Bob Sanders / NHBR

Veto override day: A guide for NH businesses

Tuesday, September 15, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

Bills that would set up a paid family and medical leave program, raise the minimum wage, boost clean energy initiatives and provide tenant protections are all on the chopping block following vetoes by Gov. Chris Sununu. And, although the bills’ backers will try to rescue at least some of them when the New Hampshire Legislature meets Wednesday to try to override those vetoes, they are not likely to succeed. READ MORE

Number of employees returning to work stalls before $600 in extra benefits ends

Saturday, July 25, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

or the first time in four months, the initial claims have gone up slightly, showing that layoffs are starting to pick up again, especially in manufacturing, perhaps reflecting the impact of the upsurge in the virus in the rest of the country and the world. READ MORE

Number of NH bankruptcy filings continues at ‘stunning’ lows

Friday, July 10, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

There were only 81 bankruptcy filings in June, four more than in May, and the third double-digit filing in a row – something we haven’t seen since the late 1980s, save for three months following October 2005 when the law was changed to make it harder to file for protection. READ MORE

NH Re-Opening Task Force begins taking up second phase guidelines

Tuesday, June 16, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

On Monday, Sununu turned his order into an advisory, lifting the 10-person gathering limit, and allowing many other businesses to reopen, including bowling alleys, gyms and wedding venues. He also allowed restaurants to have indoor dining and said day camps and overnight camps could open June 22 and June 28, respectively. And movie theaters, performing arts centers and amusement parks could open on June 29. (The task force voted on guidance for the last three, but the governor hasn’t approved it yet.) READ MORE

NH landlords, bankers voice concern over bill to aid tenants, homeowners

Wednesday, June 10, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 2

On Thursday afternoon, the Senate Election Law and Municipal Affairs Committee will hold a amendment hearing on HB 1129. Although the bill contains all sorts of coronavirus-related measures, such as how to run town meetings in an era of social distancing, it also includes using $60 million of the state’s $1.25 billion of federal CARES Act funds for housing. Some $10 million for homeless assistance and $50 million, via the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority, for a housing recovery fund, that help assist people pay rent and mortgages. READ MORE

As NH slowly emerges from shutdown, not every business and not all customers are ready to follow

Monday, May 18, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

The pressure to open from cash strapped-businesses and cabin fevered consumers is immense, despite the federal government flooding the state with billions of dollars in economic aid and despite a still-rising coronavirus caseload and death toll – a death toll that, in mid-May, only two months after the shutdown – stood at nearly half the number of opioid-related fatalities recorded in all of 2019. READ MORE

Economic Injury Disaster Loan program falls short in New Hampshire

Wednesday, April 22, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

Some 126 New Hampshire businesses – less than 1 in 200 –have received emergency loans directly from the U.S. Small Business Administration, according to figures released by the agency earlier this week on its website. READ MORE

After computer update, Employment Security processing new payments

Monday, April 20, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

The checks are in the mail, or being automatically deposited in bank accounts, for unemployed New Hampshire workers and business owners, and for many it will be a big amount – bigger than that one-time $1,200 check they’ll be receiving with President Trump’s name on it. READ MORE

Demand has been crazy’ for ‘lifesaver’ federal assistance

Thursday, April 9, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

The mad rush is on, as businesses spent the last week filing for some of the $349 billion worth of federally guaranteed loans, loans that – for the most part – they won’t have to pay back. Those funds, however, are finite and going fast. READ MORE

NH Department of Employment Security scrambles to keep up with unprecedented number of claims

Wednesday, April 1, 2020 Bob Sanders / NHBR 0

If your business was forced to shut down and you attempt to apply for benefits under New Hampshire’s new coronavirus eligibility rules, you will be denied. But don’t worry about it. Ignore it. It doesn’t mean anything. READ MORE