Two key figures in an investigation of what prosecutors call a $2.5 billion Ponzi scheme pleaded guilty in federal court in Sacramento Tuesday, paving the way for them to cooperate in an ongoing probe involving a now-defunct Benicia solar company.

Ronald Roach, a certified public accountant for DC Solar Solutions, and Joseph Bayliss, an ...Read more

Just because someone uses an Amazon Alexa device doesn't mean they've entered into a contract with Amazon.

That's one finding in a proposed order by U.S. Magistrate Judge Michelle Peterson that would deny Amazon's attempt to force arbitration and dismiss a putative class action lawsuit. The suit, filed in federal court in Seattle in June, ...Read more

SAN DIEGO -- Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and the rest of the "Sesame Street" gang will be putting down new roots in Southern California in 2021: SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. plans to turn its Aquatica water slide venue in Chula Vista into a new Sesame Place theme park.

Orlando, Fla.-based SeaWorld and Sesame Workshop, the educational ...Read more

WASHINGTON -- Facebook is on pace to spend more on federal lobbying this year than ever before, according to public disclosures out this week, as the social media giant's CEO prepares to testify Wednesday on Capitol Hill.

The company -- at the center of debates over the spread of falseinformation, data privacy and others -- spent $12.3 million ...Read more

The streaming wars are coming to your mobile phone.

Verizon Communications Inc. will offer a free year of new streaming service Disney+ to its wireless unlimited customers, Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday.

The companies said new Verizon Fios home internet and 5G internet customers would also be eligible for a yearlong free subscription to ...Read more

On Sept. 22 Smaaash go-carts at Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., abruptly closed its doors. Based in India, the company has no other U.S. locations and left no forwarding information on how to contact it. That left Randy Kraemer of Rosemount, Minn., wondering if he had any recourse. "I'm sitting on a $100 gift card," he said. "How do I get...Read more

With recreational marijuana use about to become legal in Illinois Jan. 1, the National Safety Council is urging employers to forbid workers in safety sensitive jobs from using cannabis, even when they're off the clock.

The Itasca, Ill.-based nonprofit on Monday said it "believes there is no level of cannabis use that is safe or acceptable for ...Read more

Free two-day delivery was so 2018. This holiday season, it's shaping up to be about next-day delivery.

Best Buy is among the retailers who have been able to shave a day off delivery through modernizing their supply chains. The electronics giant plans to announce Tuesday that about 99% of its customers are now able to get free next-day delivery ...Read more

Bernie Sanders has joined fellow Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren in decrying Amazon's heavy spending on Seattle's pivotal City Council elections.

Amazon last week reported a record $1.05 million contribution to a political-action committee that's been paying door-to-door canvassers and buying advertisements to boost pro-...Read more

NEW YORK -- One nurse slept on the job. Another didn't show up at all. A third scalded a child so badly that her skin peeled.

Still another failed to check on a toddler who depended on a breathing tube. By the time the nurse returned, the child's hands and feet were purple.

The little girl was dead.

All of these incidents have something in ...Read more

After the release Friday of an instant message chat between two senior Boeing pilots, the jet maker faced skepticism when, two days later, it denied it had suppressed what seemed like early evidence that its 737 Max flight control system had "run rampant" during simulator testing in 2016.

But Boeing's defense stands up, according to three ...Read more

Q: I'm facing a job change and am thinking about my next step. In reflecting, I realize that I've never had a plan or vision for where I want to be and have just let chance guide me. How I should proceed?

-- Alex, 48, senior manager, communications

A: Many things go into a life, combining planned steps and serendipity. While most of us are not...Read more

Christine Heinz is a winner. She wins so much, she's sick and tired of winning.

Or at least she's sick and tired of the calls, letters and faxes she receives almost daily telling her she's won this or that sweepstakes.

"I suppose they think that because I'm a little old lady, I must be dumb," Van Nuys, Calif., resident Heinz, 79, told me the ...Read more

JPMorgan Chase & Co. is piloting an initiative in Chicago to hire people with criminal backgrounds and is throwing its weight behind public policy proposals aimed at giving ex-offenders a second chance.

The nation's largest bank by deposits has partnered with several Chicago nonprofits to mentor, train and recruit applicants who might otherwise...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Citing gasoline prices that are as much as 30 cents a gallon higher than those in other states, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday asked the state attorney general to investigate whether California's leading oil and gas suppliers are involved in price-fixing or other unfair practices.

"Simply stated, name-brand gas retail outlets...Read more

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg continued with his recent public openness campaign on Monday when he reiterated what he said was the social-media giant's commitment to free expression amid criticism about his company's role in political campaigns.

"I get that a lot of people are angry at us," Zuckerberg said in an interview with NBC ...Read more

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. -- SkyWater Technology Inc., the biggest maker of semiconductors in Minnesota, is adding a third clean room that will allow it to build smaller chips and ones designed for outer space.

Construction just started at the factory in Bloomington, just a few blocks from the Mall of America, on the addition. "It's exciting to be ...Read more