Verbatim: Small Business Fuels Discourse During 2010 Midterm Election Campaigns

Periodically, GoodBiz113 puts its ear to the rail to listen to what politicos, pundits and others have recently said about small businesses and our integral role in growing the U.S. economy. Today, just eight days before the critical 2010 midterm elections, we share some views with you, our loyal readers.

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"Now, I want to just say a little bit about Ron, because so much of the reason we're here is to make sure that he continues to do the outstanding work that he's doing on behalf of south Florida. They have lived here for 25 years. This is where they raised their family...

"This is where Ron helped run a small business. That's who he's been fighting for since he got to Washington -- families and small business owners -- because he's part of them, he understands them." -- President Barack Obama, on a campaign stop in South Florida to support second-term Rep. Ron Klein [D.-Fla.], who aims to beat back challenger Allen West [Miami's CBS4.com, Oct. 11]

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"The Small Business Jobs Act is helping the private sector move the ball forward on job creation and economic growth... I'm pleased to see these SBA loans made to local businesses, and I expect that this law will continue to expand private-sector lending in the near term through the incentives it provides for small community lenders." -- Rep. Tim Walz [D-Minn.], teaming with Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken [D-Minn.], and Reps. Betty McCollum and Keith Ellison [D-Minn.] to announce that more than $18 million in loans will go to small businesses throughout Minnesota, helping many of them remain open and creating nearly 100 jobs [TradingMarkets.com, Oct. 11]

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"Spending within our means, looking at our long-term structural deficits, supporting small businesses." -- Small-business owner-turned-Congresswoman Betsy Markey [D-Col.], summing up her top goals as she seeks a second term representing citizens of Colorado's Fourth District [Capital News Connection, Oct. 15]

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"I'm working with your local leaders to provide the kinds of investments to create jobs, so you're strong again and our Main Street businesses keep their doors open." -- Three-term U.S. Senator Patty Murray [D-Wash.], who has helped secure millions of dollars to repair Howard A, Hanson Dam and replace Seattle's South Park Bridge [Seattle Times, Oct. 17]

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"If Republicans in Congress have their way, the millions of women who will benefit from our small-business lending programs -- from the consumer protections in the Financial Reform bill, and from the tax cuts that have helped them through a challenging economic time -- would be left without these benefits... There is an important choice for women in this country to make about whether that is the direction they want the country to move in." -- White House Deputy Communications Director Jen Psaki [ABC News, Oct. 18]

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"The President knew when he came into office that he was going to have to take immediate and bold action, or we might fall down in a hole that we could not get out of. The President takes office in January of 2009. And within 30 days, passes the Recovery Act.

"Now, in the first 100 days of the Recovery Act, that gives tax relief to more than 110 million people, cuts taxes for small business eight different times. In that 100 days, authorizes 3,000 transportation projects, starts on the path to improvement...

"And it doesn’t stop with the Recovery Act. Already this year, the President signed the HIRE Act, which gives specific incentives for companies to hire people who have been unemployed for a period of time, and gets through the Small Business Jobs Act, which brings up to 16 the number of times he cut taxes for small business, reduced the capital-gains rate to zero for anybody starting their own business or investing in a small business." -- Austan Goolsbee, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, during the second edition of his White House White Board [White House, Oct. 19]

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"I look at the jobs issue as a step-by-step process. The Recovery Act stopped our economy from going off a cliff and saved the jobs of millions of teachers, police, firefighters, first responders and others. I also have seen firsthand how it has created private-sector jobs across Wisconsin -- whether it is building a new bridge in Medford, a water sanitation system in Wisconsin Rapids, or a senior center in Plymouth.

"The next step was the HIRE Act, which gave businesses that hired workers that had been unemployed for 60 days a tax break.

"And now we have passed the Small Business Jobs Act to free up credit, so small businesses -- responsible for the majority of job creation in our country -- can expand and create jobs.

"I want to continue these targeted efforts with a jobs tax credit, which would extend and expand the HIRE Act tax break by making any business that hires new workers, expands hours or expands payroll, eligible for a tax break. As we continue to recover from the worst recession since the Great Depression, this type of tax break will help businesses next year when they are in a better position to hire." -- U.S. Senator Russ Feingold [D-Wis.], during a Q&A interview [Telegraph-Herald Online, Oct. 21]

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"I think that would be a terrible mistake... Our economy depends on a financial system in which everyone competes on a level playing field, and everyone is held to the same rules—whether you’re a big bank, a small-business owner, or a family looking to buy a house or open a credit card." -- President Barack Obama in his weekly address, warning that if Republicans take control of Congress this November, they would repeal consumer protections in the Frank-Dodd financial regulatory reform legislation, which he called "one of the most important victories" he has achieved in office. [Weekly Address, Oct. 23]

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"Clark, an attorney and mother of two, is a respected legislator from St. Cloud who was first elected in 2005. Endorsed by Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Clark has been a strong advocate for small-business owners, and pushed for the development of angel investor tax credits in the state." -- Editorial endorsement of Tarryl Clark [D-Minn.], who is challenging two-term U.S. House Rep. Michelle Bachmann [R-Minn.] to represent voters in Minnesota's Sixth District [Star Tribune endorsement, Oct. 24]

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"Barbara Boxer's top priority is to create jobs and turn our economy around. She is fighting to provide more loans to small businesses, provide tax breaks to the middle class, cut our deficit in half by 2013, rebuild our roads and bridges and make California the hub of the new clean-energy economy.

"With so many people out of work, it's shocking that her opponent still wants to go back to the job-killing policies of yesterday. Polices that led to 700,000 job losses a month and the crisis on Wall Street due to deregulation.

"Boxer is working hard to reverse those policies and replace them with smart, targeted initiatives that create jobs here at home -- jobs for today and tomorrow...

"Boxer knows that small businesses are the lifeblood of strong local economies. This is why she supported the Small Business Jobs Act, so that small businesses can expand and create jobs. This legislation includes a provision based on a bill authored by Boxer that would create a $30 billion small business lending fund to help community banks extend credit to small businesses.

"The legislation will help small businesses compete for large federal contracts, increase the maximum size of SBA-backed loans and reduce the fees associated with these loans. The bill also includes $12 billion in tax incentives to help small and medium-sized businesses expand and create new jobs.

"Boxer strongly supported the economic Recovery Act that will help provide nearly 65,000 small-business loans, including 9,600 loans to Californians worth $5.2 billion in lending authority. These loans will make it possible for successful small businesses to expand, hire more employees and further stimulate our local economy." -- Former San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer [1991-1998], endorsing U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer [D-Cal., pictured above with supporters] for a fourth term in the U.S. Senate [San Jose Mercury News, 10/24/2010]

SOURCES: ABC News, GovTrack.us, OpenCongress, San Jose Mercury News, Seattle Times, StarTribune,com, Telegraph-Herald.com, The White House
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President Obama Signs Small Business Jobs Act; Here's What's in It

"I’m thrilled to be here on what is an exciting day," said President Obama as he prepared to sign the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010 [H.R. 5297] this afternoon. With small-business owners who will receive tax breaks and better access to credit in the audience, the President explained to everybody why he has fought so long for it:

"Now this is important because small businesses produce most of the new jobs in this country," he noted. "They are the anchors of our Main Streets. They are part of the promise of America: the idea that, if you’ve got a dream and you’re willing to work hard, you can succeed.

"That’s what leads a worker to leave a job to become her own boss. That’s what propels a basement inventor to sell a new product, or an amateur chef to open a restaurant. It’s this promise that has drawn millions to our shores and made our economy the envy of the world."

The bill includes a series of small-business proposals that the President put forth earlier this year, and small businesses will start benefiting from the bill on Day 1. Among the many important provisions in the bill, 12 of the top benefits to small businesses are:

* Extension of Successful SBA Recovery Loan Provisions -- Immediately Supporting Loans to More 1,400 Small Businesses: With funds provided in the bill, SBA will begin funding new Recovery loans within a few days of the President’s signature, starting with the more than 1,400 businesses -- with loans totaling more than $730 million -- that are waiting in the Recovery Loan Queue. In total, the extension of these provisions provides the capacity to support $14 billion in loans to small businesses. The SBA Recovery loan provisions have already supported $30 billion in lending to over 70,000 small businesses.

* More Than Doubling of the Maximum Loan Size for the Largest SBA Programs: The bill also increases the maximum loan size for SBA loan programs which, in the coming weeks, will allow more small businesses to access more credit to allow them to expand and create new jobs. The bill will permanently raise the maximum size for SBA’s two largest loan programs -- increasing the maximum 7[a] and 504 loans from $2 million to $5 million, and the maximum 504 manufacturing-related loan from $4 million to $5.5 million. In addition, it will temporarily increase the maximum loan size for SBA Express loans from $350,000 to $1 million -- providing greater access to working capital loans that small businesses use to purchase new inventory and take on their next order, allowing them to create new jobs.

* A New $30 Billion Small Business Lending Fund: The bill would establish a new $30 billion Small Business Lending Fund which, by providing capital to small banks with incentives to increase small business lending, could support several multiples of that amount in new credit.

* An Initiative to Strengthen Innovative State Small Business Programs -- Supporting Over $15 Billion in Lending: The bill will support at least $15 billion in small-business lending through a new state Small Business Credit Initiative, strengthening state small-business programs that leverage private-sector lenders to extend additional credit -- many of which have been forced to cut back due to budget cuts.

* Eight New Small Business Tax Cuts -- Effective Today, Providing Immediate Incentives to Invest: The President had already signed into law eight small-business tax cuts. Today, he is signing into law another eight new tax cuts that go into effect immediately.

* Zero Taxes on Capital Gains from Key Small Business Investments: Under the Recovery Act, 75 percent of capital gains on key small-business investments this year were excluded from taxes. The Small Business Jobs Act temporarily puts in place for the rest of 2010 a provision called for by the President: elimination of all capital gains taxes on these investments if held for five years. Over one million small businesses are eligible to receive investments this year that, if held for five years or longer, could be completely excluded from any capital gains taxation.

* Extension and Expansion of Small Businesses’ Ability to Immediately Expense Capital Investments: The bill increases for 2010 and 2011 the amount of investments that businesses would be eligible to immediately write off to $500,000, while raising the level of investments at which the write-off phases out to $2 million. Prior to the passage of the bill, the expensing limit would have been $250,000 this year, and only $25,000 next year. This provision means that 4.5 million small businesses and individuals will be able to make new business investments today and know that they will earn a larger break on their taxes for this year.

* Extension of 50% Bonus Depreciation: The bill extends -- as the President proposed in his budget -- a Recovery Act provision for 50 percent "bonus depreciation" through 2010, providing two million businesses, large and small, with the ability to make new investments today and know they can receive a tax cut for this year by accelerating the rate at which they deduct capital expenditures.

* A New Deduction of Health Insurance Costs for Self-Employed: The bill allows two million self-employed to know that, on their taxes for this year, they can get a deduction for the cost of health insurance for themselves and their family members in calculating their self-employment taxes. This provision is estimated to provide over $1.9 billion in tax cuts for these entrepreneurs.

* Tax Relief and Simplification for Cell Phone Deductions: The bill changes rules, so that the use of cell phones can be deducted without burdensome extra documentation -- making it easier for virtually every small business in America to receive deductions that they are entitled to, beginning on their taxes for this year.

* An Increase in the Deduction for Entrepreneurs’ Start-Up Expenses: The bill temporarily increases the amount of start-up expenditures that entrepreneurs can deduct from their taxes for this year from $5,000 to $10,000 [with a phase-out threshold of $60,000 in expenditures], offering an immediate incentive for someone with a new business idea to invest in starting up a new small business today.

* A Five-Year Carryback of General Business Credits: The bill would allow certain small businesses to "carry back" their general business credits to offset five years of taxes -- providing them with a break on their taxes for this year, while also allowing these credits to offset the Alternative Minimum Tax, reducing taxes for these small businesses.

* Limitations on Penalties for Errors in Tax Reporting That Disproportionately Affect Small Business: The bill would change, beginning this year, the penalty for failing to report certain tax transactions from a fixed dollar amount -- which was criticized for imposing a disproportionately large penalty on small businesses in certain circumstances -- to a percentage of the tax benefits from the transaction.

GoodBiz113's Take: After months of stall tactics -- by too many mean-spirited, just-say-no House Republicans who don't want this country to succeed under President Obama's Administration, regardless of how logical its proposed policies are -- the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010 is finally in place. Here's to moving forward -- for current and would-be small-business owners and the greater good... Cheers!

SOURCES: Internal Revenue Service, Library of Congress, U.S. Small Business Administration, The White House
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Sens. Landrieu, Stabenow Join Small-Business Advocates to Discuss How Democrats Are Standing Up for Small Business and Creating Jobs

U.S. Senate Small Business Committee Chair Mary Landrieu [D-La.] and Democratic Steering Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow [D-Mich., pictured] joined Terry Gardiner, of Small Business Majority, and Frank Knapp Jr., president and CEO of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce, at a press conference this morning to discuss how Senate Democrats have cut taxes and invested in small businesses.

Democrats have worked to make it easier for small businesses to hire new workers and afford their expenses. The measures that Democrats have passed have the potential to create an additional one million jobs this year.

While Democrats are fighting for small businesses and the middle class, Republicans have fought to give tax breaks to rich CEOs who have shipped American jobs overseas. Senate Democrats remain committed to passing a small-business jobs package that will continue to bolster small businesses in the coming weeks.

"We hear time and time again that America’s 29 million small businesses are the backbone of our economy," said Sen. Landrieu. "These entrepreneurs are the ones that felt the economic downturn first and most directly, so it goes without saying that helping these Main Street businesses has been, and will continue to be, a priority for this Democratic Congress.

"After witnessing big businesses and Wall Street CEOs get bailouts and tax breaks, middle-class families and small businesses were left to fight the economic downturn alone. Congress had to respond. With the incentives Congress has put in place to aid this country’s entrepreneurs, small businesses can continue their work of creating jobs and putting this economy back on track to success.'

"Small businesses have been hit hard by the economic downturn and global credit crisis," Sen. Stabenow noted. "That’s why almost every major piece of legislation passed in this Congress has provided assistance to small businesses. We have provided tax cuts to help pay for the cost of health care, tax cuts so companies can invest in advanced manufacturing, and provided access to much-needed capital. Together, these incentives are supporting entrepreneurs across the country, which is critical to helping our economy and creating new jobs.”

"Small businesses have been hit especially hard by the recession," said Gardiner, a former 22-year commercial fisherman who now serves as Small Business Majority's national policy director. "Many pieces of legislation passed by this Congress -- including comprehensive health-care reform, tax credits to hire new workers, and tax incentives for renewable-energy businesses -- will go a long way in helping small businesses, and the economy, get back on track."

"We worked with Congress to lower taxes and make health care more affordable for small businesses," Knapp noted. "Before the new health-care law passed, 40 percent of our businesses with fewer than 50 employees could afford to offer the benefit to their employees. Now they [all] can.

"This new law is good for small businesses, and our organization will continue to look for ways to work with Congress to lower costs for small businesses."

To view the video of the press conference, go to: http://bit.ly/LandrieuStabenowSmallBiz.

SOURCES: HealthReform.gov, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, U.S. Small Business Administration
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Joined by Sen. Dorgan, Franken Proposes New Lifeline for Minnesota Small Businesses

Joined by Sen. Byron Dorgan [D - N.D.] and two local small-business owners, DFL U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken [D-Minn.] today offered a new proposal to unfreeze credit for Minnesota small businesses. His initiative is part of an economic recovery plan designed to create jobs and help Minnesota families in these tough economic times.

Franken unveiled the plan today at a news conference, joined by Dorgan and two local entrepreneurs:

* Mallard Teal is the owner of Payne Ave. Body Shop. A small-business loan enabled him to renovate his storefront and expand his business.

* Mary Leonard is the owner of Chocolat Celeste. She applies for a seasonal loan each year to expand production and hire additional employees for the busy Christmas season -- but this year, has been unable to acquire that capital.

"George Bush and Norm Coleman just don't get it: giveaways to the special interests and tax cuts for millionaire CEOs don't create jobs," Franken declared. "Small businesses create jobs. And, while Washington rushed to bail out huge corporations on Wall Street, we're going to lose jobs here in Minnesota if we don't do something to unfreeze credit for our small businesses. My proposal will ensure that folks like Mallard and Mary can continue to grow their operations and get our economy moving again."

Dorgan wholeheartedly agreed. "Al and I both opposed the bailout because it didn't protect taxpayers by adding in provisions to make sure this type of meltdown would not happen again," he said. "Al Franken is now proposing smart ideas to get this economy moving. We need him in the Senate to help fight for the middle class and stand up to the special interests."

Franken's proposal generates $4 billion for direct loans to small businesses through the Small Business Administration [SBA], and adds another $1 billion to the SBA's loan guaranty programs. It also simplifies the process of obtaining these loans; eliminates associated fees; and expands the network of lenders to increase liquidity and secure better loan rates for small businesses.

The initial $5 billion investment will be repaid by small businesses, resulting in no net cost to taxpayers over time. But Franken called for the $5 billion upfront cost to be paid for, in the short term, by taking it out of the $700 billion earmarked for the bailout package, or by eliminating unwarranted and excess stock-option deductions on executive compensation.

SOURCE: Al Franken for U.S. Senate
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