North Carolina Now; North Carolina Now Episode from 03/09/1995

The same night I will be producing smarter kids because they're eating healthier. Thanks Good evening I'm Mary Newhart glad you could join us. Well most of you have probably already eaten a healthy dinner tonight think for a moment though about some North Carolina families and their children who can't afford nutritious meals. Tonight we'll look at the whip program which is designed to give children a healthy start. And we'll

talk to North Carolina Congressman Richard Burr about the possibility that Wyck along with some school lunch programs will be cut in the late 1960s and national nutrition survey show that poor nutrition was directly linked to poor cognitive learning skills in low to moderate income children that convince Congress to sponsor a special supplemental food program for women infants and children or Wyc since wikked establishment 20 years ago. There's been a reduction in the number of iron deficient and anemic children in lower income households. The question is with results like that who would want to change with it. You'd never know it by looking at her but three and a half year old Mandy is iron deficient Mandy's mom Cathy Yates says so much her 2 year old son who is a little under the weather when we visited their wake forest home was very sick when he was born and he lost a lot of blood at one time and his hemoglobin was very low.

His iron level. So his hemoglobin was kind of drastically lower. And so he definitely I think got him immediately and both you know little kids always have a hard time eating things I need in my kids both have always have low iron up until recently. Kathy says their health has improved thanks to the Supplemental Nutritional program for women infants and children or wick and Cathy's own health has also improved. She's on the program because she's expecting her third child Wicca's nutrition program and it's for pregnant women infants and children up to age 5. And there Miriam Petersen is the director of one of the largest Wyck programs in the state. The one run out of the way County Health Department. Quite. Yes. Marian Peterson we itself is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered by county health departments to be eligible for wick like Kathy and her children. There must be a nutrition related health problem and a family must be

low to moderate income. The Yates family income is moderate right now as Kathy's husband studies to be a church music minister as basically this isn't a poverty program it's basically a program for children that are vulnerable. And we're looking for children that are vulnerable because they have very low income backgrounds or low income backgrounds. Children who are vulnerable because they have a nutrition related health need. And in many of the cases the children are also vulnerable because they come from families that aren't able to adequately support or advocate for them. Part of the support is educating mothers about nutrition. This is how Wicca differs from a food stamp program. Just a little bit something in your stomach. Nutrition counselors like Bobby Gallagher help understand what foods are necessary and healthy for their children and for pregnant moms. Every you know we talk about the five food groups in every food group has some important nutrient that is

needed for that baby and for that mom to keep her strong and healthy watch she's pregnant. So you know they don't realize that it's really important to eat a variety of foods in a variety of good foods. After receiving nutritional counseling with recipients like half they are then given vouchers to come here to the grocery store. Now under the guidelines Kathy can only purchase certain foods that are high in nutritional value. Those foods include peanut butter juice you know cheese and eggs to name a few. The question is could the cart stop here in North Carolina the General Assembly appropriates one point two million dollars a year for quick and despite her efforts to reform the welfare system which is one social program Representative Sherry Berry does not want to cut. The program is one of the programs that I believe is very successful and really does what it's intended to do. There have been over 70 evaluations done on the weight program and the results have been quite positive and I think it's a very worthwhile

program. As worthwhile as it seems which is now one of the nutritional programs who's funding is at risk in Congress currently 86 million dollars is given to Wyck in categorical funding by Uncle Sam. A proposal being considered by a House committee calls converting that funding to block grants and allowing the states to divvy up the dollars themselves. The concern is that more state control might lead to inconsistent standards for with recipients around the country. It's a question that faces much debate and a question that could greatly affect three and a half year old Mandy from Wake Forest and First District Congresswoman Eva Klain will be in Greenville on Saturday to discuss the wick program and to support people like Mandy and her family. If you're interested in attending that meeting takes place this Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the JSH rose high school auditorium 600 West Arlington Boulevard in Greenville. And Congressman Richard Burr will talk to us shortly about funding changes for Wick. But

first are women watching their health when it comes to breast cancer. Michel Louis is up next with that story and the rest of today's news Hello Michel. Hi Mary Lou. That evening everyone. A bill that would allow competition among telephone companies for local telephone service passed unanimously in the state House of Representatives today. Supporters of the bill say technological advances and the break up of telephone monopolies over the last decade mean that competition for local service is an idea whose time has come. The deregulation of the telephone local exchange service is a matter that is coming to this state as it will in all of the states and the matter is really how it's going to be accomplished. But the argument to say you know is what is end a vast interest to consumer concerns had been raised in committee about both establishing a level playing field for competition and maintaining reliable universal and inexpensive local phone

service for customers to allay those concerns Representative Miller amended the bill before it passed today to require periodic legislative review of the process of deregulation. House Republicans are also working on fulfilling a contract promise to streamline and shorten death penalty appeals. Yesterday an Appropriations Committee began debate on a bill to eliminate funding for the state's Death Penalty Resource Center an agency that provides research and other assistance to defense lawyers in capital cases. Burley Mitchell chief justice of North Carolina Supreme Court pointed out to the committee that the U.S. Supreme Court requires both death penalty appeals and the appointment of state funded attorneys for indigent capital defendants. He said that the Death Penalty Resource Center provides necessary services in these cases services that would cost far more if individual lawyers were billing the state for them. But Bill sponsor Larry justice today vowed to continue his fight to defund the Resource Center which he claims is so biased against the death penalty that it tries to impede the appeals

process rather than make sure cases are handled properly the first time. Because of backlogs and county courts. Chief Justice Burley Mitchell has ordered also period court judges to stop circuit writing and return home for three months. Mitchell wants judges to report to him on how badly they are running behind. Then he will take judges and prosecutors from smooth running counties and loan them to those with clogged court dockets. The chief justice says he's reacting to concerns of elected officials and the public who think the courts aren't doing enough to address the crime problem. Women and 24 eastern North Carolina counties will participate in a national study on breast cancer screening. Researchers at USC Chapel Hill will oversee the three year project which will establish the Carolina mammography registry. The study will give researchers insight about women who do go for mammograms and others who slip through the cracks. North Carolina is important to the research because it represents a large rural population with a high percentage of African-American women.

Today it was windy but skies were clear across most of North Carolina highs in the mountains were in the 30s while the rest of the state saw temperatures in the 40s. Tonight it will be clear and cold throughout the state with a hard freeze expected almost everywhere. Lows in the northern mountains will be in the teens and elsewhere it'll only get into the 20s. With the exception of Elizabeth City where it will be 30 degrees tomorrow will be a pretty day with lots of sunshine and high temperatures mostly in the 50s. US Air will cut 240 daily flights company wide by July. Those cutbacks include pulling U.S. Air Service out of Albert Jay Ellis airport in Onslow County this May. However U.S. Air plans to add 70 new flights including service to the west coast from its hub at Charlotte Douglas International Airport. The flight reductions along with the addition of the new flights will yield an overall reduction in the airline's capacity of about 5

percent. The cutbacks are part of US Air's efforts to save more than 100 million dollars. The airline lost 600 million last year. The stock market finished mixed today. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up about four points to close at thirty nine eighty three point thirty nine. But declining issues led gainers by a narrow margin on volume of 320 million shares. The Standard Poor's 500 index was slightly higher. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose nearly half a point. And now for some stocks of North Carolina interest. Thank you. Our guest tonight joins us via satellite from Washington

D.C.. He is freshman Congressman Richard Burr a Republican representing North Carolina's 5th District which spans all or part of 14 counties in the northwest corner of the state. The fifth district includes the city of Winston-Salem and Congressman berth thank you so much for being our guest tonight. Thank you. Republicans appear to be really pressing forward as far as the Republican Contract is concerned. What's your personal impression about the gains that have been taken so far. Well we've made some fundamental changes in what happens in Congress and I think the American people said on the November 8th election we want change we want to see the institution as a functional institution I think that's what we've tried to do in fact with the contract all we've done is tried to apply common sense to legislation that was already on the books. I think it's the second half of the year where we will actually tackle some of the tougher issues like health care and nuclear waste disposal but right now we're plan commonsense which the American people really wondered why we never did.

Well of course one of the items then in your contract was the balanced budget amendment which was passed by the House but defeated in the Senate. How do you see that as a setback. I mean is that considered something very large As far as a setback for the Republican Party. Well we're going to offer in the house and I think the Senate Senate will offer something similar. Major cuts in the spending of government in the fiscal year 96 budget. Those will be out as we move into the summer and I think we'll tell the show the American people really that we're serious about balancing the budget in the House and in the Senate. It would be nice to have the balanced budget is a far wall there. But as long as we can maintain the current majorities in the House and the Senate then we can be fiscally responsible with the taxpayers money. Our fear is that every two years the House could change and those people who may join the House of Representatives may not be as committed to make sure that we're fiscally responsible.

You don't feel that there are other ways to be fiscally responsible except for a balanced budget amendment then. Well certainly will make a lot of progress. We've had progress in the past that has only fizzled out. We need to make sure that this effort doesn't fizzle out. And by having the balanced budget amendment that would have made sure that this was a really a campaign that continued until we were successful. I'm confident that we're going to do a lot in 100 forth Congress hopefully in 100 fifth Congress in 106 Congress and as we get near the year 2000 taxpayers will feel like we have been responsible with their money and with the budget. A couple other issues that I would like your position on first of all term limits. While term limits I personally am in favor of as a matter of fact I have a self-imposed 10 year limit. I am a co-sponsor of the six year limit in the House and the 12 year limit in the house. I think that we desperately need term limits even though we had a large turnover in 1904. The need still

exist for generational change in Washington and I'll do everything in my power to make sure that term limits pass. There are certainly those that campaigned against term limits. They were open about the fact and I don't see people switching votes. But I see him holding to what they campaigned on. And unfortunately if that holds true I don't know that we have 290 votes to pass term limits in 100 for Congress. Another one that I'd like your position on then is welfare reform. While where welfare reform I believe is something that all the American people want to see. We want to really bring those who are under federal assistance out of the trap that we've created form. We realize to do that we have to become creative. That it's no longer be on one program and off another that we're going to have to redesign a system to bring these people off of federal assistance put them into the workforce and and in many cases that may mean a continuation of funds or partial participation for

some period thereafter. We are compassionate. Contrary to what the national media has made us sound like and I think that every member of Congress is committed to make sure that the system works that we're no longer dealing with a mentality of containment trying to keep a problem from getting worse. But they were actually trying to come up with solutions to crime and to welfare and and to hunger in this country and its solutions are not something that we've searched for in the past. In speaking of that hunger and assistance issues with the little time I have left with you Congressman Barr would you please also tell me a little bit how you personally stand on the issue of we just did a story on the wick program and the possibility of changing it from categorical funding to block grant funding. How do you feel about that. Well fundamentally we have to change. Where the programs are being decided designed and implemented away from Washington into the community. As I just said we can deal with the legislation here that force is

containment but we can't come with legislation that solves problems in 50 states in every community. Our attempt is to make sure that that funding goes to the community and that we challenge the talents of business leaders and nonprofit organizations as well as elected officials locally to make sure that we have programs designed to solve the problem versus just contain it. OK well very good thank you so much for joining us and we've run out of time but we'd like to have you back on as our guest again in the near future to talk about more programs and issues that will be facing Congress thank you so much Congress not are for to a thank you ever think of hiking the Appalachian Trail or strolling round the North Carolina Zoo. Do you like to visit places from the past or has the past ever haunted you from outdoor drama to women's health. North Carolina now has explored it all and we've compiled brochures to share our information with you. Send a self-addressed stamped envelope to North Carolina now P.O. Box 1 4 9 0 0 on

TNC 2 7 7 0 9. Now was that great barbecue place. Well it's tournaments time the A.S.C. tourney tips off tonight in Greensboro when NC State meets Duke in the play in game. The winner of tonight's contest will play top seed Wake Forest tomorrow. And for those of you watching you and see TV tonight and maybe just checking in occasionally on the game. Coming up on festival will talk business with financial wizard Warren Buffett festival as our month long pledge drive to raise the necessary funding we need for programs like Warren Buffett's terrific special. We'd appreciate hearing from you so call the number on your screen to help us during this critical time. Now we'll be back tomorrow night but I'll see you just in a few minutes for festival 95. Good night everyone. Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks Thanks

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