On the recordMay 24, 2012
I rise today to introduce legislation to strengthen the resources and support that we provide to entrepreneurs, and to strengthen oversight of the SCORE program. In 1964, the Small Business Administration recognized that retired business executives who volunteered to share their knowledge and expertise could be invaluable to entrepreneurs. From this, SCORE was established and has since grown to over 360 chapters across America. As with any type of growth, there comes an essential need for increased organization and oversight. This bill seeks to assist the SBA and SCORE with just that. The key to getting our nation on the road to economic recovery lies in the hands of small business, which is why I am always looking for ways to improve the SBA's entrepreneurial assistance programs. By creating a SCORE Advisory Board which functions to monitor and develop initiatives for programs affecting SCORE chapters, we can ensure that entrepreneurs in all areas of our economy are served by high-quality mentoring services. Specifically, this board is compromised of six members coming from the owners and employees of small businesses themselves, in addition to current members of SCORE chapters. While some may argue that funding for SCORE should be increased, in this budget environment, where Federal revenues and spending are misaligned to the tune of $1.1 trillion this year alone, we must find ways to be more efficient with existing resources.…
