U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE


THE PRO ACT IS AN ATTACK ON WORKER FREEDOM

FEB 03, 2020 -  All of us are pro-worker. Without the hard work, talent, and ideas of the American workforce, nothing gets done. Crops aren't harvested, steel isn't made, products aren't delivered, software isn't coded, and our economy grinds to a halt.

But in Washington, the term "pro-worker" is tossed around loosely and not always accurately. A salient example is the PRO (Protecting the Right to Organize) Act, which the House of Representatives plans to vote on before President's Day. While the bill is wrapped up in the gauzy packaging of worker rights, in reality, it's just the opposite. It would undermine worker freedom in a number of ways.  For the complete article, please visit:  The PRO Act Is An Attack on Worker Freedom
TWO BIG WINS FOR U.S. TRADE

JAN 27, 2020 - After several tumultuous years on the U.S. trade agenda, 2020 started with a bang with two back-to-back victories for American business: completion of a Phase 1 deal with China and final passage of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). These critical trade deals will create new opportunities for companies large and small and help restore certainty to business owners, workers, farmers, and manufacturers. For the complete article, please visit: Two Big Wins for U.S. Trade


For more information from the US Chamber, please visit:  United State Chamber of Commerce

PENNSYLVANIA CHAMBER OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY


REVISED OVERTIME ELIGIBILITY RULES WILL HAVE  FAR REACHING,
NEGATIVE IMPACTS

HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry President and CEO Gene Barr issued the following statement regarding the Independent Regulatory Review Commissions decision to move forward with a proposal by the Department of Labor & Industry to dramatically expand overtime eligibility rules in Pennsylvania:
 
"We are disappointed by the Independent Regulatory Review Commission's decision to move forward with the overtime eligibility rule change.  In 2018, during the initial phase of the review process, hundreds of opposition comments were submitted from a wide range of stakeholders - including nonprofits, higher education, local governments, small businesses among many others who described unsustainable cost increases and harm to workplace morale as employees are forced to be shifted from guaranteed salaries to hourly clock-in, clock-out positions.  Many of these concerns were echoed by IRRC, which directed the Department to re-engage with stakeholders and submit a revised proposal for consideration.
 
"Unfortunately, the proposal approved today is only minimally different from the Department's initial proposal and largely disregards the concerns raised by stakeholders.  We urge the General Assembly to consider the true impact of this proposal and for each legislative chamber to issue disapproval resolutions rejecting the change."  For more information on Overtime Eligibility and Minimum Wage, please visit:  PA Chamber Minimum Wage

PA CHAMBER LAUNCHES CAREER CALCULATOR TO HELP PA STUDENTS MAXIMIZE CAREER OPTIONS

HARRISBURG - The Pennsylvania Chamber Educational Foundation is proud to launch  "Your Career Starts HERE" - an online career calculator aimed at helping Pennsylvania students make informed post-secondary education decisions.  As the next phase of the PA Chamber's wide-ranging workforce initiative aimed at addressing the jobs skills gap, Start the Conversation HERE, the calculator pulls key Pennsylvania specific information - including starting salary, educational costs and potential loan payments upon graduation.  This new website tool is designed to help Pennsylvania students determine the most productive career path.
 
"For many people, post-secondary education is the first substantive investment they make as an adult," said PA Chamber President and CEO Gene Barr.  "Unfortunately, we're finding that many students are graduating with degrees that don't match up with the in-demand careers that are currently available in the state.  This disconnect results in people without jobs, but also jobs without the people to fill them.  We're excited to launch this innovative, user-friendly tool to help Pennsylvanians make educated decisions regarding the realistic costs and return on investment of their educational choices post-graduation.  This is the next step in our initiative to ensure Pennsylvania's workforce is trained and prepared to meet the needs of the Commonwealth's evolving jobs market."
 
The career calculator is an interactive tool that allows users to input key information to calculate the ROI on their educational investment and selected career field.  Based on data pulled from the state and federal government, users can determine the job prospects in a particular field, the average starting salary, the training or educational requirements; as well as the educational costs and potential loan payments upon graduation.  Users can also compare the costs of obtaining the degree/training for a specific career at different schools across the Commonwealth.  For the complete press release, please visit:  PA Chamber Launches Career Calculator For more information on PA Chamber's Workforce Development, please visit:  Start THe Conversation Here


For more information from the PA Chamber, please visit:  PA Chamber of Business and Industry


FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF PHILADELPHIA
ECONOMIC NEWS

CURRENT MANUFACTURING INDICATORS SUGGEST GROWTH IN JANUARY

JAN 16, 2020 - Manufacturing activity in the region increased this month, according to results from the January Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey. The diffusion index for current general activity increased nearly 15 points this month, from a revised reading of 2.4 in December to 17.0. The survey's future activity indexes remained at relatively high readings, suggesting continued optimism about growth for the next six months.  To view the full report, please visit:  January 2020 Manufacturing Business Outlook

JANUARY 2020 NONMANUFACTURING BUSINESS OUTLOOK SURVEY

Responses to the January Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey suggest continued expansion in nonmanufacturing activity in the region. The indexes for general activity at the firm level, new orders, and sales/revenues all rose. However, the index for full-time employment decreased. The firms continued to report overall increases in the prices of both their own goods and their inputs. The respondents continued to anticipate growth over the next six months, as both future activity indexes increased. To view the full report, please visit: January 2020 Nonmanufacturing Business Outlook Survey
 
For more information from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, please visit:  Philadephia Fed

 

PENNSYLVANIA MANUFACTURERS' ASSOCIATION (PMA)

WOLF'S PROPOSED OVERTIME RULE SLAMS TAXPAYERS AND EMPLOYERS

The Wolf Administration is pushing for a prohibitively costly change to overtime eligibility, similar to a move by the Obama Administration that a federal court rejected as blatantly disregarding both the letter and the spirit of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

And the business community is not alone in warning of economic and societal wreckage from the proposed rule change from Wolf's Department of Labor & Industry. Local governments and higher education would suffer increased costs under the plan. Worse yet, vital services for Pennsylvanians with the greatest needs, provided by publicly funded non-profits, would be strained as well.
"Governor Wolf's overtime proposal is extreme, excessive, and likely to hurt the people he claims to help," said PMA President & CEO David N. Taylor. "Employees who earned their way to full-time positions will find themselves back in hourly jobs. As ever, government mandates to increase wages don't increase the amount of money employers have to pay people."

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry's overtime rule change is scheduled for a vote before the Independent Regulatory Review Commission (IRRC) on January 31. The proposed rule would nearly double the salary threshold of employees exempt from the FSLA time-and-a-half requirement from $23,600 to $45,000. The change would effectively nullify a key factor, established by Congress over 70 years ago, in determining those exempt from the rule: the duties that fall under a salaried job. In short, Congress never intended those in executive, administrative, or professional positions to be covered by the time-and-a half rule. To read the full article, please visit:  PMA: Wolf's Overtime Rule

PMA PERSPECTIVE: RESPONSE TO GOV. WOLF'S PROPOSED 2020-2021 BUDGET

PMA Perspective discusses Governor Tom Wolf's proposed FY 2020-21 budget. Following reactions from state legislators, David N. Taylor hosts a roundtable discussion with Matt Brouillette, CEO of Commonwealth Partners Chamber of Entrepreneurs, and Sam Denisco, Vice President of Government Affairs for the PA Chamber of Business and Industry. To watch the video, please visit: PMA Perspective: Gov. Wolf's Proposed 2020-2021 Budget

For more information from Pennsylvania Manufacturer's Association, please visit:  PMA

 

TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT
ASSOCIATION OF CHESTER COUNTY (TMACC)

PASS THE PARKING-PROTECTED BIKE LANE BILL IN 2020

Senator Kim Ward, chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, is the key decider as to whether or not the parking protected bike lane bill gets a vote in 2020. HB792 was passed out of the House in June and was referred to the Senate Transportation Committee in July 2019.

Until a clean HB792 is passed and enacted into law, PennDOT is prevented from approving or installing parking protected bike lanes anywhere in the Commonwealth. Cities like Harrisburg, York, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia can't get parking protected bike lanes because of a quirk in the vehicle code that requires cars to park 12" from a curb.

Passing this legislation will help cities and towns create safe places for people to walk and bike to work, school, to run errands, and to get to regional trail systems. Click the link below for more information, and to sign the petition. To sign the petition, please visit:  Protected Bike Lanes for PA Petition

CHESTER COUNTY TRANSPORTATION UPDATES

Several highways restricted for utility improvements, please visit Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Updates for more information. Driving alone in a Single Occupant Vehicle? Experiencing construction or traffic delays along your commute? Public transportation and carpooling are two opportunities to help reduce congestion and improve Chester County's air quality. Even one day of sharing a ride reduces congestion. For DVRPC ride-share information, please visit:  DVRPC. For more information on Chesco public transportation, please visit:  Chester County Ride Guide
 
 
For more information from Transportation Management Association of Chester County, please visit:  TMACC

 

THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR GREATER PHILADELPHIA

GROW PA UPDATES:  CALL FOR INNOVATION FUNDING GETS SUPPORT

Last fall, we hosted  a program at Penn State Harrisburg featuring a keynote discussion with the Brookings Institute, who presented findings from their report,  Ideas for Pennsylvania's Innovation Policy, and provided an in-depth keynote comparison and analysis of Pennsylvania's innovation economy and its leading competition. Throughout the program, we emphasized the need for Pennsylvania to establish an innovation agenda, and urged our Grow PA advocates to share this need with their lawmakers.

Our efforts worked.

Last month, Governor Wolf made remarks about his Feb. 4th budget address showcasing the  Brookings report  when he announced a $12.35 million increase in funding for technology and innovation programs, including $2.35 million for Invent Penn State. To read to full article, please visit:  Grow PA Updates: Funding SupportFor more information on the policy committee, please visit:  Grow PA: Policy Committee


PA HOUSE UNVEILS TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE TASK FORCE REPORT

Recently, the Pennsylvania House Infrastructure Transportation Task Force, chaired by Rep. Martina White (R-Phila), revealed its findings of the status of Pennsylvania's transportation system and its current funding mechanisms. The announcement followed a Grow PA gathering at the Chester County Chamber of Business and Industry with Rep. White where attendees discussed the task force's efforts and the report findings.
The task force's report concluded that shortfalls in funding for transportation were substantial, including the shortages caused by the diversion of Motor License Fund revenue to the Pennsylvania State Police budget total $4.5 billion since 2012-13.
Other report findings included:
  • The gas tax increase passed in 2013 is failing to meet revenue projections due in part to an increase in more fuel-efficient vehicles, like hybrids and electric models.
  • Act 44 of 2007 required the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to provide PennDOT with $450 million annually for transportation capital needs. This forced the Turnpike to debt finance these payments leading to additional toll increases for 11 straight years and increased debt, now at $13 billion.
  • In July 2022, the turnpike's $450 million annual obligation to PennDOT will drop to $50 million per year until 2057 creating a large funding gap in the General Fund.
  • There are approximately 25,000 state-owned bridges in Pennsylvania, of which 23% are considered structurally deficient bridges that are safe to travel across, but at the end of their useful life.
  • Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are among the top 10 most congested cities in the U.S. In 2018. Philadelphia's growing traffic congestion costs bus and car passengers $152 million in annual time and transportation costs. Specifically, the task force recommended:
    • Expediting the transfer of state police funding to a General Fund obligation.
    • Giving counties and regions the ability to consider local solutions. Act 89 authorized local counties to impose a $5 additional vehicle registration fee to fund local transportation projects.
    • Consolidating the private sector permitting process for large projects to improve efficiencies to repair hundreds of roads and bridges simultaneously.
    • Providing PennDOT with the explicit authority it needs to implement the design-build method for certain sized projects, such as those larger than $100 million.



 For more information from Grow PA - Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia, please visit:  Grow PA

 

CHESTER COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION

CENSUS OUTREACH BROCHURES ARE NOW AVAILABLE

Are you interested in promoting the 2020 US Census in your community? The Planning Commission has been working with the Chester County Complete Count Committee to create informational brochures and posters designed to encourage county residents to fill out their US Census form in April of 2020. These materials, written in English and Spanish, are now available to be downloaded from the Planning Commission's Population and Demographics web page.
 
If you represent an organization that would like to promote the census, please contact Jake Michael at jmichael@chesco.org or 610-344-6285.

2020 SPRING PLANNERS' FORUM

Join us on March 4th at 8:00 am for our biannual Planners' Forum. Our forums provide a great opportunity to hear about current planning issues, share ideas with fellow planners, and catch up with old friends. Topics and speakers include:
  • Brandywine Creek Water Trail Feasibility Study, Meredith Mayer, Brandywine Conservancy
  • What You Don't Know about the Chester County Economic Development Council, MaryFrances McGarrity, CCEDC
  • The Missing Middle - Removing Barriers to Contextual and Affordable Housing, Mark Evans, Derck and Edson
Please note there is a snow date of March 6th if needed. Register for the event.


For more information from the Chester County Planning Commission, please visit:  Chesco Planning

 

CHESTER COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL

MUSHROOM, DAIRY FARMS IN CHESTER COUNTY GET FUNDING FOR EXPANSION

Two projects in Chester County were awarded $1.55 million in total state funding to support mushroom agriculture and dairy funding.

"Chester County has a rich agricultural heritage and farming remains the top industry in Pennsylvania," said state Sen. Andrew Dinniman, who serves on the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee, said. "This funding will go a long way in helping farms in our region - large and small - expand their operations to bring more fresh, locally-grown and locally-crafted products to consumers both near and far."

"I am so grateful to see these funds awarded to a farm right here in Chester County," state Rep. Christina Sappey said. "Supporting local agriculture benefits our local job market, economy and our environment. These funds will help residents shop local, which keeps emissions down and cuts our carbon footprint by eliminating the harmful effects of transporting products." To read the full article, please visit:  Mushoom, Dairy Farms in Chester County Get Funding


For more information from Chester County Economic Development Council, please visit their website:   CCEDC

 

WORLD TRADE CENTER OF GREATER PHILADELPHIA

US TRADE UPDATE: USMCA SIGNED

JAN 30, 2020 - President Trump signed the USMCA today.  The USMCA aims to build on NAFTA by strengthening the alliance and ensuring all parties benefit.  Mexico has already ratified the agreement.  Canada,  long insisting it would wait for US approval before proceeding, still must ratify the new agreement and then Canada, Mexico and the US must  meet their obligations
 before the deal takes effect. 

The US International Trade Commission estimates that  "USMCA would raise U.S. GDP by $68.2B and us employment by 176,000 jobs."  They go on to state that  "US exports to Canada and Mexico would increase by $19.1B (5.9%) and $14.2B (6.7%), respectively."  This projected increase in GDP and jobs for Americans allowed for the Senate to pass the bill overwhelmingly with an 89 to 10 vote.

Major areas of change:
Approved with bi-partisan support, USMCA will benefit companies across North America, create jobs and boost GDPs. For more Trade News and Views, please visit: WTC Philadelphia Trade News and Views


For more information from the World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia, please visit:  WTCGP

 

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

SBA ADMINISTRATOR CARRANZA'S STATEMENT ON JANUARY 2020 JOB REPORT
 
WASHINGTON - U.S. Small Business Administration Administrator Jovita Carranza today issued the following statement in response to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Employment Situation Summary for January. According to the just-released report, 225,000 new jobs were created in January, and the employment rate rose slightly to 3.6 percent due to the labor force participation rate increased to 63.4%. The report comes on the heels of two reports released this week indicating new U.S. jobless claims fell by 15,000 to 202,000 - a 50-year low - while private payrolls soared by 291,000 in January, the largest gain in nearly five years. Administrator Carranza said:
 
"Today's jobs report is welcome news for America's 30 million small businesses. Small businesses are investing, expanding, and creating new jobs, and more underrepresented Americans are experiencing upward economic mobility as a result. Income inequality is shrinking and wages are rising fastest among workers who have historically been left behind, including low-income women, African Americans and Latinos. Small businesses remain extraordinarily optimistic about the future, in large part because of this Administration's success in lowering the cost of taxes and regulations, opening up new export markets, and advancing innovative solutions on healthcare and workforce development. Today's news is affirmation that the President's policies are benefitting small businesses and helping more Americans climb the economic ladder."


For more information from the U.S. Small Business Administration, please visit:  US SBA

 

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF CHESTER COUNTY




For more information from Habitat for Humanity of Chester County, please visit:  Habitat for Humanity of Chester County

The Reporter  is a pro-business e-publication developed by the Community and Government Relations Committee (CGRC) of the Southern Chester County Chamber of Commerce (SCCCC)

The CGRC collaborates with business leaders, industry professionals and government officials on relevant topics that are mportant to our members' bottom line, serve to keep members informed on emerging issues at the local, state and federal levels, and benefit the broader business community. All information contained in this e-publication is being provided to Chamber membership and the business community for information purposes only and the CGRC and/or the SCCCC does not necessarily endorse or recommend any of the opinions or positions expressed therein.

Although every reasonable effort is made to present current and accurate information, the CGRC and the SCCCC makes no guarantees of any kind with respect to the information provided. We look forward to providing newsworthy and timely pro-business facts, figures and information to our readers. Questions can be directed to the Chamber at 610-444-0774 or CGRC Chairman, Tony Scheivert.