After two years of Covid-19, many Washington families and small businesses could use a break. Fortunately, the Washington Legislature has the means to help.State lawmakers have more than $8.6 billion in unrestricted cash reserves. These funds – a historic surplus by any measure – can boost our economy and improve...
A buying frenzy hit the Tri-City apartment market in the waning weeks of 2021.Driven by tax considerations and attracted by the strong economic recovery and low rental vacancy rates, investors closed deals for complexes large and small, new and old.Investors paid big prices and signaled their confidence that future rent...
Michelle HoltThe Benton-Franklin Council of Governments has tapped Michelle Holt to succeed Stephanie Seamans as executive director.Holt will begin on Feb. 15.She comes to the job from the College of Eastern Idaho, where she has served as executive director for Workforce Training and Continuing Education since December 2016.She previously held...
Check stimulus payment status onlineThe Internal Revenue service advises people to visit irs.gov to check the status of their second Economic Impact Payment.The IRS and the Treasury Department began issuing the latest stimulus payments in early January, with electronic deposits appearing before the scheduled payment date of Jan. 4. Paper...
It’s back to basics for Washington state businesses as Covid-19 infections rates rise.Gov. Jay Inslee debuted a new Covid-19 strategy that organizes Washington into eight regions and sets tough targets before restrictions meant to curtail the spread of the virus that causes the disease are loosened.Healthy Washington – Roadmap to...
Mid-Columbia lenders are ready to begin processing a new wave of Paycheck Protection Program loans.As a third edition of the popular forgivable loan ramped up in mid-January, local lenders said they would apply the lessons they learned from the first two but stood ready to respond to their customers, defying...
As members of the Prosser Chamber of Commerce struggled to pay renewal fees under pandemic-related financial pressure, the executive director found a novel solution.John-Paul Estey asked Yakima Federal Savings and Loan to allow it use sponsorship dollars for canceled events to cover dues owed by cash-strapped members.The bank agreed. Yakima...
You likely noticed changes to the front page of your Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business this month. We wanted to usher in the new year with a new look and feel as we celebrate the start of our publication’s 20th year.
Ten months after the arrival of the coronavirus in Washington, the Legislature convened on Jan. 11 for a new session amid a pandemic that will shape every aspect of the session, from the way lawmakers conduct business (over computer screens instead of beneath the Capitol dome) to the issues they...
Now that vaccines are available, we hope our lives will return to the way they were before the coronavirus pandemic blanketed the globe.That is not likely to occur.Last March our booming economy was clobbered by Covid-19. A worldwide pandemic ensued.There was no vaccine to counter it and even though vaccines...
