Providing for Congressional Disapproval Under Chapter 8 of Title United States Code, of the Rule Submitted By the Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense and the Environmental Protection Agency Relating to Revised Definition of Waters of the United States

Floor Speech

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Ms. ROSEN. Madam President, well, I want to thank Senator Cardin for his leadership on small business. For the 4 years I have been here, he has been a friend and a mentor, and he has really encouraged me in so many ways to find my voice for Nevada, for this country, and I appreciate his leadership. Thank you.

And the Senator is right. Small businesses, well, they are the engine of the U.S. economy. They foster innovation. They create jobs. They provide a lifeline for families.

And, in Nevada, small businesses make up 99 percent of all businesses. Our small business economy, it is thriving. It is increasingly diverse, allowing many Nevadans to achieve the American dream by being entrepreneurs and providing for their families.

These businesses, they are crucial for Nevada's economy. We should encourage and support them by making it easier to start and operate small businesses, increasing access to capital to help them grow and succeed, and cutting through that redtape that is far too often a barrier.

So here in this Chamber, we must focus on helping small businesses overcome the enormous challenges that they face and the obstacles they experience just to get off the ground.

As a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, my top priorities have been expanding resources in support for Nevada's small business--the owners, the employers, and their workers. And so from introducing a bipartisan bill to help those graduating from minority-serving institutions to open a business to sponsoring bipartisan legislation to help veterans start small businesses in underserved communities, to urging the Small Business Administration to open a Veterans Business Outreach Center in Nevada, I have been fighting for businesses time and time again, and I will keep fighting.

I am also working in a bipartisan way to make small, nonprofit childcare providers eligible for Federal resources so that they can grow, create jobs, and provide more affordable childcare options in all of our communities. And this just means so much to our families. It gives them so much peace of mind.

And I am going to continue, as well, to advocate to open up Federal loans for State-legal cannabis small businesses. They are job creators in our State and in a growing number of States across the country.

And we can also help our small businesses by reducing the burden that entrepreneurs face, well, when they get started. The exhaustive hoops that American entrepreneurs have to frequently jump through--from obtaining permits to fulfilling licensing requirements--well, it can be a real challenge for people just to get those businesses off the ground.

And so that is why I am proud to announce that, today, I am introducing bipartisan legislation to help small businesses by cutting through the bureaucratic redtape that often prevents them from getting off the ground.

My legislation would create a centralized website. This website, entrepreneurs can come and visit to get all the information they need from the Small Business Administration on Federal, State, and local licensing and business permitting requirements, with information and resources all in one place, because I believe we should be making it easier to start a small business, and we must make sure that entrepreneurs are in the best position to succeed right from the beginning. And having them going to a one-stop website, that is a start because I know that when we invest in our small businesses and our entrepreneurs, when we invest in our communities, when we invest in our hard-working families, well, together, we create a successful future for our State and for our country.

And so I urge my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to join me in cutting redtape, bringing down those barriers, and increasing information access for all of our small businesses.

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