With a $1.2 billion deficit looming for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), lawmakers are negotiating ways to close the budget gap for 2009. There have been proposals for fare increases of up to 27 percent as well as a new payroll tax that would be imposed on all employers including school districts. FULL STORY

BusinessWeek recently listed America's top 25 wealthiest towns, according to an analysis done by Little Rock's Gadberry Group, which ranked communities based on the average 2008 net income and 2008 net worth of their residents. FULL STORY