• Micro-Business Owners Concerned With Immigration Situation, Want Reform
• House Votes to Restore Microloan Funding
• Study Finds Health Costs for Families Continue to Rise
• Member Poll: Immigration Reform

Micro-Business Owners Concerned With Immigration Situation, Want Reform

Three-quarters of micro-business owners polled see illegal immigration as a serious situation for this country, according to a recent online member poll conducted by the National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE). Most respondents called for greater allocation of resources for border security (87 percent) and tougher penalties on those who hire illegal immigrants (84 percent). “Illegal immigration and immigration reform are very controversial issues in this country, and ones that affect micro-businesses directly,” said Kristie Darien, NASE executive director of the legislative office. “The NASE wants to educate our members on the policy proposals and ways to ensure their businesses comply with federal hiring laws.” Of the nearly 1,000 voluntary respondents, 44 percent said this issue directly affected their business. Nearly one-third of respondents (32 percent) said illegal immigration was a problem because of the cost to taxpayers. Twenty-three percent said the problem was the burden on our public services. On the subject of immigration reform policies, respondents voiced the following opinions:   Favor Oppose No Opinion Construct a wall to stop illegal crossings. 58.0% 29.1% 12.7%   Increase resources for border security. 87.7% 7.6% 4.8%   Utilize National Guard troops at the Mexican border to help border patrol. 71.6% 18.5% 9.8%   Impose tougher penalties on companies that hire illegal immigrants. 83.9% 9.2% 6.7%   Create a temporary worker program in which illegal immigrants can register, pay a fine and obtain a temporary worker permit. 51.8% 38.6% 9.4% The majority of micro-business owners believe that the hiring of illegal immigrants is costing the U.S. a great deal more than it is returning. Additionally, micro-business owners strongly support government policy changes that will control the illegal immigration and eliminate the multitude of social and economic problems associated with undocumented immigrants. Competition with businesses that employ undocumented workers is a chief concern for micro-business owners trying to compete on a fair and level playing field. “An important issue for micro-businesses owners is when they need to expand, they must also compete against businesses that use undocumented workers in their work force,” said NASE lead business consultant Gene Fairbrother. “This can often mean that those who do use illegal immigrants and do not have to deal with employee rights put the business that follows the law at a disadvantage because of additional tax costs.” Fairbrother suggests a number of ways that micro-business owners can ensure that they do not hire undocumented immigrants: During the interview process, make it clear to all applicants that you follow state and federal guidelines in hiring. Use I-9 forms, which require proper identification. Make copies of identification (driver’s license, Social Security card and resident alien authorization identification). Do background checks on all employees chosen for hire. Follow federal and state guidelines to report all new employees on the state registration systems. “The end result is that if an applicant is not authorized to work in the U.S., doing the above will likely motivate them to not come back for a second interview,” said Fairbrother. For the full results of the survey, visit http://advocacy.nase.org/membersurvey/default.asp. Methodology: Posted in the members-only portal on the NASE Web site, the survey was available for members to take during the month of June. Approximately 1,000 NASE Members opted-in to the non-scientific survey and members were prohibited from taking it more than once. House Votes to Restore Microloan Program The House has voted to restore money to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Microloan Program, which had been slated for cuts by the Bush Administration. The program provided business training and $31 million in loans to more than 2,400 entrepreneurs last year alone. Again this year, President Bush tried to eliminate the program. This is despite statistics from an online member poll by the NASE finding that only 11 percent of respondents feel that there are adequate funding resources available for micro-businesses. Three-quarters believe that funding opportunities are inadequate. Without the Microloan program, entrepreneurs will be forced to further rely on other sources of capital to start their businesses. Another NASE online member poll found that nearly 12 percent of entrepreneurs started their business utilizing credit cards, while only two percent had government funds or loans. “These programs have a proven track record and help those wanting to start or develop micro-businesses,” said executive director of the NASE legislative offices Kristie Darien. “I encourage the federal government to keep these programs in place and expand their outreach so that more micro-business owners can benefit from them.” Senator Norm Coleman, R-Minn., also urged Steven Preston, the new SBA Administrator, to not “simply meekly accept” the President’s efforts to eliminate the program. Instead, he should “have the courage” to remind the administration of Congress’ “strong support for microlending.” NASE will continue to keep you updated on this program. Tell your legislators to support the SBA’s Microloan program by going to the NASE’s online Legislative Action Center at http://advocacy.NASE.org. Study Finds Health Costs for Families Continue to Rise Health care costs continue to skyrocket. Milliman, a benefits, health care, and insurance consulting firm, recently released a study of the average health care costs for the “typical American family of four.” It found that average total medical spending reached $13,382 in 2006. This is an increase of 9.6% in the last year alone. The average annual rate of increase for the four year period from 2002 to 2006 was 9.7% The study also found that a typical family of four covered in an employer-sponsored Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) would still pay $2210 in medical costs out of their own pocket. While it is important to remember that medical costs vary with age, geographic area, general health and other factors, it is still troubling to see such rapid increases for the average family. For more information, visit http://www.milliman.com/press_releases/assets/Milliman-Says-2006-Medical-PR06-29-06.pdf. Member Poll: Contributing to the Community The self-employed and micro-businesses play a vital part in America’s communities. Many micro-businesses support local youth leagues, charities and other community efforts. Let the NASE know how you contribute to your community by visiting the MyNASE Web site at http://my.NASE.org/. Log in to your free MyNASE Web account. If you have not set up an account, you can do so at http://my.NASE.org/ with your member number.