Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2017

Floor Speech

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I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to this amendment. Over the years, the Committee on Small Business has seen the HUBZone program move further and further away from its goal, and this amendment would only amplify this problem. Allowing a massive expansion of the program, as has been proposed, would greatly reduce the efficacy of the program by steering contracts away from active economically distressed areas.

The amendment will also dilute the competition in HUBZone contracting opportunities as well as in the free and open marketplace. In some cases, agencies will even be required to pay up to 10 percent more for goods and services to companies that would otherwise not qualify for the program. The chairman and I are committed to working on the HUBZone program.

The committee plans on conducting a hearing in the fall, and I am working on a comprehensive reform bill. We will welcome Mr. Delaney's participation as we look further into how we can improve this program, while ensuring that contracts are awarded to those areas that need them most.

However, I cannot, in good conscience, support the inclusion of this provision. It has not been vetted by the committee of jurisdiction, and there is not any evidence that this amendment will further the mission of the HUBZone program of supporting economically disadvantaged areas.

I therefore ask my fellow Members to vote ``no'' on this amendment.

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