Business & Economy
Business & Economy
President Trump Appoints Mike Pence To Lead Government’s Coronavirus Response
“Mike is going to be in charge,” Trump said in an evening news conference, as officials said a case in the U.S. may have been transmitted within the community.
‘Gives Me Hope’: How Low-Paid Workers Rose Up Against Stagnant Wages
Low-paid workers push back and speak out against stagnant wages.
The Curious Case Of A Big Company (Boeing) That Wants To Give Up A Tax Break
The Boeing Company is bringing an unusual request to state lawmakers in Olympia: please take away our airplane manufacturing tax break. The Washington Legislature seems likely to oblige, but possibly will add some strings to the deal.
An Airbnb For Cropland Hits A Snag, As Farmers Raise Data Privacy Concerns
American farmers spend about $32 billion each year to rent land, and Tillable CEO Corbett Kull thinks his company could be farmland’s AirBnB or Zillow. “This is one of the beauties of digital marketplaces, where you can bring two parties together that otherwise might never meet,” he says.
To Address Homelessness, Spokane Is Starting To Put Relationships Before Punishments
There’s a growing consensus that a more punitive approach hasn’t worked for Spokane. Nationwide, the homeless population is rising. In many communities, it can feel like an intractable problem. Yet cities like Spokane are starting to show some incremental progress with some prevention programs.
Lobbying Pays Off: Washington Health Insurers Benefit From Change To Consumer-Focused Bill
Strong opposition and intense lobbying by Washington’s health insurance industry has resulted in a key change to a consumer-oriented measure designed to address rising premium costs.
Ah, Shuck: Oysters, Cherries, Other Northwest Ag Products Back Up As Coronavirus Quarantines Trade
Right now, all sorts of products aren’t reaching the U.S. because of the coronavirus outbreak that originated in Wuhan, China. Reciprocally, many U.S. agricultural and forestry products aren’t shipping back into China and other Pacific Rim countries. Global trade watchers say backed-up trade is building up on both sides of the Pacific Ocean.
Ron Wells Helped Develop Spokane, Moscow, Lewiston. He’s Been Sentenced In Federal Fraud Scheme
Prominent Inland Northwest architect and developer Ron Wells was sentenced in federal court Wednesday for his role in staging a car crash to defraud insurance companies. He was sentenced to a year of home confinement and must pay $240,000.
What Is The Toll Of Trade Wars On U.S. Agriculture?
The recently signed Phase 1 U.S.-China deal promises some relief. Details remain unclear, but the United States government’s interpretation of this deal is that China will purchase $40 billion of agricultural goods in 2020. Some analysts have questioned how realistic those estimates are, given that the highest level of farm products the United States has ever exported to China was $26 billion in 2012, although one Chinese agricultural consultancy company says this can be achieved.
Bigleaf Maple Syrup Flows As Profits Drip From A Once-Maligned Northwest Tree
The bigleaf maple has a broad canopy and is native to the West Coast. It grows from San Diego, California all the way north to British Columbia’s Vancouver Island. But the West Coast timber industry is largely set up to harvest Douglas fir. The tree, with its broad-shading canopy, is often eradicated so more Douglas fir will grow.
Do Kids Have A Right To Sell Lemonade? Washington Lawmakers Want To Guarantee It
Washington lawmakers are tackling a variety of weighty issues this year from homelessness to prescription drug pricing to transportation funding to …. the legality of kids’ lemonade stands. That’s right, lemonade stands are on the agenda for the 2020 legislative session in Olympia.
Does The China Trade Deal Move The World Away From Free Trade?
While the new deal with China lowers some trade barriers, it leaves many tariffs in place. And it dictates that China buy more from the U.S., but that has other trading partners worried.
