Unlocking Opportunities for Small Businesses Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the chairperson of the Small Business Committee, Chairwoman Velazquez, for yielding. The gentlewoman has, in the 3 years that I have been here, led this committee in a very positive direction, and also as the ranking member before she became chair. Ranking Member Chabot has also been a partner in this effort. I thank him too for his leadership of working together.

I thank Mr. Hagedorn from the great State of Minnesota, which is one of my favorite places--Sleepy Eye, Minnesota--the gentleman knows that I know about Sleepy Eye--as well as Mr. Joyce, who is a colleague from Pennsylvania. I thank my colleagues for their leadership on this bill.

The well-being of our communities depend in part on what we do to create circumstances where small businesses can thrive. When small businesses thrive, Americans enjoy great economic security. In my home city of Philadelphia, minorities constitute about 65 percent of the population. Yet, they constitute 80 percent of those in poverty.

Coupled with the fact that the city has a poverty rate of nearly 25 percent, creating economic opportunity for minorities is critical to advance well-being: financially, physically, and socially.

We, as Members of Congress, have tools in our toolbox to address economic disparity. One of those is H.R. 5146. This bill will allow small businesses to compete more fairly with large businesses by permitting small businesses to create past performance records.

A past performance record is integral to winning federal contracts, but small businesses are prevented from establishing one.

Most of the work of minority-owned small businesses does not count towards past performance, such as work in joint ventures or as subcontractors to prime contractors.

This hurts small businesses' ability to bid, compete, and win contracts as primes. In turn, it impairs the business' ability to grow, create jobs, and contribute economically to the community.

With the passage of this bipartisan bill into law, we will create circumstances where all small businesses, including minority-owned small businesses, will be better equipped to compete and thrive.

Madam Speaker, I thank the chair again for her leadership and the staff, too, for working together collectively to make this happen. I invite all of my colleagues to support passage of this bill.

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