Two new surveys show continued small business worries due to Washington-generated uncertainty.

PNC released a small business survey showing continued cautiousness about the economy. Dow Jones Newswire reports that 23% plan to hire more workers, down from 28% of those asked last spring. Also, the percentage of those pessimistic about the national economy rose from 43% to 57%.

Another stat I noticed is that the percentage of businesses planning new investments in the next six months fell from 70% last spring to 58%.

The U.S. Chamber’s Small Business Outlook Survey shows similar findings. It found that only 17% expect to hire more workers, and 60% think the business climate has gotten worse in the last two years.

Automatic tax increases and spending cuts—the “fiscal cliff”—set to smack the economy in 2013 look to be part of the cause of increased pessimism. A Wall Street Journal survey found that 47% of small businesses think Washington won’t find a solution while 38% are more confident. Book publisher, Clint Greenleaf, is most concerned about the tax hikes set to hit people like him: “Whether I invest tomorrow will entirely depend on my taxes going forward.”

In the Small Business Outlook Survey, even more--nine out of ten--are worried about the fiscal cliff and that Congress won't fix the problem.

To invigorate small businesses and get them to invest and hire workers, Congress and the administration must improve the economic environment. Stopping the federal government from going over the fiscal cliff—here’s how--has to be a priority to ease some small business owners’ worries.