A bill to amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend lease protections for servicemembers under stop movement orders in response to a local, national, or global emergency, and for other purposes (S 3637) – This bill extends the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to protect service members who were previously issued orders to change duty stations but had those orders rescinded because of the pandemic. A stop movement order may leave them with a housing and/or car lease in two different locations. This extension allows families who are unable to relocate due to pandemic-related travel restrictions to be released without penalty from their leases. It is retroactive to March 1, 2020. The bill was introduced by Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) on May 6. It was passed by the Senate in June, the House in July, and was signed by the President on Aug. 14.
Safeguarding America’s First Responders Act of 2020 (S 3607) – This bill was introduced by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on May 5. The bill extends death and disability benefits under the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program (PSOB) to public safety officers (e.g., law enforcement officers) and survivors of public safety officers who die or become injured as a result of COVID-19. The bill classifies COVID-19 or related complications suffered by a public safety officer as a personal injury sustained in the line of duty. The Act was passed in the Senate in May and in the House in July. It was signed into law on Aug. 14.
Veteran Treatment Court Coordination Act of 2019 (HR 886) – Introduced by Rep. Charlie Christ (D-FL) on Jan. 30, 2019, this legislation directs the Department of Justice to establish a Veterans Treatment Court Program to provide grants and technical assistance for state, local and tribal governments to develop and maintain veterans’ treatment courts. Treatment courts are designed to assist justice-involved vets with treatment needs such as substance abuse, mental health, and other issues unique to active service. The Act was enacted after being signed by the President on Aug. 8.
Ryan Kules and Paul Benne Specially Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019 (HR 3504) – This bill is designed to amend Title 38 of the United States Code that provides for improvements to the specially adapted housing and educational assistance programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs. It is designed to help eligible disabled veterans purchase adaptive homes or upgrade existing homes to meet their specific needs for daily living activities. The bill was introduced by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) on June 26, 2019. It was passed in the House in July 2019; in the Senate in March 2020, and was signed into law by the President on Aug. 8.
Great American Outdoors Act (HR 1957) – This Act was initially sponsored by Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) on March 28, 2019. This legislation establishes the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, which is designed to support deferred maintenance projects on federal lands for fiscal years 2021 to 2025. The bill makes funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund permanent and allocates money equal to 50 percent of energy development revenues from oil, gas, coal, or alternative or renewable energy development on federal lands and waters. The bill establishes reporting procedures for all associated projects and mandates that deposited amounts must not exceed $1.9 billion for any fiscal year. The bill was signed into law by the President on Aug. 4.
Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys Act (S 2163) – Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced this legislation on July 18, 2019. It is designed to establish a Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys within the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Office to conduct a systematic study of the conditions affecting black men and boys. The Act was passed by the Senate in June, the House in July, and was signed into law by the President on Aug. 14.
Laws to Enhance Benefits for Service Members, First Responders, Veterans and to Restore National Parks and Public Lands
September 1, 2020 · Blog, Congress at Work
⏱ 4 min read
A bill to amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to extend lease protections for servicemembers under stop movement orders in response to a local, national, or global emergency, and for other purposes (S 3637) – This bill extends the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to protect service members who were previously issued orders to change duty stations but had those orders rescinded because of the pandemic. A stop movement order may leave them with a housing and/or car lease in two different locations. This extension allows families who are unable to relocate due to pandemic-related travel restrictions to be released without penalty from their leases. It is retroactive to March 1, 2020. The bill was introduced by Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) on May 6. It was passed by the Senate in June, the House in July, and was signed by the President on Aug. 14.
Safeguarding America’s First Responders Act of 2020 (S 3607) – This bill was introduced by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) on May 5. The bill extends death and disability benefits under the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program (PSOB) to public safety officers (e.g., law enforcement officers) and survivors of public safety officers who die or become injured as a result of COVID-19. The bill classifies COVID-19 or related complications suffered by a public safety officer as a personal injury sustained in the line of duty. The Act was passed in the Senate in May and in the House in July. It was signed into law on Aug. 14.
Veteran Treatment Court Coordination Act of 2019 (HR 886) – Introduced by Rep. Charlie Christ (D-FL) on Jan. 30, 2019, this legislation directs the Department of Justice to establish a Veterans Treatment Court Program to provide grants and technical assistance for state, local and tribal governments to develop and maintain veterans’ treatment courts. Treatment courts are designed to assist justice-involved vets with treatment needs such as substance abuse, mental health, and other issues unique to active service. The Act was enacted after being signed by the President on Aug. 8.
Ryan Kules and Paul Benne Specially Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019 (HR 3504) – This bill is designed to amend Title 38 of the United States Code that provides for improvements to the specially adapted housing and educational assistance programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs. It is designed to help eligible disabled veterans purchase adaptive homes or upgrade existing homes to meet their specific needs for daily living activities. The bill was introduced by Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) on June 26, 2019. It was passed in the House in July 2019; in the Senate in March 2020, and was signed into law by the President on Aug. 8.
Great American Outdoors Act (HR 1957) – This Act was initially sponsored by Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) on March 28, 2019. This legislation establishes the National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund, which is designed to support deferred maintenance projects on federal lands for fiscal years 2021 to 2025. The bill makes funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund permanent and allocates money equal to 50 percent of energy development revenues from oil, gas, coal, or alternative or renewable energy development on federal lands and waters. The bill establishes reporting procedures for all associated projects and mandates that deposited amounts must not exceed $1.9 billion for any fiscal year. The bill was signed into law by the President on Aug. 4.
Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys Act (S 2163) – Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced this legislation on July 18, 2019. It is designed to establish a Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys within the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights Office to conduct a systematic study of the conditions affecting black men and boys. The Act was passed by the Senate in June, the House in July, and was signed into law by the President on Aug. 14.
Disclaimer
These articles provide general information on tax, accounting, and financial topics for small businesses and individuals. They are educational in nature and are not specific legal, accounting, financial, tax, or other professional advice, and should not be relied upon as such. This content was prepared by Service2Client and may have been reviewed or edited by the website owner for accuracy and compliance. Look for a trust mark below for verification details. No representation is made that any approach described will achieve a particular result, and no regulatory or professional body has reviewed or endorsed this content. Because each situation is different, readers should consult a qualified professional about their specific circumstances before acting. Images accompanying these articles are protected by copyright and may not be copied or reused.
Digital marketing is not a new phenomenon. However, new realities imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have highlighted the importance of digital marketing for businesses. Basically, digital marketing revolves around using digital channels to advertise. Such channels include mobile devices, search engines, social media, websites, email, and others to help reach consumers. The purpose is to create a relationship with potential online customers to influence their buying decisions.
Why Digital Marketing
For starters, with digital marketing, you are able to personalize your marketing and target your ideal audience. It offers the ability to target an audience based on location, age, preference, and other specific details that define the intended consumer of your product or service. In the end, you don’t waste money on audiences that might not even buy your product or service.
With the availability of artificial intelligence, it’s easy to identify trends, carry out competitor research, and accumulate data that aid quick decision making. This kind of marketing is data-led. Considering that five to 10 hours of a person’s day is spent on the internet, this creates an opportunity to familiarize consumers with your brand and create relationships that lead to sales.
What’s more, chatbots are available on business websites or social media accounts to answer customer questions even when the business is closed. This means a customer visiting your page does not leave without some information that could help in their purchasing decision.
In addition to being able to expand your reach at a lower cost, your business can enhance brand loyalty by maintaining personal contact with clients even after making sales.
The best part of digital marketing is the ability to track the results of your marketing in real-time.
How This Can Help Grow Your Business
First, digital marketing gives all businesses a fair share of the market. Today, a business can connect with customers cheaply over posts on social media.
What this means is that a business can instantly communicate with customers to inform them of their products or services and get instant feedback.
Don’t ignore the fact that people today get information from the internet. A lot of purchase decisions start with an online search. A potential customer expects to find information regarding your products on a website, social media, or from reviews by other users.
Customers also want to determine if your business and products are a good fit for their needs.
In the event that they cannot locate your business, you will lose a potential client to a competitor.
A good online presence can help potential clients find you and possibly even become customers.
How to Get the Best of Digital Marketing
The good thing about digital marketing is that it will exist as long as people are using technology. The trick is to use strategies that help you stay ahead of the competition.
Digital marketing has been proven to be the best strategy to acquire new customers as well as maintain a relationship with existing customers.
One of the hard and fast rules about digital marketing is that no one strategy fits all businesses. Digital marketing is constantly changing – meaning that businesses have to make frequent changes to their strategies.
In order to stay ahead of the competition, you can take advantage of referral traffic as it gives credibility to your brand. This is possible by connecting with industry leaders in your niche.
You can’t afford to ignore analytics. Analytics help you discover what is working and what is not working.
Use high-quality content to draw the interest of potential customers. Sacrificing quality for volume can cost you potential leads.
Select social media platforms where your potential customers are likely to be. Understanding your target market will help you reduce the time and cost spent on digital marketing, as you will be able to follow your clients where they hang out.
Digital Marketing is the Way to Go
As long as the internet continues to grow, businesses have little choice but to get involved in digital marketing. Gone are the days when social media was considered merely a place to pass the time.
For some business owners, it might be challenging to know where and how to start, considering that digital marketing is quite an extensive field. The most important thing is to establish a goal for what you want to achieve. If not well done, it can cost your business a lot of unnecessary expense.
How to Make the Most of Digital Marketing
September 1, 2020 · Blog, What's New in Technology
⏱ 4 min read
Digital marketing is not a new phenomenon. However, new realities imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have highlighted the importance of digital marketing for businesses. Basically, digital marketing revolves around using digital channels to advertise. Such channels include mobile devices, search engines, social media, websites, email, and others to help reach consumers. The purpose is to create a relationship with potential online customers to influence their buying decisions.
Why Digital Marketing
For starters, with digital marketing, you are able to personalize your marketing and target your ideal audience. It offers the ability to target an audience based on location, age, preference, and other specific details that define the intended consumer of your product or service. In the end, you don’t waste money on audiences that might not even buy your product or service.
With the availability of artificial intelligence, it’s easy to identify trends, carry out competitor research, and accumulate data that aid quick decision making. This kind of marketing is data-led. Considering that five to 10 hours of a person’s day is spent on the internet, this creates an opportunity to familiarize consumers with your brand and create relationships that lead to sales.
What’s more, chatbots are available on business websites or social media accounts to answer customer questions even when the business is closed. This means a customer visiting your page does not leave without some information that could help in their purchasing decision.
In addition to being able to expand your reach at a lower cost, your business can enhance brand loyalty by maintaining personal contact with clients even after making sales.
The best part of digital marketing is the ability to track the results of your marketing in real-time.
How This Can Help Grow Your Business
First, digital marketing gives all businesses a fair share of the market. Today, a business can connect with customers cheaply over posts on social media.
What this means is that a business can instantly communicate with customers to inform them of their products or services and get instant feedback.
Don’t ignore the fact that people today get information from the internet. A lot of purchase decisions start with an online search. A potential customer expects to find information regarding your products on a website, social media, or from reviews by other users.
Customers also want to determine if your business and products are a good fit for their needs.
In the event that they cannot locate your business, you will lose a potential client to a competitor.
A good online presence can help potential clients find you and possibly even become customers.
How to Get the Best of Digital Marketing
The good thing about digital marketing is that it will exist as long as people are using technology. The trick is to use strategies that help you stay ahead of the competition.
Digital marketing has been proven to be the best strategy to acquire new customers as well as maintain a relationship with existing customers.
One of the hard and fast rules about digital marketing is that no one strategy fits all businesses. Digital marketing is constantly changing – meaning that businesses have to make frequent changes to their strategies.
In order to stay ahead of the competition, you can take advantage of referral traffic as it gives credibility to your brand. This is possible by connecting with industry leaders in your niche.
You can’t afford to ignore analytics. Analytics help you discover what is working and what is not working.
Use high-quality content to draw the interest of potential customers. Sacrificing quality for volume can cost you potential leads.
Select social media platforms where your potential customers are likely to be. Understanding your target market will help you reduce the time and cost spent on digital marketing, as you will be able to follow your clients where they hang out.
Digital Marketing is the Way to Go
As long as the internet continues to grow, businesses have little choice but to get involved in digital marketing. Gone are the days when social media was considered merely a place to pass the time.
For some business owners, it might be challenging to know where and how to start, considering that digital marketing is quite an extensive field. The most important thing is to establish a goal for what you want to achieve. If not well done, it can cost your business a lot of unnecessary expense.
Disclaimer
These articles provide general information on tax, accounting, and financial topics for small businesses and individuals. They are educational in nature and are not specific legal, accounting, financial, tax, or other professional advice, and should not be relied upon as such. This content was prepared by Service2Client and may have been reviewed or edited by the website owner for accuracy and compliance. Look for a trust mark below for verification details. No representation is made that any approach described will achieve a particular result, and no regulatory or professional body has reviewed or endorsed this content. Because each situation is different, readers should consult a qualified professional about their specific circumstances before acting. Images accompanying these articles are protected by copyright and may not be copied or reused.