June 2, 2023

Chambers Address Childcare Crisis The Huntingdon County Chamber of Commerce joined others across the state to send a joint letter to address the childcare crisis. The Chester, Delaware, and Westmoreland Chambers of Commerce spearheaded the effort to send a joint letter to the Pennsylvania General Assembly and Governor Shapiro Administration, imploring them to address the crisis surrounding accessible and affordable childcare. The overwhelming support of 55 Chambers across the state, in addition to the PA Economic Development Association, reflects the severity of the childcare crisis and its impact on the business community through both the workforce and the economy. This grassroots initiative has garnered the attention of larger chambers, including the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia and the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce, to help drive the necessity for new legislation. Collectively, the chambers have worked with their respective employer-members to outline the following solutions to be considered by elected officials: 1)     Employee Childcare Public Private Partnership 2)     Childcare Tax Credit for Parents 3)     Retention and Recruitment 4)     Regulatory Reform  Click here to read the entire article.

UPDATE: Catered by  REBELZ MOBILE CUISINE. You may still register to attend by emailing Lorena at [email protected] or calling 814.643.1110

Two ways to promote your business at the Family Fest…… Sponsor the event for $150 and get Name or logo on Facebook cover Name or logo on invitation  Name in all publicity  Option to have space at the event to promote your business or organization.   Exhibit at the event ($50 to exhibit only; $25 for 501(C) non-profits and for businesses providing kids activities) and get   Space to display/distribute your promotional material (bring your own table) Mentioned on the Facebook event page and in social media promotions Name in the Chamber Enew

Now Recruiting for the Leadership Huntingdon County Class of 2024!

Click here for the Leadership application. Click here for the session schedule.

Small Business Administration Resources for Startups 'Lenders Match' Connects You to Lenders Get matched to potential lenders of SBA-Backed funding. Answer a few questions about your business in as little as five minutes. Receive an email with contact information of lenders who express interest in your loan. Learn More

LET'S GOLF!

Member to Member Discount! Chamber Members Save 10% on digital sign advertising.  Click here for more information.

Have a special offer for fellow Chamber members? Contact Yvonne at [email protected] or 814.643.1110.

Platinum Fulton County Medical Center Shafer Equipment Co. Gold Stern Insurance Agency   Silver Mutual Benefit Group   Bronze Bumgardner & Flasher Oil, Inc. Community State Bank Grier School Orbisonia Hardware, Inc.    Royal Bange's Masonary MiCamp Solutions LLC Culbertson Commercial Cleaning Service FirstEnergy Corporation Juniata College Keller Engineers Lincoln Caverns, Inc. and Whisper Rocks McDonald's Stiffler, McGraw and Associates, Inc.  Dirtbusters Cleaning Services MCS Bank Interested in learning about becoming a Partner in Excellence? Contact Yvonne at  [email protected]  or 814.643.1110 Packages range from $125 to $1,000.

Interested in advertising in our enews? Contact Yvonne at [email protected]. The cost is $25.00; $10.00 for 501(3) organizations. Yearly rates are available.

Juniata Reflections Gift Shoppe Business After Hours Tuesday, June 6, 2023 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Family Fest & Car Cruise Monday, July 3, 2023  Huntingdon Presbyterian Church 508 Mifflin Street, Huntingdon Car Cruise at 6:00 p.m. Family Fest 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Anytime Fitness Business After Hours Tuesday, July 18, 2023 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. 2023 Bonney Forge and HCCC Golf Tournament Wednesday, July 26, 2023 Huntingdon County Club Lake Raystown Resort, Lodge and Conference Center Tri-County Business After Hours Thursday, August 10, 2023 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Annual Membership Luncheon Thursday, August 17, 2023 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Westminster Woods Huntingdon County Night at the Curve Saturday, August 26, 2023 Altoona Curve Sporting Clay Tournament Wednesday, September 13, 2023 Wednesday, September 20. 2023 (Storm date) Shenecoy Sportsman Annual Awards Gala Thursday, October 5, 2023 Trophy Mountain Lodge Comfort Inn Business After Hours Wednesday, December 6, 2023 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Administrative Professionals Day Luncheon (Come celebrate your employees and co-workers) Wednesday, April 24, 2024 Noon to 1:00 p.m. Huntingdon Country Club We are planning our 2023 events. If you are interested in hosting a Business Afer Hours or ribbon cutting please let Lorena know. lorena@untingdonchamber,com We are also in the process of planning our seminars. Please let us know if you have specific educational needs.

MEMBERS ONLY: Download our logo to use on your website. Click the logo for more information. Feel free to link the image on your website to our website, huntingdonchamber.com.

Click here to print the flyer.

If you are hiring, please send position information to [email protected] or login to the member section of our website to post your jobs.

The Tight Labor Market Persists The cooling economy should be causing job openings to drop, but that is not happening. The labor market remains tight. ‌ Job openings were 10.1 million at the end of April. That is up 358,000 from March. Why it matters: There are 4.45 million more job openings than unemployed workers. This is up more than 500,000 from March. ‌ Be smart: Hiring and quits remained at roughly the same level as in March. Businesses are still adding workers, and workers are still confident they can quit their jobs and find better ones easily. ‌ By the numbers:‌ Openings increased in retail trade (209,000); health care and social assistance (185,000); and transportation, warehousing, and utilities (154,000). They decreased in leisure and hospitality (86,000); government (71,000); and manufacturing (26,000). Bottom line: Rising interest rates are supposed to bring inflation down, in part, by cooling off the hot labor market. This data will complicate the Fed’s job and increase the chances of another rate hike in the coming months. Curtis Dubay Chief Economist, U.S. Chamber

NFIB Webinar: Classifying Workers Correctly: Employee or Independent Contractor? Misclassifying employees and independent contractors can be very costly for businesses. Fines and penalties have skyrocketed as federal and state agencies have joined forces to intensify investigations of misclassification. This webinar will cover the federal and state law requirements for worker classification and the penalties for misclassifying employees. The webinar will also cover: How IRS classification rules differ from state and federal labor rules How to handle a 1099 audit How to get in compliance if you have misclassified employees Best practices for contracts with independent contractors Time for your questions, live! Please submit your questions ahead of the webinar so we can make sure to answer them. Can't make this Webinar? Don't worry! Register Now and we'll email you an on-demand version!

“Double Your Donation 2023” Huntingdon County Foundation (HCF) is set to kick off a new and different type of program to provide financial support to Huntingdon County non-profit charities. If you like the idea of donations to your chosen charities going twice as far, here is your opportunity! Huntingdon County residents are invited to participate in our “Double Your Donation 2023” Campaign. The process is simple… (1) Residents choose their preferred non-profit to support from a list of nine enrolled charities. (2) Mail a check, of at least $25.00, made out to Huntingdon County Foundation to our address on the DONOR Form. (3) At the end of the campaign (May 1 thru July 15, 2023), HCF will match your donation, up to $250.00, and forward the total to your chosen non-profit! That’s it! Please visit our web page, (huntingdonchamber.com/community-foundation) to download the DONOR Form and Information Page which lists the nine enrolled charities and describes all details of the DYD Program. You may also choose to give online using the “Donate” button on the web page.  The non-profit charities enrolled for 2023 are: Hunt. Co. United Way, Hunt. Forum of Churches Emergency Fund, Hunt. Co. Habitat for Humanity, Hunt. Area Food Pantry, Huntingdon House, Hunt. Co. Salvation Army, Mount Union Area Food Pantry, So. Hunt. Area Food Bank, Home Town Hearts (Formerly, Community Soup Kitchen). If you would like to participate, but do not have access to a computer, call our office (814-643-1110) to have a Donor Form mailed to you.

Map link. Survey link.

UC Fraud and UC-1099G Tax Forms https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/tax-treatment-of-unemployment-compensation Victim of unemployment fraud? Criminals using stolen identities filed claims for unemployment compensation in other people's names. Because unemployment compensation is taxable, state unemployment agencies submit Forms 1099-G to individuals in whose names and Social Security numbers the unemployment compensation was paid and to the IRS. Victims of fraud who receive Forms 1099-G with inaccurate amounts of unemployment compensation in Box 1 should notify the state agencies of the inaccuracies and request corrected Forms 1099-G. The Department of Labor details www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/UIIDtheft. Taxpayers should only report income they actually received on their tax returns. Do not report income you did not receive. The IRS offers tax guidance to victims at https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-fraud-scams/identity-theft-and-unemployment-benefits. More Information IR-2021-71, IRS to recalculate taxes on unemployment benefits; refunds to start in May IR-2021-81, IRS reminds U.S. territory residents about U.S. income tax rules relating to pandemic unemployment compensation New Exclusion of up to $10,200 of Unemployment Compensation

Did you know........ Small businesses represent the largest segment by number of most local chamber membership rolls. Results in the research study by The Shapiro Group, Inc. and Market Street indicate the impact of local chamber membership on small businesses is very powerful. If a consumer knows a small business is a member of its local chamber, the business enjoys a 44 percent increase in its consumer favorability rating, a 51 percent increase in consumer awareness, a 57 percent increase in its local reputation and a 63 percent increase in the likelihood that consumers will patronize the business in the future. Research indicates that chamber membership stimulates business-to-business commerce in the local community. Other businesses in town are more likely to do business with you and your company if you are a member of the local chamber. Because a major part of a small business typically comes from business-to-business services, it is essential to maintain a positive standing within the local business community. MEMBERS may download our logo to use on your website. Click the logo for more information.

Paid Leave Tax Credit Resources and Guidance Click here to view the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Fact Sheet to learn more about the Paid Leave Tax Credit, how it works, and who is qualified to receive it. Click here to view the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)’s Fact Sheet to learn more about how to claim the tax credit during quarterly filings and additional resources for employers about the program.

Looking for more ways to promote your business? Tag the Huntingdon County Chamber of Commerce in your Facebook posts and we will share them on the Huntingdon, PA - Promotions & Activities page. This page is followed by more than 4,000 people and it is free advertising for you.

Contact Us Yvonne Martin President/ CEO [email protected] Lorena LaGroue Program Director [email protected] 500 Allegheny Street Huntingdon, PA 16652 Phone: 814-643-1110 Fax: 814-643-1115 www.huntingdonchamber.com      Huntingdon, PA Promotions & Activities ‌ ‌

Stay Connected Chamber Website ‌ ‌ ‌ Looking to start an endowment or to support community efforts? Click the logo above to learn more about the Huntingdon County Foundation.

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