What is SBE Council doing right now to promote business startup and growth?
What efforts are underway to protect entrepreneurs from higher costs? What are we doing to protect your flexibility in managing business costs and operations?
• Affordable Energy by Tapping American Ingenuity and Supply
• A dramatic, united and forceful push is absolutely necessary to deal with high gas and energy prices. A comprehensive supply-driven policy, including -- greater oil and natural gas exploration and development in the U.S.; more nuclear power; clean-coal technology; and incentives to accelerate technological innovation in alternative energy sources all must be pursued -- and with a high sense of urgency -- in order to make the U.S. more energy secure and competitive. SBE Council is the leading small business advocate for an aggressive approach to U.S. energy policy.
• SBE Council is protecting worker privacy, and business flexibility - we are strongly opposing H.R. 800
SBE Council is a leading voice to stop legislation that would eviscerate employee freedom, privacy and choice in regards to union organizing drives. H.R. 800 - aka, the "the card-check bill" -- passed the U.S. House in March 2007 by a vote of 241-185. It did not reach the 60-vote margin in the U.S. Senate for passage. However, labor union bosses will continue to push until they reach that threshold. H.R. 800 is a very dangerous piece of legislation. Not only will employee rights be vastly infringed upon, small businesses could lose significant control over business operations -- particularly in the cost-containment and decision-making arena as union contracts may demand salary outlays (with built in increases) and benefits than a small firm could not possibly afford. Labor cost flexibility is critical to the growth and survival of small businesses.
• Health Care Affordability, Choice and Flexibility. SBE Council is opposing an HSA inspection bill, and supporting efforts to give small firms more affordable choices in the marketplace.
Right now, Congress is considering a bill that would vastly raise the costs of health savings accounts (HSAs) by mandating that every transaction be "substantiated" -- or inspected -- to ensure such expenditures are for health care purposes. The new bureacracy that will be created to "substantiate" HSA expenditures will prove costly, complex and intrusive for consumers.
Members of Congress who want single-payer (government-run health care) want this HSA inspection bill. SBE Council is opposing the measure, which is tucked into H.R. 5719, the "Taxpayer Assistance and Simplification Act of 2008." The bill passed the U.S. House on April 9, 2008.
• Stopping tax increases on small businesses
SBE Council is not exaggerating when we say that Congress comes up with a new way to tax your business each and every week. From efforts to take away long-standing tax incentives, to imposing new withholding provisions and requirements (like the 3% withholding mandate on government contractors slated to take effect in a couple of years!), and allowing all the beneficial 2001 and 2003 tax relief measures to expire...Congress is working hard to tax, tax, tax our most productive, innovative, job-creating sector - that is, small businesses!
At the state and local level, SBE Council is making it voice heard as well, weighing in with our state-based allies to reign in tax-hungry legislatures. Our new "Business Tax Index" ranks the states regarding their pro-entrepreneur, pro-investment tax climates, and our members and allies have used the Index with great success in fighting against harmful tax increases on small firms.
• Working to repeal a forthcoming law that mandates government at the federal, state and local levels withhold 3% of payments for goods and services.
This new withholding mandate impacts almost all government contractors, and is slated to take effect in 2011. Fortunately, a bill in the House and Senate to repeal this measure is gaining steam on Capitol Hill -- H.R. 1023 and S. 777 would repeal the forthcoming mandate. The 3% withholding mandate will be costly for small businesses, drastically hurt cash flow, and render many small firms non-competitive in the government procurement space.
• Supporting access to global markets for small businesses - SBE Council is strongly supporting the U.S.-Colombia trade agreement
Trade agreements, such as the U.S.-Colombia trade pact, make it easier, less costly and less risky for small firms to sell their products into promising overseas markets. Particularly as the economy is tinkering on the recession bubble, small businesses are looking for new markets to sell their goods and services. Unfortunately, the Democratic leadership is playing a very dangerous game of politics with this issue. By holding up this agreement, they are hurting the economy and U.S. standing overseas.
SBE Council is doing much, much more on the tax, regulatory, energy and health care front! SBE Council is working hard at the federal, state and local levels to help small firms compete, survive and thrive in today's competitive global economy.
To see our communications with the U.S. Congress regarding the immediate steps they can take to help small firms, click here.
To view SBE Council's "Do's and Don'ts for Small Business" Agenda for the 110th Congress, please click here.
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For more information, please call:
(703) 242-5840
SBE Council is a 501c4 nonprofit advocacy and lobbying organization. Contributions to the SBE Council are not tax deductible.
