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Gasoline prices have been plunging this fall, which is great for consumers. But it has been very hard on oil producers, who have been laying off legions of skilled workers. To hang on to their key employees, some companies are offering unpaid sabbaticals or trimming pay across the board to reduce labor costs without layoffs. But for many employers, times are so hard that they have no choice but to keep cutting employee ranks.

It is fair to say that the widely held assumption that Congress gets nothing done doesn't exactly fit in 2015. Some big issues, like guns and immigration, were left on the table, though.

The U.S. is losing 15 percent of its drinking water to leaks in its deteriorating water systems, some of which rely on 100-year-old pipes, says Robert Puentes of the Brookings Institution.

Prices already are averaging less than $2 a gallon nationwide, and a new report shows gasoline inventories are surging. Experts say that sets the stage for more price drops in coming days.

For a while, the president's plan for increasing vehicles' fuel efficiency worked; he said it would save money and reduce carbon pollution. Then came cheap gas, and the improvements have stalled.

The economy has improved dramatically in the Obama era. But problems still abound because of the soaring national debt, a deformed tax code, shrunken paychecks and a growing skills gap.

Many homes in the Northeast use oil heat, and many homeowners lock into a set price to avoid nasty surprises. But this year, that prudent step has backfired as oil prices plunge.

Alaska may overhaul the way it spends its oil wealth. While the state has a lot of oil, the price of oil has dropped so much that the state now has a $3.5 billion deficit — two-thirds of its budget.

Gas prices in Columbus, Ohio, are among the lowest in the country. Drivers appreciate the savings, but anti-sprawl advocates say cheap gas doesn't help their cause.

The deal in Saudi Arabia has been no taxation and no representation. Bottom-of-the-barrel crude prices changed the first half of the equation this week, as officials cut utility and gas subsidies.