By Steve Buckstein, Cascade Policy Institute Union-backed and activist groups are trying to put measures on the November 2016 ballot to raise Oregon’s minimum wage from the current $9.25 to either $13.50 or $15, and to allow local governments such as the city of Portland to go above whatever the […]

Are You Better Off than Before the Recession? written by Damon Runberg, Central Oregon Regional Economist Oregon Employment Department Were you working before the 2007-2009? If so, are you still working today? If you said “yes” to both then I have another question for you. Are you better off today […]

By Oregon Small Business Association, Oregon shed 5,300 jobs in September and its 12-month job growth of nearly 50,000 jobs is substantially lower than the previous 12 months. In fact, 2015 has witnessed significant developments among some of Oregon largest employers, with major companies being bought out, moving operations to […]

Congressman Kurt Schrader Congressman Kurt Schrader (OR-05) stated his disapproval of the House’s passage of the $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill. The bill will fund the government until the end of September 2016. It passed the House today by a vote of 316-113. “While this bill contained some positive policy […]

By Josh Lehner Oregon Office of Economic Analysis Blog Oregon’s high-technology sector is being disrupted. Industry growth in the past decade is entirely concentrated in software, while Oregon’s historical strength in hardware is no longer the driver of job growth. Hardware remains the state’s comparative advantage, pays a large number […]

U.S. Chamber of Commerce U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue issued the following comments regarding the compromise FY2016 omnibus spending bill and the policy priorities that were included: “Congress continues to defy expectations that nothing would get done this year. It already passed the first meaningful […]

By Oregon NFIB, At 2009 pages, the political world has a lot to say today on the federal budget deal posted online in the wee hours of the morning, and one provision in particular has Oregon small-business owners hoping Congress seals the deal on Friday and President Obama signs it. […]

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden Press Release, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., asked FBI Director James Comey how the FBI is tackling the increasing problem of “ransomware” attacks in a letter. Ransomware attacks refer to the growing criminal practice of hacking Americans’ devices, encrypting personal information and holding it for ransom […]

By Bullard Law, Portland law firm Benjamin P. O’Glasser Portland to Implement Ban the Box The City of Portland has jumped to the forefront of the national “ban the box” trend and has adopted a new ordinance that restricts many employers from screening applicants based on their criminal history before […]

University of Oregon Regional Economic Indexes By Tim Duy Oregon Economic Forum University of  Oregon Oregon Economic Indicators: The Oregon Measure of Economic Activity rebounded from an upwardly revised September number. As expected, the steep job losses reported in September were almost entirely revised away with the October employment report. […]