Subject:

Public Finance

  • Blogs

    May 25, 2012

    Prop. 29 Losing Voter Support, Though Cigarette Tax Remains Popular

    What can you get for $42 million? A penthouse apartment at the top of the St. Regis. Six years of Adonal Foyle. Roy Lichtenstein's peephole painting. Also, a 14 percent drop in support for Proposition 29, which would raise the cigarette tax and fund cancer research. In March, a poll by the Publi ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 10, 2012

    Meet the California Lawmakers Who Are Enabling the Marijuana War

    Losing efforts sometimes score wins. Medical marijuana scored such a moral victory late Wednesday, when 163 members of Congress voted in favor of not allowing federal dollars to be spent on busting pot growers, distributors, and dispensaries in states with medical cannabis laws.The brainchild o ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 5, 2011

    Occupy SF Movement Grows on Market Street

    ​Last week we told you about the Occupy Wall Street movement spreading all the way to the West Coast, including San Francisco. Near the Financial District, protesters have set up a makeshift home for themselves, equipped with tarps, food, rain gear, and, because it's San Francisco, they're attempt ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 16, 2011

    Thanksgiving in August: Cook-a-thon to Raise Funds for Food Bank

    Karl Wilder​Thanksgiving in August When: August 27, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Where: St. Luke's Church Cost: As much canned/preserved food as you can afford. It's Thanksgiving...in August! At least that's what chef Karl Wilder is planning. In a 12-hour cook-a-thon, Wilder hopes to raise money for the ... More >>

  • News

    June 8, 2011

    Clean Energy Stimulus Cash Is Slow to Be Spent

    Karl Wilder​Thanksgiving in August When: August 27, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Where: St. Luke's Church Cost: As much canned/preserved food as you can afford. It's Thanksgiving...in August! At least that's what chef Karl Wilder is planning. In a 12-hour cook-a-thon, Wilder hopes to raise money for the ... More >>

  • Blogs

    May 26, 2011

    Congressman Pete Stark Aims to Save Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Big Bucks

    You've got a friend in high places​As if raids from gun-toting Drug Enforcement Agency agents weren't enough to make stoners paranoid, California's medical marijuana clubs can also be shut down real fast by the IRS. That's because the Internal Revenue Service has declared that California's legal m ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 22, 2011

    Timothy Geithner, Treasury Secretary, Catches a Wave Near San Francisco -- on 4/20

    Would love to surf the Mavericks, we assume​Keeping the nation from falling into another Depression is not easy feat, and so U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner deserves a little R&R. And while you might expect Geithner's version of taking it easy to be nothing more than reading the finan ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 18, 2011

    Forget Your Tax Blues at National Painkiller Day at Smuggler's Cove

    Caroline on Crack/Flickr​National Painkiller Day Where: Smuggler's Cove, 650 Gough (at McAllister), 869-1900 When: Mon., Apr. 18, 5 p.m.-2 a.m. Cost: $9-$22 per Painkiller (2-8 oz. of rum) The rundown: Tax day can be painful -- at least for those with less inventive tax lawyers on the payroll ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 7, 2011

    San Jose: How Deep Does the Inferiority Complex Go?

    Do you know the way to San Jose?Greg Dewar/Flickr​In its never-ending quest to be San Francisco, it's so clear that San Jose will go to great lengths to take away anything or anyone that makes the City by the Bay, well, the City by the Bay. Funny as this faux rivalry might seem, there are two poli ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 18, 2011

    This Just In: The U.S. House of Representatives Hates NPR

    National Public Radio is good. Very good. They entertain us with such shows as This American Life, inform us with Morning Edition, and drop some musical knowledge on All Songs Considered. But the United States House of Representatives doesn't feel the same way: today it voted to cut off government f ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 4, 2011

    Gov. Jerry Brown Stops in SF to Get Buy-In on Budget

    What kind of salesman is he?​Update: The Bay Area Council voted to endorse Brown's budget proposal. Members called the talk with Brown "tough but refreshing."As a governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger had the star power that could set off a media frenzy every time he blew his nose. And while Gov.Jerry B ... More >>

  • Blogs

    December 3, 2010

    Wesley Snipes Tax Evasion Sentence Outrages Libertarian Party

    Wesley Snipes: Tax protester and vampire hunter​The leader of the nation's Libertarian Party said today he's outraged that Wesley Snipes has been sentenced to three years in prison, citing it as an example of the IRS' unfair "selective enforcement," and of the fact evaders evade because "THE TAX I ... More >>

  • Blogs

    December 1, 2010

    Cost-Saving America's Cup Proposal Not Shipshape Yet

    Don't fire up the boats yet...​The new-and-improved groundwork for hosting the America's Cup in San Francisco appears to take much less of a bite of city finances than the fabulously expensive, nonbinding "term sheet" the city approved in October. Fred Brousseau, a principal at the city's Budget A ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 30, 2010

    Tax Delinquent List Posted -- 'Target' Owes What?

    ​The state of California has, once again, updated its list of California's biggest sales tax delinquents -- and the No. 1 target is, well, Target. But not the Target you're thinking of. The big-box retailer with the checkered record regarding gay rights that has San Franciscans enraged has, ostens ... More >>

  • News

    August 4, 2010

    Vegan activist protests sale of live chickens at UN Plaza farmers' market

    ​The state of California has, once again, updated its list of California's biggest sales tax delinquents -- and the No. 1 target is, well, Target. But not the Target you're thinking of. The big-box retailer with the checkered record regarding gay rights that has San Franciscans enraged has, ostens ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 20, 2010

    S.F. Taxpayer-Funded Poll Reveals S.F. Taxpayers Don't Want to Pay Taxes

    San Francisco voters say 'Bah Humbug' to new taxes, poll claims...​A poll commissioned by the San Francisco County Transportation Authority revealed that city voters are in no mood to pay the taxes the Board of Supervisors will likely today move to place on the ballot -- where voters will eventual ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 26, 2010

    City Spends $726 Million Yearly to Help Disabled Live at Home

    San Francisco has been truly generous in helping people live at home. It has not been so generous when it comes to keeping track of all the programs it funds. ​Spending and programs are not tracked, nor coordinated -- creating a system seemingly ripe for waste and ineffectiveness.When it comes t ... More >>

  • Blogs

    April 16, 2010

    Your E-Filed Taxes Saved IRS $195M (and Counting). But Post Office Not Thrilled.

    ​Yesterday we reported that nearly eight of every 10 tax forms received by the IRS by early April was sent electronically. This put members of the United States Postal Service in the position of another blue-uniformed figure with little to do: The Maytag repairman. With the late-evening Tax Night ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 10, 2010

    S.F. Cig Fee a Money-Loser: Put *That* In Your Pipe and Smoke it

    Not cost productive either...​Kudos to SF Appeal's Chris Roberts for scouring the city controller's six-month budget status report and finding an unfiltered nugget on page 22: Somehow, the city has managed to lose millions on its highly touted cigarette fee. We've written plenty about how this fee ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 27, 2010

    Board Members Predict Even Feds' Threats Can't Derail Oakland Airport Connector

    ​What will it take to derail BART's half-billion dillar planned extension to Oakland Airport? How about the price quadrupling while the anticipated ridership dropped by two-thirds? Nope. How about the predicted commute time actually being slower than the existing shuttle system? Nope. Well, how ab ... More >>

  • Blogs

    January 15, 2010

    City Enters Era of 'Year-Round Budgeting'

    ​There used to be a time when the city hammered out a tentative budget, politicians and others duked it out regarding the allocations for their pet causes and agencies, and, eventually, everyone got on with running the city. Well, those days are over. Now the joys of budgeting never end -- and the ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 12, 2009

    Further Proof That Incarceration Is No Fun: Inmates File Federal Suit Over Alleged Price Gouging In Prison Cantina

    But no one loves pricey coffee​As hard-liners say, "you do the crime, you do the time." But if you feel you're getting ripped off by paying too much for prison coffee -- to quote Doug Llewelyn, "You take 'em to court." Eight inmates at Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City in the far north of ... More >>

  • Blogs

    October 6, 2009

    Oops, They Did It Again -- Public Campaign Finance Advocates Bemoan Latest 'Raid'

    ​Public campaign financing isn't just a political football here in San Francisco -- it's a football so frequently kicked, punted, or otherwise buffeted the laces have come undone. And is there any money to fix it? Don't ask! The latest instance of San Francisco politicos stating they like the idea ... More >>

  • News

    September 16, 2009

    Obama's stimulus money will increase traffic, but not bridge safety

    ​Public campaign financing isn't just a political football here in San Francisco -- it's a football so frequently kicked, punted, or otherwise buffeted the laces have come undone. And is there any money to fix it? Don't ask! The latest instance of San Francisco politicos stating they like the idea ... More >>

  • Blogs

    August 4, 2009

    Show 'Em What They Lost: Controller Issues Report Detailing How Much State Will Vacuum Away From S.F.

    ​As promised, city controller Ben Rosenfeld this afternoon released a report detailing the hit San Francisco will take as a result of state borrowing, filching, and other creative accounting tactics. What, you were expecting good news? How about this: Hundreds of Muni vehicles didn't crash today. ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 21, 2009

    Sacramento's Dem, Republican Leaders Schedule Caucus Meetings to Sell Legislators on Budget Deal

    Cutting billions from health and education while 'borrowing' from local governments -- the California dream!Some of the haziness surrounding the state's tentative budget deal will burn off this morning, as party leaders have scheduled 9 a.m. caucuses to outline the finer points of a plan that promis ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 2, 2009

    S.F. Treasurer Admits City Goofed on Payroll Taxes, Hit Up Companies That Don't Owe Any

    Treasurer Jose Cisneros: Sorry, our badYesterday we reported that it appeared the city's tax collectors forgot about an overwhelmingly approved ballot proposition that raised the payroll a business must pay out in order to to owe San Francisco payroll taxes. City Treasurer Jose Cisneros today confir ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 29, 2009

    Chronic City: Oh, Noes! Fewer Narcs! Budget Crisis Could Mean Fewer Drug Busts.

    Is it game over for the state's narcotics officers? California's budget crunch could cut almost a third of the agents from the Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, according to Attorney General Jerry Brown.Budget negotiators, facing the financial meltdown of the state treasury, have proposed lopping $20 ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 15, 2009

    S.F. Assessor Phil Ting Takes on the Catholic Church Tomorrow Morning

    Nobody expects Phil Ting!Tomorrow morning, assessor Phil Ting will be arguing in front of the San Francisco Appeals Board that the Catholic Church owes San Francisco up to $15 million in transfer taxes -- one of the largest tax bills in the city's history. The hearing will be held at 1 South Van Nes ... More >>

  • News

    March 25, 2009

    Transit Spotting

    A transportation activist points to inefficient and costly projects like the Central Subway.

  • Blogs

    February 12, 2009

    Mayor, Board President's Payroll Tax Plans are Different; Supes Notified Via Press Release

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • Blogs

    November 4, 2008

    Election Night Storylines

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • Blogs

    July 2, 2008

    Governor Newsom? Who Knew?

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • Blogs

    June 10, 2008

    IRS Goes After Examiner Owner

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • Blogs

    March 19, 2008

    DARPA Creates Cyborg Spy Moths, Girls' Locker Rooms Everywhere Compromised

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • Blogs

    February 27, 2008

    EFF, ACLU Go to Bat for Wikileaks

    It turns out the mayor does have a device for communicating with David Chiu. It's called a press release.Yesterday we wrote about how Mayor Gavin Newsom announced at the San Francisco Business Times breakfast that he was proposing an overhaul of the city's payroll tax -- which came as news to Board ... More >>

  • News

    May 3, 2006

    Doublespeak With Forked Tongue

    When dealing with Chris Daly and his political objectives, it's best to leave reality behind

  • News

    October 19, 2005

    Letters to the Editor

    Week of Wednesday, October 19, 2005

  • News

    June 9, 2004

    The New California Adventure

    Schwarzenegger budget policies are turning small cities and rural counties into post-apocalypse theme parks

  • News

    May 5, 2004

    Building Up California

    A high-rise condo boom in San Diego may show the way out of a statewide housing and sprawl problem

  • News

    February 11, 2004

    Letters to the Editor

    Week of Wednesday, February 11, 2004

  • News

    September 17, 2003

    Total Future Awareness

    The Defense Department hires a New Economy futurist to help fight terror. Don't you feel safer already?

  • News

    June 26, 2002

    Blowing Smoke

    WARNING: Gov. Davis' plan to use tobacco lawsuit money to fill a budget gap is dangerous to our financial health

  • News

    April 17, 2002

    The Ghost of Scandals Past

    Previous "creative financing" debacles should haunt city officials who've approved a risky $1 billion lease of Muni streetcars

  • News

    September 27, 2000

    How to Kill a Nonprofit

    A federal audit reveals the waste and mismanagement that ruined a once-promising minority aid program

  • News

    January 5, 2000

    Shaky Ground

    Environmental activists adopt a new strategy -- playing the race card

  • News

    November 17, 1999

    Opening Pandora's Box

    Once-secret documents reveal the tobacco industry's battle to gut anti-smoking education in California. Former Assembly Speaker Willie Brown and former Gov. Pete Wilson helped.

  • News

    August 19, 1998

    Crime and Patronage

    For more than a decade, three different mayors have let one man dole out government jobs to alleged murderers, crack dealers, and other serious felons. The question, obviously, is why.

  • News

    August 12, 1998

    Healthy Investment

    Ignore Davis, Fang, O'Donoghue, and Roselli; here's how renovating Laguna Honda could save taxpayers $500 million

  • News

    November 29, 1995

    Clockers

    Residents of a downtown loft tell you where to get off

  • More >>
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