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Russia offered US $12T for economic cooperation, Oil price jumps on Iran news, US military stocking equipment for likely attack on Iran, 6,000 CEOs claim AI has little impact on work, trade deficit reduced by 78%, Oregon considers dueling bills to address outdoor recreation risks, Microsoft director purchased $2m of MSFT shares, Amazon founder likely bidder for Seahawks, multiple PNW companies included in Most Admired List
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As of market close 2.18.26
Headline Roundup
Russia confirms $12 trillion pitch to Trump tied to Ukraine deal (Yahoo)
Washington State Ferries soon will charge credit card fee (SeattleTimes)
Major Seattle law firm prepares for move to new downtown space (BizJournals)
Seattle health care startup acquired by Texas clinic group (BizJournals)
World's Most Admired Companies 2026 (KF)
New Seasons Labor Union ‘outraged’ at 95 layoffs, including heavy toll at union stores (OPB)
Pearl District Landlord Threatens to Sue City Over Homeless Shelter (WW)
(WA) Suncadia lodge gets a $4M facelift (DJC)
Glacier National Park eliminates ticketed-entry system (MTFP)
PGE planning massive solar projects in Eastern Oregon (DJC)
‘Boise is not full’: Second year of new zoning code saw nearly 2,000 infill homes. City says there’s room for many more (BoiseDev)
Fitness studio backed by Jennifer Aniston to open in NW Portland (ORLive)
Boise mall is now charging for parking (IDStaesman)
(WA) Transportation Department says more than 550 driving schools must close over safety failures (SeattleTimes)
Bill Gates’ Kirkland-based Breakthrough Energy lays off staff, cuts investments (SeattleTimes)
ICE activity guts Portland-area Latino businesses (BizJournals)
FDA reverses course, will review Moderna’s mRNA-based flu shot (Ground)
U.S. Gathers the Most Air Power in the Mideast Since the 2003 Iraq Invasion (WSJ)
St. Charles will pay tuition, fees for medical assistants (BendBulletin)
Oregon and Washington join lawsuit against Trump’s clean energy funding cuts (KOIN)
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Rip’s Spotlight
Legislature considers competing bills to fix, or appear to fix, a unique-in-the-West court ruling limiting liability waivers for recreation (OregonRoundUp)
“The recreation coalition, which includes gym owners, the City of Bend, the Bend Chamber of Commerce and ski areas, say a 2014 Oregon Supreme Court ruling that renders liability waivers for injuries sustained while recreating largely unenforceable, has driven up insurance costs for businesses and forced them to increase prices or to simply go out of business.
A report issued by Common Sense Institure Oregon, a think tank, earlier this month estimates ski areas, fishing and hunting, golf and rock climbing generate generate hundreds of millions of dollars of economic activity in Oregon. The report says Oregon’s restrictions on liability waivers, which were never approved by the legislature, “are more likely to affect margings, pricing decisions, and long-term investment planning, particularly for smaller or seasonal operators with limited ability to absorb cost increases.”
Recreation advocates entered this month’s legislative session supporting two bills to re-establish the use of waivers to limit liability for recreation businesses. The House bill was assigned to the Judiciary Committee, chaired by Rep. Kropf of Bend. Despite strong support of the bill from Kropf’s usual political allies in Bend, including Democratic members of the City Council, Kropf did not hold a hearing on the House bill, and allowed it to die.
In addition to his legislative duties, Kropf is a personal injury attorney with the High Desert Law, which heralds its membership in the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association. OTLA is lobbying to keep Oregon’s judge-made restrictions on recreation liability waivers, because those waivers can prevent personal injury lawyers from winning a settlement or judgment for their clients, a percentage of which the lawyers keep for themselves.
While Kropf kept the House version of the recreation liability bill from seeing the light of day, the Senate version, SB 1593, breezed through the Committee On Commerce and General Government a week ago with unanimous support. However, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed on a 4-1 vote a competing bill, SB 1517, which would make minor changes to Oregon waiver law and is opposed by the recreation coalition as worse than current law in some respects.”
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