Latest news with #Fitzwater
USA Today
17-05-2025
- Business
- USA Today
Southwest Airlines to pay 1 cent in lawsuit over Hispanic scholarship program
Southwest Airlines to pay 1 cent in lawsuit over Hispanic scholarship program Show Caption Hide Caption The companies standing up to Trump on DEI Companies like Costco and Levi's are rejecting the White House's position on diversity, equity and inclusion. A U.S. judge signaled he will order Southwest Airlines LUV.N to pay 1 cent to end a lawsuit by a conservative group alleging that a now-defunct program awarding free flights to Hispanic college students was discriminatory. U.S. District Judge Sidney Fitzwater on Wednesday rejected a request by Edward Blum's American Alliance for Equal Rights to address the merits of its case, after Southwest "unconditionally surrendered" by scrapping its ¡Lánzate! program. Blum has tried for decades to remove racial considerations from parts of American life, including a successful push to essentially end affirmative action in college admissions. U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has made removing diversity, equity and inclusion policies from society a hallmark of his second White House term. Southwest's ¡Lánzate! program had since 2004 provided assistance to 1,500 Hispanic undergraduate and graduate students who lived at least 200 miles (322 km) from campus. Workplace diversity: What is DEI and why is it so divisive? What you need to know. Fitzwater said it would waste time and money to keep litigating whether the program violated a Civil War-era law barring racial bias in contracting, because the plaintiff achieved "total victory" after Southwest effectively gave up. "Granting an obstinate plaintiff total victory upon the defendant's unconditional surrender is a reasonable response to the problems and needs confronting the court's fair administration of justice," the Dallas-based judge wrote. Fitzwater gave both sides until May 28 to object. Southwest, based in Dallas, had no immediate comment on Thursday. Lawyers for the plaintiff did not immediately respond to requests for comment. While the plaintiff had sought 1 cent in damages, its lawyers said the case's merits should be addressed because it concerned "issues of substantial public importance" regarding intentional ethnic discrimination by a major company. "Southwest cannot avoid liability by paying the Alliance via a judgment that's not really a judgment, any more than it could avoid liability by paying the Alliance via no judgment," the lawyers wrote. The case is American Alliance for Equal Rights v Southwest Airlines Co, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas, No. 24-01209. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bill Berkrot
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Southwest Airlines likely to pay 1 cent to end DEI-related lawsuit
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - A U.S. judge signaled he will order Southwest Airlines to pay 1 cent to end a lawsuit by a conservative group alleging that a now-defunct program awarding free flights to Hispanic college students was discriminatory. U.S. District Judge Sidney Fitzwater on Wednesday rejected a request by Edward Blum's American Alliance for Equal Rights to address the merits of its case, after Southwest "unconditionally surrendered" by scrapping its ¡Lánzate! program. Blum has tried for decades to remove racial considerations from parts of American life, including a successful push to essentially end affirmative action in college admissions. U.S. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has made removing diversity, equity and inclusion policies from society a hallmark of his second White House term. Southwest's ¡Lánzate! program had since 2004 provided assistance to 1,500 Hispanic undergraduate and graduate students who lived at least 200 miles (322 km) from campus. Fitzwater said it would waste time and money to keep litigating whether the program violated a Civil War-era law barring racial bias in contracting, because the plaintiff achieved "total victory" after Southwest effectively gave up. "Granting an obstinate plaintiff total victory upon the defendant's unconditional surrender is a reasonable response to the problems and needs confronting the court's fair administration of justice," the Dallas-based judge wrote. Fitzwater gave both sides until May 28 to object. Southwest, based in Dallas, had no immediate comment on Thursday. Lawyers for the plaintiff did not immediately respond to requests for comment. While the plaintiff had sought 1 cent in damages, its lawyers said the case's merits should be addressed because it concerned "issues of substantial public importance" regarding intentional ethnic discrimination by a major company. "Southwest cannot avoid liability by paying the Alliance via a judgment that's not really a judgment, any more than it could avoid liability by paying the Alliance via no judgment," the lawyers wrote. The case is American Alliance for Equal Rights v Southwest Airlines Co, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas, No. 24-01209.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Updated: Frederick County executive, council to introduce overlay zone for data centers
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater and all seven members of the Frederick County Council on Tuesday announced their intent to limit data center development to the area around the former Alcoa Eastalco Works site near Adamstown. The bipartisan bill would create an overlay zone for data centers that would consist of no more than 1% of Frederick County's total land, or approximately 4,000 acres. When applied, overlay zones add to or modify the regulations attached to a parcel's underlying zone without changing the underlying zone itself. The former Alcoa Eastalco site is approximately 2,200 acres, leaving the door open for other nearby parcels to be included in the overlay zone. After the overlay zone is created through legislation, the County Council will have to separately approve a map of the overlay zone. Once the map is approved, owners of properties that are within the overlay zone, but not zoned limited or general industrial, would have to apply for rezoning before data center development could occur on their land. All applications for zoning map amendments are reviewed by the Frederick County Planning Commission and voted on by the Frederick County Council. "Our residents have been clear that they will accept a reasonable amount of data center development, but they will not tolerate the sprawl that occurred in Northern Virginia," Fitzwater, a Democrat, said during a press conference on Tuesday. "The compromise that we are announcing will limit data center development to a narrow slice of the county where it is already occurring, and it will give the County Council powerful tools to prevent future sprawl," she continued. The announcement on Tuesday came as the County Council prepared for a third reading and potential final vote on a bill to establish new sitting and design criteria for data centers. That bill is sponsored by Council President Brad Young and Council Member Renee Knapp, who are both Democrats. Members of the County Council have been at odds for months about how best to regulate data center development in Frederick County. In September 2024, Fitzwater announced that her administration would introduce to the council a bill to establish a data center floating zone. Floating zones are districts that, when applied, replace the underlying zoning of a specific parcel of land. In its final report, Fitzwater's data center work group recommended the creation of a floating zone that would have to be applied by the County Council over qualified parcels before data centers could be developed there. Fitzwater ultimately pulled the floating zone bill after previously expressing concerns that the zone could pit communities against each other and politicize the approval process for data centers. After Fitzwater pulled her floating zone bill, Council Member Steve McKay, a Republican, and Council Member Jerry Donald, a Democrat, drafted their own version — but Young declined to put it on the agenda before the council had finished its work on his and Knapp's bill. "I've been a strong advocate to ensure that the council be the final vote ... in terms of deciding where and where we do not build data centers," McKay said during the press conference on Tuesday. "This new data center overlay approach satisfies that requirement." Council Member Renee Knapp, who co-chaired Fitzwater's data centers work group, said during the press conference on Tuesday that the proposed zoning bill complements her and Young's data center siting and design bill. Knapp said the zoning bill will also address "a key workgroup recommendation and community concern" — establishing an upper limit on data center development in Frederick County based on total facility square footage, total land acreage, energy usage or another metric. In an interview after the press conference on Tuesday, Fitzwater said she does not have the same concerns about the proposed overlay zone as she did about the floating zone. "With an overlay, it can't float," Fitzwater said. "We're putting it in a specific place because we feel that that's where that type of development goes." The proposed overlay zone for data centers marks the first time in the history of charter government that all seven members of the Frederick County Council have co-sponsored a measure, Fitzwater said. It is not clear exactly when the proposed overlay zone will come before the County Council, but Fitzwater said it is likely to happen "pretty soon."
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Moore signs local bills aimed at safeguarding child victims, increasing housing stock
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) on Tuesday signed a tranche of bills with local sponsors, including two filed on behalf of Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater. Sen. William Folden (R-4) and Del. Karen Simpson (D-3) cross-filed SB333 and HB442 to allow statements made by a child to a professional forensic interviewer to be read in court in exception to the rule against hearsay. The measure was part of Fitzwater's legislative package for the 2025 Maryland General Assembly session, which began on Jan. 8 and ended on April 7. Another bill, HB492, was first requested by Fitzwater (D) at a forum with the state delegation in December. That bill, sponsored by Simpson and co-sponsored by several other Frederick County delegation members, will authorize Frederick County government's human resources team to use fingerprint-supported background checks for certain prospective county employees or volunteers. Currently, the county government relies on the Frederick County Sheriff's Office to conduct criminal history checks for all prospective county employees and volunteers. However, that process takes six to eight weeks on average, leading to delays in hiring and onboarding, Fitzwater said. County spokesperson Vivian Laxton wrote in an email on Tuesday that the county's human resources division is 'looking forward to reassessing the level of screening that is appropriate for the County's various safety- and security-sensitive positions, which includes County employees who work with vulnerable populations.' Laxton said the change will not have to be approved by the Frederick County Council. Also signed into law on Tuesday was a bill sponsored by Del. Kris Fair (D-3) on behalf of the Housing Authority of the City of Frederick. HB1085 will exempt certain real property owned by nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities from state and local property taxes. Nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities would instead pay a fee in lieu of taxes. During a news conference recapping the 2025 legislative session on Monday, Fair said HB1085 will 'help expand the reach and ability for housing authorities across the state to build the necessary housing needed today.' Fair said the fee-in-lieu option for nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities was already available in three Maryland jurisdictions through a pilot program. 'We've seen huge results with it,' Fair said of the change. 'We're looking forward to continuing to expand those results especially into Frederick, which was not part of that pilot.' Other bills with Frederick County sponsors signed into law by Moore on Tuesday include: * SB84/HB22 * , sponsored by Sen. Paul Corderman and Rep. William Valentine (both R-2): requires the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services to conduct an annual study on individuals' residence prior to incarceration and on release from a state correctional facility * SB502/HB1200 * , sponsored by Corderman and Valentine: authorizes the governing body of a county or municipality to provide a property tax credit for judicial officers in addition to law enforcement officers and rescue workers HB241 * , sponsored by Simpson: allows a spouse to disclose a confidential communication between spouses occurring during their marriage in a criminal action in which one spouse is charged with a crime against the other spouse * HB300 * , sponsored by Del. Ken Kerr (D-3): increases the rate at which nonprofit organizations receiving state-funded grants or contracts may be reimbursed for indirect costs from 10% to 15% * HB293 * , sponsored by Del. Jesse Pippy (R-4) and co-sponsored by Simpson: allows the testimony of a child abuse victim be taken outside a courtroom and shown in the courtroom by closed circuit television. Moore signed some Frederick County bills into law on April 8. Three more rounds of bill signings are planned on May 6, 13 and 20. He will have until May 27 to sign or veto bills passed by the state legislature during this year's session. A bill also can become law if the governor takes no action.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Frederick faces budget challenges from shake-up of federal workforce, contracts in limbo
FREDERICK, Md. () — A new fiscal year approaches for Frederick County, and an unsettled federal government landscape is presenting challenges to County Executive Jessica Fitzwater. The county executive's budget comes in at $981,919,496, but sudden turmoil from the new administration in Washington, D.C. may shift priorities for her fiscal strategists. Hagerstown hosts 2025 State of the City event 'So many of the decisions affecting federal agencies right now impact decisions we make right here in Frederick County,' Fitzwater said. In just the past month, Fitzwater said jobless claims have jumped five-fold. 'We're seeing an increase in workforce service who were either federal employees or federal contractors,' Fitzwater said during a press conference. 'They either lost their job or anticipate losing their job.' With that as a backdrop, the county executive is still managing a fast-growing region and proposes a new elementary school to accommodate close to 900 students. She also proposes renovations to Brunswick High School. According to Frederick County Schools' chief operation officer, Paul Lebo, there is a 'significant need' to address the schools' 'aging infrastructure.' Fighting climate change brings activists to Hood College conference Fitzwater has scheduled a public hearing on her proposed budget for Saturday. The County Council will hold a hearing on the spending plan on Wednesday, March 19, at 7 p.m. at Winchester Hall, 12 E. Church St. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
