Join the Oregon Small Business Association as we Fight to Save the Klamath River Dams and the Jobs they Support

The Oregon Small Business Association strongly opposes the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA) because it calls for the removal of the Klamath Basin Dams. These dams are vital to the economy of the Klamath Basin.

KBRA proponents admit that one of the major outcomes of the agreement is the removal of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River. These dams provide inexpensive power to job creators in the basin. They also provide the water and power required by family farms and ranches.

The agreement was negotiated by a group of special interests behind closed doors. This agreement will have far reaching effects. Rate payers, farmers and small business owners deserve to be at the negotiating table.

Destroying the dams could hit ratepayers with over $400 million in increased expenses.

Please join the Oregon Small Business Association as we fight to save the dams and save local jobs.

– If you wish to be kept informed in the battle to save our local dams, then please join our email alert system at the very top of this website.

Recent developments regarding the funding, design, and purpose of the Columbia River Crossing’s (CRC) plans for a new bridge linking Portland and Vancouver have renewed concerns of opponents who believe the project is ill conceived, too costly, or who question the integrity of the whole process. Recently, the U.S. Coast Guard deemed the Columbia River Crossing bridge’s planned 95 foot clearance too low and will not consider approval until a thorough assessment of the bridge’s impact on river use has been conducted—a move that could delay construction and raise the project’s cost.

The Coast Guard’s decision is the latest roadblock in a challenging couple of months for the Columbia River Crossing. In February, the Oregon Supreme Court issued a land-use ruling stating that most of the project (a 10-lane freeway bridge with new interchanges) was essentially a bargaining chip METRO offered Clark County, WA, for its approval of a long-term METRO priority—a Max light-rail line from Portland to Vancouver. Willamette Week called the Columbia River Crossing Bridge deal a “$2.5 billion bribe” that METRO gave to get what it wanted. While the Court ruled that METRO did not trespass its land-use authority in approving the CRC’s plan, it stated that traffic and safety benefits of the bridge were secondary concerns and essentially arguments METRO made to gain project support. That opinion, which METRO has essentially acknowledged, has roiled bridge opponents long suspicious of METRO’s purpose in pushing for the project’s current design and approval.
Critics contention that METRO conspired to further spend billions on a bridge for the sake of a Max light-rail line may become even more egregious should the $1 billion in federal funds assumed by the CRC fail to come through. In February, a key Congressional committee approved a transportation bill that would eliminate the program devoted uniquely to mass transit funding. That prospect now has METRO leaders deeply concerned about the federal government’s commitment to CRC funding, which is projected to cover roughly a third of the project’s cost.

The most recent questions over the bridge’s clearance and possible economic impacts allegedly came as a surprise to the CRC. According to the Oregonian, however, Coast Guard officials have been warning the CRC about insufficient clearance for months. In a letter dated December 7, 2011, a top Coast Guard official wrote to the CRC, saying that with only 95 feet of clearance the bridge “would impede both current and prospective navigation.” Moreover, at least one shipping company is on record as early as 2006 expressing concern that the bridge would be too low to accommodate its barge loads that pile as high as 120 feet.

To critics, it seems inconceivable that such a large public project seven years and $140 million into the planning did not adequately account for possible problems associated with the bridge’s proposed height. Concerns over airplane clearance from traffic originating at Vancouver’s Pearson Field prompted planners to limit the bridge to 95 feet—significantly lower than similar bridges. For example, the Lewis & Clark Bridge near Longview, WA, is 210 feet high, and the Glenn Jackson Bridge has clearance up to 144 feet—still substantially higher than the CRC’s current design. Despite the unusually low clearance, the CRC only began surveying shippers, marine terminals, and other stakeholders last month as to the economic impact of the design.

While CRC planners and the Coast Guard try to resolve the issue, few good options abound.
Some suggest that clearing 95 feet will only be problematic for a handful of vessels, and that the Coast Guard should approve the plans. Those few barges, however, may represent major projects directly worth hundreds of millions of dollars and hundreds of high-paying jobs. Consequently, critics argue that the current design will jeopardize Oregon’s long-term economic competitiveness, particularly in the fabrication and manufacturing industries.

Proponents also argue that shipping companies can reconfigure their products by building them in smaller segments so as to clear the bridge. Other port cities, however, would gain a competitive advantage over Oregon in attracting business if companies conclude accommodating the new bridge isn’t worth the cost when plenty of other shipping options exist.

The CRC appears to be in a catch-22: eventually gain approval and move forward with the current design, and the new bridge could jeopardize Oregon’s economic competitiveness. Alter current plans and raise the height of the bridge to accommodate larger vessels, and air traffic safety could be jeopardized—not to mention that hundreds of millions of dollars would be added to a project already expected to hit $3.5 billion.

Oregon licensed building contractors are finding they have to take an extra step to renew their state Construction Contractors Board (CCB) licenses this year. Effective October 1, 2011, the CCB began requiring contractors to complete continuing education credit hours. Most residential contractors are required to complete 16 hours. Those with a “dual endorsement” for both residential and commercial work require more.

The new requirement stems from a rash of litigation and claims related to moisture-intrusion, mold and mildew problems mostly resulting from improperly installed siding, windows and doors. As a result, contractors’ liability insurance became very expensive and difficult to obtain, with many carriers cancelling coverage and pulling completely out of the Oregon market.

The 2007 Oregon Legislature passed HB 2654, calling for the CCB to develop and implement the program. Of the 16 hours typically required for most residential contractors, eight hours consists of courses on building exterior shell training, building codes, and CCB laws and regulations. The courses are currently available from just a handful of education providers who have been approved by the CCB following a thorough review of their course content.

Some contractors are not happy with the timing, given the economic recession which started shortly after the legislation was passed. Many contractors are finding that computers are a necessary tool, and a convenient way to complete the requirements. One provider, Oregon Contractor Education, offers all courses via website at Oregon Contractor Education , enabling contractors to watch the videos 24/7.

“Contractors are busy people, and many are operating on a shoestring budget,” said Phil Peach, owner of Oregon Contractor Education. “This is a way to get through the continuing education requirements quickly and affordably while picking up some great tips along the way,” he said. In addition to featuring all Oregon contractors and building officials, the website offers elective courses by a popular construction industry management consultant.

The education requirements will continue for contractor license renewals through the current two-year renewal cycle until September 30, 2013. After that, subsequent renewals will undergo the same number of required hours, although changes in the curriculum are expected.

Could Seattle get another NBA team? That’s a definite maybe. Though the city has lacked a pro basketball team since the SuperSonics went to Oklahoma City in 2009, three recent developments indicate that the situation may change soon.

First of all, Paul Allen, owner of the Portland Trail Blazers, said publicly recently that he would like to bring the NBA back to Seattle. And now, developer Chris Hansen has purchased three acres near downtown Seattle for a whopping $21.6 million. Now Hansen is trying to get the city and county to go in with him on $700 million project that would build a stadium and attract the money-making power of the NBA to Washington state. Officials, however, aren’t biting. At least, they aren’t going to bite until Hansen has an NBA team signed up.

That little problem leads to the third factor: Sacramento is about to lose its basketball team. The Kings have a March 1 deadline for the city to provide a proposal to build them a new stadium there.

In short, the ingredients are here. Hansen and Allen want it to happen. And if the project goes through, basketball won’t be the only thing going on the proposed Seattle arena. The NHL also wants a piece of the arena, and has talked about creating a brand-new team or moving the Phoenix Coyotes to play in Seattle. The city already has pro baseball and soccer teams, the Mariners and the Sounders.

While the cost of essential items like gas and food will continue to rise, analysts predict that current economic trends favor lower prices on tablets, televisions, and travel in 2012.

Big screen TVs

If the past few years are any guide, consumers could purchase an LCD or 3D television for significantly less, as well. In just two years, the price of a 42” LCD TV has been cut in half and now sells for roughly $500. Recent reports indicate that the price of a 3D TV dropped more than 30% in 2011. According to one study, the number of households with an HDTV may now run as high as 60%, making market saturation of similar products a key driver of cheaper prices. Moreover, PCWorld recently reported that television manufactures are introducing new technology this year—think even thinner, lighter, more vivid TVs—in hopes of creating interest and demand for newer, more expensive televisions. Expect prices of current models to drop further as these new products are introduced and retailers respond by marking down existing inventory.

Super Bowl Tickets

The Boston Globe reports that cost for a 2012 Super Bowl ticket has dropped $300 as the big game nears. The price dropped from $3,982 to $4,311. Some prices in different markets have dropped by more than 20%. The data was collected by aggregating ticket sales websites StubHub, EBay, TicketNetwork & TicketsNow. Ticket prices drop dramatically as unsold spaces remain open near game day.

Tablets

Consumers could get their favorite tablets for hundreds of dollars less in coming months. Among other things, Apple is expected to release its iPad 3 this year, which will likely make the iPad 2 more affordable. Whatever Apple does in the tablet market will inevitably challenge lesser competitors to respond with better products, lower prices, or some combination of both. Regardless of Apple, experts say the recent influx of poorly made, overpriced tablets that have flooded the market has set the stage for a market correction that will generally result in cheaper prices. According to USA Today, the new year has already seen manufactures slash prices as much as one-third in an effort to separate themselves from the competition. Research in Motion, for example, which makes the Blackberry Playbook tablet, has cut the price of its product from $299 to $100 in a well-advertised promotion. And Amazon and Barnes & Noble will continue to exert a downward pressure on prices as their increasingly popular tablets sell at cost and generate profit instead from additional content.

Travel

There are dueling predictions that world travel costs will either increase or decrease in 2012. Here is the case that world travel prices could decline. Empty airplane seats and fewer drivers may cause transportation companies to temporarily lower prices—at least in some destinations. While airplane tickets are expected to rise overall, major airlines are having trouble filling seats on cross-Atlantic flights. Travel to Europe might, therefore, be more accessible than in recent years if the trend continues and airlines begin slashing prices. Not only may it be cheaper in 2012 to fly to Europe, a weakening Euro and Europe’s ongoing economic problems may help your dollar go farther than it has in years in terms of meals, lodging, and other items. As for domestic travel, analysts predict that car rental companies will have more inventory than demand this year. That could bode well generally for many domestic travelers in search of cheap rental deals. And consumers will get a little help from a new federal rule that requires airlines to make the actual costs of a ticket—fees and all—more transparent. That means more informed decisions and fewer surprises when time to checkout at the ticket counter.

A new form of virus—dubbed social media virus or social spam—has companies like Facebook and Twitter working around the clock to prevent hackers from exploiting their social networks.

Hackers have become adept at creating fraudulent profile accounts from which to launch large scale spam attacks. A new Social Spam Index created by Imperium, a start-up company devoted exclusively to fighting social spam, indicates that as much as 40% of public profiles across social networks are now fraudulent. Roughly 400 million Facebook users, for example, are victimized by social spam each day. And TechCrunch reported earlier this month that one of Imperium’s social network clients experienced a spam attack in which 300,000 fraudulent accounts were created in one hour, resulting in 475,000 spam messages to legitimate community members.

Compared to email spam, the problem of social spam as a percentage of overall traffic remains relatively small. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that 4% of Facebook posts and 1.5% of Tweets are now spam related. In contrast, more than 70% of all email is currently spam. However, email spam is trending downward (from 92.2% in August 2010) as preventive measures have become more sophisticated and better at blocking email attacks. Consequently, spammers are turning their attention to social networks. Facebook, which says that the volume of spam is outpacing its user base, now blocks 200 million spam-related actions daily.

Social viruses involve a number of troubling tactics. Among other things, hackers infiltrate social networks by creating false, often alluring profiles. They then target users who accept their friend invite, simultaneously sending spam across their personal network. The spam spreads further as other users do the same. Additionally, social spam is more deceptive than common email spam because it can make it look like your “friends” are recommending articles, items, and deals. Spammers also use major news events, often emotionally charged, to lure in users. Perhaps the most sophisticated and potentially dangerous social spam involves malware. Hackers dupe users into unwittingly downloading malware, effectively gaining control over their computers. In addition to sending out multiple spam messages, malware tracks users’ online presence, peers in on chat sessions, and even mines personal information.

In response to the growing problem, Facebook and Twitter, two of the most prominent social networks, are taking decisive action to thwart and stay one step ahead of spammers. Since 2008, Facebook’s site security team has grown from four engineers to 30. As many as one-third of Facebook’s 3,000 employees are now involved at some level in the war on spam. By the end of 2012, Twitter plans to have five programmers devoted exclusively to fighting spam—up from two currently.

2011 has been the year of Bill Gates bashing

From government criticisms to former co-workers, 2011 was a year full of unusually sharp and personal criticism of Bill Gates.

First of all, Governing Magazine ran a front page cover story about billionaires meddling in the classroom with the photo of a sneaky Bill Gates peering from the corner. The article represented a teacher backlash to Gates’ $400 million annually worth of education initiatives . In fact, the Gates Foundation devotes $75 million to policy-related advocacy, a significant figure for a “philanthropic” organization and one that enables Gates to wield influence in nearly every major area of education policy. One critic said that top officials in the U.S Department of Education have become so influenced by Gates that “it’s not too great a stretch to say that the Gates Foundation is, in effect, running the Department of Education.”

Also, this year saw the biography release of Apple co-founder, Steve Jobs, who did not withhold back any of his criticisms challenging his creativity and his ethics. “Bill is basically unimaginative and has never invented anything, which is why I think he’s more comfortable now in philanthropy.” Perhaps to compensate for his own limitations, Gates, said Jobs, “just shamelessly ripped off other people’s ideas.”
One could perhaps chalk Jobs’ estimation of Gates up to a casualty of healthy competition—the battle of ideas and wills in the pursuit of market dominance. After Apple popularized the personal computer in the mid-to-late 1970s, Microsoft quickly entered the personal computer marketplace. Teaming up with IBM hardware, its Windows platform enjoyed near total market dominance for decades.

The Gates criticism closest to home came from long-time friend and Microsoft Co-Founder Paul Allen who published an autobiography. Allen accused Gates of scheming against his interest in Microsoft during a personal health crisis.

Allen and Gates became friends in high school and eventually attended Harvard together. During college, they teamed up to create Microsoft. Because Gates dropped out of Harvard to devote full-time to the new company, Allen agreed to be the junior partner and accepted 36 percent ownership to Gates 64 percent.
Sometime in 1982, Allen overheard a conversation between Gates and current Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer during which Gates complained of Allen’s recent lack of production and hatched plans to undermine his interest. That conversation took place shortly after Allen was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma—a life threatening form of cancer.

For his part, Gates has his own opinions of both Jobs’ strengths and weaknesses, as well as Allen’s interpretation of events in 1982. As for controlling how his $400 million in education funding is being spent, Gates understands how quickly enormous amounts of education dollars can be wasted.

Criticism or no criticism, Bill Gates will continue to wield power and influence for years to come. Some of those years will likely be kinder to him than 2011.

In the Fall, he was on the front page of Forbes magazine for their profile on the world’s most powerful people. The interview highlighted the positive influence his charity has had on other charities around the world. That may well be the enduring legacy of Bill Gates.

Billionaire and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has turned his attention and money to an endeavor that has eluded corporate and government rocket scientists for decades: launching satellites into space from and ascending aircraft. Allen plans to inject $200 million of his own money for the project, which he hopes will usher in “the dawn of radical change in the space launch industry.” as stated to BusinessWeek.

Currently, satellites are hurled into space through conventional rockets that launch from a ground pad. Instead of ground launches, Allen envisions satellites and eventually human space vehicles launched from an airborne “mother ship” created from older Boeing technology and the latest cutting edge booster designs. The aircraft would be comprised of twin fuselages and feature six Boeing 747 engines. A rocket would rest underneath between the fuselages, launching after a sharp climb that would commence once 30,000 feet had been reached.

Costs to launch satellites into orbit from a ground launch pad currently run between $30 million and $200 million. If successful, Allen’s plan to utilize recycled Boeing airplane technology could result in significant savings for aerospace companies and the government. Additionally, ground launches are subject to weather fluctuations and rely upon optimal times and location to reach specific orbits—virtual non-factors in air launches.

Can Allen’s plan work? Time will tell. Scientists have been working on the principles of air launches into space for 20 years or more. To help him succeed where others have failed, Allen has enlisted the help of credible and influential partners, including former senior NASA official Gary Wentz and esteemed aerospace engineer Burt Rutan, who originally conceived the current aircraft design.

As the economy continues to sputter, U.S consumers have increasingly cut spending and embraced bargain shopping as a way of life. New data, however, suggests that recent fixtures of American frugality may be on the way out.

Daily Deals hitting peak

Studies indicate that the once booming “daily deal” industry by Living Social and Groupon may be losing steam. Facebook and Yelp once aggressively embraced the business model are now cooling to or spurning it altogether. And major players like Groupon and Living Social have experienced sharp declines in unique visitors in recent months. Living Social, for example, saw its unique visits decline by nearly 30 percent from June through July 2011.

According to a recent survey conducted by PriceGrabber, the proliferation of players in the “daily deal” market may have induced consumer fatigue. Of those surveyed, 52 percent of U.S. “daily deal” users say that they’re overwhelmed by the volume of deals they receive, and 60 percent believe the industry is too crowded.

The pace at which enthusiasm for “daily deals” is declining may largely be a consequence of too much market noise. It nonetheless offers insight into the willingness of even cash-strapped consumers to sift through multiple solicitations in search of a bargain.

Netbooks decline

Enthusiasm for relatively inexpensive personal computers (PCs) also appears to be waning. Despite ongoing improvements to PCs—portability, size, sophistication, and cost—sales are trending downward in leading countries, including the U.S. Alternatively, consumers are increasingly willing to spend more money for the convenience and power of tablets, like the iPad, even though they cost twice as much as a netbook, its PC rival.

Last quarter likely marked a turning point in the tablet/PC competition and established a “new normal” for the future: for the first time ever, tablet sales surpassed netbook sales, jumping 112 percent to nearly 14 million. Sales of netbook PCs, which on average cost half as much as tablets ($300 versus $600), declined by more than one million (7.3 million) over the same period.

As with certain kinds of technology, U.S. consumers are also paying more for clothes, toys, and other household items. That trend, however, is less a function of choice than global economic forces driving costs to figures not seen since the early 1990s.

China goods see price increase

Domestically, few things have been as economically predictable as the abundance of cheap Chinese goods. But that may be changing, as well. China’s growing prosperity and accompanying wage increases in recent years have driven the prices of many products upward. Price inflation appears to be accelerating. Clothing prices, for example, were still 9 percent lower this past spring than in 1991. Six months later, prices are now only 5 percent lower—a sharp rise in an overall upward trend beginning in 2007 when clothing prices bottomed out.

If the trend continues and the days of inexpensive Chinese products become a thing of the past, consumers who hope to save money on a range of everyday goods may be forced to look elsewhere for savings. “Daily Deal,” anyone?

As the economy continues to sputter, U.S consumers have increasingly cut spending and embraced bargain shopping as a way of life. New data, however, suggests that recent fixtures of American frugality may be on the way out.

Daily Deals hitting peak

Studies indicate that the once booming “daily deal” industry by Living Social and Groupon may be losing steam. Facebook and Yelp once aggressively embraced the business model are now cooling to or spurning it altogether. And major players like Groupon and Living Social have experienced sharp declines in unique visitors in recent months. Living Social, for example, saw its unique visits decline by nearly 30 percent from June through July 2011.

According to a recent survey conducted by PriceGrabber, the proliferation of players in the “daily deal” market may have induced consumer fatigue. Of those surveyed, 52 percent of U.S. “daily deal” users say that they’re overwhelmed by the volume of deals they receive, and 60 percent believe the industry is too crowded.

The pace at which enthusiasm for “daily deals” is declining may largely be a consequence of too much market noise. It nonetheless offers insight into the willingness of even cash-strapped consumers to sift through multiple solicitations in search of a bargain.

Netbooks decline

Enthusiasm for relatively inexpensive personal computers (PCs) also appears to be waning. Despite ongoing improvements to PCs—portability, size, sophistication, and cost—sales are trending downward in leading countries, including the U.S. Alternatively, consumers are increasingly willing to spend more money for the convenience and power of tablets, like the iPad, even though they cost twice as much as a netbook, its PC rival.

Last quarter likely marked a turning point in the tablet/PC competition and established a “new normal” for the future: for the first time ever, tablet sales surpassed netbook sales, jumping 112 percent to nearly 14 million. Sales of netbook PCs, which on average cost half as much as tablets ($300 versus $600), declined by more than one million (7.3 million) over the same period.

As with certain kinds of technology, U.S. consumers are also paying more for clothes, toys, and other household items. That trend, however, is less a function of choice than global economic forces driving costs to figures not seen since the early 1990s.

China goods see price increase

Domestically, few things have been as economically predictable as the abundance of cheap Chinese goods. But that may be changing, as well. China’s growing prosperity and accompanying wage increases in recent years have driven the prices of many products upward. Price inflation appears to be accelerating. Clothing prices, for example, were still 9 percent lower this past spring than in 1991. Six months later, prices are now only 5 percent lower—a sharp rise in an overall upward trend beginning in 2007 when clothing prices bottomed out.

If the trend continues and the days of inexpensive Chinese products become a thing of the past, consumers who hope to save money on a range of everyday goods may be forced to look elsewhere for savings. “Daily Deal,” anyone?