A bipartisan pair of senators has introduced a bill that would require most employers to file their W-2 forms electronically.

Small business owners reported an increase in hiring, but a decrease in optimism last month, according to a new survey by the National Federation of Independent Business.

Greatland Corporation subsidiary Nelco has launched a new Web Reporting Center as part of an enhanced set of tools for developers of accounting and payroll software.

One-third of small-business owners spends two full work weeks every year dealing with federal taxes, and 87 percent need to pay an outside accountant or other tax return preparer to do their taxes, according to a new survey.

CBIZ reported increased hiring in March, with its Small Business Employment Index rising by 0.69 percent, compared to an increase of 0.25 percent in February.

Optimism among small business owners fell in March, according to a survey by SurePayroll.

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 216,000 in March, and the unemployment rate dipped a tenth of a percent to 8.8 percent, the lowest level in two years, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

Small businesses added 102,000 jobs in March, according to payroll giant ADP, out of a total of 201,000 jobs gained in the private sector.

Small business employment continued to grow in March, according to Intuit, with employers adding 50,000 new jobs.

CFOs cited time management, new technology and accounting regulations as their greatest challenges in a new survey.

Payroll and benefits outsourcing provider Paychex reported that third quarter profits rose 17 percent to $130.6 million, on a 5 percent rise in total service revenue to $520 million for the period ended February 28.

Accounting software developer CYMA Systems has released CYMA Business Insight, a Microsoft Excel-based financial reporting tool that integrates with CYMA’s existing payroll and HR database to allow users to extract wage, benefit, tax and other labor costs for reporting purposes.

Small business owners in the United States intend to add approximately 3.8 million jobs this year, according to a new survey.

Optimism among small business owners increased since the previous month, according to SurePayroll’s Small Business Scorecard for February 2011, reaching 71 percent in February 2011.

The February CBIZ Small Business Employment Index, a barometer for hiring trends among companies with 300 or fewer employees, increased by 0.25 percent through the month, after posting a decrease of 2.62 percent in January, almost a 3 percent upswing in net month over month hiring.

Seven percent of CFOs anticipate adding full-time accounting and finance professionals in the second quarter, while another 7 percent plan personnel reductions, according to a new survey by staffing company Robert Half International.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that nonfarm payroll employment increased by 192,000 in February, and the unemployment rate dipped by one-tenth of a percentage point to 8.9 percent.

In a good news-bad news scenario, half of small business owners are optimistic about their growth prospects in 2011. However, 47 percent reported that recent government regulations have slowed or prevented growth, according to a small business survey from payroll and benefits outsourcing concern Paychex.

Private sector employers added 217,000 jobs last month, including 100,000 jobs at small businesses, according to payroll data from ADP.

Small business employment and hours worked continued to grow in February, but the level of wages generally remained flat, according to figures from Intuit.