SBA's new Online Course for Woman Entrepreneurs

The SBA has launched a new training course, "Winning Federal Contracts: A Guide for Women Entrepreneurs" as part of the wider government efforts to promote opportunities for women-owned businesses in government contracting.

Click here to see the SBA Press Release.

Click here to go directly to the course.

Web guide to the stimulus plan
Track state, federal spending under Obama’s $787 billion program

Msnbc.com queried all 50 states for home pages or database portals devoted specifically to the stimulus plan. The results are presented in the following state-by-state map, which links to each state’s official stimulus site, if it has one, or to the site maintained by the highest-ranking government office. The map also also includes a link tracking each state’s stimulus projects as compiled by Stimulus Watch, a nonprofit group organized by scholars at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va.

To compile the box of federal links, msnbc.com repeated the process for major programs and agencies in all 15 Cabinet departments. “Promo” pages are not included — only those agencies offering significant information or user interactivity are presented. Link here..............

Recovery.gov

This is the Federal Government Site for information on the Stimulus Plan.
http://www.recovery.gov/ .

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is an unprecedented effort to jumpstart our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st century. The Recovery and Reinvestment Act is an extraordinary response to a crisis unlike any since the Great Depression. With much at stake, the Act provides for unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability so that you will be able to know how, when, and where your tax dollars are being spent. Spearheaded by a new Recovery Board, this Act contains built-in measures to root out waste, inefficiency, and unnecessary spending. This website, Recovery.gov, will be the main vehicle to provide each and every citizen with the ability to monitor the progress of the recovery.

Where do I find and how do I understand what the PTAC accomplishments are?

Milestones, awards and work.

Newsweek Public Pinball, visit this interactive navigating "game" that shows you what you need to do to deal with Federal, State and Local agencies. Link here......

You have heard all the "spin", well here is a place you can go and get the REAL facts.
FactCheck.org

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OpenSecrets.org is your nonpartisan guide to money’s influence on U.S. elections and public policy. Whether you’re a voter, journalist, activist, student or interested citizen, use our free site to shine light on your government. http://www.opensecrets.org/index.php

PTAC Prime Contracting Webinar
A no cost webinar entitled Prime Contracting: What the Contractors are Looking For" will be held on January 12, 2010 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM. The purpose of this training session, hosted by the SBA and the Illinois PTACs, is to provide a venue to enlighten the small business community on the key things that large companies are looking for in a small business partner and to provide a venue for cultivating business relationships between companies. The key topics will include teaming agreements, past performance, unique capabilities and forming a "true" partnership.

The presenter, Dr. William Powell, is the General Manager of the Regional Justice Information Service (REJIS) supporting public sector Governmental agencies within the St Louis Metropolitan area. In this role he provides strategic leadership of all information technology support activities for over 300 Governmental agencies. Prior to his selection as the REJIS General Manager, he was the Director of Midwest Operations at Unisys' Federal Systems from July 1997 to July 2008. He retired from the United States Air Force in 1996 after serving his country for over 28 years.

This Webinar will use ReadyTalk, SBA's multi-media training tool. ReadyTalk allows you to attend valuable training from the convenience of your home or office at no costto you. It's easy to use!

To register please send an email to laura.cawley@sba.gov with WEBINAR RESERVATION and Prime Contracting in the subject line. Include your name, phone number and (if applicable) your organization, agency or company name.
We will send you an email two days prior to the event confirming your registration, and include the toll-free conference dial-in number and the participant access code for both the phone and web portions of the seminar.

Bidding on DOD Solicitations and Shipping Products to the Military

The SBA invites small business owners and entrepreneurs to attend a FREE Webinar. This three part series has been designed for the manufacturing specialist interested in bidding on DoD solicitations and shipping products to the military. The presentations will provide basic definitions and explanations of the various types of military marking requirements and the marking formats that are applicable at the item, unit pack and shipment level.

Session #1--January 19, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Central
Session #2-- January 26th, 2010 at 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Central
Session #3 -- February 2, 2010 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Central

To register, send an email to Laura.Cawley@sba.gov with WEBINAR RESERVATION and PRIME CONTRACTING in the subject line. Include your name, number and organization. We will send you an email two days prior to the event confirming your registration, and include the toll-free conference dial-in number and the participant access code for both the phone and web portions of the seminar.

/The Tax Incentives Assistance Project (TIAP)The (TIAP), sponsored by a coalition of public interest nonprofit groups, government agencies, and other organizations in the energy efficiency field, is designed to give consumers and businesses information they need to make use of the federal income tax incentives for energy efficient products and technologies passed by Congress as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and subsequently amended several times. Full Story.......

The Debt StoryLooking to bookmark reliable sites that show the U.S. government’s revenue and expenditures, deficit and debt. Check out the Congressional Budget Office for a wealth of information on the budget, including deficit forecasts for several years down the road. The Bureau of the Public Debt — part of the Treasury Dept. — is the best place to check the total outstanding debt, on a daily, and depressing, basis. If you’re into that sort of thing.

Other useful information Rockford Area Manufacturers Database Link

Rockford Manufacturers Blog

Future Military Items Videos

The free and open productivity suite

SBA's new Online Course for Woman Entrepreneurs