"The American Lung Association has given Duval County an "F" grade in air quality."
"Breaking it down, the city scores an "F" in both the number of high ozone days and in particle pollution."
"The worst air quality? It's Los Angeles. By comparison, the ozone data for Los Angeles indicates a weighted average of 96.5. A failing grade is anything over a 3.3. Jacksonville rates a 7.0.""In a 5-2 vote, the board voted to reduce the school day by 45 minutes."
"The district says it will save $13 million dollars, but 200 positions will be cut. Students will have three 90-minute classes and one 45-minute class."
"If you've spent time on university campuses lately, you probably know the answer. Teach for America -- the privately funded program that sends college grads into America's poorest school districts for two years -- received 35,000 applications this year, up 42% from 2008. More than 11% of Ivy League seniors applied, including 35% of African-American seniors at Harvard. Teach for America has been gaining applicants since it was founded in 1990, but its popularity has exploded this year amid a tight job market."
"So poor urban and rural school districts must be rejoicing, right? Hardly. Union and bureaucratic opposition is so strong that Teach for America is allotted a mere 3,800 teaching slots nationwide, or a little more than one in 10 of this year's applicants. Districts place a cap on the number of Teach for America teachers they will accept, typically between 10% and 30% of new hires. In the Washington area, that number is about 25% to 30%, but in Chicago, former home of Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, it is an embarrassing 10%."
"This is a tragic lost opportunity. Teach for America picks up the $20,000 tab for the recruitment and training of each teacher, which saves public money. More important, the program feeds high-energy, high-IQ talent into a teaching profession that desperately needs it. Unions claim the recent grads lack the proper experience and commitment to a teaching career. But the Urban Institute has studied the program and found that "TFA status more than offsets any experience effects. Disadvantaged secondary students would be better off with TFA teachers, especially in math and science, than with fully licensed in-field teachers with three or more years of experience."
"In addition to limits on rate increases and late-term penalties, the president called for companies to disclose the terms and conditions of credit cards "in plain language" and "in plain sight." "No more fine print, no more confusing terms and conditions. We want clarity and transparency from here on out," he said."
"He also proposed that each card issuer might issue "a plain vanilla, easy-to-understand" credit card "that the average user can feel comfortable with." There should also be more accountability for card issuers, he said. Those who break the law, Obama said, "will feel the full weight of the law.""
"The measure (HB 1293) passed Thursday on a 75-42 party line vote with Republicans for and Democrats against."
"It would increase math and science requirements and the score needed on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, or FCAT, to get a standard diploma."
"According to a report released this week by computer security company McAfee, spammers last year generated a whopping 62 trillion junk e-mails."
"What does that mean in terms of energy?"
"Instead of sending messages asking for money or marketing Viagra, the electricity used sending the e-mails could have powered 2.4 million homes for a year or driven a car around the planet 1.6 times, according to the report. "
"The decline took place over a six year period from 1999 to 2005 and reflects fundamental changes in the so-called "war on drugs" – how it's targeted and prosecuted – as well as the waning of the crack epidemic in predominantly minority urban areas and the increase in methamphetamine abuse in largely white rural neighborhoods. "
"The Costs of Illegal Immigration to Floridians found that taxpayers spend:"
"-- $3.4 billion a year to educate illegal immigrant children and the U.S. born children of illegal immigrants. -- $290 million a year on unreimbursed health care for illegal aliens. -- $90 million a year to incarcerate criminal illegal aliens."
"President Barack Obama on Monday took a big step towards relaxing sanctions on Cuba, lifting all travel and remittance restrictions on Cuban-Americans and permitting US telecoms companies to offer services directly to the island."
"The end of the restrictions, which Mr Obama promised during his campaign, means Cuban-Americans will be able to travel to the island state when they like, as opposed to once a year, and send as much money as they want to relatives, as opposed to $75 a month. Mr Obama also said he would permit Cuban-Americans to pay for US-provided telecoms services to relatives living in Cuba."
"The survey of 807 adults who lost full-time jobs in the past year showed that 49 percent had found new jobs but of those, 49 percent now earn less money."
"Of those with new jobs, 38 percent said they are now employed in a different field, the survey found. Eight percent reported finding part-time work.""Cutting financially troubled borrowers' monthly mortgage payments by more than 10% reduces the chances that they will fall behind again after their loan is modified, a study found."
"While modifications that result in lower payments are increasing, nearly half of all loan workouts still result in the same or higher payments, the study found."
"The report comes as a weak economy and falling home prices are creating problems for a number of borrowers, including many who previously had good credit. The biggest percentage jump in troubled loans was for prime mortgages, with 2.4% of these loans more than 60 days past due at the end of the fourth quarter, up from 1.1% at the end of the first quarter. The portion of subprime loans that were more than 60 days past due climbed to 16% from 11% during this same period. Overall, more than one in 10 loans were 60 days past due, the report found.""Servicers have stepped up their efforts to modify loans and reduce borrowers' payments in response to pressure to reduce foreclosures. The percentage of modifications that reduced loan payments by more than 10% increased to 37% in the fourth quarter from 26% in the third quarter. Still, roughly one in four borrowers saw their payments increase after their loan was modified."
"Mortgage servicers have been more successful modifying loans that are held on their own books than those that are owned by mortgage investors. Nearly half of investor loans were at least 60 days delinquent nine months after they were modified compared with about 30% of loans that are held in bank portfolios. Servicers said they have more flexibility to rework loan terms for mortgages they own than for those held by investors."
"Neil Havens Rodreick II pleaded guilty last year to seven criminal charges. Most involved child pornography but two stemmed from the charade he pulled off for two years."
"Authorities didn't find any victims of sexual abuse at the schools Rodreick attended, but they found an extensive collection of child pornography at his home."
"Rodreick originally faced 28 counts, but pleaded guilty to only a quarter of them: four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor stemming from the pornography, and one count each of failure to register as a sex offender, fraud and simple assault. The assault charge involved an allegation that he grabbed a girl's buttocks at a school in Prescott Valley with the intent to injure, insult or provoke."
"The Duval County School Board is rethinking its transportation plan to save money in tight times. Several changes are being considered that would add up to nearly $5 million in savings to taxpayers."
"One proposal up for debate would cut some bus stops for students who attend magnet schools. This plan would have magnet students picked from their neighborhood school and then bused to their magnet school."
"Another transportation change would increase the distance from school where transportation is provided. At present, students are not afforded a bus ride if they live closer than 1.5 miles from their school. That distance could be increased to 2 miles, which is the state standard.""The findings suggest patients aren't told enough about how to take care of themselves and stay healthy before they go home, the researchers said. A few simple things — like making a doctor's appointment for departing patients — can help, they said."
"The study found that a surprising half of the non-surgery patients who returned within a month hadn't even seen a doctor between hospital stays."
"About 10% of all readmissions were probably planned, such as putting in a stent, the researchers said. They estimated that unplanned return visits accounted for $17.4 billion of the $102.6 billion that Medicare paid hospitals in 2004.""The patients went to hospital emergency rooms 2,678 times from 2003 through 2008, said the report from the non-profit Integrated Care Collaboration, a group of health care providers who care for low-income and uninsured patients."
"Despite spending reductions, the plan projects permanent deficits exceeding $500 billion into the future, fueled largely by big tax cuts."
"The GOP plan would offer a dramatically simplified tax code in which couples would have the option of a 10 percent rate on the first $100,000 of income, with a 25 percent rate thereafter, with the first $25,000 of income exempt from taxation. Single filers could get a $12,500 exemption and a 10 percent rate on income up to $50,000."
"Taxpayers could also opt to remain in the current system. On Medicare, workers under the age of 55 would enroll in private plans and receive premium subsidies equal to the average Medicare benefit when they retire. Benefits would not be changed for people in the program or people 55 or older."
"Florida will receive $168 million in federal stimulus money to pay for projects that reduce energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and improve energy efficiency."
"The money is being made available through the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program, which was signed into law in 2007. However, the program was not funded until the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was signed into law."
"The money will be allocated through grants to 17 counties ($74 million), 69 cities ($64 million), two tribal governments ($243,000) and the governor’s Energy Office ($30 million)."
"In addition, the Energy Office will distribute $18 million in sub-grants – 60 percent of its federal allocation to smaller cities and counties that are ineligible for direct formula grants."
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