Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
Howard Schultz, the former head of Starbucks Corp., has left Seattle for Miami after more than four decades in Washington state, relocating his family office just as state lawmakers passed a first-of-its-kind income tax on millionaires. The timing of his departure, announced the same week the bill cleared its final legislative hurdles, has turned a…
A bipartisan group of senators is pushing to create a fiscal commission charged with reining in federal spending and debt, which now exceeds $38.8 trillion. Senators Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat, John Curtis, a Utah Republican, and Angus King, a Maine independent, along with other colleagues, introduced the Bipartisan Fiscal Commission Act as the government’s…
Roth IRAs are often pitched as the go-to retirement account for young workers in lower tax brackets. But take a closer look, and you’ll see plenty of high-income earners quietly using Roths to build long-term, tax-free wealth—despite earning too much to contribute the “normal” way. It’s not just about the account itself. It’s about how…
A growing number of U.S. employers are abandoning performance-based raises in favor of uniform pay increases spread evenly across their workforces, a strategy compensation professionals call “peanut butter” pay because it smears the same thin layer over everyone. The tactic mirrors what companies did during the 2008-2009 financial crisis, when recession fears drove firms to…
Las Vegas built its legend on the promise of easy fun and affordable indulgence, but a growing number of Americans now see the trip as more hassle than escape. From rising prices to shifting travel habits, the city is colliding with a tougher economic mood and a more demanding audience. The result is a sharp…
A coalition of Democratic lawmakers introduced multiple bills on February 20, 2026, demanding that the federal government automatically refund tariffs paid by small businesses under President Donald Trump’s trade orders, which federal courts have ruled illegal. The push, estimated to involve as much as $175 billion in total refunds, has drawn support from both chambers…
Homeowners who pay thousands of dollars a year in property insurance premiums often wonder whether that cost can reduce their federal tax bill. The short answer is that a standard homeowner cannot deduct personal home insurance premiums, but taxpayers who use part of their residence for business or rent it out can claim a portion…
UPS plans to cut up to 30,000 jobs this year as it reduces its dependence on Amazon shipping volume, a move announced on an investor conference call and reported by the Associated Press. The announcement lands at a moment when layoffs and discharges are rising and millions of American households lack even basic financial cushions,…
Homeowners routinely sabotage their own property values through preventable mistakes that range from botched renovations to willful ignorance of environmental hazards, according to warnings from real estate professionals surveyed for the latest national remodeling data. With buyers growing more cautious and federal disclosure rules tightening scrutiny on everything from lead paint to flood risk, the…
Federal regulators across at least four agencies have now issued warnings about fraudulent messages reaching Americans’ phones through text and messaging apps, with scam losses hitting $470 million in 2024 alone. The concern is no longer limited to individual theft. A growing body of evidence ties the same phone-based misinformation channels to broader financial instability,…