The people's voice of reason
The people's voice of reason
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With the notable exception of mortgages, consumer debts are declining in 2024. This reverses a trend of larger borrowing balances among American consumers that goes back to the Great Recession. Non-mortgage debt includes the total balance of a consumer's loans and lines of credit when their first and second mortgages are removed from consideration. That's obviously a large carve-out: Mortgage balances exceed $250,000 on average in 2024, and collectively make up about two-thirds of the overall co...
Nearly half of the continental United States is currently experiencing moderate to exceptional drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Storms during this past winter brought heavy (in some areas, record-setting) rainfall and flooding to California, offering the state an expected two-year reprieve from widespread droughts that covered nearly 100% of the state from 2020 to 2022. But in other parts of the country, especially dry conditions continue. Six states currently have the most...
WASHINGTON, D.C., November 22, 2024 – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Alabama) voted in support of U.S. Senator Rand Paul's (R-Kentucky) joint resolution of disapproval to block the Biden-Harris Administration's attempt to redistribute Ukraine's debt onto the American people. The Administration is attempting to unilaterally forgive $4.65 billion of debt owed by Ukraine, effectively forcing American taxpayers to foot the bill. "President Biden's irresponsible, lame-duck scheme to redistribute Ukraine...
November 21, 2024 – WASHINGTON D.C. – President-elect Donald J. Trump (R) nominated former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi (R) to be the next U.S. Attorney General. The announcement came after Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz Donald Trump's previous pick for attorney general, withdrew from consideration. Bondi is a former attorney general of Florida. "Pam Bondi is a brilliant attorney with a long career of fighting for the Constitution," said U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville. "She will do a gre...
Annabelle is a one-year-old female Shepherd/Border Collie looking mix, about 50 lbs. She loves attention and being close, also loves to talk to you. Knows how to play fetch, likes squeaky toys. She is good with dogs her size or larger, but a big NO to cats. The adoption fees are $100 for dogs & $50 for cats under one-year-old; cats over one-year-old can be adopted by approved adopters for a fee of their choosing. This adoption fee completely covers the mandatory spay or neuter, basic immunizatio...
The IRS Criminal Investigation Atlanta Field Office is focusing the public's attention to antifraud awareness by highlighting how to choose a reputable tax preparer and avoiding cryptocurrency scams as part of the 2024 International Fraud Awareness Week, Nov. 17 – 23. "There are numerous schemes criminals are using to defraud and separate unsuspecting Americans from their hard-earned money," said Special Agent in Charge Demetrius Hardeman, IRS-CI Atlanta Field Office. "While our special a...
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) applauded the recent U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) determination to impose duties on frozen warmwater shrimp imports. The ITC plans to impose duties on imports from Ecuador, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam after investigations discovered the four countries have illegally been subsidizing and dumping shrimp into U.S. markets. "This is a huge victory for the people of Alabama," said Senator Tuberville. "Shrimping has long been a h...
November 25,2024 - JASPER – Today, Republican Matt Woods (R-Jasper) announced his campaign for State Senate District 5. Last week, Senate Pro-Tempore Greg Reed announced his upcoming resignation from the Alabama Senate, after 14 years of service. The vacancy will create a special election to finish the remainder of Reed's term. Senate District 5 covers portions of Walker, Fayette, Lamar, Tuscaloosa, and Jefferson Counties. "I want to thank Senator Reed for his dedicated service and tremendous l...
The real estate frenzy spurred by the coronavirus pandemic continues, though at a slower pace. Buyers are still competing for a limited supply of housing, driving up prices for affordable properties. The typical home value in the United States was $360,385 in October, 2.4% higher than the year before. Increasing mortgage rates have slowed growth, with prices even declining in some places. But some areas are still seeing price jumps compared to the year before. Stacker compiled a list of cities...
The real estate frenzy spurred by the coronavirus pandemic continues, though at a slower pace. Buyers are still competing for a limited supply of housing, driving up prices for affordable properties. The typical home value in the United States was $360,385 in October, 2.4% higher than the year before. Increasing mortgage rates have slowed growth, with prices even declining in some places. But some areas are still seeing price jumps compared to the year before. Stacker compiled a list of cities...
The real estate frenzy spurred by the coronavirus pandemic continues, though at a slower pace. Buyers are still competing for a limited supply of housing, driving up prices for affordable properties. The typical home value in the United States was $360,385 in October, 2.4% higher than the year before. Increasing mortgage rates have slowed growth, with prices even declining in some places. But some areas are still seeing price jumps compared to the year before. Stacker compiled a list of cities...
A recent study by the University of Southern California revealed that exposure to air pollution can harm children's learning and memory, the LA Post reports. Ammonium nitrate, a specific component of fine particle air pollution primarily produced by agricultural emissions, is associated with decreased learning and memory performance in children aged nine and 10. The comprehensive research analyzed data from 8,500 children nationwide, suggesting potential long-term implications for cognitive...
November 25, 2024 - (Montgomery, Ala.) - Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall joined an Iowa-led letter, calling on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to end his last-ditch effort to push the Biden-Harris Administration's agenda through the door before Biden leaves office. The United Nations' Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution is meeting this week to negotiate an international plastics agreement. The States are strongly urging Secretary Blinken to not enter into...
Alabama Republican Party Executive Director Reed Phillips will be departing the Party to pursue an exciting new opportunity. Phillips, who has been with ALGOP for nearly a decade, first served as Political Director before being promoted to Executive Director in 2020. During his tenure, Phillips played a pivotal role in growing the Party's influence across Alabama. Under his leadership, the Republican Party increased its share of partisan elected offices across the state from 54% to over 73%,...
Americans are heading into the first holiday season in years where buying less may be the first thing on their minds. And this year, gift lists may exclude one important person: you. Stacker dug into Deloitte's 2024 holiday retail survey to explore the psychology behind Americans' reluctance to self-gift this year. In the modern era, holiday gifting includes a practice that may seem rooted in consumerism—giving ourselves gifts. However, "self-gifting," psychologists say, carries its own importan...
People from all over the world have long come to the United States in search of opportunities. That includes immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers, and temporary workers and students who come to the U.S. on specialty visas. Among the latter are skilled foreign workers, a select group granted special access by the H-1B visa program, designed to boost innovation and the economy via a "brain gain," according to the Brookings Institute. Since launching in 1990, the program has allowed U.S....
MONTGOMERY – The National League of Cities (NLC) elected two Alabama officials to leadership positions on its board of directors and the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (NBC-LEO) at its annual business meeting during City Summit on November 17 in Tampa, Florida. Rainbow City Councilmember Clark Hopper II was elected to serve a two-year term on the NLC board and Center Point Mayor Bobby Scott Jr. was elected to serve a one-year term as first vice president of NLC's NBC-LEO. "...
If you've consumed any kind of news in the past few years, you've likely scrolled across the very clickable headline "These are the states that will pay you to move there" a time or two. More than just a headline, the concept of cities offering incentives for people to relocate is a movement that has gained significant momentum in recent years. According to MakeMyMove, more than 5,000 remote workers have made the jump to new states since 2019. And get this: collectively, they've snagged over...
In the search for top-shelf versatility in a vehicle, it's hard to beat the following seven-passenger SUVs. The Acura MDX, Kia Telluride, and Toyota Highlander are among the bestselling on the market, but they've got more than a few competitors that are also worth looking at. Many of today's three-row SUVs sport comfortable passenger and cargo space, the latest safety equipment, and even good off-road capability that will fit anyone's intrepid summer vacation plans. But how do you know which is...
Data breaches are incidents in which confidential information, including consumer data, is stolen from a company or organization. In the first half of 2024, the number of data breach victims surpassed 1 billion, according to the nonprofit Identity Theft Resource Center. That's a 490% increase from the same time last year, when the number of recorded victims was about 183 million. If your personal information was exposed in a data breach, the breached company may notify you. It's important to...
Car insurance rates have soared in post-COVID-19 years, and despite many insurance industry experts predicting slower rate hikes in 2024, data from the first half of the year shows a 15% increase in full-coverage premiums. Insurify's data science team projects a total 22% increase in 2024. Rate increases in 2024 are largely a continuation of hikes in 2023, a year that saw full-coverage premiums rise by 24% in response to insurers' record underwriting losses ($33.1 billion) in the year prior....
Jefferson County's Series 2024 sewer warrant refinancing has been awarded The Bond Buyer's Southeast Region Deal of the Year. The County's sewer warrant issue is a finalist to be named the national Deal of the Year with the winner expected to be named in December. Jefferson County's sewer warrant debt refinance checked a number of boxes for The Bond Buyer's awards criteria and is considered a great turnaround story for the County that achieved significant ratepayer savings while reducing risk...
The holiday season feels a little less jolly considering the amount of waste generated by gift-giving. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the amount of household garbage in the U.S. increases by 25% between Thanksgiving and New Year's. After the decorations come down, all that waste heads to landfills, producing a significant contributor to climate change: methane gas. "Greening" the holidays is essential, and one simple tip is to think more about how sustainable the materials are in...
There's nothing quite like hitting the open road in a lifted truck, but not if you're worried about getting stopped by the cops. Every state has its own lifted truck laws, and no two states are exactly alike. Even if you plan on spending most of your time off-road, you need to comply with your state's rules and guidelines for lifted trucks. You may scoff at the idea of anyone telling you what you can and can't do with your truck, but these laws put an emphasis on safety. They're designed to...
In recent Alabama elections observers could predict how Alabamians vote simply by eyeballing them with better than 80% accuracy. 82 to 84% of White voters voted for the Republican candidate and 90 to 94% of Black voters voted for the Democratic candidate. That trend may be changing according to the Alabama Republican Party's post-election analysis. ALGOP reports that they have made significant gains with Black voters – particularly in rural areas. The Alabama GOP picked up three seats in d...
