Undelivered refunds or stimulus checks

The Internal Revenue Service is looking for taxpayers who are missing more than 279,000 economic stimulus checks totaling about $163 million and more than 104,000 regular refund checks totaling about $103 million that were returned by the United States Postal Service due to mailing errors. All a taxpayer has to do is update his or her address once. The IRS will then send out all checks due.

For stimulus checks it is crucial that taxpayers update their addresses with the IRS by Nov. 28. The "Where's My Stimulus Payment?" tool on IRS.gov is the quickest and easiest way for a taxpayer to check the status of a stimulus check and receive instructions on how to update his or her address. Taxpayers without Internet access should call 1-866-234-2042.

For regular refunds, use the tool "Where's My Refund?" on the IRS Web site or call 1-800-829-1954.

CEO to CEO forums

The Economic Development Work Groups of the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley will host two Industry Cluster Forums, the first will be from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Dec. 2, at the Alliance Conference Facility, 1020 10th St., Modesto and the second from 9 a.m. to noon Wednesday, Dec. 3, at the International Agri-Center, 4450 S. Laspina, Tulare.

The purpose of the CEO to CEO industry cluster forums is to share and collect information on issues and to identify solutions for increasing the competitiveness of businesses in the San Joaquin Valley.

For more information call Jennifer Faughn, Central California EDC at 888-998-2345.

SBA Outreach Centers

Bruce C. Thompson, Regional Administrator of the US Small Business Administration, recently announced the United States Small Business Administration has closed its Disaster Loan Outreach Centers in Marina, Orville and Santa Cruz.

SBA customer service representatives are still available to meet with individuals and businesses in the counties of Butte, Colusa, Fresno, Glenn, Kings, Monterey, Plumas, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sutter, Tehama and Yuba who sustained losses from wildfires caused by dry lightning, drought and high winds that began June 8 through June 23 and continued through Aug. 20.

Filing deadline to return applications for property damage is Dec. 29. The deadline to return economic injury applications is July 28, 2009.

If business owners or individuals aren't able to visit SBA's Disaster Loan Outreach Center, they can call 800-659-2955, e-mail disastercustomerservice@sba.gov or visit www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance.

Online training for exporters

A new online course will help small businesses explore exporting opportunities in international markets. "Global Enterprise: A Primer on Exporting" is a free self-paced course that provides guidance on exploring international markets.

The new course is available from the Small Business Administration training Web site at www.sba.gov/training. To access the course, click on "Free Online Courses," and then select the first course listed under International Trade.

Course participants completing the 30-minute online training programs can earn a certificate of completion from the SBA with their name, date and course title. The Export Primer course is one of nearly 30 online tutorials offered by the SBA on its virtual campus, the Small Business Training Network.

Loan deferment relief

In response to the financial crisis, the United States Small Business Administration announced it is strongly encouraging its participating seven lenders and Certified Development companies to work with business borrowers to provide them with the flexibility they need to keep their businesses running during these difficult times.

As access to credit and capital has tightened, many businesses face increased challenges in meeting their financial obligations. This is especially true of small businesses hit hard by the recent economic slowdown that are now unable to make payroll or purchase essential inventory.

For more information on this and other visit www.sba.gov.

(Nov. 20, 2008)