Second Ohio derailment raises ire in Congress on rail safety

BloomBerg

WASHINGTON —

A second freight train derailment in Ohio within a month is giving new impetus for rail safety legislation in Con gress, as Democrats and Republicans prepare to grill Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw when he testifies to a Senate committee Thursday.

“The big railroads have weakened safety rules or resisted safety rules for years,” Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown said on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “But you’d think a disaster that happened in East Palestine would have gotten their attention.”

Saturday’s train derailment happened outside Springfield, Ohio – about 180 miles west of East Palestine, where a derailment last month spilled toxic chemicals into the rural community along the Ohio-Pennsylvania border.

Are state’s new housing laws fixing affordability crisis? A7

Talking to children who left Russia about the war B6

TriBune ConTenT AgenCy

WASHINGTON —

President Joe Biden would “never even discuss” taking a mental competency test suggested by Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley for politicians older than 75, first lady Jill Biden said. Her comments to CNN come in the context of Biden’s expected bid for a second term, which would make him 82 at his inauguration if he won reelection. In previously released interview excerpts, the first lady said she’s “all for” her husband running in 2024 and pointed to his recent trip to Ukraine that included a nine-hour train ride from Poland.

“Ridiculous,” Jill Biden said when asked about Haley’s proposal and whether the president would consider taking such a test. “We would never even discuss some-

Initial reports indicate that there were no hazardous materials spilled in the Springfield incident, and officials quickly lifted a shelter-in-place order. But Brown said he wants to know if there were any residual contaminants left in the 20 mostly empty train cars that went off track.

“The railroad’s got a lot of questions they’ve got to answer and they

See Rail, Page A8 thing like that.”

Haley, 51, who is running against her former boss, ex-President Donald Trump, 76, proposed a mandatory mental competency test for politicians over the age of 75 in February. Another contender expected to enter the GOP fray is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who’s 44.

Biden, the oldest person to serve as U.S. president, has said he intends to run in 2024 but hasn’t announced a decision. His wife is understood to be his closest confidante within the White House. Biden has cited his family or a surprise development, such as a health crisis, as potential deterrents to another run.

Biden has faced questions and Republican attacks based on his age in the buildup to 2024. “It’s legitimate for people to

See Biden, Page A8

TriBune ConTenT AgenCy

SAN JOSE — A gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, a loaf of bread, a pound of chicken: That may be all the groceries some Californians can buy each month with their CalFresh benefits now that emergency federal pandemic funds that boosted food benefits have ended.

The severance comes at a time when Californians are already reeling from inflation and the high cost of groceries, leaving local food bank leaders in fear of a “food cliff” as demand soars and their budgets tighten.

The federal food program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, received boosts throughout the pandemic as Amer- icans faced furloughs and layoffs and dipped into their savings. But that emergency aid has come to an end, and eligible households will lose at least $95 a month in benefits, with some seeing their benefits dip to as low as $23 a month. Benefits are determined by income and household size.

Nationally, food prices increased by 13.1% between July 2021 and July 2022, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. It estimates that inflation has cut the value of SNAP increases by 76% since 2019.

For one San Jose single mother, the end of the added emergency benefits – which will have its final payout this month – brings worry, stress and a feeling of powerless- ness. Her monthly grocery bill had been around $300 – typically what she was receiving in CalFresh benefits with the emergency allotments. Now, her CalFresh benefits are dropping to $38.

Adrianne, 42, who asked to be identified only by her first name, said she recently went back to school, and the emergency allotments during the pandemic have been a lifeline for her and her 7-year-old daughter. She plans to stock up with the final benefits payout but is concerned about whether she’ll be able to rely on a food bank.

“Being a full-time student, taking 15 credits every semester and being a single mom, I really don’t know if I have the time to make it to pick up free food,” she said. “I’m going to have to figure

See Food, Page A8