On Friday, the Cook County, Illinois, County Board voted to increase taxes on cigarettes by $1 per pack, bringing the full amount of taxes paid on a pack of cigarettes legally purchased in Chicago to $6.67. That is just 19
News that SolarCity, another recipient of millions in government largess from the Obama Administration, would be issuing an IPO forced the disclosure that the IRS and the Treasury Department were now investigating the company, and others, for potential abuse of
Could a global tobacco tax be on the cards if tobacco tax proponents get their way at a key international organization’s meeting this week? Anti-tax advocates fear that the answer to that question may be “yes” as a conference of
On Friday, the Cook County, Illinois, County Board gave its initial approval to at least one big tax hike included in the annual budget proposed by County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. Last year, Preckwinkle pushed for tobacco tax increases in order to
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently expanded its website to include a norovirus toolkit advising the ways in which one might contract the killer virus. Among the public health agency’s prescribed practices to stop the spread of the virus:
With the World Health Organization (WHO) reportedly considering a push for a global tobacco tax at a major meeting taking place next month, fresh opposition to the plan is emerging from new quarters: Pakistan. Pakistan’s Daily Times notes that concern
A new Center for Responsive Politics analysis out this week shows that despite President Obama slipping in the polls, he still has the love of many employees of the biggest players in Washington, D.C.: Google, Microsoft, Lawyers and Lobbying Firms.
President Obama is taking heat from another prominent fellow Democrat over his energy policies. On Thursday, North Dakota Senate candidate Democrat Heidi Heitkamp said at a North Dakota Chamber of Commerce forum that she would tell the President, “You’re wrong
Less than three months after Google paid over the largest-ever US fine for violating users’ privacy, the Internet search giant is alleged to be infringing its users privacy once again — this time in Europe. At issue, according to Reuters,
The Financial Times reports that online behemoth Google has offered a pre-emptive deal to settle anticipated European Union claims of unlawful behavior damaging to competition in the online search and services market: “Google has made a bid to avoid an antitrust war with
A Chinese manufacturer of reusable bags has been quietly circulating among environmentalists a sensational infographic smearing plastic bags as an unparalleled eco-burden, lobbying for the ban of American-made single-use sacks. Factory Direct Promos, a Guangdong Province-based outfit, has produced an
With time running out for a deal on the European Union’s carbon scheme, now is not the time for America to keep a pace of action lagging far behind that of other nations. The Europeans’ controversial emissions trading scheme (ETS),
Online giant Facebook is raising fresh privacy worries over its ad tracking methods following news that the social networking company is now working with Datalogix, a firm capable of monitoring whether individuals shown online ads ultimately purchase advertised products. The Financial
President Obama has been talking a lot recently. The latest revelation – he thinks he’s “eye candy.” While he’s lost in self-discovery on “The View” and “Late Night with David Letterman,” the U.S. Senate managed to muster enough votes to
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel may be looking to further hike Chicago tobacco taxes in a stealthy forthcoming budget move, reports UPI: A spokeswoman for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel declined to discuss hikes to the city’s cigarette and live entertainment taxes sources said
With each successive municipality that rejects bans on plastic bags, the environmental lobby championing the measure grows increasingly more desperate, more willing to lean on despicable political tactics to advance a radical agenda. From Illinois to Texas, activists seeking to
For a textbook lesson on the absurdity of the regulatory rabbit hole the Obama administration has created, look no further than the EPA. Of course, that’s an obvious statement, but when the likes of Mother Jones are even second-guessing their
Way out West, on the nation’s Left coast, a battle joining trial lawyers, liberals and “natural healthers” determined to pass a controversial ballot proposition this November is underway. California ballot Proposition 37 would mandate the labeling of certain foods —
The European Union is holding firm on its plans to tax U.S. airlines for time spent in domestic and international airspace. The unprecedented power grab is a clear violation of international law, which allows each nation to control its own
Of all the voices expected to weigh in on the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) continued insistence on monopolizing forest certification standards, some onlookers may be surprised at the most recent entrant into the fray. In a Mother Nature Network
With Russia’s official addition to the World Trade Organization’s ranks (WTO) last week, a window of opportunity for the United States is closing due to congressional inaction. Unless the right course is charted, Russia’s WTO membership could jeopardize U.S. exports
Rhode Island boasts the second-highest cigarette tax in the nation, but following a recent increase in the rate, it seems that the high levy may be creating more problems than it solves. Already a target for smugglers illicitly selling untaxed
Higher cigarette taxes are to blame for a boom in illegal tobacco sales and the “proliferation of contraband” in Mexico, an industrial group says. The Mexican organization Concamin says that 17 percent of cigarettes sold in Mexico are illegal, and the sale
Jake Schmidt, a director at the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), does not want you to look behind the curtain of the environmental lobby. In a recent article in the Huffington Post, the fringe group leader attempts to hide legitimate
President Obama and congressional Democrats have taken to decrying the influence of corporations in politics since the Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United case. However, that has not stopped Obama’s re-election campaign from accepting more than $350,000 in donations
