|
September 4, 2003
Energy, Spending Bills May Delay Senate Asbestos Action
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) is still hoping to meet his
original goal of bringing the asbestos litigation reform bill to a floor
vote in October -- but work on other bills, including energy and FY04
appropriations measures, are expected to grab much of the available
floor time, CongressDaily reported. 'An October vote remains a
possibility, but obviously, we're trying first to move forward on
appropriations bills this month,' a spokesman said. However, key
senators are looking to Frist and Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.)
to make the bill a priority. 'I think Sen. Frist and Sen. Daschle need
to bring folks in, sit them down, and get an agreement,' said Senate
Judiciary ranking member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). Although the Judiciary
Committee passed the bill in July on a near party-line vote with Leahy
ultimately voting against it, Leahy said the sides could resolve their
differences with some pressure from leadership. Leaders of both parties
have a full plate of issues to address before the end of the session,
Leahy noted, but added that resolving differences on the asbestos bill
'is serious enough that they should' find time, reported the
newswire.
Construction and Business Conditions Picking Up, Reports
Say
Business conditions improved in the summer and construction spending
climbed in July to the highest level since the beginning of the year,
according to government reports released yesterday, offering promising
signs for the economy's anticipated rebound in the second half, the
Associated Press reported. Reports from the Federal Reserve's 12
districts 'indicate that the economy continued to improve in July and
August,' according to the Fed. 'In some districts, improvement occurred
in selected sectors, and in others it was broad-based,' the Federal
Reserve said, according to AP.
In a second report, the value of construction projects under way came in
at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $879.8 billion in July, the
Commerce Department said. The pace of construction spending in July was
the highest level since January, when such spending stood at $883.2
billion on an annualized basis, reported the newswire.
FTC Releases Study on Identity Theft
More than 27 million Americans -- including almost 10 million last year
alone -- have been victims of identify theft in the last five years, the
FTC said yesterday, while releasing a
href='http://www.ftc.gov/os/2003/09/timelinereport.pdf'>study of the
problem, CongressDaily reported. According to the survey, last
year's identity theft losses to businesses and financial institutions
totaled nearly $48 billion and consumer victims reported $5 billion in
out-of-pocket expenses. 'These numbers are the real thing,' said Howard
Beales, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
WORLDCOM/MCI
Former WorldCom Chief Pleads Not Guilty to Fraud
Former WorldCom Inc. Chairman Bernard Ebbers pleaded not guilty in an
Oklahoma court on Wednesday to 15 felony counts of fraud stemming from
the long-distance company's $11 billion accounting scandal, the Wall
Street Journal reported. Ebbers was released on a $50,000 bond, and
a preliminary hearing was set for Oct. 30. He and five other former
WorldCom executives are accused by Oklahoma of 15 counts of fraud. Each
count carries up to a $10,000 fine and a 10-year prison sentence.
WorldCom was also charged in the complaint by the Oklahoma attorney
general. The Oklahoma charges are the first against Ebbers or the
company in the massive accounting fraud.
The charges were brought by Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson,
who said false information on company documents, showing overstated
earnings and understated expenses, led to Oklahoma investors losing
millions, including a $64 million hit taken by state pension funds on
investments in the company, reported the online newspaper.
States Want to Extend Deadline in MCI Case
Tax revenue authorities of at least nine U.S. states are seeking to
conduct a tax audit of MCI's books and records to find out whether the
company has underpaid state taxes, the Wall Street Journal
reported. The states, led by Massachusetts, filed a motion with the U.S.
Bankruptcy Court, asking for more time to see if MCI owes them unpaid
tax income. The deadline to file such claims in MCI's bankruptcy
proceedings expired in last January. The states include New York, New
Mexico, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina and Illinois. MCI is
currently under bankruptcy-court protection. In the motion, the states
say they have learned that WorldCom Inc. established a subsidiary called
MCI WorldCom Brands LLC, a Delaware limited liability company. The
states say in the motion that the subsidiary was set up, 'at least in
part, for the purpose of avoiding or minimizing the payment of state
income taxes.'
The states may claim as much as $800 million in collective state
income taxes from MCI, people familiar with the situation say. The
bankruptcy court next week will conduct a hearing to determine whether
MCI can emerge from bankruptcy as planned later this year. A separate
hearing on the tax claim motion has been scheduled for Oct. 7, reported
the Journal.
Adelphia Founder Rigas Due for Second Arraignment
Adelphia Communications founder John Rigas will return to federal court
this month to be arraigned for a second time on charges of conspiracy,
securities fraud and wire fraud, Reuters reported. U.S. District Judge
Leonard Sand on Wednesday scheduled a Sept. 15 arraignment hearing for
Rigas and his two sons, accused by the government of cheating investors
and creditors of bankrupt cable company Adelphia.
The original indictment was brought against the family last year, but
was then superseded by another indictment in July. The defendants -- the
Rigases and Michael Mulcahey, former director of internal reporting for
Adelphia -- have yet to be arraigned in New York federal court for the
new indictment. All four have pleaded innocent and the case is set to go
to trial early next year, reported the newswire.
Bankruptcy Court Approves $29 Million Settlement in LTV Bankruptcy
Case
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary
Kathleen A. McGinty announced in a press release on Wednesday that a
U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Ohio has approved a $29 million cash settlement
to resolve numerous environmental claims against LTV, including its
obligation to provide for mine drainage treatment, land reclamation and
environmental cleanup work in Pennsylvania. The agreement involves LTV
Steel Co. Inc., Travelers Casualty and Surety Co., DEP, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and other governmental agencies.
Pennsylvania will place roughly $25 million into a trust fund as a
result of this settlement, which also involves Ohio and Indiana and the
city of Chicago. The funds will be used to treat polluted mine drainage,
reclaim mine lands and perform other environmental cleanup activities at
LTV's five coal mining facilities and three steel manufacturing
facilities in southwestern Pennsylvania.
LTV filed for bankruptcy in October 2000 and then announced in November
2001 that it would liquidate the company by the end of the following
year. In March 2002, DEP ordered LTV to address water treatment and land
reclamation obligations, effectively asserting claims against the
company's assets, according to the press release.
Family Group Acquires 'Veggie Tales' Maker
Family entertainment group Classic Media has acquired Big Idea
Prods, producer of the 'Veggie Tales' series, officials said on Monday,
Variety.com reported. Terms of the agreement, reached in connection with
Big Idea's chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, weren't immediately
available. But Classic executives said the Gotham-based company plans to
keep Big Idea and 'Veggie Tales' alive and growing.
Pic's well-received domestic run grossed $25.6 million last year. But
its Lombard, Ill.-based producers were simultaneously driven into
bankruptcy reorganization when cash flow failed to keep pace with
operating expenses, executives said, reported Variety.com.
PG&E Says California Utility Still on Target to Exit
Bankruptcy
PG&E Corp. CEO Robert Glynn confirmed that the company's Pacific Gas
& Electric utility, California's largest, plans to exit bankruptcy
in the first quarter, Bloomberg News reported. Pacific Gas &
Electric filed for chapter 11 protection in April 2001 after incurring
$13 billion in debt buying power at soaring wholesale prices.
Conseco Agrees to Sell Long-term Care Units for $27.5 Million
Conseco Inc., the insurance holding company that plans to exit
bankruptcy this month, agreed to sell its long-term care insurance
business to LTC Capital Inc. for $27.5 million, Bloomberg News reported.
A lawyer for Conseco told U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Carol Doyle that LTC
Capital was the successful bidder at an auction for Conseco's Specialty
Planners Inc. and Ardiel Insurance Service Inc.
An attorney for Conseco, which filed the third-largest U.S. bankruptcy,
also told Doyle that most objections to the company's reorganization
plan have been resolved. The plan, if approved by Doyle at a Sept. 9
hearing, would reduce the company's debt by $5.7 billion. Carmel,
Ind.-based Conseco decided it wanted to sell the long-term care
insurance units in March, and an agreement with LTC was in place before
the auction, said Roger Higgins, an attorney for Conseco, reported the
newswire.
Court Approves Amerco's Request For Probe Of Investors
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Reno, Nev., ordered two investment firms
and an attorney to hand over documents and give depositions to Amerco as
part of a probe related to the company's chapter 11 case. U-Haul's
parent company is seeking documents from, and interviews with,
representatives of Summit Capital Management LLC and Heartland Advisors
Inc., and an attorney named Michael Fleming of Lane Powell Spears
Lubersky LLP. Amerco spokeswoman Jennifer Flachman told DBR Wednesday
the company was seeking the information from Heartland Advisors and
Summit Capital to determine if they should be allowed to serve on a
committee representing stockholders in the chapter 11 case. The
investment firms may own bonds as well as stock, which could disqualify
them from the equity panel, she said.
Provided by Daily Bankruptcy Review (
href='http://www.djnewsletters.com/dbr2.html'>www.djnewsletters.com/dbr2.html)
Copyright (c) 2003 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved
AT&T Latin America To Sell Operations To Embratel
AT&T Latin America Corp. agreed to sell its units in Argentina,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru, representing all of its operations, to
Embratel Participacoes S.A.
Financial terms weren't disclosed. In a press release on Wednesday,
AT&T Latin America said the sale is subject to completion of an
auction process and approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the
Southern District of Florida.
Provided by Daily Bankruptcy Review (
href='http://www.djnewsletters.com/dbr2.html'>www.djnewsletters.com/dbr2.html)
Copyright (c) 2003 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Thanks for visiting
Today's Bankruptcy Headlines. New articles are posted here each business
day.
|
