Rules

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court, taking its first look at the 1996 welfare reform law, appeared poised yesterday to block states from giving less assistance to some new residents than to long-term residents.At a hearing on the constitutionality of a "two-tier" system of welfare payments, most of the justices made negative comments and aggressively questioned a Clinton administration attorney and a lawyer for California who tried to defend that approach.Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, noting that the court has ruled that states cannot discriminate against new state residents, told U.S. Solicitor General Seth P. Waxman, "I don't see how the federal government can do it, anymore than a state could."

WILMINGTON, Del. -- In a marathon finish to a 12-week trial, the jurors who will decide whether Thomas Capano is guilty of killing his young lover were sequestered last night after more than eight hours of closing arguments by prosecution and defense attorneys."

Ruling against a developer trying to build 27 townhouses in Ellicott City's Historic District, a Howard Circuit Court judge said this week that a county commission acted in time to block the proposed project.Developer Michael Pfau was seeking to build the homes on Fels Lane and applied for a permit before the county's Historic District Commission last year. The commission voted against Pfau's plans Nov. 5, but it did not submit a written denial until Dec. 30 -- nine days after the 45-day deadline.

A FEDERAL appeals court has blocked efforts to reduce air pollution and make it safer for millions of Americans to breathe more easily. It's a curious decision that will surely be appealed again and, likely, won. It must be, if the nation is to effectively clean up our air.The Environmental Protection Agency's plan to cut particulate (soot) emissions and smog-causing, ground-level ozone was not based on "intelligible principle," the panel of judges ruled. Congress could not delegate such broad authority to the agency, the judges said.

EVERY YEAR a few midshipmen are "separated" from the Naval Academy for sexual misconduct. For some of these individuals who are close to completing four mentally and physically demanding years, the process may seem incredibly unfair and arbitrary.It is true that academy rules prohibit romantic and sexual relations between midshipmen that are commonplace at other institutions of higher learning. But the academy's policy is no different from what the Navy demands of its officers once they join the fleet -- a work environment much different from the corporate, government or academic world most college graduates enter.

NEW YORK -- The NBA is considering rule changes next season that would limit contact away from the ball and quicken the pace of the game.A special committee headed by deputy commissioner Russ Granik and senior vice president of basketball operations Rod Thorn met for about six hours yesterday to discuss possible changes.The recommendations for change come after a season during which teams averaged 91.6 points, down about 10 points from four years ago. Commissioner David Stern and Granik said Monday that the league would consider rules changes to improve the quality of play.

WASHINGTON -- The Securities and Exchange Commission approved rules aimed at giving investors more information about tender offers and mergers, and easing regulatory delays for some corporate combinations.SEC officials described the regulatory moves as the most sweeping change of merger and acquisition rules in a generation. "It's a win for investors, a win for companies. I don't see any losers in this," said Brian Lane, the SEC's corporation finance director.The changes will let companies get more information about business combinations to investors sooner than current regulations allow.

THE PREDICAMENT of James Stuart, the man who thinks it "ludicrous" that the Columbia Association is taking him to court for violating homeowner covenants, is neither new nor unique to the planned city Jim Rouse built in Howard County. Over the years, we have seen countless conflicts involving covenants and similar fracases over alleged zoning infractions.These disputes pit the notion that a person ought to be able to do what he wants on his property against rules designed to keep neighborhoods attractive and property values stable.

MOSCOW - Like a weekend guest who arrives to find the family in the heat of a bitter and raucous quarrel, President Clinton came to Russia yesterday, squaring his shoulders and making the best of a distinctly awkward occasion.The fight here is not one that can be politely ignored; it's too big and possibly too dangerous for that. There's a lot of crockery in the air. Maybe what this family needs is a little candid advice from the outside.Clinton - respectfully, calmly, directly - plunged in."

BOSTON -- So what do we have here? The economy is humming along, the country's at peace, even the battle of the sexes seems scattered along the Lewinsky Line, and suddenly the religious right is focusing on homosexuality as a threat to the republic.If 1994 was the Year of the Angry White Male, is 1998 being cast as the Year of the Angry Heterosexual?You don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to see some political method behind the madness. First James Dobson of Focus on the Family goes to Washington to tell the Republican leadership to get with the program.

It is no exaggeration to suggest that Hereford High School's boys cross country team lost the Baltimore County championship by a thread last weekend. In a decision that only a high school referee - or perhaps a Spandex salesman - can fully appreciate, the stitching on an undergarment determined the outcome of a local athletic event. There's no dispute over the facts of the matter. The Hereford boys team finished first at the county championship with the lowest combined total points (as scored by order of finish)

Maryland's election board voted unanimously Thursday to impose stricter rules on referendum petition drives, based on a Court of Appeals ruling that critics say will make it much harder for citizens to take an issue to the voters. The board voted 4-0 with one member absent. Under the new rules, people signing petitions must use either their full name, including middle initials, or sign their name exactly as it appears on election board voting rolls. In addition, a printed name required on a petition must exactly match the accompanying signature.

If you think the Bush administration has done all the damage it can to the rules that protect our health, environment and personal rights, think again. In coming weeks, the lame-duck team is expected to issue last-minute rules that could gut the legal protections of the Endangered Species Act, give the FBI greatly expanded powers to spy on ordinary Americans and limit access to care for women seeking abortions, among dozens of other controversial new interpretations of federal law that are being rushed through required administrative reviews with extraordinary haste.

Maryland's highest court will convene today for a hearing on changes to foreclosure rules that would conform with new legislation that gives homeowners more notification and a longer waiting period before their homes are sold. The hearing by the Court of Appeals follows a top judiciary subcommittee meeting yesterday in which officials discussed further reforms and changes to help ease a foreclosure crisis that is engulfing the state and country. While the proposed rules address the issue of giving homeowners greater notice to allow them to settle debts and potentially avoid foreclosure, the regulations should also be clearer on homeowners' rights and responsibilities in the interim, said Linda M. Schuett, an Annapolis attorney and vice chairwoman of the Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure, which met yesterday.

When Cathy Reese started playing lacrosse at Maryland in 1995, there was no restraining line. Every player on the field could be in the scoring area. Now the Terrapins' coach, Reese is often met with amazement when she tells her players about her college days. "I tell them about how we didn't even have a restraining line and they're like, `What?' They can't believe it. They think it's the old dinosaur age, so long ago." The restraining line came to the women's game in 1998, Reese's senior year at Maryland, limiting each team to seven field players within 30 yards of the end line.

It's hard to imagine a worse time to cut billions in federal Medicaid spending, but that's what the Bush administration is doing. The program provides bedrock medical care for the poorest Americans, who are already feeling the most pain from an economy in the doldrums, as well as the soaring costs of gasoline and food. A bipartisan, veto-proof majority in the House has already passed legislation delaying imposition of the cuts for a year. The Senate should do the same. White House officials say new rules restricting future Medicaid spending on rehabilitation, outpatient care, transportation and graduate education are necessary to close loopholes used by states to "inappropriately enhance their claimed medical expenditures."

Older workers are more vulnerable to losing their jobs than younger ones when companies cut costs. They know this instinctively, even though the law of the land forbids age-related discrimination. More experienced workers generally earn more than their younger counterparts. It is illegal to fire them based on their age, but courts long have ruled that cost-cutting is an acceptable reason for firing higher-paid employees, even when the cuts fall disproportionately on workers older than 40. A proposed rule change by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission would not change that, but it would tweak the rules in a way that worker advocates say is positive.

The NFL's Thursday night season opener will match the Super Bowl-champion New York Giants and the Washington Redskins, with the game possibly starting 1 1/2 hours earlier to avoid clashing with the Republican National Convention. The game is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. Sept. 4 - the concluding night of the Republican convention - and will be televised by NBC. League spokesman Greg Aiello said yesterday that the NFL is talking with the network about changing the game's starting time to 7 p.m. The Redskins' participation was confirmed to the Associated Press by a person familiar with the NFL schedule who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the league has not announced it. Seahawks -- Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Trufant and Seattle have agreed to a six-year, $50.2 million contract that runs through 2013.

Nurses and social workers who provide health services to hundreds of Howard County's most vulnerable residents will lose their jobs under new Medicaid rules, local officials say. The new rules will mean the loss of $701,000 annually to the county and the elimination of 13 case managers who visit and arrange health services for low-income residents, said Dr. Peter L. Beilenson, Howard's health officer. "It affects from the very youngest to the very old," Beilenson said. In addition, the county's Citizen Services Department, which includes the Office on Aging, will lose another $700,000 a year, director Susan Rosenbaum said.

Maryland officials warned yesterday that new federal regulations could disrupt medical and social services to as many as 200,000 poor adults and children in the state, many of them with disabilities or chronic health problems. John G. Folkemer, a deputy state health secretary, told members of the House Health and Government Operations Committee that up to $75 million the state gets in federal Medicaid matching funds is at risk if the rules take effect as proposed March 3. "Every single program we have in the state is out of compliance with these new regulations," he said.