Survey says: Domestic and European economies prove problematic

SurePayroll, an online payroll service for small businesses, might want to consider renaming its “optimism survey” to something a little less...optimistic.

That's because the amount of small business owners optimistic about the economy continues to dwindle. The rate in June dropped to 60%, the firm's latest survey reports, down from 64% in May. The rate is also down from 70% in March, and 63% in December 2011.

At least it's not September 2011, when a mere 33% of survey respondents reported being optimistic about the economy. Glenview, Ill.-based SurePayroll is a subsidiary of Paychex, a publicly traded payroll, human resources and benefits outsourcing firm.