Deadline missed in clean water study

April 14, 2008

A White House task force that was supposed to devise a plan to research the issue of pharmaceuticals in drinking water has missed its deadline and failed to produce mandated reports and recommendations for coordination among federal agencies, according to documents obtained by the Associated Press. The group's report was due in December. A Senate subcommittee will hold a hearing tomorrow on the water safety issue. (AP)

PHOENIX - Mayor Phil Gordon wants the FBI to probe whether the Maricopa County sheriff has violated any civil rights laws with his crackdowns on illegal immigrants. The traffic stops and arrests in neighborhoods with high Hispanic populations have drawn protests from immigrant-rights advocates. Backers of Sheriff Joe Arpaio say the federal government hasn't done enough to curb illegal immigration. (AP)

ROCHESTER - Threatening graffiti found in three men's restrooms led Oakland University to cancel campus classes, sports, and cultural activities yesterday and today. The school sent a security alert Saturday after finding a threatening message, and officials later found similar messages in two other buildings. (AP)

NEW YORK - A union of New York-area Catholic school teachers plans a strike tomorrow, three days before Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the city. The Lay Faculty Association represents 450 teachers at schools in Manhattan, Staten Island, the Bronx, and communities north of the city. The union's contract expired in August, and it is at odds with the Archdiocese of New York on wages, pensions, and healthcare. (AP)

POPLAR BLUFF - A levee along the Black River in southeast Missouri failed for the second time in recent weeks, causing widespread flooding. About 50 houses east of Poplar Bluff were evacuated Saturday, but no injuries were reported, officials said. Some houses had 3 feet of water in them. The section that failed was built to repair a levee break in March, when about 1,000 people fled. (AP)