The 2013 legislative session began with a unanimous vote in the House and the Senate to appropriate emergency funding for additional Child Protective Services staff. With that vote, lawmakers affirmed child safety as a top priority.

It probably doesn’t show up on your calendar, but May is Disability Insurance Awareness Month. And you might agree that such a month is useful, when you consider the following:

Bill Richardson’s views on the gun control debate get a frequent and wide airing in the AFN. Unfortunately, his arguments against stronger gun laws are absurd.

If you work for an employer who offers a benefits package that includes life insurance and disability income insurance, consider yourself fortunate. But you can’t necessarily consider yourself fully protected. And if you don’t have appropriate life and disability insurance, your long-term financial goals could be at risk.

Connecting to Serve and the Ahwatukee Community Network would like to extend our gratitude to our panelists and the victims of domestic violence who attended our special forum on this serious issue April 16 at Mountain Park Senior Living.

• Police took a report of a single vehicle car accident around 8 a.m. on April 9 near the 2500 block of East Thunderhill Place. A 16-year-old driver lost control of her vehicle and crashed into a large saguaro cactus, demolishing the cactus. There were no injuries but the driver was cited for failure to control speed to avoid collision. The saguaro was on the side of the road and was valued at more than $6,000. The driver’s car, a 2008 Ford Mustang, was totaled.
• At 9 p.m. on April 9 near the 9600 block of South 46th Street an adult female was arrested, accused of knowingly striking her mother.
• Police responded to a call of an abandoned motorcycle on April 10 at 5:30 a.m. in the desert near Pecos and 40th Street. The 2011 Honda Sport motorcycle was stolen and abandoned.
• On April 12 at 8:45 p.m. police took a report of an identity theft in the 4600 block of East Lavender Lane. The victim claimed someone had gotten a hold of their Social Security number and information and used their credit cards. At 9:40 p.m. on April 12 police responded to a shoplifting call near the 4600 block of East Chandler Boulevard. An adult female was arrested. Police were called back to the area at 10:52 p.m. for a shoplifter in custody. When police made contact with the suspect they found he was also in possession of dangerous drugs. He was arrested.
• At 11:20 p.m. on April 12 police responded to a hit and run accident. A man is accused of driving eastbound in the westbound lanes on Ray Road near the 3100 block of East Ray Road. His car side swiped by another car. The person in that vehicle followed the driver who went to a home in the Equestrian Estates area. Police responded to the home and arrested the man for suspicion of driving impaired.
• At 12:45 p.m. on April 13 police got a call of a theft in the 5100 block of East Guadalupe Road. The victim said a person had taken furniture they had for sale without paying. Two suspects were identified. Between 1 and 2 p.m. police responded to a call of a theft from a residence near the 13800 block of South 44th Street on April 13. A suspect accused of stealing jewelry from the home has been identified.
• Around 4:30 p.m. on April 13 police responded to a burglary from vehicle near the 5000 block of East Ray Road. A house key and a package of cigarettes were taken.
• Police responded to a shoplifting incident at 8:30 p.m. on April 13 near the 4000 block of East Chandler Boulevard. The suspects exited the store without paying for two bottles of vodka. The suspects were not located.
• Police responded to a call of a runaway 16-year-old around 8:30 p.m. on April 14. The teen lived near the 5100 block of East La Puente Drive.
• Police responded to a domestic violence incident around 11:10 p.m. on April 14 near the 3400 block of East Chandler Boulevard. The incident was between an adult brother and sister. There were no arrests, but an order of protection will be issued.
• Police arrested an 18-year-old man for impaired driving around 2:47 a.m. on April 14 near the 1400 block of East Chandler Boulevard. Police received a report of a vehicle broken into on April 6 at the Pima Mountain Trailhead, 9400 South 48th Street. A 2012 Chevy Malibu was broken into and a wedding ring, purse, wallet and various tools were taken. Police estimate a loss of $1,600. Another vehicle was broken into at the same location on April 17 around 1 p.m. A diaper bag was taken from that vehicle.

Dear Mikey,

Week of March 25 through April 1

House Bill 2204 helps to continue health care benefits to families that have lost a police officer, firefighter, or corrections officer in the line of duty. The bill was signed into law Friday by Gov. Jan Brewer.

According to the Government Accountability Office, the federal government operates 50 different programs for the homeless. There are 23 programs in housing, 26 for food and nutrition, 130 for at-risk youth. They also operate an astounding 342 programs for economic development, which government is notoriously bad at anyway.

A House panel voted Wednesday to void parts of local anti-discrimination ordinances designed to give protections to transgendered individuals.

Last week was National Poison Prevention Week and the Arizona Humane Society (AHS) is reminding pet owners to keep their pets out of harm’s way. According to The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), its Animal Poison Control Center answers more than 200,000 calls for help annually.

The Arizona Board of Regents will start the process next month to see if there are ways that some illegal immigrant "dreamers'' can qualify for lower tuition than they now have to pay.

This year’s Fore the Dogs Golf Event was the most successful event in Valley Dogs history, raising more than $10,000 and giving away more than 100 prizes.

The Volunteer Nonprofit Service Association, Inc. (VNSA) announced the total amount of money raised from its 57th Annual Used Book Sale Feb. 16-17 was approximately $390,000. The VNSA is an all-volunteer organization. Entire proceeds of the book sale are donated to Valley human service agencies.

Sitting in a wing catty-corner from the front office at Desert Vista High School, nestled behind an outdoor play area, Thunder Tykes preschool has catered to children of school staff and other local residents since 1996.

Q: I use Microsoft Security Essentials as my “seatbelt” for protection, plus I am as careful as possible. Is this enough or should I get Trend Micro. Not both, right? — Jonathan

Arizona is on the verge of shutting the door on the ability of players for Arizona's professional sports teams to file workers' compensation claims elsewhere, even if that's where they were injured.

Gov. Jan Brewer rallied doctors and nurses at the Capitol on Tuesday in her bid to get the necessary votes to expand the state's Medicaid program.

Attorneys for Gov. Jan Brewer told a federal judge Monday there is no legal basis to order the state to immediately provide driver's licenses to certain illegal immigrants immediately since they are not being harmed.

In the past, many people stayed at one job, or at least one company, for almost their entire working lives. When they retired, they could typically count on a pension, the value of which was based on their years of service and earnings. But today, workers can expect to hold several different jobs in their lifetime, and to a great extent, pensions have been replaced by 401(k) plans, which place much of the funding responsibility on employees. So, assuming you will change jobs at some point, and you do have a 401(k), what should you do with it?

Service clubs in Ahwatukee Foothills are busy year-round working on projects to help kids and families in the community but one project, honoring first responders, was big enough to bring all of them together.

Gov. Jan Brewer recently signed into law the first bill of the 2013 legislative session — an emergency appropriation measure that will allow the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) to immediately hire 50 new full-time employees within Child Protective Services (CPS).

Question: Is there an easy way to see if I have a hidden keylogger on my Windows 7 computer before I start doing my taxes? — Don

If you’re planning to get remarried, you have plenty of company: More than 40 percent of all U.S. weddings are second marriages for at least one of the participants, according to an estimate by the National Stepfamily Resource Center. Naturally, a second marriage will bring many changes to your life — not the least of which may be changes in your financial strategy and goals.