Public Finance

Bill Nelson Now Back to Talking About Space Stuff: Wants NASA to Catch Asteroids

Florida Senator Bill Nelson finally got around to supporting gay marriage last night by penning a brief, sort-of-uncomfortable editorial for The Tampa Bay Times. Don't expect him to talk much more about it, though, because today he's gone back to talking about one of his favorite subjects: space shi ... More >>

Suze Orman May Leave Florida Over Gay Marriage and Taxes

Financial guru Suze Orman may be packing up her partner and her jacket collection and moving to a state that recognizes gay marriage if the Supreme Court overturns DOMA.Orman currently lives in Fort Lauderdale with partner Kathy Travis, but the tax breaks that could come with federally recognized ma ... More >>

Tax Refund Scams Plagued Miami-Dade In 2012

With another tax season descending on us, you might want to secure your W-2 or 1099 a little tighter. Over the past 12 months, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami has uncovered more than a dozen rackets involved in stealing tax refund checks using stolen identities of social security applicants, eld ... More >>

Federal Tax Loopholes: Big Corporations Profit From This Mafia-Like Protection Scheme

Obama Supports Marco Rubio's "Stop Taxing Olympians" Stand

Marco Rubio introduced the The Olympic Tax Elimination Act, which aims to end the taxing the winnings and medal value of Olympians, with a bit of old fashioned, conservative anti-tax zeal. "Our tax code is a complicated and burdensome mess that too often punishes success, and the tax impos ... More >>

Marco Rubio Wants To Stop Taxing Olympic Medal Winners

Marco Rubio has been studying the American tax code, and at last he's discovered the scourge that's been dragging down the U.S. economy. No, it's not Obama's higher taxes on the top-one percent, and it's not Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthy.It's Uncle Sam's tax on Olympic medalists, who, yeah, appa ... More >>

Otis Pitts Owes Miami-Dade $10 Million in Failed Liberty City Plan

Otis Pitts Jr. Owes Miami-Dade County $10 Million On Failed Project

​A prominent African-American builder just got a sweet bailout from Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and the county commission. On March 20, commissioners quietly approved Gimenez's request to pay off $400,000 that Otis Pitts Jr. owes in property taxes on a complex he owns on NW 62nd Street at Seve ... More >>

GOP Lawmaker Files Bill to Raise Florida's Sales Tax by 3 Percent

​It's not often you see Republican politicians filing bills to raise taxes, but that's exactly what Rep. Fred Costello of Ormond Beach has done. He has introduced a bill that would add a 3 percent surtax to Florida's sales tax. The bill also supports the idea of added taxes to Internet purchases a ... More >>

Miami On the Hook For Millions In New Taxes On Marlins Parking Garages

​When we recently counted down the six most absurd lies about the new Marlins Stadium, fib number one was that politicians were working for taxpayers. Even a casual glance over the deal made it clear: This $550 million stadium was a cripplingly expensive gift from struggling taxpayers to the milli ... More >>

North Bay Village Mayor Corina Esquijarosa might get the boot

Rick Scott's dirtiest deeds

Marco Rubio and the Grand Old Party Are a "Hot, Sloppy Mess"

A hot, sloppy mess. And Nicki Minaj.​The Riptide national politics desk has been working around the clock to bring you this shocking revelation: Some Democrats suspect the Republican Party is crazy."I think Mitch McConnell, frankly, has lost his mind," said Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill of Miss ... More >>

Listen Up Gov. Rick Scott: On Food Stamps? No Fast Food For You!

​I don't think everyone on public assistance is a lazy bum, but I'm happy about the welfare drug-testing bill (the only move Rick Scott has made that I approve of). More importantly, I don't think food stamps should be used to buy fast food. So far, California, Michigan, and Arizona allow the ... More >>

Miami Springs Mayor Zavier Garcia Delinquent on His Taxes

Miami Springs Mayor Zavier Garcia.​While his constituents watch taxes rise and home values slide, Miami Springs Mayor Zavier Garcia has not paid property taxes and owes back taxes on his business.Since Riptide posted a story last week that reported Garcia was in foreclosure, details of other fisca ... More >>

Will the real Julio Robaina please stand up?

Rick Scott's Major Failure: Legislature Won't Eliminate Corporate Income Tax

​Florida is undergoing a radical conservative transformation under Gov. Rick Scott, but one of his top proposals seems to be a bridge too far and too soon even for the Republican supermajorities in the state House and Senate.Even at a time when billion-dollar deficits have become the norm for Flor ... More >>

Watch Protestors Dance the "Tax the Rich Shuffle" Outside Carnival Headquarters

Photo by Tim Elfrink​To celebrate Tax Day, the folks at Right to the City and MoveOn.org decided it was high time to combine the best traditions of 1985-era Chicago Bears dancing and progressive lefty political agitation. The result? Behold the "Tax the Rich Shuffle." William "The Fridge" Perry wa ... More >>

Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina Doesn't Pay Taxes On Building He Owns

Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina owes the county for property taxes.​While Miami-Dade County residents paid higher property taxes last year, Hialeah Mayor and Miami-Dade County mayoral candidate Julio Robaina did not pay property taxes on a shopping center he owns in his city. In fact, it appears Robai ... More >>

Proposed State Amendment Would Deny Funding For Abortions For Rape and Incest Victims

​Federal Republicans were forced to back down from a controversial bill dictating that federal money could only be spent on abortions for woman who were "forcibly raped," where as current language allows for some public spending on abortions for woman who are victims of rape or incest. They backed ... More >>

Carlos Alvarez Responds to Our Plea to Support Norman Braman's Recall

​In this week's New Times, we lay out four reasons you should support billionaire Norman Braman's efforts to recall County Mayor Carlos Alvarez. We're obviously not alone in believing the measure has merit -- Braman announced last night that more than 90,000 folks in Dade County have already signe ... More >>

Norman Braman Launches Petition to Recall Mayor Alvarez

​When most citizens have a problem with the county government they maybe write their commissioner, show up at a meeting or leave an angry comment with The Miami Herald. Not Norman Braman. The billionaire is once again throwing his over-sized wealth and influence around and is launching a recall ef ... More >>

Alex Sink Supports Permanent Extension of Bush Tax Cuts, Putting Her At Odds With Obama

via MSNBC​Yesterday we noted Alex Sink's tricky new TV ad that put distance between her campaign and President Obama. Today on MSNBC, she explicitly sided with Republicans against Obama on the issue of permanently extending all of the "Bush Tax Cuts." She claims they help small businesses, but the ... More >>

Old People Hate the Tanning Tax

via BartBaKer's Youtube​Vanity Fair and 60 Minutes have come together to commission a wide ranging poll that includes questions on the ability of Sarah Palin to be President (most don't think she can) and whether or not people would still see a Mel Gibson movie (most would). Though perhaps ones of ... More >>

Marco Rubio Calls for More Tax Cuts, But Could That Hurt The Economy More?

​It seems so simple that Republicans have taken it as fact: tax cuts will lead to greater economic strength. Lower taxes mean people have more money to spend, businesses have more payroll to add jobs, and hence our economy should get a jolt, right? It's no surprise that Marco Rubio has now come ou ... More >>

Hanky-panky in Hialeah's budget office?

Two-Thirds of Voters Have Negative Opinion of Mayor Alvarez, 46 Percent Support Recall

Jonathan Postal Miami-Dade Mayor Alvarez and the County Commission have thrown sizable pay raises to staffers like they were life-vests on a sinking ship. They've simultaneously tossed funding to cultural efforts and other social programs overboard. That hasn't proven popular with voters ... More >>

Feds Indict Miami Man Who Tried To Steal $14 Trillion from the IRS

They don't call Marlon T. Moore "X-Large" for nothing. Back in December 2007, Moore, a 38-year-old Miami resident, walked out of the federal pen in Coleman, Florida after serving a six year sentence on felony money laundering charges as part of a cocaine smuggling ring. Soon after his release, Moore ... More >>

Does Bill Nelson Want to Raise Taxes on Your Alcohol?

I was reading I Can Has Cheezburger in my RSS Reader when I saw this ad below all the LOLcats. Apparently, Sen. Bill Nelson wants to raise the taxes on my wine by 233 percent! The ad leads to the Freedom Work's website, where it explains "a massive new tax hike" to pay for health care, which also in ... More >>

Miami-Dade Food Stamps - How To Apply For and Receive Benefits

http://www.dcf.state.fl.us/ess/foodstamps.shtmlRecent, informal, New Times web research showed a poor return of official government websites providing information on how to apply for and receive food stamp benefits in Miami-Dade county.A google search for Miami-Dade food stamps returned mostly pages ... More >>

Charlie Crist's Lame Attempt To Distance Himself From Obama

When Charlie Crist stood on stage with President Obama in February I wonder if Crist had any idea that he'd actually be running for Senate. As a popular incumbent running for re-election the political risk would be lessened. Well, the risk of standing with a popular, newly elected pre ... More >>

Tea Party Protests Make Less Sense than Pro Wrestling

You know what never made sense to me? Back in the '90s, the WWF (now WWE) teamed up "The Million-Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, a character who was a millionaire, with Irwin R. Schyster, AKA I.R.S., a tax man. Together they won three tag-team titles, but, dude, millionaires friggin' hate the IRS more than ... More >>

Killing Yourself Slowly with Cigarettes Will Remain Relatively Cheap

Late last year, there was a bit of buzz that the long-proposed cigarette tax hike might come to fruition. Florida has some of the lowest cigarette taxes in the nation, but the idea of raising the tax a dollar per pack was struck down today in the state's special legislative session. Rep. Jim Waldma ... More >>

Florida Supreme Court Takes Three Amendments Off the Ballot

Weekly News Wrap - Super Tuesday, Money Laundering, Cuba Criticism and more

Miami: Screwed Again

The legislature helped taxpayers, but not in the Magic City

Tax Troubles

Axing the Property Tax

Potamkin’s homestead has a market value of $21 million.... Raul Masvidal owes $33,639 in taxes for his four-bedroom residence.

Prosperity One Step at a Time

A cleverly subversive scheme for creating something Miami desperately needs: a middle class

Busted!

Greed, thievery, corruption, and betrayal -- the sordid tale of Miriam Alonso's downfall

BEST RESOURCE FOR RECENT ARRIVALS

El Paracaidista: La guia del recien llegado a Miami

Less for Moore, Part 2

The wheels of economic justice in Miami-Dade County are back in motion

Whichever Way the Wind Blows

The Stierheim Report

An old pro is recruited to undertake a very disagreeable mission: Dig into the stinking mess at Miami City Hall. Here's what he found.

Sweet Redemption

Why invest in tobacco companies or overseas sweatshops when you can capitalize on your neighbor's misfortune right here at home?

Letters

Letters

Land of Opportunity

Dade's property tax assessment appeals system features sloppy record-keeping, a lack of oversight -- and a whole lot of money for those who know how to ask for it

Loudmouths

In the battle against AIDS, some people say shouting is more effective than talking. And if you don't agree, watch out!

The Owe Zone

Most people pay their taxes. Some people don't. Some people get their name in the newspaper.