Main Street Dollars

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The Dump Luxe Furniture Outlets are closing all eight of their stores in five states: Arizona, Georgia, Illinois, Texas and Virginia. The company said on October 8 that the stores will close permanently, and a going-out-of-business sale started that morning at all eight. No last day for the stores has been announced. The sale is…

Pennsylvania food stamp households that do not prove rent and utility costs at renewal get benefits figured without those deductions, though the case stays open

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Pennsylvania food stamp households that cannot show what they pay for rent and utilities when their case comes up for renewal will have their benefit figured without those costs, which can make it smaller. The case itself stays open. The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services (DHS) said on September 29 that the proof requirement has…

VA homelessness aid for very low-income veteran families is funded only through Dec. 11

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Federal money for the VA’s main program that keeps very low-income veteran families housed is guaranteed only until December 11, 2026. A stopgap spending law, Public Law 119-103, approved September 2, sets aside $130,191,781 for Supportive Services for Veteran Families, known as SSVF, for the period from October 1 to December 11. The law does…

The immigration-court green card application fee rose to $1,590 from $1,540 on Oct. 1

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The fee for a green card application filed in immigration court went up $50 on October 1. The Justice Department’s immigration-court system now charges $1,590 for Form I-485, the application to become a permanent resident, up from $1,540. The new immigration-court amount The change comes from a notice that the Executive Office for Immigration Review,…

A Tucson tax preparer was convicted on 22 counts of filing false returns and faces sentencing Feb. 23, 2027

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in Free Tax Help

A paid tax preparer in Tucson, Arizona, has been found guilty of preparing false federal income tax returns for her clients without their knowledge. Darlene Musgrove, 68, was convicted on 22 counts on October 5, and she faces sentencing on February 23, 2027. The verdict in Tucson The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of…

A Yonkers tax preparer admitted causing more than $5 million in IRS losses

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in Credits & Deductions

A man who ran tax preparation offices in Yonkers, New York, has pleaded guilty to helping file false returns that cost the Internal Revenue Service more than $5 million. Joseph Clay, 52, of Lodi, New Jersey, entered the plea on October 1, and the same conduct cost New York State close to $900,000 more. What…

A smart rings CEO was convicted of a Ponzi scheme that took nearly $2 million

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in Fraud & Scams

A federal jury has convicted the chief executive of a “smart rings” company of running a Ponzi scheme that took nearly $2 million from investors. Michelle Bisnoff, 59, of Boca Raton, Florida, was found guilty on September 24, and she is due to be sentenced in January. Affiliate links — we may earn a commission.…

Premier Martial Arts franchise buyers would share $1.85 million and most could cancel without penalty under a proposed FTC deal

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in Consumer Rights

People who bought a Premier Martial Arts franchise would split $1.85 million and most of them would get a way out of their contracts under a settlement the Federal Trade Commission announced on October 5. The deal is still a proposal. The FTC filed it with a federal court in Tennessee, and the court has…

VA’s $10-a-day hospital charge for some veterans is extended only through Dec. 11

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Congress has pushed back the end date for a per-day hospital charge that the Department of Veterans Affairs collects from some veterans, but only by about ten weeks. A spending law approved September 2 moved the cutoff for the $10-a-day charge from September 30, 2026 to December 11, 2026. What the extension changed The change…

An Illinois woman admitted taking over $2 million in pandemic jobless aid using identities found on social media

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