Winnebago, Boone awarded thousands to divert non-violent offenders from prison - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

Adult Redeploy Illinois program, which is administered by the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, provides financial incentives to judicial circuits or counties to expand their diversion programs. The 17th Judicial Circuit Court (Boone County) was awarded $150,000, and the Winnebago County Circuit Court was awarded $646,775.

The money is part of a nearly $7 million state initiative to improve public safety in a way that's less costly to taxpayers. The programs offer criminals intense supervision and services, like cognitive behavioral and trauma-informed therapy.

Jurisdictions that have been awarded money must agree to reduce by 25 percent the number of commitments to the Illinois Department of Corrections from a target population of non-violent, prison-bound offenders.

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Electric cars may hold solution for power storage - latimes.com#axzz2osrVUV6J#axzz2osrVUV6J

By Evan Halper

December 29, 2013, 5:00 a.m.

 

The idea is that utilities would pay vehicle owners to store electricity in the batteries of electric vehicles when the power grid has a surplus and drain electricity back out of them when demand rises.

The plan takes advantage of a key fact about cars: They spend most of their time parked. The technology makes idle vehicles a source of storage for utilities and cash for car owners.

The "Cash Back Car" is how the concept is described by Jon Wellinghoff, the recently retired chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. "It provides another incentive for people to buy electric cars," he said.

The technology could solve a potentially serious problem. The power grid, a massive tangle of power plants, transformers and thousands of miles of wire, needs to maintain a steady and balanced flow of power. Sudden surges threaten crashes that can cause blackouts. That makes the stop-and-go nature of energy from the wind and sun a constant source of worry.

READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE:  http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-electric-cars-20131229,0,5640652.story#ixzz2ossBAxUB

Most Americans don't know incandescent light bulb phase-out

 

The government began phasing out 100- and 75-watt light bulbs in 2012 and 2013 respectively. The elimination of 60- and 40-watt bulbs will have a much greater impact on U.S. consumers because they are the two most popular bulbs on the market, according to the electronics industry research firm IMS Research.

Lights out?

With a major shift on the horizon, some Americans are doing their best to take stock of the situation. It's still perfectly legal to buy incandescent light bulbs as long as supplies last — companies just can't import or manufacture any new ones. Osram Sylvania's survey found that 30 percent of those who are aware of the phase-out are planning to stockpile the leftover light bulbs.

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