January 15, 2025 Vol. 02

Biz News

Due to our guest’s changing travel plans,

Sunday Supper Series will begin January 26!

Sunday, January 26 - Pre-Prohibition

An exploration of 16th - 20th Century Cocktails

Sunday, February 2 - Prohibition through 1990s

History of Prohibition and Evolution of Cocktails through the 1990s.

Thursday, February 6 - Cocktail Revival

A deep dive into the modern mixology scene and revival of classic cocktails

*Inclement weather reschedule dates will be:

Pre-Prohibition: Thursday January 30

Prohibition: Wednesday February 5

Cocktail Revival: Saturday February 8

Please ensure you will be available for reschedule days when booking!

TICKETS WILL NOW BE RELEASED TO EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS ON

THURSDAY JANUARY 16!

Thank you for your patience as we’re excitedly expecting

Zach’s arrival this week!

We’re thrilled to welcome our dear friend Zach Beeson to Maine for the month of January. 

Zach will be the host of our

SUNDAY SUPPER SERIES: History of Cocktails.

Together, we’ll explore pre-prohibition, prohibition, and post-prohibition cocktails in a three part Supper Series paired with plates he and Matt will design.

Due to our approximately to Baby Stum’s arrival, the final “Sunday” Supper will be held on Thursday, February 6.

LCRPC had a very productive 2024!

We are looking forward to an exciting 2025 in Lincoln County.

2024 BY THE NUMBERS

Hosted 1 summer intern through the Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center.

Welcomed 2 new staff members!

Wrote 15 grant applications totalling ± $1.5 million to benefit 8 towns and Lincoln County overall.

Provided targeted assistance on another 13 grant applications totalling ± $3.7 million for another 6 towns + LC and LCRPC, for an overall application total of ± $5.2 million. So far, over $1 million in funding has been awarded.

Worked with Lincoln County Commissioners to award $753,000 of ARPA funds to Affordable Housing Development & Planning projects to benefit 5 LC towns.

Our friends at CMRB were successfully awarded a $6 million grant to expand broadband to 14,000 locations in Lincoln County. Awarded $140,000 in ARPA funds to broadband projects in 2 communities.

Maine Tourism Association News

Paid Family & Medical Leave Employer Portal Now Open



What happened: The Maine Department of Labor announced today the the Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) Portal, the online system for employers to register, designate a payroll processor, file quarterly wage reports, and remit quarterly premium contributions, has launched.

All employers must register on the portal in order to begin wage reporting in April 2025. Employers will begin their first quarterly wage reporting and premium tax payments starting April 1, 2025, and they are due by April 30, 2025.

Starting January 1, 2025, any employer with at least one Maine-based employee must have begun payroll withholdings for their employees.

Employers: Register for the PFML portal here.

Need help? Call the PFML call center at (207)621-5024 from 8AM to 5PM Monday-Friday.

Stay up to date by signing up for the PFML "Get Notified List" and view the FAQ, recorded demonstrations, and step by step guides  www.maine.gov/paidleave.

An important note on withholdings for hospitality employers:

"If an employer fails to deduct the required employee share of the premium from wages paid during a pay period, the employer is considered to have elected to pay that portion of the employee share. The employer shall not deduct this amount from a future paycheck of the employee for a different pay period. However, where there is a lack of sufficient employee net wages to cover the employee share of the premiums for a pay period, the employer may deduct the uncollected portion of the employee share from one or more paychecks for future pay periods".

PFML Employer Resources

• Print and post the required PFML workplace poster: Download here.
• Watch our webinar overview of the PFML program: Watch here.
• Determine your employee count: Click here.
• Read the PFML law: Full text here.
• Read the PFML final rule: Full text here.

Thank you to Pabian Law for the following updates on the H-2B program:

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued significant regulatory changes to the H-2B and H-2A visa programs, marking the first major update to the H-2B program since 2015. These changes will take effect in January 2025. The new rules aim to modernize the H-2 programs, strengthen worker protections, and improve program efficiency. While the changes bring benefits for employers and workers, they also introduce stricter compliance measures and potential risks for employers who fail to follow the new regulations. Key updates include: 

Benefits to Employers and Workers 

Extended Grace Periods

• 30-Day Post-Employment Grace Period: Workers have 30 days after their employment ends to depart the U.S. or transfer to a new H-2B employer (up from 10 days). 
• 60-Day Post-Termination Grace Period: Workers have 60 days to find a new H-2B employer after job termination, resignation, or other separation. This new provision increases the recruiting pool for in-country petitioners, as they will be able to hire workers who, for various possible reasons, are no longer employed and would previously not have been eligible for a H-2B transfer/extension petition.

Portability of Employment 

• Workers can now start working with a new employer as soon as a change-of-employer petition is filed with USCIS, saving 1-2 weeks of processing time. 

Shortened Three-Year Limit Reset 

• The mandatory three-month break required to reset a worker's H-2B eligibility has been shortened to 60 days, making it easier for workers to maintain eligibility. 

Green Card Process Simplification 

• Because H-2B visas are temporary and green cards are permanent, existing regulations meant certain steps in the green card process can result in denial of future H-2B extensions or reentry to the US after travel abroad. The new rules eliminate some of these legal provisions, increasing the success of such applications. 

Broader Eligibility for Workers 

• The list of eligible countries for H-2B visas is eliminated, allowing workers from any country to participate in the program, which widens the recruiting pool for employers. 

Compliance Requirements and Risks for Employers 

Prohibited Fees and Penalties 

• Employers are prohibited from charging H-2B workers fees for recruitment, petitions, visas, transportation, and meals. They must also ensure recruiters or agents do not charge such fees, as ignorance is not a defense. 
• Violations can result in petition denial, revocation, and bans on using H-2B visas for up to four years. 

Discretionary Petition Denials for Past Violations 

• USCIS can deny H-2B petitions if an employer has a history of violations, such as having workers perform duties not listed in the H-2B application, inaccurate petition information, or other regulatory breaches. 

New USCIS Investigation Authority 

• USCIS now has the authority to conduct audits, revoke petitions for noncompliance, and protect whistleblowers from unlawful status if they report violations. 

Takeaways for Employers 

Employers should seek legal guidance to ensure full compliance with the new H-2B rules. Key measures include auditing practices, ensuring accurate job descriptions, and avoiding prohibited fees. New grace periods, portability, and changes to the green card process provide added flexibility for workers and employers, but the heightened compliance requirements and broader discretionary denial powers for USCIS mean that mistakes can lead to severe penalties. 

Legislative Update



Provided by Nate Cloutier

Maine BEP Approves Controversial Packaging Rules

What happened: In a 4-1 vote, the Maine Board of Environmental Protection voted to adopt rules that will oversee Maine's Extending Producer Responsibility Program related to packaging.

What it means: While we support responsible and sustainable policies, this program does not strike a fair balance between environmental stewardship and business sustainability. The adoption of these rules is the next step in a nearly 2-year timeline for implementation. Beginning in May 2026, "producers" will be required to register and report an estimate of the total tons of packaging products produced in 2025. Businesses should to take time to review these rules.

Dig Deeper: We've continued to raise concerns about the enormous complexity of this program and the unknown costs it will place on businesses. In spite of comments from hospitality, retail, and other industries encouraging Maine to follow in the footsteps of more established programs in other states, the Maine DEP is charting a path for costly and burdensome bureaucratic oversight. Given the renewed focus, we anticipate seeing several pieces of legislation concerning this issue in the upcoming legislative session. For more on the program, see the EPR website.

Portland Press Herald: Businesses will pay for packaging disposal under new state rules - "Nate Cloutier, a spokesman for HospitalityMaine, said the rules would be especially challenging for restaurant owners, who already have slim profit margins and little control over packaging used by their suppliers."

Happenings

Maine Art Gallery offers an exciting and diverse 2025 season with many opportunities for members to exhibit

The Maine Art Gallery (MAG) exhibition schedule for 2025 offers member artists numerous opportunities to participate in exhibits while inviting gallery visitors to experience the varied ways in which Maine artists are influenced by the beauty and quirkiness of life in this part of the world.

The gallery season begins with “Whimsy: Flights of Fancy,” May 1 - June 15. Spring is a time for the return of lightness and fancy, and this exhibit liberates the artist to communicate via imagery unconstrained by formal perspective or faithful representation in the service of light-heartedness, caprice, and satire. Visitors will experience the joy that the art in this exhibit can bring to their home environment. All Maine artists are eligible for juried entry to this show.

In mid-June, the gallery will present an exclusive and overdue major retrospective of the art of Joseph Fiore (1925-2008) alongside a thematically paired juried member show. “Fiore at 100: Maine Observed,” is a collaboration with Maine Farmland Trust to celebrate a widely respected artist who was an active participant in the first years of the Maine Art Gallery. Fiore’s early representational landscapes as well as his later abstractions reflect the natural beauty of the Maine environment that was his inspiration. The exhibition, curated by Fiore’s former student and distinguished Maine watercolorist, David Dewey, can be viewed on the first floor of the gallery from June 19 – August 24.

The Juried Member Exhibit runs concurrent with the Fiore retrospective from June 19-July 27. It provides an occasion for contemporary MAG artist members to express their experience with, and interpretation of, Maine vistas that so influenced the work of Joseph Fiore.

Fiore was also a practiced Plein Air painter and this year’s “Paint It! Maine,” offers contemporary artists in the genre the chance to extend the legacy that Fiore contributed to as a MAG artist. This show runs from July 31 through August 24, after artists from throughout Maine have been creating art on site in all parts of the state during the first weeks of summer. The Juried Members Exhibit, and the Plein Air show will run sequentially on the gallery second floor parallel to the Fiore retrospective—affording contemporary MAG artists heightened exposure and honor.

“Made in Maine: Annual Members Show” runs August 28-October 18. Artist members of the Maine Art Gallery will present recent work in a variety of media including drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography, and assemblage. The sky’s the limit for creativity here, and visitors are sure to be intrigued with the opportunities to purchase affordable art.

The gallery will hold its delightful annual Wiscasset school K-12 Student Show on three weekends beginning April 12.

Detailed entry information and calls for art will be issued during the season and posted as available on the MAG website, www.maineartgallerywiscasset.org.

A nonprofit organization since 1958, the Maine Art Gallery, located at 15 Warren Street, Wiscasset, is dedicated to the advancement and preservation of the visual, fine and applied arts through exhibitions, lectures, demonstrations and educational programs for children and adults. More information can be found at www.maineartgallerywiscasset.org and on Facebook at Maine Art Gallery Wiscasset. Email info@maineartgallerywiscasset.org or phone (207) 687-8143.

On February 6th, Old Bristol Historical Society in collaboration with the Lincoln County Historical Association is inviting the community to register for "Slavery and Abolition in 19th Century Maine" featuring Maine author Carol Gardner.

Gardner will draw from her upcoming book, The Divided North: Black and White Families in the Age of Slavery. Maine was bitterly divided about slavery, and her citizens played key roles in supporting and undermining the institution. 

This Zoom presentation is free but attendees must first register at www.lincolncountyhistory.org/event/carol-gardner

Educational Opportunities

SCORE’s Small Business Training Workshops

Find low-cost, targeted training in both in-person and online formats on topics that matter to you and your small business. Join a business expert at an interactive in-person or virtual workshop or learn at your own pace with one of SCORE’s recorded webinars. Upcoming event topics include Grants & Programs for Your Business, Business Bank Loan Application Tips, Starting Your Own Business, and more.

Learn more below!

View Upcoming Workshops

Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce | www.wiscassetchamber.com

(207)882-9600

info@wiscassetchamber.com