The Oregon Biz Report - Business News from Oregon

Report: Portland has 5th highest water and sewer rates in the U.S.
by Eric Fruits, Oregon economist
Econ International Blog
A recent study from Nus Consulting Group revealed that the average business district/commercial water user saw rates rise 5.5 percent in 2011 when compared to 2010.

However, in several cities, water and sewer rate increases were considerably higher. For instance, Portland had one of the biggest increases at 9 percent.

The study also identified those cities with the most expensive and the least costly water and sewer rates.

by Patrick Emerson
Oregon Economics Blog

Yet another sign today that the US may be on the road to recovery: the US grew at an annualized rate of 2.8% last quarter. This is good news considering where we have been these last few years, but not good enough to may anyone feel good about the staying power of such a trend. And the trend itself isn’t good enough: at a 2.8% rate we’ll be lucky to keep up with jab market growth – so we won’t be making any real progress on unemployment. But if this presages a more robust recovery, and if Europe doesn’t slide into serious recession and drag us down with it, then it is good news.

Bill Gates Speaks on State of the Union, Buffet Rule, Taxes on Rich

Video of the week: CNN interviews Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, on the tax debate coming right out of President Obama’s State of the Union. See Bill Gates interview below.

Europe, America and the Crisis of Capitalism
by Albert Gallatin
Guest Opinion,

Since the financial crisis of 2008 western economies have been in a continual state of crisis. In Europe one sovereign nation after another has faced the prospect of significantly reducing government spending or defaulting on its debt. So deep is this problem that now formerly solid economies such as that of France stare into the abyss of an intractable problem of weak economic growth and unmanageable debt.

In the United States as well there continues to be the hangover from our long national cheap credit binge. America’s largest financial institutions, many of which are insolvent if their assets were marked-to-market, continue to play a disproportionately large role in the economy and the thinking of government policymakers. While the real economy continues to slowly grow it remains ever subject to the threat of being strangled by insurmountable government debt.

Google has made a bold step in changing their privacy policy which includes using more of the information it gets from its users. Congress is already complaining.. Below is the video Google is using to promote its new controversial privacy policy and it strikes gold for creativity over a dangerous and complex subject.

Oregon Employers: Mandatory Union Notices Delayed Again Until April 30
By J.L. Wilson
Associated Oregon Industries
Oregon’s Largest Business Advocate

Late last year, AOI advised its members that they needed to comply with new National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) rules – slated to go into effect on January 31 – that requires nearly all employers in Oregon to post a notice of an employee’s right to unionize. The posting also lists a number of unlawful employer actions as well as contact information for the NLRB.

Better Business Bureau,

In 2011, Better Business Bureau serving Alaska, Oregon and Western Washington provided 2,975,099 BBB Business Reviews on local companies

Top 20 Complaints
1. Cellular Telephone Service & Supplies
2. Internet Selling Services
3. Internet Access Provider
4. Computers Software & Services
5. Travel Agencies & Bureaus
6. Computer Software Publishers & Developers
7.  Auto Dealers – New Cars
8. Collection Agencies
9. Auto Dealers – Used Cars
10. Property Management

Ninth Circuit rejects nationwide class action for false advertising from
by Lori Bauman
Ater-Wynne:, Oregon Law Firm

The Ninth Circuit continues to grapple with the standards for certifying class actions following the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, 131 S. Ct. 2541 (2011). Last week, a divided panel of the Ninth Circuit refused to certify a nationwide class action on behalf of individuals who bought or leased Acura RL automobiles equipped with a Collision Mitigation Braking System.

In Mazza v. American Honda Motor Company, Inc., plaintiffs claimed that Honda misrepresented and concealed material information about the braking system in the marketing and sale of Acura RL vehicles. Plaintiffs made claims under California’s unfair competition and false advertising laws. While the District Court found common issues of law and fact sufficient to certify a nationwide class, the Ninth Circuit reversed. Judge Ronald M. Gould, writing for the majority, focused on the admonition in Wal-Mart that commonality means that an issue central to each class member’s claim is subject to resolution “in one stroke.”

In Portland, road maintenance takes a backseat to bikes and streetcars
By Dr. Eric Fruits
Econ International Blog

Following up on a previous article, the figure below shows that as Portland’s road paving backlog has grown, the city has expanded bikeways and streetcar lines.

U.S. Chamber Pledges to Continue to Find Effective Solution to Foreign Rogue Websites
The Right Solution is Good for Jobs, Consumers, and the Internet
BY U.S. Chamber of Commerce

WASHINGTON D.C.—David Hirschmann, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center, released the following statement in response to the postponement of the consideration of S. 968 (the PROTECT IP Act) and H.R. 3261 (the Stop Online Piracy Act):

Video: Groupon CEO faces 60 Minutes

Oregon Court: Good News – Businesses Can Offset Corporate Minimum Tax with Credits
By Associated Oregon Industries

In a key court decision that flew under the radar during the Christmas holiday, the Oregon Tax Court sided with Con-Way, Inc. in its dispute with the Oregon Department of Revenue.

At issue: Con-Way’s use of Oregon’s Business Energy Tax Credit (BETC) to offset its corporate minimum tax liability under Measure 67.

New Ballot Measure Says “NO” to Double Taxation of Property
By Oregon Prosperity Project

Already nearly 100,000 Oregonians have signed the petition to stop real estate transfer taxes in Oregon. Over 116,284 signatures will be needed to put this measure on the November 2012 ballot.

The measure, Initiative Petition 5, prohibits the practice of taxing home sales in Oregon. These taxes are a form of double taxation on top of property taxes that are paid to support schools and local government.

In reality, these taxes on home sales, known as Real Estate Transfer Taxes, are not common practice in Oregon, though they are common throughout the country. In Oregon, only Washington County levies a small tax on the sale of property.

By Dr. Eric Fruits
Econ International Blog

If you have ever visited Portland, it’s fairly certain that someone will proclaim that the city has more strip clubs per capita than any other city. Indeed, Portland’s reputation is international. Earlier this year, the UK’s Guardian newspaper dropped the factoid in its review of Voodoo Donut.

More recently (in an article that doesn’t seem to have much of a point), The Economist magazine paints a scene in which progressives bike side-by-side with the prurient:

Chevrolet Volt Energizes the Rich
Jose Mesa
José Mesa Auto Wholesale, LLC

The Chevrolet Volt is far from being the everyday driver for the average American. In fact only 7,671 were sold in 2011 which is just short of General Motors goal of 10,000 vehicles. It has an average price of over $40K which immediately eliminates many buyers. The average Volt buyer earns about $170K per year so I guess you can call them rich. As of 2011 you could get $7500 federal and $1500 Oregon tax credits to assist with your purchase. This is a nice chunk of change and is about 25% of the overall cost of the car!

Latest viruses exploit Facebook, Twitter
By Oregon Small Business Association,

A new form of virus—dubbed social media virus or social spam—has companies like Facebook and Twitter working around the clock to prevent hackers from exploiting their social networks.

Hackers have become adept at creating fraudulent profile accounts from which to launch large scale spam attacks. A new Social Spam Index created by Imperium, a start-up company devoted exclusively to fighting social spam, indicates that as much as 40% of public profiles across social networks are now fraudulent. Roughly 400 million Facebook users, for example, are victimized by social spam each day. And TechCrunch reported earlier this month that one of Imperium’s social network clients experienced a spam attack in which 300,000 fraudulent accounts were created in one hour, resulting in 475,000 spam messages to legitimate community members.

Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber
State of the State Address
Portland City Club – 1-13-12

I’m proud of the progress we have made during the past year. We have not shied away from tough decisions – on the budget, education and health care – to put Oregon on a more sustainable path. And it’s been refreshing to partner with a legislature that has put problem-solving ahead of partisanship. We have come a long way.

Best & worst of the 2012 tech products and gadgets

CNN does a review of the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show with some very exciting and otehrs very odd tech products.

By Heritage Foundation

Economic freedom declined worldwide in 2011 as many countries attempted — without success — to spend their way out of recession, according to the 18th annual Index of Economic Freedom, released today by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal.

The average economic freedom score for the 2012 Index stands at 59.5 (on a scale in which 100 represents the ideal), down two-tenths of a point from 2011.

“The mounting burden of reckless government spending has overwhelmed gains in economic freedom in other policy areas,” write the Index editors. “Tension between government control and the free market has heightened around the world, particularly in developed countries.”

Hong Kong and Singapore finished first and second in the rankings for the 18th straight year. Australia and New Zealand ranked third and fourth, and Switzerland fifth. Canada finished sixth, slipping almost a full point and falling out of the group of “free” economies into the “mostly free” category.

By Tim Duy,
Oregon Economic Forum

The Oregon economy lost momentum in November. The three-month moving average of the Oregon Measure of Economic Activity was -0.93, largely unchanged from October. The University of Oregon Index of Economic Indicators™ slipped 0.3 percent to 88.8 (1997=100) in November.

Further comments:

• The Oregon Measure of Economic Activity indicates Oregon is growing below the trend rate of growth established over the 1990-2011 period. The manufacturing, construction, household and services sectors all weighed negatively on the measure.