By Josh Lehner Oregon Office of Economic Analysis Blog So far in early 2015, the U.S. economic data flow has been relatively lackluster, including the disappointing March jobs report. As such, now is a good time to take a step back and mark one’s economic beliefs to market, to borrow […]

By Jan Meekcoms Oregon NFIB Bill would ‘put the employer in a hiring straitjacket.’ Oregon is considering a “ban the box” law that would eliminate questions about felony convictions on employment applications. But small business owners say House Bill 3025 would limit the ability of a small business owner to […]

By Technology Association of Oregon. Why TAO is in opposition of HB 2237 and HB 2995 We write to you in opposition of HB 2237 and HB 2995 as written, and with the -2 amendments to HB 2995. These bills would place burdensome, prohibitive and punitive insurance requirements on Transportation […]

NIKE Press release & Speech, Nike Welcomes President Obama to its World Headquarters — Outlines Support for TPP and Vision For Advanced Manufacturing in the U.S. NIKE, Inc. (NYSE:NKE) welcomes President Obama to its World Headquarters in support of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The company […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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, […]

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 […]