USDA: California Community Hosts Second Annual MyPlate-Inspired Fun Run
More than 500 students were asked that question during a morning greeting at Castle Rock Elementary, in the heart of the Central Valley of California. The students enthusiastically raised their hands. The next question was “how many of you like to run and exercise?” Again, over 500 students emphatically raised their hands. This particular exercise inspired our MyPlate Color Run.
https://www.usda.gov/media/blog/2017/03/30/california-community-hosts-second-annual-myplate-inspired-fun-run
USDA Offers Renewal Options for Expiring Conservation Stewardship Program Contracts
WASHINGTON, March 30, 2017 – Acting Deputy Agriculture Secretary Michael Young today announced that a contract renewal sign-up is underway for the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP), USDA’s largest working lands conservation program with more than 80 million acres enrolled. USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) made several updates to the popular program last fall. These changes help producers better evaluate conservation options that benefit their operations while improving the health and productivity of private and Tribal working lands.
https://www.usda.gov/media/press-releases/2017/03/30/usda-offers-renewal-options-expiring-conservation-stewardship
US DEPT. OF LABOR: Why Do You Ask?
On any given day, about 80 percent of the population age 15 and up watch television, and they watch for an average of 3 hours 29 minutes.* That’s an interesting piece of trivia, you may be thinking, but why does the Bureau of Labor Statistics need to know that? Without context, TV watching may seem like an odd area of focus – but this is just one of many statistics the agency collects as part of the American Time Use Survey. And Americans across the country use that information every day to get their jobs done.
The statistics above, for example, may be helpful to those promoting healthy behaviors and products, such as those who work in the health and fitness industries. The data can also be useful to television producers in determining programming.
Unlike other BLS surveys that track employment, wages and prices, the American Time Use Survey tracks a less conventional, but equally important, economic resource that we never have enough of: time. The survey compiles data on how much time Americans spend doing paid work, unpaid household work (such as taking care of children or doing household chores) and all the other activities that compose a typical day.
https://blog.dol.gov/2017/03/31/why-do-you-ask
PRESIDENT TRUMP NULLIFIES DRUG TESTING RULE
Administration looks to ensure appropriate drug testing requirements are in place for persons seeking unemployment benefits
WASHINGTON – Today, President Donald J. Trump signed legislation to nullify a U.S. Department of Labor rule that narrowly limited the circumstances under which drug testing may be carried out by states in administering their unemployment insurance systems.
The president’s action halts a 2016 rule drawn up by the department’s Employment and Training Administration, based on a 2012 law. The rule contradicted clear congressional intent – it narrowly limited the circumstances under which drug testing may be carried out and constrained a state’s ability to conduct a drug testing program under the act.---press release issued March 31, 2017
https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/eta/eta20170331
Job Corps: A Road Best Taken for Drop-out
While in high school, Josiah Hernandez came to a difficult crossroads in his young life. Twenty credits short of graduation and struggling with academic and self discipline, he dropped out. Just a few months later, in search of direction, he found the U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Corps program.---Labor dept blog
https://blog.dol.gov/2017/03/28/job-corps-road-best-taken-drop-out
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