Julia Jamieson's blog

In California, clean energy is an important topic. Whether we’re looking to conserve water or protect our forests and beaches, clean energy and energy efficiency efforts are important to helping our state thrive. But one thing people don’t always realize is the economic importance of clean energy to small businesses.

During National Small Business Week, Small Business Majority is recognizing small business owners who strive to give back to their communities. Bryce Smith, owner of the Adel Family Fun Center in Adel, Iowa, is certainly one of them.

This is a guest post from Maria Contreras-Sweet, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). This blog originally appeared on the SBA’s website.

With tax season in full bloom small business owners have an opportunity to not only reduce their tax liability, but also help their employees receive a coveted benefit – health insurance.

Through Covered California for Small Business (CCSB), employers may qualify for a federal tax credit to help offset the cost of providing health insurance to employees by purchasing coverage.

Fresh Kutz opened its doors in North Hollywood in 2008 with the goal of offering all customers premium services by top-level barbers in a modern barbershop. Since its inception, owner Brian Portillo knew he would face several challenges as the community has a crime rate above the national average.  Not only did he want to open his business in the community in which he grew up, but he wanted to create positive social impact while running his business.

Steve Katsaros has always been an innovator. He began inventing products for the ski industry in his late teens, and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) from Purdue University so he could follow his dream of creating new technologies to improve the world. In the early 2000s, Katsaros came up with his first big invention: the RevoPower, an efficient motorized wheel designed to travel up to 20 miles per hour at over 100 miles per gallon.

The health care law includes the employer shared responsibility provisions, which require applicable large employers to offer health coverage to full-time employees and their dependents. Those that do not offer coverage might be subject to the employer shared responsibility payment.

Here are six facts about these provisions.

For small business owners, setting up an employer-sponsored retirement plan can be complicated and expensive. Too many small businesses don’t have the resources to create a formal retirement plan, which means entrepreneurs and their employees frequently struggle to plan for retirement. Nearly 80 percent of employees who work for a small business don’t have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan.