The state Commerce Department’s annual update of county tier rankings of economic distress is out, and as always, there are a number of moves up and down the list. Two of the 18 tier changes struck us as particularly notable: Randolph County’s slide to Tier 1 (the 40 most-distressed counties) and Granville County’s rise to […]
North Carolina continues to leave money on the table by failing to get its child-care house in order, a new report from the N.C. Department of Commerce argues. Issued on Oct. 23, the “Empowering Work” report notes that the labor-force participation rate of “prime-age” parents of young children declined in 2023, to 77.5% versus a […]
For the western North Carolina business community, probably the most important element of the bill is a $50 million allocation for “small business recovery bridge loans.” That money will go through the N.C. Department of Commerce and the Golden LEAF Foundation, and facilitate loans of up to $100,000. These would have interest rates capped at […]
Gov. Roy Cooper has signed an executive order expanding the state’s weekly unemployment benefit by $250, to a maximum of $600 a week. Cooper said the move is a response to Hurricane Helene and the concerns he’s heard about job losses due to temporary storm-related business closures in Western North Carolina. The increase applies across […]
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