Reports - Mississippi Renewal

96 | SMALL BUSINESSPrior toKatrina, smallbusinessesowned bywomen andminoritieswere growingat a fast clip.Growth between 1997 and2002 in businesses owned by:■ Women: 23%■ Hispanics: 34%■ African-Americans: 42%■ Asians: 22%Source:U.S. Department of Labor, Bureauof Labor Statistics.RecommendationsResearch and discussions with smallbusiness employers and employees ledto the following recommendations,some of which transcend business-onlystrategies and include proposals forstrengthening the stability of regionalinfrastructure and social services. Becausesmall businesses are closely connectedto the health of communities,they are especially sensitive to changesthat affect the security and the qualityof life of all citizens.Create a Mobile Small BusinessEmergency Recovery CenterThe energizing tax incentive plan approvedby Congress must be publicizedto small businesses. A clearinghouse forall business support assistance can teamresources with businesses in need. TheCenter should be located in a mobilevan capable of going on-site in the mostdevastated areas, bringing the resourcesto the business owner/manager insteadof making the business come to the appropriateresource.On board should be representativesof appropriate federal, state, and localagencies supporting small business, withwireless Internet and satellite capabilityso applications can be completed on-site.The Detroit Metro Chamber donatedsuch a mobile communications centerto the Mississippi Gulf Coast Chamberto use after Katrina. The Coast Chamberis making this mobile communicationsvan available to any small business.The van can be used as a mobile SmallBusiness Emergency Recover Center,and area Chambers of Commerceshould help coordinate the site visitsthroughout the hurricane-affected area.The primary expense will be towingthe mobile center and should be paidfor by area Chambers of Commerce ifgrant money is not available.Prepare and Continually Update aSmall Business Survival KitKatrina taught that the best way forsmall business to recover is to be far betterprepared before the disaster strikes.Using the American Red Cross’Emergency Preparedness Kits for theWorkplace as a model, MDA and areaChambers of Commerce should assemblea complete Small Business SurvivalKit that can be provided at minimal costto every small business owner/managerbefore disasters occur. If this kit hadbeen in place before Katrina, manyproblems faced today by small businessowners would have been avoided, andthey would have been far more preparedto recover after the tragedy.The Commission recommends thatthese kits be used as templates to bemodified with all local emergency informationand then, using the mobilecenter above, distribute them to thebusiness community.Create the Position of SouthMississippi Small BusinessEmergency Preparedness Directorand Establish the Mechanism toFund the Position PermanentlyJust as MEMA works throughout theyear – coordinating with federal, stateand local agencies as part of a comprehensiveemergency management team– to prepare the population for disastersand their recovery, an emergency managementagency and director for smallbusiness should be created. The directorshould not be affiliated with an existingagency with other responsibilities;he or she must be able to devote timepreparing and updating Small BusinessSurvival Kits, giving presentations andworkshops throughout South Mississippi,and working closely with all federal,