WASHINGTON (AP) — As the war in Iran pushes U.S. gas prices toward $4 a gallon nationally, some lawmakers are pushing to suspend the federal g…

Democrats are pushing new tax-cut plans to ease voters’ affordability worries and blunt Republicans’ advantage on the issue. Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland proposes ending federal income tax for many people earning about $46,000 or less. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker backs a plan that wipes out tax on the first $75,000 of income. Democrats say simple tax relief sells better than complicated credits. Critics warn these plans drain money for restoring funding for Medicaid and other priorities. Analysts also say benefits can tilt toward higher earners and add to deficits.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy was supposed to start the year with a bang, fueled by an unusually large jump in tax refunds from President…

States are setting new rules for cash purchases after the U.S. Mint stopped making pennies and the 1-cent coins get scarcer. Some states are considering legislation to allow, or require, businesses to round purchase totals to the nearest nickel. Indiana already requires rounding for cash sales that do not end in zero or 5 cents. Some state agencies also are publishing guidance for consumers and businesses. Experts call the common method “symmetrical rounding.” A federal bill that would apply the symmetrical rounding standard across the country is stalled in Congress.

Advocates across the U.S. are hoping a growing unhappiness of wage and wealth inequalities that have increased coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic will help more states adopt policies involve the rich paying more in taxes. Chuck Collins, who inherited generational wealth by being the great-grandson of Oscar Mayer, has spent decades arguing that people like him should face higher taxes as wage and wealth inequality worsens. Perhaps nowhere is the tax the rich movement more ambitious than the one taking place in California. Advocates are working to get voters to approve a ballot initiative that would place a one-time 5% tax on those with a $1 billionaire net worth.

Virginia senators are pushing to curtail a 5.3% tax break for data centers. The policy proposal comes while many communities are trying to defeat data center projects in zoning proceedings and some states are reconsidering their sales tax exemptions. It is not guaranteed that Virginia will end up taxing data centers. The governor and other high-ranking lawmakers say they are concerned the tax would end industry investment in the state. Still, lawmakers' campaign to end such tax exemptions has stirred bipartisan support. Officials negotiating the tax policy have until Saturday to agree on and pass a budget.