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FISCAL CLIFF STORIES
9:00 AM, Mar 19, 2013
Officials with Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore say they're making cuts because of the automatic reduction in the federal budget.
4:25 PM, Mar 1, 2013
Key advisors for the nation's last two presidents disagreed here Friday on the cause of the federal budget sequestration that will lop off $85 billion off federal spending.
9:10 AM, Mar 1, 2013
President Obama and congressional leaders meet Friday ahead of the deadline for the sequester, $85 billion in automatic budget cuts that both sides say will be bad for the economy.
11:23 AM, Feb 20, 2013
Budget cuts by the Air Force, Army and Navy scheduled to take effect March 1 will force almost $34 billion in wage and spending reductions and prompt furloughs or layoffs for millions of people, according to documents obtained by USA TODAY.
1:46 PM, Feb 19, 2013
Congress faces a March 1 deadline to find an alternative to $85 billion in widespread spending cuts from defense and social programs, which threaten to slow economic progress.
4:02 PM, Feb 5, 2013
Major cuts to defense and education programs "will cost us jobs and slow down our economy," Obama said during brief remarks at the White House.
4:22 PM, Jan 18, 2013
House Republicans said Friday they intend to extend the nation's borrowing authority for three months, but will not agree to a long-term increase on the debt limit until both chambers of Congress approve a budget.
9:51 PM, Jan 9, 2013
The Internal Revenue Service said today that it will begin processing individual tax returns on Jan. 30 -- roughly a week later than some tax experts had expected.
7:09 PM, Jan 4, 2013
With the new year, people are starting to pay an additional 2% out of their paycheck -- a so-called "payroll tax" -- going to Social Security.
11:54 AM, Jan 2, 2013
At one point, the Dow Jones industrial average was up more than 270 points.
9:01 AM, Jan 2, 2013
Taking to Twitter to express himself, U.S. Rep. Justin Amash of Cascade Township blasted the agreement to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff, saying it increases spending without making tough fiscal decisions.
8:58 AM, Jan 2, 2013
While Congress avoided the fiscal cliff, it's now up to you to turn fiscally responsible with your finances, to avoid your own mess down the road. A financial advisor offers tips.
12:21 AM, Jan 2, 2013
The measure would extend Bush-era tax cuts for family incomes below $450,000 and briefly avert across-the-board spending cuts set to strike the Pentagon and domestic agencies this week.
8:27 PM, Dec 30, 2012
President Obama said he remains hopeful Congress will reach a deal to avert the "fiscal cliff," but negotiations stalled Sunday afternoon on Capitol Hill where Senate leaders are trying to find a compromise to avert year-end tax hikes and spending cuts that threaten U.S. economic recovery.
10:33 AM, Dec 29, 2012
Pat White, an attorney with the Varnum law firm in Grand Rapids, says it makes tactical sense to do what Congressional leaders are doing.
10:31 PM, Dec 28, 2012
President Obama and congressional leaders did not come to terms Friday on a short-term plan to avoid the tax hikes and budget cuts that kick in next week with the so-called "fiscal cliff."
8:33 AM, Dec 28, 2012
"I was generally the peacemaker," he recalls. "I'm not the person who digs in his heels and says, 'You are a bunch of idiots and I'm not going to deal with you'.
4:58 PM, Dec 27, 2012
House Republican leaders told lawmakers to return to Washington on Sunday, setting the stage for a dramatic final act in this Congress to avert the year-end "fiscal cliff."
10:34 PM, Dec 26, 2012
The baristas at Starbucks are going to use the cups to send a message to the nation's leaders about the fiscal cliff.
11:51 AM, Dec 21, 2012
House Speaker John Boehner says he's still open to talks with President
Barack Obama on avoiding the double economic hit of automatic tax hikes
and spending cuts but he needs Obama to compromise more.
9:17 PM, Dec 20, 2012
A gallon of milk could skyrocket to at least $6 a gallon, if Congress doesn't reach an agreement, before the so-called "fiscal cliff."
6:57 PM, Dec 19, 2012
Fact: If Congress and the White House don't reach an agreement, your paycheck is going to go down. The reason?
4:54 PM, Dec 19, 2012
The prospect of Congress' failure to soon agree on spending and revenues could trigger an immediate cut to defense spending of $50 billion or more -- and some of that money is spent in West Michigan.