The Afterpay application login page arranged on a smartphone, Aug. 3, 2021. — Brent Lewin/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — The Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) trend, a significant shift in shopping habits, emerged as a game-changer during the recent holiday season. It broke records and offered customers a refreshing alternative to traditional methods of making large purchases.
The BNPL payment option generated $16.6 billion in online sales during the 2023 holiday season. The method allows shoppers to purchase products in installments instead of paying the full amount at once. Thus, you can get the product immediately and pay it off over a fixed period.
With the BNPL trend, consumers have the freedom to pay finance companies such as Affirm, Klarna, or Afterpay over a fixed period. These are essentially installment loans — but with a twist.
BNPL programs typically offer short-term loans with fixed payments, no interest, and no additional charges, giving you the financial freedom to make those big purchases without the immediate burden of a large payment.
Other benefits of using BNPL to make a purchase are fast approval and the lack of a need for good credit or a high credit score. Women, people under 40, and users with lower income and credit scores are the most active users, according to research by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Example on how Buy Now, Pay Later works
Suppose you plan to purchase a new TV for $250. When it comes time to pay, you may choose to pay in installments using services like Affirm, Afterpay, or Klarna.
To obtain a loan for your purchase, you may need to provide your personal information and undergo a soft credit check.
Once approved, you agree to repay the amount you owe over four equal payments. Each payment will be the same number, with the first payment due immediately and the others due every two weeks.
Spreading out payments for a big purchase, such as a TV or home appliance, can be helpful if you need more cash upfront.
What are the risks of using Buy Now, Pay Later?
There are a few drawbacks to using BNPL services. For one, paying off a BNPL loan typically won’t improve your credit score. Additionally, you won’t be able to take advantage of credit card benefits like cash-back or rewards points when you opt for Buy Now, Pay Later.
Another risk consumers face is forgetting to make payments, which can result in fees. A report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found one of every ten borrowers in 2021, one was charged a late fee averaging $7 per missed payment. This is a way for payment companies to make money and stay in business.
If you used BNPL to purchase an item and want to return it, there could be some issues. You are entitled to a refund, but the merchant needs to inform the BNPL lender of the return, which could cause a delay.
You still have to make payments during this time, and missing or delaying payments could result in additional fees and negatively impact your credit score.
What can I do to avoid the risks of Buy Now, Pay Later?
If someone loses track of the payment cycle, their debt can spiral very quickly. To avoid this risk, consumers should set up auto-pay or keep track of payment due dates to avoid falling behind.
It is crucial to review a retailer’s return policy before making a purchase to avoid complications with returns and avoid being charged for returned items. Additionally, before using the Buy Now, Pay Later option, take a moment to assess whether it fits within your budget.
Other facts about Buy Now, Pay Later
It’s important to note that certain purchases may not be eligible for Buy Now, Pay Later financing. For example, some merchants may not offer financing for certain types of products or services.
Additionally, there are limits on the amount that you can finance through this payment option. These limits can vary depending on your credit score, income, and other factors.
To ensure that you qualify for Buy Now, Pay Later financing and to understand the terms and conditions, it’s essential to read the merchant’s financing agreement carefully and to consult with a financial adviser if you have any questions or concerns.
(WASHINGTON) — Annelle Sheline publicly resigned in March from her position with the U.S. State Department over the Biden administration’s Israel policy.
Sheline, who holds a Ph.D., worked for one year as a foreign affairs officer at the Office of Near Eastern Affairs in the Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.
She resigned from her job due to the administration’s position on the Israel-Hamas conflict. According to Sheline, she initially attempted to voice her opposition within the administration and found that many of her colleagues at the State Department shared her concerns and were also devastated by the impact of U.S. policy on Palestinians in Gaza.
Sheline sat down with ABC News Live to talk about her departure in-depth and how she was shocked and horrified by the terrorist acts of Hamas.
ABC NEWS LIVE: Joining us now for more is Doctor and Annelle Sheline, a former U.S. State Department official who resigned weeks ago from her position over the administration’s stance on the war. Dr. Sheline, you just heard Matt’s story. What is your reaction to the images and videos that IDF soldiers are posting on social media?
ANNELLE SHELINE: I think they’re very disturbing. I think that it reflects the impunity that these members of the IDF are accustomed to operating. That they know that they will face no repercussions as the IDF soldier, dual national in South Africa, said. He hadn’t heard anything from the IDF, condemning what he had done or any sort of, repercussions and disciplinary measures.
I think that obviously this comes from the top. This is something that also reflects the fact that the United States has continued to provide unconditional military aid to Israel for years, regardless of years of human rights abuses. And my concern is that even now, with the levels of devastation and the violation of international law that Israel is engaging in, we still are not, in fact, seeing the U.S. condition military aid.
ABC NEWS LIVE: I want to get more into your resignation. You wrote in an op ed: “Whatever credibility that the United States has had as an advocate for human rights has almost entirely vanished since the war began.” Now, Dr. Sheline, you know, you worked in an office devoted to promoting human rights in the Middle East. At what point did you decide that it was better to speak up from the outside, as opposed to try to have a seat at the table on the inside?
SHELINE: At first I tried to raise opposition on the inside. Like many of my colleagues, people inside the State Department, many of them are devastated by what U.S. policy is enabling Israel to do to Palestinians inside Gaza. I co-authored a dissent memo. I signed two other dissent cables. I attended internal forums to speak about what was happening, to raise concerns, and I let my supervisors know that I would be resigning over Gaza.
I initially was not planning to resign publicly. I just let it be known inside the department that I, that why I was resigning. But then it was with come in conversation with colleagues at State who said that they they hoped I would reconsider. They hoped I would resign publicly. They hoped that I would contribute to the public pressure because that does seem to be the only thing that is having any kind of an impact, even though up to this point, we really have not seen the Biden administration adopt a new approach.
They continue to send weapons. We’ve seen announcements of new weapons. It’s, it’s really shocking that this has been allowed to go on for six months now.
ABC NEWS LIVE: Dr. Sheline, let’s go back to October 7. How did you feel on that afternoon about what happened in Israel? Did you agree with the initial justification for going into Gaza that Israel had a right to defend itself?
SHELINE: I was shocked and horrified by the terrorist acts of Hamas. This is a terrorist organization. However, fairly quickly it became clear that Israel’s intent was not to merely rescue their hostages or go in with a surgical strikes to go after the leaders of Hamas that were responsible for that, but instead to engage in a policy of collective punishment.
There were statements from senior Israeli officials saying they were going to cut off water, electricity, food. I, unfortunately, the the way again, that U.S. policy has given Israel a green light for decades, I think is why we’re seeing such a horrifying outcome right now in Gaza.
ABC NEWS LIVE: I understand you voted for Joe Biden in 2020. I’m curious this time around. Are you planning to sit the election out, or can either candidate earn your vote now in 2024?
SHELINE: Part of the reason I’m speaking out is in hopes that it will contribute to this pressure on President Biden. Many people are engaging in this because I do, I know for some he’s lost their vote. And, you know, there’s no way they would vote for him. But I would if he took the measures that he is able to take.
You know, Israel, Israeli officials themselves have said they cannot conduct this war without U.S. weapons. So I want Biden to uphold American law and stop American military support for Israel.
ABC NEWS LIVE: Dr. Annelle Sheline thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today.
(WASHINGTON) — A bill to reauthorize a spy program considered critical to U.S. national security is in limbo on Capitol Hill.
An attempt on Wednesday to move ahead with reforming and renewing parts of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was blocked by House Republicans, in another blow the Speaker Mike Johnson.
Johnson and members of the GOP caucus huddled privately after the failed procedural vote but disagreements remained, making FISA’s future unclear.
The House is aiming to vote on a newly revised plan Friday morning.
Here is what to know about the surveillance measure.
What is FISA?
The federal law sets out rules and procedures for gathering foreign intelligence through electronic surveillance, physical searches, pen registers and more. It established the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) and the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review.
It was passed in 1978 in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal and other intelligence controversies unearthed around that time, including surveillance against U.S. dissidents such as anti-war protesters and Martin Luther King, Jr.
It has been amended several times since then, including after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
What is Section 702?
The FISA debate on Capitol Hill largely centers around Section 702, which allows the U.S. government to collect electronic communications of non-Americans located outside the country without a warrant.
But it sometimes results in the collection of data on Americans who are in contact with those surveilled individuals, making it controversial.
Critics of the program, such as civil liberties groups like the ACLU, have called for requiring a warrant to access the data of those Americans. Some lawmakers are also opposed to reauthorizing the program without an amendment requiring a warrant or other reforms to protect Americans’ privacy.
Intelligence officials, though, have warned a warrant amendment would cripple a program relied upon for counterterrorism.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said if Congress were to impose such a requirement, it would “blind ourselves to intelligence in our holdings.”
Congress is facing a time crunch to come to a resolution, as Section 702 is set to expire on April 19.
“If we lost 702, we would lose vital insight into precisely the threats Americans expect us in government to identify and counter,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters.
That includes, he said, “terrorist threats to the homeland; fentanyl supply chains bringing deadly drugs into American communities; hostile governments’ recruitment of spies in our midst; transnational repression by authoritarian regimes; penetrations of our critical infrastructure; adversaries’ attempts to illicitly acquire sensitive dual-use and military commodities and technology; ransomware attacks against major American companies and nonprofits; Russian war crimes; and more.”
When has FISA been used?
Section 702 was used to target al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in August 2022. Al-Zawahiri was Osama bin Laden’s deputy and helped coordinate the Sept. 11 attacks.
Section 702 played a role in locating ISIS commander Hajji Iman, who was killed by U.S. Special Operations Forces in 2016, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The agency added that it has also been used to help the government gain insight on plans to smuggle fentanyl and other drugs into the U.S. and to mitigate ransomware attacks on U.S. infrastructure.
Former President Donald Trump and some of his conservative allies in Congress have broadly criticized FISA after surveillance against Carter Page, a former adviser to his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump this week urged lawmakers to “KILL FISA,” which likely contributed to its demise earlier this week.
The Justice Department admitted errors in the FISA applications for surveillance on Page, however the ordeal didn’t include Section 702 but rather another provision of the law.
ABC News’ Jay O’Brien, Lauren Peller, Arthur Jones and Alexander Mallin contributed to this report.
(YAP, Federated States of Micronesia) — Three sailors were rescued from a remote Pacific Island after being stranded for over a week and writing “HELP” with palm leaves on the white sand beach, the U.S. Coast Guard announced this week.
The unnamed sailors, all men in their 40s, were rescued from Pikelot Atoll — one of the outer islands of the State of Yap, part of the Federated States of Micronesia — on April 9, the U.S. Coast Guard announced in a press release.
“In a remarkable testament to their will to be found, the mariners spelled out “HELP” on the beach using palm leaves, a crucial factor in their discovery,” Lt. Chelsea Garcia, the search and rescue mission coordinator on the day they were located, said in the release. “This act of ingenuity was pivotal in guiding rescue efforts directly to their location.”
The men were on a fishing trip that began March 31 when their 20-foot open skiff sailboat equipped with an outboard motor was damaged and non-functional, leaving them stranded ashore Pikelot Atoll, according to officials.
The search and rescue mission began on April 6 when a relative of the sailors called the Joint Rescue Sub-Center (JRSC) Guam, reporting the men had not returned home.
The U.S. Coast Guard says a “breakthrough” in the rescue efforts came the next day, when a U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon aircraft flying over the island identified the sailors, “confirming their presence and condition.”
On April 8, a U.S. Coast Guard aircraft crew relocated the men and dropped a radio to establish communication. “The mariners confirmed they were in good health, had access to food and water, and recovered their skiff,” according to the release.
The aircraft crew successfully deployed survival packages to the stranded sailors until the USCGC Oliver Henry could re-route to Pikelot Atoll on April 9 to complete the rescue operation, officials said.
The ship rescued the sailors and their equipment, and returned them to their home island Polowat Atoll, more than 100 miles away, according to the release.
“Our unwavering dedication to the search and rescue mission not only ensures the safety and well-being of mariners and coastal communities, but also reinforces the strong bonds of friendship and cooperation between the United States and the FSM and with our DoD partners,” Capt. Nicholas Simmons, commander of U.S. Coast Guard, said in the release.
In August 2020, a similar search-and-rescue operation took place on Pikelot Atoll when three men had been missing in the western Pacific Ocean for nearly three days when their giant message outlined on the beach of tiny Pikelot Island was spotted from above by searchers in an Australian and U.S. aircraft.
(NEW YORK) — Boeing has come under fire and intense scrutiny ever since a door plug flew out of an Alaska Airlines flight on Jan. 5. Investigators revealed the plane, a 737 Max, was missing key bolts when the door was installed.
The company has been accused of not doing enough to ensure its aircraft and other products are up to standards, and some former employees attest the company has been doing shoddy work for years.
On Wednesday, another whistleblower, Boeing engineer Sam Salehpour, alleged the company took shortcuts in its production of 787 and 777 jets and, as a result, the planes have serious structural flaws.
“I literally saw people jumping on the pieces of the airplane to get them to align, basically by jumping up and down your deforming parts so that the holes align temporarily and you can hit a piece with a mallet so that you can go into the hole. And that’s not how you build an airplane,” Salehpour told reporters.
Boeing refuted Salehpour’s claims in a statement released Wednesday.
ABC News’ Gio Benitez spoke with “Start Here” about the latest development.
START HERE: Gio who is this person?
GIO BENITEZ: Hey, Brad. So this is Sam Salehpour. He’s an engineer with Boeing, and he claims that parts of the plane’s fuselage are being fastened together improperly on the assembly line which, in theory, he says could weaken the aircraft over time. So we’re talking about decades of time, and he spoke at a press conference yesterday.
And his lawyer said that he had been raising these issues with Boeing management for years, but that they just weren’t listening.
Now the FAA says it is investigating these claims from a Boeing whistleblower, but Boeing is actually responding very, very strongly. And they told us this, “These claims about the structural integrity of the 787 are inaccurate. The issues raised have been subject to rigorous engineering examination under FAA oversight.
“This analysis has validated that these issues do not present any safety concerns, and that the aircraft will maintain its service life over several decades.”
So obviously, Boeing is very strongly disagreeing with this whistleblower and they sent us a very long statement, probably one of the longest I’ve ever seen.
START HERE: And just so I’m clear. So this is different from the Max planes. When we talk about the door plug that was a 737 Max. These are Dreamliners he’s complaining about.
BENITEZ: Yeah. These are totally different planes. These are the 787 Dreamliners. You’re talking about the Max 9, obviously, scrutiny was intensified over Boeing because of that door plug flying off that plane in January. It was a very, very serious issue. And then you think back to 2018 and 2019, you had those Max crashes.
So those were the 737 Max planes. Now we’re talking about the 787 Dreamliners. There has not been any accident with the 787 Dreamliner. This is just a concern. In fact, these planes have been in service for about 13 years now and back in 2021 and 2022 Boeing actually addressed this exact issue because of employee concerns. They slowed production down and they actually temporarily stopped delivering the 787. At the time, the FAA signed off on how Boeing addressed this issue.
Now, it’s important to note that this whistleblower has not provided any documented evidence. So right now, the onus is really on the FAA to tell us, is this a new problem or is this the same problem that Boeing already dealt with?
START HERE: And is this a problem at all. It’s interesting that he’s kind of presenting this hypothetical. He’s almost saying yes, we haven’t seen any accidents yet, but they could become issues after decades of flying. It’s only been 13 years. How would you even test that? How would you even predict what’s going to happen decades from now, though, Gio?
BENITEZ: Well, there are special stress tests, and Boeing has conducted a lot of them, actually, and they used an older 787. They actually put it through 165,000 simulated cycles of takeoffs, pressurization, depressurization and landings. And they didn’t find any issues of fatigue there, and this jet is actually designed for a lifespan of 44,000 cycles. So we’re talking about almost four times the amount of cycles that it would go through anyway.
Now that is what Boeing is saying. Of course, the simulation is very different than what’s happening in real life, but Boeing believes that this is very accurate.
So the whistleblower says he’s going to testify on Capitol Hill next week. And he says that’s when he’s going to provide the evidence.
(GAZA) — A man in the Gaza Strip is using solar panels to clean water for his neighbors – a seemingly small gesture that has large consequences at a time when the region is in the midst of a humanitarian crisis.
“Yesterday, I filled this car with clean water from the well, 6,500 liters, and distributed it among people in need of water,” Mohammed Assalia told ABC News. “Some people use these wheelchairs to transport the water they fill, which is kinda sad but it does the thing.”
As the resource becomes more scarce, Assalia said he is now looking for a way to reach more people in the most devastated area of the Gaza Strip, six months since Israel declared war on Hamas. The high costs involved with the project may hinder his ability to do so without help, he says.
“With the solar-powered well in my house, at least 1,000 people benefitted and received clean water every day,” Assalia said. “Now people from other neighborhoods have come to use it and we’re trying to help more by operating as many wells as possible.”
Assalia said he has coordinated a group of people to help with his project, capitalizing on each person’s expertise: Khalil Samara, an alternative energy engineer; Mohammed Hajj-Ali, a welder installing the bases for the solar panels; and Masoud Nabhan, a plumber experienced with fixing wells.
He set up a fundraiser to tackle the inflated costs of solar panels and materials he needed, which he said were available but cost around four times the pre-war amount.
“All of the needed materials are currently available here in the North [of Gaza], Al-Yazji company for solar energy and other companies still have materials. However, these materials have become very expensive. An example is a 535-watt solar panel used to be 700 NIS ($192). Now it costs 2,400 NIS, ($657),” Assalia said.
Since the start of the blockade Israel imposed on Gaza after Hamas launched a terrorist incursion on Oct. 7, shortages and contamination have severely impeded health care access, creating a water crisis, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) monitoring the area.
“Access to sufficient amounts of clean water is a matter of life and death. Children in Gaza have barely a drop to drink,” UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell said in December.
In February, UNRWA reported that around 70% of the population of Gaza was drinking salinized or contaminated water. UNICEF said at the time at least half of the water and sanitation facilities in Gaza had been destroyed or damaged.
Flu, dehydration and hepatitis are among some of the main consequences of the water crisis in Gaza, according to MSF staff on the ground.
While both the United Nations and MSF mobilized to mitigate the water crisis, both organizations have said that other types of shortages stand in the way, including the limited number of trucks allowed into the enclave carrying aid and fuel.
People in Gaza have to rely heavily on grassroots projects like that of Assalia’s group. When he started, he said he used his own savings to operate the water well for his neighbors.
“Most of the wells could not run due to the lack of electricity and destruction of the infrastructure,” he said. “So I contacted an alternative energy engineer and I had him power up a personal well on solar energy. I paid him 400 shekels ($107).”
He added, “I don’t want anything in return, all I want is to help my people and leave a footprint.”
(SHILOH, Ala.) — An unlikely visitor made his way through rural Alabama last Wednesday to visit the community of Shiloh, a place usually far from the public eye. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and two of his top officials came to Shiloh at the request of local landowners who say they’ve experienced frequent flooding ever since the state widened a highway alongside their homes.
Many of the Black families that make up the Shiloh community have owned their land since the end of slavery. Now, as they watch their properties flood, they tell ABC News they fear the generational wealth they’ve built over 150 years will be destroyed by the water.
Pastor Timothy Williams, whose family has lived in Shiloh for generations, has been speaking out about the flooding and damage to his home since 2017, during the highway construction. But until last week, Williams said he did not feel heard by those in power.
“It feels promising just to be able to reach the top of the DOT and for them to listen,” Williams told ABC News on the eve of the visit. “I believe help is on the way.”
Buttigieg’s visit followed an ABC News investigation last October and a meeting between Shiloh residents and officials in Washington last month. It came amid a civil rights investigation, too – a probe by the Federal Highway Administration into whether the Alabama Department of Transportation discriminated against the predominantly Black Shiloh community.
ALDOT denies any discrimination in the highway widening or its aftermath. The agency maintains that the flooding in Shiloh was not caused by the project and says it has been working with the FHWA “to provide facts about the Highway 84 widening project and the concerns expressed by residents of the Shiloh Community.”
However, the ABC News investigation uncovered electronic diaries that showed ALDOT contractors were aware of the flooding in Shiloh and residents’ complaints as they were expanding the highway.
Last week, the feds got to see the situation on the ground and evaluate it for themselves.
Buttigieg walked on the eroded muddy ground that fills with water when it rains. He saw the cracks in the brick exterior of Williams’ house, which the property’s insurer determined were caused by frequent flooding. He heard from residents who said it took longer for first responders to help them during emergencies because the flooding had prevented firetrucks and ambulances from reaching their homes.
“There’s no way I’m going to forget what I just heard,” Buttigieg said.
‘There’s no more lynchings and hangings. It’s coming after your finances.’
Timothy Williams’ daughter Melissa Williams said she does not feel safe in her family’s home when it rains.
“You’re going to bed, you don’t know if you’re going to wake up the next morning,” she told ABC News.
The water isn’t the only force the Williams family says threatens their life in Shiloh. Since the original ABC News investigation aired in October, Timothy Williams said he’s lost customers at his two businesses, a cleaning service and a restaurant.
“In Alabama, there’s no more lynchings and hangings,” Timothy Williams said, but instead, “they come after your money, your finances, and try to drain it.”
Still, Timothy Williams said, he does not regret speaking up about Shiloh’s plight.
“They want us to shut up,” he said. “When they say shut up, you scream.”
But the state has seemed to listen to some voices more than others, residents said.
When Timothy Williams brought his concerns to ALDOT, he felt the agency tried to silence him: Instead of addressing the flooding, the state signed settlement agreements with Timothy Williams and some of his neighbors, paying them each no more than $5,000 to give up their rights to ever sue for flood damages.
Down the road from Shiloh, a day care center saw unprecedented flooding after the highway widening and had to close. The owners – a white mother-daughter duo – were devastated to lose their family business. In their case, ALDOT bought a portion of their land for $165,000, also preventing them from bringing future claims against the state.
Day care owner Ronda Robinson said she feels for the Shiloh families, “’cause the fight was hard.”
Her mother Peggy Carpenter said the $5,000 some Shiloh residents received was like a drop in the bucket.
“You get tired of fighting,” she added.
Robinson and Carpenter said while they don’t know whether the difference between the deal they got and what was offered to Shiloh homeowners had to do with race, they “don’t put it past” the state.
After years of Shiloh residents advocating for additional help, the nation’s top infrastructure official heard their call.
“He listened to the people,” Timothy Williams said of Buttigieg. “He heard us out and he got involved.”
Buttigieg’s visit came during one of his department’s busiest weeks, following the bridge collapse in Baltimore and disruptions to port operations.
Yet here he was, in a tiny community far from any major population center and unknown to most Americans.
“The experiences of a homeowner here in this Shiloh community matter just as much as anybody else in the wealthiest ZIP code in America,” Buttigieg said. “It is one thing to be on the radar, it is another to actually be seen.”
Journey to Justice Tour
Timothy Williams led the group of officials and residents from house to house, passing a loudspeaker to each Shiloh resident and giving them a chance to share their experiences with the flooding – and this time, to be heard.
Timothy Williams led the crowd across the highway to see the drainage system, which funnels water directly onto Shiloh properties, and to the ditches ALDOT contractors dug to hold the runoff, which frequently overflow into the Williams’ front yard.
On their trek around the neighborhood, the officials saw a water moccasin – one of the snakes and frogs that have become a frequent sight in Shiloh – and a gas pipeline that was moved next to the Williams’ home as part of the highway project.
Together, the community’s experiences formed a narrative of fear, loss and disproportionate burden.
Another prominent member of the tour was Dr. Robert Bullard, an area native and Texas Southern University professor who helped coin the term “environmental justice” and has written 18 books on the topic. He helped bring Shiloh to the national stage after joining forces with Timothy Williams last year. Bullard called the situation “a textbook case” of environmental racism.
“They survived slavery. They survived Jim Crow segregation,” Bullard said of the Shiloh community. “But now they’re fighting a highway, an infrastructure, that is somehow stealing their wealth, their inheritance. That’s not right.”
After the tour, Buttigieg met several Shiloh residents and spoke with them individually. He assured them he would bring their concerns back to Washington.
Addressing the crowd gathered near the Williams’ home, Buttigieg said, “[I] want you to know that not only are you seen, but this is being worked at the highest levels of our department.”
He told the Shiloh residents that none of them are responsible for the flooding and its impacts, and that nobody should have to live with what they are going through right now.
In an exclusive interview following his address, Buttigieg told ABC News Senior National Correspondent Steve Osunsami that his department has “a significant and substantial concern about the impact of the highway on this community and about what members of this community are going through.” He said that concern is why there is an ongoing investigation and “active engagement with the Alabama DOT.”
The road ahead
Although it received a rare visit from top brass, Shiloh is not the only community that is the focus of a FHWA civil rights investigation. The agency’s Office of Civil Rights aims to complete these investigations in 180 days. But the people of Shiloh have been waiting more than three times that long – nearly 600 days without an answer to their claims of discrimination or a solution to their flooding.
In a statement to ABC News, an ALDOT spokesperson wrote that the agency has partnered with an engineering firm to “develop plans for further controlling stormwater runoff from ALDOT’s right of way.”
But in a statement to ABC affiliate WDHN, ALDOT denied any unfair treatment and asserted the agency’s belief that Shiloh property owners had been “adequately compensated for any inconvenience caused by ALDOT’s Highway 84 project.”
ALDOT’s statement to WDHN presented two options the agency plans to offer Shiloh residents: selling their properties to ALDOT or having the agency implement a project to retain additional water.
“The choice will be theirs,” the statement read.
To Timothy Williams, this isn’t a choice at all: To sell his property would be to end a multigenerational legacy of community and wealth building. And he says ALDOT’s previous attempts to retain the runoff have not solved the flooding.
Instead, Timothy Williams wants money to rebuild his family home with better protection from flooding, including a higher foundation on drier ground. He wants to create a house as resilient as his community.
“We’re here for the long haul,” Timothy Williams said. “Whatever it takes, I’m down for it, but we’re not going nowhere.”
For the Shiloh community, some said this struggle is about much more than compensation for an inconvenience.
“When people are fighting a road and the flooding, they’re not just fighting that elevated highway,” Bullard said. “They’re fighting for their inheritance, for their children and their grandchildren and future generations, so that’s why this is an important fight.”
Buttigieg hopes to turn that fight into federal action.
“I want to make sure we take that back and engage our sister agencies to get results,” he said. “People who live here need to be taken care of.”
The Williams family saw last week’s visit as a step in the right direction.
“It still doesn’t fix what we’re going through,” Melissa Williams said, “but it does make it a tad bit better.”
(WASHINGTON) — Education Secretary Miguel Cardona will name LaWanda Toney as deputy chief of staff for strategic communications, as the secretary’s team looks to tackle college affordability with enrollment deadlines quickly approaching.
“The message is clear: We want to make college possible for folks like the secretary, who’s a first-generation college student [and] wasn’t sure if college was possible for him,” Toney told ABC News in an exclusive interview.
Pushing for adequate college and career training programs have been among Cardona’s top priorities during his three years as education secretary. But the last several months have been mired by higher education woes, such as the Supreme Court’s gutting of affirmative action last year and President Joe Biden’s initial student debt relief plan introduced in 2022 (and struck down by SCOTUS last year).
Most recently, there were widespread issues with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, form. The department has tried to simplify the form over the course of this year — implementing the Better FAFSA Form — and has ramped up operations this spring, fixing an issue that prevented contributors without a Social Security number (SSN) from starting or accessing the form.
“There’s nothing more important to the Department of Education,” Cardona said during a House Committee on Appropriations’ fiscal year 2025 budget request hearing this week. “We’re working on this around the clock because we want to make sure our students have the information they need to make informed decisions.”
However, the price of college has gone up over the years, according to higher education sources who spoke with ABC News, and some colleges never recovered from the 2008 financial crash. This comes as the annual cost of tuition has risen to nearly six figures at some institutions and millions of students are wary about their college prospects.
“We’re really trying to make it so that higher education is more affordable and accessible across the country,” Cardona told ABC’s “GMA3” on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, higher education experts say college affordability is the top barrier to entry cited by students and families.
With Toney’s strategic messaging, the department will work to ensure college is attainable, a senior Department of Education official told ABC News. “Time is of the essence,” the official said, so the department is working toward what every young student needs: The choice to either choose their career or attend college.
“We want everyone to have the opportunity to further their education,” Toney told ABC News. “Whatever path they [students] choose. If it’s to go to a career, then making sure that high schools are set up to support them in that way. And if they choose to go to college, they have those options.”
The daughter of college-educated teachers, Howard University shaped Toney, according to a source familiar, and Toney’s experience at the historically Black institution empowered her.
Toney was elevated to deputy chief of staff from her senior adviser role in the office of communications and outreach.
Prior to her work at the department, Toney ran the strategic communications team at the National Parent Teacher Association (PTA). Executive Director Nathan Monell worked with her for years and said Toney spear-headed “college readiness and accessibility” strategies.
(ENGLEWOOD, Colo.) — A school bus aide has been arrested by police in Englewood, Colorado, for allegedly physically abusing three children with severe autism, at least one instance of which was allegedly caught on video, according to a law firm representing the families.
The three students endured “extreme physical and mental abuse” over the course of six months while on a Littleton Public Schools special needs bus, the Rathod Mohamedbhai law firm said in a press release Wednesday. All three children are non-verbal, and could therefore not report the abuse, the law firm said.
Kiarra Jones, 29, faces felony assault charges for crimes against at-risk children, according to police.
“It was determined that more than one non-verbal autistic student was assaulted by the suspect on a moving school bus while en route to school,” the Englewood Police Department said in release Tuesday. “It was also determined that the suspect was the victims’ assigned paraprofessional employed by Littleton Public School District at the time of the incident.”
Jones allegedly subjected the children to “unfathomable abuse,” the law firm said.
Starting in September 2023, the parents said they “saw significant shifts in their child’s behavior and noticed physical injuries on their child, including unexplained scratches, bruises, a lost tooth, a broken toe, a black eye, and other deep bruises on their bodies and feet,” the law firm’s press release stated.
The parents contacted the school with their concerns in January. The school then reached out to the school district. But according to Ciara Anderson, an attorney with the film, the school district “utterly failed” to take action.
“They did a sham investigation in which they looked at one ride,” Anderson said in a press conference Tuesday. “They did no other investigation, they asked no other questions and they provided no other monitoring. Because of these horrific failures by the school district, the bus aide was emboldened to continue her abuse — and she did.”
The school district has not responded to ABC News’ request for comment.
Jones was arrested April 4 after a video recorded in March, which was released by the law firm on Tuesday, allegedly showed her “repeatedly hitting, punching, and stomping on a fragile 10-year-old boy.”
She was arraigned on the morning of April 5 and bonded out on a $5,000 bond, police said. A public defender is representing Jones, according to the district attorney.
Jones and her attorney have not responded to ABC News’ request for comment.
She was fired the same day she was arrested, Todd Lambert, the district’s superintendent, said in a letter to the school community Friday. Jones was hired in August 2023 “after satisfactory reference checks and after passing a thorough background check,” and “had very limited access to students during her employment,” he added.
“This kind of behavior cannot be and is not tolerated,” Lambert wrote. “As parents, you trust us with the well-being of your children and you should never have to worry about them being harmed when they are in our care.”
In the press conference, the parents of the boy seen in the video spoke of their horror at learning how their son had been treated.
“How could someone that I trusted, someone that I was so friendly with, do this to my little boy?” the mother said.
(LOS ANGELES, Calif.) — The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani now faces federal charges over allegations he stole millions from MLB’s highest-paid player in a gambling scheme, the Department of Justice announced Thursday.
Ippei Mizuhara has been charged with bank fraud for allegedly stealing more than $16 million from Ohtani to “finance his voracious appetite for illegal sports betting,” United States Attorney Martin Estrada said during a press briefing.
Estrada claimed Mizuhara committed fraud on a “massive scale” to “plunder” Ohtani’s bank account to pay for his gambling debts.
Mizuhara had helped Ohtani, who did not speak or understand English, set up his bank account in 2018 in Arizona and “used that familiarity” to later steal the funds from Ohtani to help pay for illegal sports bets, the DOJ alleged. He is accused of wiring more than $16 million in unauthorized transfers from Ohtani’s checking account from November 2021 to January 2024, the DOJ said. He is also accused of impersonating Ohtani over the phone with the bank to approve wire transfers to the bookmakers, the DOJ said.
Estrada stressed that Ohtani is considered a victim in the case and has cooperated “fully and completely” in the investigation.
“There is no evidence to indicate that Mr. Ohtani authorized the over $16 million of transfers from his account to the bookmakers,” Estrada said.
Any winnings were deposited in Mizuhara’s own personal bank account, not any account owned by Ohtani, and the ex-interpreter allegedly admitted to a bookmaker to stealing from Ohtani, according to Estrada. Ohtani also provided his cellphone to investigators, who did not find any evidence to suggest that he was aware of or involved in the illegal gambling activity, the DOJ said.
“Our investigation has revealed that due to the position of trust that he occupied with Mr. Ohtani, Mr. Mizuhara had unique access to Mr. Ohtani’s finances,” Estrada said. “Mr. Mizuhara used and abused that position of trust in order to take advantage of Mr. Ohtani.”
Bank fraud carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, Estrada said.
Mizuhara is expected to appear in the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles in the coming days. It is unclear if he has an attorney.
The federal investigation is being conducted by the Los Angeles offices of IRS Criminal Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations, the main investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The Dodgers announced they had fired the Japanese interpreter on March 20, after the gambling controversy surfaced. The team did not provide a specific reason for Mizuhara’s termination.
Ohtani addressed the scandal for the first time on March 25 during a press conference. In a prepared statement, Ohtani said through an interpreter, “I am very saddened and shocked that someone who I trusted has done this.”
“I never bet on baseball or any other sports,” Ohtani continued. “I never asked somebody to do that on my behalf and I have never went through a bookmaker to bet on sports.”
The 29-year-old pitching and hitting star, who signed a $700 million deal in the offseason to join the Dodgers, claimed he did not know about Mizuhara’s gambling until after a Dodgers game in Korea the prior week.
“Up until a couple days ago, I didn’t even know that this was happening,” he said at the time.
Mizuhara had worked with the Dodgers as Ohtani’s interpreter after serving in the same capacity with the Angels. Ohtani and Mizuhara’s relationship dates back to 2013, when Ohtani played for the Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball League and Mizuhara was an interpreter for the team.
Ohtani has been playing for the Dodgers throughout the scandal, batting .333 with three home runs and eight RBIs for National League-leading Los Angeles. He is not pitching this season as he recovers from elbow surgery.
MLB announced it was investigating the situation last month, two days after the Dodgers fired Mizuhara.
