Gas Still High For December
There is not expected to be much relief for holiday travel in the area of gas prices. AAA Oregon reports that despite steady oil prices and moderate demand the price of a regular gallon of gas hasn’t changed much over the past several weeks. The national average has dipped about three cents in the past week but locally in the state of Oregon it has only seen a penny decrease which will not affect holiday fuel spending much. In fact prices in Florence have actually gone up several pennies and is now sitting around $2.68 a gallon. Dodds does predict that there is still hope for prices to dip and says it is still possible to see decreases by 5 -20 cents by the end of the year. The country overall, Dodd says is still feeling the effect of two major hurricanes. Prices are the highest in December since 2014.
Park Parking On Sale
If you are a frequent visitor of the state parks here in Oregon there is some relief in sight. Oregon State Parks is putting its annual parking pass on sale December 1st. you can by the 12 month pass for just $25. It will get you access to all parking areas operated by the state park system. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department director, Lisa Sumption, says this makes a great gift idea for friends that adventure into the outdoors. There is also a sale on items like hats, water bottles, dog bowls, stickers and shields. You can find it at Https://store.oregonstateparks.org Parking passes are the single largest source of revenue for Oregon State Parks.
Protect Your E-dentity While Holiday Shopping
Here is a reminder for people who like to shop online during the holidays. Don’t let the holiday cheer turn into misery. Experts say folks should follow some safety tips to make sure their information stays secure. Already, American shoppers are out in record numbers, and they’re surfing the web for gifts more than ever. Michael Murdoch with Wauna Federal Credit Union in Clatskanie says people need to be careful when making purchases online. He advises people to use secure websites that begin with H-T-T-P-S and refrain from buying gifts while connected to public wifi. Most importantly, Murdoch says weak passwords are one of the easiest ways for fraudsters to get hold of personal information.
“One thing that everybody can do is to use complicated passwords. We can’t stress that enough – to change them and use complicated ones. So, at least eight characters, including numbers, special characters and, of course, upper and lower cases.”
In stores, Murdoch encourages people to shield their PIN numbers when entering them. He says people also should monitor their accounts online. Most banking institutions offer phone apps for tracking accounts.
