— This week’s episode of “WisBusiness: the Podcast” is with Maysee Herr, CEO of the Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce.
Herr provides insights on the communities served by the Milwaukee-based organization, as well as the chamber’s efforts to foster entrepreneurship and economic growth for underrepresented groups.
“Our mission is to economically uplift some of the most underserved communities, through helping build small business startups, helping them to grow and helping them to sustain,” she said.
The group was formed about 20 years ago as a community development financial institution, or CDFI, Herr explained. Along with lending services, the chamber also offers one-on-one consulting for business owners in Wisconsin.
According to Herr, recent economic challenges have driven an increase in entrepreneurship among the groups that often work with the chamber.
“Not unique to the Hmong community or Asian community, but COVID really made people reflect … perhaps this is the time to start something that is my own,” she said. “Not necessarily working for someone else, but starting something that I can call my own, while contributing to my family and the economy.”
The discussion also touches on hurdles faced by Hmong community members, as well as a trend of young people in these communities leaving the state to find job openings. But Herr stresses that Wisconsin provides a wide array of opportunities for those willing to pursue them.
“There’s certainly a place here for these small business owners and entrepreneurs of diverse backgrounds,” she said.
Listen to the show here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/wisbusiness-the-podcast-with-maysee-herr-hmong-wisconsin-chamber-of-commerce/
See the full list of WisBusiness.com podcasts: https://www.wisbusiness.com/category/podcast/
— In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Canadian Consul General Aaron Annable shares the latest figures illustrating Canada’s trade relationship with Wisconsin.
According to Annable, 174 Canadian companies currently operate in the state, employing more than 22,000 Wisconsin workers. Annual trade between Canada and the state reached $14.7 billion in 2022, marking a 13 percent increase from the prior year, he said.
“This means that Canadians buy 31 percent of all foreign-bound goods produced in Wisconsin, and that’s more than the next five largest foreign markets for the state combined,” Annable said.
Total Wisconsin exports to Canada were up 15 percent last year, he added. The state’s largest export categories to its northern neighbor were paper and plastics last year, valued at $621 million and $615 million, respectively.
Plus, nearly one-fourth of all Wisconsin imports from Canada are forestry products, valued at around $1.4 billion annually. Other top import categories include agricultural products and equipment and machinery, each of which are valued at around $800 million per year.
“We’re very optimistic about seeing this growth continue, given the very positive and productive relationship we have with Wisconsin,” he said.
Annable also discusses bipartisan efforts by U.S. lawmakers to boost trade and improve security agreements with Canada, as well as the latest international supply chain trends and more.
Watch the show here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/2023/talking-trade-with-canadian-consul-general-aaron-annable/
“Talking Trade” is now available in audio form on Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Subscribe and find more episodes here: https://www.wisbusiness.com/category/talking-trade/
— WEDC’s Wisconsin Investment Fund Committee has identified six investment funds ripe for partnership.
The Wisconsin Investment Fund, a $50 million dollar investment pool funded by the federal State Small Business Credit Initiative, is designed to support innovative small businesses and boost the state economy. Once partner venture capital funds are selected, the WIF will work with fund managers to identify companies for investment and provide one-to-one matching investment, according to WEDC.
After reviewing applicants for the fund, committee members presented initial recommendations to the Audit and Budget Committee of the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation Board. They now plan to conduct contract negotiations for six managers, and will present each contract to the committee once again for approval as they finalize them.
Of the six funds, 30 percent or more will represent underserved urban and rural investments. They also cover a diverse mix of industry expertise, including medical technology.
Anne Smith, committee chairperson of the WIF, said companies should get between $100,000 and $3 million in investments. She also expressed her enthusiasm, saying, “We are excited to get the next step and see these dollars actually get to work.”
Watch the video here: https://wiseye.org/2023/07/20/wisconsin-economic-development-corporation-board-of-directors-3/
See more on the WIF: https://wedc.org/programs-and-resources/wisconsin-investment-fund/
— The state unemployment rate ticked up to 2.5 percent in June even as Wisconsin set a new record for total employment, according to the latest DWD figures.
The state Department of Workforce Development yesterday announced unemployment last month rose slightly from the record-low rate of 2.4 percent in May. Still, it remains the lowest June unemployment rate on record.
Meanwhile, total nonfarm jobs increased by 52,900 over the year, reaching a new record of 3,006,900 in June. And the state’s labor force participation rate rose slightly over the month, from 65.1 percent in May to 65.3 percent in June.
In a virtual briefing yesterday, DWD Chief Economist Dennis Winters touted the strength of the state’s workforce.
“Businesses continue to hire, and those that do get laid off aren’t laid off for very long,” he said. “So it’s a pretty strong jobs market still here in Wisconsin.”
See the release: https://dwd.wisconsin.gov/press/2023/230720-june-state.htm
— Gov. Tony Evers is now clear to spend more than $13 million in leftover COVID-19 funds to continue subsidies for child care providers after the Joint Finance Committee raised no objections to his plan.
The Dem administration submitted the request to the GOP-controlled committee in late June. The co-chairs yesterday sent a letter back to DOA Secretary Kathy Blumenfeld that no objections were raised to the request by committee members during the passive review process, clearing the way for the plan to move forward.
The guv’s plan will help keep provider payments through Child Care Counts going until January 2024. That’s when the program is set to end after Republicans rejected Evers’ call to put $341 million in state money in the program that’s been funded with federal COVID-19 funds.
According to the original request, $11 million in American Rescue Plan Act money is left over that could be put into the subsidies. Meanwhile, the state has about $2.2 million left in administration support funding to continue spending into the 2023-24 fiscal year.
The money must be obligated by Sept. 30 and spent by Sept. 30, 2024, or it lapses back to the federal government.
Read the original request:
See the letter:
<br><b><i>Top headlines from the Health Care Report…</b></i>
— Researchers at UW-Madison found rapid on-site flu testing at nursing homes reduced emergency room visits, hospitalizations and duration of hospital stays.
Meanwhile, Attorney General Josh Kaul is highlighting a legal challenge to the Affordable Care Act that he said puts crucial preventive health care services at risk, though he remains optimistic the effort will be rejected.
<i>For more of the most relevant news on COVID-19, reports on groundbreaking health research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics.com and WisBusiness.com.</i>
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#TOP STORIES#
# With some bipartisan support, Republican lawmakers bring back tax break for retirees
# Microsoft’s Mount Pleasant data center clears another hurdle as more project details emerge
# New Port Milwaukee terminal connects local products to international markets
#TOPICS#
# AGRIBUSINESS
– Wisconsin AG launches partnership to boost competition in food and agriculture markets
http://wisconsinagconnection.com/story-state.php?Id=697&yr=2023
# CONSTRUCTION
– Milwaukee Public Museum gets first zoning approval ahead of future museum project
# EDUCATION
– Gov. Evers boosted school funding for 400 years. Why some school leaders aren’t impressed
# ENVIRONMENT
– The Great Lakes were named the first freshwater ‘Hope Spot’, here’s why that matters
# HEALTH CARE
– Children’s Wisconsin, Delta Dental raise $1.7 million to expand dental care for kids with special needs
# MANUFACTURING
– Milwaukee private equity firm acquires family-owned Pewaukee manufacturer
– ATI making custom metal parts in Cudahy for NASA spacecraft
– Clarios reports sales, earnings increases
# POLITICS
– Chair, vice chair of Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission resign after state law strips power
# REAL ESTATE
– Tenants of Bayshore apartments were allowed to move in, despite Health Department warnings
– Milwaukee area desperately needs workforce housing, real estate execs say
# RETAIL
– Drybar in Whitefish Bay set to open
# SPORTS
– Packers report operating profit of $68.6 million, down 12% from prior fiscal year
# TOURISM
– Discovery World celebrates founders with new statue
# TRANSPORTATION
– Low cost airline to launch flights from Wisconsin to Orlando with $49 starting rates
# UTILITIES
– Appeals court finds in favor of controversial power line in western Wisconsin
# PRESS RELEASES
<i>See these and other press releases:
https://www.wisbusiness.com/press-releases/ </i>
