He said all necessary measures have been taken to protect the country and the people from the rebellion.He blamed “Russia’s enemies” and said they “miscalculated.” The Kremlin also tried to project stability on Monday when authorities released a video of Russia’s defense minister reviewing troops in Ukraine.Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the mercenary group, said he wasn’t seeking to stage a coup but was acting to prevent the destruction of Wagner, his private military company. “We started our march because of an injustice,” he said in an 11-minute statement, giving no details about where he was or what his plans were.The feud between the Wagner Group leader and Russia’s military brass has festered throughout the war, erupting into a mutiny over the weekend when mercenaries left Ukraine to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city. They rolled seemingly unopposed for hundreds of miles toward Moscow before turning around after less than 24 hours on Saturday.

Prigozhin Headed for Belarus After Ending ‘Insurrection’ - Russia’s Wagner Group has called off its march on Moscow and agreed to stand down after launching a two-day mutiny and seizing a military base in the city of Rostov-on-Don. The Kremlin said it would drop all charges against the company and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has been guaranteed safe passage to Belarus.Prigozhin shared a brief audio statement to social media on Saturday confirming his decision to withdraw, saying that the PMC would return to its “field camps” and continue their previous operations in Ukraine “according to plan.”“They wanted to disband PMC Wagner. On June 23, we went on a ‘March of Justice’ in a day. We advanced on Moscow just 200km short, and during this time we did not shed a single drop of the blood of our fighters,” he said.Earlier on Saturday, the Wagner chief announced that his troops had captured the Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov, less than one day after accusing the Russian military of launching a missile strike on a Wagner position and vowing to take his complaints directly to the Kremlin. He harshly criticized the leadership of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, demanding his resignation along with the chief of staff of the armed forces, Valery Gerasimov.While the full extent of the mutiny remains unclear, unverified videos making the rounds online purported to show active clashes between Wagner and Russian regulars. A Reuters correspondent also said they witnessed a military helicopter firing on a mercenary column driving near the city of Voronezh – about halfway to Moscow from Rostov – but noted that the fighters faced little “substantial resistance” on the road.The outlet also cited a Russian source who said Wagner troops had taken military installations in Voronezh, though it was unable to confirm the claim.Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev was among a long list of local and regional officials to announce stepped-up security precautions amid Wagner’s march, also stressing that Russians would support President Vladimir Putin. The governor of Rostov, Vasily Golubev, similarly declared his region’s loyalty to the leader.Russian officials announced charges against Prigozhin on Saturday morning, with Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov saying he would be prosecuted for an “attempt to organize an armed insurrection.”The Wagner chief’s announcement came soon after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed to have successfully mediated talks with the paramilitary head and Putin, a close ally. Prigozhin did not mention the Belarusian leader in his own remarks, however.“Yevgeny Prigozhin accepted the proposal of President Alexander Lukashenko to stop the movement of the armed men of Wagner in Russia and to take further steps to de-escalate tension,” Lukashenko’s press service said, adding that they “came to agreements on the inadmissibility of unleashing a bloody massacre on the territory of Russia.”The statement said Prigozhin was offered “an advantageous and acceptable option for resolving the situation, with security guarantees for the Wagner PMC fighters,” but did not elaborate further.The Kremlin confirmed the negotiations later on Saturday night, with Putin’s top spokesman Dmitry Peskov stating Prigozhin would “go to Belarus” in de facto exile. All charges against him and his fighters would be dropped, he added, and Wagner members who did not take part in the insurrection would be permitted to continue serving under Defense Ministry contracts.

Address to citizens of Russia - President of Russia.

ECB urges banks to speed up plans to exit or shrink Russia units - The European Central Bank is pushing lenders from the region that still have operations in Russia to accelerate plans to shrink or exit units in the market after President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The ECB recently "urged these banks to speed up their downsizing and exit strategies by adopting clear road maps" and regularly reporting on progress to their management bodies and the watchdog, according to Andrea Enria, who leads the ECB's supervisory board. Several European banks have earned bumper profits in Russia over several years thanks to growth rates that were higher in their home markets. The war in Ukraine then exposed this group of lenders to risks to their finances and their reputations, with some taking more radical action to leave the market than others. "I have repeatedly and publicly expressed concerns about the disappointingly slow progress made by banks in reducing risks stemming from ongoing operations in the Russian market," Enria wrote in a letter to members of the European Parliament. Banks overseen by the ECB cut their Russia exposures 37% last year, with an acceleration in the fourth quarter, Enria said. EU banks have about €45 billion ($49 billion) of total exposure to Russia as of the first quarter, or nearly half of that figure reported just after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Raiffeisen, with more than €20 billion, is by far the most exposed, with management projecting as much as a 230-basis-point hit to Common Equity Tier 1 capital should it fully write down its Russia unit. That compares with guidance of 40 basis points at UniCredit and 70 basis points at OTP, according to Tomasz Noetzel, a senior industry analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. "Most institutions have also decided not to accept new business in Russia and are exploring different exit strategies, such as sale of business and winding down their operations in the Russian market," he wrote in a report.

What could break as interest rates rise? (Reuters) -Markets are on the alert to which sectors will buckle under the sharpest jump in interest rates in decades, with big rate moves this month in Britain and Norway a reminder that the tightening is not over.Central banks may need longer to lower inflation and a fresh bout of financial turbulence could make the process even more protracted, the International Monetary Fund warns.Stability has returned since March's banks turmoil, but warning lights are flashing elsewhere and tensions in Russia provide another possible trigger for stress.Here is a look at some of the pressure points. Just as hopes for an end to Federal Reserve rate hikes boost the U.S. housing market, European residential property is suffering under rate hikes.UK rates have jumped to 5% from 0.25% two years ago and 2.4 million homeowners will roll off cheap fixed rate mortgages onto much higher rates by end-2024, banking trade body UK Finance estimates.Sweden, where rates rose again on Thursday, is one to watch with most homeowners' mortgages moving in lockstep with rates.Having taken advantage of the low rates era to borrow aplenty and buy up property assets, the commercial real estate sector is grappling with higher debt refinancing costs as rates rise."The single most important thing is interest rates. But not just interest rates; what it is equally important is the predictability of rates," said Thomas Mundy, EMEA head of capital markets strategy at real estate firm JLL."If we were settled on an interest rate, real estate prices could adjust. But at the moment, the lag in the adjustment to real estate pricing is creating an uncertain environment."In Sweden, high debts, rising rates and a wilting economy has produced a toxic cocktail for commercial property.Banks remain in focus as credit conditions tighten."There is no place to hide from these tighter financial conditions. Banks feel the pressure of every central bank," said Lombard Odier Investment Managers' head of macro Florian Ielpo.Banks hold two types of balance sheet assets: those meant for liquidity and those that work like savings meant to earn additional value. Rising rates have pushed many of these assets 10%-15% lower than their purchase price, Ielpo said. Should banks need to sell them, unrealised losses would emerge.Most at risk are banks' real estate assets. Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell says the Fed is monitoring banks "very carefully" to address potential vulnerabilities. Rising rates are taking a toll on corporates as the cost of their debt balloons. S&P expects default rates for European sub-investment grade companies to rise to 3.6% in March 2024 from 2.8% this March.

Witnesses accuse Greek Coast Guard of responsibility for refugee tragedy in the Mediterranean -Several of the survivors from the refugee tragedy off the Greek port of Pylos have unanimously testified that the Greek Coast Guard capsized the fishing boat Adriana with some 750 refugees aboard. They contradict the official version of the Greek authorities that the boat capsized by itself. According to the witnesses, the Greek coast guard threw a rope to the refugee boat and initially tried to tow it away. When this apparently did not succeed, the Coast Guard boat first made a sharp turn to the right and then to the left, causing the boat to capsize. The Coast Guard thus deliberately risked the deaths of hundreds of refugees, if not intentionally caused them. The Adriana capsized on Wednesday night, June 14, at around 2:04 a.m. 104 survivors were rescued and so far, 82 bodies have been recovered from the sea. Hundreds of refugees, including women and children crammed below deck, were swept down with the Adriana. What is clear so far is that the boat had set off from Egypt and stopped off at the port of Tobruk on the east coast of Libya on June 9 to take hundreds more refugees on board. On June 13, the boat was spotted by a surveillance plane of Frontex, the European border agency, at around 9:47 a.m. Frontex notified the Greek and Italian authorities that the overcrowded boat, travelling at slow speed, had been spotted in international waters but within the Greek maritime rescue zone. Two freighters then arrived at the Adriana late on Tuesday afternoon. The captain of the “Lucky Sailor,” which was the first to arrive, later reported that the refugees on board had refused help and declared that they wanted to go to Italy. They first had to be convinced to accept at least some water and food, it was reported. Similar claims were made by the Greek Coast Guard, whose boat arrived early on Tuesday evening. According to the official Coast Guard statement, the overcrowded refugee boat continued at a steady speed and on the same course until a few minutes later it suddenly stopped, capsized and sank within a few minutes. Surviving witnesses vehemently contradict this official version. Abu Ahmad and Abu Hussein, both from Syria, told the Süddeutsche Zeitung that the water on board had already run out on the third day and the engine had repeatedly failed. Five people on board collapsed and died of dehydration. On Tuesday, the engine had stopped working altogether and the boat had not moved. Abu Hussein said it was a lie the refugees had refused help. “We asked for help from whatever country.” There had been a dispute over the remaining water. Everybody could see that they needed help. This coincides with the report of the aid organisation Alarm Phone, which had already received a call for help in the early afternoon of June 13. The refugees reported that they were in distress at sea and would not survive the night. Research by the BBC and the Guardian also cast doubt on the information provided by the Greek authorities. According to these media outlets, an evaluation of the locations of the ships involved clearly showed that the Adriana had not moved for at least seven hours, probably even eleven hours, before it capsized. A photo of the Adriana taken by the Greek Coast Guard hours before the accident also shows a motionless ship.

Leading UK Water Utility Is In Extreme Financial Distress --Privatization with competition was the mantra for 1980s neoconservatives. In the US, they wanted to sell the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and municipal water suppliers. In Mexico they sold the telephone company and in Argentina, well, everything. In Spain and Italy they sold off holdings dating back to the fascist regimes. In the UK, though, privatization was an ideological trophy for the Thatcher government. The privatizations and industry reorganizations produced mixed results, good for investors, so-so for consumers and a bonanza for the Treasury. But the privatization of the water industry in England and Wales (the Scots passed on the opportunity) turned into a fiasco. The government sold off water supply companies with inadequate infrastructures that had responsibilities for water pollution, dirty beaches, leaky pipes, not much in the way of competition (try shipping water long distances) and the need to spend huge sums to fix the systems (which could only be paid for by sharply hiking prices). Does that sound, sort of, like the situation of many American utilities that have let their infrastructure run down for so long? You decide that. But start by looking at the situation at Thames Water, and ask how it might apply to the energy business. The water utility serving the southeast part of the UK including London, Thames Water, appears to be in extreme financial distress. Newspaper headlines in the UK cite “a 10 billion pound black hole”, the CEO’s sudden resignation, excessive debts (some floating rate), and possible government takeover and financial restructuring—which effectively means renationalization. The Thatcher administration privatized the water and (other former government owned) utilities in 1989. Before privatization these entities borrowed money at the government rate, were debt free, paid no dividends to shareholders, and the senior executives were compensated like senior civil servants. After thirty two years of private ownership and (mis)management this company is now laden with debt, paid out billions in dividends to shareholders, may have scrimped on big capital projects, faces major operating problems, and is on the brink of insolvency. Amateur analysts have attributed the company's financial woes to excessive debt leverage (or gearing) which totaled 82% last year. Yes this is high by US and UK standards but typical in say Japan whose utilities are rated solidly investment grade by Moody’s and S&P. And debt is almost always cheaper than equity. So a highly indebted capital structure may actually serve the public’s interest if it provides capital funding at lower costs than those demanded by equity investors. (As in a 5-6% difference in cost between equity and debt). In the US for example, municipal utilities, co-ops, and G&Ts (generation and transmission companies) are 100% debt financed and seldom find themselves in financial distress. This level of balance sheet leverage is high but should not in and of itself be seen as inevitably crippling. The problem for Thames Water is that almost half of their debt is, you should pardon the expression, floating rate, that is, the interest rate they pay increases or decreases with the rate of inflation. And lately that rate has been moving steadily upward increasing interest expense for the corporation on an already bloated balance sheet. This combination, too much debt at a rate floating higher, represents a huge financial burden and one not always survivable. But it gets worse.