News From Across the Nation - Aug. 6, 2018

CALIFORNIA

Healthy food may become a prescription for saving on health care costs in a pilot program in seven counties in the Golden State, The Mercury News reported. Congestive heart failure patients in ALAMEDA, LOS ANGELES, MARIN, SAN DIEGO, SAN MATEO, SANTA CLARA and SONOMA counties are part of the three-year, $6 million experiment that started in April. One-thousand patients will receive nutrition counseling and 12 weeks of homemade, heart-healthy meals with lots of fresh ingredients.

The food, low in salt and carbs, is expected to help reduce inflammation and keep the body from retaining excess water that puts pressure on the heart. The goal of the program is to save millions of dollars by making people healthier.

FLORIDA

Trump gives a thumbs up with police officers, Palm Beach County, Fla. Photo courtesy of the White House

• PALM BEACH COUNTY is seeking $5.6 million in reimbursement from the federal government for its Sheriff’s Office, which protected President Trump during his visits to the county from November 2017 to April 2018, the Palm Beach Post reported. Trump made 10 trips to the area over 47 days including Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter visits, as well as an April summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, at his Mar-a-Lago country club. 
He greeted officers in April at the end of his last visit of the 2017-2018 season, posing for photos before boarding Air Force One. “Thank you to the incredible Law Enforcement Officers from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. They keep us safe and are very cool about it,” Trump tweeted along with a picture of himself surrounded by local officers. County taxpayers were reimbursed $3.4 million for security costs in 2017.

• MANATEE COUNTY has saved $1 million after starting a program that sends medics to check on residents who frequently visit the emergency room. County-trained employees in the Community Medic Program visit 100 patients in their homes, where they take their vitals and talk to them about their medications. Any problems are relayed to the patients’ healthcare providers. “These patients aren’t calling 911 as much and they aren’t going to the emergency room as often,” said James Crutchfield, program director. “This is the direction health care is going.” For more information about the program, visit the website.

ILLINOIS

COOK COUNTY is expected to close two branch courthouses as a way to resolve a budget fight that began after a soda tax was repealed, the Chicago Tribune reported. No employees will be laid off this year but all employees must take 10 unpaid furlough days to help the county save $6.2 million. Hearings at the courthouses will be shifted to other county courthouses.

The repeal of the tax eliminated $200 million from County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s proposed spending plan. “We will continue working with all officials to ensure that all functions of the County are operating efficiently and in a fiscally responsible manner while still providing essential services to residents,” Preckwinkle said.

IOWA

A tornado that toppled a portion of the MARSHALL COUNTY Courthouse clock tower July 19 did all sorts of damage around town, including hitting a meatpacking plant. The plant needs to dispose of 24 million pounds of pork product it lost in the storm after wind tore insulation and panels off the distribution center. The plan is to get rid of the pork at the county landfill; the amount would be equal to half a year’s regular input for the landfill.

KANSAS

It sounds like a story straight out of the Disney/Pixar Finding Nemo playbook. Thirteen years ago, a flamingo imported from Tanzania to the SEDGWICK COUNTY Zoo flew the coop. Now it appears Texas is the new Tanzania. Sporting its leg band, number 492, the exotic bird was spotted on the marshy islands of Lavaca Bay in CALHOUN COUNTY, Texas, about 685 miles south of the zoo, The New York Times reported. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was alerted to the 5-foot pink escapee after an intern snapped a photo of it hanging out with a flock of seagulls.

NEW YORK

• NASSAU COUNTY Executive Laura Curran recently signed an executive order prohibiting the release of employees’ personal information. The executive order also covers county employees’ home address, personal telephone number, personal cell phone number or personal e-mail address. The order follows the Supreme Court’s ruling in Janus v. AFSCME, which raised concerns among some that political groups might target government workers, enticing them to leave the unions that represent them. New York State and SUFFOLK and WESTCHESTER counties have also issued similar executive orders.

• Inmates at the WESTCHESTER COUNTY jail were able to take a free three-credit course this summer through Manhattan College: “Criminal Justice Ethics: Why We Punish.” Non-inmate college students enrolled at Manhattan College, who are studying criminal justice ethics, were able to take the course, which was held at the jail. Inmates who complete the course will have the opportunity to attend Manhattan College following their release.

OREGON

COOS COUNTY commissioners defined the authority of the county forester and his role in enacting forest closures to the public. The commission approved an ordinance giving the forester the authority to close or restrict public access for up to three days. Any full closure beyond three days requires approval by the County Commission.  Commissioners also approved regulations outlining the county’s authority to exclude individuals from county properties and public land, including engaging in disruptive or threatening behavior such as fighting, making unreasonably loud or disturbing noises, violating any federal or state law and so on will be asked to vacate the property and possibly excluded from further entrance, The World reported.

PENNSYLVANIA

• In addition to recording marriages, LUZERNE COUNTY can now provide a venue, too. The county courthouse rotunda, which can accommodate 125, is available to rent for weddings. The $500 fee that pays for overtime costs to keep the courthouse open includes the use of lawn and grounds around the courthouse for photographs. The rotunda features a marble staircase and the county touts the excellent acoustics, which render sound systems unnecessary.

• LYCOMING COUNTY commissioners will consider amending the county zoning ordinance to allow property owners to put new mobile or manufactured homes on a floodplain if they meet certain requirements. Currently, mobile homes grandfathered into a floodplain have been allowed to remain there and may even be repaired or replaced, but no new mobile or manufactured homes can be added to a floodplain property, The Sun-Gazette reported.

VIRGINIA

• The ARLINGTON COUNTY Board voted to join a lawsuit to prevent the Commerce Department from adding a question about U.S. citizenship to the 2020 Census, Arlington Now reported. The change, announced in March, has been criticized for its potential to discourage people from responding to the Census and affecting count totals.

• FAUQUIER COUNTY will be auctioning off two airplanes that have been sitting, abandoned, at the county airport. Owners stopped paying “tie-down” rental fees years ago on a 1946 ER Coupe 415-C and a 1961 Cessna 172-C Skyhawk. An appraiser valued the 1946 plane at $1,950 and the newer Cessna at $3,600, Fauquier Now reported. Mary Catherine Anderson, senior assistant county attorney said, “These planes are in pretty rough shape.” Nonetheless, there have been enough inquiries to prompt the auction.

• Following Gov. Ralph Northam’s (D) signing a bill to legalize gambling on historical horse racing, the NEW KENT COUNTY Board of Supervisors has amended the county code to make distinctions between historical horse racing and regular horse racing. Historical horse racing creates pari-mutuel pools from wagers placed on previously conducted horse races and is hosted at a racetrack, satellite facility or a nonprofit industry stakeholder organization, according to the county code ordinance, The Virginia Gazette reported.

Horse racing is defined as a competition on a set course involving a race between horses where pari-mutuel wagering is permitted and includes historical horse racing, according to the county code ordinance.

WASHINGTON

KING COUNTY announced a gun safety action plan that requires all gun owners in the county to securely store firearms, directs the Sheriff’s Office to destroy all weapons confiscated from crimes, establishes a task force on firearm safety and opens collaboration between the county and young adults for how to reduce the gun violence they experience. Those measures would need approval by County Council. The Board of Health’s approval would be necessary to require signs warning of the health risk of firearms to be posted in a number of different languages at gun stores and ranges and online.