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What a Harris Presidency Could Mean for Small-Business Owners

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Democratic National Convention, Day 1, Chicago, USA – 19 Aug 2024 © Earl Gibson III / Shutterstock / Earl Gibson III / Shutterstock
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Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris recently unveiled her economic plan. While there are few specific details regarding small-business owners, her past stance on the issue might provide a glimpse into what she intends to do to help them if she wins.

Read Next: How Much Is Vice President Kamala Harris Worth?

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On August 14, Harris said in a statement that small businesses are “the backbone of our communities.”

“They strengthen the middle class by creating jobs, advancing opportunity, and establishing pathways for Americans to build intergenerational wealth,” she said in the statement posted on the White House website.

In turn, she also announced that day that a record 19 million new small business applications had been filed under the Biden-Harris administration.

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She Will Continue to Support Minority-Owned Small Businesses

Under the current administration, the Small Business Administration (SBA) “has backed $35 billion in loans to over 68,000 minority-owned small businesses, an increase of more than 13% compared to the entirety of the prior administration,” according to a White House Fact sheet.

In turn, Rohit Arora, CEO of Biz2Credit, said that Harris has focused on expanding access to capital to people who have traditionally been excluded from economic prosperity — something she might continue doing if she wins.

“The agency has tripled SBA lending to Black-owned businesses and doubled small-dollar lending and lending to Latino and women-owned small businesses,” said Arora. “There is no reason to believe that policy would veer away from this path in a Harris-Walz administration if they win in November.”

Find Out: Trump Wants To Eliminate Income Taxes: Here’s What That Would Mean for the Economy and Your Wallet

Continue Funding for Underbanked Small Businesses

During her time in the Senate and as part of the current administration, Vice President Harris led efforts to invest billions in community development financial institutions (CDFIs), which are mission-driven lenders that specialize in delivering capital to underbanked small businesses, explained Carolina Martinez, CEO of CAMEO Network, California’s statewide micro-business network.

“Those of us in the small business advocacy community expect she will continue this commitment, and we are excited to see how these investments support and sustain the current small business boom,” she added.

While Well-Intentioned, Her Policies Might Hurt Small Businesses

Dave Hebert, economist at the American Institute for Economic Research, argued that while Harris’ previous policy proposals “sound lovely,” unfortunately they would be difficult for small businesses to absorb.

For example, she has advocated for increasing the mandated amount of paid family and medical leave from six weeks to six months.

“While this sounds great, both for mothers and fathers who typically must return to work shortly after the birth of a child, it would be an economic nightmare,” he said. “Someone has to pay for the paid leave and increasing the cost of labor for a small business that is already struggling to stay in the black would force many to close.”

In that same vein, Harris has supported raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour.

And according to Arora, this policy would disproportionately hurt businesses that are struggling to pay higher wages during inflationary times.

Finally, Arora added that Harris supports stronger environmental and labor regulations, which hinder small businesses and increase their cost structures.

Widening the “Huge Disconnect”

Meanwhile, other experts are less enthusiastic about what a Harris win could mean for small businesses. For instance, Joe Camberato, CEO of National Business Capital, said that he’s not optimistic about the future for small businesses if Harris wins.

“Right now, small businesses aren’t in growth mode because the economy itself isn’t growing,” he said, adding that small business owners are hesitant to make decisions because they’re worried about what’s coming next.

According to him, there’s “a huge disconnect” between what’s happening on Wall Street and what’s really going on Main Street.

“Small businesses are just getting by, and it wouldn’t take much — a small setback could be enough — to push them out of business,” he said. “We’ve already seen bankruptcy filings double in the last two years, but that’s not getting the attention it deserves.”

Editor’s note on election coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. For more coverage on this topic, please check out Millennial Entrepreneurs: 4 Financial Policies We Want Under a Trump Administration.

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Autonomy: FG, govs, LG chairs sign implementation agreement

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Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi
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Autonomy: FG, govs, LG chairs sign implementation agreement

The Committee on Local Government Autonomy set up by the Federal Government has concluded its meetings and signed the technical document, which is expected to be transmitted to President Bola Tinubu soon.

The National President of the National Union of Local Government Employees, Hakeem Ambali, made this known in an interview with our correspondent on Tuesday.

In May, the Federal Government, represented by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, filed a lawsuit to challenge the governors’ authority to receive and withhold federal allocations meant for Local Government Areas.

The suit sought to prevent state governors from unilaterally dissolving democratically elected local government councils and establishing caretaker committees.

The AGF argued that the constitution mandated a democratically elected local government system and did not allow alternative governance structures.

On July 11, 2024, the Supreme Court gave a landmark judgment affirming the financial autonomy of the 774 LGs in the country, noting that governors could no longer control funds meant for the councils.

The seven-member Supreme Court panel, led by Justice Garba Lawal, ruled that it was illegal and unconstitutional for governors to manage and withhold LG funds.

The apex court also directed the Accountant-General of the Federation to pay LG allocations directly to their accounts, as it declared the non-remittance of funds by the 36 states unconstitutional.

Also, on August 20, the Federal Government instituted a 10-member inter-ministerial committee to implement the Supreme Court’s ruling on local government autonomy.

The committee members include the Minister of Finance & Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; Attorney-General of the Federation & Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi SAN; Minister of Budget & Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu; Accountant-General of the Federation; Oluwatoyin Madein and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso.

Others are the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mrs Lydia Jafiya, the Chairman, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation & Fiscal Commission, Mohammed Shehu, and representatives of state governors and the local governments.

The committee’s primary goal is to ensure that local governments are granted full autonomy, allowing them to function effectively without interference from state governments.

Speaking to our correspondent on Tuesday, Ambali said, “The committee has held its final meeting and we have signed the technical document which will be transmitted to Mr President so by November end. It is expected that states will receive their allocations from FAAC. Also, I can tell you that the President is eager to receive that document. The committee worked within the time frame that was provided.”

Meanwhile, the National Union of Teachers has expressed fears about the capacity of LGs to pay the N70,000 new minimum wage to primary school teachers.

The NUT’s apprehension is hinged on the failure of the councils to implement the former N30,000 minimum wage.

Findings by our correspondent show that some LG workers in Nasarawa, Enugu, Zamfara, Borno, Yobe, and Kogi states, among others, have remained on the N18,000 minimum wage, which was approved in 2011.

However, the inability of the councils to implement the minimum wage has been blamed on the failure of the government to fully implement the LG autonomy.

Data obtained from the NUT revealed that teachers in LG primary schools were not paid the former minimum wage.

In Enugu State, for instance, LG workers were exempted from benefitting from the minimum wage though the state workers enjoyed the minimum wage salaries.

Also, Abia, Adamawa, Bauchi, Nasarawa, Kogi, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, Zamfara, Imo and Gombe States did not implement the old minimum wage for teachers at both state and local levels.

Confirming this, the General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Dr. Mike Ene said, “I can tell you that some states didn’t even implement the N18,000 minimum wage for teachers at the local level. Some governors refused to pay stating that the teachers are under the employment of the local governments.

“There should be no form of segregation when it comes to the implementation of the minimum wage. We all go to the same market. There is no specific market for local government workers. However, we commend all the governors who have come out to say that the minimum wage will be implemented across the board.

“Also, the NLC has vowed to shake the country by December should state governments fail to implement the minimum wage so I can tell you that the move by the NLC will force things into play.”

But NULGE president Ambali assured that the minimum wage would be implemented across the board when the LG autonomy commences.

“Over the years, governors have had one excuse and that is the fact that they always claimed that LGs are autonomous so they can’t negotiate minimum wage on behalf of LG workers. But the truth is that LGs were never autonomous during those periods.

“However, during the negotiation of the new minimum wage, the President brought in representatives of ALGON (Association of Local Government of Nigeria) to also negotiate and with the LG autonomy coming into play, that will be settled. The NLC has also given an ultimatum of December for all states as regards the payment of the minimum wage,” he added.

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North Korean defectors are already betraying Russia

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North Korean defectors are already betraying Russia © Unsplash
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A group of North Korean defectors has provided Ukrainian authorities with leaflets urging Kim Jong Un’s troops to lay down their arms and return home.

The group delivered handwritten notes and audio messages to Kyiv, outlining instructions for surrender and directions on how to reach the South Korean embassy in the Ukrainian capital, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap.

The Asian media outlet reports that the Ukrainian military could prompt a large number of North Korean soldiers to surrender “if proactive psychological warfare is employed,” as stated by Jang Se-yul, the group’s leader.

Washington has confirmed that 10,000 North Korean soldiers have been deployed to Kursk to help recapture the region, which has been partially controlled by Ukrainian forces following a surprise offensive this summer.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, relations between Russia and North Korea have strengthened significantly, with the two nations signing a mutual defense pact last summer.

In exchange for sending troops, Pyongyang expects technological support from Moscow to advance and accelerate its nuclear weapons program.

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Biden sending aid for Ukraine to keep fighting next year, Blinken says

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In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service on Nov. 13, 2024, rescue workers extinguish a fire of a building destroyed by a Russian strike in Brovary, Kyiv. © AP Photo
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US President Joe Biden will send “as much aid as possible” to Ukraine in its final few months in power, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday during a trip to Brussels.

“President Biden has committed to making sure that every dollar we have at our disposal will be pushed out the door between now and 20 January,” when Donald Trump is due to be sworn in to power, Blinken said.

The US will “adapt and adjust” what latest equipment it is sending, without providing details on what military equipment the US plans to provide the country, which is nearing its third year of war against neighbouring Russia.

He added that NATO countries should focus their efforts on ensuring Ukraine “has the money, munitions and mobilised forces” to either fight effectively in 2025, or negotiate peace from a position of strength.

There is a shadow of political uncertainty surrounding how the US will approach its policy on the war following the inaugaration of Trump.

The US is currently the largest provider of military aid to Ukraine, upon which it is heavily reliant. Trump has not given concrete details on what his administrations approach to the war would be, but has said multiple times that he would consider halting funds to the war war-torn country.

The war in Ukraine has shown no signs of slowing down, with Russia launching a huge attack on the country’s capital, Kyiv, on Wednesday with a combination of missile and drones.

Eight regions across Ukraine were attacked in total on Wednesday, with Russia firing six ballistic and cruise missiles and 90 drones, according to the Ukrainian air force.

North Korean troops have also been confirmed to be present in the war, with the US State Department saying that most of them are fighting to drive Ukraine’s army off Russian soil in the Kursk region, where Ukraine launched a surprise incursion earlier this year.

Russia’s military has trained the North Korean soldiers in artillery, drone skills and basic infantry operations, including trench clearing, said State Department spokesman Vedant Patel on Tuesday.

Kyiv officials say that Russia has deployed around 50,000 troops in a bid to dislodge Ukrainian soldiers from the Kursk region.

Russia has in recent months been assembling forces for a counteroffensive in Kursk, according to the Institute for the Study of War think tank, though the timescale of the operation isn’t known.

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