Report on March 7, 2009 SDEC meeting which lists committee reports, decisions, and upcoming events.

Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus Club Achievement Award presented to Houston Stonewall Young Democrats on March 1, 2009.

Handwritten note on March 1, 2009 regarding Linda Allen Webmaster and John-Thomas Musselman Technology Workshop.

Texas Daily Newspaper Associations' honored Patrick Birmingham with the 2008 Pat Taggart Award, one of the prestigious honors within Texas newspapers. Birmingham was given the award because he represented the ideals of the community and journalistic excellence as exemplified by Fentress Newspapers publisher, Pat Taggart. The second page honors John Roberts of the Victoria Advocate with the Frank W. Mayborn award for Community Leadership. The Mayborn award was established to honor other newspaper men and women who have firm commitment to community service. The document continues with other men and women being awarded for their services to the community and their newspaper.

Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus Lone Star Equality Advocate Award presented to Hon. Senfronia Thompson on March 1, 2009.

Deposit summary of $72.03 made on March 18, 2009.

Photocopy of an envelope addressed to Al Daniels at Dallas, Texas from Daniel Graney at San Antonio, Texas.

One of the most promising methods of capturing CO{sub 2} emitted by coal-fired power plants for subsequent sequestration is chemical looping combustion (CLC). A powdered metal oxide such as NiO transfers oxygen directly to a fuel in a fuel reactor at high temperatures with no air present. Heat, water, and CO{sub 2} are released, and after H{sub 2}O condensation the CO{sub 2} (undiluted by N{sub 2}) is ready for sequestration, whereas the nickel metal is ready for reoxidation in the air reactor. In principle, these processes can be repeated endlessly with the original nickel metal/nickel oxide participating in a loop that admits fuel and rejects ash, heat, and water. Our project accumulated kinetic rate data at high temperatures and elevated pressures for the metal oxide reduction step and for the metal reoxidation step. These data will be used in computational modeling of CLC on the laboratory scale and presumably later on the plant scale. The oxygen carrier on which the research at Utah is focused is CuO/Cu{sub 2}O rather than nickel oxide because the copper system lends itself to use with solid fuels in an alternative to CLC called 'chemical looping with oxygen uncoupling' (CLOU).

The Coal Ash Resources Research Consortium{reg_sign} (CARRC{reg_sign}, pronounced 'cars') is the core coal combustion product (CCP) research group at the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC). CARRC focuses on performing fundamental and applied scientific and engineering research emphasizing the environmentally safe, economical use of CCPs. CARRC member organizations, which include utilities and marketers, are key to developing industry-driven research in the area of CCP utilization and ensuring its successful application. The U.S. Department of Energy is a partner in CARRC through the EERC Jointly Sponsored Research Program, which provides matching funds for industrial member contributions and facilitates an increased level of effort in CARRC. CARRC tasks were designed to provide information on CCP performance, including environmental performance, engineering performance, favorable economics, and improved life cycle of products and projects. CARRC technical research tasks are developed based on member input and prioritization. CARRC special projects are developed with members and nonmembers to provide similar information and to support activities, including the assembly and interpretation of data, support for standards development and technology transfer, and facilitating product development and testing. CARRC activities from 2007 to 2009 included a range of research tasks, with primary work performed in laboratory tasks developed to answer …

The EERC developed an applied research consortium project to test cost-effective mercury (Hg) control technologies for utilities burning bituminous coals. The project goal was to test innovative Hg control technologies that have the potential to reduce Hg emissions from bituminous coal-fired power plants by {ge}90% at costs of one-half to three-quarters of current estimates for activated carbon injection (ACI). Hg control technology evaluations were performed using the EERC's combustion test facility (CTF). The CTF was fired on pulverized bituminous coals at 550,000 Btu/hr (580 MJ/hr). The CTF was configured with the following air pollution control devices (APCDs): selective catalytic reduction (SCR) unit, electrostatic precipitator (ESP), and wet flue gas desulfurization system (WFDS). The Hg control technologies investigated as part of this project included ACI (three Norit Americas, Inc., and eleven Envergex sorbents), elemental mercury (Hg{sup 0}) oxidation catalysts (i.e., the noble metals in Hitachi Zosen, Cormetech, and Hitachi SCR catalysts), sorbent enhancement additives (SEAs) (a proprietary EERC additive, trona, and limestone), and blending with a Powder River Basin (PRB) subbituminous coal. These Hg control technologies were evaluated separately, and many were also tested in combination.

Minutes of the Texas Society of the Sons of the American Revolution (TXSSAR) Board of Managers meeting covering the opening and general sessions, held March 20-22, 2009 at the Fredonia Hotel, in Nacogdoches, Texas. It includes information about the committees and business covered by the attending members.

This report summarizes USAID's efforts in controlling malaria in Africa.

A report showing the Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) data collected on offshore platforms of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) has developed an interactive, Web-based decision support system (DSS{copyright} 2007 EERC Foundation) to provide power generation utilities with an assessment tool to address water supply issues when planning new or modifying existing generation facilities. The Web-based DSS integrates water and wastewater treatment technology and water law information with a geographic information system-based interactive map that links to state and federal water quality and quantity databases for North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

Other written product issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This document is an E-supplement to GAO-09-144. It presents information from a GAO survey of states' trade offices throughout the United States on the nature of states' export promotion services and their partnerships with the Commercial Service (CS) of the U.S. Department of Commerce. We surveyed these offices to obtain information including (1) the types of export promotion services these states' trade offices provide and the user fees charged, (2) the number of state trade office staff providing these services, (3) whether small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) can use state grant programs or direct payments to defray the cost of CS's export promotion programs and services, (4) the importance of CS services to the operations of states' trade offices, and (5) the effect of CS user fees on SMEs' participation in CS export promotion programs. We surveyed all 50 states' trade offices and received responses from 45 of them. For a further discussion of our scope and methodology, see Export Promotion: Commerce Needs Better Information to Evaluate Its Fee-Based Programs and Customers. (GAO-09-144). We administered the survey from May 2008 to October 2008 in accordance with …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses GAO's plans to carry out its oversight role related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act). The Recovery Act funds are provided for purposes including: preserving and creating jobs and promoting economic recovery; assisting those most impacted by the recession; investing in transportation, environmental protection, and other infrastructure to provide long-term economic benefits; and stabilizing state and local government budgets. The Recovery Act assigns GAO a range of responsibilities to help promote accountability and transparency. Some are recurring requirements such as providing bimonthly reviews of the use of funds by selected states and localities. Others include targeted studies in several areas such as small business lending, education, and trade adjustment assistance. This statement discusses (1) GAO's plans to carry out its responsibilities under the Recovery Act, (2) how GAO's responsibilities relate to other oversight authorities, such as the Inspectors General (IG) and the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board (Board), and (3) the challenges posed in ensuring accountability over the use of funds and associated lessons learned and best practices that can be helpful in addressing those challenges."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Created in 1997, the HUBZone program provides federal contracting assistance to small businesses in economically distressed communities, or HUBZone areas, with the intent of stimulating economic development in those areas. On July 17, 2008, we testified before Congress that SBA's lack of controls over the HUBZone program exposed the government to fraud and abuse and that SBA's mechanisms to certify and monitor HUBZone firms provide limited assurance that only eligible firms participate in the program. In our testimony, we identified 10 firms from the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area that were participating in the HUBZone program even though they clearly did not meet eligibility requirements. Of the 10 firms, 6 did not meet both principal office and employee residency requirements while 4 met the principal office requirement but significantly failed the employee residency requirement. We reported in our July 2008 testimony that federal agencies had obligated a total of nearly $26 million in HUBZone contract obligations to these 10 firms since 2006. After the hearing, Congress requested that we perform a follow-on investigation. We describe the results of this investigation and further background about the HUBZone program in a …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For over a decade, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of Defense (DOD) have been engaged in efforts to improve their ability to share electronic health information. These efforts are vital for making patient information readily available to health care providers in both departments, reducing medical errors, and streamlining administrative functions. In addition, Congress has mandated that VA and DOD jointly develop and implement, by September 30, 2009, electronic health record systems or capabilities that are fully interoperable and compliant with applicable federal interoperability standards. (Interoperability is the ability of two or more systems or components to exchange information and to use the information that has been exchanged.) The experience of VA and DOD in this area is also relevant to broader efforts to advance the nationwide use of health information technology (IT) in both the public and private health care sectors--a goal of both current and past administrations. In this statement, GAO describes VA's and DOD's achievements and challenges in developing interoperable electronic health records, including brief comments on how these apply to the broader national health IT effort."

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Financial regulators have an important role in assessing risk management systems at financial institutions. Analyses have identified inadequate risk management at large, complex financial institutions as one of the causes of the current financial crisis. The failure of the institutions to appropriately identify, measure, and manage their risks has raised questions not only about corporate governance but also about the adequacy of regulatory oversight of risk management systems. GAO's objectives were to review (1) how regulators oversee risk management at these institutions, (2) the extent to which regulators identified shortcomings in risk management at certain institutions prior to the summer of 2007, and (3) how some aspects of the regulatory system may have contributed to or hindered the oversight of risk management. GAO built upon its existing body of work, evaluated the examination guidance used by examiners at U.S. banking and securities regulators, and reviewed examination reports and work papers from 2006-2008 for a selected sample of large institutions, and horizontal exams that included additional institutions. In January 2009, GAO designated the need to modernize the financial regulatory system as a high risk area needing congressional attention. Regulatory …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Future Combat System (FCS) program--which comprises 14 integrated weapon systems and an advanced information network--is the centerpiece of the Army's effort to transition to a lighter, more agile, and more capable combat force. The substantial technical challenges, the cost of the program, and the Army's acquisition strategy are among the reasons why the program is recognized as needing special oversight and review. This testimony is based on GAO's March 12, 2009 report and addresses knowledge gaps that will persist in the FCS program as Congress is asked to make significant funding commitments for development and production over the next several years."

Minutes for the March 12, 2009 TXSSAR meeting, held by the McKinney chapter.

A report on communal violence.

Conference blue binders check of $60.05 made on March 11, 2009.

Paul E. Scott's business card with contact information.