Craig Endorses Small Business Bill of Rights

Today in honor of Small Business Week Shawn Craig, Iraq War Veteran and candidate for State Representative, endorsed the Small Business Bill of Rights legislative package to help grow jobs in the Commonwealth. 

“Small businesses create three out of every four new jobs in Massachusetts.  They are the backbone of our economy. By helping small businesses, we can put people back to work,” said Craig. “Our unemployment and underemployment rates have been high for far too long. The Small Business Bill of Rights will give employers the certainty they need for planning purposes and it will allow them to start hiring again.”

Craig is the only candidate in the Republican primary with private sector experience.  Being self-employed and working in the securities industry, he knows how government regulations and mandates can stifle growth.  Craig will use his extensive experience to make a positive difference.  

Craig is endorsing the package of:

Small Business Bill of Rights

• One-year waiting period before a new tax can take effect. This initiative will give businesses time to adjust to the higher cost of doing business.
• One-year adjustment period before a new regulation can take effect. Businesses need certainty. By creating a one-year waiting period, businesses will have the time to prepare for the new requirement and make the appropriate adjustments. It will make it more affordable for them. 
• Require a systematic cost-benefit analysis of regulations every five years. The Patrick administration has been reviewing some regulations, but it should occur every five years to ensure that regulations have not outlived their usefulness.
• Allow people to freelance work and allow businesses to hire freelancers. The Massachusetts state law on independent contractors makes it almost impossible to hire a freelance person. By correcting the definition we will be creating more opportunities for businesses to test new positions which often lead to full time positions.
• Require a cost-benefit analysis of all new energy projects. The cost of doing business in Massachusetts is very expensive. We have some of the highest utility costs in the nation. Before beginning a utility project, there should be a cost-benefit analysis to determine the worthiness of the project.
• Require hearings before taxes are increased. The tech tax is a perfect example of legislators voting to increase taxes before knowing the full impact.  By holding hearings around the state, businesses will be able to educate legislators as to the direct impact before there is a vote.
• Limit treble damages to willful actions. These hefty fines should only be imposed on small businesses when there is willful action on wage disputes, not for innocent mistakes. 

Craig is a member of the Upton Finance Committee and is the liaison to the Mendon Upton Regional School District. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force. In addition, he is an active member of the VFW and Upton Men’s Club. 

Professionally, Craig has 18 years of private sector experience with the majority spent within the financial services industry. He worked for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for 8.5 years where he investigated broker-dealers for compliance with federal securities laws and FINRA rules and regulations. This included both routine as well as special investigations involving the review and discovery of money laundering, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading and unsuitable investments. One investigation of which he was the team lead resulted in the discovery of fraud and misrepresentation at a firm located in Braintree.  raig drafted a referral whereby the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission became engaged along with the FBI.  The firm’s owner was detained October 2, 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 17 years in federal prison plus 3 years supervised probation and $9 million in restitution. Craig left FINRA in 2013 to start a consulting business focused on helping small broker-dealers.

Craig earned his B.A. from Roanoke College, where he double majored in International Relations and Business, and an M.S. in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston.

Submitted by the Shawn Craig for State Representative Campaign.