It is no secret that the current public health emergency has taken a toll on our economy and our business community. This is especially true for our small business community. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s New Jersey profile, New Jersey is home to 861,000 small businesses which employ over 1.8 million people, or nearly half of our total workforce.

Sometimes critical moments in life come down to a simple decision: Are you in or are you out? That moment of decision is occurring this year.

I’m referring to the U.S. Census, a once-a-decade event, enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, whose aim it is to count every person in America. Yes, it is a legal requirement that mandates the counting of everyone in the United States regardless of race, color, creed or status.

We can all agree that New Jersey is the greatest state in the nation; but we can all also agree that we must work to make our state more affordable. More affordable for homeowners, working families, businesses, and more affordable for patients who rely on life-saving prescription drugs.

Every month, like clockwork, traditional and social media prompts us, often in earnest, about a special event, occasion, remembrance or just a reminder that something special will occur. Some are serious and have great significance in our lives. For example, February is Black History Month, and we will, fittingly, learn about exceptional women and men who led the struggle for equality. We will also discover celebrations that seem, to us, whimsical and downright funny, such as National Embroidery Month and National Grapefruit Month. All of these special months and occasions are entombed in Chase’s Calendar of Events.

Hey Boss! Do you have a minute? As the New Jersey Senate passes the mid-way point of the current legislative term, I wanted to take a minute to provide you with an update of the work I have done on your behalf. While much of the attention and headlines get devoted to the public policy part of my job (the 112 legislative proposals I have helped enact), the best part of my job is the public service –when my office helps people navigate issues facing them or their loved ones.

When we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, on Monday, January 20th, well-deserved accolades will follow this giant of the civil rights movement and champion of social justice. It is a fitting gesture and one that should inspire all of us to emulate him in our own way, however modest.

I would suggest that if we really want to honor Dr. King’s legacy, there is even a more potent and fulfilling way beyond thankful words: Let’s start by engaging our community with a servant’s mindset towards giving back to our communities.

The concept of mentoring is so important that the Harvard School of Public Health, MENTOR, and the Corporation for National and Community Service started the campaign to recruit mentors in 2002. Every January, it adds extra emphasis to its effort to find volunteers.

Human trafficking is a scourge throughout our land and, unfortunately, it also occurs in New Jersey. That’s why I’m part of a coalition determined to offer hope and a refuge to victims of this despicable practice.

As a result of our collective efforts, posters (in English and Spanish) will be posted in rest areas on all New Jersey Turnpike bathrooms and on the Garden State Parkway.

Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month is an annual designation observed in November. Sadly, my father succumbed to this horrible form of cancer in 2015.

The designation this month, and for that matter, any month, acts and helps spread the word about the dangers of pancreatic cancer. This is the time of year that most people speak up about this disease, and one of the main goals is to raise funds for early diagnosis research.

This week we once again celebrated Veterans Day. It originally celebrated the signing of the armistice that ended World War I. We have expanded that celebratory day to offer a day of thanks to all U.S. military personnel, active or retired.