A Maryland state tax court has struck down the state’s tax on digital advertising. The court says the tax violates the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act and parts of the U.S. Constitution. The decision, issued Friday, orders the state to repay digital ad tax money collected from companies like Apple and Google. Maryland introduced the tax in 2021 to fund education, expecting to raise $250 million annually. The law targeted large companies with global revenues over $100 million. Maryland officials disagree with the ruling and plan to continue the legal fight. The case has been closely watched by other states considering similar taxes.

Potential disaster was averted when a Phoenix air traffic controller recognized two American Airlines jets mistakenly were flying the same flight number and acted quickly to avoid confusion and keep them a safe distance apart. Audio of the incident shortly after midnight Friday shows how he found a solution to ensure the planes that were both called American 2482 maintained proper separation as one plane arrived from Chicago shortly after the other had taken off in Phoenix. Normally the same plane flies both legs of the round trip, but American employed a second plane after the flight out of Chicago was delayed. The incident will be investigated.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Full disclosure: this should really be two tales. How better to pay tribute to the natural and perhaps inevitable combinatio…