By Oregon Small Business Association Foundation, From 2010 to 2020, Portland increased the number of hotel rooms by 4,000, but today many of those rooms sit empty as the city and its businesses struggle to return to pre-pandemic levels of commerce, according to the Portland Business Journal. In 2019, the […]

By Portland Metro Chamber, The Oregon Secretary of State’s Office assigned a ballot measure number to a massive new tax that will appear on the November ballot. This costly tax on sales, formerly known as Initiative Petition 17, is now officially Measure 118. Measure 118 qualified for the ballot on […]

By Chris Morgan & Lex Shvartsmann Barran Liebman Law LLP, August 9, 2024 — Under ORS 652.750, an employer is required to furnish a “certified” copy of an employee’s personnel records within 45 days of the employee’s request. The statute does not expressly specify what is considered a “certified copy.” […]

By Oregon Small Business Association Foundation Two Oregon-based companies on the Fortune 500 in 2024 are laying off employees to cut costs. Nike, based in Beaverton and ranked 88th on the list, announced layoffs in February. Lithia Motors of Medford, which posted a record $8.6 billion in first-quarter sales, announced […]

By NFIB WASHINGTON, D.C. (Aug. 1, 2024) –  NFIB’s July jobs report found a seasonally adjusted net 33% of small business owners reported raising compensation in July, down five points from last month and the lowest reading since April 2021. A net 18% (seasonally adjusted) plan to raise compensation in […]

(photo: Gonzales Wine) By Oregon Hispanic Business Association, A dozen Hispanic winemakers in Oregon who hope to pass on their businesses to children and grandchildren as a legacy reflecting love, beauty, and respect for families and the land have banded together in AHIVOY, a group advocating on behalf of Hispanic […]

By Oregon U.S. Attorney Office Press Release, EUGENE, Ore.—A Lane County, Oregon man who negotiated the trade of methamphetamine for 17 firearms was sentenced to federal prison. Mark Villanueva, 38, was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release. According to court documents, in August 2020, […]

By Portland Metro Chamber, On July 11, the Portland Metro Chamber testified to express concerns for the implementation of Multnomah County’s drug addiction and deflection system. Jay Clark, director of Public Affairs, stressed that the Chamber supported HB 4002, which provided $25 million in state funding for a regional 24/7 […]

By National Retail Federation Data released by the U.S. Census Bureau shows modest retail sales gains in June despite an uneven pace of spending in recent months, National Retail Federation Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said. “The path of household spending remains difficult to read,” Kleinhenz said. “Spending has been uneven […]

By Oregon Restaurant & Lodging Association, The first increase in the DOL Overtime Final Rule is scheduled to take effect July 1 and increases the salary threshold to determine whether employees are exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Provisions include: Standard Salary Threshold Increase: Effective […]