Windham Region Chamber of Commerce

Windham Chamber

by

ARTS GRANTS

The Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) is accepting applications for its CARES Act Emergency Relief Grants. These grants are for Connecticut non-profit arts organizations that have been adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, June 3, 2020 by 11:59 pm. No grant will be less than $1,500 or more than $3,000. Due to limited funds and anticipated high volume of applications, grantees will be randomly selected from the pool of eligible applicants with attention to geographic distribution.
Funds may be used for:
·     Salary support, full or partial, for positions that are critical to an organization’s mission
·     Fees for artists and/or contractual personnel to maintain or expand the period during which such persons would be engaged
·     Facility / occupancy costs, such as rent and utilities
·     Costs directly associated with an organization’s ability to continue operations now and in the future
The FY21 Supporting Arts grant program is open and accepting applications.
Supporting Arts grants provide unrestricted funding to help support Connecticut non-profit arts organizations and municipal arts departments as they pursue their missions. This type of grant is flexible and gives the grantee the ability to use the funds where they are most needed. Grants range from $1,000 to $15,000 depending upon the size of the organization. For eligibility and how to apply, visit www.ct.gov/arts
The following is the anticipated schedule for the Artist Fellowship Program:
Release of Program Guidelines and Application: June 2020
Application Deadline: September 2020
Award Notification: Late November 2020
Funding Period: January 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021
The following is the anticipated schedule for the ARTE-accesible Program:
Release of Program Guidelines and Application: June 2020
Application Deadline: September 2020
Award Notification: Late November 2020
Funding Period: January 1, 2021 – December 31, 2021

by

YOU MUST UPDATE YOUR REGISTERED AGENT FOR YOUR BUSINESS

If you are a Corporation, LLC, Limited Partnership, Limited Liability Partnership, you have to file an annual report and you have to update your “registered agent” this year.  A registered agent is simply a person or entity appointed to “accept service of process” and official mail on your business’ behalf. You can appoint yourself or your company attorney.  The registered agent requirement came about as an aspect of due process. A lawsuit against your business cannot move forward in court without your business being properly notified first. The registered agent must have a physical address within that state and be available during business hours so someone suing you can easily find you. This requirement gives the court an easy way to notify you. This also eliminates the possibility of big corporations hiding behind 1000’s of employees. The registered agent is your business’ point of contact with the state and for service of process. The theory behind the requirements of the listed registered agent is to ensure your business maintains a reliable way to be contacted. It does not make the registered agent the person that is being sued. The registered agent is only responsible for accepting communications and passing them on to the responsible people in your company.
Also, all businesses must report their North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS code) for their business. The online filing process will help you find the NAICS code most applicable for your business. Here is where you can file:

by

AS OF 2020 BUSINESS ENTITY TAX IS ELIMINATED

The Business Entity Tax was a $250 tax every 2 years that every business had to file. The last one that you got a bill for was for the years 2017-2018. You will not get a bill for 2019-2020. You do not have to do anything to stop getting billed for this. However, if you owe this tax from previous years, you will still owe it for those years and you should pay it asap. Effective July 1, 2020, the filing fee for annual reports will increase from $20 to $80 for LLCs, LPs, and LLPs. To take advantage of the $20 filing fee, file all past due annual reports prior to July 1, 2020. Because of the elimination of the BET, the filing fee increase still results in a net savings for businesses of $65/annually.

by

IF YOU HAVE NOT FILED YOUR ANNUAL REPORT, DO SO BEFORE JULY 1 TO SAVE $$

Connecticut law requires annual report filings for the following business entities: Stock Corporations; Nonstock Corporations; Limited Liability Companies; Limited Partnerships; and Limited Liability Partnerships. The purpose of the annual report is to ensure the accuracy of the information on record regarding your business entity. The annual report does not require any financial information.  The statutory filing fees for annual reports are as follows >

These fee increases to $80 effective July 1, 2020
Online filing of annual reports is mandatory unless you request a waiver. Failure to file annual reports subjects the business entity to administrative dissolution and will prevent you from obtaining a Certificate of Legal Existence (Good Standing) for the business. The CT Secretary of State will administratively dissolve entities that fail to file annual reports. Recent administrative dissolution activity by the Secretary of the State office is listed here.

by

NEW GOVERNOR EXECUTIVE ORDERS

Day Care: The Governor issues another executive order that increased the number of children in child care program from 30 to 50 without needing approval from Office of Early Childhood.
Mandatory COVID-19 testing for staff of private and municipal nursing homes, residential communities and assisted living agencies: Requires all staff of these facilities to be tested for COVID-19 weekly for the duration of the public health and civil preparedness emergency.
Determination of suitable work: Allows the Connecticut Department of Labor to consider, when determining a worker’s eligibility for unemployment benefits, whether COVID-19 means returning to work would pose an unreasonable risk to the health of a member of that worker’s household.

by

RELIGIOUS, SPIRITUAL, WORSHIP GATHERINGS

Indoor gatherings for these purposes can be 25% of your capacity (determined by fire marshal for your building) or a maximum of 100 people, whichever is SMALLER.
Outdoor gatherings for these purposes has a maximum of 150 people, but social distancing of 6 feet, and masks, must be followed.
Gatherings where people remain in their vehicles with windows closed must have 6 feet between vehicles but have no limit on the number of vehicles present.