Secretary Perdue Leads USDA Trade Mission to Mexico
(Washington, D.C., November 5, 2019) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue will lead a trade mission to Mexico November 6-8 to forge new opportunities with U.S. agriculture’s largest bilateral trading partner and second-largest export market. The Secretary will be joined by Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Ted McKinney and more than 100 industry and government representatives. On Thursday, November 7th, Secretary Perdue will hold a press call regarding the trade mission.
Accompanying Secretary Perdue are the heads of six state departments of agriculture: Bryan Hurlburt of Connecticut, Celia Gould of Idaho, Joseph Bartenfelder of Maryland, Chris Chinn of Missouri, Doug Goehring of North Dakota, and Derek Sandison of Washington. Other participants include officials from the California, Georgia, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, Oregon, Wisconsin and Virginia departments of agriculture and representatives from the following companies and organizations:
Learn more about USDA trade missions by visiting https://www.fas.usda.gov/topics/trade-missions and following FAS on Twitter at @USDAForeignAg.
Secretary Perdue to Hold Media Call Regarding USDA’s Trade Mission to Mexico
On Thursday, November 7th, Secretary Perdue will hold an off-camera, on-the-record media briefing regarding details of the trade mission to Mexico. The briefing will be conducted via conference call begining at 4:30pm ET, and the information will be embargoed until the conclusion of the call. The number of lines are limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis, so please limit to one per outlet.
Ogden Film Festival Celebrates Independent Films
Expanding to 2 days and 6 events in its 3rd year.
Ogden, UT (November 4, 2019) - The Award Winning Ogden Film Festival returns this weekend for a 3rd year with over 30 quality short films spanning 2 days. Join us November 8th and 9th as we celebrate independent film at Peery’s Egyptian Theater. Giveaways, live audience voting, filmmaker Q&A’s and the amazing historic venue are sure to provide a unique and engaging experience.
"I love Ogden. It has a very strong arts scene and the people are amazing” said Kasey LaRose, festival co-founder. “We started the Ogden Film Festival simply to celebrate a medium that fits with our community spirit, Independent Film. Nobody was really doing it on the scale that I think the locals deserve. A film festival that focuses on story-driven narrative and documentary filmmaking has been a wonderful addition to the great many things Ogden has to offer."
Submissions were received from all over the world, and the lineup includes work from 4 First-Time Filmmakers, 9 Utah Locals and 7 from outside the United States. The majority of the festival is open to all ages, with late "After Dark" screenings held for more mature audiences and a children’s cartoon hour for those young at heart. Tickets range from $10 for individual events to $25 for 2-day all-inclusive passes.
EVENT SCHEDULE
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8TH
5:00 PM Filmmaker/VIP Meet & Greet*
7:00 PM - Best of Narrative Short Films
9:30 PM - After Dark: Best of Short Films for Ages 17+
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9TH
11:00 AM - Children's Looney Toons Fest + Dry Cereal Bar (12 years and under free)
A new way to get children involved in the festival showing “Saturday Morning Cartoons” with free cereal
1:00 PM - Best of Documentary Short Films
4:00 PM - Best of Outdoor Short Films
7:00 PM - An Evening with Award-Winning Filmmaker, Ben Knight from Telluride, CO
Featuring Oscar qualifying short “The Last Honey Hunter” created in partnership with National
Geographic and Camp4 Collective, plus Handpicked Selections of Short Films and Stories
9:00 PM - Filmmaker/VIP After Party*
*These events are available for 2 Day Pass holders only.
According to festival co-founder Tyler Cahoon, the event is a partnership with Utah Film Commission, Egyptian Theatre Foundation, CIRCA3 and Nurture the Creative Mind. “We're excited to have expanded our film lineup, based on the incredible response and feedback we received from last year’s event. We can't wait to see where this event goes from here, thanks to the tremendous support from audiences and sponsors”.
For more information and complete list of selected films visit www.ogdenfilmfestival.org or facebook.com/ogdenfilmfestival. Tickets available at smithtix.com and Peery’s Egyptian Theater Box Office.
About the Ogden Film Festival: Based in Ogden, UT, the Award Winning Ogden Film Festival’s mission is to present quality films from around the world, while supporting, recognizing, and honoring filmmakers. Celebrating the best in independent film and talent, from acclaimed features to amateur shorts and documentaries. Bringing the community together for a night of entertainment where filmmakers can showcase their projects and accomplishments in the historic Peery’s Egyptian Theater.
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Hi Dawn,
With November being National Diabetes Awareness Month and Americans collectively spending nearly $200 billion per year on obesity-related health costs, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2019's Fattest States in America as well as accompanying videos, along with interesting stats about diabetes in its Facts & Statistics infographic.
To determine which states contribute the most to America’s overweight and obesity problem, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 29 key metrics. They range from share of overweight and obese population to sugary-beverage consumption among adolescents to obesity-related health care costs.
Here are some highlights from each report:
20 Fattest States
1. Mississippi
11. Michigan
2. West Virginia
12. Maine
3. Kentucky
13. South Carolina
4. Tennessee
14. Iowa
5. Alabama
15. Kansas
6. Oklahoma
16. Texas
7. Louisiana
17. North Carolina
8. Arkansas
18. Maryland
9. Delaware
19. Georgia
10. Ohio
20. Rhode Island
To view the full report and your state or the District’s rank, please visit: https://wallethub.com/edu/fattest-states/16585/
Diabetes Facts & Statistics
For the full infographic, please visit: http://wallethub.com/blog/diabetes-statistics/41253/
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Failing To Plan For These 4 Expenses
Could Cost You Fun Money In Retirement
Good retirement planning takes many factors into account, but with so many costs to consider it can be overwhelming. Thus, people may forget some retirement expenses that are less visible now or downplay others that they think will be unlikely or infrequent.
But the retirement expenses you miss, dismiss, or underestimate in your planning could prove costly.
“Even for those who prepare thoroughly for retirement, they can’t predict with complete accuracy across the board how much they’ll spend,” says Clayton Alexander (www.retireteton.com), an investment adviser and founder of Teton Wealth Group. “The retirement expenses you forget to plan for or ignore could seriously cost you and help sabotage the kind of retirement you were otherwise planning to have.”
Alexander goes over some key retirement expenses that may fly under the radar years in advance of retirement but nonetheless should be planned for:
“It’s difficult to cover every scenario,” Alexander says, “but adhering to a careful plan laid out well before the retirement years can help one handle the unexpected costs as well as the ones that are easy to overlook and add up.”
About Clayton Alexander
Clayton Alexander (www.retireteton.com) is an investment adviser and founder of Teton Wealth Group. A graduate of Dixie State University with a B.A. in administration, Alexander also worked at Northwestern Mutual and Goldman Sachs. He is licensed for life and health insurance in the state of Utah and has passed the Series 65 securities exam. Alexander focuses on building holistic retirement plans, and with the launch of Teton Wealth he developed the four-step Ascent Plan – a system to help clients gain clarity and perspective on creating a financial plan for safe, secure and tax-efficient retirement income and estate transition.
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Welcome homeeeee! Your Scout Elf can slide right out of a paper chute and into the Christmas season for a delightful—and delicious—return idea featuring a mound of marshmallows.
Boxes and jars make simple hiding spots for your elf, who can pop out to make a surprise entrance!
Your Scout Elf can say hello for the season by leaving a note on the mirror for little ones to find!
Exclusive Scout Elf ideas with instructions and helpful North Pole alerts are included in this free app.
Over the next few months, the lack of light and colder temperatures can send utility bills through the roof. Locals are embracing a sunny trend called “Daylighting,” — and it’s leading to smaller energy bills and bigger smiles.
Local experts with Window World, America’s largest replacement window and exterior remodeling company, are shedding light on how homeowners can cut costs (and bring in more sunshine) with Window World’s Budget Saving Time guide.
Daylighting is the use of windows and skylights to bring sunlight into a building. Natural light fuels energy and positivity in a home or office, and it’s needed most when the days get shorter! In addition to good vibes, daylighting leads to energy savings. Basically, natural light makes homeowners happy all around!
We can demonstrate how ‘daylighting’ cuts costs to your audience:
In a highly visual energy-efficiency demonstration…
5 Ways to Cut $50 From Your Monthly Budget
National nonprofit credit counseling agency Take Charge America helps consumers free up hundreds of dollars through negotiating, selling and cutting subscriptions
PHOENIX – (Nov. 5, 2019) – In need of some extra cash? Examining your day-to-day spending may be all you need to free up some money to pay down debt or boost your emergency fund.
“Most of us don’t realize just how many small purchases we are making monthly, and how quickly those small purchases add up,” said Michael Sullivan, a personal financial consultant with Take Charge America, a national nonprofit credit counseling and debt management agency. “Tracking expenses in detail and combing through online bank records will help you identify areas that are easy to trim.”
Sullivan shares five of the most common ways to save $50 a month:
Seeking more ways to save money? Visit Take Charge America’s Financial Education Center for more cost-cutting tips.
About Take Charge America, Inc.
Founded in 1987, Take Charge America, Inc. is a nonprofit agency offering financial education and counseling services including credit counseling, debt management, student loan counseling, housing counseling and bankruptcy counseling. It has helped nearly 2 million consumers nationwide manage their personal finances and debts. To learn more, visit www.takechargeamerica.org or call (888) 822-9193.
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If College Sports Were A Stock,
They Would Be On Everyone’s Buy List
Big money and big-time college sports have been entwined for some time.
But that connection may have grown even closer recently when California passed a first-of-its-kind law that allows student athletes to hire agents and make money on endorsement deals, something the NCAA actively opposes.
California’s new law, along with discussions about paying college players, may lead to fiery debates among sports fans, but there’s no denying that sports are a profitable undertaking for many universities. In fact, one financial professional says that if college sports were a stock, a lot of people might add the NCAA to their portfolios.
“You have some top college football programs that bring in well over $100 million in revenue, with a 50 percent profit margin,” says Jason Lambert (www.nwfts.net), president and CEO of Northwest Financial & Tax Solutions and author of the upcoming book The Retirement Trailhead.
“If that were a business, I would definitely invest in it. It’s a unique business model.”
Lambert attended Auburn University, which averages $117 million in annual revenue from its football program. He understands the appeal of college football strictly from a fan perspective, but as a financial planner he says it’s also hard to miss just how big of a business college sports can be.
“Some schools are making an insane amount of money on their sports teams,” he says. “But not everyone. There’s a big disparity between the haves and the have nots.”
Lambert points to some of the evidence that college sports – at least at the top level – are as much a financial undertaking as they are a school-spirit booster:
Enviable profit margins. Forbes recently released its annual list of the 25 most valuable teams in college football, which combined bring in $1.5 billion in profits on revenues of $2.7 billion. Topping the list is Texas A&M, which had revenue of $147 million and a profit of $94 million. Others in the top five were Texas, Michigan, Alabama and Ohio State.
Wins equal cash. This is especially true for football teams. A Harvard Business School study showed that a single win during the football season could mean as much as a $3 million for some top schools. Even some college football programs that are not so well established saw a monetary increase as a result of invitations to postseason bowls, the study reported.
TV’s growing role. Television contracts have long been lucrative for college sports, but nothing like today when colleges and the NCAA don’t have to rely exclusively on the major networks. “Look at the top two teams on that Forbes list,” Lambert says. “The Texas Longhorns have their own TV network. Texas A&M is part of the SEC, which has it own TV network.”
Given these facts, Lambert says it shouldn’t be surprising that California wants to allow players to profit off their talents, or that others have pushed the idea that players should be paid by the universities that they churn profits for.
“Scholarships are valuable and great,” he says. “But something is going to have to change when you see the money that is coming in to these programs.”
About Jason Lambert
Jason Lambert, president, CEO and portfolio manager of Northwest Financial & Tax Solutions (www.nwfts.net), is author of the upcoming book The Retirement Trailhead. Over his career, he has worked for some of the largest financial firms in the world, including as an Assistant Vice President with Merrill Lynch. As the firm's portfolio manager, Jason plays an integral part in the success of Northwest Financial & Tax Solutions. He is a strong believer in the importance of independence in financial planning — when a firm is truly free to help the client in the best way possible. Jason graduated with a degree in finance from Auburn University.
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Eight Lawmakers Receive Awards for Conservative Voting Records
Alexandria, VA—The American Conservative Union Foundation (ACUF), host of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), has just released its ratings of the 2019 meeting of the Utah State Legislature. ACUF’s Ratings of Congress and Ratings of the States are initiatives of ACUF’s Center for Legislative Accountability (CLA). These ratings are designed to reflect how over 8,000 elected officials across the nation view the role of government while illustrating the differences between chambers of the legislature and revealing lawmakers’ positions on a wide variety of issues that directly affect Utahns.
ACU Foundation reviewed each piece of legislation voted on in both chambers of the legislature to produce average scores of each chamber as well as individual scores for each sitting member. The Utah State Legislature’s overall conservative score was 58.03%, far below neighboring Arizona (65.18%), according to ACUF’s Year in Review.
“In the 2019 session, Utah lawmakers appeared to embrace California’s radical socialist agenda,” said ACU Chairman Matt Schlapp. “Instead of eliminating big-government zoning ordinances, lawmakers supported a plan to create even more restrictions on housing development and foist $3 million in government-run housing costs onto everyday citizens. Lawmakers continued their pursuit of a socialist agenda with a dozen other initiatives, including a decision that taxpayers, not the shipping industry, should foot the bill for ‘Green New Deal’ overhauls to locomotives. We believe the overwhelming historical evidence that socialism never makes good on its utopian promises and instead enriches elites in power while oppressing the People. We urge Utah lawmakers to rapidly change course in favor of prosperity for everyone.”
The share of lawmakers earning awards varied by chamber, with representatives (seven awardees) besting senators (one awardee). Republicans earned an average 65% score and Democrats earned a 34% average.
Click Here to view the 2019 Ratings of Utah online and Click Here to visit our website.
For questions or media inquiries regarding ACUF’s Ratings of the States, email Luke Schneider, Public Affairs & Policy Analyst for the American Conservative Union Foundation, at lschneider@conservative.org.
Dear Dave,
I’ve gotten out of debt before following your plan, but I always seem to fall right back in. I find myself spending more than I mean to whenever I go out shopping or running errands. I’m tired of all this, and I want to stop busting my budget and get control of my money once and for all. Do you have any advice?
Patrick
Dear Patrick,
Years ago, when I lost everything financially, there were two or three extremely strong emotions that spurred me toward change. Probably the biggest emotion was fear. I was scared to death I’d be broke for the rest of my life, and not be able to take care of my family. Don’t misunderstand me, though. I don’t think you should ever live your life in fear. But a reasonable, healthy level of fear where some things are concerned can be a fantastic motivator.
Another emotion was disgust. I realized the way I had been living and handling money was stupid. So, I made a proactive, conscious decision that I was going to change, and things were going to be different. The third emotion was contentment. You know, advertisers try to make us believe our lives will be better, and we’ll be happier, if we just go out and buy their stuff. I can tell you from personal experience when this idea is crammed down your throat every day, it can warp your perception of contentment and happiness. Lots of stuff does not equal lots of happiness.
If you’ve tried several times, and are still falling back into the same old trap, maybe you should approach your situation in a practical, day-to-day way. Stop going places where you’re tempted to spend money on silly things. When you go out running errands and shopping, make a list of only the bare necessities, and take along just enough cash to pay for them.
Spending money on a bunch of stuff you don’t need, and probably don’t even really want, isn’t going to bring you contentment. It’s just going to bust your budget, and put you in a financial hole that will, sooner or later, become very difficult—if not impossible—to dig your way out of!
—Dave
* Dave Ramsey is CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored seven best-selling books, including The Total Money Makeover. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 16 million listeners each week on 600 radio stations and multiple digital platforms. Follow Dave on the web at daveramsey.com and on Twitter at @DaveRamsey.
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USDA Invests $23.7 Million in Rural Broadband for North Carolina Families
CLINTON, N.C., Nov. 6, 2019 – Today, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Donald “DJ” LaVoy announced USDA has invested $23.7 million in high-speed broadband infrastructure that will create or improve rural e-Connectivity for nearly 8,750 rural households in North Carolina. This is one of many funding announcements in the first round of USDA’s ReConnect Pilot Program investments.
“Our core mission at USDA is to increase rural prosperity, and this mission cannot be achieved without addressing the digital divide our rural communities face due to a lack of high-speed broadband internet connection,” LaVoy said. “Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, USDA is committed to being a strong partner to rural communities in deploying this critical infrastructure, because we know when rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”
Star Telephone Membership Corporation of Clinton, N.C., will use ReConnect Program grant funding to deploy a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband network capable of simultaneous transmission rates of 100 megabits per second (Mbps) or greater. The funded service area includes 8,749 households, 19 businesses, 10 educational facilities, and three critical community facilities. The project will facilitate more access to services and information for local residents, and it will improve the overall quality of life for people in the community.
Background:
In March 2018, Congress provided $600 million to USDA to expand broadband infrastructure and services in rural America. On Dec. 13, 2018, Secretary Perdue announced the rules of the program, called “ReConnect,” including how the loans and grants will be awarded to help build broadband infrastructure in rural America. USDA received 146 applications between May 31, 2019, and July 12, 2019, requesting $1.4 billion in funding across all three ReConnect Program funding products: 100 percent loan, 100 percent grant, and loan-grant combinations. USDA is reviewing applications and announcing approved projects on a rolling basis. Additional investments in all three categories will be made in the coming weeks.
These grants, loans and combination funds enable the federal government to partner with the private sector and rural communities to build modern broadband infrastructure in areas with insufficient internet service. Insufficient service is defined as connection speeds of less than 10 Mbps download and 1 Mbps upload.
In April 2017, President Donald J. Trump established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory, and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. In January 2018, Secretary Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to President Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force. To view the report in its entirety, please view the Report to the President of the United States from the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity (PDF, 5.4 MB). In addition, to view the categories of the recommendations, please view the Rural Prosperity infographic (PDF, 190 KB).
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
