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State Representative Patti Fritz
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-8237
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
NEWS COLUMN
SMALL BUSINESS CAUCUS CREATED TO REVITILIZE BUSINESS COMMUNITY
We learned recently that despite some indications of economic recovery, the unemployment numbers in our area continue to rise. For the first time in 20 years, Rice County hit a double-digit unemployment rate, growing to 10 percent. It is clear that job retention and creation continues to be a top priority for our state.
Throughout both my professional and legislative career, I have been a strong advocate for workers. I worked last session to extend JOBZ to help create jobs and secured significant bonding dollars for local projects. I also carried legislation to extend unemployment benefits and workmans compensation for non-profits, among others. I am always looking for innovative ways to keep the jobs we have and create new opportunities.
One group of Minnesotans who understand our economy’s current challenges better than most are the small business owners. Their entrepreneurship and innovation have long served as the foundation of our state’s economic success and they employ countless Minnesotans in every industry. Especially in Greater Minnesota, small businesses play a central role in our local economy, providing jobs and services our communities depend on. Any effort to restore Minnesota’s struggling economy must address the unique challenges facing our small business community.
One idea for helping small businesses is to make health care benefits more readily available. With costs going up, more and more employers are finding it difficult to offer health care plans for their employees, oftentimes losing qualified workers to larger companies that offer benefits. For those who do offer insurance, rising premium costs are eating up any wage increases that have been offered. In Minnesota, we are fortunate to have MinnesotaCare, a state-run plan people can purchase if their employer does not provide insurance, but this coverage is not available for everyone. The national health care reform efforts may help by making insurance portable, allowing workers to keep it from one job to another, and payment reform efforts could reduce health care costs.
Having a retirement system available to every worker, regardless where they work, would also level the playing field for small businesses. Other thoughts include equal access to the Internet highway, and a world-class education system, including post-secondary training and education.
In an effort to do everything possible to revitalize Minnesota’s small business economy, the Minnesota House is creating a new Small Business Caucus – an alliance comprised of both Democrats and Republicans committed to making Minnesota a stronger, more competitive place to do business. Through sensible, innovative policy reforms based on the input of small business owners, we will work to renew Minnesota’s commitment to helping our small businesses meet the challenges of a fast-paced, changing global economic environment.
We can’t do that work alone. This fall, I will host a town meeting in Faribault to provide local workers and business owners with the opportunity to share with us what they believe can be done at the legislature to help create jobs. I would like to hear your concerns and ideas, and moving forward, your continued involvement. Now, more than ever, it is critical for all parties involved to come together and work hand-in-hand to make Minnesota’s vision for a better economy a clear and certain economic reality. I look forward to partnering with local businesses and workers in that effort.
News Items
- STATE REP. PATTI FRITZ PARTICIPATES IN START OF LEGISLATIVE SESSION - (Posted: Jan 9 2013 3:32PM)
- Rep. Fritz: Homeowners, Farmers Need Property Tax Relief - (Posted: 2012-05-01 00:00:00)
- Rep. Fritz: Let’s Vote on a Bonding Bill that Benefits All - (Posted: 2012-04-19 00:00:00)
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