View allAll Photos Tagged recordkeeping
Earth’s 2016 surface temperatures were the warmest since modern recordkeeping began in 1880, according to independent analyses by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Globally-averaged temperatures in 2016 were 1.78 degrees Fahrenheit (0.99 degrees Celsius) warmer than the mid-20th century mean. This makes 2016 the third year in a row to set a new record for global average surface temperatures.
The planet’s long-term warming trend is seen in this chart of every year’s annual temperature cycle from 1880 to the present
The planet’s long-term warming trend is seen in this chart of every year’s annual temperature cycle from 1880 to the present, compared to the average temperature from 1880 to 2015. Record warm years are listed in the column on the right.
Credits: NASA/Joshua Stevens, Earth Observatory
The 2016 temperatures continue a long-term warming trend, according to analyses by scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York. NOAA scientists concur with the finding that 2016 was the warmest year on record based on separate, independent analyses of the data.
Because weather station locations and measurement practices change over time, there are uncertainties in the interpretation of specific year-to-year global mean temperature differences. However, even taking this into account, NASA estimates 2016 was the warmest year with greater than 95 percent certainty.
To read the full story, click here.
Winter weather has been pacing around the perimeter here like a wolf circling the campfire in shadows.
First there was hail. Then temperatures dipped below freezing for successive nights, which never happens at the beach. On Wednesday last Portland received the second deepest snowfall since recordkeeping began. Over the weekend snow was visible on the heights of the Willapa Hills.
Today the forecast called for snow here and it was correct!
I could not believe how many memories flooded back when I saw this table in a neat gently used shop in Duncan AZ. The thick book is a Websters Dictionary, highly prized once before the internet days....do you remember? We had a telephone like this when I was growing up.
Harris's Sparrow, Edmonds, Snohomish County, Washington, United States, December 15, 2018. This is the second sighting of this species in the City of Edmonds since we started recordkeeping about 30 years ago. It is a code 4 (more than five sightings) species for Snohomish County.
Almost every winter around this time, it gets to the point that the street I live on is about half as wide as it should/needs to be, due to the snowbanks. Since the winter of 2022-2023 is the 3rd snowiest since recordkeeping began here in Ottawa, we were certainly due!
I was working on a PowerPoint presentation in my home office when I heard this rumbling... peeking out the window, I could see the snowblower coming down the street. They were clearing the snow banks on my side of the road but I was too late. I knew they'd be coming back in a few minutes to tackle the other side of the road.
Sure enough, after a short while, i heard the telltale rumble and I grabbed my camera and ran out to try to capture these guys in action as they were coming down the street. They moved faster than I expected, so ultimately I didn't have much time to compose the way I wanted. I managed to snap off a few shots, and this one is the one I liked the most.
In an ideal world, this shot would be a little tighter (eliminating the basketball net altogether) or a little wider (including the entire backboard and structure) but not this. Then again, in an ideal world, I wouldn't be making photos of snow and snowblowers in March...
Mount Rainier National Park, Washington
One of my best-selling prints (maybe the most sold; my recordkeeping sucks) was a shot from a few years ago at this location with a full moon setting over the mountain at sunrise www.flickr.com/photos/geoffschmid/3776932414/.
Though I've been here so many times I've never been able to get a truly dramatic sky. It's a pass, after all, which seems to spell clear or socked in, no middle ground; the weather forecasts are very "iffy" at best. However, it's got to be one of the best spots to get a great reflection of the mountain, and if you time it right for the few times a year it happens, the moon will appear at sunset or sunrise, which will hedge your bets if faced with a cloudless sky (yes, the moon is real as evidenced by its small scale rendered by my wide angle focal length).
This year may be unique in that winter has not released its grip even in early August. I made a special trip here to grab this shot after snowshoeing the Naches Loop trail last week (yes, snowshoeing in July!). By the time you see it, the snow will be gone and avalanche lilies will be blooming (more than a month later than usual).
I arrived just before sunset and the mountain was, typically, obscured by clouds (just the mountain, of course). The clouds parted and blew away to a cloudless sky just after sunset. Suffice to say, the window was narrow.
Anyway, the serenity of the scene always appeals and though I'm reluctant to shoot an overexposed location, this spot always does my soul good.
I never post any comments this long-winded, don't know what came over me... sorry about it!
I hope you enjoy the image.
Awards: Juried into the Audubon Society of Greater Denver's Share the View 2012 competition collection.
At L'Arche Museum; St. Pierre; St. Pierre and Miquelon; Overseas Collectivity of the Republic of France.
L'ora legale è la convenzione di avanzare di un'ora le lancette degli orologi durante il periodo estivo, in modo da aumentare la luce solare nel tardo pomeriggio a scapito del primo mattino. Tipicamente, lo spostamento in avanti avviene all'inizio della primavera, per essere annullato durante l'autunno.
Di contro, l'orario di base usato da ogni paese, quando l'orario coincide con quello del fuso orario di riferimento, prende il nome di «ora solare» o «ora civile convenzionale». In alcuni paesi l'ora solare di fatto è sospesa, valendo l'ora legale per tutto l'anno. C'è da osservare che la terminologia usata negli altri paesi è più diretta, riferendosi al periodo estivo, ovvero «orario estivo». Una denominazione meglio accurata, imitando quella americana, è quella di «orario di risparmio della luce diurna» («daylight saving time»), ove viene tralasciato il riferimento estivo.
(fonte: Wikipedia)
Daylight saving time (DST; also summer time in British English—see Terminology) is the practice of temporarily advancing clocks so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less. Typically clocks are adjusted forward one hour near the start of spring and are adjusted backward in autumn. Modern DST was first proposed in 1895 by George Vernon Hudson. Many countries have used it since then; details vary by location and change occasionally.
The practice is controversial. Adding daylight to afternoons benefits retailing, sports, and other activities that exploit sunlight after working hours, but causes problems for farming, evening entertainment and other occupations tied to the sun.Traffic fatalities are reduced when there is extra afternoon daylight. Its effect on health and crime is less clear. Although an early goal of DST was to reduce evening usage of incandescent lighting, formerly a primary use of electricity, modern heating and cooling usage patterns differ greatly, and research about how DST currently affects energy use is limited or contradictory.
DST's occasional clock shifts present other challenges. They complicate timekeeping, and can disrupt meetings, travel, billing, recordkeeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Software can often adjust computer clocks automatically, but this can be limited and error-prone, particularly when DST rules change.
(source: Wikipedia)
Joe keeps track of times taken by each swimmer in the Scarboro Polar Bears winter swimming sessions.
This november was the driest november-month in germany since recordkeeping began in 1881.
The river Rhine was showing some really enormous sandbanks, even in Cologne!
Name: Robert Hall
Arrested for: Larceny
Arrested at: North Shields Police Station
Arrested on: 9 November 1903
Tyne and Wear Archives ref: DX1388-1-23-Robert Hall
The Shields Daily Gazette for 10 November 1903 reports:
"Edwin Davidson, cartman; Robert Hall, cartman; Henry Davidson, cartman; and Edward Scott labourer were charged on remand at North Shields with stealing a quantity of beef, a silk handkerchief and an ounce of tobacco valued at 8s 5d, the property of Morton Dixon, a labourer living at Shiremoor ... The Bench imposed a fine of 10s and costs upon each of them".
These images are a selection from an album of photographs of prisoners brought before the North Shields Police Court between 1902 and 1916 in the collection of Tyne & Wear Archives (TWA ref DX1388/1).
Copyright) We're happy for you to share this digital image within the spirit of The Commons. Please cite 'Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums' when reusing. Certain restrictions on high quality reproductions and commercial use of the original physical version apply though; if you're unsure please email archives@twmuseums.org.uk.
I rallied with a decent June, but still trail behind the previous 12 years for the half years mileage.
NASA image acquired February 14, 2011
In mid-February 2011, residents along South Korea’s east coast were struggling to dig out from the heaviest snowfall in more than a century. The BBC reported that hundreds of stranded motorists awaited rescue, and hundreds of homes had collapsed under the weight of heavy snow. The South Korean government had deployed 12,000 soldiers to assist and rescue residents.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this natural-color image on February 15, 2011. Mostly clear skies allowed MODIS a nearly uninterrupted view of the Korean Peninsula. East of Seoul, clusters of small white clouds cast shadows onto the surface below. But most of the white on the peninsula is snow.
Agence France-Presse reported that the port city of Samcheok recorded 100 centimeters (39 inches) of snowfall on February 11 and 12—the heaviest snowfall amount since recordkeeping began in 1911. In the west, Seoul escaped heavy snow, although the Han River froze over for the first time in years, according to the BBC.
The Chosunilbo reported that snow was expected to taper off for the east coast on February 14, although some snow might fall inland, including Seoul.
The heavy snowfall arrived on the heels of South Korea’s coolest January since the 1960s. The unusual cold might have been driven at least partly by the Arctic Oscillation (AO). A negative phase of the AO lowered temperatures in other parts of the Northern Hemisphere in January 2011.
NASA images courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC. Caption by Michon Scott.
Instrument: Aqua - MODIS
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This journal belonging to Joseph Swan is from the Swan Collection of Tyne & Wear Museums, held at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Sir Joseph Wilson Swan was a British Physicist, Chemist and Inventor. Swan lived at Underhill, on Kells Lane North in Low Fell, Gateshead. It was here that he conducted most of his experiments in the large conservatory.
His investigations in electro-chemistry led to the construction of a motor electric meter, an electric fire-damp detector, a miners' electric safety lamp. Most importantly, Swan was also a pioneer in photographic procedures such as carbon printing.
It was Swan's demonstration of the light bulb at a lecture in Newcastle upon Tyne on 18 December 1878, before its later development by the American Thomas Edison that he is most famous for. Swan and Edison later collaborated in their work with the incandescent light bulb in 1883, when they founded the Edison & Swan United Electric Light Company, otherwise known as 'Ediswan.'
Many items held at Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums relating to Joseph Swan offer an amazing insight in to his work as an inventor and his place in the History of Scientific progression. This set offers a small selection from these collections.
This set has been produced in support of the British Science Festival 2013, held in Newcastle upon Tyne. You can find more information on the Festival here
(Copyright) We're happy for you to share these digital images within the spirit of The Commons. Please cite 'Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums' when reusing. Certain restrictions on high quality reproductions and commercial use of the original physical version apply though; if you're unsure please email archives@twmuseums.org.uk
Tally from recent year’s bicycle mileages kept on my Ansel Adams calendar. This year got a slow start with nasty weather, but I still have a shot at 7000 or so.
On June 2, 2016, the BLM presented its “Making a Difference” National Volunteer Awards for outstanding volunteer service in 2015 on BLM-managed lands. The annual “Making a Difference” Award recognizes exceptional volunteers who have contributed thousands of hours improving the public lands. These hard-working volunteers have helped BLM to improve fish habitat, keep campers safe, find homes for wild horses and burros, and provide environmental education and other visitor services.
Sharron Evans, Utah State Office, won an Outstanding Achievement award. Sharron Evans contributes her time to many facets of the BLM Wild Horse & Burro Program. One of her primary areas of responsibility is recordkeeping for the 1,600+ wild horses and burros that currently reside at contracted off-range holding facilities in Axtell, Utah. In addition, she assists BLM staff, contractors, and veterinarians in identifying animals with potential health issues as well as facility conditions that require improvement. Sharron also uses her own time and vehicle to transport equine blood specimens to area laboratories for required testing. And her work has not just benefited wild horses in the holding facilities: she also led a statewide campaign to collect donated saddles, blankets, halters, and other riding tack. Most of the items are now being used by the Northern Nevada Correctional Center Saddle Horse and Burro Training Program, a partnership between the Bureau of Land Management and the Nevada Department of Corrections-Silver State Industries. Through this program, about 60 wild horses and burros are “gentled’ and trained each year before being adopted by members of the public. Sharron has also been instrumental in placing wild horses in good homes through the Mustang Heritage Foundation’s Youth and Mustang Challenge and Trainer Incentive Program. Sharron spends long hours promoting the BLM Wild Horse & Burro Program in person and via social media. Her outreach efforts have helped the BLM, partners, contractors, and members of the public work together effectively in their efforts to safeguard America’s wild horses.
To better organize my own recordkeeping I'm going to start doing end-of-month summaries of the yardbird activity.
This month I saw the following birds in the yard:
Juncos (many, daily)
Black-capped chickadees (many, daily)
Chestnut-backed chickadees (many, daily)
Anna's hummingbirds (many, daily)
Spotted towhees (a few daily)
Song-sparrows (a few daily)
Robins (a few daily)
Steller's jays (a few daily)
Flickers (male and female daily)
Downy woodpeckers (male and female daily)
Brown creepers (one or two, often)
Bewick's wrens (one or two, often)
Nuthatches (one or two, often)
Townsend warblers (one or two, often after 9.20)
Golden-crowned kinglets (one or two, often)
Golden-crowned sparrows (several, often)
White-crowned sparrows (several, often)
Starlings (many, too often)
Crows (one or two, occasionally)
Cedar waxwings (about a dozen, a few times, early Sept)
Wilson's warblers (one, a few times)
Bushtits (a good flock, often in early Sept)
American goldfinches (a few, occasionally in early Sept)
Orange-crowned warblers (one, a few times, early Sept)
Hutton's vireos (one or two, a few times in early Sept)
California/scrub jays (one, once or twice)
Pine siskins, (several, once)
Ruby kinglets (one or two, once)
Pacific slope flycatcher (one, once in early Sept)
Hermit thrush (one, once)
Golden-crowned sparrow, backyard Olympia.
A traditional quipu. It is believed that the Incas had no formal writing tradition. However, quipus like this were used as record-keeping devices through a complicated system of knots - each quipu was different in both size and color.
Accounting And Bookkeeping - Vintage bookkeeping ledger with eyeglasses resting on top.
Image © 2012 Susan Candelario / SDC Photography, All Rights Reserved. The image is protected by U.S. and International copyright laws, and is not to be downloaded or reproduced in any way without written permission.
Susan Candelario artists website to purchase Fine Art Prints If you would like to use this image for any purpose, please visit my site and contact me with any questions you may have. Thank You.
On 29 July 1952, fire ripped through the Hope Gibbons Building in Wellington, destroying boxes and boxes of New Zealand's public records.
In the days before a proper national archive was established, government records were stored in a variety of Wellington buildings. A considerable collection of these were stored on several floors of the Hope Gibbons Building, on the corner of Inglewood Place/Taranaki Street and Dixon Street. Sadly, the fire destroyed files from the Marine Department, the Public Works Department, the Labour Department, and early records of the Lands and Survey Department (up to 1891).
The event was highly significant in the history of recordkeeping in New Zealand. Because of the loss of such important records the 1957 Archives Act was passed, leading to the creation of the National Archives of New Zealand, now Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga.
Over the years Archives New Zealand has been based in a number of locations across Wellington, including Borthwick House on The Terrace, the Air New Zealand building on Vivian Street, and now in Mulgrave Street (the ex-Government Printing Office building).
Although many records were lost, Archives New Zealand does hold a number of burnt files from the Hope Gibbons fire. When searching on the online finding aid Collections, you may notice that some items have been annotated to state that the item was damaged by the fire (for example: archway.archives.govt.nz/ViewFullItem.do?code=17306031). These items have preservation restrictions in place, preventing them from being issued in the Reading Room.
This photograph of the fire is from a series of records relating to Archival Facilities and Personnel.
Archives reference: ARCH 458 Box 1/c AR1/5
collections.archives.govt.nz/en/web/arena/search#/?q=R219...
For more information use our “ask an archivist” link on our website: www.archives.govt.nz
Material from Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
After seeing these objects you can slake your severe acquisitive thirst at any number of auction houses and galleries, where there's a robust marketplace for pre-Columbian Colombian gold.
But this is highly problematic, authenticity being the first issue.
Let's assume, though that despite the huge volume of fakes that surely must be on the market, you've found the real thing, thanks to your scholarship of the services of - I don't know who - renegade scientists, perhaps - and you have an authentic piece.
The gallery self-righteously claims it will not trade in looted goods. Hmm.
What does "looted" mean? I'd say it means unauthorized excavation that doesn't meet standards of archaeological practices. Recordkeeping and the publication of academic reports in peer-reviewed journals are a must.
So, unless you've built a time machine, traveled back to the Colombia of long ago, and persuaded a chief, a priest or some other indigenous person to give (or sell) you a piece, is there any other provenance that would not amount to looting?
I suppose if the piece was unearthed in the 19th century on the farm of a member of the elite and has gathered dust since then as a curio, and it left Colombia and entered the US before either country had laws prohibiting the export and import (Colombia and the US, respectively) of antiquities you mght not be indictable. But where are you morally?
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The Zenú or Sinú is an Amerindian tribe in Colombia, whose ancestral territory comprises the valleys of the Sinu and San Jorge rivers as well as the coast of the Caribbean around the Gulf of Morrosquillo. These lands lie within the departments of Córdoba and Sucre.
The Zenú culture existed from about 200 BCE to about 1600 CE, constructing major water works and producing gold ornaments. The gold that was often buried with their dead lured the Spanish conquerors, who looted much of the gold. With the arrival of the Spaniards, the tribe all but died out. The 16th-century Spanish chroniclers wrote about the Zenú who were still living there, but recorded little or nothing about the history of the Zenú.
In 1966 the geographer James Parsons drew attention to rake-like patterns that were visible on aerial photographs of the wetlands in the lower reaches of the river San Jorge,[1] patterns that could not have arisen naturally. Ten years later a major reconstructive research started.
My name is Anna Gulbransen and I am a Senior Archives Advisor at Archives New Zealand. I also hold the role of Secretary General for the Pacific Regional Branch of the International Council on Archives. Formed in 1981, PARBICA is a professional organisation that comprises government archives, non-government archival institutions and associations, and individual members representing more than twenty nations, states and territories in the North and South Pacific, including Australia, Hawaii and New Zealand. As one of 13 branches of the International Council on Archives we do a variety of work across the Pacific to build records and archives capability in the region. One of our biggest and most successful projects has been the development of the Recordkeeping for Good Governance Toolkit. We are currently in the midst of planning our 15th conference which will be held in Honiara, Solomon Islands 12-16 August www.parbica.org/conf15.htm
I think this records is a fantastic visual record of a significant period of change in Samoa. The story is told from a very New Zealand perspective which reflects on the thoughts and opinions of the time. I particularly enjoy being able to listen to the songs and watch people going about their day to day life, the film really brings a piece of history to life. In 2013, many years on, we continue to have a great relationship with Samoa and our other Pacific colleagues. There are so many Pacific stories in our archive and in the archives across the Pacific. It is so important that we work hard to find ways to capture and preserve these records so that our young nations can build our own national identities, remembering where we've come from so we can work out where we're going.
The film was produced by the National Film Unit. The National Film Unit was established to publicise New Zealand's participation and achievements during the Second World War. After 1945 the Film Unit expanded from producing weekly newsreels to making documentaries and films to the order of Government Departments. During its existence the Film Unit produced films for national organisations as well as many films on its own initiative. This particular film was filmed by National Film Unit cameraman, Frank Chilton OBE. He displayed an interest in the constitutional changes taking place in the Pacific in the late 1950's and early 1960's. Archives New Zealand took over responsibility for the restoration and preservation of the National Film Unit's extensive archival film collection in 1988. In 1988 the Government announced its intention to sell the National Film Unit. In March 1990 the National Film Unit was sold to Television New Zealand.
To view A New Day in Samoa, please consult the version we have on Youtube - www.youtube.com/watch?v=aosF1HgRDZw
Every year on 9 June, archivists, record keepers, museums, libraries, family historians, and many others around the globe unite to celebrate International Archives Day. First observed in 2007, International Archives Day recognises the importance of archives to the economic, political, social and cultural development of humanity.
As the International Council on Archives explains, "the public's image of the archives is foggy: often confused with libraries, archives continue to be perceived as documents for internal use only, which are difficult to access and are of interest only to historians." Yet archives are so much more. From family history to government accountability, archives enable people from all walks of life to view the past, and to create the future.
Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga is the guardian of records created or used by the New Zealand government, its departments and agencies. As the country’s public archive, we gather, store and protect an extremely wide range of material. As Ray Waru notes, “in addition to its formal role as caretaker and custodian of the official government record, Archives New Zealand, it turned out, is a cornucopia of unexpected objects, curious ephemera and the sometimes slightly bizarre.” These original, one-of-a-kind records capture the interaction between citizen and state, and tell the many stories that make up the history of Aotearoa New Zealand.
To celebrate International Archives Day, we are highlighting a number of our records on Twitter and Flickr Archives New Zealand accounts. But if we had to pick a single item to represent Archives New Zealand from our collection of four million, it would have to be Te Tiriti o Waitangi [Further information available here www.flickr.com/photos/archivesnz/12210790843/]. The nine documents signed across the country in 1840 are highly significant to both Māori and Pākehā, and signalled the birth of European government in Aotearoa New Zealand. With this came paper records, record keeping, and after 1957, a National Archive. Its life as a record has been fraught. Almost subsumed by fire and then nibbled by rodents, the nine sheets have since had major preservation work, have been digitised, and are now stored in specially-housed display cases for the public to experience.
More information about International Archives Day can be found at www.ica.org/1561/international-archives-day/celebrate-the... and the International Archives Day Website [www.internationalarchivesday.org/wordpress], where archives institutions from around the world will present an item that best represents their organisation.
Archives New Zealand is a member of the International Council of Archives and is a chief contributor in improving recordkeeping knowledge across the Pacific through its leadership role with PARBICA [www.parbica.org/] the Pacific branch of the International Council of Archives.
For updates on our On This Day series and news from Archives New Zealand, follow us on Twitter twitter.com/ArchivesNZ
Material from Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga
Guidelines on re-using this image:
• images of the Treaty of Waitangi will be used in context, ie, where it is reasonably clear that the images cannot be mistaken for another document
• images will be of sufficient size to be recognised as the Treaty of Waitangi
• portions of the Treaty of Waitangi can be used for stylistic effect, but any portion so used will not include Māori signatories
• other text or images will not be used over an image of the Treaty of Waitangi, nor will the Treaty be used over other text or images, and
• images of the Treaty of Waitangi should always be used appropriately, ie, not for advertising endorsements or commercial purposes.
Description: Although Thomas Smillie, the Smithsonian's first photographer and curator of photography, used images to catalog much of the institution's physical object collection, he also extensively photographed pages of books on topics of personal interest to him as a way of copying the material for future use. Smillie also photographed letters and documents as a method of preserving the Smithsonian's records.
Creator/Photographer: Thomas Smillie
Birth Date: 1843
Death Date: 1917
Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1843, Thomas William Smillie immigrated to the United States with his family when he five years old. After studying chemistry and medicine at Georgetown University, he took a job as a photographer at the Smithsonian Institution, where he stayed for nearly fifty years until his death in 1917. Smillie's duties and accomplishments at the Smithsonian were vast: he documented important events and research trips, photographed the museum's installations and specimens, created reproductions for use as printing illustrations, performed chemical experiments for Smithsonian scientific researchers, and later acted as the head and curator of the photography lab. Smillie's documentation of each Smithsonian exhibition and installation resulted in an informal record of all of the institution's art and artifacts. In 1913 Smillie mounted an exhibition on the history of photography to showcase the remarkable advancements that had been made in the field but which he feared had already been forgotten.
Medium: Cyanotype
Date: 1890
Collection: Thomas Smillie Collection (Record Unit 95) - Thomas Smillie served as the first official photographer for the Smithsonian Institution from 1870 until his death in 1917. As head of the photography lab as well as its curator, he was responsible for photographing all of the exhibits, objects, and expeditions, leaving an informal record of early Smithsonian collections.
Repository: Smithsonian Institution Archives
Accession number: RU95_Box77_0017
On 4 December 1991, the current headquarters of Archives New Zealand on Mulgrave Street, Wellington, were officially opened. Archives New Zealand is a government department that acts as the official guardian of New Zealand’s public archives, and works to promote good information management as the government’s recordkeeping authority. The National Archives from 1975 to 1991 was situated in the Air New Zealand Building in Vivian Street. During this time there was discussion that Archives could be situated in the new National Library of New Zealand building opened in 1987 but this was not proceeded with. However, National Archives continued to search for appropriate premises and moved to the former Government Print Office in Mulgrave Street in 1991.
This model of the current site of Archives NZ dates from 1960-1970 when it was still in use as the Government Printing Office. It comes from a series of material relating to the move to Mulgrave Street created by the building manager who project managed the move from the Air New Zealand building to the current site on Mulgrave Street. It is an artifical series containing plans of Government Printing Office and files relating to the preparation of the building as an archival repository. The series was established because there is a clear provenance - the files were created by the building manager, they are unregistered and relate specifically to the move from Vivian to Mulgrave Street.
Archives reference: ARNZ 7931 W5808 7/61
For updates on our On This Day series and news from Archives New Zealand, follow us on Twitter twitter.com/ArchivesNZ
Material from Archives NZ
To celebrate International Archives Day, we asked a representative from each of our 4 regional offices to explain their role & select their favourite record. You can see the selections on our Flickr account and check our Twitter account for further International Archives Day celebrations.
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Hi I'm Marilyn Little, Chief Archivist and General Manager of Archives NZ. As Chief Archivist, I am responsible for the implementation of the Public Records Act 2005 which established the framework for recordkeeping in the state sector and I set the standards for creating and maintaining records. Archives NZ also holds the NZ Government's archive, managing large archival collections on behalf of the people of NZ.
The record I've chosen is the shipping list of the Lady Nugent, which arrived in Port Nicholson in March 1841 carrying James and Mary Ann Phelps and their children James Roland and Susannah. They were first of my partner's family to arrive in New Zealand, living at Pipitea Point and later on in Molesworth Street. I found this shipping record way back in 1987 in Archives NZ (long before I worked here in other words!), and I still remember the excitement! And I now work in Archives NZ's Mulgrave Street building - which means I work where they lived - and that's the other reason I really like this archive.
These early shipping lists have been digitised and are available on the FamilySearch website - familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/QJDV-6PT5
Archives Reference: AAYZ 8982 NZC34 1/1 - Emigration registers - August 1839 - April 1841
For further updates on our Twitter account follow us at twitter.com/ArchivesNZ
Infographic - What We're Doing - ADAMS. NRC released and made public 93,000 full-text documents in 2011 to ensure the public has access to unclassified official program and administrative records.
For more infomation to the Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS) the official recordkeeping system for the agency
go to: www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
To comment on this photo go to public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov/2012/04/01/nrc-moves-its-publ....
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
To comment on this photo go to public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov/2012/04/01/nrc-moves-its-publ....
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
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In January 1882 the Wellington Cricket Association played a cricket match against a touring England eleven. As the Wellington teams comprised of public servants, they all had to seek leave from work to play the match. This letter here from the Department of Internal Affairs notes the request for 9 players to be given two days leave. In the same file the response of the Colonial Secretary is noted in favour of granting leave after consultation with the secretaries of the Treasury, Public Works Department, Property Tax and Stamps, Surveyor General and the Colonial Architect.
When the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840, the Governor had sole responsibility for the administration of Government. He was responsible only to the British Government to whom he reported and from whom he received his instructions. The Colonial Secretary, as the Governor's chief aide, was the focal point of the administrative structure. He received reports from all Government officials not only about their core business activities, but also regarding their administrative activities. The first Colonial Secretary, appointed by Letters Patent, was Lieutenant Willoughby Shortland from 1841 to 1843.In 19th Century New Zealand, government recordkeeping was based on the annual number system, where each letter was assigned a number based on the order it was received. For example the 18th letter received by the Department on Internal Affairs from 1880 would be given the number 1880/18.
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Reference: ACGO 8333 IA1 467 /4 1882/311 collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search#/?q=24374056
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This was another illustration I need for a slide. I figured someone else might need a "box o' receipts." Besides, it was a great opportunity to experiment with my SpeedLights. I finally figured out how to make three of them work together wirelessly. Cool.
Batavia, Illinois
April 2006
e060423d044a-wb
You can find Jim Frazier at his web page, and on Facebook and Twitter
COPYRIGHT by Jim Frazier All Rights Reserved. This may NOT be used for ANY reason without consent. See www.jimfrazier.com for more information.
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BRIEFING WITH SPECIAL ENVOY FOR LIBYA JONATHAN WINER
MODERATOR: Well, welcome, everybody, on this rainy day. I’m glad you guys could come out to this. So today we have Special Envoy Jonathan Winer – Special Envoy for Libya – I believe that’s the title. We had a very important meeting today at the UN to talk about moving forward on the political process there, and he’ll provide an update on that and where we are and what can we expect moving forward.
This is a small group. We’re going to go ahead and do this on the record. So with that, I’ll hand it over. And please, if you ask a question, please state your name and who you’re affiliated with, please. Thank you.
MR WINER: Hi. I’m Jonathan Winer. I’m the United States Special Envoy to Libya, and perhaps I can begin by trying to describe where I think things are and why, where they may be heading, what our policy is. You should feel free to ask me any question when I’ve stopped speaking, and if I’m going off the (inaudible) feel free to interrupt me. That’s all right too.
The current Libyan governments, which were formed more or less in the period of June to August of last year, 2014, are not capable of delivering services to the Libyan people. They have not succeeded in acting as governments, and they spent most of their existence fighting with one another over who was legitimate and who was not.
They both have declining legitimacy, both internationally and domestically. And the UN peace process, which has been underway under the current UN SRSG Bernardino Leon, who began his mission in the beginning of – actually it was the end of September, actually – 2014. His term is nearing its close and he is trying to, as he concludes his term, bring the parties into a deal which would re-establish a unitary government – a united government back in Tripoli, which everyone agrees is Libya’s capital. And the fact is that nothing can really function very well without Tripoli being Libya’s capital, because the governmental infrastructure of Libya is weak under the best of circumstances, and you take it out of a Tripoli-centric functioning and it can’t function at all.
There are now central banks, two Libyan claimants for control of Libyan investment authority, two claimants for a national oil company, double sets of ministers on practically everything, competing ministries of foreign affairs in terms of ambassadors being appointed by one side or the other side, two presidents, two prime ministers, and a very large number legislators in both bodies.
It doesn’t work. Benghazi has been engulfed in an ongoing conflict now for 15 months, which has destroyed substantial portions of the city. Sirte has been taken over by Daesh. Derna was taken over by Daesh but then developed antibodies, and Libyan members of Ansar al-Sharia kicked Daesh out only a few months after embracing it.
You’ve got the migrant crisis into Europe through Libya, which is causing generous amounts of money to be generated for criminal gangs who, in turn, like to keep the money flows going and thus insidiously further build their capacities and weaken governmental structures.
Everyone says it can’t go on like this. The Libyan public doesn’t want it to go on like this, it’s pretty clear from polling. The majority of the legislative bodies in the House of Representatives in Tobruk and in the GNC in Tripoli believe it can’t go on like this and are ready to embrace a deal.
Everybody’s sick of it, and at some point the situation, which is already pretty terrible, becomes intolerable as Libya continues to eat its seed corn, consume its inherited capital, and the money starts to run out. I would note that Daesh did take over the central bank’s offices in Sirte about three weeks ago. It got away with some millions of dollars. It’s good that it wasn’t hundreds of millions, but it was millions. And its efforts to build that geographic space in that area are threatening to Misrata, which is the city most in its proximity.
The Misratans would very much like to fight back, but it’s hard to fight back while you’re also having to watch your back against the political forces in the context of ongoing civil division. So the Misratans have been very, very central to the changed appetite for a political accommodation, a political deal. There were important Misratan elements as part of Libya Dawn formed after Operation Dignity. It was formed by Hafter. And at this point, the Misratans, by and large, very much want to be part of the deal and to help deliver a deal.
The text that has been negotiated by the Libyans, brokered by Bernardino Leon, is, as far as Leon is concerned, final. It is final as far as the United States is concerned. It’s final so far as the major European countries involved in Libya are concerned. It’s final as far as the regional players are concerned. It’s – that process is done. What’s going to happen next is this – a process needs to be undergone very rapidly – two days, three days, four days. There is at most less than three weeks until the house by all accounts loses its current legitimacy; its current authorities run out on October 21st. So there is a process that needs to take place for agreement on five names for a new government – a prime minister, two deputy prime ministers, and two cabinet positions which become part of something called the presidency council, which collectively make all the decisions pretty much for the new government.
So it’s envisioned that Bernardino Leon will be able to, by talking seriatim to all of the Libyan delegates who’ve been participating in the process that’s taken place in Skhirat and Morocco over the past year, mostly in Skhirat, sometimes in Geneva, that they will say okay, this the right person for prime minister, we can live – all of us can live with this person. This is the right combination for deputy prime minister, the right combination for the other two. And by looking at a package of five people they can say yeah, we like that – this person, we’re not thrilled with that person but we can live with him. So that you have a total package that works for Libya that says this is a group of Libyans who represent enough of us that we will all feel reasonably safe and give them our authority.
So the idea is to get that done over the next few days and to have Bernardino Leon fill in Annex 2, which is where these five names would go – there’s a place for it in the actual political agreement in the second annex – and then say, “Here, House of Representatives in Tobruk, here GNC in Tripoli, vote yes up or down.” And if they vote for it, the new government is formed. If they don’t for it, you could still have a situation in which enough Libyan constituencies ultimately come together to provide a basis for governance, but that’s less clear. We’re seeing growing momentum for it. Representatives from both the GNC and the House of Representatives have in New York today committed themselves to trying to get from here to there.
We’ve seen this process evolve where they’ve gotten closer and closer and closer, and then they go back to their home cities. And there are elements in both cities who have not wanted a deal and who basically tend to make demands which are not answerable, and they’re obstacles to a deal. The goal is to reduce that to the absolute minimum, to the smallest number, and find a majority, indeed a supermajority, to go ahead. Reports that we have had from discussions within the house and discussions within the GNC are that somewhere between two-thirds and to five-sixths of the representatives are in support of an agreement, depending on how far along you are in the process. It’s gone more or less from two-thirds to five-sixths over the last three months. We get pretty detailed vote counts, and it’s quite clear to us that the people who don’t want to deal are in the absolute minority.
That said, when the negotiating team of the GNC left Tripoli last week to prepare to come to New York – it might even have been this week, a few days ago – there were people who tried to prevent them from getting on planes. The GNC negotiators are tough GNC members. They are not pushovers. They are not – no one would call them soft on the other side. They are tough, well-regarded people within their caucus, within their body, their institution. Yet there were still people who tried to intimidate them and prevent them from leaving. We’ve seen the same phenomenon from time to time in the House of Representatives. And so this is going to be a rocky road to success if we get there. Libya needs to get there and the Libyans need now to move ahead, not to take any more time. And if you listened to the discussion or heard about the discussion today at the UN, the message from every country that spoke, without exception, was no more negotiations, no delay, now, because legitimacy is declining in the absence of a deal.
So what about security? The question of security is a multifaceted question, but the first issue on security is security in Tripoli. Everyone agrees Tripoli has to be the seat of the government, not only for historical and affectional or emotional reasons but because physically that’s the way the ministries are constructed. And the IT and administrative systems in Libya are no so strong that you can just plug and play from anywhere. It doesn’t work.
The various militias that control various parts of Tripoli need to participate in security discussions in the next few weeks. Those have been slow. The security discussions have not gone at the speed that lots of people have wanted, both inside Libya and outside Libya, but there’s one good reason for it in addition to any number of bad reasons one could come up with. A bad reason is the person is waiting till the last minute to extract whatever they can would be a bad reason. A person who never wants to share power, is going to stop anyone from coming back, would be another bad reason. Those bad reasons may – I’m a criminal group, I don’t want more people to oppose me, I want to just do my criminal things would be a third bad reason.
But the main good reason or legitimate reason is until there is a political deal, until there’s a political agreement, it’s hard to expect security forces to come aboard for discussions with one another on solutions. This is not a security problem first and foremost, though there are massive security problems. It is in the first instance a political problem in which the various political components of society at play politically in Libya need to come together. And that’s been the process in Morocco over this period now of eight or nine – nine months, really, since we started in Skhirat, something like that – nine months, anyway, since we started Geneva, which we’re seeing in Skhirat.
So that’s basically where we are. The delegates are going to back to Skhirat immediately tomorrow and start discussing names of the quintet, quintropod, whatever the correct name is for five people – Pentium – I guess that’s copyrighted – for the five people who would control the country, be responsible for running the government. Then, if they can come to that and Bernardino was able to find five names which are in accord with the independent delegates as well as the house and the GNC, it then goes back to those two bodies for approval as the second annex of an entire integrated text. So that’s where things are.
MODERATOR: All right. We’ll take your questions.
MR WINER: I actually had a couple things. The UK, the U.S., France, Italy, and other countries made it clear to the Libyans that we will all be involved and support Libya rebuilding if they form a government of national unity; and that if they fail to do so, not only would that assistance not be forthcoming, but they’re going to be running on fumes and then those fumes are going to – even the fumes are going to run out.
QUESTION: Can I ask a quick question? In his – when President Obama spoke on Monday, he acknowledged that the international community had not done enough after Qadhafi was overthrown to help nation building, I guess one would call it, or security assistance in country in Libya. What – it was interesting that he made that acknowledgement. What motivated him? What lessons have you learned and what would you do differently now should the Libyans succeed in forming a government? Because he seemed to be saying it wasn’t handled right the first time, and that raises the question of what’s going – how different is it going to be this time?
MR WINER: Well, when something fails as much as Libya has failed after such a bright moment when people were really excited about throwing off the chains of 42 years of being enslaved or shackled by Qadhafi’s megalomania and capriciousness, you say, “Well, we must have done something wrong.” However, the Libyans really did not want a variety of kinds of international help. I was personally involved in trying to get the Libyans to move ahead with general purpose force agreement with the United States, never could get them to sign a peace of paper. When they finally signed the peace of paper, couldn’t get them to pay for their share.
When it came to military training, the United States tried to do various types of training missions. They all went awry in different ways due to the Libyans not doing what they should be doing. The Italians had a bad experience, the Turks had a bad experience, the Brits had a bad experience, the French had a bad experience with police. I can’t find a country that engaged with Libya in the period of 2012 to 2014 that was successful.
QUESTION: So then what is the point the President was making if – because he seemed to be saying that it wasn’t – enough had not been done, and you seem to be saying that it wasn’t possible to do anything. So what are you planning to do that’s going to build on these lessons? Or is it – or – I just don’t understand what the President was saying and where you’re going with it.
MR WINER: I really can’t speculate about what was in the President’s mind on what he had to say, because it’s not something that I was involved in during the preparation of his materials or – so I don’t know where that came from. I can’t speculate --
QUESTION: So how – what precisely will you do to help this new government should it ever manage to coalesce?
MR WINER: Sure. They need public financial administration so that they can take advantage of their resources in ways to deliver services effectively. If you’ve ever gotten an email from a Libyan, I can tell you it didn’t have a Libya suffix at the end. They don’t have electronic recordkeeping systems that are systemic. They’ve got some sophistication at the central bank, the ministry of finance, and the diwan, the oversight office or audit office. But overall, their IT systems are way behind what a country should have, so there’s a lot of technocratic things once could do in the first instance to try and make the ministries function post-Qadhafi.
The systems that were in place before were designed to only be workable with Qadhafi often just saying, “Do it.” That was the basic structure. When you lost that impulse – he had also – if things didn’t work, he had also told Libyans for 42 years, “I’m not running the country. You’re running the country. It’s the people’s revolution. It’s the people’s Libya.” And so with him gone, people have said to themselves, “Well, I’m running the country now.” And so you had instead of a single impulse a multitude of impulses, many of which could not be carried out to conclusion.
So in each period of time you try to learn from what went before. If you were to try and go back and say what should have been done differently, probably more focus quickly day-to-day when things didn’t happen that should have happened, when Libya was not responding to what the UN was trying to do, to what the EU was trying to do, to what the UK, France, Italy, the United States, Spain, Germany were trying to do, perhaps there should have been more of a reckoning of it earlier. That you could have done.
QUESTION: But you – would be willing – this is my last question, but would you be, the international community, provide security assistance in-country?
MR WINER: The way in which the political agreement was struck --
QUESTION: Not just --
MR WINER: Yeah. The way the political --
QUESTION: Substantial assistance.
MR WINER: I’m absolutely going to answer – I’m answering the question. The political agreement lays out a process in which the Libyans can ask the international community for help on security – various types of security assistance, including help on countering terrorism, it’s expressly there; help on countering criminal groups and illegal migration, expressly there; help in fulfilling the carrying out of all the other terms of the political agreement. So there’s a whole section in security relating to what the international community can do.
There will be donors conferences and efforts by donors to kick up various types of help to Libya that would increase the capacity to deliver services quickly in such areas as public financial administration, as I’ve mentioned. There’s going to need to be a national security structure, so there’s going to need to be defense institution building. There’ll be a need to train and equip, but focus on training first Libyan national forces who are depoliticized, who are seen as representing the country rather than being responsive to a particular militia leader. The document talks about the reconstitution of militias into a national force. That’s there in the political agreement.
So the framework provides for a way in which Libya can ask other countries for help. It has to begin with the Libyans wanting the help. Part of the problem after 2011 is various successive Libyan governments did not particularly want help and declined it in various ways repeatedly. When they did accept, it was – it didn’t come out well because of inadequate preparation of the environment, of the Libyan environment, and the way in which it was being carried out by the internationals to have it succeed. I left out the Jordanians. Their efforts to train also didn’t go well.
Maybe the Libyans themselves have learned from this process that more – that they have to work a bit harder and be a bit more flexible too. They were very determined not to have foreigners dominate the country post-Qadhafi and tell them what to do. After the losses of this past period of time – the suffering, the misery – the suffering, the misery, the unhappiness – they are clearly more open to getting help internationally. A number of countries are willing to come back and try and do that both within the region and beyond.
QUESTION: Worst case scenario of the political --
MODERATOR: Sorry, can you state your name and your --
QUESTION: Vasili Sushko, Sputnik News. If a political agreement isn’t reached – correct me if I’m wrong, you said that international support will cease?
MR WINER: Well, there’s almost no internationals in Libya today. There’s almost no international assistance today – very, very little. It’s not safe for people right now because there isn’t a government one can rely on to provide protection. So you have very few foreigners living in Libya, let alone providing services, and assistance programs have by and large been cut off de facto, already. And the resources of the country have declined from 135 billion at the end, I believe, of 2013, to 88 billion at the end of 2014, and to some number below that today. I don’t have up-to-date numbers, but they’ve been continuing to bleed. They’re producing oil at about 30 percent of what their capacities were – instead of 1.5 million barrels a day, they’re producing somewhere from 250,000 to 400,000 barrels a day, the first bit of which is used for the domestic market. And oil prices, of course, are 50 cents on the dollar of what they were so their revenues have just been decimated – literally reduced 90 percent.
And the result is a growing financial crisis which is not sustainable. The day that they cannot buy medicine and food and refined oil – gasoline – and equipment – cars and so on – from the rest of the world is a bad day for – is a bad day for Libya. And they’re going to come to that day if they don’t find a way to come together and regain the legitimacy of their national institutions. They’re also having growing litigation and litigation risk as the result of the division of national institutions into competing sides. In such a competition, potentially everybody loses because the transaction risk gets to be too great for partners to do business with them. You’re an oil company – are you going to enter into a oil contract with anybody in Libya right now? The risks are just enormous; it doesn’t matter who you’re dealing with if it’s a new contract as opposed to an existing one.
You play that against an entire economy, it creates a vicious cycle of deterioration. As Libyans come to grapple with this, they get more willing to compromise and to recognize the need for national accord, for coming together to protect the country as a whole. Daesh has also concentrated the minds. Since the Corinthia attack of last January and the takeover of Sirte, in Tripoli and in Misrata we’ve seen people say, “This is a real threat to us; we want to be able to take action against it, to take action against it more effectively. We need international support and we need to be united.”
Again, the speeches today were all about the need for unity, which is a good thing. We’re not seeing people who want to break up the country. There are some Libyans who would benefit from that at a local level if they themselves could control the energy. And so there’s been the federalist movements, which at various times has tried to fan separatism. But none of Libya’s neighbors want that, and the vast supermajority of Libyans reject that as well, and it has no teeth, it has no energy.
QUESTION: Going back to what this gentleman said earlier about what the U.S. could’ve done differently – at all ever considered possibly not ousting Qadhafi, perhaps working with him? Because since 2011, I mean, it’s been dismal, and we’re now in a situation with Syria which – I’m not sure if you can comment on Syria --
MR WINER: I can’t comment on Syria. I’m not an expert on Syria.
QUESTION: So was that ever considered, perhaps working --
MR WINER: I wasn’t in the Administration at the time the decisions were made about Qadhafi, and I can’t address the issue. But I would say generally speaking I’m very, very poor at hypothetical situations and trying to imagine alternative futures. I’m not a good writer of fiction. I’m just not a good writer of fiction. It’s just not my metier. And any kind of trying to revisit history and do imagine-ifs and what-ifs for me aren’t very useful. I don’t do it.
QUESTION: Well, the President made the comment, so was that perhaps a possibility of what you might have --
MR WINER: You could ask him. I don’t know.
QUESTION: Excuse me, thank you. Fabiola Ortiz. I write for IPS and (inaudible) in the news. So I’m coming to understand a little bit more about the (inaudible) Libya. I wonder, are we – in your opinion, are we heading towards next generation of Qadhafi, or we cannot, like, talk about the future, but a next future of possible another Qadhafi, or this General Khalifa Hafter – yeah. Please, if you could make some comments on this.
MR WINER: Yeah. Sure. Yeah. I don’t know anyone I’ve run in – I have met in Libya who thinks it is a good idea to return to one-man rule of Libya. I don’t know anyone. I don’t know anyone who supports a coup. I don’t know anyone who wants to see democracy and what was fought for in the February 17th revolution replaced by a return to the old regime. People who are very upset by what’s happened in 2012, ’13, ’14, ’15, are still not saying, “Oh, for the good old days under Qadhafi.” Instead, people who long for the good old days say, “Well, maybe we should go back to having – adopting the constitution of 1951 and having a constitutional monarch and have Libya have some integration through that.” It’s – those are not majority voices, I mean, but within the realm of things you hear, that’s one thing. So when people have nostalgia for the good old days, they go back to before Qadhafi to King Idris. They don’t go back, “No, we need a new Qadhafi.”
So that’s not something – the risk for Libya is not so much of a return to a Qadhafi as it is for continued fragmentation and collapse of institutions.
QUESTION: And about this new – it’s not a new general, but this General Khalifa Hafter, you could make some comments on him. Because he was close to Qadhafi, right? Or --
MR WINER: Hafter’s background, which you can read online --
QUESTION: Yeah, yeah.
MR WINER: -- and my knowledge comes from online reading about him and some books about him – is --
QUESTION: Only?
MR WINER: Him?
QUESTION: Only? (Laughter.)
MR WINER: Yes, essentially. Everything relevant – is that he fought – he was part of the original revolution against the king, became Qadhafi’s chief general, was imprisoned in Chad. Qadhafi was – didn’t treat him well because he lost his battles against Chad. He then moved to northern Virginia; according to press accounts, is said to have worked with the United States Government; according to press accounts, is said then not to have worked for the United States Government; and then came back to Libya for the first time in decades in the course of the revolution; declared a coup in February 2014 and at various times has said that he’s free of civilian control currently.
Our view is that no individual should be free in security space, whether they’re head of a militia or otherwise – free of civilian control. This is – has got to be a democracy in which you have elected governments and security is under the elected governments. But beyond that, there’s no point in talking about individuals, because these are principles, and the principles here are what will be relevant. I don’t know anyone, as I said earlier, who is supporting a coup or would support a coup – that is, any foreign government, period, across the board.
QUESTION: Can you --
QUESTION: No, go ahead.
QUESTION: No, you go ahead.
QUESTION: No, I don’t care.
QUESTION: All right. I’ll go ahead.
Could you expand a little more on what ISIL and Daesh is doing in Libya? You mentioned the central bank operation. How many of them are there? Where are they most active? It’s been – I guess they’re getting some guidance from the --
MR WINER: Yeah, I don’t --
QUESTION: -- from Syria, from the caliphate? What kind of – what can you tell us about --
MR WINER: Sure.
QUESTION: -- the extent of this group in Libya proper?
MR WINER: I do not feel comfortable at all talking about numbers, because whatever numbers I would give you would be wrong even if I tried to make them completely accurate. To the absolute best of my ability, I don’t feel I have a good enough grasp.
What I can say is that there appears to be foreign fighters in Libya of two different kinds. There are Libyans who went into the Iraq-Syria territory and came back to Libya, having absorbed Daesh doctrine, Daesh strategy, and Daesh tactics. In addition, there appear to be people who are from Iraq-Syria who are non-Libyans as well as people from other areas in the Maghreb region, such as Tunisia in particular, who have adopted Daesh branding, Daesh ideology, Daesh tactics, Daesh strategy.
There are also people have domestic extremist views – Ansar al-Sharia being the label that they had adopted in different towns – who merged with Daesh or joined Daesh. And as I mentioned, in Derna, after they did that, basically they said to themselves, as near as I can tell, “We’re Libyans. We don’t want to be told what to do by foreigners. We’re going to kick them out.” And they kicked them out, and they were almost entirely pushed out of Derna, as near as I can tell.
So it’s a complex dynamic in which there are, again, two types of foreign fighters – the Libyans who went and came back, and then people from Iraq-Syria. The effort clearly is to capture territory; that is, it is territorial-based, to find a beachhead and then expand the beachhead outward as they can by terrifying and intimidating anybody who might get in their way to fleeing or joining, fleeing or accepting. That’s their basic technique.
There are a variety of Libyans who don’t like it, including, as mentioned, forces in Misrata, including militia forces who are pressing against them but have not fully taken them on, in part because of a question about correlation of forces; that is, are we strong enough to take them on? There is probably a smaller presence – presences elsewhere in Libya in various cities. I’m really not the qualified person to talk about that. But there is probably some others. But there’s also as mentioned – the word I used earlier – anti – Libyan antibodies to foreign – dominance by any foreigners of any type, whether they’ve got that brand or some other flag or brand.
So it’s a very complex picture with shifting alliances and shifting allegiances. I’ve had some people allege to me that some components of Daesh in Libya are former Qadhafiites who never liked the revolution. I’ve had political people say, “Oh, it’s the other guys who are stoking them up to create more problems for us.” Sorting out what is true and what is not true in that is a tricky business.
MODERATOR: All right, we have time for one more, if anyone has one more question. No? All right, thank you.
MR WINER: Thank you.
# # #
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2015, 1:30 P.M. EDT
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NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
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Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
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Rosa DeLauro, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District, discusses the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act. H.R. 4763. 114th Congress (2015-2016), 2nd Session. United States Congress. House of Representatives. Committee on Education and the Workforce, New Haven Legal Assistance Association, Inc., 426 State Street, New Haven, Connecticut, Tuesday, April 5, 2016.
www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4763/text
A BILL
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 to prevent wage theft and assist in the recovery of stolen wages, to authorize the Secretary of Labor to administer grants to prevent wage and hour violations, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act”.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Wage theft occurs when an employer does not pay an employee for work that the employee has performed, depriving the worker of wages and earnings to which the worker is legally entitled. This theft occurs in many forms, including by employers violating minimum wage requirements, failing to pay overtime compensation, requiring off-the-clock work, failing to provide final payments, misclassifying employees as being exempt from overtime compensation or as independent contractors rather than as employees, and improperly withholding tips.
(2) Wage theft poses a serious and growing problem across industries for working individuals of the United States. Wage theft is widespread and is estimated to cost workers more than $8,600,000,000 per year. In certain industries, compliance with Federal wage and hour laws is less than 50 percent.
(3) Wage theft is closely associated with employment discrimination, with women, immigrants, and minorities being disproportionately affected. Women are significantly more likely to experience minimum wage violations than men, foreign-born workers are nearly 2 times as likely to experience minimum wage violations as their counterparts born in the United States, and African-Americans are 3 times more likely to experience minimum wage violations than their White counterparts.
(4) Wage theft is closely associated with unsafe working conditions.
(5) Wage theft—
(A) depresses the wages of working families who are already struggling to make ends meet;
(B) strains social services funds;
(C) diminishes consumer spending power and hurts local economies;
(D) reduces vital State and Federal tax revenues;
(E) places law-abiding employers at a competitive disadvantage with noncompliant employers;
(F) burdens commerce and the free flow of goods; and
(G) lowers labor standards throughout labor markets.
(6) Low-wage workers are at the greatest risk of suffering from wage theft. A survey of 4,387 low-wage workers in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago found that 68 percent of the workers surveyed had experienced some form of wage theft in the workweek immediately before the survey was conducted. These workers experienced a range of wage and hour violations: 26 percent of such workers were not paid minimum wage; 76 percent of such workers who worked more than 40 hours in the workweek immediately before the survey was conducted were not paid at the overtime rate; and, in the year before the survey was conducted, 43 percent of the workers who attempted to address such issues by filing a complaint with their employer or who attempted to form a labor organization experienced retaliation by their employers, including by being fired, suspended, or receiving threats of reductions in their hours or pay.
(7) In 2012, State and Federal authorities as well as private attorneys recovered at least $933,000,000 in wage theft enforcement actions, which was nearly 3 times the value of all bank robberies, residential robberies, convenience store and gas station robberies, and street robberies in the United States during that year.
(8) A Department of Labor study of wage theft in California and New York found that wage theft deprived workers of 37 percent to 49 percent of their income, pushing at least 15,000 families below the poverty line and driving another 50,000 to 100,000 families deeper into poverty.
(9) A study analyzing wage theft claims in the State of Washington from 2009 to 2013 estimated that the total economic cost of wage theft to the State totaled more than $64,000,000 resulting from the lower economic activity and spending of low-wage workers due to their lost wages.
(10) A Department of Labor study of wage violations in California and New York found that wage theft deprived families of $5,600,000 in possible earned income tax credits and resulted in a $22,000,000 loss in State tax revenue, a $238,000,000 loss in payroll tax revenue, and a $113,000,000 loss in Federal income tax revenue.
(11) Barriers to addressing wage theft continue to exist decades after the enactment of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.). These barriers have resulted, in significant part, because enforcement of such Act has not worked as Congress originally intended and because many of the provisions of such Act do not include sufficient penalties to discourage violations. Improvements to enforcement and amendments to such Act are necessary to ensure that such Act provides effective protection to individuals subject to wage theft.
(12) The lack of a Federal right for employees to receive full compensation at the agreed upon wage rate for all work performed by the employee has resulted in workers being able to recover only the applicable minimum wage, or the overtime rate if applicable, when employers engage in wage theft.
(13) The lack of a Federal requirement to provide employees with paystubs indicating how their pay is calculated or to allow employees to inspect their employers’ payroll records significantly impedes efforts to identify and challenge wage theft.
(14) The lack of a Federal requirement to pay employees their final payments in a timely manner upon termination of the employment relationship between the employer and employee has led to unreasonable, and sometimes indefinite, delays in compensation after an employment relationship ends.
(15) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, require employers to compensate employees at the minimum wage rate and to provide overtime compensation when appropriate, the lack of civil penalties for violations of these requirements has dampened their effectiveness.
(16) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, provide employees who are subject to wage theft with the right to unpaid minimum wages or unpaid overtime compensation plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, this low level of damages has proved insufficient to deter employers from stealing the wages of their employees.
(17) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, require employers to keep records of employees’ pay, the lack of remedies for this requirement diminishes the effectiveness of the requirement.
(18) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, provide for limited criminal penalties when employers violate the provisions of such Act, the Secretary of Labor rarely resorts to these penalties, causing them to serve as a hollow threat.
(19) The statute of limitations under section 6 of the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 (29 U.S.C. 255), in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, precludes employees from bringing claims for wage theft 2 years after the cause of action accrued, or 3 years after the cause of action accrued if the claim is with respect to a willful or repeat violation by the employer. Additionally, the statute of limitations is not suspended while the Secretary of Labor investigates a complaint. These strict confines of the statute of limitations sometimes result in employees being deprived of their ability to institute a private lawsuit against their employer in order to recover their stolen wages.
(20) Section 16(b) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(b)), as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, requires employees to affirmatively “opt-in” in order to be a party plaintiff in a collective action brought by another aggrieved employee seeking to recover stolen wages in court. This provision limits the ability of employees to unite and pursue private lawsuits against employers.
(21) Under the penalty structure of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, many employers who are caught violating such Act continue to violate the Act. A Department of Labor investigation found that one-third of employers who had previously engaged in wage theft continued to do so.
(22) The Government Accountability Office and the Department of Labor have recognized that when employers are assessed civil penalties, they are more likely to comply with the law in the future and other employers in the same region—regardless of industry—are also more likely to comply with the law.
(23) States that have enacted legislation to address wage theft by increasing the damages to which employees are entitled following violations of wage and hour laws have positively impacted the workers in such States. However, many States have not enacted such legislation and, worse still, some States do not have any laws protecting workers from wage theft or even agencies to enforce workers’ rights to compensation for work. This discrepancy in State laws has resulted in a fragmentation of workers’ rights across the United States, with some workers having a measure of protection from wage theft and other workers being left extremely vulnerable to wage theft.
(24) Effective enforcement of wage and hour laws is critical to increasing compliance. Given the limited resources available for enforcement, enhanced strategic enforcement of Federal wage and hour laws is crucial.
(25) For enhanced strategic enforcement to be effective, government regulators must work with community stakeholders who have direct knowledge of ongoing violations of Federal wage and hour requirements and who are in a position to prevent such violations.
(26) Partnerships between regulators, workers, nonprofit organizations, and businesses can increase compliance by educating workers about their rights, collecting evidence, reporting violations, identifying noncompliant employers, and modeling good practices.
(27) Partnerships between regulators, workers, nonprofit organizations, and businesses have been successful in combating wage theft. In 2006, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement of California created a janitorial enforcement team to work closely with a local janitorial watchdog organization. As of 2015, the partnership had resulted in countless administrative, civil, and criminal actions against employers and in the collection of more than $68,000,000 in back pay for janitorial workers.
(28) The Government Accountability Office has recommended that the Department of Labor identify ways to leverage its resources to better combat wage theft by improving services provided through partnerships.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to prevent wage theft and facilitate the recovery of stolen wages by—
(1) strengthening the penalties for engaging in wage theft;
(2) giving workers the right to receive, in a timely manner, full compensation for the work they perform, certain disclosures, regular paystubs, and final payments;
(3) providing workers with improved tools to recover their stolen wages in court; and
(4) making assistance available to enhance enforcement of and compliance with Federal wage and hour laws through—
(A) supporting initiatives that address and prevent violations of such laws and assist workers in wage recovery;
(B) supporting individual entities and developing community partnerships that expand and improve cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and community-based organizations in the prevention of wage and hour violations and enforcement of wage and hour laws;
(C) expanding outreach to workers in industries or geographic areas identified by the Secretary of Labor as highly noncompliant with Federal wage and hour laws;
(D) improving detection of employers who are not complying with such laws and aiding in the identification of violations of such laws; and
(E) facilitating the collection of evidence to assist enforcement efforts.
TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938
SEC. 101. REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DISCLOSURES, REGULAR PAYSTUBS, AND FINAL PAYMENTS.
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is amended by inserting after section 4 (29 U.S.C. 204) the following:
“SEC. 5. REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DISCLOSURES, REGULAR PAYSTUBS, AND FINAL PAYMENTS.
“(a) Disclosures.—
“(1) INITIAL DISCLOSURES.—Not later than 15 days after the date on which an employer hires an employee who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, the employer of such employee shall provide such employee with an initial disclosure containing the information described in paragraph (3).
“(2) MODIFICATION DISCLOSURES.—Not later than 15 days after the date on which any of the information described in paragraph (3) changes with respect to an employee described in paragraph (1), the employer of such employee shall provide the employee with a modification disclosure containing the information described in paragraph (3).
“(3) INFORMATION.—The information described in this paragraph shall include—
“(A) the rate of pay and whether the employee is paid by the hour, shift, day, week, or job, or by salary, piece rate, commission, or other form of compensation;
“(B) an indication of whether the employee is being classified by the employer as an employee subject to the maximum hours and overtime compensation requirements of section 7 or as an employee exempt from such requirements as provided under section 13;
“(C) the name of the employer and any other name used by the employer to conduct business; and
“(D) the physical address of and telephone number for the employer’s main office or principle place of business, and a mailing address for such office or place of business if the mailing address is different than the physical address.
“(b) Paystubs.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Every employer shall provide each employee of such employer who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, a paystub that corresponds to work performed by the employee during the applicable pay period and contains the information required under paragraph (3) in any form provided under paragraph (2).
“(2) FORMS.—A paystub required under this subsection shall be a written statement and may be provided in any of the following forms:
“(A) As a separate document accompanying any payment to an employee for work performed during the applicable pay period.
“(B) In the case of an employee who receives paychecks from the employer, as a detachable statement accompanying each paycheck.
“(C) As a digital document provided through electronic communication, subject to the employee affirmatively consenting to receive the paystubs in this form.
“(3) CONTENTS.—Each paystub shall contain all of the following information:
“(A) The name of the employee.
“(B) In the case of an employee who is paid an hourly wage, an employee who is employed at piece rates, or an employee who is paid a salary and is not exempt from the overtime requirements of section 7, the total number of hours worked by the employee, including the number of hours worked per workweek, during the applicable pay period.
“(C) The total gross and net wages paid, and, in the case of an employee who is paid an hourly wage, an employee who is employed at piece rates, or an employee who is paid a salary and is not exempt from the overtime requirements of section 7, the rate of pay for each hour worked during the applicable pay period.
“(D) In the case of an employee who is paid a salary in lieu of an hourly wage, the amount of salary paid during the applicable pay period.
“(E) In the case of an employee employed at piece rates, the number of piece rate units earned, the applicable piece rates, and the total amount paid to the employee for the applicable pay period in accordance with such piece rates.
“(F) The rate of pay of the employee during the applicable pay period and an explanation of the basis for such rate.
“(G) The number of overtime hours worked by the employee during the applicable pay period and the compensation required under section 7 that is provided to the employee for such hours.
“(H) Any additional compensation provided to the employee during the applicable pay period, with an explanation of each type of compensation, including any allowances or reimbursements such as amounts related to meals, clothing, lodging, or any other item, and any cost to the employee associated with such allowance or reimbursements.
“(I) Itemized deductions from the gross income of the employee during the applicable pay period, and an explanation for each deduction.
“(J) The date that is the beginning of the applicable pay period and the date that is the end of such applicable pay period.
“(K) The name of the employer and any other name used by the employer to conduct business.
“(L) The name and phone number of a representative of the employer for contact purposes.
“(M) Any additional information that the Secretary reasonably requires to be included through notice and comment rulemaking.
“(c) Final Payments.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 14 days after an individual described in paragraph (4) terminates employment with an employer (by action of the employer or the individual), or on the date on which such employer pays other employees for the pay period during which the individual so terminates such employment, whichever date is earlier, the employer shall provide the individual with a final payment, by compensating such individual for any uncompensated hours worked or benefits incurred by the individual as an employee for the employer.
“(2) CONTINUING WAGES.—An employer who violates the requirement under paragraph (1) shall, for each day, not to exceed 30 days, of such violation provide the individual described in paragraph (4) with compensation at a rate that is equal to the regular rate of compensation to which such individual was entitled when such individual was an employee of such employer.
“(3) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2), any individual described in paragraph (4) who intentionally avoids receiving a final payment described in paragraph (1), or who refuses to receive the final payment when fully tendered, resulting in the employer violating the requirement under such paragraph, shall not be entitled to the compensation provided under paragraph (2) for the time during which the individual so avoids final payment.
“(4) INDIVIDUAL.—An individual described in this paragraph is an individual who was employed by the employer, and through such employment, in any workweek, was engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or was employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce.”.
SEC. 102. RIGHT TO FULL COMPENSATION.
Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(h) Right To Full Compensation.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an employment contract or other employment agreement, including a collective bargaining agreement, that specifies that an employer shall compensate an employee (who is described in paragraph (2)) at a rate that is higher than the rate provided under subsection (a), the employer shall compensate such employee at the rate specified in such contract or other employment agreement.
“(2) EMPLOYEE ENGAGED IN COMMERCE.—The requirement under paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to any employee who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce.”.
SEC. 103. CIVIL AND CRIMINAL ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Damages.—The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.), as amended by section 102, is further amended—
(1) in section 4(f) (29 U.S.C. 204(f)), in the third sentence—
(A) by striking “minimum”; and
(B) by striking “and liquidated damages” and inserting “damages, and interest”;
(2) in section 6(d)(3) (29 U.S.C. 206(d)(3)) by striking “minimum”;
(3) in section 16 (29 U.S.C. 216)—
(A) in subsection (b)—
(i) by striking “minimum” each place it appears;
(ii) in the first sentence, by striking “and in an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the second sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and the amount of any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iii) in the second sentence, by striking “wages lost and an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “wages lost, including any unpaid wages or any unpaid overtime compensation, an additional amount as damages that is equal to 3 times the amount of such wages lost, and the amount of any interest on such wages lost accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iv) by striking the fourth sentence; and
(v) by adding at the end the following: “Notwithstanding chapter 1 of title 9, United States Code (commonly known as the‘Federal Arbitration Act’) or any other law, the right to bring an action, including a collective action, in court under this section cannot be waived by an employee as a condition of employment or in a pre-dispute arbitration agreement.”; and
(B) in subsection (c)—
(i) by striking “minimum” each place the term appears;
(ii) in the first sentence, by striking “and an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the third sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iii) in the second sentence, by striking “and an equal amount as liquidated damages.” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the third sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate. In the event that the employer violates section 15(a)(3), the Secretary may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the amount of any wages lost, including any unpaid wages or any unpaid overtime compensation, an additional amount as damages that is equal to 3 times the amount of such wages lost, and any interest on such wages lost accrued at the prevailing rate.”; and
(iv) in the fourth sentence, by striking “or liquidated”; and
(4) in section 17 (29 U.S.C. 217), by striking “minimum”.
(b) Civil Fines.—Section 16(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(e)) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
“(2) (A) Subject to subparagraph (B), any person who violates section 6 or 7, relating to wages, shall be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $2,000 per each employee affected for each initial violation of such section.
“(B) Any person who repeatedly or willfully violates section 6 or 7, relating to wages, shall be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $10,000 per each employee affected for each such violation.”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(6) Any person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of section 5 shall—
“(A) for the first violation of such subsection, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $50 per each employee affected; and
“(B) for each subsequent violation of such subsection, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $100 per each employee affected.
“(7) Any person who violates section 11(c) shall—
“(A) for the first violation, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $1,000 per each employee affected; and
“(B) for each subsequent violation, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $5,000 per each employee affected.”.
(c) Criminal Penalties.—Section 16(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(a)) is amended—
(1) by striking “Any person” and inserting “(1) Any person”;
(2) in the first sentence, by striking “$10,000” and inserting “$10,000 per each employee affected”;
(3) in the second sentence, by striking “No person” and inserting “Subject to paragraph (2), no person”; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
“(2) (A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Secretary shall refer any case involving a covered offender described in subparagraph (B) to the Department of Justice for prosecution.
“(B) A covered offender described in this subparagraph is an offender who willfully violates each of the following:
“(i) Section 11(c) by falsifying any records described in such section.
“(ii) Section 6 or 7, relating to wages.
“(iii) Section 15(a)(3).”.
SEC. 104. RECORDKEEPING.
Section 11(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 211(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following: “In the event that an employee requests an inspection of the records described in this subsection that pertain to such employee, the employer shall provide the employee with a copy of the records for a period of up to 5 years prior to such request being made. Not later than 21 days after an employee requests such an inspection, the employer shall comply with the request. In the event that an employer violates this subsection, resulting in a lack of a complete record of an employee’s hours worked or wages owed, notwithstanding whether the employer or employee is responsible for maintaining the employer’s official records, any evidence of the hours worked or wages owed set forth by the employee, including evidence of a documentary, testimonial, representative, or statistical nature, that is sufficient to establish to a finder of fact a just and reasonable inference that the employee was not fully compensated at the rate required by this Act, including under section 6(h) as applicable, for all of the work that the employee performed for the employer shall establish a rebuttable presumption that the employer violated section 6 or 7 by failing to fully compensate the employee at the required rate for all work performed by the employee for the employer and a rebuttable presumption that the evidence set forth by the employee regarding the specific number of hours worked by the employee for the employer for which the employee was not compensated and the wage rate for each of those hours is accurate. The employer may only overcome the rebuttable presumptions described in this subsection by providing clear and convincing evidence that the employee's evidence is inaccurate.”.
TITLE II—AMENDMENTS TO THE PORTAL-TO-PORTAL ACT OF 1947
SEC. 201. INCREASING AND TOLLING STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.
Section 6 of the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 (29 U.S.C. 255) is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding subsection (a)—
(A) by striking “minimum”; and
(B) by striking “liquidated damages” and inserting “other damages”;
(2) in subsection (a)—
(A) by striking “may be commenced within two years” and inserting “may be commenced within 4 years”;
(B) by striking “unless commenced within two years” and inserting “unless commenced within 4 years”; and
(C) by striking “may be commenced within three years” and inserting “may be commenced within 5 years”;
(3) in subsection (d), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
“(e) with respect to the running of the statutory periods of limitation for such action, the running of such statutory periods shall be deemed suspended during the period beginning on the date on which the Secretary of Labor notifies an employer of an initiation of an investigation or enforcement action and ending on the date on which the Secretary notifies the employer that the matter has been officially resolved by the Secretary.”.
TITLE III—WAGE THEFT PREVENTION AND WAGE RECOVERY GRANT PROGRAM
SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term the “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor.
(2) COMMUNITY PARTNER.—The term “community partner” means any stakeholder with a commitment to enforcing wage and hour laws and preventing abuses of such laws, including any—
(A) State department of labor;
(B) attorney general of a State, or other similar authorized official of a political subdivision thereof;
(C) law enforcement agency;
(D) consulate;
(E) employee or advocate of employees, including a labor organization, community and faith-based organization, business association, or nonprofit legal aid organization;
(F) academic institution that plans, coordinates, and implements programs and activities to prevent wage and hour violations and recover unpaid wages, damages, and penalties; and
(G) any municipal agency responsible for the enforcement of local wage and hour laws.
(3) COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP.—The term “community partnership” means a partnership between—
(A) a working group consisting of community partners; and
(B) the Department of Labor.
(4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term “eligible entity” means an entity that is any of the following:
(A) A nonprofit organization, including a community-based organization, faith-based organization, or labor organization, that provides services and support to employees, including assisting such employees in recovering unpaid wages.
(B) An employer.
(C) A business association.
(D) An institution of higher education, as defined by section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).
(E) A partnership between any of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (D).
(5) EMPLOY; EMPLOYEE; EMPLOYER.—The terms “employ”, “employee”, and “employer” have the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).
(6) SECRETARY.—The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Labor.
(7) STRATEGIC ENFORCEMENT.—The term “strategic enforcement” means the process by which the Secretary—
(A) targets highly noncompliant industries, as identified by the Secretary, using industry-specific structures to influence, and ultimately reform, networks of interconnected employers;
(B) analyzes regulatory regimes under which specific industries operate; and
(C) modifies the enforcement approach of such regulatory regimes in order to ensure the greatest impact.
(8) WAGE AND HOUR LAW.—The term “wage and hour law” means any Federal law enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, including any provision of this Act enforced by such division.
(9) WAGE AND HOUR VIOLATION.—The term “wage and hour violation” refers to any violation of a Federal law enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, including any provision of this Act enforced by such division.
SEC. 302. WAGE THEFT PREVENTION AND WAGE RECOVERY GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) In General.—The Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, shall provide grants to eligible entities to assist such entities in enhancing the enforcement of wage and hour laws, in accordance with this section and consistent with the purposes of this Act.
(b) Grants.—The grants provided under this section shall be designed to—
(1) support individual eligible entities in establishing and supporting the activities described in subsection (c)(1); and
(2) develop community partnerships to expand and improve cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and members of the community to—
(A) prevent and reduce wage and hour violations; and
(B) assist employees in recovering back pay for any such violations.
(c) Use Of Funds.—
(1) PERMISSIBLE ACTIVITIES.—The grants described in this section shall assist eligible entities in establishing and supporting activities that include—
(A) disseminating information and conducting outreach and training to educate employees about their rights under wage and hour laws;
(B) conducting educational training for employers about their obligations under wage and hour laws;
(C) conducting orientations and trainings jointly with officials of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor;
(D) providing assistance to employees in filing claims of wage and hour violations;
(E) assisting enforcement agencies in conducting investigations, including in the collection of evidence and recovering back pay;
(F) monitoring compliance with wage and hour laws;
(G) performing joint visitations to worksites that violate wage and hour laws with officials from the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor;
(H) establishing networks for education, communication, and participation in the workplace and community;
(I) evaluating the effectiveness of programs designed to prevent wage and hour violations and enforce wage and hour laws;
(J) recruiting and hiring of staff and volunteers;
(K) production and dissemination of outreach and training materials; and
(L) any other activities as the Secretary may reasonably prescribe through notice and comment rulemaking.
(2) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an eligible entity receiving a grant under this section may not use the grant funds for any purpose reasonably prohibited by the Secretary through notice and comment rulemaking.
(d) Term Of Grants.—Each grant made under this section shall be available for expenditure for a period that is not to exceed 3 years.
(e) Applications.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application for such grant to the Secretary in accordance with this subsection.
(2) PARTNERSHIPS.—In the case of an eligible entity that is a partnership described in section 301(4)(E), the eligible entity may submit a joint application that designates a single entity as the lead entity for purposes of receiving and disbursing funds.
(3) CONTENTS.—An application under this subsection shall include—
(A) a description of a plan for the program that the eligible entity proposes to carry out with a grant under this section, including a long-term strategy and detailed implementation plan that reflects expected participation of, and partnership with, community groups and appropriate private and public agencies;
(B) information on the prevalence of wage and hour violations in each community or State of the eligible entity;
(C) information on any industry or geographic area targeted by the plan for such program;
(D) information on the type of outreach and relationship building that will be conducted under such program;
(E) information on the training and education that will be provided to employees and employers under such program; and
(F) the method by which the eligible entity will measure results of such program.
(f) Selection.—
(1) COMPETITIVE BASIS.—In accordance with this subsection, the Secretary shall, on a competitive basis, select grant recipients from among qualified eligible entities that have submitted an application under subsection (e).
(2) PRIORITY.—In selecting grant recipients under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities that—
(A) serve employees in any industry or geographic area that is most highly at risk for noncompliance with wage and hour violations, as identified by the Secretary; and
(B) demonstrate past and ongoing work to prevent wage and hour violations or to recover unpaid wages.
(3) OTHER CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting grant recipients under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall also consider—
(A) the prevalence of ongoing community support for each eligible entity, including financial and other contributions; and
(B) the eligible entity's past and ongoing partnerships with other organizations.
(g) Memoranda Of Understanding.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after receiving a grant under this section, the grant recipient shall negotiate and finalize with the Administrator a memorandum of understanding that sets forth specific goals, objectives, strategies, and activities that will be carried out under the grant by such recipient through a community partnership.
(2) SIGNATURES.—A representative of the grant recipient (or, in the case of a grant recipient that is an eligible entity described in section 301(4)(E), a representative of each entity that composes the grant recipient) and the Administrator shall sign the memorandum of understanding under this subsection.
(3) REVISIONS.—The memorandum of understanding under this subsection shall be reviewed and revised by the grant recipient and the Administrator each year of the duration of the grant.
(h) Performance Evaluations.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each grant recipient under this section shall develop procedures for reporting, monitoring, measuring, and evaluating the activities of each program or project funded under this section.
(2) GUIDELINES.—The procedures required under paragraph (1) shall be in accordance with guidelines established by the Secretary.
(i) Revocation Or Suspension Of Funding.—If the Secretary determines that a recipient of a grant under this section is not in compliance with the terms and requirements of the memorandum of understanding under subsection (g), the Secretary may revoke or suspend (in whole or in part) the funding of the grant.
(j) Use Of Components.—The Secretary may use any division or agency of the Department of Labor in carrying out this Act.
SEC. 303. GAO STUDY.
(a) In General.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study to identify successful programs carried out by grants under section 302, and the elements, policies, or procedures of such programs that can be replicated by other programs carried out by grants under such section.
(b) Report.—Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a report to the Secretary and Congress containing the results of the study conducted under subsection (a).
(c) Use Of Information.—The Secretary shall use information contained in the report submitted under subsection (b)—
(1) to improve the quality of community partnership programs assisted or carried out under this Act that are in existence as of the publication of the report; and
(2) to develop models for new community partnership programs to be assisted or carried out under this Act.
SEC. 304. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2017 and for each subsequent fiscal year through fiscal year 2020, to remain available until expended, to carry out the grant program under section 302.
TITLE IV—REGULATIONS AND EFFECTIVE DATE
SEC. 401. REGULATIONS.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out this Act, and the amendments made by this Act.
SEC. 402. EFFECTIVE DATE.
The amendments made by titles I and II shall take effect on the date that is the earlier of—
(1) the date that is 6 months after the date on which the final regulations are promulgated by the Secretary of Labor under section 401; and
(2) the date that is 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
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NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
For additional information, or to comment on this photo contact: OPA Resource.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
For additional information, or to comment on this photo contact: OPA Resource.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
For additional information, or to comment on this photo contact: OPA Resource.
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Rosa DeLauro, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s 3rd Congressional District, discusses the Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act. H.R. 4763. 114th Congress (2015-2016), 2nd Session. United States Congress. House of Representatives. Committee on Education and the Workforce, New Haven Legal Assistance Association, Inc., 426 State Street, New Haven, Connecticut, Tuesday, April 5, 2016.
www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/4763/text
A BILL
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 to prevent wage theft and assist in the recovery of stolen wages, to authorize the Secretary of Labor to administer grants to prevent wage and hour violations, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Wage Theft Prevention and Wage Recovery Act”.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Wage theft occurs when an employer does not pay an employee for work that the employee has performed, depriving the worker of wages and earnings to which the worker is legally entitled. This theft occurs in many forms, including by employers violating minimum wage requirements, failing to pay overtime compensation, requiring off-the-clock work, failing to provide final payments, misclassifying employees as being exempt from overtime compensation or as independent contractors rather than as employees, and improperly withholding tips.
(2) Wage theft poses a serious and growing problem across industries for working individuals of the United States. Wage theft is widespread and is estimated to cost workers more than $8,600,000,000 per year. In certain industries, compliance with Federal wage and hour laws is less than 50 percent.
(3) Wage theft is closely associated with employment discrimination, with women, immigrants, and minorities being disproportionately affected. Women are significantly more likely to experience minimum wage violations than men, foreign-born workers are nearly 2 times as likely to experience minimum wage violations as their counterparts born in the United States, and African-Americans are 3 times more likely to experience minimum wage violations than their White counterparts.
(4) Wage theft is closely associated with unsafe working conditions.
(5) Wage theft—
(A) depresses the wages of working families who are already struggling to make ends meet;
(B) strains social services funds;
(C) diminishes consumer spending power and hurts local economies;
(D) reduces vital State and Federal tax revenues;
(E) places law-abiding employers at a competitive disadvantage with noncompliant employers;
(F) burdens commerce and the free flow of goods; and
(G) lowers labor standards throughout labor markets.
(6) Low-wage workers are at the greatest risk of suffering from wage theft. A survey of 4,387 low-wage workers in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago found that 68 percent of the workers surveyed had experienced some form of wage theft in the workweek immediately before the survey was conducted. These workers experienced a range of wage and hour violations: 26 percent of such workers were not paid minimum wage; 76 percent of such workers who worked more than 40 hours in the workweek immediately before the survey was conducted were not paid at the overtime rate; and, in the year before the survey was conducted, 43 percent of the workers who attempted to address such issues by filing a complaint with their employer or who attempted to form a labor organization experienced retaliation by their employers, including by being fired, suspended, or receiving threats of reductions in their hours or pay.
(7) In 2012, State and Federal authorities as well as private attorneys recovered at least $933,000,000 in wage theft enforcement actions, which was nearly 3 times the value of all bank robberies, residential robberies, convenience store and gas station robberies, and street robberies in the United States during that year.
(8) A Department of Labor study of wage theft in California and New York found that wage theft deprived workers of 37 percent to 49 percent of their income, pushing at least 15,000 families below the poverty line and driving another 50,000 to 100,000 families deeper into poverty.
(9) A study analyzing wage theft claims in the State of Washington from 2009 to 2013 estimated that the total economic cost of wage theft to the State totaled more than $64,000,000 resulting from the lower economic activity and spending of low-wage workers due to their lost wages.
(10) A Department of Labor study of wage violations in California and New York found that wage theft deprived families of $5,600,000 in possible earned income tax credits and resulted in a $22,000,000 loss in State tax revenue, a $238,000,000 loss in payroll tax revenue, and a $113,000,000 loss in Federal income tax revenue.
(11) Barriers to addressing wage theft continue to exist decades after the enactment of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.). These barriers have resulted, in significant part, because enforcement of such Act has not worked as Congress originally intended and because many of the provisions of such Act do not include sufficient penalties to discourage violations. Improvements to enforcement and amendments to such Act are necessary to ensure that such Act provides effective protection to individuals subject to wage theft.
(12) The lack of a Federal right for employees to receive full compensation at the agreed upon wage rate for all work performed by the employee has resulted in workers being able to recover only the applicable minimum wage, or the overtime rate if applicable, when employers engage in wage theft.
(13) The lack of a Federal requirement to provide employees with paystubs indicating how their pay is calculated or to allow employees to inspect their employers’ payroll records significantly impedes efforts to identify and challenge wage theft.
(14) The lack of a Federal requirement to pay employees their final payments in a timely manner upon termination of the employment relationship between the employer and employee has led to unreasonable, and sometimes indefinite, delays in compensation after an employment relationship ends.
(15) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, require employers to compensate employees at the minimum wage rate and to provide overtime compensation when appropriate, the lack of civil penalties for violations of these requirements has dampened their effectiveness.
(16) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, provide employees who are subject to wage theft with the right to unpaid minimum wages or unpaid overtime compensation plus an additional equal amount as liquidated damages, this low level of damages has proved insufficient to deter employers from stealing the wages of their employees.
(17) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, require employers to keep records of employees’ pay, the lack of remedies for this requirement diminishes the effectiveness of the requirement.
(18) While the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, provide for limited criminal penalties when employers violate the provisions of such Act, the Secretary of Labor rarely resorts to these penalties, causing them to serve as a hollow threat.
(19) The statute of limitations under section 6 of the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 (29 U.S.C. 255), in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, precludes employees from bringing claims for wage theft 2 years after the cause of action accrued, or 3 years after the cause of action accrued if the claim is with respect to a willful or repeat violation by the employer. Additionally, the statute of limitations is not suspended while the Secretary of Labor investigates a complaint. These strict confines of the statute of limitations sometimes result in employees being deprived of their ability to institute a private lawsuit against their employer in order to recover their stolen wages.
(20) Section 16(b) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(b)), as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, requires employees to affirmatively “opt-in” in order to be a party plaintiff in a collective action brought by another aggrieved employee seeking to recover stolen wages in court. This provision limits the ability of employees to unite and pursue private lawsuits against employers.
(21) Under the penalty structure of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, many employers who are caught violating such Act continue to violate the Act. A Department of Labor investigation found that one-third of employers who had previously engaged in wage theft continued to do so.
(22) The Government Accountability Office and the Department of Labor have recognized that when employers are assessed civil penalties, they are more likely to comply with the law in the future and other employers in the same region—regardless of industry—are also more likely to comply with the law.
(23) States that have enacted legislation to address wage theft by increasing the damages to which employees are entitled following violations of wage and hour laws have positively impacted the workers in such States. However, many States have not enacted such legislation and, worse still, some States do not have any laws protecting workers from wage theft or even agencies to enforce workers’ rights to compensation for work. This discrepancy in State laws has resulted in a fragmentation of workers’ rights across the United States, with some workers having a measure of protection from wage theft and other workers being left extremely vulnerable to wage theft.
(24) Effective enforcement of wage and hour laws is critical to increasing compliance. Given the limited resources available for enforcement, enhanced strategic enforcement of Federal wage and hour laws is crucial.
(25) For enhanced strategic enforcement to be effective, government regulators must work with community stakeholders who have direct knowledge of ongoing violations of Federal wage and hour requirements and who are in a position to prevent such violations.
(26) Partnerships between regulators, workers, nonprofit organizations, and businesses can increase compliance by educating workers about their rights, collecting evidence, reporting violations, identifying noncompliant employers, and modeling good practices.
(27) Partnerships between regulators, workers, nonprofit organizations, and businesses have been successful in combating wage theft. In 2006, the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement of California created a janitorial enforcement team to work closely with a local janitorial watchdog organization. As of 2015, the partnership had resulted in countless administrative, civil, and criminal actions against employers and in the collection of more than $68,000,000 in back pay for janitorial workers.
(28) The Government Accountability Office has recommended that the Department of Labor identify ways to leverage its resources to better combat wage theft by improving services provided through partnerships.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to prevent wage theft and facilitate the recovery of stolen wages by—
(1) strengthening the penalties for engaging in wage theft;
(2) giving workers the right to receive, in a timely manner, full compensation for the work they perform, certain disclosures, regular paystubs, and final payments;
(3) providing workers with improved tools to recover their stolen wages in court; and
(4) making assistance available to enhance enforcement of and compliance with Federal wage and hour laws through—
(A) supporting initiatives that address and prevent violations of such laws and assist workers in wage recovery;
(B) supporting individual entities and developing community partnerships that expand and improve cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and community-based organizations in the prevention of wage and hour violations and enforcement of wage and hour laws;
(C) expanding outreach to workers in industries or geographic areas identified by the Secretary of Labor as highly noncompliant with Federal wage and hour laws;
(D) improving detection of employers who are not complying with such laws and aiding in the identification of violations of such laws; and
(E) facilitating the collection of evidence to assist enforcement efforts.
TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938
SEC. 101. REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DISCLOSURES, REGULAR PAYSTUBS, AND FINAL PAYMENTS.
The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 is amended by inserting after section 4 (29 U.S.C. 204) the following:
“SEC. 5. REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE CERTAIN DISCLOSURES, REGULAR PAYSTUBS, AND FINAL PAYMENTS.
“(a) Disclosures.—
“(1) INITIAL DISCLOSURES.—Not later than 15 days after the date on which an employer hires an employee who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, the employer of such employee shall provide such employee with an initial disclosure containing the information described in paragraph (3).
“(2) MODIFICATION DISCLOSURES.—Not later than 15 days after the date on which any of the information described in paragraph (3) changes with respect to an employee described in paragraph (1), the employer of such employee shall provide the employee with a modification disclosure containing the information described in paragraph (3).
“(3) INFORMATION.—The information described in this paragraph shall include—
“(A) the rate of pay and whether the employee is paid by the hour, shift, day, week, or job, or by salary, piece rate, commission, or other form of compensation;
“(B) an indication of whether the employee is being classified by the employer as an employee subject to the maximum hours and overtime compensation requirements of section 7 or as an employee exempt from such requirements as provided under section 13;
“(C) the name of the employer and any other name used by the employer to conduct business; and
“(D) the physical address of and telephone number for the employer’s main office or principle place of business, and a mailing address for such office or place of business if the mailing address is different than the physical address.
“(b) Paystubs.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Every employer shall provide each employee of such employer who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, a paystub that corresponds to work performed by the employee during the applicable pay period and contains the information required under paragraph (3) in any form provided under paragraph (2).
“(2) FORMS.—A paystub required under this subsection shall be a written statement and may be provided in any of the following forms:
“(A) As a separate document accompanying any payment to an employee for work performed during the applicable pay period.
“(B) In the case of an employee who receives paychecks from the employer, as a detachable statement accompanying each paycheck.
“(C) As a digital document provided through electronic communication, subject to the employee affirmatively consenting to receive the paystubs in this form.
“(3) CONTENTS.—Each paystub shall contain all of the following information:
“(A) The name of the employee.
“(B) In the case of an employee who is paid an hourly wage, an employee who is employed at piece rates, or an employee who is paid a salary and is not exempt from the overtime requirements of section 7, the total number of hours worked by the employee, including the number of hours worked per workweek, during the applicable pay period.
“(C) The total gross and net wages paid, and, in the case of an employee who is paid an hourly wage, an employee who is employed at piece rates, or an employee who is paid a salary and is not exempt from the overtime requirements of section 7, the rate of pay for each hour worked during the applicable pay period.
“(D) In the case of an employee who is paid a salary in lieu of an hourly wage, the amount of salary paid during the applicable pay period.
“(E) In the case of an employee employed at piece rates, the number of piece rate units earned, the applicable piece rates, and the total amount paid to the employee for the applicable pay period in accordance with such piece rates.
“(F) The rate of pay of the employee during the applicable pay period and an explanation of the basis for such rate.
“(G) The number of overtime hours worked by the employee during the applicable pay period and the compensation required under section 7 that is provided to the employee for such hours.
“(H) Any additional compensation provided to the employee during the applicable pay period, with an explanation of each type of compensation, including any allowances or reimbursements such as amounts related to meals, clothing, lodging, or any other item, and any cost to the employee associated with such allowance or reimbursements.
“(I) Itemized deductions from the gross income of the employee during the applicable pay period, and an explanation for each deduction.
“(J) The date that is the beginning of the applicable pay period and the date that is the end of such applicable pay period.
“(K) The name of the employer and any other name used by the employer to conduct business.
“(L) The name and phone number of a representative of the employer for contact purposes.
“(M) Any additional information that the Secretary reasonably requires to be included through notice and comment rulemaking.
“(c) Final Payments.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 14 days after an individual described in paragraph (4) terminates employment with an employer (by action of the employer or the individual), or on the date on which such employer pays other employees for the pay period during which the individual so terminates such employment, whichever date is earlier, the employer shall provide the individual with a final payment, by compensating such individual for any uncompensated hours worked or benefits incurred by the individual as an employee for the employer.
“(2) CONTINUING WAGES.—An employer who violates the requirement under paragraph (1) shall, for each day, not to exceed 30 days, of such violation provide the individual described in paragraph (4) with compensation at a rate that is equal to the regular rate of compensation to which such individual was entitled when such individual was an employee of such employer.
“(3) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2), any individual described in paragraph (4) who intentionally avoids receiving a final payment described in paragraph (1), or who refuses to receive the final payment when fully tendered, resulting in the employer violating the requirement under such paragraph, shall not be entitled to the compensation provided under paragraph (2) for the time during which the individual so avoids final payment.
“(4) INDIVIDUAL.—An individual described in this paragraph is an individual who was employed by the employer, and through such employment, in any workweek, was engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or was employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce.”.
SEC. 102. RIGHT TO FULL COMPENSATION.
Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(h) Right To Full Compensation.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an employment contract or other employment agreement, including a collective bargaining agreement, that specifies that an employer shall compensate an employee (who is described in paragraph (2)) at a rate that is higher than the rate provided under subsection (a), the employer shall compensate such employee at the rate specified in such contract or other employment agreement.
“(2) EMPLOYEE ENGAGED IN COMMERCE.—The requirement under paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to any employee who in any workweek is engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce, or is employed in an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce.”.
SEC. 103. CIVIL AND CRIMINAL ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Damages.—The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.), as amended by section 102, is further amended—
(1) in section 4(f) (29 U.S.C. 204(f)), in the third sentence—
(A) by striking “minimum”; and
(B) by striking “and liquidated damages” and inserting “damages, and interest”;
(2) in section 6(d)(3) (29 U.S.C. 206(d)(3)) by striking “minimum”;
(3) in section 16 (29 U.S.C. 216)—
(A) in subsection (b)—
(i) by striking “minimum” each place it appears;
(ii) in the first sentence, by striking “and in an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the second sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and the amount of any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iii) in the second sentence, by striking “wages lost and an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “wages lost, including any unpaid wages or any unpaid overtime compensation, an additional amount as damages that is equal to 3 times the amount of such wages lost, and the amount of any interest on such wages lost accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iv) by striking the fourth sentence; and
(v) by adding at the end the following: “Notwithstanding chapter 1 of title 9, United States Code (commonly known as the‘Federal Arbitration Act’) or any other law, the right to bring an action, including a collective action, in court under this section cannot be waived by an employee as a condition of employment or in a pre-dispute arbitration agreement.”; and
(B) in subsection (c)—
(i) by striking “minimum” each place the term appears;
(ii) in the first sentence, by striking “and an additional equal amount as liquidated damages” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the third sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate”;
(iii) in the second sentence, by striking “and an equal amount as liquidated damages.” and inserting “, an additional amount as damages that is equal to (subject to the third sentence of this subsection) 2 times such amount of unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation, and any interest on such unpaid wages or unpaid overtime compensation accrued at the prevailing rate. In the event that the employer violates section 15(a)(3), the Secretary may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the amount of any wages lost, including any unpaid wages or any unpaid overtime compensation, an additional amount as damages that is equal to 3 times the amount of such wages lost, and any interest on such wages lost accrued at the prevailing rate.”; and
(iv) in the fourth sentence, by striking “or liquidated”; and
(4) in section 17 (29 U.S.C. 217), by striking “minimum”.
(b) Civil Fines.—Section 16(e) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(e)) is amended—
(1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
“(2) (A) Subject to subparagraph (B), any person who violates section 6 or 7, relating to wages, shall be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $2,000 per each employee affected for each initial violation of such section.
“(B) Any person who repeatedly or willfully violates section 6 or 7, relating to wages, shall be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $10,000 per each employee affected for each such violation.”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(6) Any person who violates subsection (a) or (b) of section 5 shall—
“(A) for the first violation of such subsection, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $50 per each employee affected; and
“(B) for each subsequent violation of such subsection, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $100 per each employee affected.
“(7) Any person who violates section 11(c) shall—
“(A) for the first violation, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $1,000 per each employee affected; and
“(B) for each subsequent violation, be subject to a civil fine that is not to exceed $5,000 per each employee affected.”.
(c) Criminal Penalties.—Section 16(a) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 216(a)) is amended—
(1) by striking “Any person” and inserting “(1) Any person”;
(2) in the first sentence, by striking “$10,000” and inserting “$10,000 per each employee affected”;
(3) in the second sentence, by striking “No person” and inserting “Subject to paragraph (2), no person”; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
“(2) (A) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the Secretary shall refer any case involving a covered offender described in subparagraph (B) to the Department of Justice for prosecution.
“(B) A covered offender described in this subparagraph is an offender who willfully violates each of the following:
“(i) Section 11(c) by falsifying any records described in such section.
“(ii) Section 6 or 7, relating to wages.
“(iii) Section 15(a)(3).”.
SEC. 104. RECORDKEEPING.
Section 11(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 211(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following: “In the event that an employee requests an inspection of the records described in this subsection that pertain to such employee, the employer shall provide the employee with a copy of the records for a period of up to 5 years prior to such request being made. Not later than 21 days after an employee requests such an inspection, the employer shall comply with the request. In the event that an employer violates this subsection, resulting in a lack of a complete record of an employee’s hours worked or wages owed, notwithstanding whether the employer or employee is responsible for maintaining the employer’s official records, any evidence of the hours worked or wages owed set forth by the employee, including evidence of a documentary, testimonial, representative, or statistical nature, that is sufficient to establish to a finder of fact a just and reasonable inference that the employee was not fully compensated at the rate required by this Act, including under section 6(h) as applicable, for all of the work that the employee performed for the employer shall establish a rebuttable presumption that the employer violated section 6 or 7 by failing to fully compensate the employee at the required rate for all work performed by the employee for the employer and a rebuttable presumption that the evidence set forth by the employee regarding the specific number of hours worked by the employee for the employer for which the employee was not compensated and the wage rate for each of those hours is accurate. The employer may only overcome the rebuttable presumptions described in this subsection by providing clear and convincing evidence that the employee's evidence is inaccurate.”.
TITLE II—AMENDMENTS TO THE PORTAL-TO-PORTAL ACT OF 1947
SEC. 201. INCREASING AND TOLLING STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.
Section 6 of the Portal-to-Portal Act of 1947 (29 U.S.C. 255) is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding subsection (a)—
(A) by striking “minimum”; and
(B) by striking “liquidated damages” and inserting “other damages”;
(2) in subsection (a)—
(A) by striking “may be commenced within two years” and inserting “may be commenced within 4 years”;
(B) by striking “unless commenced within two years” and inserting “unless commenced within 4 years”; and
(C) by striking “may be commenced within three years” and inserting “may be commenced within 5 years”;
(3) in subsection (d), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
“(e) with respect to the running of the statutory periods of limitation for such action, the running of such statutory periods shall be deemed suspended during the period beginning on the date on which the Secretary of Labor notifies an employer of an initiation of an investigation or enforcement action and ending on the date on which the Secretary notifies the employer that the matter has been officially resolved by the Secretary.”.
TITLE III—WAGE THEFT PREVENTION AND WAGE RECOVERY GRANT PROGRAM
SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term the “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor.
(2) COMMUNITY PARTNER.—The term “community partner” means any stakeholder with a commitment to enforcing wage and hour laws and preventing abuses of such laws, including any—
(A) State department of labor;
(B) attorney general of a State, or other similar authorized official of a political subdivision thereof;
(C) law enforcement agency;
(D) consulate;
(E) employee or advocate of employees, including a labor organization, community and faith-based organization, business association, or nonprofit legal aid organization;
(F) academic institution that plans, coordinates, and implements programs and activities to prevent wage and hour violations and recover unpaid wages, damages, and penalties; and
(G) any municipal agency responsible for the enforcement of local wage and hour laws.
(3) COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP.—The term “community partnership” means a partnership between—
(A) a working group consisting of community partners; and
(B) the Department of Labor.
(4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term “eligible entity” means an entity that is any of the following:
(A) A nonprofit organization, including a community-based organization, faith-based organization, or labor organization, that provides services and support to employees, including assisting such employees in recovering unpaid wages.
(B) An employer.
(C) A business association.
(D) An institution of higher education, as defined by section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).
(E) A partnership between any of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (D).
(5) EMPLOY; EMPLOYEE; EMPLOYER.—The terms “employ”, “employee”, and “employer” have the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).
(6) SECRETARY.—The term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Labor.
(7) STRATEGIC ENFORCEMENT.—The term “strategic enforcement” means the process by which the Secretary—
(A) targets highly noncompliant industries, as identified by the Secretary, using industry-specific structures to influence, and ultimately reform, networks of interconnected employers;
(B) analyzes regulatory regimes under which specific industries operate; and
(C) modifies the enforcement approach of such regulatory regimes in order to ensure the greatest impact.
(8) WAGE AND HOUR LAW.—The term “wage and hour law” means any Federal law enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, including any provision of this Act enforced by such division.
(9) WAGE AND HOUR VIOLATION.—The term “wage and hour violation” refers to any violation of a Federal law enforced by the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, including any provision of this Act enforced by such division.
SEC. 302. WAGE THEFT PREVENTION AND WAGE RECOVERY GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) In General.—The Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, shall provide grants to eligible entities to assist such entities in enhancing the enforcement of wage and hour laws, in accordance with this section and consistent with the purposes of this Act.
(b) Grants.—The grants provided under this section shall be designed to—
(1) support individual eligible entities in establishing and supporting the activities described in subsection (c)(1); and
(2) develop community partnerships to expand and improve cooperative efforts between enforcement agencies and members of the community to—
(A) prevent and reduce wage and hour violations; and
(B) assist employees in recovering back pay for any such violations.
(c) Use Of Funds.—
(1) PERMISSIBLE ACTIVITIES.—The grants described in this section shall assist eligible entities in establishing and supporting activities that include—
(A) disseminating information and conducting outreach and training to educate employees about their rights under wage and hour laws;
(B) conducting educational training for employers about their obligations under wage and hour laws;
(C) conducting orientations and trainings jointly with officials of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor;
(D) providing assistance to employees in filing claims of wage and hour violations;
(E) assisting enforcement agencies in conducting investigations, including in the collection of evidence and recovering back pay;
(F) monitoring compliance with wage and hour laws;
(G) performing joint visitations to worksites that violate wage and hour laws with officials from the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor;
(H) establishing networks for education, communication, and participation in the workplace and community;
(I) evaluating the effectiveness of programs designed to prevent wage and hour violations and enforce wage and hour laws;
(J) recruiting and hiring of staff and volunteers;
(K) production and dissemination of outreach and training materials; and
(L) any other activities as the Secretary may reasonably prescribe through notice and comment rulemaking.
(2) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an eligible entity receiving a grant under this section may not use the grant funds for any purpose reasonably prohibited by the Secretary through notice and comment rulemaking.
(d) Term Of Grants.—Each grant made under this section shall be available for expenditure for a period that is not to exceed 3 years.
(e) Applications.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity seeking a grant under this section shall submit an application for such grant to the Secretary in accordance with this subsection.
(2) PARTNERSHIPS.—In the case of an eligible entity that is a partnership described in section 301(4)(E), the eligible entity may submit a joint application that designates a single entity as the lead entity for purposes of receiving and disbursing funds.
(3) CONTENTS.—An application under this subsection shall include—
(A) a description of a plan for the program that the eligible entity proposes to carry out with a grant under this section, including a long-term strategy and detailed implementation plan that reflects expected participation of, and partnership with, community groups and appropriate private and public agencies;
(B) information on the prevalence of wage and hour violations in each community or State of the eligible entity;
(C) information on any industry or geographic area targeted by the plan for such program;
(D) information on the type of outreach and relationship building that will be conducted under such program;
(E) information on the training and education that will be provided to employees and employers under such program; and
(F) the method by which the eligible entity will measure results of such program.
(f) Selection.—
(1) COMPETITIVE BASIS.—In accordance with this subsection, the Secretary shall, on a competitive basis, select grant recipients from among qualified eligible entities that have submitted an application under subsection (e).
(2) PRIORITY.—In selecting grant recipients under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities that—
(A) serve employees in any industry or geographic area that is most highly at risk for noncompliance with wage and hour violations, as identified by the Secretary; and
(B) demonstrate past and ongoing work to prevent wage and hour violations or to recover unpaid wages.
(3) OTHER CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting grant recipients under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall also consider—
(A) the prevalence of ongoing community support for each eligible entity, including financial and other contributions; and
(B) the eligible entity's past and ongoing partnerships with other organizations.
(g) Memoranda Of Understanding.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after receiving a grant under this section, the grant recipient shall negotiate and finalize with the Administrator a memorandum of understanding that sets forth specific goals, objectives, strategies, and activities that will be carried out under the grant by such recipient through a community partnership.
(2) SIGNATURES.—A representative of the grant recipient (or, in the case of a grant recipient that is an eligible entity described in section 301(4)(E), a representative of each entity that composes the grant recipient) and the Administrator shall sign the memorandum of understanding under this subsection.
(3) REVISIONS.—The memorandum of understanding under this subsection shall be reviewed and revised by the grant recipient and the Administrator each year of the duration of the grant.
(h) Performance Evaluations.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each grant recipient under this section shall develop procedures for reporting, monitoring, measuring, and evaluating the activities of each program or project funded under this section.
(2) GUIDELINES.—The procedures required under paragraph (1) shall be in accordance with guidelines established by the Secretary.
(i) Revocation Or Suspension Of Funding.—If the Secretary determines that a recipient of a grant under this section is not in compliance with the terms and requirements of the memorandum of understanding under subsection (g), the Secretary may revoke or suspend (in whole or in part) the funding of the grant.
(j) Use Of Components.—The Secretary may use any division or agency of the Department of Labor in carrying out this Act.
SEC. 303. GAO STUDY.
(a) In General.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study to identify successful programs carried out by grants under section 302, and the elements, policies, or procedures of such programs that can be replicated by other programs carried out by grants under such section.
(b) Report.—Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit a report to the Secretary and Congress containing the results of the study conducted under subsection (a).
(c) Use Of Information.—The Secretary shall use information contained in the report submitted under subsection (b)—
(1) to improve the quality of community partnership programs assisted or carried out under this Act that are in existence as of the publication of the report; and
(2) to develop models for new community partnership programs to be assisted or carried out under this Act.
SEC. 304. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2017 and for each subsequent fiscal year through fiscal year 2020, to remain available until expended, to carry out the grant program under section 302.
TITLE IV—REGULATIONS AND EFFECTIVE DATE
SEC. 401. REGULATIONS.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Labor shall promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out this Act, and the amendments made by this Act.
SEC. 402. EFFECTIVE DATE.
The amendments made by titles I and II shall take effect on the date that is the earlier of—
(1) the date that is 6 months after the date on which the final regulations are promulgated by the Secretary of Labor under section 401; and
(2) the date that is 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
For additional information, or to comment on this photo contact: OPA Resource.
NRC ADAMS LICENSING SUPPORT NETWORK LIBRARY HOW-TO VIDEO SERIES
This series of videos provides instruction for searching the NRC Licensing Support Network (LSN) library.
The LSN Library is affiliated with the agency's ADAMS official recordkeeping system. The LSN Library provides access to nearly 3.7 million publicly available documents related to the hearings regarding the Department of Energy’s application for authorization to construct a high-level nuclear waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada.
These short videos show how to access the LSN library and how to perform simple and advanced searches using accession numbers, keywords, date ranges, and other document properties.
You can access the LSN library through the NRC’s public website at www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/lsn/index.html.
Visit the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's website at www.nrc.gov/.
Photo Usage Guidelines: www.flickr.com/people/nrcgov/
Privacy Policy: www.nrc.gov/site-help/privacy.html.
For additional information, or to comment on this photo contact: OPA Resource.