Business in brief: Airport boardings up for month, quarter
Passenger traffic at Spokane International Airport rose in March, and during the first quarter of 2008.
The increase for March over the prior year was 6.3 percent based on 156,083 boardings. For the first quarter, traffic increased 8 percent based on 830,836 boardings.
Felts Field Airport activity declined 25.4 percent to 4,559 operations in March. The decline for the quarter was 8.29 percent based on 12,382 operations.
Freight operations slipped at both airports in March, but improved slightly for the quarter at Spokane Airport.
Freight and mail into Spokane Airport dropped 8.6 percent to 4,378.2 tons in March, which reduced growth for the quarter to 1.9 percent based on 13,383.7 tons. Freight operations at Felts tumbled 31 percent to 3.6 tons. The quarterly decline was 9.4 percent, with 13.6 tons landed.
ALBANY, N.Y.
Amazon to fight N.Y. over sales tax collection
Amazon.com is suing New York over a new law that requires out-of-state online companies to collect sales tax from shoppers in New York.
“We are challenging the constitutionality of the recently enacted legislation in New York,” Amazon spokeswoman Patricia Smith said.
Officials estimated the state would gain about $50 million by requiring Internet giants such as Amazon.com to collect state sales tax. New Yorkers, like residents of many states, are currently on an honor system to report their online spending when they file state tax returns.
The law applies to companies that don’t have a brick-and-mortar presence in New York but have at least one person in the state who works as an online agent – basically someone who links to a Web site and receives commissions for related sales.
Businesses with a physical presence in New York already collect the state sales tax on online purchases. The proposed law would apply to companies that have $10,000 or more in New York sales.
The suit argues the change unfairly targets Amazon, is overly broad and vague, and violates the commerce clause of the Constitution because it imposes tax-collection obligations on out-of-state entities. New York state has argued that the law closes a “tax loophole.”
LOS ANGELES
Countrywide rating falls over concern about debt
Credit-rating agency Standard & Poor’s on Friday cut Countrywide Financial Corp.’s rating to junk status, citing new concerns that Bank of America Corp. may not take on all of the troubled mortgage lender’s debt once its proposed takeover of Countrywide closes.
The service lowered Calabasas, Calif.-based Countrywide’s rating to “BB/B,” and slashed its rating on Countrywide’s banking arm, Countrywide Bank FSB, to “BBB/A-3.” The new ratings are below investment grade, which means many institutional investors will not be allowed to own its debt.
S&P also placed Countrywide on credit watch, meaning it may lower or raise the company’s ratings again in the near future.
The rating cuts came a day after Bank of America said in a regulatory filing there is no assurance it would redeem, assume or guarantee some $38.1 billion in debt on Countrywide’s books once it acquires the lender.
Los Angeles
Actors union eases DVD demand, sources say
The Screen Actors Guild, hoping to reach a deal with major Hollywood studios before the union’s contract expires next month, has scaled back its demands, two people familiar with contract talks said Friday.
The studios claimed the talks were being held up by a demand to double fees paid to actors for DVD sales – a move producers said would raise costs $500 million over three years.
SAG lowered its push to what would effectively be a 15 percent increase in those fees, said the people, who were not authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity.
The guild also reduced its demand for a 50 percent pay increase for guest stars on TV shows, both people said.
Friday’s developments represented a “hopeful sign” that a deal would be reached before the three-year contract covering theatrical movies and primetime TV shows expires June 30, said entertainment lawyer Jonathan Handel.