Thursday, September 6, 2012

6:00 p.m.

Comfort Inn Huntingdon 

Click here for details

Open House at Piney Ridge Healing Arts Center
 Wednesday, September 12, 2012

4:00 - 8:00 p.m.

Click here for details

Front Line Customer Service and Handling Angry Customers Seminar

Thursday, September 13, 2012

9:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Penn State Cooperative Extension (10722 Fairgrounds Road)

Click here for details 

Read Past E-News Issues

During the August 17 Annual Membership Luncheon, the Chamber unveiled a new Mission, Vision and Values.  

Mission

To positively impact the quality of life, economic development and planned growth through leadership, vision and cooperation within our Chamber and throughout the region. 

Vision

We will be the leading voice and best resource for connecting businesses, and offering benefits and programs to strengthen business and the community. 

Values

Service, Employers, Respect, Volunteers, Integrity,Collaboration and

Employees

The Chamber & HCBI Board of Directors voted to sign the US Chamber of Commerce letter urging Congress and the President to immediately enact legislation that averts America's impending fiscal cliff.    

The year- end tax increases would yield the largest tax increases in American history at the same time that spending cuts are being imposed.  Economists warn that these spending cuts and tax increases will have a devastating effect on the economy, possibly returning it to a recession.  The letter requests that action be taken now. The looming year-end fiscal cliff has increased uncertainty, which has already begun to deter consumer spending and hamper business investment. 

Businesses cannot plan for the future and are delaying hiring, ordering and are canceling new investments.  As frightened manufacturers delay investment, the rate of economic growth is slowing from a rate of 4.1% at the end of last year to 1.5%.   

 The letter urges congress and the president to

• Extend all of the 2001 and 2003 tax rates (including current marginal rates, dividend and capital gains rates, and estate tax relief) for all taxpayers;
• Extend vital expired and expiring business tax provisions;
• Provide alternative minimum tax (AMT) relief; and
• Find spending cuts to replace a sequestration never intended to go into effect.

Short term action is not a substitute for long term fundamental fiscal reform. In addition to immediate action on the fiscal cliff, the letter also urges that legislators

• Firmly commit to tackling comprehensive tax reform in the next Congress; and
• Agree to develop a long term plan to address America's excessive spending, particularly entitlement spending.

The Chamber & HCBI believe legislation needs to be enacted to avoid automatic tax increases at a time of economic uncertainty. We support thoughtful and responsible actions addressing longer term essential tax reform that will impact positively on economic growth and job creation.

The Chamber will once again be partnering with the Huntingdon County Foundation on the Winter Blues. Past events featured a Taste of Huntingdon County and offered member non-profits the opportunity to display information and raise money by selling raffle tickets for a flat screen TV.  

If you are interested in helping us plan the 2013 event please email Yvonne at ymartin@huntingdonchamber.com.

Please take a few minutes to complete our Government Affairs Survey. Your responses will help us:

  1)  Share key issues with candidates prior to the fall elections.

  2)  Convey your concerns to legislators when we meet with them. 

  3)  Channel the concerns of local businesses to the PA Chamber of            Business and Industry and the US Chamber so that we can help            them help you.  

  4)  Determine programs to offer to you. 

Click this link 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/HCCCGovernmentAffairsSurvey2012 

to complete the survey.

Please help us help you.

The Huntingdon County Chamber of Commerce is now accepting nominations for the awards that will be presented at the October 4, 2012 Annual Awards Gala. Nominees are being accepted in the following categories: Business of the Year (Sponsored by the John B. Brown Funeral Home, Inc.), Community Service Award (Sponsored by Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. - Jo Anna Swope), Customer Service Award (Sponsored by the Comfort Inn Huntingdon), Educator of the Year Award (Sponsored by Juniata College), Entrepreneurial Success Award (Sponsored by Kooman & Associates, LLC) and Volunteer of the Year Award (Sponsored by Cisney & O'Donnell, Inc.) The nomination deadline is September 10.  

The prestigious ATHENA Award will also be presented to an individual in our community. The Award is presented to a woman or man who is recognized for professional excellence, community service, and for actively assisting women in their attainment of professional excellence and leadership skills. This worldwide Award is being sponsored by ACCO Brands, BottomLine Pros LLC, Bumgardner & Flasher Oil, Inc., DuBois Business College, Grier School, Juniata College, Lincoln Caverns, Inc. And Whisper Rocks, Northwest Savings Bank, Penelec, State College Magazine, and Westminster Woods. The ATHENA Award nomination deadline is August 22.

Please take a few minutes to help us recognize outstanding businesses and individuals. Click here to print a nomination form. Forms are also available at the Chamber office at 500 Allegheny Street, Huntingdon.

The Advantage Grant Program (AGP) available through the PA Department of Environmental Protection will consider providing 50 percent reimbursement grants up to $9,500 to support eligible projects for eligible businesses. Each eligible business may only receive $9,500 per fiscal year (FY). The AGP provides reimbursement grant funding to promote implementation of pollution prevention and energy efficiency practices of small businesses. Businesses must save 25 percent plus $750 annually as a direct result of implementing the grant supported project. All grant projects must be completed by June 30, 2013.

We strongly recommend that you save a copy of all information submitted to DEP. Grantees can expect a 30 to 60 day review period prior to possible selection. Any application submitted is expected to be complete.

http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/s

mall_business_ombudsman/10493#AGP

There's still time to advertise on the new interactive map. Click the image below to see how the current advertisers are using this opportunity.    

To advertise on the map, call Terry Smith at 724-312-2823. 

Get Your Business Ready For Any Kind of Disaster at

Free National Preparedness Month Webinar Series

You can get help with your own business preparedness planning through a series of free webinars hosted by the U.S. Small Business Administration and Agility Recovery. The September series is presented in collaboration with FEMA's Ready Campaign, as part of National Preparedness Month. SBA wants to help business owners take charge of the well-being of their own companies, the safety of their employees, and the sustenance of their local economies by being prepared to rebound quickly from any kind of disaster.

Here's a list of the webinars, held each Wednesday in September at 2 p.m. ET:

Sept. 5:   "10 Steps to Prepare Any Organization for Disaster" with an introduction from James Rivera, Associate Administrator for SBA's Office of Disaster Assistance.

Sept. 12: "Protecting Your Organization by Preparing Your Employees"

Sept. 19: "Utilization of Social Media During a Crisis"

Sept. 26: "Surviving a Crisis, Large or Small: Real Life Lessons Learned"

Business owners who recovered from disasters discuss their proactive emergency planning.

A question and answer session will follow each of the presentations.  Go to http://www2.agilityrecovery.com/npm to register for any of the webinars. 

Act 60 allowed for bond issuance to help repay the state's nearly $4 billion debt to the federal government for continued payouts from the UC Trust Fund. The Office of the Budget was able to secure an incentive from Citibank that included interim refinancing that completely cleared the Commonwealth's debt to the federal government. The administration also noted that by late September, a permanent refinancing solution will be in place to repay Citibank and complete the goal of transferring the state's high-interest UC debt to a low-interest debt.

The cost-savings to employers through this arrangement results from the debt being paid off quickly, offering job creators a more predictable UC payment structure and allowing them to reinvest their UC savings in hiring new workers or growing their business.