On the brief side...
Crowley Votes To Reduce Passport Delays

Legislation to eliminate delays for travelers waiting to receive passports, which has become a major problem, has passed the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Congressmember Joseph Crowley (D- Queens/The Bronx), a member of the committee who voted to advance the bill, said it will support efforts to return all filed requests for passports to applicants and keep abreast of the anticipated spike in demands in coming months.

The passport crisis was created when the State Department ruled all Americans traveling to points in the Western Hemisphere must have a passport to re-enter the United States. Spitzer Signs Patient Protection Bill

Closing a loophole in the law that leaves surgeries performed in doctors' offices unregulated by New York State, Governor Eliot Spitzer has signed into law legislation that will provide appropriate safety standards, no matter where a surgical procedure is performed, whether in a hospital, an ambulatory surgery center or a doctor's office.

"We have a responsibility to protect public safety by ensuring that facilities that offer office-based surgeries meet rigorous safety standards," the governor said in signing the bill.

The governor pointed out that nationwide, the number of surgical procedures done in doctors' offices instead of hospitals has more than doubled in the last decade. Nearly 10 million surgical procedures were performed in office-based settings annually since 2000. Weiner Grant Will Study Rockaway Beach Erosion

Congressmember Anthony Weiner (D- Queens/Brooklyn) has secured a $500,000 federal grant to continue to study ways to provide long-term storm damage protection for the Rockaway beaches and combat the effects of erosion.

The fight to control erosion at Rockaway Beach has been going on since 1965, Weiner said. Seawalls and dunes have been constructed to get the beach ready for us during the summer.

Since 1999, Weiner has secured almost $9 million for the Rockaway Inlet. Weprin Commemorates Iraq War Hero

City Councilmember David Weprin (D- Hollis) led ceremonies last Sunday renaming the triangle at Union Turnpike and 259th Street in Glen Oaks in memory of Lance Corporal Michael V. Postal, who was killed on May 7, 2005 while serving in Iraq.

Following the late morning mass at Our Lady of the Snows Roman Church, Weprin, joined by members of the church, community leaders, and friends and family of the slain soldier conferred the name, The Lance Corporal Michael V. Postal Triangle, on the site. Graffiti Cleanup Day

State Senator Serphin Maltese, with the 102nd Police Precinct in Richmond Hill is sponsoring a Graffiti Clean Up Day in Richmond Hill, Woodhaven and Ozone Park on a date to be announced.

Maltese (R- C, Middle Village) said volunteers are needed to help complete the project. Anyone interested in joining the effort can contact his office at 718-497-1800.

- Compiled by John Toscano