Save Sba From Sanctuary Cities Act of 2025
Floor Speech
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Mrs. McIVER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding me the time.
My colleague across the aisle, obviously, wants us to be ``sleep'' because that is the opposite of being woke. I guess my colleagues should introduce sleepy policies and be ``sleep'' at the job.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to voice my strong opposition to the efforts to undermine American small businesses by the very agency tasked with fueling them.
Let me be clear. This is what H.R. 2931 would do. It would allow the Small Business Administration to gut punch the small businesses it is supposed to serve, just to punish cities that embrace their immigrant communities.
Targeting sanctuary cities, as this bill does, is beyond the scope of the SBA's duties. It flies in the face of what the SBA is supposed to do: lift up small businesses in communities across the country, no matter what city they are located in or what party they belong to.
Rather than driving economic growth, this legislation would strip essential resources from some of our Nation's most vibrant and diverse communities. This would hurt the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of businessowners. If the New York office were to close, the effects would spill over into my own community. The SBA office in Newark services over 800,000 small businesses in New Jersey alone. Cutting offices from these areas will stall growth and jeopardize jobs. It will displace employees and disrupt critical services that local businesses rely on. It will burden nearby offices and stretch resources very thin. It will make it harder for businessowners to get the help they need when they need it. Newark's office would be overwhelmed if the New York City office closes.
This bill weaponizes Federal resources to hurt cities that have made the choice to protect immigrant communities. This is unjust.
I have worked closely with my Democratic colleagues to raise these concerns directly with the SBA administrator through multiple letters, outreach, and even in the Small Business Committee yesterday. SBA's responses, if any, have been dismissive.
I stand firmly against using the SBA as a tool to penalize cities based on their immigration policies. I hope my colleagues will stand with me.
I urge Members to vote ``no'' on the Save SBA from Sanctuary Cities Act of 2025 to protect the SBA's mission and vibrant economies for all of our cities.
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