Washington’s economic recovery will depend on small businesses. That message is driven home in the newly updated Washington Small Business Profile released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration. The most recent data shows that the state has 147,948 small employers, and they employ 98.2 percent of the state’s workforce.

“Washington depends on small business for jobs and economic growth,” said Shawne McGibbon, Acting Chief Counsel for Advocacy. “During this time of financial stress and economic instability, policymakers need to remember that the state’s small businesses provide the economic base for its families and communities.”

To further highlight the importance of small business, the updated profile notes that small businesses created 94.4 percent of the state’s net new jobs from 2004 to 2005 (latest available data).

Not only does the state’s economy depend on the health of its small businesses — so, too, does the economy of the United States.

The United States has slightly more than 6 million small employers, or 99.7 percent of all employer firms, and they provide 50.4 percent of its private sector employment. These firms created 78.9 percent of the nation’s net new jobs from 2004 to 2005, and they generated more than half of the private non-farm gross domestic product.

The Office of Advocacy, the “small business watchdog” of the federal government, examines the role and status of small business in the economy and independently represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the president. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-friendly formats, and it funds research into small business issues.

For more information and a complete copy of state and territory small business profiles, visit the Office of Advocacy Web site at www.sba.gov/advo.