Wall Street anticipated another dreadful jobs reports today and they got it. The news is actually worse that what experts were expected.

More than 250,000 Americans lost their job in October alone. That is more than 1.2 million for the year. The unemployment rate is at a 14 year high – at 6.5%. In September, that percentage was 6.1%.

Is the bad news over?
No, experts state that more than 484,000 Americans have stopped looking for jobs, believing there are none out there. That is very, very bad news for the economy.

The hardest areas hit include manufacturing, the service industry, retail, professional services and leisure. Areas least effected include Health Services, Education and Government.

It truly is a dire situation, especially with the holidays here.

Obama has a plan

Barack Obama, while campaigning for president, pledged to invest 150 billion over 10 years in “green” energy. This investment, he believes, will create 10 million new jobs; jobs that will stay here in the United States.

This would include investing in renewable energies such as wind and solar power. It also calls for investments in alternative energies such as ethanol, natural gas and hydrogen. He also wants to promote the development of the electric and hybrid vehicles.

The obvious question is where is money going to come from. But in these uncertain economic times, where is the money comes from is as important as getting the economy back on track.

It is obvious that Barack Obama has his work cut out for him. But the good news is he has the American people behind him, who share his vision and are willing to make sacrifices to get America back to where we once were.

We all know how bad things are in the housing market. Sales are down and Americans are afraid to make a home buying commitment in these uncertain economic times.  But here is great news for those first time home buyers who are ready to pursue the American dream of owning their own home.

There is a new, temporary $7,500 first-time home buyer tax credit that is expected to help millions of Americans own their first home.

The tax credit is available for first-time home buyers; this includes people who have not owned a home that is their primary residence for at least three years.

The credit depends on how much money the home buyer makes. To receive the full tax credit amount of $7,500, the income limits are $75,000 a year for single taxpayers and $150,000 for married taxpayers filing joint returns. For partial credit, the upper limit is $95,000 and $170,000, respectively.

The home purchase must occur on or after April 9, 2008, and before July 1, 2009.

The tax credit works as an interest-free loan with up to 15 years to repay. For example, a buyer claiming the full $7,500 credit would repay the loan at a rate of about $500 a year.

The National Association of Home Builders has a Web site to help people understand how this incentive works.

According to the Santa Cruz Sentinel, in Santa Cruz county, California, voters elected not to pay a tax on phone lines to fund 911 service.  The 911 taxes were intended to replace a 911 fee, which had been tagged onto phone bills but was ruled unconstitutional.

The emergency workers 911 workers who respond to calls of distress are dumbfounded looking for reasons why. Why didn’t the voters support them and how will they cover costs now?

Voters in the incorporated area of the county and Watsonville both rejected 911 taxes — measures B and C, respectively. In August, voters in Santa Cruz shot down a similar tax, Measure T.

“It’s a shocker,” Sheriff-Coroner Steve Robbins said. “I mean, none of the taxes passed in the county. The voters voted on some expensive propositions on the state level. I don’t understand the disconnect.”

The 911 taxes were intended to replace a 911 fee, which had been tagged onto phone bills but was ruled unconstitutional. The monies pay for the operation of the county’s consolidated emergency communications center, providing dispatch services to most of the county’s police and fire agencies, as well as paramedics.

In Watsonville, the 911 fee brought in about $417,000 and Measure C would have upped that revenue to about $800,000. The city’s share of emergency communications center cost is about $1.2 million annually.

The city of Santa Cruz and the county are struggling to come with a solution, including layoffs and service cutss to police and parks. No decisions have been made.

“We haven’t really sat down and put together a plan for this yet,” Santa Cruz Deputy Police Chief Kevin Vogel said.

The emergency communications funding issue is compounded by a federal mandate that radio systems be upgraded to a narrow-banded program by 2013. Costs of the project in the county have not been determined, but early estimates range from $10 million – $50 million.

“It’s a real dilemma for us, not just for the daily operations for now, again for this whole future expansion we have to do, we’re mandated to do,” Robbins said. “Boy, it’s going to be tough for us.”

Scotty Douglas, the interim general manager at the communications center, said his heart dropped when he checked the election results online late Tuesday.

“It’s kind of like, where do we go from here?” he said.

Robbins said people expect two things when they call 911: someone to answer the phone and someone to show up. The biggest concern officials voiced Wednesday was a potential drop in emergency services, such as longer hold times.

“I could visualize people dialing 911 and a machine saying ‘Your call will be answered in the order it was received,’” Medina said.

No cuts or changes to 911 service have been announced.

“I just hope there’s no degradation of the system,” Robbins said. “It’s just an excellent system now.”

What a terrible situation, I can see the same people who voted no for this tax, suing the county some time in the future, for not responding to an emergency (in time) that results in a death.  Shame on you Santa Cruz County!