WASHINGTON — As tax season approaches, the Internal Revenue Service, the states and the tax industry reminded taxpayers to be on the lookout for an array of evolving tax scams related to identity theft and refund fraud. Every tax season, there is an increase in schemes that target innocent taxpayers by email, by phone and on-line. The IRS reminds taxpayers ...

MOUNTAIN AREA — Residents and visitors were rattled just after midnight on Wednesday, Dec. 28 as an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.7 near Hawthorne, Nevada, was discernible throughout the region. The first quake was felt at approximately 12:18 a.m., with multiple aftershocks reported and confirmed through the USGS Nevada Seismological Laboratory. According to experts, the initial quake’s epicenter was ...

MADERA COUNTY — Commuters and others will want to know that delays are expected for Wednesday, Dec. 28 on SR-41, as the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has scheduled some traffic control to accommodate maintenance. Caltrans says traffic will be reduced to one lane on SR-41 between Road 208 and Road 406 during the daytime hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. for paving ...

MADERA COUNTY – Following are details from the Madera County Sheriff’s Office of reports taken locally from Monday, Dec. 19 to Sunday, Dec. 25, 2016: North Fork family disturbance On Monday, Dec. 19 at 5:40 a.m. deputies were dispatched to a family disturbance in the 31000 block of Road 222. Upon arrival, one adult female was arrested for being under ...

SACRAMENTO — With the new year just around the corner, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) wants to inform the public of several new laws or changes to existing law that, unless otherwise noted, take effect on January 1, 2017. The following are summaries of some transportation-related laws taking effect, according to the DMV. Use of Electronic Wireless Devices ...

CENTRAL SIERRA – Anyone taking to the mountain highways over the weekend should avoid any unwanted delays by making sure there are traction devices in their vehicle. Chain control is now in place on Highway 41 about 3.5 miles north of Cedar Springs. The location could change as conditions warrant. Chains are required on all vehicles except 4-wheel-drives with snow tires ...

“Your life can literally change in a second.”  One minute Jennifer McCaleb and Drew Christenson were commuting down the hill to work, and the next they were fighting for their lives. The couple met in high school, and had been dating for nearly a decade when they became engaged last February. Plans for the future were coming together nicely when a recent morning drive to work escalated ...

MOUNTAIN AREA — The National Weather Service has upgraded the winter storm watch to a winter storm warning for the Sierra Nevada from Yosemite to Kings Canyon, beginning Friday, Dec. 23 at 10 a.m. The winter storm watch continues through 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 24. According to the NWS, snow will begin above 6,000 feet in the Yosemite area ...

MADERA COUNTY —  “Over ninety million dollars in property tax payments were collected and posted from the December tenth property tax deadline,” reports Tracy Kennedy, Madera County Treasurer-Tax Collector. All payments were posted and balanced by Friday, Dec. 16. “That’s amazing, given that we had an extra day for taxpayers to make their payments on Monday, December 12th. All posted and ...

By Claudia Sanchez and Natasha Lucas — MOUNTAIN AREA — Hope For The Homeless is Senior Legacy Experience (SLE) by Minarets students Claudia Sanchez and Tally Scott, who hope to help many people this holiday season by gathering an assortment of items that will distributed after Christmas. Items sought are warm clothing, including socks and gloves. There are boxes covered in wrapping ...