Patriotic Employer Protection Act of 2019
Floor Speech
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Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3661) to support entrepreneurs serving in the National Guard and Reserve, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 3661
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Patriotic Employer Protection Act of 2019''. SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF LOAN ASSISTANCE AND DEFERRAL ELIGIBILITY TO RESERVISTS BEYOND PERIODS OF MILITARY CONFLICT.
(a) Small Business Act Amendments.--Section 7 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(3)--
(A) in subparagraph (A)--
(i) by striking clause (ii);
(ii) by redesignating clause (i) as clause (ii);
(iii) by inserting before clause (ii), as so redesignated, the following:
``(i) the term `active service' has the meaning given that term in section 101(d)(3) of title 10, United States Code;''; and
(iv) in clause (ii), as so redesignated, by adding ``and'' at the end;
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``being ordered to active military duty during a period of military conflict'' and inserting ``being ordered to perform active service for a period of more than 30 consecutive days'';
(C) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``active duty'' each place it appears and inserting ``active service''; and
(D) in subparagraph (G)(ii)(II), by striking ``active duty'' and inserting ``active service''; and
(2) in subsection (n)--
(A) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Active Duty'' and inserting ``Active Service'';
(B) in paragraph (1)--
(i) by striking subparagraph (C);
(ii) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and (B) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respectively;
(iii) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, the following:
``(A) Active service.--The term `active service' has the meaning given that term in section 101(d)(3) of title 10, United States Code.'';
(iv) in subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, by striking ``ordered to active duty during a period of military conflict'' and inserting ``ordered to perform active service for a period of more than 30 consecutive days''; and
(v) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``active duty'' each place it appears and inserting ``active service''; and
(C) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``active duty'' each place it appears and inserting ``active service''.
(b) Applicability.--The amendments made by subsection (a)(1) shall apply to an economic injury suffered or likely to be suffered as the result of an essential employee being ordered to perform active service (as defined in section 101(d)(3) of title 10, United States Code) for a period of more than 30 consecutive days who is discharged or released from such active service on or after the date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Semiannual Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and semiannually thereafter, the President shall submit to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on the number of loans made under the Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan program and the dollar volume of those loans. The report shall contain the subsidy rate of the disaster loan program as authorized under section 7(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)) with the loans made under the Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan program and without those loans included.
(d) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--Section 8(l) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(l)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``The Administration'' and inserting the following:
``(1) In general.--The Administration'';
(2) by striking ``(as defined in section 7(n)(1))''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Definition of period of military conflict.--In this subsection, the term `period of military conflict' means--
``(A) a period of war declared by the Congress;
``(B) a period of national emergency declared by the Congress or by the President; or
``(C) a period of a contingency operation, as defined in section 101(a) of title 10, United States Code.''. SEC. 3. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.
The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3661, the Patriotic Employer Protection Act of 2019.
Mr. Speaker, this commonsense legislation recognizes the service of our reservists and the companies they work at by broadening the ability of small business employers to access loans when a reservist is deployed.
Across the country, small business owners are doing the right thing by actively employing military reservists. Congress recognized the strain a small business can be under when key employees are deployed on missions. That is why this distinguished body created the SBA's military reservist programs, which are the Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan program and the Repayment Deferral for Active Duty Reservists program. These two programs provide emergency working capital and loan flexibility to small business owners who have an essential employee who is an Active Duty reservist called into action.
Over the past decade, our Reserve Forces have experienced a shift from a strategic reserve to an operational reserve. This bill addresses that shift by expanding the pool of eligible reservists through a restructuring of the programs so they are not limited to periods of conflict.
This seemingly minor modification, in addition to increased coordination between the SBA and the National Guard Bureau and State Adjutants General, will lead to targeted outreach and education about the programs while also modernizing them to meet the needs of today's small employers.
I thank Congressman Kim and Congressman Burchett for working with me to improve access to affordable capital for small businesses, especially those owned by or who employ reservists.
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Mr. SCHNEIDER. Mr. Speaker, it is now my privilege to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Kim), my friend and colleague who is a sponsor of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I, too, commend and thank Representative Kim and Representative Burchett for their leadership on this. The Small Business Committee, as a whole, commends those small business owners who support their employees serving in the National Guard and Reserves and thereby support our national security.
Reservists can be called away at a moment's notice and fulfill their duty in a variety of ways. For instance, we rely on them during our most vulnerable times, like during natural disasters, and they can be tapped to serve abroad when needed and necessary.
They protect us and our communities by leaving their lives and communities behind. Though they may be called upon temporarily, their absence is sorely noticed by their families and employers who rely upon them.
The bill before us today, H.R. 3661, takes their absence into consideration by reflecting how our Nation has changed the way we call upon them. By making the SBA's Military Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Repayment Deferral for Active Duty Reservists programs more accessible to servicemembers and their employers, we are helping to sustain small businesses, families, and local communities.
This legislation makes sure that the SBA can be a resource for when employers support their workers while on deployment.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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