Treasurer Damschen recognized for outstanding service to National Association of State Treasurers
NAPLES, Florida – October 9, 2019 – The National Association of State Treasurers (NAST) recognized Utah State Treasurer David Damschen during its annual conference this week with the Jesse M. Unruh Award for his outstanding service to the association, the profession and Utah. Treasurer Damschen is serving as the 2019 president of NAST, a bipartisan association comprised of state treasurers and state finance officials with comparable responsibilities.
During his tenure as president, Treasurer Damschen and his fellow state treasurers have championed efforts to improve financial education in public schools throughout the county, reinstate advance refunding of tax exempt municipal bonds, enable states to help return an estimated $26 billion in matured, unredeemed U.S. Treasury savings bonds to rightful owners, improve citizen access to ABLE benefits and 529 educational savings programs and more.
“It is an honor to accept this award, and it has been a great privilege to lead this national bipartisan association that has for decades addressed some of the country’s toughest fiscal challenges,” Treasurer Damschen said. “This year, we have made great progress addressing important issues that unite us as state treasurers, including innovative approaches to public infrastructure finance, strengthening public pension systems, improving banking regulations, helping our citizens achieve financial security, reuniting unclaimed properties with rightful owners and so much more.”
The Jesse M. Unruh Award is named for Jesse Unruh, a founding member of NAST and former California state treasurer. This distinguished award recognizes a current state treasurer’s outstanding service.
To learn more about NAST and the Jesse M. Unruh Award, visit nast.org.
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For Immediate Release
Contacts:
Tony Young
GOED Media Relations Manager
tonyyoung@utah.gov | 801-538-8722
Ron Ostrowski
Vice President of Finance
ron.ostrowski@amerpsorts.com
Amer Sports to Expand Existing Operations in Utah
SALT LAKE CITY (Oct. 10, 2019) — The Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) is pleased to announce Amer Sports will expand its operations in Utah, creating 110 new jobs in the next five years.
“We love it when Utah companies expand in the state,” said Val Hale, executive director of the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development. “Amer Sports is already doing great things in Ogden. As the company continues to grow, it’s yet another success story in Utah’s thriving outdoor industry — an industry that keeps attracting new people and companies.”
Amer Sports’ North American headquarters is in Ogden, Utah. The sporting goods company owns internationally recognized brands including Salomon, Wilson, Atomic, Arc’teryx, Peak Performance, Enve, Suunto and Precor. Amer Sports manufactures sports equipment, footwear, apparel and accessories for a variety of sports and outdoor activities. Its products are sold to trade customers and directly to consumers through brand stores, factory outlets and e-commerce.
“Amer Sports Winter and Outdoor opened its new warehouse in Ogden on January 4, 2019,” said Bill Kirchner, vice president and general manager of Amer Sports Americas. “The build-out and transition has gone smoothly and we’re now ready to further expand operations by adding jobs in consumer and after-sales services for the Arc’teryx brand. We value our partnership with the city of Ogden, Weber County and the state of Utah. We’re committed to supporting the local community by providing great experiences for skiers, snowboarders, runners, bikers and hikers and proud to call Utah our home.”
Amer Sports may earn up to 15% of the new state taxes it will pay over the five-year life of the agreement in the form of a Utah Legislature-authorized Economic Development Tax Increment Finance (EDTIF) tax rebate. The GOED Board has approved a post-performance tax rebate not to exceed $228,161. Each year that Amer Sports meets the criteria in its contract with the state, it will earn a portion of the total tax rebate.
“To support its internationally recognized brands — including Atomic, Salmon and Suunto — Amer Sports relocated its winter and outdoor American headquarters to Ogden in 2007,” said Mike Caldwell, Ogden City mayor. “Since joining our community and reinforcing Ogden’s amazing quality of life, Amer Sports has expanded multiple times, created quality jobs and assisted with our revitalization efforts by being one of our anchor tenants at the historic American Can Complex. Amer Sports’ expansion of Arc’teryx will benefit our city, our region, the entire state of Utah and its outdoor recreation industry.”
“With Utah’s long history in outdoor products, it’s gratifying to see Amer Sports and its globally known Arc’teryx brand deepen its relationship with the city of Ogden and our state,” said Theresa A. Foxley, president and CEO of EDCUtah. “Ogden continues to be one of the nation’s hotbeds for the outdoor recreation industry.”
State of Utah Tax Rebate By the Numbers
Tax revenue: $1,521,076
Wages: $14,895,743
Jobs: 110
Capital investment: 1.5 million
Timeline: 5 years
About Utah Corporate Incentives
The Utah Legislature has authorized economic development incentives in the form of post-performance tax rebates. Eligible companies work with the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development to outline specific performance criteria. Once GOED confirms those criteria have been met, according to statute (U.C.A. 63N-2-106(2)), companies can receive a refund up to 30% of the state taxes they paid for up to 20 years. The contract with the state is post-performance; it only provides a state tax rebate if the company meets its obligations.
About the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED)
Under the direction of Gov. Gary R. Herbert, the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) provides resources and support for business creation, growth and recruitment, and drives increased tourism and film production in Utah. Utilizing state resources and private sector contracts, GOED administers programs in economic areas that demonstrate the highest potential for development. Learn more at business.utah.gov or by calling (801) 538-8680.
About Amer Sports
amersports.com
Amer Sports, the parent company of Amer Sports Winter & Outdoor, is a sporting goods company with internationally recognized brands including Salomon, Arc’teryx, Peak Performance, Atomic, Suunto, Wilson and Precor. The company’s technically advanced sports equipment, footwear, and apparel improve performance and increase the enjoyment of sports and outdoor activities. The Group’s business is balanced by its broad portfolio of sports and products and a presence in all major markets.
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Tour of Utah Elevated to UCI ProSeries Event for 2020
“America’s Toughest Stage Race” to be held on Aug. 3-9
SALT LAKE CITY (Oct. 10, 2019) – The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) announced today that the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah has been selected to join the new men’s professional road cycling UCI ProSeries. The international cycling federation also revealed that the race in Utah will take place from Aug. 3-9, 2020.
“The Tour of Utah has been recognized for its international racing stature with its inclusion in the UCI ProSeries,” said John Kimball, managing director. “We are thrilled for this designation by cycling’s governing body among its prestigious one-day races and stage races. Our placement on the calendar of events will better allow us to attract top-tier riders and WorldTour teams. We look forward to organizing a race of the highest standard.”
The UCI has reorganized its men’s professional road racing structure into three separate divisions: UCI WorldTour, UCI ProSeries and UCI Continental Circuits. The new UCI ProSeries, which includes the best HC and Class 1 races such as the Tour of Utah, will strengthen the second division by ensuring an optimal fit with the UCI WorldTour schedule.
“The Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah has proven over the years that it has earned the opportunity to be included in the new UCI ProSeries, which will feature many of the best races and historic events from around the world,” said Sean Petty, UCI Road Commission member. “The consistent quality of the race, the start-to-finish streaming of each stage and the incredibly challenging and picturesque courses that showcase Utah are second to none.”
The Tour of Utah is the only UCI ProSeries stage race and one of only two events based in North America on the 54-race UCI road calendar. Baltimore is hosting a one-day Maryland Cycling Classic in September. Other multi-day UCI ProSeries events include the OVO Energy Tour of Britain (GBR), Tour of the Alps (ITA), Le Tour de Langkawi (Malaysia) and Skoda Tour of Luxembourg (LUX).
“We’re excited that the Tour of Utah has been designated as a UCI ProSeries event,” said Chuck Hodge, USA Cycling Chief of Racing and Events. “
As a crowd favorite and one of the most successful races on U.S. soil, elevating the event to this level will provide great opportunities for U.S. riders and reward a very supportive cycling community.”
Now in its 16th year, the week-long Tour of Utah has earned the reputation as “America’s Toughest Stage Race.” The 2019 event crowned Ben Hermans of the Israel Cycling Academy as its champion, and EF Education First captured the team title after covering 477 miles of racing and 37,882 feet of elevation gain.
Past General Classification champions have included Sepp Kuss (2018), Rob Britton (2017), Lachlan Morton (2016) and Joe Dombrowski (2015) along with stage winners such as Tejay Van Garderen, Cadel Evans, Chris Horner, Travis McCabe, Brent Bookwalter, Marco Canola, Giulio Ciccone, Rob Carpenter and Levi Leipheimer through the years.
The Tour of Utah has been sanctioned as a 2.HC-rated stage race by the UCI for the past five years, making it one of the premier events in North America. In 2019, the field featured 115 riders from 17 teams, attracting 400,000 spectators during race week, 21 hours of national television coverage and reaching more than 400 million homes via broadcast around the world.
The host venues for 2020 will be announced at a later date. Last year, the race route traversed the scenic roadways around the host venues of Snowbird Resort, North Logan City, Brigham City, Powder Mountain Resort, Antelope Island State Park, North Salt Lake, Salt Lake City, Canyons Village at Park City Mountain, and Park City.
More information about the Tour of Utah can be found by visiting www.tourofutah.com, as well as social channels Facebook (tourofutah), Twitter (tourofutah), Instagram (thetourofutah) and YouTube (tourofutah).
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75 to 95% of youth in the juvenile justice system have experienced trauma and research indicates that the majority of youth suffering from trauma perform poorly in our education system, and indeed, many drop-out. In a new interview with C.M. Rubin, Founder of CMRubinWorld, Ashley Edwards, Co-founder and CEO of Mindright says, “Trauma has been proven to have chronic long-term psychological repercussions including depression, anxiety, and substance abuse disorders.” Edwards’ organization, Mindright, seeks to tackle this epidemic with a tech-supported, human-driven mental health coaching model. Untreated trauma “continues to marginalize an already historically underserved population and perpetuate income and opportunity gaps,” says Edwards. Trauma also contributes to significant preventable public health costs and “advances the school to prison pipeline.” MindRight offers teens mental health support through text messages with 24/7 access 365 days a year.
Read the full article here
Ashley Edwards is the CEO and Co-founder of MindRight. She was included as a Forbes 30 under 30 Social Entrepreneur and in Forbes’ list of the top 30 innovators of this century. She is a 2019 Tribeca Disruptive Awards Honoree.
CMRubinWorld’s award-winning series, The Global Search for Education, brings together distinguished thought leaders in education and innovation from around the world to explore the key learning issues faced by most nations. The series has become a highly visible platform for global discourse on 21st century learning, offering a diverse range of innovative ideas which are presented by the series founder, C. M. Rubin, together with the world’s leading thinkers.
For more information on CMRubinWorld
Follow @CMRubinWorld on Twitter
Contact Information:
David Wine
David(at)cmrubinworld(dot)com
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Dear Editor:
Please consider this carefully wrought commentary by Robert Koehler on a radical notion--that we give our home--the Earth--similar rights to corporations. For PeaceVoice, thank you,
Tom Hastings
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The rights of nature
by Robert C. Koehler
980 words
“When the U.S. Constitution was ratified, women, indigenous peoples, and slaves were treated as property, without rights.”
This isn’t over yet. In the same vein of exploitative ignorance, we’re still treating a living, life-sustaining, crucial being as property: the ecosystem. And in the process, we’re choking our own habitat — that is to say, ourselves — to death.
But as Mari Margil, who is quoted above, points out: “. . . that is beginning to change, thanks to the Rights of Nature movement.”
It’s happening, literally, all around the world. It began more than a decade ago, in South America, when Ecuador and then Bolivia gave constitutional recognition to Pachamama — Mother Earth — declaring that she has the right to live. And the movement continues to bubble, at levels both national and local.
Sweden, for instance, has recently proposed a constitutional amendment giving nature the right to “exist, flourish, regenerate and evolve.” And tribespeople and municipalities all across the planet are demanding that legal personhood be recognized for imperiled natural resources: the Klamath River in California; the River Frome in England; the Whanganui River in New Zealand; even Lake Erie (the Great Lake whose waves caressed my childhood), long poisoned by toxic agricultural runoff, which has spurred voters in Toledo, Ohio, to pass a Lake Erie Bill of Rights.
This is just a sampling of the demands being made for governmental acknowledgement of the need for environmental sanity, which, of course, is only part of the global climate movement. Indeed, it’s more than just clenched fists and protests in the streets. These actions create specific and immediate changes, forcing the world’s legal systems to broaden the contexts in which they function. Yet the movement is also paradoxical almost to the point of absurdity: giving rivers, lakes, Mother Nature herself, the same sort of legal status that . . . corporations have?
This thrusts nature, as Margil writes, “into the murky realm of legal personhood.” The prime strangeness about all this is the implicit assumption that “the law” in some way has conceptual dominion over Lake Erie or the Klamath River or Pachamama and can choose (or choose not) to give a particular ecosystem, which sustains life itself, the right to exist.
In no way do I mean this observation as a criticism of the movement itself. There is no simple course of action when you are trying to open a cage while you’re locked inside of it. Demanding legal protection — legal credibility — for an ecosystem is both pragmatic in the short term and ingeniously subversive in the long term, because it yanks open both judicial and public awareness of the fact that maintaining a well-balanced, functioning global environment is a human responsibility, not to mention the only way we have a hope of surviving.
Matthew Green, writing at Reuters about the residents of the town of Frome, a hundred miles west of London, whose residents are petitioning the British government to grant “legal personhood” to the river that flows through it, put it this way:
In throwing down this gauntlet, the town has joined a global ‘rights of nature’ movement linking river basins in New Zealand to rainforests in South America and towns in the U.S. Midwest. In each case, communities are reimagining ways to harness the law to defend the Earth’s living tissues, and the places they call home. Some have dubbed it Mother Earth’s MeToo moment.
This is the essence of our perilous new times: the need to harness not nature but the law! We need to harness, in short, ourselves.
“This is much bigger than just wanting to punish people for doing something wrong,” said Peter Macfadyen, a leader in the struggle to gain legal recognition for the River Frome, as quoted by Reuters. “It’s about trying to change a mindset about the environment in which we live.”
Amen. The Rights of Nature movement, as it tinkers with governmental bureaucracies on every continent, is about ushering humanity back onto a living planet. This is where we used to live. This is where the indigenous people of the world still live.
A living planet! What does that even mean? Perhaps we can relearn.
“One way to rediscover the practices that helped Homo sapiens survive for over 200,000 years is to pay more attention to indigenous wisdom and traditional place-based knowledge (where it has not already been completely lost),” wrote Daniel Christian Wahl at Medium.com. “Indigenous human cultures are an expression of generations of co-evolution of humans within the ecosystems they inhabited.
. . . Indigenous worldviews around the planet share a common perspective: the world is alive and meaningful and our relationship with the rest of life is one of participation, communion and co-creation.”
Can the “civilized” — non-indigenous — branch of humanity step beyond its arrogance and learn from its own past, which it has been trying for several millennia to dismiss? Wahl believes it’s possible for the world to “re-indigenize.
“Even in the so-called ‘developed world’ much of the traditional knowledge of how to meet needs within the limits of biologically regenerative resources of the region was still predominant only 150 years ago,” he writes. “That is only a few generations! If we re-value what that knowledge and indigenous wisdom holds for us, we can recover much of it and blend indigenous wisdom in creative ways with the best of modern technology and science.”
When we begin consciously and systematically doing this, we can, indeed we will have to, let go of the concept the Rights of Nature, because it implies that nature is something separate from human beings. This seems true only when we are caged in our ignorance. In reality, we’re all in this together, co-evolving.
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Robert Koehler (koehlercw@gmail.com), syndicated by PeaceVoice, is a Chicago award-winning journalist and editor. He is the author of Courage Grows Strong at the Wound.
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Contact: Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Lauren Lantry, lauren.lantry@sierraclub.org
Sierra Club Launches Ad Campaign Calling on Senator Romney to Support a 100% Clean Energy Economy
Utah – Today, Sierra Club launched a digital advertising campaign calling on Senator Mitt Romney to address the climate crisis impacting communities across the country. The video pressures Senator Romney to support a 100% clean energy economy.
“The climate crisis has been ignored by President Trump and Senator Romney has simply has not done enough to spur action to reduce our carbon emission and combat climate change,” said Ashley Soltysiak, Sierra Club Utah Chapter Director. “Utahns demand action on climate change, yet Senator Romney is sitting on his hands.”
Wildfires in Utah burned over 430,000 acres in 2018, destroying homes and local businesses. Nevertheless, President Trump and his polluter-packed cabinet continue their assault on environmental protections – taking action to roll back more than 80 rules that protect us from dangerous pollution. Their agenda is propping up the dirty energy industry, threatening our health and slowing the inevitable transition to 100% clean energy sources.
The video can be viewed here.
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.
YOUTH WRESTLER RAISES MONEY FOR TRF
Cooper Sandoval, a fifth grader from Reno, Nev., was recently selected for the 2019 Association of Fundraising Professionals Sierra Chapter Cornerstone Award. A pillar of hope for pediatric cancer awareness and one of the many TRF Ambassadors around the country, this young boy has made the TRF mission his own. An All-American wrestler and eight-time Nevada State Champion, Cooper has maximized his platform to raise more than $895 for TRF through his “Pin and Slay Cancer with Cooper” initiative with donations from his community for each wrestling pin he achieves in a match. Cooper has also designed clothing items including TRF sneakers to spread awareness for pediatric cancer support with proceeds benefitting TRF families as well.
For more information on Cooper and other TRF Ambassadors in communities around the world, or to coordinate an interview contact Tara Trovato: tara@thepublicitylab.com.
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Press Release
USDA Invests in Rural Electric Infrastructure Improvements in 13 States
Investments will Benefit Nearly 231,000 Residents and Businesses
WASHINGTON, Oct. 9, 2019 – U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Donald “DJ” LaVoy today announced that USDA is investing $251 million (PDF, 120 KB) to upgrade rural electric systems in 13 states. The funding includes $38.2 million to finance smart grid technologies that improve system operations and monitor grid security.
“Under the leadership of President Trump and Agriculture Secretary Perdue, USDA continues to be a strong, effective partner to rural communities in building, expanding and modernizing electric infrastructure,” LaVoy said. “These investments in essential electric grid upgrades help to improve the quality of life in rural communities, create rural jobs and strengthen America’s economy.”
USDA is providing financing through the Electric Loan Program for 12 projects that will serve rural areas in Colorado, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The funding will help build and improve 1,971 miles of line to improve electric reliability in rural areas.
Among the loans announced today, Aligned Solar Partners 1, LLC in Maine will use a $1.7 million loan to finance a pair of 1 megawatt solar projects in Aroostook and Kennebec counties. The electricity generated will power two rural municipal water and sewer systems. This loan is an example of the ways in which USDA coordinates assistance through multiple programs – in this case the Electric and Water and Wastewater Programs.
North Carolina Electric Membership Corporation (NCEMC) will use a $16.6 million loan to improve generation systems at the Catawba Nuclear Station. NCEMC is a generation and transmission electric cooperative headquartered in Raleigh, N.C. It provides power to distribution cooperatives across 93 counties.
The A&N Cooperative, serving southeast Virginia and Maryland, will use a $54.4 million loan to build and improve 249 miles of line to improve service to 2,144 customers. The loan includes more than $5 million for smart grid technology. A&N serves 36,000 customers over nearly 2,500 miles of line in the lower Delmarva Peninsula in Accomack and Northampton counties in Virginia, and on Tangier Island (Va.) and Smith Island (Md.) in the Chesapeake Bay.
USDA will make additional funding announcements in coming weeks. USDA had $5.5 billion available for Electric Program loans in fiscal year 2019.
In April 2017, President Donald J. Trump established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities. In January 2018, Secretary Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to President Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force.
To view the report in its entirety, please view the Report to the President of the United States from the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity (PDF, 5.4 MB). In addition, to view the categories of the recommendations, please view the Rural Prosperity infographic (PDF, 190 KB).
USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community facilities such as schools, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas. For more information, visit www.rd.usda.gov.
