Friday September 7, 2001
Best Colleges List is out today
US News and World Report ranks colleges and universities each year. It always causes a stir.
How hard do your local universities try to move up these lists? How important are such lists to college students?
The magazine says, “high school students can scan our column of college student SAT scores to infer whether they could gain admission to a college–and even rise to the top of the applicant pool and possibly qualify for a merit-based scholarship. They can use our class-size data lists to get a sense of the intimacy of colleges’ classroom experience. They can check faculty-student ratios to see how much attention they are likely to get from professors at different schools, or check the freshman retention rates to learn how hard schools work to keep students from dropping out.”
See Microsoft’s Influence in Congress
After more than three years of investigations, litigation and intensive lobbying, the Justice Department today announced this week it would no longer seek a breakup of the computer giant Microsoft, ending one aspect of a landmark case that sent the company’s campaign contributions soaring and formally introduced the computer industry to Washington politics. OpenSecrets.org says, “During the 1999-2000 election cycle, Microsoft contributed more than $4.7 million in soft money, PAC and individual contributions to federal candidates and parties—almost three times what the company contributed during the previous three election cycles combined. More than two-thirds of that money went to Republicans.”
-See which House members got Microsoft money in 1999-2000
-See which Senators got Microsoft money in 2001
-See which Senators got money from 1995-2000
-How much did Microsoft spend on lobbying over the years
Tax-Free Days May Not Save Shoppers Much Money
A few weeks ago, my wife and I rushed out during Florida’s tax-free days to buy our kids some back-to-school stuff. We wanted to save the more than seven percent sales tax that gets waived during that week-and-a-half the state set aside for people like us. We noticed that almost nothing seemed to be on sale. We really didn’t think we saved much. It turns out, we were right.
Stateline.org reports: “Consumers save a few dollars on sales taxes. Retailers watch their stores fill with eager shoppers. And politicians get credit from both groups. What’s not to love here?
Well, quite a bit, according to a growing chorus of tax analysts and academics who say tax holidays are not the bargains they appear to be. “They’re gimmicks,” says David Brunori, contributing editor of State Tax Notes magazine and adjunct professor of law at George Washington University. “They are shrouded in this, ‘Well, we’re going to take care of working families,’ and, ‘Who doesn’t love children,’ and all that stuff. But there’s no meat on those bones.”
In addition to the District of Columbia, seven states have sales tax holidays: Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas.
Pennsylvania’s is the most targeted of the bunch. The state charges no sales taxes on all personal computers and accessories purchased during its two tax-free periods — Feb. 18-25 and Aug. 5-12. Clothes are already tax-free in the state.
In 2000, the holiday cost the state $8 million in tax revenue, a pittance compared to the state’s $20.7 billion budget approved for this fiscal year. But even the small price tag of tax holidays can be a big deal when budgets are tight. “During strong economic times sales tax holidays are a politically popular way to give something back to the electorate,” says Jeff Dale, policy specialist at the National Conference of State Legislatures. “As the economy cools, certainly states are going to be more cautious.”
In 2000, four states jumped on the sales tax holiday bandwagon, according to NCSL. But in 2001, no state approved one. Dale attributes this to the slowing economy. Perhaps the biggest fan of tax holidays is the retail industry. “Consumer reaction has been remarkable,” says NRF’s Cahill. “In fact, these holidays have generated crowds in Florida, Texas and Maryland usually only seen during Christmas selling season.”
The Texas Comptroller says consumers purchased $400 million worth of tax exempt clothing during last year’s tax-free holiday, double the clothing sales of a typical August week.
Maryland Sen. Barbara Hoffman remains skeptical. Her state just finished its first sales tax holiday, which it had approved last year. Hoffman says there’s little question that people bought a lot of stuff. But she’s not sure whether the big sales numbers represent new sales or just shifted sales that would have occurred anyway.”
Get Ready for Higher Health Care Costs
As health-care costs rise in a slowing economy, employers are likely to charge workers more for health insurance premiums next year, according to a national survey released a couple of days ago.
Seventy-five percent of large companies and 42 percent of small firms said they will likely increase what employees pay for health insurance in 2002, according to the survey of 2,734 companies by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust.
Premiums are skyrocketing. Overall, health plan premiums experienced the largest rise since 1992.
– At 11.7 percent, PPO plans had the highest increase; HMOs had a 11.3 percent increase, indemnity plans had a 10.1% increase and POS plans had a 9.4% increase.
– Of firms participating in the survey, smaller companies (between three and 199 employees) had larger increases, 12.5 percent, than did large firms (200 or more workers), with 10.2 percent.
– Coverage costs: Average single coverage costs for employee and employer combined rose to $221 per month and family coverage costs rose to $558 per month.
– Overall, indemnity plans remain most expensive, at $238 per month for a single plan and $640 per month for family coverage. HMO plans cost the least, $200 per month for single coverage and $545 per month for family coverage.
