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Today’s Lane Links

By Lorie Hailey
Associate Editor

Former Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer has failed to file an annual financial disclosure form covering his last year in office with the Executive Branch Ethics Commission, reports the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Farmer was the only Kentucky constitutional officer who did not meet an April 16 deadline to file the financial disclosure form for 2011, the paper says.

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Shares of Papa John’s International surged 20 percent Wednesday after the Louisville-based pizza chain reported better-than-expected results for the first quarter and raised its earnings guidance for the rest of the year, reports the Louisville Courier-Journal.

Shares closed at $47.36 on the Nasdaq after hitting a 52-week high of $47.72 earlier in the day.

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A consultant team has been selected to assist Gov. Steve Beshear’s 23-member tax reform commission in studying how to better align the state’s tax code.

The consultant team is tasked with evaluating and summarizing numerous areas of Kentucky’s tax system, as well as reviewing major tax reform efforts in competitor states and how those states addressed the particular principles the Kentucky commission has been instructed to uphold.

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Dippin’ Dots, LLC, a newly formed company based in Oklahoma City and funded by private capital, has received court approval to acquire Paducah-based Dippin’ Dots, Inc., reports Market Watch. A motion to permit the proposed sale was approved today by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Louisville. The sale is expected to close by mid-May. The buyer is unaffiliated with Dippin’ Dots, Inc., the past owners of the ice cream novelty company.

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PepsiCo is going on a reunion tour with The King of Pop, reports USA TODAY.

The company on Thursday is announcing a deal with the estate of Michael Jackson to use the late pop star’s image for its new global marketing push.

The promotion will include a TV ad, special edition cans bearing Jackson’s image and chances to download remixes of some of Jackson’s most famous songs, the newspaper reports.

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Using personal data from social networks or banks, companies including Wrapp and FreeMonee help retailers target desired customers to offer them pre-loaded virtual gift cards, hoping to boost bricks-and-mortar sales, as well as build brand loyalty, USA TODAY reports.

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The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell last week by the most in more than three months, the Associated Press reports. The figure was a hopeful sign one day before the government releases the April jobs report.

The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly unemployment aid applications fell 27,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 365,000.

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