By Steve Buckstein, Cascade Policy Institute There are still eighteen so-called “control states” in America that exert substantial control over the sale of liquor. Oregon is one of them, virtually monopolizing its warehousing, distribution, and sale through the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC). You would think that independent-minded Oregonians would […]

Miller, Nash, Graham & Dunn LLP NW Law Firm Multi Time Machine (“MTM”) sued Amazon.com for trademark infringement, claiming that when potential customers searched for MTM products on Amazon.com’s website, search results appeared for other products as Amazon.com does not sell MTM products. MTM claimed that this created “initial interest […]

Oregon Beer strike brings holiday panic By Oregon Small Business Association, The General Distributors strike has begun its second week as it heads into the critical Thanksgiving weekend. Below is a KOIN TV 6 news clip followed by quotes by the key players. Alameda Breweing “Basically, it’s kind of put […]

By Portland Business Alliance The Portland Business Alliance, the Value of Jobs Coalition, and Chalkboard Project released results of a joint study called, “Economics of the Achievement Gap; Oregon and the Portland Area.” The report looks at the economic impact over time created by the ongoing achievement gap for minority […]

by Jason Norris, CFA, Executive Vice President of Research Ferguson Wellman,Portland Back in Business Again It has been a volatile year for equities and as we head into the holiday season, that doesn’t look to dissipate. After the 12 percent sell-off investors went through over the past few months (Fed […]

Minimum wage…too low or too high? By T.J. Reilly President, Oregon Small Business Association Almost everyone once worked at a minimum wage job. This is where most of us learned our first basic workplace skills. Many of us received the training that launched us into the careers that we have […]

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden Press Release, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said that a trio of essential highway projects in Oregon would benefit from a long-term plan to rebuild the national transportation infrastructure. A member of the Transportation Infrastructure Conference Committee, Wyden praised the House bill for bringing new projects […]

By Oregon Employment Department, Average Hourly Wages on the Rise After years of remaining flat, average hourly wages (adjusted for inflation) have risen in 2015. In August 2015, average hourly wages in Oregon were $23.42, up from $23.16 in August 2014. This comes in part from essentially no change in […]

By Oregon NFIB, State infrastructure is in need of an overhaul, but it’s unclear where the money will come from. Oregon’s infrastructure is in poor shape and could face significant deterioration within the next two decades, according to the state’s department of transportation. Basic maintenance costs to keep Oregon bridges […]

By Dunn, Carney, Allen, Higgins & Tongue Employer Avoids Liability When Employee Refuses FMLA Leave In a recent federal case applicable to Oregon and Washington employers, Foster Farms was found not to have interfered with an employee’s rights under the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) when the employee […]