Proper tax planning and good tax strategy will help reduce your current tax bill and gain a little more control over your financial destiny. While many people don’t think about their taxes until March or April, it’s a good idea to start now. The recently enacted 2010 Tax Relief Act gives 95 percent of working […]
A new year offer a time to reflect on the past year, but evaluating investment performance can be complicated. What questions should investors ask of their investment managers? A systematic evaluation clears up the misperception that it doesn’t matter how they invest the money. Money might not be earning what it should, particularly for the […]
It’s natural for small business owners and managers to take a moment to reflect on both the results of the past year and the prospects for the new year. For some owners, such reflection could cause a twinge of concern or perhaps even apprehension, especially if revenues are down and the business seems stale. Here […]
A new year has brought a renewed sense of confidence among consumers, in turn bolstering hope for a more robust economic recovery. The Conference Board reported that its Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) rose more than seven points in January to 60.6. That’s the highest level since the index hit 62.7 in May 2010. Measures of […]
The end of 2010 found the Mesa County labor market in the same place as when the year began: with the monthly unemployment rate in double digits. According to the latest estimates from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE), the unadjusted jobless rate rose four-tenths to 10.2 percent in December. That matches the […]
Mesa State College will host a conference designed to give participants a better understanding of federal legislative processes. Mesa State will join with U.S. Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., in hosting the 2011 Colorado Capitol Conference. “We’re very proud to partner with Colorado’s senior senator to continue this tradition,” said Mesa State President Tim Foster. “Giving […]
Colorado continues to fare well in an evaluation of state technology and science sectors and how well they attract companies and create jobs. Colorado ranked third behind Massachusetts and Maryland in the 2010 Milken Institute State Technology and Science Index. California ranked fourth in the index, followed by Utah, Washington, New Hampshire, Virginia, Connecticut and […]
Three seats on the Grand Junction City Council will be up for grabs in the upcoming election, but only one race will be contested. As of press time, John Ballagh, Jim Doody and Aarron Norris had submitted at least the 50 signatures of registered city voters required on a petition to run for council. All […]
Slow, but steady, economic growth is the buzz phrase on the national level. Tax reports from the City of Grand Junction and Mesa County indicate slow and steady could be the trend locally as well. The city reported a seventh straight month of year-to-year increases in its sales and use tax collections in December. The […]
The latest results of an ongoing analysis confirm the growing role of Mesa State College in the Western Colorado economy. According to an analysis for the 2009 and 2010 fiscal years, the Grand Junction-based college injected $176 million into the economy through student expenditures, capital construction, purchases and employee wages. Add the indirect effects of […]