• The Bucknell University Small Business Development Center will hold its annual Celebration of Small Business breakfast this Friday, July 26 at 8 a.m. This annual event celebrates entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial leaders and also features awards. There is no cost to attend. Register online or call 570-577-1249. 

• The Regional Impact Fund of the Central Susquehanna Community Foundation recently announced its second competitive grantround of $50K for projects that address current areas of unmet needs throughout the CSCF’s service area, which includes Columbia and Montour Counties. This year’s grantround will consist of an exciting new application process and opportunity for the public to get involved. Interested nonprofits will first submit a Letter of Inquiry introducing their organization, needs, service area, and budgetary request. Those proposals selected by the CSCF Grants Committee will then be invited to submit a full application and participate in The Nonprofit Narrative next Monday, July 29, at 8:30 a.m. at the Danville Area High School auditorium. The Nonprofit Narrative is a platform for these groups to share their grant requests and stories of regional impact—the joys, challenges, dreams and requests each face as they serve our neighbors, communities, and region at large. For more information on the Regional Impact Fund, competitive grantround or The Nonprofit Narrative, visit csgiving.org/rif.

• Providence Engineering is excited to announce the promotion of Bart Foreman, P.E. to manager, distribution & warehouse facilities design.
  

  Bart Foreman of Providence Engineering

  Previously, as a project manager, Bart provided exceptional design and project management services for many clients in the distribution/warehouse market. Leveraging his 12 years of professional experience, Bart will now formally lead Providence’s distribution & warehouse facilities design department. In this new role, Bart will ensure that Providence and its clients remain at the forefront of the warehouse market by blending efficient design principles with the adoption of innovative construction technology.

• The Bucknell University Small Business Development Center invites interested business in need of website development to connect with Bucknell students in the “Markets, Innovation, and Design 300” class in the Freeman College of Management. Each semester, these students make websites free of charge for local small businesses. These projects provide a hands-on learning experience for the students while bringing new ideas to these organizations. In early September, the students will be introduced to this assignment and divided into teams. Then the teams will have the liberty to choose with which businesses and organizations they would like to work. By early October, each student team will meet with their client to learn about the specific needs and goals of the organization and the purpose that the site should serve. Over the course of the semester, the students will then design and build the website with an online website software program, incorporating text and photographs provided by the organization. If your business or organization is in need of a website, or if it would benefit from a redesigned site, then please fill out this online form by Aug. 15 to ensure your organization is considered. Additional information is available on this form. 

• Each year at the Little League World Series, Beiter’s Home Center, located right across the street from the Little League Complex in South Williamsport, allows a nonprofit organization to manage its parking lot, with the nonprofit keeping the proceeds from the parking fees. For the next two years beginning with next month’s event, Beiter’s has selected the Ronald McDonald House of Danville to be the nonprofit beneficiary. RMHD is in need of several volunteers to help run and manage the parking lot for the entirety of the event, which runs Aug. 15-25. There are several shifts available on each day of the event. If you would be interested in volunteering at the LLWS to help benefit the RMHD, please call Michael Jacobs at 570-214-1792 for more information. Volunteers must be 18 or older. 

• Wild For Salmon will holds its annual Fishtival on Saturday, Aug. 24, from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. at its retail store at 521 Montour Blvd. (Rt. 11) in Bloomsburg. The annual event, which welcomes back the fishermen from a successful fishing season in Alaska, features an assortment of delicious dishes with the signature sockeye salmon and other fish and seafood, as well as several other vendors. There is no cost to attend. 

• Camp Victory will host its annual Community Open House on Sunday, Sept. 8, from 12-3 p.m. This free afternoon of family fun includes its rock climbing wall, zip line and paddle boats on the pond as well as hot dogs, ice cream, drinks, an arts and crafts project, a moon bounce, wagon rides and live music. at 1 p.m., there will also be a ribbon cutting to celebrate the recent expansion of the Welcome Center. 

The Foundation of the Columbia Montour Chamber of Commerce has received a $4,100 grant from the PPL Foundation. These funds will be used to support Classroom in the Workplace programming, and will directly help us to provide real-world experiences to area high school students.  This grant will provide funds for two of the Foundation’s Keystone programs, Classroom in Healthcare and Classroom on Main Street. 

“Thanks to the support of PPL, the Foundation will once again be able to offer students the opportunity to get first-hand experience and knowledge about two of our key local economic drivers, healthcare and, small business and entrepreneurship,” states Jeff Emanuel, Foundation of CMCC director. 

Through strategic partnerships, the PPL Foundation will support organizations that are working to create vibrant, sustainable communities and empowering each citizen to fulfill her or his potential. The PPL Foundation contributes more than $3 million annually to a wide variety of nonprofit organizations in north and central Pennsylvania.

Downtown Bloomsburg, Inc. (DBI), invites everyone interested in the Main Street business district to meet the design team of the Miller Avenue Improvement Project.

DBI has undertaken the redevelopment of a block of Miller Avenue into a multi-use, pedestrian friendly asset for the downtown; this block connects Fog & Flame coffee shop on the Main Street end and Rose Marie’s restaurant on the Pine Avenue end. After a request for proposals and a rigorous evaluation process by DBI board members, DBI chose Larson Design Group to draw up plans and manage the project’s construction; with an expectation of ground breaking in early 2020.

The meeting will take place on Monday, Aug. 5, from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Greenly Center, 50 East Main Street in Bloomsburg, with representatives of DBI and Larson Design present. No reservations are necessary.

As one of the most important thoroughfares between Main Street and Pine Avenue, Miller Avenue sees heavy pedestrians traffic; once it closes permanently to cars and trucks, users will see a significant increase in safety. In addition, tables and chairs from the eateries at both ends, as well as other seating, will welcome citizens and visitors alike into an “outdoor living room”, complete with artwork, plantings, and attractive lighting.

DBI’s investment in the downtown comes from donations and money raised at events including the Easter and Santa train rides. DBI also received matching funds through the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant program, for which DBI acts as the Town of Bloomsburg’s designated agent.

For any questions about the project, contact DBI board member Oren B. Helbok, executive director of The Exchange, at 570-317-2596 or email.

Program summary

Penn National Insurance will return almost $900,000 in dividends for the seventh program year of the ChamberChoice Business Insurance program. Members of the ChamberChoice Business Insurance Program, who placed their insurance coverage with Penn National Insurance during the 2016/2017 program year and remained chamber members and policyholders through the end of the program year, will receive a dividend equal to 3% of their total business insurance premium (excluding Umbrella premium). Over the past six years, Penn National Insurance has returned an average of 7% in dividends and a total of over $9.7 million to the business community.

Columbia Montour Chamber members enrolled in the program received an aggregate total of $9,604 back in dividends. Over the last seven years, Columbia Montour Chamber members have now received over $240,000 in dividends.

“This program is not only a great benefit to our members, but has made a significant economic impact by putting dollars back into our local community and member businesses,” said Columbia Montour Chamber president Fred Gaffney.

An important aspect of this group insurance program is preventing loss and controlling claims costs. Because dividends are based on the group’s collective loss experience, a business that may have had a significant loss may still be eligible to receive a dividend.

The program is sold exclusively through local, independent agents who can offer chamber members a variety of coverages and pricing on property and casualty insurance, including business owners, commercial auto, general liability, inland marine and workers’ compensation. Dividends are paid on all of these coverages. In addition, through safety consulting, Penn National Insurance and local independent insurance agencies encourage member businesses to develop safety practices to substantially reduce or eliminate workplace injuries.

To see if this program could be a good fit for your business, contact Chamber members Associated Insurance Management at 570-275-0100, Hutchison Insurance Agency at 570-784-5550, or Henry Dunn Insurance at 570-416-0044 for a no-obligation quote. 

From ChamberChoice

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) imposes a fee on health insurance issuers and plan sponsors of self-insured health plans to help fund the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute. The fee, called the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) fee, is calculated based on the average number of lives covered under the policy or plan.

PCORI fees are reported and paid annually using IRS Form 720 (Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return). These fees are due each year by July 31 of the year following the last day of the plan year. This means that, for plan years ending in 2018, the PCORI fees are due by July 31, 2019. The IRS instructions for filing form 720 include information on reporting and paying the PCORI fees.

The links to the ACA Overview below provides further information on reporting and paying the PCORI fees. Please contact JRG Advisors for more information.

Reporting & Paying the PCORI Fees (pdf)
Coverage Subject to PCORI Fees (pdf)
FAQs on PCORI Fees (pdf)

From MePush

Late in 2018, we sent out a notice similar to this one discussing the end of life for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008R2, which is scheduled to occur on January 14, 2020.

Given that the end of life date is now less than six months away, we wanted to take one final opportunity to remind everyone of the above mentioned date. If you are a MePush customer and haven’t heard from us regarding your workstations over the past 7-8 months, please reply and let us know so that we can ensure you are set going in to 2020. 

It you could use help with this or other information technology issues, contact MePush or another Chamber member in the Computer/IT/Internet Services category.

From PA Chamber of Business & Industry

The Commonwealth collected $1 billion more in tax revenue than ancitipated to close out the 2018-19 Fiscal Year.  This allowed lawmakers to put $318 million into the state’s nearly depleted Rainy Day Fund, as well as help to fund numerous state-run programs, including public and higher education, without raising taxes on business or individual taxpayers.

A recent story in the Philadelphia Inquirer explains that this historic collection was due in large part to the federal tax reform law that was enacted in late 2017 and provided a much needed boost in employer optimism and confidence that resulted in higher than expected corporate profits. According to Independent Fiscal Office Executive Director Matthew Knittel, his office initially estimated $3.1 billion in revenue for the last fiscal year, but increased that estimate last month by $306 million.  “I suspect that we had maybe underestimated the impact of those tax law changes,” Knittel admitted to the Inquirer.  These positive results – along with the employer optimism expressed in the PA Chamber’s most recent Economic Survey – are why our organization is committed to working with lawmakers to enact comprehensive tax reforms at the state level when lawmakers return to session this fall.

The story also lists the taxation of internet sales and gaming expansion as two other factors that put revenue collection over the top in 2018-19.

In other good news, Knittel said that much of the additional revenue collected in the past year (with the exception of gaming) is permanent, meaning that higher revenues will continue to flow into state coffers without the need for additional taxes.

Republicans are also touting their commitment to holding the line on state spending as another factor that led to Pennsylvania’s banner Fiscal Year.  At a news conference this spring, House Majority Leader Bryan Cutler, R-Lancaster, credited the increased revenue as being “one part of the impact of fiscal responsibility and sound policymaking.” 

Chamber members are reminded to provide updates to organizational contact information as soon as possible. The 2019-20 Membership Directory will be going to print soon and we want to ensure that we’re representing members as accurately as possible. Any updates to addresses, contact information, website addresses, etc. should be sent to Brenda via email.

Also, for businesses in Montour County that were affected by readdressing, the Post Office has stopped forwarding mail to old addresses. Businesses and residents are urged to post their new addresses on properties and provide the information to the Chamber and other organizations with which they do business if they haven’t done so already.

• The Central Susquehanna Community Foundation is pleased to announce scholarship awards for local students through the Berwick Health and Wellness Fund (BHWF).
  

  Front row (l-r): Marisa Missien, Sarah Lalli, Rachel Reader, Griffin Keller
  Back row (l-r): BHWF Advisory Committee Members: Bryan Carlin, Lance Kittelson, Athena Aardweg, Amanda Stutzman, Jeff Cerminaro, and Mike Goresh.

  Applications for a variety of health-related career choices were accepted from students at Berwick, Benton, Northwest and Central Columbia school districts. The fund awarded $10,000 in scholarships to 12 graduating seniors and non-traditional students. The Foundation also awarded scholarships from 101 other scholarship funds. The following students received BHWF scholarship awards: Allison Beaver, $1,000.00; Madison Coolbaugh, $750.00; Megan Dalo, $750.00; Alicia Dent, $750.00; Samantha Dyer, $750.00; Teagan Karafinski, $750.00; Griffin Keller, $750.00; Emily Kester, $1,000.00; Sarah Lalli, $1,000.00; Joseph Lynn, $750.00; Marisa Missien, $1,000.00; Rachel Reader, $750.00

• Service 1st Federal Credit Union’s 2019 Community Savings Challenge helped members save $1.5 million in combined interest and benefited six organizations.
  

  (L-R): Laurie Swank, Director of Programs, AGAPE; Eileen Chapman, Executive Director, AGAPE; and Tom Rambo, Assistant Vice President Bloomsburg and Danville Markets, Service 1st.

  Representatives from participating charities and Service 1st recently gathered at the Pine Barn Inn, to celebrate the difference they made by working together on this four-month initiative. During the Community Savings Challenge, Service 1st reminded everyone how important it is to get a financial checkup. These checkups help establish healthy financial habits, and often identify ways members are able to save more. After completing a financial checkup, members had the opportunity to vote for one of six local charities. These organizations each received a donation reflective of the percent of votes received. The following charities partnered with Service 1st for this year’s Challenge: AGAPE, Bloomsburg; Candy’s Place, Wilkes-Barre; Caring for Kids Backpack Program, Sunbury; Disabled American Veterans, Susquehanna Valley Chapter 47, Williamsport; Mobile Health of Evangelical, Lewisburg; and Summit Early Learning, Mifflinburg.

• Bloomsburg University’s IT Outreach Webinar Series will conduct its next webinar this Thursday, July 18, at 1:30 p.m. This edition’s topic is “Two Key Ingredients for Successful Criminal Investigations: IT and Interviews,” and will be  given by Michael Huben, an instructor in the Zeigler College of Business. This event is free and open to the public. Register online and see the flyer for additional information. 

• The United Way of Columbia and Montour County’s United in Recovery coalition will hold a free assessment and treatment information on drug & alcohol next Tuesday, July 23, from 3-7 p.m. at the Reliance Fire Company, 501 West 3rd St., Berwick. 

• The Bucknell University Small Business Development Center will hold its annual Celebration of Small Business breakfast on Friday, July 26 at 8 a.m. This annual event celebrates entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial leaders and also features awards. There is no cost to attend. Register online or call 570-577-1249. 

• The Regional Impact Fund of the Central Susquehanna Community Foundation recently announced its second competitive grantround of $50K for projects that address current areas of unmet needs throughout the CSCF’s service area, which includes Columbia and Montour Counties. This year’s grantround will consist of an exciting new application process and opportunity for the public to get involved. Interested nonprofits will first submit a Letter of Inquiry introducing their organization, needs, service area, and budgetary request. Those proposals selected by the CSCF Grants Committee will then be invited to submit a full application and participate in The Nonprofit Narrative on Monday, July 29, at 8:30 a.m. at the Danville Area High School auditorium. The Nonprofit Narrative is a platform for these groups to share their grant requests and stories of regional impact—the joys, challenges, dreams and requests each face as they serve our neighbors, communities, and region at large. For more information on the Regional Impact Fund, competitive grantround or The Nonprofit Narrative, visit csgiving.org/rif. 

• The Bucknell University Small Business Development Center invites interested business in need of website development to connect with Bucknell students in the “Markets, Innovation, and Design 300” class in the Freeman College of Management. Each semester, these students make websites free of charge for local small businesses. These projects provide a hands-on learning experience for the students while bringing new ideas to these organizations. In early September, the students will be introduced to this assignment and divided into teams. Then the teams will have the liberty to choose with which businesses and organizations they would like to work. By early October, each student team will meet with their client to learn about the specific needs and goals of the organization and the purpose that the site should serve. Over the course of the semester, the students will then design and build the website with an online website software program, incorporating text and photographs provided by the organization. If your business or organization is in need of a website, or if it would benefit from a redesigned site, then please fill out this online form by Aug. 15 to ensure your organization is considered. Additional information is available on this form. 

The 35th edition of the Benton Rodeo, voted one of the best of over 65 rodeos held east of the Mississippi River by the American Professional Rodeo Association, gets underway tonight and runs through Sunday, July 21 at the Benton Rodeo Grounds.

The Rodeo brochure has all pertinent information, including ticket, schedule, vendors, sponsors and more. All shows are presented rain or shine. The shows scheduled for tonight and Wednesday night, July 16-17, are free admissions, while the championship rodeo is scheduled for July 18-20 and the Bull-A-Rama on July 21. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door or by calling 570-437-0081. For more information, visit the Benton Rodeo’s website.

On Saturday, July 20, there will be a leukemia/lymphoma cure walk/run at 8 a.m., followed by the special kids roundup at 10 a.m., a special show exclusively for kids with special needs and their families. These events raise money for their respective causes, and the special kids roundup has in the past benefited Chamber members such as the Danville Child Development Center and Camp Victory. 

Sponsors of the Benton Rodeo include Chamber members A.O. Rent, Ken Pollock Ford Lincoln, Seven Mountains Media, The River 105 & 103.5, Steve Shannon Tire & Auto, WVIA, Williams, First Columbia Bank & Trust, Alexander Family Dealerships, Mahindra of Bloomsburg, Sokol Quarries, Atlantic Broadband , Geisinger Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital, and WYOU/WBRE.