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Politico Payday In Charlotte-Mecklenburg

Background Money

When payday rolls around for local elected officials, not everyone pockets the same amount of loot. And in at least one case, the dollar disparity has sparked a squabble over what should be considered appropriate compensation for our governing class. It started, as many political dust-ups in Charlotte-Mecklenburg do, with an email from Commissioner Bill [...]

September 2, 2011 | Posted in Char-Meck Beat,City Beat,CMS Beat,House Specials,Mark Pellin | Read More »

CATS Scratching For Big Bucks

cats

As the federal government sinks into a growing abyss of debt that has drawn rebuke from Standard & Poor’s rating agency with a national credit downgrade and calls for reduced spending, the Charlotte Area Transit System is seeking upwards of $63 million in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation. If the grant applications [...]

August 17, 2011 | Posted in City Beat,House Specials,Mark Pellin | Read More »

City Eyes Possibility Of Race-Based Program For Awarding Contracts

sbo pic

Based on the results of a study that has missed two deadlines for the release of its findings, the City of Charlotte could see a shift from its current race-neutral program used for awarding public contracts to a race-conscious program similar to one that landed the city a lawsuit less than a decade ago, sparking [...]

August 8, 2011 | Posted in City Beat,House Specials,Mark Pellin | Read More »

CMS Swallows Big Tab For Unpaid Lunch Bills

School Lunch

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has struggled to collect nearly $1 million in unpaid lunch bills from the last two years, as district officials have scrambled for money to salvage popular pre-kindergarten programs, retain front-line educators, and keep classroom sizes manageable. Out of 27,233 cases where students have stacked up unpaid meal bills, CMS has managed to close [...]

July 19, 2011 | Posted in CMS Beat,House Specials,Mark Pellin | Read More »

Libertarian Popularity On The Rise

penguin

The old joke goes, “How many Libertarians does it take to change a light bulb?” The answer: None. Libertarians try and try, but they can never change anything. The punch line might need some tweaking, though, according to a recent CNN survey that shows libertarianism gaining popularity, with 63 percent of respondents indicating they think [...]

June 22, 2011 | Posted in House Specials,Mark Pellin,National | Read More »

Jell-O Wrestling And Porn Surfing For Science

nsf surf

Glad to see that millions of dollars in taxpayer money isn’t being wasted by the National Science Foundation, where they’re handing out grants by the fistful to study critical and pressing issues like how to ride a bike, how much housework a husband creates for a wife, and when dogs became man’s best friend. Oh, [...]

May 27, 2011 | Posted in House Specials,Mark Pellin,National | Read More »

Home Sweet Illegal Home

dhs

The Department of Homeland Security apparently wants everybody to feel at home in America, including those who are here illegally. Case in point: last year the DHS halted the deportation of more than 34,000 illegal aliens. This from Judicial Watch: In a perplexing development ignored by the mainstream media, the Obama Administration suspended tens of [...]

May 9, 2011 | Posted in House Specials,Mark Pellin,National | Read More »

Library Bookmarks $2.5 Million Funding Bump

books

A posh fundraiser for Mayor Anthony Foxx reportedly snagged a cool $140,000 this week, while the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners managed to save a tepid $137,000 by approving the consolidation of some library services. Super. The consolidation plan will roll the library system’s human resources, technology, and capital project management departments under the umbrella [...]

May 6, 2011 | Posted in County Beat,House Specials,Mark Pellin | Read More »

Drive-By Taxing Schemes

Mileage-Tax

The bigger government is better government brigade in Minnesota is taking to heart the notion of taxing anything that moves. The state’s department of transportation is recruiting volunteers to test technology that could be used to impose and collect a vehicle-miles-traveled (VMT) tax: “This research will provide important feedback from motorists about the effectiveness of [...]

April 22, 2011 | Posted in House Specials,Mark Pellin,National | Read More »

World Class Nanny State

food police

The Big Apple’s health department is moving into some new digs and bringing a whole slew of new mandates and edicts along for the ride. This from the NY Daily News: The updated rules – which range from what workers can serve at agency powwows to how loud they can talk in the office – [...]

April 6, 2011 | Posted in House Specials,Mark Pellin,National | Read More »

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