It’s May. Memorial Day and the end of the school year are in sight. Suddenly, you’re thinking about a summer vacation. A little advance planning — and some insider tips — can save you a lot of money. Whether you’re booking airfare, a car rental or a hotel room, there are questions you should ask first.

The football coaches evidently can’t wait until August for their first showdown of the year.

At a May 21 public hearing, the Maricopa Community Colleges Governing Board will consider raising property taxes within the limit permitted in the state constitution and statute (A.R.S §15-1461.01).

The law firm of Burch & Cracchiolo, P.A. announced that Martha C. Patrick and Wendi A. Sorensen have been selected as two of the “Top 25 Women Attorneys” in Arizona by Southwest Super Lawyers in 2013.

Travelers accustomed to chain eateries like Chili’s and Paradise Bakery now have a chance to experience local offerings such as Cowboy Ciao, La Grande Orange and Barrio Cafe at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

The decision by the IRS to take a closer look at Tea Party finances apparently did not affect some key organizations in Arizona.

Another school year is drawing to a close — so if you have young children, they’re one year closer to the day when they head off to college. And both you and your children need to prepare for that day. Your kids can do so by developing good study habits. As for you, it’s never too soon to start preparing for the high costs of higher education.

The Phoenix City Council voted on Wednesday to begin phasing out a portion of the city’s food tax on Jan. 1, 2014.

The city of Phoenix and Arizona State University announced that Sun Devil baseball will begin playing at Phoenix Municipal Stadium at the start of the 2015 season.

Gov. Jan Brewer refused Thursday to make Arizona the second state in the nation to declare privately minted gold and silver coins, bars and ingots to be legal tender in the state.

So if you think the lines at the grocery store move slowly now, imagine waiting behind someone who wants to pay with a few chunks of gold.

The Phoenix City Council will discuss options for the city’s food tax during a public policy meeting on Wednesday, including an idea to phase out a portion of the tax beginning January of 2014.

I enjoyed Dennis Tierney’s commentary (“Limiting magazine sizes just a step in trying to reduce gun violence,” AFN, March 31), which responds to my earlier commentary. His arguments appear thoughtful and completely reasonable.

Centennials are normally cause for celebration, a chance to applaud some thing or person standing the test of time. But not so for the income tax. Even the IRS is declining to mention that this year is the 100-year anniversary of the 16th Amendment of the Constitution, which authorized the tax.

When Arizona voters approved the use of medical marijuana in 2010, Steve Cottrell saw a way to combine his laboratory background and his interest in the plant he’d been studying since his 11-year-old son died of cancer more than a decade before.

"Mud" has the feel of a classic, although it's perhaps not enthralling enough to be one. The third and most elaborate feature to date from writer-director Jeff Nichols seems to have been adapted from a novel that doesn't exist -- something by James Lee Burke, perhaps, or Cormac McCarthy, or some other specialist in frequently violent tales about the challenges to masculinity and the forging of new identities that face rural people who belong to a sprawling modern world -- who might be hanging out in a supermarket parking lot one moment and falling into a creek full of deadly cottonmouths the next.

When former Scottsdale resident Mark Macias used the New York City subway’s 42nd Street Shuttle this past winter, he was transported not only between Grand Central Station and Times Square but back to his hometown.

California has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation. In addition to the over 9,000 federal gun laws, California has also enacted many laws at the state level, including ban on high-capacity magazines, ban on “assault weapons,” waiting period on gun purchases, an approved handgun list — handguns must be certified by the state before they can cross the state line, private party sales require transfer via a licensed dealer, identification of “gun free zones” and many others.

Lottery confidentiality

The value of home sales in Western states rose over the last year even as the number of transactions slipped, according to an official with the National Association of Realtors.

When the new Phoenix Premium Outlets opened last week it was flooded with eager shoppers, but many of those shoppers were confused when they saw the taxes applied to their purchases.

Procrastinators can get free last-minute help filing their taxes at four Phoenix Public Library locations from 6 p.m. to midnight on Monday, April 15.

Ahwatukee Foothills residents called for increased transparency and increased accountability Thursday night as city of Phoenix staff presented the 2013-14 budget.

When it comes to health care, the saying “you get what you pay for” doesn’t always apply. Sometimes, particularly in the realm of end-of-life care, “less is more.”