stephanie dhue has more. >> reporter: today's report says the problem started with a bad cement job that caused dangerous gases to leak into the well undetected. crew members misread tests and thought the well was under control, and didn't act until it was too late. the blowout preventer, which should have sealed the well, failed. b.p. took responsibility for its decisions on the rig, but also blamed halliburton for the cement job and rig operator transocean, which maintained the blowout preventer. transocean called b.p.'s report a "self-serving attempt to conceal... b.p.'s fatally flawed well design." b.p. says the well design is sound and consistent with other wells in the area. halliburton says it completed the well under b.p.'s specifications. it also says it's confident its contract with b.p. protects it from lawsuits. the 50-person b.p. investigation team found no proof the company cut corners, but they suggested that b.p. look more broadly at what happened. this report won't be the last word. transocean is doing its own investigation. government agencies, including the coast guard

stephanie dhue explains. >> reporter: taximagic is changing the way people call for cabs. with a smart phone, you can type in where you are and get a message back that the cab's on its way and track its arrival. >> we got a message the taxi's been dispatched. it's floyd norman, and he's 1.5 miles away, and i say, "cool." >> reporter: sanders partee helped start the company three years ago with one customer, red top cab in northern virginia. its c.o.o., george pakidis, says its a hit. already one out of ten of his customers book rides that way. >> the idea that a client can reach us through the web, they can call us from their smart phone, they can text us, it's just user friendly. >> reporter: taximagic software can help take the load off a cab company's dispatch system. >> if you can see on the phone where the cab is on it's way to pick you up, you're less likely to call the operator and say, "dude, where's my car?" >> reporter: taximagic began with a business plan to integrate taxi charges into expense account software. but when it launched the taximagic smart phone app,

stephanie dhue, "nightly business report," washington. >> tom: south florida is home to sunny skies, beautiful beaches... and it's also the epicenter of the nation's foreclosure crisis. the housing bust is putting the squeeze on south florida's taxpayers and the budgets of municipal governments. as we continue our "budget blues" series tonight, jeff yastine tells us how the lack of tax revenue means higher taxes and fewer services for people in the sunshine state. >> reporter: the human impact of the housing bust is well known-- unemployment, families uprooted, and a steep decline in home prices. now, the financial impact is coming home to roost. south florida is home to many examples, like the city of miami. >> this city has to function, and i don't think any of you want to see this city not function. >> reporter: last week, the city of miami called an emergency budget meeting to consider the unthinkable-- cuts in pay and pension benefits for police and fire-rescue crews. >> when considering voting on cuts in benefits, i would ask the commissioners the following question: how much w

stephanie dhue reports. >> reporter: companies like google, apple, and intel often collaborate on new technology. now the justice department is looking at a different kind of collaboration, where these high tech companies pledge not to poach each others' workers. analyst scott cleland says those agreements limit competition and employee choice. >> when many of the best companies that somebody would want to work at, especially a high-value employee, it really limits your income and your choices. if that group gets together and colludes and says "we're not going to poach each other." >> reporter: and it's not just workers that see a downside. tech consultant rob enderle says the practice may hurt the companies involved. >> basically, they are assuring a steady bottom line and trading off the possibility for rapid growth by doing this, they are blocking each other from getting the resources they need to advance rapidly. >> reporter: the government has looked into other industries' hiring practices, including hospitals that colluded to cap nurses' pay. in the high tech case, the justice d

stephanie dhue, "nightly business report," washington. will name this week harvard law professor elizabeth warren to a special advisor position, overseeing the consumer financial protection bureau. she has long been considered the frontrunner to leave this position. reports say warren will not be nominated to that role, and that she'll report to both the president and the treasury secretary. >> so tom, the talk today was all about currencies and gold, but still stocks had a pretty good day. >> tom: they did have a good day, inching higher. let's look at tonight's "market focus". >> tom: the gains may have been small today, but they were enough to push the indices to five-week highs. the s&p 500 sits just below its high from the july rally. this is the third time the index has traded around these levels in the past six months. the past two times, it failed to move higher. one sector that has already eclipsed its highs from earlier this summer is healthcare. this healthcare exchange traded fund is above $30 per share for the first time sinc

stephanie dhue looks at whether the governor's plan to privatize liquor sales will be a budget win or a hangover in the making. >> reporter: in town hall meetings around the state, governor robert mcdonnell is making the case for getting virginia out of the liquor business. >> i don't necessarily think it's a core function of government to have to distribute gray goose or jack daniel's, i think there's other things that are probably more important. >> reporter: the governor proposes auctioning 1,000 liquor licenses to retailers, like costco, giant, and 7-11, which already sell beer and wine in virginia. the state would also auction wholesale licenses and get rid of its warehouse and state-owned stores. the proposal promises to bring in nearly $0.5 billion to help fund transportation projects. >> letting the free market work, we can generate a one-time windfall for transportation and keep an equivalent amount of money coming to the state, it's just smart business. i'm looking for ways not to dump more taxes on the citizens, but to find other creative ways to raise money for roads. >> r

stephanie dhue reports. >> reporter: president obama appeared, campaign-style, in a virginia family'sackyard to promote the new health care law. obama ticked off a list off its achievements, among them: there are no limits on lifetime benefits. kids can no longer be denied coverage for a pre-existing condition. and, dependents up to age 26 will be able to get insurance through their parent's plan. >> all of these things are designed not to have government more involved in health care. they're designed to make sure that you have basic protections in your interactions with your insurance company, that you're getting what you paid for. >> reporter: consumers can expect to pay more in premiums. the administration estimates those new benefits will add an average of 2% to 3% to premium costs. but, supporters say a focus on preventive care will help bring long-term costs down. heritage policy analyst ed haislmaier says whether that will be true is unclear. >> when you start saying things like, "the plan has to pay for dietary counseling for people with high cholesterol," but then doesn't def

as stephanie dhue reports that'll add even more uncertainty to the business environment. >> as the november election draws near, senate republicans are sharpening their differences with democrats on health care. senator mike johanns says new requirements for small business tax filing have to go. he's making a case for that on youtube. >> this will mean a mountain of new paperwork for as many as 40 million businesses and other entities. >> reporter: that tax provision was added to generate $20 billion to help pay for health care reform. johann's proposal to do away with the extra tax paperwork has the support of the national federation of independent business. the group also opposes the health care reform bill. >> right now, with so much uncertainty and with businesses struggling to get out of the recession, they don't need a new requirement to basically file a form for every transaction they make. this is the kind of stuff that got tacked into this health care bill that needs to go away. >> reporter: johanns would pay for his proposal by cutting funding for wellness care and changing the ma