The Role of Governments in the Overindebtedness of the Economically Disadvantaged

In this article, Professors Stephanie Ben-Ishai and Saul Schwartz examine several ways in which the government becomes a creditor of economically disadvantaged Canadians and its role in limiting the options available for resolving the resulting overindebtedness. Specifically, the authors explore how government transfer programs, and the debts that result from benefit overpayment, affect those already marginalized by poverty. Ben-Ishai and Schwartz then argue that the two main remedies available to Canadians facing insolvency - credit counselling and bankruptcy - are simply too costly for low-income individuals, a term the authors use to describe those who are poor even before they incur the serious debts leading up to an insolvency. Low-income Canadians coping with government debt are shown to be in a unique and difficult position with respect to repayment. Using the overpayments that can occur within transfer programs such as Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (OSDP) to illustrate the particular issues affecting low-income individuals, the authors demonstrate the lack of recourse this group has when dealing with insolvency. Ben-Ishai and Schwartz analyze this issue using the statutory framework, interviews with government program officials and data on social assistance overpayments to cast doubt on the assumption that those with low income have no need for bankruptcy and credit counselling. In so doing, the authors ultimately question whether existing insolvency remedies are serving the needs of all Canadians

Diel activity patterns of two distinct populations of Aedes aegypti in Miami, FL and Brownsville, TX

The diel biting activity of Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti (L) populations was extensively investigated in the early 1900s to gain more information on the biology of Ae. aegypti, and this information was used to devise effective approaches to controlling populations of this species and protect the human population from widespread arbovirus outbreaks. However, few contemporary studies are available regarding the diel activity patterns of Ae. aegypti. To assess the diel activity patterns of Ae. aegypti in southern Florida and Texas, we conducted 96-h uninterrupted mosquito collections once each month from May through November 2019 in Miami, Florida, and Brownsville, Texas, using BG-Sentinel 2 Traps. The overall diel activity pattern in both cities was bimodal with morning and evening peak activity between 7:00 and 8:00 and between 19:00 and 20:00. There were significant daily, monthly, seasonal, and site-specific differences in activity patterns, but these differences did not affect the overall peak activity times. These differences suggest daily, monthly, seasonal, and site-specific variations in human exposure to Ae. aegypti. Our observations can be used in planning and executing Ae. aegypti vector control activities in southern Florida and southern Texas, specifically those targeting the adult mosquito populations

The Role of Government as a Creditor of the Disadvantaged

Economically disadvantaged Canadians who rely on government transfer programs as their primary source of income can accumulate debts to the provincial government when overpayments of benefits are made. Such debts, which are often involuntary, can push them into insolvency, where they have fewer ways of dealing with their debts. The authors examine this phenomenon in the context of overpayments made by the Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Programs, and show that the traditional remedies of credit counselling and bankruptcy that are routinely available to middle-class debtors are too costly to be accessible to those with low income. Special collection options available to the government make it a powerful creditor for those who acquire debts from the overpayment of benefits. The government has several collection options. Where the debtor is still receiving benefits payments, the payments can be reduced by up to ten percent until the overpayment has been repaid. In cases where benefits are no longer being paid, and active collection efforts have been unsuccessful, the government can resort to a passive collection method, where tax refunds and tax credits owed to debtors are intercepted by the government and applied to their overpayments. The authors discuss the various debt resolution options available for recipients of government overpayments, and show why low-income debtors often do not have access to those options. They argue that under the current system, collection efforts by the government have a harsh and unequal effect on low-income debtors, who are further marginalized by their inability to access credit counselling or declare bankruptcy. To help meet this problem, the authors argue that debt resolution remedies must be made more accessible to low-income debtors

The Role of Government as a Creditor of the Disadvantaged

Economically disadvantaged Canadians who rely on government transfer programs as their primary source of income can accumulate debts to the provincial government when overpayments of benefits are made. Such debts, which are often involuntary, can push them into insolvency, where they have fewer ways of dealing with their debts. The authors examine this phenomenon in the context of overpayments made by the Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Programs, and show that the traditional remedies of credit counselling and bankruptcy that are routinely available to middle-class debtors are too costly to be accessible to those with low income. Special collection options available to the government make it a powerful creditor for those who acquire debts from the overpayment of benefits. The government has several collection options. Where the debtor is still receiving benefits payments, the payments can be reduced by up to ten percent until the overpayment has been repaid. In cases where benefits are no longer being paid, and active collection efforts have been unsuccessful, the government can resort to a passive collection method, where tax refunds and tax credits owed to debtors are intercepted by the government and applied to their overpayments. The authors discuss the various debt resolution options available for recipients of government overpayments, and show why low-income debtors often do not have access to those options. They argue that under the current system, collection efforts by the government have a harsh and unequal effect on low-income debtors, who are further marginalized by their inability to access credit counselling or declare bankruptcy. To help meet this problem, the authors argue that debt resolution remedies must be made more accessible to low-income debtors

Localization of Fission Yeast Type II Myosin, Myo2, to the Cytokinetic Actin Ring Is Regulated by Phosphorylation of a C-Terminal Coiled-Coil Domain and Requires a Functional Septation Initiation Network

Myo2 truncations fused to green fluorescent protein (GFP) defined a C-terminal domain essential for the localization of Myo2 to the cytokinetic actin ring (CAR). The localization domain contained two predicted phosphorylation sites. Mutation of serine 1518 to alanine (S(1518)A) abolished Myo2 localization, whereas Myo2 with a glutamic acid at this position (S(1518)E) localized to the CAR. GFP-Myo2 formed rings in the septation initiation kinase (SIN) mutant cdc7-24 at 25°C but not at 36°C. GFP-Myo2S(1518)E rings persisted at 36°C in cdc7-24 but not in another SIN kinase mutant, sid2-250. To further examine the relationship between Myo2 and the SIN pathway, the chromosomal copy of myo2(+) was fused to GFP (strain myo2-gc). Myo2 ring formation was abolished in the double mutants myo2-gc cdc7.24 and myo2-gc sid2-250 at the restrictive temperature. In contrast, activation of the SIN pathway in the double mutant myo2-gc cdc16-116 resulted in the formation of Myo2 rings which subsequently collapsed at 36°C. We conclude that the SIN pathway that controls septation in fission yeast also regulates Myo2 ring formation and contraction. Cdc7 and Sid2 are involved in ring formation, in the case of Cdc7 by phosphorylation of a single serine residue in the Myo2 tail. Other kinases and/or phosphatases may control ring contraction