***WEBINAR ALERT***
Last call to sign up for Dutchess Tourism’s Virtual Lunch & Learn on Tuesday, April 14 at 1:00 p.m. Dutchess Tourism Vice-President Melaine Rottkamp presents “A Step-by-Step Guide to Using Google's Free My Business Tools.” For more information, or to register, click HERE .
Update for Monday, April 13, 2020
  • This Wednesday April 15, 8-9AM the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce will host a Virtual Contact Breakfast with Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro. You can use one of three options: 1) Zoom: HERE.  2) Dial and listen: (845) 765-7121. 3) Facebook Live: HERE.  Thank you to Greystone Programs and KeyBank for sponsoring this event.

  • On April 16th, celebrate National High Five Day and give a "Dutchess Air Five". Dutchess Tourism is encouraging all of Dutchess County to show appreciation for our local service industry, with support in the following ways: Purchase gift cards (online or over-the-phone) for later use; Shop online stores or participate in virtual experiences; Share 5-star love with favorite businesses by posting stellar reviews on Trip Advisor, Yelp, Google and on their own sites. Businesses: Promote the initiative on your social platforms using the provided graphic in the link. Help make this initiative go viral locally. For more information, click HERE.

  • At 3 PM Wednesday, be sure to honk your horn twice to support all those in the MTA and public transit systems who are working everyday to make sure essential workers are still able to get to work. This is part of the #HeroesMovingHeroes campaign to show our appreciation to an often overlooked but vital part of our state, regional, and local economy.

  • In the governor's press conference today (Monday), Governor Cuomo said he believed the worst is over in New York, but only if the state is careful. He also announced that he would look into opening up parts of the state in a regional approach.

  • Governor Cuomo held a second press conference later today where he announced that New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Delaware, and Rhode Island would create a panel to evaluate and make a plan on how to reopen their economies based on a regional approach. Each state will appoint one health official, one business development official, and the Chief of Staff for each governor, to the panel. This panel will not have the authority to override any individual governor's decisions, but is being used to brainstorm and collaborate on the effort to reopen businesses in a safe way.

  • Empire State Development has begun promoting Business Mentor NY as a way to help small businesses by connecting them with an online business mentor. ESD has partnered with business leaders to create a dedicated group of volunteers across different NYS industries – from law firms to financial professionals – to assist business owners with questions related to the impact of COVID-19 and to provide guidance on the SBA loan applications. To qualify you must be a NY business or non-profit with less than 500 employees. For more information, click HERE.

  • IMPORTANT FOR THOSE CLAIMING UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: If you have selected the call back feature while applying for UI, the number that calls you has a high chance of simply being listed as "Private." If you are expecting a call regarding your benefits, be sure to pick up any calls that are listed as such.

  • The U.S. Department of Labor has released interim guidance for enforcing OSHA's record-keeping requirement in regards to COVID-19. To view the interim guidance, click HERE.

  • The SBA will host a number of webinars that will explain the five different programs the SBA has to help businesses and non-profits through COVID-19. To see the dates of the webinars and register, click HERE.

  • We have re-released our survey that asks organizations what their needs are, and the impacts of COVID-19 on their operations. This information will not be released to the public, and will only be used to help elected officials and government agencies craft legislation or policies to address the needs identified. Please take a couple minutes to fill out the survey HERE.
To get updates as they come in and are verified, be sure to join our Facebook Group by searching "Dutchess Business Notification Network", or by clicking HERE .

To view our website and see previous emails, important documents, and other resources available, click HERE .
If you have any questions regarding the information in this notification or any other business related concerns and suggestions, please email [email protected]. Please do NOT contact elected officials regarding information in this email as they are currently inundated with handling the government response to this crisis. This network was created to help coordinate responses and share the burden, and we ask that you please contact us with any questions or concerns so our elected officials can focus on their task at hand. Thank you for your continued support through this time.
Resources With Links
United States Small Business Administration
Centers For Disease Control

Novel Coronavirus Hotline (24/7): 1-888-364-3065
New York State Department of Labor
Dutchess County Government


Dutchess County Mental Health Hotline (24/7): (877) 485-9700
Dutchess Tourism
Details on major attraction closures, lodging updates, and restaurant regulations (including a list of restaurant and farms open for takeout, curbside & delivery) can be found here : https://dutchesstourism.com/covid-19-consumer-updates
Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce
Dutchess County Workforce Investment Board
If you were forwarded this email but would like to be added to the email list, please let us know by clicking HERE.
Dutchess Business Notification Network | [email protected]