NJ Small Business Centers Push For More State Funding

New Jersey small-business advocates are walking a budgetary tightrope: expressing gratitude for Governor Christie?s proposed $250,000 appropriation for state business development centers, while pointing out the inadequacy of the current funding level.

Last week the New Jersey Small Business Development Centers issued a statement, thanking Christie and the Legislature for those funds, which will be divided among the 11 centers that consult and train small-business owners.

Still, business officials say New Jersey?s financial support for the centers pales in comparison to what other states spend, specifically Southern states that have increased their employment rolls, in part, due to a business exodus from New Jersey and other Northern states.

?I believe we?re moving in the right direction,? said Deborah Smarth, chief operating officer for the state small-business development center. ?Small business is the engine of the economy, but when you look at what is being allocated in small-business assistance ? we could have a bigger bang for our buck if we invested more.?

Small-business development centers consult entrepreneurs on how to start and grow their businesses, providing them counsel on fundamental operations, such as marketing, accounting and sales strategies. Bergen County and Passaic County centers have consulted hundreds of small businesses, but operate on tight budgets.

?I just couldn?t hire people to do the programs, so everyone had to double up,? said Vincent D?Elia, the regional director for the Bergen County Small Business Development Center. ?We?re not going to sell our clients short.?

Smarth pointed to states like Georgia and North Carolina, which are slightly larger than New Jersey?s 8.6 million residents, but operate with budgets of at least 10 times the size of New Jersey?s. Georgia and North Carolina receive $3.1 million and $2.1 million, respectively, from their state legislatures.

Those states have cut back, according to small-business directors there, but only slightly during the last three years ? which stands in stark contrast to the volatile budget process New Jersey?s center has faced.

During state fiscal year 2007-08, the legislature allocated $1 million to the New Jersey SBDC budget, up from $500,000 the year before. But the next year, facing a massive budget deficit, former Gov. Jon Corzine, attempted to eliminate the entire $1 million budget, according to Smarth. The legislature ultimately negotiated with Corzine to restore $500,000, she said.

That budget eventually dropped to the current level.

Scott Daugherty, executive director for North Carolina?s small-business development center network, said his budget has been cut about $100,000 over the last three years, and is grateful for that, considering the economy.

?We?ve been very fortunate,? he said. ?[Government leaders] just perceive there to be an extraordinary amount of value back, in terms of jobs created and businesses supported.?

Daugherty?s counterpart in Georgia has had a similar experience.

?We are seeing a lot of attention for what we do, because policymakers are seeing the value of a diversified economic development strategy,? said Allan Adams, state director for the Georgia SBDC.

Centers also receive federal matching funds from the federal Small Business Administration, as well as outside donations, but the cuts in New Jersey have forced area small-business advocates to scale back on the aggressive training they would normally seek.

In Passaic County, the loss of state funds forced William Paterson University and the City of Paterson to chip in money, according to Kate Muldoon, the county?s SBDC director.

?We definitely cut programs,? she said. ?I would have been much more impacted if the university or the city of Paterson did not step up. People are thinking we are a necessary component to economic development in the city and people have rallied around us.?

E-mail: macinnes@northjersey.com

Article source: http://www.northjersey.com/news/124555404_N_J__lags_in_financial_aid_to_development_centers.html

Source: http://www.experts-bto.com/2011/06/26/nj-small-business-centers-push-for-more-state-funding/

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