April 1, 2019: Utah Technology Innovation Summit
Awarding of the 32nd Annual Governor’s Science Medals
What: The state of Utah and USTAR will welcome industry, policymakers and technology experts as they converge at the Utah Technology Innovation Summit in Salt Lake City on April 1. Panelists will share their knowledge in technology commercialization, and government leaders will take the stage to discuss technology innovation in Utah and the nation.
When: 8:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., April 1, 2019
Where: Little America Hotel, Salt Lake City, Utah
Who:
Mike Leavitt, Former Utah Governor, HHS Secretary, and EPA Administrator
Dr. Brian E. Shiozawa, Region 8 Director, Health and Human Services
Governor’s 32 Annual Science Medals Awardees:
Fred Lampropoulos, Chair and CEO, Merit Medical Systems
Dr. Randall J Olson, CEO, John A. Moran Eye Center
Diane Crim, Salt Lake Center for Science Education, Bryant Campus
Intermountain Precision Genomics, St. George, Utah
Panelists: http://utahinnovationsummit.org/#speakers
Showcase of Utah technologies:
Representatives from the above companies, which are supported by the Utah Science Technology and Research Initiative (USTAR), will be available for interviews.
Select speakers will also be available for interviews.
Over 300 participants will be in attendance.
http://utahinnovationsummit.org/
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Drivers in Utah see some of the largest price differences for women. In Utah, women drivers pay $61 more than men for the exact same coverage. California just recently banned gender as a factor in car insurance pricing, and if Utah did the same, women could save that $61 annually.
What’s more, The Zebra’s just-released research report on gender found it’s not just Utah: the states where women pay more than men for the exact same car insurance coverage has doubled since 2016 - despite research that women are safer drivers.
I invite you to review the report to gain answers and insights into the following:
Which 25 states now charge women more than men for car insurance
Where the biggest price discrepancies are (#1 is Nevada, charging women $121 more than men. The most men pay more than women is $47, in Wyoming)
Why gender use in auto insurance is legal (and how that is changing as we speak)
Our press release can be found here, for your reference. I’m also happy to offer an interview with the report’s author, Alyssa Connolly, Director of Market Insights at The Zebra
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The Power of Digital Policy:
A practical guide to minimizing risk and maximizing opportunity
for your organization
by Kristina Podnar
HANDBOOK HELPS BUSINESSES DEVELOP DIGITAL POLICIES THAT UNLOCK OPPORTUNITY, LIBERATE EMPLOYEES
The digital world is growing rapidly, and this can be overwhelming for businesses when managing issues such as accessibility, cookies, copyrights, social faux pas, data breaches/privacy, spam, and online piracy. However, the timely new book by Kristina Podnar, The Power of Digital Policy: A practical guide to minimizing risk and maximizing opportunity for your organization, helps businesses develop smart and sound digital policies through actionable, field-tested guidance.
Based on more than two decades as a digital-policy consultant, Podnar urges companies to create and maintain digital policies (regulatory compliance plus internal digital practices and standards) to achieve a competitive advantage, reduce risk, unlock opportunity, shorten approval cycles and liberate employees. Launched with the handbook is a new Digital Policy Resource Center, a tool where companies and organizations can identify and learn about the types of digital policies and practices they should consider based on digital maturity, industry and team focus.
“Many think of digital policies as restrictive, bureaucratic red tape that slows things down and makes their jobs harder. It doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, digital policies are liberating! Once everyone knows the rules, they can stop worrying -- and focus that energy on being creative and productive within the established guardrails,” said Podnar.
Effective digital policies are simple, clear statements how a business or organization will conduct its digital operations based on culture, beliefs, goals and objectives, addressing all applicable laws and regulations, incorporating detail that translates the digital strategy into actions and providing guidance to support all digital workers— employees, vendors, contractors, etc.
“Organizations today operate in a world where mistakes are easy to make, are hard to hide and can lead to serious consequences. My step-by-step roadmap meets the company or organization at its stage of policy development – starter, intermediate or expert. Unleashing the Power of Digital Policy will add clarity, freedom and value to any business or organization,” Podnar concluded.
Sound digital policies help to manage financial and legal risk from issues like data breaches, but they also can streamline operations, reduce redundant content and produce financial value. When created properly, they are the antidote to what can go wrong when organizations make up the rules as they go. The Power of Digital Policy also provides:
KRISTINA PODNAR is a digital policy innovator. For over two decades, she has worked with some of the most high-profile companies in the world and has helped them see policies as opportunities to free the organization from uncertainty, risk, and internal chaos. Podnar’s approach brings in marketing, human resources, IT, legal, compliance, security, and procurement to create digital policies and practices that comply with regulations, unlock opportunity, strengthen the brand and liberate employees.
Podnar speaks regularly at industry conferences, contributes articles to publications, and delivers masterclasses on digital policy. Podnar is the Principal of NativeTrust Consulting, LLC. She has a BA in international studies and an MBA in international business from the Dominican University of California and is certified as both a Change Management Practitioner (APMG International) and a Project Management Professional (Project Management Institute).
The Power of Digital Policy: A practical guide to minimizing risk and maximizing opportunity for your organization is available on Amazon and through other fine booksellers. For more information, visit Kristina @ www.kpodnar.com and on LinkedIn and
DENVER—Today, Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for his confirmation hearing to become Secretary of the Interior. In questioning, Bernhardt stated he would not extend his recusals covering his former clients in the oil, gas, and mining industries if confirmed by the Senate. In response, the Center for Western Priorities released the following statement from Executive Director Jennifer Rokala:
“In his time at Interior, David Bernhardt has taken a sledgehammer to wildlife protections, rolled back climate safeguards, and stripped public health rules, all to increase drilling and mining on our public lands. That’s exactly what you get by putting an oil and gas lobbyist in charge of our parks, public lands, and wildlife.
“With nearly two dozen former clients that have business before the agency, David Bernhardt is a walking conflict of interest who is uniquely unfit to serve as Interior Secretary. Americans deserve an Interior Secretary who will conserve our parks and public lands for future generations, not sell them out to oil and coal companies.”
According to an analysis by the Center for Western Priorities, the Interior Department has advanced at least 25 policy changes supported or requested by at least 16 of David Bernhardt’s former clients since he was sworn in as Deputy Secretary on August 1, 2017.
Analysis: Bernhardt-linked companies own 20 percent of oil and gas leases in sage-grouse habitat
Trump’s pick for Interior delivers favor to major lobbying client
For more information, visit westernpriorities.org. To speak with an expert on public lands, contact Aaron Weiss at 720-279-0019 or aaron@westernpriorities.org. Sign up for Look West to get daily public lands and energy news sent to your inbox.
QUARTERLY HOGS AND PIGS – MARCH 1, 2019
COLORADO
Colorado inventory of all hogs and pigs on March 1, 2019 was 790,000 head, up 5 percent from December 1, 2018 and up 1 percent from last year. Breeding inventory, at 155,000 head, was unchanged from the previous quarter and from last year. Market hog inventory, at 635,000 head, was up 7 percent from last quarter and up 2 percent from last year.
The December 2018-February 2019 pig crop, at 718,000 head, was up 3 percent from the previous year. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 78,000 head, up 8 percent from a year ago. The average pigs saved per litter was 9.20 for the December-February period, compared with 9.70 last year.
UTAH
Utah inventory of all hogs and pigs on March 1, 2019 was 750,000 head, up 49 percent from December 1, 2018 and up 6 percent from last year. Breeding inventory, at 80,000 head, was unchanged from the previous quarter and up 5,000 head from last year. Market hog inventory, at 670,000 head, was up 6 percent from last quarter and up 56 percent from last year.
The December 2018-February 2019 pig crop, at 368,000 head, was up 33 percent from the previous year. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 40,000 head, up 11 percent from a year ago. The average pigs saved per litter was 9.20 for the December-February period, compared with 7.70 last year.
UNITED STATES
United States inventory of all hogs and pigs on March 1, 2019 was 74.3 million head. This was up 2 percent from March 1, 2018, but down slightly from December 1, 2018. Breeding inventory, at 6.35 million head, was up 2 percent from last year, and up slightly from the previous quarter. Market hog inventory, at 67.9 million head, was up 2 percent from last year, but down slightly from last quarter.
The December-February 2019 pig crop, at 33.0 million head, was up 3 percent from 2018. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 3.08 million head, up 2 percent from 2018. The sows farrowed during this quarter represented 49 percent of the breeding herd. The average pigs saved per litter was a record high of 10.70 for the December-February period, compared to 10.58 last year.
United States hog producers intend to have 3.12 million sows farrow during the March-May 2019 quarter, up 1 percent from the actual farrowings during the same period in 2018, and up 3 percent from 2017. Intended farrowings for June-August 2019, at 3.19 million sows, are down slightly from 2018, but up 3 percent from 2017. The total number of hogs under contract owned by operations with over 5,000 head, but raised by contractees, accounted for 47 percent of the total United States hog inventory, unchanged from the previous year.
All inventory and pig crop estimates for March 2018 through December 2018 were reviewed using final pig crop, official slaughter, death loss, and updated import and export data. The net revision made to the September 2018 all hogs and pigs inventory was 0.5 percent. A revision of 0.5 percent was made to the June-August 2018 pig crop.
For a full copy of the Quarterly Hogs and Pigs report please visit www.nass.usda.gov. For state specific questions please contact:
Arizona – Dave DeWalt 1-800-645-7286 Colorado – William R. Meyer 1-800-392-3202 Montana – Eric Sommer 1-800-835-2612 Utah – John Hilton 1-800-747-8522 Wyoming – Rhonda Brandt 1-800-892-1660
