Wisconsin gas prices set another record high.
The average prices of a gallon of regular gasoline rose to $4.68 a gallon Friday. That’s up 8 cents from the $4.60 average on Thursday. A week ago, the average price was $4.35. A month ago, it was $3.96.
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The rate of homeownership in the United States saw its highest surge ever recorded in 2020, with homebuying rates jumping significantly even as the country continues to see record-low stock in most states.
The homeownership rate “climbed to 65.5% in 2020, up 1.3% from 2019 and the largest annual increase on record,” the National Association of Realtors said in a press release this week.
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Nearly 200,000 households in Connecticut will benefit from an increase in the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit, Gov. Ned Lamont said.
The governor said in a news release that the Department of Revenue Services will increase the 2020 Earned Income Tax Credit from 23% to 41.5% as directed by the state budget.
Lamont said the increase will “provide needed economic support to low-to-moderate income working individuals and families” who faced negative economic impacts amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Ohio Senate approved more than $8 billion it hopes will spur both economic development and job growth while tackling the state’s transportation needs over the next two years.
The state’s proposed transportation budget passed the Senate unanimously Thursday with some adjustments made by the Senate, including additional money for public transportation, local road projects and emergency road repair. It also requires the Ohio Department of Transportation to reopen currently decommissioned weigh stations to serve as overnight parking areas for commercial truckers.
“This transportation budget makes critical investments in Ohio’s communities and local infrastructure,” said Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima. “I am confident House Bill 74 will improve roads and infrastructure that Ohioans use every day and will enhance Ohio’s economy and promote job growth.”
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Metro Nashville departments have submitted requests for the upcoming fiscal year 2021 budget totaling 861 new full-time equivalent (FTE) positions and increases funding by staggering $144 million.
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Governor Mike DeWine aggressively condemned his fellow Republicans Monday for not supporting his gas tax increase in a candid interview with the Cleveland Plain Dealer Editorial Board. During the interview, he accused them of outright endangering the safety of Ohioans statewide by not supporting his plan. DeWine, in one of his first major bills proposed to Ohio legislature, chose to introduce House Bill 62 (HB 62), to the 2020-2021 transportation budget. Starting off his tenure as a Republican Governor with a tax increase was inevitably going to give many Republicans pause. However, this initial hesitation was greatly compounded by the fact that there are no tax offsets to the hike. In addition, the tax increase will not be gradually phased in over several years, as similar tax increases often are, but will into effect immediately. Lastly, the tax will be indefinitely pegged to the Consumer Price Index which could potentially see the tax increase every year. This is a tough pill to swallow for many Ohio Republican legislators. Conversely, DeWine is accurate when he notes the dire state of roads and bridges in Ohio. As previously reported: A 2018 study gave the state’s infrastructure an “A-” while the national state average came in at a “D+.”…
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