Our Northwest Economy

Boeing's Shift To S.C. Raises Union Ire

(photo: A Boeing 787 sits on the flight line in June near the company's production facilities at Paine Field in Everett, Wash.)

Boeing is building a second production line for its new 787 jet at a facility in North Charleston, S.C. — not at Boeing's main factory in suburban Seattle. The decision, announced Wednesday, was driven largely by the company's desire to expand in a nonunion environment.

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WA Democrats Reject Actuary’s Pension Advice

Concern is mounting in Washington State over the health of the public employee pension system. The state actuary has warned of a scenario where the two oldest retirement plans could run out of money by 2017. Even so, majority Democrats today rejected a key recommendation from the actuary.

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Number of Stimulus Jobs Created in NW States Questioned

Oregon and Washington are revising their estimates for how many jobs are being created by the Obama administration’s stimulus plan. In a report today, The Associated Press questioned the job creation tallies by federal agencies. State governments used the same methodology earlier this month.

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Gregoire “Angry” and “Disappointed” Over Boeing Announcement

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire says she’s “angry” and “disappointed” that Boeing will build its second 787 assembly line in South Carolina - not Everett, Washington. Gregoire made her comments this afternoon shortly after Boeing made its announcement.

(Pictured: Governor Gregoire)

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Republican Reaction to Boeing Announcement

Minority Republicans in Washington State are reacting with dismay to news that Boeing will build its second 787 line in Charleston, South Carolina. State Senator Mike Hewitt of Walla Walla sits on the state’s aerospace task force. He calls the loss of the Boeing line a debacle and points blame at majority Democrats.

(Pictured: Washington State Senator Mike Hewitt)

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Lower Natural Gas Bills on Tap in Oregon

SALEM - Oregon natural gas customers will pay less to heat their homes this winter. The Public Utility Commission today (Tuesday) announced a double-digit rate drop for each of the state's three natural gas utilities. Salem Correspondent Chris Lehman reports.

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Natural gas prices often follow the same pricing trends as the kind of gas you put in your car. Remember how gasoline prices spiked a little over a year ago, and then plummeted? The same thing is happening for natural gas. Customers of Oregon's largest natural gas utility, Northwest Natural, will pay on average about 15 dollars less per month this winter. Oregon Public Utility Commission chair Lee Beyer says the news is bittersweet.

Lee Beyer: It's a good sign. The reason they're down is not necessarily so good. The reason things are down is that we've been in a worldwide recession so demand for gas is off.

Beyer also says new drilling technology has opened up access to more domestic natural gas fields. This winter's rates will be the lowest in Oregon in more than five years. I'm Chris Lehman in Salem.

Copyright 2009 OPB On the Web: Oregon Public Utility Commission: http://www.puc.state.or.us/ 1027CL_gasrates.jpg “The Oregon Public Utility Commission”

No Love Lost Between Business Lobby and Oregon Lawmakers

SALEM, OR - The rift is growing between Oregon’s largest business group and majority Democrats in the state legislature. Associated Oregon Industries is already backing a campaign to repeal two budget-balancing tax hikes. Now the influential group has a scathing scorecard of Democratic leaders.

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Northwest Spooky Jobs Part Two

OLYMPIA, WA - Some jobs are spooky year round, not just at Halloween. This week, we're sending out correspondents to find the spookiest jobs in the Northwest. In part two of the series, how would you like to spend your nights with bats? But first, what do you think about sorting through radioactive garbage?

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Politicians Take Sides In Boeing, Northrop Tanker Bid

A heated competition between Northrop Grumman and Boeing for a giant Air Force contract is pitting two regions of the country against each other. Northrop won the contract last year but the Pentagon canceled it after a Boeing challenge. In a new round of bidding, southern politicians are upping the ante with a four-state alliance to lobby for the $35 billion contract.

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$7B in Recovery Dollars Flowing to WA State

So far, some $7 billion in federal recovery money has been flowing to Washington state. But it hasn’t resulted in a jobs bonanza. That’s the upshot from a report being filed with the feds.

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