The proposal to create a public owned electric power utility in Maine was defeated but the confusion surrounding electricity rates remains. A series of free upcoming workshops aims to help older Mainers better understand their electric bills and advocate for lower rates. Alf Anderson, associate state director of advocacy and outreach for AARP Maine, said the election showed everyone has a stake in the future of Maine s utility prices. .
A new report found a little more than 119,000 New York City students are homeless. The group Advocates for Children of New York said 61% were "temporarily sharing" housing due to the loss of their own residence. Another 34% have spent time living in city shelters. .
One of the nation s largest labor unions has become the latest organization to demand a ceasefire in Gaza as Israel s war with Hamas plays out. The American Postal Workers Union announced on Wednesday that its members are "shocked and saddened by the tragic and ongoing violence in Israel and Palestine." The statement condemned the Hamas violence of Oct. 7 but also said Israel s response "has made the prospects for peace more remote." APWU Detroit local president Keith Combs said an estimated 4,000 children are among more than 10,000 deaths in the conflict so far. .
Advocates for the homeless in Ohio say effective and well-funded federal programs have helped cut the number of homeless veterans nearly in half over the past decade. Federal agencies with a "housing first approach" have prioritized getting veterans into stable housing quickly without preconditions and provided greater assistance to landlords willing to help. Marcus Roth, communications/development director for the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio, said the same approach should apply to all homeless people. .
Cigarettes may not appeal to America s youth like they did in the 1960s, but a significant number still experiment with e-cigarettes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has new data that show the use of e-cigarettes by high school students declined in the past year, but rose among middle schoolers. From 2022 to 2023, said CDC epidemiologist Jan Birdsey, e-cigarette use among high school students declined from roughly 14% to 10%. .