Good news just in time for Small Business Saturday

During the presidential campaign, President Obama voiced concern about his legacy -- unless Hillary Clinton won, his achievements would be lost to posterity.

He probably didn't expect it to begin before he even left office.

Businesses across the country were struggling to comply with a regulation going into effect Dec. 1, that would require them to pay overtime for salaried administrative or professional workers who make less than about $47,500 a year.

Nebraska and 20 other states filed suit, saying it would increase expenses for employers who would track hours more meticulously and force them to cut employees' base pay to compensate for overtime costs that kick in more frequently.

The U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Texas saw some merit in that argument, granting a nationwide preliminary injunction, saying the Department of Labor's rule exceeds the authority the agency was delegated by Congress.

The Department of Labor is considering its options, but observers don't expect a resolution until after the Trump administration is in place.

The Obama administration said the rules would put more teeth into the Fair Labor Standards Act, which saw 62 percent of U.S. full-time salaried workers receive overtime pay in 1975, compared to 7 percent today.

But the rules might be the straw that broke the camel's back for many small businesses, especially in small-town America.

"The one-size-fits-all doubling of the salary threshold demonstrated ignorance regarding the vast differences in the cost of living across America," said Karen Kerrigan, president and CEO of the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council.

The injunction comes at an opportune time, a few days before Small Business Saturday, which encourages holiday shoppers to patronize brick-and-mortar businesses that are small and local.

That's in contrast to Black Friday, the traditional day for shoppers to rush big-box stores the day after Thanksgiving, and Cyber Monday, the first Monday after Thanksgiving, designed to promote online shopping -- but we doubt shoppers still need encouragement to shop online.

Small-town entrepreneurs like those whose businesses line the bricks of Norris Avenue and other rural main streets are one of the bright spots in the American economy, and the new labor rules would likely stifle their growth when it was just getting started.

We hope you'll give a small business a chance to help meet your holiday shopping needs this Saturday.

With a little encouragement and favorable regulations, they might be a not-so-small business next year.