Eureka

While Utah County commissioners patted themselves on the back for passing a new budget without a tax increase (and even complained about it being too high), Sheriff Jim Tracy sighed in frustration.

"You guys have your Kevlar on?"

A slowdown in housing construction in Utah is taking the edge off the state's once-sizzling job market, according to a report released Tuesday by the state Department of Workforce Services.

The Better Business Bureau in Utah is warning the public to watch out for bogus eBay sellers when shopping online for tickets to Brigham Young University's upcoming football game against the University of California, Los Angeles in Las Vegas. BYU plays UCLA in the Las Vegas Bowl at 6 p.m. Mountain Time on Saturday.

Every spring high school seniors anxiously await letters from colleges and universities telling them whether they've gotten into the dream school or if they will have to look somewhere else. Admissions deadlines are fast approaching and students who want to enroll next fall need to get cracking. The priority deadline at Brigham Young University has already passed and applications for next fall are due Feb. 1.

Winter is back and people are flocking to the mountains for fun in the snow. But avalanches are a constant threat during the winter, so before you start exploring the back country outside the boundaries of your favorite ski resort, make sure you know how to stay safe.

The state Office of Education will have to relinquish grant information from BYU researchers about how to better train math teachers.

Even if it looks like the flu shot might hurt, you better not cry, you better not pout, Santa Claus could be watching. He came to Provo on Wednesday to get a flu shot of his own, and he didn't even wince.

The forfeiture of millions of dollars in criminal assets and lengthy prison terms are among penalties sought by the U.S. Attorney's Office against six Utahns accused of running an illegal mortgage scheme to inflate the value of several high-end homes in the affluent Riverbottoms neighborhood in Provo, according to a federal court document unsealed Tuesday.

The executives of a now defunct American Fork-based charity that had promised hundreds of school districts "free" fitness equipment in what turned out to be a Ponzi scheme, were ordered to pay $39.1 million in restitution and serve lengthy prison terms, a federal judge in Minneapolis ruled on Friday.

COUNTYWIDE

Every year, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals receives complaints about dogs who are left outside in the cold. Although they have fur coats, dogs and other animals can still suffer from frostbite, exposure and dehydration when water sources freeze.

Energy drinks have become immensely popular in recent years, especially with youth, but some health officials are working to restrict how the drinks are sold.

Pat Bird, prevention manager for the Utah County Division of Substance Abuse, said manufacturers have used misleading labeling to help sell energy drinks which contain alcohol.