Free Republic

WASHINGTON -- A last-minute addition to the Senate health-care bill that requires small construction companies to offer health coverage or pay a fine touched off a battle Tuesday with some industry groups demanding its removal. The change, offered by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D., Ore.), says construction companies should offer coverage if they have five or more employees and a payroll of $250,000 or more, or face fines of up to $750 per employee per year if the employees receive tax credits. The threshold for other types of companies is 50. Construction-related industries say it is unfair to single them out,...

The Obama administration's new plan to give a boost to small businesses reflects continued trouble in that sector, which is facing new failures even as much of the nation's economy is stabilizing. As credit lines have shrunk and consumers have cut back on spending, thousands of small businesses have closed their doors over the last year. The plight of struggling firms has been aggravated by the reluctance of banks to lend money, said Brian Headd, an economist at the Small Business Administration's office of advocacy. "While bankruptcies are up, overall, small business closures are up even more," Headd said. California...

Small Business Tax & ToilSmall business owners, like myself, pay twice as much in Social Security and Medicare Taxes as regular employees. Yet when we ask for a payroll tax cut on our own pay, what we get from the government is a crackdown on regional banks to give us more loans. Aside from the fact that 140 of these banks have failed since January 16, 2009 (here), what Obama's Cluelessian economists fail to understand is that wealth is not created through amassing debt.If Obama wants to run the Federal Government based on the myth that wealth is created through...

'Government dead wood'--the term I use to describe those who live off the taxes of others, including elected officials who propose bigger and more powerful government, along with their constituents who hold out their hands for the loot--can be permanently removed from power without firing a single shot.

Small Business Confidence Collapsed From October To November Joe WeisenthalDec. 10, 2009, 8:26 AM David Goldman spots the results from the Discover Small Business Index and it confirms what many other indicators are showing: Something happened in November to derail the recovery. --------- Economic confidence among America’s small business owners plummeted in November, as more owners cited serious concerns about cash flow and saw economic conditions for their own businesses getting worse. The Discover Small Business Watch index fell 12 points in November to 76.5 from 88.5 in October. The mood of small business owners generally has soured in November...

Fellow FR member has been invited back on Fox & Friends tomorrow morning to talk about small business and Obama's fake job summit. From 6:15-6:25 or so with a panel of two other small business owners. Mark Kreslins The Forgotten Men Show (930 WFMD)

The House of Representatives on December 3rd passed House Resolution 4154, which is deceptively called the "Permanent Estate Tax Relief Act."  This bill is part of the general war by the Democratic Party on self-employed Americans, family farms, and home businesses.  Does this sound extreme?  Consider the vote on the message:  225 Democrats in the House voted for HR 4154 and 26 Democrats voted against it; not a single Republican voted for HR 4154.  No RINOs could be persuaded to support Congressman Pomeroy's attempt to freeze the estate tax emption level at $3.5 Million and then tax all estate assets...

RUSH: I just had a chance to watch a little bit more of what he said, and let me translate this for you, Snerdley. ---------SNIP------------- OBAMA: Despite the progress we've made, many businesses are still skittish about hiring. Some are still digging themselves out of the losses they incurred over the past year. Many have figured out how to squeeze more productivity out of fewer workers. And that cost- cutting has become embedded in their operations and in their culture. That may result in good profits, but it's not translating into hiring and so that's the question that we have...

A Fox news panel discusses why, in "fixing the economy", sometimes the cure can be worse than the disease! "The economy thrives on predictability and this administration is unpredictable!" says Ben Stein. "This job summit for so-called small businesses didn't have a small business there! How stupid is that?" says Charles Payne.

Although the Fed and most economic forecasters are all looking ahead to the recovery, small business owners do not see convinced. Economic confidence among America's small business owners plummeted in November, as more owners cited serious concerns about cash flow and saw economic conditions for their own businesses getting worse. 52 percent of owners say they have experienced cash flow issues in the past 90 days, up from 44 percent in October. ... 53 percent of small business owners see conditions getting worse in the next six months, up from 43 percent in October... 62 percent of small business owners...

Say goodbye to the 90 percent guarantee and reduced fees that sparked a rebound in Small Business Administration lending. In a few days, the SBA will run out of the $375 million in economic stimulus funds that enabled the agency to make these enhancements. As a result, beginning today, borrowers and lenders will have to make a choice: They can be put on a waiting list to receive these breaks as stimulus funds become available, or they can apply for a regular SBA loan with higher fees and a lower government guarantee for the lender. The SBA expects additional funds...

A man owned a small ranch near Sheridan Wyoming. The Wyoming Labor Department got a tip that he was not paying proper wages to his help and sent an investigator out to interview him. "I need a list of your employees and how much you pay them," demanded the investigator.. "Well," replied the rancher, "there's my ranch hand who's been with me for 3 years. I pay him $1200 a week plus free room and board. "The cook has been here for 18 months, and I pay her $1000 per week plus free room and board. "Then there's the half-wit....

Nov 17, 2009 (CIDRAP News) – Making paid sick leave a national standard is crucial to controlling the H1N1 pandemic and future epidemics, public health and business experts told Congress Tuesday. But others cautioned that forcing businesses to follow federal mandates will make them pay extra costs in a recession and could depress future hiring and investment. The experts made their remarks at a hearing of the US House of Representatives' Education and Labor Committee. The committee's chairman, Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., 2 weeks ago introduced the Emergency Influenza Containment Act (HR 3991), which would guarantee any worker who is...

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs said late Tuesday that it would provide $500 million to support small businesses, hours after its CEO Lloyd Blankfein apologized for the group's role in the global financial crisis. Goldman has faced growing criticism over its likely massive bonus payouts as the U.S. economy remains in turmoil. It has also received, and subsequently paid back, $10 billion of aid from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Eight months after President Obama began prodding the nation's banks to increase their small business lending, the loan numbers continue to move in the opposite direction. The 22 banks that got the most help from the Treasury's bailout programs cut their small business loan balances by a collective $10.5 billion over the past six months, according to a government report released Monday. Three of the 22 banks make no small business loans at all. Of the remaining 19 banks, 15 have reduced their small business loan balance since April, when the Treasury department began requiring the...

A friend emailed this to me. It is one of the most eloquently put descriptions of what small business is about that I have ever read. It describes the reality of the world in which we live and work today. It also describes the future we may have to deal with as it relates to taxes, healthcare, etc.

Given the recent announcement that the government's measure of unemployment has hit 10.2 percent, and given that the official House version of Obama's healthcare plan, HR 3962, has now passed, a close examination of the effects of "Obamacare" on the labor market is important. It will be no surprise to readers of this site to learn that the Democrats' bill will seriously harm precisely those poor and uninsured citizens it is ostensibly designed to help. The harm will come by compounding mass unemployment and depriving these citizens of consumption choices. Obamacare as Labor Tax According to pages 269–273 of the...

Snubbed by Newt Gingrich’s conservative group, the owner of a Dallas topless club has decided to create a shelter for pit bulls in his honor. Dawn Rizos was set to receive an “Entrepreneur of the Year” award on Oct. 7 from the group American Solutions for Winning the Future, led by the former U.S. House speaker. But the group reneged, saying it had mistaken her business for another. Rizos, who owns the topless club The Lodge, was refunded the $5,000 fee required to receive the award. So she donated the money to Animal Guardians of America’s sanctuary for rescued dogs...

Washington is captivated by the Senate melodrama over the so-called public option, salivating at the ring of Harry Reid's political bell (see below). But the most important health-care questions continue to be about the policy substance—particularly those that Democrats don't want asked. Foremost among them is: How will ObamaCare affect insurance premiums in the private health-care markets? Despite indignant Democratic denials, the near-certainty is that their plan will cause costs to rise across the board. The latest data on this score come from a series of state-level studies from the insurance company WellPoint Inc. At the request of Congressional delegations...

... The economy remains unsteady 22 months after the recession began, with banks restricting credit and consumers hunkering down. For these small businesses, and many others across the country, there's an additional dark cloud: uncertainty created by Washington's bid to reorganize a wide swath of the U.S. economy. The economic contraction is of course the prime force driving companies to lay off workers. But a health-care overhaul grinding through Congress could bring unknown new obligations to insure employees. Bush-era tax cuts are set to end next year, and their fate is unclear. Legislation aimed at tackling climate change might raise...

President Obama spent this week's address talking about the need to extend credit to small businesses. This has become a mantra for both sides. That frankly makes me nervous. For instance, the president has proclaimed that under his directive the SBA will cover up to 90% of the loan amount and now he's pushing to increase the limits for loans to small businesses. Right now, banks can come to the fed and other banks and get money for nothing. That's because the Fed Funds rate is at zero percent. They are now being encouraged by the government to then extend...

NORFOLK Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell brought his campaign to Hampton Roads on Saturday, shaking hands and making hand-rolled waffle cones at Doumar’s Cones & Barbecue in Norfolk. “That’s a great American story,” McDonnell said after talking with Al Doumar, the owner, and his son Thad Doumar. “What a great piece of history.” McDonnell shook hands with customers inside and at the drive-in and ate a chocolate ice-cream cone. He faces Democratic state Sen. Creigh Deeds in the Nov. 3 election; Deeds will be campaigning in Hampton Roads on Sunday. In an interview with The Virginian-Pilot, McDonnell said his top...

Small Business Faces Sharp Rise in Costs of Health Care REED ABELSON October 24, 2009. As Congress nears votes on legislation that would overhaul the health care system, many small businesses say they are facing the steepest rise in insurance premiums they have seen in recent years. Insurance brokers and benefits consultants say their small business clients are seeing premiums go up an average of about 15 percent for the coming year — double the rate of last year’s increases. That would mean an annual premium that was $4,500 per employee in 2008 and $4,800 this year would rise to...

Morton Sloan feels besieged. Over the last several years, the Bronx-based entrepreneur has watched the property taxes on the ten Morton Williams supermarkets he runs in the city swell by hundreds of thousands of dollars. Increasingly aggressive city inspectors now linger in those stores for hours, writing costly citations for items that clerks accidentally mislabel. Some of Sloan’s suppliers say they’ll no longer deliver to New York City because of the Department of Transportation’s frequent parking-ticket blitzes. It gets worse: a new Bloomberg-administration program that encourages fruit and vegetable vendors to set up on street corners has left him scrambling...

Siblings Georgia, Jimmy and John Roussos have spent most of their lives working in the kitchen of the restaurant their father opened in 1954. The eatery managed to survive a hurricane and other setbacks, but it wasn't until this August that the recession took its toll, forcing Roussos Restaurant in Daphne, Ala., to permanently shut its doors. After months of slow sales, family businesses are being forced to close, ending legacies and leaving behind a wake of sad customers and loyal employees. "Some family businesses that were just hanging on have said it's time to get out," says Dann Van...

The unemployment rate for young Americans has exploded to 52.2 percent -- a post-World War II high, according to the Labor Dept. -- meaning millions of Americans are staring at the likelihood that their lifetime earning potential will be diminished and, combined with the predicted slow economic recovery, their transition into productive members of society could be put on hold for an extended period of time. And worse, without a clear economic recovery plan aimed at creating entry-level jobs, the odds of many of these young adults -- aged 16 to 24, excluding students -- getting a job and moving...

In his speech to Congress two weeks ago, President Obama made a strong sell to small business owners that his health care reform plan would be blessing, not a curse, for them. Indeed, the President directly addressed "small businesses" no fewer than nine times in his speech. Now that small business owners have heard from the President, it's time for the President to finally listen to small business owners. The O'Leary Report recently teamed up with Zogby International to poll small business owners and officers to see what they think about various topics that are central to the health care...

State fiscal experts agree generally that California's revenue structure relies too heavily on the wealthy and the whims of the stock market while failing to capture taxes from the now-dominant service sector.

Five years ago, car-wash owner Orman Wilson set up a pension plan for himself and six employees. For that, he may owe the IRS a $1.2 million tax penalty. Mr. Wilson, the owner of 19 coin-operated car washes in Houston, says he relied on four advisers, including a certified public accountant, to set up a plan that received approval from the Internal Revenue Service. Then, in late 2007, the IRS found fault with the plan and assessed it $250,000 -- plus special penalties of $1.2 million. ... The source of the distress: tax-law changes made by Congress in 2004. At...

As Labor Day approaches, marking the unofficial end of summer, many Americans are grabbing their last chances at a variety of activities: neighborhood cookouts, family outings, lounging by a pool or taking a last few days of vacation. There’s one other thing that all Americans, especially small business owners, should grab a last chance to do. They should contact their lawmakers in person before they go back to Washington after the holiday.

Here is video of a small business owner going "On the Record" that caused a "major uproar" at a town hall meeting when she voiced her opposition to ObamaCare. When she was done speaking the crowd cheered and it was clear that the majority of people agreed with her. The town hall part is also shown in the video right before the interview. (Watch Video)

“I hope I make it to December because I’m going to do everything in my power,” Fine said on a recent day in which he had sold a paltry $26 in items by midday. “I’ve got to figure out a way to survive.”

Over the past 30 years, I've read so much on how to make money that I know I can write a series of books on the topic, books that would cut through the junk and you don't have to buy 101 things for each area. Most of the information repeats itself -- same author, different title and packaging or different author repeating someone else’s list. All the how-this and how-that was driving me crazy as to what is REALLY required to make $100,000 or more in revenue. A few months ago, I decided to go on a pilgrimage to create...

Transcript of remarks made by Leo Carrington (who doesn’t exist) to a mandatory meeting of all employees of Carrington Automotive Enterprises, Inc. (which doesn’t exist either) on August 17th, 2009 at the Royal Payne Hotel (a purely imaginary place) in Norfolk, Virginia (which does, in fact, exist). I would like to start by thanking you for attending this meeting, though it’s not like you had much of a choice. After all, attendance was mandatory. I’m also glad many of you accepted my invitation to your family members to be here as well. I have a few remarks to make to...

A Republican lawmaker said Monday that he will propose a constitutional amendment to protect Louisiana from the repercussions of possible national health-care changes. “This is kind of a way to throw the gauntlet down and stand up for ourselves as a state,” said state Rep. Kirk Talbot, a River Ridge businessman. Talbot said he wants to protect state rights in the health-care arena via a constitutional change he will seek in 2010. The change would require a two-thirds vote of the Legislature, then approval by the state’s voters to take effect. Arizona and Florida are already considering similar proposals. “I...

Western U.S. Remains Hardest Hit Region ATLANTA, Aug. 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Commercial bankruptcies among the nation's more than 25 million small businesses increased by nearly 81% in June 2009 from June 2008, according to Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX), which analyzed its comprehensive small business database for the study. There were 10,339 bankruptcy filings in June 2009 throughout the U.S., up from 5,712 a year ago, according to the data. California is the most negatively affected state with 10 MSA's (metropolitan statistical areas) among the 15 areas with the most commercial bankruptcy filings during June. Los Angeles, Riverside/San Bernardino and Sacramento...

If your business goes belly up, you might be entitled to some government funds. Pink-slippers applying for unemployment insurance can hope to receive 30% to 60% of their salary from the past 12 to 18 months (up to their state's maximum allowance), and can collect that money for up to 26 weeks. But what about the safety net for busted small-business owners? While each state runs its own unemployment benefit program (each with its own requirements and compensation schemes), there is one general rule of thumb for hard-luck entrepreneurs captured by July's unemployment figures, released Friday: If you pay unemployment...

News Analysis by IBD Like just about every other sector of the economy, small business has been trying to get a fix on a moving target: the Democratic Congress' notion of how to pay for the health insurance it wants all Americans to have. The House version would require any employer with a payroll of at least $500,000 a year to provide health insurance or pay a penalty. The penalty would start at 2% of payroll and increase with payroll size. The maximum penalty would be 8% of payroll for firms whose annual outlay for wages and salaries is $750,000...

PROVIDENCE — State tax officials have put more than 1,200 businesses across the state on notice this week that they are out of business unless they pay their overdue sales taxes immediately. For most, that action came in the form of a personal visit from the state Division of Taxation, ordering business owners to lock their doors at once. By Wednesday, a line of people had queued up inside the Department of Administration building on Smith Hill, waiting their turn to plead their case to a state revenue agent. Some were angry. Others frustrated. “I understand the state needs money,...

While protesters rallied in his support, the owner of a Concord Mills kiosk that sells conservative merchandise said he met with the mall's manager Sunday to see what arrangements can be made for him to remain after his lease expires Friday. Nothing was agreed to, except that the two would meet again today, said Loren Spivack, owner of Free Market Warrior. Spivack has contended that he's being kicked out of the mall for political reasons. He's traced his exile to a letter to the editor in the Observer criticizing his business, saying it promotes “ideas such as racism, sexism and...

Obama's efforts to "help" the economy are focused almost solely on propping up giant corporations and vast labor unions.  He seems to believe that these organizational behemoths are the key to employment, productivity, and wealth in America.  This is how authoritarians think:  Big government, big business, and big labor pressed into a common purpose will make life better.  Economic reality is very different.  Jobs, particularly highly productive jobs, are created through small businesses.  Small business owners are incomparably more flexible than vast corporations.  They have tiny, almost nonexistent, bureaucracies.  They frequently offer workers an excellent opportunity to evolve into partners,...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said Saturday that Democratic plans to revamp the U.S. healthcare system would benefit small businesses, an argument that quickly drew criticism from his Republican opponents. Obama is trying to build more public support for a broad healthcare overhaul after action stalled in the U.S. Congress this week and polls showed many Americans were skeptical about the $1 trillion program. A major part of the healthcare debate has centered on small businesses, which are responsible for much of the hiring in the United States. Democratic plans would require many small businesses to provide insurance for...

As Democrats struggle to pass a sweeping health care bill, employer mandates are a key flash point.The House plan would make businesses cover their employees or pay an additional 8% payroll tax to help provide government-subsidized insurance. Employers' insurance would have to cover hospitalization, outpatient care, doctor visits, prescription drugs, rehab services, preventive services, and maternity and "well baby" care. It could have no annual or lifetime limits on benefits. Cash Cow, Job Killer?The House mandate would raise $163 billion from 2010 to 2019, with most in the last seven years, the Congressional Budget Office estimates. Small firms with payrolls...

It is the poor who will be bearing the burden of Obamacare. Sure, congress plans on paying for Obamacare by raising taxes. And while the press is reporting this tax surcharge will only burden the rich that is not exactly true. Those earning less than $250,000 will be hit with new taxes, too. If you don't sign up for health care, for instance, you will be taxed up to 2.5% of your income. Small businesses that don't have health plans will have to pay up to 8% of their payroll as a "fee." Small businesses that do not offer heath...

Nancy Pelosi: Make millionaires pay for health care By: Mike Allen July 20, 2009 04:07 AM EST Trying to sell a historic health bill to a balky caucus, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told POLITICO in an interview that she wants to soften a proposed surcharge on the wealthy so that it applies only to families that make $1 million or more. The change could help mollify the conservative Democrats who expect to have a tough time selling the package back home. Their support is the single biggest key to meeting the speaker’s goal of having health care reform pass the...

NEW YORK (AP) - The possible collapse of a key lender is sending panic through the retail industry, threatening to hang up deliveries of back-to-school clothing and other merchandise and throw holiday ordering into disarray. A bankruptcy filing by CIT Group would hurl more trouble at an industry already hammered by the worst spending slump in decades. Industry experts say that any short-term disruption in financing by CIT could ripple throughout the industry. New York-based CIT fills a crucial role in the retail industry by helping companies that make items get paid faster by the stores that sell them. It...

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124779112611354883.html#mod=article-outset-box

Washington (CNSNews.com) – House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said that job growth and economic recovery would not be harmed by a Democratic plan to increase income taxes by $540 billion to pay for their health-care reform proposal because the tax hikes would not affect small businesses. Hoyer also said he could not think of any small business owners who make enough money to qualify for the higher taxes. Speaking at his weekly press briefing on Tuesday, Hoyer said that the proposed tax was merely a surcharge on wealthy individuals, explaining that the tax increases were graduated.

BOEHNER: “SMALL BUSINESS TAX WILL DESTROY MORE AMERICAN JOBS”

House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled sweeping health-care legislation that would hit all but the smallest businesses with a penalty equal to 8% of payroll if they fail to provide health insurance to workers. The House bill, which also would impose new taxes on the wealthy estimated to bring in more than $544 billion over a decade, came as lawmakers in the Senate raced against a self-imposed deadline of this week to introduce a bill in time for action this summer. Senators face a tougher battle because they are striving for a bipartisan bill. Key senators are weighing a combination of...