BizWord July 2010
From
the desk of Laura Crawford
We are very proud to have Midwestern
University presenting the
Black & White Ball Carnivale on the evening of September 24th at
Bobak's Signature Events on Rt. 53. An institution truly focused on bettering
the community in which they reside, Midwestern University is the Village’s model
constituent.
Just as Dr. Goeppinger, president of
Midwestern University fosters positive change and enhancement, we are,
appropriately so, changing and enhancing the
Black & White Ball. Be gone with the silent auction and come into the fun.
Games, games and more games is the pre-function theme for 2010. Your choices
will include playing for fun, vying for prizes, competing or simply witnessing
the gaming talents of your colleagues. There will be something for everyone,
from Wii to hoops to Wheel of Fortune! Don’t miss this evening of merriment!
The Enterprise Award is always an evening highlight. You Chamber is
currently taking nominations for this honor, please visit the downersgrove.org.
The panel of judges includes past Citizens’ of the Year and past
Enterprise Award winners. The choice will be an individual who works or
owns a Member business that has significantly impacted the community with
personal involvement and actively provides and protects economic opportunity for
the benefit of all. Our last winner was Steve Wilkey of Downers Grove
National Bank. He hasn’t lost his touch as once again, he’s was in the thick of
organizing the successful 2010 Grove Fest for Downers Grove Rotary!
The deadline for nominations is August 20th.
The inaugural evening will also
celebrate the leadership of our Chamber including the outgoing Chairman of the
Board, Don Duncan of D3 Financial Counselors, Board of Directors and Network,
Groups and Committee Chairs. We will welcome our incoming Chairman of the Board,
Dean Malone, Vice President of Finance at Midwestern University and other new
Board Members.
Sponsorships provide a wonderful way to showcase your company and commitment
to the business community. Even the
sponsorships will be fun! Reserve your preferred commitment now by
contacting the Chamber office.
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A Message from the Chairman
of the Board
Hello Fellow Chamber Members,
I hope your summer has been fun and productive. The Chamber continues to be
busy helping you promote your business to other chamber members and the
community at large. If you are not participating in the
BUY CHAMBER
or
Ask the Expert
program, I encourage you to do so.
The date for
the
Black and White
Ball,
presented by Midwestern University, is September 24th. I am looking forward to
the activities and anticipate having a great time. Our firm is planning on
rewarding our employees and clients by giving them the opportunity to have a
great dinner, do some dancing and socialize. Think about reserving a table to
promote your business. Nominations are being taken for the Enterprise Award.
This prestigious award honors and celebrates a Chamber Member who has
significantly impacted the community through personal involvement, while
actively providing and protecting economic opportunity for the benefit of all.
Click
here to access the nomination form or visit the homepage of
downersgrove.org.
I also want to thank those who served as the
Board of Directors Nominating Committee. Chosen as a representative of the
various networks, groups and committees of the Chamber, they dedicated hours and
hours of time to speak to each candidate and will determine the slate. The slate
will be presented to the Membership in early August. To the Nominating
Committee and to the nominees your willingness to serve your community is
greatly appreciated.
Have a great rest of the summer.
Don Duncan
D3 Financial Counselors
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Just in from the Illinois Chamber: Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday August 6th
to 15th
by
Connie Beard
Despite the state's
budget woes, Governor Quinn's back-to-school sales tax holiday is scheduled
for August 6th through the 15th. During this 10 day period, qualifying
items will be exempt from the state portion of the sales tax--at an
estimated cost to the state of up to $60 million. Retailers will be
required to subtract 5% (the state portion of the 6.25% sales tax rate) from
the total sales tax rate for the municipality or county in which they do
business. Taxpayers will remain liable for any local sales taxes.
The exemption applies
to certain clothing and footware items if their price does not exceed $100
and general school supplies. Non-qualifying items include sports and
recreational equipment, certain athletic shoes, some art supplies,
instructional materials such as reference books and maps/globes and
textbooks, computers and computer supplies, and electronics.
The Department of
Revenue has issued an
Informational
Bulletin (FY 2010-17)
to retailers to assist them in determining how to handle sales tax
transactions during the sales tax holiday. The Bulletin provides a detailed
list of exempt and non-exempt items. It also addresses how to handle
“bundled sales” where exempt and non-exempt sales are sold as a unit (the
value of the exempt items must exceed the value of the non-exempt items in
order to qualify all of the items for exemption); prohibits splitting items
like pairs of shoes that exceed the $100 maximum in order to qualify for the
exemption; disallows the exemption for purchases made through business
accounts; and discusses how to handle rain checks, refunds/exchanges, back
orders and returns.
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Ambassadors Travel Downtown DG
Last week
a group of Ambassadors and Chamber staff conducted face to face visits to
businesses in Downtown Downers Grove. This was a great opportunity to thank
members for their continued support, talk up the
BUY CHAMBER program
and create awareness to non-Chamber members.
The
excitement is growing for this program. Do you have a
BUY CHAMBER card
on your keychain? Do you have your special offering posted on
www.downersgrove.org
Within 24
hours of the visits, 2 more Chamber Members posted their special savings in the
BUY CHAMBER program!
Check out the most up-to-date list of participating Members
here. It’s a
wonderful benefit for your employees, co-workers, family, friends, ANYONE!
We
encourage your business to take advantage of this FREE community program.
Be a part of the new movement rolling through the Downers Grove Area. Shop
local. BUY CHAMBER!
Click here to join the BUY CHAMBER program in 5 minutes or less!
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Small Business Job Creation
Tax Credit Act
Information provided by
Joseph A. Leo of
Scanlan & Leo,
Ltd.
On April 13, 2010, Gov. Quinn signed Senate
Bill 1578, the Small Business Job Creation Tax Credit Act. (Enacted as
Public Act 96-888 and codified as 35 ILCS 25).
This new law creates an available $2,500 tax
credit against the Illinois withholding tax for employers with 50 or fewer total
employees who hire new, full-time Illinois employees during the 12-month
incentive period beginning July 1, 2010 and ending June 30, 2011.
The credit will be managed by the Illinois
Dept. of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO). The program will have a cap
of $50 million on the total amount of credits to be issued to Illinois
employers.
Eligible companies must apply for the Small
Business Job Creation Tax Credit online with DCEO at their website
www.commerce.state.il.us/dceo/ in order to be issued a certificate of
eligibility for each new employee. At the end of the 12-month period, the
employer must then file an application for an award of the credit. After DCEO
awards the credit, it may be applied going forward against their Illinois
withholding tax liability to the Illinois Dept. of Revenue.
·
Application for the credit should be
made as soon as a new, full-time Illinois employee is hired after July 1, 2010
and begins providing services.
·
The credit is available to
qualifying employers for each new, full-time Illinois job created and sustained
for at least one year.
·
To qualify, a job must pay a salary
of at least $25,025 per year or $13.75 per hour for 52 weeks.
·
The credit may be claimed for an
hourly employee working an average of at least 35 hours per week or for a
full-time salaried employee, but not for a partner or an independent contractor.
·
Eligibility for the credit does not
require that a particular individual employee be retained for one year, only
that a new, full-time Illinois job be created and sustained for one year.
·
The determination of whether an
employer has 50 or fewer employees on June 30, 2010 will include all employees
in every location, which includes both in Illinois and out of state employment
totals.
·
Calculation of the net increase in
the number of Illinois employees is based on the employer’s number of Illinois
employees as of June 30, 2010.
·
New small businesses hiring their
first Illinois employee(s) may qualify for the credit.
·
The tax credits will be issued
beginning July 1, 2011.
·
Credits will be issued for each new
position, up to a maximum cumulative amount of $50 million, on a
first-come-first-served basis determined by date of application.
·
Employer subsidiaries created for
purposes of benefiting from the credit will not qualify for the credit under
aggregation rules; related businesses will be treated as one business for
purposes of determining whether an employer has 50 or fewer employees.
Additional information on the Small Business
Job Creation Tax Credit may be found on the DCEO website at
www.commerce.state.il.us/dceo/ including Frequently Asked Questions and a
copy of the statute.
Just
in from Jane
Refer! Reward! Receive!
The best
contribution you can make to YOUR Chamber is by referring a business who is not
currently a Chamber Member. July is Refer! Reward! Receive! When you refer a
Non-Member business, you are rewarded and receive ChamberBucks to use for
marketing your business.
It’s cheap, it’s
smart, it’s painless and it shows your dedication, especially to your fellow
Chamber Members. By increasing the Chamber Membership, you are increasing the
number of business contacts for your fellow Chamber Members – what a great gift
to give, especially during these economic times. As you know, the Downers Grove
Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry is no different than how you run your
business – referrals build clientele, plain and simple.
While you’re considering prospects,
please ask yourself if you think of Chamber Members first when you’re making
your purchases – whether personal or business!
Once your have a list, put your referrals in writing (all pertinent information
is appreciated) via email or fax to me at
jabe@downersgrove.org or (630)
968-8368.
Remember when
your referral business joins, you receive ChamberBucks to use for
marketing your business. Promote the Chamber, promote your business - it’s
a win-win!
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Members in the
News!
Congratulations to the following Members:
Barry Aluminum and Windows Wins
CertainTeed Corporation’s National Award for Craftsmanship.
Ray Graham
Association named Marty Schiller "Man of the Year".
District 99
North High ranked in the top six percent of public schools by Newsweek
Magazine!
Corporate
Strategies won the top sales award at the Sandler global conference last week.
This award has only been given out to four franchises in the history of Sandler
Training.
Des
Plaines Office Equipment is being honored by Congressman Roskam for 55 years in
business.
Dream Interiors celebrates 14 years! They
welcome you to special treats and sales on June 3rd from 4:00 to 8:00pm.
Diveheart will be featured in the upcoming
Rotarian magazine which goes out to almost 3 million Rotarians around the world!
Diveheart will also have a booth at the International Rotary Conference in
Montreal in June.
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Thank You Members!
The Downers Grove Area Chamber of Commerce &
Industry would like to Thank the following members for their generosity and
support:
Thank you to
Chris John Photography for taking
photos of our monthly events.
Click here
for event photos.
Thank you to
Skuddlebutts' Pizza & Catering for
sponsoring the YPN White Sox Outing & Tailgate Party.
Thank you to
ScotPress Printing for donating beer to
the YPN White Sox Outing & Tailgate Party.
Thank you
to following Chamber Members who lead fantastic presentations/discussions at our
recent Business Roundtable Networks:
Christopher Bennett - WINFREE
BUSINESS GROWTH ADVISORS – CHICAGO, for leading the May Business
Roundtable Network topic “Closing the Sales”
John
Page – VISTAGE INTERNATIONAL / CEO
IntroNet, for leading the June Business Roundtable Network topic
“Medical Coverage & Benefits – What Does It Mean Today?”
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