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Legislators to take on issues affecting small businesses

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by Bryan Smith

SBJ Contributing Writer

WASHINGTON, D.C. As communities nationwide celebrate Small Business Week, Missouri Rep. Jim Talent says the government should do more for small-business owners who worry about being sued by employees over problems from aching wrists to hurt feelings.

"It's uncontested and obvious that small businesses want safety, and they want help," Talent said. "If you want to work to accomplish these goals and you're a small business, we want to help you."

Talent has spent the past few weeks preparing initiatives regarding this and other small-business concerns for Small Business Week.

In a speech made to the Small Business Survival Committee May 19, Talent, who serves as the chair man for the House Small Business Committee, emphasized necessary reforms in government regulations, which would be responsible for "changing the way small businesses operate."

Those reforms include helping businesses avoid fines from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Talent said OSHA should grant a two-year, penalty-free period if businesses meet guidelines or can do so within a reasonable amount of time.

Small business is an area Talent focuses his time on throughout the year.

"I try to make every week Small Business Week," Talent said.

Talent said small businesses are crucial not just to the economy, but to their communities, as well.

"Small-business people are the backbone of their communities," Talent said. "What's good for small businesses is good for Missouri and for America."

Talent said he hopes to focus on the safety issue, as well as health care issues for small businesses, during Small Business Week.

Talent has scheduled three hearings for the week. The first, a subcommittee meeting, will revolve around empowerment and will take place the morning of May 25.

Talent also will discuss electronic commerce in a full committee hearing the afternoon of May 26.

The subcommittee will reconvene May 27 to talk about government programs, specifically the Small Business Innovation Research Program.

Missouri Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, who serves as the chairman for the Senate Small Business Committee, seems to be advocating the same issues as Talent.

May 18, Bond introduced a bill to require OSHA to delay moving forward an ergonomics rule or guideline until completion of an independent study of the medical and scientific evidence linking on-the-job activities and repetitive stress injuries.

"OSHA appears determined to put the ergonomics cart before the horse, despite the fact that Congress and the president have agreed to have the National Academy of Sciences conduct a thorough review of the merits of scientific and medical data surrounding this debate," Bond said.

"This is a very complicated issue and we need sound science and thorough medical evidence to help guide us down the right path for both small business and their employees," he added.

Bond has moved to make changes in health care for small businesses as well. May 7 he urged the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee to include immediate, full deductibility of health insurance premiums for the self-employed in the health care reform legislation that the Finance Committee is expected to mark up this month,

"It is totally unfair that large corporations can deduct 100 percent of their share of employees' health care costs, while the self-employed farmer, child-care provider and truck driver can only deduct 60 percent of their costs," Bond said in materials distributed to the press.

Bond is also holding hearings during Small Business Week.

As of May 19, Bond had scheduled one committee meeting. That hearing is titled "Education Success=Business Success," and is scheduled for May 25. The purpose of the meeting is "to hold hearings relating to education and business success."

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