The power of women-owned businesses is growing, and it’s getting noticed on Capitol Hill.
Women-owned businesses are a powerful engine in our economy. According to a recent Wells Fargo women-owned businesses study, the statistics are impressive.
The Wells Fargo study shows women-owned businesses account for 40% of all U.S enterprises and generate $2.7 trillion in revenue annually. The study also shows that women-owned businesses employ over 12.2 million people nationwide. The segment is getting stronger and louder, as they engage more with their representatives in Washington, D.C.
A New Group
As a result, a new organization has been formed with the help of Family Enterprise USA, called Women’s Business Owners Group (The Group). The Group is dedicated to helping women business owners get their voices and issues heard.
Recently, the topic of women in family-owned businesses and women business owners was center stage on Capitol Hill during a meeting of Congressional Family Business Caucus members. The discussion keyed in on how women business owners can be championed and how they can engage directly with lawmakers and be heard.
The Group also holds meetings in places like Southern California, where an early June meeting brought 25 women together to address key issues. The meeting also featured a virtual meeting with Senator Adam Schiff’s (D-Cal.) local field representative, Tommy Lawton, to discuss priorities and concerns.
The Mission
The Group’s mission is to amplify the voices of women entrepreneurs, foster collaboration and advocate for policies that promote equity in business, doing this directly with the individuals who write policy. The Group is also committed to hearing and elevating the concerns of successful women entrepreneurs. It is specifically designed to work as a coalition with the Congressional Family Business Caucus to advise on legislation that will help women-owned businesses and all family businesses.
The Group seeks to foster collaboration, advocate for equity in business and educate lawmakers in Congress on the strength of women-owned businesses. Its long-term goal is to remove policies that create barriers to women-owned businesses, whether taxation, red tape or regulations.
In the recent California meeting, held at the Irvine offices of Global, A 1st Flagship Company, a government services provider, Sherri Bovino, Chief Executive and meeting chair of The Group, focused on the new tax bill and family-owned business priorities of lower income, estate and capital gains taxes and restoration of improved research and development depreciation. The discussion also focused on the issue of improving the Internal Revenue Code Section 199A tax rates for pass-through entities, which 80% of family-owned businesses, including women-owned businesses, use as operating structures.
At these meetings, women business owners share their experiences, challenges and successes in entrepreneurship, how they work with stakeholders to create actionable solutions and how they can connect with their representatives. For example, eight women attending the Irvine meeting also met earlier in the year with members of the Congressional Family Business Caucus, when the topic was “Women-Owned Family Businesses.” By uniting women business owners, we hope to create a supportive organization that empowers women to thrive and succeed in their entrepreneurial journeys.
For many women business owners, this group offers valuable insights and education that can change the course of their success, growth and sustainability.
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