“Economic certainty” is the critical element being sought by Colorado small businesses as 2012 approaches, according to Tony Gagliardi, the Colorado and Wyoming state director of the National Federation of Independent Business.
Gagliardi said that was the unequivocal message that 7,500 Colorado NFIB business people expressed in their answers to the NFIB’s annual survey released today.
“Their message is ‘leave us alone’,” said Gagliardi. ‘We know best. If you want to create jobs, create economic certainty.”
The 2012 Colorado Member Ballot asked five questions.
Among them: “Would you support expanding the state’s sales tax on goods to include business and professional services to help support the state’s budget?”
Ninety-one percent said no; 6 percent said yes, and 3 percent were undecided.
Gagliardi said the members are against having to pay taxes for things like accounting services or legal advice.
Another question was: “Should maximum unemployment benefits be reduced if the unemployment trust fund nears bankruptcy?”
The vast majority – 85 percent – said the benefits should be reduced. Gagliardi said that in recent years, Colorado employers who have laid off workers faced steep hikes in their unemployment insurance taxes or premiums.
Paying the extra money stifles hiring, he said.
The membership also said by a 85 percent margin that laws should not be passed making it illegal for employers to discriminate against the unemployed when making hiring decisions.
Employers don’t know whether the unemployed have retained their skills and there may be questions about their work ethic, he said.
“We want to hire the best people,” said Gagliardi.
Gagliardi said the NFIB membership supports reforms that require labor unions to get annual written permission from each union member prior to using a portion of their dues for political activities.
“We believe employees should have that right when it comes to use of dues,” said Gagliardi.
One area that was not overwhelming was the question of whether Colorado should privatize some public highways, roads, tunnels, and bridges.
Sixty percent said no; 20 percent said yes, and 20 percent were undecided.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
