Q. How much total foreign aid did the United States pay out last year?
-- Ann Barnes, Lilburn
A. U.S. foreign assistance was $39.4 billion in fiscal year 2010 -- the highest amount since 1985 -- according to a congressional report, "Foreign Aid: An Introduction to U.S. Programs and Policy," released on Feb. 11. The U.S. Agency for International Development and the State Department, the primary administrators of U.S. foreign assistance, provided $10.38 billion in security-related assistance; $10.93 billion for health, education, and social welfare programs; $3.64 billion for governance programs; $5.21 billion for economic growth activities; and $4.98 billion in humanitarian assistance, the report said. The countries receiving the most aid were Afghanistan, Israel, Pakistan, Egypt and Haiti, which was hit by an earthquake on Jan. 12, 2010.
Q. With indoor sports arenas, how are seats and aisles cleaned, presuming water is not or cannot be used?
-- Martha Hunt, Hoschton
A. For seats, trash is picked up on the first pass. They are wiped down with a neutral cleaner on the second pass and then, if the seats are cloth, they are shampooed, Charlotte Jensen-Murphy, vice president and director of national sales for ABM Industries, a facilities services company, told Q&A on the News in an email. For floors, trash is picked up on the first pass and then smaller pieces of trash are swept. The seats are cleaned by backpack vacuums and then wet mopped on the third pass. "The entire process is handled with teams that are assigned to specific sections -- so each section may have two or three people, each with their own task, rolling through the rows," Jensen-Murphy said.
Lori Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
About the Author
