uschamber.com Magazine April 2005

 View Entire Magazine  | [Adobe Acrobat Required]

• Poll Ranks Legal Climates: Chamber Pressures Worst Performing States
  On March 8, the U.S. Chamber’s ILR released its fourth annual Harris Interactive 2005 State Liability Systems Ranking Survey and launched a national advertising campaign to highlight the results and to promote federal and state-based legal reform.
• Your Voice Counts: Speak Out!
  How is the economy treating your business? Are you planning to invest in plant and equipment? What’s your outlook for 2005? We want to know!
• In Your Backyard
  News across the nation.
• Face Off: Tax Reform: How Can We Improve the Tax Code?
  Rep. John Linder (R-GA) and Rep. Phil English (R-PA) debate how to improve the tax code.
• Politics Before Policy: Class Action Reform Really Won by Voters
  February 18, 2005, was a great day for the business community, the U.S. Chamber, and our Institute for Legal Reform (ILR). That was the day President Bush signed the Class Action Fairness Act into law.
• Congress Honors Reservists and Their Employers
  Congress recently began an important effort to recognize National Guard and Reserve servicemen and servicewomen and their employers.
• Beware of Health Insurance Scams: Tips for Avoiding Fraud
  A new breed of scam artists has emerged to prey on employers faced with escalating health insurance costs.
• Sarbanes-Oxley Update: Businesses of All Sizes Are Feeling the Impact
  For every Enron or WorldCom making headlines for corporate governance and accounting fraud, there are countless businesses, especially smaller public companies, struggling to comply with the new accounting rules passed by Congress in the aftermath.
• Tax Relief for Small Business: Deduction Applies to More Than Manufacturing
  A new tax deduction for manufacturing applies to more than just nuts and bolts. It pertains to capital improvements of many kinds—if you build something, you can deduct part of the taxable income that it generates.
• Shop at the New Chamber Webstore: Quality, Branded Products Available
  Looking for a way to show off your pride in the business community? You’ve got it! The spirit of enterprise is now available in the form of ties, lapel pins, golf balls, umbrellas, and much more.
• The IRS May Target You Next
  While tax day may be fast approaching for your business, the IRS is hard at work making noncompliance a top priority.
• Accessing Capital For Growth
  Acquiring capital is a driving concern for small business owners, including women and minorities.
• Are Your Employee Benefits Competitive?
  Participate in our annual benefits survey and receive a free copy of the 2005 Employee Benefits Study, which can be used to evaluate your company’s benefit offerings.
• Small Business Sells to New Market: TradeRoots Organizes Mission to Chile
  TradeRoots and the Alabama Development Office helped Connor and nine other participating companies travel to Chile last September to meet with prospective trading partners.
• Success Insight: Association Builds Network of Hope
  As the chief executive officer of America’s Blood Centers (ABC), Jim MacPherson’s secret to success is keeping ABC’s word. "We deliver on what we promise."
• ECON 101: Social Security, Personal Accounts, and National Saving
  The Social Security system was instituted in 1935 as a way to provide benefits to retired workers age 65 and older and to reduce poverty among the elderly.
• Small Business Matters: Is Franchising for You?
  Starting a business from scratch isn’t for everyone. Operating a franchise is entrepreneurial coloring inside the lines. You get the rush of working without a net without having to come up with all the answers on your own.
• Tech Tools: Boost Your Online Presence: Don’t Stay Lost in the Crowd
  To boost your online presence, make sure that your Web site is listed with the major search engines, including Google, Yahoo!, and MSN.
• This Guy Is for Real - Brad Huther, Director, Intellectual Property Initiative
  "If you remember only one thing about counterfeiting and piracy," says Brad Huther, head of the U.S. Chamber’s Intellectual Property Initiative, "it's that they are not victimless crimes."