Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Day One Payroll Protection Program (PPP) Lending - What Happened, and What You Need to Know - From Mike Paone - Joliet Chamber: Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) Releases COVID-19 Employer Toolkit; Indy Chamber launches campaign to support local businesses during stay-at-home order; Oakland Community College Donates Personal Protective Equipment to Beaumont Hospital System; Ventilators also donated to Henry Ford and Ascension Health Systems; #Look for the helpers - Volunteer in Your Community with the Arlington Chamber; Northern Kentucky Chamber Livestream Series to Address Workplace Emergency Planning; Sunday Focus: How will CARES Act help local businesses?; Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best Chamber Partner in the U.S.

Chamber of Commerce Daily News presented by Town Square Publications https://buff.ly/2NL8sDu - your local chamber report 04-07-20




Good morning #ChamberWorld! #Lookforthehelpers! Listen to the good news! Start the Recovery! Make a small win today and huge wins tomorrow! Build the future now! It's going to be a GREAT day!

Day  One  Payroll Protection Program (PPP) Lending - What Happened, and What You Need to Know - From Mike Paone - Joliet Chamber -


Chamber Members:

As we move into full week #3 of the stay at home directive, we hope that you are your organization are remaining well and healthy. We have a few new updates to share today, including some issues with the first day of PPP lending that were addressed by Senator Rubio. Also, two more banks that have asked to be listed on our PPP lending list. For other financial institutions that have not reached out yet and would like to be listed, please send an email to mpaone@jolietchamber.com and include Bank Name, Representative to contact, and a phone number.

Senator Marco Rubio, chief co-sponsor of the CARES Act, posted a thirteen-part thread outlining many of the impediments seen on day one of the PPP program and how they can/will be fixed. See Senator Rubio's comments below:
  1. Day one saw complications you would expect with unprecedented $349 BILLION emergency plan passed just 7 days ago
  2. Despite this as of 6:06 pm Friday 13,669 Small Business owners received PPP loans valued at more than $4.3B. However, a number of outstanding issues to address 
  3. On Friday we had various & extensive conversations with SBA & US Treasury about the issues that emerged on day one of PPP loans. I expect that early next week they will be releasing additional guidance that should provide clarity & help resolve many of these issues
  4. First issue is that for now most banks only provide #PPP loans to existing clients because the SBA interim final rule only exempts money- laundering requirements for existing customers. But that makes it difficult for Small Business if they are denied by their bank. 
  5. The good news is multiple FinTechs including PayPal & other online lenders are ready, able & willing to process #PPP loans for them & anyone else. But they need the US Treasury to release applications for nonbank lenders to become certified. I expect that very early next week.
  6. Second issue is that because of requirement in SBA interim final rule that lenders hold loans for 7 weeks before they can be purchased, we will need a purchase mechanism through US Treasury or federal reserve ASAP in order for community banks & FinTech to make #PPP loans 
  7. Third issue is that in order for lenders to confidently participate they need further clarity on SBA affiliation rules for Small Business & 501(c)(3) - Inconsistency on general eligibility requirements for #PPP loans I expect that very early next week as well
  8. Fourth issue is that the SBA interim final rule has contradicting guidance determining whether Small Business owners should include independent contractors 1099’s in payroll cost calculation.
  9. Fifth issue is that In calculating avg monthly payroll to determine #PPP loans amount we need SBA to make clear our intent when writing the bill that gross payroll would be applied to calculation to ensure federal tax withholding & FICA burden isn’t on small business
  10. Sixth issue is that E-Tran, the SBA internal system for loan applications has been slow due to the volume of applications Friday. SBA has contracted with Amazon Web Services to ensure E-Tran system issues are resolved moving forward.
  11. Seventh issue is that some community banks have reported issues with accessing the AWS portal which SBA uses to provide access to non-SBA lenders. We have discussed this also with SBA which assured us they are addressing this problem.
  12. Eighth issue is money. Based on the demand we saw on Day One it is clear we will need more money for #PPP by late May. Our rough estimate is that if 2/3 of the lenders that will participate in #PPP loans aren’t up & running yet, the $349 billion will run out around 6 June.
  13. When you launch something this unprecedented & far reaching, just 7 days after it became law, you are going to have some problems. The GOOD NEWS is every problem we saw on Day One of #PPP loans can be fixed. We will stay on it to make sure it gets better each day forward.
More information: Joliet Chamber of Commerce


Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) Releases COVID-19 Employer Toolkit

Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) – the combined state chamber, manufacturers’ association and safety council – released its COVID-19 Employer Toolkit on Thursday to further help employers navigate the difficult circumstances that the COVID-19 pandemic has created. This toolkit will help businesses by providing the latest and most relevant information, helpful resources and answers to some of the most frequently asked questions.
WMC’s COVID-19 Employer Toolkit Includes:
During this public health emergency, WMC has been the key player in keeping our state’s business community informed and connected.
Click here to view the full news release.


Indy Chamber launches campaign to support local businesses during stay-at-home order

The state of Indiana is under a stay-at-home order until 11:59 p.m. on April 6 to help flatten the curve of the coronavirus pandemic.
During this two-week period, many businesses considered to be “non-essential” were ordered closed for that time period. Also, restaurants, while they can remain open, have only be allowed to conduct delivery or carry out orders.
This has taken a toll on small businesses.
To help and try to alleviate some of that pain, the Indy Chamber has launched a new social media campaign to connect local businesses with people who want to support them.
The Indy Chamber wants people to begin using #BuyIndy online. Also, Indy Chamber wants small business owners to upload a vertical video to BuyIndy.org explaining how the public can buy things from them.
Indy Chamber will then share these videos on its social media using #BuyIndy. Read more: WISH TV

Oakland Community College Donates Personal Protective Equipment to Beaumont Hospital System;
Ventilators also donated to Henry Ford and Ascension Health Systems


Oakland Community College will donate much-needed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to Beaumont Health System this week, with plans pending to deliver additional PPE to other Oakland County-area health systems. The Beaumont delivery will include exam gloves, masks, and goggles culled from the OCC Nursing, Emergency Medical Services, Dental Hygiene, Science, Art and Welding programs. In addition, OCC will loan two ventilators each to Henry Ford Health System and two ventilators to Ascension Health System from its Respiratory Therapy program. “We recognized a need in our community and worked quickly to gather as many items as we could from our campus instructional clinics and labs. Read more: Birmingham-Bloomfield Chamber Member Postings

#Lookforthehelpers - Volunteer in Your Community with the Arlington Chamber

Over the past couple of weeks, the needs of our community have drastically changed and been redefined due to the coronavirus pandemic. During this time, it is important that the community comes together to find ways to support each other. Due to this, the Chamber has created a new format for our annual Arlington Chamber Volunteer Day to meet the current needs of our nonprofits, who’ve been especially hard-hit, and our broader community.

This year, the event will take place with a virtual kickoff on Tuesday, April 21 at 12:00 p.m. Following the kickoff, businesses will be paired with nonprofit organizations for projects, and nonprofits will be providing projects that are virtual in nature for the volunteers. The changes incorporated in this year’s event are in accordance with the CDC guidelines to ensure that participants are practicing social distancing.

We encourage nonprofits to register as a project site and volunteers to sign up by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, April 3 by submitting the project site form or volunteer form to events@arlingtonchamber.org.



Event Information

Date: Tuesday, April 21

Time: 
12:00-12:30 p.m. Virtual Kickoff
1:00-4:00 p.m. Volunteer Projects

Volunteer projects will be virtual in accordance with the CDC guidelines. Project instructions will be provided for each group.

Registration:
Nonprofits can register as a project site here. Volunteers can register here. Forms must be received by Friday, April 3 at 5:00 p.m

Event Questions?
Olivia McKay
Operations Manager
(703) 525-2400



Northern Kentucky Chamber Livestream Series to Address Workplace Emergency Planning


The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce’s (NKY Chamber) Workplace Safety Livestream Series, will continue Wednesday, April 15 with its fourth installment, “Workplace Emergency Planning.”

Led by Ron Hopkins, instructor for Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) Workforce Development & Community Engagement, the livestream will cover evacuation and emergency action planning in the event of a workplace emergency such as flood, fire, hurricane, tornado, civil disruption or workplace violence. Virtual attendees will walk away with knowledge on the key elements of a good emergency plan, fall protection, and resources for on-going training.

“Having a well-thought out plan of action could be the difference in saving employee lives,” said Hopkins.

In addition to addressing emergency planning, Hopkins will discuss additional safety classes and certifications offered by EKU Workforce Development & Community Engagement and how it can be a resource for employers.

Participants in the livestream will have the opportunity to submit questions anonymously prior to each streaming at www.nkychamber.com/events. All sessions are archived on the NKY Chamber’s website after airing.

While the complete Workplace Safety Livestream schedule is still under development, the next session will be on Wednesday, May 20.

Workplace Safety Livestream Series will run from 11:00-11:30 a.m. and is free to view, though advanced registration is required. To view the upcoming Workplace Safety Livestream schedule, or to register for the upcoming broadcast, visit www.nkychamber.com/events.



Sunday Focus: How will CARES Act help local businesses?

By email, by video and by blog posts, Natchez business leaders are reaching out in every conceivable way to inform local business owners and employees about the benefits available from the federal government.
A little more than a week ago, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
The $2.2 trillion relief package offers a variety of measures to support individuals and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic downturn.

Only a week old, the treasury department, banks and others were scrambling to finalize the rules and regulations for many of the provisions in the law.
Local business organizations such as the Natchez-Adams County Chamber of Commerce, Concordia Chamber of Commerce and Natchez Inc. are equally scrambling to get out the latest updates from the federal government.

“We are learning daily,” Natchez Inc. Director Chandler Russ said Friday. “We are trying to put that information in front of the business community as we get it.”
Russ said the Natchez Inc. website has direct links to the forms and applications necessary for those who want to take advantage of the law.
Natchez-Adams County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Debbie Hudson said the chamber is also trying to help local businesses make sense of the new law.
Friday morning, the chamber hosted a virtual Friday Forum on the CARES Act on Facebook. Silas Simmons partner Peyton Cavin detailed major provisions of the CARES Act and answered questions from those who watched the video live online.
“Peyton helps give (local businesses owners) a familiar face versus somebody in Washington, D.C.,” Hudson said. Read more: Natchez Democrat

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