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Tax advisor John Gilroy, right, answers Delon Stubbs' tax questions about the Afordable Care Act Monday, January 8, 2015 at H&R Block's Capital Boulevard location in Raleigh. H&R Block opened the doors to its 10,000 retail locations nationwide for 12 hours Thursday so customers could speak to an H&R Block ACA Tax Specialists to understand how the changes resulting from the Affordable Care Act may impact them this year.

State taxes done? Want to talk about it? Let us know

The News & Observer is reporting on how the overhaul of the state income tax system that went into effect in 2014 is affecting individual taxpayers. It is most apparent after you file your state income taxes this year. We’re interested in talking to taxpayers who have completed their state income tax forms and are willing to discuss it.

Sports

N.C. State assistant coach Rob Moxley hugs Ralston Turner after the Wolfpack’s 66-61 victory over Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum in Clemson.

NC State bounces back with 66-61 win at Clemson

Senior Ralston Turner leads a second-half charge that gives the NC State Wolfpack a 66-61 win at Clemson on Tuesday night.

Local/State News

Patrons gather outside the Foundation cocktail bar late Wednesday on Fayetteville Street. Some say the revived area is too loud.

Raleigh faces downtown flap, spiking rail-station cost

After months of rumblings, the Raleigh City Council has taken up the question of whether downtown Raleigh’s nightlife is going from “vibrant” to oversaturated. Also, the city’s cost for Union Station will triple.

Business

U.S. oil producers are lobbying to have the ban on crude oil exports dropped. But some sectors of the U.S. economy, notably airlines and oil refiners, want the ban to stay in place.

US oil giants want Congress to lift export ban on crude

As the number of U.S. drilling rigs plummets by a third and thousands in the industry face layoffs, oil companies are focusing on an effort to convince Congress to lift the longstanding ban on crude oil exports. 2 hours ago

Politics

Garbage pickup resumed Friday after several weather delays the past week as winter storms pummeled the area. This truck was working Shelley Road near Six Forks Road in North Raleigh.

NC House bill would let drivers cross yellow lines to pass slowpokes

Citing the frustrations of drivers who get stuck behind bicycles, mopeds and garbage trucks traveling far below the speed limit, North Carolina House members debated a proposal to let motorists drive around the slowpokes, even in no-passing zones. ...

Nation/World News

Thick smoke from an airstrike by the US-led coalition rises in Kobane, Syria, as seen from a hilltop on the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border, Oct. 22, 2014.

As airstrikes damage Islamic State, it seeks ‘money, money and more money’

The Islamic State might be the best-funded radical Islamist group, perhaps in history, but the coalition air campaign that’s targeting its oil-refining operations and military assets has begun to damage its ability to earn. 57 minutes ago

Living

These Roasted Kabocha and Vegetable Dumplings are folded into pleated crescents.

Asian dumplings make a quick, easy weeknight meal

Food writer Andrea Weigl was intimidated by the thought of making Asian dumplings. She was surprised to find that dumplings and pot stickers are easy to pull together on a weeknight, and the recipe makes so many that she can stash future meals in ...

Entertainment

(L-R): Charley Koontz, Patricia Arquette and James Van Der Beek in “CSI: Cyber” on CBS.

What to Watch on Wednesday: Oscar winner Arquette in ‘CSI: Cyber’

Newly minted Oscar winner Patricia Arquette takes the lead in this latest spinoff from the “CSI” franchise, playing an FBI expert on internet-related crimes. 2 hours ago