Archives

May 8, 2015 - Chamber releases Congress vote scorecard

U.S. Chamber of Commerce The U.S. Chamber of Commerce released its How They Voted scorecard, an effort that began 50 years ago, and also honored 208 members of the House of Representatives and 40 members of the Senate with its annual Spirit of Enterprise Award, given in recognition of their […]


May 7, 2015 - Oregon’s trade dependence

Quite a few requests coming in these days to talk about trade, its economic impact and the outlook for both the nation (new trade agreements) and local (Port of Portland marine operations) economies. There are lots of numbers flying around and it can be hard to tell which ones are […]


May 6, 2015 - Pension decision to cost Oregon $750 million

Associated Oregon Industries Oregon’s largest business advocate Preliminary analysis of Moro decision shows PERS costs will rise nearly 5% in 2017-19, costing nearly $750 million. The Oregon Supreme Court delivered its decision  in the case of Moro v State of Oregon. The Court overturned the vast majority of the PERS […]


May 5, 2015 - Oregon needs to be “Uberized”

By John Charles, Cascade Policy Institute A 120-day “pilot project” by the City of Portland has just begun to allow private car-sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft to legally compete with cab companies. Given the consumer demand for such services, there is little doubt that the Portland experiment will […]


May 4, 2015 - Schrader: No pay during Gov. shutdowns

Congressman Kurt Schrader In an effort to keep Congress answerable to the taxpayers they serve, Congressman Kurt Schrader (OR-05) reintroduced the Hold Congress Accountable Act. “In the real world, if you don’t do your job, you don’t get paid. In Congress, we are tasked with keeping the government running. Therefore, […]


May 1, 2015 - House approves Cybersecurity Bill

U.S. Chamber of Commerce The U.S. Chamber of Commerce applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for passing, with strong bipartisan support, H.R. 1650, the Protecting Cyber Networks Act (PCNA), and H.R. 1731, the National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act of 2015 (NCPAA). “This necessary legislation will improve information sharing between businesses […]


April 30, 2015 - Craigslist rolls out local “Safe Zones”

By Oregon Better Business Bureau Buying and selling secondhand goods on Craigslist can be a handy way to pick up some extra cash—or snag a great deal. If you’re not keen on having strangers meet you at your home, there’s a solution that’s been popping up all over the U.S. […]


April 29, 2015 - Free Electricity Irony — Homeless get arrested, Telsa owners get subsidies?

The crazy mixed up world of “free” electricity where the homeless get arrested and Tesla owners get subsidies By Dr. Eric Fruits, Econ Minute Blog, Oregon In Portland, OR, Street Roots reports that a homeless former social worker with muscular dystrophy was hit with a misdemeanor theft charge for charging […]


April 28, 2015 - Mapping Oregon job growth

By Josh Lehner Oregon Office of Economic Analysis Blog What follows is a mostly graphical update on the landscape of jobs across Oregon. As mentioned in the previous post on the state more broadly, Oregon is near full-throttle rates of growth. This acceleration has largely come from the pick-up in […]


April 27, 2015 - Business implications of AG data breach notification plans

Miller Nash LLP, Oregon and Washington Law Firm Implications for Businesses as Oregon Attorney General Fights for More Detailed Data Breach Notifications, and Increased Involvement in Data Breach Situations As reported in an interview with The Privacy Advisor, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is seeking the following three changes to […]