Archives

July 13, 2015 - Lottery funds show state is terrible investor

By Thomas Tullis Cascade Policy Institute When Oregon politicians pretend to be experts on venture capital investing, it ends up costing the state millions of dollars in education money. This is exactly what is going on with the Oregon Growth Board, a project of the Oregon Business Development Department. Tasked […]


July 10, 2015 - IRS fines for helping workers buy insurance?

By National Federation of Independent Business, NFIB urges quick repeal of schizophrenic IRS rule imposing fines on small businesses for helping defray the cost of their workers’ insurance or medical expenses Washington, DC (June 29, 2015) – An obscure IRS rule takes effect under which small businesses that get caught […]


July 9, 2015 - 5 things I wish I knew in my career’s first 5 Years

By Technology Association of Oregon. I have been reflecting on my 20+ year career on the things that I wish I better understood when I was first starting out: 1. Don’t wait for permission to get the experience you want In today’s world, it’s easier than ever to proactively develop […]


July 8, 2015 - Wyden: Tax reform on craft beverage industry

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden Press Release, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., has introduced legislation that would promote continued job creation in the growing craft beverage, cider, wine and distillery industries throughout Oregon and the country. The Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act, S.1562, introduced Thursday would cut taxes and modernize […]


July 7, 2015 - Oregon weak labor force results puzzling

University of Oregon Regional Economic Indexes By Tim Duy Oregon Economic Forum University of  Oregon Softness in employment components dragged down the Oregon Measure of Economic Activity in May to a near-average level. Highlights of the report include: – The three-month moving average of the Oregon Measure of Economic Activity, […]


July 6, 2015 - Video lottery sees double digit growth

By Josh Lehner Oregon Office of Economic Analysis Blog In recent years there had been somewhat of a disconnect from broader economic gains and growth in video lottery sales, and gaming more generally across the country. Granted, gaming is a very discretionary type of spending and while the economy was […]


July 3, 2015 - Chamber: New overtime rule divorced from reality

U.S. Chamber of Commerce U.S. Chamber of Commerce Senior Vice President of Labor, Immigration, and Employee Benefits Randy Johnson issued the following statement regarding the Obama administration’s overtime proposal: “Making more employees eligible for overtime by severely restricting the exemptions will not guarantee more income, but instead will negatively impact […]


July 2, 2015 - Minimum wage increases across Portland area

Portland raises minimum wage to $15 an hour for full-time city workers By Oregon Small Business Association, The Portland City Council voted on May 13 to raise the minimum wage for full-time city workers to $15 an hour. The raise will affect 16 full-time city employees and more than 150 […]


July 1, 2015 - 21-day work schedule rule bill a nightmare

By Jan Meekcoms Oregon NFIB Some small business owners have found flexible working arrangements work well for their company and benefit their employees. A proposal in Oregon, however, would reduce employers’ freedom to manage their own businesses. Senate Bill 888 would require employers to work with employees to try to […]


June 30, 2015 - Last Legislative bills to watch

Associated Oregon Industries Oregon’s largest business advocate As the 2015 Legislative Session struggles to the finish, several bills important to the business community remain on the table. Rather than an in-depth look at just a few bills, this week’s Leading Issues provides an overview of unfinished business. Some bills are […]