July News and Updates

In This Issue:

•  Wall Street Reform Passes
•  Next Up: Small Business Lending Crisis
•  SCE&G Rate Hike Cut 49%
•  Helping Small Business Conserve Energy
•  Get On Board the “BuySC” Campaign
•  Upcoming Health Care Forums In Marlboro & Dillon Counties
•  9.8% Drop in WC Costs Approved
•  Looking for Answers from Gubernatorial Candidates
•  SCSBCC Partners with 3 National Biz Organizations

Wall Street Reform Passes

The U.S. Senate has given final approval to a major financial reform bill that was needed to address the greed on Wall Street and within other financial institutions. This greed led to the nation’s worst recession in our lifetimes and dried up loans and lines of credit for small businesses. Read a summary of the bill here. 


The S.C. Small Business Chamber of Commerce (SCSBC) has vigorously supported Wall Street reform as a prerequisite for getting our economy back on its feet. A strong and successful push-back against the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which opposed reform, was needed to demonstrate that big business did not speak for small business. Read Frank Knapp’s blog on this issue. You can also view a video of his remarks at an April press conference held at the U.S. Capitol here.


Next Up: Small Business Lending Crisis: Call Graham & DeMint

Graham

With Wall Street reform under our belt, the SCSBC is turning to the small business lending crisis. Since March, the SCSBC has been calling on Congress to take action to spur loans and lines of credit to small business. 

In April, SCSBC president Frank Knapp led a delegation of other national business organizations to the halls of Congress for meetings on this issue. 

The message: small businesses will grow us out of the recession just as we did in the last three recoveries, but we need access to capital to hire the new employees to make this happen.

DeMint

The cries of small businesses have now been heard, and the U.S. Senate is preparing to debate the “Small Business Jobs Act” filed by Senators Baucus and Landrieu. Click here to read a complete summary of this bill. 

This bill has many provisions that will be beneficial to the financial health of small businesses. Three extremely important benefits would be: 

1. The creation of a Small Business Lending Fund that will both enable and encourage small financial institutions to make more small business loans.

2. An increase in SBA loan limits.
 
3. Allow small business owners to deduct the cost of health insurance for themselves and their family members in the calculation of their self-employment tax.
 
Contact South Carolina Senators Lindsey Graham (202-224-5972) and Jim DeMint (202-224-6121). 

Ask them to support the “Small Business Jobs Act.” Also ask them to support amendment S.A.4443 by Senator Udall; it will help unleash the ability of the nation’s credit unions to make more small business loans at no cost to the taxpayer. It would do this simply by increasing the Credit Union Member Business Lending Cap from 12.25% to 25% of a credit union’s assets.

Call Graham and DeMint today!


SCE&G Rate Hike Cut 49%

Small business customers of SCE&G are breathing a little easier now that their 9.52% electric rate hike request has been nearly cut in half to 4.88% by the S.C. Public Service Commission. That will be over $96 million dollars a year less in utility payments across the board. The president of the SCSBC, Frank Knapp, intervened in the rate hearing and played an instrumental role in reducing the rate hike. Read his blog explaining how it came about and what extra benefits he was able to get for small businesses.  The rate increase will phase in over three years. Small business customers of SCE&G will see a 1.35% increase in the first year, 2.52% the second year and 1.01% the third year.


Helping Small Business Conserve Energy

Small business customers of SCE&G also recently received some extra consideration in the company’s plan to encourage energy conservation. This plan has been approved by the S.C Public Service Commission. SCE&G agreed to SCSBCC President Frank Knapp’s request that small businesses be included in a pilot program to test an “Energy Information Display” that will give real-time feedback on the price of energy being used in a building and the cost of energy used in the month. This program had originally been planned only for residential customers. In addition, SCE&G agreed to have a representative from the SCSBC on an Advisory Group that will review the company’s energy conservation program. This program will include financial incentives for small businesses to purchase common energy efficient technology such as high-efficiency lighting, lighting controls, motors, HVAC systems and food service equipment.


Get On Board the “BuySC” Campaign

The statewide “BuySC” campaign is about to be launched by the SCSBC. If you are a small South Carolina-owned business, we want you listed on our “BuySC” web directory. It’s easy and free. Simply e-mail Stephanie and ask her to send you the form to be included in “BuySC.” Your company’s name, service/product, address and telephone number will be listed under a page for your county. The long-term answer to growing our state’s economy is to grow our own small businesses. Big businesses recruited by our Department of Commerce come here and then move on to greener pastures. Our small businesses are here to stay and create most of the new jobs in this country. Our “BuySC” campaign wants everyone in South Carolina to understand the importance of supporting our local small businesses. “BuySC” is not just a call to action for consumers tempted by big box stores and internet purchases. It is an awakening to the desire we all have for a healthy, sustainable economy.

Please join us in our “BuySC” campaign. Help spread the word by flying a “BuySC” hyperlink badge on your website to draw more attention to our campaign to help local, small business. Just email Stephanie or call 803-252-5733 and tell her you want to participate.


Upcoming Health Care Forums In Marlboro & Dillon Counties

The SCSBCC along with its partners in South Carolina Healthcare Voices will be holding health care forums in Bennettsville and Dillon. The forums are open to the public. Since passage of the health care law this spring, several beneficial changes have already gone into effect and a many more are still to come. Make sure that you know the facts—not the fiction.

Monday, July 26th at 6 p.m., the forum will be held at the Bennettsville Community Center.

Thursday, July 29th at 6 pm, the Dillon County Chamber will host the forum at the Dillon Wellness Center.

Representatives from South Carolina Healthcare Voices will give the public an overview of the important changes in the health care law. Questions will be answered by representatives from the SCSBCC, SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center, AARP-SC and SC Fair Share.


9.8% Drop in WC Costs Approved

Workers’ compensation insurance premiums will soon be dropping for many South Carolina small businesses. The S.C. Department of Insurance recently approved an overall decrease of 9.8% in “loss costs” in the voluntary workers’ compensation market. The “loss costs” for insurance companies is the difference between premiums collected and the cost of claims including court costs. So insurance companies overall were on a path to collect more premiums from South Carolina businesses than they could justify, leading to the industry’s filing that will—on average—reduce premiums.

This is very good news. The SCSBCC has successfully fought giant proposed workers' compensation rate increases over the years and has saved the business community approximately $200 million in premiums since 2006. This downward trend in the cost of claims is a sign that the business community is doing a better job in worker safety.


Looking for Answers from Gubernatorial Candidates

The SCSBCC does not endorse candidates nor give campaign contributions, as explained in a recent blog. However, we have sent a questionnaire to each of the three candidates who will be on the ballot for Governor in November. Senator Vincent Sheheen, Representative Nikki Haley and Dr. Morgan Reeves each received our questionnaire earlier this month covering the issues of healthcare, energy, taxation and economic development.

We’ll report to you and the public how the candidates answered our questions and our comments on their responses, which are due on August 2nd. We are also examining the legislative voting records of Sheheen and Haley to compare how they voted on bills of interest to SCSBCC.


SCSBCC Partners with 3 National Biz Organizations

SCSBCC’s success over the last year in being actively and successfully engaged in federal legislation to reform health care, Wall Street and now small business lending has been made possible by our formal alliance with several national organizations:

• Small Business Majority—A national non-profit, nonpartisan organization, founded and run by small business owners, that brings the voices of America’s 28 million small businesses to the public policy table.
• Main Street Alliance—A national network of state-based small business coalitions. The Alliance creates opportunities for small business owners to speak for ourselves in key public policy debates.
• American Sustainable Business Council—A coalition of business networks committed to public policies that support a vibrant, just and sustainable economy. Partnering organizations represent over 48,000 businesses and social enterprises and more than 150,000 entrepreneurs, owners, executives, investors and business professionals.

SC Small Business Chamber of Commerce
The Advocate of South Carolina Small Business
1717 Gervais Street • Columbia • SC • 29201
http://www.scsbc.org/ • 803-252-5733



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