On Tuesday the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a settlement with former American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. Chairman, Chief Executive and company founder Michael Strauss. He has agreed to pay close to $2.5 million to settle federal charges of accounting fraud and concealing the company’s deteriorating finances as the subprime mortgage crisis began gaining momentum.

Michael Strauss is not the only one in the company accused of charges. Stephen Hozie the company’s former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) was also accused of accounting fraud and misleading investors. The charges are still pending.

Strauss, Hozie and former controller Robert Bernstein are also accused by the SEC of misleading American Home’s auditors about the company’s reserves against losses on mortgages.

According the an SEC official the executives were major players in the national mortgage meltdown.

Thursday California air regulators adopted a mandate for low-carbon fuels, a first in the nation. The California Air Resources Board who approved the standards expect the new mandate will create a new market for alternative fuels and urge the nation to look at the future of America’s transportation system.

Board Chairwoman Mary Nichols said, “I think we’re creating the framework for a new way of looking at automotive fuels where no longer will gasoline derived of petroleum be the only game in town.”

The new standard requires the carbon content of the fuels sold in California to be cut by 10 percent by 2020. The California Air Resources Board voted 9-1 to adopt the rules. One board member, Ronald Loveridge was absent.

Every time a person uses a laser printer they are using toner, a petroleum-based product. Fortunately people now have a green alternative; PRC Technologies, a division of Print Recovery Concepts Inc. has released a toner product made from soybean oil. Because soybeans are a renewable resource they are also less likely to fluctuate in price than their oil based alternative.

Tests were conducted by printing two identical documents from two identical printers; one of the printers used a new Hewlett-Packard cartridge and the other used a soy cartridge. The printouts were virtually identical. Both were equally dark and smudge proof.

According to Rick Greenlaw, the company’s vice president of marketing, “Our interest is in the person willing to go green as long as it doesn’t cost them more. Period.”

LaserMonksGreen is one of SoyPrint’s largest distributors. The group said that they make enough money to cover expenses and donate the rest to charity. And for every soy cartridge a person buys $1 is donated to the world hunger organization and LaserMonksGreen also have a tree planted in Brazil.

They have not yet released color cartridges or toner for ink-jet printers. As of right now the cartridges are only made for HP black and white laser jet printers. However, color cartridges are in the works and the company also plans to start introducing soy cartridges for other major brands.

Exxon Mobil Corp was the most profitable Fortune 500 company in 2008, taking the place of Wal-Mart Store Inc. who has topped the list six out of the last seven years.

The oil giant Exxon Mobile made $442.9 billion in revenue and earned $45.2 billion in profits in 2008 while Wal-Mart made $405.6 billion in revenue.

These two companies are some of the few exceptions to the rule. Most companies saw their earnings disappear in what was one of the worst years for the stock market.

The overall earnings of the Fortune 500 fell 85%, the largest one-year drop since the list was started 55 years ago. The title of “biggest loser� was awarded to AIG Corp; the insurer dropped 232 spots to 245^th on the list.

Thirty eight companies fell off of the list entirely including Washington Mutual Inc, Wachovia Corp and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.