WASHINGTON, D.C. Vermont's economic recovery will depend on small business. That message is driven home in the newly updated Vermont Small Business Profile released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration. The most recent data show that the state has 18,937 small employers, and they employ 63.5% of the state s workforce, the third highest percentage in the country.
Vermont depends on small business for jobs and economic growth, said Shawne McGibbon, Acting Chief Counsel for Advocacy. During this time of financial stress and economic instability, policymakers need to remember that the state s small businesses provide the economic base for its families and communities.
To further highlight the importance of small business, the updated profile notes that small businesses created 51.7% of the state's net new jobs from 2004 to 2005 (latest available data).
Not only does the state s economy depend on the health of its small businesses, so too does the economy of the United States.
The US has slightly more than 6 million small employers, or 99.7% of all employer firms, and they provide 50.4% of its private sector employment. These firms created 78.9% of the nation s net new jobs from 2004 to 2005, and they generated more than half of the private non-farm gross domestic product.
The Office of Advocacy, the small business watchdog of the federal government, examines the role and status of small business in the economy and independently represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the President. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-friendly formats, and it funds research into small business issues.
For more information and a complete copy of state and territory small business profiles, visit the Office of Advocacy website at www.sba.gov/advo.
The Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent voice for small business within the federal government. The presidentially appointed Chief Counsel for Advocacy advances the views, concerns, and interests of small business before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, federal courts, and state policymakers. For more information, visit www.sba.gov/advo, or call (202) 205-6533.
State
% Workforce Employed by Small Businesses
State
% Workforce Employed by Small Businesses
Alabama
49.7%
Missouri
49.7%
Alaska
55.6%
Montana
69.8%
Arizona
48.8%
Nebraska
51.4%
Arkansas
48.8%
Nevada
44.2%
California
52.1%
New Hampshire
54.9%
Colorado
51.7%
New Jersey
51.1%
Connecticut
49.6%
New Mexico
57.0%
Delaware
48.3%
New York
51.7%
District of Columbia
48.2%
North Carolina
48.6%
Florida
44.0%
North Dakota
63.3%
Georgia
46.3%
Ohio
48.6%
Hawaii
56.1%
Oklahoma
54.0%
Idaho
58.6%
Oregon
57.2%
Illinois
49.2%
Pennsylvania
49.9%
Indiana
48.6%
Rhode Island
57.1%
Iowa
51.6%
South Carolina
50.0%
Kansas
54.6%
South Dakota
63.2%
Kentucky
50.0%
Tennessee
45.1%
Louisiana
54.1%
Texas
46.8%
Maine
60.6%
Utah
49.9%
Maryland
53.4%
Vermont
63.5%
Massachusetts
48.3%
Virginia
49.4%
Michigan
51.6%
Washington
55.7%
Minnesota
51.0%
West Virginia
54.3%
Mississippi
50.1%
Wisconsin
53.4%
Wyoming
66.2%