National Women’s Business Council Engage! November 2008 Issue

Business for Democracy and ASBC Lead Effort to Overturn Citizens United v. FEC

The Business for Democracy Campaign, which the American Sustainable Business Council is spearheading in partnership with Free Speech for People is tackling the compelling issue of corporate contributions to political campaigns.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC decision on January 21, 2010 allows corporations to spend unlimited funds to support or oppose candidates for political office, overturning campaign finance laws in place for decades. The Business for Democracy campaign is an initiative of business leaders and their companies who believe this ruling is in direct conflict with American democratic principles and a serious threat to good government. The campaign supports the four members of the Supreme Court and the 80 percent of Americans who disagree with the decision (Washington Post poll, Feb. 17, 2010).

If you'd like your business to join this effort, you can sign the statement of support here or here.

National Women’s Business Council Engage! November 2008 Issue

Council Hosts Successful San Francisco Town Hall Meeting

The National Women’s Business Council held a town hall meeting for women entrepreneurs on November 6 in San Francisco, California. The sixth in a series of meetings across the country, this event attracted nearly 200 participants and provided an opportunity for the Council to hear from a diverse population of women business owners who may not be involved regularly in the public policy process. The results of the day-long discussions will be compiled in a Council report to policymakers, to ensure that the voices of women business owners are being heard on Capitol Hill.
NWBC Responds to Proposed Women’s Procurement Rule

In October, the National Women’s Business Council submitted a letter to the U.S. Small Business Administration in response to its newest proposed rule affecting the women-owned business federal contract assistance procedures. In the letter, Council Chair Carole Jean Jordan states that, due to time restrictions, the Council is unable to offer a sound recommendation to the question of which data set, the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) or the Census Bureau’s Survey of Business Owners (SBO), will provide the soundest basis to identify industries in which women-owned businesses are underrepresented in Federal procurement.

Click here to read a copy of the Council’s response.

Updated Issue Brief Examines SBA Loans to Women-Owned Businesses
The National Women’s Business Council recently updated its Issue Brief on SBA Loans to Women-Owned Businesses. The updated brief examines the current state of SBA’s loan and financing programs to women-owned firms based on newly available FY 2008 data. Numbers of loans, dollars lent, and average loan value to women business owners between FY 2004 and FY 2008 are examined, with comparisons made to all firms. The brief was last updated in 2004, covering FY 1998 through FY 2003.