August 2022

Washington, D.C. (September 9, 2022)– Today, the Job Creators Network Foundation (JCNF) released its August Small Business IQ Poll of 500 small business owners. The Small Business Intelligence Quotient (SBIQ), an index tracking overall small business sentiment about the economy, is little changed compared to the previous month—rising by one-tenth of a point to 52.9. The reading remains near a record low and is down 11 percent since this time last year.

A majority (57 percent) of small business owners now believe the U.S. economy has entered a recession, while only 30 percent of respondents rate the condition of the U.S. economy as good or excellent. Meanwhile, a vast majority of small business owners are opposed to a major component of the recently passed “Inflation Reduction Act.” Seventy percent of respondents oppose doubling the size of the IRS, which will trigger more audits of Mainstreet.

Other key takeaways include:

• Small business owners are concerned about profitability. Last month, 71 percent predicted they would be profitable over the next year. That number dropped to 64 percent in August. It’s the lowest number year-to-date.
• In August there was a 10-point jump (36 percent to 46 percent) in the number of small businesses who say gas prices have affected their profitability.
• A majority of small businesses are concerned about crime (65 percent). That jumps to 85 percent for minority-owned businesses.

View more polling details and crosstabs here.

Elaine Parker, President of the Job Creators Network Foundation, released the following statement:

“The U.S. economy is on shaky ground as Mainstreet continues to face rising prices, labor shortages, government red tape, and big tax burdens. The latest blow comes in the form of the misnamed Inflation Reductions Act—legislation that will raise taxes on job creators, pick winners and losers with ‘green’ subsidies, fuel even higher inflation, and sick the IRS on small businesses. Despite efforts by the White House to spin the bill as a ‘win,’ small business owners understand it’s a raw deal for America.”