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Helping Minority-Owned Small Businesses Start and Grow

As we celebrate African American History Month, we are reminded of the remarkable men and women who have made an impact in our communities.  For me, one of those individuals is my grandfather, an entrepreneur and business owner. My grandfather owned a landscaping company that became the first African American-owned firm in Indiana to win a state contract—for cutting the grass along state highways.

My grandfather’s business exemplified the positive role that small business owners play throughout the country.  He made a point of supporting our community by hiring African Americans who had been cut out of the job market by segregation.  Many of his employees prospered and some went on to start their own businesses.

I’ve seen firsthand the effect that small business ownership can have in all our communities, including communities of color.  In fact, it is small business owners who are leading us down the path to economic recovery and prosperity once again. And, minority-owned small businesses are helping lead this effort.

Minority-owned businesses are some of the fastest growing segments of the economy.  From 2002-2007, the number of small businesses owned by African Americans increased 60%.  That’s more than triple the rate of businesses overall.SBA plays a key role in helping minority-owned businesses start and succeed. In the area of accessing capital, SBA is three to five times more likely to guarantee a loan to a minority- or woman-owned small business than a conventional lender.

When I joined the SBA team, I knew there was more I could do to help the underserved community.  That’s why I helped to create the Council on Underserved Communities which advises SBA on ways we can further expand our reach into underserved communities.  The council provides advice on everything from technical assistance, to access to capital, to outreach and education. We are honored to have Cathy Hughes, the founder of Radio One and TV One, and a former SBA borrower, serving as chair of the council.  Here experience as a female, African American business owner has been a tremendous asset to the council and the SBA.

As President Obama mentioned during his State of the Union Address, our government is committed to ensuring that every aspiring entrepreneur gets a fair shot at small business ownership. It is a priority for us to support underserved communities and help small businesses in those areas create an economy built to last.

First Lady and Dr. Biden Urge State Action to Support Military Spouses with State Licenses

From left, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden listen to Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks during a Joining Forces military spouse employment event at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., Feb. 15, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Earlier today, I had the great privilege of joining the First Lady, Dr. Biden, members of Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Joint Chiefs and state legislators at the Pentagon for a major announcement impacting our nation’s military spouses. 

In their travels to military bases across America and throughout the world over the last three years, the First Lady and Dr. Biden have heard stories from countless military family members and spouses. One of the top issues they hear about everywhere they go deals with the professional licensing requirements that affect how military spouses can move forward in their careers. 

These spouses are among the more than 100,000 military spouses who serve in one of 50 professions that require a state license or credential – teachers, nurses, childcare providers, dental hygienists, real estate brokers, speech pathologists and many other professionals.  

Here’s why this matters: military families are asked to move again and again as their husband or wife serves our country.  In fact, military spouses move at a rate that is 10 times greater than the civilian population.  

Each move to a new state can mean different credentialing or licensing standards – a process that can sometimes take months to resolve.  In so many cases, these are qualified professionals who simply can’t work in their field because they’re waiting on paperwork. 

First Lady and Dr. Biden Urge State Action to Support Military Spouses with State Licenses

From left, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden listen to Gen. Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks during a Joining Forces military spouse employment event at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., Feb. 15, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

Earlier today, I had the great privilege of joining the First Lady, Dr. Biden, members of Congress, the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Joint Chiefs and state legislators at the Pentagon for a major announcement impacting our nation’s military spouses. 

In their travels to military bases across America and throughout the world over the last three years, the First Lady and Dr. Biden have heard stories from countless military family members and spouses. One of the top issues they hear about everywhere they go deals with the professional licensing requirements that affect how military spouses can move forward in their careers. 

These spouses are among the more than 100,000 military spouses who serve in one of 50 professions that require a state license or credential – teachers, nurses, childcare providers, dental hygienists, real estate brokers, speech pathologists and many other professionals.  

Here’s why this matters: military families are asked to move again and again as their husband or wife serves our country.  In fact, military spouses move at a rate that is 10 times greater than the civilian population.  

Each move to a new state can mean different credentialing or licensing standards – a process that can sometimes take months to resolve.  In so many cases, these are qualified professionals who simply can’t work in their field because they’re waiting on paperwork. 

2013 Energy Budget: What It Means for You

Secretary Chu details President Barack Obama's $27.2 billion fiscal year 2013 budget request for the Department of Energy.

Yesterday, Secretary Chu detailed President Barack Obama's fiscal year 2013 budget, which includes a $27.2 billion request for the Energy Department. The Secretary emphasized the President's commitment to an all-of-the-above energy strategy that includes critical investments in innovation, in job-creating clean energy technologies, and in our national security. You can check out a video of the event below.

"The United States is competing in a global race for the clean energy jobs of the future," said Secretary Chu. "The choice we face as a nation is simple: do we want the clean energy technologies of tomorrow to be invented in America by American innovators, made by American workers and sold around the world, or do we want to concede those jobs to our competitors?  We can and must compete for those jobs. This budget request includes responsible investments in an American economy that is built to last."

Specifically the President's FY 2013 budget request for the Department of Energy:

• Invests in cross-cutting research to lead in the research, development, deployment and production of clean energy technologies; 
• Promotes efforts to make solar power affordable for all Americans by reducing the cost of solar energy by 75 percent and making it cost competitive without subsidies by the end of the decade;
• Continues the Obama Administration’s efforts to reduce our dependence on oil by one-third by 2025;
• Supports groundbreaking basic science, research and innovation to solve our energy challenges and ensure that the United States remains at the forefront of science and technology;
• Strengthens national security by reducing nuclear dangers and maintaining a safe, secure and effective nuclear deterrent; and 
• Advances responsible environmental management by cleaning up the legacy from the Manhattan Project and the Cold War.

Why Congress Must Extend the Payroll Tax Cut Through 2012

Today, President Obama has invited a group of Americans who made their voices heard the last time Congress threatened to raise their taxes to the White House.

At the end of this month, if Congress doesn’t act, taxes are set to go up on 160 million hardworking Americans, and the President believes that lawmakers must prevent this middle class tax hike without drama or delay. 

For a family making about $50,000 a year, the payroll tax cut amounts to about $1,000 a year, or about $40 in every paycheck. In December, we asked America to tell us what losing $40 per paycheck would mean for their family, and the answers came from across the country — from students trying to stretch the budget a little bit further. From moms who need to buy their children lunch every day in the school cafeteria. And from commuters who are filling up the tank and looking at rising gas prices. Using twitter, email and Facebook, they told us clearly that $40 can make all the difference in the world.  

Ultimately, thanks to these stories, Congress did the right thing and passed a two-month extension of the tax cut and unemployment insurance – but only after a drawn-out debate that put the strength of our economy and the security of middle class families at risk. Now that extension is about to expire.

The President is also inviting all Americans who oppose raising their taxes to share their own stories with the White House – you can submit them on WhiteHouse.gov, using the Twitter hashtag #40dollars or post them on our Google+ page or Facebook wall. You can watch the President’s remarks with these hardworking American families at 10:40 am ET on WhiteHouse.gov/live.

President Obama's Plan to Train 2 Million Workers for Jobs in High-Demand Industries

Today, President Obama announced the Community College to Career Fund, an $8 billion investment in his Fiscal Year 2013 Budget that would train two million workers with skills that lead directly to good jobs in industries that need workers, including advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and information technology.

This program will serve a dual purpose: making sure community colleges have the resources they need to equip workers with crucial skills and industry-recognized credentials, and ensuring that employers in high-growth industries have the skilled workforce they need for positions that might otherwise go unfilled—or overseas.

Employers today are looking for skilled, educated workers, and they should be able to find those workers right here in the United States. Here’s how the Community College to Career Fund would help:

Support for workers:

In addition to supporting community college-based training programs that provide workers with targeted, certified training for jobs in rapidly growing industries like clean energy, high-tech manufacturing and information technology, the proposed program will fund:

• On-the-job training opportunities such as registered apprenticeships and paid internships that allow students to simultaneously earn credit for work-based learning and gain relevant employment experience in  high-wage, high-skill fields.
• “Pay for Performance” strategies that provide incentives for training providers, community colleges, and local workforce organizations to make sure workers find permanent jobs after they complete training and earn credentials.

The Employment Situation in January

Today’s employment report provides further evidence that the economy is continuing to heal from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. It is critical that we continue the economic policies that are helping us to dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the recession that began at the end of 2007. Most importantly, we need to extend the payroll tax cut and continue to provide emergency unemployment benefits through the end of this year, and take the additional steps that President Obama proposed in his State of the Union address to create an economy built to last.

The unemployment rate fell 0.2 percentage point to 8.3%, from a high of 10% in October 2009. The drop in unemployment over the month was entirely due to employment growth, as the labor force participation rate remained constant, once new population weights are taken into account.  The unemployment rate has fallen by 0.8 percentage point in the last 12 months. Private sector payrolls increased by 257,000 jobs and overall payroll employment rose by 243,000 jobs in January. Despite adverse shocks that have created headwinds for economic growth, the economy has added private sector jobs for 23 straight months, for a total of 3.7 million payroll jobs over that period. In the last 12 months, 2.2 million private sector jobs were added on net.  Nonetheless, we need faster growth to put more Americans back to work.

Sectors with net job increases in December included professional and business services (+70,000), manufacturing (+50,000), leisure and hospitality (+44,000), health care and social assistance (+29,700), and construction (+21,000).  Government lost 14,000 jobs.

The monthly employment and unemployment numbers can be volatile, and employment estimates can be subject to substantial revision. Therefore, as the Administration always stresses, it is important not to read too much into any one monthly report; nevertheless, the trend in job market indicators over recent months is an encouraging sign.

A Legislative Agenda to Startup America

Today, Startup America celebrates its first birthday, and President Obama is sending Congress a set of proposals to help boost the startups and small businesses that create so many jobs in this country.

President Obama has already cut taxes for businesses 17 times. Now, he's asking lawmakers to create four new tax cuts. He's proposing a new 10 percent income tax credit on new payroll for small businesses; a permanent extension of a tax cut he signed in 2010 that eliminates taxes on capital gains in key investments for small businesses; a doubling of the amount that entrepreneurs can deduct from their taxes for start-up expenses, and a 100 percent extension of first-year depreciation of qualified property for one year.

To help businesses find more investors, the President is calling for a national framework that allows entrepreneurs to raise money through "crowdfunding." Currently, the most a small business can raise through a round of "Regulation A" mini-funding is $5 million -- but President Obama wants to boost that limit to $50 million, coupled with strong protections for investors. He's calling for changes in how securities laws and regulations are phased in for small companies in their first year after going public. And the President wants to increase the Small Business Investment Company program to to allow for up to $4 billion in annual support.

President Obama is also calling on Congress to relieve the backlog of immigrant visas. To do that, he wants lawmakers to eliminate the country-specific caps for certain immigrant visas to attract more high skilled foreign workers, particularly entrepreneurs.

To learn more about all these proposals, go here.

Celebrating Startups in the State of the Union

Ed note: In honor of the one year anniversary of Startup America, we invited Mike Krieger, the co-founder of Instagram, to contribute a post to WhiteHouse.gov. Instagram is the fastest growing social mobile startup in the U.S. today, and exemplifies President Obama's belief that "entrepreneurs embody the promise of America: the idea that if you have a good idea and are willing to work hard and see it through, you can succeed in this country. And in fulfilling this promise, entrepreneurs also play a critical role in expanding our economy and creating jobs." Mr. Krieger moved from Brazil to California to attend Stanford University, where he studied computer science and cognitive science. In 2010, he and a partner founded Instagram, which now employs a talented, growing team of designers and engineers. After graduation, Mr. Krieger worked for a year on his student F-1 visa, later applying for and receiving an H-1B visa as a high-skill worker. Mr. Krieger wants to permanently stay in the U.S. and has applied for a green card.

I was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and from an early age was interested in technology and engineering. When I came to the United States in 2004 to attend university at Stanford, I was instantly inspired by the stories and advice from startup leaders in Silicon Valley and beyond, who had endeavoured to create new opportunities and improve lives around the world. I was drawn to the idea of one day helping to create a startup, and last year, I was fortunate to be given the chance. In May of 2010, I joined Kevin Systrom, my co-founder, and we created Instagram, a mobile social network that today has over 15 million users. What began as a small, two-person startup working out of a pier in San Francisco has grown to a dozen employees, and our plan is to at least double that this year. There are few better sights than walking into an office full of talented, hard-working folks, working together to build a great company from the ground up.