January 5, 1995

IT was the appetizer that made the dinner illegal: grilled polenta with mushrooms. No joke. New Mexico health officials had ordered the restaurateur, Carlo Gislimberti, to stop serving wild porcini and chanterelle mushrooms he had picked in the mountains near here.

The Economy Orange County, Calif., is at least $172 million short of its fiscal obligations for the next six months, the county's financial advisers said. Deep cuts in services are expected. [ Page A1. ] Construction spending rose 0.7 percent in November, led by a sharp increase in private financing. [ D10. ] International Mexico's rescue plan disappointed investors, who sent stocks plunging in early trading. The Mexican stock market recovered somewhat after it was announced that the Finance Minister would meet with foreign investors to explain the economic plan. [ D1. ] In some respects, Brazil resembles Mexico before its financial crisis: it has an overvalued currency, and it has a growing appetite for imports and a new president. But some trade experts argue that Brazil is less vulnerable to a crisis because its economy is larger and stronger than Mexico's. [ D1. ] The United States and Japan will resume automobile trade talks. But many obstacles to an agreement remain. [ D1. ] New York's port is need of a larger and more effective work force. Union rules and aging workers are hampering the port. [ B1. ] A Federal judge ruled that journalists are professionals and are thus ineligible for the premium pay that the law requires for most workers who put in more than 40 hours a week. [ D22. ] Companies Philip Morris plans to reorganize Kraft and General Foods into one new food operation. The consolidation of the units is aimed at revitalizing the company's lagging food business. [ D1. ] Compuserve is demanding royalties on programs that enable its on-line subscribers to view thousands of images. Graphics software companies are in an uproar over the request. [ D1. ] Dime Savings Bank may have failed to disclose for nearly a month that it was the target of a Federal fraud investigation, a transcript of a court hearing suggests. [ D2. ] Microsoft's Bob will make its debut this week. Bob is a program that uses cartoon characters to help novice PC users. [ D3. ] Johnson & Johnson will buy Mitek Surgical Products, for $128 million in stock. Mitek makes implants for use in shoulders. [ D3. ] Figgie International named a new chief executive -- the third for the troubled conglomerate in less than eight months. [ D3. ] Norman E. Brinker will step down as chief executive of the restaurant company that bears his name. [ D3. ] Auto sales, defying rate increases, reached a six-year high. [ D4. ] Markets Treasury prices increased for the first time in five trading sessions. Municipal bond prices also gained. [ D11. ] Auto issues led an advance in stocks after Chrysler announced strong monthly sales. The S.& P. 500 index rose 1.60 points. [ D12. ] The dollar surged against Japanese yen. [ D21. ] Gold prices tumbled. Cotton and sugar prices rose. [ D21. ] Today's Columns Efforts to clean the environment face more opposition, with costs increasingly being weighed against benefits. But there are ways Congress can minimize costs and bureaucracy while still pursuing clean-ups. Peter Passell: Economic Scene. [ D2. ] In time of caution in the energy industry, Hondo Oil and Gas has taken a big gamble on a natural gas well in Colombia. While the well may be worth about $2 billion, the company has a long way to go before it can begin to realize any profits. Market Place. [ D12. ] It's not quite Juan Valdez Jr., but a campaign for Colombian coffee growers presents a hipper, edgier attitude to try to grab younger coffee drinkers. Stuart Elliott: Advertising. [ D22. ]

While Republicans around the nation were basking in their newly-won power, John G. Rowland, the first Republican governor of Connecticut in 20 years, took office today with a speech that never mentioned his party, avoided appeals to partisanship and called on legislators to work together as a team. In the State of the State address that Mr. Rowland delivered this afternoon, he did not include the more strident language of his campaign. He did not mention throwing people off the welfare roles or fume about possible court-enforced busing.

Companies that make graphics software for viewing pictures on computer screens are in an uproar over what they say is a sudden and surprising demand that they begin paying royalties on a technology already used by millions of people. Demanding those royalties is the Compuserve Information Service, one of the leading on-line networks for personal computer users. Compuserve caught many graphics software developers off guard by posting a notice electronically on Dec. 29 that the companies had until Jan. 10 to pay Compuserve a royalty on any programs they sell that enable Compuserve subscribers to view thousands of images available over the network.

Orange County, Calif., facing a budget deficit far greater than the spending cuts it has already made, has enough money to cover only about 60 percent of its share of the general budget, the county's financial advisers disclosed today. In the most comprehensive statement to date on the county's fiscal crisis after it declared bankruptcy last month, the advisers, in a report to the newly installed Board of Supervisors, said that the county government was at least $172 million short of its fiscal obligations for the next six months. That is more than four times the spending reductions the previous five-member board adopted last month.