The federal Budget has been handed down. How does it look for Small Business?

The Federal Government has announced energy bill and tax relief for small business in the 2023-24 Federal Budget.

Key measures to support small business announced in the Budget include:

• A return of the instant asset write-off threshold to $20,000, for 12 months from 1 July 2023
• An estimated one million eligible small businesses to have $325 deducted from their power bills
• Up to $20,000 in bonus tax rebates per asset under the Small Business Energy Incentive scheme, to encourage businesses to install energy efficient appliances.
• $18.1 million for the Department of Finance to improve the ability for SMEs to compete for government procurement, including improving AusTender to increase transparency and establish a supplier portal for panels
• Support for small enterprises to adopt artificial intelligence technologies to improve business processes and increase competitiveness
• $392.4 million over four years to establish the Industry Growth Program to support Australian SMEs and startups to commercialise their ideas and grow their operations with funds redirected from the Entrepreneurs’ Program
• The ACCC establishing a complaints mechanism for small business advocacy groups to raise systemic issues.

The NSW Small Business Commissioner gives a complete snapshot here.