Business briefs, September 10

Rocky Wire Services

Published September 10, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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LeEtta Choi joined the Mark Cooper Team at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Greenwood Village as a broker associate.

William R. Roberts II was named president of the Denver Board of Realtors.

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Smaller increases in health insurance costs helped give U.S. workers and their families a dose of stability last year, according to a new report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

A total of 62.2 percent of people under age 65 had employment-based health benefits last year, the same percentage as 2006.

In fact, last year's figure falls in the neighborhood of 1994, when about 64 percent of the population was covered, the nonprofit institute reported.

"We're pretty much where we were back then, and that gets lost when you hear the sky is falling, employers are dropping coverage, the system is vanishing before our eyes," said study author Paul Frontsin.

"Over the longer term, you don't really see that," he said.

Frontsin is the director of the institute's health research and education program. He used recently released U.S. Census Bureau numbers to compile his report. Census officials reported last month that the rate of employment-based insurance was falling, but Frontsin said their figures included people over age 65 who become eligible for Medicare.

The researcher pointed to Kaiser Family Foundation figures to explain last year's plateau. The foundation reported a 6.1 percent average increase in the cost of health insurance and a 3.7 percent wage increase.

He noted the increase in coverage costs was down from double-digit increases in recent years.

The percentage shared by 2006 and 2007 may fall soon. Rising unemployment rates and increased gas and food prices could contribute to a lower percentage of people covered by employment-based health benefits this year.

* Inventories at U.S. wholesalers piled up twice as fast as forecast in July, led by gains in stockpiles of automobiles, machinery and petroleum as sales fell.

The 1.4 percent gain in the value of stockpiles followed a revised increase of 0.9 percent in June, the Commerce Department said.

Sales dropped 0.3 percent, the most since February.

NATIONAL

Judge OKs $7.2 billion to be distributed in Enron settlement

A federal judge has approved a plan to distribute more than $7.2 billion recovered as part of a lawsuit by Enron Corp. shareholders and investors in connection with the company's collapse.

U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon also approved $688 million in attorneys' fees, the largest ever in a securities fraud case.

About 1.5 million individuals and entities will be eligible to share in the distribution under the settlement plan. The plan was part of a $40 billion lawsuit claiming financial institutions took part in the accounting fraud that led to Enron's downfall.

The $7.2 billion comes mostly from settlements made with such financial institutions as Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc.

JOB CUTS Reynolds American Inc. and its tobacco unit, R.J. Reynolds, said Tuesday they would cut about 570 jobs, or 10 percent of their American work force, as cigarette sellers prepare to compete more aggressively for sales of smokeless tobacco products.

The company expects the job cuts at its headquarters in Winston-Salem, N.C., to save $100 million by the end of 2010 and $55 million a year after that.

Employees will begin losing their jobs in the third quarter, but some cuts will take until the end of 2009.

FLIGHT CHANGES Continental Airlines said Tuesday that it will discontinue its flights to London/Gatwick Airport from the New York area and Houston, and will add a third daily flight from its New York hub at Newark Liberty International Airport to London's Heathrow Airport on Oct. 25.

MCDONALD'S Overseas consumers spent more at McDonald's Corp. in August, leading the nation's No. 1 hamburger chain to surprise investors by posting a big rise in global same-store sales on Tuesday.

The chain said its worldwide same-store sales, or sales at locations open at least a year, jumped 8.5 percent during the month. In the U.S., same-store sales rose 4.5 percent.

The rise in U.S. same-store sales fell short of the 6.7 percent jump in July and the 7.4 percent rise the company recorded last August.

LOCAL

Range Fuels, Ceres team up on cellulosic ethanol project

Broomfield-based Range Fuels Inc. said Tuesday it is collaborating with Ceres Inc. to explore the use of nonfood sources of bio mass in the commercial production of cellulosic ethanol.

Ceres is primarily focused on the development of annual and perennial grasses, such as high-biomass sorghum, switchgrass and miscanthus.

SMALL BUSINESS FAIR The U.S. Small Business Administration will hold a free Small Business Resource Fair and Expo from 10:15 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Sept. 17 at the downtown Denver Public Library, 10 W. 14th Ave. Parkway.

Commercial lenders, angel investors, business-assistance organizations, chambers of commerce and government agencies will offer counseling on starting, building and expanding a business. There will also be panel discussions on finding startup capital, choosing a lender or investor and winning government contracts. More information: 303- 844-2607, ext. 226

JANITORS STRIKE About 20 janitors staged a one-day strike at the Park Meadows mall. The Service Employees International Union went on strike Tuesday.

The union says the mall's cleaning contractor has been making it difficult for workers to organize. It says union supporters have been put under surveillance and workers have been told not to talk to union representatives.

A telephone message left for a company spokesman wasn't immediately returned. SEIU says the strike is one of 20 demonstrations planned at malls nationwide owned by Chicago-based General Growth Properties.

WIND FARM Duke Energy representatives say the company plans to build a 99-megawatt wind farm near Casper, Wyo. beginning early next year.

The Campbell Hill Windpower project - to be located about 15 miles northeast of Casper - will consist of 66 wind energy turbines, each generating 1.5 megawatts of electricity. A PacifiCorp spokesman said the power will go on the company's grid for use in Utah, Wyoming, Oregon, Idaho, Washington and Colorado.

FLUORESCENT LIGHT BULBS Xcel Energy said Tuesday its customers could purchase a compact fluorescent light bulb for $1 at participating stores of The Home Depot and Ace Hardware in Denver, Boulder and Grand Junction.

Special prices on 20 models of CFLs - single and multipacks - are available while supplies last, Xcel said.

* Gale T. Miller of Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP was selected as a Colorado Court of Appeals judge.

* William R. Roberts II was named president of the Denver Board of Realtors.

* The Department of Labor and Employment named Peggy Herbertson director of the Division of Employment and Training.

* RNL added Bradford Bull as a senior project manager and associate in the architecture studio, Omar Baghdadi as an urban designer, Ryan Knope as a 3D/graphic designer, Nathan Gulash as an architectural intern and Daniel Bloor as the network administrator.

* Karissa Stevens joined BONDI & Co. LLC as a senior accountant.

* Families First added Alice Edwards as development associate.

* Christopher J. Asmus joined Waddell & Reed as a financial adviser in the Denver Tech Center.

* The Denver office of Lockton Cos. LLC added Stephen L. Doherty to its Denver brokerage team as producer for all property and casualty lines.

* Rothgerber Johnson & Lyons LLP hired Chad S. Caby and Christopher D. Freeman as associates in the firm's Denver office.

* Citywide Banks donated more than $750 to the Food Bank of the Rockies' Kids Cafe.

* The Parents' Choice Foundation chose Boulder-based Kerpoof as a 2008 Parents' Choice Gold Award winner in its Web site category.

* Felsburg Holt & Ullevig promoted Thor Gjelsteen to principal.

* Prakash Bhatt and Jennifer Happel of US Bank in Denver received the US Bank Five Star Volunteer Award for exceptional volunteer service.

* The 2008 Bed & Breakfast Innkeepers of Colorado Conference will be held Nov. 9-10 at the Lake Shore Lodge in Estes Park. Information: InnsofColorado.org

* Inc. magazine ranked TouchStar as the 40th-fastest growing Telecommunications Company in America for 2008.

* The American Planning Association and the Colorado Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects 2008 Joint State Conference will be Sept. 10-13 at Beaver Run Resort in Breckenridge. Information: ccasla .org

* Vladimir Jones promoted Craig Rae to director of design.

* Trenka & Associates opened its second downtown location at 1625 Larimer St. in Denver.

* Greg Margheim and Kelly Sophinos joined The Kentwood Co. in Denver as broker associates.

* LeEtta Choi joined the Mark Cooper Team at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Greenwood Village as a broker associate.

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