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FederalDaily - April 12, 2007

Capitol Tunnel Workers Removed

Acting Architect of the Capitol (AOC) Stephen Ayers said that 10 Capitol tunnel workers who have been exposed to dangerous health conditions will be removed immediately from their work in the utility tunnels beneath the Capitol complex. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., in March chaired a hearing that investigated complaints that the workers had for years been subject to asbestos exposure and other dangers in the tunnels that carry utilities such as heat and water to the Capitol. After Murray received information that the workers had signs of pulmonary and respiratory disease, she called for the removal of the workers from the tunnels. “The Architect’s decision to take action is a welcome one, but does little to excuse the many years of negligence that have cost these workers their health,” said Murray. “For far too long these workers were exposed to deadly concentrations of asbestos while the Architect’s Office turned its back on their complaints.” http://murray.senate.gov/news.cfm?id=272085.

USDA Inspectors in Alabama Test Positive for TB

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is requesting Congressional hearings, saying the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has failed to implement procedures to protect some of its inspectors. The move comes after the tuberculosis germ was contracted by three USDA inspectors assigned to meat processing plants in Alabama. “Both plant workers and USDA inspectors should be afforded a safe and healthy work environment,” said Stan Painter, president of AFGE’s Southern Council of Food Inspectors. “We are concerned that USDA’s lack of action has put a great many people at risk of contracting and possibly passing on themselves, a very serious illness. Congress must investigate USDA’s safety policies and those at these processing plants.” At issue is how food processing plants document the safety of their workers, who may not be subject to the same kind of rigorous health screenings as USDA employees. While USDA inspectors must pass health and security screenings to maintain employment with USDA, it is not clear if food processors are subject to the same kind of procedures. In recent months, three inspectors have tested negative for TB in Alabama, and then returned two months later to post a positive result. AFGE has requested that USDA increase health and safety requirements in plants where the TB germ has been identified. For more, go to: www.afge.org/Index.cfm?Page=PressReleases&PressReleaseID=726.

Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Support Homeless Vets

Several Democratic senators this week introduced the Homes for Heroes Act, a bill that would expand housing and rental assistance for homeless vets. The bill, co-sponsored by Sens. Robert Menendez, N.J., Barack Obama, Ill., Charles Schumer, N.Y., and Sherrod Brown, Ohio, would establish permanent housing and services for low-income veterans and their families, expand rental assistance, focus government resources on homeless veterans, provide assistance to housing/service providers, and exclude veterans benefits from rent considerations. Among other things, the bill would establish a $225 million assistance program for community and nonprofit organizations to purchase, build or rehabilitate housing for low-income veterans, and would establish a “Special Assistant for Veterans Affairs” within the Department of Housing and Urban Development to coordinate services to homeless vets and serve as a liaison to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), state and local officials and nonprofits. According to the VA, approximately 200,000 adult veterans live on the streets or in shelters on any given day, and nearly twice as many are homeless at some point during the year. For more, go to: http://menendez.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=272090