The Ticker

House approves state sales tax holiday

The Massachusetts House voted 132-13 late Wednesday in favor of holding a state sales tax holiday on Aug. 16-17 — a week earlier than tradition — as part of an economic development package.

The proposal must be reconciled with the state Senate, which is working on its own economic development bill and is expected to take up the issue before the end of the session.

The House rejected a move to make the sales tax holiday an automatic annual event.

Massachusetts has held a sales tax holiday every year since 2004, except for 2009.

Southeastern casino license delayed

State gambling officials are concerned Massachusetts won't see any viable casino proposals emerge in the Fall River/New Bedford area and are considering delaying the licensing process another six months.

The members of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, at a meeting at the Hynes Convention Center yesterday, voiced support for pushing back the next deadline for the southeastern region casino license from Sept. 23 to March.

Moderna doubles space in Cambridge

Less than three years after its launch, Moderna Therapeutics has expanded to 320 Bent St. in Kendall Square, effectively doubling the size of its footprint in Cambridge to accommodate a nearly nine-fold increase in its staff.

Since 2011, when it started with 20 employees, Moderna has received more than $1.4 million in tax incentives from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, based on commitments to create more than 70 new jobs. It now has about 170 employees and 100,000 square feet of space.

Uniqlo opening in Faneuil Hall this month

Casual clothing chain Uniqlo — often referred to as the Gap of Japan — will open its first Massachusetts store at Faneuil Hall Marketplace later this month.

The 3,155-square-foot, pop-up store will open June 27, the company said.

Uniqlo is known for its inexpensive clothing in vast color lines.

The closing date for the temporary store hasn't been determined, according to a spokeswoman for Uniqlo, which plans to eventually move into a larger, permanent space in Faneuil Hall Marketplace.

Other Uniqlo stores will open Aug. 29 at the Natick Mall and Mall at Chestnut Hill in Newton, Sept. 19 at the Northshore Mall in Peabody and Oct. 24 at Legacy Place in Dedham.

• Cartera Commerce has named Erin Warren, left, as its senior vice president of marketing. In this new role, Warren will leverage her previous direct-to-consumer digital marketing experiences in the financial, technology and consumer goods industries. Prior to joining Cartera, Warren served as the chief marketing officer of CollegeWeekLive and led teams at both Sallie Mae and UPromise.

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Senate approves $1B convention center expansion

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Senate has approved a bill that would allow for a $1 billion expansion of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.

Supporters of the bill that passed 31-6 on Thursday say it is necessary to keep the facility competitive with similar convention centers in other cities, and the expansion will create jobs, provide additional tax dollars and boost tourism. The bill authorizes a 1.3 million square foot expansion.

Supporters said the convention center in South Boston, which opened in 1997, isn't large enough and doesn't have enough adjoining hotel rooms to attract many large-scale national and international meetings, which are now going to other cities.

The House passed a convention center expansion bill last month that promised now new taxes.

The House and Senate will work on a compromise.

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State senate OKs $11 minimum wage

Business groups fear it will be harder to make it in Massachusetts if a compromise bill passed by the Senate that would hike the state's minimum wage to the highest in the country is signed into law.

Top House and Senate negotiators struck a deal Wednesday to raise the current $8 per hour minimum wage to $11 per hour by 2017, and the Senate quickly passed it yesterday on a 35-4 vote. The bill does not include a Senate proposal that would have tied the hike to inflation. And it goes beyond a House proposal for a $10.50 per hour wage, without automatic increases for inflation. The House is expected to vote on the compromise bill next week.

"Too many people are trying to live and raise a family in Massachusetts on the current minimum wage and failing," Senate President Therese Murray said. "These changes will make a real difference in the lives of our residents and I am proud of the Legislature for this great accomplishment. But, we can't stop here."

But Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts, warned the minimum wage hike could drive many stores out of business.

"I am really concerned about the future and viability of thousands of small businesses," Hurst said. "It's a 38 percent increase in the minimum wage, far above any other state."

While Associated Industries of Massachusetts viewed the lack of indexing to inflation as a small victory, a spokesman said the higher wage will hurt businesses.

"There's plenty of economic reasons not to raise the wage," AIM spokesman Chris Geehern said.

But Jim Klocke, executive vice-president of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, said the deal is fair because it balances the higher wage with unemployment insurance reform for business owners.

Business for a Fair Minimum Wage, a Boston-based network of business owners and executives, applauded the compromise bill.

"A higher minimum wage will boost sales, keep more dollars circulating in our local economy, and reduce the strain on our social safety net caused by poverty wages," said Holly Sklar, the group's director.

Deb Fastino, co-chairman of Raise Up Massachusetts, called the bill a "positive step," but said the group for now would keep collecting signatures for a November ballot question to increase the minimum wage to $10.50.

"It has to pass ... through the House and get to the governor, and if all of this happens before the deadline, then we will make our decision," she said.

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Firm fixing Health Connector site says it’s on target

The head of the company brought on to fix the Bay State's failed Obamacare website told the Herald he's sure his company can get the Health Connector portal ready for a crucial fall relaunch — but stopped short of a guarantee.

"Our confidence level couldn't be higher," said Sanjay Singh, CEO of hCentive, which developed the software the state hopes to use. "I've never seen so much progress in four weeks in any other state we have worked in."

Health Connector officials demonstrated parts of the software at a board meeting yesterday. They are scrambling to meet a June 30 deadline to finish the website's foundation.

"We are very, very, very, very high probability that we will hit that," Singh told the Herald.

State officials also yesterday allowed the 227,374 Bay Staters who were moved to temporary Medicaid coverage — they pay no premiums — to stay on through the end of the year. It has cost $90.5 million to keep people on the temporary insurance, as of June 5, according to Secretary of Administration & Finance Glen Shor.

Critics have pointed out that just about anyone could sign up for the temporary coverage. New state Obamacare czar Maydad Cohen, however, insisted few actually did so.

"Right now, our initial estimate is under 1 percent would be potentially ineligible for that," said Cohen.

The health insurance plans are concerned about how long the temporary coverage may stretch.

"They're not in the right coverage," said Lora Pellegrini of the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans. "It could have the impact of folks who haven't paid a premium of 'Why am I suddenly paying a bill?' That's going to be the challenge, and something we all need to work on."

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Elizabeth Arden's Maine estate on the market

ROME, Maine — The former summer home in Maine of beauty magnate Elizabeth Arden is on the market for $765,000.

Arden built the main house in the town of Rome as her summer estate in the 1920s then later established the Maine Chance Spa at the site. Mamie Eisenhower, Edna Ferber, Judy Garland, Lillian Gish and Ava Gardner were among the guests.

Stefan Tufano tells the Kennebec Journal his parents bought the property 41 years ago, a few years after the spa closed in 1970. Tufano moved in to care for them when they were elderly, and now he's ready to sell.

He says the 17-acre property, part of which is in Mount Vernon, is beautiful but hard to maintain.

The property once covered 1,200 acres but was subdivided after Arden's 1966 death.

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Philippines may soon make smoking warnings graphic

MANILA, Philippines — A Philippine legislative committee has approved a bill compelling cigarette manufacturers to print illustrations of smoking hazards on cigarette packs to curb smoking in a country where tens of thousands die yearly from tobacco-related diseases.

The committee with both senators and congressmen passed the bill on Tuesday directing the Department of Health to issue 12 templates of pictures and illustrations that warn about the dangers of smoking.

The full Senate and House of Representatives will formally pass the bill before it is signed into law by President Benigno Aquino III.

The illustrations, which could include pictures of cancerous lungs and throats, will occupy half of the front and back panels of a cigarette pack. The current warning contains only words, saying that smoking is dangerous.

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'Uncharted,' 'LittleBigPlanet' coming to PS4

LOS ANGELES — Sony Corp. announced Monday that it's bringing new installments of the popular video-game franchises "Uncharted" and "LittleBigPlanet" to the PlayStation 4 as it celebrated the 6-month-old game console's marketplace triumph.

Sony also premiered "Abzu," an undersea odyssey from the creators of the award-winning "Journey" and "Entwined," a psychedelic 3-D flying game. And it showed new highlights from the steampunk thriller "The Order: 1886" during its annual presentation at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles.

On the hardware side, the company said it will bring PlayStation TV, its video- and game-streaming device, to North America and Europe this fall. The $99 device lets users stream video, older PlayStation titles and games for Sony's hand-held Vita system to any TV. The "micro-console," which debuted in November in Japan as PSVita TV, also lets PlayStation 4 players send the action to a second TV.

On July 31, Sony will launch the open beta of its cloud-based PlayStation Now service, which will allow players to stream classic games from Sony's older consoles onto newer devices such as the PS4, the hand-held Vita, Xperia cellphones and Bravia TVs.

Sony is also demonstrating Project Morpheus, its virtual reality headset, at E3. That project, however, won't be available to consumers for at least another year.

Sony has led Microsoft Corp. since both companies began selling their latest consoles in November. Sony has sold 7 million PlayStation 4 consoles to Microsoft's 5 million Xbox One units. However, both companies have outpaced the sales of their predecessor consoles — the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 — during the same amount of time. And Sony's lead is far from insurmountable.

That makes exclusive titles like the just-announced "Uncharted 4: A Thief's End" and "LittleBigPlanet 3" more important. But one much-hyped PS4 exclusive, the racing game "DriveClub," was conspicuously absent at this year's E3 presentation. Many of the games Sony showcased Monday — including Ubisoft's "Far Cry 4," Warner Bros.' "Batman: Arkham Knight" and Deep Silver's "Dead Island 2" — will also be available on the Xbox One, although Sony promised exclusive content or early beta access for each.

One exclusive that will appeal to comic book fans: A live-action drama based on Brian Michael Bendis' popular series "Powers" will begin airing on Sony's PlayStation Network in December.

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Online

http://www.playstation.com

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Follow Lou Kesten on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lkesten

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Bridgewater State Hospital accreditation at risk

BOSTON — A national nonprofit that accredits health care facilities has given Bridgewater State Hospital 45 days to respond to the findings of a surprise inspection prompted by what it called "patient safety concerns."

Failing to do so could cost the facility run by the state prisons agency its accreditation.

The Joint Commission did not release details of what it described as "a preliminary report" from the May 30 inspection, which came after a articles in The Boston Globe (http://bit.ly/1lkiCGm ) about a patient death and widespread use of restraints on mentally ill patients. The facility has also faced several lawsuits.

A Department of Correction spokesman acknowledged the inspection and said the commission's concerns are being addressed.

Bridgewater is a medium-security prison housing men involved with the criminal justice system who are diagnosed as mentally ill.

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Information from: The Boston Globe, http://www.bostonglobe.com

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Weakness in mobile business hurts RadioShack 1Q

FORT WORTH, Texas — RadioShack's first-quarter loss widened and revenue slumped as the retailer dealt with weakness in its mobile business and consumer electronics.

Its performance missed Wall Street's view. The stock dropped more than 18 percent in premarket trading on Tuesday.

CEO Joseph C. Magnacca said in a statement that its mobile business was hurt because the current handset assortment didn't resonate well with customers. It was also contending with more promotions, including those of wireless carriers.

Magnacca said that RadioShack is working on building its pipeline of new products, including private brand and exclusive items such as those from new partnerships with Quirky and PCH.

The company is trying to update its image and compete with the rise of online and discount retailers. Long known as a destination for batteries and obscure electronic parts, RadioShack has sought to remake itself as a specialist in wireless devices and accessories. But growth in the wireless business is slowing, as more people have smartphones and see fewer reasons to upgrade.

Part of its turnaround efforts have included cutting costs, renovating stores and shuffling management. It also announced in March that it planned to close up to 1,100 of its stores in the U.S., leaving it with more than 4,000 U.S. locations.

For the period ended May 3, RadioShack Corp. lost $98.3 million, or 97 cents per share. That compares with a loss of $28 million, or 28 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding certain items, its loss from continuing operations was 98 cents per share. Analysts, on average, expected a loss of 52 cents per share, according to a FactSet poll.

Revenue for the Fort Worth, Texas-based company declined 13 percent to $736.7 million from $848.4 million. Wall Street was calling for $767.5 million.

Sales at stores open at least a year, a key gauge of a retailer's health, fell 14 percent on softer traffic and weakness in the mobile business. This metric excludes results from stores recently opened or closed.

Shares of RadioShack fell 29 cents, or 18.8 percent, to $1.25 om premarket trading about two hours ahead of the market opening .

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FAA OKs commercial drone flights over land

WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday it has granted the first permission for commercial drone flights over land, the latest effort by the agency to show it is loosening restrictions on commercial uses of the unmanned aircraft.

The BP energy corporation and drone maker AeroVironment of Monrovia, California, have been given permission to use a Puma drone to survey pipelines, roads and equipment at Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, the agency said. The first flight took place on Sunday.

Made by AeroVironment, the Puma is a small, hand-launched craft about 4 1/2 feet long and with a 9-foot wingspan. It was initially designed for military use.

Last summer, the FAA had approved the Puma and the ScanEagle made by Boeing subsidiary Insitu Inc. of Bingen, Washington, for flights over the Arctic Ocean to scout icebergs, count whales and monitor drilling platforms.

"These surveys on Alaska's North Slope are another important step toward broader commercial use of unmanned aircraft," said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. "The technology is quickly changing, and the opportunities are growing."

Last week, the FAA said it was considering giving permission to seven filmmaking companies to use drones for aerial photography, a potentially significant step that could lead to greater relaxation of the agency's ban on commercial use of drones. So far, the only exceptions to that ban have been limited flights that have been approved over the Arctic Ocean and now Alaska.

Congress directed the FAA to provide commercial drones access to U.S. skies by September 2015, but the agency's efforts to write safety rules for such flights by drones weighing 55 pounds or less have been slow, and it is not expected to meet the deadline. FAA officials are on their third attempt to draft regulations acceptable to the Transportation Department and the White House.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta has said drafting such rules is complex because they must ensure that the large volume and diversity of manned aircraft in U.S. skies are protected. Even a small drone that collides with plane traveling at high speeds or gets chewed up by helicopter rotors could cause a crash.

But as the cost of small drones has come down and their sophistication and usefulness has increased, entrepreneurs and businesses from real estate agents to wedding video makers aren't waiting for government permission. Drone industry officials have warned that the longer the FAA takes to write regulations, the more rogue commercial operators will multiply.

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Follow Joan Lowy on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/AP_Joan_Lowy

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Tyson wins bid war for Hillshire with $7.75B offer

NEW YORK — Meat producer Tyson Foods Inc. has won a bidding war for Hillshire Brands, the maker of Jimmy Dean sausages and Ball Park hot dogs, with a $63 per share offer.

Both Tyson and Pilgrim's Pride had been bidding for Hillshire Brands. Tyson had previously offered $50 per share for the company. Pilgrim's Pride then raised its bid to $55 per share.

Pilgrim's Pride said Monday that it is withdrawing its offer.

Still, the deal is not sealed yet. It is contingent on Hillshire abandoning its plan to acquire Pinnacle Foods Inc., which makes Birds Eye frozen vegetables and Wish-Bone salad dressings. Hillshire Brands said Monday it received the offer but said its board of directors has not approved the offer. The company said it does not have the right to end the deal with Pinnacle on the basis of the Tyson offer, or enter into an agreement with Tyson before the deal is terminated.

Hillshire, based in Chicago, had been trying to diversify its own portfolio by moving into other areas of the supermarket with the $4.23 billion acquisition of Pinnacle.

Tyson's offer will be in place until Dec. 12, the final termination date of the deal with Pinnacle.

"There can be no assurance that any transaction will result from the Tyson Foods offer," Hillshire said in a statement.

The takeover bids by Pilgrim's Pride and Tyson Foods were driven by the desirability of brand-name, convenience products like Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwiches. Those types of products are more profitable than fresh meat, such as chicken breasts, where there isn't as much wiggle room to pad prices.

While Pilgrim's Pride and Tyson both sell such products, their businesses have been more focused on supplying supermarkets and restaurant chains.

The offer from Tyson is worth $7.75 billion based on Hillshire's 123 million shares outstanding. Tyson values the deal at $8.55 billion, including debt.

Tyson said the combination will help it expand its prepared food business.

Tyson shares fell 2 percent in premarket trading. Hillshire shares rose 4.7 percent an hour ahead of the market opening.

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Analog Devices to buy Hittite Microwave for $2.4B

NEW YORK — Semiconductor maker Analog Devices says it agreed to buy Hittite Microwave Corp. for $78 per share in cash in a deal worth about $2.4 billion.

Analog says Hittite's circuit making technology complements Analog Devices and help it expand into industrial, communications infrastructure, and automotive markets.

The price is a 29 percent premium to Hittite's closing price Friday of $60.56.

Analog Devices, based in Norwood, Massachusetts, expects the deal to close in the third quarter and benefit its earnings. The company also reaffirmed guidance for the third quarter of 60 to 64 cents per share. Analysts expect 63 cents per share, according to FactSet.

As of March 31, Chelmsford, Massachusetts-based Hittite had 31.4 million shares outstanding, implying a value of $2.4 billion for the total deal.

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Merck to buy Idenix Pharma for $3.85 billion

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. — Merck will spend nearly $4 billion for Idenix Pharmaceuticals with a per-share bid that more than triples the hepatitis C drug developer's latest closing price.

Pharmaceutical companies are racing to test new and potentially lucrative treatments for hepatitis C, a blood-borne disease that causes liver damage and is expected to become more common as the U.S. population ages.

Merck will spend $24.50 in cash for each Idenix share. The company's stock closed at $7.23 on Friday and had already climbed 21 percent so far this year. Shares of Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. soared about 235 percent before markets opened Monday.

The boards of both companies have approved the deal, which they expect to close in the third quarter.

Merck said Cambridge, Massachusetts company has built a promising portfolio of hepatitis C treatments, including three that have reached clinical testing, or testing in humans. Its most advanced candidate, samatasvir, is in mid-stage testing.

Merck also has a portfolio of hepatitis C treatments that includes Victrelis and several drugs in development.

Doctors have long sought more effective, palatable treatments for hepatitis C. Until late last year, the standard treatments required patients to ingest 12 pills a day, alongside antiviral drug injections that can cause flu-like symptoms. That approach cured only about 75 percent of patients.

Physicians quickly embraced Gilead Sciences Inc.'s once-a-day pill Sovaldi, which was approved by U.S. regulators in December and cures between 80 percent and 90 percent of its patients. Sovaldi racked up more than $2 billion in sales for Gilead in its first full quarter on the market. But the drugmaker has taken criticism for the new pill's high price. One 12-week course of treatment costs $84,000.

Idenix shares climbed $17 to $24.23 in premarket trading. Meanwhile, shares of Merck, which is based in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, slipped 39 cents to $57.46.

Shares of another hepatitis C drug developer, Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc., climbed 33 percent to $3.83 in premarket trading, while Gilead fell $1 to $81.39.

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McDonald's global sales edge higher in May

OAK BROOK, Ill. — McDonald's global sales rose slightly in May as business in China rebounded after last year's worries about avian flu.

Global sales at established restaurants grew 0.9 percent for the world's largest hamburger chain, the company said Monday. A 2.5 percent increase in sales in its Asia, Middle East and Africa region was driven by strength in China and other Asian markets.

In the U.S., sales at restaurants open at least 14 months fell 1 percent, part of an ongoing slide. McDonald's Corp. has been dealing with intensifying competition from long-time rivals like Burger King and Wendy's, which have revamped their menus and stepped up marketing. It's also facing a shift in eating habits, with places such as Chipotle positioning itself as a higher quality alternative to traditional fast-food.

Over the past year, McDonald's executives have conceded that the chain introduced too many items too quickly, causing service problems. CEO Don Thompson has said the company is working with franchisees to address those problems, in part by ensuring restaurants have appropriate staffing.

In Europe, McDonald's largest market, the sales figure rose 0.4 percent, lifted by improvements in the United Kingdom and France. An expanded beverage business was among the factors behind the improvements.

McDonald's shares slipped 19 cents to $101.77 in premarket trading Monday. Its shares are up more than 5 percent so far this year.

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Where have all the missing American workers gone?

WASHINGTON — The unemployment rate has been on a slow downward trajectory since the recession ended nearly five years ago. While the overall jobless level has dropped to non-recession levels, the number of the working-age people with jobs is barely over 6 in 10, hovering at a level reminiscent of the late 1970s.

In May, the U.S. workforce-participation rate — the combination of those with jobs and unemployed workers actively seeking them — was just 62.8 percent, the same as the month before. Job markets have been essentially flat since October.

Where have all the missing workers gone?

A key factor, nearly all agree, is the growing exodus from the job market of Baby Boomers. Born roughly in the post-World War II period from 1946 to 1964, these workers are now at or fast approaching retirement age.

Another reason is that some employment-intensive industries that suffered the most during the Great Recession, especially in manufacturing and construction, have yet to fully rebound.

But perhaps the most significant factor is unemployed workers "who just drop out of the job market after one, two or three years of looking for work and not being successful," said Carl Van Horn, a professor of public policy at Rutgers University who studies workplace dynamics and employment trends.

Recent surveys suggest more and more long-time unemployed workers are abandoning the search for another job and leaving the nation's workforce.

"And they are disproportionately older workers," Van Horn said. "We have a large number of older (unemployed) workers who are not old enough to retire, yet they are facing discrimination in the workplace and have found it nearly impossible to get another job."

There's a flip side to that, though, Van Horn suggests: "As the economy gets stronger, as it continues to grow, eventually some of those discouraged workers will come back into the labor market, and we'll have a higher labor-participation rate."

But that hasn't happened — yet.

"We know that the reason unemployment is so high right now is pretty simple: employers haven't seen demand for their stuff pick up in a way that would require them to bring on more workers, put that factory back on line, get more people to work," said Heidi Shierholz, chief economist for the Economic Policy Center, a labor-oriented Washington think-tank.

"It's going to be this way for a while. We're in a long slog," Shierholz said, noting that the recession of 2007-2009 was the harshest downturn since the 1930s Great Depression.

"We really are in a recovery. Things are getting better," Shierholz added. "It is agonizingly slow. But we are going in the right direction."

It may be quite a while before the jobless rate falls back to 5 percent and below, long the informal standard pegged by economists as a typical employment level for non-recession times.

But 5 percent may no longer be the norm.

In February 2011, economists at the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank suggested that around 6 percent might be a more appropriate unemployment rate as the "new normal." But some analysts suggested even that target may be unrealistically low.

"Our economy is leaving our unemployed folks further and further behind," said Robert A. Funk, CEO and Chairman of Express Employment Professional, an Oklahoma City-based service which tries to line people up with jobs and help client companies find suitable employees.

"But if people quit looking for work at a rate like this, it makes our job much, much more difficult," said Funk, a former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City.

And while economists note high levels of unemployment among older working-age people, joblessness is disproportionately high among younger workers as well.

Generation Opportunity, a U.S. nonpartisan youth advocacy organization which keeps close track of job levels for younger adults, reported even higher effective unemployment rates for those under 30.

"School is out for summer, and more than four out of five recent grads don't have jobs. My generation deserves better than an economy in which a 15.4 percent effective unemployment rate for 18-29 year olds is considered a good month," said Patrice Lee, director of outreach for the organization.

Even though the overall unemployment rate has been essentially flat since last October and is holding at high levels with 3.4 million Americans counted among the ranks of long-term unemployed, it's been five months since federal emergency unemployment benefits expired, leaving the burden up to the individual states.

The unemployment rate is now back to where it was before the Great Recession. It was 6.3 percent in May, same as the month before.

Still, the share of Americans who are employed is stalled below 59 percent, well below the 63.3 percent peak in March 2007 and 64.7 percent of April 2000, said William Spriggs, chief economist for the AFL-CIO. "That difference represents the multi-million job gap needed," Spriggs said.

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Follow Tom Raum on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tomraum

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Mass, RI US senators to highlight climate change

BOSTON — U.S. senators from Massachusetts and Rhode Island are among at least five Democratic lawmakers calling on their Republican counterparts to come up with solutions to climate change.

The Democrats are members of the Senate Climate Action Task Force, a group formed to highlight climate change. They invited all 45 Republican senators to join them on the Senate floor Monday evening to present their own perspectives on climate change and to discuss the best way to address the problem.

Democrats who plan to participate in the session include Massachusetts U.S. Sen. Edward Markey and Rhode Island U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse.

The episode comes nearly three months after Democratic senators delivered overnight speeches to highlight differences between Republicans and Democrats over climate change.

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MGM poised to become state's 1st casino operator

BOSTON — MGM Resorts International is nearing a final ruling on its bid to become Massachusetts' first licensed casino operator, with a proposed $800 million project in Springfield.

Starting Tuesday, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission will hold a series of meetings in Springfield and Boston leading up to a Friday vote in Springfield on who receives the western region casino license.

MGM, which owns the Mirage, Bellagio, MGM Grand and other casinos, is the lone operator standing in a once-crowded field.

Plans by Penn National Gaming and Ameristar Casinos never went before Springfield voters, while proposals by Mohegan Sun in Palmer and Hard Rock International in West Springfield were defeated in local referendums.

MGM's plan for a casino, hotel, shopping and entertainment complex on 14 1/2 acres straddling the city's downtown and South End neighborhood was approved by Springfield voters last July.

Still, commission members have been reluctant to describe MGM as a shoe-in, noting the panel has reserved the right to not issue a license now or to impose stipulations or conditions on issuing the license.

Stephen Crosby, chairman of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, said recently he doesn't expect the five-member commission will need all four days to make its decision. Each commission member is expected to present findings on one of five areas of MGM's 236-page application that they have been tasked to review.

Crosby, for example, will give an overview of the proposal, including how it "manifests an appreciation" for the Massachusetts "brand," ''leverages Massachusetts' existing assets" and enhances the state's existing tourism and leisure venues, according to the commission's evaluation guidelines.

Other commissioners will look at the project's finances, economic impacts, building and site design and impacts on local traffic patterns, gambling addiction and the state lottery.

One open question is whether the commission will take up MGM's request to delay formal "awarding" of the license at least until early July, when the state Supreme Judicial Court decides whether a voter referendum to repeal the casino law outright should be allowed on the November ballot.

Michael Mathis, CEO of MGM Springfield, has said the Las Vegas-based casino giant is concerned about some $200 million in fees and payments that effectively come due if it is awarded the license.

Those payments could be lost if the casino law is ultimately repealed.

Crosby and other commissioners have declined to say whether they support the delay. But MGM Springfield spokeswoman Carole Brennan says the casino is hopeful.

"The license isn't going to be awarded, we hope. We will be designated the licensee," she said.

The western region casino license is one of three authorized under the 2011 casino law.

In the eastern region, Mohegan Sun is proposing a more than $1 billion casino on the Revere side of the Suffolk Downs horse racing track, and Wynn Resorts has proposed a $1.6 billion casino on a former chemical plant in Everett. The commission anticipates awarding that license by the end of August, at the earliest.

In the southeastern region, Foxwoods and other casino operators have expressed interest, but no proposal has yet been put before local voters. The commission will likely not award that license until February.

The commission has already awarded the state's sole slot parlor license to Penn National Gaming. That slot facility, located at the Plainridge harness racing track in Plainville, is expected to open by June 2015.

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Startup tests resistance to HIV drugs

A simple, fast, affordable test developed by a Boston-based MassChallenge finalist is able to determine which drugs HIV is resistant to, saving money and lives.

Using a technology called Pan Degenerate Amplification and Adaptation, Aldatu Biosciences allows doctors to match patients with drugs the HIV won't be resistant to, based on the genetics of the virus.

"If resistance is present, switching people to effective drugs improves quality of life and saves money by reducing the risk of new infections," Aldatu CEO David Raiser said. "If resistance is not present, money is saved by not switching patients to more expensive drugs unnecessarily. There are clear economic and public health benefits to performing the test, regardless of the result."

Aldatu's test produces results in about two hours, compared to roughly two days for current tests, Raiser said, and the price is $99, about one-third the cost of other tests.

"Ours is a simple 'sample in/answer out' format, whereas the current tests have multiple steps and require several pieces of equipment," he said.

Raiser and co-founder Iain MacLeod, Aldatu's chief scientific officer, plan to bring their test first to Botswana, where one in four adults has HIV and about 10 percent of those receiving treatment don't respond to it, but the price of the prevailing drug-resistance test prevents most doctors from using it.

"Presently, (doctors) give everyone the same drugs and wait for them to fail to see if they're resistant to the drugs," Raiser said.

If they are, they are put on a second line of drugs, which typically costs four times as much as the first, he said. And if they're resistant to that, they're put on a third line, which can cost 15 times as much.

"In some cases, people are being switched to a second or third line of drugs because doctors don't realize the virus isn't resistant; the patients just aren't taking their meds correctly," Raiser said.

"There's the ethical question of leaving people on ineffective drugs when their quality of life is poor and they're at risk of infecting other people with drug-resistant HIV," he said.

There is also the economic question, one that countries around the world are wrestling with.

"What happens in Botswana can and will impact what happens in the U.S.," said John Hallinan, chief business officer at the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council. "What's happening is a drain on the entire global health system. We think (Aldatu) has a very promising technology."

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Drones fly with Mass. users

Some Bay State businesses are already putting drones in the air to boost their bottom line as the Federal Aviation Administration hints it may be open to some commercial uses of the hovering craft.

"It's a novelty now, but I think it will become more of a mainstay," said Missy Cummings, a drone expert at MIT. "These drones can really improve business processes."

Lexington Realtor Jonathan de Araujo has been using a drone to take aerial shots of properties he is listing since last summer, and the birds-eye view has quickly found a place in de Araujo's real estate arsenal.

"The end result is just unparalleled," he said. "Everything we can do to give a more positive impression means more people at the open house. The idea is to just give a better, more positive, a more thorough impression of what you're looking at."

De Araujo uses his drone, a model outfitted with a camera and available to any consumer, to give his homes more context, including offering a complete view of a backyard, or showing how close the park down the street is.

"When you're taking stills from ground level, you're seeing one angle, one shot," he said. "It just made sense to add that extra dimension."

Last week, the FAA said it is considering letting seven movie and television filming companies use drones. Now, the only commercial drone flights permitted by the FAA are those by one company off the Alaskan coast. The FAA has been working for the past decade on potential safety regulations that would allow widespread commercial drone use, but those regulations have been repeatedly delayed. Most recently, the FAA has said it will release proposed regulations for operating small drones by November. That would be followed by a potentially yearslong process to finalize the regulations.

Dan Kara, a robotics and drone industry analyst with Myria Research, said the FAA is under pressure to clarify the guidelines because many, from individual real estate agents to Amazon.com, are using or expressing interest in making drones part of their toolkit.

"It's happening organically," Kara said.

Marcella Hoekstra, who runs wedding video company Heirloom Pictures, is planning on buying a drone soon.

"I've seen what these drones can do, and I've seen some really beautiful, sweeping shots of landscapes and architecture," Hoekstra said. "It's a wonderful way to explore ... and give the bride and groom a bird's-eye view."

Kara said some are looking to drones for the novelty — a club in Las Vegas is delivering high end champagne to its high-rollers by drone.

But others are advocating for the permitted use of drones for search and rescue missions, to get a good view of wildfires and to help farmers track their crops.

"There's no question drones can revolutionize (agriculture)," Cummings said.

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When there’s white smoke, check first for coolant leak

I own a 2003 Honda Accord. In April a large amount of white smoke came out of the front of the car when I started it. It has happened three more times, coming from the rear of the car. Three times the engine was cold, once warm. The Honda dealer found nothing, but told me to keep track of these instances. Nothing has leaked on the garage floor.

White smoke from an automobile can be caused by three things: condensing moisture, heated coolant and vaporized fuel. In your case I'd be suspicious of an external coolant leak that collects on some part of the exhaust system and is heated into smoke as the exhaust system heats up, leaving no evidence on the garage floor.

Do you smell the semi-sweet odor of antifreeze/coolant? Before you start the cold engine next time, open the hood and visually inspect for any coolant in the engine compartment. Make sure you are monitoring the coolant level in the radiator/reservoir.

If the white smoke is exclusively from the exhaust pipe, a leaking cylinder head gasket would be a suspect. In this case the coolant would end up being heated in the combustion chambers and blown out the exhaust as the engine starts.

White smoke from the exhaust on a cold morning start is normal condensation of moisture that has collected in the exhaust system overnight, and is of no concern.

White smoke from vaporized but unburned fuel — unlikely in this case — can be caused by a failed or stuck fuel injector allowing raw fuel to be carried through and vaporized in the exhaust system as it is heated.

My 2011 Subaru is squeaking so loudly I'm ready to tear my hair out! It started on the driver's side just behind the driver's seat, moved to under the driver's seat near the middle, and then under the console. All three areas are squeaking! It's been on a lift and nothing that can be seen is an issue, according to the mechanic. A body shop owner with 40 years experience found that the back of the rear seat hadn't been put in place properly and the spare tire was not tightened down securely. The noise lessened, but is still a major nuisance.

The most common causes of body squeaks and rattles are something flexing or something loose. The entire exhaust system and its hangers should be inspected for evidence of flexing, movement or contact. Next, all engine, transmission and drive shaft mounts should be checked.

If the squeaking is rhythmical and varies with engine or road speed, the noise may be coming from the transmission or drive shaft CV joints. Subaru issued a service bulletin addressing a high-pitched sound originating in the transmission extension housing. Thermal expansion can potentially damage a pre-loaded bearing, causing the noise.

I have a 2007 Dodge Caravan with the automatic door lock feature. When I drive in the rain, the locks start locking and unlocking rapidly for 60-90 seconds then quit for a while, then do it again. This continues even after removing the key, but quits after being parked for a while. I tried to disable the auto lock, using the instructions in the manual, but was unsuccessful. There is no separate fuse that controls this. Any thoughts?

Water/moisture is grounding the electrical circuit that operates the locks. A scan tool should be able to identify specific fault codes with the power door lock system, but you could try "watering" each window for a minute or so, one at a time, with a garden hose. Water may be getting by the window seals, running down the inside of a door and grounding the circuit, causing the rapid cycling of the locks. This may help you pinpoint which door or cylinder lock switch or connector is getting wet.

Paul Brand, author of "How to Repair Your Car," is an automotive troubleshooter, driving instructor and former race car driver. Readers may write to him at: Star Tribune, 425 Portland Ave. S., Minneapolis, Minn. 55488 or via email at paulbrand@startribune.com. Please explain the problem in detail and include a daytime phone number.

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