http://www.nfib.com/Keep up with the latest news, politics and events for small business in California.en-usEM3 iOnwebmaster@nfib.orghttp://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36133.htmlDue to years of living beyond its means, California continues to face a challenging budget situation in the Capitol. When Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger presented his 2008-2009 budget, it included 10 percent cuts across the board to deal with the $14 billion-plus state deficit. Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36609.htmlRead the April/May 2008 California MyVOICE for details on such issues as healthcare, property rights and activism.Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35530.htmlCalifornia workers who earn the minimum wage will see their pay increase to $8 per hour starting Jan. 1, 2008. California will be tied with Massachusetts for the highest state minimum wage in the nation.Tue, 11 Dec 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/employmentLawCA.htmlWed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_37016.htmlThe leadership of the California Legislature, along with dozens of small business organizations throughout California, are hosting "California Small Business Day 2008 -- A Salute to Small Business." The day will include discussions with leaders from both the legislature and state agencies and an exhibit area with resources for small business owners. Small business owners from around the state will also be honored by their local legislators.Mon, 28 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36132.htmlNFIB scored a major victory for small business in 2007 with the defeat of faux eminent domain reform legislation. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the City of New London, Conn., was justified in taking a private home against the owner's wishes in order to give that property to a private developer because it increased tax revenue. Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36013.htmlRead the February/March 2008 California MyVOICE for details on such issues as health care, eminent domain and activism.Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36131.htmlSince 2005, NFIB has killed a dozen mandated healthcare reform bills that would have crippled small businesses with new payroll taxes. In January 2007, the governor announced that it would be the "Year of Healthcare Reform." Despite many efforts, including the unsuccessful Assembly Bill 8 (Nunez), which would have imposed a 7.5 percent payroll tax on employers, we have yet to see reform get off the ground. Several NFIB members were able to meet privately with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his staff to discuss the reform efforts that they support, and remind him of their opposition to mandates and more taxes.Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35529.htmlIn recent years, greedy local government hands have increasingly used the power of eminent domain to seize private property for private projects that often benefit developers and big businesses at the expense of homeowners and small businesses, replacing modest homes and productive small businesses with large retail and industrial parks. California needs real private property protections!Tue, 11 Dec 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_37039.htmlAsk Manuel Cosme what his biggest concerns are as a small business owner, and the answer comes quickly: "Healthcare insurance is no longer affordable, payroll taxes are a financial burden to small businesses and increased employer mandates are discouraging businesses to start or expand."Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36250.htmlThe National Federation of Independent Business/California named Sunder Ramani of Penta Resources as its 2008 Small-Business Champion.Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35998.htmlSmall-business owners dodged a bullet yesterday with the defeat of California's health bill. For the last year, health care policymakers across the country were watching closely as California attempted this major health care overhaul. Small-business owners have consistently voiced a need for reform but, as we learned in this case, it can't come at the expense of significant job loss. Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36147.htmlSince no one wants to call an expensive lawyer every time they have a question concerning the do's and don'ts of hiring, or managing and paying their employees, the National Federation of Independent Business Legal Foundation has partnered with DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary US LLP to create the <I>California Employment Law Handbook for Small Business</i>.Thu, 07 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35795.html"NFIB/California appreciates the governor's recommendation for tough cuts throughout California," said NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck. "As small-business owners know, when income projections do not meet expectations, cuts must be made in order to keep the doors open."Thu, 10 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35565.html"By advancing the largest single tax increase in California history, the governor and Legislature propose shutting down the life support system of our state's already-struggling small-business community," said John Kabateck, executive director of NFIB/California. "A 6.5 percent payroll tax on California's largest job creator will force businesses to pay billions of dollars in new taxes, cause hundreds of thousands of jobs to be lost and undermine California's fragile economy. Employers will have no choice but to issue pink slips, leave positions vacant, or, worst of all, shut their doors forever."Mon, 17 Dec 2007 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35568.html"NFIB/California is gravely disappointed that the Assembly irresponsibly passed a bill creating a state health-care bureaucracy with no funding during a major budget crisis. AB1X passes the buck and dodges the difficult issues, including funding and actual cost containment provisions. Instead, this 'deal' leaves small-business owners holding the check as our leaders dash for the door," said NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck.Mon, 17 Dec 2007 12:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35961.html"Small business owners can breathe a sigh of relief with the defeat of ABX1 1 in the Senate Health committee today," said NFIB/California Executive Director John Kabateck.Mon, 28 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_37015.html"We are disappointed that Governor Schwarzenegger has come out in opposition to Proposition 98," said NFIB/Caliornia Executive Director John Kabateck. "The California economy depends on the jobs that small businesses create, and now, in the middle of a massive state budget deficit, is no time to make it more difficult for people to continue to create jobs. As we've said before, if you don't have a roof over your head and place to do business, none of the other issues -- healthcare or workers' comp, to name a few -- matter."Fri, 25 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36863.html"When small businesses are struggling to stay afloat and the state is struggling to pay its bills, the Assembly Labor Committee's passage of a first-state-in-the-nation paid sick leave mandate that will cost jobs ignores the most basic economic principles," said John Kabateck, NFIB/California executive director. "Yet again, the Legislature moved ahead with a San Francisco style-scheme that puts California further out of touch with the rest of the nation."Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36864.html"California small business owners are gravely disappointed in the Assembly Labor Committee's decision to kill this fair and meaningful legislation," said John Kabateck, NFIB/California executive director. "California remains one of a few states that restrict employees to daily overtime. Current laws impose a burdensome one-size-fits-all alternative workweek schedule procedure, so the failure of AB 2127 means that small business employees and their families are kept from the same benefit that labor unions currently enjoy."Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36517.html"California small businesses cannot afford a tax increase that will further drive up the cost of business through government-imposed higher fuel costs," said John Kabateck, NFIB/California executive director. "Considering that gas prices have risen an average of 46 cents in the past several weeks, the audacity of imposing a new tax that will drive up prices is mind-boggling."Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36296.html"California small business owners know that increasing taxes slows economic activity and depresses small business job growth," said John Kabateck, NFIB/California executive director. "The governor's January budget followed the lead of California families and small businesses by cutting out-of-control costs to deal with our state's spending problem."Wed, 20 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36640.htmlThe National Federation of Independent Business, the nation's leading small business organization, today joined the legal fight to overturn San Francisco's Health Care Security Ordinance. This law, enacted by the city in 2006, mandates that all private employers with more than 20 employees pay an assigned amount of money towards employee healthcare or pay the city a fee based on the number of employees and hours worked. Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36934.htmlFor new businesses, California's primary business tax collector, the Board of Equalization, requires a security deposit as high as $50,000 to ensure that these businesses pay their tax bills. The deposit is due to be returned in three years if the business pays all taxes due. However, a recent investigation into practices of the Board of Equalization revealed that nearly $40 million in illegally withheld security deposits.Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_37109.htmlAs part of the recently launched <I>Solutions Start Here</i> healthcare campaign, the National Federation of Independent Business is conducting "Fix-it Forums" across the country to engage small business owners and employees in conversations about the healthcare challenges they face. Tue, 06 May 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36855.htmlCalifornia's business community has consistently stood united when government has sought to raise taxes and increase regulatory burdens on those responsible for keeping our economy strong and protecting jobs. Remarkably, this solidarity does not apply to the protection of small businesses from government abuse of eminent domain by seizing small businesses in favor of "Big Box" retailers that promise more money for city coffers.Tue, 08 Apr 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35857.htmlThis week, a broad-based coalition of California property owners announced that the California Secretary of State has certified the qualification of the "California Property Owners and Farmland Protection Act" for the June 2008 ballot. In November of last year, a coalition of home and business owners, family farmers and taxpayer groups submitted over 1.1 million signatures.Thu, 17 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_36196.htmlJanine Montoya's father had been a member of NFIB for more than 20 years when she was asked to join about a year ago. "I understood what NFIB was about," she says. "I love that lobbying is their emphasis -- not networking, not group buying ability. They jump into the fray of all that matters to me and my business. I am compelled to be involved in the legislative process as the decisions of my government affect me and my family personally and acutely."Tue, 12 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_35864.htmlThe National Federation of Independent Business/California has applauded a recently released report that disputes claims by private property rights opponents that eminent domain is a required tool to for urban renewal. Fri, 18 Jan 2008 00:00:00 PST http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_26758.htmlIn April 2004, following years of massive workers' compensation rate increases, the California State Legislature responded to the leadership of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, NFIB and the threat of an initiative by the people of California and finally enacted significant workers' compensation reforms that promised to significantly reduce employers' premium bills. In 2005, the reforms finally took their completed shape and began to cut costs, lower premiums and increase competition as new insurance companies entered the market.Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 PST