Should some items be taxed, and others not? The Florida House of Representatives studied that issue last week to decide whether to levy sales taxes on rent, sports tickets, gym admissions, toll road charges, and hundreds of other goods. ...more

March 22, 2009

SEBRING — When Howard Jenkins retired from the Air Force, he used his veteran benefits to go back to school and improve himself. From his experience, he saw the shortcomings of the military and wanted to help others. After starting as a veterans representative in Winter Haven, he transferred to Sebring in 1992 as a local veteran employment representative for Heartland Workforce. Jenkins enjoys helping the young, returning troops, showing them how to apply and get their earned benefits under the GI bill. ...more

December 17, 2007

The project engineer for a resort complex at Spring Hill's Oak Hill Golf Course will try Nov. 13 to again sell his plan to the planning and zoning board. ...more

November 4, 2007

Japan hopes to thwart potential terrorists from entering the country by fingerprinting and photographing all foreigners ages 16 or older on entry starting next month, an official said Friday. ...more

October 27, 2007

When it comes to property taxes — or just about anything else, for that matter — all any reasonable person wants is fairness. ...more

October 21, 2007

Cubans are migrating to the United States in the greatest numbers in more than a decade, and for most of them the new way to get north is first to head west - to Mexico - in a convoluted route that avoids the U.S. Coast Guard. ...more

October 16, 2007

Now that the Florida Legislature's much-touted property tax relief proposal is in limbo, it is time to take stock and consider alternatives. A proposal created by the state's county property appraisers, which advocates a universal tax break for all property owners , sounds practical and something that could be considered in part if a new plan is ever created. But for this and some other proposals to survive, the Legislature and the voters have to ask themselves a tough question: Is saving Save Our Homes Amendment worth the price it has extracted? ...more

October 9, 2007

SEBRING — The number of car accidents in Highlands County slightly increased from 2005 to 2006, although the number of fatal accidents went down, according to recently released statistics provided by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. There were 859 total crashes in Highlands County in 2006, five more accidents than the previous year. There were also 21 fatal accidents, down from 33 in 2005. Fatal accidents are calculated based on the number of cars involved, not the number of passenger deaths. For example, if there were multiple deaths in one car during an accident, the number would count as one fatal accident. "The trends across the state are showing that there are more crashes," said Lt. Doug Dodson, of the Florida Highway Patrol. ...more

October 1, 2007