3 area businesses 

earn accolades

Sunriver Resort, Tetherow Resort and the Oxford Hotel in Bend have been named to the 2024 Readers’ Choice Awards by Condé Nast Traveler. Sunriver and Tetherow were the No. 1 and 2 on the Northwest list of resorts. The Oxford was No. 8. This is the fourth time in seven years that Sunriver has made the Pacific Northwest ranking, according to the travel publication. Tetherow also has been on the list for seven consecutive years. Last year it was No. 1. The awards, in their 37th year, reflect the opinions of travelers voting to crown global and regional winners in a variety of categories, according to Condé Nast Traveler.

Hurricanes likely

$50B disasters

Monstrous hurricanes Helene and Milton caused so much complex havoc that damages are still being added up, but experts in economics, insurance and risk say they are likely to be in the pantheon of supercostly $50 billion disasters. That would put them in the company of storms like Katrina, Sandy and Harvey. Making those costs even more painful is that most of that damage, particularly in Helene’s case, was not insured. Several experts say damages are skyrocketing because people are building in harm’s way, reconstruction costs are soaring faster than inflation and human-caused climate change is making storms stronger and wetter.

Subscriptions now  

easier to cancel

The Federal Trade Commission has adopted a rule that will require businesses to make it easy for consumers to cancel unwanted subscriptions and memberships. The “click-to-cancel” rule approved on Wednesday will prohibit retailers and other businesses from misleading people about subscriptions and require them to obtain consumers’ consent before charging for memberships, auto-renewals and programs linked to free trial offers. The FTC said businesses must also disclose when free trials or other promotional offers will end and let customers end recurring subscriptions as easily as they started them. The agency says most of the provisions will take effect effect 180 days after the rule is published in the Federal Register.

Court allows rule

to limit pollution

The Supreme Court has allowed a Biden administration rule aimed at limiting planet-warming pollution from coal-fired power plants to remain in place as legal challenges play out. The order Wednesday comes after Republican-led states and industry groups had asked the justices to halt the rule. The challengers argued that the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped and imposed unattainable standards. Environmental groups have said the standards are reasonable, cost-effective and achievable, and well within EPA’s legal responsibility to control harmful pollution.

— Bulletin staff and wire reports