Monday, January 27, 2014

Farm bill deal would cut food stamps by 1 percent - Yahoo News

 

The measure announced Monday by the House and Senate Agriculture committees preserves food stamp benefits for most Americans who receive them and continues generous subsidies for farmers. The House was expected to vote on the bill Wednesday, with the Senate following shortly after.

The compromise was expected to cut food stamps by about $800 million a year, or around 1 percent. The House in September passed legislation cutting 5 percent from the $80 billion-a-year program. The House bill also would have allowed states to implement broad new work requirements for food stamp recipients. That has been scaled back to a test program in 10 states.

Click on the following for more details:  Farm bill deal would cut food stamps by 1 percent - Yahoo News

BDR: Public Meetings

 

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MONDAY, JAN. 27  HAS BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER

Cherry Valley Public Works Committee meets 7 p.m., Cherry Valley Village Hall.

TUESDAY, JAN. 28

Cherry Valley Planning & Development Committee meets 6:45 p.m., Cherry Valley Village Hall.

Cherry Valley Personnel Compensation & Benefits Committee meets 7 p.m., Cherry Valley Village Hall.

Belvidere Township Regular Board Meeting at 5:00p.m

Check on upcoming dates by clicking on the following:  rvpnews | BDR Public Meetings

Winter taking a toll on Boone County workers, OT budgets

Jan. 28,2014

By Bob Balgemann

 

Lee has seen plenty of blustery winters but none with the kind of wind being experienced this year. "We had a lot of snow in '78-79," he said, "but not with this kind of wind. Without the wind the snow at least stays where you put it."

The township has five full-time road department employees, including Lee, and one part-timer.

Sub-zero temperatures also have played havoc with snow-removal efforts, said County Engineer Rich Lundin. "Salt doesn't do a lot of good when it's so cold," he said. "You need three things - salt, a heat source and traffic to mix it up. So far there hasn't been much heat."

His overtime budget also has taken a hit with one-fourth of the annual total being spent in the last two pay periods. Much of that has been due to snow falling on Fridays, going into the weekend. More was expected last weekend as well.

While the county's six highway department employees are getting extra money for the additional work they're also "very tired," their boss said. "Most of the time they come in around 3 or 4 in the morning so people can get to work.

Click on the following to read all of the story:  rvpnews | Belvidere Daily Republican

December 2013 Video Poker Income for City of Belvidere, Poplar Grove and Boone County

City of Belvidere---$3,257.

Poplar Grove –$731.

Boone County—$4,653.

 

CLICK ON THE PHOTOCOPY TO ENLARGE

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Above figures are available at:  http://www.igb.illinois.gov/revreportsVG/VGStat201312.pdf

What voters actually care about, in one chart

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READ MORE BY CLICKING ON THE FOLLOWING:  What voters actually care about, in one chart

Cemetery Tales | Rockford Retold#axzz2rc3KIJTZ

Posted by Jillian Fuller

In 1858, Adam Cline buried his brother on his farm, located right across the street from the Flora Church, and built a fence around the grave. Neighbors started asking to bury their family there, and the Flora Cemetery began. You may notice while walking around that many stones there predate 1858. This is because many families transferred their family members from other burial grounds, namely Charter Oak Cemetery in DeKalb County. Some common family names in the cemetery are Banks, Cline, Roach, Houdeshell, and Taylor.

Leroy Township’s Stone School Cemetery is a pretty corner cemetery located right across the street from the Leroy Community Grange, which was once the Stone School, on Leroy Grange Road. Sadly, many stones are broken and scattered around the cemetery today. It’s still worth a walk around. According to county legend, the cemetery contains two unnamed Civil War casualties who were shipped back to Boone County to be buried.

Situated in lot 28 of County Line Cemetery in Capron is an interesting headstone for a Captain Richard Macy, who died September 16, 1850. Although the stone is largely illegible now, it reads “Died at sea on his return from California in 1850.” According to local stories, Macy was bound for the California Gold Coast but he had to abandon his ship. On his way back, he contracted malaria and died. His wife Catherine is actually the only one buried there but the headstone certainly tells an interesting story!

Manchester Township is home to a beautiful cemetery along North Boone School Road. The Livingston Cemetery, begun in 1847, was intended to also be the site of a Baptist Church. However, there was not a strong enough Baptist presence in the area so the church was never built. In 1919, Frank, Edwin, and Charles Thornton commissioned the building of a chapel on the site originally set aside for the Baptist Church. This chapel was built to honor the memory of William and Ann Thornton, the brothers’ parents and early settlers in the area. The chapel, which features Prairie-style architecture and stained glass windows, was designated a Boone County historic landmark in 1996. The ornate arched double gate that welcomes visitors to the cemetery dates from 1924.

This summer, I’m excited to visit Drake Cemetery, on Dawson Lake Road, for the first time. In 2012, Andrew Geyer of Belvidere cleaned up the cemetery for his Eagle Scout project, clearing it of brush and debris. He also added a sign and gate, as well as a memorial marker which includes information on the families buried there, including the names of the three Civil War veterans who rest there

Read more by clicking on the following:  Cemetery Tales | Rockford Retold#axzz2rc3KIJTZ