A growing pile of debt for state unemployment insurance programs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A majority of states are borrowing more federal funds for their unemployment programs than ever before. With stimulus money set to expire, the consequences may be severe.
"
AK: Alaska seeks reconsideration on offshore lease decision
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The state of Alaska is seeking reconsideration of a federal court ruling that stopped companies from developing wells in the Arctic waters of the Chukchi Sea.
"
AK: PFD steady
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Every Alaskan with a year or more of residence in the state has an individual share of the state's wealth. Every adult. Every child. Last week, the state announced it is setting aside $858 million in investments to pay Permanent Fund dividends to more than 600,000 Alaskans.
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AL: Alabama waits for test results on Gulf fishing
From: feeds.stateline.org
"MOBILE, Ala. -- Both commercial and recreational fishing could reopen within days on the Alabama coast after a summer-long layoff because of the Gulf oil spill.
"
AZ: SB 1070 boycotts cost the state dozens of meetings
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Strong feelings about tough immigration laws are costing the state millions according to resort and hotel operators.
"
AZ: Court ruling keeps union measure off ballot -- For now
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Arizonans won't be able to vote in November to make it harder for unions to organize, at least not unless legislators fix it -- and quickly.
"
AZ: APS' energy efficiency promotion cuts profit
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Helping customers buy efficient air-conditioners and lightbulbs is cheaper than building power plants and transmission lines.
"
AZ: Arizona takes top energy spot
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Arizona has been labeled the nation's "Solar Energy King" by a leading business magazine, even though the state just has a handful of solar manufacturers and generating plants so far.
"
AZ: Arizona casino revenue dips, but play is on the rise
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gamblers are slowly returning to Arizona's 22 Indian casinos after staying away through much of the economic downturn.
"
CT: 9 dead in Manchester, Conn. workplace shooting
From: feeds.stateline.org
"MANCHESTER, Conn. -- Omar Thornton almost slept through his 6 a.m. wakeup call Tuesday, springing to life only after the teenage brother of his girlfriend nudged him awake.
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DE: Delaware Drinking Water at Risk -- Prescription drugs on tap from major suppliers
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Newly released details from a state drinking water study show that prescription drugs and personal care chemicals have crept into water supplies used by every major water utility tested.
"
DE: Delaware Sen. Ted Kaufman's wealth of advice
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON -- For more than a year, Sen. Ted Kaufman has been the voice of the investor on the Senate floor. He's been speaking from experience.
"
FL: Despite anger over the spill, changes in rules may be limited
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON -- As the Gulf of Mexico focuses on cleaning up the mess left by the BP oil spill, the question facing the nation's capital is: Will Washington clean up its act, too?
"
FL: For South Florida market, a hopeful sign
From: feeds.stateline.org
"South Florida's housing sector asserted its independence from national trends in July as a key measure of the real estate market improved year-over-year, with the region's international buyers and still-drooping prices propping up the local housing market.
"
FL: BP pumping mud to cut off gusher
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pumping a barrel of mud a minute, then two, then five, then seven, BP on Tuesday finally began slowly strangling its blown-out well at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico.
"
HI: It's not too late for Hawaii to be an export powerhouse
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Brookings Institution report that ranks Honolulu 84th in export performance among U.S. metropolitan areas should give us pause about what we are doing in our local economy. The study understates Hawaii's exports, but is still a call to do better.
"
IA: Reynolds seeks bipartisan budget-cutting solutions
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Republican nominee for lieutenant governor says she wants to come up with bipartisan solutions to cut the state budget by 15 percent.
"
IA: Iowa lottery goes after web business
From: feeds.stateline.org
"CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The 25-year-old Iowa Lottery is an "offline business in an online world," but Director Terry Rich is out to change that.
"
IA: Culver, Branstad disagree on Iowa's debt rating
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Chet Culver and former Gov. Terry Branstad disagreed Tuesday on the meaning of an independent debt rating service report showing Iowa has the second lowest level of per-capita debt in the nation.
"
IA: Regency to get water upgrades
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Upgrades scheduled for today at the Regency Mobile Home Park will help ensure the park's viability, Johnson County Environmental Health Coordinator James Lacina said Tuesday.
"
IA: Official -- I-JOBS has created jobs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State officials defended Gov. Chet Culver's I-JOBS program Tuesday, saying it is helping rebuild parts of Iowa hurt by the 2008 flood and the recent down economy.
"
IA: State revenues beat projections; Strong August expected
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Iowa's revenue in July dipped less than 1 percent as compared to the same month last year, according to a report from the Iowa Legislative Services Agency.
"
IA: Branstad ad exaggerates job losses, economists say
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A new ad by Terry Branstad misrepresents the number of jobs lost in the past year by equating it with the number of people looking for jobs, according to economists and Iowa Workforce Development officials.
"
IA: Iowa 2nd-lowest in United States in per-capita debt
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Iowa's state debt is the second-lowest per capita in the nation, according to a recent report from Moody's Investors Service that Gov. Chet Culver's staff highlighted Tuesday. State debt per person: $73.
"
IL: Now isn't the time for thinking small
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Illinois needs a tax increase. And it should be "substantial," just like Gov. Quinn's budget director said last week.
"
IL: This one's a sound bet
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With so many affluent communities already opting out of this scourge, video gambling will concentrate its customary legacy of lost family income in poorer and less-educated communities.
"
IL: New law limits rights of debt settlement companies
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Governor Pat Quinn has signed a law that limits the ways debt settlement companies can do business in Illinois.
"
IL: Record number of Illinois families on food stamps
From: feeds.stateline.org
"CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- More Illinois families are receiving food stamps than ever before as a result of the deepest recession in decades, state officials said Monday.
"
IL: Quinn trims state budget again
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Pat Quinn detailed additional cuts to Illinois' cash-strapped state budget Tuesday, taking more money out of school transportation grants, cutting operations funds for psychiatric hospitals and developmental centers, and eliminating a subsidy to Peoria's Wildlife Prairie Park.
"
LA: Hurricane Katrina recovery assessed five years out
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Nearly five years after Hurricane Katrina -- and against the backdrop of a national recession and a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico -- the New Orleans region is poised to rebuild communities that are safer, more sustainable and more economically robust than before the storm, an analysis released today by a partnership of local and national think tanks shows.
"
LA: Back-to-school shoppers to get break on sales tax
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Shoppers looking to save a little money will get help from a state sales tax holiday timed for the back-to-school shopping rush but applying to most items for personal use.
"
LA: Business claims for Gulf of Mexico oil spill losses being handled faster, BP says
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Responding to mounting criticism of its oil spill claims process, BP said it has made key changes to improve the experience for business claimants while vowing not to string anyone along before an independent administrator takes over later this month.
"
LA: Initial data suggests static kill of BP oil well in Gulf of Mexico is going as planned
From: feeds.stateline.org
"BP embarked Tuesday on an operation that could seal the biggest offshore oil leak in U.S. history once and for all, forcing mud down the throat of its blown-out well in a tactic known variously as "bullheading" or a "static kill."
"
MA: Mass. sets tax-free shopping weekend for Aug. 14-15
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Massachusetts politicians decided over the weekend to cut shoppers a break by reprising the state's tax-free shopping weekend in August.
"
MA: Gov. Deval Patrick's pandering
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Deval Patrick has filed his promised amendment to the casino bill enacted by lawmakers over the weekend, an amendment that has virtually no chance, as the governor well knows, to see the light of day.
"
MA: Robert DeLeo blames casino woes on Deval Patrick
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Deval Patrick is jeopardizing his re-election and "underestimating" voters if he kowtows to liberals and kills slots, Speaker Robert A. DeLeo told the Herald yesterday, as he blamed the "rigid" governor for the likely fatal deadlock on expand gambling.
"
MA: Shake hands, move ahead
From: feeds.stateline.org
"With every adamant word that the ever-amiable Bob DeLeo uttered as he sat amid the soaring ceilings and wainscoted walls of his House speaker's office yesterday, one fact became increasingly clear: He's about to kill the racetracks he's trying so hard to help.
"
MA: A welcome return
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Retailers are hoping the state's sales tax holiday will draw customers into their stores, but will they take the bait?
"
MA: No more compromise on slots, DeLeo says
From: feeds.stateline.org
"House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo said yesterday that he will make no further compromises to save a bill to expand gambling in Massachusetts and is doubtful that the Legislature will return to override Governor Deval Patrick's rejection of the controversial measure.
"
MD: Slots opponents file campaign paperwork
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The coalition opposed to slots at Arundel Mills mall has filed necessary paperwork with state officials to begin work on its referendum campaign, coalition officials announced Monday.
"
MD: Two Md. sites finalists for Social Security center
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Two Maryland locations have been chosen as finalists for the new location of the Social Security Administration's National Data Center, members of the state's congressional delegation said Tuesday.
"
ME: Northern Maine fears loss of lifeline
From: feeds.stateline.org
"PORTAGE LAKE, Maine — Rudy Boutot, a leathery veteran of the logging trade, is the only one of 11 siblings who chose to remain in jobs-challenged Aroostook County. But in all his 66 years, Boutot said, he has never seen the economy this bad.
"
ME: State OKs site for pot dispensary in Portland
From: feeds.stateline.org
"PORTLAND, Maine -- State officials have told the Northeast Patients Group that it can open Portland's first medical marijuana dispensary at the group's preferred location, near the corner of Congress and St. John streets. Whether the state-licensed nonprofit group ultimately will operate there remains to be seen.
"
MI: State Supreme Court's rulings will invite more lawsuits, create more costs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The new majority on the Michigan Supreme Court went on a spree over the weekend, reversing prior rulings and issuing a set of decisions that will make it easier for plaintiffs' attorneys to sue -- causing more legal costs for state businesses.
"
MI: Kids suffer as Michigan slips deeper into poverty
From: feeds.stateline.org
"When people talk about the recession and the tough job market, it's usually the plight of unemployed adults that springs to mind.
"
MI: State says Belding company exceeds lead limits
From: feeds.stateline.org
"State officials say they've found higher-than-acceptable levels of lead in the air as a result of emissions from a Michigan industrial company.
"
MI: Michigan is paying price for unhealthy adults
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Michigan is paying the price for being a state with too many smokers, overweight people and others with chronic health problems, a new report released Tuesday says.
"
MI: Enbridge -- We'll buy 200 homes affected by Kalamazoo River oil spill
From: feeds.stateline.org
"MARSHALL, Mich. -- The company that spilled oil into the Kalamazoo River near Marshall said Tuesday it will buy as many as 200 homes of people directly affected by the pipeline accident.
"
MN: Pawlenty -- English official state language?
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Tim Pawlenty says Minnesota should consider making English the state's official language.
"
MN: Pawlenty, Chilean ambassador talk mining in Minn.
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Tim Pawlenty has met with the Chilean ambassador to talk business, including a northeastern Minnesota mining partnership involving companies from Chile and Minnesota.
"
MT: Tax-collection provision of health-reform law bill has business owners upset owners
From: feeds.stateline.org
"An obscure tax-collection provision of the federal health-reform law is rankling business owners, whose representatives say it will create an avalanche of needless paperwork.
"
NC: 7 N.C. stimulus-funded projects on boondoggle list
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Stoned monkeys, menopausal yogis, video-gaming retirees and insect trading cards are among the seven stimulus-funded projects in North Carolina that made a list of 100 questionable projects paid for by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
"
ND: Health care reform to cost North Dakota $1 billion, Bismarck legislator says
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Federal health care reform will cost at least $1.1 billion in North Dakota in the next 10 years, a Republican lawmaker said Tuesday.
"
ND: N.D. state mill workers splitting $1.2 million in profits
From: feeds.stateline.org
"After a record year at North Dakota's state-owned flour mill, workers are splitting up more than $1.2 million in profit-sharing payments.
"
NE: Small-town Nebraska more open to later last call
From: feeds.stateline.org
"When Nebraska lawmakers ended their decades-long objection to later last calls at bars and allowed cities to extend open times an hour to 2 a.m., liquor officials and lobbyists assumed it would be the state's large and midsize towns that would take advantage.
"
NE: Judge hears arguments about Nebraska real estate rules
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A federal judge on Tuesday ordered lawyers to submit written arguments on whether he should extend his order blocking enforcement of new rules governing Nebraska's real estate industry.
"
NE: Some employees of state 24-hour institutions to take furloughs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Most of the state's 24-hour institutions, including all prisons, will be able to furlough union employees for two days without increasing costs.
"
NH: Low NH unemployment costs jobless benefits
From: feeds.stateline.org
"New Hampshire's comparatively low unemployment is good for the economy, but is a mixed blessing to some jobless workers and to the state budget.
"
NH: NH business leaders asks speedway to keep Cup races
From: feeds.stateline.org
"LOUDON, N.H. – Business leaders from across the state are asking New Hampshire Motor Speedway owner Bruton Smith to keep both NASCAR races at the track that has hosted them since 1997.
"
NH: Guess what's coming
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Franklin's mayor has a secret he's dying to tell. At council meetings, community events and in casual encounters with residents, he's been dropping hints for months about a major new business that will soon be built in the city. He said it promises to bring new jobs and even more new tax dollars.
"
NJ: For N.J. parents, no holds barred for back-to-school shopping
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Despite the bad economy, most parents intend to send their kids back to school in style — with brand-new outfits, cell phones, laptops, manicures and even tattoos.
"
NV: State weighs business tax hike; 14.7 percent jobless rate predicted
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The economy in Nevada, already among the worst in the nation, isn't going to get better anytime soon with the gaming and construction industries still suffering, state employment experts predicted Tuesday.
"
NV: Recession expected to cost Nevada employers for years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The recession and Nevada's record joblessness will weigh on the state's economy for years, as jobs rebound slowly and federal loans to pay unemployment benefits come due, an economist told a state panel Tuesday.
"
NV: Republicans target Nevada stimulus
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON -- Republican Sens. John McCain and Tom Coburn singled out two Nevada grants Tuesday while listing 100 economic stimulus projects they described as wasteful spending.
"
NY: 125 days late, a state budget with new taxes
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Lawmakers completed one of the latest budgets in New York State history on Tuesday night, passing a last piece of legislation that will raise an additional $1 billion — in part by increasing taxes on the sale of clothing and on a variety of businesses.
"
NY: It's a state budget!
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Four months late and hundreds of millions of dollars in additional taxes later, the state Senate finally completed the 2010-11 budget on Tuesday evening.
"
NY: Lottery OKs racino operator
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A giant Malaysian gaming and resort entertainment firm with worldwide clout is in line to turn over $380 million to the state and gain the rights to build and operate the long-delayed video slots parlor at the state's Aqueduct Race Track in Queens.
"
OH: Republican Governors Association says Ohio lost 400,000 jobs on Gov. Ted Strickland's watch
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Like the refrain of a ubiquitous pop song, the phrase -- "Ohio lost 400,000 jobs on his watch" -- is playing over and over on the airwaves. And like any good lyric, the phrase is catchy.
"
OH: Midwest governors plan 'new energy' summit
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The Midwestern Governors Association is planning a summit in Columbus next month to increase investments in "the new-energy economy," Gov. Ted Strickland, chairman of the association, announced last week.
"
OH: Food-stamp cuts may aid Medicaid
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The U.S. Senate will attempt to pass a bill today that would provide $26 billion to recession-battered states to help pay for Medicaid costs and avoid teacher layoffs. But to help pay for the measure, Senate Democrats want to cut $11.9 billion from the federal food-stamp program.
"
OH: Slots foe LetOhioVote.org closes its books to public
From: feeds.stateline.org
"A group that spent more than $1.5 million on an aborted attempt to force a public vote on slot machines at racetracks said it's done disclosing its finances to the public.
"
OK: Coburn, McCain release third report on stimulus bill projects they say wasted taxpayer money
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON — The stimulus bill has funded such projects as an Oklahoma town's sidewalk to nowhere and the replacement of windows on a vacant government building, according to a report released Tuesday by Sens. Tom Coburn and John McCain.
"
OR: Gas prices in Oregon reach $3 a gallon for the first time since 2008
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The average price for regular unleaded gas in Oregon snuck up to $3 a gallon Monday but then dropped back down to $2.99 overnight, the AAA reported today.
"
OR: Oregon issues new permit for suction-dredge gold miners
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Oregon issued a new permit for small-scale gold miners today, tougher than the old one but still largely self-enforcing.
"
OR: PacifiCorp and PGE team up in effort to build new power lines
From: feeds.stateline.org
"PacifiCorp said Tuesday that it has entered discussions with Portland General Electric Co. on jointly constructing and owning the 210-mile, 500-kilovolt line.
"
PA: Pennsylvania layoffs loom as Congress nears vote on recession-related aid aid
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania's state and local governments would be forced to lay off a combined 12,500 public employees, including teachers, police officers and firefighters, if Congress doesn't send the state more recession-related aid, Gov. Ed Rendell warned Tuesday.
"
PA: Pennsylvania Department of General Services chief to step down Sept. 3
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania Department of General Services Secretary James Creedon will resign his position, effective Sept. 3, to start a management consulting and project management practice based in the Lehigh Valley. Gov. Ed Rendell said Tuesday he will appoint Elizabeth O'Reilly, the deputy secretary for public works, to succeed Creedon.
"
PA: Marcellus Shale Coalition lands 'The Big Get' in former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Has former Gov. Tom Ridge been hired by gas industry leaders to be the home-bred hood ornament festooning the Cadillac of all natural gas beds?
"
PA: Slot machines bring in more revenue in July bring
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Pennsylvania's casinos generated a record $116 million in slot machine tax revenue during July, a 17.8 percent increase compared to July 2009.
"
RI: R.I. congressional candidate David Segal announces jobs plan
From: feeds.stateline.org
"PAWTUCKET, R.I. -- First District congressional candidate David A. Segal announced a multi-pronged jobs plan Tuesday that calls on Congress to do more to help small businesses while it also invests more in green energy, public transportation, education and other areas that could stimulate the economy.
"
RI: Rhode Island Convention Center, the Dunk turn a profit
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Marquee events, such as Cirque du Soleil and the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, helped push both the Rhode Island Convention Center and Dunkin' Donuts Center into the black for the first time in more than a decade.
"
SC: Report raises ethics issue
From: feeds.stateline.org
"S.C. lawmakers have ignored a call to clamp down on ex-state employees who take jobs in private industry, then represent clients at their former agencies, auditors say.
"
SC: Greenville News editorial -- Sales tax holiday has positives and negatives
From: feeds.stateline.org
"South Carolina's annual back-to-school sales tax holiday is coming up.
"
US: Taxes don't cross New England state lines, but controversies do
From: feeds.stateline.org
"BOSTON -- In New England, state borders are not far apart, but the tax systems within them are, leading to competition for sales, businesses and other sources of revenue.
"
US: More workers face pay cuts, not furloughs
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The furloughs that popped up during the recession are being replaced by a highly unusual tactic: actual cuts in pay. Local and state governments, as well as some companies, are squeezing their employees to work the same amount for less money in cost-saving measures that are often described as a last-ditch effort to avoid layoffs.
"
US: Local governments projected to eliminate nearly 500,000 jobs in the next two years
From: feeds.stateline.org
"According to a joint report by the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties and The United States Conference of Mayors, local governments across the United States are expected to eliminate nearly 500,000 positions in the next two years that will impact public safety, public works, public health, social services, and parks and recreation.
"
VT: More passengers riding Vermont Amtrak routes
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Amtrak ridership in Vermont is growing at a pace that outstrips the national average, according to newly released figures, with the Vermonter route through northern and eastern Vermont seeing particularly large gains.
"
VT: Five years later, transportation earmarks haven't been used
From: feeds.stateline.org
"WASHINGTON - In 2005, Congress approved over $5 million to build roads and other infrastructure for a new pedestrian-friendly city center in South Burlington. So where's the project now?
"
WA: Lawmakers must do their job and reduce deficit in special session
From: feeds.stateline.org
"An important and imminent choice is facing Gov. Chris Gregoire: whether to bring the state budget back into balance by across-the-board cuts or by calling the Legislature into special session.
"
WA: State to look at agencies' overtime
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Gov. Chris Gregoire's budget staffers are looking into rumors that state agencies have undercut the expected $73 million in savings from planned furlough days by paying overtime to replacement workers.
"
WI: Wis. unemployment insurance call centers to close
From: feeds.stateline.org
"Wisconsin's call centers that handle unemployment insurance questions will be closed on Friday for a state furlough day.
"
WI: Audit may reveal Wisconsin tribal casinos' struggles, strides during recession
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The effects of the economic recession could be reflected in a biennial audit of the state's gaming division expected later this summer.
"
WI: Fed tells Citizens Republic Bancorp to improve
From: feeds.stateline.org
"The parent company of Citizens Bank, which operates 49 branches in Wisconsin, has been told by regulators to take special steps to improve its financial condition, the Federal Reserve said Tuesday.
"
WY: Republican accountants discuss views on economic development, leadership
From: feeds.stateline.org
"CODY, Wyo. — Two candidates for state auditor, both certified public accountants, discussed issues including economic development and their views on leadership Monday during a debate sponsored by the Park County Republican Committee.
"
Visit the Stateline.org Economy & Business Page
From: feeds.stateline.org
"
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and planning with investments and insurance choices.
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