The 14th Annual Youth Classic Comes to a Close

Bloomington, Ill. - June 2, 2015 - The Youth Classic brought great talent to Bloomington this year. The 2-day tournament spurred excitement in Central Illinois as 10-year-old Zell Wilson broke records. She broke the 4G division day record of 78 shooting 76 on round one. She also surpassed the overall record of 160 by scoring at 159 for the tournament. Both records were previously held by Megan Ikeda of Windermere, FL.

Here are the winners from each division:

1B: Dawson Freeman, Mahomet, IL - overall top score of 93 - The Links at Ireland Grove

2G: Lauren Ikeda, Windermere, FL - overall top score of 121 - The Links at Ireland Grove

2B: Micah Sheffer, Brownstown, IN - overall top score of 62 - The Links at Ireland Grove

3G: Trinity Beth, Calvert City, KY - overall top score of 73 - The Links at Ireland Grove

3B: Austin Hofferkamp, The Woodlands, TX - overall top score of 68 - The Links at Ireland Grove

4G: Zell Wilson, Chicago, IL - overall top score of 159 - Ironwood Golf Course

4B: Shubham Nain, Westmont, IL - overall top score of 156 - Ironwood Golf Course

5G: Reese Wilson, Chicago, IL - overall top score of 149 - Ironwood Golf Course

5B: Marcus Smith, Rockford, IL - overall top score of 144 - Ironwood Golf Course

6G: Myah Jackson, Chicago, IL - overall top score of 163 - Ironwood Golf Course

6B: Alex Heib, St. Louis, MO - overall top score of 151 - Prairie Vista Golf Course

7G: Erica Kerr, Peoria, IL - overall top score of 151 - Prairie Vista Golf Course

7B: Rob Wuethrich, Bloomington, IL - overall top score of 144 - The Den at Fox Creek

8G: Mattie Lindner, Lebanon, IN - overall top score of 151 - Weibring at Illinois State University

8B: Ian Nelson, Macomb, IL - overall top score of 141 - Weibring at Illinois State University

The 14th annual Youth Classic was presented by the Bloomington-Normal Area Convention & Visitors Bureau with title sponsor COUNTRY Financial. Established in 2002 for golfers age 3-22, the tournament took place June 29-July 1 on five Bloomington-Normal golf courses: Ironwood, Illinois State University, The Den at Fox Creek, Prairie Vista and The Links at Ireland Grove.

With nearly 400 registered players, the volunteer-based tournament reached young golfers from 13 U.S. states and one country. Over the past 14 years, the event has contributed more than $800,000 to the Bloomington-Normal economy. In 2013, The National Association of Sports Commission Member Award Program named The Youth Classic the best locally-created event.

Next year's Youth Classic is set to take place June 27-29, 2016.

For more information, a full list of participants and final scores, please visit www.theyouthclassic.com.

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SPRINGFIELD, IL (07/02/2015)(readMedia)-- SPRINGFIELD, Illinois - Sgt. Maj. Jerry D. Clements of Pittsfield, Illinois, the former command sergeant major of the 404th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, Illinois National Guard received the Legion of Merit during a ceremony July 1 at Camp Lincoln in Springfield, Illinois.

Clements received the award for meritorious service as the command sergeant major of the 404th MEB from June 2012 to January 2015.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – For the sixth consecutive year, Minor League Baseball teams will honor America and help raise much-needed funds for a worthy cause this Independence Day holiday weekend by wearing specially designed "Stars & Stripes" caps from New Era Cap Company. A total of 115 teams will wear the specialty caps as part of fundraising and awareness initiatives for Welcome Back Veterans, an organization dedicated to addressing the ongoing needs of military personnel and their families.

Minor League Baseball, in conjunction with its licensing partner Major League Baseball Properties, will once again donate 100 percent of the proceeds from cap sales to Welcome Back Veterans as part of its contribution to the program. Since the program's inception in 2010, MiLB has contributed annually to the veterans' organization. The caps have a red, white and blue version of the team logo over a flag-waving, striped background. They can be purchased in team stores of participating teams, and online on some teams' websites.

"The Stars & Stripes cap program is a way of showing our appreciation to the men and women who have served and made great sacrifices for our country, while at the same time helping a tremendous organization that provides treatment for veterans and their families," said Minor League Baseball President & CEO Pat O'Conner. "On behalf of all of Minor League Baseball, we would like to salute and thank all of the current and former members of our armed forces for their service to our country."

About Minor League Baseball

Minor League Baseball, headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, is the governing body for all professional baseball teams in the United States, Canada, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic that are affiliated with Major League Baseball clubs through their farm systems. Fans are coming out in unprecedented numbers to this one-of-a-kind experience that can only be found at Minor League Baseball ballparks. In 2014, Minor League Baseball attracted 42.4 million fans to its ballparks to see the future stars of the sport hone their skills. From the electricity in the stands to the excitement on the field, Minor League Baseball has provided affordable family-friendly entertainment to people of all ages since its founding in 1901. For more information about Minor League Baseball, visit www.MiLB.com.

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Shortstop led all AL rookies in OPS, slugging, RBI and doubles in June

HOUSTON, TX - Major League Baseball announced this afternoon that Houston Astros shortstop Carlos Correa has been named the American League Rookie of the Month for June.

Correa is just the sixth Astros player ever to win a Rookie of the Month Award and the third in the last two seasons, joining right-handed pitcher Collin McHugh (September 2014) and outfielder George Springer (May 2014). Correa is also the second Astros player to win an American League monthly award this season, as left-handed pitcher Dallas Keuchel won the AL Pitcher of the Month in April and May.

Correa, who debuted on June 8, hit .287 (27x94) with nine doubles, five home runs, 15 RBI, four stolen bases and a .543 slugging percentage in his 21 games in the month. Among AL rookies in June, Correa ranked first in OPS (.852), doubles, RBI and in slugging percentage. Additionally, he ranked tied for first in home runs and third in hits and in batting average.

Defensively, Correa has committed just one error in his 83 total chances this season for a .988 fielding percentage.

At 20 years old, Correa is the youngest position player to play in the Major Leagues this season. He's also the youngest player to ever start a game at shortstop for the Astros and the youngest position player for Houston since infielder Derrel Thomas debuted for the club in 1971.

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Rock Island, IL: Parents have two more chances to help kids improve their reading superpowers with final summer Read with Rover programs at the Rock Island Public Library.

Read with Rover will be offered at revised times of 11:00 am to noon on Wednesday, July 8 at the Southwest Branch, 9010 Ridgewood Road, and on Friday. July 17 in the Main Library Children's Room, 401 19th Street. The learning events bring in certified therapy dogs from the QC Canine Assistance Network (QC CAN) so children can practice reading aloud before a welcoming, non-judgmental audience.

Reading to a therapy dog may be especially useful for reluctant readers and children in the 8 to 12-year-old age range, who have fewer opportunities to read aloud. From increasing vocabulary to attention span, reading aloud is one of the single most important ways to improve a child's reading level. The events are open to children in grades K-6 or equivalent ages.

The Rock Island Library's Every Hero Has a Story contests for children and Escape the Ordinary teen and adult reading contests run until July 18. Reading incentives and more than 60 free events are designed to help keep children, teens and adults active, productive and learning over the summer. For more information about library events, visit the library's online branch at www.rockislandlibrary.org, call 309-732-READ, or follow the library on Facebook or Twitter.

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Founded in 1872, the Rock Island Public Library provides resources to enhance personal achievement and stimulate the imagination through the Main, 30/31 and Southwest Branches, community outreach efforts, and online opportunities.

Comptroller seeks Agreed Order from AG to continue paying employees

CHICAGO - Comptroller Leslie Geissler Munger on Thursday outlined her plan for paying the state's bills during the budget impasse as she entered the new fiscal year without appropriation authority.

In an effort to comply with federal labor laws, Munger is asking the Attorney General's Office to seek an Agreed Order from the courts that would allow the Comptroller's Office to continue paying state employees during the impasse. The Attorney General entered a similar Agreed Order on behalf of Comptroller Dan Hynes in 2007 that allowed state employees to be paid when the state entered the new fiscal year without a budget agreement.

"The contribution of state employees to maintaining public services and public order is beyond dispute," Munger said. "Allowing these employees to be paid on time and at the correct rate of pay until the budget impasse is resolved will also promote the legitimate goals of government to maintain critical services."

In addition, Munger announced that due to legislation passed by the General Assembly last year that made state legislative and judicial salaries "continuing appropriations," state legislators and judges are the only state employees who will continue to be paid during the budget impasse, unless the court acts.

The Comptroller will be able to continue making payments authorized under the previous fiscal year that ended June 30. She will also be able to make new payments classified as "continuing appropriations" and under court orders, including the following payments: debt, pension, retiree benefits, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Assistance for the Aged, Blind and Disabled, and most local government payments.

However, when the FY15 bills are paid, she will not have appropriation authority to pay most new bills incurred in the new fiscal year after July 1. Ramifications include :

  • Nonprofits and small employers will be unable to receive expedited payments
  • State employees will start missing paychecks July 15
  • New payments to state vendors will stop

Munger stressed the Comptroller's Office will continue to operate without interruption throughout the budget impasse to process all payments allowed under law. Her office has established a Budget Hotline - 855-IL-ASK-US - and she encouraged state vendors to call it with questions about their payments.

"This is not a game. This budget impasse has serious consequences for families, organizations and businesses across our state. It is time for lawmakers and the Governor to find common ground and enact a balanced budget. In the meantime, my office will continue to provide whatever resources are necessary to get the job done," Munger said.

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"American workers are more productive than ever, working longer hours and still they are not getting ahead." Said Ken Sagar, President of the Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. "Updating the federal overtime regulations is a significant step the President can take today to raise the wages of working people."

The Iowa Federation of Labor, strongly supports the proposed changes in the overtime eligibility rules to restore the overtime protection workers have lost to inflation since 1975.

Under federal overtime regulations, workers who earn less than a certain salary level are generally entitled to overtime protection.  The last regular adjustment to the salary level was made by President Ford in 1975. No further adjustments were made for the next 29 years.

The current federal threshold for overtime is $455 per week?or $23,660 per year.  To simply make up for inflation, it should be raised to $51,168. Many workers who would benefit from restored overtime protection are employees at banks, Walmart, and fast food restaurants. Insurance clerks, secretaries, low-level managers, social workers, bookkeepers, dispatchers, sales and marketing assistants and employees in scores of other occupations would also benefit.

The Iowa Federation of Labor: representing the interests of nearly a quarter of a million Iowans who make Iowa work.

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Eligible conservation coalitions nationwide have about a week to submit pre-proposals to improve soil heath, preserve clean water, combat drought and protect wildlife habitat. The deadline is July 8th.

For more information see: http://blogs.usda.gov/2015/07/02/conservation-program-pre-proposals-due-july-8/

WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley is asking key government agencies what they're doing to prevent and punish Medicaid dental fraud, including billing for unnecessary treatments for children, in light of inspector general audits and related media reports documenting worrisome practices.

"Some dentists are clearly performing unwanted and unneeded medical procedures on children without the consent of parents and bilking Medicaid for the privilege," Grassley wrote to Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services Inspector General Daniel Levinson.

Grassley's letters cited Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General audits of questionable billing practices for Medicaid pediatric dental services in four states: California, New York, Louisiana and Indiana.  All of these audits identified questionable billing practices that suggest Medicaid dental providers are performing medically unnecessary procedures on children.   Grassley wrote that this conclusion has been echoed by a variety of news sources that have reported on troubling practices performed by dentists treating children in Medicaid, including a Florida-based dentist who allegedly subjected hundreds of children to unneeded tooth extractions, improper dental fixtures, and other troublesome procedures.

Grassley asked Lynch for the number of criminal and civil fraud referrals from the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General related to Medicaid dentistry chains in the past five years, with a listing of the referrals by state and how each criminal and civil case was resolved; details of the number of ongoing Department of Justice Medicaid dental chain fraud investigations by state; and a description of the Department of Justice's plan to address the findings by the Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General that indicate health care fraud in the context of dental procedures provided to children in Medicaid.

Grassley asked Levinson for the steps the inspector general's office will take, or has already taken, to increase the auditing of dentistry offices that are recipients of federal dollars; the number of criminal and civil fraud referrals from the inspector general's office to the Department of Justice relating to Medicaid dentistry chain activity in the past five years; details of the Medicaid dentistry audits the office performed by state in the past five years, with a note on whether the audit resulted in criminal or civil referral to the Department of Justice; the number of ongoing Medicaid dental fraud investigations by state; and a description of the progress on following up on billing fraud and unnecessary procedures in Medicaid pediatric dental services.

In 2013, following a year-long investigation, Grassley and then-Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus of Montana issued a report and recommendations urging the administration to ban dental clinics from participating in the Medicaid program if the dental clinics circumvent state laws designed to ensure only licensed dentists own dental practices to prevent substandard care.  In 2014, the inspector general moved to disqualify a firm from Medicaid.

Grassley's latest letters are available here and here.

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WASHINGTON - Sen. Chuck Grassley is asking the key government agencies involved for a full accounting of their actions to approve a controversial uranium deal, despite disapproval of similar foreign takeovers and amid potential conflicts of interest concerns over millions of dollars in financial donations to the family foundation linked to one of the designated decision-making agencies, the State Department under then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

"When millions of dollars flow to decision makers who have substantial discretion to provide support for or against approval of controversial transactions, public confidence in the integrity of the process requires a commitment to transparency and responsiveness to oversight inquiries," Grassley wrote to the agencies.

Grassley is seeking details behind the acquisition of U.S.-based uranium assets by a Russian government-owned company.  Such acquisitions are reviewed by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), whose membership includes the secretary of State and of which the Treasury secretary is the chair.   The purpose of such reviews is to ensure that national security is not undermined by transactions that result in control of U.S.-based assets, such as uranium, by a foreign entity.  CFIUS approved the uranium deal, despite having denied similar controversial transactions.

While Hillary Clinton was secretary of State and during critical stages of the uranium deal and CFIUS review process, the Clinton Foundation accepted multiple donations of millions of dollars from parties with an interest in the uranium deal, according to media reports.

"It's unclear what led CFIUS to approve the uranium company transaction and whether the conflicts of interest involving the secretary of State and her family foundation were disclosed and vetted at the time," Grassley said.

Grassley asked a series of detailed questions about these concerns to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, Secretary of State John Kerry, Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and Jose W. Fernandez, the State Department designee to CFIUS during Clinton's tenure.

Grassley's letters are available here, here, here and here.

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