U.S. Chamber survey: Small firms worried about economy, health-care law

Nearly 80 percent of the nation’s small-business owners believe the economy is “off on the wrong track” and say the requirements of the national health-care reform law are now the “biggest concern.”

The finding is part of the latest quarterly small-business survey from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, issued today.

The respondents also believe that federal-government policies hamper hiring and growth, with 27 percent of small-business owners indicating they’ve lost employees in the last year.

The concern about the health-care law leads small-business concerns for the first time in two years, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.  The survey finds 31 percent of respondents plan to reduce hours and the number of full-time employees “to avoid triggering the employer mandate,” the organization said in a news release.

Beginning in 2014, the law will impose large financial penalties on certain employers that don’t provide health-insurance coverage, and, in some cases, on employers that do provide coverage, according to the website of the National Federation of Independent Business, an organization that advocates for the nation’s small businesses.

“While the general trends of the economy appear to be improving, a closer look shows workforce participation still falling and full time employment still historically low,”  Martin Regalia, the U.S. Chamber’s chief economist, said in the news release. “In today’s economy, we need policies that will breed confidence and encourage small businesses to expand, not cut back staff and employees’ hours. With the right policies in place, small business owners’ optimism and confidence in the economy will improve.”

Rochester–based Harris Interactive conducted the online survey of more than 1,300 small-business executives in March.