The current global pandemic is impacting every aspect of people's lives, and for many, that includes finances. Taking a close look at your personal finances and making a plan can help alleviate some of the stress around the impact of COVID-19. Budgeting for the current pandemic has many of the same basic steps you would take if you were creating a budget at any other time. Take a moment to look at your current finances. The first step is to figure out your starting point. Take note of what you have in savings and your current income. If your job or [...]

  Smartphone usage increased dramatically during the pandemic as more people lost their jobs, were furloughed, or adhered to stay-at-home orders. While smartphones can provide endless entertainment, they can also be bad news for your budget. In fact, the combined global monthly amount that consumers spent on apps and games peaked in May 2020 at $9.4 billion, a 25 percent gain on the monthly average in 2019. While that is all fun and games (no pun intended), it may be time to do a “digital detox.” Here is why it could be good for you mentally and financially, plus five tips to help [...]

I.U.P.A. and Howard County Public Safety Dispatchers Association are so pleased to commend our member, Kristi Carter, on being awarded the HCPD Telecommunicator of the Year Award as well as for the noteworthy record of service and hard work that the award honored. She is truly an inspiration to others and an excellent example to aspire to.   Kristi has always known she wanted to be a dispatcher and now she trains other dispatchers to do the job that she is truly passionate about and dedicated to. She is the daughter of the [...]

  One of the biggest fears of any new or seasoned state or local police association is losing money. This fear can actually inhibit a board from ever investing at all, and it might lead to selling preemptively or opting for the lower risk investment option time and again. To minimize the fear of losing money, associations sometimes choose to go with a risk-reduction strategy, such as Dollar Cost Averaging (DCA). Given that research has shown that the pain of losses is more severe than the joy of gains for investors1, risk-averse investors may prefer to dollar cost average simply to minimize [...]

  Effective 10/1/18, the Florida legislature enacted special provisions for accidental injuries suffered by first responders, including paramedics and emergency medical technicians. As relevant here, the statute confirms that Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (hereinafter “PTSD") for first responders is a compensable occupational disease within the meaning of the Florida Workers’ Compensation Law. Unlike other occupational trauma resulting in mental health condition(s), this particular statute permits a first responder to claim lost wage benefits for the PTSD without evidence of an accompanying physical injury. However, in order to obtain the benefits available under this particular statute, certain, very important elements must be met; otherwise, [...]

  International Union of Police Associations   Statement of President Sam A. Cabral re: 9/11 Remembrance Twenty years ago, on September 11, the United States suffered its worst terrorist event in history when four planes were hijacked. Two of them were flown into the Twin Towers in New York City, while the third, en route to the Capitol in Washington, D.C. crashed in Pennsylvania after passengers stormed the cockpit. A fourth plane was flown into the Pentagon. In all, nearly 3,000 people perished in the events, 2,606 at the Trade Center, 125 at the Pentagon, and 265 aboard the four hijacked planes. [...]