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Flagler, Florida and Beyond
FlaglerLive | January 30, 2012
Flagler County Property Appraiser’s preliminary estimate sees a property value drop in “the low single-digits” at most, with taxable values rising in Grand Haven and Flagler Beach, among other spots, as the five-year collapse in values appears to draw to an end.
Pierre Tristam | January 23, 2012
Internet cafés may be a pest, and their proponents make laughable arguments when they claim they’re not about gambling. But it’s not government’s business to ban them while swinging from the lottery’s levers. Regulation is the key.
FlaglerLive | January 19, 2012
Disney is asking the state for an array of tax breaks that could cost Floridians as much as $100 million over 20 years. International Speedway Corp., owner of Daytona International Speedway, is in on the deal.
FlaglerLive | January 13, 2012
The review affects such “community redevelopment agencies” such as Palm Coast’s Town Center. Special taxing districts generate $15 billion in revenue annually. Oversight can be more lax than for more general government revenues.
FlaglerLive | December 19, 2011
South Florida’s Jim Waldman, a Democrat from Coconut Creek, wants to roll back unpopular driver’s license and registration fees, paying for it with a $1 increase in Florida’s cigarette tax, now at $1.34.
Pierre Tristam | December 15, 2011
We can all afford less tax coddling and more fiscal responsibility. But don’t expect to hear that from allegedly conservative Republican and our blandly, irresponsibly centrist president, who’s bribing his way to a second term.
FlaglerLive | December 11, 2011
Faced with a series of unanswered questions, economists say they cannot not pinpoint how much money the state would rake in if Florida lawmakers approve a plan for three resort casinos.
Pierre Tristam | December 9, 2011
Obama’s version of Roosevelt Lite won’t cut it if he can’t back up his rhetoric with a more serious program of defending the middle class against corporate predators and rich-class irresponsibility.
FlaglerLive | December 6, 2011
The Florida League of Cities is urging Florida senators to avoid the temptation to restrict the ability of local officials to levy taxes, and asking for more flexibility on how they spend insurance premium tax revenue and adjust pension benefits.
Pierre Tristam | December 2, 2011
There’s a very simple way to ensure that this country goes the way of old, bankrupt empires, and it doesn’t take flying planes into building or suckering the world’s mightiest military into pointless wars halfway around the globe. All it takes is voting Republican.
FlaglerLive | November 26, 2011
Donald Kaul responds to questions raised by his recent “class-war-is-over-the-rich-guys-won” column, demystifying wealth, taxes and other dogmas.
FlaglerLive | November 10, 2011
Rep. Rick Kriseman, the St. Petersburg Republican, distributed Expedia documents that showed the company knew as early as 2003 that it should pay Florida’s bed taxes. The company wants him to explain his role in court. The Legislature is claiming that lawmakers cannot be forced to testify about issues in the legislative process.
Pierre Tristam | October 28, 2011
Watching Republican candidates debate taxes and creationism on TV reminds me of original Star Trek episodes featuring those low-tech aliens that nevertheless managed to speak English every time.
FlaglerLive | October 13, 2011
Gov. Rick Scott wants to double the corporate income tax exemption to $50,000 and eliminate the tangible tax for half of the state’s 300,000 businesses that now pay it. It’s part of his plan to eliminate all corporate taxes ins even years.
FlaglerLive | October 2, 2011
Republicans are accusing President Obama of waging class warfare, which, Donald Kaul argues, is a little like the Japanese complaining about the time Pearl Harbor attacked them in 1941.
FlaglerLive | September 28, 2011
The St. Johns River Water Management District’s 26 percent tax reduction resulted in lay-offs of 95 people and the elimination of more jobs through buyouts and vacancies, affecting various parts of the district’s mission.
FlaglerLive | September 26, 2011
The ‘check-the-box’ rule, meant to cut red tape for companies, has inadvertently allowed them to avoid billions of dollars in taxes each year, and the government keeps balking at closing the loophole.
FlaglerLive | September 22, 2011
The county commission adopts the 2012 budget for good Thursday evening, essentially cutting taxes modestly even as the tax rate will rise to a 12-year high, despite home values continuing to fall at nation-leading rates.
FlaglerLive | September 8, 2011
Only one person, a tea party representative, addressed the Flagler County Commission as it adopted, in the first of two votes, a $65.3 million budget and a 12 percent increase in its tax rate, though most property owners will pay less in taxes.
FlaglerLive | September 7, 2011
Though Flagler Beach’s tax rate is again increasing, most property owners will see their tax bills decrease. For Acting City Manager Bruce Campbell, budget season closes a crucial part of his on-going job interview.
FlaglerLive | August 30, 2011
The bottled-water tax in Florida would pay for repairing environmental damage from trashed plastic. The water industry is opposing Ormond Beach Sen. Evelyn Lynn’s proposal.
FlaglerLive | August 21, 2011
Answers to recurring questions of the day: what’s the state of the economy, are Americans really as overtaxed as they think they are, and what has the 2009 economic stimulus accomplished–or not?
FlaglerLive | August 17, 2011
As the Obama administration seeks to double average fuel efficiency by 2025, State and local government revenue dependent on gas taxes will see big declines in revenue that pays for roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
FlaglerLive | August 14, 2011
The last time the nation faced war debts Franklin Roosevelt didn’t hesitate to raise taxes and show up Republicans who stood in the way of fiscal responsibility, argues Sam Pizzigati.
FlaglerLive | August 14, 2011
Federal income tax rates by year: the full history of marginal tax rates in the United States going back to 1913 in an easy-to-read format.
FlaglerLive | August 10, 2011
Florida’s Tax Free Days, or sales tax holiday, is scheduled this year for August 12 through August 14. The sales tax exemption applies to clothing and school supplies. A complete guide.
FlaglerLive | August 9, 2011
Most city services and jobs are protected in a proposed budget that will raise taxes enough to bring in almost as much revenue next year as it did this year, with shifts in sales tax dollars to subsidize the general revenue fund.
FlaglerLive | August 3, 2011
The Palm Coast city administration now says that it never had $10 million to build a city hall. The copious record on the matter says otherwise, raising questions about the city’s numbers and verbal shell games.
FlaglerLive | July 26, 2011
Palm Coast City Council members are trying desperately to hold the line on property tax increases, but will likely not succeed entirely. The final tax rate will still not translate into a tax increase for most.
FlaglerLive | July 25, 2011
Flagler County’s tax rate is going up for the fourth year in a row to make up for collapsing valuations, but the rise will still not translate into a tax increase for most. The contrary may be true.
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