As state revenues tick upward, budget gaps remain
From: feeds.stateline.org
"There’s good news to be found in the National Conference of State Legislatures’ most recent survey of state budgets — if you can look past the bad news.
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AL: Alabama employer tax boost looms if jobless loan unpaid
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Alabama employers will face a $37.8 million tax increase in 2012 if the state government doesn't repay $283 million it borrowed from the U.S. Treasury to keep its unemployment compensation trust fund from running out of money.
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AL: Advertiser Editorial -- Legislative secrecy insults public
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The ongoing criminal probe by a federal grand jury into how the Alabama Legislature handled bills to expand gambling in the state has pulled in the Legislative Reference Service.
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AL: Alabama governor candidates favor casino disclosure
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The disclosure that the state's largest casino gave less than 1 percent of its gross per year to charity has the two candidates for governor saying more openness is needed.
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AZ: New poll -- Consumer confidence dropping in Arizona
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Arizonans' confidence that things will get better is slipping again, a result that by itself may keep the economy from improving.
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AZ: Immigration issue for GOP in ACC primary
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The usually staid election race for the Arizona Corporation Commission has been sidetracked by a hot-button issue over which the utility panel has little control: illegal immigration.
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CA: Another drop in state's taxable property seen
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Eleven of the state's 12 most populous counties are reporting decreases in taxable property values and the 12th - huge Los Angeles County - is anticipating a drop as well, says The Bond Buyer, a publication that charts trends in public finance.
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CO: Child-poverty rate increases 50 percent in Colorado
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The rate of Colorado children living in poverty increased 50 percent between 2000 and 2008, compared with a 6 percent increase nationwide, according to 2010 Kids Count Data Book, an annual report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation that tracks how states have progressed — or regressed — over time in protecting the well-being of children.
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CO: Feds to Colorado- Get drunk (but not high) during recession
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Banks across Colorado are increasingly shutting their doors to businesses in the medical marijuana industry, a trend that is only likely to increase now that dispensaries have been labeled a "sin business" by the state housing authority.
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CT: Rell calls for $260 million in bonding for rail improvements
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. M. Jodi Rell is set to call today for one of the state's biggest bond issues in recent memory when she proposes selling $260 million in bonds to make improvements to the New Haven-to-Springfield rail line.
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CT: Lawmakers fear rail funding could drain other projects
From: feeds.stateline.org
"As the governor's office prepares to commit $260 million for the planned New Haven-to-Springfield rail project, two key state lawmakers say they want to know how that will affect other efforts to maintain and upgrade an aging, congested transportation network.
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DE: Polluted water found statewide
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Three months ago, environmental regulators in Delaware received a blunt warning from the Environmental Protection Agency after workers in Dover drilled a deep test well where federal investigators were tracking shallow groundwater pollution. Check first before drilling, the EPA said, or pay the price for endangering the public's water.
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DE: Initiative pumps up Wilmington's appeal for interns
From: feeds.stateline.org
"If a modest initiative proposed by a downtown development group takes hold, more interns could choose a similar lifestyle for summer internships. Wilmington Renaissance partnered with a few downtown businesses to encourage close to a dozen of their interns to live -- or at least attend events -- downtown. Four work at Potter Anderson.
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FL: Hotels fuller this June, and pondering spill effect
From: feeds.stateline.org
"More rooms were full at South Florida hotels this June compared to last year, with rates about the same.
But local hoteliers wonder: How much better might business have been without the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico?
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FL: Back to work for oil containment efforts in Gulf
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The oil-belching beast at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico could be dead in as soon as two weeks.
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GA: New home sales rise
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Sales of new, single-family houses in June rose 23.6 percent from May, though new home sales nationally were down 16.7 percent from a year ago.
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GA: Georgia Power aims to rely less on coal
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Environmentalists are citing approval last month by the Public Service Commission of a Georgia Power Co.'s long-range plan as a turning point.
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HI: Hannemann describes economic plan
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann outlined yesterday a 10-point action plan to boost the state's economy if he is elected governor, including an audit of state government, securing a long-term commitment from the NFL on the Pro Bowl, restoring the Hawaii Superferry and naming a work force development czar.
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IA: Lake's views and revenue yield to muck and fears in Iowa
From: feeds.stateline.org
"DELHI, Iowa — What was a sparkling lake last week is now a muddy graveyard. The skeletons are mangled white boatlifts wedged in rocky sandbars.
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IA: Number of tobacco retailers drops by a third
From: feeds.stateline.org
"There's been a dramatic reduction in the number of Iowa businesses that sell cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products.
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IA: Culver pushes for renewable energy standards
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Renewable energy proponents, including Iowa Gov. Chet Culver, made a push Monday for Congress to establish a national renewable electricity standard that will spur more investment in U.S. manufacturing related to wind, solar and other alternative energy sources that will mean more good-paying "green-collar" jobs and a cleaner environment.
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IA: Fed cattle numbers in Iowa grow 10%
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Despite a decline in the overall number of cattle in the United States, the number of cattle placed on feedlots was up 10 percent in Iowa and 3 percent nationwide as of July 1, compared with the same date in 2009.
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IA: Iowans' credit positions improve
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Iowa consumers may have turned a corner when it comes to handling their credit.
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IA: Aging mobile homes -- Evictions fly amid missing money
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Circumstances for residents of a large mobile-home park south of Iowa City that is home to 600 people are growing more dire, as its Colorado owner began evicting residents and allegations swirled of missing money.
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IA: New flooding muddles corn, soybean outlook
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Floodwaters released by the break of the Lake Delhi dam seeped through farm fields in Delaware, Jones and Jackson counties in eastern Iowa on Monday, inundating corn and soybean plants.
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ID: Idaho hopes geothermal surge will benefit schools
From: feeds.stateline.org
"An influx of geothermal companies eyeing Idaho for development has prompted state officials to tweak rules for leases on endowment lands, hoping to further benefit public schools.
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IL: Illinois lawmakers have 2nd thought about foreclosure bill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Chicago's collar counties are bracing for millions of dollars in lost revenue if Gov. Pat Quinn signs a bill that would give banks the choice to hire private companies to handle the growing number of home foreclosures across northern Illinois.
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IL: Lawmakers object to tying furlough days to state holidays
From: feeds.stateline.org
"It would be a bad idea to make some state workers take no pay for up to a dozen holidays a year, Springfield-area lawmakers said Monday.
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IN: An overlooked work force
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Hoosiers with developmental disabilities, and those who work on their behalf, are going toe to toe with some harsh facts of political life.
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IN: Pennsylvania gambling tax collections outpace Nevada, Indiana
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania collected more in taxes from commercial casino gambling than any other state, including Nevada and Indiana.
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IN: State unveils date for new jobless aid
From: feeds.stateline.org
"About 80,000 Hoosiers can reapply for emergency unemployment benefits Aug. 3, the state Department of Workforce Development announced Monday.
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IN: Indiana agency revokes permit for 3,500-cow dairy
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Developers haven't given up their plans for a large dairy near South Bend, even though Indiana environmental officials have revoked its permit.
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KS: Kansas Bioscience Authority joins USDA's network for research, development
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Overland Park, Kan. — Kansas entrepreneurs, startups, researchers and various commercial enterprises will be able to tap into the world's most prolific agricultural research operation for knowledge, under a partnership announced Monday with the Kansas Bioscience Authority.
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KY: More children living in poverty in Kentucky, Indiana, annual survey shows
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The number of children living in poverty has increased in Kentucky and Indiana, following a national trend of high unemployment and growing poverty in families, according to the latest "Kid Count,'' an annual state-by-state survey of child well-being by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
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KY: Nancy Pelosi, Mitch McConnell speak at national gathering in Louisville
From: feeds.stateline.org
"House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged legislators attending a national conference in Louisville on Monday to pressure their states' GOP senators to stop stalling and act on what she described as critical economic stimulus measures before them.
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LA: State's economic outlook cloudy
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Across the country, state governments are starting to stabilize after a rough recession, according to a survey of state legislatures. Revenue is climbing. Consumers are spending. The worst of the financial decline could be over. However, a new report concludes that Louisiana's outlook is murkier, largely because of the April 20 Deepwater Horizon rig explosion that shut down the seafood industry and stopped some drilling activity.
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LA: Environmentalists link oil spill response, coastal restoration
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Speed the reconstruction of Louisiana's coastal wetlands by tapping offshore oil revenue and dedicating a significant share of any penalties levied against BP, a group of influential national and local environmental groups urged Navy Secretary and Gulf Coast oil spill recovery leader Ray Mabus in a letter published today in advertisements in The Times-Picayune, the Advocate of Baton Rouge, Washington-based Roll Call magazine, and the online publication Politico.
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LA: Where did the oil go?
From: feeds.stateline.org
"While BP begins preparations for a top kill of the company's Gulf of Mexico oil well, others are trying to find out where the oil that leaked out of the well went.
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LA: Tony Hayward of BP to leave job as CEO; post in Russia is in the works
From: feeds.stateline.org
"BP is jettisoning CEO Tony Hayward, whose verbal blunders made the oil giant's image even worse as it struggled to contain the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, and will assign him to a key job in Russia, a person familiar with the matter said Monday.
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MA: On wind power, Mass., R.I. aim to collaborate
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Rhode Island and Massachusetts will jointly explore offshore wind projects in federal waters adjacent to both states.
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MA: Leaders talk deal on Mass. casinos
From: feeds.stateline.org
"House and Senate leaders attempted yesterday to jump-start stalled negotiations over legalizing Las Vegas-style resort casinos, even as advocates for a variety of other measures grew increasingly concerned that the two-year legislative session will end Saturday with major issues still unresolved.
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MD: Maryland to save $829 million under national health care reform
From: feeds.stateline.org
"National health care reform is expected to save Maryland $829 million over the next decade and provide coverage to nearly 350,000 people — reducing the number of uninsured in the state by half, according to a report released by state officials Monday.
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MD: Don't leave retirement dollars on the table
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The average worker has at least seven jobs in a lifetime, so it's not that unusual that a pension or 401(k) has been left behind and forgotten while climbing the career ladder.
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MD: Md. remains middle of the pack in child well-being
From: feeds.stateline.org
"As the state continues to struggle with a high infant mortality rate that undercuts its relative wealth, Maryland's overall rank in child well-being remained in the middle of the pack nationally, according to an annual report released by the Baltimore-based Annie E. Casey Foundation.
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ME: Tax overhaul backers spent more
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Groups hoping to maintain the tax reform law enacted by the Legislature outspent the groups that successfully campaigned for its repeal. The controversial measure would have lowered the state income tax for most Mainers from 8.5 percent to 6.5 percent by expanding the 5 percent state sales tax to previously untaxed items and by increasing the meals and lodging tax, among other things.
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ME: Child poverty rising in Maine
From: feeds.stateline.org
"PORTLAND, Maine — While New Hampshire and Vermont ranked first and third for children's well-being in the Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual survey, Maine dropped two slots to 14th place with more children living in poverty and single-parent homes and more young people dropping out of high school.
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ME: PAC targets casino plan in S. Maine
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A political action committee of business groups that includes Hollywood Slots Hotel & Raceway in Bangor officially formed on Monday to oppose a proposal to build a gambling casino in Oxford County.
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MI: Michigan needs to keep offering business tax breaks to create jobs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Michigan needs jobs, lots of them. It's that simple.
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MI: 2 insurers to run high-risk pool in Michigan
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Two Michigan-based health insurers -- both subsidiaries of large hospital systems -- have been selected to run the state's new high-risk insurance pool to provide coverage by October for chronically uninsured adults.
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MN: Minn. promotes Saudi Arabia export opportunities
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Minnesota Department of Agriculture is highlighting export opportunities in Saudi Arabia for food and agricultural companies.
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MT: Montana hay farmers see biggest harvest in years years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Montana hay farmers are stacking more bales than usual this summer as they finish cutting the season's first harvest.
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ND: ND needs to box up its exports
From: feeds.stateline.org
"North Dakota's distance from markets has always been a problem.
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ND: N.D. economy is No. 1
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Another week, another national list where North Dakota ranks at the top.
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NE: Nebraska wheat harvest almost finished
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State agriculture officials say the wheat harvest is almost finished in Nebraska and 85 percent of the state's corn crop is rated good or excellent.
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NH: End of a 378-year era
From: feeds.stateline.org
"DOVER, N.H. — Like generations of Tuttles before him, Will Tuttle has spent his life on the family farm, working its tree-lined acres from seed to harvest. He learned by the side of his father and grandfather and, like them, chose to make his living off the land. But after years of toil and dwindling demand for the crops he produced, the thick-armed 63-year-old has decided the family legacy will end with him.
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NH: NH No. 1 in child health, but poverty increases
From: feeds.stateline.org
"New Hampshire again ranks No. 1 nationally in an annual survey on children's well-being. But the numbers also indicate a growing problem in the state: poverty.
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NH: NH's Lynch vetoes 2 bills
From: feeds.stateline.org
"New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch has vetoed a bill that would have repealed the ability of cities and towns to license people who sell firearms.
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NH: Nonprofits get break from IRS
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Several garden clubs, soccer clubs and the Independent Order of Vikings in Bow are among the more than 1,400 New Hampshire-based nonprofit organizations on a list of groups set to lose their tax-exempt status for failing to file with the Internal Revenue Service for the past three years
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NJ: Gov. Chris Christie's budget didn't make the gap go away
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The governor must be fun to play games with because he changes the rules whenever it suits him.
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NJ: N.J. Office of Smart Growth gets a new name, new boss in Lt. Gov. Guadagno
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Office of Smart Growth, created to coordinate growth in state agencies, will be renamed the Office of Planning Advocacy, and control will be given to Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, according to a report by NJSpotlight.com.
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NJ: Gov. Christie, N.J. congressional delegation to address economic growth at Washington meeting
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Chris Christie heads to Washington today to meet with New Jersey's congressional delegation. It's the second meeting between Christie and the state's 15 lawmakers since the Republican took office in January.
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NY: Governor responds to a brewing revolt
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Paterson administration, under mounting pressure from county governments owed hundreds of millions of dollars by the state, is promising local officials that Albany will wipe out a backlog of unpaid bills by the end of August.
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OH: Wall Street businesses have returned money to Ohio, but Richard Cordray overstates the total
From: feeds.stateline.org
"It's good politics to present yourself as fighting for the little guy against the corrupt corporate behemoths of Wall Street.
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OH: Ohio improves slightly on job list
From: feeds.stateline.org
"How the mighty have fallen. Nevada, California and Florida have the nation's weakest economies, according to a midyear review of state employment trends by Portfolio.com and bizjournals, which was released Monday.
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OH: Kaptur leads Ohio's congressmen in earmarks, faces controversy
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With her seniority rising, U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) has become the leading collector of congressional "earmarks" in Ohio -- $71.3 million in the 2010 federal budget -- and it's making her a target for her 2010 election opponent.
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OH: 'Unigov' is urged for region
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The senior director of governmental affairs for the Greater Ohio Policy Center in a speech to the Toledo Rotary Club Monday appealed for northwest Ohio to streamline its local governments to help promote the region for economic development.
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OH: Tax credits, loans boost area firms
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Three companies planning projects in central Ohio are among a dozen or so that will get state aid to add jobs and help buy equipment, the Ohio Department of Development announced yesterday.
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PA: Pennsylvania's gambling tax income outpaces Nevada
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania collected more in taxes from commercial casinos last year than any other state, including gambling heavyweight Nevada.
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PA: Pennsylvania state government employee layoffs still coming
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania government employees can breathe a sigh of relief. Their jobs are safe for the moment. There are no plans to announce layoffs this week, Gov. Ed Rendell said.
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PA: Gov. Ed Rendell promotes Harrisburg riverboat
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The operators of the Pride of the Susquehanna have raised about $20,000 in their effort to keep the riverboat afloat. They hope to raise at least $40,000, which would pay off unpaid operating expenses from last year. Additional funds would go toward an engine overhaul expected to cost another $40,000.
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SC: $34 million to go to jobless
From: feeds.stateline.org
"South Carolina is sending $34 million in retroactive payments to 32,000 unemployed workers this week, but experts said this extra cash is unlikely to provide a big boost for the state's economy.
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SD: Guard eyes expanded base in next 10 years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Since 1976, the South Dakota National Guard has operated an armory east of Pierre.
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SD: SD crops progressing well thanks to weather
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pests like grasshoppers continue to create problems for South Dakota farmers, especially in the western end of the state, but the crops are making progress.
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TN: Nonprofits lose water sales in TN parks
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Because of a new five-year contract with Pepsi, state parks will cease serving not only Coca-Cola products but also private-label bottled water used to market and raise funds for the parks system.
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TN: Review finds GOP 'deficit' on Smith exit
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Tennessee Republican Party had a $100,842 "deficit" when its then chairman, Robin Smith, left on May 31, 2009, according to a copy of a routine financial review conducted after Mrs. Smith departed to run for Congress.
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US: Course of economy hinges on fight over stimulus
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON — Eighteen months after President Barack Obama administered a massive dose of spending increases and tax cuts to a weak economy, a brawl has broken out among economists and politicians about whether fiscal-stimulus medicine is curing the illness or making it worse.
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US: States expect tax collections to rise
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State governments expect tax collections to grow for the first time in two years as tax increases and a recovering economy lead to higher collections.
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US: Lawmakers seeking cuts look at nonprofit salaries
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State and federal officials are starting to take their knives to the pay of leaders of nonprofit groups they do business with to help share the pain of tighter budgets.
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VA: 2 Va. banks hit by counterfeiters
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Two Virginia banks, one in western Henrico County and the other in Newport News, have contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to report that counterfeit cashier's checks bearing the institutions' names are in circulation.
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VA: Jobs commission considers better marketing of Va.
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Reducing or eliminating the corporate income tax and putting more money into tourism promotional efforts are two of the ideas being considered by the Governor's Commission on Economic Development and Job Creation. So far, the 64-member commission's eight committees have generated 115 ideas.
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VT: Energy efficiency financing faces hurdles in Vermont
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The summer scramble for efficiency upgrades to homes and businesses — always lively in Vermont — warms up this week as Congress works to overcome resistance from federal mortgage regulators.
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VT: Vermont struggles to extend broadband
From: feeds.stateline.org
"EAST MONTPELIER, Vt. -- Marlene and Mike McCarty, real estate brokers who do much of their work at home less than four miles from the Statehouse, say they spend hundreds of dollars and hours each month on things they wouldn't have to if they had broadband Internet access.
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WI: Adopt these rules
From: feeds.stateline.org
"New regulations on phosphorus will help clean the state's waters -- and that's good for business, the environment and citizens.
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WI: Damage claims flow in to insurance companies
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Claims stemming from last week's storms are mounting at property insurance companies.
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WI: State's health care start-ups raised $50 million through midyear
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Driven by two of the biggest venture capital financings the state has ever seen, Wisconsin start-ups pulled in nearly $108 million in the first half of the year, according to a MoneyTree Report issued by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association.
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WV: W.Va. storm damage loans reach $765K
From: feeds.stateline.org
"BEAVER, W.Va. -- The U.S. Small Business Administration says it's approved $765,000 in loans to West Virginian homeowners and renters who suffered storm damage in June.
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WV: State says VFDs don't need special coverage
From: feeds.stateline.org
"While BrickStreet Insurance plans to cancel Workers Compensation broadform coverage for more than 125 volunteer fire departments as of Sept. 1, a memo from the state Insurance Commission advises that the VFDs don't need the coverage.
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Visit the Stateline.org Economy & Business Page
From: feeds.stateline.org
"
"
Proactive tax planning to take advantage of timely tax saving opportunities.
Comprehensive business services that integrate income tax compliance
and planning with investments and insurance choices.
Consulting services that review businesses to find hidden opportunities to
increase wealth accumulation and retention.
Foreign investor tax services.
Individualized accounting system setup for new businesses.
State of the art payroll tax services and sales tax preparation.
Preparation of business and individual tax returns and financial
statements.
Budgeting and projection preparation and monitoring, facilitating the
creation and tracking of events.
Assistance in selection and installation of computer hardware and
software, ongoing monitoring and updating of systems.
