Emergency planners brush up before hurricane season

HOUSTON (AP) — The hurricane predictions are out. Now, emergency planners will meet one last time in case those predictions come true.

After forecasters warned that another busy storm season could produce four to six major hurricanes, state and county officials will gather Tuesday to review new evacuation and sheltering plans at the state’s hurricane conference in Beaumont.

Among those scheduled to attend are National Hurricane Center Director Max Mayfield, whose agency on Monday predicted up to 16 named storms this year. Eight to 10 of those are expected to become hurricanes.

The hurricane season begins June 1.

The chance that hurricanes could hit coastal areas still recovering from Katrina or Rita is “a troubling, yet real possibility,” said Conrad C. Lautenbacher, head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

S. Texas lawmaker wants sheriffs held accountable for spending

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — Worried about possible racial profiling in El Paso County, a South Texas lawmaker has asked Gov. Rick Perry to specify how the Texas Border Sheriffs Coalition is permitted to spend nearly $10 million in border security grant money.

Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, sent Perry a letter Friday expressing concern that El Paso County Sheriff Leo Samaniego is using a $376,500 grant to run roadblocks and raids aimed at ferreting out illegal immigrants.

Hinojosa asked the governor to detail rules for the “appropriate use of funds for Operation Linebacker.”

Hinojosa expressed concern that people are being detained in both the roadblocks and the raids on a hunch that they “look” illegal. He said some residents have even complained that they were asked for a Social Security card as a tactic to figure out if they were an illegal immigrant.

Samaniego denied any wrongdoing Monday.

“We welcome any scrutiny, any investigation of how we spend the money, of what we’re doing,” Samaniego said.

Lay on the stand again, this time in bank fraud trial

HOUSTON (AP) — Enron Corp. founder Kenneth Lay is taking the blame for federal criminal bank fraud charges against him stemming from his personal banking but insists he never intended to break the law because he wasn’t aware he was doing anything wrong.