Job Creation

As Tax Filing Extension Deadlines Near, IRS and HHS Announce New Round of Outreach to Small Businesses and Practitioners

As the upcoming filing extension tax deadlines approach, the Internal Revenue Service, in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services, is announcing a new round of outreach to small employers and the professional service providers they rely on to encourage them to review the new Small Business Health Care Tax Credit to see if they are eligible.

"As the filing deadlines approach, we want to make sure that small business owners don't leave any money on the table,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “Small businesses that offer health insurance should learn about this credit and claim it if they are eligible."

The small business health care tax credit was included in the Affordable Care Act enacted last year. Small employers that pay at least half of the premiums for employee health insurance coverage under a qualifying arrangement may be eligible for the small business health care tax credit. The credit is specifically targeted to help small businesses and tax-exempt organizations that primarily employ 25 or fewer workers with average income of $50,000 or less.

President Obama announced a new policy that will accelerate payments to small business contractors so they can reinvest that money in the economy and drive job growth. 

Small businesses are the primary engine of job creation and job growth across the country. However, in today’s economic climate many face tight budgets and limited resources. With these challenges in mind, last week in his address to Congress the President emphasized the need to take common sense steps to give small businesses the flexibility they need to invest and hire. And that is what we are doing today.

Startups, newly established and growing small businesses now have a new source of financing backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration as 20 community organizations have been funded by SBA to start making loans up to $200,000 to qualifying small businesses.

Authorized under the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, the new Intermediary Lending Pilot Program will provide direct loans up to $1 million to 20 community organizations or intermediaries in fiscal year 2011, which in turn will use those funds to help finance small businesses, mostly in underserved markets.

MBDA Seeks Bids for Business Center Focused Exclusively on Federal Procurement

The month of May has brought with it a number of announcements, news releases and opportunities of interest to the MBE constituency MBDA serves.  With this month’s newsletter I’d like to highlight two opportunities for your participation—one designed to create jobs and another intended to reform government rules. I’d also like to present new business statistics about Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Other Pacific Islander businesses.  

Just last week, the Obama Administration announced the Jobs and Innovation Accelerator Challenge to promote innovation and job growth and advance our global competitiveness. The competition offers a total of $33 million in funding from three federal agencies and technical assistance from 13 additional agencies to promote the development of at least 20 industry clusters across the country. The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration will be investing $10 million in funding and the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) will be supporting the program’s implementation.

The goal of the program is to spur economic growth through public-private partnerships in 20 regions across the country.  Applicants to this federal funding opportunity will be considered based on their ability to demonstrate a focus and measurable outcomes on achieving sustainable economic growth in the region; augmenting business formation, especially of small businesses, and leveraging existing business assets; increasing exports; developing a skilled workforce through outreach, training and the creation of career pathways, and integrating historically underserved businesses and communities into the economic activities of the regional cluster.