Business Briefs
Business Briefs: Saturday, May 10, 2008

Published: May 10, 2008

WASHINGTON — The Bush administration on Friday urged a federal appeals court to stop meatpackers from testing all their animals for mad cow disease, but a skeptical judge questioned whether the government has that authority.

The government seeks to reverse a lower court ruling that allowed Arkansas City, Kan.-based Creekstone Farms Premium Beef to conduct more comprehensive testing to satisfy demand from overseas customers in Japan and elsewhere.

Less than 1 percent of slaughtered cows are tested for the disease under USDA guidelines. The agency argues that more widespread testing does not guarantee food safety and could result in a false positive that scares consumers.

WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court has denied a request from owners of thousands of low-power television stations to force a ban on government-subsidized converter boxes that can't display their signals.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on Wednesday rejected the request for help filed by the Community Broadcasters Association.

The industry contends it is facing a "death sentence” because of a flaw in the government's plan to force broadcasters to shift to digital broadcasting.

The CBA in March asked the court to order the Federal Communications Commission to ban all digital set-top converter boxes that are not equipped to receive an analog signal, a request that had the potential to derail the biggest broadcasting transition since color television.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — EBay Inc. is exploring whether to require customers to use its online payment service PayPal, a move that has angered users and prompted antitrust scrutiny in Australia, where a PayPal-only rule takes effect next month.

It's unclear whether eBay will institute a similar policy in the United States and other countries. However, the online auction company often tries big changes in smaller markets before expanding them worldwide, and says it is open to that in this case.

"We are going to take learnings from it and apply them accordingly,” said eBay spokesman Usher Lieberman.

EBay says it wants to reduce disputes and restore trust in its marketplace with the PayPal-only plan.

DALLAS — Texas officials may claim that Amazon.com owes millions in sales taxes on purchases that state residents made from the Internet retailer.

A 1992 U.S. Supreme Court ruling lets states collect sales taxes from out-of-state retailers that have a "physical presence” in their state. Seattle-based Amazon runs a distribution center in Irving.

The Texas comptroller's office was asked why the retailer didn't charge sales taxes on Texas customers. The comptroller's office, said the agency didn't know Amazon operates a facility in the state.

The company said "they don't have a distribution center in Texas,” the office said. "We will definitely send out a team to investigate.”

NEW YORK — Consumer electronics retailer Circuit City Stores said Friday that it will allow Blockbuster to review its books in connection with the video-rental chain's bid to buy the company.

Circuit City also revealed that it received a letter from Blockbuster indicating that the company's largest shareholder, investor Carl Icahn, is prepared to buy Circuit City on his own if Blockbuster can't get financing or can't get shareholder approval.

Circuit City Stores Inc. said it hired Goldman Sachs & Co. to explore strategic alternatives, which may include a sale of the company, but that its board has not determined to pursue a particular option.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — H&R Block Inc. said Friday that the Office of Thrift Supervision has rescinded its requirement that the company hold a 3 percent tangible capital reserve — a restriction that had prevented the company from buying back stock.

Regulators eliminated the requirement after H&R Block closed the sale of its mortgage servicing business, which had operated under its Option One Mortgage Corp. unit.

The sale, along with the reduction of debt, lowered the company's risk profile, allowing the OTS to eliminate the reserve requirement.

H&R Block is subject to OTS rules because it owns H&R Block Bank. A separate 3 percent capital reserve requirement still applies to the bank.

The Associated Press

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