Frank Lautenberg: “I rise in support of S. 942, the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act. Mr. President, America's small…”

“I rise in support of S. 942, the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act. Mr. President, America's small businesses badly need relief from excessive and unnecessary regulations. For years, those of us on the Small Business Committee have heard first hand from men and women in small businesses about the disproportionate regulatory burden they face. This burden was confirmed late last year in a report by the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy. Among other things, the report found that while small businesses employ 53 percent of the workforce, they bear 63 percent of total business regulatory costs. The annual average cost of regulation, paperwork, and tax compliance for small businesses is about $5,000 per employee. By contrast, the comparable burden for businesses with over 500 workers is $3,400 per employee. This difference is significant. Big businesses already enjoy a competitive advantage over their smaller counterparts because of economies of scale. The Federal Government should not further disadvantage small businesses by imposing uniform regulations where tiering the regulation to account for business size would be just as effective.”