By Heather Fossity & Amy Angel Barran Liebman LLP Oregon Law firm As detailed in our previous E-Alert, Oregon’s face mask requirements continue to expand in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Mask, face covering, and face shield guidance now applies to businesses and members of the public visiting indoor spaces statewide, […]

University of Oregon State of Oregon Economic Indicators, This is the University of Oregon State of Oregon Economic Indicators for May 2020. The release date July 6, 2020. Special thanks to our sponsor, KeyBank The Oregon Measure of Economic Activity rebounded from -14.7 in April to 0.07 in May while […]

National Retail Federation, The National Retail Federation issued the following statement encouraging all retailers to adopt a nationwide policy that requires customers to wear face coverings or masks to protect the health and well-being of customers, associates and partners during the coronavirus pandemic: The health and safety of associates and […]

By Dr. Eric Fruits Cascade Policy Institute This is a terrible time to own and run a business. While the past three months have been dismal, the next few months could be even worse. Worse because no one knows what’s coming next. Even though many businesses have been allowed to […]

Oregon NFIB, The engine of the American economy is trying its best to start smoothly humming again, according to the release of the latest Small Business Economic Trends report (also called the Optimism Index) from NFIB, the nation’s leading small-business association. Now, can the surge in coronavirus cases abate long […]

By Josh Lehner Office of Oregon Economic Analysis, In terms of the economy, the biggest risk is the amount of permanent damage that accumulates during the social distancing phase. Across the country this is largely about business closures and/or permanent layoffs. In terms of a more Oregon-specific risk, one item […]

By Oregon Attorney General, In a letter sent to the Chief Executive Officers of Google and Apple, Attorney General Rosenblum led a coalition of 39 Attorneys General to call upon the two companies to ensure that any contact tracing and exposure notification apps related to COVID-19 adequately protect consumers’ personal […]

By National Federal of Independent Business The NFIB Research Center released its monthly jobs report, showing the small business labor market has further weakened in June. Firms reduced employment by 0.28 workers per firm over the past month, weaker than the decrease of 0.17 workers per firm in May. Unchanged […]

By Josh Lehner, Oregon office of Economic Analysis Oregon’s economy has reopened. Pent-up demand turns the economy from recession into recovery. But a key question is just how strong is that pent-up demand? Does cabin fever and increased household savings outweigh the fears and uncertainties about the virus? In this […]

By Vlad Yurlov Cascade Policy Institute Alcohol-lovers may have a reason for a toast. Oregon’s Liquor Control Commission is taking steps to decrease regulations on sellers, thereby expanding economic opportunity in the food and beverage industry, which was hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 crisis. Alcohol sales are tightly controlled […]