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National Association of Women Business Owners, Inland NW Chapter
Re: Washington DC Follow-up report from attendee, Amanda Stirn
NAWBO's Top Advocacy Issues
Immigration
There are new I-9 requirements that were released in 2007, including a voluntary E-Verify Option. The E-Verify option offers employers a way to quickly verify employment eligibility and to ensure that new employees are employable so they avoid being fined for either not having the right forms or hiring someone not eligible to work in the United States. Our sister chapters close to the boarder such as Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California, are spending anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000 per month to handle the onslaught of requirements for reporting new hires, including being subjected to continual audits because their workforce consists of migrant workers working in the US on temporary visas or green cards. To find out more about recent changes to immigration laws already in place, visit www.uscis.gov and follow the "For Employers" link on the left hand side of the page.
Health Care
NAWBO continues to support affordable health-insurance offerings for small businesses that would lower costs and promote multi-year predictability for women business owners and their employees. While keeping abreast of federal legislature affecting our business, let's not forget legislative decisions within our state, in health care reform. We should continue to keep an interest in what our officials in Washington State propose to do to create a balanced healthcare system that provides access to AFFORDABLE healthcare, both for individuals and business owners providing insurance to their employees.
Some insurance concerns discussed with women business owners across the nation at the conference are access to insurance premiums that offer fair and balanced coverage for people with pre-existing conditions, prescription coverage, mental health coverage, controlled pricing, lower deductibles, and benefits provided to employers who successfully implement a wellness program that proves to be successful in overall employee insurance claims. Prescription costs are also at the forefront of discussions.
There are some excellent articles on health care at www.ConsumerReports.org dated January 2008.
Here are some sample articles from the Consumer Reports site we discussed at one of the Health Care breakout sessions.
NAWBO has formed the Health Care Working Group to assist local chapters in developing work groups centered on following changes to health care and progress to reform. There are regular conference-call meetings on the second Wednesday of each month. Please visit www.nawbo.org, follow the advocacy and action link and select Health Care for more information.
Tax Reform
One of the key discussion points while in Washington was the Supplemental Budget presented during the Public Policy convention. I discovered that the view on the budget varied from business woman to business woman, which led me to actually research exactly what was in both the budget and stimulus package. One heated subject in particular is the tax refund money that will be disbursed in the summer of 2008. Some argued that it would put money back into the economy and help retail sales, while others argued that the nation is already in debt as are some of the recipients of the tax rebates and that we are essentially encouraging spending money we do not have both nationally and individually.
To find out more about President Bushes economic stimulus package and the fiscal-year 2009 budget request, click here or here.
Both of these links will open detailed PDF documents. You may want to do some independent research to narrow down the "nuts and bolts" of the stimulus package into simplified terms.
To read more regarding NAWBO's stand on tax reform and issues affecting our businesses and private lives, visit www.nawbo.org, go to advocacy and action, and follow the Tax Reform Link.
Federal Procurement
One of the most important items on the agenda in federal procurement is the long standing battle between the SBA, The US Women's Chamber of Congress, and federal legislators. The heated debate involves the SBA's continued snowballing of its obligation to create a true opportunity for Women Owned Small Business to achieve their 5% share of federal contracts. This includes the SBA's non-enforcement of better controls when it comes to contract bundling and the regulation of the larger federal contractor's obligation to utilize women-owned businesses, small businesses, and minority-owned businesses as sub contractors in their projects.
The newest update is that the SBA has request a ruling to include only 4 of the 2300 categories established by the North American Industrial Classification System. This target group is based on the SBA's independent consultant's "industrial survey" conducted in 2006. The survey has been scrutinized and the findings are being challenged.
For those who have had any government work or are trying to obtain government contracts, this ruling would be substantially devastating for women-owned businesses outside of the 4 selected industrial types. The debate between all parties involved is that there has been no due process. Furthermore, there is clear bias in the SBA's set-aside program because Veteran Owned, HUB ZONE, and other minority-owned, disadvantaged businesses have no constraints concerning which NAICS they will receive set aside-contracts on. However, the SBA is stipulating that Women-Owned, Small Businesses will only receive "set aside" contracts for 4 of the 2300 categories which is the reason for the outcry about not allowing the ruling to pass. It is biased, unbalanced, and unfair.
Regardless of whether or not you are a contractor for the government, the point is the SBA never fulfilled its obligation. The federal courts have ruled that the SBA has not fulfilled the requirements and continues to fail to meet regulations in the Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 637 (m) (Equity in Women's Contracting Act). The SBA continues to stall the implementation through a combination of submitted rule changes and out-right non-compliance. To find out more about the SBA proposed ruling and the history of this ongoing battle, follow this link,
OR you can Google "Small Business Act, 15 U.S.C. 637" and choose from a multitude of articles regarding this issue.
Speakers
Sandra Day O'Connor had to cancel her presentation due to a family illness; however, we had several great speakers, including inspirational speakers such as Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, Chair of the American Red Cross. My favorite was the panel discussion after Super Tuesday that included several political analyst, all of whom I have seen on CNN, Fox, and CBS. It was a very diverse group, both republican and democratic. The interaction between the audience and the panelist was both entertaining and thought-provoking.
Visit to Legislators Offices
The last event of the conferences was my visit to Capitol Hill. It was an honor for me to meet with their staff and to know that our House and Senate positions are all held by women; that is truly empowering. I met with legislative aids to discuss the various issues NAWBO is addressing using their core-advocacy point sheet they provided for us. The discussion included a need for better health insurance options for small businesses, tax reform, and a request to over-turn the SBA's rule request to narrow the federal opportunities for women-owned businesses to only 4 categories. I am proud to say that all of our Washington legislators are not agreeing to the new SBA rule. However, during our debriefing back at the conference, many of the participants were shocked that their senators and representatives were clueless to the impact of that SBA rule if it is allowed.
We ate lunch in one of the many buildings that make up the House of Representatives. We had a chance to hear directly from Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia who is a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. He offered feedback and answered questions specific to Health Insurance for Small Business, his non-support of the SBA proposed ruling, and his support of the Tax-Code Termination Act, which is scrutinized and applauded across the board. If you want to find out more regarding the Tax Code Termination Act, click here.
Resources
To download everything under the sun for links to legislative research and NAWBO- specific legislative issues, visit www.nawbo.org/section_93.cfm. You can also reach this information by simply going to www.nawbo.org and select "Advocacy and Action" to link directly to specific policy information or to obtain an overview. In addition to NAWBO's involvement in public policy, they have also aligned with Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP). To find out more about WIPP, visit www.WIPP.org.
NAWBO National provides assistance and tools on an individual basis to all NAWBO members nationwide who seek public policy information and ways to get involved and stay informed. NAWBO also recommends forming committees and forums within our own groups. If we don't speak-up, our voices will never be heard.
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