MAY 10, 2021 (OMAHA, NEB.)&nbsp;&nbsp;— Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol have arrested two people following a late-morning pursuit between Lincoln and Omaha.

At approximately 11:30 a.m., Monday, the NSP Aviation Support Division was notified that the Seward County Sheriff’s Office was in pursuit of a Kia Forte that had fled a traffic stop. Deputies discontinued their pursuit as the vehicle was passing through Lincoln on eastbound Interstate 80.

NSP pilots were able to locate the vehicle between Lincoln and Omaha and direct troopers on the ground to its location as it was traveling eastbound near mile marker 430. A trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle refused to yield and accelerated to speeds over 100 miles per hour. The trooper initiated a pursuit.

As the Kia approached the Gretna interchange at mile marker 432, it drove through the median and started traveling westbound on I-80. After several miles, the vehicle voluntarily stopped near mile marker 424. The driver and passenger were both taken into custody without incident.

The driver, Lamar Parsons Ferguson, 34, of Saint Paul, Minnesota, was arrested for felony flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, and possession of a controlled substance. The passenger, Mia Miller, 23, of Columbia Heights, Minnesota, was arrested for possession of a controlled substance. Both were lodged in Sarpy County Jail. Additional charges are possible in connection with the Seward County pursuit.

MAY 10, 2021 (OMAHA, NEB.)&nbsp;&nbsp;— Troopers with the Nebraska State Patrol have arrested two people following a late-morning pursuit between Lincoln and Omaha.At approximately 11:30 a.m., Monday, the NSP Aviation Support Division was notified that the Seward County Sheriff’s Office was in pursuit of a Kia Forte that had fled a traffic stop. Deputies discontinued their pursuit as the vehicle was passing through Lincoln on eastbound Interstate 80.NSP pilots were able to locate the vehicle between Lincoln and Omaha and direct troopers on the ground to its location as it was traveling eastbound near mile marker 430. A trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle refused to yield and accelerated to speeds over 100 miles per hour. The trooper initiated a pursuit.As the Kia approached the Gretna interchange at mile marker 432, it drove through the median and started traveling westbound on I-80. After several miles, the vehicle voluntarily stopped near mile marker 424. The driver and passenger were both taken into custody without incident.The driver, Lamar Parsons Ferguson, 34, of Saint Paul, Minnesota, was arrested for felony flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, and possession of a controlled substance. The passenger, Mia Miller, 23, of Columbia Heights, Minnesota, was arrested for possession of a controlled substance. Both were lodged in Sarpy County Jail. Additional charges are possible in connection with the Seward County pursuit.

Two Arrested By NSP After Pursuit Between Lincoln and Omaha

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said Monday that it was working toward “substantially restoring operational service” by the weekend.

The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.

Nonetheless,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-hacking-government-and-politics-technology-business-b2a867c0705acd953c90d6e2a58fabb9">the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation’s energy sector</a>&nbsp;and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.

“We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure,” Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack “tells you how utterly vulnerable we are” to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.

Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.

In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group’s members are Russian speakers, and the syndicate’s malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBI’s radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a “new and very troubling variant.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.

Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems. On Monday, U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not been disrupted, and the company said it was working toward “substantially restoring operational service” by the weekend.

Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation’s energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.

“We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure,” President Joe Biden said Monday.

The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries.

In this case, the FBI moved with unusual speed to pinpoint blame, saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group’s members are Russian speakers, and the syndicate’s malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.

Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group emerged just months ago. She said the group’s business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds, relying on what she said was a “new and very troubling variant.”

She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged “the very difficult” situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look “thoughtfully at this area” of how best to deter ransomware.

The U.S. sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies that officials have linked to a military intelligence unit and described as an intelligence-gathering operation. In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government.

The group posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. “Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society,” DarkSide said.

Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, ”“I’m going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.

“They have some responsibility to deal with this,” he added.

U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipeline’s key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other petroleum products through 10 states between Texas and New Jersey.

Colonial is in the process of restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that the company proactively took some of its systems offline, as opposed to hackers doing it, and that its operating systems were spared.

In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

“The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices,” said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. But the Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time, potentially intensifying any impact.

If the pipeline outage persists, the industry may want to turn to barges to transport fuel, but that could require a waiver of the Jones Act, a U.S. maritime law that requires products shipped between U.S. ports to be moved by American-flagged ships.

The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.

Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.

The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.

The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.

NEW YORK (AP) — The cyberextortion attempt that has forced the shutdown of a vital U.S. pipeline was carried out by a criminal gang known as DarkSide that cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity, two people close to the investigation said Sunday.

<a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/emergency/esc-ssc-wsc-regional-emergency-declaration-2021-002-05-09-2021">Click here to read </a>the emergency declaration from the Department of Transportation.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ga-state-wire-business-c6ef4314af911fb58b8445d2b121e82d">shutdown, meanwhile, stretched into its third day</a>, with the Biden administration loosening regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.

Experts said that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-342d43005020fbbc2fb279bd593428f7">gasoline prices</a>&nbsp;are unlikely to be affected if the pipeline is back to normal in the next few days but that the incident — the worst cyberattack to date on critical U.S. infrastructure — should serve as a wake-up call to companies about the vulnerabilities they face.

The pipeline, operated by Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline, carries gasoline and other fuel from Texas to the Northeast. It delivers roughly 45% of fuel consumed on the East Coast, according to the company.

It was hit by what Colonial called&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-canada-health-coronavirus-technology-288c8979c10b648ba72a4b0fc34b02ac">a ransomware attack, in which hackers&nbsp;</a>typically lock up computer systems by encrypting data, paralyzing networks, and then demand a large ransom to unscramble it.

On Sunday, Colonial Pipeline said it was actively in the process of restoring some of its IT systems. It says it remains in contact with law enforcement and other federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, which is leading the federal government response. The company has not said what was demanded or who made the demand.

However, two people close to the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity, identified the culprit as DarkSide. It is among ransomware gangs that have “professionalized” a criminal industry that has cost Western nations tens of billions of dollars in losses in the past three years.

DarkSide claims that it does not attack hospitals and nursing homes, educational or government targets and that it donates a portion of its take to charity. It has been active since August and, typical of the most potent ransomware gangs, is known to avoid targeting organizations in former Soviet bloc nations.

Colonial did not say whether it has paid or was negotiating a ransom, and DarkSide neither announced the attack on its dark web site nor responded to an Associated Press reporter’s queries. The lack of acknowledgment usually indicates a victim is either negotiating or has paid.

On Sunday, Colonial Pipeline said it is developing a “system restart” plan. It said its main pipeline remains offline but some smaller lines are now operational.

“We are in the process of restoring service to other laterals and will bring our full system back online only when we believe it is safe to do so, and in full compliance with the approval of all federal regulations,” the company said in a statement.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gina-raimondo-commerce-secretary-cd2794577a58ccae4b7cca9ce47af79d">Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo</a>&nbsp;said Sunday that ransomware attacks are “what businesses now have to worry about,” and that she will work “very vigorously” with the Department of Homeland Security to address the problem, calling it a top priority for the administration.

“Unfortunately, these sorts of attacks are becoming more frequent,” she said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We have to work in partnership with business to secure networks to defend ourselves against these attacks.”

She said President Joe Biden was briefed on the attack.

“It’s an all-hands-on-deck effort right now,” Raimondo said. “And we are working closely with the company, state and local officials to make sure that they get back up to normal operations as quickly as possible and there aren’t disruptions in supply.”

The Department of Transportation issued&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/emergency/esc-ssc-wsc-regional-emergency-declaration-2021-002-05-09-2021" target="_blank">a regional emergency declaration</a>&nbsp;Sunday, relaxing hours-of-service regulations for drivers carrying gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum products in 17 states and the District of Columbia. It lets them work extra or more flexible hours to make up for any fuel shortage related to the pipeline outage.

One of the people close to the Colonial investigation said that the attackers also stole data from the company, presumably for extortion purposes. Sometimes stolen data is more valuable to ransomware criminals than the leverage they gain by crippling a network, because some victims are loath to see sensitive information of theirs dumped online.

Security experts said the attack should be a warning for operators of critical infrastructure — including electrical and water utilities and energy and transportation companies — that not investing in updating their security puts them at risk of catastrophe.

Ed Amoroso, CEO of TAG Cyber, said Colonial was lucky its attacker was at least ostensibly motivated only by profit, not geopolitics. State-backed hackers bent on more serious destruction use the same intrusion methods as ransomware gangs.

“For companies vulnerable to ransomware, it’s a bad sign because they are probably more vulnerable to more serious attacks,” he said. Russian cyberwarriors, for example, crippled the electrical grid in Ukraine during the winters of 2015 and 2016.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ransomware-gangs-hacking-police-cybercrime-pipeline-3a38c27c4fafe0c39461fb71bf91a42a">Cyberextortion attempts in the U.S.&nbsp;</a>have become a death-by-a-thousand-cuts phenomenon in the past year, with attacks forcing delays in cancer treatment&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fbi-ransomware-healthcare-system-7531ca8d2742d855cd374213d111821c">at hospitals,&nbsp;</a>interrupting schooling and paralyzing police and city governments.

Tulsa, Oklahoma, this week became the 32nd state or local government in the U.S. to come under ransomware attack, said Brett Callow, a threat analyst with the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft.

Average ransoms paid in the U.S. jumped nearly threefold to more than $310,000 last year. The average downtime for victims of ransomware attacks is 21 days, according to the firm Coveware, which helps victims respond.

David Kennedy, founder and senior principal security consultant at TrustedSec, said that once a ransomware attack is discovered, companies have little recourse but to completely rebuild their infrastructure, or pay the ransom.

“Ransomware is absolutely out of control and one of the biggest threats we face as a nation,” Kennedy said. “The problem we face is most companies are grossly underprepared to face these threats.”

Colonial transports gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and home heating oil from refineries on the Gulf Coast through pipelines running from Texas to New Jersey. Its pipeline system spans more than 5,500 miles, transporting more than 100 million gallons (380 million liters) a day.

Debnil Chowdhury at the research firm IHSMarkit said that if the outage stretches to one to three weeks, gas prices could begin to rise.

“I wouldn’t be surprised, if this ends up being an outage of that magnitude, if we see 15- to 20-cent rise in gas prices over next week or two,” he said.

The Justice Department has a new&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-hacking-business-45977e01475a23513051ac549026fffb">task force dedicated to countering ransomware attacks.</a>

While the U.S. has not suffered any serious cyberattacks on its critical infrastructure, officials say Russian hackers in particular are known to have infiltrated some crucial sectors positioning themselves to do damage if armed conflict were to break out. While there is no evidence&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-technology-general-news-government-and-politics-c9dab7eb3841be45dff2d93ed3102999">the Kremlin benefits financially from ransomware,</a>&nbsp;U.S. officials believe President Vladimir Putin savors the mayhem it wreaks in adversaries’ economies.

Iranian hackers have also been aggressive in trying to gain access to utilities, factories and oil and gas facilities. In one case in 2013, they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-new-york-iran-new-york-city-hacking-20e754ada2eb49edbfe6f5ea823bf5c8">broke into the control system of a U.S. dam.</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620643205978.png" alt="&nbsp;The pipeline system spans more than 5,500 miles between Houston, Texas and Linden, New Jersey-image courtesy Colonial Pipeline" />
 <figcaption>&nbsp;The pipeline system spans more than 5,500 miles between Houston, Texas and Linden, New Jersey-image courtesy Colonial Pipeline</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not experienced widespread disruptions, and the company said Monday that it was working toward “substantially restoring operational service” by the weekend.The White House said in a statement late Monday that it was monitoring supply shortages in parts of the Southeast and that President Joe Biden had directed federal agencies to bring their resources to bear.Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems.Nonetheless,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-hacking-government-and-politics-technology-business-b2a867c0705acd953c90d6e2a58fabb9">the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation’s energy sector</a>&nbsp;and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.“We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure,” Biden said Monday. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the attack “tells you how utterly vulnerable we are” to cyberattacks on U.S. infrastructure.The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries, such as water and natural gas.Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.In this case, the FBI publicly assigned blame Monday by saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group’s members are Russian speakers, and the syndicate’s malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group has been on the FBI’s radar for months. She said its business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds with the ransomware developers, relying on what she said was a “new and very troubling variant.”---------WASHINGTON (AP) — Hit by a cyberattack, the operator of a major U.S. fuel pipeline said Monday it hopes to have services mostly restored by the end of the week as the FBI and administration officials identified the culprits as a gang of criminal hackers.Colonial Pipeline, which delivers about 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast, halted operations last week after revealing a ransomware attack that it said had affected some of its systems. On Monday, U.S. officials sought to soothe concerns about price spikes or damage to the economy by stressing that the fuel supply had so far not been disrupted, and the company said it was working toward “substantially restoring operational service” by the weekend.Nonetheless, the attack underscored the vulnerabilities of the nation’s energy sector and other critical industries whose infrastructure is largely privately owned. Ransomware attacks are typically carried out by criminal hackers who scramble data, paralyzing victim networks, and demand large payments to decrypt it.The Colonial attack was a potent reminder of the real-world implications of the burgeoning threat. Even as the Biden administration works to confront organized hacking campaigns sponsored by foreign governments, it must still contend with difficult-to-prevent attacks from cybercriminals.“We need to invest to safeguard our critical infrastructure,” President Joe Biden said Monday.The attack came as the administration, still grappling with its response to massive breaches by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations, works on an executive order aimed at bolstering cybersecurity defenses. The Justice Department, meanwhile, has formed a ransomware task force designed for situations just like Colonial Pipeline, and the Energy Department on April 20 announced a 100-day initiative focused on protecting energy infrastructure from cyber threats. Similar actions are planned for other critical industries.Despite that, the challenge facing the government and the private sector remains immense.In this case, the FBI moved with unusual speed to pinpoint blame, saying the criminal syndicate whose ransomware was used in the attack is named DarkSide. The group’s members are Russian speakers, and the syndicate’s malware is coded not to attack networks using Russian-language keyboards.Anne Neuberger, the White House deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, said at a briefing that the group emerged just months ago. She said the group’s business model is to demand ransom payments from victims and then split the proceeds, relying on what she said was a “new and very troubling variant.”She declined to say if Colonial Pipeline had paid any ransom, and the company has not given any indication of that one way or the other. Though the FBI has historically discouraged victims from making payments for fear of promoting additional attacks, she acknowledged “the very difficult” situation that victims face and said the administration needs to look “thoughtfully at this area” of how best to deter ransomware.The U.S. sanctioned the Kremlin last month for a hack of federal government agencies that officials have linked to a military intelligence unit and described as an intelligence-gathering operation. In this case, though, the hackers are not known to be working at the behest of any foreign government.The group posted a statement on its dark web site describing itself as apolitical. “Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society,” DarkSide said.Asked Monday whether Russia was involved, Biden said, ”“I’m going to be meeting with President (Vladimir) Putin, and so far there is no evidence based on, from our intelligence people, that Russia is involved, although there is evidence that the actors, ransomware, is in Russia.“They have some responsibility to deal with this,” he added.U.S. officials have sought to head off anxieties about the prospect of a lingering economic impact and disruption to the fuel supply, especially given Colonial Pipeline’s key role in transporting gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other petroleum products through 10 states between Texas and New Jersey.Colonial is in the process of restarting portions of its network. It said Monday that it was evaluating the product inventory in storage tanks at its facilities. Administration officials stressed that the company proactively took some of its systems offline, as opposed to hackers doing it, and that its operating systems were spared.In response to the attack, the administration loosened regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.“The time of the outage is now approaching critical levels and if it continues to remain down we do expect an increase in East Coast gasoline and diesel prices,” said Debnil Chowdhury, IHS Markit Executive Director. The last time there was an outage of this magnitude was in 2016, he said, when gas prices rose 15 to 20 cents per gallon. But the Northeast had significantly more local refining capacity at that time, potentially intensifying any impact.If the pipeline outage persists, the industry may want to turn to barges to transport fuel, but that could require a waiver of the Jones Act, a U.S. maritime law that requires products shipped between U.S. ports to be moved by American-flagged ships.The pipeline utilizes both common and custom technology systems, which could complicate efforts to bring the entire network back online, according to analysts at Third Bridge.Gasoline futures ticked higher Monday. Futures for crude and fuel, prices that traders pay for contracts for delivery in the future, typically begin to rise anyway each year as the driving season approaches. The price you pay at the pump tends to follow.The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline has jumped 6 cents over the past two weeks, to $3.02 per gallon, which is $1.05 higher than a year ago. The year-ago numbers are skewed somewhat because the nation was going into lockdown due to the pandemic.The attack on the Colonial Pipeline could exacerbate the upward pressure on prices if it is unresolved for a period of time.----------NEW YORK (AP) — The cyberextortion attempt that has forced the shutdown of a vital U.S. pipeline was carried out by a criminal gang known as DarkSide that cultivates a Robin Hood image of stealing from corporations and giving a cut to charity, two people close to the investigation said Sunday.<a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/emergency/esc-ssc-wsc-regional-emergency-declaration-2021-002-05-09-2021">Click here to read </a>the emergency declaration from the Department of Transportation.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ga-state-wire-business-c6ef4314af911fb58b8445d2b121e82d">shutdown, meanwhile, stretched into its third day</a>, with the Biden administration loosening regulations for the transport of petroleum products on highways as part of an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to avoid disruptions in the fuel supply.Experts said that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-342d43005020fbbc2fb279bd593428f7">gasoline prices</a>&nbsp;are unlikely to be affected if the pipeline is back to normal in the next few days but that the incident — the worst cyberattack to date on critical U.S. infrastructure — should serve as a wake-up call to companies about the vulnerabilities they face.The pipeline, operated by Georgia-based Colonial Pipeline, carries gasoline and other fuel from Texas to the Northeast. It delivers roughly 45% of fuel consumed on the East Coast, according to the company.It was hit by what Colonial called&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/europe-canada-health-coronavirus-technology-288c8979c10b648ba72a4b0fc34b02ac">a ransomware attack, in which hackers&nbsp;</a>typically lock up computer systems by encrypting data, paralyzing networks, and then demand a large ransom to unscramble it.On Sunday, Colonial Pipeline said it was actively in the process of restoring some of its IT systems. It says it remains in contact with law enforcement and other federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, which is leading the federal government response. The company has not said what was demanded or who made the demand.However, two people close to the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity, identified the culprit as DarkSide. It is among ransomware gangs that have “professionalized” a criminal industry that has cost Western nations tens of billions of dollars in losses in the past three years.DarkSide claims that it does not attack hospitals and nursing homes, educational or government targets and that it donates a portion of its take to charity. It has been active since August and, typical of the most potent ransomware gangs, is known to avoid targeting organizations in former Soviet bloc nations.Colonial did not say whether it has paid or was negotiating a ransom, and DarkSide neither announced the attack on its dark web site nor responded to an Associated Press reporter’s queries. The lack of acknowledgment usually indicates a victim is either negotiating or has paid.On Sunday, Colonial Pipeline said it is developing a “system restart” plan. It said its main pipeline remains offline but some smaller lines are now operational.“We are in the process of restoring service to other laterals and will bring our full system back online only when we believe it is safe to do so, and in full compliance with the approval of all federal regulations,” the company said in a statement.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/gina-raimondo-commerce-secretary-cd2794577a58ccae4b7cca9ce47af79d">Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo</a>&nbsp;said Sunday that ransomware attacks are “what businesses now have to worry about,” and that she will work “very vigorously” with the Department of Homeland Security to address the problem, calling it a top priority for the administration.“Unfortunately, these sorts of attacks are becoming more frequent,” she said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We have to work in partnership with business to secure networks to defend ourselves against these attacks.”She said President Joe Biden was briefed on the attack.“It’s an all-hands-on-deck effort right now,” Raimondo said. “And we are working closely with the company, state and local officials to make sure that they get back up to normal operations as quickly as possible and there aren’t disruptions in supply.”The Department of Transportation issued&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/emergency/esc-ssc-wsc-regional-emergency-declaration-2021-002-05-09-2021" target="_blank">a regional emergency declaration</a>&nbsp;Sunday, relaxing hours-of-service regulations for drivers carrying gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and other refined petroleum products in 17 states and the District of Columbia. It lets them work extra or more flexible hours to make up for any fuel shortage related to the pipeline outage.One of the people close to the Colonial investigation said that the attackers also stole data from the company, presumably for extortion purposes. Sometimes stolen data is more valuable to ransomware criminals than the leverage they gain by crippling a network, because some victims are loath to see sensitive information of theirs dumped online.Security experts said the attack should be a warning for operators of critical infrastructure — including electrical and water utilities and energy and transportation companies — that not investing in updating their security puts them at risk of catastrophe.Ed Amoroso, CEO of TAG Cyber, said Colonial was lucky its attacker was at least ostensibly motivated only by profit, not geopolitics. State-backed hackers bent on more serious destruction use the same intrusion methods as ransomware gangs.“For companies vulnerable to ransomware, it’s a bad sign because they are probably more vulnerable to more serious attacks,” he said. Russian cyberwarriors, for example, crippled the electrical grid in Ukraine during the winters of 2015 and 2016.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ransomware-gangs-hacking-police-cybercrime-pipeline-3a38c27c4fafe0c39461fb71bf91a42a">Cyberextortion attempts in the U.S.&nbsp;</a>have become a death-by-a-thousand-cuts phenomenon in the past year, with attacks forcing delays in cancer treatment&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fbi-ransomware-healthcare-system-7531ca8d2742d855cd374213d111821c">at hospitals,&nbsp;</a>interrupting schooling and paralyzing police and city governments.Tulsa, Oklahoma, this week became the 32nd state or local government in the U.S. to come under ransomware attack, said Brett Callow, a threat analyst with the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft.Average ransoms paid in the U.S. jumped nearly threefold to more than $310,000 last year. The average downtime for victims of ransomware attacks is 21 days, according to the firm Coveware, which helps victims respond.David Kennedy, founder and senior principal security consultant at TrustedSec, said that once a ransomware attack is discovered, companies have little recourse but to completely rebuild their infrastructure, or pay the ransom.“Ransomware is absolutely out of control and one of the biggest threats we face as a nation,” Kennedy said. “The problem we face is most companies are grossly underprepared to face these threats.”Colonial transports gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and home heating oil from refineries on the Gulf Coast through pipelines running from Texas to New Jersey. Its pipeline system spans more than 5,500 miles, transporting more than 100 million gallons (380 million liters) a day.Debnil Chowdhury at the research firm IHSMarkit said that if the outage stretches to one to three weeks, gas prices could begin to rise.“I wouldn’t be surprised, if this ends up being an outage of that magnitude, if we see 15- to 20-cent rise in gas prices over next week or two,” he said.The Justice Department has a new&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-hacking-business-45977e01475a23513051ac549026fffb">task force dedicated to countering ransomware attacks.</a>While the U.S. has not suffered any serious cyberattacks on its critical infrastructure, officials say Russian hackers in particular are known to have infiltrated some crucial sectors positioning themselves to do damage if armed conflict were to break out. While there is no evidence&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-technology-general-news-government-and-politics-c9dab7eb3841be45dff2d93ed3102999">the Kremlin benefits financially from ransomware,</a>&nbsp;U.S. officials believe President Vladimir Putin savors the mayhem it wreaks in adversaries’ economies.Iranian hackers have also been aggressive in trying to gain access to utilities, factories and oil and gas facilities. In one case in 2013, they&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/technology-new-york-iran-new-york-city-hacking-20e754ada2eb49edbfe6f5ea823bf5c8">broke into the control system of a U.S. dam.</a>-------

Cyberattack: Pipeline officials hope most service back by weekend

The Internal Revenue Services offers an online tool to track your federal tax refund status.

• Social Security number or TIN • Filing status • Exact refund amount

Click&nbsp;<a href="https://sa.www4.irs.gov/irfof/lang/en/irfofgetstatus.jsp">HERE</a>&nbsp;to track your refund.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1599869632873.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>IRSThe Internal Revenue Services offers an online tool to track your federal tax refund status.To track a refund, taxpayers will need:• Social Security number or TIN • Filing status • Exact refund amountClick&nbsp;<a href="https://sa.www4.irs.gov/irfof/lang/en/irfofgetstatus.jsp">HERE</a>&nbsp;to track your refund.

IRS: Where's my tax refund? Here's how to find out

WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government will protect gay and transgender people against sex discrimination in health care, the Biden administration declared Monday, reversing a Trump-era policy that narrowed rights at the intersection of changing social mores and sensitive medical decisions.

It marked the latest step by President Joe Biden to advance the rights of gay and transgender people across society, from military service, to housing, to employment opportunities.

The policy announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services affirms that federal laws forbidding sex discrimination in health care also protect gay and transgender people. The Trump administration had defined “sex” to mean gender assigned at birth, thereby excluding transgender people from the law’s umbrella of protection.

“Fear of discrimination can lead individuals to forgo care, which can have serious negative health consequences,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Everyone — including LGBTQ people — should be able to access health care, free from discrimination or interference, period.”

Both opponents and supporters of Biden’s action said it’s likely to lead to litigation.

Speaking for the medical community, the American Medical Association said in a statement the Biden administration “did the right thing” by ending “a dismal chapter which a federal agency sought to remove civil rights protections.” But some conservatives warned that doctors could be forced to perform gender reassignment procedures against their professional judgement.

Becerra said HHS will now be aligned with a landmark 6-3&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/courts-supreme-courts-mi-state-wire-neil-gorsuch-ap-top-news-ef3c19a79b65c060fd9e82b9dd87a1d9">Supreme Court decision last year in a workplace discrimination case</a>, which established that federal laws against sex discrimination on the job also protect gay and transgender people.

In a tweet at the time, then-President Donald Trump called the decision “horrible &amp; politically charged.” Undeterred by the ruling, his administration proceeded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bae1456be55955aab379a3541391f93b">to try to narrow protections against discrimination in health care.&nbsp;</a>But Biden early on in his term directed government agencies to apply the Supreme Court’s reasoning to areas under their jurisdiction.

Monday’s action means that the HHS Office for Civil Rights will again investigate complaints of sex discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Hospitals, clinics and other medical providers can face denial of Medicare and Medicaid payments for violations of the law.

Since the Trump transgender rule had been blocked by a federal judge, the Biden administration action essentially restores a policy established during the Obama years. The Affordable Care Act prohibited sex discrimination in health care but did not use the term “gender identity.” The Obama administration interpreted the law as shielding gay and transgender people as well.

Conservative lawyer Roger Severino, who as a former HHS official oversaw the drafting of the Trump rules, said the Biden administration cut corners in issuing its new policy.

“This is inflaming the culture wars, especially when you are trying to circumvent the process,” said Severino, now at the Ethics and Public Policy Center think tank. Partly because of conflicting lower court rulings on the Trump and Obama policies, Becerra should have undertaken a formal rule-making, which can take months. “I expect lawsuits,” Severino added.

But civil rights advocates said the Supreme Court’s ruling on transgender protections essentially wiped the slate clean for Biden. “The Supreme Court has already laid out the reasoning that applies under all sex discrimination laws,” said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, a lawyer for Lambda Legal. “They did so in an employment case but their reasoning applies equally in health care, in education, and in housing.”

In recent years the understanding of sex has broadened to acknowledge a person’s inner sense of being male, female, neither or a combination.

Behind the dispute over rights for transgender people is a medically recognized condition called “gender dysphoria” — discomfort or distress caused by a discrepancy between the gender that a person identifies as and the gender assigned at birth. Consequences can include severe depression. Treatment can range from gender confirmation surgery and hormones to people changing their outward appearance by adopting a different hairstyle or clothing.

Under the Obama-era rule, a hospital could be required to perform gender-transition procedures such as hysterectomies if the facility provided that kind of treatment for other medical conditions.

LGBTQ groups say explicit protections are needed for people seeking gender transition treatment, and even for transgender people who need care for illnesses such as diabetes or heart problems.

But Tony Perkins, president of the religious conservative Family Research Council, called sex “an objective biological reality” and said the Biden administration is promulgating “a nonsensical definition” of discrimination. “While this decision will advance America’s cultural psychosis, it will potentially put the physical well-being of individuals at grave risk,” Perkins said in a statement.

More than 1.5 million Americans identify as transgender, according to the Williams Institute, a think tank focusing on LGBT policy at the UCLA School of Law. A bigger number — 4.5% of the population— identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, according to Gallup.

HHS is a traditional battleground for conflicts over social issues. During the Trump administration the department bent to the will of conservatives. Other Trump policies applauded by the right restricted abortion referrals and broadened employers’ ability to opt out of providing birth control to women workers covered by their health plans. Under Biden, the policy pendulum has been swinging back in the opposite direction.

One of Biden’s first steps after taking office was a Jan. 20 executive order on combating discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.

Biden quickly followed that up with another order&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-reverse-ban-transgender-military-f0ace4f9866e0ca0df021eba75b3af20">reversing a Trump-era Pentagon policy&nbsp;</a>that largely barred transgender individuals from serving in the military.

And earlier this spring, the Department of Housing and Urban Development&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-government-and-politics-db45d1468f7f8dde5dedfcffabbba697">withdrew a Trump policy</a>&nbsp;that would have allowed taxpayer-funded homeless shelters to deny access to transgender people.

At HHS, Biden’s term has seen the Senate confirmation of Dr. Rachel Levine to be assistant secretary for health, a senior position that involves oversight of public health initiatives, HIV/AIDS, women’s health and minority health, as well as other areas including research protections. Levine, formerly Pennsylvania’s top health official, is the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government will protect gay and transgender people against sex discrimination in health care, the Biden administration declared Monday, reversing a Trump-era policy that narrowed rights at the intersection of changing social mores and sensitive medical decisions.It marked the latest step by President Joe Biden to advance the rights of gay and transgender people across society, from military service, to housing, to employment opportunities.The policy announcement by the Department of Health and Human Services affirms that federal laws forbidding sex discrimination in health care also protect gay and transgender people. The Trump administration had defined “sex” to mean gender assigned at birth, thereby excluding transgender people from the law’s umbrella of protection.“Fear of discrimination can lead individuals to forgo care, which can have serious negative health consequences,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Everyone — including LGBTQ people — should be able to access health care, free from discrimination or interference, period.”Both opponents and supporters of Biden’s action said it’s likely to lead to litigation.Speaking for the medical community, the American Medical Association said in a statement the Biden administration “did the right thing” by ending “a dismal chapter which a federal agency sought to remove civil rights protections.” But some conservatives warned that doctors could be forced to perform gender reassignment procedures against their professional judgement.Becerra said HHS will now be aligned with a landmark 6-3&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/courts-supreme-courts-mi-state-wire-neil-gorsuch-ap-top-news-ef3c19a79b65c060fd9e82b9dd87a1d9">Supreme Court decision last year in a workplace discrimination case</a>, which established that federal laws against sex discrimination on the job also protect gay and transgender people.In a tweet at the time, then-President Donald Trump called the decision “horrible &amp; politically charged.” Undeterred by the ruling, his administration proceeded&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/bae1456be55955aab379a3541391f93b">to try to narrow protections against discrimination in health care.&nbsp;</a>But Biden early on in his term directed government agencies to apply the Supreme Court’s reasoning to areas under their jurisdiction.Monday’s action means that the HHS Office for Civil Rights will again investigate complaints of sex discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Hospitals, clinics and other medical providers can face denial of Medicare and Medicaid payments for violations of the law.Since the Trump transgender rule had been blocked by a federal judge, the Biden administration action essentially restores a policy established during the Obama years. The Affordable Care Act prohibited sex discrimination in health care but did not use the term “gender identity.” The Obama administration interpreted the law as shielding gay and transgender people as well.Conservative lawyer Roger Severino, who as a former HHS official oversaw the drafting of the Trump rules, said the Biden administration cut corners in issuing its new policy.“This is inflaming the culture wars, especially when you are trying to circumvent the process,” said Severino, now at the Ethics and Public Policy Center think tank. Partly because of conflicting lower court rulings on the Trump and Obama policies, Becerra should have undertaken a formal rule-making, which can take months. “I expect lawsuits,” Severino added.But civil rights advocates said the Supreme Court’s ruling on transgender protections essentially wiped the slate clean for Biden. “The Supreme Court has already laid out the reasoning that applies under all sex discrimination laws,” said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, a lawyer for Lambda Legal. “They did so in an employment case but their reasoning applies equally in health care, in education, and in housing.”In recent years the understanding of sex has broadened to acknowledge a person’s inner sense of being male, female, neither or a combination.Behind the dispute over rights for transgender people is a medically recognized condition called “gender dysphoria” — discomfort or distress caused by a discrepancy between the gender that a person identifies as and the gender assigned at birth. Consequences can include severe depression. Treatment can range from gender confirmation surgery and hormones to people changing their outward appearance by adopting a different hairstyle or clothing.Under the Obama-era rule, a hospital could be required to perform gender-transition procedures such as hysterectomies if the facility provided that kind of treatment for other medical conditions.LGBTQ groups say explicit protections are needed for people seeking gender transition treatment, and even for transgender people who need care for illnesses such as diabetes or heart problems.But Tony Perkins, president of the religious conservative Family Research Council, called sex “an objective biological reality” and said the Biden administration is promulgating “a nonsensical definition” of discrimination. “While this decision will advance America’s cultural psychosis, it will potentially put the physical well-being of individuals at grave risk,” Perkins said in a statement.More than 1.5 million Americans identify as transgender, according to the Williams Institute, a think tank focusing on LGBT policy at the UCLA School of Law. A bigger number — 4.5% of the population— identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, according to Gallup.HHS is a traditional battleground for conflicts over social issues. During the Trump administration the department bent to the will of conservatives. Other Trump policies applauded by the right restricted abortion referrals and broadened employers’ ability to opt out of providing birth control to women workers covered by their health plans. Under Biden, the policy pendulum has been swinging back in the opposite direction.One of Biden’s first steps after taking office was a Jan. 20 executive order on combating discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.Biden quickly followed that up with another order&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-reverse-ban-transgender-military-f0ace4f9866e0ca0df021eba75b3af20">reversing a Trump-era Pentagon policy&nbsp;</a>that largely barred transgender individuals from serving in the military.And earlier this spring, the Department of Housing and Urban Development&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/business-government-and-politics-db45d1468f7f8dde5dedfcffabbba697">withdrew a Trump policy</a>&nbsp;that would have allowed taxpayer-funded homeless shelters to deny access to transgender people.At HHS, Biden’s term has seen the Senate confirmation of Dr. Rachel Levine to be assistant secretary for health, a senior position that involves oversight of public health initiatives, HIV/AIDS, women’s health and minority health, as well as other areas including research protections. Levine, formerly Pennsylvania’s top health official, is the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate.

US restores health protections for gay, transgender people

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The son of a Lincoln police officer who was killed in the line of duty last year is training to become a police officer. 

Carlos Herrera is on track to graduate from the police academy this spring and become a Lincoln police officer in June. 

His father, Mario Herrera, died last September about two weeks after he was shot while serving a warrant in Lincoln. Mario Herrera was the first Lincoln police officer killed on the job in more than 50 years. 

Carlos Herrera said he grew up wanting to be a police officer, so he applied after leaving the U.S. Marine Corps.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620687869514.png" alt="Officer Mario Herrera" />
 <figcaption>Officer Mario Herrera</figcaption>
 </figure>LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The son of a Lincoln police officer who was killed in the line of duty last year is training to become a police officer. Carlos Herrera is on track to graduate from the police academy this spring and become a Lincoln police officer in June. His father, Mario Herrera, died last September about two weeks after he was shot while serving a warrant in Lincoln. Mario Herrera was the first Lincoln police officer killed on the job in more than 50 years. Carlos Herrera said he grew up wanting to be a police officer, so he applied after leaving the U.S. Marine Corps.

Son of slain Lincoln officer training to join the police

WASHINGTON (AP) —COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as U.S. regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer’s shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students before they head back to class in the fall.

Shots could begin as soon as a federal vaccine advisory committee issues recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, expected Wednesday.

Vaccinating children of all ages will be critical to a return to normalcy. Most COVID-19 vaccines rolling out worldwide have been authorized for adults. Pfizer’s vaccine is being used in multiple countries for teens as young as 16, and Canada recently became the first to expand use to 12 and up. Parents, school administrators and public health officials elsewhere are anxiously awaiting the shot to become available to more kids.

“This is a watershed moment in our ability to fight back the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dr. Bill Gruber, a Pfizer senior vice president who’s also a pediatrician, told The Associated Press.

The Food and Drug Administration declared the Pfizer vaccine is safe and offers strong protection for younger teens based on testing of more than 2,000 U.S. volunteers ages 12 to 15. The study found no cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated adolescents compared to 18 among kids given dummy shots. More intriguing, researchers found the kids developed higher levels of virus-fighting antibodies than earlier studies measured in young adults.

The younger teens received the same vaccine dosage as adults and had the same side effects, mostly sore arms and flu-like fever, chills or aches that signal a revved-up immune system, especially after the second dose.

Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech recently requested similar authorization in the European Union, with other countries to follow.

The latest news is welcome for U.S. families struggling to decide what activities are safe to resume when only the youngest family members remain unvaccinated.

“I can’t feel totally comfortable because my boys aren’t vaccinated,” said Carrie Vittitoe, a substitute teacher and freelance writer in Louisville, Kentucky, who is fully vaccinated as are her husband and 17-year-old daughter.

The FDA decision means her 13-year-old son soon could be eligible, leaving only her 11-year-old son who would be unvaccinated. The family hasn’t yet resumed going to church, and summer vacation will be a road trip so they don’t have to get on a plane.

“We can’t really go back to normal because two-fifths of our family don’t have protection,” Vittitoe said.

Pfizer isn’t the only company seeking to lower the age limit for its vaccine. Moderna recently said preliminary results from its study in 12- to 17-year-olds show strong protection and no serious side effects. Another U.S. company, Novavax, has a COVID-19 vaccine in late-stage development and just began a study in 12- to 17-year-olds as well.

Next up is testing whether the vaccine works for even younger children. Both Pfizer and Moderna have begun U.S. studies in children ages 6 months to 11 years. Those studies explore whether babies, preschoolers and elementary-age kids will need different doses than teens and adults. Gruber said Pfizer expects its first results sometime in the fall.

Outside of the U.S., AstraZeneca is studying its vaccine among 6- to 17-year-olds in Britain. And in China, Sinovac recently announced it has submitted preliminary data to Chinese regulators showing its vaccine is safe in children as young as 3.

Children are far less likely than adults to get seriously ill from COVID-19 yet they still have been hard-hit by the pandemic. They represent nearly 14% of the nation’s coronavirus cases. At least 296 have died from COVID-19 in the U.S. alone and more than 15,000 have been hospitalized, according to a tally by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

That’s not counting the toll of family members becoming ill or dying -- or the disruption to school, sports and other activities so crucial to children’s overall well-being.

“Children right now are struggling,” Gruber said. Plus, “we need as many people in the country who have the potential to transmit the virus to be protected.”

Experts say children must get the shots if the country is to vaccinate the 70% to 85% of the population necessary to reach what’s called herd immunity.

In the meantime, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says unvaccinated people -- including children -- should continue taking precautions such as wearing masks indoors and keeping their distance from other unvaccinated people outside of their households.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/12/1608677701818.png" alt="A worker at Truman Medical Center in Kansas City prepares doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine against the virus that causes COVID-19 -Photo courtesy Truman Medical Center" />
 <figcaption>A worker at Truman Medical Center in Kansas City prepares doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine against the virus that causes COVID-19 -Photo courtesy Truman Medical Center</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) —COVID-19 vaccines finally are headed for more kids as U.S. regulators on Monday expanded use of Pfizer’s shot to those as young as 12, sparking a race to protect middle and high school students before they head back to class in the fall.Shots could begin as soon as a federal vaccine advisory committee issues recommendations for using the two-dose vaccine in 12- to 15-year-olds, expected Wednesday.Vaccinating children of all ages will be critical to a return to normalcy. Most COVID-19 vaccines rolling out worldwide have been authorized for adults. Pfizer’s vaccine is being used in multiple countries for teens as young as 16, and Canada recently became the first to expand use to 12 and up. Parents, school administrators and public health officials elsewhere are anxiously awaiting the shot to become available to more kids.“This is a watershed moment in our ability to fight back the COVID-19 pandemic,” Dr. Bill Gruber, a Pfizer senior vice president who’s also a pediatrician, told The Associated Press.The Food and Drug Administration declared the Pfizer vaccine is safe and offers strong protection for younger teens based on testing of more than 2,000 U.S. volunteers ages 12 to 15. The study found no cases of COVID-19 among fully vaccinated adolescents compared to 18 among kids given dummy shots. More intriguing, researchers found the kids developed higher levels of virus-fighting antibodies than earlier studies measured in young adults.The younger teens received the same vaccine dosage as adults and had the same side effects, mostly sore arms and flu-like fever, chills or aches that signal a revved-up immune system, especially after the second dose.Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech recently requested similar authorization in the European Union, with other countries to follow.The latest news is welcome for U.S. families struggling to decide what activities are safe to resume when only the youngest family members remain unvaccinated.“I can’t feel totally comfortable because my boys aren’t vaccinated,” said Carrie Vittitoe, a substitute teacher and freelance writer in Louisville, Kentucky, who is fully vaccinated as are her husband and 17-year-old daughter.The FDA decision means her 13-year-old son soon could be eligible, leaving only her 11-year-old son who would be unvaccinated. The family hasn’t yet resumed going to church, and summer vacation will be a road trip so they don’t have to get on a plane.“We can’t really go back to normal because two-fifths of our family don’t have protection,” Vittitoe said.Pfizer isn’t the only company seeking to lower the age limit for its vaccine. Moderna recently said preliminary results from its study in 12- to 17-year-olds show strong protection and no serious side effects. Another U.S. company, Novavax, has a COVID-19 vaccine in late-stage development and just began a study in 12- to 17-year-olds as well.Next up is testing whether the vaccine works for even younger children. Both Pfizer and Moderna have begun U.S. studies in children ages 6 months to 11 years. Those studies explore whether babies, preschoolers and elementary-age kids will need different doses than teens and adults. Gruber said Pfizer expects its first results sometime in the fall.Outside of the U.S., AstraZeneca is studying its vaccine among 6- to 17-year-olds in Britain. And in China, Sinovac recently announced it has submitted preliminary data to Chinese regulators showing its vaccine is safe in children as young as 3.Children are far less likely than adults to get seriously ill from COVID-19 yet they still have been hard-hit by the pandemic. They represent nearly 14% of the nation’s coronavirus cases. At least 296 have died from COVID-19 in the U.S. alone and more than 15,000 have been hospitalized, according to a tally by the American Academy of Pediatrics.That’s not counting the toll of family members becoming ill or dying -- or the disruption to school, sports and other activities so crucial to children’s overall well-being.“Children right now are struggling,” Gruber said. Plus, “we need as many people in the country who have the potential to transmit the virus to be protected.”Experts say children must get the shots if the country is to vaccinate the 70% to 85% of the population necessary to reach what’s called herd immunity.In the meantime, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says unvaccinated people -- including children -- should continue taking precautions such as wearing masks indoors and keeping their distance from other unvaccinated people outside of their households.___

US children age 12-15 can now get Pfizer COVID shot 

BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — Two Nebraska teenagers are charged with attempted first-degree murder and other crimes for allegedly attacking a man with a metal meat tenderizer and a wooden rod. 

The Omaha World-Herald reports that one of the suspects, 18-year-old Gabriella Laws, is the daughter of the victim. The other suspect is 18-year-old Josh Fithian. Both are accused of attacking Robert Laws in his bedroom in Bellevue in January.

A police affidavit says officers were called to a home just after 2 a.m. Jan. 17 and found Robert Laws with injuries so severe he was placed in a medical coma to treat brain bleeding and cranial factures.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620669074481.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — Two Nebraska teenagers are charged with attempted first-degree murder and other crimes for allegedly attacking a man with a metal meat tenderizer and a wooden rod. The Omaha World-Herald reports that one of the suspects, 18-year-old Gabriella Laws, is the daughter of the victim. The other suspect is 18-year-old Josh Fithian. Both are accused of attacking Robert Laws in his bedroom in Bellevue in January.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620669099265.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>A police affidavit says officers were called to a home just after 2 a.m. Jan. 17 and found Robert Laws with injuries so severe he was placed in a medical coma to treat brain bleeding and cranial factures.

Nebraska teens face attempted murder charges for attack on girl's father

Prairie Doc® Perspectives for week of May 9, 2021 The Healing Power of Art By Jill Kruse, D.O.

Artists and medical personnel both know the importance of art. The famous nurse Florence Nightingale once said, “Variety of form and brilliancy of color in the object presented to patients are an actual means to recovery.” Elaine Poggi, Founder of the Foundation for Photo/Art in Hospitals agrees and stated “The mood changes when our beautiful nature photos are placed on the walls, providing color, comfort, and hope to patients, caregivers, and loved ones.”

Before COVID, the walls of my exam rooms featured some of my favorite art. Each room had a different, deliberately chosen theme. One theme was photographs of the Grand Tetons and Canyon De Chelle taken by Ansel Adams. Canyon De Chelle is on the Navajo reservation where I did a rotation as a resident. Another room was filled with an Asian mural and photographs of my time in South Korea when I was a student ambassador for South Dakota State University at their sister school in Taejon, South Korea. My third exam room had circus posters and pictures of Baraboo, Wisconsin, hometown of the Ringling Brothers, and the location where I did my residency training.

The art helped break the ice with patients and allowed me to share a special part of myself and my life with them. It also provided my patients with something to look at while waiting for me to come into the room. It gave us something to talk about other than their illness or why they came to the doctor that day. As part of the discussion, I learned about my patients’ travels, their love of photography, or memories of going to the circus as a child. Each picture was an opportunity to share a common bond.

COVID forced those pictures off the walls and into storage. The rooms were stripped of anything extraneous that could potentially become contaminated. My exam room walls are now blank and sterile; the rooms seem a little colder and less inviting. There is less color and joy in the rooms. Without art, we tend to jump into the clinic visit topic without first connecting as people. I didn’t realize what a big difference the loss of art on the walls could make until it was gone.

Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen said “At the deepest level, the creative process and the healing process arise from a single source. When you are an artist, you are a healer: a wordless trust of the same mystery is the foundation of your work and its integrity.” Photographer Prakash Ghai explained it much more succinctly when he stated, “Art heals both the creator and the viewer.” I miss my art and cannot wait until I can once again hang some healing on my exam room walls.

Jill Kruse, D.O. is part of The Prairie Doc® team of physicians and currently practices family medicine in Brookings, South Dakota. For free and easy access to the entire Prairie Doc® library, visit www.prairiedoc.org and follow Prairie Doc® on Facebook featuring On Call with the Prairie Doc® a medical Q&amp;A show streaming most Thursdays at 7 p.m. central.

Prairie Doc® Perspectives for week of May 9, 2021 The Healing Power of Art By Jill Kruse, D.O.Artists and medical personnel both know the importance of art. The famous nurse Florence Nightingale once said, “Variety of form and brilliancy of color in the object presented to patients are an actual means to recovery.” Elaine Poggi, Founder of the Foundation for Photo/Art in Hospitals agrees and stated “The mood changes when our beautiful nature photos are placed on the walls, providing color, comfort, and hope to patients, caregivers, and loved ones.”Before COVID, the walls of my exam rooms featured some of my favorite art. Each room had a different, deliberately chosen theme. One theme was photographs of the Grand Tetons and Canyon De Chelle taken by Ansel Adams. Canyon De Chelle is on the Navajo reservation where I did a rotation as a resident. Another room was filled with an Asian mural and photographs of my time in South Korea when I was a student ambassador for South Dakota State University at their sister school in Taejon, South Korea. My third exam room had circus posters and pictures of Baraboo, Wisconsin, hometown of the Ringling Brothers, and the location where I did my residency training.The art helped break the ice with patients and allowed me to share a special part of myself and my life with them. It also provided my patients with something to look at while waiting for me to come into the room. It gave us something to talk about other than their illness or why they came to the doctor that day. As part of the discussion, I learned about my patients’ travels, their love of photography, or memories of going to the circus as a child. Each picture was an opportunity to share a common bond.COVID forced those pictures off the walls and into storage. The rooms were stripped of anything extraneous that could potentially become contaminated. My exam room walls are now blank and sterile; the rooms seem a little colder and less inviting. There is less color and joy in the rooms. Without art, we tend to jump into the clinic visit topic without first connecting as people. I didn’t realize what a big difference the loss of art on the walls could make until it was gone.Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen said “At the deepest level, the creative process and the healing process arise from a single source. When you are an artist, you are a healer: a wordless trust of the same mystery is the foundation of your work and its integrity.” Photographer Prakash Ghai explained it much more succinctly when he stated, “Art heals both the creator and the viewer.” I miss my art and cannot wait until I can once again hang some healing on my exam room walls.Jill Kruse, D.O. is part of The Prairie Doc® team of physicians and currently practices family medicine in Brookings, South Dakota. For free and easy access to the entire Prairie Doc® library, visit www.prairiedoc.org and follow Prairie Doc® on Facebook featuring On Call with the Prairie Doc® a medical Q&amp;A show streaming most Thursdays at 7 p.m. central.

Prairie Doc Perspectives: The Healing Power Of Art

This article is a summary of Nebraska Extension Circular EC 174,&nbsp;Noxious Weeds of Nebraska Leafy Spurge&nbsp;and the Extension Circular EC130,&nbsp;EC130, 2021 Guide for Weed, Disease, and Insect Management in Nebraska.

Leafy Spurge, one of Nebraska’s 10 noxious weeds, was first introduced to North America from Europe and was identified in Massachusetts in 1827. In the later 1800s it was likely unknowingly introduced into the north central region of North America through contaminated seed crops imported from Russia and Europe. It was first identified in Nebraska in 1923 in York County.&nbsp;

Leafy spurge is a creeping, herbaceous perennial weed that reproduces both from seed and vegetative root buds. In Nebraska, shoot emergence frequently starts in early March. Stem elongation and vegetative development increase rapidly as temperatures increase later in the spring. Leafy spurge stems are woody, hairless, erect, pale green and occur in clumps. Leaves are alternate, narrowly linear with smooth margins, about ¼ inch wide and 1 to 2 inches long. Yellow brackets that extend under the flower are most visible from mid-May to June. Seed maturation continues for 30 days after the last flower appears. Flower production and seed development can extend into the fall under favorable growing conditions. A unique characteristic of leafy spurge is the presence of a milky white juice or latex that oozes from cut stems, leaves and roots. Bright yellow brackets and the white milky latex simplify identification.

Leafy spurge is an aggressive competitor with other plants due to its ability to reproduce both by seed and through shoot buds located on the crowns and roots of the plant. Its ability to effectively disperse seed, high seed viability, and rapid seedling development allow for new infestations to establish swiftly. Seed yields can range from 25 to 3,500 pounds per acre, depending on site productivity and density of stands. Seed germination most often occurs in the spring.&nbsp;

Seed from leafy spurge is dispersed in numerous ways. As capsules shrink and split, sufficient force is generated to throw the seed as far as 15 feet. Seeds of leafy spurge can float on water and germinate while floating! This makes spurge especially challenging to control when it is present in watershed areas where water can easily move seed to new locations. Animals such as birds eat and disperse the seeds. Viable leafy spurge seeds have been found to pass through the digestive tract of birds and mammals.

The roots of leafy spurge are composed of main long roots and lateral short roots. Long roots constitute the permanent root system and have the capacity to regenerate roots and shoots. New vertical roots arise on old roots, which allow root penetration to great depths. Individual long roots may live up to four years and reach 15 feet in length. This extensive root system contributes to the plant’s resistance to control measures. While the upper portion of the plant may be killed by herbicide or tillage, root buds below the treated zone can continue to produce new shoots.

The most cost-effective method for leafy spurge control is to identify it early and prevent it from spreading. Biological control can be an effective way to control invasive plants by identifying natural predators to the plant and introducing them to the area where the invasive plant has a foothold. This method of control will not eliminate the plant over time but can be helpful for keeping the plant from spreading significantly. Several insects have been tested, approved and released for biological control of leafy spurge. Different species of beetles that feed on leafy spurge have been successful in controlling leafy spurge in some locations.&nbsp;

Grazing spurge with sheep and goats, especially during early spring growth, can prevent the plant from going to seed. Sheep and goats, once adapted to leafy spurge, can perform quite well, as the forage quality of leafy spurge can be excellent. Mature stands of leafy spurge can be mowed before grazing to improve the palatability of plants. Colorado State University research has shown that numerous consecutive years of grazing by sheep, especially in July during flowering, when combined with flea beetle presence, drastically reduced leafy spurge density. Similar research from North Dakota and Montana has shown reduction to leafy spurge populations in pasture and rangelands when grazed with sheep. Once a population of leafy spurge is established, long-term grazing with sheep and/or goats will likely be needed to limit further invasion. Several studies have shown that leafy spurge re-establishes itself rapidly on range and pasture sites when sheep and goat grazing is removed.

Mechanical control of leafy spurge, utilizing mowing or shredding prior to seed development, will reduce seed production. Multiple years of mowing during flowering and before seed fill will reduce spurge stands by depleting plant energy reserves. However, the root system of leafy spurge is so extensive that total depletion is difficult. Fire has been shown to be no more effective than mowing as a control tool. In some cases, fire can stimulate leafy spurge seed germination. Frequent mowing may also reduce plant vigor of native plants that will compete with leafy spurge on rangeland.

Chemical control with the target of eradication is best focused to small and newly established infestations. Repeated treatment of small infestations can be effective in eliminating the plant.&nbsp; Nebraska Extension Circular EC 130,&nbsp;2021 Guide for Weed, Disease, and Insect Management in Nebraska,&nbsp;available at your local Extension office and online, has several recommended products that can be effective. Always read and follow label directions before applying herbicides. The optimum time to apply herbicides can vary with the mode of action, with some being more effective in the spring of the year and others being more effective in the fall.&nbsp;

Chemical eradication of leafy spurge often becomes uneconomical as the infestation intensifies. When this occurs, the focus then turns to containment of the leafy spurge to that location by reducing seed production and movement. The use of multiple tools to manage the infestation may be needed, especially on degraded rangelands with a limited number of native plants present to reestablish after removing leafy spurge. An integrated systems approach, using multiple methods to control leafy spurge and to improve rangeland or pasture that has been severely infested is likely the best long-term tactic.

This article is a summary of Nebraska Extension Circular EC 174,&nbsp;Noxious Weeds of Nebraska Leafy Spurge&nbsp;and the Extension Circular EC130,&nbsp;EC130, 2021 Guide for Weed, Disease, and Insect Management in Nebraska.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/5/1620666020105.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Leafy Spurge, one of Nebraska’s 10 noxious weeds, was first introduced to North America from Europe and was identified in Massachusetts in 1827. In the later 1800s it was likely unknowingly introduced into the north central region of North America through contaminated seed crops imported from Russia and Europe. It was first identified in Nebraska in 1923 in York County.&nbsp;Biology of Leafy SpurgeLeafy spurge is a creeping, herbaceous perennial weed that reproduces both from seed and vegetative root buds. In Nebraska, shoot emergence frequently starts in early March. Stem elongation and vegetative development increase rapidly as temperatures increase later in the spring. Leafy spurge stems are woody, hairless, erect, pale green and occur in clumps. Leaves are alternate, narrowly linear with smooth margins, about ¼ inch wide and 1 to 2 inches long. Yellow brackets that extend under the flower are most visible from mid-May to June. Seed maturation continues for 30 days after the last flower appears. Flower production and seed development can extend into the fall under favorable growing conditions. A unique characteristic of leafy spurge is the presence of a milky white juice or latex that oozes from cut stems, leaves and roots. Bright yellow brackets and the white milky latex simplify identification.Leafy spurge is an aggressive competitor with other plants due to its ability to reproduce both by seed and through shoot buds located on the crowns and roots of the plant. Its ability to effectively disperse seed, high seed viability, and rapid seedling development allow for new infestations to establish swiftly. Seed yields can range from 25 to 3,500 pounds per acre, depending on site productivity and density of stands. Seed germination most often occurs in the spring.&nbsp;Seed from leafy spurge is dispersed in numerous ways. As capsules shrink and split, sufficient force is generated to throw the seed as far as 15 feet. Seeds of leafy spurge can float on water and germinate while floating! This makes spurge especially challenging to control when it is present in watershed areas where water can easily move seed to new locations. Animals such as birds eat and disperse the seeds. Viable leafy spurge seeds have been found to pass through the digestive tract of birds and mammals.The roots of leafy spurge are composed of main long roots and lateral short roots. Long roots constitute the permanent root system and have the capacity to regenerate roots and shoots. New vertical roots arise on old roots, which allow root penetration to great depths. Individual long roots may live up to four years and reach 15 feet in length. This extensive root system contributes to the plant’s resistance to control measures. While the upper portion of the plant may be killed by herbicide or tillage, root buds below the treated zone can continue to produce new shoots.Control MethodsThe most cost-effective method for leafy spurge control is to identify it early and prevent it from spreading. Biological control can be an effective way to control invasive plants by identifying natural predators to the plant and introducing them to the area where the invasive plant has a foothold. This method of control will not eliminate the plant over time but can be helpful for keeping the plant from spreading significantly. Several insects have been tested, approved and released for biological control of leafy spurge. Different species of beetles that feed on leafy spurge have been successful in controlling leafy spurge in some locations.&nbsp;Grazing spurge with sheep and goats, especially during early spring growth, can prevent the plant from going to seed. Sheep and goats, once adapted to leafy spurge, can perform quite well, as the forage quality of leafy spurge can be excellent. Mature stands of leafy spurge can be mowed before grazing to improve the palatability of plants. Colorado State University research has shown that numerous consecutive years of grazing by sheep, especially in July during flowering, when combined with flea beetle presence, drastically reduced leafy spurge density. Similar research from North Dakota and Montana has shown reduction to leafy spurge populations in pasture and rangelands when grazed with sheep. Once a population of leafy spurge is established, long-term grazing with sheep and/or goats will likely be needed to limit further invasion. Several studies have shown that leafy spurge re-establishes itself rapidly on range and pasture sites when sheep and goat grazing is removed.Mechanical control of leafy spurge, utilizing mowing or shredding prior to seed development, will reduce seed production. Multiple years of mowing during flowering and before seed fill will reduce spurge stands by depleting plant energy reserves. However, the root system of leafy spurge is so extensive that total depletion is difficult. Fire has been shown to be no more effective than mowing as a control tool. In some cases, fire can stimulate leafy spurge seed germination. Frequent mowing may also reduce plant vigor of native plants that will compete with leafy spurge on rangeland.Chemical control with the target of eradication is best focused to small and newly established infestations. Repeated treatment of small infestations can be effective in eliminating the plant.&nbsp; Nebraska Extension Circular EC 130,&nbsp;2021 Guide for Weed, Disease, and Insect Management in Nebraska,&nbsp;available at your local Extension office and online, has several recommended products that can be effective. Always read and follow label directions before applying herbicides. The optimum time to apply herbicides can vary with the mode of action, with some being more effective in the spring of the year and others being more effective in the fall.&nbsp;Chemical eradication of leafy spurge often becomes uneconomical as the infestation intensifies. When this occurs, the focus then turns to containment of the leafy spurge to that location by reducing seed production and movement. The use of multiple tools to manage the infestation may be needed, especially on degraded rangelands with a limited number of native plants present to reestablish after removing leafy spurge. An integrated systems approach, using multiple methods to control leafy spurge and to improve rangeland or pasture that has been severely infested is likely the best long-term tactic.

Nebraska Extension: Range and Pasture Weed of the Week – Leafy Spurge

&nbsp;Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) is currently accepting applications for the 2021-2022 Third District Youth Advisory Council and encourages high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors to submit their applications by July 15th.

The Third District Youth Advisory Council is a forum for students to share opinions, thoughts, and concerns with Congressman Smith about local and federal issues throughout the school year.&nbsp;This group provides students the opportunity to discuss the concerns of young Nebraskans and give their input on issues facing our country.&nbsp;

“I always enjoy meeting with the Youth Advisory Council because it is an opportunity to connect with young Nebraskans directly,” said Rep. Smith.&nbsp;“Today’s students are the leaders of tomorrow’s Nebraska, and emphasizing the importance of community awareness and civic engagement is vital.”

Members must be able to serve from August 2021 – May 2022.

To learn more about the Youth Advisory Council, interested students and educators can contact Smith’s Grand Island office at 308-384-3900 or his Scottsbluff office at 308-633-6333.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

&nbsp;Congressman Adrian Smith (R-NE) is currently accepting applications for the 2021-2022 Third District Youth Advisory Council and encourages high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors to submit their applications by July 15th.The Third District Youth Advisory Council is a forum for students to share opinions, thoughts, and concerns with Congressman Smith about local and federal issues throughout the school year.&nbsp;This group provides students the opportunity to discuss the concerns of young Nebraskans and give their input on issues facing our country.&nbsp;“I always enjoy meeting with the Youth Advisory Council because it is an opportunity to connect with young Nebraskans directly,” said Rep. Smith.&nbsp;“Today’s students are the leaders of tomorrow’s Nebraska, and emphasizing the importance of community awareness and civic engagement is vital.”Members must be able to serve from August 2021 – May 2022.To learn more about the Youth Advisory Council, interested students and educators can contact Smith’s Grand Island office at 308-384-3900 or his Scottsbluff office at 308-633-6333.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Smith Encourages Third District Students to Apply for Youth Advisory Council

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today issued guidance on 
the taxability of dependent care assistance programs for 2021 and 2022, 
clarifying that amounts attributable to carryovers or an extended period
 for incurring claims generally are not taxable. The guidance also 
illustrates the interaction of this standard with the one-year increase 
in the exclusion for employer-provided dependent care benefits from 
$5,000 to $10,500 for the 2021 taxable year under the American Rescue 
Plan Act.

Because of the pandemic, many people were unable to use the money 
they set aside in their dependent care assistance programs in 2020 and 
2021. Generally, under these plans, an employer allows its employees to 
set aside a certain amount of pre-tax wages to pay for dependent care 
expenses. The employee's expenses are then reimbursed from the dependent
 care assistance program.

Carryovers of unused dependent care assistance program amounts 
generally are not permitted (although a 2½ month grace period is 
allowed). However, recent coronavirus-related legislation (the Taxpayer 
Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020) allowed employers to 
amend their plans to permit the carryover of unused dependent care 
assistance program amounts to plan years ending in 2021 and 2022, or to 
extend the permissible period for incurring claims to plan years over 
the same period.

Today's <a href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-21-26.pdf">Notice 2021-26&nbsp;PDF</a>
 clarifies for taxpayers that if these dependent care benefits would 
have been excluded from income if used during taxable year 2020 (or 
2021, if applicable), these benefits will remain excludible from gross 
income and are not considered wages of the employee for 2021 and 2022.

<a href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-21-15.pdf">Notice 2021-15&nbsp;PDF</a>,
 issued in February 2021, states that if an employer adopted a carryover
 or extended period for incurring claims, the annual limits for 
dependent care assistance program amounts apply to amounts contributed, 
not to amounts reimbursed or available for reimbursement in a particular
 plan or calendar year. Therefore, participants in dependent care 
assistance programs may continue to contribute the maximum amount to 
their plans for 2021 and 2022.

For more on <a href="https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus-tax-relief-and-economic-impact-payments">coronavirus-related tax relief</a>, see IRS.gov.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/9/1599869632873.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>IRSWASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today issued guidance on 
the taxability of dependent care assistance programs for 2021 and 2022, 
clarifying that amounts attributable to carryovers or an extended period
 for incurring claims generally are not taxable. The guidance also 
illustrates the interaction of this standard with the one-year increase 
in the exclusion for employer-provided dependent care benefits from 
$5,000 to $10,500 for the 2021 taxable year under the American Rescue 
Plan Act.Because of the pandemic, many people were unable to use the money 
they set aside in their dependent care assistance programs in 2020 and 
2021. Generally, under these plans, an employer allows its employees to 
set aside a certain amount of pre-tax wages to pay for dependent care 
expenses. The employee's expenses are then reimbursed from the dependent
 care assistance program.Carryovers of unused dependent care assistance program amounts 
generally are not permitted (although a 2½ month grace period is 
allowed). However, recent coronavirus-related legislation (the Taxpayer 
Certainty and Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2020) allowed employers to 
amend their plans to permit the carryover of unused dependent care 
assistance program amounts to plan years ending in 2021 and 2022, or to 
extend the permissible period for incurring claims to plan years over 
the same period.Today's <a href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-21-26.pdf">Notice 2021-26&nbsp;PDF</a>
 clarifies for taxpayers that if these dependent care benefits would 
have been excluded from income if used during taxable year 2020 (or 
2021, if applicable), these benefits will remain excludible from gross 
income and are not considered wages of the employee for 2021 and 2022.<a href="https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-21-15.pdf">Notice 2021-15&nbsp;PDF</a>,
 issued in February 2021, states that if an employer adopted a carryover
 or extended period for incurring claims, the annual limits for 
dependent care assistance program amounts apply to amounts contributed, 
not to amounts reimbursed or available for reimbursement in a particular
 plan or calendar year. Therefore, participants in dependent care 
assistance programs may continue to contribute the maximum amount to 
their plans for 2021 and 2022.For more on <a href="https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus-tax-relief-and-economic-impact-payments">coronavirus-related tax relief</a>, see IRS.gov.

IRS clarifies tax rules regarding unused carry-over child care

Though still awaiting money from the latest federal coronavirus relief act, some governors and state lawmakers already are making plans to add the multibillion-dollar boon to their budgets.

Among their priorities: bailing out depleted unemployment accounts, expanding high-speed internet and providing additional aid to schools and businesses.

The $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law signed by President Joe Biden earlier this year contains $350 billion of flexible aid for state and local governments, plus billions of dollars more for specific programs such as housing assistance. Unlike earlier coronavirus aid, states have broad leeway to use the money to plug budget holes, invest in certain infrastructure or address the “negative economic impacts” of the pandemic.

States are expected to receive an initial installment soon, with a second round coming a year later.

“A billion dollars has just fallen from the sky, in some respects," said Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican. "It’s here, right in front of us. We have to invest it wisely.”

Like many governors, Scott hadn't accounted for a new influx of federal money when he presented a budget plan earlier this year. Now he's working with lawmakers to add it to the state's spending plan while still awaiting guidance from the U.S. Treasury Department on specific ways the money can — or can't — be used.

Scott wants to put the money toward economic development, climate change initiatives, water and sewer infrastructure, housing and high-speed internet. Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Becca Balint also wants some to go toward workforce training.

In other states, the spending plans include bonuses for teachers and first-responders; aid to movie theaters and entertainment venues; construction at parks and public facilities; and grants to farmers, commercial fishing operations and food processors.

“Of course it’s classical politics: They announce it, no details and everybody’s filling in the void with what they want to spend it on,” Virginia Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne said.

Officials in Virginia and about a dozen other states told The Associated Press they are waiting for Treasury Department guidance before developing specific spending plans. Federal law prohibits states from using the aid to make pension payments or fund tax cuts. Some state officials are concerned that other uses also could be ruled out, trigging a provision requiring them to repay the federal government.

“If we don’t know what the guidelines are, it makes it hard to spend the money, because we don’t want to spend it in the wrong way and have it clawed back,” said Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican.

The federal law, known as the American Rescue Plan, comes on top of $150 billion the federal government sent directly to states and local governments last year.

This year's law cites infrastructure for water, sewer and broadband internet as allowable uses. It’s less clear whether money can be used for other infrastructure, such as roads and bridges. But some states are planning to do so, anyway.

A budget plan passed by the Indiana Legislature allots $192 million in federal aid to pay off bonds for an Interstate 69 project and $900 million for other “future state infrastructure projects." Maine Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, rolled out a plan this week that allots $50 million for road and bridge work this summer.

A potentially wide-ranging provision allows states to use the federal aid for “government services” affected by a pandemic-induced reduction in revenue. States also can use the aid to provide extra pay for essential workers, such as the $1,000 bonuses included in a Florida budget for first-responders, teachers and early learning instructors.

Federal law allows states to address the pandemic's economic effects by providing aid to households, small businesses, nonprofits and industries such as tourism, travel and hospitality. But that doesn't necessarily prevent money from going to other purposes.

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, wants to use more than half the state’s flexible funds to plug budget holes over the next two years. But his plan also would spend millions on social programs.

Lamont wants to use $15 million to provide free admission for children at museums, aquariums, zoos and other venues from July through Labor Day; $3.5 million to help send low-income children to sports and specialty camps; and $1.9 million for programs that provide “safe, fun and healing spaces” for teenagers. He said the programs would provide a dual benefit — aiding children who were socially isolated during the pandemic and organizations that lost money because of a lack of customers.

Mills’ wide-ranging plan would provide aid to Maine’s agriculture and seafood industries, increase public support for private-sector research and subsidize health insurers to temporarily reduce premiums for small businesses and their employees, among other things.

Officials in Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine and Maryland are among those wanting to use part of their federal aid to replenish depleted unemployment trust funds. Doing so could spare businesses from temporary tax hikes that could otherwise be imposed to repay federal loans that funded benefits when jobless rates spiked during coronavirus shutdowns.

A plan passed by Kansas' Republican-led Senate would dedicate nearly $700 million to compensate small businesses that were forced to close or had their operations restricted because of the pandemic — a “pot of gold” that some Democrats said should be partly passed on to workers in higher wages.

Republican state. Sen. Mike Thompson said compensation should have been paid months ago, as pandemic restrictions were imposed.

“A lot of these businesses should not have been shut down,” Thompson said.

In Kansas and some other states, the federal funding surge has generated spats over who can control how it’s spent.

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, vetoed bills passed by the Republican-led Legislature that sought to use $1 billion for property tax cuts, $308 million for local roads and $250 million to pay off transportation bonds. Nonpartisan legislative staff had warned that those uses might not be allowed under federal law. Evers said he will instead spend the money according to his own plans, not all of which have been detailed.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham vetoed the Democratic-led Legislature’s plan to devote $600 million to the state's unemployment fund, $200 million to roads and $100 million to a college scholarship program. The Democratic governor said in her veto message that “the Legislature lacks the authority” to tell her how to use the money and that the state should wait for federal guidance.

By DAVID A. LIEB, Associated PressThough still awaiting money from the latest federal coronavirus relief act, some governors and state lawmakers already are making plans to add the multibillion-dollar boon to their budgets.Among their priorities: bailing out depleted unemployment accounts, expanding high-speed internet and providing additional aid to schools and businesses.The $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law signed by President Joe Biden earlier this year contains $350 billion of flexible aid for state and local governments, plus billions of dollars more for specific programs such as housing assistance. Unlike earlier coronavirus aid, states have broad leeway to use the money to plug budget holes, invest in certain infrastructure or address the “negative economic impacts” of the pandemic.States are expected to receive an initial installment soon, with a second round coming a year later.“A billion dollars has just fallen from the sky, in some respects," said Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican. "It’s here, right in front of us. We have to invest it wisely.”Like many governors, Scott hadn't accounted for a new influx of federal money when he presented a budget plan earlier this year. Now he's working with lawmakers to add it to the state's spending plan while still awaiting guidance from the U.S. Treasury Department on specific ways the money can — or can't — be used.Scott wants to put the money toward economic development, climate change initiatives, water and sewer infrastructure, housing and high-speed internet. Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Becca Balint also wants some to go toward workforce training.In other states, the spending plans include bonuses for teachers and first-responders; aid to movie theaters and entertainment venues; construction at parks and public facilities; and grants to farmers, commercial fishing operations and food processors.“Of course it’s classical politics: They announce it, no details and everybody’s filling in the void with what they want to spend it on,” Virginia Secretary of Finance Aubrey Layne said.Officials in Virginia and about a dozen other states told The Associated Press they are waiting for Treasury Department guidance before developing specific spending plans. Federal law prohibits states from using the aid to make pension payments or fund tax cuts. Some state officials are concerned that other uses also could be ruled out, trigging a provision requiring them to repay the federal government.“If we don’t know what the guidelines are, it makes it hard to spend the money, because we don’t want to spend it in the wrong way and have it clawed back,” said Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican.The federal law, known as the American Rescue Plan, comes on top of $150 billion the federal government sent directly to states and local governments last year.This year's law cites infrastructure for water, sewer and broadband internet as allowable uses. It’s less clear whether money can be used for other infrastructure, such as roads and bridges. But some states are planning to do so, anyway.A budget plan passed by the Indiana Legislature allots $192 million in federal aid to pay off bonds for an Interstate 69 project and $900 million for other “future state infrastructure projects." Maine Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, rolled out a plan this week that allots $50 million for road and bridge work this summer.A potentially wide-ranging provision allows states to use the federal aid for “government services” affected by a pandemic-induced reduction in revenue. States also can use the aid to provide extra pay for essential workers, such as the $1,000 bonuses included in a Florida budget for first-responders, teachers and early learning instructors.Federal law allows states to address the pandemic's economic effects by providing aid to households, small businesses, nonprofits and industries such as tourism, travel and hospitality. But that doesn't necessarily prevent money from going to other purposes.Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, wants to use more than half the state’s flexible funds to plug budget holes over the next two years. But his plan also would spend millions on social programs.Lamont wants to use $15 million to provide free admission for children at museums, aquariums, zoos and other venues from July through Labor Day; $3.5 million to help send low-income children to sports and specialty camps; and $1.9 million for programs that provide “safe, fun and healing spaces” for teenagers. He said the programs would provide a dual benefit — aiding children who were socially isolated during the pandemic and organizations that lost money because of a lack of customers.Mills’ wide-ranging plan would provide aid to Maine’s agriculture and seafood industries, increase public support for private-sector research and subsidize health insurers to temporarily reduce premiums for small businesses and their employees, among other things.Officials in Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine and Maryland are among those wanting to use part of their federal aid to replenish depleted unemployment trust funds. Doing so could spare businesses from temporary tax hikes that could otherwise be imposed to repay federal loans that funded benefits when jobless rates spiked during coronavirus shutdowns.A plan passed by Kansas' Republican-led Senate would dedicate nearly $700 million to compensate small businesses that were forced to close or had their operations restricted because of the pandemic — a “pot of gold” that some Democrats said should be partly passed on to workers in higher wages.Republican state. Sen. Mike Thompson said compensation should have been paid months ago, as pandemic restrictions were imposed.“A lot of these businesses should not have been shut down,” Thompson said.In Kansas and some other states, the federal funding surge has generated spats over who can control how it’s spent.Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, vetoed bills passed by the Republican-led Legislature that sought to use $1 billion for property tax cuts, $308 million for local roads and $250 million to pay off transportation bonds. Nonpartisan legislative staff had warned that those uses might not be allowed under federal law. Evers said he will instead spend the money according to his own plans, not all of which have been detailed.New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham vetoed the Democratic-led Legislature’s plan to devote $600 million to the state's unemployment fund, $200 million to roads and $100 million to a college scholarship program. The Democratic governor said in her veto message that “the Legislature lacks the authority” to tell her how to use the money and that the state should wait for federal guidance.___