Bert Caldwell

New federal legislation will improve the competitive position of the nation's savings and loan institutions, Sterling Financial Corp. Senior Vice President Heidi Stanley said Wednesday. But there will be near-term pain, she said, as the thrifts take charges against their earnings to cover one-time payments into the fund that insures deposits.

Inland Power & Light Co. members will save an average $10 per month on their electricity bills starting Oct. 1, Assistant Manager Dave Clinton said Thursday. A 12 percent rate decrease - the first in decades - also will position the Spokane-based cooperative for the more competitive energy marketplace that lies ahead, he said.

Paul Andrews has been busy the past four years expanding and remodeling his home. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Restructuring at Qual-Med Health Plan could cut 30 jobs in Spokane, the executive director for Inland Northwest operations said Tuesday. Dave Anderson said Qual-Med, based in Pueblo, Colo., is still reviewing options that could affect operations in several states.

Teddie Howey received a $100 AT&T; check, but didn't change phone companies. Photo by Kristy MacDonald/The Spokesman-Review

While companies battle for long-distance customers, federal legislation may stifle competition for local telephone service in much of the Inland Northwest. If so, customers may not see the lower rates and other benefits the landmark telecommunications bill is supposed to nurture through deregulation.

Washington's small businesses are missing the boat on international trade, says one of the state's top trade officials. John Anderson, the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development's program director for Canada and Mexico, said too many people think free trade is only for multinational corporations.

Distance and steady profitability have insulated Spokane-based Olivetti North America from the woes besetting its Italian parent, Chairman Ted DeMerritt said Tuesday. But concerns about Olivetti SpA's mounting problems have increased, he said, and a previously arranged travel itinerary was expanded to include additional visits with customers.

Montgomery Ward, Tandy and two other retailers have agreed to pay fines and change their advertising to settle an investigation by 23 states into zero-interest loans the companies offer. Washington will receive $100,000 to pay legal fees and other costs stemming from yearlong negotiations that also involved Best Buy and CompUSA.

Group Health Northwest would become part of the nation's largest health-maintenance organization if talks disclosed Friday lead to a merger with Kaiser Permanente. But officials said a consolidation, should one occur, would not affect the care received by Group Health members.

Itron Inc. stock plunged Wednesday after the Spokane company said it likely will lose money in the third quarter. The price of a share fell $8 to $21 - a 28 percent drop - on volume of 827,000. That's 10 times the normal trading activity.

A new Washington Water Power Co. subsidiary received permission from federal authorities on Wednesday to buy and sell electricity anywhere in the United States. WWP Resource Services Inc. a name change is in the works - will be in business by the end of the year, said Alan Meyers, who is acting as temporary vice president.

Kathy Miktuk in front of a video she uses to recruit and inform local businesses about the Green Star program. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

South Korean Ambassador Kuh Woo Park, center, chats with Davenport Hotel Executive Director Jeffrey Ng, far right, and former Spokane Mayor Sheri Barnard, who now works for the Davenport. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Washington banks will soon be turning thumbs down on any non-customers who want to cash checks. Starting Sept. 16, U.S. Bank of Washington and KeyBank will require non-customers who submit checks for cashing to place their thumbprint on the back before receiving any money.

Brian McMahon likens his task to that of a quarterback who runs just one play - over and over and over. Boring? Maybe. But according to Morningstar Inc., the mutual fund rating service, McMahon's execution has produced 108 consecutive touchdowns.

Rumors to the contrary, there is no shortage of fuel or competition among suppliers in the Spokane market, Conoco's manager of supply and distribution for the West said Wednesday. Jennie Baker said Conoco and other companies that provide gasoline, diesel and other petroleum products to the Inland Northwest have increased deliveries by 12 percent in the last 18 months despite disruptions in the pipeline from Billings, Mont.

Shibli Bayyuk (left) and Bill Fuglevand are working on fuel cell development. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

Officials at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation say they expect to conclude negotiations by the end of the month with two consortiums that will take over cleanup of the site's leaky storage tanks. And like the contract awarded earlier this week for management of the reservation, the pending agreements would force the operators to perform or face withheld payments, said William Taylor, the director of the U.S. Department of Energy Waste Disposal Division at Hanford. The teams are led by Lockheed Martin and British Nuclear Fuel Ltd. Both include members with nuclear waste remediation experience.

Washington Trust Bank has received grants worth $182,411 to help finance two Spokane housing projects intended for low-income residents who are physically disabled or with a history of mental illness or substance abuse. The funds from the Federal Home Loan Bank in Seattle bring to $3 million the sum provided through its Affordable Housing Program to 30 projects around Washington so far in 1996. The larger of the grants - $97,411 - will reduce the principal due on a permanent loan for the recently-completed refurbishing of a former nursing home at 518 S. Browne.

Washington Water Power Co. and Sierra Pacific Resources parted company amicably last week, a month after WWP abruptly pulled the plug on their planned merger. WWP Chairman Paul Redmond and Sierra Chairman Walter Higgins signed a memorandum in which Sierra agreed WWP had the right to terminate the deal. In return, WWP sought and obtained the dismissal of a lawsuit it filed last month that asked a Spokane County Superior Court judge to make the same call.

Dennis Cutter moved to Spokane in 1971 to take over the Spokane Railway Credit Union. He's kept it going strong despite a downturn in the rail industry. Photo by Shawn Jacobson/The Spokesman-Review

The Bonneville Power Administration Wednesday announced 900 employees and contractors would be cut from its work force over the next three years. The reductions are expected to trim $70 million from the federal power-marketing agency's $2.4 billion budget, said spokesman Perry Gruber.

GTE customers could be choosing a new carrier for long-distance calls within Eastern Washington or North Idaho this fall if state regulators approve plans filed this spring. Customers can reach other carriers now, but only by dialing an access code. The simplified service is another result of legislation enacted earlier this year that allows providers of local telephone service to enter the long-distance market, and long-distance companies to enter local markets, said spokeswoman Melissa Barran.