Most Small Businesses Hand Government ‘C or Below’ Grades Ahead of Biden’s State of the Union

The federal government’s report card isn’t looking stellar, casting a pall over Capitol Hill ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address on Tuesday. 

Seventy percent of entrepreneurs participating in a recent survey gave the government a grade of a “C,” “D” and even an “F,” when asked about the effectiveness of the programs, services, and tax credits made available to entrepreneurs. The new survey out Monday from Goldman Sachs’s 10,000 Small Businesses program was conducted in late January, with 1,838 small-business owners participating across 48 states. 

Forty-two percent of those surveyed said the government is doing a poor job with the effectiveness of its access to capital programs. Another 40 percent found that the government’s procurement and contracting support efforts are lacking. 

“Unfortunately, the historic challenges presented by the pandemic made clear that government programs designed to help small businesses have not evolved alongside them,” Sydney Rieckhoff, the owner of the Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based popcorn shop, Almost Famous Popcorn, said in a statement. “Now we are navigating our new normal with outdated tools and programs to fit yesterday’s needs.”

The results of the survey highlight a disconnect between the government and founders. A whopping 96 percent of small businesses report that the government should enhance efforts to fine-tune programs and services so they’re a better fit for small businesses.

Communication is another area entrepreneurs noted was lacking. Just one percent of entrepreneurs handed the government an “A” mark for the administration’s communication and marketing efforts around existing programs that small businesses can benefit from. 

In a departure, a majority of business owners called the government’s disaster assistance relief programs effective, with 42 percent saying the government did a good job and 10 percent saying it did an excellent job.

Despite awarding the government mostly poor marks, small-business owners remain optimistic for the year ahead, with 51 percent of those polled anticipating that they’ll create new jobs, and another 60 percent aiming to grow profits this year. And that’s with 55 percent of business owners anticipating a recession to hit the U.S. economy in the next year.

The results of the survey arrive on the eve of President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, which will be his first before a divided Congress. The government’s poor marks are all the more reason why the Biden administration will need to the economy in its address, and why it might want to keep small businesses in mind with its messaging.