Legislative session did nothing to help, leaving only a congressional remedy as the only hope
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tony Gagliardi, Colorado State Director, [email protected],
or Tony Malandra, Senior Media Manager, [email protected]
DENVER, June 13, 2023—Today’s release of the National Federation of Independent Business’ monthly Small Business Economic Trends report (aka the Optimism Index) didn’t show anything radically different than the previous 17, making the inability to find workers and inflation seemingly the new normal.
“Unfortunately, Colorado’s Legislature did not take meaningful action this session to brighten the economic outlook among our state’s Main Street businesses,” said Tony Gagliardi, Colorado state director for NFIB. “This leaves the Congressional passage of the Main Street Tax Certainty Act and other pro-small business legislation as a top priority. Failing to do so will result in unaffordable tax increases and continued uncertainty. We urge Colorado’s congressional delegation to support the Main Street Tax Certainty Act and additional pro-small business legislation that would provide relief for Main Street.”
Gagliardi also called on Gov. Jared Polis to issue a call for a special session for the purpose of coming up with an alternative to Proposition HH, which Gagliardi called “a light at the end of the tunnel from a train coming the wrong way.”
The SBET (Optimism Index) is a national snapshot of NFIB-member, small-business owners not broken down by state. The typical NFIB member employs 10 people and reports gross sales of about $500,000 a year. This latest Index rose 0.4 points in May to 89.4, but it marked the 17th consecutive month below the survey’s 49-year history of 98.
From NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg
“Overall, small business owners are expressing concerns for future business conditions. Supply chain disruptions and labor shortages will continue to limit the ability of many small firms to meet the demand for their products and services, while less severe than last year’s experience.”
Highlights from today’s report
- Forty-four percent of owners reported job openings that were hard to fill, down one point from April and remaining historically very high.
- The net percent of owners raising average selling prices decreased one point to a net 32% (seasonally adjusted), still an inflationary level but trending down.
- The net percent of owners who expect real sales to be higher deteriorated two points from April to a net negative 21%.
Keep up with the latest Colorado small-business news at www.nfib.com/colorado or by following NFIB on Twitter @NFIB_CO or on Facebook @NFIB.CO
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For 80 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven association. Since its founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.
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Denver, CO 80203
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www.nfib.com/colorado
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