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Jones urges Trump Administration to address unsafe radon levels in public housing

Jessa Reid Bolling

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On Wednesday, U.S. Senator Doug Jones, D-Alabama, joined a growing number of federal lawmakers in urging the Trump administration to address reports of hazardous levels of radon in public housing in Huntsville. 

Jones sent a letter to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson, citing an investigation conducted by AL.com and The Oregonian/OregonLive reporters that found high levels of the radioactive gas radon in that three apartments in Butler Terrace Addition in Huntsville had “an average level of radioactivity above the level that radon contractors say calls for specialized ventilation systems to remove it,” while two others in the same development were found to be above the federal standard for radon.

In the letter, Jones requested that funds be requested for the president’s 2021 fiscal year budget to sufficiently test for and mitigate high radon levels in federally subsidized housing. 

“Given the troubling results of this investigation, HUD should make every effort to ensure public housing across the country is tested for radon and, if found, also mitigated expeditiously,” Jones said in the letter. “HUD must ensure Americans living in federally subsidized housing are free from the risks posed by high radon levels.”

Radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in America after smoking and is estimated to kill over 20,000 people annually, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

Radon is a naturally occurring gas in rocks, soil, and groundwater that cannot be seen, smelled or tasted, making it easy to go unnoticed. Exposure to radon occurs primarily from breathing in radon that has comes in through cracks and gaps in buildings, including homes. 

HUD does not currently require testing for radon levels, even though Congress ordered the organization in 1988 to write a policy to ensure that public housing tenants “are not exposed to hazardous levels of radon.” However, HUD leaders never wrote the policy, even though the organization recommended in 2013 that they “strongly encourage” local housing authorities to test for high levels of exposure to radon. The investigation found that HUD did not test any apartments in the five years following their own recommendation.

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Carson spoke publicly about the issue in an interview on Thursday, saying that it is not a HUD’s responsibility to follow up on these reports and that state regulations in place that local housing authorities should follow. However, he also suggested that HUD would ensure radon testing is done by local housing authorities by making it part of the inspection process, called the Real Estate Assessment Center or REAC.

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Jessa Reid Bolling is a reporting intern at the Alabama Political Reporter and graduate of The University of Alabama with a B.A. in journalism and political science. You can email her at [email protected] or reach her via Twitter.

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National

Sewell votes to overhaul credit reporting system

Brandon Moseley

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Wednesday, U.S. Representative Terri Sewell, D-Selma, voted in favor of the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act of 2020 (Comprehensive CREDIT Act), HR3621.

Sponsors claim that the legislation addresses many credit reporting flaws by enhancing consumers’ rights, requiring more transparency over the consumer reporting and credit scoring processes, and increasing the accountability of credit reporting agencies (CRAs) and companies that develop credit scoring models.

“More than 40 million Americans have inaccurate credit reports, which can determine job opportunities, how much you pay for car insurance and whether you will qualify to rent an apartment,” Sewell said. “What’s more, consumers have little recourse to correct errors on their reports. The Comprehensive CREDIT Act will help fix this flawed system and empower consumers to rehabilitate their damaged credit.”

“I am especially proud of the provisions in the bill that repair credit reports of consumers who have been victimized by predatory lenders and protect those with debt from medically-necessary procedures,” Sewell said.

Was sponsored by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, D-Massachusetts.

“I’m thrilled that my colleagues in the House voted to create a credit reporting system that works for all by passing my bill, the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation and Transparency (CREDIT) Act,” Congresswoman Pressley said. “When credit reports determine where you can live, work and how much you will have to pay for everything from a car to a college degree, consumers deserve a system that ensures equity, transparency and accountability. American families are finding themselves trapped in cycles of debt, simply for trying to afford basic needs like healthcare and education. The Comprehensive CREDIT Act will greatly improve a fundamentally flawed credit reporting system, providing much needed relief for families across the country.”

Sponsors claim that the Comprehensive CREDIT Act addresses the deep flaws in the current credit reporting system and includes tenets of several bills introduced by members of the House Financial Services Committee, including Congresswoman Pressley’s Student Borrower Credit Improvement Act, which establishes protections for private student loan borrowers similar to those that already exist for borrowers with federal student loans.

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The Comprehensive CREDIT Act has broad support from consumer, civil rights, labor, community, and industry organizations including Americans for Financial Reform, Consumer Federation of America, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Consumer Law Center, National Fair Housing Alliance, Public Citizen, and National Association of Realtors, among others.

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Opponents argue that it vastly expands the regulatory burden on lenders and would actually make it harder for Americans to obtain credit.

Congresswoman Pressley is a staunch advocate for consumer and borrower protections. Last year, she introduced HR5021, the Ending Debt Collection Harassment Act, legislation that requires the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to regulate the debt collection industry. She also led a letter with Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters, D-CA, and Congresswoman Katie Porter, D-California, to CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger slamming the CFPB’s decision to roll back protections that prevent debt collectors from harassing Americans.

The bill passed the House of Representatives 221 to 189. Not one Republican in the House voted for the bill, which makes its chances of being passed by the Republican controlled Senate highly unlikely and signed into law by President Donald J. Trump (R) unlikely.

Congresswoman Terri Sewell is serving in her fifth term representing Alabama’s Seventh Congressional District. Sewell is running for a sixth term and has no Democratic or Republican opponent.

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National

Byrne calls for halt to travel from China

Brandon Moseley

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Congressman Bradley Byrne released a video statement calling for an immediate halt of all travel from China to the United States due to concerns about the worsening coronavirus pandemic.

“We are all concerned about the coronavirus,” Congressman Byrne said, “We now have a person to person spread of the virus here in this country; so I have asked the government to halt, at least on a temporary basis, to halt all transportation to or from the country.”

Byrne said that we needed to, “Protect our people that are there, if they have to come back over here then bring thm back, but stop sending any more people from going over there until we get a handle on this.”

As of press time, the Chinese government admits that 386 people have already died from the disease, which has a higher fatality rate than over communicable diseases like influenza. Three thousand Chinese were diagnosed with the disease on Sunday alone.

China has 20,438 diagnosed cases of this, the government said on Tuesday morning. Additionally more than 160 cases have been diagnosed in two dozen other countries, including 11 in the United States.

The City of Wuhan is ground zero of this outbreak. Public health officials warn that this could become a global pandemic. China has built two new hospitals there, staffed with Chinese Army doctors and nurses, one of them in just eleven days, to treat coronavirus patients.

“There’s no sign that it’s getting better,” said Leo Poon, who is the division head of the public health laboratory sciences department at the University of Hong Kong. “We don’t see a pattern of decline, and that’s a problem.”

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“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring an outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. Chinese authorities identified the new coronavirus, which has resulted in thousands of confirmed cases in China, including cases outside Wuhan City. Additional cases have been identified in a growing number of other international locations, including the United States. There are ongoing investigations to learn more,” the CDC said in a statement.

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The cases in the U.S. had all been people who had traveled to China until Thursday when the first case of a person in America who got the disease from a traveler from China was diagnosed.

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in many different species of animals, including camels, cattle, cats, and bats. More than 14,000 people traveled to the United States from China each day in 2019.

Byrne is running for the Senate seat currently held by Doug Jones (D-Alabama). The Republican primary is March 3.

(Original reporting by the New York Times contributed to this report.)

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National

Aderholt: Impeachment shows Democrats have “no ideas for improving the nation”

Brandon Moseley

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Monday, Congressman Robert Aderholt (R-Haleyville) said in an email to constituents that Democrats have nothing to show for their first year in the majority.

“Democrats have now entered their second year of controlling the House and they still have nothing to show for it,” Aderholt said. “They spent the first year trying to find ways to overturn the 2016 election and it appears this year will be no different.”

The Democrats elected House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-California) as Speaker of the House after they assumed control of the House for the first time since 2010.

“Speaker Pelosi insisted impeachment was urgent for our national security, yet she waited nearly four weeks to finally transmit the articles to the Senate,” Aderholt continued. “So, now Democrats have carried this partisan and inappropriate impeachment into a new year. I think it’s because they have no true plans or ideas for improving our nation, they are just obsessed with trying to remove Donald Trump from office. Now, Democrats have carried this partisan and inappropriate impeachment into a new year because they are obsessed with trying to remove Donald Trump from office.”

On Friday, the Republican Senate majority rejected Democratic House managers’ request to subpoena witnesses in the Senate trial.

“I am confident that the Senate will quickly acquit the President of any wrongdoing and return to regular order,” Aderholt continued. “Maybe then Democrats will accept the results of the 2016 election and start working for the American people, but I’m not holding my breath.”

While there is virtually zero chance that Trump is actually removed by the Senate, Democrats hope that the impeachment will help them defeat Trump in the general election.

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On Thursday, Pres. Trump signed the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA) on trade.

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“Everybody said, “It’s impossible to do. It’ll never, never take place,” trade deals like this,” Trump said during the bill signing ceremony. “And then we’ve built our military, we’ve cut taxes. We’ve taken care of regulations, cut more than any other President in the history of our country. And we did that in three years instead of eight years, or in one case, more. And we protect our Second Amendment. We protect our Second Amendment. So we’ve done all these things. And, remember, the tax cut was the biggest tax cut in the history of our country. And what do they do? They impeach you.”

Congressman Robert Aderholt is serving in his twelfth term representing Alabama’s Fourth Congressional District.

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Elections

Doug Jones leads Republican rivals in fundraising

Brandon Moseley

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The Doug Jones for Senate campaign reports a strong fourth quarter with over $1.9 million raised in the fourth quarter of 2019. He is leading all of his Republican rivals.

The Doug Jones campaign raised over $7.5 million in total, with an average contribution of $68.05. Most of that money is from out of state donors. Jones raised $1,076,952.32 from political action committees.

“From securing permanent funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, repealing the Military Widows Tax, simplifying the college aid application process and helping to secure paid parental leave for over 50,000 federal workers in Alabama, Doug has had an incredible year in the Senate and on the campaign trail,” said Doug Turner, Senior Advisor, Doug Jones for Senate Campaign. “We’re looking forward to continuing his work of bringing people together to get things done for Alabama in 2020.”

Jones entered 2020 with $5,042,251.25 in cash on hand.

Former Auburn head football Coach Tommy Tuberville has raised $1,328,437.18 in contributions. 98.3 percent of Tuberville’s contributions came from political action committees. PACs have donated just $16,734.11 to Tuberville. Coach Tuberville loaned his campaign $1,000,000 and has spent $804,698.50 leaving him with just $1,523,738.68 in cash on hand to spend.

Congressman Bradley Byrne, R-Montrose, raised $1,085,152.51 last year. Most of that came from individual donors with just $221,500 coming from political action committees. Byrne also transferred $2,261,084 from his Congressional campaign account and spent $1,152,953.09 in 2019 leaving him with $2,193,283.11 in cash on hand.

Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions was very late getting in the race. Despite the late entry Sessions was able to raise $185,326 in individual contributions and $126,734 from Political Action Committees during the last weeks of 2019. Sessions was also a Senator for over twenty years until leaving the Senate to become Attorney General in 2017. In his last race in 2014, the popular Senator Sessions did not have a single opponent, Republican or Democrat. Sessions thus had well over $2 million left in his Friends of Jeff Sessions account earning interest. Despite spending $311,266.22, Sessions’ 2019 contributions, combined with his carried over balance, means he enters 2020 with $2,542,974.24 in cash on hand – more than any other Republican in the field.

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Former Chief Justice Roy S. Moore was narrowly defeated by Jones in the 2017 special election for the remainder of Sessions’ term. Moore has had some difficulty raising money this time in the crowded Republican field. Moore has raised just $126,925.23, all of it from individuals. No political action committees have contributed to Moore’s campaign. Moore has spent $82,809.55 leaving his campaign with just $44,115.68 in cash on hand.

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State Representative Arnold Mooney, R-Indian Springs, has raised $769,088.30 in contributions, with political action committees contributing just $18,000. Mooney has spent $465,458.47 on his campaign leaving him with just $321,629.83 in cash on hand.

Northwest Alabama businessman Stanley Adair has only raised $148,977.39 and $0 from political action committees. Adair has also contributed $134,421.08 of his own money to his race for Senate and has borrowed $4,500. Adair has spent $286,519.32 leaving him with just $1,379.15 in cash on hand.

The Federal Elections Commission is not showing any current reports for Ruth Page Nelson of Dothan.

Secretary of State John H. Merrill dropped out of the race shortly after Sessions announced his candidacy. Before dropping out Merrill has raised $928,497.69, spent $513,897.35, and still has $414,600.34 in cash on hand.

Michael Parish is attempting to qualify for the ballot as an independent, a difficult task in Alabama. He reports total receipts of just $5,116.21, spending $1,742.87, and cash on hand of just $3,373.34.

The Republican primary will be on March 3. Jones does not have a Democratic Party opponent. Jones will face the eventual Republican nominee on November 3.

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