It isn't easy to run a business.
There are family pressures, and it can be stressful when you know that people are counting on you.
It's a risk. It's hard work. But it's also rewarding and so worth the effort.
My family owned and operated an orchard and fruit stand in Kettle Falls, Washington, and working alongside my brother and parents, I learned what it means to be a small business owner.
When you start a business, you embrace an inner part of you that tells you to dig deeper, push harder, and let the creativity flow. It's about imagining what's possible and going out and making it happen.
This spirit of innovation is why America is the home of cutting-edge startups, scientific discovery, and technological advancements. Here, you have the freedom to pursue.
America's business women are testament to that freedom. As we celebrate American Business Women's Day, it's worth noting how far women have come since President Reagan first proclaimed this day in 1983. Women currently make up nearly half the workforce, attain post-graduate degrees at higher rates than their peers, and launch firms at a rate one and a half times that of the national average.
Women across the country are breaking through the glass ceiling and boldly pursuing their own unique version of the American Dream.
As a lawmaker, my colleagues and I have a responsibility to listen to this next generation of business leaders, and put forth ideas that address the unique challenges they face.
Hearing from women from coast to coast, I'm proud to use my role as Chair of the House Republican Conference to guide policy to make it easier for business owners to grow, hire, and continue to build on the accomplishments of trailblazers before them.
This American Business Women's Day, Rep. Kristi Noem of South Dakota shares how running a small business shaped her understanding of government.
When House Republicans rolled out A Better Way: Our Vision for a Confident America to tackle some of the biggest problems facing Americans from all walks of life, like the business owner, we reaffirmed our commitment to making it easier to do business. Here's how:
Regulate Smarter
Women-owned businesses are the fastest growing segment of American small businesses, which also means they are also among the groups most disproportionately affected by the regulatory burdens of paperwork, the overtime and fiduciary rules, and accessing capital.
Our "Better Way to Grow the Economy" plan addresses these burdens by helping to roll back the red tape that straps so many business owners. Americans spent 9.45 billion hours on federal paperwork in 2013 alone. That's like watching Disney's Frozen back-to-back for nearly 400 million days straight (for us parents, it feels like we already do this). We know you have better uses for that time, so we focus on eliminating redundancies, allowing for more transparency and public commenting, and increasing oversight.
We propose repealing the overtime and fiduciary rules, both of which saddle small business owners and make it difficult for low and middle income families to save and plan for retirement.
Further, we tackle one of the biggest barriers to women starting and growing their businesses: access to capital. Our plan aims to force the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the agency tasked with regulating the securities industry and the nation's stock and options exchanges, to make capital formation and access to capital a core priority.
A Tax Code Built for Growth
In addition to targeting regulations that are holding so many American businesses back, our "Better Way for Tax Reform" plan calls for a simpler, fairer tax code. Whether a woman is running a Fortune 500 company or juggling the demands of a small business, we propose lessening the tax burden by lowering the rate she pays to Uncle Sam.
With our plan, we're offering simplicity and fairness. The compliance costs and convoluted rates that small business owners face are long overdue for an overhaul. A small business owner simply doesn't have the resources to dedicate an employee, or a team, solely to managing compliance and taxation.
However, it isn't only about compliance – we want to give Americans more of their income back.
As Rep. Diane Black (R-TN), a small business owner who has been working on our tax code, shared with BlogHer readers earlier this summer, "Our plan starts with simplifying the tax code to three tax brackets, and lowering the top individual income tax rate down to 33 percent. It also calls for simplifying taxes for families by creating a larger standard deduction and a larger child and dependent tax credit. As a result, the average family would be able to complete their taxes on a postcard-sized form like this one—no expensive software or professional tax preparer required."
However, it isn't only about paperwork—we want to give Americans more of their income back.
Currently, most American businesses file under the individual rate, and as a result many of them are forced to pay a top marginal rate of 44.5 percent, while their corporate counterparts don't pay anywhere near that.
Under our plan, small businesses will pay a maximum marginal rate of 25 percent – that's nearly 20 percent back in the pockets of these business owners that they can use to invest and grow their businesses.
By simplifying the code and giving business owners regulatory relief, they can redirect these resources to growing their business rather than burying them in a mountain of regulatory compliance.
Quality, Affordable Health Care
The number-one concern among American families is health care costs, and small business owners are hit particularly hard by the uncertainty posed by our current health care system.
Most businesses that don't offer health insurance coverage say that the primary reason is cost. This leaves many Americans in a challenging position.
Our "Better Way to Fix Health Care" plan makes it easier for small businesses to offer affordable health care to their employees, supports portability of your health insurance, and makes it simpler for businesses and their employees to buy their own health insurance in the individual market. This is creates consistency in care as you move from job to job, and into your retirement years.
Our agenda brings younger and healthier people into the system, expands patient-centered health care, offers sales across state lines, preserves employer-based insurance, and allows small businesses and individuals to band together.
Rather than tie up wellness programs in red tape, our plan makes sure employers are able to reward employees for making healthy choices. This will encourage personal responsibility, and save both businesses and workers valuable healthcare dollars. Having access to affordable healthcare not only helps small businesses retain talent, but it's the right thing to do to ensure the future health of countless Americans.
No matter where you come from. No matter what your age, race, gender, or walk of life, you should have the ability to imagine what's possible and have the opportunity to go out and make it happen.
As we continue to bring our agenda to communities across the country, I hope you will offer feedback. At the end of the day, our agenda is about you, inspired by you, and for you.
With A Better Way, House Republicans are offering women an option that values their voice and puts them in the driver's seat.
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