ISMA members in good standing will be receiving their online ballots to vote in our Board of Directors election for 2012. The ballot must be filled out by FEBRUARY 28th in order to have your vote counted. So that you know a bit about each candidate who is running, we have provided you here a brief biography, provided by the candidates.

2012-2013 ISMA Board of Directors Nominee Statements
David Zimmerman
Blackthorn Bar
David was born and raised in the Noe Valley neighborhood of San Francisco and has owned and operated businesses in the city for the last 10years. He currently owns the Blackthorn bar on Irving St. in the Inner Sunset and Icon Lounge in the SOMA area. David is honored and excited about the opportunity to continue the hard work done by the previous board in their goal to expand and strengthen ISMA. David’s goals include forming a stronger bond with the Inner Sunset Park Neighbors as they work towards like-minded goals including the Inner Sunset Fair and the planned Gateway to the Sunset program.
Dane Morton
Sterling Bank and Trust
Dane joined the Inner Sunset neighborhood in April of 2011 as manager with Sterling Bank & Trust. Dane has been in banking for 8 years and is married with a one year old son. In the past year, Dane served as the VP of the Taraval Parkside Merchants Association and during his term they held a Street Fair, Senior Citizen Dance, Community Wide Rummage Sale, and won a financial award for façade improvements.
Brandi Chalker and Briana Bers
Urban Bazaar
Brandi Chalker and Briana Bers, co-owners of Urban Bazaar, seek your vote to share the position of Secretary on the ISMA Board of Directors. Brandi & Briana currently hold the positions of VP Communications and Events Coordinator on the Board, and are looking forward to continuing to serve our merchant community. We value inclusiveness, creativity, and a long-term outlook in ISMA’s agenda for 2012, and would like to see the Board focus on: creating an Inner Sunset Guide so that locals and tourists are more drawn to support our local businesses; creating greater collective marketing opportunities for ISMA members; working more closely with the Inner Sunset Park Neighbors on long-term beautification and improvement plans for our neighborhood; and fostering a more inclusive organization that responds to the needs of all of its merchants.
Brendan Wolf
First Republic Bank
Brendan is an entrepreneurial-minded banker that brings a fresh approach to personal and business finance. He has held various positions in banking since 2003 including Teller, Personal Banker, Business Specialist, and Assistant Manager. He holds two BA degrees from UC Santa Barbara and spent his final year studying abroad at the Universita’ di Bologna in Italy to gain a more global perspective through cultural immersion. In the aftermath of the Great Recession, he’s determined to use his experience within the financial sector to help people by providing objective financial advice. Having recently started working in the Inner Sunset, he’d like to meet more of the local community and gain more professional experiences. The opportunity to become Treasurer for the ISMA would aid in developing deeper relationships with local business owners as well as provide a unique opportunity to gain professional experience while he’s preparing for MBA applications.

Ambiance, a local clothing boutique that was founded in 1983, opened the doors to its fourth location on February 2. The store, which is also one of ISMA’s newest members, is located right in the heart of our neighborhood at the corner of 9th and Irving. Take a moment to stop in, greet our newest merchant neighbor, and peruse some of their stylish outfits & accessories!

The San Francisco Department of the Environment is kicking off the annual Commuter Benefits Ordinance compliance process with outreach to businesses about deadlines and assistance in setting up a Commuter Benefits program.

As you know, San Francisco has a reputation as a trail blazer for cities nationwide. In January 2009, San Francisco took an innovative step towards relieving traffic congestion and improving air quality – making our city and region a better place to live – when the Board of Supervisors passed the San Francisco Commuter Benefits Ordinance with support from local business associations, including the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.

The Commuter Benefits Ordinance requires businesses with locations in San Francisco and 20 or more employees nationwide to offer a commuter benefits program to their employees. By taking advantage of an existing federal pre-tax transit benefit, employers can save up to 9% on payroll taxes and employees can save up to 40% on their transit, vanpool and parking costs.

By April 30^th, all San Francisco employers subject to the Ordinance are required to submit their 2012 Compliance Form.

For any questions, please contact:

Casey Strong

Commute Smart Program Associate
San Francisco Environment
casey.strong@sfgov.org
www.commuterbenefits.org

There are 2 important labor law changes happening on Jan. 1st, 2012 in San Francisco:

• Minimum Wage is increased to $10.24/hour
• Health Care Security Ordinance Rates are increasing for all non-exempt businesses (you are exempt if you have 19 or fewer employees)

Here is the message we received from the Office of Small Business:

The Office of Small Business wants to make sure that you are aware of several key updates and new regulations in San Francisco labor laws, effective January 1, 2012.
New Minimum Wage: $10.24/Hour
Beginning January 1, 2012, all employers must pay to each employee who performs work in San Francisco (including temporary and part-time employees) wages not less than $10.24 per hour.  The minimum wage requirement, set forth in the San Francisco Minimum Wage Ordinance, applies to adult and minor employees who work two (2) or more hours per week.  Each year, the City will adjust the amount of the minimum wage based on increases in the regional consumer price index.
If you should have any questions or require additional information, please contact the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) at (415) 554-6292 or Email MWO@sfgov.org.  Please click here for the new 2012 Minimum Wage poster, which must be posted in a visible area where employees can easily read.
New Health Care Security Ordinance (HCSO) Expenditure Rate: $1.46/Hour (20-99 Employees)

The Health Care Security Ordinance (HCSO) requires Covered Employers to spend a minimum amount of money each quarter on their Covered Employees’ health care.  Beginning January 1, 2012, health care expenditure rate for large employers (100+ employees) will be $2.20/hour.  For medium-sized employers (20-99 employees), the rate will be $1.46/hour.  Employers with 19 or less employees are exempt from the HCSO requirements. Please refer to the HCSO website for details, and the Frequently Asked Questions regarding the Employer Spending Requirement of the San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance.

Please email HCSO@sfgov.org or call 554-7892 with any questions regarding your rights and responsibilities under the San Francisco Health Care Security Ordinance.

New HCSO Regulations
Posting:
Beginning January 1, 2012, new HCSO provisions take effect.  Below is a summary of the key changes, but for more details, visit the OLSE website at www.sfgov.org/olse/hcso, or contact the OLSE at (415) 554-7892 or hcso@sfgov.org.

All “Covered Employers” (i.e. businesses with 20 or more employees) are subject to the HCSO and must post an Official OLSE Notice at every workplace.  You can download and print a copy of the Official OLSE Notice at www.sfgov.org/olse/hcso.

HRA Accounts:
The following provisions apply to businesses that utilize Health Reimbursements Accounts (HRAs) to satisfy, in whole or in part, the HCSO spending requirement.

In order for HRA contributions to qualify as health care expenditures, all of the following criteria must be met:

1) Any HRA funds available at the end of 2011 must roll-over to 2012;
2) The contributions must be reasonably calculated to benefit the employee;
3) The contributions must remain available to the employee for a minimum of twenty-four months from the date of the contribution;
4) The employee must receive a written summary of the contribution within 15 days of the date of the contribution; and
5) Upon separation, employees must be provided with a written summary of their account within 3 days, and the funds must remain available for a minimum of 90 days.

Businesses with Surcharges:
The following provisions apply to businesses that impose a surcharge on customers to cover, in whole or in part, the costs of the HCSO spending requirement.

• You will be required to report two pieces of data to the OLSE during the annual reporting process: 1) the amount of money collected from the surcharge for employee health care and 2) the amount of money spent on employee health care.
• If the amount collected from the surcharge is greater than the amount spent on employee health care, the Covered Employer must irrevocably pay or designate an amount equal to that difference for health care expenditures for its employees.

Please contact the Office of Small Business for further details.

Office of Small Business
City Hall, Room 110
1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102

www.sfgov.org/osb