Small Biz Bulletin - January 2024
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BUILDING AN INCLUSIVE
ECONOMY
Happy New Year fellow small business owners and entrepreneurs. As you reflect on the past year’s experiences and lessons learned and plan your goals and objectives for 2024, I hope you will include your legislators in your plan. The 446th session of the Maryland General Assembly begins on January 15, 2024 in Annapolis. The men and women elected to serve in both chambers of the legislature (Maryland State Senate) and Maryland House of Delegates) will consider more than 2,000 pieces of legislation as well as the state's annual budget during the 90-day session. The Moore-Miller administration is eager to build an inclusive economy featuring small businesses and entrepreneurs in a central role. The legislative process works best when all stakeholders are engaged. This is particularly true for small business owners. You can shape the legislation and regulations that will affect your business's operations and profitability by speaking up and getting involved. That starts by connecting with your representatives and sharing your valuable perspectives. You can even offer testimony (written or live) on the pieces of proposed legislation that are the most important to you and your business. I invite you to use the link below to visit the Maryland General Assembly webpage where you can identify your representatives, track legislation, and watch livestream activities in both chambers throughout the legislative session. I hope to see you in Annapolis this Session as we work together to build an economy that leaves no one behind.
Sincerely,
Maria Martinez
Special Secretary
Maryland General Assembly
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FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Program Seals Available
The Governor's Office of Small, Minority & Women Business Affairs now offers program seals for all three of Maryland's socioeconomic procurement programs. Firms holding certification in the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE), Small Business Reserve (SBR), or Veteran-Owned Small Business Enterprise (VSBE) programs are invited to download the seals for use on print, online, or digital materials. What a great way to show your pride in being a certified vendor in one, or all three, of these programs. Certification status will be verified during the solicitation process. The seals are available online in high resolution format. Just right click on the image and save the file to your device.
Governor's Office of Small, Minority & Women Business Affairs
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Comptroller to Launch New
Online Business Taxpayer
Portal
The Comptroller of Maryland recently announced a new online portal for Maryland business taxpayers called Maryland Tax Connect. The portal is designed to allow taxpayers to securely complete important functions themselves from either a mobile devise or a desktop. The portal's full functionality will roll out in phases. By 2026 all Maryland taxpayers will be able to pay their state taxes and interact with the Office of the Comptroller through the Maryland Tax Connect Portal. Businesses should be aware of the following important information to ensure a smooth transition:
- The last day to use the current bFile application is January 22, 2024. Incomplete returns will no longer be available after this date.
- A welcome letter with instructions on how to register for a Maryland Tax Connect account will be mailed to all active business taxpayers in February 2024.
- With the new system, you will notice improvements in the appearance of tax forms and the overall online experience. The form numbers have not changed, but there are several formatting changes to the layout.
Visit the Maryland Tax Connect webpage to stay informed as the new portal comes online. You can also call the Taxpayer Services Division at 1-800-638-2937 or 410-260-7980.
Maryland Tax Connect
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MBE Certification
The Maryland Department of Transportation's (MDOT) Office of Minority Business Enterprise serves as the state's official certification unit for the state of Maryland's Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Program. As required by Maryland law, the state’s MBE Program adjusts its Personal Net Worth (PNW) cap annually based on the Consumer Price Index. MDOT recently announced the PNW cap for the 2024 calendar year has increased to $2,073,412. In addition to meeting the personal net worth cap, applicant firms must also meet eligibility requirements for minority status, ownership, control and size. Once certified, firms must renew annually. The certification process ensures that bona fide disadvantaged firms receive the MBE designation in support of the state's minority business inclusion efforts. Call the Office of Minority Business Enterprise at 410-865-1269 or visit them online to learn more about the certification process.
Office of Minority Business Enterprise
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Small Business New Year's Resolutions
Did you make a New Year resolution to declutter your home, workout more often, or take an international vacation? For small business owners, business resolutions can be powerful tools to help achieve greater success. Start by thinking about what went wrong last year, what went right, and how things can get better. Do you need to trim expenses, attract new customers, or expand into new markets? Be strategic, resilient and make a commitment to change. Check out these five tips to help you set the stage for a prosperous 2024.
Five Practical Small Business New Year's Resolutions for 2024
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TRAINING & OUTREACH
T.I.P.S. Webinar Series
Improve core competencies and gain an insightful understanding of the state's procurement by attending our T.I.P.S. (Training and Insights for Procurement Success) Webinar Series. We offer two free classes every month on topics carefully curated to help you learn to compete with confidence. If you want to do business with the State of Maryland, our T.I.P.S. webinar series is a must. There is no cost to participate, just register in advance to receive the participation link.
Never stop learning! Visit the T.I.P.S. Webinar Series webpage to download the slide deck of last month's classes and check out our YouTube Playlist to view any of the recorded sessions you may have missed over the past year.
T.I.P.S. Webinar Series
T.I.P.S. Webinar Series Playlist
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eMMA Vendor Training
The State of Maryland is dedicated to facilitating an open and transparent procurement process. To ensure all businesses have the opportunity to participate in the contracting process, the Maryland Procurement Academy (MDPA) and Office of State Procurement (OSP) offer a variety of online resources to help vendors effectively use eMaryland Marketplace Advantage (eMMA), Maryland’s online procurement platform. Visit the Vendor Training and Support page to view the schedule of upcoming virtual instructor-led sessions and access the vendor web channel of on-demand video content.
eMMA Vendor Training and Support
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We Want You!
We continually share information curated specifically for small, minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses on our social media channels. We'll inspire you with our #MotivationMonday series and connect you to a broad range of small business resources, events, and training programs. Please join our social media community and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X.
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