Senate budget action includes YDC Settlement Fund, landfill moratorium
A new provision in the Senate budget proposal would make the administrator of the YDC Settlement Fund a political appointee subject to a vote of the Executive Council to serve at the 'pleasure of the governor.'
The current administrator, John Broderick, was appointed by the state Supreme Court with the support of Attorney General John Formella and lawyers representing an overwhelming majority of alleged victims of sexual or physical abuse at the the state's youth detention centers.
Broderick is a former chief justice of the state Supreme Court and has come under criticism for his handling of settlement payments.
Chuck Miles is a YDC abuse survivor who is on the board of YDC Victims, an advocacy group.
"The Senate's proposal to remove any semblance of impartiality surrounding the YDC Settlement Fund administrator is an affront to YDC victims who have voluntarily paused their constitutional rights to a court trial with the understanding that the settlement fund would be a fair, impartial process," Miles said in a statement.
"Adopting this measure combined with a dramatic underfunding in the first year of the budget is an abandonment of the settlement fund by the state and a slap in the face for all victims who were promised justice. We encourage the Legislature to change or remove this unfair measure and stand by their promises before the budget is finalized."
Landfills
The Senate budget panel also approved a scaled-down version of the House-passed moratorium on the construction of new landfills.
Sen. Howard Pearl, R-Loudon, worked out the Senate position that would reduce the moratorium from three years to one and significantly scale back the powers of a new site evaluation commission to review landfill permit applications.
The Senate language also would give preference to expansions of existing landfills over new ones.
Gov. Kelly Ayotte had called for a one-year moratorium.
klandrigan@unionleader.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Washington Post
39 minutes ago
- Washington Post
ICE memo outlines plan to deport migrants to countries where they are not citizens
Federal immigration officers may deport immigrants with as little as six hours notice to countries other than their own even if officials have not provided any assurances that the new arrivals will be safe from persecution or torture, a top official said in a memo this week. Todd M. Lyons, the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, wrote in a memo to the ICE workforce Wednesday that a Supreme Court ruling last month had cleared the way for officers to 'immediately' start sending immigrants to 'alternative' countries.
Boston Globe
3 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Trump says he's considering ‘taking away' Rosie O'Donnell's US citizenship
Advertisement It's just the latest threat by Trump to revoke the citizenship of people with whom he has publicly disagreed, most recently his former adviser and one-time ally, Elon Musk. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up But O'Donnell's situation is notably different from Musk, who was born in South Africa. O'Donnell was born in the United States and has a constitutional right to U.S. citizenship. The U.S. State Department notes on its website that U.S. citizens by birth or naturalization may relinquish U.S. nationality by taking certain steps – but only if the act is performed voluntary and with the intention of relinquishing U.S. citizenship. Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, noted the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the Fourteen Amendment of the Constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship. Advertisement 'The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born U.S. citizen,' Frost said in an email Saturday. 'In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.' O'Donnell moved to Ireland after Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to win his second term. She has said she's in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage. Responding to Trump Saturday, O'Donnell wrote on social media that she had upset the president and 'add me to the list of people who oppose him at every turn.'
4 hours ago
Trump says he's considering 'taking away' Rosie O'Donnell's US citizenship
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump says he is considering 'taking away' the U.S. citizenship of a longtime rival, actress and comedian Rosie O'Donnell, despite a decades-old Supreme Court ruling that expressly prohibits such an action by the government. 'Because of the fact that Rosie O'Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship,' Trump wrote in a social media post on Saturday. He added that O'Donnell, who moved to Ireland in January, should stay in Ireland 'if they want her.' The two have criticized each other publicly for years, an often bitter back-and-forth that predates Trump's involvement in politics. In recent days, O'Donnell on social media denounced Trump and recent moves by his administration, including the signing of a massive GOP-backed tax breaks and spending cuts plan. It's just the latest threat by Trump to revoke the citizenship of people with whom he has publicly disagreed, most recently his former adviser and one-time ally, Elon Musk. But O'Donnell's situation is notably different from Musk, who was born in South Africa. O'Donnell was born in the United States and has a constitutional right to U.S. citizenship. The U.S. State Department notes on its website that U.S. citizens by birth or naturalization may relinquish U.S. nationality by taking certain steps – but only if the act is performed voluntary and with the intention of relinquishing U.S. citizenship. Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, noted the Supreme Court ruled in a 1967 case that the Fourteen Amendment of the Constitution prevents the government from taking away citizenship. 'The president has no authority to take away the citizenship of a native-born U.S. citizen," Frost said in an email Saturday. 'In short, we are nation founded on the principle that the people choose the government; the government cannot choose the people.' O'Donnell moved to Ireland after Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to win his second term. She has said she's in the process of obtaining Irish citizenship based on family lineage. Responding to Trump Saturday, O'Donnell wrote on social media that she had upset the president and 'add me to the list of people who oppose him at every turn.'
