Author: Christy Bieber

Many people in Michigan’s Midland area remain underwater financially after a catastrophic dam failure in 2020 forced the evacuation of 11,000 residents and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses.

"So many of us are still not just back to where we were, but not even a level of financial stability, of not having a home that is permanent and is sustainable," resident Darla Ball told ABC 12.

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She is among nearly 800 area residents to send a letter to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, demanding the governor keep a promise she made at the time of the disaster.

Whitmer’s exact words: “Little by little, we are going to help the Midland-area residents and businesses get back on their feet."

Residents believe that “back on their feet” means financial compensation from the state, and residents are tired of waiting for it.

"We feel we have been ignored and left behind," Ball said.

Here’s why 2,000 of them have launched a lawsuit.

Residents argue that the state had a role in disaster

On May 19, 2020, a dam on the Tittabawassee River failed.

Owned by Boyce Hydro Power, the original dam was showing its age before it collapsed, according to a report by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

Sadly, its failure led to a second dam to collapse — resulting in catastrophic flooding.

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Local business owners Denny and Kathy Sian had to take out a mortgage to rebuild their destroyed hardware store.

"Other people, their retirements were destroyed, mine included,” Denny Sian said. “My retirement was having a store that was paid off.”

Many residents successfully sued the private company Boyce Hydro Power, which was forced to liquidate its assets to pay for damages.

But as Mid Michigan Now reports, residents believe the state is also financially responsible.

A group of 2,000 of them have joined forces to sue Michigan for damages. Attorney Ven Johnson, who is representing the plaintiffs, argues that the state actually increased the risk of dam failure “by demanding that water levels be raised.”

But state officials deny responsibility, arguing that the original lawsuit against Boyce Hydro Power demonstrated that county officials were not to blame.

"The failure of the Edenville Dam was tragic,” As Michigan Attorney General told 12News in a statement, “and the Attorney General sympathizes with the thousands affected by the dam failure who undeniably suffered tremendous losses.

“The State, however, was not responsible for the dam failure."

The Attorney General also noted that the plaintiffs initially lost their suit against the county. But the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled the plaintiffs’ case can continue and return to the trial court.

Johnson is motivated. He said for the state to deny responsibility is “just crazy,” and that officials clearly want to keep “delaying, delaying, delaying and destroying people’s dreams.”

The trial is expected to begin in January if there are no further delays.

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Kevin Costello, owner of Siam Imports, had a bad experience recently receiving payment with cash. A customer came into his store and paid with a fake $100 bill, but it turned out that the bill was actually a legitimate bill made into a counterfeit — and he failed to catch it.

"I had a couple other girls in here at the same time, so I didn’t really closely look at the $100, which if I would have did that I could [have] probably prevented it,” Costello said.

One reason he didn’t identify the issue on the spot: The counterfeit $100 was made using a clever technique thieves are favoring recently.

Unfortunately, Costello isn’t the only one to receive payment with phony money, as counterfeiting cases are on the rise in Hawaii, where he owns his business. Fake bills can cost business owners a lot of money, so it’s important to understand the dangers of this crime as well as how to identify fake bills — even if the counterfeiting is done well.

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Bleached money on the rise in Hawaii

According to Honolulu police, counterfeiting and forgery rose 16.5% in the past year.

While this counterfeiting can take on different forms, one popular method — and the one that applied to the bill Costello collected — involves taking $1 bills, bleaching them and reprinting them to look like real $100 bills.

"We’re seeing more and more of these bleaching of dollar bills and then they’re being printed with 50 or 100 on them,” Tina Yamaki, president of Retail Merchants of Hawaii, said.

One reason this approach is becoming common is that it can be really hard to detect. “It still feels kind of like a paper bill because you’re still using the same, you know, paper. It’s like if you throw money through the wash. Right? It still feels like a bill, but we’re seeing a lot more people now holding it up to the light, finding out that the [counterfeit detection] pens don’t always work,” Yamaki said.

It’s not just Hawaii where there is a concern. According to the Federal Reserve, around one in 40,000 bills is counterfeit, with high-denomination ($50 and $100) bills accounting for most of the fake money.

While this is a significant decline in counterfeit funds since 2006, when around one in 10,000 notes was thought to be fraudulent, this still means that as much as $30 million in fraudulent money is cycling through the economy.

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How to spot fake money

Costello feels that his mistake in accepting the fake $100 was driven by the fact that he simply didn’t take the time to look carefully enough at the bill. "Take the extra couple seconds, actually, all it would’ve took,” Costello said.

However, for those who aren’t as confident about their ability to tell a forgery, it’s helpful to review the nine guidelines from the Secret Service that can help you to distinguish when a bill is fake. Some of the features real bills include:

• Large, off-centre portrait images without a frame
• Money being printed on paper that’s a blend of linen and cotton, with random red and blue security fibers woven throughout
• A watermark you can see when holding the money up to light and looking at the bill from either side
• Color-shifting ink that changes from copper to green as money is tilted at a 45-degree angle
• Clear thread that is embedded vertically in the paper on larger bills, which indicates the denomination of the note if the bill is held to light
• A 3D security blue ribbon woven into the $100 bill’s paper. The 100’s move from side to side if you tilt the note back and forth and they move up and down if you tilt the note from side to side

You can also look at the face plate number, the position of the letter and number on the note and the number designators placed on the bill by the Federal Reserve.

If you have any doubts, be sure to review the Secret Service guide, which includes pictures of each of these features, to help you determine if the bill is a legitimate one.

While it’s a pain to take the time to confirm all these details, it can keep you from accepting a bill that’s not a valid one and that vigilance can pay off both for you and for the rest of the economy.

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When you are separated or getting divorced, the last thing you probably want is to continue living with your estranged wife.

If you owned your home before marriage and don’t believe it qualifies as marital property, you might be tempted to kick her out so the home can be yours alone again.

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However, simply changing the locks or trying to evict your spouse is not a good idea. Doing so could have legal consequences, so you should take the time to understand the law — and ideally consult a lawyer — before taking any action you might regret.

Here’s what you need to know about how the law treats your home during separation or divorce so you can make informed decisions.

How does the law treat your home during a separation or divorce?

The first step in this difficult situation is to determine whether your home isn’t marital property.

Assets brought into the marriage — such as a home — are generally considered separate property by default, meaning they are not divided in a divorce. This holds true whether your state follows community property rules (which divide assets equally) or equitable distribution rules (which divide property fairly, though not necessarily 50/50).

However, complications arise if the asset is co-mingled. If your spouse contributed to mortgage payments, helped with renovations, or invested "sweat equity" in the home, it may have been converted into marital property. In such cases, she could have a legal claim to it.

To protect your exclusive interest in the home, you’ll need to demonstrate that you kept it separate. An experienced attorney can help you gather the necessary evidence to support your case.

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Can you remove your spouse if your house is separate property?

Even if your home is clearly separate property, you cannot simply lock your spouse out.

Since you were living there together, the house remains your wife’s legal residence until a court formally determines ownership and issues an order requiring her to leave.

Additionally, if your spouse has not worked in years, the court may require you to provide financial support — potentially including her attorney’s fees, temporary or permanent alimony and other assistance. This is especially true if she contributed to your career or left her career to care for your children.

In this situation, negotiating with your spouse is often the best approach, as litigation can become expensive. However, if she’s unreasonable, court intervention may be necessary.

You don’t necessarily need to file for divorce to seek legal resolution on living arrangements — you can request a legal separation agreement if you are uncertain about ending your marriage.

Regardless of your next steps, you must follow the proper legal process. Attempting to remove your spouse without legal authority could lead to police involvement and damage your standing in court, potentially jeopardizing your ability to get a fair divorce settlement that fully protects your interests.

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San Diego’s new “daylighting law,” AB-413, draws a new line in the sand when it comes to parking near intersections and crosswalks.

But drivers are frustrated that the new line isn’t marked on the city’s curbs, where no-parking zones have traditionally been painted red.

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Now anyone who parks within 20 feet of crosswalks can be fined $117 — even if the curb is not painted red, and even if there are no signs explaining the rules.

“If there’s no sign and no red curb, how am I supposed to know not to park there?” Luke Glass, a North Park resident, complained to CBS News 8 San Diego.

New parking law is profitable for city

While the new law was touted as a measure to improve pedestrian safety, some drivers wonder if it’s a cash grab to address San Diego’s budgetary shortfall.

"I do see it’s a law that’s supposed to have good intentions,” Vincent Thai said. “But yeah, I could really see it as some kind of cash cow.”

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Tickets issued between March 1 and May 1 this year have already generated $660,000 for San Diego, which anticipates $1.2 million in revenue by year-end as a result of the new law.

City officials insist safety is their motivation and that the changes will make the area more walkable. Some residents, like North Park local Eric Hansen, support the “daylighting law.”

"Now I think you should be able to see pedestrians a lot easier,” he said. “It’s going to make it harder to park, but I’d rather be able to walk more safely.”

But Omar Flores, who has been ticketed multiple times under the new law would prefer being able to see the no-parking zones along with the pedestrians.

To date, only around 400 of the 16,000 intersections in the city have been painted red, so there’s no way for drivers to tell where the 20-foot no-parking zone is at most intersections.

"I mean, people don’t carry tape measures around,” Flores added.

How to avoid a ticket under the new parking law

Residents of San Diego who want to avoid being ticketed under AB 413 need to make sure they avoid parking near crosswalks so they don’t run afoul of the rules.

No matter where you live, if you want to avoid parking tickets, pay attention to any changes to local parking infractions.

Local media can be a good source of information about new parking restrictions.

You can also check the website of your city council and of local representatives to get regular updates.

If you do believe you were ticketed unfairly, you can challenge it.

You might consider reaching out to an attorney who can help you avoid a fine you don’t deserve.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Massachusetts residents might recognize Natalie Logan. She’s had her picture taken — a lot — by the state’s lottery commission while posing with a big smile and even bigger winner’s check.

But it’s not because Logan embodies Lady Luck herself — she’s an attorney who helps lottery winners stay anonymous.

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“When somebody calls me and says, ‘I won the lottery! What do I do?’ I’m, like, ‘Yes!’ This is my bread and butter,” she told WCVB Channel 5 Boston in a story published May 21. “It’s pretty funny.”

Logan has built a thriving business guiding lottery winners on how to best protect their prize money.

Her services extend beyond just picking up the prize, though. She also has some other helpful advice that every winner should heed.

Helping lottery winners to stay anonymous

Logan’s services are necessary for her clients to keep their identities secret. The lottery commission states prizes over $103,000 must be claimed from their headquarters in Dorchester. According to Channel 5, the process requires a lot of paperwork and taking a photo, which may be displayed on the Mass Lottery website.

Massachusetts is far from the only state that has rules about identifying winners. In fact, only a few states allow winners to remain anonymous, while the rest have various rules in place that require winners to disclose at least some of their details.

Logan helps clients get around these rules by forming a trust to claim their prize, protecting their personal details. This is permissible in some other states as well.

“The legal trustee — your lawyer — goes and collects the prize, and the underlying beneficiary remains anonymous,” Logan explained.

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The trust can be named anything you want and it will be written on one of those big novelty checks she gets to hold — which, unfortunately, she says you don’t actually get to keep.

“I don’t walk out with that humungous check," Logan said. “It’s actually just a regular-size check, regardless of the amount. And then I go straight to the bank.”

Tips for lottery winners to protect themselves

Logan’s services are important because staying anonymous can protect winners from scammers, criminals and even friends, family and acquaintances who may pressure them into sharing their prize.

“I think no matter the amount, tell as little people as possible,” Logan advised. “I’m sure it’s very challenging to do that, but only tell those that you would trust with your life.”

Logan also has other tips for winners, including:

• Sign the back of the ticket right away after your win so no one else can claim it
• Create a team to help you, including a lawyer, a certified accountant and a financial advisor who can assist with making informed choices with your new wealth
• Avoid hiring anyone who charges you a percentage of what you won for their services instead of a flat fee

By following these tips — and potentially having a lawyer help you create a trust to claim your prize — you can maximize the chances that a lottery win will improve your life, instead of turning into a stressful time. Assembling a good financial team to help you plan around your sudden wealth can also help ensure it lasts.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Tony DiMare’s family owns 4,000 acres of tomato farms across Florida and California. Sadly, his Florida crops are not looking good — mowed over and left to rot, like tomato vines across the state.

But it’s not growing conditions that are the problem. It’s economic ones.

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DiMare told WSVN 7 Miami that President Donald Trump’s tariff and immigration policies are driving farmers to abandon their crops.

In January, he warned that Trump’s crackdown on migrants would squeeze farmers, who rely on migrants to pick produce.

“We have to secure our borders south and north, but you have to have a workforce in this country,” he told the Financial Post.

Deportations devastate farm workforce

About 50% of farm workers in the U.S. are undocumented migrants — including skilled supervisors and machine operators — according to Farmonaut, a farm technology company.

As the Trump administration proceeds with mass deportations of undocumented migrants, there are far fewer pickers in the fields, and crops are left to go bad.

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One spoke to WSVN about fellow migrants leaving Florida each day. He spoke on condition of anonymity, concerned he might be deported himself

"A lot of people are really afraid, and sometimes they come, sometimes they don’t come,” he said. “And the harvest is lost because it cannot be harvested.”

The labor shortage also means Florida farmers have to pay more for labor. At the same time, they’re getting less money for their produce due to Trump’s tariff policies.

Tariffs upset traditional supply chain

From January through April, Trump’s threatened tariffs triggered Mexican suppliers to double or even triple tomato exports to the U.S. — before tariffs went into effect.

The result? The U.S. market was flooded with Mexican tomatoes. Florida farmers saw the wholesale price of a box of tomatoes plummet from $16 per box to $3 or $4. DiMare said tomato farmers need around $10 or $11 per box to break even.

“You can’t even afford to pick them right now,” said Heather Moehling, president of the Miami-Dade County Farm Bureau. “Between the cost of the labor and the inputs that goes in, it’s more cost-effective for the farmers to just plow them right now.”

It’s not just Florida tomato growers feeling the pinch. Canada has imposed a 25% tariff on U.S. watermelons in retaliation for Trump’s tariffs on Canadian products. DiMare knows one watermelon grower who’s lost Canadian customers to Mexican watermelon suppliers as a result.

Prepare for higher food costs

Farmonaut notes that the impacts of tariffs and immigration policy on farmers will have a knock-on effect in grocery stores. If U.S. farmers don’t have enough workers to harvest crops, Americans will have to buy more imported produce, and pay more due to tariffs.

The Food Policy Center at Hunter College of New York City warns that the resulting surge in food prices will drive inflation — “stressing household budgets across the nation, and particularly hurting families in areas with high food insecurity."

While farmers have few options but to hope the political upheaval will end, consumers should prepare to mitigate those costs.

One way to do that is to buy a membership in a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) organization. You’ll be supporting local farmers and getting local, less costly produce delivered to your door.

In addition to shopping frugally by clipping coupons and shopping sales flyers deals, you can get creative in the kitchen. For example, you can limit food costs by planning weekly menus around seasonal and affordable foods.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

How many chickens is too many? This isn’t the start of a joke, but rather a question that neighbors and officials are going to have to grapple with in Waxahachie in Ellis County, Texas.

That’s because aeroponic farmer Anthony Whitley recently had a large number of chickens delivered to a plot of land he is renting to run a free-range egg project.

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"Take the commercial chickens and put them in a situation where they live, and they be more healthy so they can produce more healthy eggs” Whiltey told NBC DFW, explaining his goal for his new egg farm.

While he may be a good egg with his intentions, some residents, however, aren’t exactly on board with this idea, though, and city officials have already taken action.

Thousands of chickens may not make good neighbors

Whitley has long been a pioneer in the field of alternative agriculture, bragging that he was the "first guy that put a rooftop garden inside Deep Ellum with the aeroponic technology."

Now, he’s renting land for his farming project, and he decided to add some birds to the mix. “I already grow produce, so I’m mixing produce with poultry and eggs,” Whitley said. “One day to have a farm market or something like that, you know.”

He didn’t just get a few chickens, though. Neighbor Loretta Billings told NBC that she was told the number was somewhere around 18,000 — although Whitley said it’s more like several thousand, but didn’t provide exact details.

Regardless of the specific number, Billings wasn’t happy to find the birds wandering free. "Well, they smell, they get into all of the other yards. I don’t know if these chickens are clean. It just don’t look right,” she complained.

Whitley believes this is fixable, though, and says that his neighbors just haven’t been patient enough with the process. "From the rain, you know, I stayed out there for days trying to herd them in,” said Whitley. “We’re getting everything put up and if you just give us a few seconds and they won’t even see them. Then, we’ll go back to regular life.”

Farm worker Quinton McCright also took issue with the bad press, indicating that the chaos was just temporary and all would be well in the end. "Everybody’s coming by, taking pictures and videos and we just wanted to put the narrative out there that this is nothing negative,” McCright said. “This is all positive, and this will be a good source for the community.”

Of course, these assurances may not put neighbors at ease, given the very large volume of chickens that are apparently residing locally.

Read more: Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says this 7-step plan ‘works every single time’ to kill debt, get rich in America — and that ‘anyone’ can do it

Your rights if your neighbor runs afoul of the law

In this particular case, Whitley apparently didn’t follow protocols for poultry entering the state, so the Texas Animal Health Commission indicated they were addressing the situation.

However, if the chicken were imported legally, residents would need to explore all of their options if they were dissatisfied with the situation. This would typically start with checking local zoning laws to see how many animals and what types of animals are allowed to be kept on the property.

Both zoning laws and local health and safety codes are a good place to start if you believe your neighbors are doing something dangerous or something that will affect your enjoyment of your property. If there’s a code or regulatory violation, you can report the issue to the local authorities, who will take action.

When there is a concern about the condition that animals are living in, on the other hand, you can contact your local animal control department for assistance.

If your neighbor is following all of the laws, though, you may have limited recourse and may simply have to rely on your neighbor’s goodwill and common sense — like knowing that 18,000 chickens roaming the neighborhood is a bit of a cracked idea.

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Stay in the know. Join 200,000+ readers and get the best of Moneywise sent straight to your inbox every week for free. Subscribe now.

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Maximo Sanchez is a Florida business owner operating dumping sites where debris is piling up. While that description alone makes clear he’s running a dirty business, the reality is worse than it may seem. That’s because the land includes protected wetlands — and Sanchez has refused to clean up the mess despite signing an agreement to do so.

According to an investigation by ABC Action News Tampa, Sabchez is facing fines and penalties but hasn’t cleaned up his act despite repeated warnings — and neighbors are concerned that officials aren’t being aggressive enough in enforcement.

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“I just don’t think they spank him hard enough, to be honest with you,” Aaron Truman, a neighbor operating a company near one of Sanchez’s properties, told Action News.

Here’s what happened and advice for anyone who may live near a rule violator.

Unauthorized dumping next door

Problems with Sanchez’s dumping grounds came to light more than a year ago, with Action News reporting in early 2024 that he was operating an unpermitted dump in an environmentally sensitive wetland.

The news team’s cameras recorded a three-story-high mound of debris, mostly construction and demolition materials, at Snchez’s property on Hartford Street — and the pile was still growing, with trucks continuing to arrive at the site.

"Any sort of material that would be put in a wetland that could degrade its environment would require an authorization from EPC point blank,” Michael Lynch, director of wetlands at Hillsborough County’s Environmental Protection Commission (EPC), told Action News at the time.

“Currently, the site on Hartford Street has no authorization from EPC or any other regulatory body."

Authorization is required because of the serious consequences that can come from dumping in wetlands.

“We are in the state of Florida in a very delicate ecosystem. It has to be protected at all costs,” Walter Smith II, owner of an environmental engineering firm and Sierra Club member, told Action News last year.

Sanchez did sign an agreement last year with the county to clean up the site, Action News reported, but hasn’t yet done so. The EPC has now alerted him that he missed the November 2024 deadline included in the agreement, and thus owes a fine of $7,900.

This site isn’t the only cause for concern, either, as neighbors near another unpermitted dumping site run by Sanchez have also made complaints to officials.

"Dust just continually pours over this building,” said Truman in a video he sent to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, shared with Action News.

Truman told reporters that he has to service the air conditioners at his flooring business on Linebaugh Avenue every three months and regularly replace carpets because of the dust, but it doesn’t help much — and it could be more than just an issue of cleanliness.

“Concrete has what you call silicates in it. Those silicates can get into the air and cause a real problem if the dust isn’t taken care of,” Smith said in a recent interview with Action News.

"It’s very dangerous."

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The state takes action — but is it enough?

After Action News originally reported on the unmitigated wetland dump in 2024, officials did spring into action, filing civil lawsuits against Sanchez for both of the unpermitted dumping sites he’s running, alleging repeat offences. Officials are seeking fines of $15,000 daily if Sanchez doesn’t correct course.

Sanchez has also been charged with a felony violation of litter laws in Florida, as well as misdemeanor violations of environmental protection rules by the Hillsborough CountyState Attorney’s Office, Action News confirmed.

Still, Smith thinks more should have been done — and sooner.

"I would have thought that they would have nipped this in the bud a long time ago. There appears to be a consistent pattern of defiance," Smith said, arguing that the delay may make it seem like officials aren’t as serious as they should be about enforcing the law.

"It says I can get away with this for just a little while longer. And that’s not the type of message that needs to be had,”

For his part, the news channel reports that Sanchez has pleaded not guilty to the criminal offenses and denied wrongdoing in the civil cases. He’s also listed the Hartford Street site for sale, with the listing stating the property owner is in the process of environmental cleanup of wetland areas.

He has until July 1 to comply with the court’s new cleanup order. When he talked to the Action New reporters last year, he said "It’s all being dealt with. And as I said, I’m not giving any statement. You talk to my attorney.”

How businesses can stay compliant — and how concerned citizens can report them if they don’t

Sanchez may have gotten away with violating environmental rules for a while, but he’s been fined and penalties could get worse pending the outcome of the civil and criminal cases against him.

Companies that don’t want to face these hassles should make sure they follow their state and local laws, including getting permits before dumping and making sure they are not performing any unauthorized operations in environmentally sensitive or protected areas.

Citizens who spot rule violations can also do their part by reporting them so officials can take action. The process for doing this can vary by state, but usually involves:

• Taking pictures or video of suspected violations when possible and safe.

• Reporting issues to your local EPC or your state’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Reports can usually be submitted online — the EPA offers this form — and the sooner a witness takes action, the quicker officials can respond and help mitigate environmental damage in their communities.

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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.