Endeavor's Neat Numbers

5.9

The Pa. Labor Department reports that the jobless rate was 5.9 percent in Cameron and McKean counties during August. Potter County's jobless rate increased from 5.8 percent to 7.0 percent, affected by job losses that occurred when Time Warner took over most of Adelphia's Coudersport properties. The national unemployment rate was 4.7 percent during the period, and the Pennsylvania jobless rate was 4.9 percent. The rate 5.2 percent in Elk County.

2

Pennsylvanians pay a twopercent tax on fire insurance purchased from out-of-state companies. Few realize how the state spends that revenue. It amounts to about $66 million annually and is made available to local volunteer fire and ambulance departments. Funds can be used for equipment, training and financial protection to volunteers injured in the line of duty. Not all departments take full advantage of the available funds. Auditor General Jack Wagner was in the area recently to meet with volunteers from several local emergency service agencies and encourage them to apply for the grants.

5

The state also rewards local governments that recycle. McKean County is trying to snare a higher amount of that revenue by hiring a recycling coordinator, whose mission is to boost the proportion of aluminum, glass and other recyclables that are pulled from the county's waste stream. Mary J. Williams estimated that figure at about five percent today, and she'd like to boost it to 35 percent. A pilot program will be underway soon in Kane.

51

Students favor reading news online rather than in a newspaper. The notion that no young person cares about the news is wrong, said Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet and

American Life Project. Instead, they're moving to a different distribution mechanism. Some 51 percent of teenagers are reading news on the Internet at least once a week.

5,771

DuBois Regional Airport has experienced a drop in passengers. Denise Trunzo, marketing director, said that, through August, there have been 5,771 passengers, compared to 7,152 for the same period last year. There were 775 passengers in August, and 974 in August 2005. The numbers are important because if 10,000 passengers depart annually from DuBois, the airport would qualify for a $1 million Federal Aviation Administration grant. All seven of the state's small commercial service airports have had disappointing passenger trends. Traffic decreases were 41 percent at Franklin/Oil City, 33 percent at Bradford, 21 percent at Johnstown, 17 percent at Williamsport, 14 percent at DuBois.

18

About $10.8 million is coming to support 18 airports throughout the state. The grants are a combination of state and federal funds administered by PennDOT's Bureau of Aviation. St. Marys Municipal Airport will receive $453,375 for relocation of the airport access road.

1,107

Every resident in Alaska will soon receive a check for $1,107 from the state. It represents a share of the royalties oil companies pay to tap the state's vast reserves.

20

If somebody tries to sell you a Hewlett Packard/Compaq laptop computer, Model NX9020, it might be hot. St. Marys City Police are investigating the theft of 20 laptops from St. Marys Catholic Middle School. The thieves didn't take the AC power adapters.

50

A study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals the jarring forecast that, by 2010, some 50 percent of children in this country will be overweight or obese. Evidence of weight problems among children ages six through 11 has increased by 100 percent in the last decade. The increase for teenagers is nearly 200 percent. Diet, genetics and lack of exercise are the leading factors, two of which are controllable with lifestyle changes, better parenting and more responsible school policies, the researchers pointed out.

11,480

Health insurance rate increases run far ahead of the rate of inflation. Fewer people than ever can afford to buy the insurance themselves. Some 155 million Americans get health insurance through employer-sponsored plans. Those plans cost an average of $11,480 annually for employers covering a family of four. That figure has risen by 87 percent since 2000, compared to an overall inflation rate of 18 percent over the same period. At the same time, those covered by employer-paid health insurance are being hit with increased deductibles and less coverage. Average out of pocket medical expenses for workers who have insurance through their jobs are up to $1,400 a year.

4

Four games into the 2006 football season, the Oscoda (Mich.) Area High School football team is calling it quits. The team was 0-4 and had not scored a point. The competition was so talented and physically superior that the coach asked the school board for permission to surrender, forfeiting the rest of the games on this season's schedule. Coach Kyle Tobin said he feared for his players' safety: "I have 28 years of coaching experience in high school and college, and I know the difference between a team playing bad and a team that's unsafe."