On the brief side...
Bill Blocks Fees For Paying Bills Online

Credit card companies will be prohibited from charging a fee to customers who pay their bills online or by phone under a bill introduced by Congressmember Gary Ackerman (D- Bayside).

"Credit card holders are being overridden with transfer fees, membership fees, finance fees, overthe limit fees, cash advance fees, stop-payment order fees, interchange fees, and the list goes on and on," Ackerman said.

"Now some credit card companies have resorted to socking consumers with fees for paying bills over the Internet or by phone- which is outrageous," he added.

Council Bills Make Nightclubs Safer

After the City Council passed three bills last week to make nightclubs safer, Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr., chair of the Public Safety Committee, stated, "We want to make sure that nightlife headlines are not on the front page, but they're on Page 6 [in the New York Post] where they belong."

The bills, which Mayor Michael Bloomberg supports, require security cameras at exits and entrances and make it easier to shut down establishments that sell fake IDs. The action was inspired by the death of a graduate student Imette St.Guillen after leaving a Downtown Manhattan bar a year ago.

Deadline For Filing For 9/11 Workers' Comp

Former 9/11 volunteers and other workers have until August 14 to file their intention to preserve their right to file for 9/11 workers' compensation claims, Assemblymember Audrey Pheffer (D- Rockaways) announced.

The lawmaker said about 100,000 people who worked at Ground Zero are eligible to register for the benefit, but fewer than 7,000 have filed. Go to www.nycosh.org to learn about eligibility requirements and registration procedure or call toll free, 24-hour hotline, 866-WTC-2556. Padavan Files BIll To Curb Internet Crimes

A new report, entitled "Protecting Children in the Internet Age" urging enactment of a series of measures to protect children from Internet predators, has been introduced by state Senator Frank Padavan (R- C, Bellerose).

Padavan says the report "touches n some of the most sensitive issues affecting our children", such as child prostitution, predators operating from Internet chat rooms, [YouTube™ and MySpace™] and strengthening the sex offender registry.

Life Without Parole For Child Murderers

Violent child abusers and parents or guardians who kill a child would face a life sentence without parole under a bill passed by the state senate.

The legislation, sponsored by Senator Serphin Maltese (R- C, Middle Village) is named after Nixmary Brown, the seven-year-old Brooklyn girl who was brutally beaten and left to die last year.

The crime of "aggravated murder of a child" under the age of 14 would mandate the tough sentence, Maltese said.

"Anyone who would do this to a child, most especially the very ones a child should be able to depend on for safety and love- the parents- should be dealt the most severe sentence on the books," Maltese said.

The bill now goes to the Assembly.

Seminar For Flushing Restaurant Owners

City Councilmember John Liu announced that a labor law seminar will be held for restaurant owners in Flushing on Tuesday, March 27 from 2 to 4 p.m. at 138-60 Barclay Ave., Flushing.

Organized in collaboration with the New York State Department of Labor and the Flushing Business Improvement District (BID), the seminar is designed to help employers achieve compliance with state labor laws.

Liu noted that many new immigrants have entered the food service industry and the many laws governing it must be understood in order for any such business to succeed.

Students' Artwork To Be Displayed In Capitol Tunnel

Congressmember Joseph Crowley (D-Queens, The Bronx) invites high school students in his district to submit their artwork for the 2007 Congressional Art Competition. Winning submissions will be sent to Washington, DC, and placed on display in the U.S. Capitol building tunnel for one year. Students with art displayed in the Capitol will be invited to attend the competition's reception on June 28 in Washington. The Savannah College of Art and Design will award a $5,000 scholarship to winning students.

High school art students living in the 7th Congressional District of New York may submit artwork in several different media, including painting, drawing, collage, prints, mixed media, computer generated art, and photography. Work may not exceed 30-inches by 30-inches with a depth of 4-inches, and must be entirely original, as well as accompanied with a student release form. The deadline for submission is Wednesday, April 18.

For more information, and a complete list of rules, call Jesse Mosier, District Representative, at 718-931-1400, or e-mail him at jesse.mosier@mail.house.gov.

The deadline for all submissions to arrive in Crowley's Bronx District Office, 2800 Bruckner Blvd., Suite 301, Bronx, NY 10465, is April 18.