Small Business

California's insurance commissioner said an 11% rate increase for small businesses by Anthem Blue Cross is "unreasonable" because the company overstated its costs and improperly added fees related to the federal healthcare law. Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones also said Anthem, a unit of industry giant WellPoint Inc., was reaping excessive profits in California. But under state law the commissioner has no authority to block the rate increase from taking effect this month. "This is a huge loophole in California law and in the federal Affordable Care Act," Jones said.

California's insurance commissioner scolded Anthem Blue Cross for raising rates for small businesses while praising industry rival UnitedHealth Group Inc. for cutting worker premiums. Escalating his campaign against rising health insurance rates, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said Anthem's premium hike for companies with 50 or fewer workers, which he pegged at 11%, was "unreasonable" because the company overstated its projected medical costs and improperly added fees related to the federal healthcare law. But state regulators have no authority to block Anthem's rate increase from taking effect this month.

Google Inc. is expanding its push to help more small businesses get online, this time en español. The Internet search giant held a free seminar Tuesday to teach Latino business owners how to create and manage their websites and promote their businesses. At a production studio in Los Angeles' warehouse district - transformed for the day with colorful chairs and candy jars - Google employees explained in Spanish how to register domains, set up Google Alerts and use tools such as Google Calendar and Google Docs.

American small business owners are in a sour mood, with optimism at one of its lowest levels since 1986, but don't blame Superstorm Sandy. It's the fiscal cliff's fault, according to a new report from the National Federation of Independent Business. The threat of major spending cuts and tax hikes in the new year has caused a forward-looking gauge of Main Street sentiment to plummet. The election and the looming implementation of President Obama's health coverage overhaul is also weighing on small business owners, according to the report.

The job outlook at America's small businesses is the worst it's ever been, according to new research. Last month, 21% of small business owners said they expected to lower head count over the next six months - the highest percentage recorded by the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index since its launch in 2003. In July, the last time the data was compiled, just 10% of bosses said they planned to shrink employee ranks. More than six in 10 owners said they would keep their workforce steady, while 17% said they intended to boost hiring.

WASHINGTON - Acknowledging that talks have hit a “stalemate,” House Speaker John A. Boehner sought to portray his party as willing to work with President Obama, even as Republicans hardened the line against Obama's proposed higher tax rates for the wealthy. “There's a stalemate; let's not kid ourselves,” said the Ohio Republican, speaking to reporters Friday at the Capitol as the president took Air Force One to a toy factory in Pennsylvania to argue for his proposal to keep the current tax rates for 98% of Americans, while allowing rates to rise on the wealthiest.

Holiday shopping continued at a brisk pace Saturday as customers nationwide scoured big chain stores for more Black Friday weekend deals and discounts, made online purchases and turned some of their attention to neighborhood boutiques and other small businesses. Retailers reported strong sales on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and traditionally the kickoff to the holiday shopping season. On Saturday, a preliminary report showed sales totaling $11.2 billion on Black Friday, slightly down from the $11.4 billion spent on the same day last year, said Bill Martin of research firm ShopperTrak.

A day after shoppers surged into malls for Black Friday, local merchants around the country are welcoming them to Small Business Saturday. The shopping day, invented by American Express in 2010, is a nationwide effort to get customers to support neighborhood boutiques and mom-and-pop shops. Last year about 100 million shoppers visited small businesses on that day. Local merchants in Los Angeles got into the spirit on Saturday, sandwiched between the marathon shopping days of Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

After the Black Friday shopping madness, small boutiques in Silver Lake were anticipating customers who were less about giant malls and more about supporting local business. Dubbed Small Business Saturday , the shopping event was invented by American Express in 2010 to encourage consumers to spend some dollars at neighborhood shops and independent retailers. The day has high-profile supporters such as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and President Obama, who took his two daughters to a bookstore in Arlington , Va., on Saturday.

The Apt2B + Alpha Home for the Holidays pop-up shop -- tucked into a well-appointed corner of the Satine boutique on West 3rd Street -- will be holding a sale Nov. 24 in celebration of Small Business Saturday . "If it can fit in a shopping bag, it's 25% off," Apt2B founder Mat Herman told us when we stopped by earlier this week, holding aloft a brown paper sack big enough to stow a countertop microwave (which is about the only thing for...