WASHINGTON - Chuck Grassley today said that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Rural Development has awarded 12 loans totaling $565,963 and 12 grants totaling $521,526 to Iowa through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).

"REAP funding helps promote the use of safe, renewable energy which will lessen our dependence on foreign oil," Grassley said.  "That's good for Iowa and it's good for America."

The Office of Rural Development will distribute the funds as shown below organized alphabetically by town.  All funds are being used to purchase and/or install energy efficient grain drying systems.

· Kerrigan Bros. in Afton will receive a $49,801 loan and a $49,801 grant

· John Hayek in Clutier will receive a $42,919 loan and a $42,919 grant

· WE Inc Grain Dryer Project in Fonda will receive a $42,486 loan and a $42,486 grant

· Todd Christians in Kanawha will receive an $88,874 loan and a $44,437 grant

· Benton Grain Company in Keystone will receive a $49,941 loan and a $49,941 grant

· Craig Hupfeld in Liscomb will receive a $47,510 loan and a $47,510 grant

· Marcydu, Inc. in Monticello will receive a $40,215 loan and a $40,215 grant

· Carl Ries in Monticello will receive a $45,938 loan and a $45,938 grant

· S & J Lawler, Inc. in Ogden will receive a $49,550 loan and a $49,550 grant

· Clark Yeager in Ottumwa will receive a $49,245 loan and a $49,245 grant

· Richard Homan in Remsen will receive a $33,584 loan and a $33,584 grant

· Ronald Schnoor in Stockton will receive a $25,902 loan and a $25,902 grant

According to the USDA, REAP funds are used to promote investments in renewable energy, such as bioenergy, geothermal, hydrogen, solar, wind and hydro power, and energy efficiency projects.

Each year, thousands of local Iowa organizations, colleges and universities, individuals and state agencies apply for competitive grants from the federal government.  The funding is then awarded based on each local organization or individual's ability to meet criteria set by the federal entity.

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WASHINGTON - May 18, 2010 - Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, founder and co-chairman of the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth, this week said the direct experiences of youth in the foster care system continue to be critical to improving policies that help foster youth find permanent, loving homes and smooth the transition of those who "age out" of the system.

"You can read all the studies in the world, but nothing compares to hearing from someone who's lived the experience," Grassley said.  "Congress has to continue listening to foster kids and the people who work with them, then we need to act to improve whatever isn't working.  We also need to listen to federal, state and local care providers.  Youth in foster care are in the educational system as well as various social services programs.  Everyone needs to communicate well, or kids might fall through the cracks."

Grassley highlighted the individual experiences of foster youth at a special event on Capitol Hill.  The caucus hosted a preview of an upcoming Porch Productions documentary "From Place to Place," which follows six young people as they "age out" of the foster care system.  Then the senators held a roundtable discussion with leading child welfare researchers, advocates, policy makers and young people from foster care.

The event focused on the challenges and needs of the half a million youth in foster care and provided a forum for discussing policy recommendations to improve the foster care system and better serve the youth in care.

Moderating the discussion was Gary Stangler, executive director, Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative.  Stangler is the co-author of the book "On Their Own: What Happens to Kids When They Age Out of the Foster Care System," which dedicates a chapter to Reggie Kelsey, an 18-year-old from Des Moines who aged out of the foster care system and died in 2001.  His death prompted advocacy for foster youth and improvements of services in Iowa.

The event was the latest in a series to highlight May as National Foster Care month.  Last week, Grassley and the caucus co-chairman, Sen. Mary Landrieu, hosted a policy briefing covering recommendations in areas such as employment, housing, financial security, education, mentoring and permanency to improve the experiences and outcomes of youth in foster care. The panelists included researchers, child welfare experts, and alumni of the foster care system.

In 2008, Congress passed and the President signed legislation Grassley initiated to make major updates to foster care laws and dramatically increase adoption into permanent, loving homes.  The law - Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoption Act of 2008 -- also broke new ground by establishing opportunities for states to extend care and help "aged out" kids with education and vocational training.  Monitoring implementation of this law is another focus of the Senate caucus.

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WASHINGTON - Chuck Grassley today said that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has awarded competitive grants totaling $3,146,657 to the state of Iowa, Iowa cities and Iowa businesses through the Freight Rail Security Grant Program, the Port Security Grant Program, the Intercity Bus Security Grant Program, the Buffer Zone Protection Program, the Interoperable Emergency Communications Grant Program, the Driver's License Security Grant Program and the Emergency Operations Center Grant Program.

"The federal government has a responsibility to defend the homeland," Grassley said. "This funding will help prevent future emergencies and protect Iowans."

DHS will distribute the money as shown below ordered alphabetically by town.

Through the Freight Rail Security Grant Program:

· Iowa Interstate Railroad, Ltd. in Cedar Rapids will receive $100,000

Through the Port Security Grant Program:

· Davenport Fire Department in Davenport will receive $200,000

Through the Intercity Bus Security Grant Program:

· Royal Charter, Inc. will receive $20,627

· Windstar Lines, Inc. will receive $273,353

Through the Buffer Zone Protection Program:

· Iowa will receive $200,000

Through the Interoperable Emergency Communications Grant Program:

· Iowa will receive $452,000

Through the Driver's License Security Grant Program:

· Iowa will receive $800,677

Through the Emergency Operations Center Grant Program:

· Benton County Emergency Management Commission will receive $500,000

· Ames will receive $600,000

The Freight Rail Security Grant Program encourages sustainable, risk-based efforts to protect travelers and surface transportation infrastructure from acts of terrorism and other emergencies.

The Port Security Grant Program provides grant funding to port areas for the protection of critical port infrastructure, particularly from attacks using explosives or non-conventional threats that could cause major disruption to commerce.

The Intercity Bus Security Grant Program funds sustainable protection of travelers and intercity bus systems from acts of terrorism. 

The Buffer Zone Protection Program provides funding to increase preparedness of departments responsible for the security of communities near critical infrastructure and key resources.  These include chemical facilities, financial institutions, nuclear and electric power plants, dams, stadiums, etc.

The Interoperable Emergency Communications Grant Program funds initiatives carried out by states, territories, and local and tribal governments designed to improve communication and cooperation during collective emergency response.

The Driver's License Security Grant Program advances public safety by improving the security of state-issued driver's licenses and ID cards.

The Emergency Operations Center Grant Program identifies and corrects weaknesses in current emergency response programs.

Each year, thousands of local Iowa organizations, colleges and universities, individuals and state agencies apply for competitive grants from the federal government.  The funding is then awarded based on each local organization or individual's ability to meet criteria set by the federal entity.

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Q&A with Senator Chuck Grassley

Oversight of Government Bailout

Friday, May 7, 2010

Q: How exactly is the claim made that General Motors paid back a multi-billion dollar taxpayer-supported government bailout loan "in full, with interest, ahead of schedule, because more customers are buying vehicles."

A: Here's what's happened and, unfortunately, the reality doesn't match the rhetoric.  As part of the government bailout of the automakers, the taxpayers had loaned GM around $20 billion by May 2009.  After GM declared bankruptcy in June, the Treasury Department loaned GM another $30 billion.  Then, to help GM emerge from bankruptcy, the Treasury Department struck a deal with GM that contained three components -- a $7 billion loan, $2 billion in preferred stock and 61 percent of GM's common stock -- in exchange for the original $50 billion in loans.  The deal translated into the taxpayers paying roughly $41 billion for the GM common stock.  Today, when GM says it paid its loan "in full," it's talking only about the newer $7 billion loan, not the original $50 billion in taxpayer loans.  And, the repayment money came from a $17 billion escrow account that was created with the $41 billion in tax dollars used to buy GM common stock.  The escrow was for expenses, and GM needed permission from the Treasury Department to use the money.  The way that GM repaid the newer $7 billion loan was with the TARP money in that escrow account, not earnings.

The taxpayer bailout of GM still stands at around $40 billion.  Taxpayers won't get back that money unless GM's stock price goes up enough to repay the $40 billion.  Will that happen?  No one knows, but the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated in March that, in the end, taxpayers will lose around $30 billion on GM.

Another question is why the Treasury Department allowed GM to repay the $7 billion, seven-percent loan out of escrow and gave permission to take the final $6.6 billion out of escrow free and clear, but did not require that a $2.5 billion, nine-percent loan that GM owes to the union health plan be repaid?  You'd think the higher interest rate loan would be paid first.  And, with $6.6 billion left over in the escrow, GM could have paid both loans.  When I asked the Treasury Secretary during a Senate hearing, he didn't have a good answer.

Q: What can be done about it?

A: I hope one lesson that's been learned by the Treasury Department is to tell it like it is.  Overall, the effort to collect the bailout funds is speculative at best.  So far, since coming out of bankruptcy, GM has lost billions.  Beyond that, the way the agreement was set up with the Treasury Department, GM now has access to the remaining $6.6 billion in the escrow account without any strings attached.  GM said publicly that it didn't need the escrow money.  If that's the case, then the extra $6.6 billion should be returned to the taxpayers right now.  The most important lesson from all of this is that it doesn't make sense for the federal government to own private businesses.