Abraham forms GHB task force
Once again thrusting GHB into the local spotlight, Sen. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.) announced yesterday his plan to form a task force that will promote the education of the so-called date rape drug in Michigan schools. Abraham's announcement comes after both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives passed separate bills last December to tighten federal restrictions on GHB, or gamma hydroxybutyrate.

Delta Sig to become dry house
The national chapter of Delta Sigma Phi fraternity has announced that all alcohol will be banned from all chapter property by Dec. 10. Following the reinstatement of the campus Delta Sig chapter, national authorities noted in a written statement that the removal of alcohol is part of the Delta Sigma Phi Challenge, an initiative "that provides a values-based experience for all members."

Engler to focus on education in address
With the Michigan economy leaving nothing to worry about, in his 10th State of the State Address tonight Gov. John Engler will once again make education the focus of his speech. "Education will make up 50 percent" of the address, said Susan Shafer, Engler's deputy press secretary. The governor will "continue different types of education initiatives," she said.

City Council puts off vote on living wage
The Ann Arbor City Council last night moved to postpone voting on a proposal to establish a living wage for city workers until their next meeting Feb. 7. The "living wage" is a proposal that would ensure that all city employees and employees of contractors, vendors and grantees exceeding deals of more than $10,000 a wage of $8.50 per hour with benefits or $10 per hour without benefits. Similar living wage laws have been passed in 40 other cities and townships across the nation.

SOLE occupies forum, resigns from committee
John Chamberlin, chair of the University Advisory Committee on Labor Standards and Human Rights said he did not expect anything substantial to happen at last night's open forum on the University's code of conduct for licensed apparel manufacturers.

Voice Your Vote tries to get students registered
College students are notorious for their poor showing at the polls each election year. But the traditional lack of turnout at the polls by students has some of their peers luring them to partake in political activities. A voter registration drive is being held to register by the Jan. 24 deadline for the Michigan primary and caucus. The drive is sponsored by the Michigan Student Assembly's Voice Your Vote Task Force and External Relations Committee in conjunction with the Undergraduate Political Science Association.

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MSA tables motion on Code wording
Michigan Student Assembly members deliberated for 45 minutes over one sentence in the University's Code of Student Conduct at the assembly's meeting last night in the Michigan Union.

'U' Channel 72 now shows movies continuously
Walking down residence hall corridors at anytime of night, students can be seen curled up on beanbags and futons, their eyes glued to the television. But now, students in residence halls have expanded television options after the Residence Hall Association added two new channels to its television line-up. "I like to watch the movie channel after a long night of studying," said LSA first-year student Mike Ferguson. Students in residence halls have been watching Channel 72, RHA's original movie channel, since 1995.

Search for new American Culture faculty to begin
In an effort to offer students a more well-rounded and elaborate selection of courses, the Program in American Culture will be conducting an extensive faculty search that could last as long as four years. In the process, program coordinators will seek to recruit scholars who will offer strong contributions to the University's Latino/a, Asian Pacific American and Native Studies programs. In an effort to offer students a more well-rounded and elaborate selection of courses, the Program in American Culture will be conducting an extensive faculty search that could last as long as four years.

Higher Education Notes

Prop. 22 would outlaw same-sex marriages
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Christie Hardwick Vianson has been married twice, to men, and has no plans to wed her female partner of the past six years. She doesn't want the state, in the form of Proposition 22, telling them and other same-sex couples they can never marry. ''It's the government coming into my personal relationship and making a decision about whether it's valid,'' said Vianson, a mother of three who works for a high-tech company. ''I think it gives legitimacy to people who want to hate.''

Russian forces begin nal push to capture Grozny
URUS-MARTAN, Russia (AP) - After weeks of ferocious fighting, Russian forces penetrated the center of Grozny yesterday and started a final assault to take control of the capital of separatist Chechnya, Russian officers said. Russian troops were pushing into the center from east and west and had established control over part of central Grozny, said Lt. Col. Konstantin Kukharenko, a Defense Ministry spokesperson. "The decisive phase of the liberation of Grozny has started," he said, adding that the city would soon fall. The military's claims could not be confirmed.

Justices ask courts to review decisions
WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court raised the prospect yesterday that women who work for state government agencies, colleges and universities may no longer be allowed to use a federal law to try to gain equal pay. The justices ordered two federal appeals courts to reconsider rulings that had permitted such claims under the Equal Pay Act of 1963. The lower courts must now weigh whether Congress had authority to apply the law to state governments in cases where differences in pay are based on a state worker's sex.

Photo Feature: Groomin' girl

1-19-2000