Federal Independent Agencies
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from federal independent agencies.
Featured Stories
NASA Awards Construction Contract for Instrument Development Facility
WASHINGTON, April 21 -- NASA issued the following news release:
NASA has awarded a contract to the Manhattan Construction Company, of Arlington Virginia, for the construction of the Instrument Development Facility at the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
This firm-fixed-price contract has a potential total value of $31.1 million. Work under the contract begins April 20 and runs through Oct. 20, 2019.
This contract requires the construction of a 54,200 sq ft., multi-story laboratory and office facility to co-locate and re-locate the Science and Exploration Directorate's
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WASHINGTON, April 21 -- NASA issued the following news release:
NASA has awarded a contract to the Manhattan Construction Company, of Arlington Virginia, for the construction of the Instrument Development Facility at the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
This firm-fixed-price contract has a potential total value of $31.1 million. Work under the contract begins April 20 and runs through Oct. 20, 2019.
This contract requires the construction of a 54,200 sq ft., multi-story laboratory and office facility to co-locate and re-locate the Science and Exploration Directorate'sbranch and the Planetary Environments Laboratory scientists.
When completed, the Instrument Development Facility is expected to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification.
For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov
IMF Reaches Staff-Level Agreement on the Fourth Review of Sri Lanka's Extended Fund Facility
WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The International Monetary Fund issued the following news release:
After constructive discussions with the authorities in Colombo and during the Spring Meetings in Washington DC, Manuela Goretti, the IMF mission chief for Sri Lanka, issued the following statement:
"The IMF team reached a staff-level agreement with the Sri Lankan authorities on the fourth review under an economic reform program supported by a three-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement . All the end-December quantitative performance criteria under the program were met, as the authorities have successfully
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WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The International Monetary Fund issued the following news release:
After constructive discussions with the authorities in Colombo and during the Spring Meetings in Washington DC, Manuela Goretti, the IMF mission chief for Sri Lanka, issued the following statement:
"The IMF team reached a staff-level agreement with the Sri Lankan authorities on the fourth review under an economic reform program supported by a three-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement . All the end-December quantitative performance criteria under the program were met, as the authorities have successfullyadvanced fiscal consolidation and strengthened international reserves. Due to a weather-related spike in food prices, inflation exceeded the upper limit for the inner band for December, but has since fallen back within the inner band. The authorities are taking actions to implement all the pending structural benchmarks for this review, despite some delays."
"Following subdued growth in 2017 due to the lingering effects of weather-related shocks, a recovery is underway as agriculture has started to rebound and food prices decelerated. Real GDP growth is expected to reach 4 percent and inflation to remain below 5 percent in 2018. Exports are also recovering and the recent sovereign bond issuance was successfully oversubscribed. However, the economy remains vulnerable to adverse shocks given the still sizable public debt, large refinancing needs, and low external buffers."
"Subject to cabinet approval of an automatic fuel pricing mechanism--consistent with the EFF-supported program, the Board is expected to consider Sri Lanka's request for completion of the fourth review in June 2018. The measure would represent a major step towards completing energy pricing reforms in 2018. Further efforts remain needed to strengthen governance and mitigate fiscal risks from state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Progress in implementing the Inland Revenue Act (IRA) and other revenue measures in the 2018 budget remains essential for meeting social goals and improving debt dynamics. The central bank should continue to remain vigilant in guarding against inflationary pressures, while continuing to build reserves and supporting greater exchange rate flexibility."
"Under the EFF-supported program, sustaining the reform momentum is critical to strengthen the resilience of the economy to shocks and promoting inclusive and strong growth. The authorities should push ahead with their Vision 2025 objectives, by further advancing fiscal consolidation through stronger fiscal rules and SOE governance; modernizing monetary and exchange rate frameworks; accelerating their inclusive growth reform agenda, through trade liberalization, climate, and gender budgeting; as well as better-targeted social protection programs."
IDB Invest Finances the Achiras Wind Farm in Argentina
WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
IDB Invest, the private sector institution of the IDB Group, finances the construction, operation and maintenance of the Achiras 48 MW wind farm located in the southeast region of the province of Cordoba, in Argentina. The project includes a transmission line of 14 kilometers and is developed by the company Central Puerto, S.A.
The financing consists of a $20 million IDB Invest loan and the mobilization of $10 million from the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector of the Americas (C2F), managed
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WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
IDB Invest, the private sector institution of the IDB Group, finances the construction, operation and maintenance of the Achiras 48 MW wind farm located in the southeast region of the province of Cordoba, in Argentina. The project includes a transmission line of 14 kilometers and is developed by the company Central Puerto, S.A.
The financing consists of a $20 million IDB Invest loan and the mobilization of $10 million from the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector of the Americas (C2F), managedby IDB Invest. The financial package also includes co-financing of $20.7 million from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). On April 9, 2018, the full disbursement of the loans from IDB Invest and IFC was made for the project.
The tenor of up to 15 years makes the project financially viable as this period is not available in local capital markets.
The objective of the operation is to contribute to the diversification of Argentina's energy matrix and to the sustainability of its power generation capacity. In addition, the Achiras wind farm will displace the equivalent of 2,047 million tons of carbon dioxide in the next 20 years. With the mobilization of capital, the project also increases private participation in the Argentine energy sector.
The intervention of the C2F Fund includes incentives for the project to incorporate an internship program for women. The wind farm will integrate female workforce in disciplines related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics, both at the corporate level and in the execution of the project. Also, through IDB Invest, the parties involved agree to increase their commitment to implement best practices in environmental and social matters.
About IDB Invest
IDB Invest, the private sector institution of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, is a multilateral development bank committed to supporting Latin America and the Caribbean businesses. It finances sustainable enterprises and projects to achieve financial results that maximize economic, social and environmental development for the region. With a current portfolio of $11.2 billion under management and 330 clients in 23 countries, IDB Invest works across sectors to provide innovative financial solutions and advisory services that meet the evolving demands of its clients. As of November 2017, IDB Invest is the trade name of the Inter-American Investment Corporation. http://www.idbinvest.org
About Central Puerto Renovables S.A.
Central Puerto is the largest private shareholder of the companies Vuelta de Obligado S.A., Termoelectrica Jose de San Martin S.A. and Thermoelectric Manuel Belgrano S.A. The mission of Central Puerto S.A. is to produce electricity efficiently and efficiently, contributing to supply electricity demand with quality, and managing business in a way that creates value for the company while creating it for society, in a sustainable way and in harmony with the environment. The objective is to be the leading company in the production of electricity in Argentina, by market share, by operational excellence and profitability, while supporting the technological evolution of the industry at a national, regional and global level, and adapting its portfolio of assets to this evolution. http://www.centralpuerto.com/es/
Four Years of NASA NEOWISE Data
PASADENA, California, April 20 -- NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory issued the following news:
NASA's Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission has released its fourth year of survey data. Since the mission was restarted in December 2013, after a period of hibernation, the asteroid- and comet-hunter has completely scanned the skies nearly eight times and has observed and characterized 29,375 objects in four years of operations. This total includes 788 near-Earth objects and 136 comets since the mission restart.
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) are comets and asteroids that
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PASADENA, California, April 20 -- NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory issued the following news:
NASA's Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) mission has released its fourth year of survey data. Since the mission was restarted in December 2013, after a period of hibernation, the asteroid- and comet-hunter has completely scanned the skies nearly eight times and has observed and characterized 29,375 objects in four years of operations. This total includes 788 near-Earth objects and 136 comets since the mission restart.
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) are comets and asteroids thathave been nudged by the gravitational attraction of the planets in our solar system into orbits that allow them to enter Earth's neighborhood. Ten of the objects discovered by NEOWISE in the past year have been classified as potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs). Near-Earth objects are classified as PHAs, based on their size and how closely they can approach Earth's orbit.
"NEOWISE continues to expand our catalog and knowledge of these elusive and important objects," said Amy Mainzer, NEOWISE principal investigator from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. "In total, NEOWISE has now characterized sizes and reflectivities of over 1,300 near-Earth objects since the spacecraft was launched, offering an invaluable resource for understanding the physical properties of this population, and studying what they are made of and where they have come from."
The NEOWISE team has released an animation depicting detections made by the telescope over its four years of surveying the solar system.
More than 2.5 million infrared images of the sky were collected in the fourth year of operations by NEOWISE. These data are combined with the year one through three NEOWISE data into a single publicly available archive. That archive contains approximately 10.3 million sets of images and a database of more than 76 billion source detections extracted from those images.
Originally called the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), the spacecraft launched in December 2009. It was placed in hibernation in 2011 after its primary astrophysics mission was completed. In September 2013, it was reactivated, renamed NEOWISE and assigned a new mission: to assist NASA's efforts to identify and characterize the population of near-Earth objects. NEOWISE also is characterizing more distant populations of asteroids and comets to provide information about their sizes and compositions.
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, manages and operates the NEOWISE mission for NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office within the Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Space Dynamics Laboratory in Logan, Utah, built the science instrument. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. of Boulder, Colorado, built the spacecraft. Science data processing takes place at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at Caltech in Pasadena. Caltech manages JPL for NASA.
To review the latest data release from NEOWISE, please visit:
http://wise2.ipac.caltech.edu/docs/release/neowise/
For more information about NEOWISE, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/neowise
http://neowise.ipac.caltech.edu/
More information about asteroids and near-Earth objects is at:
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/asteroidwatch
To learn more about NASA's efforts for Planetary Defense see:
https://www.nasa.gov/planetarydefense/overview
EPA Announces First Water Infrastructure Loan Under WIFIA
WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Environmental Protection Agency issued the following news release:
Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its first-ever loan from the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program to King County, Washington, to help finance its Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station.
"Today's loan marks a major milestone in advancing President Trump's vision for improving our country's water infrastructure," said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. "EPA's WIFIA program is proof positive that we can achieve environmental protections and economic
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WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Environmental Protection Agency issued the following news release:
Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its first-ever loan from the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program to King County, Washington, to help finance its Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station.
"Today's loan marks a major milestone in advancing President Trump's vision for improving our country's water infrastructure," said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. "EPA's WIFIA program is proof positive that we can achieve environmental protections and economicgrowth at the same time."
During heavy winter rains, the combined sewer pipes in the Duwamish Valley fill with stormwater and overflow, sending millions of gallons of polluted runoff and sewage into the Duwamish River, which drains into Puget Sound. When the Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station is completed in 2022, it can collect and treat up to 70 million gallons of wastewater and stormwater per day that would have spilled into the river during bad weather.
The project is estimated to cost $275 million and EPA's WIFIA loan will help finance nearly half that--up to $134.5 million. Because the WIFIA program offers loans with low, fixed interest rates, EPA's loan is expected to save King County up to $32 million. The project is expected to create an estimated 1,400 jobs and will provide education, job training, and apprenticeship opportunities during its design, construction, and operation through King County's Priority Hire program and partnership with South Seattle College's Georgetown Campus.
EPA's WIFIA program supports the President's commitment to rebuilding the country's aging water infrastructure. According to EPA's estimate of drinking water and wastewater needs, over $743 billion is needed for water infrastructure improvements. With the latest two appropriations totaling $93 million, WIFIA loans will be combined with other public and private funding to finance approximately $16 billion in infrastructure needs. WIFIA financing will play an important part in fulfilling this need. The President's Infrastructure Plan calls for increasing the program's funding authorization and expanding project eligibility.
Using funding provided in 2017, WIFIA's 2017 loans will finance approximately $2 billion in infrastructure costs, including the loan to King County. On April 4, 2018, EPA announced the availability of additional WIFIA funding that could provide as much as $5.5 billion in loans, which could leverage over $11 billion in water infrastructure projects. This year's WIFIA Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) highlights the importance of protecting public health including reducing exposure to lead and other contaminants in drinking water systems and updating the nation's aging infrastructure. Prospective borrowers seeking WIFIA financing in 2018 must submit a letter of interest (LOI) by July 6, 2018.
Background
Established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, the WIFIA program is a federal loan and guarantee program at EPA that aims to accelerate investment in the nation's water infrastructure by providing long-term, low-cost supplemental loans for regionally and nationally significant projects. The WIFIA program received $63 million in funding in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 23, 2018.
For more information about the WIFIA program and the Georgetown Wet Weather Treatment Station, visit: https://www.epa.gov/wifia
Contact Us (https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/forms/contact-us) to ask a question, provide feedback, or report a problem.
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection Announces Settlement With Wells Fargo for Auto-Loan Administration and Mortgage Practices
WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued the following news release:
Today the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) announced a settlement with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. in a coordinated action with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). As described in the consent order, the Bureau found that Wells Fargo violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) in the way it administered a mandatory insurance program related to its auto loans. The Bureau also found that Wells Fargo violated the CFPA in how it charged certain borrowers for mortgage
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WASHINGTON, April 20 -- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued the following news release:
Today the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) announced a settlement with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. in a coordinated action with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). As described in the consent order, the Bureau found that Wells Fargo violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) in the way it administered a mandatory insurance program related to its auto loans. The Bureau also found that Wells Fargo violated the CFPA in how it charged certain borrowers for mortgageinterest rate-lock extensions. Under the terms of the consent orders, Wells Fargo will remediate harmed consumers and undertake certain activities related to its risk management and compliance management. The Bureau assessed a $1 billion penalty against the bank and credited the $500 million penalty collected by the OCC toward the satisfaction of its fine.
"I am especially pleased that we were able to work closely and effectively with our colleagues at the OCC, and I appreciate the key role they played in the negotiations," said Bureau Acting Director Mick Mulvaney. "As to the terms of the settlement: we have said all along that we will enforce the law. That is what we did here."
The Bureau's Wells Fargo consent order is available at: https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_wells-fargo-bank-na_consent-order_2018-04.pdf
The OCC's Wells Fargo consent order is available at: https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/news-releases/2018/nr-occ-2018-41.html
Austin Emergency Shelter Gets Major Facelift With Help of $500K Grant
AUSTIN, Texas, April 20 -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, a district bank in the Federal Home Loan Bank System, issued the following news release:
The Salvation Army's downtown emergency shelter in Austin, Texas, has been in continuous operation for more than 30 years, serving 800 meals a day and providing shelter to thousands of individuals annually.
With such constant use, the 65,000-square-foot shelter was in need of some major tender loving care. Frost Bank and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) helped in that effort by awarding a $500,000 Affordable Housing Program
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AUSTIN, Texas, April 20 -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, a district bank in the Federal Home Loan Bank System, issued the following news release:
The Salvation Army's downtown emergency shelter in Austin, Texas, has been in continuous operation for more than 30 years, serving 800 meals a day and providing shelter to thousands of individuals annually.
With such constant use, the 65,000-square-foot shelter was in need of some major tender loving care. Frost Bank and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) helped in that effort by awarding a $500,000 Affordable Housing Program(AHP) grant to The Salvation Army Austin.
The AHP grant helped fund a $3 million renovation, which was completed in March. The renovations included brick repair and new plumbing to a large portion of the property. A new chiller and new furnace were added and electrical wiring was upgraded. In addition, the project included new flooring, energy-efficient lighting, upgraded elevators, an improved dining room, and new industrial washers and dryers. Additional funding was raised through a Salvation Army capital campaign, said Major Andrew Kelly, who oversees the Austin-area command.
"The AHP grant helped us to fund more than what we would have been able to do otherwise," Major Kelly said. "We had a very successful capital campaign that included this project, but it also included several others. And, as we were going through the campaign and working on the renovation, the cost of construction continued to go up. Originally, the cost was expected to be $2 million and it ended up increasing to $3 million. The grant definitely helped us get the work accomplished to make the building more livable for the residents and support staff."
The Salvation Army kept the shelter open and operating at near full capacity throughout the renovations, housing about 250 people per night.
"We all know The Salvation Army from its annual Red Kettle campaign but many are unaware of the daily, steady work it does behind the scenes to provide a safety net for children, women and men who may be hungry or homeless," said Frost Bank's Senior Vice President and CRA Officer Donna Normandin. "We're proud to partner with FHLB Dallas to widen The Salvation Army's reach and impact here in Austin."
Greg Hettrick, first vice president and director of Community Investment at FHLB Dallas, said Frost Bank has long championed the work of charitable organizations that provide aid to vulnerable populations.
"Frost has taken an active role in supporting mission-minded agencies through the AHP and we thank them for their partnership," Mr. Hettrick said.
AHP grants are awarded through FHLB Dallas member institutions such as Frost Bank. FHLB Dallas annually returns 10 percent of its profits in the form of AHP grants to the communities served by its member institutions. AHP grants fund a variety of projects, including home rehabilitation and modifications for low-income, elderly and special-needs residents; down payment and closing cost assistance for qualified first-time homebuyers; and the construction of low-income, multifamily rental communities and single-family homes.
In 2017, FHLB Dallas awarded $7 million in grants to 19 affordable housing projects. The grants will help create 1,108 new or rehabilitated housing units. Since the inception of the AHP in 1990, FHLB Dallas has awarded more than $261 million in AHP and AHP-funded grants to assist more than 48,500 families.
About Frost Bank
Frost is the banking, investments and insurance subsidiary of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE: CFR), a financial holding company with $31.7 billion in assets at December 31, 2017. One of the 50 largest U.S. banks by asset size, Frost provides a full range of banking investments and insurance services to businesses and individuals in the Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Permian Basin, Rio Grande Valley and San Antonio regions. Founded in 1868, Frost has helped Texans with their financial needs during three centuries. For more information, visit http://www.frostbank.com.
About the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas is one of 11 district banks in the FHLBank System created by Congress in 1932. FHLB Dallas, with total assets of $68.5 billion as of December 31, 2017, is a member-owned cooperative that supports housing and community investment by providing competitively priced loans and other credit products to approximately 835 members and associated institutions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico and Texas. For more information, visit fhlb.com.
