WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is moving toward a narrower student loan relief plan that would target specific groups of borrowers — those with soaring interest, for example — rather than a sweeping plan like the one the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loan-forgiveness-supreme-court-653c2e9c085863bdbf81f125f87669fa">Supreme Court rejected</a>&nbsp;in June.

The Education Department on Monday released a draft of new federal rules paving the way for a second attempt at student loan relief. The proposal targets groups that are seen as especially vulnerable, focusing on those who owe so much, or make so little income, that they otherwise may never repay their loans.

Though full details are likely months away, the department says it wants to cancel some or all student debt for: borrowers whose balances exceed what they originally owed; those who have loans that entered repayment 25 or more years ago; those who used loans to attend career-training programs that led to “unreasonable” debt loads or insufficient earnings; those who are eligible for other loan forgiveness programs but did not apply.

A fifth group is also being discussed — “those who are experiencing financial hardship that the current student loan system does not currently adequately address.”

“President Biden and I are committed to helping borrowers who’ve been failed by our country’s broken and unaffordable student loan system,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement. "We are fighting to ensure that student debt does not stand in the way of opportunity or prevent borrowers from realizing the benefits of their higher education.”

President Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loan-forgiveness-biden-plan-d9c8e18774a744187c9af634bf4eb728">initial plan</a>&nbsp;was broader. It would have canceled up to $20,000 in federal student loans for those with annual incomes below $125,000 or couples below $250,000. But after that was rejected by the court’s conservative majority, he called on the Education Department to try again using a different legal basis.

The new proposal aims to tackle issues that are seen as some of the biggest culprits behind skyrocketing debt.

It would help counter interest that snowballs beyond borrowers' original balances. It would offer relief to borrowers who attended for-profit college programs with poor outcomes. It would also help older borrowers who took out loans decades ago and struggle to make payments.

The department says it will continue to refine the proposal as it goes through a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loans-debt-cancellation-college-7c8d3736578eb799e2f976d2f8feee79">federal rulemaking process</a>. The public will be able to provide written feedback next year.

The draft proposal would give the department authority to wipe away federal student loans entirely for borrowers in some categories.

For those who started repaying loans more than 25 years ago, the proposal says that “the secretary may waive the outstanding balance of a loan” — amounting to total cancellation. It's the same for borrowers who are eligible for other cancellation programs but haven't applied.

Loans used to attend low-value college programs would also be wiped away. Borrowers would fall into that category if they attended a program that fails new standards outlined in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/college-for-profit-student-debt-tuition-b4db9895af1ce6ac6737aa2dad015551">separate federal rule</a>&nbsp;known as gainful employment.

For those with snowballing interest, the proposal would reset their loans back to the original balance, effectively canceling unpaid interest.

Even a more limited plan for relief is sure to draw fierce opposition from Republicans, who see cancellation as an unfair burden on taxpayers.

The latest attempt rests on the Higher Education Act of 1965, a wide-reaching law that gives the education secretary power to “compromise, waive or release” certain debts. But the law is unclear on how the secretary can wield that authority, creating a legal gray area that has been the subject of debate since Biden took office.

The proposal aims to settle the dispute by creating new federal rules detailing cases that merit cancellation. Before the rules can be enacted, they must be weighed by a committee of government outsiders in a process known as negotiated rulemaking. The new draft will be taken up when the committee meets next week.

The committee is made up of negotiators who represent a range of viewpoints on student loans. It includes students and officials from a range of colleges, along with loan servicers, state officials and advocates including the NAACP.

Meetings began earlier this month and are scheduled to continue into December.

At the end of the process, negotiators will vote on a proposed rule. If they reach consensus, the department will move forward with it. If they don’t, the agency will propose its own plan, which can be finalized after a public comment period.

Biden called for a plan to help “as many borrowers as possible,” but his administration seems to be moving away from the type of mass cancellation that he promised in August 2022.

That plan was estimated to cost $400 billion. It’s unclear how much the second proposal will cost.

In a separate action on Monday, the Education Department moved to correct errors by a student loan servicer that failed to send billing statements on time.

The department is withholding $7.2 million in payment to the loan servicer MOHELA after finding that it failed to send timely billing statements to 2.5 million borrowers recently. In some cases, borrowers received their bills within seven days of their due date. As a result, the department said, 800,000 borrowers were delinquent on their payments.

The department ordered MOHELA to put all affected borrowers into forbearance — a temporary hold on payments — until the issue is resolved.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/9/1695745650600.png" alt="The new proposal aims to tackle issues that are seen as some of the biggest culprits behind skyrocketing debt.-White House photo" />
 <figcaption>The new proposal aims to tackle issues that are seen as some of the biggest culprits behind skyrocketing debt.-White House photo</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is moving toward a narrower student loan relief plan that would target specific groups of borrowers — those with soaring interest, for example — rather than a sweeping plan like the one the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loan-forgiveness-supreme-court-653c2e9c085863bdbf81f125f87669fa">Supreme Court rejected</a>&nbsp;in June.The Education Department on Monday released a draft of new federal rules paving the way for a second attempt at student loan relief. The proposal targets groups that are seen as especially vulnerable, focusing on those who owe so much, or make so little income, that they otherwise may never repay their loans.Though full details are likely months away, the department says it wants to cancel some or all student debt for: borrowers whose balances exceed what they originally owed; those who have loans that entered repayment 25 or more years ago; those who used loans to attend career-training programs that led to “unreasonable” debt loads or insufficient earnings; those who are eligible for other loan forgiveness programs but did not apply.A fifth group is also being discussed — “those who are experiencing financial hardship that the current student loan system does not currently adequately address.”“President Biden and I are committed to helping borrowers who’ve been failed by our country’s broken and unaffordable student loan system,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a statement. "We are fighting to ensure that student debt does not stand in the way of opportunity or prevent borrowers from realizing the benefits of their higher education.”President Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loan-forgiveness-biden-plan-d9c8e18774a744187c9af634bf4eb728">initial plan</a>&nbsp;was broader. It would have canceled up to $20,000 in federal student loans for those with annual incomes below $125,000 or couples below $250,000. But after that was rejected by the court’s conservative majority, he called on the Education Department to try again using a different legal basis.The new proposal aims to tackle issues that are seen as some of the biggest culprits behind skyrocketing debt.It would help counter interest that snowballs beyond borrowers' original balances. It would offer relief to borrowers who attended for-profit college programs with poor outcomes. It would also help older borrowers who took out loans decades ago and struggle to make payments.The department says it will continue to refine the proposal as it goes through a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/student-loans-debt-cancellation-college-7c8d3736578eb799e2f976d2f8feee79">federal rulemaking process</a>. The public will be able to provide written feedback next year.The draft proposal would give the department authority to wipe away federal student loans entirely for borrowers in some categories.For those who started repaying loans more than 25 years ago, the proposal says that “the secretary may waive the outstanding balance of a loan” — amounting to total cancellation. It's the same for borrowers who are eligible for other cancellation programs but haven't applied.Loans used to attend low-value college programs would also be wiped away. Borrowers would fall into that category if they attended a program that fails new standards outlined in a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/college-for-profit-student-debt-tuition-b4db9895af1ce6ac6737aa2dad015551">separate federal rule</a>&nbsp;known as gainful employment.For those with snowballing interest, the proposal would reset their loans back to the original balance, effectively canceling unpaid interest.Even a more limited plan for relief is sure to draw fierce opposition from Republicans, who see cancellation as an unfair burden on taxpayers.The latest attempt rests on the Higher Education Act of 1965, a wide-reaching law that gives the education secretary power to “compromise, waive or release” certain debts. But the law is unclear on how the secretary can wield that authority, creating a legal gray area that has been the subject of debate since Biden took office.The proposal aims to settle the dispute by creating new federal rules detailing cases that merit cancellation. Before the rules can be enacted, they must be weighed by a committee of government outsiders in a process known as negotiated rulemaking. The new draft will be taken up when the committee meets next week.The committee is made up of negotiators who represent a range of viewpoints on student loans. It includes students and officials from a range of colleges, along with loan servicers, state officials and advocates including the NAACP.Meetings began earlier this month and are scheduled to continue into December.At the end of the process, negotiators will vote on a proposed rule. If they reach consensus, the department will move forward with it. If they don’t, the agency will propose its own plan, which can be finalized after a public comment period.Biden called for a plan to help “as many borrowers as possible,” but his administration seems to be moving away from the type of mass cancellation that he promised in August 2022.That plan was estimated to cost $400 billion. It’s unclear how much the second proposal will cost.In a separate action on Monday, the Education Department moved to correct errors by a student loan servicer that failed to send billing statements on time.The department is withholding $7.2 million in payment to the loan servicer MOHELA after finding that it failed to send timely billing statements to 2.5 million borrowers recently. In some cases, borrowers received their bills within seven days of their due date. As a result, the department said, 800,000 borrowers were delinquent on their payments.The department ordered MOHELA to put all affected borrowers into forbearance — a temporary hold on payments — until the issue is resolved.

Biden considers narrower student loan relief targeting groups of borrowers

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jaredstrong/">JARED STRONG</a>

Federal agricultural officials plan to spend up to $2.3 billion to promote farm exports and to send U.S. grain to countries that are suffering food shortages.

“This will complement existing trade promotion programs as we await Congress’s action on both the budget and the farm bill,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Tuesday.

The farm bill — which governs policy and spending for farm, food and conservation programs — is up for renewal, which typically happens every five years. Some of its provisions expired at the end of September, and more will expire at the end of the year.

<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/10/06/farm-bill-stalled-amid-u-s-house-speaker-battle-delay-of-spending-bills/">It’s unclear</a>&nbsp;when federal lawmakers will approve a new farm bill. The U.S. House of Representatives has been without a speaker for about three weeks and, consequently, unable to act on legislation.

A popular trade promotion program that was created in 2018 amid then-President Donald Trump’s trade war with China and other countries is also set to expire next year.

“We continue to look for ways in which we can increase trade opportunities for U.S. agriculture, especially because of the strength of the U.S. economy and the difficulties experienced in the global economy,” Vilsack said. “We now find ourselves with unusual trade deficits in agricultural products.”

The new federal funding — $1.3 billion for the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program and $1 billion to combat global hunger — will be paid out of the Commodity Credit Corporation, which the Biden administration has used for myriad new agriculture initiatives, including those that promote&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2022/02/07/usda-pledges-1b-for-climate-smart-ag-products/">“climate smart” practices</a>.

Some Republican lawmakers&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/08/09/usdas-climate-grants-for-farms-and-forests-run-into-republican-buzzsaw/">have criticized</a>&nbsp;the use of CCC funds for those initiatives. The CCC was created decades ago to assist farmers with catastrophic crop losses, but the USDA has broad spending authority over it.

The latest announced spending was the result of an August request from the top Democrat and Republican of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.

“We write to urge you to consider using your authorities with regard to the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act to support the creation of new and better market opportunities for our nation’s farmers by addressing two key needs: trade promotion, and in-kind international food assistance,” U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat, and John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/090623_stabenow-boozman_to_vilsack_re_ccc_request.pdf">wrote to the USDA</a>.

They noted bipartisan support for the food assistance because “Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine continues to disrupt supply chains and perpetuate humanitarian crises in the region and around the world.”

Russia invaded Ukraine about 20 months ago. As the fighting continues, Russia has sought to block grain from being exported by Ukraine, especially through its Black Sea ports. Ukraine is a major producer of corn and wheat.

The USDA will use up to $1 billion to buy commodities and distribute them with the help of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the lead federal agency for international emergency food aid programs.

Vilsack said the USDA hopes to finalize the details of the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program funding in the coming months.

This story was originally published by t<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/10/24/feds-pledge-2-3-billion-to-boost-ag-exports-amid-farm-bill-uncertainty/">he Iowa Capital Dispatch</a>, a States Newsroom affiliate.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698495317565.png" alt=" U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack talks trade at a Woodward farm on Aug. 18, 2022 (Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch)." />
 <figcaption> U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack talks trade at a Woodward farm on Aug. 18, 2022 (Jared Strong/Iowa Capital Dispatch).</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/jaredstrong/">JARED STRONG</a>Federal agricultural officials plan to spend up to $2.3 billion to promote farm exports and to send U.S. grain to countries that are suffering food shortages.“This will complement existing trade promotion programs as we await Congress’s action on both the budget and the farm bill,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Tuesday.The farm bill — which governs policy and spending for farm, food and conservation programs — is up for renewal, which typically happens every five years. Some of its provisions expired at the end of September, and more will expire at the end of the year.<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/10/06/farm-bill-stalled-amid-u-s-house-speaker-battle-delay-of-spending-bills/">It’s unclear</a>&nbsp;when federal lawmakers will approve a new farm bill. The U.S. House of Representatives has been without a speaker for about three weeks and, consequently, unable to act on legislation.A popular trade promotion program that was created in 2018 amid then-President Donald Trump’s trade war with China and other countries is also set to expire next year.“We continue to look for ways in which we can increase trade opportunities for U.S. agriculture, especially because of the strength of the U.S. economy and the difficulties experienced in the global economy,” Vilsack said. “We now find ourselves with unusual trade deficits in agricultural products.”The new federal funding — $1.3 billion for the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program and $1 billion to combat global hunger — will be paid out of the Commodity Credit Corporation, which the Biden administration has used for myriad new agriculture initiatives, including those that promote&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2022/02/07/usda-pledges-1b-for-climate-smart-ag-products/">“climate smart” practices</a>.Some Republican lawmakers&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/08/09/usdas-climate-grants-for-farms-and-forests-run-into-republican-buzzsaw/">have criticized</a>&nbsp;the use of CCC funds for those initiatives. The CCC was created decades ago to assist farmers with catastrophic crop losses, but the USDA has broad spending authority over it.The latest announced spending was the result of an August request from the top Democrat and Republican of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.“We write to urge you to consider using your authorities with regard to the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act to support the creation of new and better market opportunities for our nation’s farmers by addressing two key needs: trade promotion, and in-kind international food assistance,” U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat, and John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican,&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.agriculture.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/090623_stabenow-boozman_to_vilsack_re_ccc_request.pdf">wrote to the USDA</a>.They noted bipartisan support for the food assistance because “Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine continues to disrupt supply chains and perpetuate humanitarian crises in the region and around the world.”Russia invaded Ukraine about 20 months ago. As the fighting continues, Russia has sought to block grain from being exported by Ukraine, especially through its Black Sea ports. Ukraine is a major producer of corn and wheat.The USDA will use up to $1 billion to buy commodities and distribute them with the help of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the lead federal agency for international emergency food aid programs.Vilsack said the USDA hopes to finalize the details of the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program funding in the coming months.This story was originally published by t<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/10/24/feds-pledge-2-3-billion-to-boost-ag-exports-amid-farm-bill-uncertainty/">he Iowa Capital Dispatch</a>, a States Newsroom affiliate.&nbsp;

Feds pledge $2.3 billion to boost ag exports amid farm bill uncertainty

Director of the Munroe-Meyer Institute Karoly Mirnics, MD, PhD, accepted a prestigious award on behalf of Special Olympics International on Oct. 27 in New York City.

The organization, which provides year-round sports training, athletic competition, advocacy and health assessment for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, was named the recipient of the 2023 Pardes Humanitarian Prize in Mental Health from the Brain &amp; Behavior Research Foundation.

The foundation’s award recognizes physicians, scientists, public citizens or organizations whose extraordinary contributions have made a profound and lasting impact on advancing the understanding of mental health and providing hope and healing for people who are living with mental illness.

Individuals with intellectual disabilities are considered high risk for various mental health disorders, including ADHA, anxiety, depression and mood disorders, Dr. Mirnics said. Access to timely, quality care can be impeded by inadequately prepared practitioners, lack of adapted assessment tools and limited understanding of intellectual disabilities.

To remedy this, Special Olympics International in 2010 created the Strong Minds program, an emotional well-being assessment and interactive learning activity focused on developing adaptive coping skills in individuals with intellectual disabilities. The program is a great success and was found to be deserving of this prestigious international prize, Dr. Mirnics said.

Dr. Mirnics sits on the board of directors for Special Olympics International and serves as chair of the organization’s global medical advisory committee.

“These things are very strong reinforcers that what we do matters,” Dr. Mirnics said. “It not only matters to our athletes, but it matters to the community. We are not alone and there are other like-minded organizations, and we are changing the world together.”

University of Nebraska Medical Center Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, nominated the organization for the award.

In his nomination letter, Dr. Gold cited the positive impact Special Olympics International’s work has on the mental health of its participants.

“In addition to their direct work with individuals with intellectual disabilities, Special Olympics International has also been a leading advocate for the inclusion of people with disabilities in all areas of society,” Dr. Gold wrote. “Their efforts to promote inclusion and reduce stigma have helped to raise awareness about the mental health needs of individuals with intellectual disabilities and have contributed to a more accepting and inclusive society.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Special Olympics International‘s global presence makes programs and sports activities available to more than 5 million children and adults across more than 200 countries.

UNMCDirector of the Munroe-Meyer Institute Karoly Mirnics, MD, PhD, accepted a prestigious award on behalf of Special Olympics International on Oct. 27 in New York City.The organization, which provides year-round sports training, athletic competition, advocacy and health assessment for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, was named the recipient of the 2023 Pardes Humanitarian Prize in Mental Health from the Brain &amp; Behavior Research Foundation.The foundation’s award recognizes physicians, scientists, public citizens or organizations whose extraordinary contributions have made a profound and lasting impact on advancing the understanding of mental health and providing hope and healing for people who are living with mental illness.Individuals with intellectual disabilities are considered high risk for various mental health disorders, including ADHA, anxiety, depression and mood disorders, Dr. Mirnics said. Access to timely, quality care can be impeded by inadequately prepared practitioners, lack of adapted assessment tools and limited understanding of intellectual disabilities.To remedy this, Special Olympics International in 2010 created the Strong Minds program, an emotional well-being assessment and interactive learning activity focused on developing adaptive coping skills in individuals with intellectual disabilities. The program is a great success and was found to be deserving of this prestigious international prize, Dr. Mirnics said.Dr. Mirnics sits on the board of directors for Special Olympics International and serves as chair of the organization’s global medical advisory committee.“These things are very strong reinforcers that what we do matters,” Dr. Mirnics said. “It not only matters to our athletes, but it matters to the community. We are not alone and there are other like-minded organizations, and we are changing the world together.”University of Nebraska Medical Center Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, nominated the organization for the award.In his nomination letter, Dr. Gold cited the positive impact Special Olympics International’s work has on the mental health of its participants.“In addition to their direct work with individuals with intellectual disabilities, Special Olympics International has also been a leading advocate for the inclusion of people with disabilities in all areas of society,” Dr. Gold wrote. “Their efforts to promote inclusion and reduce stigma have helped to raise awareness about the mental health needs of individuals with intellectual disabilities and have contributed to a more accepting and inclusive society.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Special Olympics International‘s global presence makes programs and sports activities available to more than 5 million children and adults across more than 200 countries.

Karoly Mirnics accepts prestigious award on behalf of Special Olympics International

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health regulators are warning consumers not to use more than&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-warns-consumers-not-purchase-or-use-certain-eye-drops-several-major-brands-due-risk-eye">two dozen varieties</a>&nbsp;of over-the-counter eyedrops because of the risk of infections that could lead to blindness.

The Food and Drug Administration advisory applies to lubricating drops sold by six companies, including CVS Health, Target, Rite Aid and Cardinal Health. Consumers should stop using the products immediately and avoid purchasing any that remain on pharmacy and store shelves, the FDA said in a statement.

The agency asked the companies to recall their products last week, because FDA inspectors found unsanitary conditions and bacteria at the facility producing the drops. The FDA did not disclose the location of the factory or when it was inspected.

No injuries related to the products had been reported at the time of the announcement, but the FDA encouraged doctors and patients to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/medwatch-fda-safety-information-and-adverse-event-reporting-program">submit cases</a>&nbsp;through the agency’s online reporting system.

Earlier this year, federal officials linked an outbreak of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-york-city-business-health-4572be6da44f4fab4e0f691f5e37e3ed">drug-resistant bacteria</a>&nbsp;to eyedrops from two companies, EzriCare and Delsam Pharma. More than 80 people in the U.S. tested positive for eye infections from the rare bacterial strain, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/hai/outbreaks/crpa-artificial-tears.html#anchor_1674746879046">most recent update</a>&nbsp;from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. health regulators are warning consumers not to use more than&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/fda-warns-consumers-not-purchase-or-use-certain-eye-drops-several-major-brands-due-risk-eye">two dozen varieties</a>&nbsp;of over-the-counter eyedrops because of the risk of infections that could lead to blindness.The Food and Drug Administration advisory applies to lubricating drops sold by six companies, including CVS Health, Target, Rite Aid and Cardinal Health. Consumers should stop using the products immediately and avoid purchasing any that remain on pharmacy and store shelves, the FDA said in a statement.The agency asked the companies to recall their products last week, because FDA inspectors found unsanitary conditions and bacteria at the facility producing the drops. The FDA did not disclose the location of the factory or when it was inspected.No injuries related to the products had been reported at the time of the announcement, but the FDA encouraged doctors and patients to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fda.gov/safety/medwatch-fda-safety-information-and-adverse-event-reporting-program">submit cases</a>&nbsp;through the agency’s online reporting system.Earlier this year, federal officials linked an outbreak of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-york-city-business-health-4572be6da44f4fab4e0f691f5e37e3ed">drug-resistant bacteria</a>&nbsp;to eyedrops from two companies, EzriCare and Delsam Pharma. More than 80 people in the U.S. tested positive for eye infections from the rare bacterial strain, according to the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/hai/outbreaks/crpa-artificial-tears.html#anchor_1674746879046">most recent update</a>&nbsp;from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Infection, blindness: FDA warning for dozens of over-the-counter eye drops

Lincoln, Neb.&nbsp;(Oct. 30, 2023)&nbsp;—&nbsp;The Nebraska Sports Council (NSC) Board of Directors has elected Scott Haas as its 17th Chairman.&nbsp;Haas, Division Director for Orthopedics at CHI Health, succeeds Rob Trebilcock, Senior Manager—Public Affairs at Cox Communications, who stepped down after five years.

Also elected as officers were Amy Reynoldson, Executive Vice President of the Nebraska Medical Association to the position of Vice Chair, and Pinnacle Bank Loan Officer Aaron Sundberg to the position of Secretary/Treasurer.

Newly elected Board members include Kimberly Barrett, Wellbeing Consultant at Ameritas; Derek Bombeck, Sports Director at Visit Lincoln; Miranda Long, Aquatics Director at the Fremont YMCA’s Dillon Aquatic Center and Claire Reeves, an attorney with Bruning Law Group.

Members leaving the Board include Aaron Davis, Stephanie Mattoon, Jeff Maul, Molly Nance and Ed Swotek. The elections took place during the Nebraska Sports Council Board of Directors annual meeting last week in Lincoln.&nbsp;

The Nebraska Sports Council is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization with a mission of providing quality sports competition and promoting healthy/active lifestyle choices.&nbsp;The organization was incorporated in 1985 and in 2024 will celebrate its 40th anniversary.&nbsp;Major events and programs include the Cornhusker State Games, the Lincoln and Omaha Corporate Games, the Pumpkin Run and the WellPower Movement.&nbsp;Learn more at&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001M8t33gRxwRBO7xS1jkeudD3z9HmgvYKXr2a1c2JOQhQTNz1kHkuQemLpZqZcMePXl0M9DfCZ1CZeLuZExDrkATyJ5GDf1pwJDAe15arDCB8TX-Jis8ASh9gebD_r1ny1Cjx1bpFm3RYsOn1aal1-kYfubL97nwBr&amp;c=6bwOdcW-uR4gthyHA18WW59HciaJS_3nYnWMYidaEoclI7NtnnMcew==&amp;ch=uOBQn63m1dTk2UcnytOXiY-SMiBn_MT-G8XYjOhv_FIIaQBhVe4gAA==" target="_blank">NebraskaSportsCouncil.com</a>.

Nebraska Sports CouncilLincoln, Neb.&nbsp;(Oct. 30, 2023)&nbsp;—&nbsp;The Nebraska Sports Council (NSC) Board of Directors has elected Scott Haas as its 17th Chairman.&nbsp;Haas, Division Director for Orthopedics at CHI Health, succeeds Rob Trebilcock, Senior Manager—Public Affairs at Cox Communications, who stepped down after five years.Also elected as officers were Amy Reynoldson, Executive Vice President of the Nebraska Medical Association to the position of Vice Chair, and Pinnacle Bank Loan Officer Aaron Sundberg to the position of Secretary/Treasurer.Newly elected Board members include Kimberly Barrett, Wellbeing Consultant at Ameritas; Derek Bombeck, Sports Director at Visit Lincoln; Miranda Long, Aquatics Director at the Fremont YMCA’s Dillon Aquatic Center and Claire Reeves, an attorney with Bruning Law Group.Members leaving the Board include Aaron Davis, Stephanie Mattoon, Jeff Maul, Molly Nance and Ed Swotek. The elections took place during the Nebraska Sports Council Board of Directors annual meeting last week in Lincoln.&nbsp;The Nebraska Sports Council is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization with a mission of providing quality sports competition and promoting healthy/active lifestyle choices.&nbsp;The organization was incorporated in 1985 and in 2024 will celebrate its 40th anniversary.&nbsp;Major events and programs include the Cornhusker State Games, the Lincoln and Omaha Corporate Games, the Pumpkin Run and the WellPower Movement.&nbsp;Learn more at&nbsp;<a href="https://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001M8t33gRxwRBO7xS1jkeudD3z9HmgvYKXr2a1c2JOQhQTNz1kHkuQemLpZqZcMePXl0M9DfCZ1CZeLuZExDrkATyJ5GDf1pwJDAe15arDCB8TX-Jis8ASh9gebD_r1ny1Cjx1bpFm3RYsOn1aal1-kYfubL97nwBr&amp;c=6bwOdcW-uR4gthyHA18WW59HciaJS_3nYnWMYidaEoclI7NtnnMcew==&amp;ch=uOBQn63m1dTk2UcnytOXiY-SMiBn_MT-G8XYjOhv_FIIaQBhVe4gAA==" target="_blank">NebraskaSportsCouncil.com</a>.

Nebraska Sports Council Elects Officers, Board Members

WASHINGTON —On&nbsp;Monday, the President and First Lady are hosted a Halloween event that welcomed local public school students and military-connected children to the White House for trick-or-treating.&nbsp;

A teacher for more than three decades, including years spent as a reading specialist, First Lady Jill Biden created this year’s theme, “Hallo-READ!,” with the White House’s festive décor featuring famous literary characters, ghoulish tales, and ghost story time. Dr. Biden’s theme encourages families and children to grab a flashlight, pick out their favorite Halloween book, and relish in the spooktacular thrill of reading together.&nbsp;

Children were able to trick-or-treat along the South Lawn of the White House up to the South Portico to receive both candy and books from the President and First Lady, as well as other White House friends and neighbors, including representatives from: the Department of Education, Department of Transportation, Department of State, Department of Agriculture, Department of the Treasury, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Energy, Department of Housing and Urban Development, FEMA, NASA, National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, Environmental Protection Agency, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, United States Secret Service,&nbsp;White House staff, and the White House Military Office.&nbsp; Children will also get to participate in spooky story time with special guests reading their favorite books of the season.&nbsp;

Approximately 8,000 guests participated in this year’s Halloween event at the White House, with each family receiving chocolate and candy treats provided by the National Confectioners Association and its member companies.

 In a nod to this year’s “Hallo-READ!” theme, each family also received donated books from Scholastic to read and enjoy. Instacart provided overall support for the Halloween celebration, in addition to supplying Halloween tote bags and treats to each child. In the spirit of hands-on learning, the company will also distribute recipe cards to teach children and their families how to make deliciously spooky, easy Halloween-themed treats together. 

Costumed characters strolled the South Lawn for the Halloween festivities, including Clifford the Big Red Dog, Greg Heffley from&nbsp;Diary of a Wimpy Kid, as well as Disney friends Doc McStuffins, Vampirina, and Darth Vader and the Stormtroopers.

The White House was decorated with autumnal foliage, stacks of books, and multi-dimensional displays of ghoulish literary characters and tales.&nbsp; A spooky story time corner also was part of the Halloween festivities this year, featuring author Brad Meltzer and illustrator Chris Eliopoulos, author Jeff Kinney, Librarian of Congress Dr. Carla Hayden, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, and other special guests.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698711670678.png" alt="Hallo-READ! at the White House and First lady Jill Biden read a book in the spooky story time corner. She’s dressed as Willow the cat&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Hallo-READ! at the White House and First lady Jill Biden read a book in the spooky story time corner. She’s dressed as Willow the cat&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON —On&nbsp;Monday, the President and First Lady are hosted a Halloween event that welcomed local public school students and military-connected children to the White House for trick-or-treating.&nbsp;<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Welcome to “Hallo-READ” at the White House! From famous literary tales and ghost stories to the spooktacular thrill of reading — we hope families and children pick out their favorite Halloween book, grab a flashlight, and take a moment to enjoy story time together. <a href="https://t.co/PJO0UEi8lH">pic.twitter.com/PJO0UEi8lH</a>&mdash; Jill Biden (@FLOTUS) <a href="https://twitter.com/FLOTUS/status/1719183997811445957?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 31, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>A teacher for more than three decades, including years spent as a reading specialist, First Lady Jill Biden created this year’s theme, “Hallo-READ!,” with the White House’s festive décor featuring famous literary characters, ghoulish tales, and ghost story time. Dr. Biden’s theme encourages families and children to grab a flashlight, pick out their favorite Halloween book, and relish in the spooktacular thrill of reading together.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698713432917.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Children were able to trick-or-treat along the South Lawn of the White House up to the South Portico to receive both candy and books from the President and First Lady, as well as other White House friends and neighbors, including representatives from: the Department of Education, Department of Transportation, Department of State, Department of Agriculture, Department of the Treasury, Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Energy, Department of Housing and Urban Development, FEMA, NASA, National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, Environmental Protection Agency, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, United States Secret Service,&nbsp;White House staff, and the White House Military Office.&nbsp; Children will also get to participate in spooky story time with special guests reading their favorite books of the season.&nbsp;<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698711412812.png" alt="photo courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>photo courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>Approximately 8,000 guests participated in this year’s Halloween event at the White House, with each family receiving chocolate and candy treats provided by the National Confectioners Association and its member companies. In a nod to this year’s “Hallo-READ!” theme, each family also received donated books from Scholastic to read and enjoy. Instacart provided overall support for the Halloween celebration, in addition to supplying Halloween tote bags and treats to each child. In the spirit of hands-on learning, the company will also distribute recipe cards to teach children and their families how to make deliciously spooky, easy Halloween-themed treats together. Costumed characters strolled the South Lawn for the Halloween festivities, including Clifford the Big Red Dog, Greg Heffley from&nbsp;Diary of a Wimpy Kid, as well as Disney friends Doc McStuffins, Vampirina, and Darth Vader and the Stormtroopers.The White House was decorated with autumnal foliage, stacks of books, and multi-dimensional displays of ghoulish literary characters and tales.&nbsp; A spooky story time corner also was part of the Halloween festivities this year, featuring author Brad Meltzer and illustrator Chris Eliopoulos, author Jeff Kinney, Librarian of Congress Dr. Carla Hayden, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, and other special guests.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

First Lady welcomes Trick-or-Treaters to the White House for “Hallo-READ

WASHINGTON (AP)— The Pentagon continues to provide weapons shipments almost on a daily basis to Israel, Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Monday.

Despite the rising number of civilian casualties, “we are not putting any limits on how Israel uses weapons,” Singh said. “That is really up to the Israeli Defense Force to use and how they are going to conduct their operations.”

Singh did not answer a question on whether there were concerns inside the Pentagon about the way the weapons were being used, but said that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has regularly emphasized the need for Israel to follow the laws of armed conflict and avoid civilian casualties as much as possible.

Meanwhile,&nbsp;Israeli ground forces are attacking Hamas militants and infrastructure&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-31-2023-54ab6bd7f6861be86266770c245827e1">in northern Gaza</a>&nbsp;as warplanes strike across the sealed-off territory. Buoyed by the first successful rescue of a captive held by Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected calls for a cease-fire and again vowed to crush the militant group’s ability to govern Gaza or threaten Israel.

More than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians have fled their homes, with hundreds of thousands sheltering in packed U.N.-run schools-turned-shelters or in hospitals alongside thousands of wounded patients.

The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 8,306, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 122 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.

More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them civilians slain in the initial Hamas rampage that started the fighting Oct. 7. In addition, 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group. One of the captives, a female Israeli soldier,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-30-2023-131e9537aaad8e74586cc114d2668e5a">was rescued</a>&nbsp;in a special forces operation.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698490072758.png" alt="Three U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotankers assigned to Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash., arrive at an undisclosed location in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Oct. 23, 2023. The aircraft provide aerial refueling, as well as rapid and reliable passenger and cargo airlift and aero-medical evacuations. The KC-135 is deployed within the Centcom area of responsibility to help defend U.S. interests, promote regional security, and deter aggression in the region. Photo courtesy Air Force&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>Three U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotankers assigned to Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash., arrive at an undisclosed location in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Oct. 23, 2023. The aircraft provide aerial refueling, as well as rapid and reliable passenger and cargo airlift and aero-medical evacuations. The KC-135 is deployed within the Centcom area of responsibility to help defend U.S. interests, promote regional security, and deter aggression in the region. Photo courtesy Air Force&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP)— The Pentagon continues to provide weapons shipments almost on a daily basis to Israel, Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Monday.Despite the rising number of civilian casualties, “we are not putting any limits on how Israel uses weapons,” Singh said. “That is really up to the Israeli Defense Force to use and how they are going to conduct their operations.”Singh did not answer a question on whether there were concerns inside the Pentagon about the way the weapons were being used, but said that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has regularly emphasized the need for Israel to follow the laws of armed conflict and avoid civilian casualties as much as possible.Meanwhile,&nbsp;Israeli ground forces are attacking Hamas militants and infrastructure&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-31-2023-54ab6bd7f6861be86266770c245827e1">in northern Gaza</a>&nbsp;as warplanes strike across the sealed-off territory. Buoyed by the first successful rescue of a captive held by Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected calls for a cease-fire and again vowed to crush the militant group’s ability to govern Gaza or threaten Israel.More than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians have fled their homes, with hundreds of thousands sheltering in packed U.N.-run schools-turned-shelters or in hospitals alongside thousands of wounded patients.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 8,306, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 122 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them civilians slain in the initial Hamas rampage that started the fighting Oct. 7. In addition, 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group. One of the captives, a female Israeli soldier,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-30-2023-131e9537aaad8e74586cc114d2668e5a">was rescued</a>&nbsp;in a special forces operation.

US continues to provide Israel with weapon shipments daily 

DENVER (AP) — A heavily armed man killed himself rather than carry out an apparent plan to shoot up a mountaintop amusement park in Colorado, authorities said Monday.

The 20-year-old man was found dead in a bathroom at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park by a maintenance crew on Saturday morning before it opened to the public, apparently entering the park while it was closed. He was armed with an AR-style rifle, a semi-automatic handgun and explosives and was wearing body armor and tactical clothing, similar to what a police SWAT team member might wear, authorities said.

A message saying, “I am not a killer, I just want to get into the caves,” was written on a wall of the women’s bathroom where the man was found lying on the floor, Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario said. Nearby was a handgun and explosive devices, some real and some fake, he said. The AR rifle was on a counter nearby along with a duty belt holding several ammunition magazines.

Vallario could not say for certain that the suspect left the message.

Multiple improvised explosive devices were found in the man's vehicle, police had said. Authorities searched the rest of the park for other explosives but suggested no others were found.

“Given the preparation, given the amount of weapons and ordinance he had it almost seemed very highly likely he intended to use those against the community. He chose not to,” Vallario said.

The park would likely be crowded on a fall weekend during hunting season when people go to the mountains to see the changing autumn colors, Vallario said. And given the park’s isolated location, which visitors take a gondola to normally, it would have been difficult to get any wounded to the hospital, he said.

The man, whose name has not been released, was from the nearby town of Carbondale, where he lived with his mother and brother, Vallario said. He had no known criminal history or prior encounters with law enforcement, the sheriff said.

The weapons found on the suspect were ghost guns, which do not have serial numbers and therefore cannot be traced. The man’s clothing had patches and emblems that gave the appearance of him being associated with law enforcement.

Some of the suspected explosives turned out to be fakes -- including several that looked like hand grenades -- but others were real, the sheriff said. However, there was no evidence to suggest that explosive devices had been placed elsewhere inside the park, he said.

The park is located on a mountain above the Colorado River in western Colorado. Its attractions include cave tours, an alpine coaster and a pendulum swing ride perched on the edge of a cliff that sends riders over the river canyon.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/9/1630969323925.png" alt="Photo courtesy Glenwood Caverns" />
 <figcaption>Photo courtesy Glenwood Caverns</figcaption>
 </figure>DENVER (AP) — A heavily armed man killed himself rather than carry out an apparent plan to shoot up a mountaintop amusement park in Colorado, authorities said Monday.The 20-year-old man was found dead in a bathroom at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park by a maintenance crew on Saturday morning before it opened to the public, apparently entering the park while it was closed. He was armed with an AR-style rifle, a semi-automatic handgun and explosives and was wearing body armor and tactical clothing, similar to what a police SWAT team member might wear, authorities said.A message saying, “I am not a killer, I just want to get into the caves,” was written on a wall of the women’s bathroom where the man was found lying on the floor, Garfield County Sheriff Lou Vallario said. Nearby was a handgun and explosive devices, some real and some fake, he said. The AR rifle was on a counter nearby along with a duty belt holding several ammunition magazines.Vallario could not say for certain that the suspect left the message.Multiple improvised explosive devices were found in the man's vehicle, police had said. Authorities searched the rest of the park for other explosives but suggested no others were found.“Given the preparation, given the amount of weapons and ordinance he had it almost seemed very highly likely he intended to use those against the community. He chose not to,” Vallario said.The park would likely be crowded on a fall weekend during hunting season when people go to the mountains to see the changing autumn colors, Vallario said. And given the park’s isolated location, which visitors take a gondola to normally, it would have been difficult to get any wounded to the hospital, he said.The man, whose name has not been released, was from the nearby town of Carbondale, where he lived with his mother and brother, Vallario said. He had no known criminal history or prior encounters with law enforcement, the sheriff said.The weapons found on the suspect were ghost guns, which do not have serial numbers and therefore cannot be traced. The man’s clothing had patches and emblems that gave the appearance of him being associated with law enforcement.Some of the suspected explosives turned out to be fakes -- including several that looked like hand grenades -- but others were real, the sheriff said. However, there was no evidence to suggest that explosive devices had been placed elsewhere inside the park, he said.The park is located on a mountain above the Colorado River in western Colorado. Its attractions include cave tours, an alpine coaster and a pendulum swing ride perched on the edge of a cliff that sends riders over the river canyon.

Heavily armed man found dead at Colorado amusement park

Lincoln, October 30, 2023- The month of November means the start of the Nebraska Public Service Commission’s (PSC) cold weather rule. The cold weather rule provides financially strapped customers of&nbsp;<a href="https://psc.nebraska.gov/natural-gas/providers" target="_blank">Nebraska’s jurisdictional natural gas utilities</a>&nbsp;a little extra time to pay their bills.

From November 1-through-March 31,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.blackhillsenergy.com/" target="_blank">Black Hills Energy</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.northwesternenergy.com/" target="_blank">NorthWestern Energy</a>&nbsp;cannotshut off service to customers without allowing an additional 30 days to pay beyond the normalbill due date.

The PSC implemented the cold weather rule when it was given regulatory authority over thestate’s jurisdictional utilities in 2003. Nebraska communities served by municipally ownednatural gas utilities are not subject to regulation by the PSC and are not required to comply withthe cold weather rule.

“We are all hoping to catch a break with natural gas prices this fall and winter seasons,” saidCommission Chair Dan Watermeier.&nbsp; “If not,&nbsp;<a>the cold weather rule lets jurisdictional natural gassuppliers, and their customers work together to help ensure service is uninterrupted during a timewhen natural gas usage is typically highest.”</a>

Customer finding it difficult to pay natural gas bills should contact the company to arrangepayment. Local public assistance agencies can also be contacted for help with natural gas billsincluding the Nebraska Department of Health and Humans Service and the Salvation Army.

Taking steps to minimize the impact of higher natural gas prices during the winter months is also important. Consumers can take steps to help lower costs by setting their thermostat a little lower. Gas utilities recommend 68 degrees or lower, and to reduce thermostat settings when a home or building is unoccupied. Check gas appliances and space-heating equipment for efficient operation. Obtain a home energy audit to identify ways to conserve energy and participate in ag as company’s yearly budget plan to spread cost through the year.&nbsp;

Deb CollinsLincoln, October 30, 2023- The month of November means the start of the Nebraska Public Service Commission’s (PSC) cold weather rule. The cold weather rule provides financially strapped customers of&nbsp;<a href="https://psc.nebraska.gov/natural-gas/providers" target="_blank">Nebraska’s jurisdictional natural gas utilities</a>&nbsp;a little extra time to pay their bills.From November 1-through-March 31,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.blackhillsenergy.com/" target="_blank">Black Hills Energy</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.northwesternenergy.com/" target="_blank">NorthWestern Energy</a>&nbsp;cannotshut off service to customers without allowing an additional 30 days to pay beyond the normalbill due date.The PSC implemented the cold weather rule when it was given regulatory authority over thestate’s jurisdictional utilities in 2003. Nebraska communities served by municipally ownednatural gas utilities are not subject to regulation by the PSC and are not required to comply withthe cold weather rule.“We are all hoping to catch a break with natural gas prices this fall and winter seasons,” saidCommission Chair Dan Watermeier.&nbsp; “If not,&nbsp;<a>the cold weather rule lets jurisdictional natural gassuppliers, and their customers work together to help ensure service is uninterrupted during a timewhen natural gas usage is typically highest.”</a>Customer finding it difficult to pay natural gas bills should contact the company to arrangepayment. Local public assistance agencies can also be contacted for help with natural gas billsincluding the Nebraska Department of Health and Humans Service and the Salvation Army.Taking steps to minimize the impact of higher natural gas prices during the winter months is also important. Consumers can take steps to help lower costs by setting their thermostat a little lower. Gas utilities recommend 68 degrees or lower, and to reduce thermostat settings when a home or building is unoccupied. Check gas appliances and space-heating equipment for efficient operation. Obtain a home energy audit to identify ways to conserve energy and participate in ag as company’s yearly budget plan to spread cost through the year.&nbsp;

NOVEMBER TRIGGERS PSC COLD WEATHER RULE

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;on Monday issued a sweeping <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">executive order </a>to guide the development of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/artificial-intelligence">artificial intelligence</a>&nbsp;— requiring industry to develop safety and security standards, introducing new consumer protections and giving federal agencies an extensive to-do list to oversee the rapidly progressing technology.

<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">Click here to</a> read details of the order

The <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">order </a>reflects the government's effort to shape how AI evolves in a way that can maximize its possibilities and contain its perils. AI has been a source of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ai-artificial-intelligence-518ec2a9190cfb10db9dbcc1eaab3c4c#:~:text=Washington%20News-,In%20San%20Francisco%2C%20Biden%20talks%20with%20tech%20leaders%20about,and%20promises%20of%20artificial%20intelligence&amp;text=SAN%20FRANCISCO%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20President,enormous%20promises%E2%80%9D%20of%20artificial%20intelligence.">deep personal interest</a>&nbsp;for Biden, with its potential to affect the economy and national security.

White House chief of staff Jeff Zients recalled Biden giving his staff a directive to move with urgency on the issue, having considered the technology a top priority.

“We can’t move at a normal government pace,” Zients said the Democratic president told him. “We have to move as fast, if not faster than the technology itself.”

In Biden's view, the government was late to address the risks of social media and now U.S. youth are grappling with related mental health issues. AI has the positive ability to accelerate cancer research, model the impacts of climate change, boost economic output and improve government services among other benefits. But it could also warp basic notions of truth with false images, deepen racial and social inequalities and provide a tool to scammers and criminals.

The order builds on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/artificial-intelligence-safeguards-joe-biden-kamala-harris-4caf02b94275429f764b06840897436c">voluntary commitments</a>&nbsp;already made by technology companies. It's part of a broader strategy that administration officials say also includes congressional legislation and international diplomacy, a sign of the disruptions already caused by the introduction of new AI tools such as ChatGPT that can generate new text, images and sounds.

Using the Defense Production Act, the order will require leading AI developers to share safety test results and other information with the government. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is to create standards to ensure AI tools are safe and secure before public release.

The Commerce Department is to issue guidance to label and watermark AI-generated content to help differentiate between authentic interactions and those generated by software. The order also touches on matters of privacy, civil rights, consumer protections, scientific research and worker rights.

An administration official who previewed the order on a Sunday call with reporters said the to-do lists within the order will be implemented and fulfilled over the range of 90 days to 365 days, with the safety and security items facing the earliest deadlines. The official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, as required by the White House.

Last Thursday, Biden gathered his aides in the Oval Office to review and finalize the executive order, a 30-minute meeting that stretched to 70 minutes, despite other pressing matters including the mass shooting in Maine, the Israel-Hamas war and the selection of a new House speaker.

Biden was profoundly curious about the technology in the months of meetings that led up to drafting the order. His science advisory council focused on AI at two meetings and his Cabinet discussed it at two meetings. The president also pressed tech executives and civil society advocates about the technology's capabilities at multiple gatherings.

“He was as impressed and alarmed as anyone,” deputy White House chief of staff Bruce Reed said in an interview. “He saw fake AI images of himself, of his dog. He saw how it can make bad poetry. And he’s seen and heard the incredible and terrifying technology of voice cloning, which can take three seconds of your voice and turn it into an entire fake conversation.”

The possibility of false images and sounds led the president to prioritize the labeling and watermarking of anything produced by AI. Biden also wanted to thwart the risk of older Americans getting a phone call from someone who sounded like a loved one, only to be scammed by an AI tool.

Meetings could go beyond schedule, with Biden telling civil society advocates in a ballroom of San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel in June: “This is important. Take as long as you need.”

The president also talked with scientists and saw the upside that AI created if harnessed for good. He listened to a Nobel Prize-winning physicist talk about how AI could explain the origins of the universe. Another scientist showed how AI could model extreme weather like 100-year floods, as the past data used to assess these events has lost its accuracy because of climate change.

The issue of AI was seemingly inescapable for Biden. At Camp David one weekend, he relaxed by watching the Tom Cruise film “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One.” The film's villain is a sentient and rogue AI known as “the Entity” that sinks a submarine and kills its crew in the movie's opening minutes.

“If he hadn’t already been concerned about what could go wrong with AI before that movie, he saw plenty more to worry about,” said Reed, who watched the film with the president.

With Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/schumer-artificial-intelligence-elon-musk-senate-efcfb1067d68ad2f595db7e92167943c">still in the early stages</a>&nbsp;of debating AI safeguards, Biden's order stakes out a U.S. perspective as countries around the world race to establish&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/artificial-intelligence-risk-of-extinction-ai-54ea8aadc60d1503e5a65878219aad43">their own guidelines</a>. After more than two years of deliberation, the European Union is putting the final touches on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ai-act-artificial-intelligence-europe-regulation-94e2b38703b38fdbfabc9580f845ef9a">a comprehensive set of regulations</a>&nbsp;that targets the riskiest applications for the technology. China, a key AI rival to the U.S., has also set some rules.

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also hopes to carve out a prominent role for Britain as an AI safety hub at a summit this week that Vice President Kamala&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-ai-artificial-intelligence-db8bbdc0e726f1993cced4b298eb8aa9">Harris plans to attend</a>.

The U.S., particularly its West Coast, is home to many of the leading developers of cutting-edge AI technology, including tech giants Google, Meta and Microsoft and AI-focused startups such as OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT. The White House took advantage of that industry weight earlier this year when it secured commitments from those companies to implement safety mechanisms as they build new AI models.

But the White House also faced significant pressure from Democratic allies, including labor and civil rights groups, to make sure its policies reflected their concerns about AI's real-world harms.

The American Civil Liberties Union is among the groups that met with the White House to try to ensure "we're holding the tech industry and tech billionaires accountable” so that algorithmic tools "work for all of us and not just a few,” said ReNika Moore, director of the ACLU's racial justice program.

Suresh Venkatasubramanian, a former Biden administration official who helped craft principles for approaching AI, said one of the biggest challenges within the federal government has been what to do about law enforcement’s use of AI tools, including at U.S. borders.

“These are all places where we know that the use of automation is very problematic, with facial recognition, drone technology,” Venkatasubramanian said. Facial recognition technology has been shown to perform unevenly across racial groups, and has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mistaken-arrests-facial-recognition-technology-lawsuits-b613161c56472459df683f54320d08a7">tied to mistaken arrests</a>.

WASHINGTON (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;on Monday issued a sweeping <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">executive order </a>to guide the development of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/artificial-intelligence">artificial intelligence</a>&nbsp;— requiring industry to develop safety and security standards, introducing new consumer protections and giving federal agencies an extensive to-do list to oversee the rapidly progressing technology.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">NEW: Today, <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> will issue a landmark Executive Order to ensure America leads the way in seizing the promise and managing the risks of AI. Watch as <a href="https://twitter.com/WHOSTP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WHOSTP</a> Director Arati Prabhakar explains the actions we’re taking, and then head to <a href="https://t.co/BkeiXp02Rt">https://t.co/BkeiXp02Rt</a> to learn more. <a href="https://t.co/nZUiBgaVOM">pic.twitter.com/nZUiBgaVOM</a>&mdash; The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1718983691446493640?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">Click here to</a> read details of the orderThe <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/10/30/fact-sheet-president-biden-issues-executive-order-on-safe-secure-and-trustworthy-artificial-intelligence/">order </a>reflects the government's effort to shape how AI evolves in a way that can maximize its possibilities and contain its perils. AI has been a source of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-ai-artificial-intelligence-518ec2a9190cfb10db9dbcc1eaab3c4c#:~:text=Washington%20News-,In%20San%20Francisco%2C%20Biden%20talks%20with%20tech%20leaders%20about,and%20promises%20of%20artificial%20intelligence&amp;text=SAN%20FRANCISCO%20(AP)%20%E2%80%94%20President,enormous%20promises%E2%80%9D%20of%20artificial%20intelligence.">deep personal interest</a>&nbsp;for Biden, with its potential to affect the economy and national security.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Here’s how President Biden’s landmark Executive Order on AI will ensure America leads the way in this period of technological change while keeping Americans safe. <a href="https://t.co/SvBPxiZk3M">pic.twitter.com/SvBPxiZk3M</a>&mdash; The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1719070211188687216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 30, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>White House chief of staff Jeff Zients recalled Biden giving his staff a directive to move with urgency on the issue, having considered the technology a top priority.“We can’t move at a normal government pace,” Zients said the Democratic president told him. “We have to move as fast, if not faster than the technology itself.”In Biden's view, the government was late to address the risks of social media and now U.S. youth are grappling with related mental health issues. AI has the positive ability to accelerate cancer research, model the impacts of climate change, boost economic output and improve government services among other benefits. But it could also warp basic notions of truth with false images, deepen racial and social inequalities and provide a tool to scammers and criminals.The order builds on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/artificial-intelligence-safeguards-joe-biden-kamala-harris-4caf02b94275429f764b06840897436c">voluntary commitments</a>&nbsp;already made by technology companies. It's part of a broader strategy that administration officials say also includes congressional legislation and international diplomacy, a sign of the disruptions already caused by the introduction of new AI tools such as ChatGPT that can generate new text, images and sounds.Using the Defense Production Act, the order will require leading AI developers to share safety test results and other information with the government. The National Institute of Standards and Technology is to create standards to ensure AI tools are safe and secure before public release.The Commerce Department is to issue guidance to label and watermark AI-generated content to help differentiate between authentic interactions and those generated by software. The order also touches on matters of privacy, civil rights, consumer protections, scientific research and worker rights.An administration official who previewed the order on a Sunday call with reporters said the to-do lists within the order will be implemented and fulfilled over the range of 90 days to 365 days, with the safety and security items facing the earliest deadlines. The official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, as required by the White House.Last Thursday, Biden gathered his aides in the Oval Office to review and finalize the executive order, a 30-minute meeting that stretched to 70 minutes, despite other pressing matters including the mass shooting in Maine, the Israel-Hamas war and the selection of a new House speaker.Biden was profoundly curious about the technology in the months of meetings that led up to drafting the order. His science advisory council focused on AI at two meetings and his Cabinet discussed it at two meetings. The president also pressed tech executives and civil society advocates about the technology's capabilities at multiple gatherings.“He was as impressed and alarmed as anyone,” deputy White House chief of staff Bruce Reed said in an interview. “He saw fake AI images of himself, of his dog. He saw how it can make bad poetry. And he’s seen and heard the incredible and terrifying technology of voice cloning, which can take three seconds of your voice and turn it into an entire fake conversation.”The possibility of false images and sounds led the president to prioritize the labeling and watermarking of anything produced by AI. Biden also wanted to thwart the risk of older Americans getting a phone call from someone who sounded like a loved one, only to be scammed by an AI tool.Meetings could go beyond schedule, with Biden telling civil society advocates in a ballroom of San Francisco's Fairmont Hotel in June: “This is important. Take as long as you need.”The president also talked with scientists and saw the upside that AI created if harnessed for good. He listened to a Nobel Prize-winning physicist talk about how AI could explain the origins of the universe. Another scientist showed how AI could model extreme weather like 100-year floods, as the past data used to assess these events has lost its accuracy because of climate change.The issue of AI was seemingly inescapable for Biden. At Camp David one weekend, he relaxed by watching the Tom Cruise film “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One.” The film's villain is a sentient and rogue AI known as “the Entity” that sinks a submarine and kills its crew in the movie's opening minutes.“If he hadn’t already been concerned about what could go wrong with AI before that movie, he saw plenty more to worry about,” said Reed, who watched the film with the president.With Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/schumer-artificial-intelligence-elon-musk-senate-efcfb1067d68ad2f595db7e92167943c">still in the early stages</a>&nbsp;of debating AI safeguards, Biden's order stakes out a U.S. perspective as countries around the world race to establish&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/artificial-intelligence-risk-of-extinction-ai-54ea8aadc60d1503e5a65878219aad43">their own guidelines</a>. After more than two years of deliberation, the European Union is putting the final touches on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ai-act-artificial-intelligence-europe-regulation-94e2b38703b38fdbfabc9580f845ef9a">a comprehensive set of regulations</a>&nbsp;that targets the riskiest applications for the technology. China, a key AI rival to the U.S., has also set some rules.U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also hopes to carve out a prominent role for Britain as an AI safety hub at a summit this week that Vice President Kamala&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-ai-artificial-intelligence-db8bbdc0e726f1993cced4b298eb8aa9">Harris plans to attend</a>.The U.S., particularly its West Coast, is home to many of the leading developers of cutting-edge AI technology, including tech giants Google, Meta and Microsoft and AI-focused startups such as OpenAI, maker of ChatGPT. The White House took advantage of that industry weight earlier this year when it secured commitments from those companies to implement safety mechanisms as they build new AI models.But the White House also faced significant pressure from Democratic allies, including labor and civil rights groups, to make sure its policies reflected their concerns about AI's real-world harms.The American Civil Liberties Union is among the groups that met with the White House to try to ensure "we're holding the tech industry and tech billionaires accountable” so that algorithmic tools "work for all of us and not just a few,” said ReNika Moore, director of the ACLU's racial justice program.Suresh Venkatasubramanian, a former Biden administration official who helped craft principles for approaching AI, said one of the biggest challenges within the federal government has been what to do about law enforcement’s use of AI tools, including at U.S. borders.“These are all places where we know that the use of automation is very problematic, with facial recognition, drone technology,” Venkatasubramanian said. Facial recognition technology has been shown to perform unevenly across racial groups, and has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mistaken-arrests-facial-recognition-technology-lawsuits-b613161c56472459df683f54320d08a7">tied to mistaken arrests</a>.

🎥Biden Issues new Executive Order on Artificial Intelligence

Townhall meeting scheduled for Sidney, Kimball on Nov. 6th & 8th

<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/30/nebraska-mulls-participation-in-new-child-nutrition-program-that-could-bring-18m-in-benefits/">Nebraska Examiner</a>

LINCOLN — A child nutrition program poised to launch nationwide on a permanent basis could deliver an estimated $18 million in grocery-buying benefits to Nebraska families next summer.

While that’s an encouraging prospect to child welfare advocates and struggling families, state government officials first must decide whether to opt into the new Summer EBT program for children.

That has yet to happen — and a looming federal government deadline has some advocates antsy.

“If they do nothing there is going to be more child hunger, more stress on the emergency food distribution network in our state, which already is stressed,” said Eric Savaiano, food and nutrition access manager at Nebraska Appleseed, a nonprofit that combats poverty and discrimination.

Modeled after pilot projects and a nationwide pandemic-era initiative that’s now ended, Congress authorized the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/sebt/implementation-toolkit">more permanent summer program</a>&nbsp;via the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.&nbsp;

It will offer an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card to children whose household income makes them eligible for free and reduced school lunches during the school year. Each youth would receive a card loaded with $120 to help buy food during months that school is out.

Estimated reach is 150,000 youths statewide

The funding through the U.S. Department of Agriculture is intended to supplement, not replace, existing programs that help families, including summer meal sites and the year-round SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).

Based on Nebraska’s participation in the pandemic program, the Appleseed advocacy group estimates that 150,000 Nebraska kids would benefit next summer if the state opted into the new EBT program.&nbsp;

That amounts to a total of about $18 million in food benefits that would be fully covered financially by the federal government. Nebraska, like other states, would be responsible for half of the cost to administer its program.

Appleseed’s review shows Nebraska would be on the hook for up to $300,000 annually. That’s a change from the pandemic-era program, where the federal government paid all administrative costs. According to guidance from the USDA, states also are to conduct outreach efforts and facilitate collaboration among involved agencies.

Cortni Bowman’s family — including her husband and their three children, ages 7 to 14 — benefited last summer from Nebraska’s pandemic EBT program and are hoping for a return in 2024.

“It felt like this really great weight was lifted,” the South Sioux City mom said. “We used that money to stock our freezer with different meats. My kids were so happy to have a variety of fresh fruit to snack on as opposed to our bananas.”

For a bit of splurge, Bowman bought Cheez-It crackers for her kids instead of the usual Great Value brand.

“Anyone coming from a food insecure house can tell you how exciting it is to have that name brand food,” she said.

The summer boost would be good news, Bowman said, as food prices are growing along with her kids’ summer appetites.&nbsp;

Bowman has returned to school to study law, leaving her family with the single income of her husband, who works at a packing plant. They don’t qualify for year-round SNAP benefits, she said.

And the existing free summer meals program in her town isn’t as helpful to the family, she said, because lunches are offered on-site, and the closest spot is about six blocks and a busy street crossing away.&nbsp;

Savaiano said another barrier to participation in the traditional summer meal site program is that there are fewer spots available.&nbsp;

According to state education data, he said, participating schools, community centers and other meal sites have dropped in number, from 270 in 2019 to 197 today.

If the new program were implemented, Bowman’s three-child household likely would get a total of about $360 next summer. On their own time, the family would find a store that accepts EBT and shop for food that meets their needs.

“I’m strategic in my buying,” Bowman said. &nbsp;”I think we did a good job of making the other funds stretch as far as we could.”

According to the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, which oversees such nutrition programs, more than 29 million children across America could benefit from the 2024 Summer EBT program.

Under the federal requirements, each state, by Jan. 1, is supposed to notify the USDA of its intent to administer the program.&nbsp;

Gov. Jim Pillen’s office referred questions about the program to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. A DHHS spokesman on Friday said, in a statement to the Nebraska Examiner, that the department is reviewing information and “awaiting the interim final rule from FNS expected to be issued by the end of 2023.”

The state officials did not answer any further questions.

Savaiano said advocates are concerned about the state response so far. ”It seems they don’t have a strong voice” on the matter.

He and others pointed to growing demand for food assistance.

Alicia Christensen, director of policy and advocacy for the nonprofit Omaha-based Together Inc., said COVID-19 caused an unprecedented demand for emergency food in Nebraska. She said data from six area service organizations — including the Food Bank for the Heartland, which covers 77 counties, and Community Action of Nebraska, which covers 93 counties — shows continued strain.

For example, the groups report food pantry traffic rising from about 708,000 visits in 2018 to 2.1 million visits in 2022.

Ongoing need is attributable in part, said Christensen, to wages not keeping pace with inflation that’s driving up grocery prices.

With emergency food services “sort of maxed out at the moment,” Christensen said, she is pushing for help, and that includes the summer EBT program.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/10/1698363393415.jpg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Cindy Gonzalez<a href="https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/10/30/nebraska-mulls-participation-in-new-child-nutrition-program-that-could-bring-18m-in-benefits/">Nebraska Examiner</a>LINCOLN — A child nutrition program poised to launch nationwide on a permanent basis could deliver an estimated $18 million in grocery-buying benefits to Nebraska families next summer.While that’s an encouraging prospect to child welfare advocates and struggling families, state government officials first must decide whether to opt into the new Summer EBT program for children.That has yet to happen — and a looming federal government deadline has some advocates antsy.“If they do nothing there is going to be more child hunger, more stress on the emergency food distribution network in our state, which already is stressed,” said Eric Savaiano, food and nutrition access manager at Nebraska Appleseed, a nonprofit that combats poverty and discrimination.Modeled after pilot projects and a nationwide pandemic-era initiative that’s now ended, Congress authorized the&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.fns.usda.gov/sebt/implementation-toolkit">more permanent summer program</a>&nbsp;via the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023.&nbsp;It will offer an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card to children whose household income makes them eligible for free and reduced school lunches during the school year. Each youth would receive a card loaded with $120 to help buy food during months that school is out.<h2>Estimated reach is 150,000 youths statewide</h2>The funding through the U.S. Department of Agriculture is intended to supplement, not replace, existing programs that help families, including summer meal sites and the year-round SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).Based on Nebraska’s participation in the pandemic program, the Appleseed advocacy group estimates that 150,000 Nebraska kids would benefit next summer if the state opted into the new EBT program.&nbsp;That amounts to a total of about $18 million in food benefits that would be fully covered financially by the federal government. Nebraska, like other states, would be responsible for half of the cost to administer its program.Appleseed’s review shows Nebraska would be on the hook for up to $300,000 annually. That’s a change from the pandemic-era program, where the federal government paid all administrative costs. According to guidance from the USDA, states also are to conduct outreach efforts and facilitate collaboration among involved agencies.Cortni Bowman’s family — including her husband and their three children, ages 7 to 14 — benefited last summer from Nebraska’s pandemic EBT program and are hoping for a return in 2024.“It felt like this really great weight was lifted,” the South Sioux City mom said. “We used that money to stock our freezer with different meats. My kids were so happy to have a variety of fresh fruit to snack on as opposed to our bananas.”For a bit of splurge, Bowman bought Cheez-It crackers for her kids instead of the usual Great Value brand.“Anyone coming from a food insecure house can tell you how exciting it is to have that name brand food,” she said.The summer boost would be good news, Bowman said, as food prices are growing along with her kids’ summer appetites.&nbsp;Bowman has returned to school to study law, leaving her family with the single income of her husband, who works at a packing plant. They don’t qualify for year-round SNAP benefits, she said.And the existing free summer meals program in her town isn’t as helpful to the family, she said, because lunches are offered on-site, and the closest spot is about six blocks and a busy street crossing away.&nbsp;<h2>Jan. 1 deadline</h2>Savaiano said another barrier to participation in the traditional summer meal site program is that there are fewer spots available.&nbsp;According to state education data, he said, participating schools, community centers and other meal sites have dropped in number, from 270 in 2019 to 197 today.If the new program were implemented, Bowman’s three-child household likely would get a total of about $360 next summer. On their own time, the family would find a store that accepts EBT and shop for food that meets their needs.“I’m strategic in my buying,” Bowman said. &nbsp;”I think we did a good job of making the other funds stretch as far as we could.”According to the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, which oversees such nutrition programs, more than 29 million children across America could benefit from the 2024 Summer EBT program.Under the federal requirements, each state, by Jan. 1, is supposed to notify the USDA of its intent to administer the program.&nbsp;Gov. Jim Pillen’s office referred questions about the program to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. A DHHS spokesman on Friday said, in a statement to the Nebraska Examiner, that the department is reviewing information and “awaiting the interim final rule from FNS expected to be issued by the end of 2023.”The state officials did not answer any further questions.Savaiano said advocates are concerned about the state response so far. ”It seems they don’t have a strong voice” on the matter.He and others pointed to growing demand for food assistance.Alicia Christensen, director of policy and advocacy for the nonprofit Omaha-based Together Inc., said COVID-19 caused an unprecedented demand for emergency food in Nebraska. She said data from six area service organizations — including the Food Bank for the Heartland, which covers 77 counties, and Community Action of Nebraska, which covers 93 counties — shows continued strain.For example, the groups report food pantry traffic rising from about 708,000 visits in 2018 to 2.1 million visits in 2022.Ongoing need is attributable in part, said Christensen, to wages not keeping pace with inflation that’s driving up grocery prices.With emergency food services “sort of maxed out at the moment,” Christensen said, she is pushing for help, and that includes the summer EBT program.

Nebraska mulls participation in new child nutrition program that could bring $18M in benefits

WASHINGTON&nbsp; (AP)— Two U.S. senior defense officials briefing reporters at the Pentagon on Monday said that from Oct. 17 to Oct. 30, U.S. and coalition forces were attacked at least 14 times in Iraq and nine times in Syria by a mix of drones and rockets for a total of 23 attacks.

The officials said many of the drones and rockets were intercepted and failed to reach their targets.

Bases housing U.S. troops in Syria and Iraq have come under rocket and drone attacks over the past weeks as tensions in the region rise over the Israel-Hamas war.

Meanwhile, Israel expanded its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-30-2023-131e9537aaad8e74586cc114d2668e5a">military incursion</a>&nbsp;deeper into the northern part of the Gaza Strip on Monday as the U.N. and medical staff expressed fears over airstrikes hitting closer to hospitals, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have sought shelter alongside thousands of wounded. The largest convoy of humanitarian aid to arrive in Gaza still fell far short of needs, relief workers said.

The movements of recent days, including larger ground operations both north and east of Gaza City, point to a focus on the city.

Israel’s military said late Monday that a female soldier captured during Hamas’ wide-ranging&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-attack-military-war-a8f63b07641212f0de61861844e5e71e">Oct. 7 attack</a>&nbsp;inside Israel was released during its ground operation — the first such rescue since the weekslong war began.

The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 8,306, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 110 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.

More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them civilians slain in the initial Hamas rampage that started the fighting Oct. 7. In addition, 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.

WASHINGTON&nbsp; (AP)— Two U.S. senior defense officials briefing reporters at the Pentagon on Monday said that from Oct. 17 to Oct. 30, U.S. and coalition forces were attacked at least 14 times in Iraq and nine times in Syria by a mix of drones and rockets for a total of 23 attacks.The officials said many of the drones and rockets were intercepted and failed to reach their targets.Bases housing U.S. troops in Syria and Iraq have come under rocket and drone attacks over the past weeks as tensions in the region rise over the Israel-Hamas war.Meanwhile, Israel expanded its&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-gaza-war-news-10-30-2023-131e9537aaad8e74586cc114d2668e5a">military incursion</a>&nbsp;deeper into the northern part of the Gaza Strip on Monday as the U.N. and medical staff expressed fears over airstrikes hitting closer to hospitals, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have sought shelter alongside thousands of wounded. The largest convoy of humanitarian aid to arrive in Gaza still fell far short of needs, relief workers said.The movements of recent days, including larger ground operations both north and east of Gaza City, point to a focus on the city.Israel’s military said late Monday that a female soldier captured during Hamas’ wide-ranging&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-attack-military-war-a8f63b07641212f0de61861844e5e71e">Oct. 7 attack</a>&nbsp;inside Israel was released during its ground operation — the first such rescue since the weekslong war began.The Palestinian death toll in the Israel-Hamas war has reached 8,306, according to the Hamas-run&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-gaza-health-ministry-health-death-toll-59470820308b31f1faf73c703400b033">Health Ministry in Gaza</a>. In the occupied West Bank, more than 110 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them civilians slain in the initial Hamas rampage that started the fighting Oct. 7. In addition, 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group.

US: American, coalition forces attacked 23 times in Syria, Iraq 

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors and the United Auto Workers union have reached a tentative contract agreement that could end a six-week-old strike against Detroit automakers, two people briefed on the deal said Monday.

The agreement follows the pattern set with Ford last week and Jeep maker Stellantis over the weekend.

It was reached early Monday in a meeting at the UAW headquarters in Detroit involving union President Shawn Fain, GM CEO Mary Barra and manufacturing chief Gerald Johnson, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they aren't authorized to speak publicly about the deal. The agreement was reached on Fain's 55th birthday.

The deals will last four years and eight months and include 25% general pay raises and cost of living adjustments. Combined they bring the wage increase to over 30% over the life of the contract.

The contract with GM is similar to those reached by the other two automakers, but there are some differences.

GM was the last company to reach a deal and the union added a lucrative factory in Tennessee to the strike list on Saturday to turn up the pressure.

The UAW reached&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/auto-workers-strikes-ford-general-motors-stellantis-08a81503d72e44d4efa40549f684d5a2">tentative agreement last week with Ford</a>&nbsp;and Stellantis on Saturday, and it wasted no time in hitting GM where it hurts financially.

Nearly 4,000 unionized workers on Saturday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/uaw-strike-gm-spring-hill-tennessee-contract-64c756ec121d7f39205fdea396d21bc0">walked out of GM's largest North American plant</a>&nbsp;in Spring Hill, Tennessee, hours after the deal with Stellantis was announced. They joined about 14,000 GM workers already striking at factories in Texas, Michigan and Missouri.

The people briefed on the matter said Barra and Johnson wanted a deal in an effort to get Spring Hill up and running on scheduled Monday morning, plus they're trying to reopen a large and profitable SUV factory in Arlington, Texas.

President Joe Biden was asked about the deal Monday, as he boarded Air Force One back to the White House. He gave a thumbs-up and said: “I think it’s great.”

Also Monday, 8,200 Stellantis workers in Canada represented by a different union, Unifor, briefly went on strike before reaching a deal that comes with base hourly wage increases of nearly 20% for production workers. General Motors and Ford workers in Canada have already voted to ratify a three-year contract agreement with the company.

Spring Hill, the plant where workers hit picket lines Saturday, produces the engines for vehicles assembled at nine plants as far afield as Mexico, including Silverado and Sierra pickups. It's a big money maker for GM that could have potentially amplified the company's financial pain after workers walked off the job last week in Arlington, Texas, where full-size SUVs including the Tahoe and Suburban are produced. Spring Hill also produces the electric Cadillac Lyriq, GMC Acadia and Cadillac crossover SUVs.

Presidents of the Ford union locals voted unanimously in Detroit on Sunday to endorse that tentative contract after UAW President Shawn Fain explained its details,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/uaw/status/1718773591972495386?s=46&amp;t=kB_Z_dm-QT0eZ5qMjDc8zA">the union tweeted.</a>

As he explained&nbsp;<a href="https://uaw.org/uaw-auto-bargaining/fordcontract/">the particulars</a>&nbsp;to the full membership in a later livestream, Fain, along with Chuck Browning, the UAW vice president, said the deal represents a “historical inflection point” for reviving union power in an America where "we were being left behind by an economy that only works for the billionaire class.”

“UAW members at Ford will receive more in straight general wage increases over the next 4 1/2 years than we have over the last 22 years combined,” Browning said.

Fain called the deal “a turning point in the class war that has been raging in this country for the past 40 years.”

The Ford and Stellantis pacts, which would run until April 30, 2028, include 25% in general wage increases for top assembly plant workers, with 11% coming once the deal is ratified.

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors and the United Auto Workers union have reached a tentative contract agreement that could end a six-week-old strike against Detroit automakers, two people briefed on the deal said Monday.The agreement follows the pattern set with Ford last week and Jeep maker Stellantis over the weekend.<div><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cT9XpLEmy9U?si=-gOCq5LCG_1PlQua&amp;start=221" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>It was reached early Monday in a meeting at the UAW headquarters in Detroit involving union President Shawn Fain, GM CEO Mary Barra and manufacturing chief Gerald Johnson, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they aren't authorized to speak publicly about the deal. The agreement was reached on Fain's 55th birthday.The deals will last four years and eight months and include 25% general pay raises and cost of living adjustments. Combined they bring the wage increase to over 30% over the life of the contract.The contract with GM is similar to those reached by the other two automakers, but there are some differences.GM was the last company to reach a deal and the union added a lucrative factory in Tennessee to the strike list on Saturday to turn up the pressure.The UAW reached&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/auto-workers-strikes-ford-general-motors-stellantis-08a81503d72e44d4efa40549f684d5a2">tentative agreement last week with Ford</a>&nbsp;and Stellantis on Saturday, and it wasted no time in hitting GM where it hurts financially.Nearly 4,000 unionized workers on Saturday&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/uaw-strike-gm-spring-hill-tennessee-contract-64c756ec121d7f39205fdea396d21bc0">walked out of GM's largest North American plant</a>&nbsp;in Spring Hill, Tennessee, hours after the deal with Stellantis was announced. They joined about 14,000 GM workers already striking at factories in Texas, Michigan and Missouri.The people briefed on the matter said Barra and Johnson wanted a deal in an effort to get Spring Hill up and running on scheduled Monday morning, plus they're trying to reopen a large and profitable SUV factory in Arlington, Texas.President Joe Biden was asked about the deal Monday, as he boarded Air Force One back to the White House. He gave a thumbs-up and said: “I think it’s great.”Also Monday, 8,200 Stellantis workers in Canada represented by a different union, Unifor, briefly went on strike before reaching a deal that comes with base hourly wage increases of nearly 20% for production workers. General Motors and Ford workers in Canada have already voted to ratify a three-year contract agreement with the company.Spring Hill, the plant where workers hit picket lines Saturday, produces the engines for vehicles assembled at nine plants as far afield as Mexico, including Silverado and Sierra pickups. It's a big money maker for GM that could have potentially amplified the company's financial pain after workers walked off the job last week in Arlington, Texas, where full-size SUVs including the Tahoe and Suburban are produced. Spring Hill also produces the electric Cadillac Lyriq, GMC Acadia and Cadillac crossover SUVs.Presidents of the Ford union locals voted unanimously in Detroit on Sunday to endorse that tentative contract after UAW President Shawn Fain explained its details,&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/uaw/status/1718773591972495386?s=46&amp;t=kB_Z_dm-QT0eZ5qMjDc8zA">the union tweeted.</a>As he explained&nbsp;<a href="https://uaw.org/uaw-auto-bargaining/fordcontract/">the particulars</a>&nbsp;to the full membership in a later livestream, Fain, along with Chuck Browning, the UAW vice president, said the deal represents a “historical inflection point” for reviving union power in an America where "we were being left behind by an economy that only works for the billionaire class.”“UAW members at Ford will receive more in straight general wage increases over the next 4 1/2 years than we have over the last 22 years combined,” Browning said.Fain called the deal “a turning point in the class war that has been raging in this country for the past 40 years.”The Ford and Stellantis pacts, which would run until April 30, 2028, include 25% in general wage increases for top assembly plant workers, with 11% coming once the deal is ratified.The Ford agreement revives cost-of-living adjustments that the UAW agreed to suspend in 2009 during the Great Recession.At Stellantis, workers get cost-of-living pay that would bring raises to a compounded 33%, with top assembly plant workers making more than $42 per hour. Top-scale workers there now make around $31 per hour.Starting wages for new Stellantis hires will rise 67% including cost-of-living adjustments to over $30 per hour. Temporary workers will get raises of more than 165%, while workers at parts centers will get an immediate 76% increase if the contract is ratified.Like the Ford agreement, it will take just three years for new workers to get to the top of the assembly pay scale, the union said. Similarly, the union won the right to strike over plant closures.Bruce Baumhower, president of the local union at a large Stellantis Jeep factory in Toledo, Ohio, that had been on strike since September, said he expected workers to vote to approve the deal because of pay raises including the immediate 11% raise on ratification. "It's a historic agreement as far as I’m concerned.”The UAW began targeted strikes against all three automakers on Sept. 15 after its contracts with the companies expired. At the peak, about 46,000 UAW workers were on strike — about one-third of the union’s 146,000 members at all three companies.____