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Ecotality Inc. revenue took a hit last year as the company as it shifted focus to its $100 million federal contract to develop a pilot network of charging stations for electric vehicles — dropping from $11.2 million to $8.6 million.

The company also saw its net loss increase to $29.5 million, or $8.16 per share, from $8.07 million. Officials said increased expenses related to the restructuring of debt and obtaining new capital, contributed to losses. As of Dec. 31, Ecotality had $11.8 million of cash on the balance sheet with assets of $19.6 million.

"Over the course of the year, we successfully transformed the company in to the leading EV infrastructure company both domestically and internationally,” said CEO Jonathan Read in a statement. “During the fourth quarter we strengthened our balance sheet and secured the capital needed to begin the deployment of our charging infrastructure under the DOE agreement.”

Although its stock currently is traded over the counter, the company recently applied for a listing on The Nasdaq Stock Market.

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The government’s Recovery Act is responsible for between 2.2 million and 2.8 million jobs through the first quarter of 2010, according to the latest stimulus report from President Obama’s chief economic adviser.

The report, from the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers, says the $787 billion economic stimulus is on track to create or save 3.5 million jobs by the end of the year.

"From tax cuts to construction projects, the Recovery Act is firing on all cylinders when it comes to creating jobs and putting Americans back to work," Vice President Joe Biden said in a statement.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which was signed into law in February 2009, is the largest simulus program in the nation’s history. While the Obama administration credits the stimulus with lifting the United States from the recession, Republican critics also look to the nation’s 9 on line pay day loans.7% unemployment rate as proof that the act fails to create long-term jobs.

So far $525 billion of the simulus money has been committed to specific projects and $370 billion has been paid out.

More than $110 billion went to tax relief through credits for first-time homebuyers, for college expenses and for energy-efficient home improvements. Another $90 billion went to unemployment benefits and food assistance through the end of March.

The report is based on a mathematical formula that calculates the number of jobs likely saved or created by stimulus money. The government also collects reports showing the actual number of jobs directly funded by stimulus spending, with the next one due to be released April 30. 

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The number of Americans filing for unemployment insurance for the first time jumped last week, according to government data released Thursday.

There were 460,000 initial jobless claims filed in the week ended April 3, up 18,000 from an upwardly revised 442,000 the previous week, according to the Labor Department’s weekly report.

Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected new claims to fall to 435,000 in the week. The number of new claims were just below the level reached in the Feb. 27 week, when initial claims totaled 466,000.

The Labor Department also tracks the 4-week moving average of initial claims, which smoothes out volatility in the measure. That number was 450,250 for the week, up 2,250 from the previous week’s downwardly revised average of 448,000.

The data may have been clouded by factors that included the end of the first quarter and religious holidays, which made it difficult to get an accurate reading, according to a Labor Department official who asked not to be named.

The report also said that 4,550,000 people filed continuing claims in the week ended March 27, the most recent data available. That figure, the lowest level since Dec. 20, 2008, was down 131,000 from the preceding week’s 4,681,000 claims, and below the 4.63 million economists expected, according to Briefing.com.

The 4-week moving average for continuing claims was 4,648,250, a decrease of 36,000 from the preceding week’s revised average of 4,684,250.

Continuing claims data exclude people whose benefits expired or those who have moved to state or federal extensions. It reflects those filing each week after their initial claim until the end of their standard benefits, which usually last 26 weeks.

"The general trend in the jobs market is improving, reinforced by the decline in continuing claims," said Carl Riccadonna, senior U.S. economist for Deutsche Bank. "That’s a good indication that the next move in the unemployment rate could be lower."

President Obama and lawmakers in the House and Senate in March pushed for more relief, by extending the deadline to file for unemployment insurance and instituting a number of tax breaks for businesses.

The goal of these measures has been to spark job growth and bring down the national unemployment rate, which hovers at 9.7%.

Jobless claims rose the most in Texas, with an increase of 3,640, primarily due to more layoffs in the finance, service, and manufacturing industries. Oregon and New Jersey rounded out the top three states with the largest increases in new claims.

Conversely, Michigan, Illinois and Oklahoma were the top three states with the largest declines in initial claims.

The report came after last week’s much anticipated non-farm payrolls figures, which showed the U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs in March. Full-time positions unexpectedly outnumbered temporary Census-related jobs.

Still, initial claims will be top of mind for economists, as movement in the figure is likely to affect non-farm payrolls and the unemployment rate.

"If we see initial claims break lower than 400,000 for an extended period, that would be a good sign that we’re going to see sustained triple-digit non-farm payroll gains," said Riccadonna.  

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The National Federation of Independent Business is backing U.S. Sen. John McCain in his primary race against former Scottsdale Congressman J.D. Hayworth.

NFIB represents small businesses and tends to take a conservative stance on taxes and regulations.

NFIB likes McCain’s position on taxes and opposition to union-backed efforts to make it easier to organize.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry also backing McCain in the senate race.

“Small businesses are the engine and lifeblood of our economy, providing the vast majority of jobs and opportunities for people across Arizona, and I am proud to have the support of the NFIB,” said McCain in a statement. “I fight every day to get government out of the way of our dynamic private sector and get our economy moving again. I admire the important work of the NFIB, and look forward to partnering with them to ensure that our small businesses thrive and become engines for job creation once again.”

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Source: KV Pharmaceutical Co.

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Research in Motion posted a fiscal fourth-quarter profit and revenue that missed Wall Street expectations, but the BlackBerry maker’s forecast for the current quarter easily topped analysts’ estimates.

Shares of RIM (RIMM) plunged 5% in after-hours trading after the company reported a profit of $710.1 million, or $1.27 per share. Net income rose 37% compared with a year earlier, but analysts polled by Thomson Reuters were looking for earnings of $1.28 per share.

The Canadian company said it shipped 10.5 million devices and added 4.9 million users during the quarter, driving sales up 18% to $4.08 billion compared with a year earlier, but the figure was below analysts’ estimates of $4.31 billion.

Even as competition intensifies with Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500)’s iPhone and Google (GOOG, Fortune 500)’s Android-based phones, the company maintained its leading role in North America, where the BlackBerry continues to be the top selling smartphone.

And RIM chief executive Jim Balsillie said the company "made great strides in penetrating international markets."

Nearly half of the quarter’s revenue was supported by international sales, he said, and about 38% of new subscribers were from markets outside of North America.

"The fourth quarter results were softer than expected, but the company’s growth in international markets will be a major driver going forward and supports its first-quarter guidance," said Steven Li, analyst at Raymond James.

The company’s cheaper devices, such as the BlackBerry Curve 8520, are strong sellers abroad, but they push the company’s average selling price lower.

But with a new lineup of higher-priced products being introduced in the second half of the year, Balsillie said he is confident in the company’s future growth.

For the current quarter, RIM said it expects to add between 4.9 million and 5.2 million BlackBerry users, driving earning between $1.31 and $1.38 per share, above analysts’ outlook of $1.23. For the three months ended May 29, the company forecast revenue between $4.25 billion and $4.45 billion. Analysts are looking for $4.33 billion.

For the year ended Feb. 27, RIM reported a profit of $2.46 billion, or $4.31 per share, on revenue of $14.95 billion. 

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It’s official: Californians will decide whether legal marijuana should be used to plug the state’s $20 billion budget gap.

California residents are expected to vote this year on whether legalization should be approved to raise nearly $1.4 billion in state revenue. That’s based on an estimate from the State Board of Equalization, a tax administration agency.

"It would be another source of revenue for the state," said Anita Gore, spokeswoman for the board. The board has not issued an opinion on legalization as a means of easing the state’s budget crisis, she added.

California Secretary Debra Brown confirmed on Wednesday that enough signatures had been collected to put AB 390, a marijuana legalization bill, on the ballot for Nov. 2. A press release from the secretary said that legalization proponents submitted 694,248 petition signatures for the bill, easily surpassing the required 433,791.

"The momentum for reform has grown exponentially since we introduced the bill last year," said Quitin Mecke, spokesman for Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, the lead sponsor of the bill. "We’re excited about the prospect to reform drug laws again."

Mecke noted that California was the first state to pass legislation allowing medicinal marijuana, 14 years ago.

Unlike prior legislation that has passed in California and other states, this form of legalization is not restricted to medicinal use of marijuana pay day loan lenders. The bill proposes that marijuana be regulated and taxed in a similar way to alcohol.

According to the bill, people would have to be 21 years or older "to possess, cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use." Californians would not be permitted to use the drug in public or within the presence of minors, and would not be allowed to possess it on school grounds.

Most importantly, as far as the budget gap is concerned, the bill stipulates that the drug would be subject to a sales tax. An additional retail fee of $50 would be imposed on every ounce that’s sold.

The State Board of Equalization estimates that the state could raise $1.382 billion in annual tax revenues from legal marijuana. The figure is based on estimated revenue of $990 million from the retail fees and $392 million from sales taxes.

"With the state in the midst of an historic economic crisis, the move towards regulating and taxing marijuana is simply common sense," Ammiano said in a press release when he first proposed the bill last year.

Also, Mecke said that legalization could prompt the state to "reallocate" more than $300 million in law enforcement spending away from non-violent drug activity to address violent crimes.  

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