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As wildfires tore through neighborhoods across the Los Angeles area this month, the city’s large architecture and design community found itself in an uncomfortable state of anticipation. With thousands of homes destroyed, architects in L.A. know that they’ll soon be called upon to help some people rebuild. That’s how more than 350 L.A. area designers have found themselves members of Rebuild LA Architecture, a workspace in the online communication platform Slack where architects, interior designers, and contractors are sharing resources and information about what it takes to design and build in the aftermath of fire. For a field often defined by competition, these designers are collectively wrapping their heads around the recovery to come. The Slack workspace was created by Aaron Leshtz, an L.A. native and cofounder of the architecture firm AAHA Studio. In the days after the fires broke out, Leshtz’s friend and fellow architect, Rachel Shillander, had posted on her Instagram account asking if any L.A. area architects and designers wanted to talk through the implications of the Eaton and Palisades fires and how the design community could play a role in the recovery. A Zoom call was set up, and hundreds of people logged in. With this particular disaster and being in such a concentrated city of designers and architects like Los Angeles, I think we all realized, oh, we’re in a very unique position to be able to help, Leshtz says. [Screenshot: Rebuild LA Architecture] In an effort to help formalize the conversation, Leshtz posted a link to the Zoom’s chat inviting people to join a free Slack workspace and share thoughts and resources. They swarmed in. Within three or four days it was almost 300 people, Leshtz says. So now I’m in charge of a very large Slack group. The workspace is part resource library, part ad hoc task force. There are about a dozen separate channels focusing on various sides of the architecture profession in the context of wildfire recovery. One channel is aimed at helping architects understand how to work within the strictures of the city of L.A.’s Department of Building and Safety. Another sheds light on the process of handling claims with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Another is a smattering of information and personal experience on dealing with fire insurance claims. One particularly active channel has formed around the idea of creating what’s being dubbed the Rebuild LA Handbook, compiling information homeowners can use as they venture into rebuilding their lost homes. It’s all serving as a kind of crash course in how to be a designer for fire recovery. Some of the designers in the Slack have plenty of experience, designing in the aftermath of major wildfires across California. But for others, especially those working in smaller firms with fewer buildings under their belt, the massive scale of this year’s wildfires is opening up an unexpected new line of business. Leshtz, whose firm is made up of eight people, says he’s already received more than 20 inquiries for potential rebuilding projects in Pacific Palisades. There’s going to be more work than anybody can handle, he says. And there’s a sense that it’s not a zero-sum game. We can share resources. We can do things better collectively and still run businesses and still be profitable. The L.A. architecture Slack group is not the only fire recovery effort underway among the city’s design community. In the days after the fires broke out, another grassroots recovery effort was launched in the form of a crowdsourced list of architects, engineers, and contractors willing and able to help in the recovery and rebuilding. Though much of the Pacific Palisades is on the wealthier end of the income spectrum, the communities affected by the Eaton Fire in Altadena are much more in the middle class. For architects, who are often taking commissions from wealthy homeowners or engaging in resource-intensive design competitions to secure new projects, it’s been a moment of opening up to a less lucrative but arguably more important type of client, and being more open with people who may otherwise be competitors. We all realize that we need to be moving and rowing in the same direction, and the best way to do that is to have the same information, says Leshtz. Greg Bleier, founder of the interior architecture firm Studio UNLTD, has become an active member of the Rebuild LA Architecture workspace. For me, the biggest resource are the connections, the people. Our practice doesn’t focus on home building, so I don’t know if the ultimate resources may impact us directly, but it has been a tool to learn about processes such as permitting after a wildfire, FEMA responsibilities, and insurance expectations, he says. Collating and collecting data and information in one place like this with people who are effectively strangers is a pretty powerful thing. Leshtz says the L.A. architecture Slack workspace has about 50 active members, with some members only posting sporadically with relevant information. Most of the 350-plus members, he assumes, are there to gather as much information as they can. How long that lasts is uncertain, but Leshtz says the Slack workspace will exist as long as it’s needed. (Through a friend of a friend, Leshtz got in touch with someone in Slack’s management who extended the workspace’s free access through the summer at least.) Will this exist in six months? Will anybody be on it? I don’t know. It might be a ghost town, Leshtz says. But if it’s useful for people in these first couple of months to understand the best next steps to rebuilding in the city then I’ll be thrilled. Leshtz says he’s hoping to refine the workspace, and try to find ways of making it more useful to people who’ll need information quickly. I didn’t expect to be the father of a 350-person Slack group, but I’m trying to at least move the ting in the right direction, he says. Because this is going to be a long haul.
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When President Donald Trump tapped Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to become the nation’s top health official, his administration inherited a sprawling list of ideas to “Make America Healthy Again,” from banning TV drug advertisements to dropping restrictions on raw milk.While those unorthodox proposalsand Kennedy’s discredited views on vaccineshave dominated recent headlines, a slate of more familiar ideas have attracted interest on Capitol Hill and across the U.S.: making school lunches healthier, banning certain food additives, and cracking down on ultraprocessed foods linked to obesity and diabetes.For decades, public health groups have called for similar steps, lobbying federal leaders and mounting public campaigns about the risks of American diets loaded with salt, sugar, and fat.As Kennedy faces Senate confirmation hearings Wednesday and Thursday, health advocates find themselves in an uncomfortable position: voicing cautious support for some of Kennedy’s ideas while warning of the catastrophic consequences of others.“If there’s an opportunity to advance the public health, you have to seize it,” said Dr. Peter Lurie, a former FDA official who now leads the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest. “So you can’t ignore the guy on everything because you oppose him on some things.”Like many experts, Lurie says Kennedy’s record on vaccines should disqualify him from becoming health secretary. And he’s deeply skeptical Kennedy can deliver on his ideas for food and nutrition.Kennedy’s confirmation is far from certain in the Senate, where he is expected to face pointed questioning from both Republicans and Democrats on the chamber’s health and finance committees. Kennedy has been downplaying his long history in the anti-vaccine movement, but experts say that’s where lawmakers should focus.“The elephant in the room is vaccine policy,” said Dr. Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention under Barack Obama. “In medicine we say: ‘Above all, do no harm.’ I’m certainly not convinced that RFK Jr. wouldn’t do a lot of harm to our vaccine policy and to our kids.”Still, such worries haven’t stopped some Democrats from finding shared interests.Former Ohio congressman Tim Ryan penned an op-ed last month titled: “Hey Democrats: We should work with RFK Jr. on fixing America’s food system.”Sen. Cory Booker, a vegan, told reporters that he and Kennedy are “talking out of the same playbook” when it comes to food reforms.Booker’s office did not respond to a request for comment. Trump and Kennedy are an unlikely alliance Trump’s unlikely alliance with Kennedy, a lifelong Democrat until 2023, reflects a diverse segment of Americans who increasingly worry about chemicals in their food and water and distrust medical experts, government officials, and big food and drugmakers.Supporters of Kennedy’s long shot presidential campaign included California parents concerned about food dyes in cereal and Midwestern factory workers resentful of COVID-19 vaccine mandates.But the clash between Trump’s antiregulatory approach and Kennedy’s anticorporate stance has many observers skeptical that much of the so-called MAHA agenda will ever happen.Requiring healthier foods in school lunches, for example, has long been opposed by food and agriculture companies that overwhelmingly backed Trump in the last election, donating to his campaign by a nearly 4-to-1 margin over Kamala Harris, according to records compiled by Opensecrets.org.During Trump’s first term, political appointees weakened school nutrition guidelines introduced as part of Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign. The rules required schools to offer more fruit and vegetable options.Making major changes to the federal program involves coordination between the Agriculture Department, the Department of Health and Human Services, and dozens of state educational programs.“They don’t have the policy coherence to make that happen,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin of the American Public Health Association. “People have been talking about improving the quality of school lunches for many years, but it takes a lot of money and collaboration to do it at a national level.”Even seemingly smaller goals like banning potentially harmful food additives would require new regulations and staffers at FDAwhich Kennedy has vowed to “clear out.”U.S. foods contain hundreds of ingredients that aren’t permitted in Europe because American companies aren’t required to seek FDA approval before introducing them. Companies can self-certify that new colors or chemicals are “generally recognized as safe.”Efforts to reform the decades-old system have been rejected in court and defeated in Congress, with backing from industry lobbyists.Seemingly popular ideas like discouraging ultraprocessed foods could also prove untenable.“I don’t think most Americans know that when you talk about ultraprocessed foods you’re talking about ice cream, frozen dinners, fast food,” said Benjamin. “Are we really talking about changing the entire American food experience?” Experts hope for the best, but prepare for the worst If Kennedy is blocked from overhauling the nation’s food system he would still have many other ideas to pursue.“What we have is a bunch of good things that are very unlikely to happen weighed against a bunch of bad things that are very injurious but are much more feasible,” Lurie said.Kennedy has threatened to fire hundreds of employees at the National Institutes of Health and slash FDA regulations on a host of unproven treatments, including stem cells, psychedelics, and discredited COVID-era treatments like ivermectin.Even seemingly small changes on vaccines could have damaging consequences, experts say.Kennedy could dissolve current federal vaccine committees and staff them with advisers who are hostile to vaccines. Currently, insurers must pay for children to receive shots recommended by those experts. But the requirement would lapse if Kennedy’s appointees declined to endorse updated shots and immunization schedules.For now, Georgetown University’s Larry Gostin says he and other advocates are hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.“If he comes up with ideas that are good and actionable, I will be the first one to applaud and put my back into helping them succeed,” said Gostin, a health attorney. “I’m just very skeptical that he will do that.” The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Matthew Perrone, AP Health Writr
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E-Commerce
Today (Monday, January 27, 2025) is the first day that you can file your tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). But this year, many more Americans will have the option to use the IRSs Direct File system. Heres whos eligible for Direct File and things you need to know about the 2025 tax filing season. When is the 2025 tax filing season? The 2025 tax filing season begins today, Monday, January 27, 2025. That is the first day that people can file their tax returns for the 2024 tax year. This year, most people have until Tuesday, April 15, 2025, to file their 2024 returns. However, taxpayers may be eligible for filing extensions if they meet the necessary requirements. How can I file my 2024 tax return? There are many ways to file your 2024 tax return, including: By using an accountant. By using tax filing software like Turbo Tax or H&R Block. By mailing in a paper tax return. By using Direct File. That last optionDirect Fileis free for eligible taxpayers. What is Direct File? Direct File is an IRS program that allows eligible taxpayers to electronically file their tax returns directly with the IRS for free. Direct File launched a pilot program last year with a limited number of states. This year, the Direct File program is adding more states. One of the big benefits of Direct File is that, if you are eligible for it, you can use the program to file your taxes for freeno need to pay an accountant or pay for software from companies like Intuit or H&R Block just to file your taxes. Which states are eligible for Direct File? If you lived and worked in the following states, you may be able to use Direct File to file your federal taxes for 2024: Alaska Arizona California Connecticut Florida Idaho Illinois Kansas Maine Maryland Massachusetts Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina Oregon Pennsylvania South Dakota Tennessee Texas Washington state Wisconsin Wyoming Are there other eligibility requirements for Direct File? Yes. In addition to having to have lived and worked in the states above during 2024, Direct File can only be used if you have certain types of income. For example, the IRS states that Direct File can be used for W-2 wage income, 1099-INT interest income, and various other types of income. However, if you had some types of income, including gig economy, rental, or business income, you will not be able to use Direct File. Requirements to use Direct File can be found here. The IRS also offers an online tool that lets you check if you are eligible to use Direct File. The IRS estimates that up to 30 million people are eligible to use the Direct File program. Is Direct File an app? No, its an online tool. However, it is designed so that you can use it on your computer, phone, or tablet. How is Direct File different than Free File? Direct File is web-based software created by the IRS. The Free File program allows tax filers to use commercial software to file their taxes, according to the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS). Usually, taxpayers would need to pay for this commercial software, but if their income level is below a certain amount, the Free File program gives them access to the software for free. According to the IRS, to be eligible for Free File this tax season, you must have had a 2024 adjusted gross income (AGI) of $84,000 or less. In total, the IRS says it expects more than 140 million individual tax returns to be filed between today and the end of the tax filing season on April 15. How soon can I get my tax refund? That depends on how you file. According to the IRS, it takes up to 21 days to receive your refund payment if you filed electronically and use direct deposit. (Amended and paper returns will take longer.) The agency has an online tool called Where’s My Refund? where you can check the status of your refund, sometimes as soon as 24 hours after filing.
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