REUTERS
"Exclusive: US plans to restore tariffs on dominant solar technology, sources say"
By Nichola Groom and Jarrett Renshaw
April 17, 2024
April 17 (Reuters) - The Biden administration is expected to grant a request by South Korea’s Hanwha Qcells to reverse a two-year-old trade exemption that has allowed imports of a dominant solar panel technology from China and other countries to avoid tariffs, two sources familiar with the White House plans said on Wednesday.
The news sent shares of solar manufacturers including U.S.-based First Solar higher in afternoon trade.
The Qcells request, which has not previously been reported, comes as the company is seeking to protect a pledged $2.5 billion expansion of its U.S. solar manufacturing presence against competition from cheaper Asian-made products.
The solar division of Korean conglomerate Hanwha Corp outlined the request in a formal petition to the U.S. Trade Representative on Feb. 23.
It included letters of support from seven other companies with billions of dollars combined invested in U.S. solar factories.
No decision has been made on the timeline of the expected reversal, the sources said.
Duties on imports of bifacial panels, the main technology in utility-scale solar projects, would be a boon to the more than 40 solar equipment factories planned since U.S. President Joe Biden signed his landmark climate change law, the Inflation Reduction Act, in 2022.
Those plants are critical to Biden's plan to fight climate change, revitalize American manufacturing and create millions of union jobs.
Past trade remedies have sharply divided the U.S. solar industry, which is dominated by installers and developers who rely on cheap imports to keep their project costs low.
The top U.S. solar trade group, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), lobbied for the bifacial exemption.
In a statement, SEIA did not address the exemption directly but advocated for an increase in the amount of solar cells that can be imported tariff-free to help companies assembling American-made panels.
"We hope the Administration is prepared to directly support increased domestic manufacturing of solar modules by raising the tariff rate quota on cells," said Stacy Ettinger, SEIA's senior vice president of supply chain and trade.
Biden administration officials, including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, in recent weeks have said the U.S. is evaluating trade remedies to deal with threats posed by China's massive investment in factory capacity for clean energy goods.
The solar panel issue goes to the core of one of Biden’s arguments for re-election: that his economic policies have begun transforming the U.S. energy economy while combating climate change.
However, the pace of growth in the domestic solar panel manufacturing market has been cast into doubt by surging imports of cheap, Chinese panels.
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators, led by the two Democrats from the critical election battleground state of Georgia, asked Biden earlier this year to toughen up tariffs on Chinese solar panels or face a glutted market just as clean-energy tax credits hit the market.
Qcells, which has two factories in Georgia, is the largest U.S. producer of silicon-based solar products.
In its petition, a copy of which was seen by Reuters, the company asked Biden to revoke an exemption of so-called bifacial panels from duties first imposed by Republican former President Donald Trump in 2018 and extended by Biden, a Democrat, in 2022.
The tariffs on imported modules started at 30% and currently stand at 14.25%.
They are due to expire in 2026.
'A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD'
Most panel imports come from Southeast Asia but are made by Chinese companies there.
The U.S. imposed duties on some panel makers for finishing their products in Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam to avoid tariffs on Chinese-made goods.
Biden waived those tariffs nearly two years ago, a policy that the White House said it will allow to expire in June.
"We're continuing to look at all of our options to ensure that the historic investments spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act are successful," a White House official said.
"Our companies and workers can compete with anyone, but they need a level playing field."
Bifacial panels can generate electricity on both sides.
The technology was nascent when the tariffs were first imposed but now accounts for 98% of imported modules, according to the petition.
The action is needed, Qcells said in the petition, to preserve the many plans for new U.S. solar manufacturing capacity that have been unleashed by incentives contained in the IRA.
"Despite these positive trends, there is growing evidence that negative market conditions caused by surging imports of bifacial modules are causing several companies to rethink their plans to invest in the U.S.," the petition said.
Qcells' request is supported by seven other solar manufacturers with U.S. factories - First Solar, Heliene, Suniva, Silfab, Crossroads Solar, Mission Solar and Auxin Solar - according to the petition documents.
First Solar shares closed nearly 3% higher at $178.01 on the Nasdaq.
Reporting by Nichola Groom and Jarrett Renshaw; editing by Timothy Gardner and Bill Berkrot
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-pla ... 024-04-17/
POLITICS
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"New tariffs on Chinese metals won't impact inflation, White House says"
By Reuters
April 17, 2024
WASHINGTON, April 17 (Reuters) - Sharply higher tariffs on Chinese metal products being considered by the Biden administration would not affect U.S. inflation and are necessary for national security, White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein said on Wednesday.
"If we don't take action, we're putting at risk about one of our most critical sectors -- what the president calls the backbone of the American economy, the bedrock of our national security -- and that's domestic steel production," the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers told CNBC.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday will call for sharply higher tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum as part of a package of policies aimed at pleasing steelworkers in the swing state of Pennsylvania, at the risk of angering Beijing.
Bernstein said such tariffs would not have a negative effect on the U.S. economy.
"This is a targeted intervention that shouldn't have much impact at all on inflation," he said in an interview with CNBC.
Reporting by Doina Chiacu; editing by Susan Heavey
https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodi ... 024-04-17/
"New tariffs on Chinese metals won't impact inflation, White House says"
By Reuters
April 17, 2024
WASHINGTON, April 17 (Reuters) - Sharply higher tariffs on Chinese metal products being considered by the Biden administration would not affect U.S. inflation and are necessary for national security, White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein said on Wednesday.
"If we don't take action, we're putting at risk about one of our most critical sectors -- what the president calls the backbone of the American economy, the bedrock of our national security -- and that's domestic steel production," the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers told CNBC.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday will call for sharply higher tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum as part of a package of policies aimed at pleasing steelworkers in the swing state of Pennsylvania, at the risk of angering Beijing.
Bernstein said such tariffs would not have a negative effect on the U.S. economy.
"This is a targeted intervention that shouldn't have much impact at all on inflation," he said in an interview with CNBC.
Reporting by Doina Chiacu; editing by Susan Heavey
https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodi ... 024-04-17/
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"Stellantis chief Tavares warns of tough year ahead"
By Giulio Piovaccari
April 16, 2024
Summary
* AGM approves chief executive's 2023 pay package
* CEO remuneration for 2023 rose 56% to up to 36.5 mln euros
* Warns of auto sector's increasingly competitive pricing
MILAN, April 16 (Reuters) - Carmaker Stellantis faces a challenging year with increasing pricing pressures, its chief executive warned on Tuesday before shareholders voted to approve his bumper 2023 salary package.
Having had to contend with high raw material costs and strikes over pay in North America last year, the company is now operating in an increasingly competitive market, CEO Carlos Tavares said.
"We see that the market is being more and more competitive in terms of pricing."
"We cannot ignore that," he told the group's annual general meeting (AGM).
In a consultative-only vote, on Tuesday about 70% of Stellantis shareholders voted in favour of the 2023 remuneration report for senior managers.
Total remuneration for Tavares rose 56% to up to 36.5 million euros ($38.8 million) including 13 million euros in long-term incentives linked to specific performance targets.
That salary has drawn criticism at a time when the Franco-Italian automaker is seeking to cut costs and reduce its workforce as part of its transition to electric vehicles (EVs).
The Portuguese CEO, who has made Stellantis one of the most profitable companies in the industry, had defended his compensation while speaking at an event in France on the eve of Tuesday's AGM, drawing comparisons with soccer players or Formula 1 drivers.
"Ninety percent of my salary is determined by the results of the company, so this proves that the company's results are apparently not too bad," he told reporters.
The carmaker this year agreed voluntary redundancy packages for about 3,000 workers, representing 7.5% of its Italian workforce.
It also announced layoffs for 600 workers on time contracts in France and for 400 salaried employees in the United States.
Stellantis, brands of which include Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep, has rewarded employees worldwide with a total of 1.9 billion euros for the group's performance in 2023.
The company's investors approved Tavares' remuneration package last year but rejected it at the 2022 shareholder meeting in the run-up to the French presidential elections, when both President Emmanuel Macron and his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen strongly and openly criticised Tavares's package.
France has a 6% stake in the carmaker and is represented on its board.
Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan; Additional reporting by Dominique Patton in Paris; Editing by Gavin Jones, Keith Weir and David Goodman
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos- ... 024-04-16/
"Stellantis chief Tavares warns of tough year ahead"
By Giulio Piovaccari
April 16, 2024
Summary
* AGM approves chief executive's 2023 pay package
* CEO remuneration for 2023 rose 56% to up to 36.5 mln euros
* Warns of auto sector's increasingly competitive pricing
MILAN, April 16 (Reuters) - Carmaker Stellantis faces a challenging year with increasing pricing pressures, its chief executive warned on Tuesday before shareholders voted to approve his bumper 2023 salary package.
Having had to contend with high raw material costs and strikes over pay in North America last year, the company is now operating in an increasingly competitive market, CEO Carlos Tavares said.
"We see that the market is being more and more competitive in terms of pricing."
"We cannot ignore that," he told the group's annual general meeting (AGM).
In a consultative-only vote, on Tuesday about 70% of Stellantis shareholders voted in favour of the 2023 remuneration report for senior managers.
Total remuneration for Tavares rose 56% to up to 36.5 million euros ($38.8 million) including 13 million euros in long-term incentives linked to specific performance targets.
That salary has drawn criticism at a time when the Franco-Italian automaker is seeking to cut costs and reduce its workforce as part of its transition to electric vehicles (EVs).
The Portuguese CEO, who has made Stellantis one of the most profitable companies in the industry, had defended his compensation while speaking at an event in France on the eve of Tuesday's AGM, drawing comparisons with soccer players or Formula 1 drivers.
"Ninety percent of my salary is determined by the results of the company, so this proves that the company's results are apparently not too bad," he told reporters.
The carmaker this year agreed voluntary redundancy packages for about 3,000 workers, representing 7.5% of its Italian workforce.
It also announced layoffs for 600 workers on time contracts in France and for 400 salaried employees in the United States.
Stellantis, brands of which include Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep, has rewarded employees worldwide with a total of 1.9 billion euros for the group's performance in 2023.
The company's investors approved Tavares' remuneration package last year but rejected it at the 2022 shareholder meeting in the run-up to the French presidential elections, when both President Emmanuel Macron and his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen strongly and openly criticised Tavares's package.
France has a 6% stake in the carmaker and is represented on its board.
Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan; Additional reporting by Dominique Patton in Paris; Editing by Gavin Jones, Keith Weir and David Goodman
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos- ... 024-04-16/
Re: POLITICS
THE CAPE CHARLES MIRROR APRIL 17, 2024 AT 5:49 PM
Paul Plante says:
Where I have been these last several days of apparent quietude on my part in here is out there in what these days passes for the “real” world, embroiled in a controversy splitting my small community which is a direct outcome of what happens when BIDEN INFRASTRUCTURE MONEY is mindlessly made available to small towns like mine for alleged “infrastructure” improvements, which small towns, to get their hands on what they consider “free money,” a windfall of riches into their pockets courtesy of the federal government in Washington, D.C., have to promise to put their local taxpayers in hock for a certain percentage of the project cost, whether those taxpayers want or need the project, in this case a public water supply, without those taxpayers having any say in the matter, period, largely because it is all, the process of actually getting that money being political in nature, going on behind closed doors with absolutely no transparency for the affected taxpayers of whom I am one, as can be seen beginning @6:34 into this video of the April 11, 2024 Poestenkill, New York town board meeting ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 ) where I go ballistic with respect to us being lied to and misled as I vent some incandescent rage at a corrupt town board for selling us into debt slavery to get their hands on some $5,277,567 of grant money of which $670,367 is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-EC grant, and $1,693,000 in a congressional community project funding grant from Kirsten Gillibrand, with us in a small community being on the hook for a minimum of $272,433, subject to cost overruns we will also be on the hook for, all based upon an imaginary crisis at local middle school as the need for the grant money.
In other words, to get their hands on this “free government money,” the Poestenkill town board simply lied, knowing they could and would get away with it, because first of all, given the secrecy, who would even know, and then, once they did find out, which always happens, other than vent some fury about it, as I am seen and heard doing in that video, and make some noise, which goes away real soon, what can they do about it?
Have the federal government, which based the grants on that lie, take the money back?
HAH, as if that is going to happen, as we see in a 31 July 2023 writing from myself to Hon. Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Senator, Leo W. O’Brien Federal Office Bldg,, 11A Clinton Ave, Rm 821, Albany, NY 12207, RE: Federal funding for Water District No. 2, Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County; U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 9, Clause 7: No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law, wherein was stated as follows with respect to the fraudulent nature of this grant application, to wit:
Dear Senator Gillibrand:
As you will recall, on 28 January 2023, I sent a letter to your office concerning this above referenced matter of Water District No. 2 in the town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County, state of New York titled RE: Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County; Water District No. 2; Requesting federal assistance for Water District No. 2 based on false pretenses, wherein I detailed for you the fact that the PFAS contamination in Poestenkill’s groundwater is as a result of willful gross negligence and neglect of duty by the town of Poestenkill itself, which raises the substantive question of why the federal taxpayers should be put on the hook here to pay for the intentional negligence and neglect of duty by Poestenkill, especially when the request is made based on falsehoods?
Subsequent thereto, on July 28, 2023, Poestenkill Town Councilmember Eric Wohlleber, who since 27 September 2021 has been spearheading a whitewash and cover-up in this matter to protect the polluter, Waste Management of New York, LLC, at the Poestenkill transfer station in a Planned Development District at the intersection of NYS Rts. 66 and 351 in Poestenkill regulated by the town of Poestenkill, sent out a notice to Poestenkill residents titled Subject: Poestenkill PFOA Water Update, wherein was stated as follows, to wit:
Neighbors,
I just received a message this evening from a member of Senator Gillibrand’s office with some great news.
“The appropriations committee moved your Poestenkill Water Supply Project CDS request forward!”
“This means there is a very high likelihood your project will be included in the final appropriations package and funded.”
“I will keep you updated on any movements and please let me know if you have any questions.”
This is an important step to hopefully securing additional funding for a potential Water District #2 here in Poestenkill, which would lower the cost per unit, should the district receive approval.
end quotes
So my question to your office, which I will also raise with Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Appropriations Committee, and Senator Susan Collins, Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee, remains the same: why are the federal government taxpayers, who get no benefit from the expenditure of these federal dollars, being put on the hook here to pay for the intentional negligence and neglect of duty by the town of Poestenkill, coupled with nuisance, negligence and trespass by Waste Management of New York, LLC at the Poestenkill transfer station?
This question is relevant because to date, there has been no demonstration whatsoever that this water district is even needed because in a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Report titled “Community Update – April 2023 – Poestenkill Area PFAS Contamination, it was stated as follows, to wit:
To date, RCDOH has sampled 97 private wells near the school.
PFOA and/or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected above the State’s public drinking water standards of 10 ppt in 14 private wells.
As a result, DEC provided the 14 homes served by private wells that exceed 10 ppt with point-of-entry treatment systems (POETs) to filter out PFAS and provide clean drinking water.
The remaining 83 private wells did not show PFOA or PFOS detections above the standards.
end quotes
The cost of these activated carbon point of entry treatment systems is between $300 – $1,800, and as the NYSDEC Report from April of 2023 makes incandescently clear, the 14 homes affected have already had these systems installed, which the NYSDEC states will provide them with clean drinking water, which is more than this proposed Water District No. 2 can claim, given it is based on a surface water supply which itself is susceptible to PFAS contamination.
As to the remaining 83 private wells, the cost of installing activated carbon filter point of entry systems, which is the most cost-effective solution, assuming a cost of $2000 per home, would be $166,000, which money Poestenkill already has in hand.
So what then, is your office providing federal tax dollars to Poestenkill for?
To establish a slush fund for the local politicians?
We federal taxpayers residing in Poestenkill would like to know!
Thanking you in advance for your prompt reply to this taxpayer inquiry, I remain
Respectfully.
end quotes
And I never heard a word back from any of them.
As to the MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR LIE that is bringing home the federal bacon to tiny Poestenkill, I have emulated Wayne Creed, who I consider a true unsung American hero for maintaining the Cape Charles Mirror as a bastion of sanity in otherwise totally insane world, by starting my own on-line newspaper, this is what today’s edition had to say on that score. to wit:
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 17th 2024 Edition
“THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM – STEALING FROM THE TAXPAYERS POESTENKILL STYLE”
Yesterday, I was asked by a fellow town resident to justify a statement I made about the town procuring these county, state and federal dollars for water district no. 2, all taxpayer dollars, which means the pockets getting looted here include ours, based on false pretenses (a deliberate misrepresentation of facts, as to obtain title to money or property), which is a form of stealing, although stealing from the taxpayers in Rensselaer County and New York state is not considered a crime, but a benefit of holding public office.
“What false pretenses,” he wanted to know, “where are the false pretenses, because I am unaware of them?”
To which I answered that he was unaware of them precisely because he was supposed to be, because if he knew his pocket was being picked, and his bank account was being looted, then he would have stood up at a town meeting and protested, and that had to be prevented at all costs for this taxpayer scam to succeed, which it has to the tune of MILLION$ in the form of a cash transfer from our pockets into those of the looters.
As to the false pretenses, they are right there staring us all in the face, in the beginning of the Laberge report accepted by the town board in August of 2022:
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Map, Plan and Report was commissioned by the Town of Poestenkill Town Board to evaluate the feasibility of, and to assist with, the creation of a water district in the Town.
The need for expansion of the water system stems from the joint investigation by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Department of Health, and Rensselaer County Department of Health.
The presence of multiple contaminants shows the priority of providing municipal water to the Algonquin Middle School and surrounding area.
end quotes
The false pretenses are right there for all to see right there in that last sentence, where it says there is a priority of providing municipal water to the Algonquin Middle School, which is an untrue statement.
There NEVER was a need for Poestenkill at taxpayer expense to provide water to the school.
That was a ruse that Poestenkill and Laberge used to obtain county, state and federal funds.
The Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill is already served by Public Water Supply NY4117257, a Non-transient non-community water system serving 1000 persons at the Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill, which water supply is owned by the taxpayers of the Averill Park School District, of whom we are all one, and that is a separate taxing district the town neither owns nor controls, so that was a patently false statement the town submitted to get those funds, which is a false pretense.
That Poestenkill would have known in August of 2022 that it was a false statement that the town needed to run water to the school, the necessary excuse to get this project going, is made clear by the following:
COMMUNITY UPDATE
NOVEMBER 2021
PROTECTING POESTENKILL’S DRINKING WATER AND INVESTIGATING PFAS CONTAMINATION
Two Public Availability Sessions Scheduled for Dec. 8, 2021
The school is currently installing a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to filter the PFOA and other PFAS and effectively treat the contaminants to provide clean water to the school community.
end quotes
So if the town knew in November of 2021 (actually earlier) that the school was getting that filter, it would have known it was telling a falsehood in September of 2022 when it applied for state funds based on a premise that it had to supply the school with water.
And it is news to ALL of us because it was all very well buried so we wouldn’t know, given we had no access to that Laberge Report in August and September of 2022 when the town made those funding requests.
As to the funding requests, recall from the Laberge Report at p.5 in the section titled PROJECT BACKGROUND AND HISTORY, under i) NYS Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), as follows:
The Town, as required to submit for certain grant funds, has completed the required SEQRA review and has made a Determination of Significance under SEQRA (6 NYCRR Part 617). The Town Board issued a Negative Declaration on September 8th, 2022, a copy of which is included in Appendix F.
That the town would have known on September 8th, 2022 that it was a false statement about the need to provide water to the school is further reinforced by the following:
COMMUNITY UPDATE
FEBRUARY 2022
POESTENKILL PFAS INVESTIGATION
Updates: New Investigation Summary Reports
The New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Health (DOH), and the Rensselaer County Department of Health (RCDOH), are working together to protect the public health and environment of the Poestenkill community.
The following is an update from the November 2021 community update.
Beginning in December 2021, the school installed a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community.
System startup and flushing of the school’s distribution system continued throughout January and into February 2022.
The school district is currently working with the RCDOH to test the water and make the system operational.
end quotes
If in fact as the DEC said in February of 2022 that the granular activated carbon (GAC) system installed by the taxpayers at the school would provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community, then clearly, in August of 2022, there was no need for the town to do so, but they needed that excuse to get those funds – big emergency, school kids, poisoned water, send money!
That money doesn’t come from heaven, it comes from our pockets. so should the town be telling lies to take it from our pockets?
Call me very old-fashioned, but I don’t think so.
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-918798
Paul Plante says:
Where I have been these last several days of apparent quietude on my part in here is out there in what these days passes for the “real” world, embroiled in a controversy splitting my small community which is a direct outcome of what happens when BIDEN INFRASTRUCTURE MONEY is mindlessly made available to small towns like mine for alleged “infrastructure” improvements, which small towns, to get their hands on what they consider “free money,” a windfall of riches into their pockets courtesy of the federal government in Washington, D.C., have to promise to put their local taxpayers in hock for a certain percentage of the project cost, whether those taxpayers want or need the project, in this case a public water supply, without those taxpayers having any say in the matter, period, largely because it is all, the process of actually getting that money being political in nature, going on behind closed doors with absolutely no transparency for the affected taxpayers of whom I am one, as can be seen beginning @6:34 into this video of the April 11, 2024 Poestenkill, New York town board meeting ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 ) where I go ballistic with respect to us being lied to and misled as I vent some incandescent rage at a corrupt town board for selling us into debt slavery to get their hands on some $5,277,567 of grant money of which $670,367 is coming from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-EC grant, and $1,693,000 in a congressional community project funding grant from Kirsten Gillibrand, with us in a small community being on the hook for a minimum of $272,433, subject to cost overruns we will also be on the hook for, all based upon an imaginary crisis at local middle school as the need for the grant money.
In other words, to get their hands on this “free government money,” the Poestenkill town board simply lied, knowing they could and would get away with it, because first of all, given the secrecy, who would even know, and then, once they did find out, which always happens, other than vent some fury about it, as I am seen and heard doing in that video, and make some noise, which goes away real soon, what can they do about it?
Have the federal government, which based the grants on that lie, take the money back?
HAH, as if that is going to happen, as we see in a 31 July 2023 writing from myself to Hon. Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Senator, Leo W. O’Brien Federal Office Bldg,, 11A Clinton Ave, Rm 821, Albany, NY 12207, RE: Federal funding for Water District No. 2, Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County; U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 9, Clause 7: No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law, wherein was stated as follows with respect to the fraudulent nature of this grant application, to wit:
Dear Senator Gillibrand:
As you will recall, on 28 January 2023, I sent a letter to your office concerning this above referenced matter of Water District No. 2 in the town of Poestenkill, Rensselaer County, state of New York titled RE: Poestenkill (T), Rensselaer County; Water District No. 2; Requesting federal assistance for Water District No. 2 based on false pretenses, wherein I detailed for you the fact that the PFAS contamination in Poestenkill’s groundwater is as a result of willful gross negligence and neglect of duty by the town of Poestenkill itself, which raises the substantive question of why the federal taxpayers should be put on the hook here to pay for the intentional negligence and neglect of duty by Poestenkill, especially when the request is made based on falsehoods?
Subsequent thereto, on July 28, 2023, Poestenkill Town Councilmember Eric Wohlleber, who since 27 September 2021 has been spearheading a whitewash and cover-up in this matter to protect the polluter, Waste Management of New York, LLC, at the Poestenkill transfer station in a Planned Development District at the intersection of NYS Rts. 66 and 351 in Poestenkill regulated by the town of Poestenkill, sent out a notice to Poestenkill residents titled Subject: Poestenkill PFOA Water Update, wherein was stated as follows, to wit:
Neighbors,
I just received a message this evening from a member of Senator Gillibrand’s office with some great news.
“The appropriations committee moved your Poestenkill Water Supply Project CDS request forward!”
“This means there is a very high likelihood your project will be included in the final appropriations package and funded.”
“I will keep you updated on any movements and please let me know if you have any questions.”
This is an important step to hopefully securing additional funding for a potential Water District #2 here in Poestenkill, which would lower the cost per unit, should the district receive approval.
end quotes
So my question to your office, which I will also raise with Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Appropriations Committee, and Senator Susan Collins, Vice Chair of the Appropriations Committee, remains the same: why are the federal government taxpayers, who get no benefit from the expenditure of these federal dollars, being put on the hook here to pay for the intentional negligence and neglect of duty by the town of Poestenkill, coupled with nuisance, negligence and trespass by Waste Management of New York, LLC at the Poestenkill transfer station?
This question is relevant because to date, there has been no demonstration whatsoever that this water district is even needed because in a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Report titled “Community Update – April 2023 – Poestenkill Area PFAS Contamination, it was stated as follows, to wit:
To date, RCDOH has sampled 97 private wells near the school.
PFOA and/or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected above the State’s public drinking water standards of 10 ppt in 14 private wells.
As a result, DEC provided the 14 homes served by private wells that exceed 10 ppt with point-of-entry treatment systems (POETs) to filter out PFAS and provide clean drinking water.
The remaining 83 private wells did not show PFOA or PFOS detections above the standards.
end quotes
The cost of these activated carbon point of entry treatment systems is between $300 – $1,800, and as the NYSDEC Report from April of 2023 makes incandescently clear, the 14 homes affected have already had these systems installed, which the NYSDEC states will provide them with clean drinking water, which is more than this proposed Water District No. 2 can claim, given it is based on a surface water supply which itself is susceptible to PFAS contamination.
As to the remaining 83 private wells, the cost of installing activated carbon filter point of entry systems, which is the most cost-effective solution, assuming a cost of $2000 per home, would be $166,000, which money Poestenkill already has in hand.
So what then, is your office providing federal tax dollars to Poestenkill for?
To establish a slush fund for the local politicians?
We federal taxpayers residing in Poestenkill would like to know!
Thanking you in advance for your prompt reply to this taxpayer inquiry, I remain
Respectfully.
end quotes
And I never heard a word back from any of them.
As to the MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR LIE that is bringing home the federal bacon to tiny Poestenkill, I have emulated Wayne Creed, who I consider a true unsung American hero for maintaining the Cape Charles Mirror as a bastion of sanity in otherwise totally insane world, by starting my own on-line newspaper, this is what today’s edition had to say on that score. to wit:
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 17th 2024 Edition
“THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM – STEALING FROM THE TAXPAYERS POESTENKILL STYLE”
Yesterday, I was asked by a fellow town resident to justify a statement I made about the town procuring these county, state and federal dollars for water district no. 2, all taxpayer dollars, which means the pockets getting looted here include ours, based on false pretenses (a deliberate misrepresentation of facts, as to obtain title to money or property), which is a form of stealing, although stealing from the taxpayers in Rensselaer County and New York state is not considered a crime, but a benefit of holding public office.
“What false pretenses,” he wanted to know, “where are the false pretenses, because I am unaware of them?”
To which I answered that he was unaware of them precisely because he was supposed to be, because if he knew his pocket was being picked, and his bank account was being looted, then he would have stood up at a town meeting and protested, and that had to be prevented at all costs for this taxpayer scam to succeed, which it has to the tune of MILLION$ in the form of a cash transfer from our pockets into those of the looters.
As to the false pretenses, they are right there staring us all in the face, in the beginning of the Laberge report accepted by the town board in August of 2022:
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Map, Plan and Report was commissioned by the Town of Poestenkill Town Board to evaluate the feasibility of, and to assist with, the creation of a water district in the Town.
The need for expansion of the water system stems from the joint investigation by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Department of Health, and Rensselaer County Department of Health.
The presence of multiple contaminants shows the priority of providing municipal water to the Algonquin Middle School and surrounding area.
end quotes
The false pretenses are right there for all to see right there in that last sentence, where it says there is a priority of providing municipal water to the Algonquin Middle School, which is an untrue statement.
There NEVER was a need for Poestenkill at taxpayer expense to provide water to the school.
That was a ruse that Poestenkill and Laberge used to obtain county, state and federal funds.
The Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill is already served by Public Water Supply NY4117257, a Non-transient non-community water system serving 1000 persons at the Algonquin Middle School in Poestenkill, which water supply is owned by the taxpayers of the Averill Park School District, of whom we are all one, and that is a separate taxing district the town neither owns nor controls, so that was a patently false statement the town submitted to get those funds, which is a false pretense.
That Poestenkill would have known in August of 2022 that it was a false statement that the town needed to run water to the school, the necessary excuse to get this project going, is made clear by the following:
COMMUNITY UPDATE
NOVEMBER 2021
PROTECTING POESTENKILL’S DRINKING WATER AND INVESTIGATING PFAS CONTAMINATION
Two Public Availability Sessions Scheduled for Dec. 8, 2021
The school is currently installing a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to filter the PFOA and other PFAS and effectively treat the contaminants to provide clean water to the school community.
end quotes
So if the town knew in November of 2021 (actually earlier) that the school was getting that filter, it would have known it was telling a falsehood in September of 2022 when it applied for state funds based on a premise that it had to supply the school with water.
And it is news to ALL of us because it was all very well buried so we wouldn’t know, given we had no access to that Laberge Report in August and September of 2022 when the town made those funding requests.
As to the funding requests, recall from the Laberge Report at p.5 in the section titled PROJECT BACKGROUND AND HISTORY, under i) NYS Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), as follows:
The Town, as required to submit for certain grant funds, has completed the required SEQRA review and has made a Determination of Significance under SEQRA (6 NYCRR Part 617). The Town Board issued a Negative Declaration on September 8th, 2022, a copy of which is included in Appendix F.
That the town would have known on September 8th, 2022 that it was a false statement about the need to provide water to the school is further reinforced by the following:
COMMUNITY UPDATE
FEBRUARY 2022
POESTENKILL PFAS INVESTIGATION
Updates: New Investigation Summary Reports
The New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Health (DOH), and the Rensselaer County Department of Health (RCDOH), are working together to protect the public health and environment of the Poestenkill community.
The following is an update from the November 2021 community update.
Beginning in December 2021, the school installed a granular activated carbon (GAC) system to provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community.
System startup and flushing of the school’s distribution system continued throughout January and into February 2022.
The school district is currently working with the RCDOH to test the water and make the system operational.
end quotes
If in fact as the DEC said in February of 2022 that the granular activated carbon (GAC) system installed by the taxpayers at the school would provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community, then clearly, in August of 2022, there was no need for the town to do so, but they needed that excuse to get those funds – big emergency, school kids, poisoned water, send money!
That money doesn’t come from heaven, it comes from our pockets. so should the town be telling lies to take it from our pockets?
Call me very old-fashioned, but I don’t think so.
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-918798
Re: POLITICS
"Rensselaer County officials fight federal charges as trial looms - Three Rensselaer County officials facing federal criminal charges for voter fraud have filed pretrial motions challenging the government's case"
By Brendan J. Lyons, Albany, New York Times Union
April 18, 2024
TROY — Three Rensselaer County officials facing federal criminal charges for voter fraud have filed pretrial motions challenging the government’s case and seeking access to more of the evidence against them as their September trial date looms.
The pretrial motions reveal more details about the lengthy FBI investigation that focused on the actions of multiple Republican officials and had already led to the guilty pleas of former Troy Councilwoman Kimberly Ashe-McPherson and Jason T. Schofield, the county’s former Republican elections commissioner.
One of the motions, filed by Richard W. Crist, the county’s director of operations, contends the top count against him — conspiracy to violate constitutional rights — should be thrown out because he claims to have had no authority to hire or fire the employees who were reportedly intimidated to help gather absentee ballots in the 2021 election.
His attorney also argues that count should be dismissed because there was no federal election involved in the allegations.
The charges include allegations that the trio conspired to use their official positions to violate the constitutional rights of dozens of subordinate county employees to intimidate them into requesting and filing fraudulent absentee ballots in the 2021 election, when county Executive Steve McLaughlin, a former state Assemblyman, was seeking reelection.
In his motion to dismiss the top count against him, Crist contends he had no authority to hire or fire employees and therefore could not have acted “under color of law” to coerce anyone to commit a crime.
“I do not engage in direct supervision of any of Rensselaer County employees and do not have any authority to hire or fire anyone and lack authority to impose employee discipline,” Crist said in a declaration attached to his motion to dismiss the top charge.
The pretrial motions filed by Crist and codefendants James R. Gordon, director of the county’s Bureau of Central Services, and Leslie A. Wallace, a longtime political consultant and “assistant for constituent relations” in McLaughlin’s office, indicate the case is on course for trial in September and that there may be no plea bargain negotiations underway.
Crist’s motion was filed as he has joined in another motion with Wallace and Gordon that seeks to compel the government to turn over more of its evidence.
Federal prosecutors said they have already met their pretrial discovery obligations and will continue to do so.
In addition, Gordon is seeking to quash evidence against him that came from a mobile phone seized from a person whose name has been redacted in the court filings.
Wallace is also arguing that allegedly incriminating statements that she made to two FBI agents who confronted her outside her apartment in February 2022 should also be thrown out because she had repeatedly suggested they should speak to her attorney, former Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel A. Abelove.
The motion by Wallace is scheduled to be the subject of a hearing next month at U.S. District Court in Albany.
In a response motion filed this week by the U.S. attorney’s office in Albany, assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett argued that Wallace’s “version of events is not credible” and is contradicted by the statements of the two FBI agents who interviewed her.
Wallace claims that just before 10 a.m. Feb. 3, 2022, it was raining heavily when two FBI agents knocked on her car window as she was leaving her apartment to go to work and asked her to step out of the vehicle.
They told her she was not in any trouble and just needed to ask her questions about the 2021 elections.
Her motion says she asked them if she needed an attorney and that they should speak with Abelove.
Wallace eventually told the agents to come inside her apartment and they interviewed her over the course of four hours.
At points, she contends, she cried as one of the special agents told her she was “implicated in this,” would go to prison and needed to answer their questions.
One of the charges against Wallace alleges that she lied to FBI agents.
The interview with Wallace took place the same morning that FBI agents seized mobile phones from Crist, Gordon and Sara J. McDermott, who also works for Rensselaer County.
McDermott has been described by county political insiders as a GOP operative but has not been accused of wrongdoing.
An affidavit filed by an FBI agent contradicts Wallace’s version of their confrontation outside her apartment and also the details of the subsequent interview that federal authorities say lasted more than five hours.
The motion filed by the Justice Department in response to Wallace’s motion asserts that initially she was not forthcoming with the FBI agents and “minimized her involvement and omitted information, requiring agents, in their questioning, to return to many events and conversations she had previously described, to make sure she was being truthful.”
“After Wallace told agents that she filled out approximately 150 to 200 absentee ballots of other voters Nov. 1, 2021, she asked agents if they thought she should get an attorney; they responded that they could not provide legal advice, and that the decision was hers to make,” the government’s motion states.
“Wallace never requested an attorney during the interview, nor did she ever mention that Joel Abelove was her attorney, nor did she ever seek to end the interview, nor did she ever ask agents to leave her apartment.”
An affidavit filed by an FBI agent says Wallace offered the two agents something to drink, was never threatened with arrest and had the ability to use her laptop and mobile phone, which she used while they were there to make calls and to send text messages to others.
He said that Wallace “spent time explaining to us and showing us, and emailing me, text messages, emails and documents from her phone and her computer that she said would be helpful to our investigation.”
But he said that Wallace also minimized her involvement in any criminal acts and omitted key information.
The agent said that Abelove called their office the next day, confirmed that he was Wallace’s attorney and asserted that she would continue to cooperate and provide additional information.
Days later, Abelove and Wallace went to the FBI’s Albany office, where she took part in another lengthy interview.
She also signed consent forms allowing FBI agents to search her mobile phone, laptop computer and Gmail account, according to the agent’s affidavit.
“She also provided agents with a thumb drive with additional evidence, and turned over paperwork and notes related to absentee ballots and other matters,” the agent’s affidavit states.
It’s unclear what evidence was gleaned from Wallace’s electronic devices or the paperwork she turned over to the FBI.
There is no timetable for when the federal judge in the case may rule on the pretrial motions.
Crist is a former news reporter and longtime GOP political operative in Rensselaer County who has wielded enormous influence in local politics and for many years has been McLaughlin’s political confidant.
Wallace is a former Republican legislative aide in the state Assembly and Senate.
Gordon is a former Troy mayoral candidate and a member of the North Greenbush Town Board.
Their arrests were the result of a federal grand jury investigation that went on for more than a year and focused on allegations of widespread ballot fraud.
“Their conduct violated the constitutional rights of Rensselaer County voters to have their votes counted equally as compared to votes cast by other voters, and made it more likely that the defendants’ preferred candidates would win the election,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a release.
In addition to the single count civil rights conspiracy charge, Gordon was charged with one count of witness tampering and Wallace was charged with one count of making false statements.
Crist, Gordon and Wallace each face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of conspiracy to violate constitutional rights.
Gordon faces up to 20 years in prison if he’s convicted of witness tampering.
The charge against Wallace for making false statements carries a five-year maximum sentence.
Schofield pleaded guilty more than a year ago to 12 counts of unlawfully using the names and dates of birth of voters to fraudulently apply for absentee ballots for elections held in 2021.
He resigned before pleading guilty and has not been sentenced.
He testified before the grand jury that indicted Crist, Gordon and Wallace.
Ashe-McPherson pleaded guilty to a single felony count in which she admitted to fraudulently submitting absentee ballots in the 2021 primary and general elections as she sought reelection to the city council.
She is also awaiting sentencing.
McLaughlin, the highest-ranking county official, has not been implicated in the federal voter fraud case.
https://www.timesunion.com/news/article ... 0headlines
By Brendan J. Lyons, Albany, New York Times Union
April 18, 2024
TROY — Three Rensselaer County officials facing federal criminal charges for voter fraud have filed pretrial motions challenging the government’s case and seeking access to more of the evidence against them as their September trial date looms.
The pretrial motions reveal more details about the lengthy FBI investigation that focused on the actions of multiple Republican officials and had already led to the guilty pleas of former Troy Councilwoman Kimberly Ashe-McPherson and Jason T. Schofield, the county’s former Republican elections commissioner.
One of the motions, filed by Richard W. Crist, the county’s director of operations, contends the top count against him — conspiracy to violate constitutional rights — should be thrown out because he claims to have had no authority to hire or fire the employees who were reportedly intimidated to help gather absentee ballots in the 2021 election.
His attorney also argues that count should be dismissed because there was no federal election involved in the allegations.
The charges include allegations that the trio conspired to use their official positions to violate the constitutional rights of dozens of subordinate county employees to intimidate them into requesting and filing fraudulent absentee ballots in the 2021 election, when county Executive Steve McLaughlin, a former state Assemblyman, was seeking reelection.
In his motion to dismiss the top count against him, Crist contends he had no authority to hire or fire employees and therefore could not have acted “under color of law” to coerce anyone to commit a crime.
“I do not engage in direct supervision of any of Rensselaer County employees and do not have any authority to hire or fire anyone and lack authority to impose employee discipline,” Crist said in a declaration attached to his motion to dismiss the top charge.
The pretrial motions filed by Crist and codefendants James R. Gordon, director of the county’s Bureau of Central Services, and Leslie A. Wallace, a longtime political consultant and “assistant for constituent relations” in McLaughlin’s office, indicate the case is on course for trial in September and that there may be no plea bargain negotiations underway.
Crist’s motion was filed as he has joined in another motion with Wallace and Gordon that seeks to compel the government to turn over more of its evidence.
Federal prosecutors said they have already met their pretrial discovery obligations and will continue to do so.
In addition, Gordon is seeking to quash evidence against him that came from a mobile phone seized from a person whose name has been redacted in the court filings.
Wallace is also arguing that allegedly incriminating statements that she made to two FBI agents who confronted her outside her apartment in February 2022 should also be thrown out because she had repeatedly suggested they should speak to her attorney, former Rensselaer County District Attorney Joel A. Abelove.
The motion by Wallace is scheduled to be the subject of a hearing next month at U.S. District Court in Albany.
In a response motion filed this week by the U.S. attorney’s office in Albany, assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett argued that Wallace’s “version of events is not credible” and is contradicted by the statements of the two FBI agents who interviewed her.
Wallace claims that just before 10 a.m. Feb. 3, 2022, it was raining heavily when two FBI agents knocked on her car window as she was leaving her apartment to go to work and asked her to step out of the vehicle.
They told her she was not in any trouble and just needed to ask her questions about the 2021 elections.
Her motion says she asked them if she needed an attorney and that they should speak with Abelove.
Wallace eventually told the agents to come inside her apartment and they interviewed her over the course of four hours.
At points, she contends, she cried as one of the special agents told her she was “implicated in this,” would go to prison and needed to answer their questions.
One of the charges against Wallace alleges that she lied to FBI agents.
The interview with Wallace took place the same morning that FBI agents seized mobile phones from Crist, Gordon and Sara J. McDermott, who also works for Rensselaer County.
McDermott has been described by county political insiders as a GOP operative but has not been accused of wrongdoing.
An affidavit filed by an FBI agent contradicts Wallace’s version of their confrontation outside her apartment and also the details of the subsequent interview that federal authorities say lasted more than five hours.
The motion filed by the Justice Department in response to Wallace’s motion asserts that initially she was not forthcoming with the FBI agents and “minimized her involvement and omitted information, requiring agents, in their questioning, to return to many events and conversations she had previously described, to make sure she was being truthful.”
“After Wallace told agents that she filled out approximately 150 to 200 absentee ballots of other voters Nov. 1, 2021, she asked agents if they thought she should get an attorney; they responded that they could not provide legal advice, and that the decision was hers to make,” the government’s motion states.
“Wallace never requested an attorney during the interview, nor did she ever mention that Joel Abelove was her attorney, nor did she ever seek to end the interview, nor did she ever ask agents to leave her apartment.”
An affidavit filed by an FBI agent says Wallace offered the two agents something to drink, was never threatened with arrest and had the ability to use her laptop and mobile phone, which she used while they were there to make calls and to send text messages to others.
He said that Wallace “spent time explaining to us and showing us, and emailing me, text messages, emails and documents from her phone and her computer that she said would be helpful to our investigation.”
But he said that Wallace also minimized her involvement in any criminal acts and omitted key information.
The agent said that Abelove called their office the next day, confirmed that he was Wallace’s attorney and asserted that she would continue to cooperate and provide additional information.
Days later, Abelove and Wallace went to the FBI’s Albany office, where she took part in another lengthy interview.
She also signed consent forms allowing FBI agents to search her mobile phone, laptop computer and Gmail account, according to the agent’s affidavit.
“She also provided agents with a thumb drive with additional evidence, and turned over paperwork and notes related to absentee ballots and other matters,” the agent’s affidavit states.
It’s unclear what evidence was gleaned from Wallace’s electronic devices or the paperwork she turned over to the FBI.
There is no timetable for when the federal judge in the case may rule on the pretrial motions.
Crist is a former news reporter and longtime GOP political operative in Rensselaer County who has wielded enormous influence in local politics and for many years has been McLaughlin’s political confidant.
Wallace is a former Republican legislative aide in the state Assembly and Senate.
Gordon is a former Troy mayoral candidate and a member of the North Greenbush Town Board.
Their arrests were the result of a federal grand jury investigation that went on for more than a year and focused on allegations of widespread ballot fraud.
“Their conduct violated the constitutional rights of Rensselaer County voters to have their votes counted equally as compared to votes cast by other voters, and made it more likely that the defendants’ preferred candidates would win the election,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a release.
In addition to the single count civil rights conspiracy charge, Gordon was charged with one count of witness tampering and Wallace was charged with one count of making false statements.
Crist, Gordon and Wallace each face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of conspiracy to violate constitutional rights.
Gordon faces up to 20 years in prison if he’s convicted of witness tampering.
The charge against Wallace for making false statements carries a five-year maximum sentence.
Schofield pleaded guilty more than a year ago to 12 counts of unlawfully using the names and dates of birth of voters to fraudulently apply for absentee ballots for elections held in 2021.
He resigned before pleading guilty and has not been sentenced.
He testified before the grand jury that indicted Crist, Gordon and Wallace.
Ashe-McPherson pleaded guilty to a single felony count in which she admitted to fraudulently submitting absentee ballots in the 2021 primary and general elections as she sought reelection to the city council.
She is also awaiting sentencing.
McLaughlin, the highest-ranking county official, has not been implicated in the federal voter fraud case.
https://www.timesunion.com/news/article ... 0headlines
Re: POLITICS
THE CAPE CHARLES MIRROR APRIL 18, 2024 AT 11:52 AM
Paul Plante says:
For an example of these “hidden” costs to local taxpayers associated with this STIMULATION money and CORPORATE WELFARE Joe Biden is handing out like candy to the richest corporations in the world as he pumps out enormous amounts of state support to these corporations, let’s go back to Joe’s so-called State of the Union Address on 7 March 2024, where we have the following self-congratulatory BIDEN PUFFERY and BOBAUNCE, to wit:
The great comeback story is Belvidere, Illinois.
Home to an auto plant for nearly 60 years.
Before I came to office, the plant was on its way to shutting down.
Thousands of workers feared for their livelihoods.
Hope was fading.
Then, I was elected to office, and we raised Belvidere repeatedly with auto companies, knowing unions would make all the difference.
The UAW worked like hell to keep the plant open and get these jobs back.
And together, we succeeded.
Instead of auto factories shutting down, auto factories are reopening and a new state-of-the-art battery factory is being built to power those cars there at the same.
To the folks — to the folks of Belvidere, I’d say: Instead of your town being left behind, your community is moving forward again.
Because instead of watching auto ja- — jobs of the future go overseas, 4,000 union jobs with higher wages are building a future in Belvidere right here in America.
end quotes
Now, people, seriously doesn’t that that sound just grand and glorious – there is beleaguered Belvidere, Illinois down on its knees, gasping for its last breaths before finally expiring for good when just in the nick of time along comes WHITE KNIGHT Joseph Robinette Biden, Junior on his white destrier standing 20 hands tall with Joe and his couched lance, pennants flying, firmly in the saddle, and the day is saved, and peace and prosperity will reign forever after in Belvidere, Illinois, thanks to Joe.
But is that really true?
For that answer, let’s go to the Jan 18, 2024 edition of the Rockford Register Star and a news item titled “A $32M sewer expansion needed for Belvidere battery plant” where we learn as follows, to wit:
Four Rivers Sanitation Authority Executive Director Tim Hanson said his office is preparing an estimated $32 million plan talked about for three decades to extend sanitary sewer lines to the area from Cherry Valley to service the Stellantis facility and any suppliers that will be needed.
end quote
So, to make Joe’s INSANE GREEN DREAM come true in Belvidere, Illinois, the people in that area are going to have to pony up an estimated $32 million plus cost overruns to make Joe’s INSANE GREEN DREAM actually come true, so that when Joe said to the folks of Belvidere on 7 March 2024, that “instead of your town being left behind, your community is moving forward again,” we have to ask ourselves this important question, which applies to corrupt Poestenkill as well:
ARE THEY REALLY?
Or is Joe driving those people in Belvidere, like the people of corrupt Poestenkill, NY, into eternal debt slavery to pay off the cost of that $32 million sewer expansion in their case, and in the case of Poestenkill, about a million in hidden costs to upgrade the piping system from Troy, New York through Brunswick, New York in order to actually be able to get the water Joe’s STIMULATION money appears to be paying for?
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-919005
Paul Plante says:
For an example of these “hidden” costs to local taxpayers associated with this STIMULATION money and CORPORATE WELFARE Joe Biden is handing out like candy to the richest corporations in the world as he pumps out enormous amounts of state support to these corporations, let’s go back to Joe’s so-called State of the Union Address on 7 March 2024, where we have the following self-congratulatory BIDEN PUFFERY and BOBAUNCE, to wit:
The great comeback story is Belvidere, Illinois.
Home to an auto plant for nearly 60 years.
Before I came to office, the plant was on its way to shutting down.
Thousands of workers feared for their livelihoods.
Hope was fading.
Then, I was elected to office, and we raised Belvidere repeatedly with auto companies, knowing unions would make all the difference.
The UAW worked like hell to keep the plant open and get these jobs back.
And together, we succeeded.
Instead of auto factories shutting down, auto factories are reopening and a new state-of-the-art battery factory is being built to power those cars there at the same.
To the folks — to the folks of Belvidere, I’d say: Instead of your town being left behind, your community is moving forward again.
Because instead of watching auto ja- — jobs of the future go overseas, 4,000 union jobs with higher wages are building a future in Belvidere right here in America.
end quotes
Now, people, seriously doesn’t that that sound just grand and glorious – there is beleaguered Belvidere, Illinois down on its knees, gasping for its last breaths before finally expiring for good when just in the nick of time along comes WHITE KNIGHT Joseph Robinette Biden, Junior on his white destrier standing 20 hands tall with Joe and his couched lance, pennants flying, firmly in the saddle, and the day is saved, and peace and prosperity will reign forever after in Belvidere, Illinois, thanks to Joe.
But is that really true?
For that answer, let’s go to the Jan 18, 2024 edition of the Rockford Register Star and a news item titled “A $32M sewer expansion needed for Belvidere battery plant” where we learn as follows, to wit:
Four Rivers Sanitation Authority Executive Director Tim Hanson said his office is preparing an estimated $32 million plan talked about for three decades to extend sanitary sewer lines to the area from Cherry Valley to service the Stellantis facility and any suppliers that will be needed.
end quote
So, to make Joe’s INSANE GREEN DREAM come true in Belvidere, Illinois, the people in that area are going to have to pony up an estimated $32 million plus cost overruns to make Joe’s INSANE GREEN DREAM actually come true, so that when Joe said to the folks of Belvidere on 7 March 2024, that “instead of your town being left behind, your community is moving forward again,” we have to ask ourselves this important question, which applies to corrupt Poestenkill as well:
ARE THEY REALLY?
Or is Joe driving those people in Belvidere, like the people of corrupt Poestenkill, NY, into eternal debt slavery to pay off the cost of that $32 million sewer expansion in their case, and in the case of Poestenkill, about a million in hidden costs to upgrade the piping system from Troy, New York through Brunswick, New York in order to actually be able to get the water Joe’s STIMULATION money appears to be paying for?
http://www.capecharlesmirror.com/paul-p ... ent-919005
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"Fed's Bostic says he is not in a 'mad dash hurry' on rate cuts"
By Reuters
April 18, 2024
April 18 (Reuters) - Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic on Thursday said inflation is going to return to the U.S. central bank's 2% more slowly than many had expected, and "for me, that's okay ... I'm not in a mad dash hurry to get there," because the economy is continuing to create jobs and wages are rising.
"I'm comfortable being patient," Bostic said during an appearance before the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance in Florida.
"I'm of the view that things are going to be slow enough this year that we won't be in a position to reduce our rates towards ... the end of the year."
The Fed has kept its policy rate in the 5.25%-5.50% range since last July.
Earlier this year most U.S. central bankers thought inflation was falling quickly enough to allow several rate cuts before the end of 2024.
But hotter-than-expected inflation readings so far this year have changed minds.
Bostic has been at the vanguard of that change, projecting just one rate cut in the fourth quarter, and earlier this month going so far as to suggest the Fed may end up not cutting rates at all this year.
Monetary policy, Bostic said on Thursday, is restrictive and will slow the economy and move inflation to the Fed's 2% target over the next two years.
"I'm going to be watching labor markets to make sure that we're still creating jobs" and wages continue to rise faster than inflation, he said.
"If we can keep those things going, and inflation has the signs that it is moving to that target, I'm happy to just stay where we are" on the policy rate.
Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Paul Simao
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds ... 024-04-18/
"Fed's Bostic says he is not in a 'mad dash hurry' on rate cuts"
By Reuters
April 18, 2024
April 18 (Reuters) - Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic on Thursday said inflation is going to return to the U.S. central bank's 2% more slowly than many had expected, and "for me, that's okay ... I'm not in a mad dash hurry to get there," because the economy is continuing to create jobs and wages are rising.
"I'm comfortable being patient," Bostic said during an appearance before the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance in Florida.
"I'm of the view that things are going to be slow enough this year that we won't be in a position to reduce our rates towards ... the end of the year."
The Fed has kept its policy rate in the 5.25%-5.50% range since last July.
Earlier this year most U.S. central bankers thought inflation was falling quickly enough to allow several rate cuts before the end of 2024.
But hotter-than-expected inflation readings so far this year have changed minds.
Bostic has been at the vanguard of that change, projecting just one rate cut in the fourth quarter, and earlier this month going so far as to suggest the Fed may end up not cutting rates at all this year.
Monetary policy, Bostic said on Thursday, is restrictive and will slow the economy and move inflation to the Fed's 2% target over the next two years.
"I'm going to be watching labor markets to make sure that we're still creating jobs" and wages continue to rise faster than inflation, he said.
"If we can keep those things going, and inflation has the signs that it is moving to that target, I'm happy to just stay where we are" on the policy rate.
Reporting by Ann Saphir; Editing by Paul Simao
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds ... 024-04-18/
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"Fed policymakers coalesce around 'no rush' on rate cuts"
By Ann Saphir and Michael S. Derby
April 18, 2024
April 18 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve policymakers are coalescing around the idea of keeping borrowing costs where they are until perhaps well into the year, given slow and bumpy progress on inflation, and a still-strong U.S. economy.
On Thursday New York Fed President John Williams became the latest U.S. rate-setter to embrace the "no rush" on rate cuts view articulated in February by Fed Governor Christopher Waller and since echoed by many of his colleagues.
"I definitely don't feel urgency to cut interest rates" given the strength of the economy, Williams said at the Semafor's World Economy Summit in Washington.
"I think eventually...interest rates will need to be lower at some point, but the timing of that is driven by the economy."
Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, in comments late on Wednesday, also said the Fed will likely cut rates "at some point," steering clear of the later "this year" language she - and Williams - had previously used.
Speaking in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Thursday, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic offered "the end of the year" as his view of the likely timing for a first rate cut, saying "I'm comfortable being patient."
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari told Fox News Channel he also wants to be "patient," with the first rate cut "potentially" not appropriate until next year, Bloomberg News reported.
As recently as a few weeks ago many policymakers signaled they expected hotter-than-expected inflation in early 2024 would give way to cooler readings in the face of the Fed's tight monetary policy, necessitating several rate cuts before the end of the year to prevent policy from slowing the economy too much.
But strong growth in jobs, a third-month-in-a-row upside surprise on inflation in March, and robust retail spending among other recent economic indicators have convinced more central bankers that rate cuts ought to wait.
Earlier this week Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson omitted any reference to the appropriate timing for rate cuts, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it's likely to take longer to get enough confidence on inflation's decline to reduce borrowing costs.
As San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly put it on Monday, "the worst thing to do is act urgently when urgency is not required."
With Fed rhetoric shifting and the labor market data showing few signs of cracks, financial markets have also moved to price in fewer and later rate cuts.
Futures contracts that settle to the Fed's policy rate now reflect expectations that the first reduction comes in September, versus June just a few weeks ago.
The odds of a second rate cut by the end of the year have dropped to about 50-50, based on the CME FedWatch Tool.
A Reuters poll released on Thursday showed economists are on the same page.
Inflation by the Fed's targeted measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index, was 2.5% in February, and Fed policymakers say they expect the March reading of core PCE - a gauge of where inflation is heading - to be even higher.
The Fed targets 2% inflation.
That has even raised questions of whether the Fed may have to hike rates again to ensure price pressures ebb.
Williams said that appears unlikely but noted that it was impossible to rule out.
Fed policymakers next meet April 30-May 1 and are expected keep the policy rate in the 5.25%-5.5% range, where it has been since last July.
Reporting by Michael S. Derby and Ann Saphir; Editing by Andrea Ricci
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds ... 024-04-18/
"Fed policymakers coalesce around 'no rush' on rate cuts"
By Ann Saphir and Michael S. Derby
April 18, 2024
April 18 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve policymakers are coalescing around the idea of keeping borrowing costs where they are until perhaps well into the year, given slow and bumpy progress on inflation, and a still-strong U.S. economy.
On Thursday New York Fed President John Williams became the latest U.S. rate-setter to embrace the "no rush" on rate cuts view articulated in February by Fed Governor Christopher Waller and since echoed by many of his colleagues.
"I definitely don't feel urgency to cut interest rates" given the strength of the economy, Williams said at the Semafor's World Economy Summit in Washington.
"I think eventually...interest rates will need to be lower at some point, but the timing of that is driven by the economy."
Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, in comments late on Wednesday, also said the Fed will likely cut rates "at some point," steering clear of the later "this year" language she - and Williams - had previously used.
Speaking in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Thursday, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic offered "the end of the year" as his view of the likely timing for a first rate cut, saying "I'm comfortable being patient."
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari told Fox News Channel he also wants to be "patient," with the first rate cut "potentially" not appropriate until next year, Bloomberg News reported.
As recently as a few weeks ago many policymakers signaled they expected hotter-than-expected inflation in early 2024 would give way to cooler readings in the face of the Fed's tight monetary policy, necessitating several rate cuts before the end of the year to prevent policy from slowing the economy too much.
But strong growth in jobs, a third-month-in-a-row upside surprise on inflation in March, and robust retail spending among other recent economic indicators have convinced more central bankers that rate cuts ought to wait.
Earlier this week Fed Vice Chair Philip Jefferson omitted any reference to the appropriate timing for rate cuts, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it's likely to take longer to get enough confidence on inflation's decline to reduce borrowing costs.
As San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly put it on Monday, "the worst thing to do is act urgently when urgency is not required."
With Fed rhetoric shifting and the labor market data showing few signs of cracks, financial markets have also moved to price in fewer and later rate cuts.
Futures contracts that settle to the Fed's policy rate now reflect expectations that the first reduction comes in September, versus June just a few weeks ago.
The odds of a second rate cut by the end of the year have dropped to about 50-50, based on the CME FedWatch Tool.
A Reuters poll released on Thursday showed economists are on the same page.
Inflation by the Fed's targeted measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index, was 2.5% in February, and Fed policymakers say they expect the March reading of core PCE - a gauge of where inflation is heading - to be even higher.
The Fed targets 2% inflation.
That has even raised questions of whether the Fed may have to hike rates again to ensure price pressures ebb.
Williams said that appears unlikely but noted that it was impossible to rule out.
Fed policymakers next meet April 30-May 1 and are expected keep the policy rate in the 5.25%-5.5% range, where it has been since last July.
Reporting by Michael S. Derby and Ann Saphir; Editing by Andrea Ricci
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/feds ... 024-04-18/
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"US labor market stays resilient; housing regresses on higher mortgage rates"
By Lucia Mutikani
April 18, 2024
Summary
* Weekly jobless claims unchanged at 212,000
* Continuing claims rise 2,000 to 1.812 million
* Existing home sales drop 4.3% in March
WASHINGTON, April 18 (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits was unchanged at a low level last week, pointing to continued labor market strength that is driving the economy.
Labor market resilience, together with elevated inflation have led financial markets and some economists to expect that the Federal Reserve could delay cutting interest rates until September.
A few economists doubt that the U.S. central bank will lower borrowing costs this year.
"Overall, layoffs remain low," said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
"We expect a continuation of the current trend, with a further adjustment in the labor market coming from a moderation in hiring rather than a surge in firings."
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits were unchanged at a seasonally adjusted 212,000 for the week ended April 13, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 215,000 claims in the latest week.
Claims have been bouncing around in a 194,000-225,000 range this year.
Unadjusted claims declined 6,756 to 208,509 last week.
Filings in California jumped by 3,063.
There were also notable increases in claims in Connecticut, Georgia and Oregon.
These were more than offset by a decline of 4,551 in filings in New Jersey.
Claims in the state had surged in the prior week, a move that was blamed on layoffs in the accommodation and food services, transportation and warehousing, and public administration industries.
There were also significant decreases in filings in Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell backed away on Tuesday from providing any guidance on when rates might be cut, saying instead that monetary policy needed to be restrictive for longer.
Financial markets initially expected the first rate cut to come in March, but the timing got pushed back to June and now to September as data on the labor market and inflation continued to surprise on the upside in the first three months of the year.
The Fed has kept its policy rate in the 5.25%-5.50% range since July.
It has raised the benchmark overnight interest rate by 525 basis points since March of 2022.
The claims data covered the period during which the government surveyed businesses and other establishments for the nonfarm payrolls component of April's employment report.
Claims were unchanged between the March and April survey weeks.
The economy added 303,000 jobs in March.
Stocks on Wall Street were trading higher.
The dollar gained versus a basket of currencies.
U.S. Treasury yields rose.
RISING LABOR SUPPLY
The Fed's latest "Beige Book" report on Wednesday described employment as rising at a "slight pace overall" since late February, adding that "several districts reported improved retention of employees, and others pointed to staff reductions at some firms."
It also noted that even as labor supply has improved, "many districts described persistent shortages of qualified applicants for certain positions, including machinists, trades workers and hospitality workers."
Data next week on the number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, will offer more clues on the state of the labor market in April.
The so-called continuing claims edged up 2,000 to 1.812 million during the week ending April 6, the claims report showed.
Though still low by historical standards, the slightly elevated level of continuing claims suggests it could be taking longer for some unemployed workers to land new jobs.
With the outlook for rate cuts uncertain, the average rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has drifted above 7%, data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac showed, combining with higher house prices to depress home sales.
A separate report from the National Association of Realtors showed existing home sales fell 4.3% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.19 million units.
Home resales, which account for a large portion of U.S. housing sales, declined 3.7% on a year-on-year basis in March.
Sales also continued to be constrained by tight supply, especially in the lower price segment of the market, resulting in multiple offers for properties.
The median existing home price increased 4.8% from a year earlier to $393,500 in March.
That was a record high for the month of March.
Sales of houses in the $100,000-$250,000 price range declined 15.8% year-on-year.
By contrast, sales for houses priced $1 million and above increased 14.0% from a year ago.
The weak sales followed data this week showing housing starts and building permits tumbled in March.
"We're forecasting a very subdued recovery in existing home sales," said Thomas Ryan, property economist at Capital Economics.
"Borrowing costs will fall from where they are now, but not enough to fully offset mortgage rate 'lock-in' effects, which will continue to hold back sales volumes."
While the housing market has regressed, signs of revival in manufacturing are growing.
A third report from the Philadelphia Fed showed its gauge of factory activity in the mid-Atlantic region rising to a two-year high in April amid a jump in new orders.
But businesses reported paying more for inputs, suggesting a pick-up in goods prices could be looming.
Some economists were, however, not too concerned about the rise in the survey's prices paid measure, noting the recent rebound in oil prices amid tensions in the Middle East.
Falling goods prices were the main driver of lower inflation last year.
Data this week showed manufacturing production rebounded in March from a year ago.
"While far from conclusive, this report provides some marginal support in favor of a recovery in the manufacturing sector after its prolonged slump," said Oliver Allen, senior U.S. Economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Paul Simao and Andrea Ricci
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-wee ... 024-04-18/
"US labor market stays resilient; housing regresses on higher mortgage rates"
By Lucia Mutikani
April 18, 2024
Summary
* Weekly jobless claims unchanged at 212,000
* Continuing claims rise 2,000 to 1.812 million
* Existing home sales drop 4.3% in March
WASHINGTON, April 18 (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits was unchanged at a low level last week, pointing to continued labor market strength that is driving the economy.
Labor market resilience, together with elevated inflation have led financial markets and some economists to expect that the Federal Reserve could delay cutting interest rates until September.
A few economists doubt that the U.S. central bank will lower borrowing costs this year.
"Overall, layoffs remain low," said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
"We expect a continuation of the current trend, with a further adjustment in the labor market coming from a moderation in hiring rather than a surge in firings."
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits were unchanged at a seasonally adjusted 212,000 for the week ended April 13, the Labor Department said on Thursday.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 215,000 claims in the latest week.
Claims have been bouncing around in a 194,000-225,000 range this year.
Unadjusted claims declined 6,756 to 208,509 last week.
Filings in California jumped by 3,063.
There were also notable increases in claims in Connecticut, Georgia and Oregon.
These were more than offset by a decline of 4,551 in filings in New Jersey.
Claims in the state had surged in the prior week, a move that was blamed on layoffs in the accommodation and food services, transportation and warehousing, and public administration industries.
There were also significant decreases in filings in Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell backed away on Tuesday from providing any guidance on when rates might be cut, saying instead that monetary policy needed to be restrictive for longer.
Financial markets initially expected the first rate cut to come in March, but the timing got pushed back to June and now to September as data on the labor market and inflation continued to surprise on the upside in the first three months of the year.
The Fed has kept its policy rate in the 5.25%-5.50% range since July.
It has raised the benchmark overnight interest rate by 525 basis points since March of 2022.
The claims data covered the period during which the government surveyed businesses and other establishments for the nonfarm payrolls component of April's employment report.
Claims were unchanged between the March and April survey weeks.
The economy added 303,000 jobs in March.
Stocks on Wall Street were trading higher.
The dollar gained versus a basket of currencies.
U.S. Treasury yields rose.
RISING LABOR SUPPLY
The Fed's latest "Beige Book" report on Wednesday described employment as rising at a "slight pace overall" since late February, adding that "several districts reported improved retention of employees, and others pointed to staff reductions at some firms."
It also noted that even as labor supply has improved, "many districts described persistent shortages of qualified applicants for certain positions, including machinists, trades workers and hospitality workers."
Data next week on the number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, will offer more clues on the state of the labor market in April.
The so-called continuing claims edged up 2,000 to 1.812 million during the week ending April 6, the claims report showed.
Though still low by historical standards, the slightly elevated level of continuing claims suggests it could be taking longer for some unemployed workers to land new jobs.
With the outlook for rate cuts uncertain, the average rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has drifted above 7%, data from mortgage finance agency Freddie Mac showed, combining with higher house prices to depress home sales.
A separate report from the National Association of Realtors showed existing home sales fell 4.3% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.19 million units.
Home resales, which account for a large portion of U.S. housing sales, declined 3.7% on a year-on-year basis in March.
Sales also continued to be constrained by tight supply, especially in the lower price segment of the market, resulting in multiple offers for properties.
The median existing home price increased 4.8% from a year earlier to $393,500 in March.
That was a record high for the month of March.
Sales of houses in the $100,000-$250,000 price range declined 15.8% year-on-year.
By contrast, sales for houses priced $1 million and above increased 14.0% from a year ago.
The weak sales followed data this week showing housing starts and building permits tumbled in March.
"We're forecasting a very subdued recovery in existing home sales," said Thomas Ryan, property economist at Capital Economics.
"Borrowing costs will fall from where they are now, but not enough to fully offset mortgage rate 'lock-in' effects, which will continue to hold back sales volumes."
While the housing market has regressed, signs of revival in manufacturing are growing.
A third report from the Philadelphia Fed showed its gauge of factory activity in the mid-Atlantic region rising to a two-year high in April amid a jump in new orders.
But businesses reported paying more for inputs, suggesting a pick-up in goods prices could be looming.
Some economists were, however, not too concerned about the rise in the survey's prices paid measure, noting the recent rebound in oil prices amid tensions in the Middle East.
Falling goods prices were the main driver of lower inflation last year.
Data this week showed manufacturing production rebounded in March from a year ago.
"While far from conclusive, this report provides some marginal support in favor of a recovery in the manufacturing sector after its prolonged slump," said Oliver Allen, senior U.S. Economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Paul Simao and Andrea Ricci
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-wee ... 024-04-18/
Re: POLITICS
REUTERS
"Mortgage rates top 7% for the first time this year, Freddie Mac says"
By Amina Niasse
April 18, 2024
NEW YORK, April 18 (Reuters) - U.S. mortgage rates increased by the most since June and also crossed the 7% threshold for the first time since December, muddling home sales growth, a Thursday report said.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 7.10% for the week ended April 18 from 6.88% the week prior, Freddie Mac reported.
The 22-basis point increase was the largest in about 10 months.
“As rates trend higher, potential homebuyers are deciding whether to buy before rates rise even more or hold off in hopes of decreases later in the year," said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's chief economist.
"Last week, purchase applications rose modestly, but it remains unclear how many homebuyers can withstand increasing rates in the future.”
While buyers saw rates on home loans ease during 2023's fourth quarter, they have steadily increased since January, though rates remain below two-decade highs nearing 8% in October.
High mortgage rates last year contributed to limited housing inventory, following the Federal Reserve's rate hike campaign launched in 2022.
Reporting by Amina Niasse; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/mort ... 024-04-18/
"Mortgage rates top 7% for the first time this year, Freddie Mac says"
By Amina Niasse
April 18, 2024
NEW YORK, April 18 (Reuters) - U.S. mortgage rates increased by the most since June and also crossed the 7% threshold for the first time since December, muddling home sales growth, a Thursday report said.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose to 7.10% for the week ended April 18 from 6.88% the week prior, Freddie Mac reported.
The 22-basis point increase was the largest in about 10 months.
“As rates trend higher, potential homebuyers are deciding whether to buy before rates rise even more or hold off in hopes of decreases later in the year," said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac's chief economist.
"Last week, purchase applications rose modestly, but it remains unclear how many homebuyers can withstand increasing rates in the future.”
While buyers saw rates on home loans ease during 2023's fourth quarter, they have steadily increased since January, though rates remain below two-decade highs nearing 8% in October.
High mortgage rates last year contributed to limited housing inventory, following the Federal Reserve's rate hike campaign launched in 2022.
Reporting by Amina Niasse; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/mort ... 024-04-18/