Alternate plan approved: Louisiana has been granted a waiver from the hard-to-reach federal goals of the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act. That law requires that all students be proficient in reading and math by 2014. The waivers granted to Louisiana and eight other states on Tuesday allow them to fall short of that requirement without losing federal funds—provided they offer a viable alternative plan. Louisiana education officials say they submitted a multifaceted application including references to the state school accountability plan that factors in performance on the ACT college preparation exam and other tests. Reacting to the federal approval today, state officials say policies outlined in the waiver request are designed to ensure all students are on track for a college degree or a professional career. The state Department of Education says the approved waiver application will provide superintendents and principals similar levels of autonomy over the use of $375 million in federal funding, dollars historically tied up in government mandates and regulations.
Pay day: Four FEMA contractors that installed or maintained government-issued trailers for storm victims after Hurricane Katrina have agreed to pay a total of $5 million to resolve claims that the temporary shelters exposed Gulf Coast residents to hazardous fumes, according to court filings today. The documents don’t disclose how much would be individually paid by Shaw Environmental Inc., Bechtel Corp., Fluor Enterprises Inc., CH2M Hill Constructors Inc., and the companies’ respective insurers. The deal is linked to a larger class-action settlement agreement between plaintiffs’ attorneys and several companies that manufactured travel trailers for the Federal Emergency Management Agency that were used following hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. The proposed settlement with the trailer makers was expanded late Monday to include claims against Gulf Stream Coach Inc., Forest River Inc., Jayco Inc. and Monaco Coach Corp. Financial terms of that part of the deal haven’t been disclosed. The Associated Press has more on this story here.
Free to roam: A federal magistrate has agreed to ease the travel restrictions he imposed on a former BP engineer charged with deleting text messages about the company’s response to the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. Magistrate Daniel Knowles III ruled today that 50-year-old Kurt Mix, of Katy, Texas, can travel throughout the continental United States while he is free on bond, provided he reports his travel plans to pretrial services officers. Knowles had ruled earlier this month that Mix must limit his travel to Louisiana, Texas, Massachusetts and New York. Mix worked on BP’s efforts to stop the leak from its blown-out Macondo well. Prosecutors claim he deleted text messages to a supervisor and a contractor to prevent them from being used in a federal grand jury probe.
