Secretary of State Commends Work of the Office of Small Business Assistance
Secretary of State Jeanne P. Atkins today released a report detailing successes of the Office of Small Business Assistance in its second year.
The Office helped 219 small businesses and nonprofits with 100 or fewer employees in 2015, an increase of 56 percent over 2014. Small Business Advocate Ruth Miles, with the support of Jorge Aviles, Small Business Assistant, helped business owners with state regulatory issues ranging from licensing to procurement.
“Oregon’s small business owners are innovators, job creators, and have been instrumental to our state’s economic recovery,” said Secretary Atkins. “I am proud of the work of the Office of Small Business Assistance. Along with the services offered by our Corporation Division, reports like today’s show that we are reaching the right people and providing quality services to help businesses prosper.”
The 2015 Report illustrates how the Office helped businesses across the state. Of cases the Office handled, the largest percentage dealt with licensing. Also raised were questions involving taxes, procurement, the need for capital and other business questions.
This legislative session, Governor Kate Brown introduced Senate Bill 1583, legislation that directs the Office of Small Business Assistance to act as a facilitator between small businesses and local governments in addition to its current duties. The bill will also allow the Office to provide recommendations to improve local government transactions with small businesses.
“Oregon’s small businesses are the lifeblood of its economy,” said Small Business Advocate Ruth Miles, who has served in that position since the creation of the Office. “Two full years of operations for the Secretary of State’s Office of Small Business Assistance has raised the profile of the Office, both increasing awareness and adding perspective to the trends we identified last year. I am looking forward to the work we can do to help Oregon’s small businesses in 2016.”
The Office of Small Business Assistance was the idea of Governor Kate Brown when she served as Secretary of State. Housed in the Secretary of State’s Corporation Division, the Office of Small Business Assistance was created by the Legislature in 2013 to facilitate interactions between small businesses and state agencies. The Office also reviews and investigates small businesses’ complaints about interactions with state agencies.
A detailed description of the Office of Small Business Assistance is available online at http://sos.oregon.gov/business/Pages/office-small-business-assistance.aspx.
You can read the 2015 Annual Report on the Secretary of State’s website at http://sos.oregon.gov/business/Pages/osba-annual-report.aspx.
