Dan Cox, Republican Nominee for Congress, Md-Dist. 8

(8/2016) As a small business owner, I have experience in signing the front of paychecks, of hiring new employees and knowing just how important it is sustain both payroll and taxes, and to maintain operational vitality.

Yes we did build our small businesses after all, but in the last three years a new study shows small business formation is collapsing along with the jobs and economic upward mobility small businesses provide to so many.

The Economic Innovation Group, an independent think-tank founded by business leaders including one of Facebook's founders Sean Parker, just released its new study entitled "...Unprecedented Collapse of New Business Formation During The Economic Recovery," which released a "New Map of Economic Growth and Recovery" examining the startling downward trends during the last three years.

The central point of the study is that small business growth is collapsing as we speak and only 20 counties in America have shown any growth in start-up companies and small business employment.

"Anyone who cares about economic inequality should be tremendously concerned that only 20 large counties now dominate the new business creation in America" writes EIG co-founder and executive director Steve Glickman.

Another recent study by NFIB, the National Federation of Independent Business, shows that small businesses and jobs are getting crushed by federal regulations, which burden its members at costs far higher than government regulators would like to admit. And under Obamacare, small business health premiums are facing anywhere from 20 to 200% increases each year.

As I go throughout the Eighth District speaking with voters, one common theme is "what can you do for us in the jobs and small business arena to help us make it?" I identify with this pressure and concern because I've been there too.

My plan for jobs and economic growth has at least three elements. First, we must begin with repealing "Obamacare" so that full-time jobs will come back with incentives for businesses to provide health insurance for employees, such as dollar-for-dollar tax credits and health savings accounts. Second, we need an aggressive reduction of taxes on businesses and individuals so that jobs can immediately open up. Once new jobs are created, profits and wages will come up quickly back to the higher rates compared to inflation and cost of living they once were. Third, we need to eliminate the approximately 3000 pending regulations on small businesses that the Obama Administration has issued and reduce the incredibly high regulatory burden that hurts small businesses. Two-thirds of American jobs are created by small business. We can support those jobs through this three-step plan.

With these reforms we will see trillions of overseas capital being reinvested back into America. District 8 will have thousands of great jobs, like those in the tech, science and defense industry.

I am running to protect and bring back jobs for all of us in Maryland's District 8. My opponent has listed as his first issue on his website his goal of passing a "sweeping carbon tax" upon individuals and small businesses – which will crush us all, especially small business jobs, and that is very unwise.

We must create a business environment for better jobs and higher wages. After all, we want our kids to be able to stay here and find great employment and make Maryland home. Let's do it together and help rebuild small business in Maryland's District 8. I'm asking for your vote on November 8 to do just that.

To learn more about Dan Cox visit his website is www.coxforcongress.org