News 6 Mashup: Jan. 31, 2022
Here is this week’s News 6 mashup of stories for the week of Jan. 31, 2022, straight from AWN News 6 Correspondent, Jolene McNutt:
Utility Bills Coming Back to Military Housing
Due to rising energy prices, residents of privatized military housing will be soon be paying utility bills, reported Military Times. The policy memo was issued on December 16 to all military branches, however, according to Military Times, “the timeline and details are unclear.” The program falls under the Resident Energy Conservation Program and is “designed to monetarily reward tenants who conserve energy and charge more to those who don’t.”
Free Tax Software for Service Members
The Department of Defense announced the continued partnership with free tax software for military members. You can access the software through Military OneSource. The e-filing software walks users through a step-by-step process to file their taxes. “Service members and spouses also have free access to MilTax consultants who are versed in recent changes to tax law and specially trained to know all the nuances of filing taxes in the military.”
Free Online Classes for Military Spouses
Military spouses can access free online courses on learning platform Udemy through June 29, 2022. Courses are on-demand and flexible and will help you enhance your current skills, learn new skills and stay up to date on industry trends. Some classes are designed to help learners prepare for certifications in areas including cloud computing, information security, project management, accounting and more. Get started by contacting a SECO career center by calling 800-342-9647 or texting MilLife SECO to 468311.
This Week in History
It was 1975. A McDonald’s restaurant in Sierra Vista, Arizona next to Fort Huachuca was thriving on the local military population. However, strict military rules prohibited soldiers from wearing their uniforms in public. Changing in and out of uniform just took too long for soldiers to get a quick lunch in town. According to RVTravel.com the owner of the McDonald’s, David Rich, had an idea. “He cut a hole in the side wall of his restaurant. This allowed military personnel to remain inside their cars.” The drive thru caught on – and now we enjoy drive throughs for coffee, our banking, ice cream shop, and even to get married! Yes, in Las Vegas, for $79 you can drive through a wedding tunnel. Sometimes those military rules pay off!
I cannot even with how the drive-thru window was essentially a product of military rules and regs. One of my fave News 6 tidbits, possibly of all time. THANK YOU, Jolene!