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1. Gov't to talk with Cuba
2. IG: initiative lacks oversight
3. Feds under suit over fees
4. Rep.: GOP must 'change tone'
5. MA gov. makes benefits case

1.
Cuba, US to resume immigration talks at UN
Agence France Presse, July 13, 2009

Washington, DC (AFP) -- Talks between Cuba and the United States on the thorny issue of immigration, suspended since 2003, are set to resume at the UN headquarters in New York.

A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, confirmed the talks would resume, adding that they would take place at the United Nations building in Manhattan.

The move to thaw relations follows President Barack Obama's decision in April to authorize travel and money transfers to the island by US nationals of Cuban descent.

In early June, the White House welcomed Havana's agreement to resume talks on migration issues, but the US official did not confirm whether the negotiations would address establishing direct mail service between the two countries -- current policy requires mail to go through third countries.

"Obviously, it's in the interest of both governments," said White House spokesman Robert Gibbs last month.

"Obviously, I think direct mail would increase the ability for the president's initiative to be able to reach out directly to the Cuban people."

Discussions on immigration issues were held every two years until they were suspended in 2003 by Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush.

But Havana informed Washington in late May that it would take up the US offer to resume the long-stalled talks.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at the time that Cuba must still improve human rights -- including releasing political prisoners and expanding political freedoms -- before fully ending its isolation under a decades-long US embargo.
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http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gFsfTrjga92ioNKWJIi0q...

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2.
IG: Secure Border Initiative lacks effective oversight
By Katherine McIntire Peters
The Government Executive (Washington, DC), July 10, 2009

Short staffed and under pressure to implement the Homeland Security Department's high-profile program to improve border security known as the Secure Border Initiative, the Customs and Border Protection agency has made extensive use of contractor support services. So much so that contractors are doing inherently governmental work in violation of federal regulations, the department's watchdog said.

"With continued heavy reliance on contractor support services, CBP risks losing control of program decisions while remaining accountable for mission results," DHS Inspector General Richard Skinner wrote in a report released on Thursday.

Contractors make up 51 percent of the staff working on the Secure Border Initiative, while government workers account for the other 49 percent, according to the IG.

In particular, CBP has not provided an adequate number of contracting officer's technical representatives to oversee support contractor performance. The technical representatives are to be the eyes and ears of government contract officers, monitoring technical performance and reporting potential or actual problems that arise, according to guidance provided by the Office of Management and Budget.

"COTRs assigned to SBI support services contracts did not take action or notify the contracting officers when progress reports showed that contractors were performing prohibited or questionable activities," the IG stated. "Further, as the number of SBI contractors increased, the COTRs had little time for contract oversight duties beyond reviewing contractors' time charges and travel claims."
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http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=43141&dcn=todaysnews

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3.
Judge gives immigrant suit class-action status
By Bob Egelko
The San Francisco Chronicle, July 14, 2009

A federal judge in San Francisco has granted class-action status to a lawsuit by hundreds of thousands of Central American immigrants who say the United States illegally overcharged them for the right to stay in this country.

The order by U.S. District Judge Thelton Henderson allows about 400,000 immigrants from Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador to challenge the fees and potentially seek $100 million in refunds, attorney Linda Dardarian said Monday. Henderson said in an earlier ruling that the immigrants had made a strong case that the fees violated federal law.

The Central Americans have been allowed to stay in the United States under a 1990 law granting temporary residence to foreigners who fled their homelands because of war or natural disaster.

Federal officials approved entry for Hondurans and Nicaraguans in 1999 because of a hurricane, and for Salvadorans because of a 2001 earthquake. Officials have renewed their approvals periodically after finding that housing, water and sanitation systems in those countries haven't recovered, Dardarian said.

The 1990 law limits individual registration fees to $50. But immigration officials have charged a separate "biometrics services fee" since 1998 for taking fingerprints, photos and electronic signatures at each re-registration. That $80 fee raises $25 million a year to pay for identity and background checks, government lawyers said.
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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/07/14/BAD618NST8.DTL

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4.
Prominent Hispanic Republican says GOP must change its tone
By Michael M. Gleeson and Bob Cusack
The Hill (Washington, DC), July 13, 2009

One of the most prominent Hispanic Republicans says the GOP is going in the wrong direction and must change its tone on a range of issues.

In an interview with The Hill, Puerto Rico Gov. Luis Fortuño (R) said the tenor adopted by some Republicans — particularly on the topic of illegal immigration — is “a turnoff to the Hispanic community.”

“[Republicans] are going in the wrong direction,” Fortuño said. “We should be the party of Hispanics.”

He added, “There are no terrorists coming from south of the border. That’s the bottom line.”

And proposals from some Republicans to deport 12 million illegal immigrants from the U.S. are “unreasonable,” he said.

Fortuño, who served in the House from 2005 to 2008 as resident commissioner of Puerto Rico, strongly opposes abortion rights and believes marriage should be defined as between a man and a woman. He is viewed as a fiscal conservative, having cut government salaries in Puerto Rico and merging agencies in response to the dire budgetary shortfall he inherited.

But he also breaks with his party. He supported the $787 billion stimulus package and is backing the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.

Sotomayor is “obviously well-qualified” and “not an ideologue at all,” Fortuño told The Hill.

While respecting their right to speak out, Fortuño made it clear that he disapproves of charges by conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh and former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) that Sotomayor is a racist. Gingrich has since backtracked, but Fortuño maintains that more Republicans need to respect the views of others — even if they don’t agree with them.
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http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/prominent-hispanic-republican-says-g...

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5.
Deleo: Patrick made ’compelling’ case for immigrant care
The Boston Herald, July 13, 2009

With the fate of health insurance for 30,000 legal immigrants hanging on the choices legislative leaders will make in the coming days, House Speaker Robert DeLeo said Gov. Deval Patrick made a "good and compelling case" for maintaining the coverage.

He added, though, that lawmakers were still concerned about financial constraints and had yet to finalize plans for dealing with budget issues.

His remarks came minutes after Patrick’s top budget and human services aides emerged from the speaker’s office Monday afternoon. Secretary of Administration and Finance Leslie Kirwan, who chairs the state board implementing health care reform laws, and Secretary of Health and Human Services JudyAnn Bigby walked directly from DeLeo’s office into the governor’s suite, with Bigby declining to answer questions from reporters.
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http://www.bostonherald.com/business/healthcare/view.bg?articleid=118463...