CHALLENGE:  GO RED FOR SOPHIA

HENDERSON COUNTY - The family of an 11 year-old Girl Scout is asking people to wear red on Tuesday, October 21, while she undergoes heart surgery.

Janna Carter's daughter, Sophia, was diagnosed with a heart disease over the summer.

Carter created a community Facebook page called, "Go Red for Sophia."

She is challenging people to wear red on the day of Sophia's surgery - October 21 - then take a photo and share it on the Facebook page.

"Part of this is to show support for Sophia, but it's also to spread awareness about heart disease and the importance of women's heart health. Heart disease is the #1 killer of women, even more so than cancer," said Carter.

Sophia appreciates the support, because the surgery is scary for her. She also hopes that spreading awareness about heart disease will help change people's perception that it only happens to people who are unhealthy.

"She eats well and exercises daily. In fact, she'll have the surgery just in time to begin swim season," said Carter of her daughter. "We want people to know this can happen to anyone."

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WASHINGTON D.C. – Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), announced today that Iowa will receive an initial allocation of nearly $48.5 million to help low-income Iowans meet home energy costs. This funding was made available by language Harkin helped to secure in the fiscal year 2015 Continuing Resolution that passed Congress in September. This funding is part of a total of $3 billion announced today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) recipients throughout the country. Additional funding will be made available later in the year once a final fiscal year 2015 appropriations bill is enacted. Harkin is the Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS subcommittee) that oversees these initiatives.

"No family should have to choose between paying their heating bill and putting food on the table," said Harkin. "Access to LIHEAP provides a safety net for low-income households, especially those with children, people with disabilities, and senior citizens. As temperatures begin to drop across the state, many Iowans will start to feel the effects of higher heating bills and this funding is welcome relief for the thousands of Iowans families that depend upon the program."

Last year, this program provided home heating assistance to approximately 85,000 Iowan households. Read more about Harkin's legacy in fighting for the middle class: http://www.harkin.senate.gov/labor.cfm.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15, 2014 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced several steps that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is taking to address the increase of herbicide resistant weeds in U.S. agricultural systems.

"Weed control in major crops is almost entirely accomplished with herbicides today," said Vilsack. "USDA, working in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency, must continue to identify ways to encourage producers to adopt diverse tactics for weed management in addition to herbicide control. The actions we are taking today are part of this effort."

Today USDA is announcing several of the steps it is taking to help farmers manage their herbicide resistant weed problems in a more holistic and sustainable way:

• USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) will offer financial assistance under its Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for herbicide resistant weed control practices that utilize Integrated Pest Management plans and practices.
• Later this year NRCS will be soliciting proposals under the Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) Program for innovative conservation systems that address herbicide resistant weeds.
• USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will actively promote use of best management practices (BMPs) in design protocols for regulated authorized releases of genetically engineered (GE) crops and will include recommendations for BMPs with the authorization of field trials of HR crops.
• USDA is partnering with the Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) and is providing funds to develop education and outreach materials for various stakeholders on managing herbicide-resistant weeds. The Secretary has directed Dr. Sheryl Kunickis, Director of the USDA Office of Pest Management Policy, as the point person leading this effort with the USDA.

The issue of herbicide resistant weeds has become one of increasing importance for agriculture. When herbicides are repeatedly used to control weeds, the weeds that survive herbicide treatment can multiply and spread.

With EPA's announcement today on the registration of new uses for herbicide mixtures containing the herbicides 2,4-D and glyphosate (in the Enlist® formulation) in conjunction with new genetically engineered crop varieties, farmers are being offered one more new tool to better manage emerging populations of herbicide-resistant weeds in corn and soybeans crops. In its decision for 2,4-D use on genetically modified corn and soybean, EPA has outlined new requirements for registrants as part of a product stewardship program.

The USDA Office of Pest Management Policy worked with EPA to address the issue of herbicide resistance through appropriate label language that will require registrants to develop a stewardship program for the herbicide, develop training and education on proper use of the product that includes diversifying weed management, investigate and report nonperformance, and develop and implement a remediation plan for suspected herbicide resistant weeds.

EPA intends to require the same stewardship plans for all new applications for product registration on genetically modified crops with the goal being to encourage effective resistance management while maintaining needed flexibility for growers.

USDA recognizes that the problem of herbicide resistant weed control will not be solved solely through the application of new herbicides. USDA has worked with the Weed Science Society of America for a number of years on identifying best management practices for farmers and on addressing impediments to adoption of those practices.

USDA will continue to work to ensure that growers have the diverse tools they need to address the management of herbicide resistant weeds.

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USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. To file a complaint of discrimination, write: USDA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (866) 632-9992 (Toll-free Customer Service), (800) 877-8339 (Local or Federal relay), (866) 377-8642 (Relay voice users).