University of Oregon Regional Economic Indexes By Tim Duy Oregon Economic Forum University of  Oregon Oregon’s economy posted solid gains in March. Highlights of the report include: The Oregon Measure of Economic Activity rose to 0.73 in March, compared to a revised 0.16 the previous month. As it currently stands, […]

Michael Hendrix Director, Research & Emerging Issues U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Tech hubs are blossoming in America’s big metros. Not just in Silicon Valley, but in New York City and Boston too. Richard Florida’s new “Startup City” report shows tech firms and venture capital “shifting back to the great […]

By Economist Dr. Eric Fruits, Econinternational First, the good news: In 2013, Oregon outperformed the nation in job growth. Add to that, the good-but-don’t-too-excited news: U.S. employment is now back to where it was before the recession.

By Oregon Small Business Association Blazer owner Paul Allen was one of the first NBA team owners to speak publicly on the recent LA Clippers owner, Donald Silverman, charges of racism over a taped conversation. Shortly after the news break, Paul Allen stated publicly, “If true, the alleged comments by […]

By Steve Buckstein Cascade Policy Institute By abandoning Oregon’s failed technology and adopting the federal exchange technology, the Cover Oregon Board may have made the right technical decision, but they may have opened up a huge legal risk for many Oregonians. As Cascade’s Steve Buckstein testified at the Board meeting, […]

Barran Liebman Oregon Law Firm Fit for Duty? Questioning an Employee’s Readiness to Return from FMLA Leave The Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) permits employers to require a second (and in some cases even a third) medical opinion about an employee’s need to take leave, but FMLA expressly forbids second […]

Ater Wynne LLP NW Law frim Target of social media criticism can sue for defamation, Oregon Court of Appeals holds The Oregon Court of Appeals recently held that a business owner can pursue a defamation claim against an individual who posted a negative on-line review. In Neumann v. Liles, plaintiff, […]

By Oregon Small Business Association A proposal to eliminate a so-called “insurance industry bailout” has received a lot of attention in our Nation’s Capitol. The proposal (S.1726), advanced by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, aims to eliminate this provision from the Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as Obamacare. But, […]

By Jabob Grier, Portland Writer Cocktail consultant, magician, blogger. Liquidity Preference Blog Depending on whom one asks, Bitcoin is the future of currency, a useful tool for conducting transactions with vast untapped potential, or a speculative bubble of no lasting consequence. Enthusiasm for Bitcoin also signals various commitments, as Tyler […]

By Josh Lehner Oregon Office of Economic Analysis Blog New occupational data for 2013 was just released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Overall 2013 was not only stronger than previous years, since we already knew job growth accelerated, but the pattern of growth across occupations was also more encouraging.  […]