June 24, 2024

New Law to Reduce State Workforce Shortages

Our CEO Lacey Osborne was among the representatives from business organizations across the state at the State Capitol to witness Gov. Landry's signing of SB 293. This groundbreaking bill emphasizes the importance of coordination among a variety of agencies by establishing that the Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC) coordinates the delivery of business workforce solutions through various workforce and educational entities of the state. This is a significant step towards enhancing workforce development and educational collaboration in Louisiana. Read more about the bill’s impact here.

Pictured from left are Sen. Beth Mizell, Rep. Dixon McMakin, LABI President Will Green, Lacey Osborne and Scott Ballard.

ISSUES MAKING NEWS

Insurance Commissioner Calls for Special Session

The Louisiana legislative session just ended, but Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple is urging lawmakers to go back to Baton Rouge following Gov. Landry’s Veto of HB 423. The bill would have limited the amount of money juries can award to people injured in car crashes. Click here to read more. The news release can be found here.

State Revenue Secretary Shares Vision for Tax Policy Changes

Eliminate some of Louisiana’s more than 200 sales tax exemptions. Tax digital goods consumers buy online. Expand the list of services that get taxed in Louisiana. Those moves, Department of Revenue Secretary Richard Nelson contends, might just be enough to help the state weather an impending fiscal cliff and help pay for a reduction he says is needed to the state’s personal and corporate income taxes. Last week, he laid out his broad vision for tax policy changes before a panel of state lawmakers that convened at the State Capitol just two weeks after the close of the regular legislative session. Click here to the full nola.com article.

On the Radio...

ICYMI, our Chamber Chairman Chris Abadie was interviewed by Newell Normand on his WWL-870AM morning talk show last Friday. They discussed the Chamber’s vision for economic growth in the state’s fourth largest parish, how Chris is able to directly interface with economic development, and the container terminal issue in Violet and how it might affect the Northshore. Click here to listen to the radio interview.

One Ticket = Raffle Chance AND

Pep Rally Admission!

Be in THAT NUMBER when the Saints play in the Dome this year! Win a pair of Plaza Level 2024 Saints Season Tickets valued at $3,395! Tickets are $20 and can be purchased from Chamber board members, advisory board members or by calling 985-892-3001.

PLUS, each ticket admits one to the Fan Up Pep Rally on Thursday, August 15, at the Slidell Auditorium from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM when the drawing will be held. It’s an indoor tailgate party complete with booths set up as tailgate spots, each offering competitions, food or opportunities to win raffle items and prizes. There will be music, Saints Superfans and lots of fun for football fans of all ages! Tickets can be purchased at the door! Click here if you'd like to have a booth at the pep rally.

On The Calendar

Featured Event: Click here to purchase Southern Nights tickets!

This Thursday, June 27

11:30 AM to 12:00 PM

Ribbon Cutting for

Category 5 Pickleball

2989 Hwy, 190,

Mandeville

This Thursday, June 27

11:30 AM to 1:00 PM

Networking: 11:30 AM

Program and Lunch: Noon

Centerwell Covington

66 Park Place, Covington

Tuesday, July 9

11:30 AM to 12:00 PM

Ribbon Cutting for

Dilly & Sons Bagelry and Cafe

2040 Hwy. 59,

Mandeville

Check out Member Events on the Community Calendar!

Click here to post your events.

Community Calendar

Thursday, July 11

8:30 AM to 9:30 AM

Chamber's Covington Office

610 Hollycrest Blvd.,

Covington

Thursday, July 11

4:30 PM to 6:30 PM

OnPath Federal Credit Union

4246 Hwy. 22,

Mandeville

Tuesday, July 16

8:00 AM to 9:30 AM

Networking: 8:00 AM

Program: 8:30 AM

St. Tammany Health System

1202 S. Tyler St., Covington

(An informative health and wellness article from the Chamber's Live Better St. Tammany Committee member Zeringue & Associates.)

Reduce Stress, Improve Focus

Do you want to improve you day in five minutes? I challenge you to take fjive minutes a day for 30 days to MEDITATE. That’s right. Simple but not easy and yet, oh so rewarding! If it works for Jeff Weiner, Arianna Huffington, and Marc Benioff, it can work for you too. Meditation has proven to offer the following benefits:

Reduced Stress and Anxiety: Meditation has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety by decreasing the production of stress hormones and increasing the release of neurotransmitters that promote wellbeing.
Improved Focus and Concentration: Regular meditation can help improve your attention span

Article continues here.

Are We Losing Our Common Sense?

In the Gulf South today:

‣One-quarter of our waking hours (assuming eight hours of sleep) is spent on a smartphone or watching television.

‣One of every five people spend MORE THAN FIVE hours on social media A DAY.

‣Three out of four of us are active participants on Facebook…Yes. Still.

‣Around two out of three of us are watching YouTube.

‣Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and/or Disney+ are subscribed to by at least half of us.

So much information is coming at us all day every day. Are we losing our common sense?

2024 marks the fifth year of the Gulf South Index. Five years of anything tells us things.

Read the full Gulf South Index report here. The Gulf South Index delves into hundreds of thousands of data points to understand how millions of people living in the Gulf South are going about their lives.

Small Business News You Can Use:

The Difference Between Advertising and Marketing

Marketing and advertising share some similarities, but they have different goals and objectives. Marketing builds brand awareness and offers a perceived value, while advertising promotes a product or service. Click here to read a U.S. Chamber of Commerce article explaining ow marketing and advertising work, how they differ, and how to use both strategies in your business.

Your voice of business in St. Tammany Parish!