Declarations

Forget Cars

“I hate cars, I don’t trust people driving them, especially in New Jersey, and I see a lot of accidents and it’s scary. When someone pulls into our lane, maybe from a parking lot, I just automatically tense up.”

— Kat Wilson, 16, whose father, Donnie Wilson, is a local short track racer in New Jersey, says she has no interest in automobiles or driving. According to a recent study based on Federal Highway Administration, Wilson joins many other teenagers in turning down the opportunity to drive. The study by Green Car Congress showed that in 2018 approximately 61% of 18-year-olds in the U.S. had a driver’s license, down from 80% percent in 1983. The number of 16-year-olds with licenses decreased from 46% to 25% in the same period.

Premature PIP Cap

“The premature imposition of a $250,000 cap could have severely impacted the lives of Michigan drivers and uninsured passengers, pedestrians, and bicyclists.”

— Michigan DIFS Director Anita Fox said in a media release after reaching an agreement with the state’s personal injury protection (PIP) medical coverage program regarding unlimited coverage for persons injured in an automobile accident prior to the July 2, 2020, implementation of Michigan’s new auto insurance law. The law enacted June 11, 2019, capped PIP coverage at $250,000 for claims incurred beginning July 2, 2020. The Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility (MAIPF), which administers the PIP program, sought to impose cap beginning June 11, 2019.

Unheard Warnings

“We have these issues maybe once a year, and it’s very limited. … It just happened to be this is the date that it happened.”

— Cmdr. Vince Taylor of the Coast Guard Communication Command said during a hearing into the deadly capsizing of the Seacor Power lift boat off the coast of Louisiana on April 13 that a technical issue prevented the Guard from relaying severe thunderstorm and marine warnings on the day the lift boat sank amid hurricane-force winds, leaving 13 dead. Mariners who relied on the Coast Guard’s system missed the National Weather Service warnings and NWS forecaster Philip Grigsby said the storm’s path would have been clear to those who picked up on the messages.

Western U.S. Drought

“This is definitely the worst crop year we have had since we started farming 35 years ago.”

— Marci Green, whose family is the sixth generation on the same farming land just south of Spokane, Wash., had to harvest her wheat crop early because the severe drought stunted this year’s grow.

It Stinks

“We are prisoners in our own smelly home.”

— A South Carolina resident’s complaint of living near a paper mill blamed for releasing large amounts of hydrogen sulfide, a gas that smells like rotten eggs. The New-Indy paper mill in Catawba has received more than 30,000 complaints, and three federal civil lawsuits have been filed, alleging the odor endangers families. An April site visit by EPA inspectors found hydrogen sulfide levels as high as 15,900 parts per billion, enough to cause breathing problems, headaches and nausea according to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Zero Tolerance

“Ulster County’s Emergency Services and Fire Investigations Unit have zero tolerance for anyone who puts lives of our first responders at risk for their own financial gain and will diligently investigate every suspicious fire in our communities.”

— Ulster County Director of Emergency Services Everett Erichsen said in a New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) press release after Yevganiy Ilyayev was arrested for insurance fraud in the second degree following a year-long criminal investigation into the origin of a house fire. The house had been condemned by the town of Wawarsing, New York, and a stop work order was placed on the residence for suspected illegal renovations. Following the fire, Ilyayev submitted a fraudulent claim to Travelers Insurance seeking $478,000 as restitution for the loss of the house.