How has Massachusetts differed from other states in dealing with Essay

How has Massachusetts differed from other states in dealing with fiscal problems in the last couple of years - Essay Example Since the recession started, most states have closed more than $425 billion in shortfalls. All states have to balance operating budgets at least biennially unlike the federal government, which can go on providing services even with a financial downturn. Since federal economic assistance is to expire before the recovery of most state budgets, the states must address these shortfalls by a combination of tax increases and spending cuts. This paper aims to discuss how the state of Massachusetts has differed from other states in dealing with their fiscal problems. An annual update released by the US Census Bureau for local and state government finances provided national data for the year 2010. The amount of local and state taxes in Massachusetts as total personal income share was 10.2% in the fiscal year 2010. Using this measure, the state of Massachusetts, recorded lower taxation when compared to twenty-four other states (Ellwood 23). Measuring of taxes as a personal income share allows financial experts a meaningful comparison tool to compare states. Taxes act as the primary funding source for people living in various states that are provided to government for the provision of such functions as public education, safety nets, libraries, playgrounds and parks. The new data from the census shows that Massachusetts has a level of taxation ranging at 10.42%, below the average nationally that came at 10.59% in 2010 (Ellwood 23). If the state of Massachusetts had a taxation level at the average nationally, then local and state government would have had an extra $1.1 billion to spend during the fiscal year. Most states across the United States started implementing budget cuts in spring 2008 with the recession bringing weakened revenues sharply into focus. These cuts have increased given the persistently high unemployment. Most states cut funding by 4.2% in 2009 and a further 6.8% in 2010 despite the continued need for services that are funded by the state (Ellwood 25). Ho wever, in Massachusetts, a few diversions were noted, especially with budget cuts. Massachusetts has four major categories in their budget where they spent much more than other states despite/ instead of effecting cuts. These were public welfare, transit, veteran services and unemployment compensation. Public welfare, behind education, is the second largest category in the census encompassing temporary assistance for needy families, food stamp program and Medicaid. Unlike other states, Massachusetts has seen overspending in this category, indicated by the low ratings for welfare reform. TANF afforded flexibility to most states for the administration of benefits provided the goals set out by TANF were satisfied. A comprehensive study gave Massachusetts a low grade for the satisfaction of these goals, with a score of 34.9% and a ranking of forty-sixth out of fifty states (Ellwood 28). Unemployment compensation includes benefits that are funded by the federal government such as basic u nemployment benefits and cash benefits for military and civilian employees. This includes shared expenditure, for example, extended employment for those states with high rates of unemployment. One significant indicator that Massachusetts overspends in this category compared to other states in this category is the fact that, in 2008s second quarter, Massachusetts recorded the second highest rate of weekly payment at $391.91 in comparison to the national average at $285.28 (Gold 250). Massachusetts’

An Individual decision making process analysis project Essay

An Individual decision making process analysis project - Essay Example This business project involves the provision of catering service to people who intend to hold parties at their houses. This might involve anybody from young children, teenagers and adults. Also all sorts of catering services required will be made available via the workforce available from the company. The reason why the ‘time to party’ project looks viable is that many people like to have parties in the present time. However, most of these people do not have the time and manpower to organize and execute such a celebration. However, they might have the cash to pay for the service and that is where this project fits in. however, there is one unique feature about this business that separates if form the others. Time to party will prepare the ordered food away from the party venue and transport it there. This will help to avoid privacy invasion and will reduce the amount of activities in the venue. This will also help utilize other resources that are not in the venue but are available in the company. This is therefore an investment with a bright future. Business objectives There are two main objectives that the ‘time to party’ project aims to achieve. I. Make good profits from the catering services provided. II. Become the biggest home catering services in Sheffield The enlisted objectives provide just but the big picture. All will agree that much profits means expansion of the business. When the business expands and the name is well established, there will be much room for development in this project. In addition, becoming the biggest catering company will allow room for capacity to hold many events at once without breaking a sweat thus better profitability. Competitors In the world of business, there will always be other businesses to battle with for the market share and reputation. This greatly affects not only the profitability of the project, but the ability to run efficiently and stay in the same market segment. There are seven cater ing service providing companies in Sheffield I. Organic fusion II. The tiffin company III. Carols catering service limited IV. The milestone on the move V. Hazels catering limited VI. Coco catering limited VII. Deli venture catering limited The largest competitor for the ‘time to party’ project is the coco catering limited. This is a well-organized and well-funded business institution. They have a high profile physical and online presence and consumer preference. This is due to their flexibility and the high quality services they provide. They also have a well-developed website that gives all their information and allow for special bookings. However, they do not offer an online payment and ordering system for home deliveries on a daily basis and this is one of the loopholes that ‘time to party’ will exploit. In addition, time to party will offer a new service that is not on their service list. With these two major issues, ‘time to part’ has the power to stand against coco catering. Target audience This project mostly targets people who have the desire to celebrate many events, have the money to do it but lack the time, resources and man power to ensure a successful execution of an event. This will include adults that work and university students that hold celebrations such as birthday or any other. This is the majority group that falls among the top desired clients. However, the company will

Signifier of Victorian Architecture Annotated Bibliography

Signifier of Victorian Architecture - Annotated Bibliography Example The architecture was like that so that it could fit with the period and all that was going on at that time. This architecture applied to almost all the buildings from that time. Some people maintained older architectures. The Victorian architectures have several readable meanings because the forgotten convictions, monuments, and architectural style show the religious and cultural aspect (Crimson 5). The forgotten convictions, monuments, and the architectural style show that there has been a transformation over the years probably due to interaction with other cultures and architectures from all over the world that have influenced the current architecture. The source is valid as Crimson presents pieces of evidence that support his arguments fully. For example, he gives sufficient evidence to support his claim by showing the cultural exchanges that influenced the Victorian architecture. The pieces of evidence presented by the author are objective research and not personal narrations. Moreover, Mark Crinson is a professor of Art History at Manchester University. This book is relevant to my topic as it addresses the qualities of the Victorian architecture that have a meaning. The book’s conclusion on the Victorian architecture is applicable to my subject area because the book succeeds in showing that religious and political agendas and the racial theory were responsible for guiding the architects during the Victorian era. The book’s targeted audience is any individual who is interested in learning about how the Western architecture has changed over time and what has been its major influence and in turn how it has influenced the architectures in other continents especially the architecture and history students. The book develops my research by providing a lot of information on the changes that have occurred from the Victorian era.

Ethics Exam 2 Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Ethics Exam 2 - Article Example Thus, first an individual needs to identify the harm a particular scenario may do to the majority population of the society. In order to identify the harm, one needs to identify what the majority of the society perceives regarding the issue and whether there is an agreement on the issue impacting the majority in a negative manner. Once it has been established that an issue may have consequences associated with it for the majority of the population, an individual needs to look at the various solutions that are available to solve the problem. Once solutions have been identified, a cost and benefit of all the solutions need to be conducted. This is a significant step in order to identify which solution will have lesser consequences and more benefits for the overall society. This step will help in ensuring that only that solution is implemented which benefits the major population of the society. 2. An ethical leader needs to have good communication skills in the area of communicating ethical values and guidelines of the organization. He/she needs to encourage his/her followers to focus on the interests of the organization. Ethical leaders even need to indulge in successes planning in order to ensure that there are other ethical leaders within his/her ranks and in future the organization will have ethical leaders to continue to promote and adopt the ethical values of the organization (Lewis 138). Ethical leaders need to be able to exhibit the connection of operating within ethical guidelines and how these guidelines help in the attainment of organization’s aims and objectives. Ethical leaders even need to ensure that they do as they preach. If they are preaching ethical values, then they need to abide by them and take strong and difficult decisions in times when the ethical values of the organization are being compromised. For example an organization may have a zero t olerance policy towards sexual

Les Croix de Bois Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Les Croix de Bois - Research Paper Example Also, portrayed is the courage shown by soldiers in the face of insurmountable odds. Such unwavering commitment is a necessary pre-requisite for success in war. Once commitment wavers, the war is half lost. Even the most accommodating movie can not capture all the realities of the battlefield. Our feature film is; thus, constrained by several factors among them time (Bernard). The film is one hundred and ten minutes long. Among the realities that did not make the cut is the role of women in war. However, they shall at least get a mention in this paper. The paper shall be brought to a close by studying how the inclusion or seclusion of some aspects relating to the war tie up with traditional French customs (Dorgeles 76). Among the most glaring omissions in Croix de Bois is the role of women. This is even starker considering that the status of the modern day French woman is highly elevated relative to that of the male. However, things have not always been the same. At the beginning of the 18th Century, there was the dawn of the Age of Enlightenment. One of its famous authors was the French philosopher, Jean Jacques Rousseau. According to this leading scholar, women had a leading role in family affairs compared to their male counterparts. They had to breastfeed and educate their children. This was hardly a progressive attitude towards gender relations. As a consequence, even in the film Croix De Bois, women are virtually anonymous. The understanding then was that their place was the home and, therefore, they had no business in the battlefield (Rousseau). However, not even in French history has it always been the case that the place of the women is only in the home. A remarkable exception for instance is Joan of Arc. She inherited a lost battle from Charles VII and miraculously managed to do what her predecessor had failed. She drove away the English and secured an important victory at Patoy, in 1429. It might still be argued that Joan of Arc did this with the help of supernatural powers. Conversely, the fact that this supernatural being chose a female figure to accomplish such a huge fete is in itself a confirmation that women can handle the rigours of battlement (Strachan 246). The movie Croix De Bois censures women as far as their role in the battlefield is concerned. All the cast in the movie are male, for example. They include Fouillard, Gilbert Demachy, Sulphart, Caporal Breval, Vieuble, Brouke, and several others. We witness the fact that women can engage as well as men in combat. As a result, the assumption that their place is only the home is not accurate. Another role that has been performed well by women during war is that of nursing wounded soldiers (Strachan). The case of Florence Nightingale is now legend. She ably provided her services to the soldiers wounded in the Crimean war. This challenges the French notion that women were not up to the task of war. Very important in Croix De Bois is the socio-cultural impact of the war. W ar although it happens many miles away can still affect society. Several problems accompany war. One of them is that the young men (Gilbert Demachy in the movie), and increasingly women, who engage in war usually have families to provide for at home. If they die at war, as is the case in the film, their families are left unattended. There shall be increase in cases of single parent families or even orphans. This directly impacts on society. Crime might

Using examples from the hospitality industry outline the triple bottom Essay

Using examples from the hospitality industry outline the triple bottom line concept of sustainable development and discuss the contradictions that are present in this model - Essay Example Sustainable development means growth and improvement in operations that last for longer periods without depreciating in value at a high rate. (flinkinghub.eselvier.com) From this, the benefits derived from the operations of the firm by the firm and societies are felt for a longer period. The economic and social developments gained open up the region for more trading opportunities through the externalities and multiplier effects. In the hospitality industry, resorts that have taken the 3Ps are such as the Sarova hotels in Kenya who sponsor sports events such as the Lewa marathon that has proceeds going to charity. Serena hotels in Kenya, sponsor youth art projects to promote the growth of young talent and reduce the level of youth unemployment in East Africa. The Mara resort employs local Maasai morans to act as tour guides and this reduces unemployment as well as increasing income for the community. Travel firms such as Kenya Airways sponsor sports activities. They have set aside 3 billion to cater for travel and sports gear and salaries for the Kenya 7s national rugby team. The airlines recruit and train their own employees from the local community. Every year, a team of 25 recruits is trained and offered fully paid aviation scholarships to South Africa. After the training, they are absorbed in Kenya Airways. In New Zealand, Air New Zealand offers discounted air fares and luxury class travel packages for t heir clients that fly frequently to certain tourism destinations. It is aimed at encouraging people to go on holidays. They have to save for their holidays. The more they travel, the better the service they get at Air New Zealand. In Arabella Western Cape Hotel, South Africa, they offer their clients chartered tours around the Cape. They encourage them to interact with the local and indulge in the rich South African culture. This is done to conserve and embrace the culture and traditions of the Africana and native South

Toyota to move from Torrance to Texas; Automaker plans to create new Essay

Toyota to move from Torrance to Texas; Automaker plans to create new American headquarters with jobs shifting to Dallas area - Essay Example However, the company now does not import its vehicles and 75 percent to its branded cars sold in the United Sates are manufactured there. Most of them are manufactured in Toyota plants in Texas, Kentucky and Mississippi. There is a reason that could have led the Toyota Company not to use Los Angeles as a manufacturing point. These are: the distance from the market; and the distance from the inputs. Locating a manufacturing firm near its market helps in lowering the transportation cost of the output. With such companies, the monetary weight of output is more than the weight of the input thus the firm locates manufacturing points near its market (Hirsch and Undercoffer, 1). As is suggested by the observer, the move that shows that Toyota is trying to avoid high taxes in California is true. This is evident from the article. It is stated that, Perry visited California so as to recruit companies. He contends that 50 California companies have planned to grow and move to Texas as it offers a business climate that is better than California. The author of the article also states that, â€Å"Toyota could also save money in an environment of lower business taxes, real estate prices and the cost of living† (Hirsch and Undercoffer, 2). With the communication technology today, the Toyota Company should not feel compelled to relocate its headquarters closer to its manufacturing facilities. This is because technology enables companies to operate even when there is distance between its headquarters and the manufacturing point. The managers of the Toyota Company are able to run it even from another location. There are also other factors that may hinder Toyota Company from relocating its headquarters such as the cost of moving, the quality of life in the new location, the cost of living and the cost of operation in the new area (Busch, 1). However, the location of a