Al's Morning Meeting

When mad cow disease scared consumers, the U.S. Department of Agriculture responded with a National Animal Identification System to track animals from birth to the butcher shop.

The government knew it needed a way to "help producers and animal health officials respond quickly and effectively to animal disease events in the United States," as the Government Accountability Office said.

But ranchers and farmers complained that the system, which already cost more than $142 million to develop, was so cumbersome that it would drive small producers out of business. Barely one-third of the producers signed up.

Now, the USDA says, the plan is dead. ...

Read on to find out how the USDA plans to come up with a satisfactory way to trace animal diseases.

In 2005, the federal government launched a plan to build a $6.7 billion virtual fence along the U.S.-Mexico border. But the government has spent only $672 million and plans to cut spending to $574 million next year. The fence was to be completed next year. Now it won't be done before 2014, if at all.

The Associated Press reported:

"Ultimately, the project could be scaled back dramatically, with the government installing virtual fences along a few segments of the nation's 2,000-mile southern boundary but dropping plans for any further expansion, officials said."

Read on to find out more about what might happen to the "virtual fence" idea.

This is an investigation that reveals nothing less than a sort of human trafficking involving senior citizens. It works like this: One person owns a property and gets approval to house a handful of senior citizens to live there. The owner of the home then sells the property as a business. The buyer buys the home and the old folks inside. The buyer may know nothing about taking care of seniors, especially those with dementia.

When I contacted Seattle Times investigative reporter Michael J. Berens last week, he apologized for taking a little while to get back to me. Since the paper and its Web site launched his project on "adult family homes," he has been flooded with hundreds of calls and e-mails from readers.

"I've done long-term projects for many years. Yet this topic has resonated with readers unlike any other," he told me. "I think our videos create a powerful companion to the stories." The investigation, he added, is just the beginning of a year-long effort to examine the system.

Read on for a Q&A with Seattle Times investigative reporter Michael J. Berens about how he found the subjects for his series and why he thinks this is a national problem.

If you own one of those Toyotas that was just recalled, your vehicle is worth about 5 percent less than it was a few weeks ago.

USA Today said two of the most important auto valuation services, Kelley Blue Book and ALG, estimate that the recalls could lead to an estimated 5 percent depreciation value over the period of time it takes to fix the recalled vehicles:

Read on to find out what experts say about whether Toyota owners should sell or keep their cars.

States are about to start snagging tax refunds from parents who are past due on child support payments. And the number of overdue payments is growing because of the recession.

In Tennessee, for example, the state says it is collecting less in child support than it did last year, the first decline in a decade.

Some parents are going back to court to have their child support payments reduced because, they say, the payments were based on a full-time job that they no longer have.

Read on about the steps governments are taking to keep child support flowing in difficult times.