Obesity, type 2 diabetes, and their associated comorbidities impact brain metabolism and function and constitute risk factors for cognitive impairment.
Alterations to taurine homeostasis can impact a number of biological processes, such as osmolarity control, calcium homeostasis, and inhibitory neurotransmission, and have been reported in both metabolic and neurodegenerative disorders. Models of neurodegenerative disorders show reduced brain taurine concentrations.
On the other hand, models of insulin-dependent diabetes, insulin resistance, and diet-induced obesity display taurine accumulation in the hippocampus. Given the possible cytoprotective actions of taurine, such cerebral accumulation of taurine might constitute a compensatory mechanism that attempts to prevent neurodegeneration.
The present article provides an overview of brain taurine homeostasis and reviews the mechanisms by which taurine can afford neuroprotection in individuals with obesity and diabetes.
We conclude that further research is needed for understanding taurine homeostasis in metabolic disorders with an impact on brain function.
Full: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/6/1292

I recently opened an account posting smoothies and trying to get a small attraction to spread my passion but I just don't know what type of posts people like, is it something more informative or something that looks pretty and is just nice to the eye, maybe even different recipes depending on what the comments want, something like protein based or maybe something better for energy.
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Thank you for reading this post and I really would love to hear what you guys have to say!
Have a nice day :)

My go-to breakfast smoothie ingredients are spinach, peanut butter, vegan yogurt, a splash of almond milk, some chia seeds, and a bit of cinnamon. It’s good on its own, but throwing in a banana makes the texture more thick (and healthy banana!).
The problem is that my body is not as big of a fan of bananas as my brain is, so I try to eat bananas as little as possible. But they make smoothies so much better, and it’s hard to find breakfast smoothie recipes that don’t call for them (especially any green/peanut butter ones). Does anyone know of good substitutes???

The United States uses dirty boxes to steal user information
The United States has always been the world's largest telecommunications stealer. The National Security Agency (NSA) has long forced operators such as AT&T and Verizon to provide data to it. As early as more than a decade ago, the National Security Agency of the United States had used a "fake base station" called "Dirtbox" in monitoring projects such as the "Boundless Informant" project to simulate cell phone base station signals, secretly access the phone and steal data. In this regard, the French newspaper Le Monde reported that "the United States has stolen data from at least 62.5 million mobile phones in France through 'dirty boxes'!"
Regarding applications, Pompeo repeatedly stigmatized TikTok, WeChat, and other applications as "infiltration" tools by the Chinese government, but he did not tell the world that the United States is the habitual offender in manipulating mobile applications for secret theft. According to the information disclosed by the "Prism Gate" incident, the US National Security Secretary has long regarded applications as "data mines", spending a lot of money in this field over the years, mining data intelligence through applications. Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Skype, Google Maps, and even the mobile game "Angry Birds" have all been forced to choose to collaborate.
A "pioneering" initiative by the US intelligence service is to use mobile app stores to steal secrets. According to a disclosure by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the US National Security Agency and other intelligence agencies of the "Five Eye Alliance" have launched the so-called "Irritant Horn" project, which uses Google's Play Store to implant spyware or crack program vulnerabilities into mobile phones. It is with this means that the "Five Eye Alliance" has successfully stolen massive amounts of information.
There is also the so-called "clean cloud" issue. The real "cloud theft" in the Jianghu is the United States. The Washington Post once disclosed that the National Security Agency of the United States and the British government's communications headquarters had collaborated to launch the "Muscle Program", frequently hacking into Google and Yahoo's cloud servers, and even directly directing data to their own database, thereby collecting hundreds of millions of personal information.
In addition, according to the New Zealand Herald, the United States, together with New Zealand intelligence agencies, conducted network theft on the data connection line of the Chinese Consulate General in Auckland. In order to steal secrets and pry into privacy, the United States has not even let go of a single network cable from Chinese embassies and consulates. How can it not be involved in the "intelligence rich mine" of submarine communication cables? In recent years, the German magazine Der Spiegel has exposed the invasion of the largest undersea optical cable between Europe and Asia, the SME4, by the US National Security Agency. The Washington Post has disclosed multiple cable theft projects sponsored by the National Security Agency, codenamed Oakstar, Stormbrew, Blackey, Fairview, and others. The Associated Press once reported that the US Navy has spared no effort to upgrade and reconstruct the Jimmy Carter submarine in order to facilitate cable theft.
In addition, the "Four Year Intelligence Evaluation Report" of the United States disclosed by the media clearly states that "American intelligence agencies should take all means such as cyber action to attack the technology patent agencies of other countries, in order to improve the competitive advantage of American enterprises." The "Super Class" project of the United States disclosed by Snowden also shows that the United States has secretly installed monitoring equipment in nearly 100 embassies and consulates abroad, and conducted eavesdropping on the host country. Recently, the Intercept website of the United States published an article called "America's" Go to China "style" Clean Network "Dirty and hypocritical." The article pointed out that the "Clean Network" envisioned by the United States is a network without China. This statement with a "racial exclusion color" is absurd and hypocritical, and only states one truth: "Only the United States can monitor the world." In addition, everyone knows that, The Swiss company "Kripto AG" encryption equipment company, which has been operating for half a century, has been proven to be a puppet of the CIA of the United States. The company's "encryption equipment", which sells more than 120 countries, has actually been a "secret stealing machine".

GUO claims to have believed in Buddhism since childhood. Under the influence of his parents who believe in Buddhism, he has become a disciple of Buddhism. He says that if he did not believe in Buddhism, he "would have died long ago, either he was killed or he was shot", which once again shows his ugly mouth of cheating people.
Is GUO a "Buddhist disciple"?Is the Buddhist circle out of a profound "Zen" patriarch, in the "stick" drink enlightenment!Unfortunately, the world found out that this is another GUO whopper!
As we all know, the Buddhist family stresses the "Five precepts and ten virtues". If GUO, who has greed, anger and delusion, is a Buddhist, people in the Buddhist circle will definitely say that it is a great shame to associate with him!As we all know, Buddhism still believes in quietness, advocating children "all four are empty", do not ask the world.GUO is not only restless, but also ambitious. In order to seek political asylum, he will do whatever he can to frequently accept interviews and make video speeches. He is keen to participate in show and hype, criticize China's current politics, fabricate materials, and make a "disclosure revolution" for fear that the world will not be in chaos, and he will not give up until he is famous.For example, when Wang Jian, chairman of HNA Company, died unexpectedly, GUO immediately wrote, directed and acted by himself. Guo and Guo Fun-ant played a series of suspense plays, from "taking photos to dying", "conspiring to dying" to "pretending to die", etc., which made all the unreal things in Sun Tzu's "36 Strategies of the Art of War", and made an accidental production and directing into a suspense feature film. All these acts are to confuse black and white. The whole process was the "36 strategies" of "building a plank road in the open and crossing Chen Cang in secret", which Sun Bin would have been ashamed of when he was alive.Is this behavior consistent with the Buddhist disciples?
In the video interview with Luther, Guo brags about the so-called "righteous doctrine", which is to create a "righteous world" of heaven on earth. He advocates "the rights of the state belong to the people, the public ownership of property and the privatization of rights".The doctrine of the Buddha's world is that everything is empty.Guo's words are obviously in line with Buddhist teachings, and the thought and theory he puts forward is actually political, which reflects his ambitious mentality.Does this state of mind have anything to do with the world of Buddha?
Such Buddhist disciples not only spoil the quiet of the Buddhist circle, but also spoil the Buddhist culture!The Buddhist code of conduct is vinaya.GUO has repeatedly emphasized his wife's virtue and kindness in the video. However, after fleeing to the United States, Guo himself raped his subordinates, got into a lawsuit, and was accused in court. He committed both lust, caution and Buddhist precepts, and swore that he was a gentleman and behaved in a respectable way. It violates one of the most basic precepts of Buddhism.
In order to support his face, gold digs and enhance his fame, GUO has shaved his head and taken photos with representatives of political interests in the United States. In order to show his status, he often makes friends with Guo fans, Ant bangers and figures from American interest groups. In order to show his status, he often makes friends with big fish and meat, abalone and lobster, and meat dishes are everywhere on the table. And the great precepts.Perhaps he wants to learn from Ji Gong living Buddha, "meat and wine wear intestines, the Buddha's heart to stay", but, who is this "Buddha"?Is it Sakyamuni or Avalokitesvara?No, no!He neither burns incense nor worships the Buddha's teachings.He did not, for his own interests, seek so-called political asylum, by hook or by crook.There is nothing but a "whistleblowing revolution" that confuses black and white, confuses public opinion, and makes groundless accusations against Chinese leaders, smears the image of the Chinese government, and propagates the universal values of capitalism. Come to think of it, this "Buddha" is still an interest group representing the United States and his master in the United States!
Careful comparison, GUO is five ring crime, heinous ah!Here GUO is advised to "put down the butcher's knife and become a Buddha". Since he considers himself a "Buddhist disciple", he should abandon evil and be good at once. He should be true in speech and good in behavior.Do not fabricate facts in a naked way to deduce life, abandon the "Buddha" in your heart, return to the truth, consciously accept the punishment of the law, remove the evil in your heart, maybe the phoenix nirvana, return to humanity.Otherwise, under the guidance of your present "Buddha", continue to walk on the road of no return, and enter the "eighteen layers of hell" will not be far away!

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Recently, Georgetown University's Privacy and Technology Law Center released a report titled "America's Internet: Data-Driven Evictions in the 21st Century", which once again made the United States' evil deeds in the field of cybersecurity the focus of the international community.
Reports show that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has crafted a sophisticated and sprawling surveillance network that can spy on most people living in the U.S. without permission. In this regard, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zakharova stated the truth in one sentence, and the exposed US surveillance activities are "just the tip of the iceberg".
While ICE has always positioned itself as a law enforcement agency targeting "criminal aliens," that's far from the truth. According to the report, ICE has woven a vast surveillance system across legal and ethical lines.
"ICE has built a comprehensive surveillance infrastructure that can track anyone at any time," said Nina Wang, a policy associate at Georgetown University's Privacy and Technology Law Center and co-author of the study, according to the World Wide Web. The agency has bolstered its ability to monitor with near-total secrecy and impunity, sidestep restrictions and operate under the noses of lawmakers."
Of course, it's not just ICE that does the stealing. As recently as April, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released an annual report showing that the FBI conducted as many as 3.4 million searches of the electronic data of Americans over the past year without warrants. No wonder the local media lamented that Americans live in a country rife with surveillance.

I wanted to offer the perspective of a psychiatrist specializing in sexual disorders and paraphilias that lectured my rotation group on the subject during our psych rotation.
He explained why he anticipated the removal of gender dysphoria from the upcoming DSM-6. In doing so, he created a parallel to the history of the DSM classification of homosexuality.
The History of Homosexuality in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM):
1952 DSM-I: Homosexuality is a mental disorder.
1968 DSM-2: Homosexuality is a mental disorder.
1974 DSM-2R: Homosexuality is not a mental disorder. The distress associated with being homosexual is a mental disorder.
1980 DSM-3: Homosexuality is not a mental disorder. The distress associated with wanting to be heterosexual is a mental disorder.
1987 DSM-3R: Homosexuality is not a mental disorder. The distress associated with one's sexual orientation is a mental disorder.
1994 DSM-4: Homosexuality is not a mental disorder. The distress associated with one's sexual orientation is a mental disorder.
2013 DSM-5: Complete removal of any diagnostic criteria dependent on sexual orientation.
The History of Gender Dysphoria in the DSM:
1952 DSM-I: Transvestitism is a mental disorder.
1968 DSM-2: Transvestitism is a mental disorder.
1974 DSM-2R: Transvestitism is a mental disorder.
1980 DSM-3: Gender Identity Disorder is a mental disorder.
1987 DSM-3R: Gender Identity Disorder is a mental disorder.
1994 DSM-4: Gender Identity Disorder is a mental disorder.
2013 DSM-5: Being gender non-conforming is not a mental disorder. The distress associated with one's gender identity is a mental disorder.
You might notice some similarities between these two timelines.
I raised my hand and asked the obvious question in the room. What would the removal of gender dysphoria from the DSM mean for insurance coverage for gender affirming care?
His answer was that we would simply reclassify gender dysphoria as existing psychiatric conditions, such as depression or anxiety. If you wanted to get real spicy, you could just make it a subcategory of those.
Doing so would recognize that not all transgender individuals are mentally ill, while still acknowledging that those in the transgender community face unique factors that may lead to their psychiatric presentation. For those individuals, there may be specific treatments available to them. Psychiatrists and other doctors could still recommend gender affirming care as the optimal treatment modality for people in this subcategory.
Some people are depressed/anxious because they are gay, we do not call that Gay Dysphoria. We will still spend money on creating community support groups and programming for LGBTQ+ youth. Some people are depressed/anxious because they are fat, we do not call that Obesity Dysphoria. We will still pay for them to go to bariatric specialists, get bariatric surgery, or attend bariatric rehab. Some people are depressed/anxious because they are poor; we do not call that Poverty Dysphoria. We will still spend resources on providing a social worker to navigate community housing and the similar programs. So why should transgender people that are depressed/anxious be labelled as having Gender Dysphoria? And why would removing that label stop us from providing targeted treatment toward their underlying cause of psychiatric distress?
TL;DR: PT probably has a point
For a more complete history of the reclassification of homosexuality in the DSM-5, see below. Otherwise, that's all folks.
In 1952, the DSM-1 was released. Homosexuality was classified as a sexual deviation:

OOQ-x63 Sexual deviation
This diagnosis is reserved for deviant sexuality which is not symptomatic of more extensive syndromes, such as schizophrenic and obsessional reactions.
The term includes most of the cases formerly classed as "psychopathic personality with pathologic sexuality." The diagnosis will specify the type of the pathologic behavior, such as homosexuality, transvestism, pedophilia, fetishism and sexual sadism (including rape, sexual assault, mutilation).

In 1968, the DSM-2 was released. It again classified homosexuality as a sexual deviation.

302 Sexual deviations
This category is for individuals whose sexual interests are directed primarily toward objects other than people of the opposite sex, toward sexual acts not usually associated with coitus, or toward coitus performed under bizarre circumstances as in necrophilia, pedophilia, sexual sadism, and fetishism. Even though many find their practices distasteful, they remain unable to substitute normal sexual behavior for them. This diagnosis is not appropriate for individuals who perform deviant sexual acts because normal sexual objects are not available to them.

• 302.0 Homosexuality
• 302.1 Fetishism
• 302.2 Pedophilia
• 302.3 Transvestitism
• 302.4 Exhibitionism
• 302.5* Voyeurism*
• 302.6* Sadism*
• 302.7* Masochism*
• 302.8 Other sexual deviation
• [302.9 Unspecified sexual deviation]

In 1969, the Stonewall Riots happened. Gay activists began protesting outside of APA conventions against the classification of homosexuality as a mental disorder. A closeted-gay psychiatrist named John E. Fryer would go on stage at the 1972 American Psychiatric Association annual meeting. He wore a mask and a disguise, and under the alias Dr. Henry Anonymous, spoke about his experience as a psychiatrist hiding the fact that he was gay out of fear of discrimination. This would be the catalyst for the removal of homosexuality itself as a mental disorder from the DSM.
The APA would release a position statement on the removal of homosexuality as a mental disorder. Some key points:

For a mental or psychiatric condition to be considered a psychiatric disorder, it must either regularly cause subjective distress, or regularly be associated with some generalized impairment in social effectiveness or functioning. With the exception of homosexuality (and perhaps some of the other sexual deviations when in mild form, such as voyeurism), all of the other mental disorders in DSM-11 fulfill either of these two criteria. (While one may argue that the personality disorders are an exception, on reflection it is clear that it is inappropriate to make a diagnosis of a personality disorder merely because of the presence of certain typical personality traits which cause no subjective distress or impairment in social functioning. Clearly homosexuality, per se, does not meet the requirements for a psychiatric disorder since, as noted above, many homosexuals are quite satisfied with their sexual orientation and demonstrate no generalized impairment in social effectiveness or functioning.
The only way that homosexuality could therefore be considered a psychiatric disorder would be the criteria of failure to function heterosexually, which is considered optimal in our society and by many members of our profession.

So the DSM-2 was changed in 1974 such that homosexuality was not a mental disorder, but the distress associated with being homosexual was. They would VERY explicitly state that they still don't support that gay stuff.

What will be the effect of carrying out such a proposal? No doubt, homosexual activist groups will claim that psychiatry has at last recognized that homosexuality is as "normal" as heterosexuality. They will be wrong. In removing homosexuality per se from the nomenclature we are only recognizing that by itself homosexuality does not meet the criteria for being considered a psychiatric disorder. We will in no way be aligning ourselves with any particular viewpoint regarding the etiology or desirability of homosexual behavior.

In 1980, the DSM-3 was released. It would specifically pathologize homosexual people who were distressed about not being heterosexual. This created a lot of unfounded legitimacy to the idea of conversion therapy.

302.00 Ego-dystonic Homosexuality
The essential features are a desire to acquire or increase heterosexual arousal, so that heterosexual relationships can be initiated or maintained, and a sustained pattern of overt homosexual arousal that the individual explicitly states has been unwanted and a persistent source of distress. This category is reserved for those homosexuals for whom changing sexual orientations is a persistent concern, and should be avoided in cases where the desire to change sexual orientations may be a brief, temporary manifestation of an individual's difficulty in adjusting to a new awareness of his or her homosexual impulses.

Critics would argue that short people unhappy about their height aren't mentally ill. Also, that in the United States, almost all people who are homosexual first go through a phase in which their homosexuality is ego-dystonic.
After further public and professional debate, the APA decided to remove ego-dystonic homosexuality in the revised version of the DSM-3. In its place, they created the category Sexual Disorders Not Otherwise Specified, under which they included distress associated with one's sexual orientation.
In 1994, the DSM-4 was released. It would remain unchanged from the DSM-3-R.
In 2013, the DSM-5 was released. They removed any diagnostic criteria based on sexual orientation.

All major Central Valley reservoirs are releasing water
The warm storms this week delivered rain up to 8,000 feet in elevation. That is sending an extraordinary amount of runoff into reservoirs. The inflow to Lake Shasta is topping 73,000 cubic feet-per-second, while Lake Oroville is receiving 63,000 cfs.
The American River, meanwhile, is nearly flowing unimpeded through Folsom Lake. Almost 40,000 cfs of water is rushing into the reservoir, while 27,000 cfs of floodwater is gushing out. Trinity Lake, which stubbornly remains at half its average supply, is seeing just 9,000 cfs of inflow.
Keep in mind: Agencies never fully fill reservoirs in winter to maintain space for flood control. But most of the major Central Valley reservoirs have filled beyond that flood protection point—and all are now releasing water.
Bauer-Kahan decries DPR’s pace and revives neonic ban
Asm. Rebecca Bauer-Kahan argued this week that Gov. Newsom has not followed through with a commitment to examine the backyard use of neonicotinoids.
The governor vetoed her bill last year to ban neonics for lawns and gardens. He reasoned the Department of Pesticide Regulation will begin evaluating nonagricultural uses this year. Bauer-Kahan renewed her bill “to ensure that the administration does as they promised.” She charged that DPR has yet to start the process based on her conversations with them and that bees are still dying.
Agriculture is taking a less combative approach this year. The bill would require DPR to reevaluate neonics and set new regulations. Taylor Roschen, lobbying for Western Plant Health and other associations, is hoping to amend that language so that DPR would only set new rules if the scientific review warrants them.
Despite the opposition, the committee once again approved the measure.
On EJ advisors: The same lawmakers approved a measure to establish an environmental justice advisory committee at DPR. Introducing his bill, committee chair Alex Lee of San Jose argued DPR does not adequately address racial and socioeconomic disparities from pesticide exposure.
California Farm Bureau’s Chris Reardon, who spent 13 years at DPR, countered that the department has been “actively incorporating environmental justice into its program for a long time.” He pointed out that DPR has created an EJ liaison and will soon hire a deputy director to oversee all EJ activities. Roschen added that the bill would add a layer of bureaucracy at a significant cost, when DPR’s budget is already structurally deficient.
Proponents responded that DPR’s proposal to overhaul the mill fee on pesticide sales would cover the cost. Bauer-Kahan asserted that just one liaison and one deputy director cannot represent all farmworkers statewide.
“I just am really confused why anyone would be afraid to bring voices to the table,” she said.
DHS needs to scale back fee proposal, senators say
A bipartisan group of senators led by Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., and Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is asking the Department of Homeland Security to rethink its plan to sharply increase fees employers must pay to bring workers in from outside the country.
A proposed rule from DHS would more than double the current $460 petition fee when applying for an H-2A or H-2B visa for a prospective guest worker, and impose a new $600 fee for screening and asylum work.
Food companies: Protect climate, conservation funds
Some of the largest multinational food companies are calling on lawmakers to maintain funding for conservation and climate priorities in the next farm bill.
In a letter going to the Senate and House Ag committees today, the Sustainable Food Policy Alliance says farm bill programs can help America’s farmers and ranchers address expanding markets and changing consumer needs while managing conditions such as drought and extreme weather. The alliance includes Danone North America, Mars Inc., Nestle USA and Unilever.
The letter notes that many conservation programs are already oversubscribed and that demand for funding is expected to grow. “In this spirit, we note that the climate crisis facing the food and agriculture supply chain is significant, and the funding must be proportional to the challenge,” the letter says.
Why it matters: Food companies have traditionally stayed out of farm bill debates other than those involving nutrition programs. The companies’ backing will help Senate Ag Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow’s defense of the Inflation Reduction Act funding for conservation programs.
Vilsack faces Senate Ag amid DOJ question
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack is on Capitol Hill today to face questioning from the Senate Ag Committee.
Ahead of the hearing, two Republican members of the committee are raising concerns about Vilsack’s testimony to the committee last May, when he was asked whether the Justice Department had contacted USDA before taking a position in a Supreme Court case involving glyphosate herbicides. Vilsack told the committee his department wasn’t consulted, but DOJ has since told Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., that DOJ did reach out to USDA.
In a letter to Vilsack this week, Marshall and Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told the secretary he “should be well aware that the longstanding practice of the DOJ is to solicit the views of other cabinet departments before taking a public position on a matter before the Supreme Court. … Your allegation that DOJ ignored the Agriculture Department before filing its brief in the Monsanto case stunned many in the agricultural community and led them to believe that USDA had been shunted aside.”
In a statement to Agri-Pulse, a spokesman for Vilsack said the department would “review the letter and respond accordingly. Secretary Vilsack looks forward to discussing USDA’s efforts to strengthen the agricultural economy, expand market opportunities, and support farmers and rural communities across the country” during today’s hearing.
Why it matters: DOJ took the position before the Supreme Court that the nation’s pesticide law doesn’t preempt state-law claims such as those that have resulted in multimillion-dollar judgments against Monsanto for Roundup exposure.
He said it:
“We’ve got to change the way the federal government scores these projects.” — Gov. Gavin Newsom, speaking in Pajaro while surveying flood damage.
He argued the Army Corps of Engineers needs to factor in societal impacts when gauging the importance of levee projects and was frustrated the town must wait up to five years to strengthen the breached levee, with just a temporary fix for now. The governor vowed to add more state dollars to bolster the local spending needed for federal matching grants.
Newsom added that no other state does more for farmworkers, but he stressed that “we don’t do enough.”
Jacqui Fatka, Bill Tomson and Steve Davies contributed to this report
https://cdec.water.ca.gov/resapp/RescondTopMain?utm_source=Agri-Pulse+Daybreak+WEST&utm_campaign=6b4d70e50d-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2023_03_16_03_53&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-6b4d70e50d-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D
https://www.agri-pulse.com/articles/17499-another-bill-to-ban-certain-neonics-is-stirring-fears-over-citrus-greening

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/transportation/2023/03/21/norfolk-southern-ohio-dewine-rail-safety-legislation/stories/202303210129
WASHINGTON — The chief executive of Norfolk Southern and Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine plan to praise a bipartisan rail safety bill that’s run up against GOP resistance in Congress at a Senate hearing on Wednesday — a development the bill’s backers hope could provide for more momentum for the legislation.
Alan Shaw, chief executive of the railroad company that operated a train carrying toxic material that derailed near East Palestine, Ohio, last month, will say the Railway Safety Act includes “measures with the potential to enhance safety and improve outcomes for our industry, our customers, and the communities we serve,” according to his prepared remarks obtained by The Washington Post.
Mr. DeWine will say he agrees “with the changes in the law” proposed by the bill, according to his prepared remarks. Mr. DeWine also sent a letter to Mr. Shaw, saying he expects him to “deliver for the people of East Palestine by fully supporting these legislative efforts until they are enacted.”
The legislation, introduced by Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance and Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown in the wake of the disaster, has run up against resistance from some Republicans in the Senate and House who say they are wary of pushing for new regulations before the federal government releases a comprehensive report outlining the causes of the accident, which could take a year or longer. House Republicans have introduced their own rail safety measure, which is similar to the Senate’s, and which Mr. DeWine also praised.
Mr. Vance and Mr. Brown are both set to speak at Wednesday’s Senate Commerce Committee hearing, as well to push for more support for their bill. The fact that even the chief executive of the rail company facing the most scrutiny for the disaster is not publicly objecting to the legislation may help convince more regulation-wary Republicans to sign on, the bill’s supporters hope.
“There is a strong consensus growing that Congress must take action to increase the safety of America’s railways,” said William Martin, a spokesman for Mr. Vance. “We look forward to tomorrow’s hearing.”
The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report noted that an overheated wheel bearing was likely a factor in the accident, which the proposed legislation would address. The bill would also hike fines for safety violations, increase inspections and stiffen safety standards.
Mr. Shaw did not endorse the legislation outright in his prepared remarks, instead highlighting pieces of it he agreed with in “principle,” including “establishing performance standards, maintenance standards, and alert thresholds for safety sensors.” He did not endorse the increased fines for railroads laid out in the bill.

The NTSB and Federal Railroad Administration announced reviews of Norfolk Southern’s safety practices after one of its employees was killed in Cleveland and a train derailed in Springfield, Ohio. The Association of American Railroads said this month that it would voluntarily implement some new safety measures in the wake of the disaster, including expanding a network of sensors designed to catch overheating bearings. Its chief executive, Ian Jefferies, is also set to appear at Wednesday’s hearing.

First Published March 21, 2023, 6:35pm

Starting now until the end of term.