Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/684273
ByPaulJ.Weber TheAssociatedPress AUSTIN, TEXAS Texas and 10 other states are su- ing the Obama adminis- tration over its directive to U.S. public schools to let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity. The lawsuit announced Wednesday includes Okla- homa, Alabama, Wiscon- sin, West Virginia, Tennes- see, Maine, Arizona, Lou- isiana, Utah and Georgia. The challenge, which asks a judge to declare the di- rective unlawful, follows a federal directive to U.S. schools this month to let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity. The Obama adminis- tration has "conspired to turn workplace and edu- cational settings across the country into labora- tories for a massive social experiment, flouting the democratic process, and running roughshod over commonsense policies pro- tecting children and basic privacy rights," the lawsuit reads. Many of the conserva- tive states involved had previously vowed defi- ance, calling the guidance a threat to safety while be- ing accused of discrimina- tion by supporters of trans- gender rights. U.S. Attor- ney General Loretta Lynch has said "there is no room in our schools for discrim- ination." Texas' lieutenant gover- nor has previously said the state is willing to forfeit $10 billion in federal edu- cation dollars rather than comply. The directive from the U.S. Justice and Edu- cation Departments repre- sents an escalation in the fast-moving dispute over what is becoming the civil rights issue of the day. Pressed about whether he knew of any instances in which a child's safety had been threatened be- cause of transgender bath- room rights, Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said "there's not a lot of research." He said he his office has heard from concerned parents, but didn't say how many, and said he did not meet with any parents of trans- gender students before fil- ing the lawsuit. Two school districts joined the states in the law- suit: one is the tiny Harr- old school district in North Texas, which has 100 stu- dents and passed a policy this week requiring stu- dents to use the bathroom based on the gender on their birth certificate. Su- perintendent David Thwe- att said his schools have no transgender students to his knowledge but de- fended the district taking on the federal government. "It's not moot because it was thrusted upon us by the federal government," Thweatt said, "or we were going to risk losing our federal funding." The question of whether federal civil rights law pro- tects transgender people has not been definitively answered by the courts and may ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court. But schools that re- fuse to comply could be hit with civil rights lawsuits from the government and could face a cutoff of fed- eral aid to education. The guidance was is- sued after the Justice De- partment and North Caro- lina sued each other overs a state law that requires transgender people to use the public bathroom that corresponds to the sex on their birth certificate. The law applies to schools and many other places. Supporters say such measures are needed to protect women and chil- dren from sexual preda- tors, while the Justice De- partment and others argue the threat is practically nonexistent and the law discriminatory. LAWSUIT 11 states sue over Obama's school transgender directive DAVIDT.FOSTERIII—THECHARLOTTEOBSERVER Chad Griffin, le , president of the Human Rights Campaign, and Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality talk to the media outside the Meeting Chamber during a break at the Charlotte City Council meeting on Monday in Charlotte, N.C. Call 877-4DAD411 or visit www.fatherhood.gov be a dad today. Take time to By Matthew Daly The Associated Press WASHINGTON The Trans- portation Security Admin- istration will add 768 new screeners by mid-June to deal with increasingly long airport security lines that have caused passengers to miss flights even before the busy summer travel season, the agency's chief told Con- gress on Wednesday. Most of the new screeners will be sent to the nation's busiest airports in Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Los An- geles and other hubs, TSA Administrator Peter Nef- fenger told a House com- mittee. The TSA also has in- creased the use of overtime in Chicago and other major airports, converted some part-time workers to full- time status and increased the use of bomb-sniffing dogs to help with security lines, Neffenger said. And it is launching an incident command center that will track daily screen- ing operations and shift offi- cers, canine units and other resources to shorten lines at the busiest times, he said. The group includes officials from major airlines and in- dustry associations. "We have a challenge this summer, which we are ag- gressivelymeetinghead-on," Neffenger told the House Homeland Security Com- mittee. Rep. Michael McCaul, the panel's chairman, was un- convinced. Congress has grantedarequestbytheTSA to reallocate $34 million to hire more officers and pay overtime, yet wait times are growing, he said. "TheAmericanpeopleare angry and frustrated as we head into the busiest travel season of the year, starting this Memorial Day week- end," said McCaul, R-Texas. "They deserve answers." The crisis "didn't just come out of nowhere," Mc- Caul said. "Airports and air- lines have been sounding the alarm for months. Wait times are not soaring sim- ply because security is that muchtighter.It'sbecausethe TSA bureaucracy has gotten weaker." A combination of factors contribute to increased wait times to pass through se- curity screening, Neffenger said: More people are fly- ing this year and fewer peo- plethananticipatedhaveap- plied for the government's PreCheck program, which expeditesscreeningforthose whosubmit to a background check and pay an $85 fee. In addition, airline fees for checked bags have boosted the volume of carry- on bags, putting extra pres- sure on screeners. About four times more bags are brought through TSA check- points than are checked at the ticket counter or curb, Neffenger said. TheTSAexpects toscreen 740 million passengers this year, a 15 percent increase over 2013. That increase comes amid a 12 percent drop in the TSA's workforce that has reduced the num- ber of screeners to about 42,000 at 440 airports na- tionwide. The 768 screeners to be hired next month will boost the number of inspec- tors by less than 2 percent. McCaulpressedNeffenger about the abrupt ouster of the agency's top security of- ficial. Kelly Hoggan was re- movedMondayandreplaced by Darby LaJoye, a former federal security director in Los Angeles and New York. Neffenger declined to ex- plain why he removed Hog- gan, saying only that "I needed a new direction go- ing forward." Hoggan, who received more than $90,000 in bonuses in 2013-14, re- mains at the agency on paid administrative leave. Long lines have been plaguingairports sinceearly spring, but the issue came to a head in recent weeks when thousands of passengers in Chicago missed flights be- cause of lengthy checkpoint waits. Despite those problems, there are signs of improve- ment, Neffenger said. The agency has installed a new managementteamincharge of screening operations at Chicago's O'Hare Interna- tional Airport following an incident in which 450 pas- sengers were stranded over- night because of long secu- rity lines. TSA also has in- creased use of overtime and made other changes that ap- pear to be working. The lon- gest wait time at O'Hare on Tuesday was about 15 min- utes, he said. American and United air- lines say they are spending $4 million each to bring in contract employees who can take over nonscreening choressuchashandlingbins and managing lines, freeing up TSA agents to focus on screening. Delta Air Lines will spend at least $3 mil- lion and is redesigning two checkpoint lanes at Harts- field-Jackson Atlanta Inter- national Airport to speed things up before Memorial Day. HomelandSecuritySecre- tary Jeh Johnson, who over- sees TSA, has asked airlines to temporarily reduce or eliminate fees for checked bags to speed up inspections atcheckpoints.Airlines have balked at the suggestion, saying TSA is to blame for the long lines. Besides reducing fees, air- lines should enforce rules limitingcarry-onstoonebag plusonesmallpersonalitem, Neffenger said. "Every addi- tional bag coming through the checkpoint is a poten- tial slowdown," he said. TSA chief: Help is on the way to address long airport lines CONGRESS J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Transportation Security Administration (TSA) chief Peter Neffenger testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Wednesday before the House Homeland Security Committee which is looking for answers on how to balance security with long lines at airport checkpoints. 2016 Tehama County Health and Wellness Guide & Directory A reference guide to North State medical professionals and related medical services available to Tehama County residents. Advertising Rates (cost includes same-size adjacent space for promotional copy, provided by advertiser) 1/8 Pg...................................$199.00 1/4 Pg...................................$325.00 Half Pg.................................$485.00 Full Pg..................................$765.00 Inside Front...........................$1150.00 Inside Back............................$1015.00 Back Cover............................$1275.00 Center Double Truck.............$2175.00 Advertising&CopyDeadline:FRIDAY,JUNE3,2016 INSERTS: THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2016 GaylaEckels: geckels@redbluffdailynews.com(530) 737-5044 Suzy Noble: snoble@redbluffdailynews.com(530) 737-5056 We're taking a new approach with this popular annual glossy magazine publication to increase its reach and reminder to consumers in Tehama County and within the Redding-Chico DMA. As before, 5,000 copies will be inserted in a full edition of The Daily News, with advance in-paper and front page promotion. 3,000 additional printed copies will be produced for year-round provision to medical waiting rooms, Chambers of Commerce, local hotels, and advertiser counter-top distribution. Also as before, the online version of this magazine Guide will be hosted for a full year under the Special Publications tab on the front page of redbluffdailynews.com, for 24/7 viewability. Advertisers may embed a URL to their own website, to which readers of the publication can be sent directly to advertisers' own web pages! Advertisers are invited to provide copy for promotional copy on their practice or business, to be published in the Guide the same size space as their advertisement. Alternatively, advertisers can double the size of the ad space sizes listed below at no extra cost. NEW THIS YEAR! The Guide will feature a directory of local medical and health service providers, provided by St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, published by category. Advertisers in the publication will have their listings printed in bold text.. Advertising businesses that may not be included on the list of providers provided by St. Elizabeth will have their listings added in bold in the appropriate business category. Once monthly during the life of the publication, the Daily News will post a different aspect of the Guide and Directory as a post to The Daily News' Facebook page, which currently has over 5,000 "Likers." The post will refer them to the link to the digital edition. We will "boost" these posts to reach 2-3,000 additional Facebook users who may not yet be "likers" of our Facebook page. We've saved the best for last: Using the AdTaxi digital advertising agency's targeted email service, we will send a promotion and link to the digital edition of the Guide and Directory to 50,0000 emails of men and women 40 and older across the Redding-Chico DMA in September of 2016. This publication is an ideal promotional vehicle not only for medical practitioners, but alsoanybusiness the services of which promotes and supports health and wellness; health food sellers, gyms and health clubs, medical equipment providers and more! 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