Providing Opportunities to Show Transparency Via Information Technology Act of 2023

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4668) to amend the Small Business Act to require the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman to publish guidance documents for certain rules, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 4668

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 ``Providing Opportunities to Show Transparency via Information Technology Act of 2023'' or the ``POST IT Act of 2023''. SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF GUIDANCE ON OMBUDSMAN WEBSITE.

(a) Website Requirement.--Section 30 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657) is amended--

(1) in subsection (e)--

(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the end;

(B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and

(C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

``(3) to the extent practicable, hyperlinks for such guidance that is designed to set forth policy on a statutory, regulatory, or technical issue, or an interpretation of such issue, for any rule for which an agency produces a small entity compliance guide.''; and

(2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:

``(g) Protection of Confidential Information.--Subsection (e) does not require the public availability of information that is exempt from public disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the `Freedom of Information Act').''.

(b) Applicability.--Paragraph (3) of section 30(e) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657), as added by this section, shall apply with respect to guidance on, or interpretation of, a rule for which an agency produces a small entity compliance guide described under section 212(a)(1) of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (5 U.S.C. 601 note) on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. SEC. 3. COMPLIANCE WITH CUTGO.

No additional amounts are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act or the amendments made by this Act.

I rise in full support of H.R. 4668, also known as the POST IT Act, introduced by Representative Molinaro of the great State of New York.

Small business owners face some of the biggest challenges in understanding how to comply with Federal regulations. Oftentimes, small businesses are hiring compliance officers, which are a drag on their bottom lines, rather than focusing on their core business model and looking for growth opportunities.

This legislation would make it easier for small businesses to track the ever-changing agency guidelines on how to comply with any given regulation. The POST IT Act requires agencies to post their guidance, and all subsequent changes on how to comply, in a centralized location on the SBA's Office of the National Ombudsman's website.

Businesses should not have to search through many different websites to try to find all the latest information on how to comply with any given requirement. If an agency updates a regulation or puts out more information, it should be easily accessible for any business to look up.

I hope this bill is just the first step in much-needed regulation modernization efforts in the committee. We have seen far too many new requirements coming from government agencies that are hurting our Nation's job creators. As businesses continue to deal with high interest rates and elevated inflation, we should not be adding additional costs in the form of new regulations.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Molinaro for leading this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

H.R. 4668 is a step in the right direction to lessening the regulatory burden placed on our Nation's small businesses.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Molinaro for his work on this crucial piece of legislation, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join us in creating a regulatory environment that allows Main Street America to thrive.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source