ALL-USA BASEBALL TEAM

LATE SCORES INSIDE

T H E N A T I O NS N E W S P A P E R

$1.00

Frampton live with Alive

By H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY

Rocker brings 70s hits back on tour, 1D

Video: 5 questions

By Rick Heaton, The Owasso Reporter

Player of year: Dylan Bundy of Owasso (Okla.) High, 6C

2011s hottest hitters, pitchers

THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2011

Newsline

THE GREAT KIDS COVERUP

FDA chief Margaret Hamburg will make the final call. AP photo

Shade

By Julian Finney, Getty Images

Despite two-set lead, he falls to Tsonga at Wimbledon, 1C

Federer falters in quarterfinals

Cancer drug Avastin again criticized by federal panel

FDA advisers vote to withdraw drugs approval to treat breast cancer, 3A

Housing turning around in spots

Recoverys afoot in several rural states
By Julie Schmit USA TODAY The housing market is hurting nationally, but it appears to be marching toward recovery in a handful of mostly rural states, economic forecasters say. The states including North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa and Alaska have economies more dependent on the energy, industrial or agricultural sectors, the stronger parts of the U.S. economy. Their home prices, in general, didnt rise as much as in other states in the boom years, so theyve fared better in the wake of the crash. Their unemployment rates tend to best the national average. Housing is a mess all over the place, but Prices its less of a mess in edge up some places, says Jim Diffley, regional housIncrease in nondistressed home sale ing economist for IHS prices from 2006 to Global Insight. the 12 months endSeveral of the smalling March 31, on a er Midwestern states per-square-foot appear on the road to basis: Increase recovery, says Jona17% Okla. than Smoke, executive director for research 12% Neb. for Housing IntelliMiss. 11% gencePro, which tracks real estate in 800 marKan. 6% kets nationwide. Ark. 6% The company compared sales of homes 6% N.D. not hit or threatened Source: Housing by foreclosures for the IntelligencePro 12 months ending in By Julie Snider, USA TODAY March with sales in 2006, the peak of the national housing bubble. Excluding distressed sales gives researchers a better view of what normal housing markets look like. North Dakota, Iowa and Wyoming have seen the strongest rebound in numbers of non-distressed home sales, the data show. North Dakota was the only state where sales in the recent period rose from 2006, Housing Intelligence found. Iowa and Wyoming reached about 70% of their 2006 levels. In 34 of 47 states for which data were available, volumes were at less than half their 2006 levels. Oklahoma and Nebraska saw the biggest jumps in prices per square foot for non-distressed homes: 17% and 12%, respectively. Prices on a per-square-foot basis offer some adjustment for different types of homes that may be selling at any given time. South Dakota and Alaska also appear among the states least vulnerable to further home price declines given their stronger economies, says Capital Economics economist Paul Dales. In the first quarter, Alaska house prices rose 2.7% year-over-year, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency. They fell 5.5% nationally. South Dakota has one of the nations lowest unemployment rates, at 4.8% in May vs. 9.1% nationwide. Existing home sales data also show strong demand for housing in the state, Dales says. States with fewer troubled loans are likely to have fewer foreclosures, which can be a drag on prices. As of May, the states with the lowest percentage of loans that were delinquent or in foreclosure were Montana, Wyoming, Arkansas, South Dakota and North Dakota, says Lender Processing Services. No U.S. region is likely to see stable prices until late this year. Some may decline longer, Moodys Analytics says. The slowing pace of the U.S. economic recovery also poses risks for Midwestern economies, which have benefited from strengthening in manufacturing, Moodys says.
F

Judge OKs force medicating accused Tucson shooter

Prosecutors say Jared Loughner is violent in prison; he faces charges of killing six, wounding 13, including Rep. Giffords, in January. 3A.

Arizona and New Mexico have seen fires scorch more than 1.5 million acres; with vegetation gone, rains can flood homes, destroy habitat. 2A.

For those who survived fires, erosion, flood threats are next

Appeals court upholds law requiring health insurance

Ruling gives Obama administration big victory, but dispute will likely reach Supreme Court. 7A.

By Jamie Rector for USA TODAY

In Burbank, Calif.: Shade structures provide protection but can be costly. This one cost $25,000.

Fathers work an average of 47 hours a week, compared with 44 hours for men who dont have or dont live with kids, study says. 1B.

Men who have children work more than men without kids

Shade provides playground relief while protecting against health risks. There just isnt enough of it.
By Liz Szabo USA TODAY Kids flocked to two redesigned New York City playgrounds last year to check out the shiny, stainless-steel climbing domes. But they reacted with more than squeals of delight. On sunny days, the climbing domes quickly got hotter than a frying pan. Children scalded their hands, which prompted park officials to install a tent over the dome in Union Square and to remove the domes in Brooklyn Bridge Park. The uproar highlights a problem that makes many parents as hot as a metal slide: a lack of shade at most of the places that children spend their summers. At stake is far more than playtime comfort. Though children have always dealt with the summer sun, research now shows a growing risk of the most serious form of skin cancer. And sun exposure is greatest during childhood. Shade does more than protect childrens skin. A growing number of advocates say it also may help children be more active. At a time when one-third of chil- COVER dren are obese or overweight, a movement is growing to provide STORY more shade at playgrounds, parks and pools, both to reduce future cancer risk and promote exercise, says Richard Louv, co-founder of the Children & Nature Network, a non-profit that encourages kids to get outside. Its right under the surface, but the momentum has been increasing, says Colleen Doyle of Please see COVER STORY next page u

Federal Reserve softens rule to cap debit card swipe fees

Banks, retailers disappointed. Fed votes to set limit at 21 cents, up from 12-cent cap proposed last year, down from current 44-cent average. 1B.

Soulful Javier Colon, 34, of Stratford, Conn., wins $100,000 and a recording contract. His coach was Maroon 5s Adam Levine. 1D.

NBCs The Voice crowns its first champion singer

Download the Microsoft TagReader app at http://gettag.mobi and capture a photo of todays tag.

See news photos of the day on your smartphone

Costly colleges have explaining to do

Education Department posting lists of most expensive online
By Mary Beth Marklein and Luke Kerr-Dineen USA TODAY These are rankings no college wants to top. The Education Department today unveils a website on which it is publishing for the first time lists identifying the nations most expensive colleges. The lists, which also include the least expensive colleges, were created to help students and families make informed decisions and to hold colleges accountable for rising tuition. We hope this information will encourage schools to continue in their efforts to make the costs of college more transparent, Education Secretary Arne Duncan said Wednesday. The lists, which do not include current tuition charges, are based on data colleges report annually to the federal government. The rankings are broken down into sections for private, public, for-profit and community colleges. The Education Department gave colleges a peek at the data this week, but most havent had a chance to digest it, said Terry Hartle, chief lobbyist for the American Council on Education. He said it will be of limited use to families, in part because the methodology is fairly complex. But the rankings have raised concerns among college officials. Any time somebody does this sort of a prioritizing . . . is a big deal, particularly if it has

QIJFAF-04005w(M)g
67

Topping lists at collegecost.ed.gov

Public in-state Private For-profit four-year

COPYRIGHT 2011 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co., Inc.

Crossword, Sudoku 5B Editorial/Forum 8-9A Market scoreboard 4B Marketplace Today 5B State-by-state 5A TV listings 7D

Subscriptions, customer service 1-800-USA-0001 www.usatodayservice.com

Penn State Main campus Bates College $51,300 $21,324 Maine Sanford$45,628 $15,661 Brown College Virginia Source: Education Department

National Tuition average $14,416 $6,397

USA TODAY Snapshots

Close calls on runways

Serious runway incursions1 at U.S. airports:

6
FY 2000 FY 2010

1 A collision was "narrowly" averted by llision extreme action or there was a "significant potent ex potential" for an accident because aircraft came too close together. cause toge together Source: Fe Sour So Federal Aviation Administration
By Anne R. Carey and Paul Trap, USA TODAY

the weight of the Department of Education behind it, said Roland King, spokesman for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. There are so many chances for misinterpretation. Under federal law, colleges with the fastestrising published tuitions and net prices about 530 will now have to explain to Education Department officials why their costs went up and what steps theyll take to reduce them. Among reactions from those schools: uCalifornia State University system spokesman Mike Uhlenkamp said fast-increasing tuitions posted by several campuses are a direct reflection of the budget situation in California. uPaul Panesar, president of Coleman University in San Diego, said the data cast his institution in an undeservedly bad light. uJohn Bassett, president of Heritage University in Toppenish, Wash., said he is undisturbed: If anything our tuition is still too low.