Government Shutdown Crippling Small Business Community

Small business owners joined Small Business Majority, the National Association of Guaranteed Government Lenders (NAGGL), business leaders and Senators Landrieu (LA), Heitkamp (ND), and Shaheen (NH) today to discuss how the government shutdown is crippling small business growth.

The inability of lawmakers to successfully pass a federal budget and mitigate a government shutdown is distressing to the small business community as such negligence has unintended consequences in other sectors of our economy.

̢???As soon as the government shut down I suffered an immediate loss of revenue, and depending on how long it lasts, there could be contracts I̢??‰?m not awarded,̢???? said LaJuanna Russell, President of Business Management Associates, Inc. in Alexandria, Va., and a member of Small Business Majority̢??‰?s network council who spoke at the press conference. ̢???That means I could end up having to lay people off. It̢??‰?s appalling that Congress has put me in a position where I might have to fire people. I was just starting to rebuild revenue and regain some confidence in our economy, then this shutdown happened. Congress needs to find a solution now.̢????

A shutdown creates tremendous uncertainty, which diminishes consumer confidence. Small Business Majority̢??‰?s recent opinion polling found consumer demand is the No. 1 concern of small businesses. Anything that scares consumers wreaks havoc on small businesses̢??‰? bottom lines. What makes it worse is this is happening in the fourth quarter̢??‰۝the most important time of the year for countless entrepreneurs. Slackening sales now has serious consequences on profits for the coming year.

What̢??‰?s more, lending institutions every day rely on the Small Business Administration̢??‰?s (SBA) guaranteed lending offerings to meet the needs of small business owners. With a government shutdown, additional SBA loans that have been vetted, approved and submitted to the agency have grinded to a halt and are stuck in a queue until the 2014 federal budget is approved. With no alternative access to capital, small businesses across our community will be suffering crippling effects to growth, especially if a shutdown lasts for an extended period of time.

Cutting opportunities for businesses to expand and reinvest in their companies and employees will only create more economic uncertainty for communities across our country as banks and lenders are no longer able to fill a fundamental need left in the absence of the SBA.

̢???The real-life consequences of this shutdown often get lost in the political theater. There̢??‰?s been so much said about the political gamesmanship around this shutdown, but this is not a game for small businesses,̢???? said John Arensmeyer, Founder & CEO of Small Business Majority. ̢???Congress needs to start working together for the good of our economy instead of playing politics. Doing otherwise puts countless small businesses and our fragile economy in jeopardy.̢????

̢???In the coming days and weeks, we urge policymakers to collaboratively work towards agreeing upon a budget and restore much needed access to capital for our hard-working small business owners around the country. The time for compromise is upon us,̢???? said NAGGL Board of Directors Chair Lynn Ozer, who is also the President of the Government Lending Division at Susquehanna Bank.

Additional business organizations joined the event to show support for ending this government shutdown. They include:

Native American Contractors Association, Executive Director, Kevin Allis: "Small minority owned business are a big part of the U.S. economy. A prolonged government shutdown is devastating to the health of, and in some cases fatal, to these important businesses."

National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, President, Justin Nelson: "This senseless standoff between Congress and then White House is damaging our national psyche and hurting a fragile economic recovery. Shuttering businesses and stemming job growth to suit a political agenda does not help the American people."