The Portland office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Attorney's Office today announced expanded efforts to identify and prosecute mortgage fraud. As part of a multi-agency approach, special internet and phone tip lines have been established to handle reports of mortgage fraud. Investigations will be handled by the Oregon Mortgage Fraud Working Group, which has been operating since 2007, and continues to tackle mortgage fraud on multiple fronts. . . .

Somali pirates released a hijacked ship and its 19-man crew when they learned it was picking up food aid for their hungry countrymen, a Somali clan elder said Monday. But NATO said pirates also attacked a Maltese-flagged ship before dawn with rocket-propelled grenades before the ship escaped unharmed. The recent surge in Somali piracy has alarmed countries and businesses behind the 20,000 ships per year that cross the Gulf of Aden, the key water link between Europe and Asia. Pirates have attacked more than 80 boats this year alone, according to the Kuala Lumpur-based International Maritime Bureau. . . .

If you think the competition is fierce to gain entrance to the country's elite colleges, then you oughta get a load of the cutthroat tactics employed by parents of toddlers to get their little monsters into the country's exclusive pre-schools. That's right, pre-schools. "Nursery University," directed by Marc Simon, follows . . .

Coming on the heels of positive poll numbers and an endorsement by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, a proposal to raise the Oregon beer tax for the first time in 32 years is attracting more support, according to the Oregon Partnership. Such groups as Local 503 of the Service Employees International Union, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, the Oregon Prevention Education Recovery Association, and the Governor's Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse have thrown their support behind House Bill 2461. . . .

Laid-off Oregon workers who recently entered or returned to the labor force will be more likely to qualify for unemployment benefits as a result of a new law signed today by Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski, according to the Oregon Center for Public Policy.
"It's great news for Oregon's economy and workers," said Joy Margheim, policy analyst with the Oregon Center for Public Policy, who advocated on behalf of the legislative change. "Let's hope the Governor gets to sign other bills that will fully bring our unemployment system into the 21st century and better meet the needs of unemployed workers." ... Senate Bill 462 allows workers who don't qualify under the traditional formula to count more of their most recent work experience. . . .

King County property owners have until April 30 to pay 2009 first-half property taxes. After that date, state-mandated interest charges and penalties will be added to the tax bill. To make the process easier, King County provides several ways for property owners to pay their taxes quickly and conveniently.
"Each year, an increasing number of taxpayers in Rural King County are using the County's eTax service to pay their taxes online" said Finance and Business Operations Director Ken Guy, "Making a payment online from your home computer is convenient, safe and provides you with a documented record of your payment."  In 2008 over 23,000 taxpayers used the eTax online payment services. . . .

As a senator, Barack Obama led the charge last year to pass a bill allowing black farmers to seek new discrimination claims against the Agriculture Department. Now he is president, and his administration so far is acting like it wants the potentially budget-busting lawsuits to go away. The change isn't sitting well with black farmers who thought they'd get a friendlier reception from Obama after years of resistance from President George W. Bush. . . .

At home in central Somalia, Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse frequented a dusty, outdoor cinema after school, watched Bollywood films dubbed into his native Somali and, his mother says, "was wise beyond his years.'' Now Muse -- the sole surviving Somali pirate from the hostage-taking of an American ship captain -- is a world away in New York City to face what are believed to be the first piracy charges in the United States in more than a century. He smiled but said nothing Tuesday as he was led into a federal building under heavy guard. "The last time I saw him he was in his school uniform,'' the teen's mother, . . .

Humphries talks technology issues with Denise Rolark Barnes, publisher of the Washington Informer in the nation's capitol.
Photo by Frederic Kendrick

Microsoft executives discussed their governmental initiatives and product offerings at the event billed as the first Diversity Media Briefing of 2009. The nearly a dozen attendees quizzed top Microsoft decision-makers on the company's strategic approach in view of the new Obama administration. . . .

The architectural group responsible for San Francisco's Museum of the African Diaspora will design the new Black history museum on the National Mall in Washington. A Smithsonian Institution jury announced the pick Tuesday. The firm Freelon Adjaye Bond in association with SmithGroup proposed a layered, glowing structure topped with a bronze crown ... The institution will be called the National Museum of African American History and Culture. . . .