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Chamber concern: Illinois business leaders decry tax hike with no reforms
When the Illinois General Assembly's spring session ended with no balanced budget deal or structural reforms, the president and CEO of the Illinois Manufacturers' Association called it one of the worst sessions in history.
During a news conference at the Capitol Tuesday, Greg Baise corrected himself.
"I was wrong. I want to amend that statement today," Baise said. "After yesterday's activities and votes on the tax hike, this has truly become the worst legislative session for employers in this state."
Baise spoke to several Illinois manufacturers Tuesday and said they are "dumbfounded" by Sunday's vote in the Illinois House to raise taxes by $5 billion without helping the state's job creators by enacting reforms sought by Gov. Bruce Rauner. House Speaker Michael Madigan's tax hike plan funds a $36.5 billion spending plan that also was approved late Sunday.
"The Illinois House voted for these tax hikes, without any kind of job reforms in the economic front in this state," Baise said. "They just can't believe that that occurred."
Baise – who was joined by Rob Karr, president and CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, and Todd Maisch, president and CEO of the Illinois Chamber of Commerce – asked lawmakers to get back to work on pension, workers' compensation, spending and other reforms that have been part of budget discussions since the start of the spring session.
Illinois businesses pay the eighth-highest workers' compensation costs in the country and the highest in the Midwest, and the state's pension systems are underfunded by $130 billion. Read more: Illinois News Network
Valpo Chamber Recognized As 2017 Chamber of the Year
The Valpo Chamber has been recognized as the statewide Indiana Chamber of the Year for 2017. The Valpo Chamber was judged in the areas of leadership and organization; finance; advocacy; membership; and programming, and received the award during the annual Conference of the Indiana Chamber Executives Association.
Shelli Williams, President of the Indiana Chamber Executives Association, says, “The Valpo Chamber team presented a very solid nomination for this award, outscoring the competition in every category.” Williams went on to say, “This chamber continues to be a leading catalyst for professional innovation in Indiana.”
The Valpo Chamber previously won this award in 2013 and in 2005.
The Indiana Chamber Executives Association reports the Valpo Chamber, through its economic development partner, secured a private equity investor to construct a $6.5 million shell industrial building to attract businesses looking for a new location. The building was completed in May of 2017 and now the marketing effort has begun to find the end user. Another example of how the Chamber helped to enhance the level of business activity in the community was success in being selected as the development site for an Australian based corporation to build the largest investment ever in the community’s history. The company opened in 2016 and now employs 500 individuals. This construction project provided numerous local firms important contracts and employment.
This Chamber has adopted eight specific issues in the public policy arena over the past three years. One important success during this past year was the Chamber’s active and visible role in bringing attention to the need for a $140 million school referendum. After endorsing the project, the Chamber encouraged volunteers to lead the effort by becoming personally involved in the marketing campaign to the voter. Chamber Board members took leadership positions on the marketing effort. Both referendums passed by an overwhelming 63% of the electorate vote. This important effort was a game changer to ensure that for the next 30 years the public school system will be adequately ready from a physical facility stand point as well as a staffing standpoint to continue performing as one of the top school systems in the state.
Recognizing the changing demands of the Chamber member, the Valpo Chamber has completely revamped programming and marketing over this past year. The results have shown an increase in attendance through simplifying processes, discontinuing programs and enhancing offerings. During 2016, this Chamber has also made a point of utilizing video to enhance member services and has received national recognition for this shift. The results have led to an open rate of more than 40% with each video receiving over 1,000 organic views on social media.
While many chambers are seeing a flat-line in member growth, the Valpo Chamber saw a record number of new memberships, as the Chamber welcomed 123 new members which generated $50,196 in new membership income during this past fiscal year. Some of the strategies that staff used for membership recruitment include cold call stops, utilizing biannual “leads contests” to engage existing members for referring new members, doing a monthly Board “ask” for leads, and watching site review reports for new businesses. This Chamber’s ended the year with a strong retention rate of 90%. Read more: Indiana 105
Chamber interest: Michigan launches plan to boost career education - and skilled trades
Gov. Rick Snyder on Monday unveiled a series of actions and recommendations that will give Michigan students better access to career pathways.
The move is expected to expand and strengthen career technical education statewide.
Among the recommendations: Set up a job-readiness course for middle schoolers, recruit more professional trades instructors, and expand job training statewide.
"We all have an important role in making sure every student has the opportunity to explore multiple pathways to find a career that matches their interests and goals," Snyder said.
"We call this effort the Michigan Career Pathways Alliance because we are bringing together not just TED and the Education Department, but employers and educators, K-12 districts with higher education, union leaders and businesses."
The move is expected to close Michigan's talent gap. About 100,000 jobs are posted and unfilled in the state today, a situation that is particularly acute in the skilled trades.
"We need to change the perceptions of the professional trades so students, parents and others know about the outstanding opportunities that are out there as Michigan businesses grow and thrive," said Roger Curtis, director of Talent and Economic Development.
"But that's only part of the job. Once we've shattered stereotypes, we need to have a stronger system in place for students to determine the best pathway for them, then have access to the rigorous training to get them to the job they want - no matter where they live."
Curtis and State Superintendent Brian Whiston have been working with stakeholders on the recommendations.
Many of the recommendations, including increased funding for high school and at-risk students, a focus on competency-based learning, and more access to postsecondary learning, were adopted by the state Legislature during the budget process.
Whiston on Monday signed a directive setting some of the actions in place immediately. Others are recommendations that would require legislative changes, or would be the first steps in an important discussion about addressing long-term challenges. Read more: M LIVE
Metro Milwaukee economy improved in May
“A primary factor in this upgrade was an improving employment trend, both overall and across a majority of industry sectors,” said Bret Mayborne, the MMAC’s economic research director.
The number of jobs in the metro area rose 0.3 percent in May, after falling 0.5 percent in April.
The education and health services sector had the biggest employment gain in the area, up 1.6 percent in May.
The largest employment decline was in the construction, mining and natural resources sector, which was down 7.9 percent in May.
The number of unemployed people in the area was down 26.8 percent in May to an average of 25,400. New unemployment compensation claims were down 6.4 percent.
The Milwaukee area’s seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate was 3.1 percent in May, down from 4.2 percent a year ago. The state’s unadjusted unemployment rate for May was 2.8 percent, and the nation’s was 4.1 percent.
The number of existing homes sold in the area rose 3.5 percent in May to 1,777.
New car registrations in the area were down 5.4 percent in May to 2,135.
Read more economic data reports on the BizTracker page.
Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce 2016 Community Map
The Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce 2016 Community Map is available at the Rochester Regional Chamber today! Thanks to the chamber team for their help and direction putting this together!
Town SquarePublications (www.townsquarepublications.com) can help you accomplish your chamber's gloss map, directory, community guide or publication needs at no expense to the chamber. Please email John Dussman at jdussman@tspubs.com or call (847)-427-4633.
Northern Virginia Chamber Announces Officers and 2017-2018 Executive Committee and Board of Director Members
The Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce (Northern Virginia Chamber) has announced its officers and 2017-2018 members of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors.
Harry Klaff, Managing Director, JLL, will serve as the 2017-2018 Chair of the Board; Jennifer Siciliano, 2016-2017, Vice President, Government Relations, will serve as the 2017-2018 Vice Chair; and Todd Rowley, Senior Vice President, United Bank, will serve as the 2017-2018 Secretary.
A full list of members of the 2017-2018 Executive Committee and Board of Directors can be found online.
New Executive Committee members for 2017-2018 include:
Don Britton, Network Alliance
John Avalos, Booz Allen Hamilton
Anthony Chang, Washington REIT
Wayne Corini, Grant Thornton
Nicholas Jordan, Capital Bridge Holdings
Jack LaVoie, Cooley
Ellen Mundell, Cordia Partners
Tom Weithman, Center for Innovative Technology
New Board of Directors members for 2017-2018 include:
Judy Bjornass, ManTech
Evan Burfield, 1776*
Mary-Claire Burick, Rosslyn BID*
Jake Burns, Washington Nationals*
Ryan Conrad, Northern Virginia Association of Realtors*
Sandy Corbett, Incadence
Christian Deschauer, Transurban
Doug Duncan, Leadership Greater Washington*
Deb Gandy, Chevy Chase Trust
Jack Gocke, Marsh & McLennan
Raymond Goodrich, Chain Bridge Bank
Shannon Jameson, Dixon Hughes
Kevin Jennings, Millenium
Bremmer Kneib, PNC
Bob Lazaro, Northern Virginia Regional Commission*
Brian Leuck, Dulles Airport Acting Manager
James Milam, Federal Realty
Susan Moser, Cherry Bekaert
Andrew Moses, Morgan Franklin
Gary Nunes, Womble Carlyle
James Quigley, Canvas*
David Ritchey, JBG Companies
Ben Rodgers, BNY Mellon
Barbara Richardson, WMATA*
Cole Stern, WeWork
Tien Wong, Lore Systems*
*Denotes ex-officio member of the board.
“We are thrilled to add these celebrated individuals to our Executive Committee and Board of Directors who will assist in guiding the Northern Virginia Chamber to success,” said Jim Corcoran, Northern Virginia Chamber president and CEO. “The Northern Virginia Chamber’s mission is to offer business development opportunities to organizations interested in growth through knowledge, access and influence throughout the region. By adding these admired individuals to our board we are able to position ourselves and our member companies for success.”
More information about the Northern Virginia Chamber Board of Directors can be found online.
Kyndle Educator of the Year Nominations Due Today
The extended deadline for submitting nominations for Kyndle’s 2017 Henderson County Educator of the Year is approaching.
The Henderson County Educator of the Year is open to faculty or staff of Henderson County Schools, Holy Name School, Henderson Community College, the Murray State University Henderson Campus and the Lindsey Wilson College Henderson Campus.
Forms must be submitted by 4 p.m. next Thursday, July 6.
The process involves submitting two forms: An application form submitted by the nominator and a nomination form completed by the educator who is the nominee. The forms can be downloaded at www.kyndle.us.
The two forms should be submitted simultaneously by delivering them to the Kyndle office at 136 Second St., Suite 500, or mailing them to: Kyndle, Attn.: Educator of the Year, P.O. Box 674, Henderson Kentucky 42419-0674 in time to arrive by July 6.
The Educator of the Year will be announced in August at the convocation of the recipient’s school. Read more: Surf KY
Ashley Butsch is the new programming coordinator for the Mississippi Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce. She previously was community liaison for Southern Hearts Hospice for Harrison and Hancock Counties, event sales manager of Treasure Bay Casino and director of marketing for Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport. She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a focus in marketing from University of Southern Mississippi and 10 years of experience in event planning, sales and public relations.
Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.
Town Square Publications, a division of the Daily Herald Media Group, is a national chamber custom publishing group that specializes in developing partnerships by producing high-quality print and digitally integrated publications along with other added value programs dedicated to creating relevancy for local chambers of commerce and other membership focused organizations interested in raising non-dues revenues.
Town Square Publications parent company, Paddock Publications, has over 100 years’ experience of print product development and dedicated customer service in communities throughout the Midwest. Our experience allows Town Square Publications to offer you attractive royalty and non-dues revenue share streams, provide direct distribution of your custom designed printed publications, including digital and mobile integration, and all with the quickest turn-around times available in the industry. Town Square also offers multi-media maps in both print and online formats, both with our No-Cost guarantee. More information: Town Square Publications
Chambers of Commerce and member focused organizations serve as a valuable resource in the local marketplace. The networking opportunities and representation with a wide variety of diverse businesses in your community is the catalyst of a successful organization. For further information about Town Square's publishing partnership with chambers of commerce and our No-Cost guarantee and Earned Revenue Share Program, To request your chamber publication or map proposal, contact Town Square Chamber Proposal
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