New Hampshire Alliance for Retired Americans Wins Hearing Aid Help Bill

by Mike Hall, May 1, 2010

Charlie Balban, a retired Sheet Metal Workers (SMWIA) member and president of the New Hampshire Alliance for Retired Americans, suspects his hearing loss started during his apprentice days in a noisy shop.

Now, years later, he knows firsthand how expensive a good hearing aid can be—and how essential. Balban joined with the New Hampshire Alliance, which led the successful fight for state legislation that will help retirees and workers afford the devices.

This week, the New Hampshire Senate has passed a bill that ensures insurance companies provide $1,500 over five years to help people purchase hearing aids and related services. The bill passed the House earlier. “A good hearing aid can cost as much as $6,000,” says Balban.

Obama Pokes Fun at McCain's Maverick Claim

President Barack Obama nibbles on fruit during the White House Correspondents' Association fundraising dinner, at the Washington Hilton Hotel, Saturday, May 1, 2010, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)© 2010 The Associated Press

May 2, 2010, 12:55AM

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is poking fun at Sen. John McCain's claim he was not identified as a maverick.

Obama quipped Saturday night at the White House correspondent's dinner that "we know what happens in Arizona when you don't have an ID. ... Adios amigos."

McCain faces a tough re-election fight against a conservative opponent and has distanced himself from the maverick label he once embraced as a presidential candidate.

Despite Annual Shortfalls, Jacksonville City Budget Keeps Rising

As mayor seeks more cuts, some are asking: “Where is the money going?”

Posted: May 3, 2010 - 1:51am

By Matt Galnor

Every spring since Mayor John Peyton took office, the words “budget shortfall” ring from City Hall as Jacksonville leaders try to craft a spending plan for the next year.

Yet every fall, when the City Council signs off on the budget, it’s more than the previous year.

Since Mayor John Peyton took office in 2003, the city’s annual revenue has ballooned $265 million, records show.

But expenses, Peyton counters, have gone up even more — annual pension contributions have doubled, and health insurance costs have double-digit percentage increases about every year.

More Tough Decisions Ahead on City’s Budget

Submitted by Ron Littlepage on May 1, 2010 - 11:47pm

Mayor John Peyton says the City Council acted courageously last Tuesday when it approved increasing city fees, including doubling the garbage fee.

I’ve heard several other choice descriptions of what the council did, and courageous wasn’t among them.
But, like it or not, what the council did was necessary to begin getting the city’s financial house in order.
And it was just one step of many that need to be taken.

Peyton met with council members last Thursday and began laying out his budget plans for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1.

Florida Senator Wants Plans for Drilling Halted

Posted: April 30, 2010 - 11:58pm

By Steve Patterson

FERNANDINA BEACH - As sheens of spilled oil drifted in the Gulf of Mexico, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson said Friday that President Barack Obama should drop plans for expanded oil exploration off Florida's coast.

"I've said to the White House, 'Don't you dare think about your five-year plans [for offshore oil leases] ... We're just not going to let you,' " the Florida Democrat said hours after visiting Pensacola and checking preparations for a potential oil landfall.

Obama proposed expanded oil drilling in the Gulf and preparations for oil and gas exploration along the South Atlantic in March. The Interior Department has been collecting public comments on plans that would be implemented in five year-phases, holding a hearing in Jacksonville last month.

Several First Coast Judges Keep Their Posts

Posted: April 30, 2010 - 12:38pm

By Scott Butler

Several First Coast circuit and county judges have been re-elected with no opposition, supervisor of election offices announced Friday.

They’ll serve additional six-year terms as of January 2011.

The Duval County judges are John A. Moran, Russell L. Healey, Eleni Elia Derke and Ronald P. Higbee.
Two county judges in Clay — Timothy Collins and Richard Townsend — also retained their seats after having no opposition when qualifying ended Friday. St. Johns County Judge Charles J. Tinlin kept his judgeship.

Alliance for Retired Americans - Friday Alert, April 30, 2010

Friday, April 30, 2010

(Alliance for Retired Americans)

Alliance Members Protest Across the Country as Fiscal Commission Meets in DC
On Tuesday in Washington, DC, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform met for the first time. Erskine Bowles, former Chief of Staff to President Bill Clinton, and retired Sen. Alan Simpson (R-WY), co-chair the Commission. Click on http://bit.ly/bsw4qW for a list of the 18 members who make up the panel. The Commission could determine the future of Social Security; however, after Tuesday's opening session, it plans to hold most of its meetings outside of the public eye, behind closed doors. Activists have been contacting their elected officials, saying that the Commission's deliberations - and the future of Social Security - are too important to be kept secret. Alliance members sent more than 3,600 letters to their elected officials driving their point home this week.