Community Life in Rural Nebraska: Results from the 1997 Annual Nebraska Rural Poll

This working paper presents findings from the second annual Nebraska Rural Poll. The study is based on 3,264 responses from households in the 87 non-metropolitan counties in the state. The objectives of this paper are to answer the following questions: 1. How do rural Nebraskans perceive changes occurring in their community? 2. How do rural Nebraskans describe their communities: friendly or unfriendly, trusting or distrusting, supportive or hostile? 3. How satisfied are rural Nebraskans with various services and amenities; and how does satisfaction vary by community size, region, household income, age, gender, education and marital status? 4. Do rural Nebraskans believe there is a shortage of affordable housing in their community; and how do they feel this shortage has affected the community’s population and economic growth? 5. How do rural Nebraskans believe the consolidation of public schools, health care and local government would affect the quality of life in their community; and how do these perceptions vary by community size, region, and various individual attributes? 6. How do rural Nebraskans feel that population growth by adding different demographic segments (e.g., elderly residents, young families, members of minority groups) would affect the quality of life in their community

The TREAT-NMD advisory committee for therapeutics (TACT): an innovative de-risking model to foster orphan drug development

Despite multiple publications on potential therapies for neuromuscular diseases (NMD) in cell and animal models only a handful reach clinical trials. The ability to prioritise drug development according to objective criteria is particularly critical in rare diseases with large unmet needs and a limited numbers of patients who can be enrolled into clinical trials. TREAT-NMD Advisory Committee for Therapeutics (TACT) was established to provide independent and objective guidance on the preclinical and development pathway of potential therapies (whether novel or repurposed) for NMD. We present our experience in the establishment and operation of the TACT. TACT provides a unique resource of recognized experts from multiple disciplines. The goal of each TACT review is to help the sponsor to position the candidate compound along a realistic and well-informed plan to clinical trials, and eventual registration. The reviews and subsequent recommendations are focused on generating meaningful and rigorous data that can enable clear go/no-go decisions and facilitate longer term funding or partnering opportunities. The review process thereby acts to comment on viability, de-risking the process of proceeding on a development programme. To date TACT has held 10 review meeting and reviewed 29 program applications in several rare neuromuscular diseases: Of the 29 programs reviewed, 19 were from industry and 10 were from academia; 15 were for novel compounds and 14 were for repurposed drugs; 16 were small molecules and 13 were biologics; 14 were preclinical stage applications and 15 were clinical stage applications. 3 had received Orphan drug designation from European Medicines Agency and 3 from Food and Drug Administration. A number of recurrent themes emerged over the course of the reviews and we found that applicants frequently require advice and education on issues concerned with preclinical standard operating procedures, interactions with regulatory agencies, formulation, repurposing, clinical trial design, manufacturing and ethics. Over the 5 years since its establishment TACT has amassed a body of experience that can be extrapolated to other groups of rare diseases to improve the community's chances of successfully bringing new rare disease drugs to registration and ultimately to marke

A Systematic Screen for Tube Morphogenesis and Branching Genes in the Drosophila Tracheal System

Many signaling proteins and transcription factors that induce and pattern organs have been identified, but relatively few of the downstream effectors that execute morphogenesis programs. Because such morphogenesis genes may function in many organs and developmental processes, mutations in them are expected to be pleiotropic and hence ignored or discarded in most standard genetic screens. Here we describe a systematic screen designed to identify all Drosophila third chromosome genes (∼40% of the genome) that function in development of the tracheal system, a tubular respiratory organ that provides a paradigm for branching morphogenesis. To identify potentially pleiotropic morphogenesis genes, the screen included analysis of marked clones of homozygous mutant tracheal cells in heterozygous animals, plus a secondary screen to exclude mutations in general “house-keeping” genes. From a collection including more than 5,000 lethal mutations, we identified 133 mutations representing ∼70 or more genes that subdivide the tracheal terminal branching program into six genetically separable steps, a previously established cell specification step plus five major morphogenesis and maturation steps: branching, growth, tubulogenesis, gas-filling, and maintenance. Molecular identification of 14 of the 70 genes demonstrates that they include six previously known tracheal genes, each with a novel function revealed by clonal analysis, and two well-known growth suppressors that establish an integral role for cell growth control in branching morphogenesis. The rest are new tracheal genes that function in morphogenesis and maturation, many through cytoskeletal and secretory pathways. The results suggest systematic genetic screens that include clonal analysis can elucidate the full organogenesis program and that over 200 patterning and morphogenesis genes are required to build even a relatively simple organ such as the Drosophila tracheal system

Community Life in Rural Nebraska: Trends and Comparisons

Nebraska’s rural communities have undergone many changes in recent years. The development of a global economy and pressures to consolidate services and government offices are some of the challenges that rural communities are currently facing. How have these changes affected rural Nebraskans’ perceptions of their communities? Do their perceptions differ by the size of their community, the region in which they live, or by their occupation? This report details results of 4,196 responses to the 1998 Nebraska Rural Poll, the third annual effort to take the pulse of rural Nebraskans. Respondents were asked a series of questions about their community and their preferred community size. Trends are examined by comparing data from the two previous polls to this year’s results. In addition, comparisons are made among different subgroups of the respondents, e.g., comparisons by age, occupation, income, etc. Based on these analyses, some key findings emerged: • Most rural Nebraskans believe their community has either stayed the same or changed for the better during the past year. Over one-half (53%) of the respondents felt their community had stayed the same during the past year and thirty-one percent believed it had changed for the better. Only seventeen percent felt their community had changed for the worse. • The proportion of rural Nebraskans who said their community has changed for the worse has decreased since 1996; however, the proportion stating their community has changed for the better has also decreased. Thirty-eight percent of the 1996 respondents felt their community had stayed the same, while fifty-three percent of the 1998 respondents shared this opinion. • Overall, rural communities are described as friendly, trusting, and supportive. Seventy-two percent of the respondents felt their community was friendly and sixty-three percent believed their community was both trusting and supportive. • The majority of rural Nebraskans feel that everyone is allowed to contribute to governmental affairs in their community and disagree that differences of opinion on public issues are avoided. Seventy-five percent of the respondents either strongly agreed or agreed that most everyone in their community is allowed to contribute to local governmental affairs if they want to. Sixty-two percent disagreed or strongly disagreed that differences of opinion on public issues are avoided at all costs in their community. • Over one-third of rural Nebraskans are dissatisfied with the following services and amenities in their community: entertainment, retail shopping, restaurants, and streets. Services viewed most positively included library services, parks and recreation, education (K - 12), and basic medical care services. • Respondents living in the Panhandle were much more likely than respondents in other regions to be dissatisfied with air service. Fifty-three percent of respondents in this region were very or somewhat dissatisfied with air service, compared to only fifteen percent of the respondents in the Southeast region. • Only three percent of rural Nebraskans are planning to leave their community in the next year. Younger respondents, those living in the larger communities, and manual laborers were the respondents most likely to be planning to move. Of those planning to move, sixty-two percent planned to stay in Nebraska. • Rural Nebraskans tend to prefer the following community sizes (ranked by proportion selecting each): living in the country, a smaller city (10,000 to 49,999 in population), and a town/village 1,000 to 4,999 in population. Within these general preferences there was a marked tendency for rural residents in smaller towns to prefer smaller rural towns, for those living in larger rural towns to prefer larger towns, etc. The least preferred community size was a large city. Only one percent of rural Nebraskans would prefer to live in a place with population in excess of 500,000. • A majority of rural Nebraskans would prefer to live within 30 miles of a larger city. Sixty-six percent of the respondents that chose a preferred community size less than 50,000 would like that place to be within 30 miles of a large or medium-sized city. • Current residence, satisfaction with health services, satisfaction with consumer services, community social attributes, satisfaction with transportation services and satisfaction with environmental services influence preferred community size. Respondents largely prefer their current community size. In addition, respondents satisfied with health and environmental services, those dissatisfied with transportation and consumer services, and respondents rating their communities as unfriendly, distrusting and hostile tend to prefer larger community sizes

Nebraska’s Changing Agriculture: Perceptions about the Swine Industry

The livestock industry has been restructuring during the past several decades, resulting in fewer and larger farms as well as some vertical integration. One particular livestock sector, hogs, has received much attention in Nebraska during the past year. An increase in the applications for new hog confinement facilities has caused concern for some rural residents. Some are worried about environmental damage, while others are concerned about economic implications for smaller farms. However, supporters of these facilities point to additional jobs and other economic benefits they can bring to a community. Given these issues, how do rural Nebraskans feel about large-scale pork production facilities? What do they feel are the economic, environmental and social impacts of these operations? Have they directly experienced any negative effects of livestock production? This report details results of 4,196 responses to the 1998 Nebraska Rural Poll, the third annual effort to take the pulse of rural Nebraskans. Respondents were asked a series of questions about pork production including: their concerns regarding various locations of large-scale facilities, their perceptions about the impacts these facilities have, and if they have experienced any negative effects of livestock production. Comparisons have been made among different subgroups of respondents, e.g., comparisons by community size, region, age, occupation, etc. Based on these analyses, some key findings emerged: • Rural Nebraskans become increasingly concerned about the development of large-scale pork production facilities as these proposed developments approach their residences. While 38% of the respondents were very concerned about the development of these facilities in Nebraska, this increased to 49% when the facilities would be within their local community and 69% when they would be within a mile of their residence. • Over one-half of rural Nebraskans agree that smaller pork production facilities are better than large-scale facilities for both the state and local economy. Approximately fifty-seven percent of the respondents agreed with these two statements. Conversely, only 12% thought larger facilities were better for the state’s economy, and 16% thought the larger facilities were better for the local economy. • The majority of rural Nebraskans are concerned about the environmental impacts of pork production facilities. Fifty-four percent agreed that even if properly managed, large-scale pork production facilities damage the environment. And almost three-quarters of the respondents (73%) agreed that all hog operations should be monitored for proper treatment and disposal of wastes. Seventeen percent agreed that only large operations should be monitored. • Rural Nebraskans have mixed opinions on the desirability of pork production. Thirty-six percent of the respondents agreed that it is better to have some pork production and some odor problems in their community. However, almost an identical proportion (35%) agreed that it is better to have no pork production and no odor problems in their community. Thirty percent were undecided. • A majority of rural Nebraskans feel that large-scale facilities owned by local farmers are better for their community than large facilities owned by outside investors. Seventy-nine percent of the respondents agreed that large-scale facilities owned by local farmers are better for the community than large-scale facilities owned by outside investors. Only four percent agreed with the opposing view, that large-scale facilities owned by outside investors are better than those owned by local farmers. • Over one-half of rural Nebraskans were undecided about the effects of the location of large-scale pork production facilities in a community on its social relations. Fifty-two percent were undecided regarding the effect these large facilities have on a community’s social relations. Thirty-nine percent thought these facilities would diminish social relations in the community. • Over one-half of rural Nebraskans agreed that if large-scale pork production facilities locate in a community, market access for smaller farms will decline. Fifty-four percent of the respondents agreed with this statement, while thirty-four percent were undecided. Only thirteen percent agreed that market access for smaller farms would increase if these facilities locate in a community. • Some rural Nebraskans are more concerned than others about large-scale pork production facilities. In general, there was considerable concern expressed about largescale pork production facilities across all types of respondents to the 1998 Nebraska Rural Poll. However, the level of concern tended to increase with the age of the respondent; and tended to be higher (a) among those living in smaller communities and in Northeast Nebraska, and (b) among males, those with lower incomes and lower educational levels, and farmers/ranchers. • The majority of rural Nebraskans either didn’t know or said they had not directly experienced the following as a result of livestock production: high nitrates in drinking water supply, contamination of local surface water, unacceptable dust levels, and unacceptable noise levels. However, the majority of respondents stated they had experienced at least a minor level of unacceptable odor. Sixty-nine percent of the respondents didn’t know or hadn’t experienced high nitrates and sixty-eight percent didn’t know or hadn’t experienced surface water contamination. The proportions responding either “don’t know” or “none” for unacceptable dust and unacceptable noise were 55% and 71%, respectively. However, sixty-four percent had experienced at least a minor level of unacceptable odor as a result of livestock production

Rural Nebraskans’ Quality of Life: Trends and Contributing Factors

Nebraska’s economy and population have shown growth during recent years. Agricultural producers are experiencing change as well with the implementation of a new farm program. How have these changes affected rural Nebraskans at a local level? How do they perceive their quality of life? Do their perceptions differ by the size of their community, the region in which they live or by their occupation? This report details results of 4,196 responses to the 1998 Nebraska Rural Poll, the third annual effort to take the pulse of rural Nebraskans. Respondents were asked a series of questions about their general well-being and their satisfaction with specific aspects of well-being. Trends are examined by comparing data from the two previous polls to this year’s results. In addition, comparisons are made among different subgroups of the respondents, e.g., comparisons by age, occupation, income, etc. Based on these analyses, some key findings emerged: •&#;Rural Nebraskans show continued optimism about their current and future situations. In 1996, thirty-six percent of the respondents said they were better off compared to five years ago. This increased to forty-one percent in 1998. This pattern continued when asked how they thought they would be ten years from now. Thirty-two percent believed they would be better off ten years from now in 1996; in 1998, forty-two percent thought they would be better off. •&#;More than half of rural Nebraskans are very satisfied with the following: their marriage, their family, and greenery and open space. •&#;Items receiving the highest proportion of very dissatisfied responses include financial security during retirement, current income level and job opportunities for the respondent. The rank ordering of these items has been relatively stable since 1996. •&#;Farmers and ranchers are not as optimistic about the future as respondents with other occupations. Only thirty-one percent of farmers or ranchers felt they would be better off ten years from now, compared to fifty-one percent of the respondents with professional/administrative occupations. •&#;The belief that people are powerless to control their own lives is affected by size of the respondent’s community, household income, age, and education. A multiple regression analysis revealed that respondents living in smaller communities, those with lower income levels, older respondents, and those with less education were the groups most likely to think that people are powerless. •&#;Overall, household income, age and occupation (whether or not a farmer) affect general well-being. Multiple regression analyses revealed the primary influences on well-being were household income, age and occupation. As age increases, well-being scores decrease. Household income had a positive relationship with well-being; as income levels increase so do well-being scores. Farmers report lower well-being scores than non-farmers. •&#;Farmers and ranchers were more likely than other occupational groups to be satisfied with clean air and water. Eighty-eight percent of the farmers/ranchers report being satisfied with clean air and water, compared to seventy-five percent of the manual laborers. •&#;Satisfaction with respondent’s housing was related to age. Older respondents were more likely to be satisfied with their housing compared to the younger respondents. Eighty-seven percent of the respondents age 65 and older stated they were satisfied with their housing; only sixty-eight percent of the respondents between the ages of 19 and 29 were satisfied with their housing. •&#;Respondents living in the North Central and Northeast regions of the state were more likely than those living in other regions to feel that people are powerless to control their lives. Approximately 35% of the respondents in these two regions agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that people are powerless to control their own lives, compared to twenty-seven percent of the people living in the Panhandle

Rural Nebraskans’ Perceptions of Tax Restructuring and Local Schools

School finance in Nebraska has been altered dramatically in recent years. School districts have been required to reduce their property tax levy to $1.10 per$100 in valuation this year. In addition, the formula for state aid has been changed. Many schools are scrambling to make changes to reach this levy lid. Some are considering cutting programs, cutting staff or even consolidation to deal with the limited funding. Many of these changes in school funding have resulted from a demand by Nebraskans for lower taxes and controlled government spending. Given these issues, how do rural Nebraskans feel about the current tax structure? What opinions do they hold about school finance? Do they support or oppose school consolidation, and how do they feel it would affect their community? This report details results of 4,196 responses to the 1998 Nebraska Rural Poll, the third annual effort to take the pulse of rural Nebraskans. Respondents were asked a series of questions about taxes, school finance and school consolidation. Comparisons have been made among different subgroups of the respondents, e.g., comparisons by community size, region, age, income, occupation, etc. Based on these analyses, some key findings emerged: • When asked about their recommended distribution of state and local taxes, rural Nebraskans would like to see less reliance placed on property taxes and individual income taxes and would place more reliance on sales tax and corporate income tax as compared to the current distribution. In the 1995-96 fiscal year, 39% of state and local taxes came from property taxes according to the Legislative Fiscal Office. However, respondents believed only 24% of state and local taxes should come from property taxes. Another major shift was suggested with regard to corporate income tax. While only 3% of the 1995-96 fiscal year distribution came from corporate income taxes, respondents felt that 13% should come from this type of tax. • At least one-half of rural Nebraskans feel that public services would not be greatly affected if property taxes are cut by 10% or less BUT the quality of education will be reduced as schools make the changes necessary to meet the levy limits. Fifty-one percent of the respondents strongly agreed or agreed that public services will not be greatly affected if property taxes are cut by 10% or less. Forty-nine percent strongly agreed or agreed that the quality of education will be reduced as schools make the changes needed to meet the property tax levy limits. • A majority of rural Nebraskans feel property tax rates for school districts should be capped, and considerable support exists for using state income taxes and local option sales taxes as needed alternative sources. Fifty-eight percent strongly agreed or agreed that property tax rates for school districts should be capped, just as they are for counties, cities, and other units of local government. Fifty-nine percent agreed or strongly agreed that more funding for schools should come from state income taxes as a way of leveling out differences among school districts. And, forty-eight percent agreed or strongly agreed that they would support a local option sales tax as an additional source of funds for their local school district. • Most rural Nebraskans disagree that schools should be a minimum size to be eligible for state aid and opinions were mixed on whether or not the quality of schools should be a factor in how much state aid they receive. Sixty-four percent of the respondents disagreed or strongly disagreed that schools should be a minimum size in order to be eligible for state aid. Forty-four percent agreed or strongly agreed that the quality of schools should be a factor in how much state aid they receive; however, thirty-eight percent disagreed or strongly disagreed with this statement and eighteen percent had no opinion. • The majority of rural Nebraskans are satisfied with their local school district’s allocation of funds, the overall quality of education it provides, and its level of participation in the community. Fifty-one percent were very or somewhat satisfied with their local school district’s allocation of funds, seventy-three percent were satisfied with the overall quality of education and fifty-seven percent were satisfied with their school’s level of participation in the community beyond traditional school activities. • Rural Nebraskans were more likely to support school consolidation if it lowered their taxes and enhanced the quality of education or if it didn’t cause the closure of any of the existing schools. Sixty-nine percent would support the consolidation of their school if it lowered taxes and enhanced the quality of education. Forty-six percent would support consolidation if it didn’t cause the closure of any of the existing schools. • The majority of rural Nebraskans believe school consolidation would reduce their community’s economy, its social life and its future prospects. Seventy-three percent believed school consolidation would reduce their community’s economy, seventy-one percent felt their community’s social life would be reduced as a result of consolidation and seventy-four percent felt it would reduce the future prospects of their community. When asked how school consolidation would affect the quality of education and student opportunities, opinions were not as strong as they were on the earlier items yet almost one-half thought both would be reduced. Forty-six percent of the respondents felt the quality of education would be reduced and fifty percent felt that student opportunities would decline

Rural Development Strategies for Nebraska: Results from the 1997 Annual Nebraska Rural Poll

This working paper presents findings from the second annual Nebraska Rural Poll. The study is based on 3,264 responses from households in the 87 non-metropolitan counties in the state. The objectives of this paper are to answer the following questions: 1. Do rural Nebraskans generally support policies of state and local governments which provide tax breaks and other financial incentives to businesses that will locate or make a commitment to stay in their state/area? 2. How effective do rural Nebraskans believe the Nebraska Employment and Investment Growth Act and the Nebraska Employment Expansion and Investment Incentive Act have been in helping rural Nebraska? 3. How high a priority do rural Nebraskans feel the following development options should be for the state? • Promote Nebraska agricultural products • Promote the location of manufacturing firms in rural Nebraska • Promote the development of industrial parks in rural Nebraska • Promote the development of retail shopping centers in rural Nebraska • Promote the expansion of existing industries in rural Nebraska • Promote the development of telecommunications networks in rural Nebraska • Promote the development of small businesses in rural Nebraska • Promote tourism in rural Nebrask

Quality of Life of Rural Nebraskans: Results from the 1997 Annual Nebraska Rural Poll

This working paper presents findings from the second annual Nebraska Rural Poll. The study is based on 3,264 responses from households in the 87 nonmetropolitan counties in the state. The objectives of this paper are to answer the following questions: 1. Has the well-being of rural Nebraskans changed from what they reported in the first annual Rural Poll? 2. All things considered, do rural Nebraskans believe they are better off today than five years ago, and do they believe they are better off than their parents were at their age? 3. Do rural Nebraskans believe they will be better or worse off ten years in the future? 4. Do rural Nebraskans believe that “people are powerless to control their own lives”? 5. How important are certain factors in determining rural Nebraskans’ well-being and how satisfied are they with those same factors? Key findings include the following: •&#;Over sixty percent of rural Nebraskans believe they are better off than their parents were at their age. •&#;Sixty percent of the respondents believed they were either better off or about the same as they were five years ago, and seventy-five percent believed they would be either better off or about the same ten years from now. •&#;Rural Nebraskans tended to have a somewhat more positive outlook in 1997 than in 1996. More of the 1997 respondents said they were better off than they were five years ago and more of them expect to be better off ten years from now than last year’s respondents. •&#;Certain sub-groups of respondents were less likely than others to be positive about their present and/or future well-being. These sub-groups include those living in smaller towns, those living in the Panhandle Region, respondents with lower incomes and lower educational levels, female respondents and those who are widowed. •&#;Slightly less than forty percent of rural Nebraskans either “agreed” or “strongly agreed” with the statement that “…people are powerless to control their own lives.” However, the proportion of the respondents holding this belief did increase somewhat between 1996 and 1997. •&#;Again, certain sub-groups of the respondents were more likely than others to believe that “…people are powerless.” These subgroups include those with lower income and educational levels and those age 65 and over. •&#;Rural Nebraskans rank their family, the health of their family, and their own health as the most important factors affecting their overall well-being. •&#;Several other factors, including financial security during retirement and current income levels, were also quite important in affecting overall well-being. At the same time, a significant proportion of the respondents were not very satisfied with either their current income levels or financial security during retirement

Community Life in Rural Nebraska: Results from the 1997 Annual Nebraska Rural Poll

This working paper presents findings from the second annual Nebraska Rural Poll. The study is based on 3,264 responses from households in the 87 non-metropolitan counties in the state. The objectives of this paper are to answer the following questions: 1. How do rural Nebraskans perceive changes occurring in their community? 2. How do rural Nebraskans describe their communities: friendly or unfriendly, trusting or distrusting, supportive or hostile? 3. How satisfied are rural Nebraskans with various services and amenities; and how does satisfaction vary by community size, region, household income, age, gender, education and marital status? 4. Do rural Nebraskans believe there is a shortage of affordable housing in their community; and how do they feel this shortage has affected the community’s population and economic growth? 5. How do rural Nebraskans believe the consolidation of public schools, health care and local government would affect the quality of life in their community; and how do these perceptions vary by community size, region, and various individual attributes? 6. How do rural Nebraskans feel that population growth by adding different demographic segments (e.g., elderly residents, young families, members of minority groups) would affect the quality of life in their community