NFIB Sends Message to Lawmakers in Boston Herald

December 16, 2022

NFIB Sends Message to Lawmakers in Boston Herald

Massachusetts State Director Chris Carlozzi recently penned an Opinion column in the Boston Herald about what small business is asking from lawmakers this upcoming legislative session. You can read the column here and below. One of the best parts of this time of year is watching our favorite Christmas and holiday films to celebrate the season. Whether a classic, something from our childhood, or a movie we convince ourselves fits the holiday genre, these stories have become traditions in many households. However, some of these films also serve as a reminder of the struggles facing Massachusetts small businesses right now. In Christmas Vacation, Clark Griswold sustains his fair share of injuries attempting to spread yuletide cheer, highlighting the dangers of hanging lights, sledding, and finding that perfect tree. But what you did not see after the credits rolled were the exorbitant medical bills he faced for his numerous hospital visits. Instead of swimming in that new pool, Clark will instead need his Christmas bonus to avoid swimming in debt. Massachusetts small businesses already experience some of the highest health insurance costs in the nation. Even in years when Massachusetts was below the state’s health growth benchmark, small business owners still faced double-digit premium increases. In 2023, lawmakers must address the high price tag of health insurance for small businesses and their workers. In order for employers to offer the robust types of benefit plans that are attractive to prospective workers, they must ensure small businesses and their employees have access to affordable health coverage. Everyone knows the story of George Bailey who, with the help of his guardian angel, realizes his life is remarkable despite falling upon difficult times. In It’s a Wonderful Life, Bedford Falls residents struggled through the Great Depression, leaving many without jobs. In Massachusetts, the state’s unemployment insurance fund, which provides benefits to the jobless and is supported by employer taxes, requires significant reforms. Massachusetts’ unemployment insurance system allows for the highest maximum benefit in the country along with extremely lax eligibility requirements. Attempts at meaningful reform are often met with immediate opposition from lawmakers who feel the solution is to instead increase UI taxes on small business owners to ensure the fund’s solvency. The pandemic ravaged the state’s UI fund, leaving employers with a hefty bill. Other states used federal funding to shore-up their respective UI trusts, but Massachusetts legislators only provided a fraction of what was necessary. In fact, the Tax Foundation consistently ranks Massachusetts as worst in the nation when it comes to UI taxes. Lawmakers must provide UI tax relief for small businesses who are still paying for pandemic-related layoffs that were a result of state mandated shutdowns and restrictions. We usually think of Arnold Schwarzenegger as an indestructible action hero, but in Jingle All the Way he plays a bumbling father trying to secure the impossible-to-find Turbo Man that tops his son’s Christmas list. Small business shops and restaurants are dealing with supply chain disruptions, labor shortages, and record-high inflation. Like Arnold desperately trying to find the out-of-stock gift, small business owners are struggling to fill open positions with qualified workers. Due to prolonged inflation, small businesses are paying more for products and raw materials, further driving up costs for consumers. Massachusetts elected officials must find a way to provide much-needed tax relief to both residents and small businesses after their efforts fell short in 2022. The movie Elf proved Santa’s sleigh runs on Christmas cheer, so an impromptu chorus of Santa Claus is Coming to Town helped provide the needed lift to get the reindeer back into the air to save Christmas. Small businesses may run on more practical types of fuel, but much like Santa’s sleigh, energy bills have skyrocketed into the stratosphere. Businesses need energy to keep stores warm, prepare food at restaurants, preserve groceries at supermarkets, and operate machinery in factories. For many Massachusetts residents and businesses, energy bills have more than doubled in recent months. State lawmakers must find ways to bring more clean, affordable natural gas into Massachusetts to meet demand and lower energy expenses. It should not take three ghosts to remind our elected officials that small businesses play a vital role in our communities. State and local policies must allow for an environment that encourages Main Street business growth and expansion through job creation in order to strengthen our local economies. That will involve working to make health insurance and energy more affordable, providing a reprieve from prolonged inflation, and much like Hans Gruber’s fate at the end of Die Hard, throwing the moniker of “Taxachusetts” away for good. Christopher Carlozzi is the State Director for NFIB here in Massachusetts.

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State:

Massachusetts

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