From The Panama Canal Oregon’s Economy Dependence on International Trade To Brookings Harbor
March 15, 2016 1
A few words from Greg: An outrageous political season may be the best time to begin a conversation about the Southern Oregon Business Journal. With a country in heated disagreement about political candidates and the direction of our country’s future it is hard to recognize the strength and hope of our economy and those most likely to skillfully handle the reigns of everything we will face in the future.
The good news is that our future is in very good hands. You and your neighbors are doing some amazing things. Our children accomplish things every day that my generation in the sixties would never believe possible. Publicity might be part of the problem, because the publicity of negative happenings makes the news long ahead of the good and encouraging. We hope to change that. Quietly and confidently people are creating, discovering and sharing ideas and inventions we may not even know we want or need. That person may be in the car in front of you. Maybe it’s you. There are six counties in the home region of the Southern Oregon Business Journal. By sharing the activities of entrepreneurs working from their garages, kitchens and laboratories we hope to encourage more involvement in start-up businesses and job creation while improving educational achievement and financial opportunities. We won’t do these things alone but we intend to be active participants in the effort. Information shared is exponentially more valuable than information hidden. When appropriate we will be spreading the news of accomplishments and discoveries happening all around us. The spirit and excitement of creating a business around hopes and dreams elevates attitudes and energy that can be infectious. The impact of activities around the world may have a profound effect on everyone in the reach of the Southern Oregon Business Journal. For that reason you will see articles about events from places all over
the planet. Please let your contacts know they can be subscribers of the journal by doing nothing more than providing their names and an e-mail address. The journal is free and issues are sent out on the first and fifteenth of every month. Thank you for being a part of this exciting new exchange of important information.
Greg Henderson, Publisher greg@southernoregonbusiness.com Southern Oregon Business Journal, 703 Divot Loop, Sutherlin, Oregon 97479
www.southernoregonbusiness.com
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In This Issue 1. Letter from Greg 2. Indemnification—State of Oregon 3. A Marketing Plan 4. End of LNG? Jordan Cove 5. Recommended Reading 6. Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights 7. 2016 Legislative review 8. Shipping changes impact the world
Southern Oregon Business Journal ADVERTISING SPACE AGREEMENT For inquiries: Attn: Email: Website:
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Materials Deadline: Two Weeks Prior To Publication Camera ready ads are preferred. Ads can be submitted as a hard copy, or electronically. All electronic photos should be formatted as a PDF or TIFF file format. 3
Indemnification Avoid or Reduce Liability or Risk Indemnification is a way to provide limited liability protection to the people whose role is to actively manage, operate or oversee a company. A structure such as a corporation or limited liability company provides the shareholders or owners with limited liability protection from debts that exceed their investment in the company. Because those limited liability protections may not automatically extend to people filling the roles of directors, officers, managers or employees, many companies choose to adopt an indemnification provision in the articles of incorporation or articles of organization as a way to shield them from liability. In many cases, the shareholders or owners are filling these roles and may benefit from the additional protections that an indemnification provision provides.
Barry Robinson General Manager barryr@ameri-title.com (541) 672-6651 Fax: (541) 672-5793
AmeriTitle is proud to announce the availability of ACH capabilities for both our Borrowers and Lenders. ACH payment handling will eliminate delays in mail and lost checks, this allows us to provide more efficient service to you.
1495 NW Garden Valley Blvd Roseburg, OR 97471
541-672-6651
http://sos.oregon.gov/business/Pages/ default.aspx 4
DOWN TO BUSINESS
Is a marketing plan different from a business plan and do I need both? By Arlene M. Soto CMA, Southwestern SBDC Director A marketing plan is a section of a business plan and in many ways even more important than a full business plan. The marketing plan for a company identifies: the target customers for products or services, branding, packaging, competition, competitive advantage, market trends, pricing strategy, a distribution model, sales potential and a promotion plan. Profitable sales are the heart of any business and a marketing plan gives direction to making those profitable sales possible. A business plan encompasses all aspects of operating a business, important for financing, but often time consuming to create. The first step in developing a marketing plan is market research, the collecting of data and analysis that will help determine how successful a business could be in the future. Market research may be primary, directly asking potential customers about their preferences; or secondary, looking at data available from other sources such as published surveys, books, magazines, industry associations, government agencies or the internet. The keys to effective market research are: it needs to be timely, based on valid assumptions, as comprehensive as possible and accessible at a reasonable price. Customers buy products and services because they have wants, needs, concerns or problems. Basic market research assumptions consist of the answers to these questions: (1) What do you plan to sell; (2) Who will be most interested in buying it; (3) How much or how often will customers buy; (4) What is a reasonable price point; (5) Where do you plan to sell; and (6) What other options are available to customers to alleviate their
want, need, concern or problem? Once the market potential has been determined, it’s time to look at the best ways to reach prospective customers. Keeping in mind the available budget for advertising, where would customers expect to hear about the business? Knowing the demographics of target customers helps. Where do they get information? How do they make buying decisions? The written marketing plan will incorporate all the research that’s been done into an action plan for reaching potential customers and creating a lasting impression in the minds of buyers. An excellent resource for writing a marketing plan is available at http:// www.missouribusiness.net/sbtdc/docs/ marketing.pdf. Market research assistance is available through the local Small Business Development Center office (find the nearest one at www.BizCenter.org). Still not sure where to start, advisors from the Small Business Development Center are available to provide direction and their help is free and confidential. The SBDC is a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Oregon Small Business Development Center Network, the Oregon Business Development Department and Southwestern Oregon Community College. Arlene M. Soto has been the Director of the Southwestern Small Business Development Center since July 2007. To ask a question call 541-756-6445, e-mail asoto@socc.edu, or write 2455 Maple Leaf, North Bend, OR 97459. Additional help is available at the OSBDCN Web page www.bizcenter.org.
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Jordan Cove Energy Project Denied Has the project reached an end?
How it started: Jordan Cove LNG has completed its pre-filing process with FERC and filed a complete FERC application May 2013.
Veresen Comments on FERC Decision to Deny Applications of Jordan Cove LNG and Pacific Connector CALGARY,
March 11,
ALBERTA--(Marketwired 2016) - Veresen Inc. ("Veresen")
(TSX:VSN) has received an order from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") denying the applications of Jordan Cove LNG and Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline ("Pacific Connector") seeking authorization for the construction and operation of a liquefied natural gas ("LNG") export terminal and natural gas pipeline. Specifically, the FERC stated that the public benefits of Pacific Connector do not outweigh the potential for adverse impacts on landowners and communities. "Clearly, we are extremely surprised and disappointed by the FERC decision," said Don Althoff, President and CEO of Veresen. "The FERC appears to be concerned that we have not yet demonstrated sufficient commercial support for the projects. We will continue to advance negotiations with customers to address this concern." Jordan Cove LNG and Pacific Connector will file a request for a rehearing of the decision. Jordan Cove LNG is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Veresen. Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline is owned equally by a subsidiary of Veresen and a subsidiary of The Williams Companies, Inc.
Jordan Cove Energy Project L.P. proposes to construct a liquefied natural gas export facility near North Bend, Oregon. The applicant proposes to construct the facility on 500 acres on the North Spit of the Coos River, at River Mile Seven. The facility would have the capacity to export up to six million metric tons of LNG per year. A companion natural gas pipeline project is proposed between the Jordan Cove facility and Malin in Klamath County. The 231mile, 36-inch diameter pipeline’s capacity would be up to one billion cubic feet of natural gas per day. The pipeline is proposed by Pacific Connector Gas Pipeline. Other elements of the project include construction of a power plant, a marine terminal, a regional emergency response center, temporary work force housing and related road and highway improvements.
As proposed, the project is expected to represent an investment of $7.5 billion, and would begin operating in 2019. If approved by local, state and federal agencies, the facility would employ approximately 2,000 workers during its four-year construction phase, and would permanently employ about 180 workers. DEQ must evaluate the proposed project elements to ensure that construction and operation complies with state and federal environmental laws. 6
Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World Amazon Author: Adam Grant Description: "Reading Originals made me feel like I was seated across from Adam Grant at a dinner party, as one of my favorite thinkers thrilled me with
“If you want to be rich, all you have to do is
his insights and his wonderfully new take on the
make a decision to do something that most peo-
world." — Malcolm Gladwell
ple don’t do,” writes David Bach, who became a
millionaire by age 30, in his book “The Automatic Source: Dave Lutz — head of ETF trading and
Millionaire.”
strategy at JonesTrading
That decision is to pay yourself first.
Mr. Lutz is credited with building Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE: SF) institutional ETF business. Prior
Thu, Jan 21, 2016
to heading that business he was head of Tech, Media, and Telecom trading, also at Stifel. He held the same position, with a focus on block trading, at Wells Fargo. He is a frequently contributor to major television, electronic, and print media. 7
What Are Patents, Trademarks, Servicemarks, and Copyrights?
anyone who invents or discovers any
Some people confuse patents, copyrights,
ment
and trademarks. Although there may be some
2) Design patents may be granted to
similarities among these kinds of intellectual
anyone who invents a new, original, and
property protection, they are different and
ornamental design for an article of man-
serve different purposes.
ufacture;
What is a Patent?
new and
useful process, machine,
article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvethereof;
and
3) Plant patents may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers and asex-
A patent for an invention is the grant of a
ually reproduces any distinct and new
property right to the inventor, issued by the
variety of plant.
United States Patent and Trademark Office. Generally, the term of a new patent is 20 years from the date on which the application for the patent was filed in the United States or, in special cases, from the date an earlier related application was filed, subject to the payment of maintenance fees. U.S. patent grants are effective only within the United States, U.S. territories, and U.S. possessions. Under certain circumstances, patent term extensions or adjustments may be available. The right conferred by the patent grant is, in the language of the statute and of the grant itself, “the right to exclude others from making,
What Is a Trademark or
using, offering for sale, or selling” the inven-
Servicemark?
tion in the United States or “importing” the in-
A trademark is a word, name, symbol, or de-
vention into the United States. What is grant-
vice that is used in trade with goods to indi-
ed is not the right to make, use, offer for sale,
cate the source of the goods and to distin-
sell or import, but the right to exclude others
guish them from the goods of others. A ser-
from making, using, offering for sale, selling or
vicemark is the same as a trademark except
importing the invention. Once a patent is is-
that it identifies and distinguishes the source
sued, the patentee must enforce the patent
of a service rather than a product. The terms
without aid of the USPTO.
“trademark” and “mark” are commonly used to
There are three types of patents:
refer to both trademarks and servicemarks.
1) Utility patents may be granted to
8
Trademark rights may be used to prevent others from using a confusingly similar mark,
but not to prevent others from making the same goods or from selling the same goods or
services under a clearly different
mark. Trademarks that are used in interstate or foreign commerce may be registered with the USPTO. The registration procedure for trademarks and
general information con-
cerning trademarks can be found in the separate book entitled “Basic Facts about Trade-
marks.�(http://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/ basics/Basic_Facts_Trademarks.jsp). What is a Copyright? Copyright is a form of protection provided to the authors of "original works of authorship" including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and
certain other intellectual works, both
published and unpublished. The 1976 Copyright Act
generally gives the owner of copy-
right the
exclusive right to reproduce the
copyrighted
work,
to
prepare
derivative
works, to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work, to perform the copyrighted work publicly, or to display the copyrighted work publicly. The copyright protects the form of expression rather than the subject matter of the writing. For example, a description of a machine could be copyrighted, but this would only prevent others from copying the description; it would not
prevent others from writing a
description of their own or from making and using the machine. Copyrights are registered by the Copyright
Congress.
Office of the Library of
Oregon Trails
The Association of Oregon Counties
Community & Economic Development
Below is a recap of the bills the Community and Economic Development Steering Committee weighed in on during the 2016 Legislative session:
HB 4020: Higher Ed/Innovation/Workforce Provides that the Oregon Growth Board, in accordance with rules adopted by the board, may require that a management company or state agency under contract with board invest a certain amount in Oregon. AOC Position: NONE. Passed House 59-0-1, Passed Senate 29-0-1.
HB 4079: Affordable Housing Pilot Program for Local Governments Directs the Land Conservation and Development Commission to establish a pilot program in which local governments may site and develop affordable housing. AOC Position: NEUTRAL. Passed House 31-25-4, Passed Senate 16-11-3. HB 4081: Low-income Housing Property Tax Exemption Extension Extends to 2022 the sunset of the exemption from ad valorem property taxation for property of a non-profit corporation that, for tax year beginning on July 1, 2012, was actually offered, occupied or used as low-income housing and granted exemption by the county. AOC Position: NEUTRAL: Passed House 59-0-1, Passed Senate 29-0-1. HB 4084: Brownfields Property Tax Incentive Programs Authorizes certain local governments to adopt an ordinance or resolution providing property tax incentive programs that grant special assessment to brownfields or exemption to new and existing improvements and personal property on brownfields for a period of up to 10 years, with an additional period of up to five years based on locally adopted criteria. Caps the dollar amount of benefits at specified eligible costs for property. AOC Position: SUPPORT. Passed House 58-0-2, Passed Senate 29-0-1. HB 4143: Tenants' Rights Bill This tenants' rights bill requires notice of rent increase (week to week tenancy = 7 days written notice; month to month = no increase during 1st year, 90 days notice after 1st year). AOC Position: SUPPORT.Passed House 48-11 9 -1, Passed Senate 16-9-5.
tion equal 75 percent or more of the total SB
1533:
Inclusionary
Zoning
combined rate of taxation. Requires the ex-
Permits certain cities and counties to adopt
emption to be granted to all eligible industrial
land use regulations or functional plan provisions, or impose conditions for approval of permits, that effectively establish sales or rental price, or require designation for sale or rent as affordable housing, for up to 20 percent of multifamily structure in exchange for one or more developer incentives. Allows cities or counties to impose a construction tax to pay for incentives. AOC Position: SUPPORT. Passed Senate 20-8-2, Passed House 39-21. improvements on the same terms in effect on SB
1547:
Clean
Energy
the date the application is submitted. Prohib-
The clean energy bill includes an AOC/CREA
its stacking of exemptions or special assess-
amendment, changing the eight percent goal
ments other than exemption for commercial
in the RPS for small-scale, community-based
facilities under construction. If the application
renewable energy projects in Oregon to a re-
for exemption is otherwise eligible for approv-
quirement. See Info Sheet. AOC Position:
al, requires city or county and applicant to
SUPPORT W/ AMENDMENTS.
Passed
agree to the conditions related to hiring and
House 38-20-2, Passed Senate 17-12-1.
employment and other reasonable conditions related to economic development established
SB 1565: Property Tax Exemption or Deferral
by the city or county. AOC Position: SUP-
for
PORT w/AMENDMENTS.
Industrial
Construction/Improvements
Authorizes a city or county to adopt an ex-
27-0-3,
Passed
Passed Senate
House
56-2-2.
emption for newly constructed or installed industrial improvements with a location in a
SB 1582: Affordable Housing for Low-
rural area and that have a cost of initial in-
income
vestment of at least $1 million and not more
Directs the Housing and Community Services
than $25 million. Provides the exemption
Department to develop and implement the
shall be granted as 100 percent exemption
Local Innovation and Fast Track Housing
for any three of five consecutive years unless
Program to expand the state's supply of af-
city or county adopts other terms. Provides
fordable housing for low-income individuals
that the ordinance or resolution granting the
or families. Provides guidance to OHCS on
exemption may not take effect unless the
how to spend the $40 million allocated in
rates of taxation of the taxing districts whose
2015. AOC Position: SUPPORT. Passed
governing bodies agree to grant the exemp-
Senate 21-7-2, Passed House 46-13-1.
Individuals
or
Families
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2016 Legislative Session—Continued
HB 4146: Transient Lodging Tax Increases the state transient lodging tax rate to 1.8 percent for four years and then to 1.5 percent thereafter. Requires the Oregon Tourism Commission to spend 15 percent of the state transient lodging tax revenues rather than the current "as much as 15 percent" to implement regional cooperative tourism program. Broadens the type of programs for which appropriated state transient lodging tax moneys may be spent from "tourism marketing programs" to "tourism programs." AOC Position: NONE. Passed Senate 18-12, Passed House 38-22 SB 1506: Tax Exemption for Food Processing Equipment Changes the minimum expenditure requirement for property tax exemption of qualified machinery and equipment used to process grains or bakery products from $100,000 of real market value when placed in service to $100,000 of total cost of initial investment to food processor. AOC Position: NONE. Passed Senate 29-0-1, Passed House 59-01. For more information contact Mary Stern, AOC community and economic development policy manager.
1201 Court St NE, Suite 300, Salem OR, 97301 Phone: (503) 585-8351 Email: info@oregoncounties.org
Panama Canal expansion, Port of Portland loss of shipping contract and the extreme investments in port upgrades in Tacoma, Los Angeles, and East Coast ports will change the way ports in Oregon will concentrate efforts to keep the traffic flowing. High debt levels at Hanjin Shipping and Hyundai Merchant Marine will make it difficult for the South Korean container lines to take advantage of their government’s new S1.2 billion fund to assist the country’s struggling shipping and shipbuilding companies. The fund is available only to companies with debt-to-equity ratios below 400 percent. Hanjin’s debt ratio was 687 percent as of Sept. 30. Hyundai Merchant Marine’s was almost 980
percent. As of Sept. 30, Hanjin had total debt of 7.23 trillion won ($6.15 billion) and equity of just over 1.05 trillion won. HMM hads total debt was 6.31 Southern Oregon Business Journal 703 Divot Loop Sutherlin, Oregon 97479 www.southernoregonbusiness.com greg@southernoregonbusiness.com 541-315-6127
trillion won and equity of just over 644.45 billion won . Oregon will address these changes with many thoughts in mind. World wide shipping has tak-
en on an entirely different role than before.
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