More On How Small Businesses Don’t Hate Regulation

by Stuart Shapiro

Last week Andy Bolin posted an article with several small businesses quoted as saying that regulation wasn’t a major cost for them.  While that anecdotal data was interesting, it turns out that the sentiment is much broader.  The National Association for Business Economics did a broader survey.  The results were the same.

Regulatory activity has gained a lot of attention, with many groups suggesting that American businesses are overregulated by the current administration. With that said, 80 percent of survey respondents felt that the current regulatory environment was “good” for American businesses and the overall economy.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, when the Chamber of Commerce or a Washington politician voices concern for small businesses, you should automatically substitute the word “big” for the word “small.”

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.