The post $750,000 Schmidt Sciences Grant Uses AI to Transform Black Press Archives appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.

By Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN

(CNN) — The US government has collected $1 billion in de minimis tariff revenue since rolling back the exemption on low-value packages this spring, according to new data that Customs and Border Protection shared exclusively with CNN.

The exemption applied to goods worth less than $800 and contributed to the proliferation of American shoppers on Chinese e-commerce sites like Temu, Shein and Alibaba. But CBP data suggests that with those duties now in place, Americans have trimmed their purchases.

President Donald Trump initially closed the loophole for goods from China and Hong Kong in May and later applied it to all countries’ exports below $800. Trump argued that it would not only help the government raise tariff revenue but that it would also stop drugs and other illicit goods from entering the country, given the packages would be subject to more rigorous inspections by CBP.

Since the loophole was closed on goods from China and Hong Kong, “seizures of unsafe and non-compliant low-value goods have increased by 82%. These included counterfeits, narcotics, faulty electronics, and goods containing hazardous chemicals,” CBP said in a statement shared with CNN.

Before the de minimis loophole was closed, CBP said an average of 4 million packages a day came through customs. But in late August, before the exemption went into effect for all countries’ goods and was just applicable to China and Hong Kong, CBP said an average of 1 million packages a day entered the country.

The tariff rates range from 10% to 50%, depending on their country of origin. (In certain cases, there is flat fee of $80 to $200 instead, but that expires in February.)

SCOTUS decision hanging over

While the US government has certainly raised more revenue by closing the loophole, the change has created headaches for large and small businesses as well as individual American consumers, who often aren’t aware that they’ll be responsible for paying these duties in instances where the shipper doesn’t include them in the price of the goods.

The shift has likely been felt most acutely by low-income households, who have increasingly been struggling to afford necessities. About 48% of de minimis packages were shipped to America’s poorest zip codes, while 22% were delivered to the richest ones, according to research in February from UCLA and Yale economists.

However, in closing the loophole, Trump cited the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law he’s used to impose the bulk of new tariffs during his second term.

His ability to impose tariffs in that way could soon be reined in, with the Supreme Court set to issue a verdict by early next year on whether he holds such authority. If the court rules against him, it could result in importers, including individual American consumers who’ve paid duties on low-value packages, receiving refunds.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

The post $1 billion in de minimis tariff revenue has been collected since loophole closed appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

The post De La Vina Street Water Main Project to Enter Phase Three in Spring 2026 appeared first on edhat.

By Alejandra Jaramillo, CNN

(CNN) — The White House has installed plaques along President Donald Trump’s “Presidential Walk of Fame,” offering descriptions of his predecessors, often written in the style of his social media posts — including insults, baseless claims and random capitalization.

A plaque at the front of the exhibit, which lines the walkway outside the West Wing of the White House, says it was “conceived, built, and dedicated” by Trump “as a tribute to past Presidents, good, bad and somewhere in the middle, who served our Country, and gave up so much in so doing.”

Trump’s own plaque touts his 2024 victory, saying he overcame the “unprecedented Weaponization of Law Enforcement against him, as well as two assassination attempts.” And it declares that Trump, who’s been in office for 11 months, has “delivered” on his Inauguration Day promise to usher in the “Golden Age of America,” pointing to his claims of wars ended, borders secured and alleged gang members deported.

The plaque for former President Joe Biden, who is represented by a photo of an autopen, leans on familiar Trump grievances. “Sleepy Joe Biden was, by far, the worst President in American History. Taking office as a result of the most corrupt Election ever seen in the United States, Biden oversaw a series of unprecedented disasters that brought our Nation to the brink of destruction,” part of the plaque reads. “But despite it all, President Trump would get Re-Elected in a Landslide, and SAVE AMERICA!”

Other presidents receive similarly politicized descriptions, such as former President Barack Obama.

“Barack Hussein Obama was the first Black President, a community organizer, one term Senator from Illinois, and one of the most divisive political figures in American History,” the plaque reads. It dings him for passing what Trump calls “the highly ineffective ‘Unaffordable’ Care Act” and signing “the one-sided Paris Climate Accords.”

Former President Bill Clinton’s plaque notes policy achievements, but also points out Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s 2016 loss to Trump. “In 2016, President Clinton’s wife, Hillary, lost the Presidency to President Donald J. Trump!”

“The plaques are eloquently written descriptions of each President and the legacy they left behind. As a student of history, many were written directly by the President himself,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN in a statement when asked for more information about who’s paying for them.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

The post New plaques on Trump’s ‘Presidential Walk of Fame’ offer pointed descriptions of predecessors appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

The post Mejoras propuestas identificadas para el corredor de la ruta estatal 166 appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.