Headline roundup - Nov. 18

More on e-verify, immigration and economy..found on the World Wide Web this morning:


Half of world faces water shortage by 2080 because of global warming From the IHT:
Wong said the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that as many as 2 billion people won't have sufficient access to clean water by 2050. That figure is expected to rise to 3.2 billion by 2080 — nearly tripling the number who now do without it.

Anti-salmonella effort lacked coordination, report says From Bloomberg in Salt Lake Tribune

The report called for an examination of how quickly information was shared among local, state and federal officials, and whether they fully disclosed relevant information to one another. The outbreak shows the need for safety standards, which can be created by the Food and Drug Administration, according to the report.

Economists say recession is here and will last

The consensus among economists surveyed by the Fed is that the country entered the recession in April, that it will last 14 months and would drive the U.S. unemployment rate, now 6.6 percent, to 7.6 percent by the third quarter of 2009.

Final rule on e-verify said to burden contractors

Under the new rule, which goes into effect Jan. 15, the government estimates that 168,000 employers will have to screen 3.8 million employees in 2009, up from the 70,000 employers using the system this year.

Contractors are worried that E-Verify is not ready to handle a huge volume of activity and may result in people being laid off or contracts being delayed until the system can manage the larger volumes, said Trey Hodgkins, vice president of federal government programs for the Information Technology Association of America.



Thanksgiving feast gobbling up more food dollars

“Thanksgiving food prices are up about 6 percent compared to last year,” Alexander said. “What’s interesting is the difference between grocery store prices compared to restaurant prices. Grocery store prices are increasing at a pace of 7.6 percent, compared to a pace of 4.5 percent for restaurants.”


Europe relaxes rule on fresh produce imports

Fresh produce exporters have an opportunity to boost their deliveries to the key EU market, which has relaxed its marketing standard rules on fruits and vegetables to improve trade.

In what is now dubbed “the return of the curvy cucumber” the EU said it had repealed specific marketing standards for 26 types of fruits and vegetables as part of efforts to cut down on red tape in trade.


Making healthy choices in local schools

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program provides students at Bennington Elementary School with a healthy snack once a week. Carol Adinolfi, the program's director, said it is about teaching students through their senses.

"Rather than being told, students are experiencing it for themselves," she said Wednesday. " ... It's about exposing them to fruits and vegetables they've never had. Recently, we had a pear tasting, which started getting students thinking about the enjoyment of food, the delectability."

Texas legislature to consider immigration bills

The proposals go well beyond the usual proposals to require ID to vote or requiring citizenship to get a driver's license.One would require public schools to check the citizenship of their students. Another would require illegal immigrants to live in self-described "sanctuary cities."Author Leo Berman, R-Tyler, said he filed it mainly to make a point to cities that describe themselves as "sanctuaries," or havens for illegal immigrants. "The federal government is requiring us to give free education and health care to illegals," Mr. Berman said. "It's the largest unfunded mandate in the history of our nation."