Encuestas a pequeñas empresas, las HSAs podrían expandirse, SCORE amenazado

Hey everybody, it's Gene Marks, and welcome back to this week's episode of the Paychex THRIVE podcast Week in Review. This is where we take a few items from the news this past week that impacts your small business and mine and we talk about them just a little bit. So, without further ado let's go to the headlines.

For starters, this week – actually, in the past say week or two weeks – there has been a number of small business studies that have been released all dating through the beginning of June, and they give us a fairly good handle as to how small businesses are doing right now in light of all of the challenges that we face.

So, first of all, there was the EY Entrepreneurs Growth Confidence Study, which was published on June 3. Their study found that the participants showed growth optimism.

• 95% of entrepreneurs expect business expansion over the next 12 months.
• 43% still cited macroeconomic pressures as significant concerns (i.e., tariffs).
• Entrepreneurs are actively pursuing fundraising, M&A, and AI tools to leverage opportunities in talent and market access.

Then there was a report from Intuit, the makers of QuickBooks. So, this was the QuickBooks Small Business Index. They released this in June, as well. Their index said that over 95% of the employers that they surveyed report using digital and AI tools to boost their efficiency and growth, and growth in both revenues and profits had fallen slightly month to month.

The third study came out from TD Bank that was released on June 2. And here are three things that came from that study.

• Most owners feel confident, but 72 percent could only endure two quarters of lost revenue.
• 43% say a three- to four-quarter downturn would be untenable.
• And finally, 99% of those studies reviewed preparedness regularly and 82% intend to secure new credit lines this year.

And finally, the Small Business Employment Watch, which was released by Paychex that just came out this past week. In this study, Paychex reported that small business hiring in May remains steady with the jobs index near to 100, indicating little to no change month over month. Hourly wage growth slowed to a four-year low of 2.77%.

So, what's the takeaway from these four studies? One from EY, one from Intuit, one from TD Bank, and one from Paychex. It shows really sort of a middle ground. Business owners, in general, still remain optimistic, although cautious. Wage growth has slowed to less than inflation. Hiring itself is around the same as it is, and many small businesses are leaning into technology – particularly AI technology – to try and keep themselves moving forward in a profitable way.

We're at a period right now in June before the big Congressional, big, beautiful bill gets passed, before tariffs take effect, and other concerns are going on around the world where businesses are still seemingly middling along and doing okay and relatively optimistic but still have concerns for the future.

The next bit of news comes from the Wall Street Journal, and it has to do with health savings accounts. Now, if the big, beautiful bill does get passed, there are going to be at least five changes that will impact health savings accounts.

Now, health savings accounts is kind of like a 401(k) for your health care. You and your family or employees can put money away pre-tax and then it grows over time that can then be used for out-of-pocket expenses, things that are not covered by your health insurance plan. They have to be attached to a high-deductible health insurance plan. Very, very popular among businesses, particularly small businesses, and if you don't have a health savings account plan, you really should implement one.

Now, with the big, beautiful tax and spending bill that's being considered right now, there are five things in it that could affect you, per the Wall Street Journal. Number one, new rules will allow people that are getting Medicare Part A to enroll in health savings accounts. So, that would remove any age-related barriers to people doing that.

In addition, people that are getting their insurance through the health care exchanges, bronze and catastrophic plans on the health care exchanges, can now enroll in health savings accounts, as well.

Number three, for you fitness people, you will now be able to take money out of your health savings accounts to use for fitness – up to $500 per individual and $1,000 per family per year can reimburse you for fitness.

And in addition, if you have any employees that are over the age of 55, they can now contribute more and combine those contributions into a single health savings account.

So, five big changes coming in HSAs makes them even more attractive for you and me as employers to offer them and make sure that our employees are well aware of these new benefits under health savings accounts. Offering these plans not only help retain your existing people, but of course, are a competitive advantage to attract new employees to your business.

Finally, SCORE, the program under the Small Business Administration that helps mentor small businesses, is facing a huge, huge problem. There is critical federal funding that’s being cut off for SCORE because of DOGE.

This is per their press release:

“SCORE, a volunteer-driven network providing mentoring and education to small businesses, appealed to Congress to maintain its federal grant funding from the Small Business Administration. The support is vital. SCORE says it helped launch 59,447 new businesses and created 143,000 jobs in just the previous year. Facing potential budget cuts, SCORE warned that losing federal support would disrupt free counseling, webinars, workshops, and local chapter services nationwide. The organization emphasized that its role is the U.S.'s largest network of volunteer small business mentors, aiding entrepreneurs across sectors. SCORE urged Congress to ensure continued funding to sustain its operations to protect its impact on economic growth through small business development.”

If your business has gotten services from SCORE before – and they're a great organization – or if you know people that can benefit from SCORE, it's very, important for them to continue to get this funding. The best thing you can do while all the negotiations are going on is to call up with your congressmen and your senators and tell them how important SCORE is for your business. It really does make a difference.

My name is Gene Marks, and you have been watching or listening to this week's episode of the Paychex THRIVE Week in Review. If you need any help or advice or tips in running your business, please sign up for a newsletter. Go to paychex.com/thrive. Thank you so much for watching or listening. We'll see you again next week. Take care.

Do you have a topic or a guest you’d like to hear on THRIVE. Visit payx.me/thrivetopics and send us your ideas or matters of interest. Also, if your business is looking to simplify your HR, payroll, benefits or insurance services, see how Paychex can help. Visit the resource hub at paychex.com/worx. That’s W-O-R-X. Paychex can help manage those complexities while you focus on all the ways you want your business to thrive.

I'm your host, Gene Marks, and thanks for joining us.

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