The Obama administration announced Monday that the 21 largest banks receiving government money must report monthly on how much lending they do to small businesses. All other banks getting taxpayer help are being asked to report quarterly on small business loans. Even banks that are not taking government funds are being told by the administration to "make an extra effort'' to increase small business lending. . . .

Nykita Hurt holds a photo of her daughter Brandi who became a child prostitute at the age of 14. Experts say more than 300,000 children are being sexually exploited in the United States. . . .

Seattle City Council members announced today a timeline to develop a publicly financed elections program for local campaigns in the city of Seattle. The plan proposes development of a proposal over 2009 and early 2010 with a possible ballot measure placed before voters in 2010. If voters approve a measure, candidates could participate in a program as early as the 2011 election cycle. 
Public financing, sometimes called "voter-owned" elections, allows a candidate to qualify for public funds to run an electoral campaign if he or she is able to demonstrate a broad base of community support. . . .

Black kids and White kids in the Portland metro area are basically achieving academically at the same rate – but the high rates of gentrification that push poorer families away from their neighborhoods are disproportionately disrupting African American children's ability to learn.
Those are a few of the findings of a new report commissioned by the Black Parent Initiative and the Chalkboard Project, and conducted by EcoNorthwest.
The study, while examining why African American students lag behind White students in academic achievement, found that Black students are more likely to switch schools at every stage of their school careers. . . .

A Black September terrorist convicted of placing three powerful car bombs in New York City in 1973 has been sent to Sudan after completing his sentence and being deported by the U.S. government. Khalid Al-Jawary, 63, was flown out of Denver International Airport on Thursday and arrived Tuesday in Khartoum, said Carl Rusnok, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman.. Al-Jawary ended up in Sudan after Algeria initially agreed to accept him but then reversed course, setting off a scramble to find a country that would take the aging terrorist. It's unclear why Algeria ultimately decided against taking Al-Jawary. Al-Jawary wanted to be deported to Jordan, where his family lives, but the country apparently would not allow him entry. Federal officials said he had dual citizenship with Jordan and Iraq. . . .

Federal prosecutors say two White supremacists accused of plotting to kill President Barack Obama and dozens of other Black people were armed and dangerous when West Tennessee authorities swooped down on them. Eighteen-year-old Paul Schlesselman of Helena-West Helena, Ark., and 20-year-old Daniel Cowart of Bells, Tenn., were arrested in October -- while Obama was still a candidate -- and are in custody without bond . . .

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The Obama administration's housing plan is intended to help 9 million struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure, but it leaves out tens of thousands of borrowers in the most battered housing markets who won't qualify because their homes have lost too much value. ...

WASHINGTON (AP) _ The nation can't afford to wait for the economy to recover before tackling out-of-control medical costs, President Barack Obama is telling some of the most powerful players in the health care reform debate.
"If we want to create jobs and rebuild our economy, then we must address the crushing cost of health care this year, in this administration,'' Obama says in remarks prepared for delivery to a White House forum on the issue Thursday. ...

Pratt Fine Arts Center and Pilchuck Glass School announced Saya Moriyasu as the 2009 recipient of the Pratt/Pilchuck Partnership Glass Scholarship ...

The Kayak Academy is now taking registrations for its annual spring nature tour along the shores of Lake Sammamish.
A professional kayak guide leads the two-hour tour along the shores of Lake Sammamish and up a portion of Issaquah Creek. ...