Message from the CEO: Moving Business Forward
| Good Morning Valued Chamber Member, I hope you and your family enjoyed a restful holiday weekend. July will be a wicked awesome month as Major League Baseball will kick off on July 24th. Go Red Sox! Just this past Saturday, the deadline for small businesses to apply for a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan was extended to August 8th. The PPP loan is designed to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll. The SBA will forgive these loans if all employee retention criteria are met, and the funds are used for eligible expenses. Additionally, The U.S. Small Business Administration, in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, has published a revised, borrower-friendly Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness application implementing the PPP Flexibility Act of 2020. Please click here to learn more. Palm Beach County Mayor, Dave Kerner, announced that starting this month, in an effort to provide all residents with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), the County will mail each resident a package which will include two cloth and two disposable facial coverings, now required by the county. The facial coverings and the cost of the postage will be paid for using the money the County received from the federal government. Also in County news, the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office is hiring Poll Workers for the upcoming August 18th, and November 3rd, elections. It takes 4,000 poll workers to staff over 400 election day polling locations and phone banks. The Poll worker positions are paid. To see the requirements and to apply, please click here. Remember, the deadline to register to vote in the August 18th primary is July 20th Click here to register. This past Wednesday, the Palm Beach County School Board held a workshop to discuss its 2020 Re-Open plan. The district received more than 80,000 survey responses by 66,000 parents and 14,000 employees. During this workshop, Board Members had the opportunity to receive input from parents, teachers and School District staff regarding their feelings on the Re-Open plan. The Board will make a final determination at their July 15th School Board meeting. Additionally, yesterday evening, the Florida Education Commissioner signed an Executive Order requiring all School Boards and Charter School governing Boards to open brick and mortar schools at least five days per week for the upcoming 2020 school year. Under this new Executive Order, each school district still must submit their re-opening plans to the Department of Education. As more information becomes available, we will share it with you. Today, Boynton Beach’s new City Hall building (located at 100 E. Ocean Avenue) will be open to the public and residents for the first time. Additionally, the Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency has relocated their office to the 4th floor of the new building. Visitors must follow CDC guidelines, including social distancing, and the mandatory use of facial coverings. The Town Center at Boca Raton, which is owned and operated by the Simon Property Group, has opened a walk-up COVID-19 testing site. The hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week. The only requirements are that you be at least 18 years of age and have a photo ID. The test administered will be nasal swabs. The site is located in front of the Container Store at the mall which is located at 6000 Glades Rd, Boca Raton, FL 33431. In State news, the Verification of Employment Eligibility Act went into law effective July 1st – establishing employment verification requirements on both public and private employers throughout the State of Florida. This Act requires public employers (and those doing business with them) to use the federal governments e-verify system when checking employment eligibility of potential hires. Florida’s private employers are required to use either the Federal Government’s e-verify system or the Federal Government’s I-9 process when checking the employability of a potential employee. Florida employers have until January 1, 2021 to comply with this new mandate. We are continuing to provide you with educational webinars and virtual experiences to help you and your business. Please see below for a list of upcoming virtual experiences: 07/07 – 11:30am: International Business Alliance Speaker: Daniel Garcia, Head of Top Strategic Accounts Under Armour Click here to register 07/08 – 10:00am: State of the Tourism Industry Speaker: Jorge Pesquera, President of Discover the Palm Beaches Click here to register 07/08 – 12:00pm: Boynton Beach Lunch and Learn Speaker: Erick Solms, President of Simplitfy Click here to register 07/09 – 11:30am: Government Affairs Committee Meeting Speaker: Anne M. Gannon, CFCA, Constitutional Tax Collector Serving Palm Beach County Click here to register 07/16 – 8:00am: Boynton Beach: Coffee Plus Network Click here to register 07/16 – 12:00pm: Successful Women in Business Speaker: Martine Pierre-Paul, Founder & CEO of Modern Etiquette & Leadership Academy, LLC Click here to register 07/21 – 8:30am: Virtual Workshop: How to Develop Content that Grows Revenue Speaker: Todd Paton, President, CEO & Founder, Paton Marketing Click here to register 07/21 – 3:00pm: The Fall Re-Opening Plan for Florida Atlantic University Featuring Dr. John Kelly Speaker: Dr. John Kelly, President, Florida Atlantic University, Stacy Volnick, M.Ed, Vice President, Administrative Affairs & Chief Administrative Officer Click here to register 07/21 – 5:00pm: PULSE Happy Hour Click here to register To stay up to date on all Chamber activity, visit bocachamber.com or download the Chamber App on your phone or tablet and stay connected! You can also access all of our past virtual experiences by visiting our YouTube Channel. July marks the fifth month of us living and working in a COVID-19 world. As we continue to adapt to this way of living and doing business – social distancing, frequent hand washing, and the wearing of facial coverings – it can all seem overwhelming. The Governor and the Surgeon General has provided guidance encouraging us to protect the vulnerable by avoiding the three C’s: Closed space, Crowded spaces, and Close-Contact Settings. Let’s stay focused on doing our part – for all of us – and continuing to rebuild our economy. Your Chamber stands with you as a resource, advocate, and friend. Moving Business Forward, Troy M. McLellan, CCE, FCCP President & CEO Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce #movingbocaforward #movingboyntonforward #movingdelrayforward |
