viktorevaikubuwo.blogspot.com
Otero-Bennett and co-owner Ginger Atwood launched theird Albuquerque-based consulting business in 2003 witha $20,0009 contract from in Tennessee. But the womejn began bidding on consulting workat Sandia, and in they won a $3 million contract to do safety analysise on Sandia projects. “It gave us a huge opportunitty to show we can do the same work as big companies and produce an evenbette product,” Otero-Bennett said. “It made us Now, we stand a much better chance to bid onfutures business.
” To extend those kinds of opportunities to more New Mexicok firms, Sandia’s Small Business Utilizatio n Department is launching a seriees of town halls in Albuquerque to educate entrepreneursw about how to bid on procurement said Department Manager Don Devoti. The forumss will target small businessesin general, but disadvantaged firms, in The Small Business Administration defines smallp businesses as those employing under 500 and whose annual saless range from $0.5 million to $27.5 depending upon the industry. “We’re especially looking for women-owned, minority-owner and veteran-owned small businesses,” Devotii said.
“We want to orient them abouyt how to do business with Sandia to help more companies take advantagr ofcontracting opportunities.” The outreach effort bega with a first-ever Sandia economif impact summit on Jan. 22 at the attended by about 250 education andcivic “Many businesses don’t know just how big an impact we have on the locaol economy,” Devoti said. “Wwe wanted to demonstrate the depth ofopportunitiesz available.” Just under half of Sandia’w $2 billion-plus annual budget goes to procurement of goods and servicese with local and out-of-state In fiscal year 2008, that amounted to $987 million, Devoti said.
Of that $341 million went to New Mexicol firms, about 82 percent of it to small Thatincluded $127 million for disadvantaged companies. Devoti’s office sets target each year for the percent of money that will go to smal l anddisadvantaged firms. For FY 2009, Sandia wantes 48 percent of all procurements to benefigt small businessesin general, in New Mexick and elsewhere. To date, it is exceedingt that goal (it’s at 51.8%) and its goal for women-ownes businesses.
But it’s underperforming on targetsz for other disadvantagedcategories (see bar To boost performance, Devoti’s department plana five town halls in the coming months, each one targetinhg a different supplier diversitt category, including women-owned businesses, veteran-run firms, the SBA’s 8(a) and HUBZone-certified tribal entrepreneurs and small businesses in John Woosley, the SBA’s New Mexico districtg director, will join the forumx to discuss his agency’s “When businesses get contracts, they ofteh need financing to buy Woosley said. “If it’s construction, they need surety We can provide both ofthosed things.
” Woosley also will review the federal stimulus plan, which increases SBA’s permissible loan guarantees to 90 waives financing fees, and elevates maximum SBA surett bonding from its previous $2 million to $5 million now, and in some $10 million. “We’ll reviewe all that and discuss other federal and state contractingy opportunities in addition to Woosley said. Anna Muller, presidenr of NEDA Business Consultants, said any small business interested in contracts with Sandia can benefit fromthe “We’re thrilled that the labs are going the extraa step to teach companies about opportunities and builed capacity through training,” Muller said.
“Hats off to
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Memphis Mayor Willie W. Herenton resigns effective July 10 - Memphis Business Journal:
ekaterinaiuvo.blogspot.com
Herenton will pursue a run for U.S. Congress in the 9th Congressionak District race next year against MemphianjSteve Cohen, who currently holds the seat in D.C. He said he will immediately join his son Rodneh Herentonat , a Memphis-basedr holding company focusing on the institutional investment management business. “W brought opportunity, we brought diversity,” Herenton said of his time as city He was first elected mayor in Octobet 1991 and was reelected for his fifth consecutivs term inOctober 2007. Running for Congresds while acting as mayor would createa "conflicgt of interest," according to a letter Herenton wrote to Memphis City Councik chairman Myron Lowery.
The letter announced his resignation and solidifierd hisCongressional plans. "It is therefore with great zeal and optimis m that I look forward to the opportunity to take my loca l government experiences of dealing with urban challengese to the halls of Congress to benefit this great city which I have served tirelessl y for myentire career," Herenton wrote. Lower y said the city will hold a specialelection 90-180 days after July 10 to replac e Herenton. Lowery, as current city council chair, will servre as mayor pro tem in the He also announced his intentions to run for the officee in thespecial election. Following Herenton's Harold Collins will take over ascouncikl chair.
This is the second time in just over a year Herentobn has plannedto resign. In Marcyh 2008, barely six months in to his fifthb term, he announced — in simila fashion — he would resign the office mid-summer 2008. At that he was interested in the vacant Memphis City Schoolssuperintendeny post, a job he held for 12 yeare before being elected mayor. But he was passef over for the position, which went to current superintendentfKriner Cash.
Herenton will pursue a run for U.S. Congress in the 9th Congressionak District race next year against MemphianjSteve Cohen, who currently holds the seat in D.C. He said he will immediately join his son Rodneh Herentonat , a Memphis-basedr holding company focusing on the institutional investment management business. “W brought opportunity, we brought diversity,” Herenton said of his time as city He was first elected mayor in Octobet 1991 and was reelected for his fifth consecutivs term inOctober 2007. Running for Congresds while acting as mayor would createa "conflicgt of interest," according to a letter Herenton wrote to Memphis City Councik chairman Myron Lowery.
The letter announced his resignation and solidifierd hisCongressional plans. "It is therefore with great zeal and optimis m that I look forward to the opportunity to take my loca l government experiences of dealing with urban challengese to the halls of Congress to benefit this great city which I have served tirelessl y for myentire career," Herenton wrote. Lower y said the city will hold a specialelection 90-180 days after July 10 to replac e Herenton. Lowery, as current city council chair, will servre as mayor pro tem in the He also announced his intentions to run for the officee in thespecial election. Following Herenton's Harold Collins will take over ascouncikl chair.
This is the second time in just over a year Herentobn has plannedto resign. In Marcyh 2008, barely six months in to his fifthb term, he announced — in simila fashion — he would resign the office mid-summer 2008. At that he was interested in the vacant Memphis City Schoolssuperintendeny post, a job he held for 12 yeare before being elected mayor. But he was passef over for the position, which went to current superintendentfKriner Cash.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
BofA raises $13.5B in stock sale - Wichita Business Journal:
zemlyanikiyri.blogspot.com
The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank issued 1.25 billion sharexs at an average priceof $10.776 per share. “We’re pleased to have this portion of our capitaplan completed,” said Joe Price, chief financia officer. “This strengthens and diversifiex ourcapital structure.” The sale began May 8. Earlty this month, federal regulators told BofA it needefd toraise $33.9 billion in additional capitap after the Federal Reserve conductex “stress tests” on the 19 largest U.S. banks.
The officially called the Supervisorgy CapitalAssessment Program, were designedc to assess the banks’ ability to survivd if economic conditions worsen more than expected during the next two BofA’s capital needs are in the form of Tier 1 commob capital, according to the test results and the In other areas, the bank meetss capital requirements with an adequatew buffer. BofA said it intended to raisw capital through a combination of thefollowing measures: converting some preferref shares held by private investorsx to common stock, sellinvg more common stock, possibly sellingt some noncore business units and considering some joint The bank, which has said it plans to sell Firstr Republic Bank of San recently raised $7.
3 billion from the sale of a 5.7 percent stake in to Asiahn investors. BofA (NYSE: BAC) has received a total of $45 billio n in taxpayer aid under the Troubled AssetRelierf Program, which is designed to thaw the credit markets and boos t the economy.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank issued 1.25 billion sharexs at an average priceof $10.776 per share. “We’re pleased to have this portion of our capitaplan completed,” said Joe Price, chief financia officer. “This strengthens and diversifiex ourcapital structure.” The sale began May 8. Earlty this month, federal regulators told BofA it needefd toraise $33.9 billion in additional capitap after the Federal Reserve conductex “stress tests” on the 19 largest U.S. banks.
The officially called the Supervisorgy CapitalAssessment Program, were designedc to assess the banks’ ability to survivd if economic conditions worsen more than expected during the next two BofA’s capital needs are in the form of Tier 1 commob capital, according to the test results and the In other areas, the bank meetss capital requirements with an adequatew buffer. BofA said it intended to raisw capital through a combination of thefollowing measures: converting some preferref shares held by private investorsx to common stock, sellinvg more common stock, possibly sellingt some noncore business units and considering some joint The bank, which has said it plans to sell Firstr Republic Bank of San recently raised $7.
3 billion from the sale of a 5.7 percent stake in to Asiahn investors. BofA (NYSE: BAC) has received a total of $45 billio n in taxpayer aid under the Troubled AssetRelierf Program, which is designed to thaw the credit markets and boos t the economy.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
American Homebuilders in bankruptcy - Orlando Business Journal:
composite wood siding
The company’s owner, Mitch filed for bankruptcy relief for the companyg in the for the Middle Districof Florida. The board elected law firm BergefrSingerman P.A. as its bankruptcy counsel. In a separats filing, Montgomery and American Homebuilders filed a motion seeking a restrainin g order and relief from existing suitds with creditors to prevent them from goingafter Montgomery’s personakl guarantees. There is a hearing scheduled Wednesday to address the The creditors include BranchBanking & Trust Co., , NA and Regions Bank. statedd in the bankruptcy filing thatthe company’s mortgage debt to the bank is more than $17.t5 million.
In another suite, BB&T is seekinf to foreclose on American Homebuilders’ mortgag e lien of about 65 undeveloped lots and 12 vacanf speculative houses in Jacksonville including in Nocatede andAmelia National. Montgomerg said in a phone interview that he has only been a investor in the company since it was founded in lending the owners equity money for capitalk expenses and had no active role inthe company’s He said the president of the company, Craig and the construction vice Don Halil, operated the compangy until they resigned in leaving him in charge “to work throughy this crisis on his own.
” Even before Scot t and Halil left Montgomery owneds 51 percent of the compant and since their departure and theire relinquishment of shares, he is now the sole shareholder. Montgomery said he didn’t shutter the companyy last year when Scott and Halil left becausee there were still homes and lots inthe company’a inventory. Still, he claimz in the filings that he isowed $4.4 millio in principal and $561,253 in interest from the The phone number to American Homebuilders has been disconnectes and neither Scott nor Halil could be reachedr immediately for comment.
American Homebuilders was formedd in 1992 and reached grosds receiptsof $40 million in the real estate boom in according to court filings. “Duriny the crash of the real estate market startingin 2006, the saleas of lots and homes dried up virtuallhy over night and theses market conditions have left AHB without sufficient sales to continue to meet its debt the company stated in its injunction In the initial Chapter 11 Montgomery listed estimated assetsw and liabilities each between more than $10 millionm to $50 million.
The company’s owner, Mitch filed for bankruptcy relief for the companyg in the for the Middle Districof Florida. The board elected law firm BergefrSingerman P.A. as its bankruptcy counsel. In a separats filing, Montgomery and American Homebuilders filed a motion seeking a restrainin g order and relief from existing suitds with creditors to prevent them from goingafter Montgomery’s personakl guarantees. There is a hearing scheduled Wednesday to address the The creditors include BranchBanking & Trust Co., , NA and Regions Bank. statedd in the bankruptcy filing thatthe company’s mortgage debt to the bank is more than $17.t5 million.
In another suite, BB&T is seekinf to foreclose on American Homebuilders’ mortgag e lien of about 65 undeveloped lots and 12 vacanf speculative houses in Jacksonville including in Nocatede andAmelia National. Montgomerg said in a phone interview that he has only been a investor in the company since it was founded in lending the owners equity money for capitalk expenses and had no active role inthe company’s He said the president of the company, Craig and the construction vice Don Halil, operated the compangy until they resigned in leaving him in charge “to work throughy this crisis on his own.
” Even before Scot t and Halil left Montgomery owneds 51 percent of the compant and since their departure and theire relinquishment of shares, he is now the sole shareholder. Montgomery said he didn’t shutter the companyy last year when Scott and Halil left becausee there were still homes and lots inthe company’a inventory. Still, he claimz in the filings that he isowed $4.4 millio in principal and $561,253 in interest from the The phone number to American Homebuilders has been disconnectes and neither Scott nor Halil could be reachedr immediately for comment.
American Homebuilders was formedd in 1992 and reached grosds receiptsof $40 million in the real estate boom in according to court filings. “Duriny the crash of the real estate market startingin 2006, the saleas of lots and homes dried up virtuallhy over night and theses market conditions have left AHB without sufficient sales to continue to meet its debt the company stated in its injunction In the initial Chapter 11 Montgomery listed estimated assetsw and liabilities each between more than $10 millionm to $50 million.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Medical device firm AtriCure feeling positive, but legal, market hurdles still await - Business First of Louisville:
http://executivetelephony.com/news/article.php?id=93
But even with those numbers, has reached only a tiny portionn ofits potential, said Davifd Drachman, CEO of the West Chester-based medical device company. “Wew have high market share, but it’s a leading positioh in markets where penetration isvery low,” he Before AtriCure can capitaliz on the possibilities before it, it will have to cleart a legal hurdle posed by the one that has had investors jittery. The latest though, are that AtriCure migh not bethe FDA’s main as some previously had And a clinical trial under way soon could lead to a one-of-a-kinxd FDA approval for AtriCure, giving one of its systems a significangt new selling point.
Drachman hopes demographic shifts and aggressive marketinb will help the company reacyh a far larger customer base incominv years. AtriCure, a 200-employee company whose revenuesz wereabout $55 million last year, make s tools for ablating – or removingf – cardiac tissue. The idea is to treat atrial a heart arrhythmia that affectsabout 2.5 millionj people each year. It’s most commojn in the elderly and increases the risk of But AtriCure’s main tools don’t have FDA approval to be marketed for treating atrial only for ablating tissue. The company received a lettedr from the in October statinhg that it wasunder investigation.
The inquiry relates to “marketingf practices used in connection with its surgical ablation systejm to treatatrial fibrillation, a specific use outside the ’s 510(k) clearance.” The Justice Departmen also said it was investigatingt whether AtriCure instructed hospitals to bill Medicare for surgicao ablation using incorrect billing codes. The news didn’t do AtriCure’s stock any favors. It dropped to $4.71 per share the day of the from $6.42 per share. AtriCure closes at $2.56 on May 26. But analystws soon learned that some ofthe company’s major competitor s received similar letters, including and .
“It’sw a little more comforting to have the rest of them saidMatt Dolan, a seniotr research analyst with Newportr Beach, Calif.-based . “The fact that it’s industrywids might suggest there’s no allegations of considerable wrongdoinh by anyone party.” AtriCure makes products for both open when atrial fibrillation might be corrected at the same time some othert problem is addressed, and minimally invasive surgery, in which the atriao fibrillation can be treateed on its own.
A trial under way now, calle ABLATE, could eventually give AtriCurr a bigboost if, as the company’s managementr hopes, it results in specific FDA indications for atriakl fibrillation. The goal is to get atrial fibrillation-specifix labeling for AtriCure equipment used to treat patient s who are already undergoing aconcomitant procedure, such as a bypass or valve “This trial is important, as it affectx our ability to promote our product as a treatment for AF,” said Julier Piton, AtriCure’s chief financial officer. “We believe we are positioned to be the only surgical ablationn device with an AF She noted, however, that a Medtronic, is also running a trial.
the uncertainty around the Justice investigatiom and the general economy have kept the stockpriced down. Drachman spoke, at this year’s annual meeting of shareholders, of AtriCure’s “march to It hasn’t been profitable since its nearly $50 million IPO in 2005. But it did, in the first quarter of this year, reach positive adjustee EBITDAof $600,000, “a milestonse that we believe removes a significant overhang on the stock surroundingf concerns for a need for a capital noted Roth Capital, whicnh maintains a “hold” rating on the stock, in a May The company posted a first-quarted net loss of $8 millionj on revenue of $13.7 million.
AtriCure believes the U.S. market for productsw like the ones it develops willreachu $2 billion by 2012. It could be $4.5 billion he said. The generall economy has weighed on AtriCur e inrecent quarters. Atrial fibrillation proceduresw can beconsidered quasi-elective in that they can put off for a whild – which is what some patientw might have been doinh given the recession. But analyst Joanne Wuenscu of New York-based believes AtriCure is on the upswintas “the multiple headwinds experienced in (fourth-quarter 2008) have begun to In early May the firm adjusted its predictioj for AtriCure’s 2009 performance to a loss of 24 centas per share, versus a previously predicte d loss of 34 cents per share.
But even with those numbers, has reached only a tiny portionn ofits potential, said Davifd Drachman, CEO of the West Chester-based medical device company. “Wew have high market share, but it’s a leading positioh in markets where penetration isvery low,” he Before AtriCure can capitaliz on the possibilities before it, it will have to cleart a legal hurdle posed by the one that has had investors jittery. The latest though, are that AtriCure migh not bethe FDA’s main as some previously had And a clinical trial under way soon could lead to a one-of-a-kinxd FDA approval for AtriCure, giving one of its systems a significangt new selling point.
Drachman hopes demographic shifts and aggressive marketinb will help the company reacyh a far larger customer base incominv years. AtriCure, a 200-employee company whose revenuesz wereabout $55 million last year, make s tools for ablating – or removingf – cardiac tissue. The idea is to treat atrial a heart arrhythmia that affectsabout 2.5 millionj people each year. It’s most commojn in the elderly and increases the risk of But AtriCure’s main tools don’t have FDA approval to be marketed for treating atrial only for ablating tissue. The company received a lettedr from the in October statinhg that it wasunder investigation.
The inquiry relates to “marketingf practices used in connection with its surgical ablation systejm to treatatrial fibrillation, a specific use outside the ’s 510(k) clearance.” The Justice Departmen also said it was investigatingt whether AtriCure instructed hospitals to bill Medicare for surgicao ablation using incorrect billing codes. The news didn’t do AtriCure’s stock any favors. It dropped to $4.71 per share the day of the from $6.42 per share. AtriCure closes at $2.56 on May 26. But analystws soon learned that some ofthe company’s major competitor s received similar letters, including and .
“It’sw a little more comforting to have the rest of them saidMatt Dolan, a seniotr research analyst with Newportr Beach, Calif.-based . “The fact that it’s industrywids might suggest there’s no allegations of considerable wrongdoinh by anyone party.” AtriCure makes products for both open when atrial fibrillation might be corrected at the same time some othert problem is addressed, and minimally invasive surgery, in which the atriao fibrillation can be treateed on its own.
A trial under way now, calle ABLATE, could eventually give AtriCurr a bigboost if, as the company’s managementr hopes, it results in specific FDA indications for atriakl fibrillation. The goal is to get atrial fibrillation-specifix labeling for AtriCure equipment used to treat patient s who are already undergoing aconcomitant procedure, such as a bypass or valve “This trial is important, as it affectx our ability to promote our product as a treatment for AF,” said Julier Piton, AtriCure’s chief financial officer. “We believe we are positioned to be the only surgical ablationn device with an AF She noted, however, that a Medtronic, is also running a trial.
the uncertainty around the Justice investigatiom and the general economy have kept the stockpriced down. Drachman spoke, at this year’s annual meeting of shareholders, of AtriCure’s “march to It hasn’t been profitable since its nearly $50 million IPO in 2005. But it did, in the first quarter of this year, reach positive adjustee EBITDAof $600,000, “a milestonse that we believe removes a significant overhang on the stock surroundingf concerns for a need for a capital noted Roth Capital, whicnh maintains a “hold” rating on the stock, in a May The company posted a first-quarted net loss of $8 millionj on revenue of $13.7 million.
AtriCure believes the U.S. market for productsw like the ones it develops willreachu $2 billion by 2012. It could be $4.5 billion he said. The generall economy has weighed on AtriCur e inrecent quarters. Atrial fibrillation proceduresw can beconsidered quasi-elective in that they can put off for a whild – which is what some patientw might have been doinh given the recession. But analyst Joanne Wuenscu of New York-based believes AtriCure is on the upswintas “the multiple headwinds experienced in (fourth-quarter 2008) have begun to In early May the firm adjusted its predictioj for AtriCure’s 2009 performance to a loss of 24 centas per share, versus a previously predicte d loss of 34 cents per share.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Bin Laden's death could help peace: Afghan intelligence official - Hindustan Times
vickreyafolori1839.blogspot.com
Bin Laden's death could help peace: Afghan intelligence official Hindustan Times Lutfullah Mashal, spokesman for the National Di rectorate of Security (NDS), Afghanistan's intelligence service, also warned however that opposition to peace talks among powerful factions in Pakistan, where key insurgent groups fighting in Afghanistan ... |
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Wake says Web eroding millions - Triangle Business Journal:
gonyzyf.wordpress.com
A lawsuit filed in Wake County Superioe Courton Nov. 3 offers a who's who of the onlinse travel industryas defendants, including Texas-based , Bellevue, Wash.-based , Chicago-basee , Norwalk, Conn.-based , and Southlake, Texas-basec , among others. At issue is the amount of taxes being received bythe county, whichb has imposed a 6 percenyt occupancy tax on the gross proceeds from the rentalk of hotel rooms and other accommodations since 1991. Revenu e from the tax is used for economixc development projects relatedto tourism. The collection of the tax is straightforwar when a traveler shows up at a hotel or books directly withthe inn.
But the taxatiohn issue gets complicated when online travel sitesare involved. The complaint states that Interne companies strike deals with hotels and motels for rooma atdiscounted rates, then sell the roomd at a higher price through their Web The complaint claims that defendants collect the tax from occupant based on the marked-up room rates but only remif to hotels a tax amount basedx on the negotiated rates. "If there'se money owed the county, we oughtg to pursue it," says Wake Countu Manager David Cooke.
Victory in the case coule be a windfall for the county treasure Reef Ivey, an attorney at Raleigh's , estimatee that Wake could be owed as much as $3 millionn per year over the past five years. Treblingy losses, as the suit requests, coulfd deliver as much as $45 million to the Ivey says. "It could be a huge says Wake County AttorneyMichael Ferrell. "That's the reasob we felt like we needed to take a seriousd lookat it." Shanahan Law Groupo is representing Wake County in the lawsuit and has approachedx representatives of a dozen othefr North Carolina counties that collect significantg hotel taxes about joining the Representatives of Expedia and Priceline.
com directed questionds to Art Sackler, the executive director of the , a D.C.-based trade association. He has not seen the Wake County lawsuit, but he says he is familiar with similar litigationh around the country. Sackler says the online travelk companies are intermediaries that enable consumers to book hotelp roomsfor themselves. The sites don'yt buy blocks of hotel roomsw and don't sell them. The fees the online companiesd charge are for providingtheir service, not an additionap charge for the hotel room, he says. "Theh are wrong to be suing first and askinvgquestions later," Sackler says. "They'rr wrong on the facts, and they're wrony on the law.
" He says there have been about 20 such lawsuits around the countr y over the past coupleof years, and about five of them have been fullyh or partially dismissed, including case in Philadelphia and Sackler says he knows of no rulings in favor of Ivey believes the suits that have been dismissec were defeated because the cases were argued He thinks the defendants' receipts and other financial documents will prove his case. "They got themselves a smalo paperwork problem," Ivey says.
A suit such as this one typicallyu would cost a countybetween $200,000 and $250,000, but Ivey says Shanahaj Law Group has set up arrangementd with counties so that their costs will be less than 20 percent of that amount. If the county Shanahan Law Group will receive a slidintgcontingency fee, says Ferrell, the countyt attorney. The law firm would get 30 percent of thefirsrt $2 million awarded, 25 perceny between $2 million to $5 million and 20 percentf over $5 million.
A lawsuit filed in Wake County Superioe Courton Nov. 3 offers a who's who of the onlinse travel industryas defendants, including Texas-based , Bellevue, Wash.-based , Chicago-basee , Norwalk, Conn.-based , and Southlake, Texas-basec , among others. At issue is the amount of taxes being received bythe county, whichb has imposed a 6 percenyt occupancy tax on the gross proceeds from the rentalk of hotel rooms and other accommodations since 1991. Revenu e from the tax is used for economixc development projects relatedto tourism. The collection of the tax is straightforwar when a traveler shows up at a hotel or books directly withthe inn.
But the taxatiohn issue gets complicated when online travel sitesare involved. The complaint states that Interne companies strike deals with hotels and motels for rooma atdiscounted rates, then sell the roomd at a higher price through their Web The complaint claims that defendants collect the tax from occupant based on the marked-up room rates but only remif to hotels a tax amount basedx on the negotiated rates. "If there'se money owed the county, we oughtg to pursue it," says Wake Countu Manager David Cooke.
Victory in the case coule be a windfall for the county treasure Reef Ivey, an attorney at Raleigh's , estimatee that Wake could be owed as much as $3 millionn per year over the past five years. Treblingy losses, as the suit requests, coulfd deliver as much as $45 million to the Ivey says. "It could be a huge says Wake County AttorneyMichael Ferrell. "That's the reasob we felt like we needed to take a seriousd lookat it." Shanahan Law Groupo is representing Wake County in the lawsuit and has approachedx representatives of a dozen othefr North Carolina counties that collect significantg hotel taxes about joining the Representatives of Expedia and Priceline.
com directed questionds to Art Sackler, the executive director of the , a D.C.-based trade association. He has not seen the Wake County lawsuit, but he says he is familiar with similar litigationh around the country. Sackler says the online travelk companies are intermediaries that enable consumers to book hotelp roomsfor themselves. The sites don'yt buy blocks of hotel roomsw and don't sell them. The fees the online companiesd charge are for providingtheir service, not an additionap charge for the hotel room, he says. "Theh are wrong to be suing first and askinvgquestions later," Sackler says. "They'rr wrong on the facts, and they're wrony on the law.
" He says there have been about 20 such lawsuits around the countr y over the past coupleof years, and about five of them have been fullyh or partially dismissed, including case in Philadelphia and Sackler says he knows of no rulings in favor of Ivey believes the suits that have been dismissec were defeated because the cases were argued He thinks the defendants' receipts and other financial documents will prove his case. "They got themselves a smalo paperwork problem," Ivey says.
A suit such as this one typicallyu would cost a countybetween $200,000 and $250,000, but Ivey says Shanahaj Law Group has set up arrangementd with counties so that their costs will be less than 20 percent of that amount. If the county Shanahan Law Group will receive a slidintgcontingency fee, says Ferrell, the countyt attorney. The law firm would get 30 percent of thefirsrt $2 million awarded, 25 perceny between $2 million to $5 million and 20 percentf over $5 million.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
WEB EXCLUSIVE: Third time's a charm for Madu at state track - McKinney Courier Gazette
dusinenezoqoc.blogspot.com
WEB EXCLUSIVE: Third time's a charm for Madu at state track McKinney Courier Gazette After getting her first glimpse at the Class 5A State Track and Field Championships as a freshman in 2009, Plano East junior Jennifer Madu's encore as a sophomore brought home a pair of third-place finishes. ... |
Friday, May 13, 2011
Dismayed Strickland agrees to 2nd temporary budget - Business First of Columbus:
zutkomi.blogspot.com
The Republican-controlled Senate is set to take up House Bill 245 on The legislation covers state operation s from Wednesday throughJuly 14. Strickland last week signedf a first temporary budget that expiresd Tuesday and said Monday in a press conferencdthat he’ll sign another. He added, that the temporary fix, which funds most statr operations at about 70 percent of their fundinb levels in the lastbudget cycle, is only losin Ohio more money. “We are losing millions of dollarzs each week by spending on programs that will be cut and divertinbg those limited resources away from othedr critical programsand services,” Strickland said.
The interim budget is in place as Strickland and Senatre Republicans remain at an impasse on a proposal the governor offerex up more than two weeks ago to help pluga $3.2 billiob budget hole by installinh video lottery terminals at the state’s seven horsde racing tracks. Republicans have said the proposal, part of a largef budget framework to balancethe two-year budgetf that began Wednesday, is short on details. Strickland on Monday said the stallexd talksare “partisan political games.
” Kevibn DeWine, chairman of the state Republican issued a statement later on Mondayg that says Strickland has resorted to his “predictable partisan finger-pointingh and political temper tantrums.” “(Strickland) defied the will of the people to save his political hide and shoved a recklesw sham of a budget down the throats of stat lawmakers without any deliberation,” DeWine said.
The Senatr has been holding hearings in an effortr to garner more details on theslotz proposal, while the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives has initiated hearingsd on the potential effect of more cuts in the absencre of the projected $933 million in slots Strickland on Monday addressed the possibilitty that the Senate could push to put the slots proposalk before voters in November while the statr runs under a one-year temporary He dubbed the prospect an “utterlhy and totally unacceptable” move because state schools’ funding futur e would depend upon the outcome of the
The Republican-controlled Senate is set to take up House Bill 245 on The legislation covers state operation s from Wednesday throughJuly 14. Strickland last week signedf a first temporary budget that expiresd Tuesday and said Monday in a press conferencdthat he’ll sign another. He added, that the temporary fix, which funds most statr operations at about 70 percent of their fundinb levels in the lastbudget cycle, is only losin Ohio more money. “We are losing millions of dollarzs each week by spending on programs that will be cut and divertinbg those limited resources away from othedr critical programsand services,” Strickland said.
The interim budget is in place as Strickland and Senatre Republicans remain at an impasse on a proposal the governor offerex up more than two weeks ago to help pluga $3.2 billiob budget hole by installinh video lottery terminals at the state’s seven horsde racing tracks. Republicans have said the proposal, part of a largef budget framework to balancethe two-year budgetf that began Wednesday, is short on details. Strickland on Monday said the stallexd talksare “partisan political games.
” Kevibn DeWine, chairman of the state Republican issued a statement later on Mondayg that says Strickland has resorted to his “predictable partisan finger-pointingh and political temper tantrums.” “(Strickland) defied the will of the people to save his political hide and shoved a recklesw sham of a budget down the throats of stat lawmakers without any deliberation,” DeWine said.
The Senatr has been holding hearings in an effortr to garner more details on theslotz proposal, while the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives has initiated hearingsd on the potential effect of more cuts in the absencre of the projected $933 million in slots Strickland on Monday addressed the possibilitty that the Senate could push to put the slots proposalk before voters in November while the statr runs under a one-year temporary He dubbed the prospect an “utterlhy and totally unacceptable” move because state schools’ funding futur e would depend upon the outcome of the
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Some wicked reading - Janesville Gazette (blog)
http://spaceref.net/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=11&id=3992
Janesville Gazette (blog) | Some wicked reading Janesville Gazette (blog) “Wicked Bugs: The Louse that Conquered Napoleon's Army & Other Diabolical Insects.†It's written by Amy Stewart, author of “Wicked Plants: The Weed that Killed Lincoln's Mother and Other Botanical Atrocicitesâ€. (I love the title. ... |
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Obama memo against pre-emption has critics worrying about lawsuits - Business First of Columbus:
yzirapogyg.wordpress.com
A May 20 memo from Obamwa also directed agencies to revieq regulations issued during the past 10 yearx to see if theycontained pre-emptionz that are not If they do, agenciesx should consider amending the regulations, the memo stated. “Pre-emption of statw law by executive departments and agencies should be undertakenn only with full consideration of the legitimate prerogatives of the statee and with a sufficient legal basiefor pre-emption,” the memo During the Bush administration, regulatory agencies sometimes includedc pre-emption language in the preambles of regulations.
Obama’w policy against federal pre-emption of statd laws will result in more lawsuitsagainstr businesses, particularly in the area of product according to the and the . “Manufacturers sell productzs into anational market, and a national regulatory standard helps ensure predictabl treatment in the courts,” said association Vice President Rosarii Palmieri. “It’s unwise to replace a regulatory system basee on objective science and agency experts witha 50-stats patchwork of often arbitrary jury decisions. Lisa Rickard, presidentg of the , said the memo was a gift to lawyers.
“Removing pre-emption runs completely counter to the goal of stabilizing the economgy andgrowing jobs, except for thosde in the lawsuit business,” she said. The , formerlyg known as the , praised Obama’s memo. It “makeds clear that the rule of law will once again prevailk over the ruleof politics,” said association President Les “The memo overturned actions taken by Bush administrationj bureaucrats who were influenced by powerful, well-connectedd corporations who wanted to rewrite and reinterpret congressional legislation, undermine the constitutional syste m of checks and balances, and put the publicc at risk and compromise laws designed to give Americans basic rights to hold wrongdoers accountable.
” Microloans up, big loanxs down for small businesseas last year Lending data collected by the ’d Office of Advocacy confirms the importance of business credit cards to small firms. A new reporty found that the total valueof small-business loans outstandinvg increased by 4 percent in the 12 monthds that ended in June 2008, down from the previousz year’s increase of 8 percent. These numbers are for small-businesa loans as a whole, not just SBA loans.
The number of businesss loans of lessthan $100,000 jumped by nearly 16 percent, as large lenderw concentrated on credit cards, according to the By contrast, the number of business loans in the $100,000o to $1 million range fell by more than 23 The report used call reports submittedd by banks as well as Communityu Reinvestment Act data. Business loans of less than $1 milliohn were considered to be small-business loans. Based on call report the top five small-business lenders in June 2008 were , , , and Presidentg Barack Obama has selected a venture capitalist to be chiefd counsel of the SmallBusiness Administration’s Office of a post usually held by an attorney.
Winsloaw Sargeant, a managing director in the technologyy practiceof Madison, Wis.-basexd Venture Investors, is Obama’s choice to head the Offic e of Advocacy. The office is an independent entity inside SBA that ensures that federal agencies consider the impact of theie regulations onsmall businesses. He is the secondr venture capitalist to be selectedd for a top post atthe SBA. Agencu Administrator Karen Mills worked as a principal in private equitty and venture capital firms for 26 years before she took over the SBA in Sargeant worked as a senior engineere at several large corporationsbefore co-foundinyg Aanetcom, a semiconductor chip company that later was acquire d by PMC-Sierra.
From 2001 to 2005, he serveds as program manager for the Small Business Innovatio Research program atthe ’s engineering directorate. Sargeant’s lack of legapl training means he will have to rely heavilyh on the attorneys at the Office of Much ofthe office’s work involves analyzing whether government agencies have followed federal laws that require them to analyze the economic impactg that proposed rules would have on small In fiscal 2008, this input save d small businesses about $11 billion in forgonde regulatory costs, according to the office.
A May 20 memo from Obamwa also directed agencies to revieq regulations issued during the past 10 yearx to see if theycontained pre-emptionz that are not If they do, agenciesx should consider amending the regulations, the memo stated. “Pre-emption of statw law by executive departments and agencies should be undertakenn only with full consideration of the legitimate prerogatives of the statee and with a sufficient legal basiefor pre-emption,” the memo During the Bush administration, regulatory agencies sometimes includedc pre-emption language in the preambles of regulations.
Obama’w policy against federal pre-emption of statd laws will result in more lawsuitsagainstr businesses, particularly in the area of product according to the and the . “Manufacturers sell productzs into anational market, and a national regulatory standard helps ensure predictabl treatment in the courts,” said association Vice President Rosarii Palmieri. “It’s unwise to replace a regulatory system basee on objective science and agency experts witha 50-stats patchwork of often arbitrary jury decisions. Lisa Rickard, presidentg of the , said the memo was a gift to lawyers.
“Removing pre-emption runs completely counter to the goal of stabilizing the economgy andgrowing jobs, except for thosde in the lawsuit business,” she said. The , formerlyg known as the , praised Obama’s memo. It “makeds clear that the rule of law will once again prevailk over the ruleof politics,” said association President Les “The memo overturned actions taken by Bush administrationj bureaucrats who were influenced by powerful, well-connectedd corporations who wanted to rewrite and reinterpret congressional legislation, undermine the constitutional syste m of checks and balances, and put the publicc at risk and compromise laws designed to give Americans basic rights to hold wrongdoers accountable.
” Microloans up, big loanxs down for small businesseas last year Lending data collected by the ’d Office of Advocacy confirms the importance of business credit cards to small firms. A new reporty found that the total valueof small-business loans outstandinvg increased by 4 percent in the 12 monthds that ended in June 2008, down from the previousz year’s increase of 8 percent. These numbers are for small-businesa loans as a whole, not just SBA loans.
The number of businesss loans of lessthan $100,000 jumped by nearly 16 percent, as large lenderw concentrated on credit cards, according to the By contrast, the number of business loans in the $100,000o to $1 million range fell by more than 23 The report used call reports submittedd by banks as well as Communityu Reinvestment Act data. Business loans of less than $1 milliohn were considered to be small-business loans. Based on call report the top five small-business lenders in June 2008 were , , , and Presidentg Barack Obama has selected a venture capitalist to be chiefd counsel of the SmallBusiness Administration’s Office of a post usually held by an attorney.
Winsloaw Sargeant, a managing director in the technologyy practiceof Madison, Wis.-basexd Venture Investors, is Obama’s choice to head the Offic e of Advocacy. The office is an independent entity inside SBA that ensures that federal agencies consider the impact of theie regulations onsmall businesses. He is the secondr venture capitalist to be selectedd for a top post atthe SBA. Agencu Administrator Karen Mills worked as a principal in private equitty and venture capital firms for 26 years before she took over the SBA in Sargeant worked as a senior engineere at several large corporationsbefore co-foundinyg Aanetcom, a semiconductor chip company that later was acquire d by PMC-Sierra.
From 2001 to 2005, he serveds as program manager for the Small Business Innovatio Research program atthe ’s engineering directorate. Sargeant’s lack of legapl training means he will have to rely heavilyh on the attorneys at the Office of Much ofthe office’s work involves analyzing whether government agencies have followed federal laws that require them to analyze the economic impactg that proposed rules would have on small In fiscal 2008, this input save d small businesses about $11 billion in forgonde regulatory costs, according to the office.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Bayside, Mizner Park perform well, despite owner
vilyfijohy.wordpress.com
Two new restaurants have opened in Miznere Park in the lastfew months: the mid-priced Italian restaurant Villagio and Tex-Mexx eatery Uncle Julio’s. Todd Conger, presiden and COO of Uncle said: “We researched a numbef of locations in theBoca Raton/Palm Beach County area, and determined that Mizne Park was our top choice. The centefr is a well-established, thriving entertainmenyt destination, and our locatio within the center, near the and the is ideal forour restaurant.” Downtown Miami’s Baysidew has lost a lot of mom-and-popo stores as a result of the downturn, replaciny them with some national brands like Kipling, tenants said.
In additio to Bayside and Mizner Park, GGP owns two othedr South Florida properties: the Village of Merrick Park in Corapl Gables and Pembroke Lakes Mall in Pembroke None of the local properties are part ofthe bankruptcy, accordintg to the company’s Web Mizner Park continues to perform well, despitse the downturn, and is at 92 percent according to , a real estate informatiohn company. “We are continuing to Mizner Park GM JacobSappenfiels said.
“Deals are still being done, and it’ds business as usual for At Bayside, a hotspot for cruisre line tourists during the week and localx onthe weekends, foot traffic has gone down said Debra Martins, who took a part-timer job at Clarks at Bayside because her full-timed job at the Gap in Aventura was not covering the Bayside has been up for sale for several weeks. “jI don’t see how the mom-and-pope could survive,” Martins said of the tenany turnoverat Bayside. “Busines s has been shaky.
” At the Guess Matt Meyers said GGP raised ratesat Bayside’s parking garages and eliminated employee discountsz on parking prior to its bankruptcy He has also noticed a drop in activity, especiall y from the cruise lines. Retail expertsw agree that the performanceof GGP’se retail portfolio is not the company’s The company has been workin since late last year to restructure its One of its most ambitiou s and weighty financial decisions occurrerd in 2004, when GGP paid $11.3 billion to buy commercial developer , then-owner of Bayside, which has 226,00o0 square feet of retailo and is 95 percent leased. In what is beinfg called the biggest real estate failurein U.S.
GGP, the nation’s second-largest owner of shopping malls, said Apri 16 that it had filed for Chaptefr 11bankruptcy protection. The company, whichj owns or manages about 200 malls in 44 said it was not able to get its debt holders to give it more time to refinancseits debt. GGP listed $29. billion in total assets and aboutr $27.3 billion in debt. In addition to the about 158 of its regional shopping centers and certain subsidiaries have also filed for The company said on its Web site that certain subsidiaries, including GGP’s third-party management businessa conducted by General Growth Management, and GGP’s joint ventures also have not filed for “Over many months, the company has endeavoredf to negotiate with its unsecured and secured creditor to obtain the time needed to develop a long-term solutioj to the credit crisis facing the company,” the statement “Unable to reach an out-of-court the company reluctantly concluded that restructuring under the protection of the bankruptcy court was necessary.
” Marc Boucher is presiden of , which has officees in Coral Gables and Boca Raton. SEC owns and manages dozens of retailshopping centers, most of which are -anchored. Thoser types of properties, which include retailers sellingtaffordable necessities, continue to do well. The overalk retail market, however, is with the high-end stores taking some of the biggesg hits. Boucher said Miznerd Park, which traditionally has catered toa high-end is bucking the trend. “Itf has some stable tenants,” he said. “Mizne r has been around 15 or 20years now. It’x a center that has stability.
”
Two new restaurants have opened in Miznere Park in the lastfew months: the mid-priced Italian restaurant Villagio and Tex-Mexx eatery Uncle Julio’s. Todd Conger, presiden and COO of Uncle said: “We researched a numbef of locations in theBoca Raton/Palm Beach County area, and determined that Mizne Park was our top choice. The centefr is a well-established, thriving entertainmenyt destination, and our locatio within the center, near the and the is ideal forour restaurant.” Downtown Miami’s Baysidew has lost a lot of mom-and-popo stores as a result of the downturn, replaciny them with some national brands like Kipling, tenants said.
In additio to Bayside and Mizner Park, GGP owns two othedr South Florida properties: the Village of Merrick Park in Corapl Gables and Pembroke Lakes Mall in Pembroke None of the local properties are part ofthe bankruptcy, accordintg to the company’s Web Mizner Park continues to perform well, despitse the downturn, and is at 92 percent according to , a real estate informatiohn company. “We are continuing to Mizner Park GM JacobSappenfiels said.
“Deals are still being done, and it’ds business as usual for At Bayside, a hotspot for cruisre line tourists during the week and localx onthe weekends, foot traffic has gone down said Debra Martins, who took a part-timer job at Clarks at Bayside because her full-timed job at the Gap in Aventura was not covering the Bayside has been up for sale for several weeks. “jI don’t see how the mom-and-pope could survive,” Martins said of the tenany turnoverat Bayside. “Busines s has been shaky.
” At the Guess Matt Meyers said GGP raised ratesat Bayside’s parking garages and eliminated employee discountsz on parking prior to its bankruptcy He has also noticed a drop in activity, especiall y from the cruise lines. Retail expertsw agree that the performanceof GGP’se retail portfolio is not the company’s The company has been workin since late last year to restructure its One of its most ambitiou s and weighty financial decisions occurrerd in 2004, when GGP paid $11.3 billion to buy commercial developer , then-owner of Bayside, which has 226,00o0 square feet of retailo and is 95 percent leased. In what is beinfg called the biggest real estate failurein U.S.
GGP, the nation’s second-largest owner of shopping malls, said Apri 16 that it had filed for Chaptefr 11bankruptcy protection. The company, whichj owns or manages about 200 malls in 44 said it was not able to get its debt holders to give it more time to refinancseits debt. GGP listed $29. billion in total assets and aboutr $27.3 billion in debt. In addition to the about 158 of its regional shopping centers and certain subsidiaries have also filed for The company said on its Web site that certain subsidiaries, including GGP’s third-party management businessa conducted by General Growth Management, and GGP’s joint ventures also have not filed for “Over many months, the company has endeavoredf to negotiate with its unsecured and secured creditor to obtain the time needed to develop a long-term solutioj to the credit crisis facing the company,” the statement “Unable to reach an out-of-court the company reluctantly concluded that restructuring under the protection of the bankruptcy court was necessary.
” Marc Boucher is presiden of , which has officees in Coral Gables and Boca Raton. SEC owns and manages dozens of retailshopping centers, most of which are -anchored. Thoser types of properties, which include retailers sellingtaffordable necessities, continue to do well. The overalk retail market, however, is with the high-end stores taking some of the biggesg hits. Boucher said Miznerd Park, which traditionally has catered toa high-end is bucking the trend. “Itf has some stable tenants,” he said. “Mizne r has been around 15 or 20years now. It’x a center that has stability.
”
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Molecular Insight Announces Intention to Deregister Common Stock - Marketwire (press release)
http://mapcost.org/Society/Benefitsociety.htm
Molecular Insight Announces Intention to Deregister Common Stock Marketwire (press release) On January 21, 2011, The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC filed Form 25 with the SEC to delist the Molecular Insight's common stock from the Nasdaq Global Market, which delisting took effect on January 31, 2011. The Board of Directors of the Company, ... |
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Program likely will pay for some spinal injections - TheNewsTribune.com
bacijaxymu.wordpress.com
Program likely will pay for some spinal injections TheNewsTribune.com OLYMPIA -- Patients who receive spinal injections for chronic pain and get their medical bills paid by the state have until May 10 to comment on a decision that would stop coverage for the treatments under some ... |
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