Exec Report 0408

In this issue: April 2008

2008 Healthcare Conference
American Competitiveness Summit
States Eye New Taxes
'Dead-tree Medium' No Longer: For Many Marketers, Print Outperforms Digital
Chamber Staffers Recognized
Current Economic Indicators
Chamber PAC, NIBAC Welcome Hastert
Illinois Chamber's HR and Safety Helplines
HR Illinois
Illinois Chamber Calendar of Events

2008 Healthcare Conference -- register now

CHALLENGES. REFORMS. INNOVATIONS. Our third annual healthcare conference builds on the success and momentum generated with the 2006 and 2007 conferences. Our powerful conference agenda is designed to address major healthcare issues and challenges facing employers by providing meaningful solutions and implementable tools. It will be a forum for discussion and learning to address major policy issues and provide practical, innovative solutions to incorporate back at the workplace. Learn more and register today.

Don't Miss the 2008 National Summit on American Competitiveness in Chicago

A unique opportunity on May 22 will convene the nation's premier leaders of business, government and academia to discuss steps to secure America's position as the most competitive economy in the 21st century and beyond. The Illinois Chamber is pleased to help promote this opportunity to hear Carlos Gutierrez, US Secretary of Commerce, and Henry Paulson, US Secretary of the Treasury, along with a stellar line-up of speakers.

States Eye New Taxes

Facing budget shortfalls, tax commissioners in many states are desperate for new sources of revenue. Guess where they're looking?

At first, Ohio's new tax law appealed to Michael Kovach. Under the plan, which was enacted in 2005 and is being phased in gradually, Kovach, president of City Machine Technologies in Youngstown, Ohio, would no longer have to pay tax on machinery and equipment. The state scrapped its outmoded tangible personal property tax and several others and replaced them with a new tax on gross receipts. For Kovach, whose company manufactures and repairs industrial magnets and other parts and brings in about half of its $10 million in annual sales in Ohio, the change would seem to knock $10,000 off next year's tax bill. Not bad, he thought.

But as is often the case with tax law, the fine print revealed a different story. More>

'Dead-tree Medium' No Longer: For Many Marketers, Print Outperforms Digital

Paper costs are rising, mail rate hikes are looming and competition from new media continues to grow. Yet marketers' use of direct mail and other printed materials is stronger than it's been in years. Thanks to variable-data printing, companies can now tap purchase-history databases to design, create and print entirely personalized catalogs that cross-sell products and services to individual consumers. They can also combine print with other media in the evolving discipline known as cross-channel marketing.

According to the U.S. Postal Service, approximately 103 billion items were mailed at the commercial rate last year, surpassing the nearly 96 billion letters sent first class. The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) projects print-based expenditures will rise slightly in the 10-year period ending in 2012, even as traditional mass media channels -- TV and radio, but especially newspapers and magazines -- continue to struggle. More>

Chamber Staffers Recognized

Four Chamber staff members were recognized for their service recently. Membership Exec Peggy Hardy and Chicago Office Manager Jeanette Anderson were honored for reaching 25 years of service with the Chamber, and Business Services VP Gloria Guy for 15 years. The three were honored at a recent staff meeting.(Left to right: Peggy Hardy, Gloria Guy, Jeanette Anderson)

Membership VP Jack Bernhardt was honored at the March Infrastructure Council meeting for his leadership and guidance in creating and building the council. Jack recently turned council leadership over to new Executive Director Jim Farrell. (Left to right: Doug Whitley, Jack Bernhardt, and Jim Farrell)

Current Economic Indicators

Illinois Unemployment Rate: Seasonally adjusted Illinois unemployment rate decreased to 5.5 % in January, down 0.1 point from January
National Unemployment Rate: The unemployment rate rose from 4.8 to 5.1 percent in March, and nonfarm payroll employment continued to trend down (-80,000)
Consumer Price Index (CPI): Increased 0.3% in February before seasonal adjustment, February level of 211.693 was 4% higher than in February 2007
Producer Price Index (PPI): rose 0.3% in February
Import/Export Price Index: Import Index increased 0.2% in February, Export Index rose 0.9%
Conference Board - Consumer Confidence Index: declined sharply in February, further in March; now stands at 64.5. It was 95.2 in October (1985=100)
Conference Board - Help Wanted Index: now stands at 21, down 9 points from a year ago

The Northern Illinois Business Advisory Coalition and Illinois Chamber PAC are pleased to host Breakfast with the Speaker, featuring former US House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert

Thursday, April 10, 2008
7:30 - Registration & Networking | 7:45 - Breakfast Buffet | 8:15-9:30 – Program
Sheraton Chicago Northwest, 3400 W. Euclid Ave., Arlington Heights, IL

$50 minimum contribution | call 630.482.7142 to RSVP or go to www.nibac.org for more info.

Illinois Chamber's HR and Safety Helplines

Knowing what you can and can't do will help you prevent costly mistakes. Call our staff of HR and Safety experts for assistance in HR and Safety compliance issues:

HR Helpline: Pam Holleman helps you deal with HR problems and avoid disputes at 800-322-4722
Safety Helpline: Steve Yates answers your Safety questions at 888-90SAFETY

HR Illinois

Your membership in the Illinois Chamber pays! We offer valuable programs and services to our members at special discounts. Click here to see the many posters and HR reference materials available from the Chamber to help you run your business. While you're there, don't miss our growing list of seminars and workshops designed especially for you and presented by experts and leading practitioners in the field. Don't see what you need? Contact Gloria Guy, VP of Business Services. We're here to serve you!


In this issue: April 2008
2008 Healthcare Conference American Competitiveness Summit States Eye New Taxes 'Dead-tree Medium' No Longer: For Many Marketers, Print Outperforms Digital Chamber Staffers Recognized Current Economic Indicators Chamber PAC, NIBAC Welcome Hastert Illinois Chamber's HR and Safety Helplines HR Illinois Illinois Chamber Calendar of Events
2008 Healthcare Conference -- register now CHALLENGES. REFORMS. INNOVATIONS. Our third annual healthcare conference builds on the success and momentum generated with the 2006 and 2007 conferences. Our powerful conference agenda is designed to address major healthcare issues and challenges facing employers by providing meaningful solutions and implementable tools. It will be a forum for discussion and learning to address major policy issues and provide practical, innovative solutions to incorporate back at the workplace. Learn more and register today.
Don't Miss the 2008 National Summit on American Competitiveness in Chicago A unique opportunity on May 22 will convene the nation's premier leaders of business, government and academia to discuss steps to secure America's position as the most competitive economy in the 21st century and beyond. The Illinois Chamber is pleased to help promote this opportunity to hear Carlos Gutierrez, US Secretary of Commerce, and Henry Paulson, US Secretary of the Treasury, along with a stellar line-up of speakers.
States Eye New Taxes Facing budget shortfalls, tax commissioners in many states are desperate for new sources of revenue. Guess where they're looking? At first, Ohio's new tax law appealed to Michael Kovach. Under the plan, which was enacted in 2005 and is being phased in gradually, Kovach, president of City Machine Technologies in Youngstown, Ohio, would no longer have to pay tax on machinery and equipment. The state scrapped its outmoded tangible personal property tax and several others and replaced them with a new tax on gross receipts. For Kovach, whose company manufactures and repairs industrial magnets and other parts and brings in about half of its $10 million in annual sales in Ohio, the change would seem to knock $10,000 off next year's tax bill. Not bad, he thought. But as is often the case with tax law, the fine print revealed a different story. More>
'Dead-tree Medium' No Longer: For Many Marketers, Print Outperforms Digital Paper costs are rising, mail rate hikes are looming and competition from new media continues to grow. Yet marketers' use of direct mail and other printed materials is stronger than it's been in years. Thanks to variable-data printing, companies can now tap purchase-history databases to design, create and print entirely personalized catalogs that cross-sell products and services to individual consumers. They can also combine print with other media in the evolving discipline known as cross-channel marketing. According to the U.S. Postal Service, approximately 103 billion items were mailed at the commercial rate last year, surpassing the nearly 96 billion letters sent first class. The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) projects print-based expenditures will rise slightly in the 10-year period ending in 2012, even as traditional mass media channels -- TV and radio, but especially newspapers and magazines -- continue to struggle. More>
Chamber Staffers Recognized Four Chamber staff members were recognized for their service recently. Membership Exec Peggy Hardy and Chicago Office Manager Jeanette Anderson were honored for reaching 25 years of service with the Chamber, and Business Services VP Gloria Guy for 15 years. The three were honored at a recent staff meeting.(Left to right: Peggy Hardy, Gloria Guy, Jeanette Anderson) Membership VP Jack Bernhardt was honored at the March Infrastructure Council meeting for his leadership and guidance in creating and building the council. Jack recently turned council leadership over to new Executive Director Jim Farrell. (Left to right: Doug Whitley, Jack Bernhardt, and Jim Farrell)
Current Economic Indicators Illinois Unemployment Rate: Seasonally adjusted Illinois unemployment rate decreased to 5.5 % in January, down 0.1 point from January National Unemployment Rate: The unemployment rate rose from 4.8 to 5.1 percent in March, and nonfarm payroll employment continued to trend down (-80,000) Consumer Price Index (CPI): Increased 0.3% in February before seasonal adjustment, February level of 211.693 was 4% higher than in February 2007 Producer Price Index (PPI): rose 0.3% in February Import/Export Price Index: Import Index increased 0.2% in February, Export Index rose 0.9% Conference Board - Consumer Confidence Index: declined sharply in February, further in March; now stands at 64.5. It was 95.2 in October (1985=100) Conference Board - Help Wanted Index: now stands at 21, down 9 points from a year ago
The Northern Illinois Business Advisory Coalition and Illinois Chamber PAC are pleased to host Breakfast with the Speaker, featuring former US House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert Thursday, April 10, 2008 7:30 - Registration & Networking \| 7:45 - Breakfast Buffet \| 8:15-9:30 – Program Sheraton Chicago Northwest, 3400 W. Euclid Ave., Arlington Heights, IL $50 minimum contribution \| call 630.482.7142 to RSVP or go to www.nibac.org for more info.
Illinois Chamber's HR and Safety Helplines Knowing what you can and can't do will help you prevent costly mistakes. Call our staff of HR and Safety experts for assistance in HR and Safety compliance issues: HR Helpline: Pam Holleman helps you deal with HR problems and avoid disputes at 800-322-4722 Safety Helpline: Steve Yates answers your Safety questions at 888-90SAFETY
HR Illinois Your membership in the Illinois Chamber pays! We offer valuable programs and services to our members at special discounts. Click here to see the many posters and HR reference materials available from the Chamber to help you run your business. While you're there, don't miss our growing list of seminars and workshops designed especially for you and presented by experts and leading practitioners in the field. Don't see what you need? Contact Gloria Guy, VP of Business Services. We're here to serve you!
The Exec Report - Copyright © 2008 The Illinois Chamber of Commerce Deb McCarver, Director of Communications, Editor