Udall Recognizes National Small Business Week, Introduces IGNITE Act to Help Entrepreneurs Save

WASHINGTON - In celebration of National Small Business Week, U.S. Senator Tom Udall recognized the over 150,000 small business owners across New Mexico, who create jobs and make up almost 96 percent of the state's employers. In their honor, Udall also unveiled a new bill to help continue to build and strengthen New Mexico's small business community.

The Incentivize Growth Now In Tomorrow's Entrepreneurs (IGNITE) Act will help ease the challenge many entrepreneurs face accessing credit to pay the start-up costs associated with creating a small business. Entrepreneurs often resort to credit cards, home equity or their retirement savings to cover those initial costs. Udall's bill would allow them to create tax-free savings accounts. Potential business owners could put aside up to $10,000 per year for start-up expenses, helping budding entrepreneurs to kickstart their small businesses with less reliance on debt.

"Small businesses in New Mexico are the engine that drives our state's economy, and I'm proud to join them in celebrating National Small Business Week and the thousands of entrepreneurs who create jobs and keep our communities strong," Udall said. "Access to capital is essential for any startup to get off the ground, and I'm pleased to introduce the IGNITE Act to help New Mexico small businesses expand, create jobs, and provide exciting new opportunities."

Congressman Daniel Maffei (D-N.Y.-24) introduced a similar bill in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Udall has long championed measures to support new and existing small businesses in New Mexico, including:

- The Small Business Investment Promotion Act to make permanent a tax deduction of $250,000 for the purchase of machinery, software and property investments so businesses can buy the equipment they need to grow jobs and increase profits.
- The Help Our Middle Class Entrepreneurs (HOME) Act to reduce the paperwork burden on small business owners who work out of their homes by making permanent an optional standard deduction of $1,500, replacing the current complicated process for claiming the home office deduction.
- The Expanding Opportunities for Main Street Act to raise the cap to $500,000 on the value of small business contracts, giving small businesses preference in contracting and increasing the government-wide small business contracting goals.
- The Assuring Contracting Equity (ACE) Act of 2013 to give small businesses a better shot at tapping into federal awards. The bill increases contracting goals for veteran- and women-owned businesses, and holds procurement officers accountable when they don't award a contract to a qualified small business.