Small firms say regulation is fastest-growing concern
It’s been exactly three and a half years since Barack Obama was inaugurated, and here are two things that folks on the left have been saying about the economy every day since then: It’s Bush’s fault, and the problem is a lack of aggregate demand.
Here’s what small businesses have to say about the situation:
Chart by Dan Clifton at Strategas Research, via the AEIdeas blog
Keeping in mind that these are what small firms are “most concerned” about, meaning many likely have concerns to varying degrees about all three, a few things jump out at me:
1. In 2005, these three concerns accounted for a little more than one-third of small firms’ biggest worries. Today, they combine for about 60 percent. That suggests to me that these firms have less time and energy to devote to specific concerns about growing their business.
2. After shooting to the top in the second half of 2008, concerns about sales plateaued for about two years. Those concerns have been falling pretty steadily for the past year and a half.
3. Concerns about regulation, which more or less mirrored those about sales from 2005 to the start of 2008, began a steady ascent in 2009 and have almost doubled since then.
4. Concerns about taxes have remained fairly steady over these years.
5. At the beginning of 2009, the sum of concerns about regulation and those about sales was in the neighborhood of 40 percent — pretty much the same as today. But the division between them is starkly different: Whereas there were three small firms concerned about sales for every one worried about regulation then, now the two are dead even. In other words, worries about sales have been gradually replaced by worries about regulation.
6. If current trend lines continue, both taxes and regulation will soon rank higher among small firms’ concerns than sales.
Even if one wants to credit Obama’s “stimulus” package with the decrease in worries about sales — totally ignoring the effects of the Federal Reserve’s ultra-loose monetary policy — this graph clearly shows why improved demand hasn’t shifted the economy out of neutral: Increased regulation has stifled the recovery we might have had.
Small firms are generally credited with the bulk of job creation in this country. So the question this information puts to voters is: Which candidate do you expect to do more about the most pressing problems faced by small firms — Barack Obama or Mitt Romney?
– By Kyle Wingfield
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575 comments Add your comment
ragnar danneskjold
July 20th, 2012
1:46 pm
There is no meaningful economic difference between (a) a regulation, and (b) a tax coupled with a legal mandate. A regulation requires that a company tax itself to whatever extent necessary to achieve a particular goal-not-set-by-the-market. If you like higher taxes, you will love the coming economic effects of ObamaCare and Dodd-Frank.
Dusty
July 20th, 2012
1:49 pm
Wellll…..anybody think it is going to rain this afternoon?
As to small firm regulations, is an AVON sales person a small firm? Is PAY-A-POSTER (Cheep!) a smarl firm? I think they have an office on a back street in Doraville.
Up to 50 workers does not sound so small to me, But…if small firms think they know what hurts their business I’m inclined to believe them. Taxing and regulations sound like tying a small child to a chair and feeding him nothing but spinach to make him grow strong. Perpetually wrong.
OK, that’s my bad comparison for today. I do think it is going to rain! Otherwise, why is cloud cover hanging over my house? Some people just cannot realize the obvious. Well, that’s the subject, isn’t it? Taxes and regulation hinder small business and Obama refuses to believe it.. There. THE SUBJECT!!!
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
1:49 pm
I’m banned over there ” they BOTH suck”………..And rightly so I guess. Having a little fun and there is no fun in Libville to be had.
carlosgvv
July 20th, 2012
1:49 pm
I don’t blame firms one bit for wanting little or no regulations. After all, we all want to return to the days of 6 day work weeks, 12 to 16 hour workdays, no health insurance, no vacation days, no sick days, no workman’s comp and, most importantly, child labor. It’s definitely true that Republcians are called “compassionate conservatives” for a reason. I mean no regulations is good. Right? Right? Right?
Cutty
July 20th, 2012
1:51 pm
Exactly what regulations have hindered these small businesses? Seems like its all just speculation to me. What new regs instituted under this President have kept these businesses from making a buck?
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
1:52 pm
Jay said he would probably reinstate after his Vacation. Man I gotta be there for the Romney victory.
ragnar danneskjold
July 20th, 2012
1:54 pm
If you seriously want to stimulate the economy, you need not repeal a single regulation – simply abolish the capacity of any agency to “levy a fine.” Let them attempt to put people in jail for alleged violations, but do not allow the bureaucrats to siphon off capital.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
1:55 pm
Cutty, I spent 21K on a surprise OSHA visit last year on petty stuff. ( no lives in danger) and the guy on day 2 told ( a con no doubt after I got to know him day 2) that he was out getting his new ” quota”.
Real world cutty, no fantasy lib world.
ragnar danneskjold
July 20th, 2012
1:56 pm
Dear Cutty @ 1:51, good afternoon, you have a flawed assumption, that the moribund economy is reactive to the Obama agenda already published in the CFR. In fact, the morbund economy is anticipative of the Obama agenda to be published in the CFR.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
1:57 pm
and one more thing cutty………….I know in a Libs mind I got what was coming to me.
ragnar danneskjold
July 20th, 2012
1:58 pm
Dear Cutty @ 1:51, rephrasing my 1:56, the fellow whose head in the guillotine is concerned about the blade about to fall; he has little regard for the blade that already fell.
They BOTH suck
July 20th, 2012
1:59 pm
I’m a lib
Unless you did something real crazy. He will let you come back
Filter
July 20th, 2012
2:03 pm
I still don’t have an answer to my question. Lots of banter and deflection but no answer.
As for OSHA and their inspections, that agency was around LONG before January 2009. It seems disingenuous to lay every regulation on the books at the feet of the President, unless of course your argument is that he should repeal all of them.
I am asking, repeatedly now, for a simple list of regulations that this President has enacted that are strangling small business and the economy.
Get Real
July 20th, 2012
2:04 pm
“Hating the President because he is so much more intelligent, more compassionate, more capable, better educated and is just a better person than you are is not pretty. That also explains your hatred for Bill Clinton and your love of Dubya. You’re a pathetic and disgusting excuse for a human being”
Wow, somone must have an Obama poster above their bed
Some people are stupid
July 20th, 2012
2:05 pm
I am a liberal-
So you say it was petty stuff, but that implies it ws still a violation
So what you are saying is you want to be above the law…wow.
Some people are stupid
July 20th, 2012
2:06 pm
As for OSHA and their inspections, that agency was around LONG before January 2009
He has a point…
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:08 pm
Tools of ignorance.
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
2:10 pm
nah, I just hijacked a moniker for some fun. He got po’ed
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:10 pm
“Let them attempt to put people in jail for alleged violations”
Sounds like the former Soviet Union — and not at all Randian.
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:12 pm
“Taxing and regulations sound like tying a small child to a chair and feeding him nothing but spinach to make him grow strong.”
For real?
I'm a liberal and believe everything I read and nothing the other side comes up with...cause we're smart and they are not
July 20th, 2012
2:13 pm
A fan plugged into a outlet with an extension cord is worth a 1,200 fine from a “fair, I’m here to help Government”. The OSHA book has over 76,000 rules. This guy said he only knew about 20 % of them
They BOTH suck
July 20th, 2012
2:14 pm
Well maybe a methed out Ayn………….
can’t speak for the Rand Heads themselves, but Ayn did love her some meth, she did
Dusty
July 20th, 2012
2:16 pm
Well, off subject as usual but Romney and Obama have BOTH spoken with charm and concern on the terrible tragedy in Colorado. Always good to remember the real feeling Americans have for each other. Someone killing 12 people and wounding 50 while they were simply watching a movie…..that reminds us of our mutual humanity.. The outstanding gentlemen of our country reflect that well.
Dusty
July 20th, 2012
2:19 pm
Real Athens 2:12
Yes, for real. I already said that was a poor comparison. What you want? Ice cream with your spinach?
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm! Just sayin...
July 20th, 2012
2:20 pm
We don’t hate your president, AU, we just think he’s mildly retarded and a sociopath.
Jefferson
July 20th, 2012
2:21 pm
Sounds like McCain could have won with all the same ideas you spew, ever wonder why he didn’t ?
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:22 pm
For 28 years she took Methamphetamine every day to “control her weight”. She died collecting her disability check because of her declining health due to over consumption of cigarettes.
So much for objectivism, as long as it doesn’t apply to you.
She was personally more into collectivism. The lemmings still hang on every word though. Only L. Ron Hubbard was a worse, morally corrupt “author”.
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:25 pm
I Report (-: You Whine )-: mmm, mmmm, mmmmm! Just sayin… calling someone a sociopath — that’s rich.
Georgia, The " New Mississippi "
July 20th, 2012
2:31 pm
“Corporations are people too ” ….Mitt
They are people because they have lobbyists that give money to elect politicians. Small firms do not count.
Jimmy62
July 20th, 2012
2:31 pm
Amen, Kyle. A lot of regulations are set up to protect existing players, and existing players usually aren’t the small businesses, they are the big ones that the left loves to vilify, but then helps by supporting regulations that protect those big businesses.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
2:31 pm
Which candidate do you expect to do more about the most pressing problems faced by small firms — Barack Obama or Mitt Romney?
Barack Obama.
Mitt will help firms that need to offshore work or organize workforces outside the US. And very few small businesses are in a situation to take advantage of that. Barack is focused on the companies working here.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
2:33 pm
The regulations most of these small businesses are worried about are what?
Limitations of access to low-wage illegals?
Healthcare? But the government will now make it easier for small businesses to be able to afford healthcare provisions for their employees?
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
2:38 pm
We don’t hate your president, AU, we just think he’s mildly retarded and a sociopath.
Well, better mildly retarded than obviously retarded:
“We want to help people put food on their families.”
“We ought to make the pie higher.”
“Brownie, you’re doing a heck of a job.”
“You’re working hard to put food on your family.”
“Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB-GYNs aren’t able to practice their love with women all across this country.”
“Strategery”
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
2:39 pm
best one:
“Then you wake up at the high school level and find out that the illiteracy level of our children are appalling.” —President George W. Bush, Washington, D.C., Jan. 23, 2004
Thulsa Doom
July 20th, 2012
2:43 pm
I made the point just yesterday to our liberal friends on the other blog that burdensome regulation is affordable by the big boys in business and helps keep out the smaller firms and erect a barrier to entry. Hopefully it will sink in with our liberal friends. If you really despise big business as many of you seem to then you better hope that regulation is loosened. Because if not then big business will be protected and insulated by regulation and will be calling the shots. You would think that once they understand this that liberals would be in favor of less regulation that only aids the big business behemoths.
Kyle Wingfield
July 20th, 2012
2:46 pm
hatorade @ 1:20: I haven’t commented on it yet because it seems to me this story has a lot of information yet to come out. But it’s not nearly as one-sided as you seem to think: The Federal Reserve of New York — headed at the time by one Timothy Geithner — knew about it in 2008.
Thulsa Doom
July 20th, 2012
2:48 pm
Same thing happened in fascist Germany by the way. The big businesses like Mercedes Benz allowed themselves to be regulated and worked with by the govt. The combination of the 2 together big business with big gubment should be enough to scare the hell out of both cons and libs. Over here we call it crony capitalism but the idea is the same- big gubment picking winners and losers and helping big business which in turn gets help in the form of subsidies, tax breaks, and regulation that keeps out or unfairly burdens smaller competitors.
md
July 20th, 2012
2:49 pm
“if people aren’t buying your stuff I don’t care how many regulations are or are not on the books, you’re done….the worry should be on why your business model cannot draw in enough revenue as opposed to non-specific regulations that may or may not even affect you.”
A big leap with assumption on this one……who said they were having trouble getting customers? Regulations add to expenses, which may be the difference between a profit and hiring more people and a loss and having to let them go……and the number of customers might be a constant.
Thulsa Doom
July 20th, 2012
2:54 pm
md,
To echo your point grocery stores operate on traditionally razor thin profit margins- 1-3%. If you have a new regulation that adversely affects a small, independent grocery store or a smaller grocery chain then that could be the difference between profit and going out of business.
Real Athens
July 20th, 2012
2:56 pm
Hey Thulsa Dope,
And who “aids” big business?
“Corporations are people, my friend” – Mitt Romney.
Saxby Chambliss is the best friend Monsanto and Conagra ever had (his son Bo works for them) are small farmers small businesses?
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
3:01 pm
Regulations add to expenses, which may be the difference between a profit and hiring more people and a loss and having to let them go……and the number of customers might be a constant.
Regulations are the cost of doing business – every company in that space has the same regulations. All trucking companies face the same regulations. All stapler makers face the same regulations. All calculator makers face the same regulations. All ice cream truck vendors face the same regulations.
It’s the cost of doing business and has to be taken in to account when starting a business. If you can’t make a profit, start a different business. Otherwise, it’s just a normal everyday republican crying point.
Any manager you see – anywhere – who is blaming regulations for his/her not being able to earn profits is a lazy slob or an idiot who shouldn’t be in business anyway. If you can’t make a profit and don’t leave the industry then you have to question your ability to think clearly.
Republicans want to keep failing businesses open for what reason? Republicans want sorry managers to keep on losing money and laying off people because of what?
Oh, that’s right. They can probably write the losses off on their taxes. So we, the tax payers, get to subsidize these losers cause Republicans love em and need their votes?
md
July 20th, 2012
3:01 pm
As for actual examples…..pick one, they are right in front of your face…start with Dodd-Frank, think having to have an accountant/accounting department read through that thing and make sure one is complying doesn’t cost money??
Here’s another…..”state waters”………did you people know that one has to have any standing body of water looked at by the corps of engineers to ensure it is NOT state waters. And that even the ditch in front of your house can be classified as state waters? And that waiting on the corps to send out an engineer can take up to 12 months? No cost there, right?
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
July 20th, 2012
3:03 pm
If you have a new regulation that adversely affects a small, independent grocery store or a smaller grocery chain then that could be the difference between profit and going out of business.
Then LEARN how to make a profit – do the work, pull all nighters working on the problems. Hire people who can solve problems. Otherwise, close you doors cause you are just a drain on all the other businesses.
Jefferson
July 20th, 2012
3:05 pm
Romney should get a VP that has more jack than he does, just to take the pressure off. You know more money oversees and stuff.
Dusty
July 20th, 2012
3:06 pm
Well, I forgot to throw out the welcome mat for refugees from the blog next door. I am sure they miss the twisted pretzel bits they are fed every day. Kyle serves only wholesome vittles here. (I am definitely into food comparisons today, Real Athens)
Anyway, dear wandering ones, Kyle does have REGULATIONS!!! Tada! If you do not behave, you are thrown into the outer darkness. If you cry and sniffle, Kyle does have a box of Kleenex on his desk.
Now, for the most part, I am off to mind my small “business”. Just one delightful household, a few tomato plants and a feral cat !!
Don’t forget,: MYOB and no monkey business!
Jefferson
July 20th, 2012
3:06 pm
Oh yea, just pass the cost of regulation on to the customer, it will be fine.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
July 20th, 2012
3:09 pm
“I still don’t have an answer to my question.”
Yes you have Filter; you just choose not to do your own reading.
However in the spirit of hoping you’ll finally shut up with your foolish question:
Obamacare.
Far more than 10 regulations in THAT steaming pile which will cost businesses plenty.
md
July 20th, 2012
3:11 pm
“Corporations are people too ”
Hmmm…..Chik-fil-a just announced an opinion…….are corporations capable of doing that?
Dusty
July 20th, 2012
3:11 pm
Uh oh, Finn is here to start his second job. I shoulda left earlier.
md
July 20th, 2012
3:13 pm
“Then LEARN how to make a profit”
They did……hence the 20 million people looking for jobs……