Small businesses are the backbone of North Carolina’s economy. They account for 99.7% of all employer firms, employ more than half of all private sector employees, and have accounted for 65% of the new jobs created in the last 15 years.

These same small businesses have been hit particularly hard by the current economic crisis. Thousands of small businesses across our state have been forced to downsize, and in many cases have gone out of business.

May marked North Carolina’s 15^th straight month of double-digit unemployment and North Carolina now ranks 11^th in the nation in unemployment.

Small businesses throughout North Carolina need help. North Carolinians need and want jobs.

Under North Carolina’s current leadership neither is likely to happen.

Legislative Democrats – including my opponent - continue to oppose any real economic reform and instead seem intent on creating gimmicks with silly names to intentionally mislead the public. There is no better example of this is than HB 1721 – the “H.E.L.P. Small Business Act”.

H.E.L.P. stands for Health Care, Employment, Leverage and Preparation. This legislation would provide qualifying small businesses with a whopping $1000 tax credit for creating AND sustaining a job for three years.

A $333 a year tax credit will not help businesses provide health care to its employees. It will not stimulate any kind of employment. The only reason the word leverage was selected was because you can’t spell “help” without an L. The only preparation this bill will result in is the preparation of additional paperwork required by a business to qualify for the credit.

This legislation will not help businesses create one job. It might cover the costs of their toilet paper…unless of course they happen to be in the restaurant business.

We can improve North Carolina’s economy and create jobs – real private sector jobs. But it takes leadership with the guts to make unpopular choices, reduce government spending and create a competitive tax climate. Small businesses are who will lead North Carolina out of this recession – not gimmick legislation.

H.E.L.P won’t help at all. But it looks good on a campaign mailer – the real intent behind this legislation.