In Your Backyard - Regional Business News

Florida
Legislators Weigh Options on Foreclosure Crisis
Gov. Charlie Crist (R) is expected next week to announce his plan to ease the foreclosure crisis. One proposal from a state lawmaker would suspend a portion of property taxes that pay for schools for a year for homeowners and small business owners with property worth less than $1 million. Average savings, according to proponents, would be up to $1,400 for homeowners and $5,000 for businesses. Meanwhile, state lawmakers are also scrambling to plug a $2 billion budget hole. Last week, state economists reported that sales tax revenues, which account for nearly 80 cents of every dollar the state takes in, are $692 million less than predicted in August. Taxes from auto sales plummeted $383 million and taxes from an anemic tourism industry are off more than $100 million.
Source: Florida Capital News

 

Idaho
Weekly Unemployment Claims Jump 20%
The Idaho Department of Labor says nearly 19,000 jobless workers statewide received unemployment insurance benefit checks during the past week, 20% more than the previous week, when 3,200 fewer checks were handed out. More than 8,800 more jobless workers also collected federal unemployment benefits.
Source: Associated Press

 

Massachusetts
State Tops Innovation Index
Massachusetts once again leads all other states in moving its economy away from the old industrial "smokestack-chasing" model to one based on technology, creativity, and innovation, a new report released Nov. 18 said. Massachusetts, which also topped the list in 1999, 2002, and 2007, widened its lead over other states largely because of its concentration of software, hardware, and biotech firms supported by world-class universities, according to "The 2008 State New Economy Index."
Source: Stateline.org

 

Michigan
Employers Bracing for Health Care Cost Increases
Michigan employers said they expect total health care expenses to jump an average 7.7% in 2009--if they do nothing to contain costs--after increasing 6.1% this year to $9,513 per employee, according to a new survey of Michigan companies by Mercer, a New York-based human resource and consulting company. By shifting costs to employees and changing benefit designs to incorporate higher-deductible plans, however, employers hope to reduce cost increases to 4.8%, according to Mercer’s 2008 National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans.
Source: Crain’s Detroit Business

 

Nevada
Report: State Must Invest in Colleges
A new report predicts "disastrous" economic consequences unless Nevada invests more in higher education to train workers and attract new businesses and industries. The report released this month by the Institute for Higher Education Policy said that in 2006, only 28% of Nevadans between the ages of 18 and 24 were enrolled in college, compared with 41% in top states. It blamed inadequate academic preparation of elementary and high school students, as well as a lack of financial aid.
Source: Associated Press