News from the

House Committee on Small Business

Nydia M. Velázquez, Chairwoman

 

For Immediate Release CONTACT: Alex Haurek / Duncan Neasham

May 7, 2009 (202) 226-3636

 

 

Job Creating Small Business Bill Prepped
for Movement

 

Committee Hearing Examines New, Existing Entrepreneurial Development Programs

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. --Lawmakers with the House Committee on Small Business yesterday examined a bipartisan legislative package that would update key entrepreneurial development programs within the Small Business Administration (SBA). Witnesses and Members of the Committee said the package expands existing support services and creates new programs in a major effort to help small businesses bring the economy back on track.

 

"To get out of this recession we need to do all that we can to help established small businesses and prospective entrepreneurs succeed and create new jobs," said Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY), the Chairwoman of the House Small Business Committee.  "Just as they have in the past, small firms promise the surest path to a recovery, and these initiatives give them the right tools and support they need to prosper."

The Committee reviewed a print of the Job Creation through Entrepreneurship Act of 2009. If enacted, the legislation would mark the first overhaul of the SBA's entrepreneurial development programs in a decade. The measure expands specific programs, such as Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), Women's Business Centers (WBCs) and the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE). The bill also creates new support programs for veteran-owned and Native American-owned small businesses, improves cross-program coordination to maximize use of program resources, and creates 21^st century online learning initiatives for entrepreneurs. In addition, the bill creates a grant program for Small Business Development Centers, specifically designed to assist small firms in securing capital and credit.

 

"The single biggest challenge facing small firms right now is the ability to access credit," Velázquez said. "The Recovery Act that the President signed into law in February will result $21 billion in new lending for small businesses. However, small firms need to know how to access these loans, and this bill will educate them on strategies for meeting their capital needs."

 

During the hearing, lawmakers frequently commented on how investment in entrepreneurial development programs yields strong returns in terms of economic growth. In 2008 alone, the SBA's entrepreneurial development programs helped generate 73,000 new jobs and infused $7.2 billion into the economy. Some economists have estimated that every dollar invested in these initiatives returns $2.87 to our economy and helps these small businesses thrive.

"This legislation enjoys widespread bipartisan support and it should, given what a strong return on investment entrepreneurial development programs offer to taxpayers," Chairwoman Velázquez said.  "America's small businesses are ready to get back to work and this legislation will help them do so. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to move this important measure toward enactment."

 

The legislative package is comprised of seven measures that were approved by the Committee's Subcommittee on Rural Development, Entrepreneurship and Trade last week. Those bills, sponsored by five Republicans and two Democrats, include:

• H.R. 1803, the Veterans Business Center Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Glenn Nye (D-VA)

• H.R. 1834, The Native American Business Development Enhancement Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ)

• H.R. 1807, the Educating Entrepreneurs through Today's Technology Act, introduced by Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA)

• H.R. 1838, the Women's Business Center Act, introduced by Rep. Mary Fallin (R-OK)

• H.R. 1839, the SCORE Act, introduced by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL)

• H.R. 1842, the Expanding Entrepreneurship Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO)

• H.R. 1845, The Small Business Development Center Modernization Act of 2009, introduced by Rep. Aaron Schock (R-IL)

Velázquez said that the Committee intended to swiftly move the larger legislative package through the full Committee and to the House floor.

 

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Click here to view video of the hearing.

 

 

 

 

IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, CALL 202-226-3636.

THANK YOU.