Property Tax
HF 2274, is a compromise bill brokered between House Republicans and the Governor.  The new bill combines aspects of both original bills (HSB 500 and HSB 519).  The bill includes the House of Representatives provision to move the School Foundation Aid from local property taxes onto State General Fund dollars.  The bill also includes rollback of 5% a year over 8 years as well as a 15% exemption for properties under $400,000 valuation in order to bring more relief to smaller businesses sooner.  The bill includes the same spending limitations for local government as both bills originally included and a 2% cap on the rate at which taxes can increase.  The bill passed out of committee on Wednesday and should see action on the House floor as early as next week.

Tax Increment Financing (TIF)
HSB 540 and SSB 3118 were discussed in subcommittee meetings this past week.  Both bills are aimed at limiting TIF, although the Senate bill is more measured in its approach.

Economic Development Programs
SSB 3110, introduced by the Iowa Economic Development Authority overhauls and cleans up several aspects of existing economic development programs and makes an effort to create a new funding stream for economic development incentives.  The subcommittee met for the first time this past week regarding the bill.

Chamber members mark your calendar for next week’s Government Relations meeting with guest speaker Rep. Jeremy Taylor.  The meeting will be on Friday, February 17^th at 7:00 a.m. in the lower level conference room at the Chamber of Commerce.

Sure it is! It will improve your bottom line.

When a breastfeeding mother returns to work after maternity leave, she wants to be a productive and profitable employee in addition to being a good mother.  By helping women continue to breastfeed after they return to work, your business could benefit:

ü  Lower employee turnover

ü  Less employee absenteeism

ü  Improved morale and loyalty of employees

ü  Reduced overtime or temporary worker cost

ü  Reduced health insurance claims

ü  Reputation as family friendly business

Breastfed babies get less sick from infections and illnesses like diarrhea, ear infections and pneumonia. Breasfeeding mothers are at a lower risk of getting breast and ovarian cancer.  A study published in the Journal of Pediatrics estimated that our country can save $13 billion a year from reduced medical and other costs if 90% of mothers choose to breastfeed their babies exclusively for 6 months.

Your business can support breastfeeding by allowing breaks for a mother to pump at work and providing a private area other than a restroom to pump. Check out the video link below to see how an employer in Colorado supports a breastfeeding employee.

Employer’s perspective on workplace breastfeeding support

Please take the survey and help us assess Workplace Breastfeeding Support in Siouxland.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WorkplaceBreastfeedingSupportSurvey

I’m also proud to say that we were able to do this working with the city and private donors without using taxpayers dollars. We thank Scheels for their support. As well as SIMPCO and the Siouxland Trails Assc. for their collaboration with the Chamber’s Community Enhancement Committee.

Look for more to be installed in the spring-a variety of shapes colors and sizes!

Beth Trejo-Siouxland Chamber of Commerce

Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center will be closed December 24, 25 and 26.  Open regular hours other days – pending good weather.  Call ahead 712-258-0838.

Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center – call ahead for hours 712-224-5242

If you know of other attractions that will be open, please let us know.

Mary Koster

The note states:
Beth-
Thank you so much for taking the time to meet with me this afternoon. I will call you next week so we can get signed up.
Thanks again,
Sarah

Thank YOU Sarah for the sweet note. Just made my Friday:-).

Beth Trejo- Director of Investor Relations

A pile of business cards collected in the last two months from technology based local companies.

Over the last several days, I’ve been trying to wrap my head around the question if a tech community does exist in Siouxland as more and more people seem to be bring up the “tech boom” in Des Moines and the Midwest. My job at the Chamber is to meet with business, new and existing so if anyone should know the answer I should…right?

My answer is yes, I believe we do have a tech community in Sioux City however one that is not connected to each other. There is a core group of former Gateway entrepreneurs who are very connected to the greater community and have established their own businesses, very successfully.

But there are also young entrepreneurs that have online businesses, social  sites and other innovative web based platforms that need help taking their ideas to the next level.

Now enter the Chamber of Commerce. One of the things we are best at  is bringing people together. It’s our hope that we can match these start up companies with resources they may need and bring like minded people together.

Do you have a start up you need help with? Or maybe just want to talk technology? Call or email me here at the Chamber btrejo@siouxlandchamber.com. I’d love to hear what ideas are out there.

-Beth Trejo, Director of Investor Relations-Siouxland Chamber of Commerce

‘beSomebody’is a  campaign on good citizenship, doing the right thing, role modeling, reducing bullying, and eliminating alcohol and other drug abuse.  This initiative provides direction to youth and adults to show that in order to make positive change, we must start with ourselves by displaying good character and standing up for what is right.

The ‘beSomebody’ campaign is an outcome of many Siouxland groups and agencies coming together behind this powerful and positive message.  Siouxland CARES, the United Way of Siouxland, and the Waitt Institute for Violence Prevention were the founding parties and quickly joined by the Sioux City Community Schools and Bishop Heelan Catholic Schools to drive the ‘beSomebody’ across our communities young adults and children.

You have a role as well.  There are several ways to beSomebody and help.  All you can do right now!

1. Be a role model in our community.  Displaying good character and standing up for what is right is something we all need to practice every day.
2. Become a beSomebody participant.  It is not a lot of work.  It’s just a little something you can do to help youth take notice of what beSomebody stands for.
3. Provide some incentives to recognize students who join the beSomebody initiative.
4. Pick a day where your business is willing to do a special promotion like “buy 1-get 1 free”and we’ll help you promote your beSomebody message.
5. Put the beSomebody logo on your company signboards, billboards, stationery,  and website.
6. Display beSomebody posters or window clings in your windows or lobbies.
7. Give.  Consider a gift to the beSomebody initiative to help purchase beSomebody resource materials for the schools or for community display. Just a little something to help us get out the beSomebody message.

Many Siouxland Community businesses and organizations have already joined in and jumped on board.  You can too.

Contact Siouxland CARES at 712-255-3188 to schedule the day to promote your business.

-Linda Phillips & Jason Glover with Siouxland CARES

 The Siouxland Chamber of Commerce is excited to announce the Siouxland Social Media Conference in partnership with Morningside College on Friday, November 4, 2011 on the Morningside College Campus. 

The Siouxland Social Media Conference will be highlighted by two trailblazers of the social media world: 1:45 p.m. presentation by Gary Vaynerchuk, best-selling author, self-trained wine and social media expert, and Noon presentation by Erik Deckers, author and co-owner and VP of Creative Services.

Gary Vaynerchuck is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal Best-Selling  author who is also a self-trained wine and social media expert. Gary does not claim to be a ‘techie’, but in 2005, he began video blogging and is known as a true social media trailblazer! He has close to 1 million followers on Twitter and was included in BusinessWeek’s list of the ‘Top 20 people every entrepreneur should follow’. In his session, Gary Vaynerchuk teaches entrepreneurs how to take advantage of the current business environment, while also preparing them to succeed as it changes and evolves into what he’s termed “The Thank You Economy.” Gary discusses the incredible tool that allows brands to show customers that they care: social media.

Gary has appeared on countless programs from Jimmy Fallon, Late Night with Conan O’Brien and Ellen to MSNBC, CNBC, CNN and NPR. He was also notably featured in Decanter Magazine’s 2009 Power List which is a list of the 50 most influential people in wine.

Erik Deckers co-authored No BS Social Media (Pearson 2011) and Branding Yourself: Using Social Media to Invent or Reinvent Yourself (Pearson, 2010). Erik is the co-owner and VP of Creative Services for Professional Blog Service in Indianapolis. He has been blogging since 1997, and has been a published writer for more than 24 years. His session will be based on his latest book, why you should be using social media to communicate with your customers and business partners. It disproves the myths and knocks down the excuses, and shows you the biggest reason why your business needs social media: because you want to make money.

Other sessions during the day include “Why Businesses Need to Worry about Social Media”, “Social Media in Siouxland: Trends & Tactics”, “I have an Account, Now What?” and “This Sounds Great…but is it Practical?” presented by local experts and local business people finding success with their social media strategies.

The Siouxland Social Media Conference on November 4 will begin with check-in at 7:30 a.m., with four presentations and panel sessions starting at 8:00 a.m., author, Erik Deckers, will present during the Noon lunch and the keynote presentation by Gary Vaynerchuk will be at 1:45 p.m. in Eppley Auditorium. The keynote presentation is open to the public.

Reservations are $99.00 per person for Siouxland Chamber of Commerce members and $199.00 for non-Chamber members.  All sales and reservations must be made in advance. Register online today at www.siouxlandchamber.com. For further information or reservations, call the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce at (712) 255-7903 or register online at http://business.siouxlandchamber.com/Events/details/navigating-the-social-media-world.

Pledges to Walk--Darker the Green=More Pledges

So join us and find a walk or thank those businesses who have participated.

We invite everyone to join us by taking the pledge to walk . As a part of the Community Enhancement Committee we will be starting at City Hall at noon and taking the first steps toward a heathier Siouxland and a healtheir Iowa. See you at noon!

-Beth Trejo, Director of Investor Relations.