On the recordJuly 26, 2011
I yield myself such time as I may consume. Small businesses who employ more than half of all private sector employees remain absolutely critical to the U.S. economy. With the unemployment rate at 9.2 percent, we need them more than ever to create new jobs. Central to these efforts are the tools and resources of the Small Business Administration which enable entrepreneurs to secure low- cost capital, fairer contracts, and technical assistance. However, over time, I feel the agency's programs have become redundant and unnecessary. Many have not been funded in decades, while others are simply antiquated policy remnants from a bygone era. It is a disservice to both small businesses and taxpayers to keep these obsolete initiatives on the books. By cleaning up the statute, as this legislation does, we can be assured that efforts to assist small businesses both now and in the future will be both efficient and up to date. Importantly, many of these cuts were at the behest of our colleagues in the Senate. Given this, it is my hope that the Senate takes up this legislation and passes it expeditiously. Chairman Graves is also to be commended for his comity and bipartisan approach to vetting these charges. Doing so has produced a bill that does not adversely affect small businesses. Similarly, a new but equally concerning trend has been the growth of unauthorized programs.…
