United Way of Columbia and Montour Counties Will Launch Day of Action
HOW DOES IT WORK?
United Way of Columbia and Montour Counties reached out to local Partner Agencies to see where they needed support, and if we could fulfill any “wish lists” for their organizations. Seven nonprofits responded with twelve different projects they are looking to complete. The projects range from planting and weeding gardens, sanding, staining, and painting projects, building planter boxes, organizing storage units, and even some longer-term data entry projects.
Just use our sign-up form below:
Select the areas where you would like to help, and we will match you to a project!
WHAT DAYS CAN I VOLUNTEER?
Our Days of Action will take place the 3rd weekend in June. You are welcome to volunteer for one or all of the days depending on what works best for your schedule. Children under 14 years of age are welcome to participate but must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Saturday, June 19th, 2021
Sunday, June 20th, 2021
Monday, June 21st, 2021
WHAT IF I HAVE QUESTIONS?
You can reach out to Danielle Velkoff at (570) 360-5009 or via email at info@cmcuw.org.
Bason Coffee is Turning 10!
June is Bason Coffee‘s birthday month and they want to give back to its customers to say THANK YOU! Thank you for your support through the past 10 crazy years. Whether it be supporting Bason Coffee at the Lewisburg Market, the Bloomsburg Fair or just being a regular at the store in Danville.
On June 19, Bason Coffee will have a parking lot event with food, beverages and fun for everyone.
With that being said…. each Saturday in the month of June they will be doing something outside or in store.
June 19~ Parking Lot Event! Come enjoy a grilled cheese from the Grilled Cheese Cafe 2, grab a sweet treat from Four Girls Bakery, have the kids enjoy an activity from the Bloomsburg Children’s Museum, and for the parents enjoy a nice drink from Rock God Brewing. It will be a fun day for sure… did I mention anyone who shops in the store that day will be entered to win some prizes too?!
June 26~ Danville Downtown Spring Fling, come visit Bason Coffee down on Mill Street and see many other vendors as well. The Danville store will be open from 8:30a-3p.
What a whirlwind it was on Saturday, June 12 as they gave away 200 Chicken BBQ dinners for the community in 40 minutes with the help of Friendship Fire Company Station 10. The Chicken BBQ took place in Bason’s parking lot with Friendship Fire Company serving the meals. Friendship Fire Company also was fortunate to have folks make generous donations towards their new ladder truck.
Bason Coffee is celebrating its 10th birthday this month by finding ways to say thank you to all of the amazing customers. Come join the festivities this weekend and next as they continue to celebrate with its customers and community.
Bloomsburg Town Park Announces its 2021 Summer Concert Series
Wednesday, June 16 McNett Country- Traditional and Contemporary Country Music
Wednesday, June 23 Greenwood Valley Boys- Traditional Bluegrass music
Wednesday, June 30 Coast Two Coast- A trio playing music from the 50’s to the present
Wednesday, July 7 Memory Lane- Music of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s
Wednesday, July 14 BC Combo*- Bringing 30 years of experience & passion to Blues, Jazz, Swing, Folk, R&B & Soul
Wednesday, July 21 Clickard Consortium- A 10-piece ensemble playing swing to modern jazz
Wednesday, July 28 Gift, Troutman and Gift- vocal harmonies from the 40’s to the present
Thursday, August 5 64th Annual Ice Cream and Cake Festival with the Catawissa Military Band. Come and enjoy
this traditional community event with food, games, music, entertainment and fun for all!
All concert times are 7:00 – 8:30
* Sponsored in part by The Exchange
On Tuesday, June 15th, Governor Tom Wolf’s administration certified the results of the May primary election, resulting in the end of the disaster emergency declaration in Pennsylvania. While the Legislature has extended some regulatory waivers until September 30th, benefits afforded to establishments with liquor licenses, including drinks to go, have now ended. Three bills are now being considered in the Senate that would extend these benefits. The Chamber’s Board of Directors is supporting all three of the original House proposals.
- House Bill 1154 would allow licensed establishments to sell prepared beverages and mixed drinks for off-premises consumption permanently. The bill was introduced by Representative Kurt Masser and co-sponsored by Representative David Millard. It passed the House by a vote of 187-14 and Governor Wolf stated he would immediately sign the version passed by the House. A Senate committee added language that has now jeopardized the Governor’s support.
- House Bill 425, co-sponsored by Rep. Millard, would allow a licensed premises to be extended to outside serving areas that are immediately adjacent to or within 1000 feet of the licensed building through 2022. This bill passed the House unanimously and the language has now been incorporated into H.B. 1154.
- House Bill 427 would increase the discount of liquor to licensed establishments to 15% for a period of three years following the end of the disaster declaration. This legislation was also co-sponsored by Rep. Millard and passed the House unanimously.
With workforce shortages causing businesses to reduce hours and services and outsource work, and the resulting supply chain issues, the Chamber’s Board of Directors is calling for an end to the $300 per week federal Unemployment Compensation bonus payments as soon as possible. Currently, the weekly bonus is scheduled to end in early September, though 26 states have opted to end the benefits sooner. Legislation is currently being considered in Harrisburg that would also end the bonus payments in Pennsylvania, and offer return to work bonuses. This week, the Chamber Board voted unanimously in opposition of reentry bonuses.
House Bill 508 would provide a $300 bonus after four and eight weeks of employment. Senate Bill 699 would provide a $1,000 bonus to individuals returning to work after four weeks of employment. In addition to the unanimous vote by the Board, the Chamber has received feedback from members of all sizes expressing concerns over the appropriateness of return to work bonuses.
“The UC bonus and stimulus payments have been disincentivizing people from returning to work for months,” said Chamber president Fred Gaffney. “With good paying jobs available throughout the state, the government needs to recognize that it is hindering economic recovery. Businesses should not have to compete with the UC system for employees.”
On June 14th, the town’s new parking application went live, which allows residents, employees and visitors to pay by smartphone. Citizens now have the opportunity to download the free Pango Parking App and pay to park using a credit card. There will be a convenience fee to use the App. You will need to download the app from your App store or set up an account with Pango at www.mypango.com.
• A Pay-by-Phone credit card option is available if you do not have a smartphone.
• Signs will be located throughout town to notify you in which Pango Zone you are parked. There will be 14 Zones throughout Bloomsburg.
• When you choose the zone in the App, the screen will advise you of the costs, time restrictions and choices for length of stay.
• You will be able to add time from a remote location as long as it does not exceed any
restrictions in that zone.
• If you drive multiple vehicles you can add them all in the App but must choose the correct
license plate when you pay to park. Enforcement is done by license plate.
• Meters will remain as a coin choice at many spaces. You do not have to pay the meter if you
choose to use the App. If you do not use the app you must park and pay at a meter.
From PA Chamber of Business & Industry
The state legislature flexed its new constitutional authority last week and voted to end Governor Tom Wolf’s ongoing COVID-19 Disaster Emergency Declaration. The concurrent resolution received bipartisan votes in both chambers, with one Democrat joining all 28 Republicans and one Independent in the Senate and eight Democrats voting with all 113 Republicans in the House to approve the measure.
During floor remarks, Republicans argued that with a majority of the Wolf administration’s mitigation orders having already been lifted, an increase in the number of vaccinations and a decrease in COVID caseloads, an emergency declaration was no longer necessary. The administration – which had strongly opposed giving the General Assembly the authority to end emergency declarations with a simple majority – and legislative Democrats raised concern over the future of programs and federal funding that tied to the emergency declaration.
To that point, the General Assembly also passed legislation – which the governor signed into law – that extends the regulatory flexibility the administration utilized over the past year as part of the disaster declaration. This extension lasts until Sept. 30.
May Primary Election voters approved two changes to the state’s constitution as it relates to a governor’s emergency powers. The first measure gives the General Assembly the ability to end or extend an emergency disaster declaration by a simple majority vote. The second measure would limit emergency disaster declarations to 21 days, but allow the General Assembly to approve an extension via a concurrent resolution. Prior to these changes, governors could issue an emergency declaration for up to 90 days and extend it indefinitely, and the General Assembly could only end a declaration by a 2/3 majority vote. The PA Chamber had supported the constitutional amendments as a way to restore checks and balances to the emergency declaration process.
The Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce is spotlighted in the latest edition of SECV8’s In Your Neighborhood program. Host Chris O’Rourke interviewed Chamber President Fred Gaffney about the organization’s activities since the pandemic began, and how the Chamber is looking to help members and the general business community going forward.
The episode will air every Wednesday at 6:30 and 9:30 p.m., every Friday at 5:30 and 9:30 p.m., every Saturday at 1 and 4:30 p.m., and every Sunday at 1, 5, and 9:30 p.m. through the month of June.
Pennsylvania’s new unemployment benefits system is now online and accepting claims at benefits.uc.pa.gov.
The new unemployment system replaces a 40-year-old outdated mainframe that made filing for unemployment benefits complicated for users and processing benefits cumbersome for staff. The new system makes filing for benefits easier and faster for claimants. Staff will need less time to process claims, which is expected to help reduce the number of claimants waiting for their claim to be processed.
These changes will allow employers to:
• Receive important information and notices via a dashboard.
• View all notices of separations, dates of appeal hearings, and UC correspondence in real-time.
• Have greater oversight, faster response time, and better communication regarding changes in information.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to have an actual event,” said Dan Knorr, the university’s director of external and government relations.
Knorr spoke to about two dozen people, including state Rep. Kurt Masser, Chamber of Commerce President Fred Gaffney and BU administrators and staff, gathered outside the new four-story, $35 million building near Centennial Hall on campus.
“I know this is just a small thing, but I feel like I’ve been dreaming of it for a year. So this is very exciting,” Knorr remarked.
The light-filled glass building features a large, central atrium and is home to administrative offices as well as student classrooms and art studios.
That’s an unusual mix for a campus building, noted BU President Bashar Hanna. He called the new facility a “collaboration.”
“Often, when universities build buildings, they design them either as academic buildings or as administrative buildings,” Hanna told the crowd. “What we’ve done here at Bloomsburg emphasizes that it’s one family.”
Just inside the main entrance, the new admission’s office welcomes incoming students in the same building as other student services, such as financial aid and the registrar. Those offices had been scattered throughout campus, making it harder for students to access those services, university spokesman Tom McGuire said.
History and art students who had crowded into the aging 114-year-old Old Science Hall for classes now have space and resources spread throughout the building’s four floors, McGuire added.
The university broke ground on the building in late 2018. It opened early this year.
From PA Chamber of Business & Industry
With less than one month remaining in the state’s 2020-21 Fiscal Year and negotiations on the upcoming year’s budget beginning in earnest, the Commonwealth continues a strong fiscal showing. May’s revenue collections totaled $3.9 billion – representing a staggering 65.4 percent increase over official estimates.
Last month, the state’s Independent Fiscal Office forecasted the Commonwealth would finish the fiscal year with a $3.16 billion revenue surplus. The state is on track to realize that number with revenue collections to date totaling $36.6 billion, or $2.9 billion over estimates.
The higher than anticipated revenues come as welcome news for state government officials. With the fiscal year nearing an end, June historically marks a period of intense negotiations over the upcoming year’s state budget. Adding another dynamic to budgetary discussions is the influx of more than $7 billion in federal stimulus aid.
While strong revenues help to alleviate pressures on the General Fund brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still several areas of disagreement between the Wolf administration and Republican majorities in the General Assembly – including the final spend number and the allocation of the stimulus dollars.
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed interest and optimism in finalizing the 2021-22 budget plan well ahead of the June 30 constitutional deadline.
Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education is hosting public hearings in June to review the proposed integration of six universities into two institutions, doubling the number of opportunities the public has to directly voice their feedback.
The virtual hearings are part of a transparent, consultative process outlined in state law that has guided the System toward its goal of expanding student opportunities through integrations. The proposed plans would create two combinations of three co-equal campuses: California-Clarion-Edinboro universities in the western region and Bloomsburg-Lock Haven-Mansfield in the northeast.
“Feedback from the public is an integral part of our efforts to creatively reimagine the structure of public higher education in a way that expands student opportunities, supports their success, and sets these campuses for sustainability deeper into the 21st century,” Board chair Cindy Shapira said. “The hearings are not only part of the process outlined in state law, they are also the right thing to do because these efforts are in support of public higher education in the Commonwealth.”
The hearing schedule will be:
• June 9, 8-9:30 a.m. (western plan)
• June 9, 4:30-6 p.m. (western plan)
• June 10, 8-4:30 a.m. (northeastern plan)
• June 10, 4:30-6 p.m. (northeastern plan)
Each hearing will include brief presentations by system leaders as well as opportunity for the public to voice their feedback on the proposed integrations. The public can view the hearings, participate, or submit comments here.
“By hosting morning and late-afternoon hearings, the public will have greater opportunity and choice for when they would like to participate,” Chancellor Dan Greenstein said. “We made a commitment when this journey began almost a year ago to be consultative and transparent because we are doing nothing less than reimagining how public higher education is delivered in Pennsylvania. This is historic. This can profoundly support students by giving them access to academic programming and other activities across three campuses, more than a single campus can offer. And if successful it will mean serving these regional economies deeper into the 21st century by maintaining and expanding quality, affordable higher education.”
The process involves organizing public comments submitted through email and other means by subject matter and their potential as actionable items. The comments are reviewed and evaluated daily by subject matter experts at the System.
“We’re committed to documenting and showing any improvements to the integrations plans based on public comment before final plans are presented to the Board for their consideration,” Greenstein said. “Transparency is key to the success of integrations. So too is the involvement of stakeholders from the grassroots all the way to university and System leadership. We are the public’s higher education system, and as such, we’re committed to continuing to be consultative and transparent to stakeholders across the Commonwealth.”
Integrations are possible through Act 50 of 2020, legislation passed by near-unanimous vote in the General Assembly and signed by Gov. Tom Wolf. It proposes at both California-Clarion-Edinboro and Bloomsburg-Lock Haven-Mansfield single leadership teams, faculty cohorts, enrollment management, and budgets while opening academic program at the co-equal campuses to all students. It also places priority on maintaining unique identities and experiences at the six campuses and, while maintaining traditional residential education experiences, expanding into potential growth areas – non-degree credential and non-credential upskilling programs in the northeast and affordable, Pennsylvania-based fully online programming in the west.