Income

The state Department of Education has released income criteria for free or reduced-price student meals during the 2009-10 school year. Households will be asked to fill out an application listing their income level in order to qualify. Qualification is based on household size and relative income. For example, a family of four must earn no more than $28,665 to qualify for free lunch, breakfast or milk, or $40,973 to qualify for reduced-price lunch or breakfast. Households that already receive Food Stamp, CalWORKs, Kin-GAP or FDPIR benefits may not have to fill out an application for the program.

Eron Ben-Yehuda HUNTINGTON BEACH -- The fear of attracting criminals into the neighborhood threatens a proposed affordable housing project. Local developer Amwest Environmental Group Inc. plans to build a three-story, 106-unit apartment complex at 8102 Ellis Ave. The single-room studios, each with a kitchen, bathroom and storage space, are expected to rent for about $500 per month, although regulations permit stays as short as a week at a time, said James Lu, the developer's president.

Deepa Bharath The Orange County district attorney has charged the owner of a local chain of electronics companies and his wife with failing to report nearly $3 million in income and falsifying tax returns, officials said. Prosecutors filed six felony counts of filing false tax returns against 52-year-old George "Nick" Jesson Jr., owner of CD Electronics, Capacitor Specialists International and No Time Delay Electronics, all in Huntington Beach.

WHAT HAPPENED: The City Council denied an appeal by Step by Step Daycare for a conditional-use permit, upholding the decision handed down by the Planning Commission. WHAT IT MEANS: Step by Step Daycare will not be able to open an 88-child day-care facility at the southeast corner of Brookhurst Street and Adams Avenue in an existing shopping center. The Planning Commission denied Step by Step Daycare's original request for a conditional-use permit on Aug. 13. The child-care center had planned to open in the shopping center and create an outdoor play area that would have meant a loss of 28 parking spaces at the center.

Huntington Beach man killed in Costa Mesa automobile crash A single-car crash early Monday in Costa Mesa killed Huntington Beach resident Andrew Pearson, 44, police said. Pearson was driving a 1999 Lexus RX 300 east on Victoria Street at Pomona Avenue at 1:26 a.m. when he apparently lost control and struck a traffic signal pole.   The crash caused major front-end damage to the car and injured Pearson, who died at the scene. Costa Mesa police are still investigating the accident.

Jenny Marder Tax day is imminent, looming like a dark shadow on the horizon. It's easy to leave it to the last minute, to be daunted by pages of calculations, overwhelmed by piles of forms and eluded by new federal tax laws. But doing taxes doesn't have to be like returning to a calculus problem years after graduation. About 100-million people, roughly three out of four taxpayers received refunds last year. The average refund size was $2,033, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

Angelique Flores Maggie Miller is single and raising three grandchildren on her own. She works part time and receives Social Security. Her limited income doesn't allow her to put all of her grandchildren through the Huntington Beach Junior Lifeguard program. But the Huntington Beach Assistance League does. "On a limited income, it's out of my reach," Miller said. The philanthropic organization has donated $6,000 to sponsor 20 of the children in the program, paying $300 of the $350 tuition.

by John M. W. Moorlach One has to appreciate Assemblyman Tom Harman's tax day timing for his recent comments on making it harder to raise taxes on Californians ("Too many taxes, especially today," April 15). April 15 is certainly a great day to contemplate federal and state income taxes. One should also contemplate the good assemblyman's actions. To talk "no taxes" is great, but the walk should support the talk. It was only last year that the assemblyman coauthored Senate Bill 204. Later versions do not include his name, but he is still given credit for the bill.

Parents of Marina High School students entering the eighth grade are invited to participate in the campus' second annual Expo on Feb. 6. As enticements to attend, there will be food trucks and performances by the Viking band beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the parking lot. An informational session will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the gym, followed by a tour of the school conducted by members of the Associated Student Body. Families can meet teachers, visit classrooms and explore the campus.

The president of a Huntington Beach advocacy group has filed a complaint against the chairman of Southern California's largest water district, claiming he failed to properly report income he and his wife received from the water industry. Merle Moshiri, the president of Residents for Responsible Desalination, said she filed a complaint March 13 with the Fair Political Practices Commission against John Foley, the board chairman of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

It was a warm and sunny Friday afternoon at the beach when 16-year-old Monica Candelario learned something new about herself. "I learned that I'm brave," she said. "I know when I put my mind into something, I can accomplish it. " Although she was afraid to get on a surfboard and learn to catch a wave, the excitement of tackling something new helped push her through. When Monica, a member of SteppingUP, a college preparation program offered by the nonprofit Orange County Community Housing Corp., first heard that her group was going to learn how to surf, she right away decided against the idea.

Jane was happy all the time. Newly married to her dream husband—handsome, hardworking and wonderful—she lived in her dream house in Cypress with her three children and was having success as a real estate agent. It was in this happy bubble that she was met with a social worker one day after work who told her her husband was molesting her daughter. "I think I died that day," she said. From that day in September 2007 to today, the family has struggled to get back some sense of normalcy and searched in vain for someone to give them a hand to get out of their situation.

A former Huntington Beach-based business owner pleaded guilty Monday to embezzling almost $4 million meant to bring low-income housing up to code, according to news reports. Belinda Exon, 55, of Phoenix, Ariz., pleaded guilty to embezzling $3.9 million from September 2002 to October 2008 to U.S. District Court Judge Otis D. Wright II in Los Angeles, according to KPCC. The charge holds a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison. While living in Fontana, Exon started the now defunct Rehab Financial in Huntington Beach in the 1990s, KPCC reported.

When his number was called, Gerald Beamon walked to the tables to make his selection. Beamon joined the queue of seniors walking down the line and picking out food, some putting it in a bag, others filling up a push cart. ?They have orange juice if you can handle it,? Beamon said. Scrutinizing the spread of eggs, yogurt and an assortment of pre-made foods, he took a couple of items. Getting to the milk, Beamon grabbed a quart. ?The milk is the important thing, so I don?

When his number was called, Gerald Beamon walked up to the tables to make his selection. Beamon joined the queue of seniors walking down the line and picking out food, some putting it in a bag, others filling up a push cart. “They have orange juice if you can handle it,” Beamon said. Scrutinizing the spread of eggs, yogurt and an assortment of pre-made foods, he took a couple items. Getting to the milk, Beamon grabbed a quart. “The milk is the important thing, so I don’t have to buy it,” he said.