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Election offices across the country are making preparations to ensure everything is ready for a smooth voting process. A crucial piece to make sure that happens is recruiting enough poll workers for Election Day."The majority of poll workers are over age 60, and so, often in some of those higher risk categories for complications for COVID-19. So in the primaries this year we saw a lot of challenges getting poll workers," said Ben Hovland, Chairman of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Hovland says, in years past, most poll workers have been retirees volunteering their entire day and doing an important civic duty at polling places.During this summer's primaries, as COVID-19 cases rose, cities and states nationwide had some difficulty retaining poll workers. So much so, that the U.S. Election Assistance Commission launched National Poll Worker Recruitment Day."We created a website Helpamericavote.gov. If you go there you can choose your county and jurisdiction in the drop down menu and it can get you to your local election official and you can sign up if you want. But again, we¡¯re seeing a number of places that still need poll workers," said Hovland.In Madison, Wisconsin, more than 1,000 poll workers canceled their volunteer shift for the primary and an August election. But then, something extraordinary happened. The city had more people sign up to be poll workers than ever before."We heard from a lot of people who said, 'I¡¯m signing up to work at the polls because my grandma usually does and my mom usually does and can¡¯t right now because of COVID, so I want to fill that spot.' We had to stop taking applications, which we¡¯ve never had to do before," said Madison's City Clerk, Maribel Witzel-Behl. Witzel-Behl says during the last three presidential elections they had 3,000 poll workers. Now, they have 6,000 signed up. Many are local college students or people who were given the day off by their employer in order to participate in the presidential election."Now, almost 4,000 of those 6,000 poll workers are first-time poll workers and so that¡¯s a pretty amazing thing to think about," said Witzel-Behl. Witzel-Behl says extra workers will help them be "pandemic proof" on Election Day. Poll workers are instructed to follow strict health guidelines, which include not having a fever within the last few days or showing any symptoms of COVID-19.Now that so many are signed up, the City of Madison will be conducting 50 new poll worker virtual training sessions to get them ready for the big day. Officials hope this boost in volunteers gives a renewed and longstanding interest for civic engagement."We're glad that the poll workers who have been in place for decades and may have a greater risk for COVID-19 don't have to feel bad about staying home and sitting this one out. That there are plenty of people to fill in and they're able to stay safe because we want our whole community to be safe," said Witzel-Behl.The U.S. Election Assistance Commission says there are also other ways people can contribute to a smooth Election Day. This includes being prepared to vote, simply by ensuring you're at the correct polling place, bringing the proper identification and making sure your address information is updated."That means you're in the polling place less time. That means shorter lines behind you. It's good for you, it's good for poll workers and it's good for election officials," said Hovland.Hovland says always check with your local election office for the most accurate information and to sign up to be a poll worker. 3574

ESCONDIDO (KGTV) -- Hundreds of North County school children were surprised Thursday with a new book for National Reading Day, along with a visit from Clifford the Big Red Dog. 10News employees, with help from the Scripps Howard Foundation, donated 3,000 books to elementary schools in Fallbrook and Escondido. It was the most books ever donated by the station in the annual ¡°If You Give a Child a Book¡­¡± campaign, and nearly twice as many as last year, said Community Outreach & PR Manager Patty Thompson.Kindergartners and first graders at Live Oak Elementary in Fallbrook and Farr Avenue Elementary in Escondido lined up to greet Clifford and pick out a book of their own. Other books will be donated to libraries in the districts, Thompson said.At Live Oak Elementary, one girl picked out a new book about Barbie. ¡°I like to read because sometimes, when it¡¯s a fairy tale, it can take you to magical places,¡± she said.¡°A lot of these kids can¡¯t afford books,¡± said Live Oak Elementary librarian Stacey Regotti.Farr Avenue principal Lizeth Lopez said encouraging students to read early is critical.¡°Data shows that if we can¡¯t get our kids to read by third grade, their future may be limited,¡± she said. ¡°So starting at 4, 5, and 6 years old is when we can catch them.¡±10News is owned by the E.W. Scripps Company. Scripps-owned stations across the country took part in Thursday¡¯s event, distributing more than 172,000 books to children in need. The company¡¯s corporate foundation, the Scripps Howard Foundation, matched donations by Scripps employees.The San Diego County Office of Education and Scholastic Book Fairs of San Diego also contributed to the book giveaways in the North County. 1705

Europe is proposing a ban on single-use plastic items such as cutlery, straws?and cotton buds in a bid to clean up the oceans.The European Commission wants to ban 10 items that make up 70% of all litter in EU waters and on beaches. The list also includes plastic plates and drink stirrers.The draft rules were unveiled Monday but need the approval of all EU member states and the European Parliament. It could take three or four years for the rules to come into force.The legislation is not just about banning plastic products. It also wants to make plastic producers bear the cost of waste management and cleanup efforts, and it proposes that EU states must collect 90% of single-use plastic bottles by 2025 through new recycling programs.The European Commission estimates that these rules, once fully implemented in 2030, could cost businesses over €3 billion (.5 billion) per year. But they could also save consumers about €6.5 billion (.6 billion) per year, create 30,000 jobs, and avoid €22 billion (.6 billion) in environmental damage and cleanup costs.The Rethink Plastic Alliance -- an association of environmental organizations -- called the proposals "a leap forward in tackling plastic pollution" but criticized some perceived shortcomings.The proposals do not set targets for EU countries to reduce the use of plastic cups and food containers, it said."This could result in countries claiming they are taking the necessary steps as long as any reduction is achieved, regardless of how small," the alliance said in a statement.The proposal also faced criticism from the plastics industry.Plastics Europe, which represents manufacturers, said it supported the "overarching objective" of the proposal but said there must be more resources dedicated to "waste management" to ensure better collection of used plastic."Plastic product bans are not the solution," it said in a statement, and noted that "alternative products may not be more sustainable."On a global basis, only 14% of plastic is collected for recycling. The reuse rate is terrible compared to other materials -- 58% of paper and up to 90% of iron and steel gets recycled.Research shows there will be more plastic than fish by weight in the world's oceans by 2050, which has spurred policy makers, individuals and companies into action.Last month a group of more than 40 companies including Coca-Cola, Nestle, Unilever and Procter & Gamble pledged to slash the?amount of plasticthey use and throw away in the United Kingdom.Starbucks also announced in March it was launching a  million grant challenge to solicit designs for a cup that's easier to recycle. 2689

ESCONDIDO, Calif. (KGTV) - Surveillance video captured a man in a truck treating an Escondido neighborhood like a dumping ground.In the video, a white truck pulls up in the 800 block of North Citrus Avenue just before 1 p.m.  The driver goes to the back and casually pulls the couch onto the street, before going back to the truck to toss out a piece of carpet. He then drives off."Just makes our neighborhood look bad and ugly, and we don't want that," said Gil Gomez who lives feet from where the couch was dumped.His frustrations growing every time he watches the video, recorded from his Ring camera. That's because the truck appears to be a newer model Ford F-150."If you can afford to buy a brand new truck, you can afford to get rid of this thing properly," said Gomez.Gomez fears this type thing could attract more dumping."It might happen around the corner next time. That is the type of culture we cannot stand for," said Gomez.Gomez posted the video on the Neighbors by Ring app to track the person down and to send a message to would-be dumpers. "Not in our neighborhood. This is not that type of neighborhood," said Gomez.After 10News contacted Escondido's Public Works Department, the couch was picked up Tuesday afternoon.If you have any information on the case, call Escondido police at 760-839-4722. 1339

Enterprise is the latest company committing to causes that will help improve racial equity and fight hunger.The company's ROAD Forward initiative was developed in response to the death of George Floyd. Through it, the company's foundation will give million to four nonprofits.The company says it chose the nonprofits, because they work to address social gaps in three critical areas: early childhood development, youth health and wellness, and career or college prep.The organizations had no idea these donations were in the works.¡°It's an amazing affirmation of what we do and what we've been doing and where we hope to go,¡± said Constance Gully, President and CEO of Parents as Teachers.Parents as Teachers uses home visits to help families of color with newborns through kindergarten entry. Its plan is to use the funds to fill gaps in their framework.¡°We see them now. We see people, so that's what I think the corporate community can do is see and hear people and communities that have unfortunately been literally invisible,¡± said Gully.Another recipient is Girls Inc., which offers social and emotional support to mostly minority and low-income families outside of school.¡°These are the girls who need the most support, but they also have an incredible amount of potential,¡± said Stephanie Hull, President and CEO of Girls Inc. ¡°Girls will be important in the future, girls in these communities will be important in shaping the future and an investment in these girls right now is a significant step toward a better tomorrow.¡±The initiative will also commit million to fight food insecurity and global operating teams will allocate million to local charities. 1685

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