Bristol, RI – Today U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse continued his fight to advance policies that can create good jobs for Rhode Island and help local businesses expand. Whitehouse met with a group of local business owners in Bristol to hear about how the economy has affected them and to discuss legislation he has introduced to create jobs.
“With so many Rhode Islanders still out of work, we must make sure our small businesses have the support they need to grow and create jobs,” said Whitehouse. “Small business owners are the engine of our economy and I am fighting every day to make sure they have the tools they need to succeed.”
Whitehouse met today with a group of Bristol business owners at Roger Williams University. Attendees included representatives from Alayne White Spa, Leo’s Ristorante, The Naughty Dog, Bristol Warren Education Foundation, Bristol Marine, East Bay Tent Company, the Herreshoff Marine Museum, and Hair, Heart and Soul.
Whitehouse heard from each business owner about the issues affecting them and spoke about his Job Creation Tax Credit Act, which he introduced in June. This legislation would offer tax incentives to help businesses expand their workforce. If passed, the bill would provide businesses refundable tax credits of 15% of wages paid in 2011 and 10% of wages paid in 2012 for qualified new hires – those who have been unemployed for at least 60 days. The refundable nature of the credit means that struggling businesses can benefit from it even if they aren’t currently making profits.
Whitehouse has also been working to support our state’s manufacturing sector with his “Making It in Rhode Island” plan. As part of that plan he has introduced legislation to end tax giveaways to companies that ship jobs overseas, and is working to even the playing field for Rhode Island businesses by cracking down on China’s unfair currency manipulation.
