Security services ‘monitoring resurgent Nusra Front cells’

BEIRUT: Lebanese security services are following up on information suggesting that Nusra Front cells have resumed activity and planned more terrorist attacks in Lebanon, security sources told The Daily Star Monday.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the sources said the security services received information that a Palestinian identified by his initials T.M.T. was recruiting members for the cells with the aim of carrying out terrorist attacks.

The sources said the man had been a senior official of Fatah al-Islam in Lebanon in the past and is currently among the most prominent members of Al-Qaeda in Lebanon.

The Palestinian suspect is in constant contact with Al-Qaeda officials in Syria, Pakistan and Iraq via the Internet, the source said.

The source said the security services were monitoring the movement of these cells, headed by Ghazi A., 31, a Lebanese man from the northern region of Wadi Khaled.

The sources added that Ghazi often goes to the Bekaa Valley town of Arsal, where he coordinates with Abdel-Mohsen H., a Lebanese explosives expert.

Abdel-Mohsen also trains fundamentalists about various ways of using explosive belts, they said.

According to the information, T.M.T. recently distributed CDs to members of fundamentalist organizations in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain al-Hilweh on the outskirts of Sidon and in some Beirut neighborhoods, containing instructions on how to rig cars and motorcycles.

Lebanon has recently witnessed a wave of bombings, which mainly targeted Hezbollah-associated areas.

Most of the attacks were claimed by Syrian rebels, who said they were in retaliation for Hezbollah’s military involvement in Syria alongside the regime.

The attacks came to a halt over a month ago, following an Army crackdown on terrorist cells in the country and an operation by the Syrian army and Hezbollah that drove rebels out of Syrian rebel-held territories adjacent to Lebanon.

Separately, the Lebanese Army said in a statement that it arrested Yahya Allouki in the northern city of Tripoli. Allouki was wanted on several arrest warrants for using firearms and tossing hand grenades.

Allouki is the brother of Ziad Allouki, a militia commander in Tripoli who is wanted by authorities but remains at large.

Best Way To Get Women To Run For Office? Ask Repeatedly

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hide captionRep. Donna Edwards, D-Md., plays in the annual Congressional Women's Softball game in 2011. She plays with other female members of Congress, but says it's hard to get more women to run for office.

Tom Williams/Roll Call/Getty Images

Rep. Donna Edwards, D-Md., plays in the annual Congressional Women's Softball game in 2011. She plays with other female members of Congress, but says it's hard to get more women to run for office.

Tom Williams/Roll Call/Getty Images

Women make up less than 20 percent of those serving in Congress, but more than half the population. There are many reasons for this, but one simple answer comes back again and again. It's about recruiting.

When Monica Youngblood got the call, she thought it was a joke. The call came from a man she had worked to help get elected.

"It's your time," she says he told her. "We need people like you in Santa Fe. We need a voice like yours who's live here, who's been through what you've been through. I think you need to really consider it."

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When she realized it wasn't a joke, Youngblood had a lot of questions — and self-doubt.

"Thoughts from, 'Am I qualified to do this? Do we have the time?' " she says. "It will be a sacrifice, not only to my profession but my family, my kids."

Youngblood is now a Republican representing Albuquerque, N.M., in the state House of Representatives. When she got that call she was a mom and a real estate agent who had been volunteering on other people's campaigns for about a decade.

It took a few more phone calls and several family conversations to convince Youngblood to run. She did and she won. And this year she's running unopposed for re-election.

This initial reluctance is common among female candidates, according to Sue Ellspermann, Indiana's lieutenant governor.

"You need to be asked," Ellspermann says. "Women are still not likely to just take that step on their own."

Ellspermann speaks from experience. She works to recruit female candidates to run for state elected office as part of an initiative of the Republican State Leadership Committee called Right Women Right Now. But five years ago, she couldn't imagine herself as a candidate.

"When they asked me to consider running, I said, 'Oh no. I haven't run for anything since high school student council.' " Ellspermann says. "So they said, 'Oh just think about it.' "

Ellspermann has a PhD in industrial engineering and owned her own business. Yet she was convinced she wasn't qualified. Brenda Major, a social psychologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, isn't surprised.

"It makes sense, given what we know about women and confidence and self-confidence," Major says.

Her research finds that women have less confidence in their own abilities, judge themselves harshly, even when they are successful, and carry failures as more of a burden than men do.

"So many competent, capable women are basically selecting themselves out of leadership positions and I think that we've all wrestled with this," Major says. "I know it personally. I know it first-hand."

Stepping up to bat

It's 7:30 a.m. and about a dozen female members of Congress are bundled against a cold spring rain, practicing softball. They'll play in a charity game later this year.

Maryland Democratic Congresswoman Donna Edwards plays first base. She was also just named chair of the Red to Blue initiative organized by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The initiative aims to recruit winning candidates, but Edwards herself was initially a reluctant candidate.

"I actually went around to a whole bunch of other people, most of whom held elective office already, and all of them begged out," Edwards says. "It really wasn't until the last moment I got up one morning and I just said, 'Donna, you've asked everybody. Why don't you run?' "

She confirms most women have to be asked not once, but repeatedly.

"We try to get them to yes. The question is always, how do we get them to yes? What is their concern? What's the biggest thing that's on their checklist?" Edwards says.

Even then, researchers say men are still much more likely to get asked to run.

'Spider-Man 2' swings into theaters with $91.6M

NEW YORK -- "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" swung into North American theaters with a $91.6 million debut, kicking off Hollywood's summer season.

Studios released their final box office numbers from the weekend Monday, and Sony's second installment of its second Spider-Man series performed solidly if not spectacularly. 2007's "Spider-Man 3," by comparison, opened with $151.1 million.

Sony has a lot riding on Marc Webb's version of the web slinger, starring Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. It has plans for two Spider-Man sequels and two spinoffs.

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Rentrak, are:

1. "The Amazing Spider-Man 2," Sony, $91,608,337, 4,324 locations, $21,186 average, $91,608,337, 1 week.

2. "The Other Woman," 20th Century Fox, $14,407,264, 3,238 locations, $4,449 average, $47,552,736, 2 weeks.

3. "Heaven Is For Real," Sony, $8,601,509, 2,930 locations, $2,936 average, $65,503,918, 3 weeks.

4. "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," Disney, $7,774,269, 3,179 locations, $2,446 average, $237,155,480, 5 weeks.

5. "Rio 2," 20th Century Fox, $7,711,952, 3,314 locations, $2,327 average, $106,582,228, 4 weeks.

6. "Brick Mansions," Relativity Media, $3,691,672, 2,647 locations, $1,395 average, $15,628,988, 2 weeks.

7. "Divergent," Lionsgate, $2,182,283, 1,639 locations, $1,331 average, $142,669,009, 7 weeks.

8. "The Quiet Ones," Lionsgate, $1,994,670, 2,027 locations, $984 average, $6,755,702, 2 weeks.

9. "The Grand Budapest Hotel," Fox Searchlight, $1,777,513, 884 locations, $2,011 average, $51,548,945, 9 weeks.

10. "God's Not Dead," Freestyle Releasing, $1,765,906, 1,330 locations, $1,328 average, $55,561,308, 7 weeks.

11. "Bears," Disney, $1,710,162, 1,790 locations, $955 average, $14,366,216, 3 weeks.

12. "Draft Day," Lionsgate, $1,382,280, 1,354 locations, $1,021 average, $26,426,047, 4 weeks.

13. "Transcendence," Warner Bros., $1,173,020, 1,775 locations, $661 average, $21,366,230, 3 weeks.

14. "Haunted House 2, A," Open Road, $1,075,668, 1,328 locations, $810 average, $16,124,463, 3 weeks.

15. "Noah," Paramount, $900,538, 929 locations, $969 average, $99,025,287, 6 weeks.

16. "Oculus," Relativity Media, $761,099, 884 locations, $861 average, $26,702,365, 4 weeks.

17. "The Railway Man," The Weinstein Company, $502,556, 164 locations, $3,064 average, $1,629,354, 4 weeks.

18. "Fading Gigolo," Millennium Entertainment, $482,847, 110 locations, $4,390 average, $1,124,922, 3 weeks.

19. "RoboCop," Sony, $404,440, 231 locations, $1,751 average, $58,317,504, 12 weeks.

20. "Mr. Peabody And Sherman," 20th Century Fox, $402,961, 410 locations, $983 average, $108,548,062, 9 weeks.

Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by 21st Century Fox; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.

BC-Noon Oil

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Legislature OKs electricity consumer safeguards

HARTFORD, Conn. -- The Connecticut House of Representatives has joined the Senate to unanimously approve consumer protections promising more transparent billing and marketing by electricity suppliers.

Lawmakers, responding to hundreds of complaints from irate consumers about sharply higher prices and deceptive marketing, backed the measure 145-0 on Monday. The Senate approved it unanimously last week.

Rep. Lonnie Reed, House chairwoman of the Energy and Technology Committee, said the legislation tells companies with poor consumer records to clean up their act or leave.

John Erlingheuser, state advocacy director for AARP Connecticut, said the legislation does not include stronger consumer protections. He said it doesn't prevent electric suppliers from automatically putting consumers into a new contract with potentially higher rates when the previous contract expires.

The bill now heads to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy who supports it.

Dunkin' Donuts readies to do battle in Europe

AMSTERDAM -- The doughnut, that classic deep-fried American snack, is going forth to do battle with European national treats in their homelands: the Belgian waffle, the Austrian strudel and the Danish ... Danish.

After beating a retreat in the 1990s, American restaurant chain Dunkin' Donuts has been quietly building up its presence in Europe and now has 120 outlets, mostly in Germany but also in Russia, Spain, Bulgaria and most recently, Britain.

Dunkin' Donuts' head of international development Jeremy Vitaro says that the company is now looking to open stores in Denmark, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands. Despite the weak European economy, it thinks customers have money to spend.

"They're sophisticated, and they're culturally very open (to trying new foods)," he said.

Dunkin' Donuts' mainstays are doughnuts and coffee, along with muffins and more solid lunch foods, such as bagels. Then the chain offers variations to please local tastes.

In London, where the chain has recently opened three shops, it sells a savory snack called "Bacon Buttie," as well as porridge.

Is that porridge as in, well, oatmeal?

"Hot cereal, yes," Vitaro says. "We also do a Croistrami sandwich, that's a pastrami croissant. So we do localize. We have a curry doughnut in India."

Joost Kling, a Dutch food industry entrepreneur, thinks the chain will face something of an uphill battle in the Netherlands.

"They don't have much name recognition, if any," he said. "I think a lot will depend on their staying power." He wondered about the willingness of the firm to advertise and lose money for a time when stores first open.

Kling has some experience going the opposite direction. His company, "Eat Dutch Waffles," has brought the Dutch delicacy known as "stroopwafel" — a hot waffle cookie filled with syrup — into 1,000 American stores and bakeries.

He guessed around a half of Dutch people know what doughnuts are, but most have only tried low-quality versions on offer in grocery stores.

"A stroopwafel tastes very different when it's fresh, and it's the same for a doughnut," he said. Europeans "won't really have any basis for value comparison: they don't know what makes a good doughnut."

In addition, Europeans may feel attachment to their own local delicacies.

In Belgium, the Brussels waffle is light and fluffy and dusted with powdered sugar, while in Liege they're heavier and sweeter, with caramelized sugar. The "Belgian Waffle" topped with powdered sugar, strawberries and a flourish of whipped cream is probably an American invention. It's popular in Scandinavia.

In Austria, people with a sweet tooth turn to Apfelstrudel — or Danishes.

In Denmark they also eat Danishes, of course. But the Danes in turn call them "wienerbrod," or 'Viennese bread,' since, as lore has it, the treat was introduced by Austrian bakers once upon a time. Cinnamon is a favorite flavor.

Vitaro said Dunkin' Donuts is already interviewing would-be franchise owners and plans to open several stores in each new market by the end of 2014, focusing on major cities first, with "many more" coming in early 2015.

"We believe our basic offer of speed and value and fun will connect well with consumers," he said. "It has so far."

More Health Insurance Equals Fewer Deaths In Massachusetts

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hide captionMassachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney signed a health care reform bill during an April 12, 2006, ceremony at Faneuil Hall in Boston. The bill made Massachusetts the first state in the country to require that all residents have health insurance.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney signed a health care reform bill during an April 12, 2006, ceremony at Faneuil Hall in Boston. The bill made Massachusetts the first state in the country to require that all residents have health insurance.

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Fewer people died in Massachusetts after the state required people to have health insurance, according to researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health.

In each of the first four years of the state law, 320 fewer Massachusetts men and women died than would have been expected. That's one life extended for every 830 newly insured residents.

Massachusetts passed its mandatory universal health coverage law in 2006 under then-Gov. Mitt Romney. The hope was that when people have health insurance, they would be more likely to get preventive care, go to the doctor when they become ill, and live longer.

Now there's evidence of that link, according to a study published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine. In the first four years of universal health insurance, the state's death rate dropped 2.9 percent when compared to similar counties outside Massachusetts that did not expand health coverage.

White residents are living longer, but the biggest improvement in life expectancy came for blacks, Asians and Latinos, whose death rates dropped 4.6 percent. Barbara Ferrer, executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission, says the study builds on prior research showing that health coverage is reducing income and racial disparities in Massachusetts. She's hopeful the state is on a path to eliminate health disparities altogether.

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"I would be surprised if we didn't see a closing of the gap that could be attributed to improved coverage rates," Ferrer says. But, she continues, "We have to be a little bit wary, that you can't just insure people without making sure that they have access to high quality services. But certainly in Massachusetts we're able to do both."

Dr. Ben Sommers, an assistant professor of health policy and economics and the study's lead author, says the most significant decline was in conditions including cancer, infections, heart disease and other ills that could be prevented or delayed with medical care. "Meanwhile, in some other causes of death that are less amenable to health care, such as car crashes, homicide, suicide, we didn't find any statistically significant changes," he says.

Sommers coauthored the paper with Dr. Sharon Long of the Urban Institute and Dr. Katherine Baicker of the Harvard School of Public Health. They say the findings are encouraging for states in the early stages of implementing the Affordable Care Act.

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But Douglas Hotlz Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, is skeptical. He says the study does not prove that coverage lowers death rates. The authors, he says, "don't directly observe how people interact with the medical community. " They reach their conclusions "by inference and process of elimination. There's a limit to that."

He says to beware of drawing too many conclusions from this one state.

"If there's one thing we've learned about health care reform, Massachusetts doesn't look like the rest of the country. People are always skeptical about expanding to the whole US the findings from a Massachusetts experiment."

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Alan Weil, director the National Academy for State Health Policy, says many opponents of the Affordable Care Act acknowledged that there would be health benefits to insuring more people through the federal law, but that they "don't feel that the nation can afford it or that it's an appropriate role for government. And if that's the basis of your opposition, I think additional evidence that it might improve people's health is unlikely to change your overall view of the law."

This study takes the research into role of health insurance a step further, says author Sommers.

"We already had a large body of research that showed the uninsured rate had dropped, people were able to access services and that they felt better," Sommers says. "This adds another important piece to that, which is that people are living longer."

This story is part of a collaboration with NPR, WBUR and Kaiser Health News.

Trial to start in Vegas Strip dancer slaying case

LAS VEGAS -- Jury selection is due to begin Monday for the murder trial of a former Cirque du Soleil (sihrk doo soh-LAY') performer accused of strangling and dismembering his ex-girlfriend — a dancer at another Las Vegas Strip resort.

It's been almost 3½ years since Jason Omar Griffith was arrested in January 2011.

Police reported finding body parts of 31-year-old Deborah Flores Narvaez in concrete-filled containers in an empty Las Vegas home. She had failed to show up Dec. 13, 2010, to perform in the burlesque show "Fantasy" at the Luxor hotel-casino.

Griffith is now 35. He has pleaded not guilty.

His lawyers and his mother maintain Griffith had a volatile relationship with Flores Narvaez. They say she had a history of aggression against Griffith and other former boyfriends.

Target and JPMorgan are big market movers

NEW YORK -- Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Monday on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq Stock Market:

NYSE

Target Corp., down $2.14 to $59.87

A massive data breach at the nation's third-largest retailer has now cost its CEO his job five months after it was disclosed.

JPMorgan Chase & Co., down $1.36 to $54.22

The bank said trading revenue this quarter will fall about 20 percent and it warned of a challenging trading environment going forward.

Pfizer Inc., down 79 cents to $29.96

The drugmaker's first-quarter profit dropped 15 percent despite sharp cost cutting at as cheaper generics weighed on earnings.

Tyson Foods Inc., down $4.21 to $38.44

The food producer fell short on earnings expectations during the second quarter and its profit outlook left some disappointed.

Nasdaq

Symantec Corp., down 27 cents to $20.10

Antivirus "is dead," according an executive at the company that pioneered such software long ago, and which still drives its revenue.

Auxilium Pharmaceuticals Inc., up 2 cents to $21.50

Losses widened at the drugmaker, which recently revised its outlook for the year due to lower demand for its testosterone gel.

B/E Aerospace Inc., up $8.26 to $97.22

The maker of airplane seats and many of other things you see on a commercial flight said that it could put itself on the block.

BroadSoft Inc., down $4.84 to $20.16

The company, which makes software for cable providers and others, fell short of Wall Street expectations for profit and revenue.

Gas prices up a penny in Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The price of gas in Rhode Island is up a penny from last week, and is again above the U.S. average.

The latest price survey from AAA Southern New England released Monday found the average cost of a gallon of regular self-serve in the state is $3.72. The local price is 13 cents higher than a month ago. It's also 5 cents more than the national per-gallon average of $3.67.

Rhode Islanders were paying 23 cents less on average, or $3.49 a gallon, a year ago this week.

The AAA survey found a 26-cent range in prices, from a low of $3.53 a gallon to a high of $3.79 a gallon.

Rising African cache poses choice for US ties

LUANDA, Angola -- Traveling from lush green hilltops to hot dusty roads and seaside ports, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry asked African nations this last week to make a choice: Choose democracy. Embrace economic stability. Reject violence, and move people into the modern world.

It was an optimistic offer, and the kind of Western jingoism the U.S. is used to espousing. But two conflict-wracked African nations said no, challenging the limits of American influence in a continent that is emerging as the next land of opportunity for foreign financial investors.

So far, the U.S. is lagging in the worldwide race to reap economic benefits in Africa, and President Barack Obama is hosting a summit this August for leaders of more than 40 African nations to try to build stronger financial ties. The refusal this week by several leaders to heed Kerry's urgings now confronts the Obama administration with a choice of its own: Pursue economic opportunities with governments that do not respect rule of law or human rights, or take a backseat in global competition by shunning obstinate sub-Saharan countries.

"This is up to the will of the people, and the will of leaders," Kerry told about 100 diplomats and local activists gathered at an environmentally friendly tukul hut atop a hilltop in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital. "We need to make certain that we grab the choice that seizes the future, and we need to refuse to be dragged back into the past."

He added: "I have absolutely no doubt that this could be an inflection point for the new Africa, a time and a place where Africans bend the arc of history toward reform, and not retribution; toward peace and prosperity, not revenge and resentment."

In what appears to be the biggest flop of his trip, Kerry announced a tentative agreement to restart stalled peace talks in South Sudan, where U.S. officials say six months of fighting between President Salva Kiir and former Vice President-turned-rebel leader Riek Machar have plunged the world's newest nation into a civil war.

But even before Kerry left Africa on Monday, Machar called the peace talks premature and derided the American diplomat's demand for a transitional government. Kerry continued to hold out hopes that the talks would happen as soon as this week, saying Machar "didn't close the door" on negotiations. Kiir, meanwhile, sent troops into two rebel strongholds in a violent offensive that the State Department quickly denounced as a violation of an earlier cease-fire agreement.

Kerry again raised the possibilities of imposing financial and travel sanctions against both leaders and their most violent commanders, as well as sending in U.N. troops to quell the fighting. But such threats have been bandied for weeks without any apparent impact. Leaders in neighboring countries are reluctant to take similar steps that would hurt their own economies or otherwise draw political opposition.

Kerry's visit last Friday to Juba, the South Sudan capital, "is coming at a crucial time and cannot serve as an empty gesture or a photo-op," Raymond C. Offenheiser, president of human rights group Oxfam America, said in a statement. "This visit and subsequent follow through by the administration must demonstrate to all that the U.S. will not tolerate a prolonged conflict that neither side can win and in which civilians are the clear losers."

On another losing front, Kerry promised $30 million in election assistance aid for the upcoming 2016 presidential vote in Congo, which has weathered at least 20 years of fighting between the government and a number of rebel groups. But as he pledged the money, Kerry urged President Joseph Kabila to step down at the end of his current term in office, as required under Congo's constitution.

The response by Kabila's government was almost comically unenthusiastic. Congo government spokesman Lambert Mende said the constitution would be respected, but also suggested it could be revised.

"Why all this noise just about Congo, when there are more than 15 countries that are going to organize elections in the next year?" Mende said.

Other leaders held Kerry's requests at arms' length throughout the trip, from ensuring press freedoms from Ethiopia's oppressive government to demanding that Ugandan security forces leave South Sudan or otherwise work under the auspices of the United Nations.

At the same time, the U.S. does not want to miss out on economic gains available in Africa, which has vast oil and gas resources and a middle class that is expected to double over the next decade. And it was impossible to ignore the number of construction cranes erecting new buildings around Addis Ababa, or the Chinese hotel next to Juba's airfield, or the presence of General Electric at Luanda's shipping port.

Compared to competitors across the world, the U.S. companies "have been slower to sort of pick up on the growth in Africa," said Elizabeth Littlefield, president and CEO of the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corp.

But in the last several years, she said, American companies like IBM and GE have opened major offices across Africa. Legal and accounting firms also have flocked to the continent to help the expected flood of U.S. investors navigate various nations' business rules. And the U.S. Commerce Department is planning to open a commercial service office in Luanda.

OPIC financed $1 billion in loans for U.S. investors last year, and since 2008 has increased by five-fold the number of businesses it works with.

Much of the test of Africa's future will come in elections in 37 nations over the next three years, and of course, whether warring and threat of famine continue to mire the continent.

Kerry said the U.S. is looking for more than simply an economic relationship with Africa, drawing an unspoken comparison to nations like China, which is sinking 5 percent of its foreign direct investment into the continent, compared to 1 percent by the U.S. But despite building roads and hotels in Africa, officials say China has done little to create long-term jobs or provide services like health care and education training for local workers.

"Africa has the resources; Africa has the capacity; Africa has the know-how," Kerry said in his speech in Addis Ababa. "The questions that Africa faces are similar to those confronting countries all over the world: do we have the political will, the sense of common purpose, to address our challenges? Are we prepared to make the hard choices that those challenges require?"

"The continent's course is ultimately up to you," Kerry said.

The Intra-Party Landscape, Seen From The Edge Of Primary Season

Audio for this story from All Things Considered will be available at approximately 7:00 p.m. ET.

Three states go to the polls Tuesday, starting what will be an eight-week stretch of primaries in the U.S. For a look at the intra-party political landscape, NPR's Charlie Mahtesian has this overview.

Dry weather, Ukraine send wheat prices higher

Grain prices moved higher Monday as dry weather scorched the southwestern Plains states in the U.S. and as the conflict in Ukraine escalated.

Wheat for July delivery rose 13 cents to $7.29 a bushel, the highest price in a year.

Wheat has been rising sharply since the beginning of 2014. It has increased 31 percent since hitting a recent low of $5.51 a bushel on Jan. 29.

Corn prices also rose. The July contract rose 9 cents to $5.08 a bushel.

Todd Hultman, a grain analyst with DTN in Omaha, Nebraska, said the drought in the southwestern Plains states was pushing wheat prices higher.

"The drought situation is extremely serious," Hultman said.

A flare-up of tensions in Odessa over the weekend also threatened to jeopardize Ukraine's sizable corn and wheat exports from the Black Sea.

Ukraine is the world's No. 3 exporter of corn behind the U.S. and Brazil, Hultman said, making up about 16 percent of world exports of the grain.

Metals futures mostly rose.

Gold for June delivery edged up $6.40 to $1,309.30 an ounce. July silver increased 2.5 cents to $19.57 an ounce, July platinum rose $7.70 to $1,448.40 an ounce and June palladium rose $4.10 to $816.50 an ounce.

Copper was the outlier. The July contract lost 2 cents to $3.05 a pound.

Energy futures closed mostly lower.

U.S. crude oil for June delivery fell 28 cents to $99.48 a barrel. Wholesale gasoline fell four cents to $2.91 a gallon and heating oil fell 2 cents to $2.91 a gallon.

June natural gas rose a penny to $4.688 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Oil producers get break on Alaska property taxes

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Gov. Sean Parnell's administration worked out a deal with Alaska's major oil producers that let the companies withhold tens of millions of dollars in property taxes, public documents show.

The 2013 agreement occurred after producers disagreed with the state board that set the value of the trans-Alaska pipeline, the Anchorage Daily News reported (http://is.gd/FG5RBE).

The deal was negotiated after Steven Mahoney, an attorney for the oil pipeline owners, complained in a June 2013 email to an assistant attorney general that the State Assessment Review Board set too high a value for the pipeline, raising the tax bill for oil companies.

"As you may be aware, Owners consider the Determination of the Board to be both aberrant and irresponsible," Mahoney wrote.

Martin Schultz, supervising attorney in the state Law Department's oil, gas and mining section, said if the court determines more money is owed or a settlement is reached for a higher amount, oil producers would owe it plus interest.

The Parnell administration argues that declining oil flow is a reason for lower property taxes. Parnell, on another front, is pushing to retain cuts in oil production taxes approved by lawmakers last year, saying those decreases already are generating new investment.

"The value that SARB set for 2013 . . . is so much higher than has ever been set before by anybody, including the courts," Schultz said. "It seemed like a legitimate concern that potentially could expose the state to a tax refund."

The review board hears appeals from oil companies and local governments over the valuation of crude oil transport properties that are initially set by the state Department of Revenue.

The deal to give oil companies at least a temporary break emerged in public view in April when some of the municipalities that receive property taxes on the pipeline appealed the state's 2014 valuation. Municipalities argue the state's significant reduction from the previous year was improper.

Craig Richards, one of the attorneys objecting to the lower value, said the arrangement between the state and oil producers appears to be part of a broader strategy to ensure oil companies pay less.

"How does the state have a secret agreement with the oil companies that they don't have to pay their taxes, pending future litigation outcomes, and nobody knows about it?" Richards said.

Marty McGee, former chairman of the board that sets the 2013 value at a record $11.9 billion, was terminated from the board by Parnell, and another board member resigned.

Parnell appointed two oil industry executives to the board, but one withdrew his name because of controversy over his California residency.

Following Mahoney's email last summer, state official said producers could pay taxes on a smaller valuation of the pipeline, not the $11.9 billion set by the board.

The estate tax bill now amounts to $66 million, with another $47 million owed under the board's ruling.

The Energy Behind Repealing Obamacare May Be Ebbing

i i

hide captionSarah Luke, 73, of Kennesaw, Ga., who has diabetes, works out as part of a new exercise program at her local YMCA. While she is on Medicare, the Affordable Care Act has led insurance companies to make similar exercise programs available to younger persons with diabetes.

David Goldman/AP

Sarah Luke, 73, of Kennesaw, Ga., who has diabetes, works out as part of a new exercise program at her local YMCA. While she is on Medicare, the Affordable Care Act has led insurance companies to make similar exercise programs available to younger persons with diabetes.

David Goldman/AP

Sure, you can still hear congressional Republicans talking about repealing the Affordable Care Act.

But there's clearly something different about the current climate, and the GOP approach to Obamacare. The thrill of repeal may not be gone for Republicans, but much of the urgency of repeal is.

For starters, the House GOP doesn't have more repeal votes lined up for these weeks after the spring recess.

When Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., the House majority leader, recently informed his colleagues what was on their schedule — and thus part of their messaging for the mid-term election — the schedule contained no repeal votes.

Instead, he said the House would likely vote on, among other bills, contempt legislation against former Internal Revenue Service official Lois Lerner for the agency's controversial examination of non-profit political groups. They might even vote on extending some tax credits. But not an ACA repeal.

And this comes after what seemed like an insatiable hunger for repeal votes. The House has had more than 50 of them.

A recent bipartisan NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, conducted by Democratic and Republican pollsters Hart Research and Public Opinion Strategies, indicated that the grassroots energy behind the repeal effort isn't what it used to be.

Between December and April, support for repealing the law fell five percentage points. Since Democratic support for the law has stayed fairly constant, it would be independents and even Republicans who would account for that shift.

Research by Stan Greenberg, a respected Democratic pollster, confirmed this. Greenberg told journalists during a recent teleconference that, based on new data, the intensity to repeal the ACA has dropped significantly since December — even in Republican districts.

Meanwhile, the percentage of voters wanting the law to be implemented has risen.

"What's driving this is a dramatic change among independent voters," Greenberg said. "You had in December a majority of independents who were for repeal, 48 percent, with a lot of intensity, that was a painful number... Repeal intensity has dropped from 48 to 39 percent."

Another recent survey, a tracking poll done for the Kaiser Family Foundation, found that 58 percent of voters wanted Congress to fix the law instead of repealing it. About 35 percent supported repeal.

Part of what is going on is that, after a notably shaky start with the flawed Healthcare.gov website, the ACA has had some real or perceived successes.

More than eight million people signed up for health insurance, exceeding the administration's publicly stated goal. And many of the problems with the federal health exchange were fixed.

The repeal effort was also significantly damaged by last year's partial government shutdown. Some Republicans had urged the shutdown, arguing it would force Obama to consider undoing his signature domestic policy achievement.

Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other Republican leaders never bought that logic but allowed those GOP voices to have their way, at least initially.

While the energy for repealing the health law may have receded from where it was two or three years ago, that's not to say that it has turned the corner in public perception — far from it.

A Washington Post/ABC News poll found plenty of reasons for President Obama and congressional Democrats to be worried about the vibes surrounding the law during this mid-term election year. A plurality of Americans still find the law not living up to their expectations – a Pew Research/USA Today poll released Monday reports just 41 percent approve of the ACA, compared to 55 percent who disapprove.

That's a sure danger sign for Democrats in 2014.

Law students push to license dead Chinese attorney

SAN FRANCISCO -- In a decision still studied in law schools as a 19th century lesson in bigotry, the California Supreme Court in 1890 denied Hong Yeng Chang's application to practice law solely because he was Chinese.

Now, students at a Northern California law school are working to right that ancient wrong. They hope to persuade the current court to reverse its 124-year-old decision.

Students at the University of California, Davis, School of Law's Asian Pacific American Law Students Association and two professors have submitted an application to practice law to the State Bar of California on behalf of Chang. It is a first step before approaching the high court, which licenses California's attorneys.

The state bar vets all California applications and recommends approval or denial to the California Supreme Court. The Supreme Court usually follows the recommendation of the state bar.

"This is a unique situation and we don't know what the Committee of Bar Examiners will do with the application," spokeswoman Laura Ernde said. The committee is scheduled to consider the application in late June.

Approving Chang's application would correct a personal injustice and serve a broader public interest purpose, the students and professors wrote the state bar.

"Admitting Mr. Chang would be a powerful symbol of our state's repudiation of laws that singled out Chinese immigrants for discrimination," said Gabriel "Jack" Chin, a professor at UC Davis School of Law and the student association's adviser.

Chang studied at Yale University and Columbia Law School, graduating from Columbia in 1886. After initially being denied a chance to take New York's bar exam, a special act of the state Legislature enabled him to sit for the test and pass. The New York Times reported at the time that Chang was the first Chinese immigrant to become an American lawyer.

In 1890, he moved to California with plans to practice law and represent the burgeoning Chinese population in San Francisco. But the California Supreme Court turned down Chang's application, citing the federal Chinese Exclusion Act — which barred Chinese natives from obtaining U.S. citizenship — and a California law prohibiting noncitizens from practicing law.

"It's a pretty notorious decision," Chin said.

Chin said that Chang's case is well-known in legal circles interested in combatting discrimination. He also said the project is a good lesson for the Asian Pacific American Law Students.

"Every student can put themselves in his position," Chin said.

Chin said there is no precedent in California for awarding a posthumous law license, but at least two other states have granted similar applications. In 2010, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court admitted George Vashon to the practice of law. The same court denied Vashon's application in 1847 because he was black. In 2001, the state of Washington Supreme Court admitted Takuji Yamashita after he was denied a license in 1902 because of his Japanese ancestry.

In addition, Chin said granting Chang a posthumous license would be in line with lawmakers formally undoing the anti-Chinese and anti-Asian laws and apologizing for the discrimination. Congress repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1943 and both chambers have recently apologized for the exclusion act and other discriminatory laws. The California Supreme Court in 1972 allowed noncitizens to become lawyers in the state.

Chang went on to have a distinguished career in banking and diplomacy.

Chin has made a career of working with law school students to redress past injustices. When he taught at the University of Cincinnati, for instance, he and his students discovered that Ohio was the only state not to ratify the 14th Amendment, which gave blacks citizenship and allowed them to vote. Ohio lawmakers ratified the amendment in 2003.

Pfizer mulls options after AstraZeneca snubs offer

By LINDA A. JOHNSON The Associated Press

Executives at drugmaker Pfizer Inc. say they're continuing to review options after British rival AstraZeneca PLC again rejected their proposal to buy the company, adding that Pfizer would prefer a friendly deal. The latest offer was valued at over $100 billion.

"We believe our revised proposal is compelling," Pfizer CEO Ian Read said Monday, adding that it offers AstraZeneca shareholders more benefits than if the maker of cholesterol blockbuster Crestor remains an independent company.

"We believe they are an excellent strategic fit for Pfizer," Read told analysts during a conference call to discuss Pfizer's first-quarter results.

Asked whether there's "something wrong with Pfizer without AstraZeneca," Read said a deal would accelerate Pfizer's "already good" stand-alone strategy. That includes getting key experimental drugs approved, maximizing sales of existing medicines, particularly in emerging markets, and carefully managing expenses and capital.

Since January, Pfizer has been trying to get AstraZeneca to discuss its bid to buy the company, but says AstraZeneca's board refuses to talk. On Friday, AstraZeneca rejected Pfizer's third offer, a cash-and-stock deal worth about $106 billion, saying it still undervalues the company, particularly its drugs in development.

The deal would include Pfizer moving its official domicile — but not its corporate offices — to London. That would reduce Pfizer's income tax rate, because U.S. rates are considerably higher than in the United Kingdom.

The acquisition also would enable Pfizer, which has grown rapidly as a result of three huge acquisitions since 2000, to reduce costs with yet another round of job and other cost cuts.

Under the UK Takeover Code, New York-based Pfizer has until May 26 to make an official offer to AstraZeneca or withdraw.

Read noted that if the deal happens, Pfizer will still have" a massive presence in the U.S."

Drilling traffic overwhelms some W. Virginia towns

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. -- After two young boys were crushed to death by a truck, relatives hoped the accident would force the family's small West Virginia community to confront some of the problems created by heavy traffic from the oil and natural gas industry.

But Clarkesburg Police Chief Robbie Hillard said hundreds of tanker trucks carrying water and brine still come through the same intersection where the boys were killed, and the city can't enact any changes because it's a state highway.

The city is in the northern part of the state, near the Pennsylvania border.

"It's just constant," Hillard said of the truck traffic. "It's all day long."

Last March, the tanker truck overturned onto a car carrying 7-year-old Nicholas Mazzei-Saum and 8-year-old Alexander. Their father, William Saum, said the driver was given two traffic citations for running a stop sign but was never criminally charged.

The accident happened around 9 p.m. on a Saturday, just minutes from the family's home.

Several other states that have seen a boom in oil or gas drilling have launched special programs to help communities cope with the surge in traffic.

Brent Walker, a spokesman for the West Virginia Department of Transportation, said the agency does not specifically track fatalities that may be related to the drilling boom.

Starkville looks at alcohol sales changes

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- The Starkville Board of Aldermen is considering a change in its local liquor rules that could lead to more business development.

Currently, businesses under city rules cannot sell liquor within 250 feet of the nearest point of any church, school, child care facility or funeral home. That distance is measured with a straight line.

Under state law, no sales are allowed within 400 feet of any church, school, kindergarten or funeral home. However, within an area zoned commercial or business, the minimum distance shall be not less than 100 feet. The law allows churches and funeral homes to waive the distance restrictions.

Alderman Scott Maynard told The Commercial Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1iPEWb3 ) due to the physical placement of churches and businesses in the Main Street, Russell Street and Mississippi Highway 182 corridors, the potential change could unlock new retail opportunities. He said Starkville's sales tax and 2 percent food and beverage tax receipts would increase as the city continues branding itself as a restaurant destination for out-of-town diners.

Stocks barely budge; US service sector improves

NEW YORK -- Stocks are little changed Monday as investors weigh an improving outlook for the U.S. economy against a report that showed Chinese manufacturing contracted for a fourth straight month in April.

KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell half a point, or 0.3 percent, to 1,880 as of 1:36 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial dropped seven points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,505. The Nasdaq composite fell one point, or less than 0.1 percent, to 4,127.

SERVICE GROWTH: U.S. service firms grew more quickly last month as sales and new orders rose, adding to other evidence that the economy is picking up after a slow start to the year. The Institute for Supply Management says its service-sector index rose to 55.2 in April from 53.1 in March. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.

DRUG STORE SALES: Walgreen rose $1, or 1.5 percent, to $69.87 after the company reported revenue from established drugstores jumped 7.6 percent last month, topping analysts' expectations. Sales were helped by a later Easter holiday.

CHINA SLOWDOWN: China's manufacturing contracted in April, but the pace of decline was less severe, suggesting the downturn in the world's No. 2 economy is bottoming out. HSBC's purchasing managers' index released Monday ticked up to 48.1 from 48.0 in March on a 100-point scale. Numbers above 50 indicate expansion.

THE QUOTE: The S&P 500 is trading close to its all-time closing high of 1,890 set April 2 and the Dow is also just below its record close of 16,580, set last week. Stocks may struggle to push higher in the immediate future amid concern about the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine and against a backdrop of faltering growth overseas, said Jim Russell, regional investment director at US Bank.

"We're at very high levels relative to history," Russell said. "And we're not at all amazed, or disappointed, that a little bit of a minor pullback could be at hand."

BOND HIT: JPMorgan slumped $1.45, or 2.6 percent, to $54.14 after the bank said late Friday in a quarterly filing that it expects revenue from its bond and stock market unit to be down about 20 percent in the second quarter in a "continued challenging environment." The bank's first-quarter earnings were crimped by lower revenues at its bond trading business.

WEAK DRUGS: Pfizer fell 71 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $30.04 after the drug company said Monday that its first-quarter profit dropped 15 percent despite sharp cost-cutting. The earnings decline reflected competition from cheaper generic drugs. Pfizer has been trying since January to get British rival AstraZeneca to discuss its bid to buy the company, but AstraZeneca continues to rebuff Pfizer.

MEATY SURPISE: Tyson foods slumped $3.94, or 9.2 percent, to $38.71 after the company reported earnings. The food company said that its second-quarter net income more than doubled, benefiting from strong demand for chicken and higher prices for beef and pork, but its outlook for full-year earnings fell short of analysts' expectations.

POWER MOVE: Utilities stocks rose the most in the S&P 500 index. The utility sector has risen 12.5 percent this year, making it the best performing industry group in the S&P 500, as investors favor stable companies that pay big dividends.

BONDS AND COMMODITIES: Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note edged up to 2.61 percent from 2.59 percent on Friday. The yield is close to its lowest level of the year and has fallen from 3 percent at the start of January. The price of oil fell 69 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $99.09 a barrel.

Kemper overruns drag down Southern Co. stock

JACKSON, Miss. -- Troubles at the Kemper County power plant that Mississippi Power Co. is building are so great that they're dragging down the stock of parent Southern Co.

Company stock has fallen four straight days since Southern disclosed another $196 million in overruns related to higher construction costs and delays in the project.

Mississippi Power says it will pay the additional money — not its 186,000 customers from Meridian to the Gulf Coast. However, the company says it also lose $120 million to $150 million in tax benefits by not completing the complex this year. Mississippi Power says it will change proposed rates to recover that money.

Monday, Swiss investment bank UBS cut Southern's stock to a "sell" rating, citing Kemper.

The coal-fueled power plant is now projected to cost $5.5 billion.

Natchitoches approves $2M for hotel project

NATCHITOCHES, La. -- The Grand Hotel project in downtown Natchitoches has moved another step closer to fruition.

The Town Talk reports (http://townta.lk/1fLyH7W ) the Natchitoches City Council has approved issuing $2 million in taxable revenue notes to help finance the planned hotel, which would be built across the street from the Natchitoches Events Center.

The hotel project has been stymied by financing problems since hotel developer Warren Reuther and the city reached a cooperative endeavor agreement in 2011. Construction had been projected to begin in mid-2012.

City officials are optimistic that the project is moving again.

In February, the State Bond Commission gave permission for the city to issue $2.2 million in taxable revenue notes, but city officials decided to set the amount of the issue at $2 million.

"An additional $200,000 was originally included in our request to the Bond Commission to cover bond issuance costs. It has since been determined that these costs would be much lower, so the city chose not to finance these costs," Natchitoches Finance Director Patrick G. Jones said in an email to The Town Talk.

Jones said it is expected that the sale of $2 million in revenue notes should be completed in 30 to 60 days.

"Of course, this is only for the city's share of the financing, and we have no control over the developer's portion. However, we have been advised by the developer that construction should take between 9 and 12 months once the commercial bank loan is completed," Jones wrote.

Mayor Lee Posey has said the financing method is a way to assist Reuther in the project. The total price tag for the project, including hotel construction, furniture, fixtures, equipment and land, is estimated at about $9.9 million.

Reuther is expected to put up about $1.5 million and borrow about $6 million.

The city expects about $72,000 annually in sales tax revenue to be generated by the two-story hotel.

Mass. high court hears arguments in casino case

BOSTON -- The state's highest court is weighing a case that will determine if Massachusetts voters get to decide in November whether or not to allow Las Vegas-style casino gambling in the state.

The Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments Monday in an appeal challenging state Attorney General Martha Coakley's ruling that a proposed ballot question violates the state constitution.

The anti-casino group Repeal the Casino Deal wants the court to allow a question on the ballot asking voters if they want the state's 2011 casino law repealed.

The law allows for up to three casinos and one slots-only parlor in the state.

Coakley's office argued that the question is not permissible because it would result in an uncompensated taking of private property from casino developers.

A ruling is not expected until July.

Track reports strong wagering on Derby Day racing

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Churchill Downs says total wagering on this year's Kentucky Derby race card tied an all-time record.

On-track wagering on the Derby and the day's entire race program at the track were higher than a year ago.

The figures show the world's most famous horse race remains a cash cow for the track's parent company.

California Chrome won the Run for the Roses on Saturday. The race drew a crowd of 164,906, the second-largest in the Derby's 140-year history.

Churchill Downs says wagering from all-sources on the Derby race card totaled $186.6 million, tying the record set in 2012.

On-track wagering on the Derby program reached $23.4 million, up 11 percent from last year.

Churchill Downs Inc. Chairman and CEO Robert L. Evans says Derby week is a key to the company's growth.

Camping World to sponsor Truck Series through 2022

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- NASCAR has reached a seven-year contract extension with Camping World to remain the title sponsor of the Truck Series through 2022.

Camping World's first seven-year entitlement deal ran through 2015, but CEO Marcus Lemonis began negotiations well in advance of the expiration.

Lemonis said since signing with NASCAR and the Truck Series in 2009, his RV supplies company based in Bowling Green, Kentucky, has added 35 percent more stores and eclipsed $3 billion in annual revenue.

The deal announced Monday gives Camping World exclusive rights to market its Good Sam Roadside Assistance program as the "Official Roadside Assistance of NASCAR." It also gives official NASCAR branding to CarCash and AutoMatch USA.

Pfizer 1Q profit drops 15 pct due to lower sales

NEW YORK -- The drugmaker Pfizer says its first-quarter profit dropped 15 percent due to cheaper generic competition that continues to reduce sales of its multiple medicines and the end of some partnerships with other drug makers.

The maker of Viagra says net income was $2.33 billion, or 36 cents per share, for the January-March period. That's down from $2.75 billion, or 38 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time charges, income was 57 cents per share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet expected 55 cents per share.

Revenue totaled $11.35 billion, down 9 percent. Analysts expected $12.08 billion.

Pfizer, which recently has made three unsuccessful offers to acquire rival AstraZeneca Plc, confirmed its 2014 profit forecast for earnings per share of $2.20 to $2.30 and revenue of $49.2 billion to $52.3 billion.

Texas tries to curb road deaths from energy boom

Transportation authorities in Texas have been working to reduce traffic deaths related to the oil and natural gas boom, but local officials and industry experts agree that education alone won't solve the problem.

"Our roads are really deteriorating" because of the surge in heavy traffic, said Karnes County Sherriff Dwayne Villanueva. "A lot of the traffic accidents are being caused by the road conditions."

Karnes County now has an accident serious enough to require air transport of victims three or four times each week, compared with only a few times a month before drilling operations took off, the sheriff said.

John Esparza of the Texas Trucking Association said the drilling boom has brought many benefits to the state, but investments in roads have not kept pace.

"We've just got to rethink the way we're engineering our roads," Esparza said. "The amount of truck traffic — they weren't designed for that."

Esparza also said longtime residents of some rural counties need to adjust the way they think about driving.

"People don't know how to share the road with these large vehicles," he said. "We're talking about a general infusion of people and equipment that counties have not seen before."

But Villanueva said the industry has work to do, too.

Karnes County officers believe many oil field workers are probably driving longer hours than the law allows. The county has had two incidents in which oil company trucks ran into school buses, and the drivers reported they were just tired, Villanueva said.

Esparza said progress is being made in reducing the number of accidents per driving mile. That's a standard way to measure safety, but Esparza said the drilling boom has a catch.

"The fear is, miles are going to get greater and greater," he said of the volume of heavy truck traffic. "By virtue of that, the number of people who lose their lives is likely to grow" unless changes are made.

Villanueva said members of law enforcement struggle with the psychological toll of responding to a steady stream of accidents with fatalities.

"It'll get to you after a while," he said.

New Mexico districts recruit teachers in Midwest

FARMINGTON, N.M. -- School districts in New Mexico's Four Corners area are going the extra mile to hire new teachers, and they are looking at the Midwest for help.

Several school districts in San Juan County have increased recruiting efforts as the number of students graduating from New Mexico teacher education programs has dropped, the Farmington Daily Times reported (http://bit.ly/1ohOkDD ).

For the Farmington Municipal School District — the area's biggest school district with a large Navajo student population — that has meant sending representatives to Minnesota, Montana and Michigan to recruit teachers. Officials say they received more than 2,000 applications for the upcoming school year at teachers' fairs in those states.

Chris Pash, human resources director for Farmington schools, said the district has to fill about 60 teacher positions for the coming school year, which is fewer than the number of teachers it hired for the current school year.

"We hired over 100 teachers last year, so we're actually down a little bit from where we were," Pash said. But he estimated another 20 to 30 teacher openings could be added as the end of the school year approaches.

Meanwhile, officials of the Aztec and Bloomfield school districts report they face similar recruitment challenges.

"This is the most aggressive we've been as a district in recruiting in my 24 years in the district as a teacher, principal and administrator," Aztec Municipal School District Superintendent Kirk Carpenter said.

Bloomfield schools needed to hire about 25 teachers for the upcoming school year, said Chuck Culpepper, director of curriculum and assessment for the Bloomfield School District. On average, about 10 percent of teachers leave the district annually, he said.

The teacher shortage comes as the number of graduates from four-year teacher education programs in the state has declined since 2007, said Michael Morehead, dean of the College of Education at New Mexico State University.

In 2007, 1,113 students graduated from teacher programs at New Mexico's four-year college programs, according to the Educator Accountability Reporting System report. That number dropped to 732 in 2011 and is expected to dip to 690 in 2013. That year of the report has yet to be compiled.

Morehead believes a number of factors are behind the declining teacher numbers, including accountability mandates from the No Child Left Behind Act, compensation and "impression of opportunity."

"I think the salaries have not kept pace, especially lifetime salary potential," Morehead said. "I think there is an environment right now that is putting demands on educators that make people apprehensive about going into it."

Youngsville Sports Complex to open this month

YOUNGSVILLE, La. -- Officials say the 70-acre, $15.4 million Youngsville Sports Complex will open in time to host youth baseball and tennis tournaments in mid- and late May, with a grand opening set for May 31.

Originally scheduled for completion in December, Mayor Wilson Viator tells The Advocate (http://bit.ly/RgzZwk ) the opening has been delayed due to weather and issues with the nearby Acadiana Renaissance Charter Academy. Despite the delay, Viator says the park will be completed for $15.4 million, which is about $200,000 or 1.3 percent over projected costs.

The mayor said the additional money was spent on such extras as more batting cages that were added during construction.

Youngsville voters in 2011 approved a 1-cent sales tax to pay for the park. The tax, which began to be levied one year ago, generates up to $2 million a year.

The Youngsville City Council on Wednesday approved accepting the project from prime contractor Trahan Construction, a company based in Lake Arthur, complex Director Tim Robichaux said.

"There's still some work we have to do, but we're going to be ready" for the May tournaments and grand opening, Robichaux said.

The work is being completed during a required 45-day lien period.

Trahan Construction workers continued painting and putting other finishing touches Friday at the park.

Viator said the five baseball fields are easily convertible to fast-pitch softball fields, so the complex can handle sizable tournaments.

The lights on the ball fields have been tested for endurance, and park workers are now aiming the lights so just enough light falls on each part of the field, Robichaux said.

United States Specialty Sports Association, or USSSA Baseball, is holding a boys baseball tournament the weekend of May 17.

Also in May, Youngsville will begin Phase II of the Sports Complex, as workers start laying the foundation for the Youngsville Community Recreation Center and an accompanying parking lot.

The center will house the park's administrative offices, basketball courts and rooms for other functions.

The estimated cost for Phase II $4.6 million, Viator said.

Minister urges donor countries to fulfill refugee funding promise

BEIRUT: Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk urged Monday donor countries to make good on their promise to help Lebanon address the Syrian refugee crisis, saying new measures should be in place to better manage their presence.

“There is a need for the international organizations and donor countries to fulfill their promise toward Lebanon to support plans put forward by the Lebanese government to resolve the refugee crisis,” Machnouk told a delegation from UNRWA and Deputy U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Ross Mountain.

He also said that the funds would support municipalities in the Bekaa Valley and north Lebanon which host the majority of Syrian refugee families.

Machnouk also stressed on the need to place “clear standards to regulate the presence of Syrian refugee in Lebanon.”

The meeting at Machnouk’s ministry also discussed measures taken by General Security to regulate the influx of Palestinian refugees from Syria as well as proposals of the ministerial committee tasked with addressing the refugee crisis.

Lebanon has repeatedly appealed to international organizations to help fund a government plan proposed last year to resolve the refugee crisis particularly as the number of Syrian refugees, now standing over one million, is expected to increase gradually.

Officials have estimated that there are over 1.5 million in the country including refugees who enter the country without registering with U.N. agencies, warning Lebanon can no longer bear the brunt of the crisis on its own.

Tyson Foods 2Q more than doubles, meat sales up

SPRINGDALE, Ark. -- Tyson Foods said Monday that its second-quarter net income more than doubled, benefiting from strong demand for chicken and higher prices for beef and pork.

The biggest U.S. meat company also boosted its full-year revenue forecast.

Chicken sales rose on strong demand, while beef and pork sales climbed as they were helped by higher prices amid tight supplies. Sales of prepared foods also increased, thanks in part to some successful product launches.

In the international segment, sales fell slightly as the unit contends with soft demand in China.

For the three months ended March 29, Tyson earned $213 million, or 60 cents per share. A year earlier the company earned $95 million, or 43 cents per share.

Analysts, on average, forecast slightly higher earnings of 62 cents per share for the latest quarter, according to a FactSet survey.

Revenue increased 8 percent to $9.03 billion from $8.38 billion, topping Wall Street's estimate of $8.8 billion.

Tyson Foods Inc. said that it was the first time its quarterly revenue has passed the $9 billion mark.

The Springdale, Arkansas, company anticipates full-year earnings of at least $2.78 per share on revenue of approximately $37 billion. It previously forecast revenue of about $36 billion. Analysts predict earnings of $2.93 per share on revenue of $36 billion.

Its stock slipped 20 cents to $42.45 in premarket trading an hour before the market opening after rising as high as $43.19 earlier.

La. IndyCar race hinges on scheduling, track work

AVONDALE, La. -- IndyCar racing officials expressed confidence on Monday that the NOLA Motorsports Park will be able to complete more $4.5 million in improvements needed to host the proposed Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana in suburban New Orleans next year.

"We're delighted by this broad show of support and encouraged by the prospect of a Verizon IndyCar Series race in New Orleans," said Mark Miles, CEO of Hulman & Company, the parent of IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Gov. Bobby Jindal, NOLA Motorsports Park officials and Andretti Sports Marketing gathered at the track in Avondale for Monday's formal announcement of the planned race.

Ongoing negotiations include scheduling a weekend for the event, which would also affect the timeline for track improvements that Miles said are needed for "safety, fan enjoyment and quality of racing."

Jindal will need state Legislative approval for $4.5 million, which will be combined with private money to make improvements, including pit area, straight away and perimeter fencing enhancements.

"This is great news for our entire state," Jindal said. "A three-day event would allow us to show off the excitement of an IndyCar Series race right here in Louisiana, as well as our state's culture, entertainment and food. This event would be a great economic driver."

The NOLA Motorsports Park, a private, $60 million facility about 14 miles southwest of downtown New Orleans, features a 2.75-mile road course that has already hosted AMA motorcycle racing and developmental levels of open-wheel auto racing including the Indy Lights, Pro Mazda and USF2000 series.

The track is owned by Dr. Laney Chouest, whose family founded and operates Edison Chouest Offshore, reputedly one of the world's leading builders and operators of sea vessels specially designed to service the offshore oil and gas industries.

Chouest thanked Jindal for supporting a "public-private partnership that will leverage the significant private investment we made into this facility."

Organizers were confident enough in the event's success that they launched an Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana website, indynola.com, which referred to the event as, "Inevitable."

"I'm really pleased to see IndyCar preparing to bring a race to NOLA," said former racer Michael Andretti, CEO of Andretti Sports Marketing. "New Orleans is a great market to grow the sport and I'm excited to have Andretti Sports Marketing involved with the operations and promotion of the inaugural Indy Grand Prix of Louisiana."

IndyCar, which includes the Indianapolis 500 as its marquee event, is the premier American-based open-wheel racing series.

Currently, the series' drivers include Helio Castroneves, Tony Kanaan and Scott Dixon, who are former Indy 500 winners, as well as Marco Andretti, the grandson of former racing great Mario Andretti, and Graham Rahal, son of 1986 Indy winner Bobby Rahal.

AP Auto Racing Writer Jenna Fryer contributed to this report.

AP IMPACT: Deadly side effect to fracking boom

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. -- Booming production of oil and natural gas has exacted a little-known price on some of the nation's roads, contributing to a spike in traffic fatalities in states where many streets and highways are choked with large trucks and heavy drilling equipment.

An Associated Press analysis of traffic deaths and U.S. census data in six drilling states shows that in some places, fatalities have more than quadrupled since 2004 — a period when most American roads have become much safer even as the population has grown.

"We are just so swamped," said Sheriff Dwayne Villanueva of Karnes County, Texas, where authorities have been overwhelmed by the surge in serious accidents.

The industry acknowledges the problem, and traffic agencies and oil companies say they are taking steps to improve safety. But no one imagines that the risks will be eliminated quickly or easily.

"I don't see it slowing down anytime soon," Villanueva said.

The energy boom, fueled largely by new drilling technology, has created badly needed jobs, lifted local economies and drawn global manufacturers back to the United States. But the traffic accidents have devastated families: two young boys crushed to death last year by a tanker truck in West Virginia; a Pennsylvania father killed by another tanker in 2011; a 19-year old Texas man fatally injured in 2012 after colliding with a drilling truck on his way to work. A month later, on the same road, three retired teachers died in another collision with a truck.

Not all of the crashes involved trucks from drilling projects, and the accidents have been blamed on both ordinary motorists and heavy equipment drivers. But the frenzy of drilling activity contributes heavily to the flood of traffic of all kinds that has overwhelmed many communities.

Deadly crashes are "recognized as one of the key risk areas of the business," said Marvin Odum, who runs Royal Dutch Shell's exploration operations in the Americas.

Crashes often increase when the volume of traffic goes up, whether because of an improving economy, a new shopping mall or more people moving into the area. Still, the number of traffic fatalities in some regions has climbed far faster than the population or the number of miles driven.

In North Dakota drilling counties, the population has soared 43 percent over the last decade, while traffic fatalities increased 350 percent. Roads in those counties were nearly twice as deadly per mile driven than the rest of the state. In one Texas drilling district, drivers were 2.5 times more likely to die in a fatal crash per mile driven compared with the statewide average.

This boom is different from those of the past because of the hydraulic-fracturing process, which extracts oil and gas by injecting high-pressure mixtures of water, sand or gravel and chemicals. It requires 2,300 to 4,000 truck trips per well to deliver those fluids. Older drilling techniques needed one-third to one-half as many trips.

Another factor is the speed of development. Drilling activity often ramps up too fast for communities to build better roads, install more traffic signals or hire extra police officers to help direct the flow of cars and trucks.

Last year, a truck carrying drilling water in Clarksburg, W.Va., overturned onto a car carrying a mother and her two boys. Both children, 7-year-old Nicholas Mazzei-Saum and 8-year-old Alexander, were killed.

"We buried them in the same casket," recalled their father, William Saum. He said his wife, Lucretia Mazzei, has been hospitalized four times over the last year for depression.

Traffic fatalities in West Virginia's most heavily drilled counties, including where the Mazzei-Saum boys were killed, rose 42 percent in 2013. Traffic deaths in the rest of the state declined 8 percent.

The average rate of deaths per 100,000 people — a key mortality measurement that accounts for population growth — in North Dakota drilling areas climbed 148 percent on average from 2009 to 2013, compared with the average of the previous five years, the AP found. In the rest of the state, deaths per 100,000 people fell 1 percent over the same period.

Traffic fatalities in Pennsylvania drilling counties rose 4 percent over that time frame, while in the rest of the state they fell 19 percent. New Mexico's traffic fatalities fell 29 percent, except in drilling counties, where they only fell 5 percent.

In 21 Texas counties where drilling has recently expanded, deaths per 100,000 people are up an average of 18 percent. Across the rest of Texas, they are down by 20 percent.

For Villanueva, that means his county now has accidents serious enough to require air transport of victims three or four times each week, compared with only a few times a month before drilling operations took off.

In two Texas drilling regions, an average of 100 more people were killed in vehicle accidents in each of the last two years compared with before the boom.

When oil and gas are found, changes come fast. Drillers scramble to acquire leases and get the oil and gas flowing as soon as possible. Local service companies quickly marshal trucks and drivers to earn as much new business as they can while the boom lasts.

Counties and regions going through drilling booms simply cannot keep up. A weigh station stands on U.S. Route 2 in Williston, North Dakota, the heart of drilling country, but traffic on the highway gets backed up if the station stays open for 15 minutes, said Alan Dybing, a research fellow at North Dakota State University's transportation institute. So it soon has to close, letting streams of unchecked trucks pass through.

Some experts say regulatory loopholes make things even worse. Federal rules limit the amount of time most truckers can stay on the road, but the rules are less stringent for drivers in the oil and gas industry.

"These exemptions make Swiss cheese out of safety regulations," said Jackie Gillan, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety.

Every truck accident "is a tragedy and deserves serious attention," said Steve Everley of the industry group Energy in Depth. He said oil and gas drillers and their suppliers have been working to reduce traffic and accidents by adopting safety programs, recycling more drilling water and building more pipelines to transport water.

Vehicle crashes are the single biggest cause of fatalities to oil and gas workers, according to a study by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Truck drivers aren't the only ones getting blamed. In many cases, accident investigators found that motorists got impatient while following big trucks and took risks that led to accidents, such as passing on hills or curves, according to Robert Barnes, safety director for Pennsylvania's Bradford County.

Some states are working to reverse the trend, and there's at least one drilling region that appears to be getting safer.

In North Dakota, turning and climbing lanes are being added to give drivers a safe way to pass, and officials are planning to widen a stretch of U.S. Route 85. The Pennsylvania and Texas transportation departments have launched safe-driving campaigns.

Colorado's Weld County, which lodged a record number of drilling permits last year but saw traffic fatalities fall to 30 from 39, to its lowest level in 10 years. Capt. Rocco Domenico of the Colorado State Patrol says the county has been the focus of a long-term safety campaign, and drilling there isn't as concentrated or as intense as it is in other states.

On the day his sons were killed, William Saum's wife had taken the boys to the YMCA to register for swimming and karate classes. The truck didn't stop at the stop sign, tried to make a turn and flipped onto the family car. Police issued two traffic tickets but filed no criminal charges.

Saum and his wife waited until she was 40 to have children. Now she's 49, he said, and "it's not like we can have any more."

Asked what he thinks of the drilling boom, he paused.

"I guess," Saum said, "it's good for the people who are making the money."

Fahey reported from New York.