Here at The Citizen, we do problem-solving journalism, looking for ideas and solutions to move the region forward and make a better city. Here are some other great ideas for solving the world’s problems, from media outlets around the globe:
Their reasoning is incredibly different, but both the far-left-wing and far-right-wing senators agree that the very exercise that is tax day is wasteful and could be done better. On average, we each spend 13 hours and $200 each year preparing our taxes. But we’re mostly just telling the government what it already knows, since most of us have simple returns based on one W2. Now, Cruz wants to eliminate the payroll tax altogether and move to a combination of a sales tax and a flat income tax (because you might as well double-dip with regressive taxes). Warren, on the other hand, would let the two-thirds of us with simple returns simply let the IRS do our taxes for us. Turnabout’s fair play, right? (via FiveThirtyEight)
Nearly 3 million Pennsylvanians have nonviolent criminal records that hold them back from getting jobs, homes, loans, and more. Expungements are only available for non-convictions (like charges that were dropped or went into diversion programs), meaning that a gubernatorial pardon is necessary not just for high crimes like murder, but also for petty misdemeanors like shoplifting. Now, though, thanks to the new Clean Slate Act, any of these old, non-violent misdemeanors will be automatically sealed, so that employers and others can’t use them against people who have paid their debt to society and been model citizens for years. (via Huffington Post)
Did you buy healthy foods the last time you went grocery shopping? How can you be sure? Maybe you bought low-fat foods, but what about sodium content? And that’s even if you’re being health-conscious. Because as much as we need to increase access to healthy foods, grocery stores are to shoppers what water is to the proverbial horse. So how can we help people make healthier decisions at the grocery store? One designer is trying to gamify the system by including simple color-coded indicators at the bottom of shoppers’ receipts. Now, in addition to seeing how much money you can save by using the store’s loyalty card, you can try to make your trips healthier and healthier. (via CityLab)
Photo header: Flickr/Chris Tolworthy
