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By FATIMA HUSSEIN, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Golf caddies, blackjack dealers and house painters are among the jobs covered under the Trump administration’s preliminary list of occupations not required to pay income tax on their tips under Republicans’ new tax cuts and spending bill. A bit more unexpected? Podcasters and social media influencers will also be excluded from forking over a portion of their tips, according to the list released Tuesday by the Treasury Department. The provision in the law signed by President Donald Trump in July eliminates federal income taxes on tips for people working in jobs that…

By MEAD GRUVER, Associated Press A judge has ruled that Utah lawmakers must proceed with redrawing the state’s congressional district map right away, pointing to Texas and California in rejecting their argument that the job can’t be done in time for the 2026 midterm elections. The ruling keeps Utah firmly among states where partisan redistricting battles stand to tilt the outcome of the next congressional election. Utah lawmakers were wrong to disregard an independent commission’s map in drawing one that has been used for the 2022 and 2024 elections, Salt Lake County District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled Aug. 25. The…

LOS ANGELES — Josh Lewin eschews the limelight. He spends his late springs and early summers surrounding himself with a handful of local newspapers, talking shop with folks while sipping on a pint of cider – during this time of year, it might be the closest Lewin gets to the back-and-forth buzz of sports talk radio. These outings have reached small English town pubs, such as The Purple Turtle in Reading, transporting Lewin from the broadcast booth to a wooden barrel table adorned with a husk umbrella, shading him from the sun. Lewin marked his 10th anniversary as UCLA’s football…

By Madyson Fitzgerald, Stateline.org This year, comprehensive privacy laws are going into effect in eight states to regulate how businesses handle digital information and to give consumers more protections over their personal data. The laws in Delaware, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Tennessee have taken effect already this year, according to a database from the International Association of Privacy Professionals’ Westin Research Center. Maryland’s privacy law, signed by Democratic Gov. Wes Moore last year, will go into effect Oct. 1. Privacy laws enacted in Indiana, Kentucky and Rhode Island will go into effect next year. Several other…

By FRED SHUSTER | City News Service Jasveen Sangha — the so-called “Ketamine Queen” — is expected to plead guilty Wednesday in Los Angeles federal court to illegally selling the ketamine that killed “Friends” actor Matthew Perry in October 2023. The North Hollywood woman has agreed to enter her plea to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. Upon entering her guilty plea, the 42-year-old Sangha will face up to 65 years in federal prison, according to prosecutors. Matthew Perry…

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) — Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has praised a U.S. strike on a boat suspected of carrying drugs in the southern Caribbean and said that all traffickers should be killed “violently.” U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that 11 people were killed aboard the boat that had departed Venezuela, which is located near Trinidad and Tobago. “I, along with most of the country, am happy that the U.S. naval deployment is having success in their mission,” Persad-Bissessar said in a statement late Tuesday. “The pain and suffering the cartels have inflicted on our nation is immense. I…

Jim Harbaugh worked some serious magic to get the Chargers into the playoffs after an 11-victory regular season in his first year as their coach. Can he work some more to vault them past the Kansas City Chiefs and to their first AFC West championship since the 2009 season? Or more to the point, can Harbaugh keep the Chargers in playoff contention in his second season on the job? He guided the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl after the 2012 season, his second year as their coach. Doing the same with the Chargers would seem to be a…

By KATE PAYNE, Associated Press/Report for America TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Carlie was hoping to spend her senior year savoring her final moments on the palm tree-lined campus of the University of Central Florida. Instead, she sits at home alone, logging on to online courses, afraid to leave her apartment and run the risk of being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A few months ago, Carlie was studying public relations in Orlando, envisioning one day working for nonprofits that help students like her. Thanks to in-state tuition and private scholarships, Carlie had been living a life she had…

By JAMIE STENGLE and RIO YAMAT, Associated Press FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Families of some of the 346 people killed in crashes of Boeing 737 Max jetliners held photos of their dead loved ones Wednesday outside a federal court in Texas, where a judge was hearing arguments on the U.S. government’s motion to dismiss a felony conspiracy charge against the aerospace company in connection with the twin disasters. U.S. District Chief Judge Reed O’Connor set aside time for relatives of the crash victims to speak during the hearing. Some traveled from countries in Europe and Africa to pursue what could be their final opportunity to…

By DAVID McHUGH, Associated Press Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The head of the European Parliament’s trade committee said Wednesday he has “doubts” about aspects of the EU’s trade deal with the Trump administration and predicted the deal could be amended during the legislative approval process. “A lot of questions are there, and I guess there will be some amendments,” said committee chairman Bernd Lange, adding that “myself and also some colleagues of mine have doubts about the deal.” FILE – Chairman of European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA) Bernd Lange attends a news conference in Jakarta, Indonesia,…