The act would provide cost-of-living increases for a long list of compensations like wartime disability and dependency and indemnity compensation to children.

U.S. Rep. Elaine Luria, chairwoman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, introduced a bill to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to veterans.   The bill, the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) Act, would provide cost-of-living increases for wartime disability compensation; compensation for dependents; clothing allowance; dependency and indemnity compensation to surviving spouses; and dependency and indemnity compensation to children.

Any increases would start on December 1.

Two Army deals worth a total of $575 million for Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicles “mark the beginning of low-rate production for the highly mobile, survivable, multipurpose vehicle designed to meet the mission of the U.S. Army’s Armored Brigade Combat Teams,” according to BAE Systems, the company that makes the AMPV. The Marine Corps awarded General Dynamics $37.2 million for 60 hardware kits to reset its Light Armored Vehicles. “The hardware kit addresses key obsolescence and readiness issues and consists of a modern powerpack, driveline system, driver’s instrument panel and a new turret slip ring,” the company said.

Lockheed and Raytheon grew their staff by about 5 percent between 2017 and 2018 according to Callan, the Capital Alpha analyst. Northrop’s headcount rose from 70,000 to 85,000, “but we don’t know how much of that was due to the Orbital ATK acquisition.” Orbital reported 13,900 employees in 2017, meaning the it might have actually grown only about 2 percent to 3 percent, he wrote in a Feb. 17 note to investors.

In this series of articles, we will examine the financial options and programs available to business owners to fund their business.

By Debbie Gregory.

In part 1 of this series, we have looked at the option of using your own money or assets to fund your business. Now we will look at using someone else’s.

If you are willing to take on investors, venture capital might be a good option. This can come from a single person, often referred to as an angel investor, or a venture capital firm. Angel investors are usually affluent individuals who provide capital for a business start-up, and more often than not are looking for convertible debt or ownership equity, as well as an active role in the company.

When you secure venture capital funds, you are not taking out a loan. You are offering a piece of the pie in exchange for funds to be used to drive your business venture down the road to success.

If you want to attract investors, do your homework in advance. Watch a few episodes of Shark Tank to understand how investors evaluate a potential investment. Although this is just a quick introduction, you’ll see how they value a company based on the amount of money requested and percentage of business offered, while inquiring about past performance, future projections, profit margins, the backgrounds of the principals, etc. You will see the importance of coming in with an appropriate valuation. Often times a deal is made based on the quality, passion, commitment, and integrity of the entrepreneurs.

Investors will want to review your business plan to make sure it meets their investing criteria. Most investment funds concentrate on an industry, geographic area, or stage of business development.

After determining the amount of the investment, you will need to settle on the terms and conditions. Venture funds are normally released in predetermined rounds. As the company meets milestones, further rounds of financing are made available, possibly with adjustments in price as the company executes its plan.

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,

In this series of articles, we will examine the financial options and programs available to business owners to fund their business.

By Debbie Gregory.

Whether you’re looking for start-up funds, capital to expand, or money to hold in reserve to get you through tough times, how you fund your business is one of the most important decisions you will make.

The term self-funding includes using your own money to invest directly in the company and using your personal assets as collateral for outside funding. If you are in a financial position to fund your business yourself, this option allows you to be independent and retain complete control of your business.

These monies could come from sources such as your savings, equity in your home, credit cards or even your retirement account.

Saving up the money to fund your business ahead of time saves you money since you will not be paying any interest, although it does involve risking your personal savings.

If you have equity in your home, a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC) is another option. Home equity loans provide a one lump-sum payment, while a HELOC works similarly to a credit card, where you only pay interest on the outstanding balance. But keep in mind that you are at risk by using the family home as collateral, something you wouldn’t want to lose.

One of the most expensive ways to self-finance your business is by using credit cards. Many successful business owners have used this method and made it work, but again, this is very risky, and depending on the interest rate, could be very expensive.

For a short burst of cash, you can withdraw money from your IRA interest and tax free, as long as you replace it within 60 days. However, make sure you pay back the money on time. If you’re just one day late in replacing the money for any reason, you’ll have to pay a 10 percent penalty and taxes on any of the money you haven’t paid back.

You may also be able to get funds from family members and friends. But please consider, each one of these methods does have a potential down-side should your business be slow to show a profit.

Veteran and Military Business Owners Association, VAMBOA,