In Your Backyard - May 13, 2008

Michigan
Businesses Split on Proposed Smoking Ban
A smoking ban in Michigan restaurants and bars wouldn't have the long-term negative impact on business that many owners fear it will, several restaurateurs predicted last week. But some still are unhappy that the state may be on the verge of imposing a ban. The Michigan Restaurant Association, an opponent of the ban, is especially unhappy about a possible exemption for American Indian-run casinos.
Source: Detroit Free Press

 

Ohio
Coalition Fights to Put Paid Sick Days on Ballot
A coalition that wants to require most Ohio businesses to give their employees paid sick days says it wants to put the issue on the November ballot. The proposal would require Ohio businesses with 25 or more employees to provide them with at least seven paid sick days a year. Ohioans for Healthy Families have gathered 154,693 valid signatures, and will attempt to gather about 87,000 more valid signatures to place the issue directly on the ballot.
Source: Associated Press

 

Tennessee
Lawmakers Approve Health Insurance Pooling Bill
The Tennessee Legislature has passed a bill that would make businesses with up to 50 employees eligible to participate in health care purchasing pools.  The bill also authorizes smaller employers to enter into health group cooperatives.
Source: The Nashville Business Journal

 

Vermont
Online Filing System Declared a Success
The state announced last week that 37% of 35,500 corporations and LLCs that filed year-end annual reports with the Secretary of State during the last renewal cycle did so using the state's new online service.
Source: Burlington Free Press

 

Wyoming
Energy Prices Offer Mixed Benefits for State Economy
Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D) says high energy prices are good for Wyoming's economy as a whole, but he laments their hard impact on small businesses and consumers. "Demand for energy drives our economy, and it drives it well, but the bad news is that the current level of prices is hard for small business, and I think it's going to be hard on the travel industry," the governor told Cheyenne business leaders last week. The governor was the featured speaker at the annual Governor's Small Business Week Breakfast, a fixture of the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce's celebration of Small Business Week.
Source: Wyoming Business Report