The Big Story: Biden’s regulatory freeze is a mixed bag for startups. President Joe Biden’s decision to institute a 60-day regulatory freeze on new or pending rules from federal agencies and executive departments could significantly impact the U.S. startup community. As the Biden administration undertakes this assessment, which gives officials the opportunity to review proposed regulations from the previous administration, federal officials should take care to refrain from holding up any policies that would expand and enhance entrepreneurship, while taking a closer look at rules that would prove detrimental to innovation and competition.
As Policymakers Turn the Heat up on Tech Policy, Startups Need a Seat at the Table
In a new Medium post, Engine announced the launch of our Startup Agenda 2021, which outlines the policy priorities of the U.S. startup community. The Startup Agenda 2021 covers a range of policy issues that include capital access, connectivity, intellectual property, privacy, and more. As we explain in our post below, there are startups in every state and congressional district across the country, and their perspective is especially critical if policymakers hope to craft rules and regulations that boost innovation and competition.
Startup News Digest 01/22/21
The Big Story: Biden administration hits the ground running on immigration. The technology sector is already rallying behind President Joe Biden’s early immigration moves, which have included rolling back several of the previous administration’s harmful immigration policies and proposing legislation that would overhaul the nation’s immigration system. Now, entrepreneurs are hopeful that Biden will continue to undo the last administration’s policies, which have, among other things, limited tech companies’ access to high-skilled, foreign born talent.
Efforts to Undermine H-1B Visa Program Will Harm U.S. Tech Sector
TLDR: Although the technology industry remains hopeful that the incoming Biden administration will overturn President Trump’s harmful immigration policies, startups and other businesses are concerned that a federal rule published in the last days of Trump’s term would further weaken and restrict access to the H-1B visa program. Tech companies rely upon the significant contributions of foreign-born workers to grow their businesses, but ongoing efforts to limit access to crucially-needed talent will only drive high-skilled workers to other nations.
Startup Policy: 2020 Year in Review
TLDR: Over the course of 2020, policymakers engaged on a variety of critical issues and concerns impacting the nation’s startup community, especially around the COVID-19 pandemic, which upended daily life for millions of Americans. Small businesses and entrepreneurs affected by the pandemic called for Congress to provide nascent companies with the emergency support needed to weather the economic uncertainty. The startup perspective has also been crucial in discussions about the importance of Section 230 for small Internet companies that host user-generated content, changes to a law that provides startups with a balanced framework for addressing allegations of online copyright infringement, policies limiting access to high-skilled talent, and much more. As the end of the year draws near, we wanted to highlight just a few of the policy issues that have affected the startup community in 2020.
Limiting High-Skilled Visas Hurts U.S. Startups
TLDR: As the technology industry looks to President-elect Joe Biden to overturn the Trump administration’s immigration policies limiting access to high-skilled foreign talent, startups are continuing to pressure Congress to defend and expand the H-1B visa program. Tech companies rely upon the contributions of high-skilled foreign-born workers to drive innovation, but limiting access to this talent—particularly during the pandemic—could harm the long-term growth of U.S. startups.
Startup News Digest 11/13/20
The Big Story: Recognizing the contributions of veteran entrepreneurs. Each year, almost 200,000 service members transition to civilian life. Armed with leadership skills, technical knowledge, and problem-solving capabilities, many of these veterans choose to launch their own startups and small businesses as a way of using their military experience to further serve the public good. In fact, the U.S. Small Business Administration has found that veterans “are at least 45 percent more likely than those with no active duty military experience to be self-employed.” With more than 2.5 million U.S. businesses owned by veterans—approximately 9.1 percent of the nation’s private sector companies—it is especially critical that these entrepreneurs and founders receive the attention and support that they need to thrive. As we reflect on Veterans Day and the contributions of those who have served our country, Engine wanted to take the opportunity to also celebrate just some of the contributions of veteran-led startups across the United States.
Startup News Digest 10/30/20
The Big Story: Where Trump and Biden stand on tech policy. With the election in full swing, President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden are wrapping up their respective campaigns. Ahead of the impending election, we wanted to take a look at where the major party candidates stand on some critical tech and startup issues.
White House Efforts To Undermine Visa Programs Will Harm Startup and Tech Innovation
TLDR: The U.S. tech industry and startup ecosystem rely upon the important contributions of high-skilled foreign talent to drive innovation and economic growth. But the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the country’s visa programs by suspending work visas for immigrants and attempting to narrow eligibility for H-1B visas will harm domestic innovation and drive qualified talent to other countries.
To Support Tech Companies, U.S. Should Embrace High-Skilled Workers
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has brought change to every facet of life and government. While Congress’ focus has largely been on providing direct relief for workers and business owners struggling with the financial impact of the outbreak, recent actions taken by the Trump administration on immigration issues stand to impact the talent needs of American businesses.
Law Reclassifying Independent Contractors Will Harm California’s Startups
TLDR: Uber and Lyft may have to suspend their services in California after a San Francisco judge ruled last week that the firms must comply with a state law—Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5)—that requires California companies, including “gig economy” platforms, to reclassify many independent contractors as employees. Although the law is ostensibly targeted at larger platforms like Uber and Lyft, it is likely to be an existential threat for smaller startups.
Startup News Digest 07/10/20
The Big Story: Startup community voices concerns about suspension of H-1B visas. U.S. startups are asking the Trump administration to reconsider a recent decision that will limit access to high-skilled talent amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a new letter, Engine and 118 startups, entrepreneurial organizations, and other companies—including Pinterest, Postmates, Reddit, and Twitter—are asking President Donald Trump to reconsider his suspension of work visas to high-skilled foreign workers, including those issued under the H-1B visa program. The letter comes after the president signed an executive order last week temporarily halting the issuance of work visas for foreign workers through the end of the year.
Engine, startups push White House to reconsider suspension of work visas
This afternoon, Engine released a letter signed by 118 startups, entrepreneurial organizations, and other companies—including GitHub, Postmates, Reddit, and Twitter—asking the Trump administration to reconsider its recent suspension of work visas for high-skilled foreign workers, including those issued under the H-1B visa program.
Statement on the Trump Administration’s Proclamation to Suspend Visas for Foreign Workers
The administration’s decision to halt the issuance of work visas—including those under the H-1B program—for highly-skilled foreign workers will needlessly harm the tech industry and U.S. startup ecosystem that rely upon talented employees to drive global innovation. Instead of helping startups and small businesses recover from the coronavirus pandemic’s economic downturn, this proclamation hampers the tech sector’s ability to respond to the ongoing outbreak by limiting the effectiveness and reach of its workforce.
Statement on the Supreme Court's DACA Decision
DACA decision is make or break moment for startups
The fate of up to 800,000 individuals and their ability to live and work in the United States will be decided in the coming months, as the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Tuesday for the consolidated cases challenging the Trump Administration’s termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. While the justices appeared split in their questioning, the outcome of this case will not just have ramifications for the recipients and their communities, but also stands to impact the desirability of the United States as a destination for high-skilled workers to put their skills and entrepreneurial initiative to the test.
Engine submits comments to House Antitrust Subcommittee on non-compete agreements
Engine submitted comments to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law following the panel’s October 29th hearing on competition in labor markets.
Lawmakers use recess break to learn more about local startups
Although Congress has been on recess for the past two weeks, that hasn’t stopped lawmakers from connecting with startups and entrepreneurs back home. At least six representatives and one senator toured startup facilities, spoke with and profiled small business owners, or otherwise learned more about the entrepreneurial endeavors of their constituents.