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LA faces $1 billion budget hole, warns of thousands of layoffs

Business / Business News /

Los Angeles is facing a projected deficit of nearly $1 billion in the next fiscal year as the city grapples with the aftermath of historic wildfires and a deep decline in revenue.

A key budget official painted a grim picture of the city’s finances at a council meeting on Wednesday. Warnings included the possibility of thousands of layoffs ...Read more

Daniel Mears/The Detroit News/TNS

Stellantis offers UAW workers in Detroit, Toledo buyouts. Here's how much they're worth

Business / Business News /

Stellantis NV has offered hourly employees across multiple Detroit and Toledo-area facilities buyouts worth $50,000 or more, the latest move by the automaker as it seeks to reduce costs and streamline its workforce in the United States.

The voluntary termination of employment program, or VTEP, applies to certain United Auto Workers-represented ...Read more

Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Their corporate landlord kicked them out to fix their flooding home, suit says. Instead, it was sold

Business / Business News /

LOS ANGELES — Cody Recker and Jessica Perez loved their Boyle Heights rental — warts and all. Lots of warts.

The plumbing broke, spraying raw sewage puddles on the floor. The floor and foundation were falling apart, inviting hordes of mice and fleas. The basement flooded 14 times, and there were so many leaks in the attic that mushrooms ...Read more

Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

Disney's Bob Iger announces 'Coco' sequel at shareholder meeting

Business / Business News /

The Walt Disney Co. took a victory lap at its annual shareholders meeting Thursday, promoting its theatrical and series successes released this past year while touting investments in its parks division and announcing a sequel to the 2017 animated Pixar hit "Coco."

The upbeat tone of the online meeting was a far cry from last year's tension-...Read more

Newsroom Public Relations/TNS

Their son died after a Magic Mountain roller-coaster ride. Now they're suing

Business / Business News /

A popular ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain caused a severe head injury that killed a 22-year-old, according to a lawsuit filed by a Garden Grove, California, family.

The fatality occurred June 23, 2022, after Christopher Hawley rode the X2 roller coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, California. He was in a row by himself with his ...Read more

Real estate Q&A: Is it a good idea to buy a starter home with my boyfriend?

Business / Business News /

Q: My boyfriend and I want to move in together but cannot find an affordable rental that allows pets. With interest rates and prices inching down, we are thinking about buying a starter home. We both have good jobs and strong credit. My mom reads your column and suggested I ask if this is a good idea. Thanks! —Rita

A: I cannot say if it is a ...Read more

TOM GRALISH/The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

Philadelphia usually only inspects rental homes if someone complains. The city may soon start doing proactive checks

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Philadelphia is looking into proactively inspecting rental homes for safety and health instead of relying on tenants’ complaints to trigger inspections, according to a city official who testified at a City Council hearing Tuesday.

The Department of Licenses and Inspections has started working with the Pew Charitable Trusts to conduct research...Read more

Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel/TNS

'Yellowstone' in the Everglades? A day on the South Florida farm that's building a ranch-to-restaurant empire

Business / Business News /

OKEECHOBEE, Florida — At daybreak on a misty-blue Wednesday, a herd of cows and bulls are horseplaying on a South Florida prairie when a tractor roars to life, hoisting in its jaws a hay bale as golden as the sun. Curious copper-red cows crook their heads toward the noise.

It’s ear-tagging and DNA tissue-sampling day at Rancher’s Reserve ...Read more

Yuri Gripas/Abaca Press/TNS

Trump calls for lower interest rates after Fed holds them steady with tariffs looming

Business / Business News /

President Trump is calling for lower interest rates after the Federal Reserve announced it would hold them steady amid uncertainty over his plans for tariffs on imported goods.

Rejecting the traditional independence of the central bank, Trump Thursday called on the Fed to “do the right thing” and lower borrowing costs to keep the economy ...Read more

David McNew/Getty Images North America/TNS

Mattel to lay off 120 workers in latest cost-cutting move

Business / Business News /

Mattel, the toymaker behind Barbie and Hot Wheels, is laying off 120 workers from its El Segundo headquarters, according to a notice provided to state and local officials.

The toy and entertainment company is cutting various roles including in marketing, design and information technology. Some of the employees held positions as managers, ...Read more

Theo Wargo/Getty Images North America/TNS

Sean Hannity promotes new Tesla as 'greatest car ever invented'

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Fox News host Sean Hannity joined President Trump in throwing his support behind Republican mega-donor Elon Musk’s embattled electric vehicle company.

The veteran TV personality hosted Musk for an interview Tuesday night, when he heaped praise on Tesla — much to the liking of the automaker’s polarizing CEO. Hannity started by stating he ...Read more

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images North America/TNS

Boeing blamed for whistleblower's death in new lawsuit

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The family of John “Mitch” Barnett, a Boeing whistleblower whose death last year brought fresh attention to the company’s persistent struggles with quality, filed a wrongful-death lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, blaming the aerospace company for Barnett’s suicide.

Barnett was found March 9, 2024,...Read more

Anker/Anker/TNS

Tech review: New Anker laptop chargers bring small size but plenty of power

Business / Business News /

As device charging becomes more important to our daily lives, I’m drawn to better and smarter chargers.

When I leave town, I’m usually carrying a laptop, my phone, an iPad and my watch. Now add my wife’s laptop and phone and her Fitbit and we have a serious nightly charging requirement.

I’m the kind of person who puts together a ...Read more

Nuccio DiNuzzo/Chicago Tribune/TNS

Chicago Public Media's cost-cutting buyout reduces Sun-Times staff by 20%

Business / Business News /

The Chicago Sun-Times, which bills itself as the hardest-working newspaper in America, may have to work even harder after more than a fifth of its staffers took a buyout, heading off potential layoffs in a sweeping cost-cutting initiative by Chicago Public Media.

Thirty Sun-Times employees, including 23 reporters and editors, will be ...Read more

Kevin Clark/The Seattle Times/TNS

Danny Westneat: Here's a 'dead' person on Social Security in Seattle, with plenty to say

Business / Business News /

“DOGE Has 10 Staffers at Social Security in Hunt for Dead People,” the headlines read this past week.

I found a dead person on Social Security. Right here in Seattle, on Capitol Hill.

Of course the circumstances of Ned Johnson’s death were completely the opposite of what Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency had claimed ...Read more

Ken Wolter/Dreamstime/TNS

General Mills aims to cut $100M in costs to weather bleak economic outlook

Business / Business News /

Consumers aren’t turning to comfort foods like Lucky Charms or Chex Mix to quell their economic anxieties, forcing General Mills to enter cost-cutting mode.

“Our imperative is to get back to growth,” CEO Jeff Harmening said. “It’s very clear to us we have an opportunity to improve the way we go about our business and become more ...Read more

Glen Stubbe/Minnesota Star Tribune/TNS

Medtronic recalls aneurysm-treating devices linked to four deaths

Business / Business News /

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday announced a Class 1 recall — the most serious level — affecting more than 26,000 Medtronic devices used to treat brain aneurysms. The recall comes after four reported deaths and 17 injuries.

The recall affects two versions of the device. For its Pipeline Vantage 021 models, Medtronic is ...Read more

Madeline Carter/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS

Here's how to claim up to $75 in the MGM data breach settlement

Business / Business News /

MGM Resorts International customers who believe their personal information was exposed in two data breaches that occurred in July 2019 and September 2023 have until June 3 to submit a claim form through a class-action lawsuit.

U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro, in January, preliminarily approved a $45 million settlement in a lawsuit brought ...Read more

NATHANIEL LEVINE/The Sacramento Bee/TNS

Tesla granted taxi permit in California amid protests, vandalism

Business / Business News /

Tesla was granted a permit in California allowing it to operate its own fleet of taxis driven by company employees, state officials said, the first in a step toward autonomous Tesla taxis.

Approved by the California Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday, its new transporter charter-party carrier, or TCP permit, only allows it to use company-...Read more

Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Fed holds rates, sees slower growth and higher inflation

Business / Business News /

Federal Reserve officials held their benchmark interest rate steady for a second straight meeting, though they telegraphed expectations for slower economic growth and higher inflation.

The Federal Open Market Committee voted on Wednesday to keep the benchmark federal funds rate in a range of 4.25%-4.5%, and said it would further slow the pace ...Read more