Bipartisan Budget Deal Provides Small Businesses with Much-Needed Economic Certainty
Statement by John Arensmeyer, Founder & CEO of Small Business Majority, on House passage of a two-year bipartisan budget agreement made with the White House
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a budget agreement today that will suspend the debt limit until 2017 and stave off sequestration and a government shutdown, which is encouraging news for small businesses that need a stable economy and strong consumer confidence in order to thrive.
Failure to raise the debt ceiling before the Nov. 3 deadline would have had catastrophic consequences, including an unprecedented U.S. government default, higher interest rates and a severe credit shortage. Additionally, we would have faced additional threats of government shutdowns and sequestration cuts over the coming year. This would have had a chilling effect on consumer confidence and overall economic certainty—something many small businesses' bottom lines couldn't tolerate, especially with the holiday season right around the corner.
We were also pleased to see that lawmakers were able to avoid cuts to some essential programs, including the Prevention and Public Health Fund—a program established by the healthcare law that helps contain costs, making it easier for small businesses to offer health coverage.
This deal moves us toward prolonged stability, increased consumer confidence and an economic environment where small businesses can do what they do best—create jobs, strengthen local communities and drive innovation. We're glad House lawmakers were able to work across the aisle and come to an agreement with the White House to move our economy forward and provide small businesses with economic certainty.
About Small Business Majority
Small Business Majority is a national small business advocacy organization, founded and run by small business owners to focus on solving the biggest problems facing America's 28 million small businesses today. Since 2005, we have actively engaged small business owners and policymakers in support of public policy solutions, and have delivered information and resources to entrepreneurs that promote small business growth and drive a strong, sustainable economy. We are a team of more than 30 working from our 11 offices in Washington, D.C. and 9 states, with a network of more than 45,000 small business owners and more than 2,000 business organizations, along with a formal strategic partnership program of more than 125 business organizations, enabling us to reach more than 500,000 entrepreneurs. Our extensive scientific polling, focus groups and economic research help us educate and inform policymakers, the media and other stakeholders about issues including taxes, healthcare, access to capital, entrepreneurship, workforce development, clean energy and immigration. Learn more about us on our website and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.