By CLAUDIA BUCK, Sacramento Bee

Shredding companies thrive amid identity theft fears

In less than three minutes, it was over.With the flip of a switch, Scott Linzy tilted a bushel of white paper files into the steel jaws inside his mobile shredding truck.Instantly, the pile of paper was reduced to a mound of confetti-like fluff. A security camera on the side of the Absolute Secured Shredding Inc.'s truck recorded the quick-moving process.

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IRS playing catch up after error in rebate checks

Did the Internal Revenue Service forget your kids?For hundreds of parents expecting a $300-per-child stimulus payment, the IRS could still owe you.Because of computer glitches and taxpayer filing errors, as many as 350,000 tax-paying parents nationwide were shorted the $300-per-child payment they're due under the federal government's stimulus payment plan.

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Americans can share their stimulus stories online

Until this week, it's been purely speculation where 130 million Americans will plunk down their not-so-hard-earned stimulus checks.Pay down bills? New hi-def TV? Vegas vacation? Feed the gas pump?Economists, government officials and others have been doing plenty of head-scratching in anticipation of just how - or whether - people will spend those $600 or $1,200 checks.

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Money lessons high-school kids need

For the 15 girls clasping hands in celebration, their recent graduation ceremony was a rite of passage.

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Tips to speed up economic stimulus checks

Get ready, here they come. If you're among the 130 million Americans counting on getting IRS "economic stimulus" checks, take note: The first batches will start going out in six weeks.Starting May 2, the IRS will begin issuing the first payments - typically $600 for individuals or $1,200 for a couple - for those who file a tax return by April 15.

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