Coming to you from the nation's 4th largest city, Houston, Texas. Sharing news bites and opinions are my own. Links, re-posts, comments etc., are not necessarily endorsements.
Diaries published: 71 (3 days since last diary on Fri Mar 16, 2012 at 10:05 AM PDT)
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COMMUNITY
New law puts heat on 'doctor shoppers'
The closing of dozens of so-called "pill mills" has so far not stemmed the tide of addictive drugs flowing into the eight-county Houston region, as the number of hydrocodone prescriptions climbed by 22 percent to 3.1 million last year compared to 2010. Harris County accounted for nearly one-fourth of all the hydrocodone prescriptions in the state last year, records showed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 76 percent of the 12 million Americans abusing prescription drugs are consuming drugs that were prescribed to someone else.
http://www.chron.com/...
Housing authority paid thousands to employees' friends, relatives, records show
Harris County Housing Authority executives have doled out hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal taxpayer money to the friends and relatives of employees without formal contracts or board approval, the agency's financial records show. Some of the authority's handshake deals extended to convicted criminals with dubious qualifications for the jobs they were paid to perform - including working on complex, multimillion-dollar federal housing programs, according to an examination of the agency's records and background checks on people paid during the past five years.
http://www.chron.com/...
Texas Gets a D+ In Public Integrity Study
Texas has scored a 68 out of 100, placing 27th in a national state integrity study. The state got high marks for auditing and for monitoring pension funds, but not as high for accountability of the governor and legislators. The report compared laws and practices in individual states against 330 “corruption risk indicators” and applied them to 14 categories of state government that were each graded on a 0-100 scale.
http://www.texastribune.org/...
KPRC Ch. 2: Beyond the Headlines talks to HAR and HAUL (video starting 10 minute mark)
Advice for homeowners who may be stressed by mortgage hardships or prospective first time home buyers. The Obama administration is pushing congress to pass legislation to help, but in the meantime has authorized the FHA to cut rates that could possibly positively impact thousands of southeast Texas homeowners. Inger Richard of the Houston Area Urban league has advice that may help ease your stress and talks about Urban League programs that can help. Mike Weaster of the Houston Association of Realtors joins the conversation and says politics may be part of the problem.
http://www.click2houston.com/...
Tour de Houston riders hit the streets for a cause
19,000 trees removed - Former Mayor Bill White started the event in 2005. It was cancelled last year because of a lack of sponsorship, but Apache signed on this year. The Houston-based oil and gas producer agreed on the condition that proceeds fund reforestation efforts in city parks.
http://www.chron.com/...
BUSINESS
Skeptics say new meters not so smart
In response to their complaints, the Public Utility Commission of Texas last month began evaluating whether to let electric customers opt out of the devices that power companies say improve efficiency for the companies and their customers. More than 100 homeowners across the state signed a petition asking the PUC to put a moratorium on the installation of smart meters while it considers the opt-out idea. In the Houston area, CenterPoint Energy is on schedule to complete installation of more than 2 million smart meters by May. Area electric customers have been covering part of the costs for the upgrade through a fee of about $3 on their monthly bills since 2009.
http://www.chron.com/...
War between United, Southwest looms over Houston
Plan for Hobby global flights triggers clash between airlines. A proposal by Southwest Airlines to offer international flights from Hobby Airport has triggered an intense lobbying duel with United Airlines, which still wields considerable local clout as the successor to Houston-based Continental. If it gets city approval, Southwest says it would spend an estimated $75 million to $100 million to build a new international terminal equipped with full-scale Customs facilities, as well as to improve the aging airport's domestic terminals. Southwest flights would depart from the new terminal to destinations such as Cancun and the Caribbean.
http://www.chron.com/...
AT&T Announces Quarter-Billion-Dollar Expansion of Education Commitment
As access to skilled workers becomes increasingly vital to the U.S. economy, AT&T* is launching a quarter-billion-dollar campaign to help more students graduate from high school ready for careers and college, and to ensure the country is better prepared to meet global competition. AT&T Aspire, already among the most significant U.S. corporate educational initiatives with more than $100 million invested since 2008, will tackle high school success and college/career readiness for students at-risk of dropping out of high school through a much larger, "socially innovative" approach. Social innovation goes beyond traditional philanthropy – which typically involves only charitable giving – to also engage people and technology to bring different approaches, new solutions and added resources to challenging social problems.
http://money.msn.com/...
UPS expands its reach with $6.8 billion deal
United Parcel Service is expanding its global reach by agreeing to acquire rival delivery service company TNT Express in a $6.8 billion deal. UPS said the merger will expand its presence not only in Europe, but in Asia and Latin America. The company said that about 26% of its revenue currently come from outside the United States, and it expects that figure to grow to 36% following the merger.
http://money.cnn.com/...
Tech companies 'control the future of news'
Technology companies such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple “now control the future of news.” That’s one of the take-aways from the 2012 State of the News Media report, released today by the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism. The news industry, the report says, “finds itself more a follower than leader shaping its business.”
http://www.forbes.com/...
NONPROFIT / OTHER
Wells Fargo Named United Way's Top National Campaign
Wells Fargo team members pledged more than $56 million through the company's 2011 "Community Support and United Way Campaign". Overall, the company gave $213.5 million to nonprofits. The Wells Fargo campaign is only one part of the company's larger, strategic investment in community. Additionally, more than 52,000 Wells Fargo team members volunteered more than 1.5 million hours – a 10.8% increase over last year – with more than 28,000 nonprofits and schools. As part of this effort, team members leveraged their professional expertise to deliver financial education using the company's Hands On Banking program.
http://www.bizjournals.com/...
Some of My Favorite Measures
From stakeholder relationships to infrastructure to fundraising, what measures does your organization use right now? Here are several lists of measures that you may wish to consider.
http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/...
Giving Back: How Every Startup Can Be Philanthropic
Philanthropy is not only a worthwhile ideal but an expectation of a company’s brand promise to its customers. A recent survey of global C-suite executives revealed that 84% believe that society expects businesses to take a more active role in environmental, social, and political issues than it did five years ago. Corporate philanthropy allows us to fulfill the expectations of this social contract, and should be the mission of every technology company.
http://www.forbes.com/...