Before the latest holiday shopping season, many voices encouraged the public to shop locally during Small Business Saturday and the rest of the holiday season, reminding consumers that gifts and services purchased locally support businesses and jobs in our backyards. 

Supporting local businesses beyond the holiday shopping season and into the New Year has long-term and far-reaching benefits for the local economy.

Nearly 98 percent of all New York businesses are small businesses — about 451,000 across the state — and more than half of all workers earn a paycheck from small businesses. They provide a vast array of goods and services — from a cup of coffee to tech support to manufacturing — and collectively, they have a substantial impact on the economy. Based on the latest U.S. Census information, gross income and cost of goods sold as reported on federal income-tax forms average more than $950 billion annually for businesses with fewer than 500 employees in New York. Together, they support 3.9 million jobs statewide and are responsible for about $190 billion in payroll each year.

Locally, their impact cannot be overstated. The jobs small businesses create in individual counties was recently outlined in a report put together by the New York State Comptroller which was based on the latest Census from 2013. Oswego County reported 1,827 small businesses which supported 14,096 employees; Onondaga County reported 9,001 small businesses which provided jobs for 103,138; and Jefferson County reported 1,894 small businesses that provided jobs for 18,091.

Small-business owners’ investment in their community strengthens the local economy and adds to the quality of life of the area. Because the businesses are owned, managed, and have employees who live in the local community they are also inherently community-minded and are more likely to create partnerships and create ties in local neighborhoods —all of which contributes to stronger and safer communities. This includes giving to community causes and supporting fellow small businesses in the area. All of this helps increase local sales-tax receipts and, in general, adds to local tax base which supports municipal services, local roads, and education. 

Consumers have many options but shopping locally is an easy way to support the local economy. To learn more about small businesses in New York, visit a local chamber of commerce. Fulton and Oswego businesses are listed at http://www.oswegofultonchamber.com/. Many Baldwinsville businesses can be found at http://baldwinsvillechamber.com/, Central Square and Oneida Lake–area businesses can be found at https://www.oneidalakechamber.com/, and Pulaski area businesses can be found at http://pulaskichamberofcommerce.com/.         

William (Will) A. Barclay is the Republican representative of the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses most of Oswego County, including the cities of Oswego and Fulton, as well as the town of Lysander in Onondaga County and town of Ellisburg in Jefferson County. Contact him at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us or (315) 598-5185.

In the days following former President George H. W. Bush’s death, it was impossible to ignore the mood that settled over much of the country: a yearning for the civility, dignity, and inclusiveness that the former president represented. It was a form of bipartisan nostalgia for a time when the nation seemed to work.

As we start 2019, it’s equally hard to ignore the ground that this yearning sprang from: a deep-seated doubt that the system can work, and great worry that our democratic institutions are failing. Looking at American politics today, coming into what will undoubtedly be a momentous political year, what seems most apparent is an air of disappointment in our politicians and watchful concern for our way of life.

A lot of trends are feeding this. There’s the intensifying partisan divide, which is in turn stoked by disagreements over economic priorities, over environmental awareness, over issues like affirmative action, immigration, and the role of police, and over such cultural issues as abortion and gay rights. Inequalities of wealth and education exacerbate these divisions. And the rural-urban divide that featured so prominently in the midterm elections shows no sign of narrowing.

This fraying of the American fabric might not appear so threatening if we were capable of pursuing a healthy political dialogue, but that, too, seems increasingly out of reach.

We don’t get the kind of extensive, deep, fact-based discussion of the issues we once did. Our political leaders seem less skillful than their predecessors at finding the common good or negotiating their way to compromises that give all sides the chance to leave the table with something in hand. There’s a lot of excoriating one’s opponents for misbehaving, and typically no concern at all for similar misbehavior on one’s own side. Partisanship is hardening.

I’m also impressed by the number and variety of groups and interests that seek to bring Americans to their side, using multiple avenues — the internet, television advertising, “grassroots” campaigns — to persuade them to support their point of view. A lot of people are putting a huge amount of resources, time, energy, and talent into all kinds of political groups. They always identify what they want to do as a public good, but nonetheless it’s almost invariably a plea for special consideration. They want the public to see things the way they see them.

Which, not surprisingly, has made the role of money in politics ever more important, and the amount flowing into politics ever more massive. That’s been true for a couple of generations now. What seems different, though, is that ordinary Americans seem to be more aware of the role that money plays in getting things done.

At the same time all this is going on, it’s hard to miss the sense of engagement that many Americans — whatever their political beliefs — feel at this moment. We saw this in the midterm elections, of course, but we also see it in the day to day workings of community life.

Although there are some notable exceptions, many state and local governments, disappointed by what they see as either gridlock or dysfunction at the federal level, are finding ways to improve life for their citizens on their own. And citizens of all sorts are plunging into politics and into community issues with enthusiasm and vigor.

Clearly, at the federal, state, and local levels, a lot of this activity is based on citizens’ desire to improve the quality of their lives. That’s a heartening motivation. They want to see power used to get things right. Just as they want to be productive in their own communities, they want policy makers to be serious and productive, too.

This suggests, I think, that many Americans are wearying of pure ideology and rhetoric as political tools; they want tangible progress on the issues that affect the country.

So as we start 2019, there’s a feeling afoot that we’ve got a lot of work to do — and the nagging worry that our political system isn’t up to the task. That’s why this will be a momentous year: it’s our political leaders’ opportunity to prove that they, and the institutions they run, can answer to Americans’ needs.                              

Lee Hamilton is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at the IU School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Hamilton, a Democrat, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years, representing a district in south central Indiana.