Author: Elizabeth Blessing
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Hyundai and Kia owners can claim up to $350 from a $62 million airbag settlement
An airbag that doesn’t deploy in a crash isn’t a minor defect, and that’s the allegation behind a nationwide settlement covering millions of Hyundai and Kia vehicles built over more than a decade. Lawsuits consolidated into multidistrict litigation in California alleged that certain airbag control units, made by ZF-TRW and installed across a range of…
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The FTC warns veterans about postcards promising money from a savings program that does not exist
Veterans across the country are opening their mailboxes to find postcards promising extra money every month through something called the “Veterans Savings Program.” The Federal Trade Commission wants people to know that program doesn’t exist. It’s a mail-based phishing scheme built to sound official enough that a veteran calls the number printed on the card,…
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The IRS says a permanent paid-leave credit now reaches part-timers working 20 hours a week
A tax credit that has quietly encouraged employers to offer paid family and medical leave for the past several years just became permanent, and its reach just got noticeably wider. The Treasury Department and the IRS issued Notice 2026-28 on August 5, spelling out how the employer credit for paid family and medical leave now…
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The IRS gave wildfire victims in seven Washington counties until February 1 to file and pay
Six counties in central and eastern Washington, three tribal nations, and one additional county are now working under a federal tax deadline that has effectively moved five months. The IRS announced August 31 that taxpayers affected by wildfires that began July 31 have until February 1, 2027, to file and pay most federal returns that…
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The IRS raised the business mileage rate to 76 cents for the second half of the year
Anyone still logging business miles for the second half of 2026 at 72.5 cents apiece is leaving real money on the table. The IRS raised its standard mileage rate for business driving to 76 cents a mile for trips taken from July 1 through December 31, a jump of 3.5 cents from the rate that…
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The IRS now requires a 1099 only after a company pays $2,000, up from $600
A freelance graphic designer who earns $1,800 from a single client this year should not expect a 1099 form to show up in January — and should not mistake the silence for a tax-free payday. The IRS’s own instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC confirm that the reporting threshold businesses use to decide whether to…
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The VA cut the average survivors pension decision from 172 days to 73
Losing a spouse who served in the military often means losing a paycheck along with everything else, and the VA benefit meant to help fill that gap has historically taken months to arrive. In an April 15, 2026 press release, the Department of Veterans Affairs reported a specific fix to that wait: the average time…
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Social Security cut average field office wait times 30 percent while serving 25 million visitors
The Social Security Administration marked its 91st anniversary on August 14 with a data dump most agencies would rather not publish: exactly how long people are waiting when they show up in person. This year, for the first time in a while, the numbers moved in the visitor’s favor. Nearly 25 million people walked into…
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Social Security announces the 2027 cost-of-living raise on October 14
Every fall, one government release date determines how much bigger — or smaller — the raise will be for the roughly 75 million Americans who collect Social Security or Supplemental Security Income. That date isn’t set by the Social Security Administration deciding when it feels ready. It’s locked to a Bureau of Labor Statistics data…
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Medicare Advantage plans no longer have to tell members which extra benefits went unused
Every Medicare Advantage plan with supplemental extras — dental cleanings, an eyewear allowance, a grocery card — has always counted on enrollees to notice, on their own, whether they were actually using what they paid into the plan for. A rule finalized earlier this year had been set to change that by forcing plans to…
