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Dalié Jiménez

@dalie.bsky.social

🇨🇺🇺🇸 Lawprof at UCI Law All things debt & credit with social science methods: consumer law, bankruptcy, access to justice. Co-Dir @UC-SLLI.bsky.social Co-PI @DebtCollectionLab.bsky.social Cats, bikes, kdramas - she/ella

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Charlie Eaton@charlieeaton.bsky.social · 2mo ago

We've got a new article about abuses in higher ed financial aid's weird world of discipline and punish: California takes students' tax refunds to pay private colleges for dubious debts imposed on students when they're financial aid is revoked because they fail to complete an academic term.

Dalié Jiménez@dalie.bsky.social · 2mo ago

@charlieeaton.bsky.social, Jonathan Glater, Andrew Martin, and I wrote a tax article (!) and the draft is now online. TL;DR: We argue over a dozen private colleges have had the CA Franchise Tax Board divert taxpayer funds illegally for ~20 years and show the receipts papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Public Power, Private Debts: The Misuse of California's Tax Intercept Power for Private Colleges Forthcoming Yale Law Journal Forum. Like many states, California allows its taxing authority (the Franchise Tax Board, or FTB) to intercept a person’s state tax refund, unclaimed property payouts, and lottery winnings before the money ever reaches the taxpayer under limited circumstances. Traditionally that "offset" power is used only when the taxpayer already owes the state—back taxes, child-support arrears, court fines, and the like—so the government is simply paying itself first. We investigated the use of this power through a series of Public Records Act requests, finding that California’s intercept authority has been used routinely without regard to statutory requirements. From 2018-23, seventeen private schools took more than $4.36 million in tax refunds and another $40,681 in lottery and unclaimed property payouts, payments which were not authorized by the statute. One institution, UMass Global, is responsible for almost 49% of that total. As far as we can tell, the illegal interceptions have been occurring since at least 1998, although we cannot know the extent of the damage. These interceptions short-circuited normal collection rules and relied on a strained reading of California law. While the Legislature should repeal this section altogether, this Essay argues that the Controller can and should immediately halt private college offsets and undergo a review of past actions. Schools for their part may be liable under California’s Unfair Competition Law, among other statutes. Policymakers in other states and levels of government should also review their policies and practices regarding offsets to ensure that misuse on behalf of private creditors has not occurred elsewhere. The powerful collections machinery of the state should not be used to punish vulnerable students and reward private colleges and universities not allowed by law to such benefit.
Katie Mack@astrokatie.com · 3mo ago

When Einstein developed general relativity the closest thing to a practical application that could even be imagined at the time was a slightly more precise description of where to look for the planet Mercury in the sky, and yet now we’d all be literally lost without it. Anyway: fund basic research.

Mike Boylan-Kolchin@mbkplus.bsky.social · 3mo ago

GPS satellites move at 1/100000 the speed of light, causing their clocks to tick slower by 7 microseconds per day, and orbit at a height that makes their clocks tick faster by 45 microseconds per day. Two relativistic effects, both at the 1 part in 10 billion level, both essential for GPS accuracy 🧪

Will Bunch@willbunch.bsky.social · 5mo ago

They had names. They had beautiful faces. And they had the same dreams as your kids - crushed when American "precision" bombs slammed into their Minab elementary school, killing 175 Don't blame AI for this. Blame the sick humans who see war as a game My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/iran...

AI error or not, Iran school bombing is a permanent stain on America’s soul | Will Bunch

A debate on AI in warfare obscures the truth about an Iran school bombing. U.S. humans are to blame for this war crime.

inquirer.com

graham steele@grahamsteele.bsky.social · 5mo ago

The @federalreserve.gov just granted a crypto company—Kraken—access to its public payment services for the first time. More evidence that crypto’s success is not as an *alternative* to the existing financial system but to capture the existing payment infrastructure. www.wsj.com/finance/regu...

Kraken Becomes First Crypto Firm to Win Access to Fed’s Core Payments System

The decision means the industry is a step closer to becoming integrated into the mainstream financial system.

wsj.com

Charlotte Garden@charlottegarden.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Raskin is so good on his feet -- he pivots based on the answers he actually gets & asks clear & non-compound questions. That's hard enough, but then he does it at a cadence that ratchets up the pressure on Noem. Probably as close to a TV/movie cross-exam as you'll ever see in real life.

Acyn@acyn.bsky.social · 5mo ago

Raskin: Based on what you know today, were Renee Good and Alex Pretti domestic terrorists? Noem: What happened was an absolute tragedy. Raskin: Were they domestic terrorists? Noem: My condolences to their families Raskin: You lied about them.

Dan Immergluck@danimmergluck.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Kate is a reporter for the American Banker. Trump’s DOJ & CFPB turn a predatory lending discrimination lawsuit into an anti-immigrant crusade. Instead of providing restitution for victims of discrimination they use $ to fund more police resources aimed at “illegals.” (Full article paywalled.)

The DOJ, CFPB and state of Texas reached a $68 million settlement with the Houston developer Colony Ridge Development LLC to resolve a lawsuit alleging discrimination and predatory lending in a scheme that resulted in one-in-four loans going into foreclosure.  The settlement is unusual because no money has been set aside as redress for harmed consumers. Instead, DOJ is requiring that the private developer pay for a new police station and fund two full-time law enforcement officers for 10 years. Colony Ridge also has to purchase law enforcement equipment, gear, and vehicles at the discretion of the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office and Liberty County Constable. What began as a discrimination / fair lending case under the Biden administration turned into a focus on illegal immigrants under the Trump administration. #banks #bankingsector #corruption https://lnkd.in/gnWrMyAC
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 6mo ago

Rep. Delia Ramirez to DHS officials: "I have as much respect for you as I do for the last white men who put on masks to terrorize communities of color. I have no respect for the inheritors of the Klanhood and the slave patrol. Those activities were criminal and so are yours."

Walt H@walt88.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Khanna named, US businessman Leslie Wexner of Victoria’s Secret, Abercrombie & Fitch and Bath & Body Works fame; Emirati businessman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem; and Salvatore Nuara, Zurab Mikeladze, Leonic Leonov, and Nicola Caputo.

🪖 🇺🇸 🌎 🇺🇦@rjmrim.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Trump rolling back consumer protections don't help. How Companies Profit by Annoying the Hell Out of You Report reveals that sneaky fees, excessive paperwork, spam calls, & other annoyances cost #Americans $165 billion annually in wasted time & money. newrepublic.com/article/2063...

How Companies Profit by Annoying the Hell Out of You

A new report reveals that sneaky fees, excessive paperwork, spam calls, and other annoyances cost Americans $165 billion annually in wasted time and money.

newrepublic.com