TUCSON, Arizona, July 23 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service issued the following news: Monsoon rain storms have become more intense in the southwestern United States in recent decades, according to a study recently published by Agricultural Research Service scientists. Monsoon rains--highly localized bursts of rain--have become stronger since the 1970s, meaning the same amount of rain falls in a shorter amount of time--by 6 to 11 percent. In addition, the num  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $52,500 cooperative agreement to the American Conservation Experience of Flagstaff, Arizona, for a summer youth crew for habitat restoration and community engagement at the Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio. The agency description of the grant states: "The goals of this project are to provide occupational, educational and training opportunities for youth from communities ne  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $44,076 cooperative agreement to the Archaeology Southwest of Tucson, Arizona, for baseline inventory and assessment of newly acquired lands at the Rincon Mountain District of Saguaro National Park. The funding opportunity number is P19AS00414 (CFDA 15.945). For more information, contact Kelly Adams, Kelly_Adams@nps.gov.  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics issued the following article from the Economics Daily: Twenty-eight states had statistically significant over-the-year increases in nonfarm payroll employment for the year ended in June 2019. The largest percentage gain occurred in Nevada (+3.3 percent), followed by Arizona (+2.8 percent), Utah (+2.7 percent), and Washington (+2.7 percent). View chart at (https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2019/nevada-had-largest-percen  more

PHOENIX, Arizona, July 26 -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division issued the following news release: After a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation, Younger Brothers Companies - a contractor based in Peoria, Arizona - will pay $723,764 to 271 employees. WHD investigators found violations of the overtime and recordkeeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Investigators found Younger Brothers Companies failed to pay employees requi  more

OAKLAND, California, July 23 -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency issued the following news release: The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to assist the State of Arizona to combat the Museum Fire burning in Coconino County. On July 22, 2019, the State of Arizona submitted a request for a Fire Management Assistance Declaration for the Museum Fire. At the time of the request, the fire was threatening 3,  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $58,736 cooperative agreement to the Friends of Saguaro National Park of Tucson, Arizona, for local youth employment for natural resource monitoring and education. The agency description of the grant states: "The purpose of this project is to cooperatively recruit and manage youth from Tucson and surrounding communities for paid internships, placed in national parks. Participan  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $73,917 cooperative agreement to the Friends of Saguaro National Park of Tucson, Arizona, for employment opportunities for youth. The agency description of the grant states: "The Next Gen Rangers will be assigned to the Division of Interpretation, at Saguaro National Park. The incumbent will be mentored by Chip Littlefield, Park Ranger-Education Branch Coordinator. The assigned  more

LAKEWOOD, Colorado, July 22 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service - Mountain Regional Field Office issued the following news release: Arizona dairy herds produced 1.24 billion pounds of milk during the April - June quarter, down 5.0 percent from the previous year. Colorado dairy herds produced 1.21 billion pounds of milk during the April - June quarter, up 4.9 percent from the previous year. Montana dairy herds produced 65.0 million pounds of milk du  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it intends to award a $35,000 grant to the Northern Arizona University for research to study the demography, breeding system and pollinators of Pectis imberbis at the Coronado National Memorial. The funding opportunity number is F19AS00310 (CFDA 15.657). For more information, contact Janet Huff, 505/248-6477, janet_huff@fws.gov.  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's U.S. Geological Survey announced that it intends to award a $448,205 cooperative agreement to the Northern Arizona University for long-term monitoring of sediment resources and channel substrates of the Colorado River at the Grand Canyon National Park. The funding opportunity number is USGS-19-FA-0076 (CFDA 15.808). For more information, contact Donald J. Shannon, 916/278-9342.  more

FORT HUACHUCA, Arizona, July 22 -- The U.S. Army issued the following news: Col. Osvaldo 'Oz' Ortiz assumed command of the U.S. Army Information Systems Engineering Command at a ceremony here, July 12. Ortiz accepted command from outgoing ISEC Commander Col. Nicole R. Morris in a ceremony on the Brown Parade Field. The change of command ceremony was overseen by the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command, Maj. Gen. Mitchell Kilgo. Ortiz assumes command at ISEC a  more

PHOENIX, Arizona, July 22 -- The U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs issued the following speech by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan at the National Organization for Victim Assistance 45th annual training event: "Thank you, Judge [Richard] Barajas. I'm thrilled to be here. Judge Barajas has so many incredible achievements in his life. The one I like to highlight is the Presidential Award for Victim Services, which was, of course, well -deserv  more

WASHINGTON, July 24 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $26,294 cooperative agreement to the Student Conservation Association of Arlington, Virginia, for wildlife natural resource internship at the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Arizona. The agency description of the grant states: "The goal of this project is to monitor, protect, and restore natural resources in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. The intern will assist the  more

DALLAS, Texas, July 26 -- The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, Erin Nealy Cox, issued the following news release: A federal grand jury in Amarillo, Texas has indicted a former Mexican municipal police officer for fentanyl trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Erin Nealy Cox. In a superseding indictment filed Thursday evening, Assmir Contreras-Martinez, 30, of Tucson, Arizona, was charged with conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it intends to award a $215,000 cooperative agreement to the Tucson Audubon Society of Arizona for the increase of Native quail populations at the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. The funding opportunity number is F19AS00304 (CFDA 15.608). For more information, contact Michelle L. Willcox, 505/248-7486, michelle_willcox@fws.gov.  more

FORT HUACHUCA, Arizona, July 22 -- The U.S. Army issued the following news: By Michelle Miller The Program Executive Office for Aviation's Unmanned Aircraft Systems Project Office, in collaboration with the Maneuver Center of Excellence Maneuver Capabilities Development and Integration Directorate, conducted Short Range Reconnaissance small UAS vendor demonstrations June 17-20 at Fort Benning, Georgia. The demonstrations support the Army's direction to maximize Soldier feedback in the developm  more

SAN DIEGO, California, July 22 -- The Environmental Protection Agency issued the following news release: Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in coordination with the North American Development Bank (NADB), released a Request for Proposals (RFP) through the Border 2020 Program. The RFP is seeking environmental and public health projects in the Arizona, Sonora, California and Baja California border region. The border region is defined as the area within 62 miles (100 kilometers  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's National Park Service announced that it intends to award a $68,317 cooperative agreement to the University of Arizona for the increase of the public availability of archives at the Western Archeological and Conservation Center. The agency description of the grant states: "The University of Arizona School of Information and the Western Archeological and Conservation Center (WACC) archives staff will collaborate to provide an archives-fo  more

WASHINGTON, July 23 - The U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation announced that it intends to award a $107,424 grant to the Yavapai Apache Nation of Verde Valley, Arizona, for technical works to confirm the viability of the Sedona reclaimed water management alternative. The agency description of the grant states: "The Yavapai Apache Nation (YAN) is uniquely qualified to complete this project because it has a direct impact on the negotiations to settle their water rights claims   more