New Jersey Governor Chris Christie urged Congress to support Sen. Lamar Alexander’s Marketplace Fairness Act to give states the option to decide how to deal with the current sales tax collection loophole. Christie’s statement is another strong conservative voice in the growing chorus for Congressional action.

“There’s been no bigger issue facing retailers than sales tax fairness,” said John Holub, president of the New Jersey Retail Merchants Association. “Governor Christie’s support for the Marketplace Fairness Act is great news and adds add to the momentum for Congress to level the playing field for all retailers.” read more »

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Supreme Court has rejected a lawsuit claiming that Initiative 1183, which privatized state liquor sales, violated the state Constitution’s requirement that proposed laws only address a single subject. The Court also rejected a claim that the description of the new law on voters’ ballots was misleading.

“We appreciate the Court recognized that this initiative satisfies our state Constitution’s requirements and agrees that voters understood what they were voting for,” said state Attorney General Rob McKenna. read more »

Kitsap County residents will receive free prescription discount cards in the mail during the next few weeks, courtesy of the National Association of Counties (NACo).

The cards will help county residents deal with the high cost of prescription medications, and produce an average savings of 24 percent off the retail price of prescription medications. The discount cards will provide the most help to residents who do not have prescription insurance coverage. In addition, the cards can assist residents who have insurance, but take medications that are not covered. The card can also be used for some pet medications. read more »

The Associated Press

Facebook’s stock has fallen below $30 a share for the first time since its much-awaited public debut.

The stock fell $3.07, or 9.6 percent, to close at $28.84 on Tuesday. That’s down 24 percent since its public stock debut. It went as low as $28.65 earlier in the day.

Facebook Inc. began trading publicly May 18 following one of the most anticipated stock offerings in history.

The site, which was born in a Harvard dorm room eight years ago and has grown into a worldwide network of almost a billion people, was supposed to offer proof that social media is a viable business and more than a passing fad. read more »

The Home Builders Association of Kitsap County will host its inaugural Builders Best Awards ceremony on June 20 in the Olympic Room of Oxford Suites in Silverdale.

The festivities will begin at 5 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres and a no-host bar. The awards program will begin at 5:45, featuring presentations of the award winners’ projects.

Tickets are $25 and reservations are required. Guests are welcome. RSVP and payment should be sent to the Home Builders Association (www.kitsaphba.com) office by June 12. For more information, call 360-479-5778.

OLYMPIA — The Association of Washington Business has endorsed former Justice Richard Sanders in his bid to return to the state Supreme Court, as well as recently appointed incumbent Steve Gonzalez.

The endorsements came following an extensive process that included interviews with the candidates, a review of campaign materials and candidate questionnaires, and — in the case of incumbents — a thorough review of their records and their rankings in AWB’s Judicial Scorecard, which evaluates justices’ votes in cases of importance to the business community.

While Justice Gonzalez has been on the bench since his appointment by Gov. Chris Gregoire in January, too short a time to develop a track record, the committee that developed the endorsements was impressed his background as a trial judge and federal prosecutor, said Kris Tefft, AWB’s general counsel and director of AWB’s practice before the Supreme Court. read more »

WASHINGTON — The Obama Administration today announced a $26 million multi-agency Advanced Manufacturing Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge to foster innovation-fueled job creation through public-private partnerships. These coordinated investments will help catalyze and leverage private capital, build an entrepreneurial ecosystem, and promote cluster-based development in regions across the United States. This is the third round of the Jobs Accelerator competition, which is being funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST); the U.S. Department of Energy; the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration; the Small Business Administration; and the National Science Foundation (NSF). read more »

The Washington State Community Economic Revitalization Board has made $1.6 million in public investments targeting business growth and job creation in three Western Washington counties.

The City of Tacoma will receive a $50,000 to complete a sub-area planning Environmental Impact Statement for North Downtown. This will replicate the process used in the South Downtown and Martin Luther King Jr. Districts to allow accelerated revitalization through up front environmental review and planning for infrastructure and neighborhood amenities.

Port of Skagit County will receive a $1.35 million loan and a $150,000 grant to purchase and renovate a building for use as a boat manufacturing facility. read more »

May 20-26 was National Small Business Week. Around the country, government officials paid homage to the small business owners who drive innovation in our national and state economies.

The recognition is certainly well deserved, but small businesses need more than a week of ceremonial platitudes in order to create the jobs that will spur our national and state economies out of recession.

What small business desperately need is real relief — relief from over-regulation, high taxes, and burdensome labor laws — at both the federal and state levels. read more »