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Crew members sue NLV airline over missing pay for war-zone flights |
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Charter aircraft crew members who made flights for the government into war zones in Afghanistan and Iraq are suing a North Las Vegas airline, claiming the company failed to pay all of the federal hazard pay they are due for their work. |
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Nevada workers' comp insurer to cut 14 percent of jobs |
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A big Nevada insurance company said today it's cutting its workforce by about 14 percent. Employers Holdings Inc., parent of Employers Insurance Company of Nevada, said the layoffs are in response to the economic downturn and are part of a restructuring plan following the company's acquisition of AmCOMP Inc. |
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While economy is down, business is up for pawn shop company |
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Business is good for a big operator of Las Vegas pawn shops as struggling consumers seek out short-term loans. |
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Big drop in prices boosts home sales |
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Fueled by foreclosures and a 37 percent drop in median price to $205,893, the existing-home market ended 2008 with 31,727 sales, 38 percent more than in 2007. Combined with declines in 2007, the median home price has fallen 45 percent since February 2007 when it was $288,000. |
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Changes to judicial discipline process studied |
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After a tumultuous year in which the alleged misdeeds of two judges attracted national attention, the Nevada Supreme Court is entertaining suggestions for changes to the rules, regulations and practices of the Judicial Discipline Commission. A special committee set up to review all aspects of the state’s court system, known as the Article 6 Commission, held a public hearing Jan. 15 on the system for filing complaints against judges and heard comments on changes recommended by a subcommittee established to study reforms. |
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Goodman stays positive despite tough economy |
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The messages at Las Vegas’ State of the City address last week were not that different from previous years. A lot has changed since the last State of the City speech, however, and despite the positive spin Mayor Oscar Goodman put on the evening, it’s clear some challenges are ahead. |
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UNLV economist foresees darker times |
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It’s bad and getting worse. That’s the description of the local economy from Keith Schwer, director of UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research. Schwer released the center’s Southern Nevada Index of Leading Economic Indicators that shows a downward trend that suggests the economic contraction won’t abate during the first half of the year. |
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Marlon no fan of Obama’s planned reform |
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Excessive spending on medical tests is the biggest waste in the cost of health care, the former chief executive and founder of Sierra Health Services said. Over the years, Dr. Anthony Marlon has pushed for evidence-based care, which emphasizes decisions made by doctors and managers of the insurers, applying a scientific method. “I was the first one in town that said, ‘I will not leave that to the doctor, because I don’t trust him,’ ” he said. |
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Fresh & Easy lets patrons shop for schools |
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Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets has introduced a program to benefit local schools. Shop for Schools gives participating public, private and parochial schools an opportunity to receive a $1 cash donation for every $20 spent at a Fresh & Easy store, up to $5,000 per school. |
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A governor with vision would take a good, hard look at Nevada’s slumping economy and call on political and business leaders to gather for a major summit. At this gathering the governor would direct the participants to help devise a plan to diversify the state’s economy, a crucial component of which would be to increase Nevada’s investment in its greatest asset, its children. |
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15 lawyers vying for judicial vacancies |
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Fifteen local lawyers have applied for two recent vacancies on Southern Nevada court benches. The contenders include one judge, a deputy public defender, a former hearing master and several private attorneys. A few of the candidates have unsuccessfully run for judicial seats in past elections. |
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Unusual measures evident in state, local tourism efforts |
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The Nevada Tourism Commission is working to hire a director who may never take office, and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is promoting a visit to Southern Nevada with characters that have never ridden an escalator. Yes, these are indeed unusual times in the local tourism industry and just when you thought things couldn’t get any weirder, they do. |
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Verde capitalizes on telecom partnership |
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In 2002 two local entrepreneurs started what they thought would be a modest little telecom provider called Verde Communications. Today it has become part of the fastest-growing telecom startups in the nation. |
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Trump Tower’s shift to apartments could become trend |
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With the condo-hotel market hard hit and many prospective owners unable to close on their units, Donald Trump has an innovative solution. The real estate developer has decided to lease units at the Trump Tower up to one year as upscale furnished apartments. |
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The most striking news in Gov. Jim Gibbons’ State of the State speech surely was the 36 percent cut in the higher education budget. Most of the rest was anticlimactic — the 6 percent pay cut for state employees and teachers, the robbing counties to pay the state, the implementation of the SAGE Commission benefit-reduction proposals. |
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Randolph Townsend is a Republican senator representing Washoe County’s District 4, but he spends enough time in Southern Nevada to know Las Vegas’ issues well. By the end of his current term, Townsend, who turns 62 this week, will have served longer in the state Senate — 28 years — than anybody but his Reno Republican colleague, Sen. Bill Raggio. But Townsend will be term-limited out after the 75th session closes later this year. |
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Nevada remains first in foreclosures in 2008 |
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The Las Vegas metropolitan area ranked second in the nation last year for its rate of foreclosures, while Nevada held its top spot in the nation. |
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Foreclosures are top housing obstacle |
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A group of economists at a national homebuilders’ conference predicted the housing market will continue to struggle in 2009, but held out hope it could stabilize by end of the year and begin a slow recovery in 2010. But the same economists suggested it will be another two to three years before the market starts to return to any sort of normalcy. |
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Humana eyes larger footprint in Nevada |
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Humana is taking advantage of its acquisition of UnitedHealthcare’s Medicare Advantage business, Secure Horizons, to make its mark in the commercial health insurance market. With the 27,000 Medicare policies it acquired last year from UnitedHealthcare in Clark and Nye counties, the Louisville, Ky.-based company is setting the stage for expansion, focusing its efforts on signing up employers and their workforces. |
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Businesses brace for legislative session |
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Southern Nevada’s business community is girding for what promises to be one of the most contentious legislative sessions in state history after hearing highlights of Gov. Jim Gibbons’ budget proposal and party leadership responses that indicate the governor’s plan has no chance of passage. |
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