It may be too early to tell whether President Barack Obama struck a chord with small business owners and entrepreneurs in Tuesday night's State of the Union address, but initial reactions are favorable. Of course, if the country can agree on one thing, it's that the president is a good speaker - it's his actions that most entrepreneurs are worried about.
So what is it that small business owners want? It's true that conditions have begun to show considerable improvement in recent weeks - with dramatic gains in employment, consumer activity, and business optimism - but few business leaders feel confident enough to assume the current upward trajectory is here to stay. For most, the problem can be traced back to excessive regulations.
"Especially for small businesses, the threat of new taxes and changing regulations goes right to their bottom line," Dan Danner, president of the National Federation of Independent Business, told the Washington Post. "So when the cost of doing business is a moving target, it's hard to with confidence make any sort of major investment like purchasing new equipment or hiring new people."
Representative Sam Graves, chairman of the House Small Business Committee, argues that lowering taxes on small companies and simplifying the 70,000-page tax code would be instrumental in building confidence and success in the sector. In an op-ed for Politico, Graces cited a recent NFIB study that found four of the top 10 small business problems are related to taxes.
Entrepreneurs looking to incorporate in California, New York, and other regulation-heavy states face an even greater uphill challenge. This has forced small business owners to account for excessive costs in a number of detrimental ways, such as layoffs, relocation, and outsourcing.
In the president's speech Tuesday he addressed some of the regulatory burdens facing today's business owners and acknowledged the need to rein in unnecessary rules. Obama even cited a study showing how his administration has enacted 5 percent fewer regulations than did the Bush White House at the same point in its tenure. Still, the volume of regulations continues to grow, regardless of which presidency created them.
"Any avenue to save taxpayer dollars, increase competition, and spark growth is the route we should be taking," Graves wrote. "Small businesses are recognized as the engine of job creation in America - and allowing them every opportunity to compete fuels that engine."
Tags : Taxes, California, New York, LLC,
Posted: 01/25/2012