CHARGING AHEAD: Ventura County tax collectors don’t...

CHARGING AHEAD: Ventura County tax collectors don’t take American Express--or Visa or MasterCard, for that matter. But now you can pay taxes and other fees with the Discover Card. . . . The giants of the credit card industry have prevented local governments from passing on credit card fees to taxpayers, but Discover wanted the business. . . . “This is an industry we’ve decided to target this year,” spokeswoman Cathy Lambrechts said. Top fee: $5 for bills of $800 or more. . . . Discover users get a rebate on purchases, so taxpayers charging $800 could get back $8--for a $3 profit.

LIBRARY AID: Ventura County libraries have taken some hits lately, but book lovers have come to the rescue. . . . First, Ojai kicked in city funds for the county branch there. On Election Day, Santa Paula voters overwhelmingly approved a special tax for their library district. Now private groups have raised money to keep county libraries in Ventura, Meiners Oaks and Oak Park open longer, and Simi Valley is helping its county branch (B1). . . . Merced County residents have not been so lucky. All of their 18 libraries are shutting down (A3).

TWINS COMPETE: Twins Ryan and Tyler Dritz were tired of being thought of as a unit. So now Ryan plays football and baseball at Westlake High, while Tyler wears a Moorpark High uniform (C1). . . . Mike and Bob Bryan of Camarillo have found a different way to stay close while achieving individual potential: The tennis stars don’t compete with each other, even if it means defaulting.

SWEEPS MONTH: Latinos make up a quarter of Ventura County’s population, and about 13% of them--or 23,000 people--watch only Spanish-language TV shows. That’s a tempting target for KADY-TV during the November ratings sweeps. . . . So on Saturday night, the station is simulcasting English and Spanish soundtracks for “Born in East L. A.” and “Joe Kidd.” Oxnard radio station KOXR will carry the Spanish track. . . . KADY Manager John Huddy reports one last-minute problem: “We just realized we need someone to translate the advertising.”