INSTALLATION LUNCHEON AT ANTUN’S – APRIL 19TH – ADRIAN BENEPE, NYC COMMISSIONER OF PARKS, GUEST SPEAKER

Come to the Chamber’s annual business luncheon to vote in the officers & board members for 2007. Help us honor outgoing President Raymond J. Irrera for his outstanding leadership during the last 3 years. Adrian Benepe, NYC Commissioner of Parks & Recreation, is our guest speaker. Queens BP Helen Marshall & Queens DA Richard Brown will honor the Chamber with their presence. The slate of officers presented to the membership includes Albert F. Pennisi, Esq., President, Carol Conslato, 1st V.P., Gerard Thornton, Treasurer. Board members on the ballot include: Clare Browne, Estelle Cooper, Dolly DeThomas, Mayra DiRico, Tom Gilmartin, Howard Graf, Alfred Graser, Stanley Legan, Neil Levin, Frank Macchio, William D. Martin, Joseph Mattone, Sr., Sher Sparano, Mary Vavruska, Lou Vlahos and Henry Wan.

Platinum sponsor - Con Edison. Silver sponsor - State Bank of Long Island.

$55 per person; $500 per table of ten. For additional information or to make reservations call the Chamber at 718-898-8500 or click on the calendar at www.queenschamber.org.

NYC EDC ANNOUNCES PUBLIC SCOPING MEETINGS ON WILLETS POINT – MAY 1ST
The NYC EDC has announced that there will be 2 public scoping meetings at the Flushing branch of the Queens Library, 41-17 Main Street, Flushing, on Tuesday, May 1, 2007 concerning the Willets Point Development Plan. One is from 3pm to 5pm and the second is from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. Public Scoping is a process whereby the public is invited to comment on the proposed scope of analysis planned for the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) that has been prepared for the Willets Point Plan. A copy of the draft Scoping document may be obtained by any member of the public from Ms. Asma Syed, Planner, NYC EDC, 110 William St., NY, NY 10038, 212-618-5789, Fax 212-312-3989 or Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination, 253 Broadway, 14th floor, NY, NY 10007, 212-788-9956. Documents are also posted on the websites of the NYC EDC and the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination: www.nycedc.com and www.nyc.gov/oec.

QUEENS BUSINESS DAY EXPO & LUNCHEON – MAY 17TH - TERRACE ON THE PARK
NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn – Guest Speaker
Make your plans now to participate in the Queens Chamber of Commerce’s Expo & Luncheon on May 17th at Terrace On The Park. The exhibits open at 9am. Expo attendance is free. Luncheon is 12:30pm to 2pm. Introduce your services & products to the Queens business community; expand your network of clients; hear from speakers who shape policies that affect your business; receive a free Expo Guide with a listing of all registrants; take home valuable prizes, gifts and giveaways. The event is co-sponsored by the Hispanic Chamber, JFK Chamber, Middle Village Chamber, Rockaway Chamber and Sunnyside Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to all of the above, this year the Chamber will offer (3) free business seminars guaranteed to provide new information & strategies for your business:

9:30am Health Insurance; Choices, Strategies & Options - Sher Sparano, Benefits Advisory Service, Inc., Dean Mohs, Private Health Insurance Initiatives, HRA, & Jeff Borowick, NYS Business Group/Conference Associates.
10:30am B-to-B Marketing on the Internet – George Hermann, Visible Shops LLC
11:30am Prospecting for New Business – Gene D’Agostino, TEM Associates, Inc.

List of Sponsors to Date

Diamond Sponsor - HIP. Health Plan of New York Platinum Sponsor – HSBC

Gold Sponsor – Queens College Silver Sponsor – State Bank of Long Island

Media Sponsors – CNG/Times Ledger Newspapers – New York Daily News –– Queens Tribune

See the monthly flyer for registration & sponsorship information. Click on the calendar at www.queenschamber.org or call the Queens Chamber at 718-898-8500.

JOIN TASTE MASTER TONY TANTILLO OF CBS 2 AT THE 5TH ANNUAL QUEENS…A TASTE OF THE WORLD!
More than forty restaurants will come together at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, located in Flushing, New York, on Monday, April 16, 2007 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm to sample their best dishes and drinks to attendees. QEDC is proud to present restaurants from Queens’ many wonderful dining neighborhoods, such as Astoria, Flushing, Long Island City and Bayside. Restaurants will offer cuisines from around the world including, Italian, Thai, Argentinean, Greek and Mediterranean, Portuguese, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, and American.

Tickets to the event are $85 per person. For more information, call or email Michelle Stoddart at 718-263-0546 or mms@queensny.org

"SKILLS, STYLES, AND STRATEGIES: TOOLS FOR ACADEMIC SUCCESS" WORKSHOP – SYLVAN LEARNING CENTER – APRIL 20
Chamber member Dr. Edward M. Petrosky, Licensed Psychologist, will be conducting a complimentary workshop entitled "Skills, Styles, and Strategies: Tools for Academic Success" on Friday, April 20 from 6pm to 7pm. The event is hosted by the Sylvan Learning Center, 95-25 Queens Blvd., Suite 7110, Rego Park. He will be providing practical strategies to parents and educators on what they can do to help boost students' performance in the classroom.

It will be an excellent networking opportunity, as a broad range of professionals who work with students are invited to attend. The workshop will also be helpful to any Queens Chamber member who is a parent and wants to know what they can do to help their child learn.
For more information call (917) 520 – 4444 or visit www.toolsforstudents.info.

SBA SMALL BUSINESS WEEK AWARDS - APRIL 20
The U.S. Small Business Administration New York District Office cordially invites you to attend the 2007 Small Business Week Awards Ceremony honoring the achievements of outstanding small business owners and advocates. Special Guest: Robert W. Walsh, Commissioner, NYC Department of Small Business Services. Keynote Address: Monique Greenwood, Owner & CEO, Akwaaba Bed & Breakfast Inns, When: Friday - April 20, 2007 Where: Ted Weiss Federal Building, 290 Broadway, 30th Floor, New York, NY, Time: 9:15 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Registration 8:30 a.m.) Complimentary Breakfast RSVP by April 18, 2007

Call (212)264-1473 to register.

NYC PARKS & RECREATION’S 19TH ANNUAL VEHICLE & EQUIPMENT SHOW – MAY 22 – RANDALL’S ISLAND
Over 130 vendors will present the latest in light and heavy-duty vehicles, trucks, horticultural equipment, tools, fleet-related services, clean and alternative fuel technologies and more at the 19th Annual Vehicle & Equipment Show. The event will take place on Tuesday, May 22 from 9am to 3pm on Randall’s Island, New York. The show will be located outside Parks Five-Boro Garage facility. Upon entering Randall’s Island, follow the directional signs.

If you have any questions or to RSVP, please call (212) 410-8384 or e-mail Mahanth.joishy@parks.nyc.gov.

THE AWARD WINNING INTERNATIONAL EXPRESS, A GUIDE TO COMMUNITIES ALONG THE #7 TRAIN
Queens Council on the Arts launches a revised electronic International Express, A Guide to Communities along the #7 Train. Winner of the 2005 Municipal Arts Society Award, the International Express brochure focuses on the diversity of Queens through its communities and cultures. As a guide to the various attractions, cultural sites and businesses along the route of the #7 Train, the brochure gives an inside look at Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, Jackson Heights, Corona and Flushing.

To download your free copy, please visit the www.queenscouncilarts.org.

STATE BUDGET ESTABLISHES MANDATE REVIEW COMMISSION
The 2007-08 state budget included $300,000 in funding plus legislation to establish the Health Care Quality and Cost Containment Commission. The commission will provide lawmakers with critical, independent information they need to aid their decision-making process. Health insurance mandates are laws that expand basic health insurance policies by requiring carriers to include specific treatments or services. Historically close to 100 health insurance mandate proposals are introduced annually.

The Council for Affordable Health Insurance places New York in the top 10 of most heavily mandated states, with more than 40 different treatments or services that expand the scope of the basic health care policy. According to an actuarial study New York premium payers purchasing fully-insured policies pay 12.2% of their total premiums to cover the costs of mandates. A health insurance mandate review commission will help to ensure that any future legislation is fiscally responsible and medically sound.

The Employer Alliance for Affordable Health Care has been calling for creation of this type of commission since its inception in 1997. The group, which began with a handful of concerned business owners, is now the largest single-issue grassroots business coalition in New York State with more than 3,500 who oppose health insurance mandates and believe that everyone should have access to basic, affordable health insurance.

From the Business Council
NEW BUDGET INCLUDES MAJOR TAX REDUCTIONS FOR MANUFACTURERS, OTHER BUSINESSES
Legislature Rejects Some, Accepts Some Of Governor Spitzer's Proposals To Raise Tax Revenue From Corporations
The new state budget reduces New York's primary business-tax rate and provides especially significant tax cuts for thousands of manufacturing companies, while substantially reducing new tax costs that had been proposed for banks. The Article 9-A corporate tax rate imposed on more than 50,000 businesses drops from 7.5 percent to 7.1 percent, effective this year. The primary tax rates on banks and insurance companies are also reduced from 7.5 to 7.1 percent. The general tax rate on an estimated 3,400 manufacturing corporations drops further, from 7.5 to 6.5 percent, effective for taxable years starting after January 31, 2007.

Hundreds of manufacturing, securities and other firms that pay corporate tax under the state's alternative minimum tax will see that rate drop by 40 percent, from 2.5 percent of taxable income to 1.5 percent. Many manufacturing and other companies with disproportionate levels of payroll and capital investment in New York, relative to their sales in the state, will also benefit from more rapid implementation of the state's change to single-sales factor apportionment. That change, enacted in 2005, was to phase in over several years with full implementation in 2008. Under the new budget, the move to single-sales factor apportionment takes full effect this year.

The Legislature accepted Governor Spitzer's proposal to require out-of-state companies that are related to New York corporations to file combined tax returns if the related companies have substantial intercorporate transactions. The Business Council had urged rejection of that provision, saying it would increase taxes on major employers and diminish New York's competitive position as a headquarters state.

The new budget also raises taxes on larger banks with real-estate investment trusts by phasing out, over four years, a deduction for dividends from "captive" REITS. The enacted provision is scaled back from the Executive Budget proposal, which would have eliminated the REIT deduction immediately. Community banks with assets of less than $8 billion will maintain the deduction.

The enacted legislation also rejects several other tax increases that were proposed in the Executive Budget and opposed by The Business Council. One such proposal would have decoupled New York from a federal tax incentive for production-related capital investment by manufacturers and certain other businesses. Another would have raised taxes on banks, and discouraged banking employment in the state, by eliminating preferential treatment under the Bank Tax for payroll expenses.

Overall, the business-tax increases included in the budget will raise state revenues by an estimated $450 million, according to the state Budget Division. The Budget Division estimates the value of enacted tax reductions at $150 million.

USPS APPROVES INCREASE IN FIRST CLASS STAMP, FOREVER STAMP & SHAPE-BASED PRICING
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) approved an increase in the price of a First-Class stamp to 41 cents, authorized the issuance of the Forever Stamp, approved shape-based pricing, and set May 14 as the date for implementation of these changes. However, they delayed implementation of new prices for periodicals and requested reconsideration for some mail classes.

Forever Stamp
The Governors approved the Forever Stamp, which will sell at the new 41-cent First-Class Mail one-ounce letter rate. The value on these stamps will always be the one-ounce letter rate and can be used for any future one-ounce letter mailing without extra postage. "The Forever Stamp is a consumer innovation that delivers convenience and value and will help ease the transition for mailing letters when prices change," said Chairman Miller.

Shape-based Pricing
The new prices also reflect differences in the costs of handling letters, large envelopes (flats), and packages. Mailers are encouraged to consider options available to reduce postage costs. For example, if the contents of a First-Class large envelope are folded and placed in a letter-sized envelope, mailers can reduce postage by as much as 39 cents per piece.

Delayed Implementation
The Board of Governors also delayed until July 15, 2007, implementation of the new prices for Periodicals (magazines and newspapers) to allow time for the publishing industry to update computer software and adjust to the complexity of the PRC-recommended rate structure for periodicals. USPS had proposed a single container charge for periodicals to encourage efficiency, but the PRC recommended 55 different prices based on container type, entry point, and level of sortation.

WELCOME NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS
Reach out and welcome the companies who submitted applications during the last 2 weeks

Alexander Wolf & Company, Inc., Mr. John Wolf
One Dupont Street, Suite 200, Plainview, NY 11803
(516)349-0540, (516)349-7751
Real Estate Management

Five Star Banquet, Mr. Binver Vasueev
13-05 43rd Avenue, Long Island City, NY 11101
(718)784-8484, (718)729-7212
Caterers

Structural Processing Corp., Mr. Steve Rosenblatt
59-30 56th Road, Masepth, NY 11378
(718)326-7226, (718)894-8587
www.structuralprocessing.com
Metal Fabricators

Concetta Holdings LLC, Ms. Concetta Abbracciamento
505 Manhasset Woods Road, Manhasset, NY 11030
(718)429-8485,
Real Estate

DC Financial Services, Mr. Don Chin
36-09 Main Street Suite 7-D, Flushing, NY 11334
(718)886-4619, (718)886-7280
dcfin3609@aol.com,
Financial Services, Planning

Franklin Stucco Supply Inc., Mr. John Di Stefano
354 Franklin Ave., Franklin Square, NY 11010
(516)358-5061, (516)358-5071
jdistefano@franklinsquare.com,
Building Materials & Supplies

Minutemen Fleet Radio Inc., Mr. Tom Cappiello
59-01 37th Ave., Wooside, NY 11377
(718)651-5100, (718)424-3763
tommy@minutemenlimo.com,
Limousine Service

RENEWING MEMBERS
Thanks to all our members who renewed during the last 2 weeks

Law Office of Anthony Mallilo
82nd Street Dist. Management Assoc.
Ahern Painting Contractors Inc.
American Lung Assn of the City of New York, Inc.
Anheuser-Busch Distributors of NY
Antun's Queens Village
Best Friends Tires Inc.
Biscotti, Toback & Co. P.C., CPA's & Advisors
Boys' Club of New York
Bulova Corporation
California Pizza Kitchen
Cebco Check Casher Corp.
Chinatown Partnership Local Dev. Corp.
Ciampa Organization
Dynasty Meat Corp.
Financial Services of LI
Flushing Savings Bank FSB
Gabrielli Truck Sales, Ltd.
Gerald J. Caliendo, R.A., A.I.A.
Gordon & McCarthy Inc.
Graf & Lewent Architects
Greater NY Automobile Dlrs Assn.
Health Plus
Home Loan Experts
Independence Residences, Inc.
Johnstone Supply
Joseph J. Previte, Esq.
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation-Qns. Branch
KeySpan Energy
LaGuardia Community College
London Lennie's Seafood Rest.
London Towncars, Inc.
Long Island Board of Realtors, Inc.
Lowery Liquor & Wine Co.
MechoShade Systems, Inc.
Merrill Lynch-Forest Hills
Miele Associates
Mr. Rooter Plumbing
Mutual of America Life Insurance Co.
NY Medical Career Training Center
NYS Education Dept.-VESID
Neighborhood Housing Services of Northern Queens
Nemo Tile Co., Inc.
New York Enterprise Report, The
New York Times, The
Northeastern Conference of SDA
Nyserda
Outreach Project, Inc.
Ozanam Hall of Queens Nursing Home
PAETEC
Park Dental Care
Pepsi Cola Bottling Co. of NY
Pickman Realty Corp.
Queens Council on the Arts Inc.
Rabco Links Building Corp.
Regal Heights Rehabilitation & Health Care Ctr.
SMJ Services Inc.
Sholom & Zuckerbrot Realty LLC
Star CPG (Marketeer)
Sunnyside Chamber of Commerce
T-Mobile
Tennisport, Inc.
The New York Roofing Co.
Time Warner Cable of NYC
Times Newsweekly/Ridgewood Times
USTA National Tennis Center, Inc.
Variety Boys & Girls Club of Qns
Wayland Incorporated