While the country may now be cognizant of water contamination and other serious safety gaps prevalent in the regions hit by Hurricane Katrina, health and safety threats are not unique to the Gulf Coast. Threats to security and safety exist throughout the country, and some of these unmet public needs, which receive little media attention, pose even greater threats to public health and safety than risks found in New Orleans. While the examples cited below are by no means exhaustive, they highlight troubling gaps in our security and safety protections.

The debate in Congress over fiscal priorities has taken a turn toward radical conservatism this week, as the right-wing members of the House Republican Study Committee (RSC) have gained the upper hand in their push for increased cuts in the budget resolution. As Congress returns from its October recess this week, House GOP leaders are planning to amend the budget resolution to include more drastic cuts to mandatory and discretionary spending, ostensibly to pay for rebuilding in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The President's Advisory Panel on Tax Reform met last week, for the first time since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita ravaged the Gulf Coast, and again today, in preparation for making their recommendations for tax reform to the Treasury Department before the Nov. 1 deadline. During the two meeitngs, the panel referenced some loose conclusions it has reached on tax reform, mainly with regard to the alternative minimum tax, and to scrapping deductions for homeownership, employer-provided health insurance, and state and local taxes.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the Healthy Californian's Biomonitoring Program (SB 600), after its narrow passage by the state legislature. The bill would have established America's first state-wide program to assess levels of human chemical exposure. The governor struck down the bill despite its support by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), the California Medical Society, and numerous health advocacy organizations.