Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/465103
ByEricaWerner and Jim Kuhnhenn TheAssociatedPress WASHINGTON TheObama administration put its new deportation-relief program on hold Tuesday on the eve of its launch, comply- ing reluctantly with a fed- eral judge's order that roiled immigrant communities nationwide and seemed to harden an already-tense stalemate on Capitol Hill. The administration promised an appeal. But for tens of thousands of immigrants in line to be- gin applying Wednesday for work permits and deporta- tion stays under President Barack Obama's directives, those plans were canceled, at least temporarily. A statement from Home- land Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said he strongly disagreed with the ruling from U.S. District Judge An- drew Hanen of Texas find- ing the administration had exceeded its authority, but "in the meantime, we recog- nize we must comply." On Capitol Hill, John- son's agency stood 10 days away from losing funding, but Hanen's ruling made a compromise on that dis- pute look more distant than ever. Republicans are block- ing funding for the Home- land Security Department unless Democrats agree to cancel Obama's immigra- tion orders, and they seized on the ruling as validation for their position. "Congress must reassert its waning power. We must re-establish the constitu- tional principle that the peo- ple's representatives control the purse," said Sen. Jeff Ses- sions of Alabama, a leading immigration hardliner. Yet Senate Democrats, who have been blocking a House-passed bill that would fund the department but also undo Obama's actions, said the ruling from Hanen did nothing to budge them. "Democrats remain united in our belief that funding for the Depart- ment of Homeland Secu- rity should not be used as a ransom by Republicans, pe- riod," said Chuck Schumer of New York. The agency's $40 billion budget runs out Feb. 27, and with Congress now on recess lawmakers will have only a few days to reach an agree- ment once they return to Washington next week. One possibility is a short-term ex- tension of current funding levels, but House Speaker John Boehner said over the weekend that the House had done its job and he would "certainly" let a shutdown occur if the Senate didn't act. If the political impasse seemed severe, so were the implications for millions of immigrants in the country illegally who have cheered Obama's executive direc- tives in the face of congres- sional inaction. "We feel powerless but not defeated, sure that it will all work out," 46-year- old Claudia Ramon, a na- tive of Colombia, said at a rally in Houston, one of dozens nationwide where immigrants and their ad- vocates vowed to continue with preparations under Obama's programs. Obama's directives would make more than 4 million immigrants in the United States illegally eligible for three-year deportation stays and work permits. Mostly those are people who have been in the country for more than five years and have children who are U.S. citi- zens or legal permanent res- idents. Applications for the first phase were to begin Wednesday, when as many as 300,000 immigrants brought illegally to the coun- try as children could begin applying for an expansion of Obama's 2012 program aimed at the younger immi- grants known as Dreamers. Yet there was also palpa- ble anxiety, with their ap- parent White House gains under attack on Capitol Hill and in the courts. Ad- vocates pledged to redou- ble their efforts to sign up as many people as possible. "It's extremely impor- tant for the community to understand from a legal perspective it is on solid le- gal footing and actually the larger numbers of people who come forward to ap- ply, the more likely we can protect the expansion," said Marielena Hincapie, execu- tive director of the National Immigration Law Center. Hanen's ruling late Mon- day night, in a case brought by 26 states led by Texas, said that Obama and his Homeland Security Depart- ment lacked the authority to take the actions they did. "No statute gives the DHS the discretion it is try- ing to exercise here," wrote Hanen, and he issued a stay blocking the actions from taking effect. JUDGE'S ORDER Wh it e Ho us e pu ts i mmi gr at io n plans on hold a er court ruling PATSULLIVAN—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS People cheer during a town hall forum, Tuesday in Houston. The meeting was held to help immigrants prepare for President Barack Obama's immigration order in spite of an injunction from a federal judge in Texas. Thank you! PLEASE RECYCLE THIS NEWSPAPER. By Josh Lederman The Associated Press WASHINGTON The United States must ensure that immigrants are fully in- cluded in the fabric of American society to pre- vent violent ideologies from taking root at home, Vice President Joe Biden said Tuesday as he opened a White House summit on countering extremism and radicalization. Joining local elected of- ficials, community lead- ers and religious figures, Biden portrayed the U.S. as far better positioned than Europe, thanks to what he called America's successful record at cultural integra- tion. He said societies must offer immigrants an "affir- mative alternative" to ex- tremism, cautioning that military force alone could not address the threat. Across the Atlantic, deadly terrorist attacks in France, Belgium and Denmark have left Euro- peans feeling vulnerable to the type of violent ide- ology promoted by the Is- lamic State group and once thought to be confined mostly to the Middle East and North Africa. "National security flows from a sense of commu- nity," Biden said, adding that the most important lesson the U.S. can learn is that "inclusion counts." The White House has sought to use the three- day conference in Wash- ington to stir a sense of ur- gency about the challenge of preventing home-grown terrorism and the radical- ization and recruitment of Americans, particularly dis- affected young people. Yet it comes as the Obama ad- ministration has struggled to match its stated strategy for fighting IS and other Is- lamic extremist groups with the realities on the ground in Libya, Yemen and other Mideast hotspots. On Wednesday, Presi- dent Barack Obama was to address a gathering at the White House examining the response from U.S. cit- ies, then speak at the State Department on Thursday at a gathering of repre- sentatives from roughly 60 countries. The United Kingdom, Jordan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and France are ex- pected to attend. Global concerns that the Islamic State is drawing interest and support from communities far away from Iraq and Syria have only grown in recent days. Egypt launched airstrikes against IS positions in Libya, where the group posted video of 21 Egyptian Coptic Chris- tians being beheaded, and the U.N. Security Council is considering its own re- sponse. Denmark is reel- ing from a weekend shoot- ing spree by a 22-year-old gunman that authorities believe may have been rad- icalized in prison. Biden, in his remarks, held up Boston, Los An- geles and Minneapolis as examples of communities moving ahead with pro- grams to counter extrem- ism locally. He said the goal was to bring together broad coalitions of com- munity leaders so that all Americans — and particu- larly Muslims — would feel like "we see them." SUMMIT ON EXTREMISM Biden stresses inclusion of immigrants in society By John Raby and Jonathan Mattise The Associated Press MOUNT CARBON, W.VA. Fires were still burning more than a day after an oil train carrying more than 3 million gallons of crude derailed in a snowstorm, shooting fireballs into the sky and leaking oil into a West Virginia waterway. Hundreds of families were evacuated and two wa- ter treatment plants were temporarily shut down af- ter 19 of the tanker cars left the tracks and caught fire, burning a nearby house down to its foundation. "There's nothing there," said Democratic U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, who toured the scene alongside a Kanawha River tributary. "All you can see is a cou- ple of blocks sticking out of the ground. There's some pickup trucks out front completely burned to the ground." One person was treated for smoke inhalation, but no other injuries were re- ported, according to the train company, CSX. The two-person crew, an engi- neer and conductor, walked away unharmed. "It was a little scary. It was like an atomic bomb went off," said David Mc- Clung, who felt the heat at his home about a half-mile uphill. He said one of the explosions sent a fireball at least 300 feet into the air. Fire crews had little choice Tuesday but to let the tanks burn themselves out. Each carries up to 30,000 gallons of crude. The train was carrying volatile Bakken crude from North Dakota's shale fields to an oil shipping depot in Yorktown, Virginia. It used model 1232 tank cars, which include safety upgrades vol- untarily adopted by the in- dustry four years ago, the Federal Railroad Adminis- tration confirmed. A series of ruptures and fires in recent derailments involving model 1232s has the National Transporta- tion Safety Board question- ing their safety as well, and the Department of Trans- portation has drafted new standards being reviewed by the White House bud- get office. Just last year, a similar accident happened along the same route in Lynchburg, Virginia. The cause of Monday's accident, which happened about 1:20 p.m. about 30 miles southeast of Charles- ton, was not immediately known. Snow was falling heavily at the time — as much as 7 inches in some places Monday — but it's not clear if the weather was a factor. All but two of the 109 cars were tankers, and 26 of them left the tracks, the governor's spokesman Chris Stadelman said. The two locomotives stayed on the track, as the front of the train began derailing, a CSX spokesman said. Some of the tanks were still on fire Tuesday after- noon, but federal investi- gators were allowed to get closer as the day wore on, and Appalachian Power crews were allowed to re- pair a line providing elec- tricity to about 900 cus- tomers. With no water or power, about 85 displaced resi- dents had gone to shel- ters set up by CSX and the American Red Cross, Mes- sina said. The West Virginia Na- tional Guard was taking water samples to deter- mine whether the oil that spilled into Armstrong Creek reached the Kanawha River, which supplies drink- ing water to thousands of West Virginians. So far, "we haven't been able to deter- mine how much, if any, crude oil made it into the river," state Environmental Protection spokeswoman Kelley Gillenwater said. OIL TRAIN Hu nd re ds d is pl ac ed a e r de ra il men t NOTICEOFPACIFICGASANDELECTRICCOMPANY'SREQUEST TO INCREASE YOUR RATES FOR THE ELECTRIC VEHICLE INFRASTRUCTURE AND EDUCATION PROGRAM (A.15-02-009) Summary On February 9,2015,Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) submitted an application to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for approval of its proposed Electric Vehicle Infrastructure and Education Program. PG&E's estimate of the proposal's total cost is $654 million, which will result in an increase to rates by $103 million to cover its costs to provide public access to electric vehicle charging stations and educational outreach.PG&E seeks approval of this application to help achieve California's greenhouse gas reduction goals by expanding the use of electricity as a cleaner transportation fuel. Background PG&E's proposal will provide customers with convenient access to electric vehicle charging stations. PG&E proposes to install, maintain and manage the operation of electric vehicle charging stations and related electric infrastructure at approximately 2,600 sites throughout PG&E's service territory.The sites will be located at workplaces, multi-unit dwellings and public spaces. If the application is approved, PG&E also will develop materials to promote hosting of charging stations and to raise awareness of the benefits of clean electric transportation. The program will help improve transportation options for electric vehicle owners and improve the environment. How will PG&E's application affect me? The proposed program will provide greater access to charging stations by expanding their availability across PG&E's service territory.The cost to electric customers over the first five years of the program will be $5 million in 2016, $19 million in 2017, $41 million in 2018, $76 million in 2019 and $103 million in 2020. Most customers receive bundled electric service from PG&E, meaning PG&E provides the customer electric generation as well as transmission and distribution services. If approved, distribution rates would increase for this initiative beginning the year the application is approved. A table presenting more illustrative descriptions of the impact of this application was included in a bill insert announcing this filing that was sent directly to customers in February and March. If this application is approved, PG&E estimates that in 2020, the year with the largest requested rate increase to support this program, a bundled service residential customer using 500 kWh per month would see an average bill increase of $0.90 (or 1.0 percent) a month, from $88.39 to $89.29. Individual customers' bills will differ based on their monthly usage levels and their rate plan. How will PG&E's applications affect non-bundled customers? Direct Access (DA) and Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) customers receive electric transmission and distribution services from PG&E and are required to pay the same transmission and distribution rates as bundled customers. The impact of PG&E's application on DA and CCA customers is $8.2 million, or an average increase of 1.1 percent. Another category of non-bundled customers is Departing Load customers. These customers do not receive electric generation, transmission or distribution services from PG&E for their departing load. However, like DA and CCA customers, they are required to pay certain additional charges that are impacted in the recovery costs in this application.The impact on Departing Load customers is $3,064, or an average decrease of 0.01 percent. How do I find out more about PG&E's proposals? If you have questions about PG&E's application, please contact PG&E at 1-800-743-5000. TDD/TTY users call 1-800-652-4712. Para más detalles llame al 1-800-660-6789 • (詳情請致電) 1-800-893-9555 If you would like a copy of PG&E's application and exhibits, please write to PG&E at the address below. Pacific Gas and Electric Company Electric Vehicle Infrastructure & Education Program P.O. Box 7442 San Francisco, CA 94120 A copy of PG&E's application and exhibits are also available for review at the CPUC, 505 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94102, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–noon. PG&E's application (without exhibits) is available on the CPUC's website at www.cpuc.ca.gov/puc. How does the CPUC's decision-making process work? This Application will be assigned to an Administrative Law Judge (Judge) who will determine how to receive evidence and other related documents necessary for the CPUC to establish a record upon which to base its decision. Evidentiary Hearings (EHs) may be held where parties of record will present their testimony and may be subject to cross-examination by other parties. These EHs are open to the public, but only those who are parties of record can participate. After considering all proposals and evidence presented during the formal hearing process, the assigned Judge will issue a proposed decision which may adopt PG&E's proposal, modify it or deny it. Any CPUC Commissioner may sponsor an alternate decision.The proposed decision, and any alternate decisions, will be discussed and voted upon at a scheduled CPUC Voting Meeting. As a party of record, the Office of Ratepayer Advocates (ORA) will review this application. ORA is the independent consumer advocate within the CPUC with a legislative mandate to represent investor-owned utility customers to obtain the lowest possible rate for service consistent with reliable and safe service levels. ORA has a multi- disciplinary staff with expertise in economics, finance, accounting and engineering. Other parties of record will also participate in the CPUC's proceeding to consider this application. For more information about ORA, please call 1-415-703-1584, email ora@cpuc.ca.gov or visit ORA's website at http://ora.ca.gov/default.aspx. Stay informed If you would like to follow this proceeding, or any other issue before the CPUC, you may use the CPUC's free subscription service. Sign up at: http://subscribecpuc.cpuc.ca.gov/. If you would like to learn how you can participate in the proceeding, or if you have informal comments or questions about the CPUC processes, you may access the CPUC's Public Advisor's Office (PAO) webpage at www.cpuc.ca.gov/puc and click on "Public Advisor" from the CPUC Information Menu. You may also contact the PAO as follows. Email: public.advisor@cpuc.ca.gov Mail: Public Advisor's Office 505 Van Ness Avenue, Room 2103 San Francisco, CA 94102 Call: 1-866-849-8390 (toll-free) or 1-415-703-2074 TTY 1-866-836-7825 (toll-free) or 1-415-703-5282 (530) 529-1220 100 Jackson Street Red Bluff $25AMonthwith No Enrollment Fee Offer Expires 2-28-2015 Call for details RUNNINGS ROOFING SheetMetalRoofing ResidentialCommercial • Composition • Shingle • Single Ply Membrane Ownerisonsiteoneveryjob ServingTehamaCounty 530-527-5789 530-209-5367 No Money Down! "NoJobTooSteep" " No Job Too Flat" FREE ESTIMATES CA. 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