The Market Institute

The House passed the small business lending bill (AP, voted 237-187, and The Hill). The Republicans (minus Walter Jones of NC)  were  joined by 13 Democrats, but didn’t have enough votes to  stop the bill. The small business bill attempts to

Today Republicans take the “Pledge” (Pledge to America, AP, Washington Post, and McClatchy). This is their updated version of the “Contract with America” that helped propel the Republicans to the 1994 Republican revolution. We think that the “pledge” goes much further. It does more than just clean up government, it proposes a path to long-term [...]

The small business administration just published a new paper on the regulatory burden faced by small businesses (Here). As we have seen in the past this burden is disproportionate to the burden faced by large corporations. In fact, according to the report the burden is 36% greater for small businesses.

Last week the Senate took two votes on the burdensome 1099 filing requirements included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The votes were both troubling and reassuring.