Author: Elizabeth Blessing
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Sextortion victims can get intimate images taken down free within 48 hours under the Take It Down Act, the FTC says, as it sues a paid helpline
Anyone being blackmailed over intimate images has a free way to get them removed, and the Federal Trade Commission is warning that some paid “helplines” are charging thousands of dollars for help they do not deliver. In a consumer alert on sextortion help, the FTC says online platforms must take down intimate images within 48…
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The IRS will not require excise tax reporting or assert penalties on taxable dyed diesel use from October 1 through December 31
The Internal Revenue Service has told fuel users they do not have to file or keep records for one excise tax on taxable dyed diesel use this fall. In release IR-2026-125, dated October 21, the IRS said it will not assert civil penalties or additions to tax for those reporting and recordkeeping failures. The relief…
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Winter shutoff protections start November 1 in at least eight states, Arkansas to Montana
Utility companies in at least eight states have to hold off on cutting power or gas to homes for much of the winter, and the first date on the calendar is Sunday, November 1. The federal LIHEAP Clearinghouse, which is funded by the Department of Health and Human Services, lists date-based winter shutoff protections starting…
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Social Security can waive repayment of an overpayment for beneficiaries who did not cause it and cannot afford to pay it back, using Form SSA-632
An overpayment letter from Social Security does not always end with a repayment. A beneficiary who agrees the money was overpaid, did not cause the mistake and cannot afford to repay it can ask the agency to waive the debt on Form SSA-632. Social Security says it will stop recovering the overpayment until it decides…
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USDA proposes moving every state’s food stamp cards to chip and tap within two years of a final rule, after more than $360 million in stolen benefits was replaced
The magnetic stripe on the back of a food stamp card is the weak spot USDA wants to replace. On October 21, 2026, the department posted a proposed rule that would require every state to move Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits onto chip-and-tap cards, with a two-year clock that starts when a final rule…
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Humana Basic Rx drug plan members in 28 states who paid no premium in 2026 and get no Extra Help face 2027 premium increases of $6.30 to $30.60 a month if they keep the plan, an analysis of CMS data finds
Medicare members who pay nothing for a Humana Basic Rx drug plan this year will pay something in 2027 if they stay put. A KFF analysis of the 2026 and 2027 Medicare plan landscape files from CMS finds that Humana Basic Rx enrollees in 28 states face increases of $6.30 to $30.60 a month. The…
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Kroger plans a $5 billion investment in lower prices through 2029, with new everyday shelf prices reaching about 250 stores by year-end
Kroger, the Cincinnati-based grocer, says it will put $5 billion into lower prices through 2029, and the first wave of new everyday shelf prices is due at about 250 stores by the end of this year. The company laid out its first multi-year plan at an investor update on October 20, 2026. The catch for…
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Social Security lets a divorced spouse married at least 10 years collect up to half of an ex’s full benefit, and the ex’s own check does not shrink
A person who was married for at least 10 years and later divorced can collect Social Security on a former spouse’s earnings record, and the former spouse’s own monthly check does not go down because of it. Social Security spells out both points in its publication for divorced spouses. The rule matters most to people…
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Food stamp shoppers in Ohio cannot buy sugar-sweetened drinks or any fountain drinks starting April 1, 2027
Ohio food stamp shoppers will not be able to use their benefits on sugar-sweetened drinks or on any fountain drinks beginning April 1, 2027, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s list of state restriction waivers. The list was updated October 13, 2026. That is six months later than the date Ohio first had in…
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Food stamp rolls in Virginia have dropped by more than 150,000 people since June 2025, the governor says, as soda comes off the SNAP list November 1
Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s office says SNAP participation in Virginia has fallen by more than 150,000 people since June 2025. The figure came on October 20, when the governor launched a coalition of 32 organizations to help residents keep food and health benefits under the federal law passed last year. The next change for Virginia shoppers…