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Talk of the bay

By TIMES WIRES
Published January 6, 2007

WHISTLEBLOWER LAWSUIT CAN GO ON, SAYS JUDGE

It looks like Neil Lockhart, a former employee of General Dynamics' St. Marks Powder plant in Crawfordville will get his day in court after all. A federal judge in Tallahassee has rejected a motion by the defense contractor to dismiss Lockhart's false claims lawsuit against the company that he filed in 2004. Lockhart, who had been a ballistics technician with the company for 18 years, said the plant failed to perform required tests on gunpowder bound for the military, cheating the government and potentially endangering U.S. soldiers. The St. Marks Powder plant makes the gunpowder that is loaded in 95 percent of the U.S. military's small-caliber ammunition for use in weapons including M-16 rifles and M-60 machine guns.

Bahamas offers passport refund

Is the price of a passport standing in the way of your tropical winter vacation? No problem. Nassau and Paradise Island in the Bahamas will refund the cost of passports if you spend at least two nights in one of 19 participating hotels. The offer covers passports for up to two adults and two children, worth $358. You must have applied for a U.S. passport between Dec. 20, 2006, and March 24 and visit from Jan. 17 through March 31. Starting Jan. 23, all air travelers will need a passport to enter the U.S. from Canada, Mexico and other Western Hemisphere countries.

Philanthropy class available at UT

Because not every philanthropist went to business school: The University of Tampa is launching a graduate program to build more business-savvy nonprofits. The classes, tailored to professionals who work for nonprofits, are worth 12 credit hours. They will be taught in four sessions of one week each, stretched over 1 1/2 years. The first class is March 5-9. The program will cost about $7,000 per student. The Management Assistance Program of Tampa Bay, a resource Web site for nonprofits, hopes to underwrite 50 percent of the tuition. An information session will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Jan. 17 at UT's Vaughn Center. To reserve a seat: Call 813 258-7409, e-mail utgrad@ut.edu or visit grad.ut.edu.

Correction

Kevin Sneed is the pharmacist at the University of South Florida quoted in a diet pill story in Friday's business section. The first name was listed incorrectly.

[Last modified January 6, 2007, 00:03:19]