Nydia M. Velazquez: “our country is coming off of one of the greatest economic growth periods in our Nation's history. This phenomenal…”

“our country is coming off of one of the greatest economic growth periods in our Nation's history. This phenomenal expansion has been driven by our small businesses, which are the engine of our economy. The contribution of American entrepreneurs cannot be underestimated. Small businesses employ half our workers, create new jobs 75 percent faster than large companies, and make up half of our GDP. The SBA fuels this powerful engine through its loan and technical assistance programs. SBA maintains a loan portfolio of $45 billion to nearly a half million businesses, accounts for nearly half of all venture capital financing, and helped secure financing for eight of Fortune Magazine's 100 fastest-growing firms in 1999. The SBA has even helped launch household brand names like Fed-Ex, Intel, and Apple. Unfortunately, this bill's funding levels leave the agency short by $130 billion. It zeros out ten programs and underfunds another half-dozen. This leaves our small businesses close to running on empty. This amendment, offered by my colleague, the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Kelly), and myself, will restore $17 million to the agency, allowing us to adequately fund SBA's 7(a) loan program and maintain for PRIME and BusinessLinc, two critical small business development programs. Mr. Chairman, access to capital means access to opportunity for small business owners.”