Tag: taxes

Mamdani Proposes Massive Estate Tax Exemption Cut From $7M To $750K, Among Other Tax Increases

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is urging Albany to consider a sweeping overhaul of New York’s estate tax, proposing to sharply lower the exemption threshold and dramatically increase the top rate on large inheritances. His plan would cut the exemption from more than $7 million to $750,000 while boosting the highest tax rate from 16 percent to 50 percent, Bloomberg reported. 

The idea was included in a policy memo his administration recently shared with state lawmakers as they negotiate the state budget, according to NY Focus.

The estate tax proposal is one of several revenue measures Mamdani’s office has floated as the city prepares for a significant budget gap. New York City is projecting a $5.4 billion deficit for the fiscal year that begins July 1, and the mayor is asking state officials to help identify new sources of funding to help close the shortfall.

Among the other proposals is a narrower package of business tax increases aimed specifically at companies operating in the city. The administration estimates those changes could generate about $1.75 billion annually. Under the plan, the city’s corporate tax rate would rise to 10.8 percent for financial firms and to 10.62 percent for other corporations, while the tax on large unincorporated businesses would increase modestly for firms earning more than $5 million.

Mamdani is also proposing to scale back the Pass-Through Entity Tax credit, which currently allows certain business owners to use company tax payments to fully offset what they owe in personal income taxes. Limiting that credit to 75 percent of its value would produce roughly $700 million a year, according to city estimates. The mayor continues to advocate for raising the local income tax rate on residents earning more than $1 million annually, a measure projected to bring in about $3 billion each year.

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LA awards $106M to nonprofit whose lawyers hinder city’s ability to clean up streets — and bill $1,025 an hour

Los Angeles just cut a whopping $106.6 million taxpayer check to a nonprofit law firm whose lawyers have spent years hindering the city’s ability to dismantle homeless camps and clean up city streets — with one attorney billing as much as $1,025 an hour for work tied to its activism.

The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) was awarded the largest share of an eye-popping $177 million tenant rights funding package approved at City Hall this week, despite opposition from the City Attorney.

Under the deal, Los Angeles will funnel $106,572,543.69 over the next three years to LAFLA for eviction defense services, even as attorneys connected to the organization have repeatedly filed lawsuits that blocked the city from enforcing municipal codes aimed at keeping sidewalks clear of encampments and neighborhoods safe.

But the money flowing to the group is far larger than that. City records show the Stay Housed LA eviction defense program, a city initiative administered by LAFLA through a network of partner organizations, had already grown to a maximum contract value of about $90.8 million through a series of amendments approved by the City Council.

Put together, the contracts push the pipeline of taxpayer funding tied to the nonprofit to about $197 million. That number jumps off the page when compared to the organization’s own finances.

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Exposed: Ilhan Omar’s Ties to Sister’s Minneapolis Health Clinic, Somali Health Company, and Alleged Brother-Husband

Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) web of shady family ties goes even deeper than her alleged marriage to her brother — reportedly using her political offices to secure millions of dollars for a Minneapolis health clinic operated by her sister, who is married to a top Somali government official.

Omar’s elder sister, Sahra Noor, states on her LinkedIn profile that she was the CEO of People’s Center Clinics & Services from July 2014 to April 2018. In January 2017, Omar began her two-year term as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. 

People’s Center is in the Minneapolis neighborhood of Cedar-Riverside, nicknamed “Little Mogadishu” for its high Somali migrant population, many of whom do not speak English.

The 2017 capital budget approved by the state legislature included $2.2 million for the clinic, which operates as a nonprofit that has received $33 million in Health and Human Services (HHS) grants since 2002. 

While People’s Center has an active contract pharmacy agreement for HHS’s 340B Drug Pricing Program with “Degdeg’s Carepoint Pharmacy,” signed by Noor in 2015, the pharmacy lost its license in 2017 and is listed as “permanently closed” on Google Maps. 

Omar boasted about getting the $2.2 million for the clinic that was being run by her sister at the time, celebrating the renovations it completed in 2022 along with Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D), state Sen. Omar Fateh (D-MN), and other Democrats.

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Husband behind $14M COVID loan scam bought mansion for another wife he had in the Middle East

An Illinois tax preparer who helped run a “staggering” $14 million COVID scam used the money to build a mansion for a wife and kids he had in the Palestinian territories — infuriating his other wife in Illinois.

Sharhabeel Shreiteh, 46, received around $740,000 in kickbacks as he helped more than 1,000 people get phony Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans in what he admitted to one sidekick was likely the “most stupid fraud in history.”

Shreiteh used his own ill-gotten gains to build a home and a luxury Mercedes car for his wife and their three kids in Palestine — sending his American-based wife of nearly 18 years into a jealous rage, the Chicago Tribune reported.

“You suck!” Hania Atiq Shreiteh, his 52-year-old wife in America, texted him in July 2021 about the money he was sending to his family in his native Palestine.

“I bust my a– for 13 years and don’t have like she gets without working for it!!!” she wrote, according to messages in court filings.

“You gave her kids, a villa, now fancy cars??!! … I’m so sick and tired of being lied to by you.”

Shreiteh and Hania were married in 2008 and have a daughter in suburban Chicago. It was not clear when he married the other woman in Palestine, with whom he has three children and talked to every day, nor if they are still married.

However, Hania’s anger appeared to have subsided by the time the taxpayer pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Tuesday.

“Having a second family aligns with his religious beliefs and was approved by his wife,” a court memo seeking a lighter sentence claimed. “He hopes that once the situation in the Middle East stabilizes, his other family can visit him here.”

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Over 60% on Welfare: Sanctuary States Quietly Turn Illegal Aliens Into a Permanent Dependent Class

Jessica Vaughan, director of the Center for Immigration Studies, said policies adopted by sanctuary states can attract illegal immigration and place financial burdens on taxpayers through expanded access to public assistance programs.

Vaughan discussed how certain state policies provide benefits to individuals living in the country illegally, arguing that these programs increase government spending and encourage illegal settlement in those states.

“Sanctuary states typically have other policies that attract illegal settlement and thus burden taxpayers with support of illegal immigrants,” Vaughan said.

She said that beyond providing emergency medical care and public education, some sanctuary states extend additional benefits funded by taxpayers.

“Besides funding emergency health care and schooling for all, a number of sanctuary states go farther and choose to provide Medicaid, subsidized health insurance, nutrition assistance, housing and much more,” Vaughan said.

According to Vaughan, those programs are used frequently by households headed by individuals living in the country illegally.

“Illegal immigrants use these welfare programs in large numbers,” Vaughan said.

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Pete Hegseth’s Defense Department Blew $22M On Steak and Lobster in a Single Month, Watchdog Claims

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth‘s Defense Department allegedly blew through $22 million on lobsters and ribeye steak as part of a wild September 2025 end-of-year spree.

According to an analysis by nonprofit watchdog Open the Books, Hegseth’s DoD spent $93.4 billion on grants and contracts in Sept. 2025 alone — nearly 50 percent of which was expended in the last five business days of the month.

Open the Books, run by the American Transparency charity founded in 2011, collects and publishes government spending data, including expenditures down to the lobster tail.

Per the analysis by Open the Books, in September, the Pentagon spent $2 million on Alaskan king crab, $6.9 million on lobster tail, $15.1 million on ribeye steak, and $1 million on salmon. Dessert included 272 orders of doughnuts for $139,224 and ice cream machines for $124,000.

While the Pentagon does not technically have to spend all its congressionally allocated funds, “use-it-or-lose-it” policies often push it to do so. Any leftover funds could be removed from the budget the following year. So, extravagant sprees are not unusual at the end of a fiscal year.

For example, the group noted in its report, “Furniture is near the top of the military’s wish list at the end of every fiscal year. Since 2008, the DoD has spent an average of $257.6 million on furniture every September — a 564% increase above the norm. In months besides September, furniture costs the military only $38.8 million on average.”

Speaking to Open the Books, the CEO of Govly, an AI company that assists government contractors, compared Sept. 30 to “Amazon Prime Day” for the federal government.

Extravagant spending sprees are also not unusual for Hegseth’s DoD. The report noted that the department also spent more than $7.4 million on lobster throughout four months in 2025: March, May, June, and October.

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States Sue Trump Over New Tariffs Imposed Under 1974 Trade Act

A coalition of 24 Democrat-led states has filed a sweeping federal lawsuit against President Donald Trump and several federal agencies and officials, arguing that their latest tariffs violate both federal law and the U.S. Constitution. The case, filed last Thursday in the United States Court of International Trade, challenges tariffs imposed under long-dormant Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 right after the Supreme Court struck down the administration’s earlier “emergency” tariff policy.

The states are asking the court to block the tariffs and order refunds for the costs already paid.

A New Tariff Strategy

The legal battle began after a major ruling from the Supreme Court on February 20.

In Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, the Court ruled that the administration could not impose sweeping tariffs using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). That law allows presidents to respond to economic emergencies, but the Court concluded that it does not authorize tariffs. The ruling was a significant blow to the administration’s trade policy. For more than a year, the White House had been imposing global tariffs using IEEPA.

But the administration swiftly adopted a new strategy. Per the challenge:

Having lost the battle on IEEPA, the President now dusts off a separate statute: Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, 19 U.S.C. § 2132, which is another statute that has never been used to impose tariffs. Indeed, it has never been used at all.

On the same day the Supreme Court decision was issued, Trump signed a proclamation invoking Section 122 to impose a 10-percent tariff on most imports worldwide for a period of 150 days. The new tariff took effect on February 24.

The next day, the president announced on Truth Social that the tariff would rise to 15 percent — the maximum rate allowed by the statute. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later confirmed the prospect.

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O’Keefe Media Group Releases Undercover Video of Chenega & Cherokee Federal Executive Admitting “Native-Owned” Firms Cheat Government Contracts

The O’Keefe Media Group on Tuesday released undercover video of a Chenega & Cherokee federal executive admitting that “Native-owned” firms cheat US government contracts and outsource the work while they collect millions.

Ricky Longhurst, Senior Account Executive at Cherokee Federal, told the undercover OMG journalist that companies are claiming ‘Native’ ownership to “cheat” the government.

Mike Montgomery, a Chenega Architecture and Design President, disclosed the revenue split: “We give 37% back to the tribe for infrastructure… 63% goes back to the business.”

“So, how do you do that because you don’t look Native?” the OMG journalist asked Mike Montgomery.

“I’m not Native, no. No, they hire business executives, that understand the federal marketspace – but the board members are all Alaskans in the Chenega Tribe,” he said.

Per the O’Keefe Media Group:

In OMG’s previous undercover footage, ATI Government Solutions Contract Manager Melayne Cromwell admitted, “We only do 20%… the rest goes to subs.”

New undercover footage involving executives connected to Chenega Architecture and Design and Cherokee Federal describes similar arrangements and admits they are cheating.

Ricky Longhurst, Senior Account Executive at Cherokee Federal, summed up the system bluntly: “It’s cheating really.”

These companies are claiming Native ownership on paper to access and secure 8(a) government contracts worth $100+ million.

Mike Montgomery of Chenega Architecture and Design described how the revenue is split: “We give 37% back to the tribe for infrastructure… 63% goes back to the business.”

He also stated, “We have an incentive because of the Alaskan Native ownership.”

Following our first report, Small Business Administration Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced major enforcement action.

Loeffler stated that the “SBA suspended 1,091 firms from the 8(a) Program,” and the agency took “immediate action” against companies taking advantage of the program.

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Defense Department Records Reveal U.S. Funding of Anthrax Laboratory Activities in Ukraine

Judicial Watch announced today it received 345 pages of records from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), a component of the U.S. Department of Defense, revealing that the United States funded anthrax laboratory activities in a Ukrainian biolab in 2018. Dozens of pages are completely redacted, and many others are heavily redacted. The records show over $11 million in funding for the Ukraine biolabs program in 2019.

The records were obtained in response to a February 28, 2022, Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Defense Threat Reduction Agency for records regarding the funding of Black & Veatch involving work of any manner with biosafety laboratories in the country of Ukraine.

Three phases of work are discussed in the records, several of which are indicated to have occurred “on site” at the Ukrainian labs.

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency provided a report titled “PACS [Pathogen Asset Control System] at the [redacted (b)(3), which exempts information from disclosure when a foreign government or international organization requests the withholding, or the national security official concerned has specified in regulations that the information’s release would have an adverse effect on the U.S. government’s ability to obtain similar information in the future] Phase 2 On-the-Job Training Report, December 11-13/December 26, 2018” The Executive Summary includes information regarding “on-site” activities, likely referring to a Ukrainian biolab:

  • PACS [Pathogen Asset Control System] on-the-job training was conducted for users of the [redacted (b)(3)] on December 11-13, under Phase 2 implementation activities, Anthrax Laboratory activities were conducted on December 28, 2018.
  • PACS existing configuration and customization were checked jointly with the on-site PACS Working Group
  • Phase 1 implementation activities including progress and current status were reviewed; issues and problems discussed and resolved;
  • Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for PACS use at [redacted (b)(3)] was updated to include Subculturing Operation process – the updated SOP submitted to the on-site Working Group.

The report provides a list of titles of “OJT [on-the-job training] Participants” with all participants names from Black & Veatch redacted, citing exemptions (b)(6) for personal privacy and (b)(3).

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We visited “ground zero” for hospice fraud: Los Angeles, California

At age 69, Lynn Ianni is a pickleball whiz, zipping from dinks to drives energetically. When she suffered an injury on the court two years ago, she sought physical therapy, and was surprised to learn her Medicare insurance wouldn’t cover it.

She was, according to Medicare records, dying and in hospice.

“They said, ‘you’re in hospice.’ And I said, ‘what? What are you talking about?” Ianni said. “‘Are you kidding me? Do I look like I’m in hospice?’”

Ianni’s Medicare number had been stolen, and used by a company to fraudulently enroll her in hospice – specialized, compassionate care for terminal patients nearing the end of their lives. It was another example of fraud in the hospice industry, long a nationwide problem. But her case arose well after officials had promised to stamp it out in California, where the problem has been especially acute.

Medicare is federally administered, and hospices must be certified for reimbursements. But the state issues the licenses for hospices to operate.

Three years ago, California’s state auditor sounded the alarm that Los Angeles County had seen a 1,500% increase in hospice companies since 2010 – more than six times the national average relative to its elderly population.

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