Tag: business

Congress must act now to save small businesses like mine

Last Thursday, I had the honor to testify in front of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. My message to the committee was simple: time is running out for small businesses like mine. Unless Congress acts immediately to provide emergency relief, Main Streets across America — including in my county of Prince George’s — might as well hang up giant “Out of Business” signs come January.

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MBE researcher awarded state contract despite protest

A new contract for the company whose work will be used to justify Maryland’s minority business contracting program was awarded in spite of protests from another bidder for the project, which argued that the current contractor puts the program at risk.

The Board of Public works gave a $2 million, three-year extension to National Economic Research Associates Inc., which has worked with the state on its Minority Business Enterprise program since 2000. Under the contract, NERA will continue to study whether the state still needs special programs to direct state contracting dollars to firms owned by minorities and women.

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Marylands sales force debates state competitiveness

The people who sell Maryland to the country and the world spent part of this week debating whether the Free State’s brand is competitive in today’s marketplace.

On the plus side, Maryland has a “great quality of life” and a highly educated workforce, said economist Anirban Basu. On the downside, it has high taxes and a perceived bad attitude toward business.

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Analysis: Hands-on or hands-off? Candidates differ on business outlook

Former Gov. Bob Ehrlich today rolls out a small business initiative as he campaigns to get back his old job.

He told reporters the proposals will be a combination of “things that worked” from his first administration, ideas that come from a series of roundtable discussions he’s held with more than 100 businesses, and best practices “we were able to steal from other states.”

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Analysis: Big hole in jobless fund created legislative battle

Two numbers illustrate why changing unemployment insurance is such an important part of the legislative agenda for business, labor and Gov. Martin O’Malley this session.

Last February, Maryland’s unemployment insurance trust fund had $680 million in it. A year later it holds just $50 million, and is paying out $20 million a week to the jobless.

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