Debra Newby Watkins CPA

A bit of legislative trivia.  Note that Cigars are exempt.

The legislation titled “Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act,” was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Obama on March 31, 2010.

Effective immediately, the U.S. Postal Service® cannot accept or transmit any package that it knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, contains nonmailable smokeless tobacco or cigarettes.

Cigarettes, including roll-your-own tobacco, and smokeless tobacco are considered “nonmailable” matter, unless the shipment falls within certain exceptions. The acceptance and transport of packages containing cigars is not prohibited under the Act.

Read More USPS.com.

Comptroller’s Economic Outlook

“The Texas economy, the world’s 11th-largest, continues to fare better than those of many other states. But Texas felt the effects of the worldwide recession during 2009. Despite the state’s economy contracting in 2009, Texas’ relative economic advantage should continue as the state and U.S. economies turn around and expand again in 2010. The Comptroller’s office estimates that Texas’ gross state product will grow by 2.6 percent during calendar 2010. The U.S. economy should grow at a slower rate of 2.0 percent during the year.”

Read more of Susan Comb’s remarks.

David Brooks column in the NY Times, An Economy of Grinds, emphasises that the economy will continue to creep along until the business climate for “the country’s loners, its contrarians and its narrow, ambitious outsiders”  is “wide-open” with an “atmosphere of general confidence”.  Brooks calls these outsiders The Grinds.

Here’s a link to the article:  An Economy of Grinds.

The jobless recovery was discussed on the March 5, 2010, broadcast of The Takeaway.   Lakshan Achuthan, managing director of Economic Cycle Research Institute , a market analysis company,   tells a tale of two economic Americas. Contrary to popular belief, the current recession has not been all that bad for many Americans. Unfortunately, the other 40 percent of unemployed fall into what Lakshman calls the “long term unemployed;” and he adds that their plight may not be over any time soon.

Achuthan comments that the Jobs Package which offers a payroll tax reduction incentive to employers will not address the problem of the long term unemployed as employers will only accelerate hiring that is already on the table.

We are lucky to live in a state that is urban and urbane, but still celebrates the rural traditions that make Texas what it is.
In this issue of Fiscal Notes, you will learn that hunting is big bucks to the state’s economy – $2.2 billion annually. And deer are the most popular quarry. But to me, deer hunting has a more personal connection.

When I was a young girl, Thanksgiving meant going to my grandparents’ East Texas farm near Magnolia. Early on Thanksgiving morning, the men would go hunting. Invariably, my grandfather would return with a deer, dressed and freezer-bound. To my child’s mind, deer hunting and the holiday were synonymous. I thought families everywhere were hunting!

I know better now. But it’s hard to live in Texas and not be touched by hunting. It is not just a sport for rural Texans. Six in 10 hunters live in urban areas. Eight percent are women. I didn’t grow up to be a hunter. I prefer to bait a hook and try my luck. But Texas is a better place because of our great outdoors and the hunting it affords.

Enjoy this issue and please share with others.
Delane Caesar
Director
Public Outreach & Strategies

Read Fiscal Notes.

New York Times Book Review, Liaquat Ahamed

The build-up of dollars abroad transformed the United States into a gigantic bank, and like any bank, it was vulnerable to a run.