Today the U.S. Department of Labor announced that in May only 54,000 jobs were created while the unemployment rate rose to 9.1 percent. The disastrous economic policies executed by the Obama Administration along with the continued uncertainty they have created is a big reason why we are not seeing recovery or enough jobs created.

Hopefully, this news will be a wakeup call to the White House and Senate that they must start working with House Republicans on policies that will create jobs and cut wasteful spending, such as the Plan for America’s Job Creators that we recently unveiled. This plan includes common sense policies that remove uncertainty for our job creators by reducing regulatory burdens, lowering business tax rates to 25 percent, spurring exports by passing the pending free trade agreements, and introducing a budget that gets our nation’s fiscal house in order. Instituting these actions will get government out of the way and allow business owners to start handing out paychecks instead of more pink slips.



Sam Graves
Chairman

On Wednesday, House Small Business Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-MO) held a full committee hearing to examine access to capital needed by small businesses to grow and create jobs. Small business owners and bank lenders testified to the many challenges they face when deciding to expand or to lend money. A lack of economic confidence coupled with the new, cumbersome and inconsistent lending requirements is leaving many business owners unable to obtain the capital they need just to stay in business. 

Click on video player above to watch Chairman Graves discuss capital access

On Thursday, Healthcare and Technology Subcommittee Chairwoman Renee Ellmers (R-NC) held a hearing to examine the barriers small medical practices face in adopting health information technology. Digitizing records can increase efficiency and patient care while decreasing medical errors and paperwork. However, financial, legal and technology barriers prevent many small practices from moving forward with electronic record keeping.   

Click for more photos from the Health IT Hearing 

News From Washington

On Tuesday, the House overwhelmingly rejected a proposal (H.R. 1954) to raise the nation’s debt limit without cutting spending by a vote of 97-318. Every House Republican voted no, as did 82 Democrats. This vote proved that there is a strong majority in Congress who believe that any deal that increases the debt limit should include significant spending cuts.

On Wednesday, the House passed the Small Business Additional Temporary Extension Act of 2011 (S. 1082) 387-33. In addition to extending the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program through the end of the fiscal year, the bill also extends five programs carried out by the Small Business Administration for two months. Already passed by the Senate, the bill is now on the way to the President’s desk.

On Thursday, the House passed the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act of 2012 (H.R. 2017) by a vote of 231-188. This bill will provide funding for the Department of Homeland Security for Fiscal Year 2012.

On Friday, the House voted on H.Res. 292, declaring that the President shall not deploy, establish, or maintain the presence United States Armed Forces on the ground in Libya. The resolution also gives the White House 14 days to inform Congress of a justification for involvement in Libya and a rationale on why Congressional authorization was not sought. The resolution passed 268-145-1.

• Reuters: May Jobless Rate Rose to 9.1%
• WSJ: Small Businesses in 'Soft Patch'
• Washington Post: U.S. Economy: Manufacturing Slowdown the Latest Sign the Recovery is Faltering
• NYT: Employment Data May Be the Key to the President’s Job
• Fox Business: Gas Prices Still Pinching Small Business Owners

• Graves Applauds Passage of Small Business Extension Bill
• Ellmers Examines Barriers in Health IT for Small Medical Practices
• West Sparks Witness Frustration: Federal Lending Regulators Are Inconsistent
• Tipton: 'All of the above' Energy Policy Needed 
• King on Fox News Discussing Debt Meeting with President 

• ARTBA’s 2011 National Convention, Oct. 2-5
• NFIB: 3 Books Small Business Owners Should Read in 2011
• AHIP: Healthcare Coverage Blog