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In Point of Fact |
from NewsLink, Vol. 2, No. 1, Fall 1997
Tort in a box : How many bytes, or is it bites, does that package contain?
A bill that gives software companies the right to use as much packaging as they like for their products is sailing through the [California] Legislature. The bill is a response to a flurry of lawsuits against software makers by William Henley, an Albany attorney, who has mounted a one-man campaign against excess packaging. Henley claims software manufacturers are breaking a law that prohibits them from filling their packages with air. That's the same law that requires cereal boxes and potato chip bags to have labels explaining why there's so much empty space inside.
Julia Angwin, San Francisco Chronicle, September 11, 1997.
Marriage is taxing, still.
It's still true - and worth noting - that married couples pay more in federal income taxes than two single people living together earning the same income. Uncle Sam combines the incomes of married couples, pushing them into a higher tax bracket. For example, two single persons each earning $24,000 a year are each taxed at 15%. A working married couple, each earning $24,000 a year, pays a marginal tax rate of 28%.
Houston Chronicle, September 15, 1997.Send in the IRS!
Nine out of ten Italians failed to complete their income tax forms correctly in 1996, with taxpayers on average underestimating amount owed by some $5,000. A recent study concluded that 1996 tax evasion totalled 9.01 trillion lire ($5 billion). Almost 90% of all individual income tax forms subject to checks by authorities were not filled out properly, and with each audit, the state cashed in on average an extra 9.4 million lire, the study said.
Reuters, September 9, 1997.Taxes do matter!
Car sales in Japan fell for the top three automakers in July. The main culprit appears to be an April consumption tax increase that has consumers buying fewer new cars and building fewer homes. The negative impact of the higher tax has lingered longer and dug deeper than the government or private economists had predicted.
Boston Globe, August 28, 1997.
NewsLink is the quarterly newsletter of the Beacon Hill Institute for Public Policy Research at Suffolk University. © 1996-2002. All rights reserved.
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