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Report
Access for Small Business Forum
February 19, 2010
Rochester, NY
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On
Friday, February 19, 2010, members of the Business
and Labor Coalition of New York (BALCONY)
staged their second Access for Small Business
forum at the Colgate
Rochester Crozier Divinity School
to assist small businesses survive in a challenging
economy.
Attendees included BALCONY representatives and members,
representatives of New York business, labor, and finance, and
Congressman Chris Lee (NY-26), the keynote speaker of the event. Of
particular concern was how businesses can survive the credit crunch as
well as how employers can find affordable health care for their
employees. Other topics included general health care, health care
reform, disease prevention in the workplace, how businesses can improve
their marketing, and how businesses can gain access to capital and
technology such as e-commerce.
Event co-sponsors included: Verizon, the American Cancer
Society, the NYS Health Foundation, Citizens Bank, Canandaigua
National Bank, Entre Computer Services, NYS Small
Business Development Center, Excellus, the Small Business
Majority, Pulse Marketing Group, and New York State
United Teachers.
The event kicked off with Tom Gillett, Director of the
Rochester chapter of BALCONY, who expressed his excitement about
the gathering before introducing the M.C. for the day and Director
of BALCONY, Lou Gordon.
Mr. Gordon provided a quick overview of the event and
introduced the two central questions of the day: "Can businesses
survive the credit crunch?" and "How can businesses find
affordable health insurance?" Mr. Gordon noted that in a
survey of 400 New York businesses, only 44% are able to provide health
coverage while 79% say they wish they could provide insurance.
After expressing his hope that the forum would help businesses and
labor to solve some of the problems they face in this tough economy,
Mr. Gordon introduced the first panel of the day: Access to Health
Care.
View the photographs from the Forum here: Photos
View the full program from the Forum here: Program
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ACCESS TO
HEALTH CARE
    
Ben Geyerhahn, Dave Mack, Jim Bertolone, Eileen Wolff,
Lou Gordon, Tom Gillett
 Eileen Wolff,
the Regional Director of Strategic Health Initiatives at the American Cancer
Society, spoke on cost effective strategies that can help keep
employees healthy and prevent disease in the workplace thus reducing
the cost of health care and prescription plans and increasing
productivity and good health in the long term. Ms. Wolff argued
that prevention initiatives, such as tobacco cessation programs and
incentives, encouraging and rewarding physical activity and nutrition,
and keeping an open line of communication regarding general health with
employees is shown to increase productivity and quality of work while
decreasing health problems that lead to high premiums and expensive
prescription plans. In conclusion, Ms. Wolff pointed out that the
American Cancer Society also offers free resources and would happily
partner with any interested employers to asses their current state, set
goals, and offer support in instituting preventative measures.
[View Eileen Wolff
Presentation]
 Ben
Geyerhahn, the New York Project Director
of the Small Business
Majority, spoke about the challenges businesses face in providing
health care to its employees and what different health care reform
options would mean for businesses, small and large. Health care
premiums in New York State are some of the highest in the nation and
small businesses (those with less than 100 employees), according to a
study conducted by the Small Business Majority, pay an average of 18%
of their payroll just to provide health coverage. Even more daunting is
the fact that health insurance costs are still on the rise. In New York
the cost of health care is predicted to rise 20-30% in 2010. In
order to asses what, if any, reform to healthcare would minimize these
problems and give small business access to affordable health care, the
Small Business Majority commissioned MIT economist Jonathan Gruber (who
is involved in the Republican health care reform plan, now known as the
Massachusetts plan) to conduct a scientific study comparing three
popular reform options: two shared responsibility plans - play or
pay, and pay as you go - and one market reform plan. The study found
that either shared responsibility reform option would protect jobs and
wages that would otherwise be cut to account for the rising cost of
health care as well as cut health care costs in the long run, however,
the study found that reform will be much easier for large businesses
than for small ones due to the initial costs and loss of profit.
[View Ben Geyerhahn
Presentation]
 Jim Bertolone,
the President of the Rochester and Genesee
Valley Area Labor Federation, discussed labor's perspective on
health care reform. Mr. Bertolone has been President of the
American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 215 for the Greater
Rochester Area for nearly twenty years. He also serves on the
Executive Council of the New York State AFL-CIO and the Board of
Directors for the New York State Workforce Development
Institute. Labor, Mr. Bertelone asserted, has supported and will
continue to support a universal Medicare plan over any version of the
so-called competitive model. Echoing Mr. Geyerhahn, Mr. Bertolone
argued that the current competitive system is broken and
unsustainable. Health care, he pointed out, costs employers
nationwide about 16% of their payroll and as health care costs
skyrocket, employers are forced to drive down wages and slow or
eliminate growth. Even more frightening was Mr. Bertolone's prediction
that by the end of this decade, without reform, a family health plan
will cost $28,000, an astronomical figure that is clearly out of the
price range of the average American worker. In attempting to show
just how badly the competitive model has failed Mr. Bertolone pointed
to a recent Harvard study that revealed that 44,000 Americans die every
year from lack of coverage. In the 1990's, he recalled, Rochester
had a collaborative, community rated health care system. At the
end of that decade, however, at the behest of the Chamber of Commerce,
the system was overhauled and a deregulated competitive model was put
in its place, forcing prices to rise and quality to deteriorate over
the next decade. Mr. Bertolone argued that reform is essential and
that arguing against health care reform because of worries about
deficit spending is like "trying to save water when your house is
on fire."
 Dave Mack,
the Senior Vice President/Corporate Relations at The Lifetime
Healthcare Companies, parent organization of Excellus BlueCross
BlueShield, spoke about the insurance company's perspective on health
care reform. Mr. Mack joined Excellus in 1997 after a 34-year
career in newspapers, going from a job where "nobody trusts you to
one where everybody hates you," he joked. In terms of access
to health insurance, the primary topic of his talk, Mr. Mack asserted
that the outlook is not good. Of the 46 million Americans without
health care more than half are categorized as poor or working poor by
the government, therefore, if universal coverage is the goal of reform
then the cost of health insurance must be reigned in, and that any
other changes at this time are mere window dressing. Ultimately, Mr.
Mack concluded that the worst possible outcome is no action, that the
cost curve can be bent, and that insurance companies like Excellus will
be willing to accept reforms as long as everyone is sharing the risk
and as long as the reform is pursued on a bi-partisan basis.
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ACCESS TO
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND CAPITAL
 
Malcolm Richards, Susan
DeVyust, Jeffrey Barker, Darlene M. Anthopoulos
 Malcolm Richards,
Branch Manager of the U.S. Small Business
Administration(SBA), talked to the audience about the various ways
the SBA can help small businesses attain capital. The SBA is a
self-funded agency of the federal government that was formed with small
business concerns in mind. Mr. Richards discussed three ways that
small businesses can get access to capital and grow by partnering with
the SBA. First, SBA guarantees loans that private lenders are
unwilling to underwrite. Second, the SBA provides small businesses
with business growth and development counseling. Third, the U.S.
government is the biggest buyer of businesses in the country and SBA
helps small business owners looking to sell their business compete to
win better contracts and works with other agencies to meet procurement
goals. In contrast to Congressman Lee, Mr. Richards claimed that the
stimulus bill did and does help small business. One way the
stimulus bill attempted to help small business owners, he mentioned,
was to increase the loan guarantee the SBA offers to 90%. This move,
according to Richards, got lenders back to the discussion table and
lowered banks' exposure, allowing them to lend more
freely. Another way the government sought to increase lending and
help small business, according to Richards, was by eliminating the
borrowing fee, generally 2-3% of the original loan, altogether. It
is the governments hope that the savings businesses will enjoy from
this move will go back into the business and facilitate
growth. Despite the recession, the SBA saw an increase of 40-50%
in loan guarantees last year and had over one million individuals use
SBA's counseling resources. In closing, Richards noted that $6
billion of the recovery fund went to helping small businesses.
"It's your government working for you," Richards concluded.
 Darlene
Anthopoulos, the Vice President of Citizen's Bank,
spoke about how a bank like Citizens Bank determines who qualifies for
a loan. Citizen's bank is headquartered out of Providence, R.I. It is a
wholly owned subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Scotland, (RBS) however,
it is completely independent. Ms. Anthopolous boasted that this
arrangement affords Citizen's Bank the resources of a world bank as well
as the benefits and feel of a local bank. Ms. Anthopolous spoke to the
fact that, in the current economic climate, banks are less willing to
take risks, but that does not mean banks aren't lending
altogether. Ms. Anthropolous then introduced the two types of
loans that businesses typically need: a line of credit and a term
loan. Ms. Anthropolous recommended that every business have a
line of credit but cautioned that it is very important, before seeking
one, to understand what the purpose of that credit is and how it may be
used. The reason being that a line of credit needs to be a
revolving door, according to Ms. Anthropolous, so if the bank feels
like you are going to use the credit to cover losses or other
inappropriate activities they will not sign off on it. If, on the
other hand you are looking to buy equipment or real estate you are
probably looking at a long-term loan that can divide payments over a
longer period of time. Ms. Anthopolous then offered advice on
making the best case possible to the bank for getting either type of
loan. In general, she said, banks are more likely to lend to businesses
with a loyal following of customers and/or collateral, but that banks
are always receptive to a well thought out business plan. The
best thing a business owner can do to make their case to the bank is to
be prepared, understand exactly what they need, have a clear plan to
pay the money back, and be able to express that clearly and concisely.
 Jeffery
Barker, Vice President of Commercial Services for Canandaigua National
Bank and Trust, spoke about the advantages of using community
banks. Canandaigua Bank is a $1.7 billion community bank that has
been around since 1887. The definition of a community bank, Mr.
Barker explained, is a bank owned and operated in your community, where
all the decision makers, bankers, locations etc. are
local. According to Mr. Barker 56% of the loans Canandaigua Bank
underwrites were to people in the Rochester community. Despite the
current recession, Canandaigua's commercial loans to community
businesses, according to Mr. Baker, were up 5.6% in 2003 and up 8.1% in
2009. According to Mr. Barker, in this tough economy it can
be a big benefit to partner with a community bank rather than with the
big banks that effectively cut off lending after the crash. In
Rochester in the 1990's, Barker recalled, there was a situation where
the banks decided they were not going to lend to contractors
anymore. Community banks continued to lend to contractors,
however, because, as local people, they were able to determine the
quality of the contractors and their proposals on a one by one basis.
Mr. Barker concluded by stressing the importance of communication
between business owners and their banks and emphasizing that this is
much easier to accomplish with a local community bank like Canandaigua.
[View Jeffery Barker
Presentation]
 Susan
DeVyustof H&R Blockspoke
about how H&R Block helps businesses prepare the proper tax returns
they need to get loans. Ms. DeVyust offered several tips on
getting deductions and tax credits for small businesses. In order
to capitalize on these credits, Ms. DeVyust told the audience, it is
very important that every business keeps careful records and that they
back those records up or risk losing out on the opportunity. Also,
good record keeping is important because both the government and the
bank will want to study them carefully before approving credits or
loans. Ms. Devyust concluded by noting that H&R Block will send
speakers to any business that is interested free of charge to educate
them on these and other issues and to help business owners decide on a
plan of action.
[View Susan DeVyust
Presentation]
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ACCESS
TO TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS
 
Paul Bornemann, Marquett Smith, Jim Barolotta
 Paul
Borneman, VP of Consulting Services for Entre Computer
Services, discussed IT solutions for small businesses. Entre
is an IT services firm in Rochester providing businesses of all sizes
with tech solutions, including IT management, consulting, application
and web development, software licensing, and hardware
acquisition. Mr. Borneman described himself as a customer of Entre
for fifteen years and an employee for ten. The IT payroll at Entre
is an impressive $8 million giving it plenty of resources to provide
solutions to all different kinds of businesses. In a world of so
many options, tech terms, and moving pieces Mr. Borneman explained that
an IT consultant is a great tool and can help align business needs with
the right technology to improve and grow business.
[View Paul Borneman
Presentation]
 Jim
Bartolotta, Chief Executive Officer for Pulse Marketing Group,
spoke about how online marketing can help businesses grow their
customer base and their name recognition. Pulse offers marketing,
advertising and public relations solutions. It has 13 employees
that cover all aspects of marketing, web development, video, and
videography. Mr. Bartolotta explained that internet marketing is
something that every business should consider and is especially good
for businesses with smaller budgets. A foundation piece of any
internet marketing program, Mr. Bartolotta explained, is a good,
user-friendly website. According to Mr. Barlotta, the web is the best
way to reach specific targeted demographics by utilizing social media
sites like facebook and twitter to reach out to customers efficiently
and immediately.
[View Jim Bartolotta
Presentation]
 Marquett
Smith, President of the Upstate New York Region for Verizon Wireless,
spoke about the ways Verizon wireless solutions can help businesses
streamline communications and improve their connectivity. Mr. Smith
introduced a new device to the audience called a 'My-Fi,' a light and
portable wireless card that allows you to access your local hotspot
along with four others. It can be used traveling and uses a password
system to limit the number of users that can log on. Mr. Smith
admitted that most networks have similar devices but argued that
Verizon's 3G cross coverage provides Verizon customers with more
coverage and fewer dead spots than other networks. Additionally,
Mr. Smith noted that Verizon can help businesses find the technology
solutions that are right for them through their small business plans
specifically designed to provide devices, support, and services to
small businesses at discounted prices.
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Keynote
Speaker
Congressman
Chris Lee
Hillary Clarkfrom the American
Cancer Societyintroduced the key-note speaker of the
day, Congressman
Chris Lee. Congressman Leeserves
on the House Committee on Financial Services and was recently named one
of Politico's rookie Congressmen of the year. A republican
with over two decades experience in the private sector Congressman Lee
brings to Congress a strong voice for fiscal conservatism and
deregulation. Congressman Lee began his speech by expressing the
wish that more members of Congress had private sector experience, as
opposed to being career politicians, so that they would know how hard
government can make it to be a successful businessman. In fact,
Congressman Lee claimed that, since coming to the capitol, he had not
seen a single bill that would help small businesses
succeed. Congressman Lee believes that in order to grow out of the
current recession the government needs to start setting clear goals,
such as doubling manufacture in America in the next twenty years (he
noted that manufacturing in Rochester had been halved in the last two
decades). Additionally, Congressman Lee argued that, in a
globalized economy, it is essential that government allow businesses
compete with their counterparts in Europe and Asia by relaxing the
rules and standards that he sees as preventing American business from
excelling in the international market. If cost of sales for
American businesses is more than it is in Europe or Asia, the
Congressman continued, then health care reform is simply not an option
business can consider in a recession. Lee went on to say that he was
firmly opposed to the current health care bill and commented that it is
so large it never had a chance to pass. Instead, Lee suggests that
the bill should be broken up into manageable chunks that both sides of
the aisle can agree on.
On a local note, Congressman Lee contended that there is little to no
incentive for businessmen to base their operations out of New York
because of the high cost of workers compensation and the small business
tax the state imposes. Congressman Lee expressed his
dissatisfaction with the President's plan to freeze spending in 2011 as
well as his plan to allow the deficit to grow to $14
trillion. Expanding on this point, the Congressman commented,
"When we start paying out in interest to other countries more than
we give to Medicare or seniors, we've got a
problem." Congressman Lee said he hoped to leave two legacies
in Washington: one, to bring awareness to the issues facing
manufacturing in this country and two, to add transparency so that
voters can understand how their representatives are voting and
why. Congressman Lee finished by stressing his commitment to
fiscal responsibility as well as to his desire to see a currency reform
bill passed that would allow American businesses to level the playing
field with trading partners like China, where currency manipulation
allows businesses to substantially increase profits on imports.
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The event concluded with Tom Gillett, Director
of BALCONY Rochester, who thanked the staff, panelists, and
Congressman Lee for attending and expressed his hope that attendance
for BALCONY forums like this one will continue to grow in order
that BALCONY can continue to put on forums like this one and
further their mission of finding common ground between business and
labor.
FORUM
COMMITTEE
Lou Gordon, Director, BALCONY
Tom Gillett, Director, BALCONY Rochester
Hillary Clarke, Regional Advocacy Director and Federal Issues Manager,
American Cancer Society
Mike Leary, Sr. VP of Administration, Rochester Primary Care Network
Editor: Nicholas Kapustinsky
Design: Kevin R. Weaver
For
more information, contact
Lou Gordon, Director
BALCONY
| 633 Third Avenue | 16th Floor | New York, NY 10017 | (212) 219-7777
loug@balconynewyork.com
www.balconynewyork.com
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BALCONY NYC
ACCESS FOR SMALL BUSINESS FORUM:
MAY 6,
2010 at 8 a.m.
Greater New
York Chamber of Commerce at Madison Square Garden Business Fair.
BALCONY hosts Health Care Panel.
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A
Time for Change
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An
International Health Care Conference
BALCONY is a sponsor of the
international health care conference
"A Time for Change:
Restructuring America's Health Care
Delivery System"
May 11-12 in New York City
Designed for health care practitioners, management and labor
leaders, researchers and policymakers, the event is being organized by
Cornell University's ILR School.
Click here for
more information: Cornell
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BALCONY
MEMBERS DIRECTORY (Spring 2010)
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BALCONY, the Business and Labor Coalition of New York,
represents more than 1,000 New York businesses, labor unions, and
trade associations. BALCONY seeks common ground in the public policy
debate in New York to spur economic development through the adoption of
business/union friendly, socially responsible common sense laws that
maintain and improve the quality of life for working New Yorkers.
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