“We are writing to share our perspective related to the current debate on transportation funding in the upcoming 2015-17 state budget. Although tough decisions need to be made in order to budget responsibly, we ask that any resulting spending reductions be equitable and not disproportionately affect out-state areas,” the letter reads.

Click Here for Letter

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According to Grothman, “The EPA set National Ambient Air Quality Standards, in particular ozone, at 120 parts per billion (ppb) in 1971, and now the EPA has proposed a new rule of 65 ppb set to take effect in October 2015, which cuts the standard nearly in half since 1971. By 2015 the EPA will have changed ozone standards over five times. Changing it again will damage Wisconsin, specifically counties in the 6th Congressional District, disproportionately more than other states around the country. These regulations also put United States businesses at a comparative disadvantage globally, in particular with countries like China and Russia.”

Click Here for More

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According to WHBY News, “… the tourism and retail industries are the best bets for teens to target. The national unemployment rate for 16 to 19 year olds is over 17 percent.”

Read the entire story here.

The Fox Cities Chamber offices have been busy this morning with area teens coming in for work permits. Visit the chamber website for more information.

Who needs a work permit?
Every employer who hires a youth between the ages of 12 and 18 or who permits the minor to work at a gainful occupation must insure that the youth has a valid permit. A new permit is required until the minor reaches the age of 18 for every new job.

Where are permits obtained? 
Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce & Industry
125 N. Superior St.
Appleton, WI 54911

Hours
We are open from 8:30am-5:00pm Monday through Friday

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For roughly the last 75 years, some form of TPA has been in place to negotiate agreements facilitating the movement of American products into other countries. With one in five American jobs relying on free trade, TPA is an important issue to watch. Companies throughout northeast Wisconsin, from manufacturing to agriculture, have made exporting their products a key part of their business plan. It diversifies their portfolio, but also helps them reach the fastest growing markets in the world.

Over the next decade, there will be more than 3 billion new customers in Asia. They can either buy their products from other countries, or they can buy them from the U.S. The debate over Trade Promotion Authority will be moving to the U.S. House of Representatives during the month of June.

While the issue of free trade is not without its detractors, the White House and Congress have so far chosen to work together. By allowing this 6-year authorization to go into effect, the countries negotiating these deals with the U.S., will know they have partners in both the Executive and Legislative branch that will honor the terms of any final agreement.

There are also still checks and balances within this TPA authorization:

-It requires the White House to consult with Members of Congress.

-Congress must still vote the package up or down.

-It will also open a 60 day window (after a trade agreement has been reached) for the public to comment.

The post TPA on the move appeared first on Fox Cities Chamber Blog.

The Post Crescent writes, “Companies in the Appleton area can participate in SLP by hosting on-site career education opportunities, serve as mentors and event volunteers and advise and publicize the initiative within their professional networks. Businesses interested in participating should contact Chris Nowicki at 912-251-1562 or chris.nowicki@gulfstream.com.”

Read the entire story here.

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This is related to a proposed EPA rule known to the Agriculture community as “waters of the U.S.” According to the Associated Press, “Broadly, the EPA’s proposed rules would assert federal regulatory authority over streams, tributaries, wetlands and other flowing waters that significantly affect other protected waters downstream. That means some operations that wanted to dump pollutants into those waters or develop around them would have to get a federal permit.”

Opponents have said definitions contained within the rule are too vague and may lead to compliance problems. A bipartisan group of lawmakers agree and are looking to repeal the proposed rule by the E.P.A. and Army Corp. of Engineers. The legislation also instructs those agencies to, “jointly consult with and solicit advice and recommendations from representative State and local officials, stakeholders, and other interested parties on how to define the term “waters of the United States” as used in the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.”

U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp is pushing for similar legislation in the upper Chamber.

The post Vote scheduled for EPA water rule appeared first on Fox Cities Chamber Blog.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 8, 2015

Governor Scott Walker Calls for Agency Mergers to be Removed from State Budget

After hearing concerns from stakeholders, agency boards, mergers will not move forward

Madison – Governor Scott Walker announced that he asked legislators to remove the two proposed agency mergers from the budget, as well as asked the bill authors of separate merger legislation to not move forward.  Governor Walker released the following statement:

After hearing concerns from legislators, stakeholders, and the WHEDA and WEDC Boards, we asked legislators to remove the proposed agency mergers from the state budget and we asked the bill authors to not move forward with the proposed separate legislation.  My sincere thanks to the bill authors, Senator Gudex, Representative Hutton, Senator Roth, and Representative Ballweg, for their hard work and collaboration on these bills.  Given the issues raised at the recent joint WEDC/WHEDA board meeting, it is not the appropriate time to pursue these proposals.

Governor Walker had proposed a merger of the Department of Financial Institutions and the Department of Safety and Professional Services into one regulatory agency for all businesses and a merger of the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) into one authority focused on housing and economic development.

The post Breaking News on WEDC/WHEDA Merger appeared first on Fox Cities Chamber Blog.

Today the U.S. Chamber is recognizing an important trade relationship with Mexico on Cinco de Mayo. According to the U.S. Dept. of Commerce’s – International Trade Administration, “The United States currently has free trade agreements in force with 20 countries, which accounted for $13.2 billion (56 percent) of Wisconsin’s exports in 2014. During the past 10 years (2005-2014), exports from Wisconsin to these markets grew by 65 percent, with NAFTA, Peru, Australia, Chile, and Korea showing the largest dollar growth during this period.”

It is often mentioned that Wisconsin is the number one producer of cheese in the nation. It also happens to be the 2^nd largest exporter of cheese in the nation. The main destination for this state’s signature product? You guessed it, Mexico, which imports $87 million in cheese products in 2014. Canada placed a distant second with $30 million in imports. American’s purchased $2.5 billion in Mexican beer last year alone, says the U.S. Chamber.

Beer and Cheese. It’s no wonder this has been a great partnership. In all seriousness, if any businesses in the Fox Cities, or northeast Wisconsin, want to explore exporting their products, consider contacting Katy Sinnott, VP of International Business Development at WEDC at 608-210-6838.

More information on free trade agreements available at: http://trade.gov/fta/

The post What WI and Cinco de Mayo have in common appeared first on Fox Cities Chamber Blog.

Do you support Gov. Walker’s use of the budget surplus to reduce income taxes?

Roger Roth: I support income tax relief. We’re still near the top of the country for income tax. Job creators are looking for places to relocate with a good tax climate. We need to remain competitive.

Penny Bernard Schaber: I did not support that bill. I do support a fair and balanced tax system. The bill had a provision that looked at how we fund our technical colleges that will create problems going forward.

Do you support increasing the state minimum wage, to what amount?

PBS: I do support increasing the minimum wage. When we have people that have money in their pockets they can go downtown, go out for dinner, go out to movies and buy things in their community. I don’t know what level it should go to. I think we should have a commission study that and determine the options.

RR: I do not support raising the minimum wage because it hurts the very people we’re trying to help. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated in 2012 that in Wisconsin 92,000 people earn minimum wage. It could cost 27,000 jobs in Wisconsin. To me that’s not the answer. The answer is to grow the overall economy by supporting pro job creation policies in Madison.

What additional regulations should be passed, if any, regarding phosphorus?

RR: The Legislature passed phosphorus regulations in the twilight hours of the Doyle administration and they are harmful to our area. Appleton would be faced with a $40 million water treatment facility. Each of our paper mills would face $30 million in compliance. What we need to do going forward is look at the largest creators: agriculture.

PBS: The phosphorus rules were passed in a thoughtful fashion. The rules do exactly what they should do — they work with people upstream to reduce phosphorus. We need to take care of it at the beginning, instead of the end.

Should more be done by the state to facilitate the opening of an iron ore mine?

PBS: The iron ore mine bill is something I didn’t support. It changed many different standards in order to site a mine. We have a history of mining in Wisconsin, but it was different shaft mining. This is a huge strip mine that would have multiple problems. We tried to make the bill better, but it has significant problems. I don’t believe it protects the health of people and the nearby Indian reservation.

RR: I would have supported the bill. The government doesn’t create jobs, it creates an environment for job creators. This bill doesn’t change the environmental standards; they still have to comply with the Army Corps of Engineers, DNR and Environmental Protection Agency. The people in northern Wisconsin want this mine and the 700 permanent jobs. Instead of raising the minimum wage, I’d support job creation policies that would really help families where it counts.

Do you support centralizing the funding and governance of technical colleges?

PBS: Right now the technical colleges are flexible and responsive to the needs of the business community. If we change how they’re governed we’ll change that ability to respond quickly to the needs of the community, so I have some concerns about that.

RR: I do not support that. Technology changes quickly and you have to be able to respond quickly with training. I support having the local control.

Do you support the regional transit authority that would allow for a new tax to fund transit?

RR: I support the RTA because it includes some important steps that make sure the taxpayers have a say. This is a new tax, so we should ask the citizens if they support it. I think the RTA is necessary because we have multiple municipalities coming together for the bus system. I would support that and take up where Sen. Mike Ellis left off in the last session.

PBS: I’m glad we put the referendum portion in the bill. We addressed the concerns in the Senate and Assembly. We’ve worked very hard to ensure it’s the right bill for this community.

Can you see changing the gas tax or tolls to pay for transportation?

PBS: We have to find a way to support long-term funding of our transportation. There are multiple recommendations, increasing the gas tax, indexing the gas tax or taxing individual vehicles. I think we should look at all of them to make sure we continue the high quality of transportation throughout the state. Tolls would take a long time to set up with the infrastructure costs.

RR: The most important thing in addressing the transportation needs is supporting the segregation of the transportation fund. That is on the ballot. It’s important because of the raids we saw that could have been spent on roads and bridges. Cars are becoming more efficient so we’re not collecting as much in gas tax. Then I’d put all options on the table in the next session.

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