WEEKLY SENATE UPDATE

HEALTHY SMALL BUSINESSES EQUAL HEALTHY EMPLOYEES AND ECONOMIES

 Small businesses are vital to our nation’s short and long-term economic success and there is no better time to recognize this fact than this week during National Small Business Week. 97 percent of all Maine businesses are small and small businesses create about 75 percent of new jobs in America. I recently had the privilege of meeting with Doug Newman, a concrete business owner from Hallowell, Maine who is one of the many Americans helping to grow our economy by operating a small business.  

We must keep the importance and impact of small businesses in mind as we work to sustain the strides made in economic growth in recent months. This means laying a foundation to support existing business operations while nurturing entrepreneurs who are investing their time and money to launch new business ventures. 

The opportunity to contribute to this important challenge is why I am so pleased to serve as Chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, where I fight to ensure that this nation’s small businesses are properly supported. This year I plan to use my Chairmanship to work toward a goal I feel very strongly about: helping the Small Business community confront the rising number of uninsured workers on their employee rolls. USA Today recently identified health insurance costs as the number one issue facing small business employers across the country. Of the nearly 45 million uninsured Americans, 62 percent of the uninsured are either employed by a small business or dependent on someone who is. If we want to get serious about helping the uninsured, which I believe is long overdue, as well as ensure that America’s economy remain competitive, we need to start by focusing on uninsured workers in small business.  

Both the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Small Business Association (SBA)’s Office of Advocacy have concluded that small businesses currently absorb a greater portion of their insurance plans’ administrative costs, paying as much as 20 to 30 percent more in total premiums than larger health plans. As a result, small businesses receive less generous benefits than larger employers while paying the same level of premiums.  

That is why I have introduced the Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2005, which would give small businesses the same market-based advantages and competitive leverage that large employers and unions enjoy when providing their employees with health insurance.  

This past week I convened a hearing entitled “Solving the Small Business Health Care Crisis: Alternatives for Lowering Costs and Covering the Uninsured” to focus on the Act and explore the ways that it would address current problems. I was pleased to welcome Doug Newman, owner of a small concrete company in Hallowell, Maine, to testify before the Committee. His testimony about premium increases of close to 65% since 2000 provided the Senate with a real-world example of the health care crisis facing small businesses. He also spoke passionately about his desire to continue benefits for his employees, all of which now feel like his family, and his concerns that the viability of his company may be at stake is he continues to keep their best interests at heart. Although Doug’s resilience in the face of rising health care costs is a testament to the flexibility of small business in Maine and throughout the country, there is no need for small businesses to be unfairly penalized under health care plans. Doug’s insightful and thoughtful testimony will hopefully help pave the way for legislation that will give small business owners options when it comes to providing health care for their employees.

I am also pleased to have the opportunity to meet with some outstanding small business leaders in my Washington, D.C. office this week- Marianne Sensale-Guerin, winner of Maine Small Business Person of the Year; Cheryl Cerrier, Women’s Business Award winner; and Marianne Cavalearo, National Small Business Person of the Year and Editor of Maine Biz. Their exemplary work in the realm of small businesses can serve as a model for others working to start, sustain, and expand their businesses.

Small businesses can serve as powerful engines of economic development in communities across the nation. We must continue our efforts to support the incredible work that they do and the significant gains that they continue to make so we can foster a brighter economic future for everyone.