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BIO Legislator of the Year

I was recently honored to receive the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) “Legislator of the Year” Award for 2005-2006. As a co-chair of the House Biotechnology Caucus, I am very supportive of our Illinois farmers, agricultural biotechnology, and increased domestic production of ethanol, as well as the many uses that biotechnology can have in healthcare and the potential to develop lifesaving medications. Biotechnology has so much potential that we must continue to explore it. For more information on Biotechnology, please visit my website, www.house.gov/shimkus.

REMINDER:

· Medicare Part D Sign Up

This is a very important opportunity for Medicare beneficiaries, particularly those who do not have a prescription drug benefit plan, to obtain one through Medicare. I want to make sure that seniors and others who apply, first, get all the information they need to make a decision; second, that they understand they have choices and options and need to make a decision that fits their personal needs.

While the Medicare Part D program officially began on January 1, 2006, Medicare beneficiaries currently on Medicare actually have until May 15, 2006, to make their choice without penalty.

There are numerous plans available to Medicare beneficiaries in Illinois, and I’m sure there are still some questions.

I will be hosting seminars on April 21st and 22nd, for Medicare beneficiaries to gather additional information on the new Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit and to sign up. The exact times and places are:

Friday, April 21, 2006, 10:00 a.m.- 12 noon

Lakeland College Kluthe Center, Room 222, 1204 Network Center Drive, Effingham;

Friday, April 21, 2006, 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

Sanford-Brown College, 1101 Eastport Plaza Drive, Collinsville;

Saturday, April 22, 2006, 10:00 a.m.-12 noon

Southeastern Illinois College, A144, 3575 College Road, Harrisburg;

Saturday, April 22, 2006, 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

Frontier Community College, Richard L. Mason Building, Room 25, 2 Frontier Drive, Fairfield.

Illinois Senior Health Insurance Program (SHIP) is the best place to get assistance in making your Medicare prescription drug plan choice. Feel free to contact them at 1-800-548-9034 or visit the Illinois SHIP website, http://www.idfpr.com/DOI/Ship/ship_help.asp.

Also, Rx for Illinois, A Partnership for Prescription Assistance, works to provide access to over 475 programs that help people without prescription coverage pay for their medication. They will be in Springfield, Illinois on April 4, 2006. For more information, please visit their website, www.pparx.org, or call 202-835-3436.

Also, for more information on how to sign up, please visit my website, www.house.gov/shimkus.

D.C. and District Talk

· Higher Education

This week we passed H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act of 2005.

This bill will improve our nation’s higher education system by providing more access to low- and middle-income students. H.R. 609 will authorize spending in many important areas, such as student aid programs, teacher training programs, graduate study, foreign language, and many other programs.

The College Access & Opportunity Act will provide more reimbursements for not only students but teachers as well in areas that America is lagging, such as math, science, and education. These are areas in which we need to work to remain competitive in our ever-growing global economy.

This bill will continue to assure that our men and women in uniform are eligible to participate in the TRIO college access programs. It will also make them eligible for other forms of student aid.

An important part of this legislation works to get rid of outdated programs that were not doing their intended job or duplicative programs that are doing the same exact job of another program. This lowers spending in the bureaucratic arena and allows these funds to go to the students for whom they were intended.

I believe that this is a great bill that will continue to help in providing the needed funds for higher education. For more information on this bill, please visit http://edworkforce.house.gov or http://thomas.loc.gov.

Constituent Corner

· Disaster Declaration

I am pleased to announce that President Bush has made a federal disaster declaration for Illinois following the tornadoes and storms on March 11th – 13th.

Assistance to individuals will be made available to residents of Sangamon County. People who have losses greater than their insurance coverage will be able to apply for this help. Those eligible might be able to receive temporary housing, repair or replacement of homes, and help with other expenses incurred as a result of the storm. The Small Business Administration also make loans available to qualified homeowners or businesses. Unemployment assistance, legal services, special tax consideration, and crisis counseling are also available.

Assistance to public entities has been approved for Greene, Logan, Morgan, Sangamon, and Scott counties. This allows state, local, and other government bodies to apply for reimbursement of items, including debris removal, emergency measures, roads and bridge repair, water control facilities, public buildings and content, public utilities, and parks and recreation facilities. The federal share of any expenses cannot be greater than 75 percent.

Applications should be made to FEMA by calling 1-800-621-FEMA.

· CRP Program

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) began their general sign-up period on March 27, 2006 and it will continue until April 14, 2006.

CRP is a very widely used program used for conservation and encourages us to be good stewards of the land. Currently there are 36 million CRP acres, which, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), have shown many environmental benefits.

For more information on this program, please visit the USDA website, www.usda.gov.

· Congressional Art Competition

I am happy to invite high school artists to submit an entry for the 25th Annual Congressional Arts Competition, An Artistic Discovery.

One winning entry from my district will be chosen to hang on display in Washington, DC. Original paintings, drawings, prints, photography, computer generated art, two dimensional collages and mixed media artwork are eligible.

We have made entering even easier, as artwork does not need to be framed to be entered. Only the winner will be asked to have their artwork framed.

Complete application materials, including a release form that must be signed by the student and teacher, are available by calling my office at 618-344-3065. High schools throughout the 19th District have also been mailed information on the contest.

The deadline for submitting artwork to our offices is Friday, May 12. They must be no larger than 30 inches high by 30 inches wide and four inches deep – once framed. Local runners-up will have their artwork displayed in one of my offices.

I look forward to seeing all of the great work.

· EDA Grant

I am happy to announce funding through the United States Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) to two local planning commissions.

The Greater Wabash Regional Planning Commission, Albion, will receive $51,628. Greater Wabash serves Edwards, Lawrence, Richland, Wabash, Wayne, and White counties. The South Central Regional Planning and Development Commission, Salem, will receive $55,628. South Central serves Clay, Effingham, Fayette, Jasper, and Marion counties.

Both grants are to support long-term regional economic development planning efforts.

EDA Support is vital to maintaining local economic development offices, as well as for additional support for specific projects.

For more information on these grants, please visit the EDA website, www.eda.gov.

· Library Donations

I am also pleased to announce an award of classic books to two libraries by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Through the We the People Bookshelf program, the Farmersville-Waggoner Public Library District and the Bluford Elementary School District #114 Library will receive 15 books on the theme of “freedom.”

Libraries are valuable sources of information at schools and to the community. I hope that these works will increase the knowledge of our history and culture.

For more information on these awards, please visit www.neh.gov.

· New “Traveling Help Desk” Dates

On Thursday, April 5, 2006, Deb Detmers of my Collinsville district office will be available to help the residents of Sumner and Olney. In Sumner, she will be in the Sumner Village Hall from 11:00 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. In Olney, she will be in my Olney district office at 120 South Fair from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

For more information, please visit my web page at www.house.gov/shimkus/helpdesk.shtml. I hope you stop in to see us!

Legislative Week in Review

· The following bills were passed by the House of Representatives this week:

o H.R. 609 – College Access and Opportunity Act of 2005 (Rep. Boehner)

· To keep up to date on legislation as it moves through the legislative process please visit http://thomas.loc.gov and type in the bill number.

Anticipated Action on the House Floor Next Week

· Congress will be in session next week from Tuesday through Friday.

o H.R. 513 – 527 Reform Act (Rep. Shays – House Administration)

o Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for FY 2007

· Keep an eye on the Office of the Clerk’s web site for upcoming legislation: http://clerk.house.gov/legisAct/index.html. This site provides up-to-date information on House legislative schedules.

Did You Know?

· Forwarded Emails

I often receive forwarded emails from friends and family which detail many great stories, and others many horrible stories. Many of these are incredible or even outrageous, making them hard to believe. A lot of them are, in fact, spreading false information. If you receive any of these and would like to check out the authenticity of the story, please visit www.snopes.com, and type in a few key words to find an explanation.

Thank you for the interest in my newsletter! Remember to tell your friends about it as well--they can sign up on my web page at http://www.house.gov/shimkus.

Sincerely,

Congressman John Shimkus

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