John Edwards Blog

U.S. home prices are expected to drop by 7.8%, down from the last quarter’s 9.1% expectation, according to the latest sustainable home price projection from Fitch Ratings.

However, with steady economic growth, and inflation running close to 3% annually, Fitch believes that home prices will bottom by the end of 2013 and begin a slow recovery.

The economy continues to grow with economic indicators on a positive trajectory and pointing to a recovery. But struggles remain. High unemployment, a declining labor force, stagnant wages, and a large delinquent inventory across many parts of the country are slowing the recovery’s momentum.

Regionally, the drastic declines of the last few years seem to be ending in Arizona and Michigan.

Arizona posted small quarterly gains for the first time in over two years, and Michigan is stabilizing.

In contrast, prices are beginning to fall in the Northeast. For example, with the inventory backlog beginning to liquidate, New Jersey and New York City have dropped 10% and 7% over the past five quarters, with further declines expected.

A state that has flown mostly under the radar during the crisis is Georgia.

Second only to a Michigan in real home price declines, Georgia prices are now 32% lower than their 2000 levels.

Fitch’s analysis reveals two distinct housing markets in the Atlanta area: central city and affluent northern suburbs that have largely held values and a collapsing housing economy across the city’s south. Absent a fully recovering economy, Fitch expects continued performance differences between the strong and weak areas of Georgia.

Fitch’s latest report, ‘U.S. RMBS Q42011 Sustainable Home Price Projection, is available at ‘www.fitchratings.com’

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In April, Nevada’s unemployment rate fell below 12 percent for the first time in nearly three years.

The unemployment rate declined for the eighth consecutive month, with a fall from 12 percent in March to 11.7 percent in April.

The jobless rate is down from a peak of 14 percent reached in October 2010, and the number of unemployed Nevadans has fallen from 193,600 to 158,600 over the period.

Unemployment in the Las Vegas area, where most of the state’s population is concentrated, came in slightly lower at 11.6 percent for April, compared with 13.6 percent a year ago and 12 per in March 2012.

The job growth rate registered at 0.6 percent in Las Vegas for April, up from 0.2 percent a year ago and slightly above the 0.5 percent for March this year.

“Nevada has recorded year-over-year private sector job gains every month since early 2011, a clear sign that we are slowly but steadily working our way toward a stronger economy,” said Governor Brian Sandoval said in a statement.

“We will continue to push for job growth in our economy, especially in key economic sectors to ensure the unemployment rate continues to decline,” Sandoval said.

New job growth in Nevada is being driven by the private sector, which has added employment in every month since January 2011.

So far this year, private sector job levels are trending about 13,800 higher than a year ago. That is on top of approximately 12,000 new jobs added in 2011.

Those improvements are being partially offset by declines in the public sector, which has lost 6,400 jobs since January 2011.

The unemployment rate in each of the state’s three metropolitan areas moved below 12 percent and reached levels not seen in nearly three years.

In the Reno-Sparks area, unemployment declined by six-tenths to 11.4 percent in April.

In the Capital region, the unemployment rate fell six-tenths to 11.8 percent in April, down from 12.4 percent in March.

In the Elko and Eureka counties, the unemployment rate dipped three-tenths to 6.3 percent. The rate is 5.2 percentage points lower than the statewide average and 1.4 points lower than the national average, 7.7 percent.

“Much has been made of late about the underlying reasons behind the downtrend in the unemployment rate,” said Bill Anderson, chief economist for the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

“While job growth has been positive of late, contributing to the drop in the jobless rate, there are some structural forces at play, as well” Anderson said.  Specifically, the labor force participation rate has been trending down both at the state and national level for many years.”

At the beginning of the recession, about 66 percent of the U.S. population was in the labor force (either employed or unemployed).

As of April, the LFPR was just 63.6 percent, suggesting individuals (presumably without a job) are dropping out of the labor force and are not counted amongst the unemployed.

In Nevada, the labor force participation rate has been trending down since the early 1980’s, after reaching a peak of 73.7 percent.

The current LFPR stands at 64.9 percent, down from 67.8 since the start of the recession. While recent declines in the LFPR can be attributed to a poor job market, longer term trends point to changes in the structure of the economy and demographics of the population.

Seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment in Nevada fell by 600 from March to April. Private-sector employment grew by 200 in April, but government employment fell by 800.

Over the last year, private sector employment increased by 10,500 jobs. However, these gains were offset by a decrease in government employment of 5,100.

April’s lackluster jobs report comes on the heels of a strong report in March, which was revised up by 2,700 jobs, pushing that month’s gain from 5,000 to 7,700.

Results were mixed for Nevada’s major industry sectors. Mining employment rose by 100 in April and set a new series peak dating back to 1990.

The trade, transportation and utilities sector added 2,900 jobs, with a strong showing from retail trade (+1,600), transportation/warehousing/utilities (+1,100); and an increase of 200 jobs in wholesale trade. Education and health services added 1,200 jobs in April — most of it coming from the health care and social assistance sub-sector which added 1,100 jobs.

Even with the increase, the health care and social assistance employment level is still below the peak set in October 2011.

“On the down side, a number of industries shed employment in April. Construction (-900) continued to trend down, setting a new post-boom low,” Anderson said.

Employment in professional and business services was down by 2,000 in April.

Within the sector, administrative, waste management and remediation services lost 2,100 jobs.

Although employment in accommodation and food services fell by 1,400 in April, it has gained 7,800 jobs over the last year (a gain of 2.7 percent).

Government employers cut employment by 800 jobs over-the-month. Federal government employment was unchanged, and state government employment decreased slightly (-200).

Most of the losses occurred in local government (-600). Local government employment has steadily decreased, losing 4,200 jobs in the last year and is currently at levels not seen since October 2005.

Employment levels in two of Nevada’s metropolitan areas increased over-the-month, with Las Vegas adding 400 jobs and Reno adding 500.

Carson City lost 200 jobs and employment is down 3.5 percent from a year ago. Reno employment is also down from a year ago, with 900 fewer jobs than in April of 2011 (a decrease of 0.5 percent). Las Vegas has added 4,600 jobs since April of 2011 for a year-over-year growth rate of 0.6 percent.

Along with a growing labor market, measures of wages paid to employees continue to trend positive.

The 12 month average of hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by six cents, to $19.56. Average hourly earnings have increased by $0.70 since April 2011, an increase of 3.6 percent.

Additionally, contribution reports from employers enrolled in Nevada’s unemployment insurance program show moderate growth in covered wages. After declining in both 2009 and 2010, average weekly wages have rebounded of late. Wages in 2011 were up 1.3 percent from a year ago ($829 vs. $818), despite some weakness in the fourth quarter.

Total personal income in Nevada has increased on an over-the-year basis for seven straight quarters, despite a fall in transfer payments.

Transfer payments as a share of personal income rose markedly during the recession, driven by increases in unemployment insurance benefits, and peaked at 16.6 percent in the final quarter of 2010. Since then, the level of transfer payments as a part of personal income has trended down and currently stands at 15.6 percent of the total.

Go to http://www.nevadaworkforce.com for more information from the state.

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Buying a bank certificate of deposit is about as easy as falling out of bed, but the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. offers consumer advice in a new article posted today.

To learn more about the nuances of CDs, read on.

A bank CD typically offers a higher rate of interest than a regular savings account in exchange for you keeping the money on deposit for, say, three months to five years or more.

Whether you are considering buying a simple, fixed-rate CD or one with more complex features, either directly from a bank or indirectly from a non-bank broker, here are tips for selecting the right CD for your needs.

Make sure you are purchasing a “deposit” product issued by a federally insured institution.

Not all companies with bank-sounding names are actually banks that are insured by the FDIC. To verify that an institution is FDIC-insured, click on “Find Your Bank” at www.fdic.gov or contact the FDIC’s toll-free Call Center at 1-877-275-3342.

If you purchase a CD from a third-party broker instead of directly from the bank, you will have to rely on the broker to make your deposit and acquire the CD.

“Remember that the FDIC does not license or register deposit brokers and that an unscrupulous broker could mislead or defraud its customers,” explained Martin Becker, an FDIC Senior Deposit Insurance Specialist.

“If the broker fails to place your funds into a CD at an FDIC-insured bank, your money will not be insured by the FDIC. Also, be sure to review the account agreement and other supporting documentation to confirm you are in fact purchasing a CD and not a financial product that is not insured by the FDIC.”

If you purchase a CD issued by an institution where you already have deposits, make sure that all of your funds are insured.

“If the new CD combined with your existing deposits at the same bank would put your total bank deposits above the $250,000 FDIC basic insurance limit, you may need to take steps to make sure all of your deposits are fully protected,” explained Jan Templeman, an FDIC Consumer Affairs Specialist.

If you have more than $250,000 on deposit at a FDIC-insured bank you can call the FDIC toll-free at 1-877-275-3342 and speak to a deposit insurance specialist who will help to make sure you are fully insured. You can also use the FDIC’s online deposit insurance estimator “EDIE” at www.fdic.gov to verify your deposit insurance coverage.

Know what the contract says about your interest payments.

Some banks are offering CDs with variable interest rates based on a pre-set schedule or tied to the performance of a basket of market indexes (such as the S&P 500, bonds or foreign currency).

Many market-linked CDs accrue interest only when the CD matures, not every day or every month.

To learn more about the potential benefits and risks of market-linked CDs (also known as indexed or structured CDs), see Market-Linked CDs: Don’t Let the Possibility of Higher Returns Cloud Your View of the Potential Risks.

Be suspicious if the advertised CD rate is far above the competition.

The product may be offered by a company that is not federally insured, in which case any money invested could be lost if the firm goes bankrupt.

There is also a common marketing ploy to lure customers with a temporary high CD rate with the goal of eventually selling them something else.

“A very high interest rate advertised on an FDIC-insured bank CD could be a scheme created when a finance company or an insurance agent adds a small bonus to the CD to lure people in the door and, sooner or later, tries to sell the customers uninsured, long-term investments that may not be in their best interest,” advised Richard M. Schwartz, an FDIC attorney.

Find out if the CD would automatically renew at the maturity date if you don’t withdraw the money.

If that is the case, check to see if the automatic renewal will be at the “old” interest rate or the current rate at the time of the renewal. If market rates have risen, it may not be to your benefit to renew at the old rate.

Determine whether you can terminate the CD early.

The terms of most fixed-rate CDs will allow the depositor to pay a fee to redeem the deposit prior to maturity.

However, most market-linked CDs do not allow for an early redemption. Also be aware that market-linked and other long-term, high-yield CDs typically have “call” features that give the bank the right to close the account early.

A callable, fixed-rate CD could undermine your ability to lock in an attractive, long-term interest rate. Why? If interest rates fall, the issuing bank may decide to call the CD and give you back your money (plus accrued interest) because it can issue new CDs at the lower interest rates.

For additional guidance, see For More Help or Information Regarding CDs.

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The Las Vegas labor market has grown worse over the last 12 months by one measure.

The Las Vegas metropolitan area ranked 10th nationally with 2,139 workers seeking unemployment benefits in the first quarter because of mass layoffs, according to data released May 16 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor.

That contrasts with the same quarter last year when the Las Vegas area was 64th among metropolitan areas with 566 workers seeking unemployment compensation because of mass layoffs,

Out of 372 metropolitan areas, Los Angeles led with 24,286 workers seeking unemployment in this year’s first quarter because of mass layoffs.

New York came next, followed by Chicago, San Francisco, Riverside, Calif., San Diego, Philadelphia, Detroit, Sacramento and Las Vegas.

Among the states, Nevada experienced 20 mass layoffs during the first quarter, down from 34 in the fourth quarter of last year but up from 5 in the first quarter of the prior year.

The government counted 2,641 worker separations in the Nevada mass layoffs in the first quarter of the current year, up dramatically from the 1,650 workers in mass layoffs in the first quarter last year. The current total, however, dropped from 6,546 workers involved in mass layoffs in the last three months of 2011.

The bureau defines mass layoffs as events involving 50 or more workers and lasting 31 days or longer.

Nationally,  employers in the private nonfarm sector initiated 1,077 mass layoff events in the first quarter of 2012, the lowest first-quarter levels since 2006. The manufacturing sector nationally posted its lowest number of first-quarter mass layoff events and separations since data collection began in 1995.

The bureau reported that mass layoffs that resulted in the separation of 182,101 workers from their jobs, down from 225,456 a year ago. The 1,077 mass layoffs during the first three months of this year is well below the 1,490 in the same period last year.

Over the year ending in the first quarter of 2012, the number of private nonfarm extended mass layoff events declined in 16 of the 18 major industry sectors. The manufacturing and the construction sectors experienced the largest declines in the numbers of worker separations over the year.

Fourteen of the 21 manufacturing subsectors experienced over-the-year decreases in the number of layoff events.

Events and separations in the manufacturing sector declined to their lowest levels in program history (210 and 28,393, respectively).

Business demand factors, primarily contract completion, accounted for 39 percent of the events and 44 percent of related separations in the private nonfarm sector during the first quarter of 2012, the bureau said.

Layoffs due to the completion of seasonal work accounted for 28 percent of extended mass layoff events and 24 percent of related separations during the quarter.

In the first quarter of 2012, 29 extended mass layoffs involved movement of work and were associated with 3,726 worker separations, a program low for both figures. Sixty-two percent of the events related to movement of work were from manufacturing industries.

Employers cited organizational changes as the economic reason for layoff in 52 percent of the events involving movement of work.

Among workers affected by the movement of work, the largest proportions were in the West.

Forty-nine percent of the private nonfarm employers reporting an extended mass layoff in the first quarter of 2012 indicated they anticipated some type of recall.

Of those employers expecting to recall workers, 22 percent indicated the offer would be extended to all displaced employees and 64 percent anticipated extending the offer to at least half of the workers.

Among employers expecting to recall laidoff workers, 57 percent intend to do so within six months.

Excluding extended mass layoff events due to seasonal work and vacation period, in which 86 percent of the employers expected a recall, employers anticipated recalling laid-off workers in 35 percent of the events.

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SACRAMENTO – Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. released a revised state budget today that protects funding for education and public safety while slashing $8.3 billion from government to close a $15.7 billion deficit and get California back on track.

“This budget reflects the fact that the nation’s economic recovery is proceeding more slowly than anticipated,” said Governor Brown. “Lower tax revenues, coupled with federal government obstructions that blocked billions in necessary cuts, have created a deeper budget hole. More painful reductions will be necessary as a result, but education and public safety must be protected.”

The revised May budget slashes spending in almost every part of government, but proposes a 16 percent increase in funding for K-12 education, subject to voter approval.

It also continues funding to local governments that are implementing public safety realignment, and proposes legislation to create a permanent funding structure so that local governments will have a reliable funding source into the future.

“We can’t balance the budget with cuts alone; that would just further undermine our public schools,” said Governor Brown. “The budget I am proposing will boost funding for education, protect public safety and prevent an even deeper round of trigger cuts.”

To achieve this goal, Governor Brown has placed an initiative on the November ballot that will increase money for schools and provide constitutional protection for public safety funding. The measure will enact temporary income tax increases on high-income earners. It will raise income taxes by up to three percent on the wealthiest Californians for seven years and will also increase the state sales tax by one quarter of one percent for four years.

Governor Brown’s measure works with the framework of the state budget, so it will increase funding for schools and protect public safety funding while also stemming cuts to other critical safety net programs.

“My proposal is modest, fair and temporary,” said Governor Brown. “It won’t solve all of the state’s problems, but it will help dig us out of a deep hole and protect our schools until the recovery is complete.”

The May Revision proposes cuts far deeper than those in the January budget. It increases cuts by $4.1 billion, bringing total cuts to state employee compensation, welfare, health care, higher education, courts, and other critical government programs to $8.3 billion.

If the Governor’s tax initiative does not pass in November, $6 billion in additional cuts will go into effect on January 1.

“I don’t like making additional cuts, and I recognize the impact they have on Californians. They are difficult – but necessary – in order to get us back on firm fiscal footing until California fully recovers from the global economic recession,” said Governor Brown.

The revised May budget builds on the progress that has been made in tackling the $26.6 billion deficit inherited from the previous administration. Last year, Governor Brown signed an on-time budget that slashed $16 billion from the budget and shifted California’s credit outlook from negative to positive.

The 2011-2012 budget cut funds for state programs, made state government more efficient through consolidation and reorganization and moved government closer to the people through realignment.

Through the budget and executive actions, Governor Brown has already slashed billions from state prison costs and banned costly government perks like cell phones, travel, vehicles and freebies. He also permanently shrank state government through the elimination of 30,000 positions.

Significant details of the revised 2012-2013 budget:

Increases Funding for K-12 Education
Under the Governor’s proposal, funding for K-12 education would receive an increase of 16 percent, subject to voter approval. State funding for K-12 schools would increase from $29.3 billion in last year’s budget to $34.0 billion by the end of 2013.

Keeps Higher Education Affordable for Low-Income Students
The revised budget proposes that the state award Cal Grants using the same methodology that determines eligibility for Federal Pell Grant awards. This would ensure that the neediest applicants – who constitute some 63 percent of Cal Grant recipients – continue to receive the maximum award. Students with higher family incomes will receive reduced assistance.

Protects Public Safety
The revised budget continues to fund local governments that are implementing public safety realignment. It proposes a permanent funding structure so that local governments will have a reliable funding source into the future.

Cuts State Employee Compensation Costs
The revised budget includes a 5 percent cut to state employee compensation costs. This will be achieved through a reduced workweek or a commensurate reduction in work hours and pay.

Provides Funding for Existing Homeowner and Consumer Assistance Programs
Existing assistance programs for homeowners and consumers affected by the mortgage crisis will be funded with proceeds from the National Mortgage Settlement, resulting in $292 million in General Fund savings.

Funding court budgets from alternative sources
This year’s budget restructures trial court funding, reducing General Fund support by $300 million on a one-time basis and requiring each trial court to use their available reserve. It delays court construction for a savings of $240 million and increases retirement contributions for state court employees. Altogether, these will result in $125 million in ongoing savings.

Reduces Corrections Spending
In April 2012, the administration released a comprehensive plan to save billions of dollars, end federal oversight, and improve the prison system. As a result of this plan, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation expects to save $1 billion in 2012-13 and $1.5 billion in 2015-16 while satisfying the U.S. Supreme Court’s order to reduce the prison population.

The Governor’s news conference will be streamed live this morning at 10:00 a.m. at www.calchannel.com. The budget, in full, will be posted online shortly after the news conference begins at: www.dof.ca.gov.

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Western Liberty Bancorp, the holding company for Service1st Bank of Nevada and Las Vegas Sunset Properties, on May 15 reported narrowing its first quarter loss to $1.1 million, or $0.08 per share, compared to $2.4 million, or $0.17 per share, in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Net loss for the year ago quarter was $409,000, or $0.03 per share.

Western Liberty reported its tangible book value per share was $5.53, down slightly from $5.60 in the preceding quarter.

“Our loan portfolio is beginning to stabilize. No new properties moved into classified status during the quarter, and we are receiving solid interest from investors in some of our foreclosed properties,” Chief Executive Officer William Martin said in a statement.

“During December, we moved $4 million of foreclosed real estate into our new holding company asset resolution subsidiary, Las Vegas Sunset Properties,” Martin said.

“These transfers improved the bank’s ratio of classified assets to Tier 1 capital plus reserves to 29% at March 31, 2012, down from 84% at year end,” he said.

“While on a consolidated basis our nonperforming assets are still higher than we would like, at the Bank level we are much closer to achieving asset quality levels mandated by our regulators,” he said.

Capital levels “remain very strong” for the Las Vegas-based bank and its holding company, Martin said.

Service1st Bank recorded 35.6 percent in Tier 1 Risk based-capital, and Western Liberty capital registered 71.3 percent.

“And, as an improving economy emerges in Las Vegas, we expect to be able to deploy capital and liquidity into loans as demand improves,” he said.

The bank earned $62,000 in the first quarter, but expenses at the holding company generated a loss of $1.1 million in the first quarter of 2012, reflecting ongoing elevated expenses for legal and professional fees. The holding company took a $117,000 impairment charge for other real estate owned at LVSP, said Martin.

No provision for potential loan losses needed to be recorded in the first quarter.

Noninterest bearing deposits jumped by $9.4 million and accounted for 48% of total deposits and core deposits (excluding time certificates of $100,000 or more) are 60% of total deposits.

Total deposits increased $4.8 million to $126.0 million from the preceding quarter.

Although new reports confirm that Las Vegas continues to lag in the economic recovery, Marcus & Millichap, a national commercial real estate brokerage and advisory firm, projected the addition of 12,000 jobs locally this year and that office-using job growth will push start a recovery in the Las Vegas office market this year.

Further signs of recovery were reported by the Nevada State Department of Taxation with its April 26 report on February tax revenues.

Statewide taxable sales for February 2012 of $3.2 million represent a 10.2% increase over February 2011 and a 7.5% increase for the fiscal year.

The largest increases in statewide taxable sales were realized by Food Services and Drinking Places, up 11.9%; Motor Vehicle and Parts Dealers, up 22.9%; General Merchandise Stores, up 16.9%; Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods, up 18.0%; and Clothing and Clothing Accessories Stores, up 11.3%.

According to the April 5, 2012, report from the University of Nevada Las Vegas’ Center for Business and Economic Research, “CBER’s Southern Nevada Index of Coincident Economic Indicators showed significant gains for March 2012, rising by more than 2% from the previous month. The index is constructed with two measures of employment. One is collected from a survey of businesses and one collected from a survey of households (the latter as part of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics).

Although both measures included in the index rose, the data from the household survey were the primary driver of the gain, increasing by over 3% from February 2012. CBER’s Southern Nevada Index of Leading Indicators also rose by 0.36% in March, continuing on its trend of a slow recovery. The local, regional, and national components all contributed to this growth and allow us to forecast continued economic growth until late summer. CBER’s other three indexes of current economic activity were mixed:

CBER’s Clark County Business Activity Index declined slightly in January, the result of the drop in taxable sales after the holiday season.

CBER’s Clark County Tourism Index grew by 0.6% in January. Increased activity at McCarran airport and Las Vegas hotels/casinos drove the growth.

CBER’s Clark County Construction Index rose in January, the result of a spike in residential and commercial building permits.”
Additional reports on the Nevada economy can be found at http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2012/apr/03/new-reports-confirm-las-vegas-lagging-economic-rec/; http://tax.state.nv.us/press_release.htm; and http://cber.unlv.edu. Sources: http://business.unlv.edu/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/CBER-05Apr2012.pdf

Total assets were up slightly to $202.0 million at March 31, 2012, from $198.3 million at December 31, 2011, and fell 12% from $228.8 million a year ago.

Western Liberty shares remained unchanged at $2.97 on Nasdaq prior to release of the financial report.

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Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller reported May 11 that first-quarter, in-state new business filings posted a modest 1.0-percent decline from the same quarter of the prior year.

The decline was largely sourced to fewer domestic corporations while the number of new limited liability companies (“LLC”) rose 1.2
percent. During the past 12 months, the number of new domestic filings was up 4.0 percent as limited liability companies being formed surged 8.3 percent.

New limited liability company filings, which continued to represent the lion’s share of new business filings at 65.9 percent of total, were
up by 0.9 percent (or 90 filings) overall when compared to first quarter 2011.

Corporations submitted 5,030 new filings during the quarter, a decline of 3.9 percent year-over-year.

Go to http://nvsos.gov/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=2338 for the full report, which includes graphs.

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The Treasurer’s Office Unclaimed Property Division and Nevada citizens are expected to receive at least $1 million as the result of an agreement with insurer Prudential Financial over unclaimed life insurance and annuity contracts, State Treasurer Kate Marshall said May 7.

The agreement, which will assist Nevada residents in recovering unclaimed insurance benefits owed to them, establishes the terms and conditions under which unclaimed death benefits, maturity payments, and retained asset account proceeds will be escheated to the State if the funds are not reunited with rightful Nevada citizens through the due diligence process.

Audits of Prudential and 25 other insurance companies are being conducted by Verus Financial LLC on behalf of Nevada, other states, and the District of Columbia.

The purpose of the audits is to determine if these companies are complying with Nevada’s unclaimed property laws and to verify if these companies may be utilizing the U.S. Social Security Administration’s Death Master File to halt annuity payments, but failing to use that same information to alert people who may not be aware of being named as a beneficiary of an insurance or annuity policy.

Marshall said that a simple search of the State’s unclaimed property database (https://nevadatreasurer.gov/UPSearch/) by typing in your name or the name of a deceased relative who may have had a policy will show any unclaimed property listed by that name.

“A beneficiary of an insurance or annuity policy never loses the ability to claim the value of that unclaimed property,” she said.

The agreement will result in Prudential escheating 100 percent of all unclaimed insurance and annuity related proceeds from 1992 to the present and in future years to the State in accordance with Nevada laws.

In Nevada’s case, following the three year dormancy period required in Nevada Revised Statutes 120A.

For more information about Nevada’s Unclaimed Property Division or to search the State’s database for unclaimed property that may belong to you, go to https://NevadaTreasurer.gov and click on the yellow “Search for Unclaimed Property” icon.

The Treasurer’s Office also provides a link which allows users to search a national database for unclaimed property.

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Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto on May 7 joined 44 other states and the District of Columbia in announcing a $100 million settlement with Abbott Laboratories over allegations of illegal off-label marketing of its Depakote drug.

As part of this settlement, Nevada will receive nearly $1.4 million to benefit consumer protection efforts.

As a result of the states’ investigation, the Illinois-based Abbott will be restricted from marketing the drug for off-label uses not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and has agreed to significantly change how it markets Depakote.

“Pharmaceutical companies must promote and market drug appropriately,” said Masto. “This settlement was reached because I felt Nevada consumers had not been adequately protected.”

The agreement marks the largest consumer protection-based pharmaceutical settlement ever reached.

In a complaint filed today along with the settlement agreement, the states alleged Abbott engaged in unfair and deceptive practices when it marketed Depakote for off-label uses.

Depakote is approved for treatment of seizure disorders, mania associated with bipolar disorder and prophylaxis of migraines, but the attorneys general alleged Abbott marketed the drug for treating unapproved uses, including schizophrenia, agitated dementia and autism.

Under the settlement, Abbott Laboratories is:

• Prohibited from making false or misleading claims about Depakote,
• Prohibited from promoting Depakote for off-label uses, and
• Required to ensure financial incentives on sales do not promote off-label uses of Depakote.

In addition, for a five-year period Abbott must:
• Limit the creation and use of responses to requests by physicians for non-promotional
information about off-label uses of Depakote,
• Limit dissemination of reprints of clinical studies relating to off-label uses of Depakote,
• Limit use of grants and Continuing Medical Education,
• Disclose payments to physicians, and
• Register and disclose clinical trials.

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By Sean Whaley | 2:18 pm May 8th, 2012

Nevada News Bureau

CARSON CITY – According to the latest report by the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), Las Vegas ranks fifth in the nation for questionable slip-and-fall claims despite being only the 30th largest city in the United States.

Most businesses carry insurance to financially protect them should someone become injured as a result of a legitimate accident. However, criminals fake slip-and-fall injuries in order to submit fraudulent claims against the business or the business’s insurer.

“The cost of these claims goes into the cost we all pay for retail goods,” said Bryan Wachter, director of Government Affairs for the Retail Association of Nevada.

Go to www.nevadanewsbureau.com/ to read more of the story and other Nevada news.

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