Government Impact on Small Business - Universal

Ten words we never want to hear are “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.” It is with good reason that business owners have come to distrust the government’s helping hand. Joe Ricci, President & CEO of TRSA, exposed the laws and regulations that will add $1.76 trillion annually to the cost of doing business in the United States.

Joe contends that much of the dysfunction in our government can be attributed to redistricting and polarization of media, but whatever the cause, it is clear that the resulting regulations are not helpful for small business owners. Some of the changes coming from Washington that Joe mentioned are:

• The FLSA expansion of overtime eligibility will affect pay for mid level managers

• OSHA injury and illness reporting that may provide an entry point for union activity and put your safety incentive programs under scrutiny

• The Persuader Rule forces the disclosure to employees and the federal government when you seek the advice of a labor attorney

• EEOC reporting escalated to include pay data relating to gender, race and ethnicity of employees

• Additional 7 days per year paid sick leave for employees of businesses that have any government contracts

• NLRB creation of a new joint employee standard expanding liability under the National Labor Relations Act.

• EPA redefinition of “Waters of the U. S.” impacts commercial laundries discharge limits While many of the federal regulations are onerous, Joe reported some positive action that TRSA accomplished on a state and local level such as:

• Tax rebate legislation in Missouri allowing for tax rebates on any product used in the processing of laundry (excluding textiles) that may result in an average savings of $20,000 annual savings per plant.

• Redefining laundries as manufacturers in Texas and Wisconsin may result in lower tax rates and incentives from local governments.

• Removed the required reporting of names and addresses of both clients and employees from the New York City Clean Act to prevent Labor solicitation.

• Working with California to update outdated regulations of time and temperature for processing healthcare linen to reflect modern technologies.

• Working with publicly owned treatment works to establish increased allowances for PH levels in discharge.

Joe also discussed other challenges and opportunities facing small businesses and the changes that may present themselves with the coming election. Take advantage of the replay of the entire presentation in the Video Library section of the Member web site.