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4 weeks, 10,000 traffic tickets Heath officials say they didn't expect such a windfall Saturday, August 1, 2009 3:01 AM By Josh Jarman THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH HEATH, Ohio -- City officials say they were shocked by the number of violations recorded during the first month of traffic-camera enforcement and decided to make it cheaper to protest multiple tickets. More than 10,000 violations had been recorded by Heath traffic cameras through Tuesday. At $100 apiece, that would net the city a little more than $830,000 after paying the vendor, Redflex, its share. In four weeks, the cameras will have generated an...

They deliberately twist and use that class-envy reaction under the big lie of fairness, to gain even more control of the economy and then use that control for their ends and best interests, not the nation's. So this is why flat tax, Fair Tax, works. This arbitrary setting of rates based on what Obama thinks is rich, leads to even further diversions and divisions in the country among the population. Plus it doesn't raise any money! You know, the fascinating thing? If you were listening yesterday and you heard me say you didn't want to listen and you didn't want...

It is absolutely mind boggling how people continue to confuse higher tax rates with higher tax revenues. Numerous pundits continue to argue that we need to raise tax rates to fund the growing budget deficit. But raising tax rates is one sure way of making sure the budget deficit grows even larger.

Mark Schuster and Jeffrey Webb are immigrants of a different sort. So are Lynn Adler and Paige Warren. The gay American couples resettled in Massachusetts, where they are treated -- legally and socially -- like any other married folks. They moved in part because they wanted their children to grow up in a welcoming environment.... This month marks the fifth anniversary of Massachusetts' breakthrough -- opening marriage to gay couples: More than 12,000 have since tied the knot there. Three new studies document wonderful results: Gay matrimony has been a $111 million boost to the state's economy. The average gay...

Libya's executive and legislative bodies have voted to delay an oil distribution scheme of Muammar Gaddafi, the state news agency Jana has reported. The Libyan leader, who has advocated handing out oil revenues directly to the people to beat endemic corruption in the government, would have distributed about $32bn this year alone. The results of the vote were announced at a meeting of the General Public Congress (GPC) at Gaddafi's home town, Sirte, on Tuesday. Only 64 of the 468 Basic People Congresses (LBPCs), or municipalities, voted for Gaddafi's plan to hand out the money now, while 251 endorsed the...

California collected just $7.34 billion in personal income tax payments in April, putting further stress on the state's budget. The state controller's office said the collections in April were down from $13 billion a year earlier. About a quarter of all income tax revenue is collected in April, the agency said. In addition, the dismal April means the state is falling behind the revenue forecasts incorporated into the budget deal adopted by the Legislature in February.

I am struck by the lack of coverage in the media of the obvious beneficiary of the rise in Somali piracy. Let's just ask the question; who stands to gain from this phenomenon? It's pretty simple really. The piracy in the northern Indian Ocean raises large sums of money for fundamentalist Mullahs and puts a big hurt on Suez Canal traffic. This piracy is a de facto extension of the strategy behind the assassination of Anwar Sadat and busloads of foreign tourists. This is an attack on world trade and the civilian government of a sovereign nation by a coordinated...

It's been all over the news - Rush Limbaugh packing up camp and abandoning his operations in New York City. It's been the subject of a Jon Stewart "The Daily Show" tirade [0] and even drew the attention of New York Gov. David Paterson [0]. Limbaugh appeared on Fox News Channel's April 8 "Your World with Neil Cavuto" [1] and explained why he was leaving and how he felt about those that were glad he was leaving. "Well, if they're glad I'm leaving, Neil, then I assume that the governor of New York, the unelected governor - has no interest...

Surprise. Surprise. The California deficit is climbing again. Despite the recent budget “deal,” the deficit is on the rise again. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) says that the deficit – even with the claimed “12.5 billion” in tax increases - will be another $8 billion dollars. Time and again, Republicans in and out of the legislature have rightfully claimed that the California has a spending problem. Our Politicalvanguard.com CA Spending Addition Chart also makes that same case. The obscene, March 16, 2009, Sacramento Bee story indicating that the State payroll has risen by 2000 employees over the last year -...

A Duncanville City Council member wants to re-evaluate how the city issues citations to red-light runners and make it easier for suspected violators to request a jury trial. Paul Ford questions the nearly 45,000 citations issued in 2008 at four intersections monitored by cameras. Compared with Duncanville's population of 38,500, he said, the number of citations seems excessive. Ford will ask fellow council members to vote on a proposal at tonight's council meeting that would allow suspected violators to ask for a jury trial in municipal court. But City Manager Kent Cagle said Duncanville already allows for jury trials. Ford...

AUGUSTA, Maine — Like many Mainers, Marion Dunham relishes the chance to enjoy the peace and beauty of the region’s lakes from her kayak. Dunham said she would even be willing to donate a few dollars more to help support the services provided by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. But change that voluntary donation into a mandatory canoe or kayak license and lawmakers have lost the Readfield resident’s support. “I’m sorry, it’s a tax,” Dunham told state lawmakers on Tuesday. For years, policymakers have struggled to find a way to generate more revenues from the significant portion of...

Rent car in suburbs, pay Chicago? 8% TAX | Enterprise sues city over attempt to force collection February 24, 2009 BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter How would you like to rent a car in Waukegan or St. Charles, only to be slapped with the 8 percent "transaction tax" that applies to Chicago car rentals? Brace yourself. With a burgeoning $50.5 million budget gap, Chicago is reaching into suburban pockets. And Enterprise Rent-a-Car has filed a lawsuit challenging the Daley administration's effort to collect the tax from drivers who rent cars in the suburbs. » Click to enlarge image Enterprise...

California is going through a state budget crisis and has been going through chronic and persistent budget problems for over a decade. California chooses not to use its offshore oil or develop more nuclear power. Some environmentalists will say that the oil and nuclear power would not be enough to solve the energy problems of the United States. However, this will show that California could get $5-10 billion per year of tax revenue from the development of 10 billion barrels of oil and 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Also, the development of nuclear energy could offset electricity purchases...

Our late colleague Jim Boulet last year unearthed the facts here and here and here on how the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) ‘localism' schemes could shut down or inhibit talk radio. Last Thursday, Ishmael Jones, nom de plume of a former officer in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) clandestine service, gave his take on the danger radio ‘localism' poses to free political speech in his American Thinker article "What the CIA's Censors Can Teach Us about Plans to Muzzle Talk Radio" here. Here is Ishmael Jones on this Administration and their possible ‘localism' approach to shutting down political speech on...

California could pay the price for the foreclosure crisis for years to come, thanks to Proposition 13, the 1978 voter initiative that caps property taxes. As banks feverishly dump foreclosed homes at cut-rate prices, and as neighboring homes change hands at similar bargain-basement rates, those amounts are enshrined as the new basis for determining property tax until the homes are sold again. Under Prop. 13, that basis can rise a maximum of just 2 percent a year, even if the home is worth significantly more. The consequence is likely to be a revenue crunch for the public services funded by...

Governor Warns of Mass Firing 20 January 2009 Penza's governor on Monday proposed firing bureaucrats to help the region get its economy back on track, telling his Cabinet that as many as 40 percent of them could be without work in the coming months. The region is facing "difficult times" because businesses' incomes are falling, which is taking a toll on the amount of taxes the region is collecting, Penza Governor Vasily Bochkaryov told the regional government, Interfax reported. To survive the crisis, he said, the region must seek to develop small businesses, and government officials are well-equipped to help...

Speeding? You'll pay higher 'taxes' Watch out, leadfoots: Many strapped cities and towns are trying to fix their budgets by stepping up traffic enforcement. By Christopher Solomon MSN Money Here's a tip for the next time you're barreling down U.S. 425 through northeastern Louisiana: If you see a sign that reads "Baskin Town Limits," slow down. Way down. Baskin has been expecting you. Between 2004 and 2006, little Baskin (population about 200) got 87% of its town budget from speeding tickets, the highest percentage of 304 Louisiana municipalities surveyed. "It is primarily a tool in many communities to raise revenue,"...

Nothing but trouble comes out of Serbia? Don't you believe it. The country that gave us Gavrilo Princip -- the assassin who started the ball rolling for World War I -- has now redeemed itself by giving us Rod Blagojevich, a governor whose conduct may offer a whole new paradigm in state government financing. Gov. Blagojevich's snuffling around in the muck for the juiciest truffle he could get in exchange for Obama's former Senate seat -- an appointment that he found himself happily holding in the palm of his trotter -- may seem distasteful to the brahmins and puritans among...

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – California's general fund revenues in November were $1.3 billion, or 18.5 percent below expectations, suggesting the government of the most populous U.S. state could run out of money as early as February, State Controller John Chiang said on Tuesday. "November blew away even the most pessimistic estimates, with general fund revenue down $1.3 billion," Chiang said in a statement. "These receipts could expand our immediate cash problem by another half a billion dollars, with no recovery in sight." "According to projections from last month, all general and special funds will be exhausted by March 2009 when...

California's financial free fall is likely to get much worse before it gets better, spreading from the statehouse to every other level of government, including schools, cities, counties and the special districts that fight fires, maintain parks and levees and run libraries. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and state lawmakers are already grappling with an expected drop in revenue from taxes on personal income, sales and corporate profits. Since they adopted the budget in September, the state's revenue estimate for the current year has dropped by $11 billion, or about 10 percent, with no prospect for a recovery in sight. But that...