Government > Public Affairs

Contents
Aldevron: A New Harvest in the Heartland
MSUM Incubator Space Breeds New Life Science Businesses
Final Rule on No-Match Letters
IRS News for Small Tax-Exempt Organizations
Planning for the Future: GMEDC Proposes Growth Initiative
Roadmap Outlines Region's Energy Future
Reliability CapX 2020
Work Force Housing Needed in Area
2008 Legislative Agendas

 

Final Rule on No-Match Letters

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently issued a final rule on safe harbor procedures for employers who received a no-match letter from the Social Security Administration (SSA) or written notice from the DHS.

Under current law, an employer is required to send SSA wage information on an annual basis. When the employer's submission doesn't match SSA records, the SSA will send the employer a "No-match" letter. This "no-match letter" gives the employer notice that the employee may not be authorized to work in the United States pursuant to federal immigration laws.

The final rule proves safe harbor procedures that an employer should follow after receiving a no-match letter. To view this information, please contact the Society for Human Resource Management at 703.535.6026 or via e-mail at kwiley@shrm.org. (contents)

IRS News for Small Tax-Exempt Organizations

With the enactment of the Pension Protection Act (PPA) in 2006, small tax-exempt organizations (EOs) may now be required to file a annual electronic notice, known as the Form 990-N. these organizations, such as youth athletics leagues, organizations that support the elderly and other small charities were not previously required to file a return because their gross receipts were normally $25,000 or less.

Small EOs will be required to file Form 990-N, also known as the e-Postcard, beginning in 2008. The e-Postcard will require the organization to provide basic information, such as their legal name and mailing address, any other names the organization uses, a Web address, the name and address of the organization's principal officer and a statement that the organization's annual gross receipts are still normally $25,000 or less.

The PPA requires the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of any organization that fails to meet its annual filing requirement for three consecutive years. Therefore, organizations that do not file the e-Postcard or an information return will have their tax exempt status revoked as of the filing due date of the third year.

For additional information about the e-Postcard visit www.irs.gov/charities. (contents)

Planning for the Future: GMEDC Proposes Growth Initiative

While the current Fargo Moorhead economy is healthy and experiencing growth, researchers have projected a dramatic potential change within the next few years. In fact, according to several economic experts, population growth, job growth, personal income growth and net migration in the Fargo Moorhead metropolitan statistical area will decelerate from now through the end of the decade.

In response to this situation, the Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corporation (GFMEDC) embarked on a community-led strategic planning initiative in January of 2006 to bring a new vision of growth to the region. This vision centers on attracting high paying jobs for Fargo Moorhead residents as well as better positioning the communities to compete and win on a global playing field. More than 18 months of research, planning and discussion went into the creation of the growth plan which primarily focuses on enhancing capabilities and infrastructure within three emerging industries: information technology, life sciences and physical sciences.

These three sectors were chosen for several reasons. Research has shown that the majority of high-paying jobs created in the United States in the upcoming years will be in these sectors. Fargo Moorhead also has the resources needed to enhance these fields. Our community boasts higher education and job training infrastructure as well as a modest base in related industries.

The GFMEDC brought together groups of local experts from the business community, academia and the public sector to discuss and evaluate potential areas of growth within the three broader categories. After several meetings, three specific growth sectors were chosen based on their high growth potential, high wage scales, work force demand, existing base of academic competencies and interest from both academic and private sectors. The three target technologies include embedded systems, vaccine development and biomedical device technologies. Other potential growth sectors continue to be evaluated.

Funding for the growth plan includes a GFMEDC Smart Growth Initiative private sector campaign, federal and state funding and a half cent sales tax increase in Cass County. The sales tax increase would raise an estimated $9.4 million per year, with a four percent annual increase. The majority of this would be invested in developing centers for the advancement of emerging technology with state-of-the art buildings, equipment and talent. The purpose of the centers is to attract researchers, students and businesses nationwide to the region in order to work, study and conduct research in the three target technologies, spurring economic growth, high-wage jobs and attraction and retention of area workers.

At their August 6 meeting, the Cass County Commission voted to allow a special election for voters to decide whether to approve the half cent sales tax increase. The board of directors of the Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead, at their August board meeting, then decreed the following: Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead endorses the Growth Plan developed by the GFMEDC and a half cent sales tax in Cass and Clay counties for economic development. Learn more. (contents)

Roadmap Outlines Region’s Energy Future

In June, 2007, leaders from industry, agriculture, state and provincial governments and environmental groups in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Manitoba reached agreement on a 50-year roadmap for the region's energy future. A first-of-its-kind for the upper Midwest, the roadmap is the result of three years of intense education and discussion among these leaders, convened and facilitated by the Great Plains Institute's Powering the Plains program.

The recently released roadmap offers three key messages:
• The region's world-class energy resources and ingenuity can be harnessed to significantly reduce global warming emissions in the electric power sector while meeting projected demand at a moderate increase in cost-but only if we begin now.
• Large investments in energy efficiency, necessary for achieving such reductions, will save consumers, businesses and governments billions of dollars over the next half century.
• Fully optimizing the region's low-carbon energy resources will stimulate jobs and economic development and provide a prudent hedge against volatile energy prices. (contents)

Reliability CapX 2020

While electric consumption has doubled since 1980, few transmission lines have been built during the past 25 years. CapX 2020 (Capacity Expansion by 2020) is a joint initiative of transmission-owning electric utilities serving Minnesota, North Dakota and the surrounding region formed to expand the electric transmission grid to ensure electric reliability for years to come. The project began as a collaborative planning effort by the utilities (including cooperatives, municipal utilities and investor-owned utilities) to assess the current system and project the growth in customer demand for electricity through 2020.

This summer CapX 2020 utilities are entering into the regulatory and implementation phase of the project. They will begin seeking regulatory approval for approximately 600 miles of 345 kilovolt lines in Minnesota with short segments in North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. Regulatory filings for a smaller, 230 kilovolt line in north-central Minnesota also are planned.

One of the projects being proposed is a 345-KV transmission line between Fargo, North Dakota and Monticello, Minnesota. This line will strengthen service reliability to the Red River Valley, the North Central Minnesota area around Alexandria, and the St. Cloud area. It will also support the development of new power generation including the expansion of wind energy in the region. The line will be connected to the existing electrical system at Alexandria and on the west side of St. Cloud.

Regulatory approvals will be required from state agencies in Minnesota and North Dakota before it can be built. Landowners, residents and local governments in areas where the new lines are being proposed will be provided information about the project and encouraged to participate in the regulatory process.

Planning, regulatory approvals, and construction of the CapX2020 project will continue to unfold over the next decade.

More information is available at: www.capx2020.com. (contents)

Work Force Housing Needed in Area

The Fargo Moorhead area economy is rapidly expanding. As growth continues and jobs are created and filled, the need for new homes at an affordable price is increasing. In the past few years, the rising cost of housing has made it difficult for members of the work force to find affordable homes. Recently, the Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead took a closer look at this issue.

At their January 25 meeting, the Chamber board voted to adopt the Regional Workforce Housing Resolution. The resolution was based upon the Regional Workforce Housing Profile, which was prepared by the F-M Metropolitan Council of Governments (Metro COG) to better understand the dynamics of the regional housing market and the potential opportunities for increasing housing options for the region’s workforce.

Several area communities, including Fargo, West Fargo, Dilworth, Moorhead, and Cass and Clay Counties, were involved in the compilation of the report, which includes a profile of the regional work force, a regional housing market analysis with a focus on new housing, and a public engagement process.

Creators of the regional work force housing profile looked at the Fargo Moorhead work force, including the types of jobs and the wages associated with them. The group found that, of the 106,010 jobs in the Fargo Moorhead area, approximately two-thirds paid less than $32,000 a year. They also found that half of the almost 11,000 jobs created since 2000 had salaries of $31,000 or less.

Based on these findings, a housing market analysis was conducted in order to comprehend the changing trends. The analysis found that, while the current housing market is meeting the demand for housing priced between $150,000 and $299,000, there is a lack of new housing below $150,000. This is especially true of housing priced under $110,000, where only 39 percent of the demand is being met. Because of this deficit, home buyers are instead turning to apartments, which drives up the cost of rent. As the report states, “The rental housing market is ‘out of balance.’ An extremely strong demand for housing enables lower-quality rental apartments to command higher prices.”

Several strategic needs related to workforce housing in the regional housing market were identified. These needs are outlined as the “next steps” to be taken in the resolution:

• Intergovernmental cooperation in the area of work force housing
• Increased education, communication and dialogue on issues of workforce housing
• Community acceptance of workforce housing
• Resources to facilitate the production of workforce housing
• Build capacity within the marketplace to produce new workforce housing units

Chamber president David Martin commended Kline and Metro COG for organizing the research and then providing a plan of action. The Chamber will remain actively involved in the process. (contents)