Pointing out that Pomona has had two significant fires this year that started at waste processing centers, ICON leader Lisa Engdahl testified before the Pomona City Council asserting that the CIty should develop an action plan that incorporates the concerns of neighborhood residents. Reverend Julie Roberts-Fronk argued that the City should establish greater oversight over recycling and waste management businesses.

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Leaders long working to secure funding for a lift at the Arncliffe commuter station, celebrated Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian's announcement that an elevator would be installed soon. Stroller-carrying parents, senior citizens and wheelchair using citizens launched a campaign to make the Sydney public transportation system more accessible. Leaders have identified an additional 761 stations that are not currently wheelchair accessible.

Arncliffe Commuters Get a Lift!, Sydney Alliance

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Building on a program they created 7 years ago to provide emergency shelter for Marin residents during winter months, 250 MOC leaders succeeded in persuading both leading candidates for Marin County District 1 Supervisor to commit to finding money to expand the program to year round. Candidates Susan Adams and Damon Connolly both said yes to the crowd gathered at Congregation Rodef Sholom.

The Rotating Emergency Shelter Team (REST) program operates during five winter months each year, housing and feeding 40 men at rotating congregations -- as well as 20 women housed at the County Wellness Center and served by congregations.

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More than 1,500 leaders from across Nevada convened at the packed Cashman Theatre in Las Vegas to celebrate the passage of anti-sex trafficking legislation last year to and issue challenges to a broad range of public officials around multiple issues. The organization obtained solid commitments from public officials after sharing stories about elder abuse in unlicensed group homes, public transportation problems for wounded veterans and disabled, and the need for immigration reform and respite care for caregivers. The organization has grown over the last two years to include 33 member institutions. [Photo Credit: L.E. Baskow, Las Vegas Sun)

Building Off Legislative Success, Interfaith Group Eyes New Set of Social Concerns, Las Vegas Sun

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Testifying before the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, COPA leader Elsa Quezada called for a County strategy to educate undocumented and uninsured Monterey residents about newly available healthcare services. "They are our neighbors, our friends, they go to church with us, they join us at the park, the rodeo...their children go to school with our children," she argued.

At COPA's urging, the Board approved the creation of a strategic plan and simplified "access point document" to better spread the word about healthcare access to the uninsured; both are to be produced within 90 days.

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As part of its elder issues campaign, leaders of 'Nevadans for the Common Good' have begun researching the accessibility of public transport in Boulder City, conducting a research action in the field.

"'The good news,' said the Rev. Robert Stoeckig of the Office of the Vicar General of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas, ...'is that the (Regional Transportation Commission) website is wrong. But the bad news is that the website is wrong.'

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'Together Louisiana' leaders publicly handed out Bibles to Louisiana state legislators, asking them to read it before voting on a payday lending reform bill which would cap the number of times an individual can turn over a loan. Said Rev. Lee T. Wesley of Baton Rouge, "We took notice that some legislators wanted to make the Bible the state book...if legislators want to give the Bible special standing, they should start off by reading it."

One of 45 lobbyists paid to kill Senate Bill 84 revealed he was feeling "like a bug smashed against a windshield" today.

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When the Jackson mayoral campaign turned ugly, with a series of negative ads paid for by an organization that does not exist on paper, both candidates invoked the "clean elections" pact created by Working Together Jackson.

This commitment, that both candidates made, was leveraged during an accountability session that garnered additional pledges on: infrastructure, neighborhood renewal, workforce development and bridging long-standing racial, class and political divides in Jackson.

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PCIC clergy and leaders piled into City Hall to deliver a letter signed by 50 clergy requesting that the City not raise fares for low-income bus riders. The City Manager had proposed that Tucson double the fares of low-income people in addition to increasing all fares across the board. Bus riders and PCIC leaders filled the room while 60 listened from outside...

Concrete Example of Religious Leaders Standing Up for the Poor, Voces de Casa Maria

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"Interfaith members who met with The Times editorial board last week, said their interest in this legislation is about helping consumers avoid entering a debt loop they often find it difficult to escape from. Interfaith and other organizations around the state have joined forces as "Together Louisiana" to highlight the matter before the public and lawmakers.

'We are not asking that the payday industry be outlawed,' Interfaith members stated in a news release. 'Banks and credit unions have a cap on the number of loans one person can receive. We do not think it unreasonable that the payday industry should adhere to the same rules.'"

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