Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council

Immigration Reform Questions in the Senate

By SBE Council at 11 June, 2013, 1:23 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- A fix for our broken immigration system is long overdue. It’s time for immigration policies to line up with economic reality, and to affirm the rule of law (which is currently undermined). That means fixing the system so that U.S. labor needs are met, including for both low and high-skilled workers; [...]

The Coming Ills of ObamaCare

By SBE Council at 6 June, 2013, 9:22 am

by Raymond J. Keating- After being signed into law more than three years ago, American voters still do not like ObamaCare. According to a survey of likely voters by Rasmussen Reports released on June 3, 54 percent view the ObamaCare law unfavorably, with 41 percent viewing it favorably. For good measure, 60 percent believe that [...]

From Soldiers to Entrepreneurs

By SBE Council at 30 May, 2013, 1:44 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- Does a relationship exist between being in the military and going on to become an entrepreneur? The answer is yes, and the link is generally positive. A March 2011 study from the SBA — “Factors Affecting Entrepreneurship among Veterans” by John B. Hope, Brian Oh, and Patrick C. Mackin – found [...]

Online Sales Tax Effort All About Grabbing Revenue

By SBE Council at 23 May, 2013, 12:56 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- On May 6, the U.S. Senate passed a major tax measure on a bipartisan vote of 69-27. Unfortunately, if it becomes law, this “Marketplace Fairness Act of 2013” would amount to a massive tax increase imposed on the economy, with businesses, including small firms, confronted with additional and considerable tax compliance [...]

The IRS, Freedom and Tax Reform

By SBE Council at 15 May, 2013, 9:31 am

by Raymond J. Keating- It sounds like a conspiracy theory, or the plot of some kind of futuristic dystopia sci-fi novel. The IRS was being used to harass those who seek to educate Americans about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, government debt, government spending, taxes, as well as the Affordable Care Act, better known [...]

Competitive Realities, Common Sense Economics and Tax Reform in the States

By SBE Council at 8 May, 2013, 1:02 pm

by Raymond J. Keating Rhode Island is not exactly known as a state that is super friendly to entrepreneurship, business and investment in terms of the policy decisions made by elected officials Consider that Rhode Island ranked 41st, or tenth worst, on SBE Council’s “U.S. Business Policy Index 2012,” and 39th, or 12th worst, on SBE [...]

April Jobs Data Offers Some Hope

By SBE Council at 3 May, 2013, 1:11 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- When the news hits with the latest jobs numbers, we’re all left hoping these days. That is, we hope things will pick up in a substantive, consistent way. But at the same time, many of us wonder why that would be the case. The latest jobs data for April offers a [...]

A Look at First Quarter GDP Growth

By SBE Council at 25 April, 2013, 1:08 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- Since this sad recovery started in mid-2009, real GDP growth has averaged a lowly 2.1 percent. Then came big tax increases, courtesy of the “fiscal cliff” deal and ObamaCare, at the start of this year. Yet, for some reason, many economists were expecting growth in the first quarter to hit 3.2 [...]

The Obama Budget and Taxes

By SBE Council at 11 April, 2013, 8:36 am

by Raymond J. Keating- President Obama finally released his proposed 2014 budget plan on April 10 – more than two months late. Mixed in with an estimated 10-year tax hike of more than $1 trillion – on top of the huge ObamaCare and “fiscal cliff” tax increases – are a few positives. Overall, though, this [...]

Where Do Things Stand on Immigration Reform?

By SBE Council at 4 April, 2013, 6:16 pm

by Raymond J. Keating- The need to reform our immigration system should be clear to all. After all, the fact that we have 11 million to 12 million undocumented workers in the nation speaks to how badly broken the system is. As for the economics, the benefits of immigration are unmistakable, including that immigrants meet [...]