Subsidized jobs: A faint echo of the New Deal
From: www.stateline.org
"A small piece of the federal stimulus program is going toward funding jobs in the private sector. Even conservatives seem to like the idea."
Raising state revenue: The year of the punt
From: www.stateline.org
"
Most states chose to put off major revenue-raising decisions this year, cobbling together budgets with modest, targeted tax increases while banking on Congress to come through with more money for Medicaid. Few made sweeping changes to their tax systems or made concrete plans on what they will do when the federal stimulus ends — even though most agree that states face at least two more years of budget gaps."
AK: State seeks oil, gas tax consultant for $2M
From: www.adn.com
"The Parnell administration is looking to hire a $2 million consultant to review proposals for changing state petroleum taxes to encourage a natural gas pipeline."
AZ: $50M from settlement to boost border security
From: azstarnet.com
"A new $50 million pot is available to local law enforcement in Arizona and along the U.S.-Mexico border for border-security projects."
CA: Democrats propose shifting some programs to counties
From: www.sacbee.com
"State Senate Democrats on Monday unveiled their plan to give counties greater control of state programs, potentially shedding $3 billion to $4 billion in ongoing costs to the state budget."
CT: State to lead multistate probe of Google
From: online.wsj.com
"As many as 30 U.S. states are considering joining forces to look into how Google Inc.'s Street View vehicles came to collect Internet users' personal data from unsecured wireless networks."
CT: Prospect for more jobs wipes out Rell's OTB veto
From: www.theday.com
"State lawmakers rescued plans for off-track betting facilities at restaurants in New London, Windham and Manchester Monday, voting to override Gov. M. Jodi Rell's veto of a bill authorizing OTB simulcast screens in the three locations."
CT: Senate approves extension of conveyance tax; Foreclosed Homes exempted from conveyance tax for first time
From: blogs.courant.com
"Cash-strapped homeowners who are forced to sell their homes would gain some relief under a bill approved Monday by the state Senate."
CT: Electric boat buying Pfizer headquarters in New London, adding 700 jobs
From: www.courant.com
"NEW LONDON, Conn. -- Pfizer didn't have to look far for a buyer for its New London research and development headquarters — merely across the Thames River."
FL: Gulf oil spill pushes oysters off Red Lobster menu
From: www.orlandosentinel.com
"The Gulf oil spill is forcing the removal of oysters from Red Lobster's menu. A Franklin, La., processing plant that provided Orlando-based Darden Restaurants with oysters for its Red Lobster chain shut down last week because it was unable to maintain its supply."
FL: Weather favoring Fla. oil response
From: www.tallahassee.com
"Gov. Charlie Crist and state emergency officials said Monday winds and sea currents should move the Gulf oil spill away from Florida in the next few days."
FL: Rays owner, St. Pete in stadium stalemate
From: www.tampabay.com
"Setting up a legal and political standoff that could take years to resolve, Tampa Bay Rays owner Stuart Sternberg finally made it clear Monday that he wants to leave downtown St. Petersburg and explore new stadium sites on both sides of the bay."
FL: Florida rushes to the rescue again to save oil-soaked pelicans
From: www.miamiherald.com
"In the months since the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, hundreds of soaring brown pelicans -- Louisiana's official state bird -- have been drenched in oil and grounded, their startling images now powerful symbols of the sweeping damages delivered by a stubborn leak.
"
FL: Florida Keys dodging threat from oil
From: www.miamiherald.com
"The risk of oil from the Deepwater Horizon blowout reaching the Florida Keys and South Florida anytime soon is now so remote that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has suspended its trajectory maps for the area, effectively downgrading the region to low risk.
"
FL: Tar-ball cleaners outnumber tourists on Panhandle beach
From: www.miamiherald.com
"PANAMA CITY, Fla. -- As beachgoers fished and waded in the clear waters of St. Andrews State Park, a crew of more than 80 raked the park's beaches, trying to sift tar balls from the seaweed.
"
GA: Davis responds to Atlanta Business Chronicle's BP story
From: atlanta.bizjournals.com
"University System of Georgia Chancellor Erroll B. Davis Jr. on Monday responded to an Atlanta Business Chronicle story from June 18 that detailed his role as a director for BP plc."
IA: Pace of job creation in Iowa rivals 1994 levels
From: www.radioiowa.com
"An eastern Iowa economist says the latest data shows job growth in Iowa is better than it's been in 16 years. "
IL: Quinn signs law limiting payday loan interest rates
From: newsblogs.chicagotribune.com
"Payday loan companies will face limits on how much interest they can charge under legislation Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law this afternoon."
IN: More children held in grip of poverty
From: www.indystar.com
"At its inaugural summer Breakfast Club program a year ago, the Lord's Pantry served seven hungry people."
IN: Shorter school breaks impact businesses, vacation jobs for teens
From: www.courierpress.com
"Summer seems shorter each year to many parents and grandparents. They remember when school ended before Memorial Day and didn't resume until nearly Labor Day."
IN: Economic hope seen as Hoosiers get back on the road
From: www.courierpress.com
"Hoosiers are hitting the road again. After a four-year slide that saw miles driven on Indiana roads dip by 5.8 percent by the end of 2008, traffic is beginning to pick up, according to figures assembled by the Federal Highway Administration. "
KS: Parkinson set to begin wheat harvest tour
From: www2.ljworld.com
"Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson and state Agriculture Secretary Josh Svaty planned to make their annual wheat harvest tour on Monday."
KS: Four Wichita business owners seek to have Kansas' new smoking ban deemed unconstitutional
From: www2.ljworld.com
"Four Wichita-area business operators have gone to court to prevent Kansas from banning smoking in many public places, partly because its new law contains an exemption for state-owned casinos."
KY: Bad legislation
From: www.bgdailynews.com
"Labor unions have been losing membership faster than BP's been losing value in the stock market."
LA: Lightning limits oil capture rate
From: www.2theadvocate.com
"BP recovered slightly less leaking oil from the Gulf of Mexico with its containment devices Sunday because lightning in the area caused part of the operation to shut down — for the second time in a week."
LA: House cutoff kills attorney measure
From: www.nola.com
"An 11th-hour compromise to allow the state to hire private attorneys on contingency fee contracts for oil spill litigation died Monday when the annual legislative session ended without the House taking up the measure."
LA: Accord reached on plan to bar shady contractors
From: www.nola.com
"The House and Senate came to terms Monday on a bill that will give public bodies the authority to reject the lowest bid from an individual contractor or firm if an owner or manager has been convicted of a state or federal felony."
LA: State backs oil industry, wants drilling moratorium thrown out
From: www.csmonitor.com
"Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is supporting a legal challenge that seeks to reverse President Obama's six-month moratorium on deepwater oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico."
MA: Race over casinos
From: www.bostonherald.com
"Sen. Stanley Rosenberg said the competition for three casino licenses is expected to heat up once lawmakers approve expanded gambling in the Bay State. "I am convinced we have not heard from everybody yet," said the Amherst Democrat. "There are people waiting in the wings who won't show their hands until the legislation is passed.""
MD: Baltimore gets boost to cruise business
From: www.baltimoresun.com
"Despite a deep recession that has put a crimp in vacation budgets, a record number of cruise ship passengers and voyages are expected at the port of Baltimore this year."
ME: AGs seek assurances BP would pay East Coast claims
From: www.bangordailynews.com
"COLUMBIA, S.C. — Attorneys general in 11 Atlantic Coast states, including Maine, asked BP PLC for assurances that legitimate claims from their residents will be paid if oil from the massive Gulf of Mexico spill reaches their shores."
MN: Twin Cities nurses back new strike, so now what?
From: www.twincities.com
"Nurses voted Monday night to endorse an open-ended strike of 14 Twin Cities hospitals, giving their union leverage as it seeks to resuscitate contract negotiations over pay, pension and nurse staffing levels. The vote does not mean a strike is imminent, however. The Minnesota Nurses Association must give hospitals at least 10 days' notice before any such job action."
MO: Tax incentives for some Missouri projects, delay for others
From: newstribune.com
"While asserting new tax breaks are urgently needed for Ford Motor Co., Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon is delaying tax credits that could help finance tens of millions of dollars of development projects."
NC: N.C. Senate rejects sweepstakes parlors
From: www.charlotteobserver.com
"The Senate resoundingly rejected the argument that sweepstakes parlors are a harmless cash generator for the state, voting Monday night to ban the industry."
NC: Bill to lure N.C. biz with tax breaks gets House OK
From: www.news-record.com
"Expanded tax breaks for North Carolina film productions and new incentives for computer simulation games and green-based business parks are now headed to the state Senate."
ND: N.D. OIL -- Bakken spur to Keystone pipeline planned
From: www.grandforksherald.com
"A Houston company wants to ship North Dakota oil through a proposed pipeline that would carry Canadian crude to the Gulf of Mexico."
NM: Labor department's upgrades bring reprieve
From: www.santafenewmexican.com
"For the first time that many employees at the Department of Workforce Solutions can remember, there are more people on duty some days than phone calls coming in. "
NY: Cigarette tax increased to keep state running
From: www.nytimes.com
"ALBANY — New Yorkers who like to smoke will have to dig a little deeper to light up next month, after the Legislature passed a bill on Monday that will give the state the highest cigarette taxes in the country."
NY: Tribal draft deal sparks outrage
From: www.timesunion.com
"Amid the push to bolster cigarette taxes in New York on Monday, some reporters obtained a draft settlement between the state and the Oneida Indian Nation aimed at resolving a lawsuit over a highly controversial land deal and long-standing tobacco taxation issues. "
OH: Records for retirees off-limits in Ohio
From: www.ohio.com
"Despite spending more than $4 billion annually on state and local government pensions, Ohio taxpayers have little access to retirement records."
OH: State officials in China on trade mission
From: www.dispatch.com
"The state starts a trade mission to China this week that's led by the director of the Ohio Department of Development and includes 17 participants from across the state."
OK: Stockyards Centennial Celebrations continue
From: www.newsok.com
"The Oklahoma National Stockyards, the largest cattle market in the country, is having a big birthday this year, and the celebrations have begun. "
OR: IBM to bring 600 jobs to Oregon, most of them in Beaverton
From: www.oregonlive.com
"BEAVERTON, Ore. -- IBM anticipates hiring 600 new employees in Oregon as it introduces new mortgage software tied to its recent acquisition of Beaverton-based Wilshire Credit Corp., state and city officials said Monday. "
PA: Meadows purses to fall as state dips into horse racing cash
From: www.pittsburghlive.com
"In the six years since they passed the law legalizing slot machines, state lawmakers seem to have forgotten one important part of it. That would be its name."
SC: AGs seek assurances BP would pay East Coast claims
From: www.thestate.com
"Attorneys general in 11 Atlantic Coast states asked BP PLC for assurances that legitimate claims from their residents will be paid if oil from the massive Gulf of Mexico spill reaches their shores."
SC: S.C. gubernatorial candidate Haley earned $42,500 in undisclosed fees
From: www.charlotteobserver.com
"Republican S.C. gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley was paid $40,500 - 20 percent of her family's income - by engineering firm Wilbur Smith Associates for consulting work the Lexington County state lawmaker performed in 2007 and 2008, according to Haley's tax records released Monday."
SD: EPA delays irk ethanol backers
From: www.argusleader.com
"South Dakota ethanol supporters say they are disappointed to hear that the Environmental Protection Agency once again is delaying a decision on whether the American public can use higher concentrations of ethanol in their vehicles."
TX: How tighter EPA rules will affect Texas
From: www.texastribune.org
"After three high-profile takeovers of permitting at three large Texas industrial plants, the Environmental Protection Agency has raised the hackles of state politicians and brought criticism of undue meddling that will cost the state's economy jobs."
TX: Perry says China trip promotes Texas in Asia
From: www.chron.com
"Gov. Rick Perry says his first trip to China has led to increased exposure for Texas in Asia."
UT: Utah's jobless trust fund is about to go broke
From: www.sltrib.com
"Devastated by the recession, Utah's trust fund for paying jobless benefits is now expected to go broke."
UT: Utah refinery hit with $1M in fines for explosion
From: heraldextra.com
"Utah regulators have fined an oil refinery more than $1 million for an explosion in November."
VA: Cities weigh making new workers pitch in on pensions
From: hamptonroads.com
"Local cities and school divisions are facing a choice they've never had before: Should new employees contribute to their own pension plans?"
VA: Va. uranium mining question spawns studies
From: hamptonroads.com
"A uranium mining and milling operation in Southside Virginia would create up to 350 jobs and generate $40 million to $50 million for the local economy."
VA: United Football League coming to Norfolk in 2011
From: hamptonroads.com
"A few weeks after officials visited the region to kick some tires, the United Football League announced Monday evening that it has conditionally approved bringing a team to Norfolk in 2011."
VT: Cabot Creamery neighbors fret over water wells
From: www.burlingtonfreepress.com
"Neighbors of Vermont cheese maker Cabot Creamery are pressing the state to study the impact of the plant's well water use on the wells of adjoining landowners."
VT: Budget deal Is reached in New Jersey
From: www.nytimes.com
"TRENTON (AP) — A compromise deal on a $29.3 billion budget for New Jersey that averts a government shutdown and restores tens of millions of dollars to programs for needy residents has been reached by the Republican governor's office and Democrats who control the Legislature. "
WA: Washington State University gets $1M to study onions
From: seattle.bizjournals.com
"Washington State University said it will receive $1 million as part of a national project to study improving the productivity and profitability of onion growing."
WI: Wisconsin DOJ sues Verizon over billing
From: host.madison.com
"The Wisconsin Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against telephone carrier Verizon."
WI: Senate passes bill to expand investment tax credits
From: www.jsonline.com
"The state Senate passed a bill Thursday to expand angel investment tax credits and improve links between businesses and university research."
WI: Alliant Energy to cut 90 jobs in Wisconsin, Iowa
From: www.jsonline.com
"One year after eliminating 276 jobs in a restructuring, Alliant Energy Corp. of Madison has launched another restructuring that will eliminate up to 90 jobs over the next several months."
WV: W.Va. coal suffers yet another blow
From: www.dailymail.com
"Since 1997, coal companies nationwide have been using an expedited process to obtain certain permits from the Army Corps of Engineers."
WY: Rancher drops land swap proposal
From: billingsgazette.com
"The controversial Falls Ranch state land exchange in Natrona County is off the table for now."
New York hikes cigarette taxes
From: www.stateline.org
"
TODAY'S TAKE: New York has become the latest state to raise cigarette taxes in the face of a budget deficit that exceeds $9 billion. Once the increase takes effect in July, New Yorkers will pay the country's highest tobacco taxes."
States ride broadband wave
From: www.stateline.org
"With an infusion of even more funding for planning since the National Broadband Plan was released in March, states are moving ahead with efforts to expand high-quality broadband access, even as a court ruling against the FCC’s net neutrality authority leaves them seeking clarity."
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson on the issues
From: www.stateline.org
"SANTA FE, N.M. — In a June 10 interview with
Stateline, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson discussed how the immigration issue is playing in this year’s race to succeed him. He described the benefit of sending the National Guard to secure the border and discussed his recent trip with Arizona Governor Jan Brewer to tour the border area."
Jindal warns Obama: "We're not winning this war"
From: www.stateline.org
"
TODAY'S TAKE: During President Obama's fourth tour of the Gulf Coast since oil began spilling from an offshore well, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal told the president that the country is losing the "war" against the spill. The governor's admonition came at the same time Louisiana's state treasurer urged Jindal to prepare for the possible bankruptcy of BP."
Visit the Stateline.org Economy & Business Page
From: www.stateline.org
"
TODAY'S TAKE: During President Obama's fourth tour of the Gulf Coast since oil began spilling from an offshore well, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal told the president that the country is losing the "war" against the spill. The governor's admonition came at the same time Louisiana's state treasurer urged Jindal to prepare for the possible bankruptcy of BP."
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