Backers of Legal Aid services for the poor are pushing a measure that would increase court filing fees in Kentucky to raise money for the program, which faces steep funding cuts. The proposed bill, sponsored by Rep. Charles Geveden, D-Wickliffe, would double the portion of the fee that goes to Legal Aid -- in district court to $10 from $5 and in circuit court to $20 from $10. Kentucky's current fee for filing a case in district court is $50.50, and in circuit court $108. The increase still would leave Kentucky's filing fee costs below those of surrounding states and would raise about $1.3 million a year -- almost enough to replace what Legal Aid is losing from federal and other sources, said Jamie Hamon, executive director of the Access to Justice Foundation, a state poverty law resource center in Lexington. Geveden said his measure appears to be the only potential source of money for the program, which is being forced to lay off workers and close offices around the state. Geveden said he's concerned because federal funding hasn't increased in recent years, and states with increased poverty are taking a greater share of the money. ''If you don't come up with the money somewhere, legal services to people in need will diminish or go away,'' he said. Hamon said the proposed bill has attracted a number of co-sponsors, and Legal Aid backers are hoping to get it passed in the upcoming legislative session. Hamon said she knows fee increases aren't popular with lawmakers but hopes they realize the crisis Legal Aid is facing. ''A lot of poor people are not going to get served,'' she said. The measure has the endorsement of the Kentucky Bar Association. The association's board of governors voted unanimously last month to back the bill, said KBA President Stephen Catron, a Bowling Green lawyer. Legal Aid ''has been a godsend to a great number of people in this state,'' Catron said. ''We simply must find a way to provide those services to the public.'' Larry York, executive director of Appalachian Regional Defense Fund, which provides Legal Aid services in 37 Eastern Kentucky counties and is a KBA board member, said he hopes the measure is approved. ''It would really offset the current cuts,'' he said. 

What organization has endorses the measure to increase legal aid fees?


If you build a campfire, you start with a large stack of sticks and logs. As the fire burns, the stack slowly shrinks. By the end of the evening, all that is left is a small pile of ashes. What happened to the matter that you started with? Was it destroyed by the flames? It may seem that way. What do you think happened? The truth is that the same amount of matter still exists. The wood changed not only to ashes, but also to carbon dioxide, water vapor, and other gases. The gases floated off into the air, leaving behind just the ashes. Although matter was changed, it was not created or destroyed. Because the same amount of matter still exists, we can say that matter is conserved. You may wonder how it can be conserved if something is now missing? Assume you had measured the mass of the wood before you burned it. Assume you had also trapped the gases released by the burning wood and measured their mass and the mass of the ashes. What would you find? The ashes and gases combined have the same mass as the wood you started with. This example illustrates the law of conservation of mass. 

Is any matter created when you burn wood in a campfire?


At 9:48, a representative from the White House shelter asked if there were any indications of another hijacked aircraft. The deputy director for operations mentioned the Delta flight and concluded that "that would be the fourth possible hijack." At 9:49, the commander of NORAD directed all air sovereignty aircraft to battle stations, fully armed. At 9:59, an Air Force lieutenant colonel working in the White House Military Office joined the conference and stated he had just talked to Deputy National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley. The White House requested (1) the implementation of continuity of government measures, (2) fighter escorts for Air Force One, and (3) a fighter combat air patrol over Washington, D.C. By 10:03, when United 93 crashed in Pennsylvania, there had been no mention of its hijacking and the FAA had not yet been added to the teleconference. The President and the Vice President The President was seated in a classroom when, at 9:05, Andrew Card whispered to him: "A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack." The President told us his instinct was to project calm, not to have the country see an excited reaction at a moment of crisis. The press was standing behind the children; he saw their phones and pagers start to ring. The President felt he should project strength and calm until he could better understand what was happening. The President remained in the classroom for another five to seven minutes, while the children continued reading. He then returned to a holding room shortly before 9:15, where he was briefed by staff and saw television coverage. He next spoke to Vice President Cheney, Dr. Rice, New York Governor George Pataki, and FBI Director Robert Mueller. He decided to make a brief statement from the school before leaving for the airport. The Secret Service told us they were anxious to move the President to a safer location, but did not think it imperative for him to run out the door. Between 9:15 and 9:30, the staff was busy arranging a return to Washington, while the President consulted his senior advisers about his remarks. No one in the traveling party had any information during this time that other aircraft were hijacked or missing. Staff was in contact with the White House Situation Room, but as far as we could determine, no one with the President was in contact with the Pentagon. 


How many possible hijackings were there?