Here's some information for Rams fans looking to get involved with the draft experience.

The 2017 NFL Draft is just a few mere hours away from getting underway, which means theLos Angeles Ramswill be actively looking for anyway to improve the roster ahead of next season.

With that in mind, here are a few quick predictions in how it may all unfold for the Rams over the next few days in the draft:

Take wide receiver early in the draft

It's no secret that the Rams need to find a big playmaking target in the passing game forJared Goffto throw for the 2017 campaign. The addition ofRobert Woodsin free agency helps, but more depth and talent at the position is needed. Keep in mind, Los Angeles has had just one 1,000 receiving yard receiver since the 2007 season which wasKenny Brittlast year. This may likely be at their 37th overall pick in the second round or 69th overall in thethird round when former Rams' greatSteven Jacksonannounces it.

Acquire addition picks

With the Rams not possessing a first round pick in this year's draft due to the massive trade that landed them the first overall selection last April enabling them to take Goff, movement in the other rounds should be expected. The team does possess a solid amount of selections with eight at this current moment, but thefront office is aware of the multitude of needs across the roster. This could see Los Angeles slide down a few slots to aggregatea few more picks in the middle to later rounds.

Add depth to secondary

Although this is a universal need across the league, the Rams possess a greater necessity to gather more viable help in this unit of their defense. The front office may have added some veteran presence with the free agent additions of cornerbacksNickell Robey-Coleman andKayvon Webster, but the team still has question marks in the secondary beyondTrumaine JohnsonandLamarcus Joyner.

Select more offensive linemen

This may sound like beating the same old drum for the Rams over last few years, but there remains a glaring need to improve the offensive line. They have made strung together a couple of solid additions in former Pro BowlerAndrew Whitworthand centerJohn Sullivan, but there are doubts surroundingGreg Robinsonand the long-term durability ofRodger Saffold.

Bob Garcia IV is a staff writer of LARamsReport.com. You can follow him at @bgarcia90 andus on Twitter at@LA_RamsReport.

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Rams' 2017 NFL Draft Predictions - Scout

The Ravens hadnt taken a cornerback in the first three rounds in five straight drafts, a fact team officials attributed to their insistence on sticking to their board and selecting the best player available. With cornerbacks at a premium in the pass-happy NFL, theyve gone far earlier in recent drafts than the Ravens were prepared to select them.

But Ravens assistant general manager Eric DeCosta predicted this draft would be different because of how many talented cornerbacks were available. And when the Ravens were on the clock with the 16th overall pick Thursday night, their board stipulated that it was time to add another piece to their revamped secondary.

Eschewing an opportunity to bring in a linebacker or another target for quarterback Joe Flacco, the Ravens selected Alabama cornerback Marlon Humphrey, a relatively surprising pick given who else was available.

Three other higher-regarded Alabama players defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, tight end O.J. Howard and middle linebacker Reuben Foster were all available when the Ravens decided to take Humphrey.

Humphrey, the Ravens first-round selection, is the son of former NFL running back Bobby Humphrey, a first-round pick by the Denver Broncos in the 1989 supplemental draft.

A two-year starter for the Crimson Tide, Marlon Humphrey had five interceptions and 19 pass breakups in his college career. While there are some questions about his instincts and ball skills, Humphrey is 6 feet and 197 pounds and has the prototypical size, length and speed that teams are looking for in cornerbacks.

Humphrey, an Alabama native and a member of the Crimson Tides national championship-winning team in 2016, was the second cornerback off the board, following Ohio States Marshon Lattimore who went 11th to the New Orleans Saints.

It was well-documented that the Ravens would draft a cornerback, but it was expected to happen on either day two or three of the draft because of how much depth was available at the position. Evaluators have said that this is one of the deepest cornerback classes in draft history.

The Ravens had already signed veteran Brandon Carr in March to join top corner Jimmy Smith and 2016 fourth-round pick Tavon Young, who had a strong rookie year. However, the selection of Humphrey underscores their recent issues at the position as the Ravens have struggled to keep Smith and other cornerbacks healthy and several of their other cover guys have played poorly.

With the additions of Humphrey and Carr, the Ravens are as deep at cornerback as theyve been in a while. Behind their top four, they have three young corners who they believe have potential: Maurice Canady, a sixth-round pick last year, Robertson Daniel and Sheldon Price

Humphrey is the fourth cornerback the Ravens have taken in the first round in team history, following Duane Starks in 1998, Chris McAlister in 1999 and Smith in 2011. After taking Smith with the 27th overall pick, the Ravens had drafted six cornerbacks but all of them were taken in the fourth round or later.

Continuing their offseason secondary overhaul, the Ravens have now added Humprey, Carr and Tony Jefferson, arguably the top free-agent safety available. They re-signed safety Lardarius Webb, a 16-game starter last year, after releasing him earlier in the offseason. Cornerback Jerraud Powers retired and the Ravens moved on from safeties Kendrick Lewis, Matt Elam and Marqueston Huff, and cornerbacks Shareece Wright and Jumal Rolle.

One of the NFL cornerbacks that Humphrey is often compared to is Smith, now his teammate. At his best, Humphrey is extremely aggressive in press coverage at the line of scrimmage and is able to use his size and strength to knock receivers off their routes or funnel them toward the sideline where they cant make a play.

He posted a 4.41 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine so he has the necessary speed to stay with receivers on deep routes, and he also has the acceleration to break on balls quickly. While playing two years in the Southeastern Conference he redshirted as a freshman Humphrey was tested by some of the top receivers in the country.

Humphrey is also a physical player who fights through blocks and is a willing tackler both down the field and taking on running backs at the line of scrimmage.

Humphrey did fight consistency issues at times and some scouts have expressed concern about breakdowns in his technique and eye discipline. His ball skills, an area the Ravens have focused on with their defensive backs in recent years to try to improve the number of forced turnovers, also dont stand out.

However, the Ravens obviously feel comfortable that his skills will translate well to the NFL, and hell provide even more depth to a defense that theyve spent considerable resources trying to improve this offseason.

They are also still expected to add a pass rusher to the group during the draft. The Ravens have six more picks in the three-day draft which continues with rounds two and three Friday. The Ravens have one pick in the second round and two in the third. Rounds four through seven will be on Saturday.

jeff.zrebiec@baltsun.com

twitter.com/jeffzrebiecsun

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Ravens select Alabama CB Marlon Humphrey with No. 16 overall pick in NFL draft - Baltimore Sun

April 25, 2017

MILWAUKEE- The Marquette University womens volleyball team and head coach Ryan Theis have announced the signing of Gabbi Martinez, Liza Kastrup, Kayli Trausch, and Martha Konovodoff to the program. Each of the newcomers will arrive on campus in the summer of 2017 and will be eligible to compete with MU during the 2017 season.

Martinez, a defensive specialist, comes to Marquette after spending four years competing at Westlake High School in Austin, Texas. During her time at Westlake, Martinez recorded 608 career digs and was an AVCA Under Armour All-American Honorable Mention selection in 2016. In her senior season, Martinez served as Westlakes captain and averaged 4.9 digs per set, and led her club team, Austin Juniors, to an 18 USA Division National Championship.

A Sugar Grove, Illinois, native Konovodoff joins Marquette after competing at Rosary High School for the last four seasons. Konovodoff had an illustrious career at Rosary, as she set the school record with 1,660 career digs, won four regional championships, and was named to the Daily Herald all-area team three times. The libero also features an extensive career on the AAU circuit, as she helped her squad capture the 2016 AAU national championship and was named to the JVA All-National Team in 2015.

Kastrup hails from Dortmund, Germany, where she captained her Vice Regional championship teams each of the last two seasons. The right-side hitter was a Federal Cup champion with USC-Munster in 2015, and has played with the squad for the last three years where she was named Most Valuable Player nine times through the 2016-17 season. Kastrup earned the second-place youth practice award for USC-Munster in 2016.

"We are pleased to add these three to our program," said Theis. "They will make our gym extremely competitive this fall and moving forward. All three have big game experience with Martha and Gabbi competing for national championships in the last two years while Liza has competed with Germany's youth national teams and played in big time matches in front of thousands of people. We are looking forward to August."

Trausch arrives in Milwaukee after transferring from McHenry County College, where she served the role of team captain in 2016. While running with MCC, the Barrington, Illinois, native tallied 519 kills, 157 total blocks and 669.5 points en route to helping her team win the 2016 Illinois Skyway Conference championship and the NJCAA Region IV title. Following her strong 2016 campaign, Trausch was named ISC Player of the Year. Prior to her time at MCC, Trausch attended Cary-Grove High School in Fox River Grove, Illinois, where she garnered multiple all-conference and all-area accolades.

Kayli is a late bloomer that we are excited to add the program," stated Theis. "Her story is quite remarkable because she was virtually out of volleyball but decided to give it another try. Kayli came back stronger and better than ever, and after achieving multiple accolades at the Junior College level, she is ready to take on her next challenge.

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Marquette Welcomes Four Additions to the Roster - GoMarquette.com

We all know what May means - the beginning of summer vacation. Once finals are over we will all have a lot of free time on our hands, and what better way to spend that time than relaxing and watching Netflix? There are a total of 75 new shows and films being added, including Forrest Gump (1994) along with new seasons of the popular Netflix original series House of Cards and The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Heres a look at what other films and shows will be coming and going.

Several Netflix original series are coming out with new seasons in May, and as mentioned earlier the fifth season of House of Cards will be released on May 30, which the award-winning political drama starring Kevin Spacey. The lighthearted comedy The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt will come out with season three on May 19. Other originals include the second season of Sense8 being released May 5, season three of Bloodline being released May 26, and the second season of Masters of None starring Aziz Ansari on May 12.

If you are looking for a heavier drama film, Netflix has you covered. The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), starring Ryan Gosling, sports-drama Southpaw (2015), Academy Award winning Inglourious Basterds (2009) and military drama War Machine (2017), based on a true story and stars Brad Pitt.

There are also some romantic movies being added such as Chocolat (2000), which stars Johnny Depp and follows the story of a single mom who moves to France to open up a chocolate shop. Romantic-comedy starring Jennifer Aniston The Break-up (2006) is also being added.

Action/adventure films The Host (2013), based on the novel by Twilight author Stephenie Meyer, and Marvels Doctor Strange (2016) are also new additions.

Other additions include the animated penguin film Happy Feet (2006), cult classic Forrest Gump (1994) and Freeform shows The Fosters and Switched at Birth.

Unfortunately, with the start of a new month there will also be several movies leaving, including all seasons of Scrubs, The Wedding Planner, American Dad, Bobs Burgers, "Good Luck Charlie, "What About Bob?, "Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, "Step Up" and "Fantastic Four. If you want to watch any of these titles, nows your last chance!

The full list of whats coming and going can be found on hollywoodreporter.com.

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What's coming to Netflix in May - UConn Daily Campus

The founder of Wikipedia says he's on a mission to fight fake news.

Jimmy Wales is launching a news platform that will bring journalists together with an army of volunteer fact checkers. He's calling the site "Wikitribune."

Its main goal? Fighting fake news.

"We want to make sure that you read fact-based articles that have a real impact in both local and global events," the publication's website states.

The site will publish news stories written by professional journalists. But in a page borrowed from Wikipedia, internet users will be able to propose factual corrections and additions. The changes will be reviewed by volunteer fact checkers.

Wikitribune says it will be transparent about its sources. It will post the full transcripts of interviews, as well as video and audio, "to the maximum extent possible."

The language used will be "factual and neutral."

"It takes professional, standards-based journalism, and incorporates the radical idea from the world of wiki that a community of volunteers can and will reliably protect the integrity of information," said Wales.

The project will be funded through contributions from supporters, rather than advertising or subscriptions.

Wales said that "Wikitribune" is designed to help counteract fake news spread on social media.

"[Fake news] is literally designed to show us what we want to see, to confirm our biases, and to keep us clicking at all cost," Wales said. "It fundamentally breaks the news."

But experts are skeptical.

Charlie Beckett, a professor at the London School of Economics, said that while any initiative that boosts trust and transparency in journalism is welcome, the danger is that it will appeal to the sort of people who are already "media literate."

"I wonder whether it will be able to scale up to make a significant impact on the information sphere -- especially on social networks such as Facebook where the main problems of fake news and misinformation occur," he added.

Wikipedia itself has been accused of hosting misleading or inaccurate information. At 10 edits per second, the internet encyclopedia has sometimes found it difficult to fight those who deliberately make false claims.

In recent years, the site has invested in new tech to identify what it calls "Wikipedia vandalism." It has also hired more administrators to police the site.

Wikipedia recently barring citations of The Daily Mail after branding the tabloid newspaper as "generally unreliable."

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Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales is launching a news website - ABC15 Arizona

Jason Munz , Southern Miss Sports Writer 8:58 a.m. CT April 25, 2017

Southern Miss football coach Jay Hopson spoke to reporters after Saturday's spring game. Jason Munz/Hattiesburg American

Southern Miss football coach Jay Hopson looks on during Saturday's Black and Gold spring game.(Photo: Adriana Garcia/Hattiesburg American)Buy Photo

Southern Miss closed the book on spring camp last week, the second under coach Jay Hopson.

Before it got going in March, Hopson was anticipating a fun and competitive 15 practices. Now that its over, here are the five biggest questions the Golden Eagles are facing between now and early August, when the team is allowed to get back on the practice field.

We still dont know. And very likely wont until at least a couple of weeks before the season opener (Sept. 2 versus Kentucky).

Overall, though, the general consensus is Kwadra Griggs had the better spring of the two quarterbacks. But only by a very slim margin. And a lot can happen in two months time. It wouldnt be shocking if Keon Howard shows up in August having made big strides and surpasses Griggs.

QBs still neck-and-neck as USM wraps up spring camp

Southern Miss has a lot of playmakers at the skill positions offensively. In the spring, Jordan Mitchell, Trevor Terry and Quez Watkins joined the likes of Allenzae Staggers, Korey Robertson, Chase Whitehead, Julian Allen and JayShawn Washington as talented pass catchers capable of making big plays for the Golden Eagle offense.

We all know Ito Smith will get the ball a ton this fall. But what about Tez Parks? Or George Payne? Both running backs either performed well enough this spring or have enough of a solid track record to warrant increased roles.

Excellent question, glad you asked.

The answer: I dont know.

Hopson praised the work of veteran Devin Farrior, while also talking up youngsters Drake Dorbeck and Arvin Fletcher. Jerry Harris and Hayden McMahan spent the spring working at left tackle, while Ty Pollard sat camp out while recovering from an injury. And it appears Tyler Stutzman is the frontrunner to land the starting center job, although Wyatt Richthofen isnt far behind.

But Cru Birdyshaw, Justus Satterfield and Woodlyson Alcius showed flashes. Not to mention the additions that will be made to that position group post-spring, in the form of junior college transfer Jimmie Terry and the much-ballyhooed incoming freshman Paul Gainer.

So, a lot to sort out by September.

Things were looking good halfway through spring camp for Southern Miss defensive line.

Most of the teams biggest contributors from a year ago were set to return and the coaching staff added Delmond Landry as well as a couple of others who did not play last season (Allen Fails, Jacques Turner, etc.).

One of the key players along the line last season was Xavier Thigpen. But the senior pass rushing specialist was absent from the last several practice sessions and did not play in the annual Black and Gold spring game.

Hopson said Thigpen is still a part of the team but did not go into any further detail. So it remains to be seen whether hell rejoin the team for fall camp.

He could be. At least part of the solution, anyway.

Southern Miss has a giant need for quality linebackers. Sherrod Ruff missed spring due to injury, which has been a recurring problem for him throughout his Golden Eagle career. And that makes it all the more imperative for the team to come up with more options for that position.

Sangster led the way in spring there and he put an exclamation point on it with a 40-plus yard interception return for a touchdown that won the spring game for his team.

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5 burning questions for Southern Miss post-spring - Hattiesburg American

But just asfrightening are the additions of former staffers from two anti-immigrant hate groups to two federal immigration agencies (because of course): the Center for Immigration StudiesJon Feere to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Federation for American Immigration Reforms Julie Kirchner toCustoms and Border Protection. Both CIS and FAIR, founded by white nationalist, eugenicist, and retired eye doctorJohn Tanton, have been designated hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center:

Papers from Tantons library showhe has for decades been at the heart of the white nationalist scene. He has corresponded with Holocaust deniers, former Klan lawyers and the leading white nationalist thinkers of the era.And according to Think Progress,Tanton is a strictnativistwho once wrote a paper titled The Case for Passive Eugenics. Charming.

Both CIS and FAIRdisown SPLCsfact-finding and claim they just want to reform the legal immigration system, but the truth is they want to stop brown people from coming to the U.S. And the ones that are already here, theywant out.Weve worked closely with lots of people, who are now very well placed in his administration, for a long time, FAIRs president, Dan Stein, admitted about the allies he and other anti-immigrant extremists now have in the White House. With an unshackled ICE sweeping up hardworking, undocumented immigrants with no criminal history and deep ties to this nation, thats been very clear so far.

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Hate group leader: Our allies 'are now very well placed' in the Trump administration - Daily Kos

Here is what you need to know about New Jersey's school funding formula. Some say it's time to change, but is that an option? Wochit | Amanda Oglesby

What to know about the 2017-2018 budget passed by Freehold Borough Public Schools.(Photo: FACT LIST BY STEPH SOLIS)

FREEHOLD BOROUGH -- Years of requests for more school fundinghave become a demand for millions of dollars after public school officials approved a resolution Monday to sue the Department of Education for the money.

Officials representing the borough school district, one of the most underfunded in New Jersey, say the state owes it millions of dollars in state aid this year alone according to the school funding formula.

"This is the start of the process but one that's been years in the making," said Joseph Howe, the school's business administrator. "The board feels at this point that they have no other choice but to bring this action, absent a solid plan from the administration, from the legislature to remedy theunder-adequacyof the district."

Since the start of the year, school officials made public appeals for additional state aid this budget season, includinga news conferenceMondaymorningin Trentonaswhere Education Commissioner Kimberley Harrington testified before the Assembly Budget Committee.

When grilled by legislators over underfunded districts, Harrington acknowledged that school funding remains a problem but said the problem lies with the formula as well. She referred to Gov. Chris Christie's budget address in February, in which he challenged lawmakers to come up with a new school funding formula within 100 days.

David Saens, a spokesman for the NJ Department of Education, said the agency could not comment because he was "not aware of this particular resolution from the Freehold Borough School Board and we have not received any formal documents regarding it."

The district will be represented by and Bruce Padula and Micci Weiss from the law firm Cleary, Giacobbe, Alfieri & Jacobs. Howe said they expect to file a complaint to the state Superior Court over the next couple of weeks.

School officials say there are 369 underfunded districts and 222 that are overfunded, or receive more than 100 percent of what they should under the state's school funding formula.

Education policy experts blame Gov. Chris Christie's administration for declining to increase education funding in the budget over his two terms, while increasing funding for charter and choice schools.

"Make no mistake, Governor Christie is directly responsible for the painful cuts schools must make again this year - whether in Kingsway Regional, Freehold Borough, Clifton, Bayonne, Newton or a host of other districts across the state," said David Sciarra, executive director of the Newark-based Education Law Center.

Christie, who called the school funding formula a "disaster," has called for an alternative strategy for funding public schools.

Meanwhile, the state Department of Education has continued to distribute aid to districts based on the 2008 results of the school funding formula even though some districts' enrollment dropped and others', like Freehold Borough and Red Bank's, surged during that period of time. These districts also saw an increase in students who are low-income, at risk or take English as a Second Language, which are other variables considered in the formula.

This year, the borough received $9.7 million in state aid this year, $12 million less than it should per the school funding formula.

FREEHOLD'S SCHOOL FUNDING BATTLE:

Four ways to improve N.J. school funding

Will there be enough teachers for Freehold's new classrooms?

Freehold, Red Bank public schools push for more state aid

The state awarded Freehold Borough schools $25 million last year to fund new classrooms and building additions to ease the district's overcrowding, following two failed referendums to fund the construction locally.

The school district, which has more than 1,700 students, currently only has enough space for 1,148. The new construction would bring the district's capacity to 1,589.

Rocco Tomazic told the Press he was grateful for the construction grants but worried whether he would have enough teachers to staff the new classroomsdown the road. The district faced a $380,000 budget shortfall and contemplating cutting 10 positions, even though Tomazic repeatedly said the district is 50 teachers short.

The district used $275,347 from unassigned reserves, in addition to some of its surplus from previous years to balance the budget. It also had to eliminate a technology teacher position, which it had previously outsourced.

Padula, an attorney representing the district. says that while hundreds of school districts are underfunded, Freehold Borough is unique in that the district cannot meet its requirements to provide a "thorough and efficient" education to its students without the state aid.

"We believe the facts will demon that the funding that the state provides the district does not comply with its constitutional mandate to provide a thorough and efficient education," Padula said.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Steph Solis: 732-403-0074; ssolis@gannett.com

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Freehold Borough passes resolution to sue state over school funding - Asbury Park Press

This is one of our largest second story addition projects that we have ever designed. In total, there is 1,566 square feet of new living space.

This home addition was built onto our very own New Yorker Cape custom home. The addition itself measures 37' by 43'. With that amount of space, it was really easy to outfit this design with two large bedrooms and one exceptionally large master suite.

The master suite includes its own master bath (which we rendered in a few different styles), and a large 14' by 6' walk-in closet.

Since this second story addition has so many bedrooms, we also included another full bath and a laundry room, so its occupants can stay clean without having to lug hampers up and down the staircase.

This home extension was also estimated with a full extension of the existing HVAC system. The price below actually reflects additional duct work as well as a furnace upgrade with multi-zone control.

Lastly, we could have added another bathroom, family room, or home theater, but instead we outfitted a large space to be used as a home office.

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The Grand Second Story Addition Design - Extensions ...

New Milford Borough Hall.(Photo: Philip DeVencentis/NorthJersey.com)

What's new:The Borough Council has proposed a $20.7 million budget for 2017 that would raise municipal taxes by less than 1 percent.

Thebudget isup $162,035, or a fraction of1percent, from last year. It is supported byatax levy of $16.36 million,up $17,059from last year.

What it means:Themunicipaltax rate would remain $1.035per $100 of assessed valuationfor the second straight year.The owner of a home assessed at the boroughs average of $325,511 would see no changetohis or her municipal tax bill of $3,369.

Boroughofficials saythe tax rate is staying flat, in the face of amodesttax levy increase, because theboroughs ratable base ortotal taxable valuation is going up.

Mayor AnnSubrizisaidratablesincreased by more than $11 million over the past two years.

There is a tremendous amount of additions and things going on in the southwest corner of town that could easilyaccount for millions of dollars, she said. We have a lot of people investing in New Milford, and our home values are increasing, so that creates a bigger ratable base.

What's in it:Theproposed budget includes the followingincreases:

Several of the most significantbudget increasesare out of theborough's direct control,Subrizisaid.

About $1.5 million in surplus would be applied to the proposed budget.

Subrizisaid officialsarecontrolling theuse ofsurplus and stretchingcosts formajorprojects, so that residents are not wallopedwithonehuge bill.The proposed budget projects the followingdebt-service payments, including those for bonds, interest and other loans:$1.05 millionthis year, $1.03 millionnext year and $1.02 millionin 2019.

Referring to major projects either finished or ongoing, the mayor said, In spite of the fact that we bonded for the police station, the firehouses and [remediation of] the brook, we did it at a time when all of our other debt was paid off. Andwe were able to spread it out in a moderate fashion, at a very low interest rate.

Theborough will receive $1.62 million instate aid this year, the same amount it received last year.

What's next:A public hearing on the2017 budget will be Monday at 8 p.m.at Borough Hall, at930 River Road.The council is also expected to vote on adoption of the budget that night.

Email: devencentis@northjersey.com

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At a glance: 2017 New Milford budget - NorthJersey.com