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9A Page 9 the employer must prove that the injury was caused by circumstances other than employment. Additionally, case law has made it impossible for employers to rebut a cancer presumption. Current law also affords public safety personnel the ability make a cancer related claim after the five-year limitation, but the burden of proof shifts back to the injured worker away from the employer. AS 128 would eliminate the five-year post employment limitation and replace it with one-year of post employment to file a claim for every year of employment with the agency. For example, a fire fighter with a 30~year career would have up to 30 years post-employment to make a claim with the benefit of presumption that the cancer is a result of employment. Estimates show that 50 percent of people will have some form of cancer at some point in their lives. AS 128 would give very expensive long-term health care benefits to firefighters for any cancer at the taxpayers' expense. The California State Association of Counties Excess Insurance Authority conservatively estimates that the current $90 million in cancer claims will double to $180 million under AS 128. They further testified before the Assembly Insurance Committee that AS 128 could easily triple or quadruple the costs. The exposure under this new benefit for public agencies and the taxpayers is tremendous. The bill passed the Assembly Insurance Committee and will be heard next in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. Take Action Cities are urged to contact members of the Assembly Appropriations Committee to oppose AS 128. A sample opposition can be found on the League's Web site at www.cacitles.ora/billsearch. Enter "AS 128" into the search field to access the sample letter. Apply for Funding from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) recently issued a notice of funding availability for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). The program was established by the Federal Housing Economic and Recovery Act of 2008 and provides $3.9 billion to various entities (including local governments) to purchase abandoned or foreclosed homes. Cities can use this money to rehabilitate communities affected by the housing crisis. The enacting law also requires any homes purchased with NSP funds to be sold or rented to low or moderate income families. The first round of applications are due by June 15. HCD dedicated the following staff to assist with the application process and answer any questions: . Leticia Martinez, Imartinez@hcd.ca.aov, (916) 552-9357 . Charles Ewers, cewers@hcd.ca.aov, (916) 319-8444 . Sharon Hoshiyama, shoshivama@hcd.ca.Qov, (916) 319-8100 . Rita Levy, rlew@hcd.ca.Qov, (916) 327~3822 The application can be found on the HCD Web site: http://www.hcd.ca.Qov/fa/nsp/Final APD 5-8- 09.doc. Take action and apply for funds available through the NSP. Program funds will assist your city in mitigating the effects of the foreclosure problem. Register Now for Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Webcast The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a series of webcasts and online resources on the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECSG). The next webcast will focus on the EECSG application process and is scheduled for Wednesday, May 20, from 12-1 :30 p.m. Pacific Time. DOE plans to repeat this webcast weekly, as needed. 9