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Tuesday, July 29, 2014
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A shake-down on winter salt Bureau County will have to pay more for salt supply By Donna Barker dbarker@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — Bureau County will no doubt have to pay quite a bit more for its winter road salt supply this year.
On Monday, Bureau County Highway Department Engineer John Gross said the state’s Department of Central Management Services (CMS) has not released specific information yet, but it has announced bid
prices are in the $70 to $140 range per ton. Last year, Bureau County paid $58 a ton for road salt, so whatever the chosen bid this year, it will be a huge jump in costs for the county, Gross said. The Bureau County Highway Department will need about 2,500 tons of road salt, so that increase amounts
to a lot of money. The county has next to no salt left over from last year’s supply, Gross said. Because of the increased cost, there is a very real possibility the highway department will not be able to do all the road work it should or wants to do to make up for that added cost in road salt, Gross said.
There is only so many dollars to go around. The repercussions can be long-lived, he said. In explaining the process, Gross said the county submits its request for the amount of needed salt, and the county’s budgeted price for the salt to the CMS. The CMS is the one that accepts the bid, which
is to be awarded to the lowest responsible bid. The county does not have a say in the decision, he said. Hopefully, Bureau County will hear by the end of August from the CMS on what it will have to pay for this winter’s road salt. He will present
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Scams target college students By Donna Barker dbarker@bcnews.com
PRINCETON — A scam alert has been issued targeting college students and their families. On Monday, Bureau County Sheriff John Thompson said he has not heard of any local victims of the recent scam targeting people with college loans, but he is aware of the work being done by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan on this scam. Madigan testified Thursday before the U.S. Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions Committee about her efforts to crack down on abuses and scams targeting the millions of Americans with student loan debt. Madigan wants Congress to institute stronger federal protections including loan refinancing options and universal standards for loan servicers to help borrowers struggling to repay their student loan debt. According to a press release issued by her office, Madigan filed the first lawsuits in the country targeting a new industry of student loan debt relief scams. The lawsuits, filed against the Chicago-based First American Tax Defense LLC and Texas-based Broadsword Student Advantage LLC, allege the companies sought to scam student loan borrowers into paying as much as $1,200 upfront for bogus debt relief services, including assistance enrolling in a fake “Obama forgiveness program,” or for government services that are already free of charge.
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BCR photo/Goldie Currie
Getting ready for the show ring Destiny Ginter, 17, of Seatonville takes a few minutes before leading her horse into the show ring on Saturday during the Bureau County 4-H Fair. The fairgrounds was buzzing with activities of all sorts this weekend as the fair continued through Sunday morning. The fair provides an opportunity for all 4-H youth to display and show off their hard work and efforts on various projects they’ve chosen to work on throughout the year.
Are you ready to Relay? Annual Relay for Life is Friday ... with some changes By Terri Simon tsimon@bcrnews.com
SPRING VALLEY — It’s that time of year again, when a sea of purple T-shirts and the brave men, women and children who wear them proudly will congregate at Hall High School. Besides the fun, the camaraderie, the laughter and even a few tears, they all have one thing in mind ... a hope for a cure.
The annual American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life in Bureau County steps off this Friday at the Hall High School track in Spring Valley. A time to honor cancer survivors as well as those who have lost their battles with the disease, the overnight event is free and open to the public. While many have attended this event throughout the years, event-goers will experience a different Relay this year. Because of changes in the American Cancer Society (ACS), two new Relay for Life specialists from the Peoria office — Tanya Huntington and TJ Klockenga — have embraced the local
Relay, and they will be working to rebuild the Bureau County event. “This year is going to be different than the Relays for Life in the past,” Huntington said. “This will
be our rebuilding year because of managerial changes (at the ACS). There have been several reorganizations in the American Cancer Society, so we are reorganizing the event.” Huntington said she expects this year’s Relay to be a smaller and fast-paced event. Relay for Life teams are able to set up their campsites from 3 to 6 p.m. A dinner will be served to cancer survivors and their guest at 5 p.m. in the Hall High School cafeteria. Reservations can be made by calling Huntington at 309-6489685.
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