‘Tren de Aragua’, get to know this name, this gang’s name.
Read MoreCommentary: Thanks to Biden-Harris, Venezuela’s Killer Gang ‘Tren de Aragua’ Moving to Your Neighborhood
Tag: small business
Vast Majority of Small Business Owners Worried Biden’s Economy Will Force Them to Close
A large portion of small business owners are concerned about their future amid wider financial stress under President Joe Biden, according to a new poll from the Job Creators Network Foundation (JCNF) obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Around 67 percent of small business owners were worried that current economic conditions could force them to close their doors, ten percentage points higher than just two years ago, according to the JCNF’s monthly small business poll. Respondents’ perceptions of economic conditions for their own businesses fell slightly in the month, from 70.2 to 68.1 points, with 100 points being the best possible business conditions, while perceptions of national conditions increased from 50.4 to 53.2 points.
Read MoreBusinesses Blast New Biden Rule Allowing Union Reps to Inspect Job Sites
Business groups are pushing back against a new Biden administration rule that would allow third-parties, including union representatives, to accompany federal inspectors of job sites.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the final rule earlier this year, but critics say the rule goes beyond safety needs and panders to unions and their recruitment efforts. The rule would apply even to job sites where workers have not unionized.
Read MoreSmall Business Owners Lament Inflation
As inflation continues to rise this year, small businesses are feeling the pain.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses released a survey of small business owners Tuesday that found the nation’s job creators cite inflation as their top concern more than any other issue.
Read MoreCommentary: The Federal Government is Deciding Who Can Start a Small Business
Just when it seemed impossible for things to get tougher for small businesses, the federal government decided to make things worse.
Small businesses have had a tough run for the last few years. Record inflation, high interest rates, and workforce shortages have led to widespread pessimism among small businesses. The last thing they need is more government interference, but that is exactly what is happening.
Read MoreBusinesses Are Getting Crushed ‘Beneath the Surface’ of Economy, New Figures Show
In recent years, mid-sized companies between $100 million and $750 million in yearly revenue have been increasingly struggling compared to large businesses, taking the brunt of poor economic conditions and high interest rates, according to asset manager Marblegate.
From 2019 to the end of 2022, mid-sized companies had a 24 percent drop in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) compared to public companies, which had their earnings rise 18 percent, according to a study by Marblegate acquired by Axios. The discrepancy between large and midsized companies is in part due to the increased cost of credit for smaller businesses, which are more affected by the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes, with the federal funds rate currently being placed in a range of 5.25 percent and 5.50 percent, the highest point in 22 years.
Read MoreSoaring Interest Rates Are Squeezing Out Small Businesses
Small businesses are feeling the effects of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes as tightening credit puts more businesses and workers in dangerous positions, according to The New York Times.
Interest payments for small businesses will rise to about 7 percent of revenues next year on average, as opposed to being just 5.8 percent of revenues in 2021, according to the NYT. The Fed has raised its federal funds rate to a range of 5.25 percent and 5.50 percent following a series of 11 hikes that started in March 2022, bringing the rate to its highest point in 22 years.
Read MorePoll: 73 Percent of Virginia Small Businesses Want Republican-Run Congress
Nearly three-quarters of small business owners in Virginia hope Republicans will come out on top, according to a poll conducted by the small business network Alignable.
According to the poll, 73 percent of small business owners hope Republicans will control both chambers of Congress. Less than one-fifth of business owners, about 18 percent want to see Democrats control both chambers. Another 4 percent are hoping for split control of Congress and about 6 percent chose none of the above.
Read MorePoll: Small Business Optimism Remains Near Record Lows
Small business optimism remains near record lows, as small business owners believe that inflation, supply chain problems and tax increases pose serious threats to small businesses, according to a Friday poll by the Job Creator’s Network Foundation (JCNF).
Read MoreSmall Businesses Risk Shutting Down in Droves Amid Elevated Inflation, Energy Prices
Nearly half of American small business owners say they are at risk of closing down this fall, according to new survey data.
The small business network Alignable released the survey, which found that “47% of small business owners … say their businesses are at risk of closing by fall 2022, unless economic conditions improve significantly.”
Read MoreYoungkin to Go After Unemployment Fraud, Gets Thanks from Virginia Businesses
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced a deal aimed at cracking down on fraudulent unemployment claims, a move that garnered support from members of the business community.
The governor and Attorney General Jason Miyares signed an agreement with the Virginia Employment Commission, which allows the attorney general to represent the VEC in the prosecution of criminal unemployment compensation fraud cases.
“The VEC has asked that I take on this responsibility, and I enthusiastically agreed to the VEC’s request,” Miyares said in a statement. “Protecting the Commonwealth from crime is one of my top priorities as Attorney General. Fraudulent claims must be prosecuted and fraud on the unemployment fund diverts resources from those who need them most.”
Read MoreCommentary: Protect Small Businesses from the Scourge of Stolen and Counterfeit Goods
Recent images from the Los Angeles railyards of a sea of cardboard wreckage, the remnants of thousands of stolen packages, have made national headlines. Union Pacific railroad said criminal rail theft in LA has increased by more than 2.5 times since December 2020. Yet while most media coverage focuses on this third-world scene, little has been made of the consequences for the small business sellers ripped off by this grand theft.
Whether it comes in the form of widescale package theft by criminal enterprises or organized smash-and-grab robberies at brick and mortar stores, theft has become a big problem for small businesses. A new survey finds that nearly all small business owners experienced an increase in theft in 2021.
This isn’t the shoplifting of your parent’s generation. Elaborate criminal networks steal and resell goods at below-market rates on internet marketplaces such as Amazon, Facebook, eBay, and Alibaba. The cost of lost inventory and ensuing cut-rate online competition puts tremendous pressure on small business margins that are already strained by the highest inflation in 40 years and severe supply chain disruptions.
Read MoreReport: Private Companies Added Half as Many Jobs as Expected in July
Private companies added 330,000 jobs in July, far fewer than expected and the lowest amount since February, according to a major payroll report.
The 330,000 jobs added to private payroll last month represented a significant decline from the 680,000 jobs added in June, the ADP National Employment Report showed. Economists predicted that private companies would add 653,000 jobs in July, nearly double the number reported Wednesday, according to CNBC.
Read MoreSurging BBQ Companies Go Public, Signaling Continued Post-Pandemic Shift to Home Cooking
Multiple home barbecue companies are going public after a successful year and a half amid the COVID-19 crisis, an apparent reflection of increasing consumer orientation toward home cooking after many months during which dining out was sharply curtailed.
Traeger — a manufacturer of automated wood-pellet smokers — this week announced an initial public offering of 23,529,411 shares of common stock at as much as $18 per share. The company was expecting to realize around $400 million in the IPO.
The company in its IPO prospectus said it “more than doubled revenue from $262.1 million in 2017 to $545.8 million in 2020,” with huge surges in social media followings last year
Read MoreCommentary: A January 6 Detainee Speaks Out
Joe Biden’s Justice Department notched another victory last week in the agency’s sprawling investigation into the January 6 protest on Capitol Hill against Biden’s presidency.
On Wednesday, Michael Curzio pleaded guilty to one count of parading, demonstrating, or picketing in the Capitol building. The government offered the plea deal to Curzio’s court-appointed attorney in June; Curzio faced four misdemeanor charges, including trespassing and disorderly conduct, for his role in the Capitol breach.
Curzio will pay the government “restitution” in the amount of $500 to help pay for the nearly $1.5 million in damages the building reportedly sustained. (The Architect of the Capitol initially said the protest caused $30 million in damages but prosecutors have set the figure far lower.)
Read MoreSmall Business Owners Struggling to Find Workers
Small business owners are continuing to have problems attracting new workers in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and are trying to entice them with new incentives, a new report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows.
“Small businesses are bearing the brunt of the current worker shortage,” said Tom Sullivan, vice president of small business policy at the Chamber. “Many have given up on actively recruiting new workers as it is too hard to find skilled and experienced workers for their open positions.”
Read MoreBusiness Groups Slam Biden’s ‘Flawed’ Competition, Antitrust Executive Order
President Joe Biden’s competition and antitrust executive order will harm American consumers, groups representing both large and small businesses said.
The leading groups — including the Chamber of Commerce, Job Creators Network (JCN) and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) — slammed Biden’s executive order, arguing that it will harm competition and present a host of challenges to small businesses. The business groups said the order is an example of big government attempting to exert control over the free market via onerous rules and regulations.
“This executive order amounts to a bizarre declaration against American businesses, from the largest to the smallest,” Small Business and Entrepreneurship (SBE) Council Chief Economist Raymond Keating said in a statement. “It’s hard to understand why a White House would go down such a path, especially as the economy is digging out from the COVID-19 disaster.”
Read MoreCommentary: As President Biden’s Deputy Secretary of Labor, Julie Su Would Take California’s Small-Business Nightmare National
Last Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer filed cloture on the nomination of Julie Su, California’s top labor official, to become President Joe Biden’s deputy secretary of labor.
Su’s confirmation vote will likely occur soon after the Independence Day Senate recess. That’s bad news.
After all, Su leads California’s Labor and Workforce Development Agency, presiding over one of the most anti-small business regimes in the country. If confirmed as second-in-command at the Department of Labor, she would use her position to expand California’s war on small businesses nationwide. On behalf of their small business constituents, Senators must oppose Su’s confirmation.
Read MoreCommentary: It is Time to Fight for the Rights of Independent Businesses
As a very young man, I was fortunate enough to start my own company out of my apartment using a small amount of investment capital from friends and family. Over time, that business grew to have over 6,000 employees and revenues in excess of $2 billion. Over nearly a 40-year span, my team and I built what some would consider a remarkable track record, as measured by both sales and profits.
Because of my experience growing that business, I feel a special kinship with small, privately owned businesses and their owners. I also come from a middle-class background, one that shaped me into the person I am today. It is through both the lens of entrepreneur and member of the middle-class that I look through when reflecting upon this Independence Day.
Read MoreJust Six Percent of Small Businesses Have Fully Recovered Pandemic Losses, Poll Shows
Just 6% of small businesses that were negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic have fully recovered their losses, a Job Creators Network survey showed.
The vast majority of U.S. small business owners continue to “claw their way out” of the hole caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the poll commissioned by small business advocacy group Job Creators Network (JCN) and shared with the Daily Caller News Foundation. While 6% of small business owners that suffered losses related to the pandemic said they have recovered, 43% believed they would be fully recovered within six months.
Read More‘My Income Has Dropped to Zero’: About 45 Percent of Small Businesses Risk Closure Within Months
At least 13.9 million of the nation’s small businesses are at serious risk of shuttering their doors by April 1, a recent industry report found.
Forty-four percent of the country’s 31.7 million small businesses are at risk of closing by the end of the first quarter, according to small business group Alignable. Small businesses on the brink of closure expect to earn less revenue than their owners estimate is needed to stay afloat.
Read MoreMore Than $1 Trillion in Coronavirus Aid Hasn’t Been Spent, Includes $120 Billion for Small Businesses
About $1.1 trillion in coronavirus aid, including more than $120 billion for small businesses, has still not been spent, according to a memo Republicans are circulating on Capitol Hill.
The more than $1 trillion in unspent coronavirus relief funds represents a significant portion of the $4 trillion allocated by Congress as part of multiple 2020 stimulus packages, according to the Republican Study Committee (RSC) memo reviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation. Of the $828 billion allocated for small business loans, about $123.7 billion has not been spent, according to Small Business Administration data.
Read MoreDave Portnoy’s ‘Barstool Fund’ Raises $20M, Helps More Than 90 Small Businesses
The Barstool Fund, created by Dave Portnoy, has helped raise more than $20 million, helping nearly 100 small businesses hurt during the coronavirus pandemic lockdowns. Portnoy started the Barstool Fund one month ago with his own $500,000 to help small businesses.
The fundraiser has raised $20,119,270 from more than 156,000 donors and has aided 92 small businesses across the country as of Thursday evening.
Earlier in the day, Portnoy announced his fundraising success on Twitter, but stressed that their mission is far from over.
Read MoreFour California Small Business Owners Share Their Struggles to Survive Under Lockdowns
California small businesses are crumbling under the weight of a new stay-at-home order and a lack of meaningful financial assistance.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a new region-based lockdown order for California on Dec. 3, forcing more California businesses to close their doors or severely limit operations.
Read MoreMinimum Wage Hikes Set for 2021 Imperil Businesses Struggling Amid COVID Shutdowns
More than 80 states and local municipalities are slated to see minimum wage hikes in 2021, even as business owners continue to struggle during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Employment Policies Institute, a non-profit based in Washington, D.C., that studies how public policy impacts employment growth, released a comprehensive list of the minimum wage increases that will go into effect next year and in subsequent years.
“Minimum wage increases are demonstrated to cause job losses even in times of economic health,” said Michael Saltsman, EPI’s managing director. “These states and local areas are increasing the cost of labor as businesses are dealing with forced closures or a drastic drop in revenue. Employers and employees will pay the price for these misguided good intentions.”
Read MoreVirginia Business Community Praises COVID-19 Stimulus, but Seeks State Action for Full Benefits
Virginia business advocates praised the COVID-19 stimulus package passed by Congress but said additional state action is necessary for businesses to receive the full benefits of the legislation.
The $900 billion COVID-19 stimulus provides about $325 billion in aid to small businesses nationally, including $284 billion for forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, $20 billion for Economic Injury Disaster Loan grants, $15 billion for live venues, independent movie theaters and cultural institutions and another $12 billion for businesses in low-income and minority communities.
Congress’ bill also addressed a couple of concerns businesses raised regarding the first wave of PPP loans. The bill simplifies the forgiveness applications and makes the loans tax deductible at the federal level. The deductibility applies to loans that already have been received and any loans received in the second wave, which would prevent a hidden tax increase on businesses.
Read MoreFour California Small Business Owners Share Their Struggles to Survive Under Lockdowns
California small businesses are crumbling under the weight of a new stay-at-home order and a lack of meaningful financial assistance.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a new region-based lockdown order for California on Dec. 3, forcing more California businesses to close their doors or severely limit operations.
Read MoreChamber: Most Small Businesses Say More Federal Aid Necessary for Success
Some two-thirds of small business owners say more federal relief funds are needed for them to be successful in the coming year during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, according to the fourth quarter Small Business Index survey from the United States Chamber of Commerce.
Read MoreRubio Calls for More Small Business Loan Money in Compromise COVID-19 Relief Bill
The $908 billion pandemic stimulus compromise package being discussed in the U.S. Senate is a hopeful sign of progress, Florida Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio said, but it won’t garner his support until more assistance is tabbed for small businesses.
The four-month emergency package introduced Tuesday by a bipartisan coalition of senators and House representatives on Capitol Hill would fund transportation, food assistance, coronavirus testing centers and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) crafted by Rubio’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship Senate Committee to help businesses pay their employees during shutdowns rather than lay them off.
Read MoreVirginia Del. Glenn Davis Announces His Run for Lieutenant Governor
Thursday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host John Fredericks welcomed Glenn Davis to the program to announce his run for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and discuss a Democrat bill that would crush small businesses in his state.
Read MoreThis New Health Plan Expansion Is a Godsend for Small Businesses Like Mine
by Kalena Bruce Last month, the Trump administration took a concrete step to lower skyrocketing health care costs for middle-class families like mine. The Department of Labor issued a final rule expanding association health plans, which allow small businesses like my farm to band together with others to negotiate bulk rates…
Read MoreA Record Number Of Small Businesses Are Raising Wages Amid Tight Labor Market
by Will Racke A greater share of small companies in the U.S. are raising wages than at any time in the past three decades, according to a survey released Thursday from the nation’s biggest independent business association. A seasonally adjusted 35 percent of small business owners reported they have increased…
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