Across the country, just about every city and town has at least some small business sector of its own, and now many are starting to take the initiative to encourage further growth and success of such companies. This list now includes the city of Nashville, which is about to do more to help companies drive employment numbers in the new year.
Nashville has had a small business incentive program designed to help companies bring on more workers since 2013, but recently lowered the bar so that more firms could participate in it, according to a report from the Nashville Tennessean. Earlier this week, the city’s metro council voted unanimously to make it so that any company with fewer than 100 employees adds at least 10 new jobs in the coming year will receive a grant of $500 per new worker, or $750 if they hire a veteran. Previously, the threshold was 20 new workers.
Other details of the plan
However, it should be noted that these hires cannot be marginal; workers have to make at least 80 percent of the county’s median salary (though in the past the number had to at least equal that median level), the report said. In addition, companies can only receive up to $50,000 in these grants per year. The reason these changes were made to increase participation is that the program has been woefully underutilized: Only a fraction of the city’s small businesses have applied for the benefit, but none have actually participated. The hope is that the lowered requirements will bring more companies into the fold going forward.
“We know that many small businesses are going to be applying for these grants,” at-large Councilman Jerry Maynard, who helped push for the original law and changes, told the newspaper. “We’re going to get it out to citizens and small businesses.”
Owners who want to make sure their companies are well-positioned when it comes to being able to bring on new workers and potentially qualify for these grants may want to consider the ways in which their firms currently spend money. If they can find ways to reduce expenses, such as those for small business insurance policies – possibly including those for errors and omissions insurance – as a means of potentially trimming thousands of dollars from their bottom lines annually.
