Vote by March 31 and show your support for MCCC here! The SBA's Baltimore District is hosting the 35th Maryland Small Business Week Awards (MDSBWA) on Thursday, June 6. For the month of March, the MDSBWA is hosting the Chamber Challenge, encouraging folks to vote for their favorite local chamber. The chamber with the most votes will receive a recognition award at MDSBWA.
Montgomery County Updates
FY20 Operating Budget: The County Council has the full authority to accept or modify the County Executive's Recommended Budget. MCCC will delivery testimony in early April highlighting our concerns, including the significant increase proposed for County employee salaries (9.4%), as well as our support for other budget items. We welcome your thoughts on the budget. Please email Tricia Swanson with your comments.
Transition Team Report Released: Last fall,MCCC participated on County Executive Marc Elrich’s transition team in the Economy Group. Click here to read the full report.
CPACE Improvements: MCCC supports Councilmember Tom Hucker’s bill that would continue to improve Montgomery County's Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (CPACE) Program and put it in line with other CPACE programs around the country by allowing new construction to qualify for the program.
Metro Maryland Updates
Minimum Wage Veto Overridden: Maryland adopted $15 minimum wage by 2025 as lawmakers rejected Hogan’s veto yesterday. MCCC successfully advocated for the bill to fit in line with the current Montgomery County law so that Montgomery County businesses would still be given an additional year to comply with the regulations.
Government Shutdown Support for Federal Employees: On Tuesday, the Federal Shutdown Paycheck Protection Act became the first bill during the 2019 Maryland General Assembly Legislative Session to be signed into law by Governor Hogan. Once activated by Maryland’s governor during a federal government shutdown - full or partial - this would offer no-interest loans or unemployment insurance benefits to government employees in the state who must report to work without pay.
State Budget Adopted: The State adopted a $46.6 billion dollar budget which
includes increases in education funding (operating and capital), increased investment in Opportunity Zones, leaves a fund balance of $118.2 million, and produces a $26 million structural surplus for FY 2020.
Metro Maryland Economic Development: Last week, MCCC Vice President of Government Relations Tricia Swanson (left) and MCCC President & CEO Gigi Godwin (right) toured College Park. The tour was led by former Howard County Executive and current President of Margrave StrategiesKen Ulman. In addition to these roles, Mr. Ulman is also a Board Member for the College Park City-University Partnership - a nonprofit local development corporation jointly funded by the City of College Park and the University of Maryland. The purpose of the tour was to learn about the various economic development activities taking place in College Park as well as on the University of Maryland Campus.
Share Your Thoughts on the I-495 and I-270 Managed Lanes Study
This week, MCCC President and CEO Gigi Godwin submitted a letter to Maryland Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Pete Rahn and State Highway Administrator Gregory Slater regarding the ongoing public-private partnership under the Governor's Traffic Relief Plan.
In April, DOT is hosting three public workshops in Montgomery County for residents to share their thoughts and learn more about the proposed I-495 and I-270 Managed Lanes Study. Click here to learn more about the workshops and the study. Don't miss your chance to share your thoughts!
Federal Updates
Update on the Runway Act: On March 26, MCCC Board Member Erin Allen (President, CONTEMPORARIES, Inc.) testified on behalf of MCCC at a House Small Business Committee hearing on the Small Business Runway Extension Acttitled, "Cleared for Take-off? Implementation of the Small Business Runway Extension Act." She urged the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to expedite implementation of the new law. Watch the hearing here.
Chamber-Back Cybersecurity Bills Pass Senate Committee: MCCC submitted a letter endorsing two bills, S. 771 and S. 772, as a strong start to offering entrepreneurs support to comply with cybersecurity requirements. S. 771 would require Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) to train a minimum number of their employees to provide cyber strategy counseling to small business clients. S. 772, cosponsored by Senator Cardin (D-MD), would require the SBA to report to Congress at least once a year on the security of its own data, and on strategies to increase its cybersecurity. On March 27, both bills passed the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
