|
Senators Call for Reauthorization of Violence Against Women Act
At a press conference yesterday Sens. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Barbara
Boxer (D-Calif.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), and Blanch Lambert-Lincoln
(D-Ark.) exhorted the Republican leadership to bring the Violence Against
Women Act (VAWA) to the Senate floor for a vote, according to the White
House Bulletin. The legislation, which has bi-partisan support,
has 70 co-sponsors. As a sweetener for the bankruptcy bill, Senate Republican
leaders have floated the idea of attaching to the bankruptcy measure
a bill that would renew funding for the VAWA.
Murray said, “We cannot allow the violence Against Women Act to be
used as a political bargaining tool for a vote to extract compromises
on unrelated items” (e.g. bankruptcy), she said. “I urge the Republican
leadership to bring this bill to the floor. This is really a matter
of life or death. We should not allow battered women and children who
witness this violence to be used as political pawns.”
Owens Corning Files for Bankruptcy
Owens Corning filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday to help it cope
with asbestos-related lawsuits that could eventually cost the company
$7 billion, according to an Associated Press report. The supplier of
building and industrial materials estimated that it has paid or is committed
to paying $5 billion so far. The Toledo, Ohio-based company said it
faces about $2 billion more in asbestos claims even though it stopped
selling asbestos products more than 25 years ago.
The voluntary chapter 11 filing in Wilmington, Del., would allow the
company to develop a plan of reorganization that would resolve its asbestos
liabilities while allowing it to continue operating its businesses.
Toledo-based Owens Corning, probably most familiar for its Pink Panther
mascot, has made payouts to 440,000 people who said asbestos made them
ill. Asbestos payments this year will reach $600 million — more than
Owens Corning expects to get in sales from its building products.
Owners of Island Medical Center File for Bankruptcy
Beset by declining patient census and financial liabilities from a previous
owner's bankruptcy, the owners of Island Medical Center (formerly Hempstead
General Hospital) yesterday filed chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy
Code, according to a company press release. According to attorney Ted
Berkowitz of the Uniondale, N.Y. law firm, Farrell Fritz, who is managing
the bankruptcy proceedings for the hospital's owners, Long Island Healthcare
Corporation (LIHAC), the strengths of the hospital simply weren't enough
to overcome a significant burden of debt that was the legacy of the
hospital's previous owners. "We are doing everything possible to
make certain that the doors of this hospital remain open," he said.
Island Medical Center is a 213-bed acute care hospital, and is the
only such facility located in the Village of Hempstead. It is one of
only two "for-profit" hospitals on Long Island — a status
that costs the owners approximately $725,000 in taxes each year. LIHAC,
a closely held corporation, purchased the hospital in 1999 from Hempstead
General Hospital, which had itself declared bankruptcy in 1994. As the
purchase price for the hospital's assets, LIHAC was required to assume
approximately $9.66 million of Hempstead General's liabilities. In the
short term, interim management at Island Medical Center is working to
obtain temporary loans for working capital from state and local authorities.
At the same time, several potential buyers have expressed interest in
the facility. The hospital anticipates that it can conclude the sale
in six to 12 months.
Bid4Assets.com to Sell Select Assets of Value America in Online
Auction
Bid4Assets announced Monday that it has been retained to auction select
assets of Value America Inc., which filed chapter 11 on Aug. 11 in the
Western District of Virginia. Assets with an original value of more
than $2 million will be included in the sale. Items for auction include
approximately 1,000 units of computer equipment; 350 work stations from
Herman Miller, Open Plan and other manufacturers; hundreds of desk sets
and additional office furniture. The auction will run from Oct. 2 –
Oct. 12 at www.bid4assets.com.
Tokheim's Prepackaged Financial Restructuring Plan Confirmed
by Court
Tokheim Corp. announced yesterday that the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for
the District of Delaware, according to a newswire report, has confirmed
its prepackaged financial restructuring plan under chapter 11. Confirmation
comes only 38 days after Tokheim filed its prepackaged restructuring
plan with the court. Cancellation of existing common stock and distribution
of warrants to previous shareholders and distributions of new common
stock to bondholders, as outlined in the Plan of Reorganization, are
expected to begin shortly. Tokheim, based in Fort Wayne, Ind., is the
world's largest producer of petroleum dispensing devices. Tokheim Corp.
manufactures and services electronic and mechanical petroleum dispensing
systems.
Complete Management Inc. to Sell Picker Vista at Public Auction
Complete Management Inc. (CMI), a chapter 11 debtor in possession, will
ask U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jeffry H. Gallet on Oct. 17 for authority
to sell its Picker Vista 1.0 Tesla Mobile MRI Unit and Trailer at public
auction, according to a newswire report. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for
the Southern District of New York issued an order dated Sept. 22 approving
the form, manner and notice of the motion and approving certain bidding
procedures. The Picker Vista Unit is a state-of-the-art portable magnetic
resonance imaging unit and is currently in storage in Belle Meade, N.J.
Thanks for visiting Today's Bankruptcy Headlines. New articles are
posted here each business day |
