• First Lady Laura Bush has designated Rock Island as one of 20 new "Preserve America" communities. The official designation was announced March 18 and was delivered last week by U.S. Representative Lane Evans (D-Rock Island) to Rock Island Mayor Mark Schweibert during a ceremony at city hall. The Preserve America program recognizes communities that protect and celebrate their heritage, use their historic assets for economic development and community revitalization, and encourage people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs. Preserve America is a White House program with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the U.S. Department of Commerce. Next year's proposed federal budget includes $10 million in grants for communities recognized by the Preserve America program. For more information, look at the Preserve America Web site at (http://www.preserveamerica.gov/3-18-04PAcommunity-rockislandIL.html).
• Librarian Live! is a new chat-based online reference service in which you can ask questions and get answers from librarians in real time from your home computer. This is a joint project of 20 libraries in Illinois and the Bettendorf Public Library in Iowa. Librarian Live! is available Monday through Thursday from 3 to 9 p.m. and on Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. You can access the service from the Bettendorf Public Library Web site at (http://www.bettendorflibrary.com).
• Volunteers are needed at Sylvan Island in Moline from 2 to 4 p.m. on April 24 to plant native grasses and wildflowers and clean up the trails. This planting is part of River Action's "Retain the Rain" stormwater-conservation project. Bring trowels and shovels; gloves will be provided. Following the planting, River Action is hosting its second annual Earth Day Fish & Fire Fundraiser, including a catfish fry at 5:30 p.m. at the McKesson Building, 120 19th Street in Rock Island and the site of the new River Action and Rock Island "green roof" project. The event also features a silent auction and live music. Fish & Fire tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for ages 8 to 16. Reservations are needed for the fish fry; send a check as a reservation for your party by April 20 to River Action, 822 E. River Dr., Davenport IA 52803. For more information, call River Action at (563)322-2969.
• The Scott County Sheriff's Office Reserve Deputy Unit has received the Reserve Officer Unit of the Year Award from the Iowa Sate Reserve Officer's Association (ISROA). The award was presented at the ISROA annual meeting that was held recently in Muscatine. Present to accept the award on behalf of the Sheriff's Reserve Unit was Gary Lee, the unit's current president.
• The average Iowa utility customer would save approximately $74 a year under legislation approved by the Iowa Senate. The bill would lower the state sales tax on Iowans' heating and cooling bills and encourage the production of alternative energy across the state. Currently, the tax rate on utilities stands at 2 percent. However, it's scheduled to go back up to 5 percent on July 1 because of Governor Tom Vilsack's veto last year of an economic-stimulus package that would have phased out the sales tax. Under this new legislation, the rate would stay at 2 percent for the remainder of the year and drop to 1 percent on January 1, 2005. Lowering the sales tax on utilities to 1 percent will save Iowa's families more than $60 million a year. Under an amendment to the bill, the revenue collected from the sales tax, about $18 million annually, would go into an incentive fund to encourage the development of small, independent alternative-energy providers. Alternative sources of energy include wind, solar, and biomass. The bill now goes to the House for consideration.
• The Electronic Privacy Information Center reports that the Department of Homeland Security has announced that it will fingerprint and photograph travelers entering the United States through the Visa Waiver Program beginning September 30. The announcement marks an expansion of the United States Visitor & Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT), a massive government-wide program that tracks the entry and exit of visitors to the United States. The expansion will affect an estimated 13 million citizens from 27 nations - including Japan, Australia, and many European countries - who until now have been permitted to visit the United States for up to 90 days without a visa. For more information about US-VISIT, see (http://www.epic.org/privacy/us-visit/).
• Through a grant from the Riverboat Development Authority, the Davenport Public Library is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Grand Excursion by adding to its collection of culture kits. A new one called "Grand Excursion" is now available for library patrons to check out for a limited loan period. The kit has a wide range of items for patrons to enjoy, including a variety of posters, books, CD-ROMs, CDs, and more. All materials in the "Grand Excursion" culture kit relate to local history and/or the riverfront. The loan period is one week, and the kit can be reserved in advance by calling (563)326-7900. Other culture kits available include China, Colombia, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
• Congratulations to local 8th grader Emily Martin for her winning invention, the D-LO (Deluxe Locker Organizer). Martin presented her invention at the February 28 Regional Invention Convention in Bettendorf and was selected to take her invention to the University of Iowa for the State Invention Convention on May 1. About 30,000 students from across the state compete in the Invent Iowa competition, but only a few are selected to show their inventions at the state convention. The judges were impressed with the quality of Martin's work and felt her invention is marketable.
• Librarian Live! is a new chat-based online reference service in which you can ask questions and get answers from librarians in real time from your home computer. This is a joint project of 20 libraries in Illinois and the Bettendorf Public Library in Iowa. Librarian Live! is available Monday through Thursday from 3 to 9 p.m. and on Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. You can access the service from the Bettendorf Public Library Web site at (http://www.bettendorflibrary.com).
• Volunteers are needed at Sylvan Island in Moline from 2 to 4 p.m. on April 24 to plant native grasses and wildflowers and clean up the trails. This planting is part of River Action's "Retain the Rain" stormwater-conservation project. Bring trowels and shovels; gloves will be provided. Following the planting, River Action is hosting its second annual Earth Day Fish & Fire Fundraiser, including a catfish fry at 5:30 p.m. at the McKesson Building, 120 19th Street in Rock Island and the site of the new River Action and Rock Island "green roof" project. The event also features a silent auction and live music. Fish & Fire tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for ages 8 to 16. Reservations are needed for the fish fry; send a check as a reservation for your party by April 20 to River Action, 822 E. River Dr., Davenport IA 52803. For more information, call River Action at (563)322-2969.
• The Scott County Sheriff's Office Reserve Deputy Unit has received the Reserve Officer Unit of the Year Award from the Iowa Sate Reserve Officer's Association (ISROA). The award was presented at the ISROA annual meeting that was held recently in Muscatine. Present to accept the award on behalf of the Sheriff's Reserve Unit was Gary Lee, the unit's current president.
• The average Iowa utility customer would save approximately $74 a year under legislation approved by the Iowa Senate. The bill would lower the state sales tax on Iowans' heating and cooling bills and encourage the production of alternative energy across the state. Currently, the tax rate on utilities stands at 2 percent. However, it's scheduled to go back up to 5 percent on July 1 because of Governor Tom Vilsack's veto last year of an economic-stimulus package that would have phased out the sales tax. Under this new legislation, the rate would stay at 2 percent for the remainder of the year and drop to 1 percent on January 1, 2005. Lowering the sales tax on utilities to 1 percent will save Iowa's families more than $60 million a year. Under an amendment to the bill, the revenue collected from the sales tax, about $18 million annually, would go into an incentive fund to encourage the development of small, independent alternative-energy providers. Alternative sources of energy include wind, solar, and biomass. The bill now goes to the House for consideration.
• The Electronic Privacy Information Center reports that the Department of Homeland Security has announced that it will fingerprint and photograph travelers entering the United States through the Visa Waiver Program beginning September 30. The announcement marks an expansion of the United States Visitor & Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT), a massive government-wide program that tracks the entry and exit of visitors to the United States. The expansion will affect an estimated 13 million citizens from 27 nations - including Japan, Australia, and many European countries - who until now have been permitted to visit the United States for up to 90 days without a visa. For more information about US-VISIT, see (http://www.epic.org/privacy/us-visit/).
• Through a grant from the Riverboat Development Authority, the Davenport Public Library is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Grand Excursion by adding to its collection of culture kits. A new one called "Grand Excursion" is now available for library patrons to check out for a limited loan period. The kit has a wide range of items for patrons to enjoy, including a variety of posters, books, CD-ROMs, CDs, and more. All materials in the "Grand Excursion" culture kit relate to local history and/or the riverfront. The loan period is one week, and the kit can be reserved in advance by calling (563)326-7900. Other culture kits available include China, Colombia, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
• Congratulations to local 8th grader Emily Martin for her winning invention, the D-LO (Deluxe Locker Organizer). Martin presented her invention at the February 28 Regional Invention Convention in Bettendorf and was selected to take her invention to the University of Iowa for the State Invention Convention on May 1. About 30,000 students from across the state compete in the Invent Iowa competition, but only a few are selected to show their inventions at the state convention. The judges were impressed with the quality of Martin's work and felt her invention is marketable.
