24
Sep
2002
• The Scott County Family YMCA has announced that the Kresge Foundation has awarded $600,000 in a challenge grant toward the Y's $15.3-million community-wide facility-expansion and -improvement program. To receive the money, the Scott County Family Y must raise by December 1, 2003, the $1.8 million needed to complete its expansion campaign. A new facility is being constructed in collaboration with the Davenport Community School District on the campus of North High School, and another is planned for Bettendorf at Tanglefoot and Devils Glen roads in collaboration with Genesis Health Systems and the City of Bettendorf. In addition, the YMCA recently completed an aquatic center at Camp Abe Lincoln and is planning a renovation to the downtown Davenport facility.
• Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack has proclaimed September as College Savings Month - recognition that tuition has out-paced inflation, that student debt has increased dramatically, and that Iowans need to begin saving early for their children's education. The average costs at a four-year public college rose 7.7 percent last year, according to the College Board, and tuition at Iowa's state schools rose 18.5 percent this fall. College Savings Iowa lets anyone - parents, grandparents, relatives, and friends - invest in college on behalf of a child. Contributions to the plan can be used to pay for qualified education expenses including tuition, fees, books, supplies, and room and board at any public or private college, university, community college, or accredited technical-training school in the United States. Withdrawals from the plan for qualified higher-education expenses are free from federal and Iowa income taxes. Iowa residents who participate College Savings Iowa can also take a state tax deduction of up to $2,180 per account on their contributions. For more information on College Savings Iowa, visit (http://www.collegesavingsiowa.com) or call (888)672-9116. Illinois has several similar programs, including the state treasurer's Bright Start Savings. For more information, visit (http://www.brightstartsavings.com)
• World Heritage, a not-for-profit student-exchange program, is seeking a local representative to provide local program support to high-school students from several countries, including Germany, France, Spain, Japan, Thailand, Mexico, Grant Britain, and Brazil. Community representatives screen potential host families, plan annual orientations, meet with local high schools, provide support counseling for participants, and visit with exchange students and families on a monthly basis. Annual and ongoing training is provided. Community representatives spend an average of two to four hours a month per student. For more information, call Chris at (800)888-9040 or visit the Web site at (http://www.world-heritage.org).
• Want to own your very own graveyard? The Iowa Insurance Division was appointed as the receiver of Dubuque Memorial Gardens in a court order issued November 15, 2001. The state agency now plans to sell the cemetery's assets in conjunction with an assignment of the cemetery's pre-need contracts to protect the interests of lot owners and pre-need contract-purchasers and their families. A sale is planned in November. Interested parties should contact Dennis Britson; Iowa Insurance Division; 340 Maple; Des Moines, Iowa 50319-0066; (515) 281-4441.
• Retired and senior volunteers are needed to help elementary Hispanic children in grades one through five with reading. Spanish is not required. If you have questions or want to volunteer, call Michelle Hammond at (309)793-4425 or e-mail (mhammond@wiaaa.org).
• Medical drugs and devices cannot be marketed in the United States unless the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) grants specific approval. FDAReview, a project of the Independent Institute, argues that FDA control of drugs and devices has large and often overlooked costs that exceed the benefits. The group also claims that regulation of the medical industry has suppressed and delayed new drugs and devices, and has increased costs, with a net result of more morbidity and mortality. A large body of academic research has investigated the FDA and with unusual consensus has reached the same conclusion. Drawing on this body of research, FDAReview evaluates the costs and benefits of FDA policy. Also presented is a detailed history of the FDA, a review of the major plans for FDA reform, a glossary of terms, a collection of quotes from economists who have studied the FDA, and a bibliography with many Web links. See for yourself at (http://www.FDAReview.org).
• The excellent Scott County Web site has a new addition: The Scott County Jail & Alternatives Advisory Commission (CJAAC) can be found at (http://www.scottcountyiowa.com/jail/). The Scott County Board of Supervisors created CJAAC to identify why community members did not support previous jail-planning efforts and to develop a new plan for the expansion of jail capacity and reduction of the jail population. CJAAC was designed to solicit community input and provide opportunities for interaction and informational exchange between representatives of county government, the justice system, and the community. CJAAC advises the board of supervisors and makes recommendations for future board action. Not only is the Web page packed with statistics, it has links to information about CJAAC and copies of agendas.
• The recently released State of the First Amendment 2002 survey report has found that almost half (49 percent) of those surveyed said the First Amendment goes too far in the rights it guarantees - a 10-percentage-point jump from 2001, which suggests new public concerns in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. The least popular First Amendment right once again was freedom of the press. Forty-two percent of respondents said the press in America has too much freedom, roughly the same level as last year. The survey also found, as in previous years, that many Americans are unable to name the five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment. You can see for yourself at (http://www.freedomforum.org/first/).
• The governors of Illinois and Iowa didn't fare well in a report card on fiscal management prepared by the conservative Cato Institute. Both Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, a Democrat, and Illinois Governor George Ryan, a Republican, received a D in the 2002 Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors. Only two governors received the group's highest grade of A this year: Bill Owens of Colorado and Jeb Bush of Florida, both Republicans. Four governors received failing grades: Democrats Gray Davis of California and John Kitzhaber of Oregon, and Republicans Don Sundquist of Tennessee and Bob Taft of Ohio. Governors who have increased spending and taxes the most receive the lowest grades. You can see the report for yourself at (http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-454es.html).
• Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack has proclaimed September as College Savings Month - recognition that tuition has out-paced inflation, that student debt has increased dramatically, and that Iowans need to begin saving early for their children's education. The average costs at a four-year public college rose 7.7 percent last year, according to the College Board, and tuition at Iowa's state schools rose 18.5 percent this fall. College Savings Iowa lets anyone - parents, grandparents, relatives, and friends - invest in college on behalf of a child. Contributions to the plan can be used to pay for qualified education expenses including tuition, fees, books, supplies, and room and board at any public or private college, university, community college, or accredited technical-training school in the United States. Withdrawals from the plan for qualified higher-education expenses are free from federal and Iowa income taxes. Iowa residents who participate College Savings Iowa can also take a state tax deduction of up to $2,180 per account on their contributions. For more information on College Savings Iowa, visit (http://www.collegesavingsiowa.com) or call (888)672-9116. Illinois has several similar programs, including the state treasurer's Bright Start Savings. For more information, visit (http://www.brightstartsavings.com)
• World Heritage, a not-for-profit student-exchange program, is seeking a local representative to provide local program support to high-school students from several countries, including Germany, France, Spain, Japan, Thailand, Mexico, Grant Britain, and Brazil. Community representatives screen potential host families, plan annual orientations, meet with local high schools, provide support counseling for participants, and visit with exchange students and families on a monthly basis. Annual and ongoing training is provided. Community representatives spend an average of two to four hours a month per student. For more information, call Chris at (800)888-9040 or visit the Web site at (http://www.world-heritage.org).
• Want to own your very own graveyard? The Iowa Insurance Division was appointed as the receiver of Dubuque Memorial Gardens in a court order issued November 15, 2001. The state agency now plans to sell the cemetery's assets in conjunction with an assignment of the cemetery's pre-need contracts to protect the interests of lot owners and pre-need contract-purchasers and their families. A sale is planned in November. Interested parties should contact Dennis Britson; Iowa Insurance Division; 340 Maple; Des Moines, Iowa 50319-0066; (515) 281-4441.
• Retired and senior volunteers are needed to help elementary Hispanic children in grades one through five with reading. Spanish is not required. If you have questions or want to volunteer, call Michelle Hammond at (309)793-4425 or e-mail (mhammond@wiaaa.org).
• Medical drugs and devices cannot be marketed in the United States unless the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) grants specific approval. FDAReview, a project of the Independent Institute, argues that FDA control of drugs and devices has large and often overlooked costs that exceed the benefits. The group also claims that regulation of the medical industry has suppressed and delayed new drugs and devices, and has increased costs, with a net result of more morbidity and mortality. A large body of academic research has investigated the FDA and with unusual consensus has reached the same conclusion. Drawing on this body of research, FDAReview evaluates the costs and benefits of FDA policy. Also presented is a detailed history of the FDA, a review of the major plans for FDA reform, a glossary of terms, a collection of quotes from economists who have studied the FDA, and a bibliography with many Web links. See for yourself at (http://www.FDAReview.org).
• The excellent Scott County Web site has a new addition: The Scott County Jail & Alternatives Advisory Commission (CJAAC) can be found at (http://www.scottcountyiowa.com/jail/). The Scott County Board of Supervisors created CJAAC to identify why community members did not support previous jail-planning efforts and to develop a new plan for the expansion of jail capacity and reduction of the jail population. CJAAC was designed to solicit community input and provide opportunities for interaction and informational exchange between representatives of county government, the justice system, and the community. CJAAC advises the board of supervisors and makes recommendations for future board action. Not only is the Web page packed with statistics, it has links to information about CJAAC and copies of agendas.
• The recently released State of the First Amendment 2002 survey report has found that almost half (49 percent) of those surveyed said the First Amendment goes too far in the rights it guarantees - a 10-percentage-point jump from 2001, which suggests new public concerns in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks. The least popular First Amendment right once again was freedom of the press. Forty-two percent of respondents said the press in America has too much freedom, roughly the same level as last year. The survey also found, as in previous years, that many Americans are unable to name the five freedoms guaranteed in the First Amendment. You can see for yourself at (http://www.freedomforum.org/first/).
• The governors of Illinois and Iowa didn't fare well in a report card on fiscal management prepared by the conservative Cato Institute. Both Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, a Democrat, and Illinois Governor George Ryan, a Republican, received a D in the 2002 Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors. Only two governors received the group's highest grade of A this year: Bill Owens of Colorado and Jeb Bush of Florida, both Republicans. Four governors received failing grades: Democrats Gray Davis of California and John Kitzhaber of Oregon, and Republicans Don Sundquist of Tennessee and Bob Taft of Ohio. Governors who have increased spending and taxes the most receive the lowest grades. You can see the report for yourself at (http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-454es.html).
