Taxpayers who put up $63 million for new courthouse must park elsewhere

By   /  April 16, 2013  /  City Government, County Government, Featured, New Mexico, News, Public Safety, Wasteful spending  /  No Comments

NO PARKING FOR YOU: Citing security concerns, Santa Fe's county commissioners have ruled the public cannot use the 40 parking spaces in the underground lot of the new $63 million courthouse downtown. New Mexico Watchdog photo.

It has run $25 million over budget, it’s way behind schedule and, now, the new courthouse downtown has merchants worried that a decision to prohibit public parking will translate hurt their businesses.

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Former Ag secretary: Obama using food safety as sequester ‘pawn’

By   /  March 14, 2013  /  Agriculture, Nebraska WatchBlog, Public Safety  /  1 Comment

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By Joe Jordan | Nebraska Watchdog
Nebraska Sen. Mike Johanns, a former Secretary of Agriculture in the Bush Administration, isn’t done pushing food safety sequester questions at the country’s current top farm hand.

In his latest letter to Sec. Tom Vilsack, Johanns, who is concerned that the lack of federal funds could result in furloughs for meat and poultry [...]

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Supreme Court draws a ‘bright line’ on police detention

By   /  March 7, 2013  /  Accountability, Featured, Federal Government, Issues, Judiciary, law enforcement, National, National News, News, Power Abuse, Private property rights, Public Safety, Uncategorized  /  No Comments

BAILEY V. USA: Police are not allowed to detain individuals who are not present during a search, the Supreme Court ruled last week. It's a win for civil libertarians.

A Supreme Court ruling last week has important consequences for civil libertarians and police departments across the country.

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Study: More ‘sinners’ paying more ‘sin’ taxes

By   /  February 5, 2013  /  Featured, Free Market, Legislature, Local Government, Politics, Public Safety, State Budgets, State Government, State Politics, Taxes, Taxes versus Fees, Wasteful spending, Wisconsin  /  4 Comments

I'M SUPPORTING THE ARTS! Sin taxes start out punishing unhealthy behavior, end up subsidizing unrelated activities.

By M.D. Kittle |Wisconsin Reporter
UPDATED VERSION:11:26 p.m. 2/6
MADISON – Sin is in, and fat is where it’s at — when it comes to taxes.
Aiming to make American consumers break bad habits, governments across the land of the free are levying a wider array of “sin taxes.”
From cigarettes to sex to soft drinks to bacon, specialty [...]

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Wake up, environmentalists: Your cell phone was mined somewhere else

By   /  January 22, 2013  /  Economy, Environment, Environmental, Featured, Legislature, Mining Wisconsin, News, Politics, Public Safety, Regulations, Regulatory Reform, State Government, Uncategorized, Wisconsin  /  4 Comments

Most Americans probably don't realize that the components in the cell phones they use are mined elsewhere, in places not always friendly to the U.S., the environment or human rights.

By M.D. Kittle | Wisconsin Reporter
MADISON – Dan McGroarty would tell you the irony is about as rich as the critical mineral resources untapped in the United States.
McGroarty, principal of the American Resources Policy Network, a nonprofit, pro-mining think tank based in Washington, D.C., has seen sundry environmental groups rallying against proposed mining sites — [...]

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