American Entrepreneurs First Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 458, I call up the bill (H.R. 2966) to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to require an applicant for certain loans of the Administration to provide certain citizenship status documentation, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2966, the American Entrepreneurs First Act of 2025, introduced by Representative Van Duyne from the great State of Texas.

For 4 years under the Biden-Harris administration, the SBA approved loans for illegal immigrants despite their ineligibility. This bill requires citizenship verification of SBA loan assistance applications to ensure that taxpayer-backed loans go only to American entrepreneurs.

This Congress, the Committee on Small Business is working to carry out the Made in America agenda alongside the Trump administration. It is critical that we get the capital necessary for U.S.-owned small businesses to ensure they have everything they need to expand and grow.

This bill codifies both President Trump's executive order to end taxpayer subsidization of open borders and Administrator Loeffler's SBA 7(a) program guardrails put in place earlier this year.

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Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Van Duyne).

Ms. VAN DUYNE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, in the past 107 days since President Trump was inaugurated and Administrator Loeffler took the helm at the Small Business Administration, we have seen incredible strides toward streamlining services, eliminating waste, and ensuring that every taxpayer dollar delivers immeasurable results.

Beyond tackling bloat, inefficiencies, and burdensome regulations, the administration has partnered with us to deliver real results for the American people.

Today, congressional Republicans are partnering with them through my bill, the American Entrepreneurs First Act.

We have heard this bill described this morning as complicated and as taking drastic measures. Drastic measures mean that the SBA is going to need new resources to be able to actually do their job.

Simply put, all this does is say that when they are giving out SBA loans, they have to require age verification and citizenship status verification. That is it. How complicated and drastic is that? Verify age and citizenship status, that is it. It is codifying an important executive action that is already taking place.

In recent months, it has been discovered that under the previous administration, lax safeguards have allowed illegal aliens, children, and even the deceased to apply for and receive SBA assistance.

Thanks to the great work done by this administration, we learned that in June 2024, the SBA approved a $783,000 loan application for a small business that was owned by almost one-half, 49 percent, by an illegal alien.

Further, they found that between 2020 and 2021, the SBA issued over 3,000 loans totaling $333 million to borrowers over 115 years old--one more time, that is $333 million of taxpayer dollars that went to borrowers over 115 years old--and more than 5,500 loans totaling $300 million to children under 11 years old. Is that where we want our dollars to be spent?

We know, without a doubt, that the previous administration welcomed millions of illegal aliens into our country when, during the first 50 days of the Trump administration, ICE made over 32,809 arrests, which included 14,111 convicted criminals, including 1,155 criminal gang members.

We cannot allow those kinds of folks who are in our country illegally to take money away from hardworking Americans who are applying for SBA taxpayer-backed loans.

I am thankful to see that the tide is now turning and that we have a new day here in America, but it is important that we pass this legislation to protect the successes of this administration in the long term.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the American Entrepreneurs First Act.
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Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Van Duyne).

Ms. VAN DYNE. Mr. Speaker, we have heard a little bit of concerns about 1071. There is a huge difference between what we are requiring in this and what 1071 required. That was for all businesses, for all loans. It was not voluntary, and if businesses did not comply, they could actually be fined. What we are asking for is simply verification of legal status and age for companies that are applying for American taxpayer-backed loans.

Now, this should not surprise anybody. This proposed rule increases lending security and ensures that taxpayer dollars are used well. Further, participating in government lending programs like the 7(a) program naturally involves complying with government rules. This is no different.

U.S. taxpayer dollars back the SBA lending programs, and adding additional assurances, like age and legal status verification, making sure loans go to lawful citizens is just common sense.

Lender concerns related to nationality discrimination are nonsensical. This law does not prohibit lending based on nationality but rather on legal residency or status.

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Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to vote ``yes'' on this commonsense legislation, the American Entrepreneurs First Act. We need to put the guardrails up to support Main Street America.

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