The out-of-pocket cost of caring for an aging parent or spouse averages about $5,500 a year, according to the nation's first in-depth study of such expenses, a sum that is more than double previous estimates and more than the average American household spends annually on health care and entertainment combined. ...more

November 19, 2007

A St. Petersburg toddler whose parents say would not be alive today if not for government-financed health care is being featured in lobbying efforts to persuade Congress to override the president's veto of a children's health insurance program bill. ...more

October 16, 2007

The state's new plan to cut property taxes offers a pittance of the savings homeowners would have realized under the original proposal. ...more

October 12, 2007

SEBRING — Two questions are being raised about the "Save Our Seniors" property tax discount, passed statewide by voters in 1998 to help lower-income homeowners age 65 and up. First: Should Highlands County commissioners raise this tax break? Highlands County offers 1/10th of the maximum level of this tax relief, available to seniors with annual household income of $23,600 or lower. The commissioners authorize it at a $5,000 reduction in the taxable value of a homestead house. The constitutional amendment creating Save Our Seniors originally gave cities and counties the option of reducing homestead taxable value by up to $25,000. A year ago, the state Legislature adjusted the maximum up to $50,000. ...more

September 16, 2007

Low-income seniors in Hillsborough County probably will get an additional property tax reduction of about $87 per household starting in 2008. ...more

September 7, 2007

Low-income seniors in Hillsborough County will probably get an additional property tax reduction of about $87 per household starting in 2008. ...more

September 6, 2007