Briefcase: Boat show opens Saturday in CdA

Boat show opens Saturday in CdA

Hagadone Marine Group will open the doors Saturday for its newest boat event, the 15-day Coeur d’Alene Boat Show and Sales Event.

It runs through Feb. 5 at the Hagadone Marine Group showroom and its 11,000-square foot service center on Blackwell Island, near the Cedars Floating Restaurant.

The show will feature 75 boats, including 2012 designs.

Having the event on the island allows enthusiasts to schedule test drives before buying a boat, Marine Group General Manager Craig Brosenne said.

The show is free and open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Tom Sowa

Clif Bar foundation funds fellowships

A foundation started by the makers of Clif Bars will pay for two fellowships in organic plant breeding at Washington State University.

The fellowships will pay for five years of research by Ph.D. students under the direction of WSU professors Stephen Jones and Kevin Murphy.

Jones is known for his work with wheat farmers, millers and bakers to restore local grain economies. Murphy is breeding cover crops and heritage grains, such as quinoa and spelt.

Clif Bar Family Foundation, based in Emeryville, Calif., contributed $375,000 in grants for the fellowships.

Clif Bar & Co. was started in 2006. The energy bars are made of organic ingredients.

Becky Kramer

Foreclosure deal called ‘very close’

WASHINGTON – A $25 billion settlement between the nation’s major banks and U.S. states over deceptive foreclosure practices during the housing crisis is nearing completion.

Five major banks – Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citibank and Ally Financial (formerly GMAC) – and U.S. states are “very close,” Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan said Wednesday.

Under the deal, banks would pay states and the federal government, which would fund programs to compensate homeowners.

Talks have been dragging on for more than a year between major U.S. banks and state attorneys general over fraudulent foreclosure practices that drove millions of Americans from their homes during the housing crisis.

Individual states can opt out of the proposed deal.

Associated Press

Zappos, Amazon sued over hacker attack

LAS VEGAS – Online retailers Amazon.com and Zappos.com are being sued in Kentucky by a Texas woman alleging that she and millions of other customers were harmed by the release of personal account information.

Officials representing Zappos in Nevada and parent company Amazon in Seattle declined comment Wednesday on the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Louisville.

The lawsuit was filed Monday after Zappos chief executive Tony Hsieh alerted employees and customers by email Sunday that names, phone numbers and email addresses of the shoe retailer’s customers may have been accessed in a hacker attack. The company said customers’ credit card and payment information weren’t stolen.

Attorneys for plaintiff Theresa D. Stevens of Beaumont, Texas, are seeking class-action status on behalf of 24 million customers for what the lawsuit alleges was a violation of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Associated Press