Quick hits: Released prisoners need better access to jobs; cloud-seeding may not help much with drought

Here's a roundup of stories with rural resonance; if you do or see similar work that should be shared on The Rural Blog, email us at heather.chapman@uky.edu.

Several drought-stricken states are experimenting with cloud seeding to bring rain. But it's not a simple process, and not as promising as they might have hoped. Read more here.

Though Congress passed a law requiring states to report the number of people who have died in custody, it was never properly implemented, so the federal government doesn't have reliable statistics on how many people die in U.S. jails and prisons each year. That matters for a lot of reasons, including accountability. Read more here.

Rural white people and Blacks face the same high barriers to finding a job after imprisonment, putting both groups at similarly high risk of recidivism, a study found. The study found strong links between unemployment, "fatherlessness" as a result of having a parent in prison, and child poverty in rural areas, much the same as in urban areas. The study found that long-term imprisonment is associated with these issues, but not short-term stints in jail. Policies that make it easier for former prisoners to find work could significantly reduce recidivism and improve child welfare. Read more here.

The Rural Health Information Hub has an updated backgrounder guide on Rural Emergency Preparedness and Response. Read more here.