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Facts - Archives -
Month of May 2009Current
Week
May 29, 2009
Legislature Grinds toward Adjournment Date with no Budget
Agreement in Sight
CRMA Continues to Oppose One Size Fits All Return Bill
BPA Legislation Passes House and is on its Way to Governor
Other News and Notes from the State Capitol
CJA Update
Retail News and Notes
• As we wrap up the week with our weekly FF we are now
just days away from the Constitutional adjournment date
for the CT General Assembly and still, despite a close to
$8 billion deficit, there is still no agreement on a State
Budget.
• Also this week we witness a continuation of the Minority
Republicans efforts to conduct an unofficial filibuster on
almost all bills that have been called by the Majority
Democrats for debate.
• This effort has lead to long hours of debate on one or
two bills and a real slow down of the process. Which is
not a bad thing considering some of the legislation that
is still under consideration.
Legislature Grinds toward Adjourn.
Date with no Budget Agreement in Sight
• There appears, from comments made by leaders of the
General Assembly that the Legislature will adjourn on
Wednesday of next week without adopting a new two year
state budget.
• This week, there continued to be meetings between all
parties involved but there also was a general consensus
that they are getting nowhere in those meetings. In fact,
in some ways the process is going backward.
• Among the items that seem to have kept the parties apart
is agreeing first on how big the problem is.
• The legislature’s Office of Fiscal Analysis pegs the
number one way, but the Governor’s budget office has it
lower. And in many ways, if they cannot agree on how big
the problem is they are very unlikely agree to how to
close the number.
• Here is a sample of some of the quotes by Leaders
regarding the state of budget negotiations and whether the
Legislature will pass a budget before they adjourn on June
3rd:
• “We have a long way to go”, Robert Genuario, the
Governor’s budget chief.
• “We are nowhere close to a budget” House Minority Leader
Larry Cafero (R-Norwalk), “very few, if any cuts, have
been agreed to by the Democrats”
• “It’s critical that we agree on a bottom line”, Sen.
President Don Williams (D- Brooklyn), “there’s no
agreement on the bottom line… It is looking bleak now”
• For retailers, we are concerned that any budget that is
adopted does not include elimination of the sales tax
holiday as well as some other critical exemptions from the
sales tax that keep our members be competitive.
• We will keep you updated on the progress of the state
budget negotiations. But, we think it may be a long hot
summer under the Capitol dome.
CRMA Continues to Oppose One Size
Fits All Return Bill
• With adjournment day right around the corner and again
thanks to the House GOP efforts to slow down the
deliberation of many bills, one benefit of that is the
House continues not to take up HB 6516 “AA Establishing
Minimum Retail Refund and Exchange Policies”.
• That bill, which we strongly oppose, has been introduced
by the House Chair of the General Law Committee, Rep Jim
Shapiro (D-Stamford) and would change CT’s return policy
law, making all retailers regardless of size have the same
minimum return policies.
• The bill has not been called by the House and we will
continue to keep a close eye on it with the hopes that it
does not get called at all.
BPA Legislation Passes House and is
on its Way to Governor
• Last week we informed you that, HB 6572 “AAC Banning
Bisphenol-A in Children’s Products and Food Products and
Prohibiting Certain Alternative Substances”, passed in the
State Senate.
• We were pleased that this bill eliminated a warning
label that would have been placed on all products
containing BPA.
• However, the House in a surprising move gave final
passage to the bill last week and now the bill is on its
way to the Governor for her consideration.
Other News and Notes from the State
Capitol
• After a nine hour debate, the House passed a paid sick
leave bill, HB 6187 “AA Mandating Employers Provide Paid
Sick Leave to Employees”.
• The bill would require employers with 50 or more
employers to allow their employees to earn at least 1 hour
of paid sick leave for every 40 hours they work.
• The bill now goes to the State Senate for consideration.
• The House has SB 1080 “AAC Concerning Access to Health
and Nutritional Information in Restaurants”, on its “Go
List” but has not called it yet. We do expect they will
call that bill before they adjourn.
• HB 6328 “AAC Customer Access to Restrooms in Retail
Establishments”, is also ready for action in the State
Senate, but Sen. Harris (D- West Hartford) has not called
it yet.
• As we go to print, the State Senate completed its
business at 2:00 am on Friday morning and Sen. Majority
Leader Martin Looney announced they would be back in later
Friday afternoon and that a Saturday session was very
likely.
• We also expect the House to be in session on Saturday as
well.
CJA Update
• Plans are underway for a reception for members and non
members of the CT Jewelers Association for June 30, 2009
at the Michael’s Jewelry Store in Danbury CT.
• This reception will be a great way for members to meet
the new management team of the CJA as well as talk to
their colleagues in the jewelry industry.
• There is no charge to attend this event. So, we
encourage members of the CJA to save June 30th on your
calendar.
• A formal invitation will be sent to members next week.
Retail News and Notes
Apple to open 25 stores, remodel 100 Despite the
economic conditions, Apple is setting out on an aggressive
strategy to remodel 100 of its existing stores this year
and open new ones in New York City, Paris, Italy and
Germany, according to Ron Johnson, senior vice president
of retail for the company. "We know that a lot of people
are cutting back, but we're doing the opposite," he said.
"We're investing in the downturn." USA TODAY (5/27)
Toys R Us acquires FAO Schwarz Toys R Us has acquired
FAO Schwarz and will operate both brands' stores,
including FAO Schwarz's Manhattan flagship. The company
said the acquisition will enable it to increase its
specialty business. The Star-Ledger (Newark, N.J.) (5/28)
Consumer confidence at highest level in 8 months
The Consumer Confidence Index for May is 54.9, up from
40.8 in April and indicative of a growing optimism. "While
confidence is still weak by historical standards, as far
as consumers are concerned, the worst is now behind us,"
said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board
Consumer Research Center. Supermarket News (5/27)
May 22, 2009
Senate Passes BPA Bill Minus Warning Label
Menu Labeling Passes State Senate
No Movement on Return Bill or State Budget
Member Services Update
Retail News and Notes
Welcome to this weeks FF, a weekly E-Newsletter sent to
members of the CRMA and today for the first time to members of
the Connecticut Jewelers Association.
The FF is designed to give members the latest information
about what is going on at the State Capitol as well as all
things retail.
If you would like to add additional folks to our distribution
list, please email Cathy in our office at
cathy@crmaonline.com,
we will take it from there.
On Thursday of this week, the State Senate passed HB “AAC
Banning Bisphenol-A in Children’s Products and Food Products”.
But they passed it minus a key provision.
• The Senate passed the bill after they passed an amendment
that eliminates a provision of the bill that called for a
warning label to be placed on all those products that are
covered in the bill.
• For retailers, the elimination of the warning label is a
good thing. And although we are still part of a coalition that
is opposing the bill, the elimination of a warning label goes
a long way to making this bill easier to comply with for
retailers.
• The bill, now, has to go back to the House where it is not
an automatic that it will be adopted.
• The advocates for this bill will keep pushing, and so will
the business coalition that opposes it and with the
legislature racing towards a June 3rd adjournment this bill
remains in play.
Menu Labeling Passes State Senate
• At about 5:15 this morning the State Senate passed HB 1080,
“AAC Access to Health and Nutritional Information in
Restaurants.”
• The bill is a result of a long negotiation with Sen.
President Don William’s office.
• Although we would have preferred a national bill to pass and
we are still working on making that happen, the bill that
passed in CT is at least consistent with what has passed in
other States.
• The Bill now goes down to the House where it should pass- if
time allows.
Other Capitol News and Notes
• No movement this week on HB 6516, “An Act Establishing
Minimum Retail Refund and Exchange Policies”, which is being
pushed by the House Chair of the General Law Committee, Rep.
Jim Shapiro (D- Stamford)
• Rep. Shapiro continues to ask his leadership to call this
bill, but we are still hopeful that we can persuade him to
back off on the bill.
• Speaking of Rep. Shapiro, he has filed an amendment on our
ORC bill insert bill number.
• The amendment Rep. Shapiro filed is one that he knows we
oppose, it establishes a gift card guarantee fund that all
retailers would have to pay into, and is doing it essentially
to send a signal to us that he is not happy with our
opposition to HB 6561.
• Although we are disappointed that he has tacked an amendment
onto our ORC bill we will continue to do our job and oppose HB
6516.
• Both the House and Senate went into session late on Thursday
and into early Friday morning. In the Senate they debated into
Friday morning changes to the death penalty while the House in
a surprise move adjourned its session around midnight on
Thursday and will be back in session on Friday.
Member Services Update
• Attention CJA members:
• Members of the CJA can take advantage of a great money
saving program that is available to members for savings on
your credit card processing needs with a program offering by
National Merchant Services.
• Last year, CJA leadership offered to members a great credit
card processing program with First National Merchant
Solutions.
• The CJA/First National program offers members of CJA the
opportunity to save money in the area of bank card services.
• Some of the features of the program are:
• No transition costs
• Program setup on net sales, which means you get credit for
processing a refund
• Small monthly fee of $5 and low processing rates.
• If you are interested in learning more about this program or
would like First National to talk to you about it in person,
contact David Blanco, at 860-883-5002 or call the Association
office.
• We also remind members that CMRA offers members a variety of
ways to save money.
• We encourage you to visit our website, www.crmaonline.com,
to view for yourself the number of offerings that are
available to members.
Retail News and Notes
•
Obama expected to sign
credit card reform bill by Memorial Day
The House approved a credit card bill that provides stronger
protections to consumers than previous reform has. Still, the
legislation does not limit interchange fees, which last year
cost retailers $48 billion. President Barack Obama is expected
to sign the bill by Memorial Day.
USA TODAY (5/21)
,
The Washington Post (5/21)
      
•
Life is Good in the
T-shirt business
In 1994, after years of selling T-shirts out of a minivan,
brothers Bert and John Jacobs noticed their friends focusing
on one particular sketch during a keg party at their Boston
apartment. They printed that sketch -- a stick figure with a
beret and a grin -- on 48 shirts that sold out within 45
minutes at a street fair. The T-shirt's slogan morphed into a
full-fledged company, and today Life is Good generates sales
of $120 million.
Financial Times (free registration) (5/19)
•
Ann Taylor to offer more
fashionable styles
Ann Taylor this fall will revamp its merchandise to
include more modern and fashionable clothing with shorter
hemlines and softer fabrics. The stores will focus on core
basics instead of changing inventory every month.
The Wall Street Journal (5/21)
May 15, 2009
CRMA Continues to Oppose One Size Fits all Return Bill
Menu Label Legislation Pending in State Senate
Union Concession First Step to Budget Deal?
Other Capitol News and Notes
Member Services Update
CRMA Member Highlighted in this Weeks Retail News and Notes
Welcome to this weeks FF, a weekly E-Newsletter sent to
members of the CRMA and today for the first time to members of
the Connecticut Jewelers Association.
The FF is designed to give members the latest information
about what is going on at the State Capitol as well as all
things retail.
If you would like to add additional folks to our distribution
list, please email Cathy in our office at
cathy@crmaonline.com,
we will take it from there.
• All session long we have been reporting on our efforts to
defeat HB 6516, “AA Establishing Minimum Retail Refund and
Exchange Policies.”
• This bill seeks to micro manage a retailer’s return policy,
in effect, having a one size fits all return policy for every
retailer.
• The House Chair of the General Law Committee, Rep. Jim
Shapiro (D- Stamford) has been the chief sponsor of the bill
which is now on the House Calendar and is ready for action.
• Despite our continued opposition, Rep. Shapiro insists that
this bill is necessary and is pushing his Leadership to call
the bill.
• In a long standing tradition, each session day the House
Leadership releases what is called a Go List, which is a list
of bills that they have reviewed and feel are ready for debate
by the full House.
• This bill, has been marked Go for several days now, but has
not been called yet.
• We spoke again yesterday with Rep. Shapiro to try to
persuade him not to call the bill, but it appears that he
simply will not listen to our plea.
• Many members have called regarding this bill and we have
encouraged them to contact their local legislator and tell
them their opposition to this bill.
• We would encourage all members to do that.
• If you are unsure who your local legislator is, please call
our office today and we will identify them for you.
• The House is not in formal session today, so we stopped the
bill for another week, but it is our sense that it will take
more members contacting their local legislators to stop this
bill from moving.
• We will keep you posted on the progress of this bill in next
week’s FF, but we encourage members to review it and if they
feel strongly about it to contact their local state
legislator.
Menu Label Legislation Pending in State
Senate
• Attention CRMA QSR members:
• SB 1080 “AAC Access to Health and Nutritional Information in
Restaurants”, may be voted on today in the State Senate.
• This bill would require that our QSR members disclose
calorie information on their menu board.
• We have been working on compromise legislation with the Sen.
President Don William’s (D- Putnam) office and are hopeful
that the final version of the bill includes our suggested
changes.
• As we go to print on this week FF, we have not seen the
final version but have had a good meeting with a key staff
person late last night to review our changes.
• We will update those members with concerns for this bill via
special notice if action is taken today.
Union Concession First Step to Budget
Deal?
• As we mentioned above, the House of Representatives is not
scheduled to be in formal session until next week after
adjourning early this morning.
• That is due in large part because they where in session
debating a resolution approving an amendment to a State
employee union contract that the Governor and the State
Employees Union agreed on.
• That agreement is expected to save the State $700 million in
this fiscal year and the next two years and is a big piece to
solving the State’s huge deficit.
• Among the highlights of the deal are:
• In this fiscal year, which ends June 30th, State employees
will take on unpaid furlough day, and 3 furlough days the next
2 fiscal years.
• There is an early retirement incentive in the agreement that
an estimated 3,000 State employees will take advantage of
saving close to $208 million.
• And State employees will now join the rest of the world in
seeing their co payments of prescription drugs go from $3 or
$6 to $5 or $10 depending on the type of prescription.
• The State Senate is expected to vote on the agreement today
in a, rare for them, Friday session.
Other Capitol News and Notes
• Yesterday the House called, HB 5025 “AAC the Use of
Electronic Surveillance Equipment in the Public Areas of
Retail Stores and other Commercial Establishments”.
• This bill would have required retailers or other commercial
establishments that use surveillance cameras to post a sign.
• That bill ran into big trouble during the debate and was
pulled.
• We remain active in a coalition of groups who oppose HB
6572, “AAC Banning Bisphenol-A in Children’s Products and Food
Products Prohibiting Certain Alternative Substances.
• Our sense is that this bill will be acted on by the General
Assembly this session so we want to make the bill workable for
our members.
• The State Senate may take action this bill on Friday as
well. We will update members if they do.
• Attention CJA members: We continue to have support from a
key House member in opposition to “ HB 6519 , AAC Pawnbrokers,
Precious Metal and Stone Dealers and the Recovery of Stolen
Jewelry and Precious Metals and Stones”. We do not expect that
bill to be called.
• HB 6187 “AA Mandating Employers Provide Paid Sick Leave to
Employees” has yet to be called and we hear that members of
the Senate are working on compromise language.
• Finally, our next legislative committee meeting is scheduled
for next Wednesday, May 20th at 11:00 EST. We will send a
reminder notice along with our tracking sheet to all members.
• We encourage all members to join in the call and if you
would like more information please call Cathy in our office at
860-527-1044.
Member Services Update
• If you are member of the Connecticut Jewelers Association,
we have a special notice for you in this week’s segment of the
member services update.
• Last year, CJA leadership offered to members a great credit
card processing program with First National Merchant
Solutions.
• The CJA/First National program offers members of CJA the
opportunity to save money in the area of bank card services.
Some of the features of the program are:
• No transition costs
• Program setup on net sales, which means you get credit for
processing a refund
• Small monthly fee of $5 and low processing rates.
• If you are interested in learning more about this program or
would like First National to talk to you about it in person,
contact David Blanco, at 860-883-5002 or call the Association
office.
• CRMA is close to finalizing a deal that will help members
save money with a new program that offers discounts on payroll
processing.
• There are other unique features of this program that we hope
to announce in next week’s FF, so stay tuned. If you are
interested in learning more about this or if you need
immediate help in payroll processing call Cathy in our office
today at 860-527-1044!
Retail news and notes:
•
Kohl's gets bump from more expensive lines
Kohl's is getting a boost from its more expensive brands,
rather than its discount lines, indicating that shoppers are
willing to spend more money on items that will last. The
company will look to beat rivals during the holiday season,
the CEO said.
Reuters (5/14) 
•
ASDA's "standout" contribution boosts Wal-Mart profit
Wal-Mart Stores, which services more than 100 million
consumers across 16 countries, reported a 7.8% increase in
operating profit in the first quarter at its international
businesses. ASDA in the U.K. helped boost the global
retailer's profit. "In almost every country we grew the top
line faster than the market despite the strong dollar and a
recession that is even deeper in some countries than it is in
the United States," CEO Mike Duke said.
Reuters (5/14)
•
Graduates to receive more cash, fewer gift cards this year
Family and friends of graduates this year are choosing to be
more practical with their gift giving, opting for the
versatility of cash instead of gift cards. According to NRF's
2009 Graduation Consumer Intentions and Actions survey,
conducted by BIGresearch, Americans who will give graduation
gifts will spend about $40 per gift, down from nearly $50 in
previous years.
Read the press release.
May 1, 2009
Heading into the Home Stretch of the Legislative Session
ORC Bill Passes in State Senate
Other Capitol News and Notes
Golf Outing Update
Retail News and Notes
• Both Chambers of the General Assembly were in session on
Wednesday and Thursday of this week and both are now not
expected back into session until Tuesday of next week.
• When they come back into formal session next week it will be
the 4 week mark until the “official” end of the long session.
• They still have a tremendous amount of work to do, including
the most important job of trying to close the state budget gap
and adoption of a state budget for the next two years.
• We all assume that work is being done behind the scenes on
the budget, but quite honestly it is hard to really tell.
• So, absent a budget to debate, we are left to fight off anti
retail bills, of which there seem to be more of this year than
in years past.
• We will keep you posted on things but, at the same time, we
encourage you to join our next legislative conference call to
review with us the bills that we are tracking.
• Our next legislative call is scheduled for Wednesday May 6th
at 11:00 am.
• The call is open to all members. Please call Cathy in our
office for more information at 860-527-1044.
ORC Bill Passes in the State Senate
• We are very pleased to report this week that yesterday the
State Senate passed, with no opposition, SB 974, “AAC
Organized Retail Theft”.
• This is a bill that CRMA has been advocating now for 3 years
and with the action of the Senate, we now have just one more
Chamber to go.
• We want to thank all of our LP Committee members for their
help on this bill. We are not done yet and will keep you up to
date on the progress of this bill in the House.
Other Capitol News and Notes
• As we have mentioned in previous FF, everywhere we turn this
year, mostly in the House, it is hard to find friends among
the members of the Democratic Majority.
• This year’s freshman class, along with a number of 2nd term
members, has a decidedly different attitude towards retailers
and business in general.
• We will keep fighting but it appears the longer the session
goes on, that we have a much more sympathetic audience among
the members of the Democratic Majority in the State Senate.
• HB 6516, “AA Establishing Minimum Retail Refund and Exchange
Policies”, did not get called in the House this week. Rep. Jim
Shapiro, (D-Stamford) the House Chairman of the General Law
Committee, continues to push this bill.
• We met again on Monday of this week with him to once again
urge him not to go forward with a bill that attempts to have a
one size fits all retail policy. Unfortunately it appears he
is continuing his quest.
• We would encourage members to email Rep. Shapiro today to
explain to him your return policy and your relationship to
your customers and how that is so very important to your
business.
• We are also continuing our battle to prevent HB 5215, “An
Act Promoting Reusable Shopping Bags” from passing.
• The bill has the support of the House Majority Leader Denise
Merrill, (D-Storrs) and despite her office’s arm twisting of
members of the Finance Committee, we were able to get 22 no
votes out of a possible 50 , on the bill.
• This bill would impose a .05 cent fee to customers at the
point of sale, when using a plastic or paper bag.
• This week the House passed HB 6572, “AAC Banning Bisphenol –
A in Children’s Products and Food Products and Prohibiting
Certain Alternative Substances”
• They did amend the bill that makes it a little better, but
it still remains problematic for retailers and manufacturers.
• We are part of a broad business coalition that is organized
to fight this bill and will continue to reach out to members
of the State Senate to voice our opposition.
• There are other bills that we continue to watch and remind
members that they are free to join in our legislative
conference calls and review our tracking sheet to get the
latest updates from the State Capitol.
• Finally, yesterday was Husky Day at the Capitol with the
House and the Senate hosting the men’s and women’s basketball
teams and the men’s football team.
Golf Outing Update
• By now, hopefully, everyone should have received your
invitation to join us for our Annual Golf Outing. This year’s
event will once again be held at the prestigious Hartford Golf
Club on Monday Oct 6, 2009.
• Please send in your registration information today. We are
hoping for a big turnout this year as the Golf Outing is a
very, very important fundraiser for CRMA.
• We understand the challenges that folks face this year, but
we hope that you can use this event as a way to increase
business by networking with colleagues, vendors or other
business associates.
• Also, if you are interested in being a part of our Golf
Committee, we would love to have you. Please call Cathy in our
office for more information on how you can take part in this
great event at 860-547-1044.
Retail News and Notes
•
Toys "R" Us adds store-within-store shops
Toys "R" Us is creating store-within-the-store "R" Markets
that sell diapers, snacks and other non-toy items. The idea is
to provide "busy parents with the convenience of finding
everything they need for their kids under one roof," CEO Jerry
Storch said in a news release.
American City Business
Journals/Cincinnati (4/29)
•
Forever 21 founders built one of fastest-growing retailers
When Forever 21 founder Do Won Chang first came to the U.S.,
he worked three jobs before opening a clothing store. Now, he
and his wife are worth at least $1 billion and are expanding
their brand through home goods, swimwear and junior's
plus-size merchandise.
Forbes (4/29)
•
Some Walgreen stores to take on new format by summer
top financial officer at Walgreen gave a peek Tuesday into the
store's redesign, saying 35 of the stores will have a new,
slimmed-down look by early summer, and then about 400 more by
fall. The prototype has a pared-down selection, with a focus
on "affordable essentials" such as mouthwash, shampoo and
batteries.
Drug Store News (free registration) (4/29)
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