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Virginia Receives $9M For Anti-Terror Efforts
by Chloe Albanesius
Virginia Gov. Mark Warner announced Wednesday that the state had received more than $9 million in grant money for local law enforcement terrorism prevention programs.
"Increasing resources and support for Virginia's 'first responder' law enforcement professionals is fundamental to our mission of further enhancing our focus on prevention as part of our broader preparedness effort," Warner said in a statement. "These funds will continue to strengthen the shared commitment of localities and their law enforcement agencies to keep our citizens safe and secure."
The Criminal Justice Services Department will administer the money to help local law enforcement officials improve security via training, equipment, exercises and planning. The funds come from the $49 million in first-responder money the state received from the U.S. Homeland Security Department.
The 36 localities receiving grant money include: $1.1 million for Fairfax; $753,000 for Virginia Beach; $505,000 for Henrico; $503,000 for Chesterfield; $446,000 for Norfolk; $401,000 for Loudoun; $383,000 for Arlington; $380,000 for Richmond; and $225,000 for Roanoke City.
In other news, New Jersey Gov. James McGreevey on Wednesday met with his homeland security officials to discuss recent terrorism warnings from federal authorities and the potential threat during the upcoming Republican National Convention in New York City. While "there continues to be no specific terrorist threat aimed at New Jersey ... we are working hard everyday to ensure that our communities are safe and secure," McGreevey said in a release.
Also at the meeting, the governor's task force presented a report detailing its anti-terrorism efforts during 2003. Organizers highlighted the coordination among departments of information and resources. McGreevey criticized the lack of funding from the federal government for the task force. "With or without the federal government's help, the counter-terrorism work New Jersey is doing must and will continue," he said. "We will keep developing more sophisticated ways to keep our infrastructure and communities safe from terrorist attacks."
State efforts include a two-way radio system that interconnects all 85 acute-care hospitals and an improved security and investigations unit to help prevent identity theft. New Jersey also plans statewide coordination of approximately 50 explosive-detecting canine units responding to bomb incidents.
And on Friday, Homeland Security announced that its Internet-based counterterrorism network would expand to include the 50 states, five territories and Washington, D.C., to improve the flow of threat information. Future expansion will include the county level and the private sector.
States Settle With Telemarketing Scammer
Ten states on Wednesday announced they had reached a settlement with a Minnesota-based telecommunications firm accused of deceptive telemarketing practices.
The states said New Access lied about its service charges, its affiliation with the customers' current provider and potential savings if they switched to New Access' service. New Access denied any wrongdoing but agreed to the terms of the settlement. Under the deal, the company will credit customer bills, put $250,000 in a trust fund for future customer refund claims and pay $750,000 for penalties, attorney fees and costs.
In addition, the company is banned from switching a customer's phone service without the expressed consent of the consumer and cannot misrepresent its relationship with other providers. New Access also must provide customers with a toll-free number for customer support and provide clear guidelines regarding charges on customers' bills.
The office of North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and the state's Public Service Commission received more than 150 customer complaints about New Access. "The agreement will provide protection for our consumers," he said in a release.
"This settlement is a significant victory in the fight to ensure that companies adhere to fair and honest business practices," Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox said in a release. The case should "serve as a warning to unscrupulous telecommunications providers."
The following states also were involved in the settlement: Colorado, Iowa, Ohio, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Texas and Wisconsin.
In other news, Missouri officials ordered a Florida-based telemarketing company to pay $75,000 for calling residents who asked not to be called. Xentel also will implement procedures to ensure compliance with the Missouri ruling in the future. "We will aggressively go after telemarketers who make repeat calls after being told to stop," Attorney General Jay Nixon said in a release.
In addition, Nixon ordered Missouri businesses Thomas Construction and First Union to pay $10,000 for violating the state's do-not-call statute. The state has raised about $1.2 million from do-not-call fines.
And Nevada Attorney General Brian Sandoval on Friday announced that John Conlin was sentenced to three years in prison for stealing cellular telephone services from Cricket Communications and trying to sell that service to unwitting customers.
Gov. Ehrlich Vetoes SSN Bill
Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich last week vetoed a measure, SB 117, that would restrict the way companies or government could use an individual's Social Security number (SSN). Specifically, the measure would prohibit the public posting of someone's SSN, printing that number on specified cards, requiring a person to transmit a SSN over the Internet; or requiring a person to enter their SSN when accessing a Web site.
The Maryland House and Senate unanimously passed the measure, but Ehrlich vetoed the measure because "one section of the bill ... makes it more difficult for consumers to transact businesses with their insurers."
The Republican governor cited the United Services Automobile Association (USAA), which primarily deals with insurance policies for deployed service members. "Prohibiting the use of a Social Security number for identification via e-mail or facsimile will substantially inconvenience military personnel who are often deployed in areas where traditional mail is not timely," Ehrlich said in his veto message. The importance of using SSN's was highlighted by USAA, which said it had 1,800 members named "David Johnson," he said.
Ehrlich urged Maryland lawmakers to adopt a measure similar to the one enacted in California which allows insurers to use SSNs on e-mail "if it's over a secure connection and encrypted," he said. "Given the absence of a federal law and the fact that insurers such as USAA deal in multiple states, it is critical that Maryland's law comports with the laws of other states."
Ehrlich, however, approved five technology-related measures last week: SB 88 provides residents with a telephone consumer protection act; SB 917 and HB 1538 establish a task force on the status of women and information technology; HB 694 adopts the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax agreement; and HB 1208 requires an investigator who has knowledge of child pornography to contact the server on which the pornography is present in order to have the content removed.
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