LITTLE ROCK — QUOTE OF THE DAY “I was asked to step into these shoes, and I firmly and deeply believe that BP is a company made up of great people and great businesses.” Robert Dudley, the American picked to lead BP when current CEO Tony Hayward steps down Oct. 1 Article, 1ASen. Kerry agrees to pay yacht taxes
BOSTON - Democratic Sen. John Kerry moved to end a flap over his decision to base his new $7 million yacht in tax-free Rhode Island, informing the Massachusetts Department of Revenue on Tuesday that he would “promptly” pay taxes as if the vessel were docked in his home state.
In a statement, he said, “As we’ve said from the beginning, we have always complied with tax laws and we always will. ... The payment is being made promptly.”
The 2004 Democratic presidential nominee has been dogged by charges of tax evasion since last week, when the Boston Herald first reported about his decision to dock the 76-foot sloop Isabel in Newport, R.I.
Doing so spared Kerry a $437,500, one-time sales tax charge in Massachusetts, as well as about $70,000 in annual excise taxes.
Rhode Island repealed those taxes in 1993, making the state something of a nautical tax haven.
In fatal crash, Metro’s neglect cited
WASHINGTON - A faulty electronic circuit that caused a deadly Metro crash last summer was symptomatic of an “anemic safety culture” at the D.C. area’s transit agency, the National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday.
Eight passengers and a train operator were killed in June 2009 when a Metrorail train rear-ended a second train stopped near the Fort Totten station on the city’s northeastern outskirts.
As expected, the safety board concluded that the collision occurred because Metro’s automatic signal system failed to detect the stopped train. The approaching train continued to travel at 55 mph until the operator saw the train ahead of her. She pulled the emergency brake but was still traveling at more than 40 mph at the moment of the collision.
More broadly, the safety board said Metro ignored repeated warning signs and fostered a culture of indifference to chronic safety issues. The agency was warned about deficiencies in its safety department for 15 years before the crash, safety board Chairman Deborah Hersman said.
LA suburb in pay scandal investigated
BELL, Calif. - Investigations touching on the high pay of leaders in this blue-collar city intensified Tuesday as prosecutors said they were looking into allegations of voter fraud and as the state’s chief fiscal officer announced he would conduct an audit of spending.
District attorney spokesman Jane Robison said her office was looking into claims that off-duty Bell police officers were recruited to distribute absentee ballots in last year’s election and tell people which candidates to vote for.
It was only one of several allegations the district attorney is looking into in the city where three top officials resigned last week after it was disclosed they were being paid salaries totaling about $1.6 million a year.
“We do have a full investigation on several fronts,” Robison said. She declined to elaborate.
Also Tuesday, state Controller John Chiang arrived in the city of some 40,000 residents, about 17 percent of whom live in poverty, to announce his office is launching an audit of city spending.
If he finds any appearance of wrongdoing, Chiang said, it will be reported to the district attorney and the state attorney general’s office.
Twister rips Montana farmhouse; 2 die
HELENA, Mont. - A tornado ripped a family’s farmhouse from its foundation in Montana’s remote northeastern corner, killing two people and leaving neighbors and authorities to dig through the rubble to rescue a 71-year-old woman who was found next to her grandson’s body. Her nephew was found dead 200 feet away.
Robert Richardson, 10, and Steven D. Smith, 46, died of blunt-force head and chest injuries at the farm 13 miles west of Reserve on Monday night, Sheridan County Coroner David Fulkerson said.
Barbara Smith, 71, was taken from the basement of her home to a hospital in Plentywood and was later transported to the Billings Clinic, where she was listed in serious condition Tuesday afternoon, hospital spokesman Julie Burton said.
Front Section, Pages 5 on 07/28/2010