New York SBDC Research Network

The Office of Advocacy, an independent office within the Small Business Administration, has released a report investigating the differences in STEM entrepreneurship between U.S.-born and foreign-born college graduates. The study finds that differences in educational attainment along with differences in the distribution of U.S.–foreign-born demographic characteristics explain most of percentage the gap.  Among immigrants who earned their highest degree in the United States, the rate of STEM entrepreneurship is almost 4 percentage points higher than for otherwise-similar native-born citizens. The report is titled Imported Entrepreneurs: Foreign-Born Scientists and Engineers in U.S. STEM Fields Entrepreneurship and is written by the noted economist, Margaret Blume-Kohout. It suggests several opportunities for policymakers interested in spurring new business creation and startup employment in new ventures focusing in STEM fields. The  full report  and  research summary  are located

This week, the Office of Advocacy released a new research product, “Three Reasons to Love Your Region.” Designed to encourage regional small business pride, these handouts and web animation highlight unique facts and statistics illustrating the central role small businesses play in the economy. The series draws from the Office of Advocacy’s State Small Business Profiles and federal agency data sources.  To learn more about your region or to explore another region’s small business success, click  here .

the Office of Advocacy released the Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act FY 2014. The report is a requirement of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), which directs the Chief Counsel for Advocacy to monitor federal agency compliance with the RFA and report on it at least annually. This year’s report finds that the Office of Advocacy’s efforts at ensuring RFA compliance helped save small entities at least $4.8 billion in first-year regulatory costs in FY 2014, while ensuring that agencies were able to meet their regulatory goals. The report and research summary are available HERE on Advocacy’s webpage .

North Carolina: Home to Solution-Driven Entrepreneurs The RFA + Advocacy = Small Business’s Voice in Federal Rulemaking Do Trade Restrictions Affect Your Business? Link to newsletter

This annual report reviews the small business lending activities of institutional depository lenders, including commercial and cooperative banks, federal and state savings banks, and savings and loan associations. The lenders are ranked on their overall small business lending nationally and on a state-by-state basis. Small business loans are defined as business loans under $1 million; micro business loans are those under $100,000; macro loans are those between $100,000 and $1 million. Two data sources are used—Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income or “Call Reports” and reports required under the provisions of the Community Reinvestment Act—CRA reports. Should you need further information, please feel free to contact Victoria Williams at (202) 205-6533 or advocacy@sba.gov

Small Business Profiles for the States and Territories supply data on small businesses in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The publication also provides national-level data and limited data on the U.S. territories. What do the profiles say about small business health? Despite continuing challenges, the profiles show that the U.S. economy was relatively strong in 2011. At the national level, the unemployment rate was down 0.7 percent between 2010 and 2011, and 48 states reported a decrease as well. Of these states, 10 had rates equal to the national level. The usefulness of the profiles is the great detail it provides about small businesses at the state level. Small business borrowing activity, as well as self-employment by various demographics, are presented. Also covered are the number of firms, small business income, banking, business turnover, industry composition, and employment gains and losses by size of business. Each profile is available in Adobe PDF

From CBS News MoneyWatch : If you told people you were going to launch a small, independent snack food company, with essentially no marketing money, most would tell you to get your head checked. Going up against the likes of Nabisco and Keebler for supermarket shelf space is -- and this is a gross understatement -- a very low odds proposition. But that's exactly what two concerned dads did with their niche-market munchies, and their business is taking off, thanks to the unstoppable social power of an audience with a very personal, vested interest in their success. ...[The founders] ...both have children who are among the estimated 6 million people with Tree Nut and Peanut Allergies (TPA). TPA is one of the most prevalent and serious food allergies...and it affects many more than just the people who have it: There are millions more who care for, feed, coach, play with, teach and otherwise interact with them. ( My daughter has a peanut allergy as well. )

The Office of Advocacy has just released two new reports on small business retirement planning. The research confirms that small business owner participation in retirement plans remains low but is unaffected in recessions. A study by Advocacy Economist Jules Lichtenstein, Financial Viability and Retirement Assets: A Look at Small Business Owners and Private Sector Workers , uses 2009 data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation to look at a broad spectrum of individual account retirement assets held by business owners and private-sector workers. Retirement, Recessions, and Older Small Business Owners , by Tami Gurley-Calvez, Kandice Kapinos, and Donald Bruce, uses the 1992-2010 Health and Retirement Study to focus on individuals nearing retirement. The study finds that older small business owners with IRAs and Keogh accounts are likely to have larger amounts of such assets than workers in the same age group. Should you need further information, please feel free to con

Release Date: December 2010 Volume 29, number 8 The Small Business Advocate is a periodic newsletter that details economic developments and regulatory trends related to small business as well as the latest initiatives of the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy. In This Issue Broadband Survey Published Chief Counsel Calls for Repeal of 1099 Requirement Where Will the Jobs Come From? FCC Broadband Comments H-2B Program Changes and more

From the SBA Office of Advocacy: The purpose of this research is to provide policy-relevant analysis of the characteristics and career paths of those Americans who have chosen self- employment. Specifically, the study uses the National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth to provide new empirical findings regarding the dynamics of self- employment and documents generational changes in self-employment patterns in early adult work life between two cohorts born in the second half of the 20th century. The key finding is that early exposure to self-employment increases individuals’ engagement in self-employment during the early- and mid-career years. There is a strong positive link between an indicator of self- employment during ages 20-22 and the self-employment outcome measures in ages 22-41. A copy of the report is located HERE and the research summary can be found HERE . Should you need further information, please feel free to contact Ying Lowrey at (202) 205-6533 or advocacy@sba.gov.

If you get "The Small Business Advocate" newsletter from SBA's Office of Advocacy (and you've actually read it), then this won't be news to you. Their March 2008 issue features an article called "Trio of New Advocacy Reports". They don't always pertain to the day-to-day activities with our clients, but I find them interesting nonetheless. Here's what they mention: 1) " The Tax Debts of Small Business Owners in Bankruptcy " 2) " Rural and Urban Establishment Births and Deaths " 3) " Small Business and Micro Business Lending in the U.S., 2005-2006 " Regarding #3, here's one person's take on the real impact of microlending, at least internationally.