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As we noted, in 1990, Gilbert Hyatt was awarded the patent for the first single-chip microprocessor. This invention earned Hyatt a lot of money and he soon moved to Nevada, which has no state income tax. California’s Franchise Tax Board (FTB) claimed Hyatt lied about his residency, and that he owed millions in state…
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In 1990, Gilbert Hyatt was awarded the patent for the first single-chip microprocessor. The computer industry welcomed this invention, earning Hyatt a lot of money. He soon moved to Nevada, which has no state income tax. California’s Franchise Tax Board (FTB) claimed Hyatt lied about his residency, and that he owed $7.4 million in…
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The ongoing saga of Dallas’ failing government employee pension fund for its police officers and firefighters is continuing to play out to the detriment of the Texas city’s residents. When MyGovCost last checked on the story, the city’s mayor had rejected new property taxes to finance a taxpayer bailout of the insolvent pension fund….
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It’s official! The 2017 edition of Government Shutdown Theater, which MyGovCost hinted was coming less that two weeks ago, was initiated by President Trump at a speech in Phoenix, Arizona on Tuesday, August 22, 2017. The Hill‘s Mike Lillis reports on the now increased chance that the U.S. government will be partially shut down…
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With President Trump getting so much press, a few hangovers from the previous administration have managed to escape notice. As we noted, Operation Choke Point, supposedly a measure against consumer fraud, pressured financial institutions doing business with allegedly “high risk” companies. These included Ponzi schemes, payday lenders, escort services and such, but the DOJ…
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Since 1996, U.S. presidents have deployed the 1906 Antiquities Act to create 27 national monuments, including the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and Bear Ears, both in Utah, and the 1.6 million-acre Mojave Trails National Monument in California, created in early 2016. President Donald Trump calls this a “massive federal land grab” that unilaterally puts…
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For a very long time, the employees of the U.S. government have had it really good. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the combination of regular wages with extremely generous benefits puts the total compensation of the federal government employees well ahead of their peers in the private sector. But that’s not all. Downsizing…
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When it comes to the amount of money that’s wasted by governments, it’s hard to beat corporate welfare for both its size and its endurance. All too often, once a company is gifted with taxpayer money to “stimulate the economy” or to “stabilize the market” or to “keep jobs here”, it opens the door…
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In California’s capital of Sacramento, rapid transit has been in terrible shape, but not for lack of spending on management. As we noted, after hiring Mike Wiley as manager, the RT district plunged into financial distress, tapping reserve accounts to balance its budget and raising fares 10 percent. Though a major bust as transit…
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In what is almost an annual tradition now, the U.S. Congress will soon come up on the deadline where it must either approve a new increase in the statutory debt ceiling, the total amount of public debt outstanding that the U.S. government is officially allowed to have on its books, or risk defaulting on…
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