Money

Read AARP Alabama State Director Jesse Salinas' guest op/ed from Sunday's Montgomery Advertiser in which he asks the Alabama Public Service Commission to review the profit percentage (return on equity) for Alabama's public utilities.

I try to keep up with the news and activities in Washington as much as I am able. But there are so many abbreviations and unfamiliar terms in the news coming from current activities and debates that I feel like that famous groundhog who sticks his head out in the spring, looks around, dislikes what he sees or hears and decides to go back to sleep. I think that there are many who have similar reactions to news from Washington. But now, more than ever, that news has the potential to dramatically change my life and the lives of my loved ones, so I’m trying to educate myself.

April is Encore Entrepreneur Mentor Month and AARP Hawaii and the U.S. Small Business Administration are teaming up to help Hawaii residents age 50+ interested in starting their own small business or expanding an existing business.

Remember just last year—an election year—when political leaders in Washington and on the campaign trail told us they would not cut Social Security benefits for people currently in the program? Now, President Obama is pushing a budget deal that includes a proposal called “chained CPI,” a fancy Washington term that really means cutting Social Security and veterans’ benefits, and increasing taxes for most taxpayers. The chained CPI would cut the cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security and veterans’ benefits by $146 billion in the first 10 years alone, while also raising taxes by $124 billion.

The AARP Foundation in Colorado is working with a variety of community partners to present the 2013 Fraud Prevention and Safety Summit—a one-day, no-cost event to empower you with tools and information to stay safe and avoid fraud before it happens. The event is organized by the 18th Judicial District Office of the District Attorney and will be held Wednesday, May 8, 2013, at the Lone Tree Arts Center.

SOUTHERN PINES -- Listening to the experiences of real life entrepreneurs gives those seeking to start their own businesses some practical advice and guidance. Throughout the month of April, AARP, the Small Business Administration and other partners, are holding a series of events to help older entrepreneurs learn how to turn their “silver” into gold.

AARP Kansas, teaming up with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), will host “encore entrepreneur” events in Kansas during the month of April. The first event will be held in Wichita at Wichita State University’s Marcus Welcome Center on Wednesday, April 17 th from 2 to 5 p.m. The second event will be in Topeka at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library, April 29 th from 9 a.m. until noon.

AARP Colorado released new survey results that show 68 percent of older Colorado voters would be considerably less favorable to their member of Congress or Senator if the member voted for a chained or superlative CPI proposal, expected to be in the President’s budget proposal this week. The survey shows that 81 percent of Colorado voters age 50+ also oppose the highly unpopular idea of reducing Social Security benefits to reduce the deficit. AARP also released a national survey that could indicate how a vote for benefit cuts could impact House and Senate races across the nation.

AARP Minnesota commended a bipartisan group of state legislators today after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved legislation, HF 194, to crack down on wire transfer fraud. According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, tens of thousands of Minnesotans have been scammed by making a wire transfer, resulting in millions of dollars of loss per year.

Pennsylvania Voters 50+ Oppose the Chained CPI, Believe Social Security Should Not Be Cut to Reduce the Deficit