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The latest Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index finds 85 percent of small business owners say they do not plan to hire new employees in the near future, with nearly half citing potential healthcare costs (48%) and government regulations (46%) as reasons.

While that’s actually an improvement, it is still unacceptable to most Americans and not good enough to turn around the declining economy.

According to Gallup Chief Economist Dennis Jacobe:

Given this difficult operating environment, it is not surprising that many small-business owners also worry about potential new healthcare costs and government regulations. While small businesses are always finding ways to deal with their changing operating environment, including government regulations and healthcare, these added challenges can be seen as exacerbating an already uncertain and difficult situation. In turn, they become additional reasons to hold back on hiring.

Jacobe later writes:

(L)awmakers could place a moratorium on new regulations for some period of time. In turn, this might provide the extra push needed to get small-business owners to decide to hire the employees they actually need and get the economy growing at a pace the average American can recognize as an economic recovery.

Republicans won’t do that.  Democrats won’t do that.  But Libertarians will.