As campaign finance controversies brew, tougher Nevada laws coming into play

CARSON CITY, Nev. — Three years ago, an independent watchdog group ranked Nevada's campaign finance transparency laws 45th in the nation — an "F'' rating underscored by high-profile campaign finance hijinks in the past few months.
"The problem we have in Nevada," said Secretary of State Ross Miller, "is that we're perceived as being the Wild Wild West and have a reputation that anything goes."
Miller, who oversees the state's elections, finally found success changing those laws earlier this month after four years of trying. Gov. Brian Sandoval signed three bills that make a variety of changes in disclosure laws, from requiring candidates to file campaign contribution forms online, to requiring a disclosure on any ad $100 or more, so voters know when large, out-of-state advocacy groups are trying to influence Nevada politics.
"In previous sessions, it felt like pushing a rock up the hill," Miller said of the bills. "Every session, people forgot about the importance of the issue."
Votes were still split, but Miller said several controversies made it easier this time around for lawmakers to see holes in state election law.
Rory Reid, who failed a 2010 gubernatorial bid against Sandoval, was under investigation for skirting rules after his campaign created 90 smaller PACs and funneled donations through them from a large, umbrella PAC. Reid earlier this month paid an administrative fine of $25,000, but said he thought all along that the funding structure he used in his campaign was legal.
Another controversy cropped up after dozens of lawmakers received contributions from a company hoping to legalize Internet poker. Pokerstars is based overseas, and federal rules ban international contributions; one of the new campaign laws will clarify the ban in state law.
A criminal complaint filed Friday against a former Nevada Assemblyman brought the issue to the forefront again. The state attorney general alleges that Morse Arberry Jr. diverted more than $121,000 in campaign contributions to his personal checking account during the 2008 election cycle.
Miller says his office wants to "repair the perception" that political groups can get away with murder in Nevada.
Among the changes that will be in place by the 2012 election season:
Candidates will file all their reports electronically through the secretary of state's office. Existing law has candidates filing at different locations, including county clerk offices. The new system will create a database that voters can search by candidate, contributor, dollar amount and other data. It upgrades a system that required state staff to scan piles of handwritten documents into the system, and that only allowed voters to search reports by candidate.
Contribution and expense reports will be due four days before early voting begins so an increasing number of Nevadans who vote early can do more research before making their decision. The extra reports are in addition to the ones already due just before election day.
All ads, billboards and radio spots that cost more than $100 now must identify who paid for them. Anyone who spends more than $100 to influence an election must also register with the secretary of state and file expense reports.
Opponents say portions of the laws are too strict, and the extra paperwork and looming penalties could discourage average citizens from participating in elections.
"We want to be as transparent as possible," said Sen. James Settelmeyer, R-Minden, who vetted the laws as part of the Senate elections committee. "But to maintain the concept of a citizen Legislature, it can't be so cumbersome that a citizen can't participate."
He also worried that the electronic filing could oust candidates who don't have computer access.
Anne Bauer, a researcher with the National Institute on Money in State Politics, said some of the new laws are strong compared with those in other states — the $100 threshold for registering with the secretary of state is one of the lowest in the country.
But she added that the measures will make information more useable, and give voters a better picture of who is influencing the people on the ballot.

Personal Finance: Credit card offers are back

Seem like you're seeing more credit card offers lately? You aren't dreaming.

Targeting everyone from teenagers to 80-somethings, credit card companies are cranking out more offers, especially to those with good credit ratings.

Lee Marengo, a retired state employee in Sacramento, said she and her husband have been getting lots of tempting credit card offers in the mail.

A longtime credit card user who faithfully pays off her balance each month, the 84-year-old is getting "wonderful" offers for rewards cards, such as a Chase Visa that dangles 5 percent cash-back on gas, groceries and pharmacy purchases.

Marengo typically only uses one card but, "If something new and better comes along, by golly, I'm gonna grab it."

She's certainly not alone in getting credit card offers.

During the recession, card issuers kept a low profile. They got hammered by record rates of defaults by consumers who couldn't pay off their monthly balances. They also got pinched by new consumer protections in the federal Credit CARD Act that clamped down on late payment fees, interest rates and other charges.

But that's old news. Today, as the battered economy starts to heal, credit card defaults and late payments are lower. Banks have adjusted to the new landscape, amping up efforts to grab new consumers.

"There are a lot more mailings going out. The competition among credit card issuers has definitely stepped up," said Bill Hardekopf, CEO of LowCards.com, an online credit card comparison site. "They are sending out many more solicitations, especially to the most sought-after customers: those with good to excellent credit scores."

The spike in credit card mailings was significant this past year, says Anuj Shahani, who oversees tracking services for Synovate, a global market research firm. Direct mailings from credit card companies skyrocketed from 1.39 billion in 2009 to 2.82 billion in 2010, a whopping 103 percent increase.

"With the CARD Act in place and the economy doing better, credit card mailers have come back with a bang and are making up for some lost ground," said Shahani in an email. "We expect to see a modest rise in mailings for 2011."

Credit cards that offer rebates or rewards are where competition is most intense, says Hardekopf. "Issuers are offering some great deals out there, especially in miles and cash back. That is what excites consumers."

But if you're contemplating a new credit card, do your homework. Here are some tips:

Balance vs. no balance

You have to know which camp you're in, says Tim Chen, CEO and founder of NerdWallet.com, a Redwood City-based credit card comparison site.

If you don't carry a monthly balance, get a rewards card. They typically have an annual fee but offer airline miles, cash-back on purchases (groceries, dining, etc.) or discounts at certain stores.

If you do carry a balance, generally go for cards with the lowest interest rate.

Read the fine print

No matter what kind of card you apply for, be sure to read the disclosures first. Otherwise, you might get hit with surprise fees later. For instance, a company that brags it has no "annual fee," might instead charge an "application fee," says Ken Lin, CEO of CreditKarma.com, a Bay Area-based credit card site.

"If you take 20 minutes to read the disclosures, it can save you several hundred dollars," said Lin.

Watch out for terms/fees

Many new cards entice people to switch by offering to move your outstanding balance to a new card with a lower rate. But those so-called "teaser rates" usually last only six months or so. Or they can disappear entirely and be replaced by a sky-high rate if you fail to make a monthly payment on time.

For instance, let's say you've got a $2,000 balance on your credit card that's charging 20 percent APR. You get an offer to transfer your old balance to a new card that's only charging 6 percent. Sounds good, eh?

But look at the details: There's an upfront fee of 3 percent. On a $2,000 balance, that's $60. "Not the end of the world," notes Lin, but it's still money out of your pocket.

And if you don't pay on time every month, that super-low interest rate could jump to nearly 30 percent, the typical "penalty pricing" rate. In the end, you could be worse off than if you kept your original card.

Choose rewards wisely

If you buy a lot of gasoline, look at a card that pays cash back. Or if you fly for business or vacations and live in a Southwest Airlines city like Sacramento, it might be worth getting the airline's credit card to rack up miles.

But note that some cash-back rewards are capped, say $250 a year for gasoline purchases.

NerdWallet's Chen likes to tell how he scooped up 225,000 airline miles in one year by signing up for three cards: 75,000 bonus miles each for an American Airlines card from Visa and American Express. And a Capitol One card that did a match-my-miles promotion.

And he didn't get hit with annual charges.

"The fees were waived for the first year, so I just canceled the cards after I got the miles."

With his miles he's flying to Greece this summer.

That's not the kind of consumer that credit card companies are looking for, needless to say.

Every time you apply for a credit card, your credit score can get dinged. That's why it's best to do your homework before applying for too many cards. And if you have a card with a long history of good payments, don't cast it aside just because you see a better-looking deal out there. Hang onto it for the long-term benefit to your credit score.

Best tip: Always pay your credit card bill on time. "If you do, you're gonna save a lot of money. If you don't, that's where they get you," says CreditKarma's Lin.

By:- http://onlinemoney-foryou.blogspot.com 

No Greek budget cuts, no bailout aid: German Finance Minister

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble warned that a veto of the Greek government's austerity plans by parliament this week could mean Athens will not receive a bailout tranche it needs to remain solvent.

"If the package is rejected, which no one expects actually, then the prerequisites would no longer exist for the IMF, EU and euro zone countries to release the next tranche of aid," he told German Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag.


Athens needs to get its fifth slice of a 110 billion euro ($155.7 billion) EU/IMF bailout worth 12 billion euros, without which the country would be unable to cover pressing funding needs after July 15.

"The stability of the entire euro zone would be in danger and we would need to quickly ensure that the risk of contagion for the financial system and other euro area countries would be contained," he said.

The Greek parliament is due to vote on Wednesday and Thursday on measures that include 6.5 billion euros worth of extra austerity steps for this year and savings of 22 billion euros for 2012-2015 to cut deficits and keep qualifying for EU/IMF aid. It also speeds up the sale of state assets under a 50 billion euro privatization program.

"We are doing everything to prevent the crisis from escalating, but we must be ready for everything. That's our responsibility and we are preparing ourselves for that," he said.

"I am confident that a majority can be found in the Greek parliament for the austerity package," Schaeuble added.

The PASOK part of Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou counts 155 MPs in a 300-strong parliament, but his already razor thin majority may be undermined by two announced defections.

In Bild am Sonntag, Finance Minister Schaeuble also said that he expected private sector creditors to participate willingly in a second bailout package, which is likely to be similar in size to the 110 billion euros of EU/IMF loans from May 2010 and should tide Greece over until the end of 2014.

"Stabilizing the situation in Greece and bringing it under control is really in the absolute interest of all investors. Therefore the private sector doesn't need any additional incentives," Schaeuble said.

German banks, which say they have some 10-20 billion euros in exposure to Greece, have called for the state to guarantee their risk with taxpayer money should they participate in some form of a debt rollover.

Separately, German Sunday weekly Welt am Sonntag reported that German banks were expected to name what kind of maturity extension on Sunday that they are willing to accept.

Welt am Sonntag wrote that as of Friday banks were only offering to grant a one-year extension, instead of the five that the German government wanted.

Speaking to Bild am Sonntag, Schaeuble also said that he was confident his coalition could muster up the votes necessary to approve the creation of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the permanent fund to finance euro zone sovereign bailouts that goes into effect in 2013.

"I don't have the slightest doubt that once the summer break is over the treaty over the European Stability Mechanism finds a sufficient majority in the Bundestag and Bundesrat," he said, referring to the upper and lower houses of parliament.

Neighbors Lend a Hand to Flood-Ravaged North Dakota Town

Chased from their homes by rising floodwaters and bunking with friends, clergymen Mike Johnson and Mike Pancoast did what seems to come naturally to folks around here: They hopped into a car and headed for a nearby town to help others evacuate.

"There are people who need help and they need it now and we're able to do it, so let's go," Johnson said Saturday before hitting the road for the North Dakota town of Velva, about 20 miles downstream from Minot, where the Souris River was nearing its peak after swamping an estimated 4,000 homes. TheNational Weather Service predicted the river's crest later in the weekend would be 2 feet lower than earlier projected, welcome news in the battered community.

Johnson, associate pastor of Christ Lutheran Church, was uncertain about the fate of his own apartment building, although his belongings were safely in the hands of parishioners and friends in town. Fellow Lutherans from Stanley, an hour's drive west, took charge of his office equipment and files. "They just showed up on Tuesday and carted stuff off for us," he said.

Similar stories of people helping each other, often without being asked and demanding nothing in return, were a heartwarming counterpoint to the destruction from unprecedented flooding along the Souris valley in north-central North Dakota. Brought together by word of mouth, church and civic networks, social media and random encounters, those with housing and supplies to spare gave willingly to those without.

So many opened their doors that while some 11,000 people were evacuated from neighborhoods nearest the river, only a few hundred used shelters at Minot State University and the City Auditorium.

"For the rest of the country, that is kind of mind boggling. But ... that's how we are in North Dakota," Sen.John Hoeven said.

A Facebook page called "Minot ND Flood Help" drew volunteer offers to haul furniture, care for pets, clean laundry and even give therapeutic massages -- many from outside town.

Patrica Eide of Tioga, about 85 miles west, posted an offer to loan her 30-foot camper to a displaced family. It quickly drew a taker: a man with a wife and three children who were living in their van since being evacuated.

"We could probably rent that thing for $500 a month, but I told my husband there's no way I'm going to be greedy," Eide, 62, said by phone. "God just had better plans for our camper than renting it."

She was preparing to haul it to Minot with a load of canned tomatoes and green beans, a grill, propane and other supplies. "I think we've got `em covered," she said.

Mike Pancoast and his wife Kari, both associate pastors at First Lutheran Church, were staying with Minot State campus pastor Kari Williamson after the rising river threatened their church and adjacent brick parsonage. Like Johnson, they didn't know how high the waters would rise, but were confident enough to move most of their clothes and other belongings to higher floors instead of removing them. Their four children were staying with her parents in Minnesota.

"We've kept it together pretty well, although it's not to say we're a solid rock through this," Mike Pancoast said, sipping coffee at the kitchen table of Williamson's ranch-style house. "It's one thing to go and visit somebody and stay in their house and enjoy their hospitality for a couple of days. It's another thing to move in indefinitely and wonder, have we overstayed our welcome?"

Johnson was staying with parishioners David and Laurie Weber. Their teenage sons Preston and Dylan accompanied him to Velva after spending Thursday on their bikes, going door-to-door to help evacuees move furniture.

A common sight was garages packed with televisions, books, clothing and other items as residents turned their homes into temporary storage units for flood victims. Williamson was keeping things for students at Minot State.

Across the street, a trailer stuffed with household belongings stood in Derek Cumbie's driveway. His garage was a veritable warehouse after several friends dropped off their things.

Two were staying with Cumbie, 26, a captain at Minot Air Force Base.

"I've been really impressed with how people in this community are helping each other, so I wanted to do my part," he said.

The river had been expected to peak at some 8 1/2 feet above major flood stage, but it leveled off hours earlier and was only rising by tiny amounts later Saturday. The National Weather Service dropped the projection by about 2 feet as upstream flows weakened.

City officials applauded when Minot Mayor Curt Zimbelman announced the peak forecast at a news conference. He warned the sustained high water flows were likely to last for three to four days, enough to put significant strain on the city's newly built earthen levees.

"You've got that deterioration on the dikes. If you see how fast that water is moving, it's scary," Zimbelman said. "We're concerned that we can hold it, and it's critical that we keep a vigilant eye on this."

Minot's Broadway Street bridge over the Souris, which is its most important connection between the north and south sections of the city, is likely to remain closed until the crest recedes, the mayor said.

Problems at Minot's water treatment plant prompted the state Department of Health to issue a "boil order" on Saturday for users of city water. It also applies to the Minot Air Force Base, about 13 miles north of town, which gets its drinking water from Minot's municipal system.

Alan Walter, Minot's public works director, said water plant workers discovered that untreated water had gotten into the city system, and he believe the problem would be remedied in one or two days.

Zimbelman said city officials were "not completely sure at this point" that Minot's water supply had been contaminated.

"It has not been fully tested ... to show that it is contaminated," Zimbelman said. "There is just a concern at this point, so we're taking precautions."