Wednesday, February 24, 2021
DEATH-BY-POWERPOINT SLIDE PRESENTATIONS [3] > Mesa City Council Study Session Thu 02.25,2021
| File #: | 21-0221 |
| Type: | Presentation | Status: | Agenda Ready |
| In control: | City Council Study Session |
| On agenda: | 2/25/2021 |
| Title: | Hear a presentation, discuss, and provide direction on the future disposition of City-owned land within downtown area. |
| Attachments: | 1. Presentation |
| File #: | 21-0135 |
| Type: | Presentation | Status: | Agenda Ready |
| In control: | City Council Study Session |
| On agenda: | 2/25/2021 |
| Title: | Hear a presentation and discuss the City’s forecast highlights including Mesa’s financial and economic trends. |
| Attachments: | 1. Presentation |
| File #: | 21-0208 |
| Type: | Presentation | Status: | Agenda Ready |
| In control: | City Council Study Session |
| On agenda: | 2/25/2021 |
| Title: | Hear a presentation and discuss the Planning Division’s work plan, including a list of major land use planning strategies and goals for 2021 and into the future. |
| Attachments: | 1. Presentation |
Mesa is Growing Fast > Time To Catch Up on Demographics and Create New Mesa City Council Districts
SEE SOMETHING SUSPICIOUS > Twice-Told Tales A Thorny Twist on Red Roses
Law Enforcement, Social Media Users Turn An Act Of Kindness Into A Human Trafficking Investigation
from the some-people-are-just-the-worst dept
With enough self-delusion, any act of humanity can be considered a criminal act. It works for cops. It also works for the general public. When you're a suspicious busybody with an overactive imagination and too much time on your hands, you can waste everyone's tax dollars by panicking.
A Walmart employ, who is apparently convinced human trafficking is as common as the common cold, decided to get law enforcement involved, resulting in this message from the Coshocton (OH) County Sheriff's Office:
On 2/15/2021 the Sheriff’s Office received a call from the Walmart Security Department in regards to suspicious activity in their parking lot involving a vehicle and two, what appear to be, males looking into vehicles and placing a single red rose under the windshield wipers of those vehicles. While reviewing the Walmart Surveillance Cameras, the two unknown males are seen exiting from, what appears to be, a newer style dark gray Ford Explorer, or similar looking vehicle, with chrome rims and side mirrors and placing a single red rose on it. This same sequence occurs multiple times on several vehicles that are parked on the outskirts of the parking lot. The males then get back into the vehicle and leave the area. Although there have been several Facebook posts of similar instances that have happened in Ohio regarding Human Trafficking related techniques, it is unclear at this time if this incident is related to such type of crime.
Pay attention to the last sentence and mourn with me over the state of online discourse. "Several Facebook posts of similar instances… regarding Human Trafficking related techniques." Oh wow. Maybe Facebook shouldn't be considered a trustworthy source of information about "Human Trafficking related techniques." Perhaps Google might provide a more, better informed perspective on the red rose=human trafficking assumption.
Here's a 2019 Snopes post detailing (and debunking) another stupid panic originating from Kentucky. A photo of a long-stemmed red rose slid into a car's door handle was accompanied by something even writers for Law & Order: SVU would find too far-fetched:
“There have been recent incidents in Northern Kentucky about sex traffickers leaving roses on victim’s [sic] cars. The roses have a chemical on them to make you pass out, so they can grab you. One incident happened in the Walmart parking lot in Florence, KY! Please be careful, ladies!”
The photo used by this Facebook user dates back to 2014. And the original post containing it said nothing about human trafficking. Instead, it was captioned with nothing more than a bunch of words some people might have mistakenly believed were insightful or original.
"Growth is Not Pretty"
This was local law enforcement's response to Snopes' queries:
“This is completely unfounded and has been floating around for quite a long time. There have been zero incidents anywhere in Florence, or anywhere else that I have heard, of anything remotely related to this.”
But maybe the Kentucky cops were wrong. Let's scroll through a few more search results…
New SBA PPP Prioritizes Smallest of Small Businesses To Promote Equitable Relief
PRESS RELEASE ENGLISH
Steps to Promote Equitable Relief for Mom-and-Pop Businesses
February 22, 2021 | Release Number 21-17
WASHINGTON – Building on a month of strong results, the Biden-Harris Administration and the U.S. Small Business Administration are taking steps with the Paycheck Protection Program to further promote equitable relief for America’s mom-and-pop businesses.
The latest round of Paycheck Protection Program funding opened one month ago and already the Biden Administration has succeeded in making major improvements to the program’s implementation:
- For businesses with fewer than ten employees, the share of funding is up nearly 60%
- For businesses in rural communities, the share of funding is up nearly 30%
- The share of funding distributed through Community Development Financial Institutions and Minority Depository Institutions is up more than 40%
“The SBA is a frontline agency working to create an inclusive economy, focused on reaching women-owned, minority-owned, low- and moderate-income, rural, and other underserved communities in meaningful ways. While reported data illustrates we have made real strides in ensuring these funds are reaching underserved communities, we believe we can still do better,” says SBA Senior Advisor Michael Roth.
“The important policy changes we are announcing further ensure inclusivity and integrity by increasing access and much-needed aid to Main Street businesses that anchor our neighborhoods and help families build wealth.”
These simple progressive steps by the Biden-Harris Administration further demonstrate the commitment to racial and gender equity, reaching low and moderate-income, rural, urban, and other underserved areas.
The SBA will:
- Establish a 14-day, exclusive PPP loan application period for businesses and nonprofits with fewer than 20 employees
- Allow sole proprietors, independent contractors, and self-employed individuals to receive more financial support by revising the PPP’s funding formula for these categories of applicants
- Eliminate an exclusionary restriction on PPP access for small business owners with prior non-fraud felony convictions, consistent with a bipartisan congressional proposal
- Eliminate PPP access restrictions on small business owners who have struggled to make federal student loan payments by eliminating federal student loan debt delinquency and default as disqualifiers to participating in the PPP; and
- Ensure access for non-citizen small business owners who are lawful U.S. residents by clarifying that they may use Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) to apply for the PPP.
The 14-day exclusivity period will start on Wednesday, February 24, 2021 at 9 a.m., while the other four changes will be implemented by the first week of March. The SBA is working on the program changes and will communicate details throughout this week.
These actions will help to lay the foundation for a robust and equitable recovery for small businesses across the country. Small businesses employ nearly half of the American workforce; they create 2 out of 3 net new private-sector jobs; they reinvest 68% of revenues to build and sustain communities.
Borrowers can apply for the Paycheck Protection Program by downloading the First Draw PPP loan application or Second Draw PPP loan application and working with a participating PPP lender through the SBA Lender Match tool.
Through SBA’s nationwide district offices, the Agency will work in close partnership with the Administration to further leverage its resource partner network and expand on multilingual access and outreach about the PPP.
Updated PPP information, including forms, guidance, and resources is available at www.sba.gov/ppp and www.treasury.gov/cares.
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About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration makes the American dream of business ownership a reality. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow, or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations.
To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
Press release
La SBA da prioridad a las más pequeñas de las pequeñas empresas en el Programa de protección de pago
Medidas para promover la ayuda equitativa para las empresas familiares
February 22, 2021 | Release Number 21-17
WASHINGTON - Aprovechando un mes de buenos resultados, la Administración Biden-Harris y la Agencia Federal de Pequeños Negocios están tomando medidas con el Programa de protección de pago para promover aún más la ayuda equitativa a las empresas familiares de los Estados Unidos.
La más reciente ronda de financiamiento del Programa de protección de pago se abrió hace un mes y la Administración Biden ya ha logrado realizar grandes mejoras en la implementación del programa:
- Para empresas con menos de diez empleados, la cuota de financiamiento es de casi un 60 %
- Para empresas de comunidades rurales, la cuota de financiamiento es de casi un 30 %
- La cuota de financiamiento distribuida a través de las Instituciones financieras de desarrollo comunitario y las Instituciones crediticias para minorías es de más de 40 %
"La SBA es una agencia de primera línea que trabaja para crear una economía inclusiva, enfocada en llegar, de forma significativa, a las empresas propiedad de mujeres, propiedad de minorías, de ingresos bajos y moderados, rurales y otras comunidades desatendidas. Aunque los datos reportados ilustran que hemos logrado grandes metas para garantizar que estos fondos lleguen a las comunidades desatendidas, consideramos que podemos hacerlo aún mejor”, dijo el Asesor Principal de la SBA, Michael Roth. "Los importantes cambios en la política que estamos anunciando garantizan aún más la inclusión y la integridad al aumentar el acceso y la tan necesaria ayuda a las empresas comunitarias estadounidenses que sirven de ancla a nuestros vecindarios y ayudan a las familias a crear riqueza".
Estos sencillas medidas progresistas de la Administración Biden-Harris demuestran el compromiso con la equidad racial y de género, llegando a áreas de ingresos bajos o moderados, rurales, urbanas y otras áreas desatendidas. La SBA:
- Establecerá un período, de 14 días, de solicitud de préstamos PPP exclusivo para las empresas y organizaciones sin fines de lucro con menos de 20 empleados
- Permitirá que los propietarios únicos, contratistas independientes y trabajadores autónomos reciban más ayuda financiera mediante la revisión de la fórmula de financiamiento del PPP en estas categorías de solicitud
- Eliminará una restricción de exclusión en el acceso al PPP para los propietarios de pequeñas empresas con condenas previas por delitos graves no relacionados con el fraude, en consonancia con una propuesta bipartidista del Congreso
- Eliminará las restricciones de acceso al PPP para propietarios de pequeñas empresas que han tenido dificultades para realizar los pagos de sus préstamos estudiantiles federales, mediante la eliminación de la morosidad de los préstamos estudiantiles federales como descalificador para participar en el PPP; y
- Garantizará el acceso a los propietarios de pequeñas empresas, que no son ciudadanos estadounidenses y que son residentes legales de los EE. UU., mediante la aclaratoria de que pueden usar su Número de identificación de contribuyente individual (ITIN, por sus siglas en inglés) para solicitar el PPP.
El período de 14 días de exclusividad comenzará el miércoles, 24 de febrero de 2021, a las
9 a. m., mientras que los otros cuatro cambios se implementarán en la primera semana de marzo. La SBA está trabajando en los cambios del programa y comunicará los detalles durante esta semana.
Estas medidas ayudarán a sentar las bases para una recuperación sólida y equitativa de las pequeñas empresas de todo el país. Las pequeñas empresas dan empleo a cerca de la mitad de la mano de obra estadounidense; crean 2 de cada 3 de los nuevos puestos de trabajo netos del sector privado; y reinvierten el 68 % de las ganancias para construir y mantener a las comunidades. Los prestatarios pueden solicitar el Programa de protección de pago descargando la solicitud de los primeros préstamos PPP o la solicitud de los segundos préstamos PPP y trabajando con un prestamista participante del PPP a través de la herramienta "localizador de prestamistas de la SBA Lender Match".
A través de las oficinas distratales de todo el país, la Agencia trabajará en estrecha colaboración con la Administración para aprovechar aún más su red de recursos asociados y ampliar el acceso multilingüe y la divulgación sobre el PPP. La información actualizada del PPP, incluso los formularios, orientación y recursos, están disponibles en www.sba.gov/ppp y www.treasury.gov/cares.
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Agencia Federal de Pequeños Negocios
La Agencia Federal de Pequeños Negocios hace realidad el sueño americano de ser propietario de un negocio. Como el único recurso y voz para las pequeñas empresas respaldado por la fortaleza del gobierno federal, la SBA empodera a los empresarios y propietarios de pequeñas empresas con los recursos y el apoyo que necesitan para comenzar, hacer crecer o expandir sus negocios, o recuperarse de un desastre declarado. Brinda servicios a través de una extensa red de oficinas de campo de la SBA y la colaboración con organizaciones públicas y privadas. Para conocer más, visite www.sba.gov/espanol.
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