Small Business Administration Extension

Floor Speech

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Ms. VELÁZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

All of us on both sides of the aisle agree that America's small businesses will be the cornerstone of our economic recovery. Not only are small businesses more nimble and better able to respond to economic turbulence, but after losing their jobs many Americans turn to entrepreneurship as a new source of income. This ingenuity has led us out of previous recessions. With the right tools and support, I believe small businesses will again lead our Nation back to recovery.

Since January, this Congress has taken important steps to help our small businesses. The Recovery Act is helping address the single biggest challenge facing entrepreneurs today, namely, access to affordable capital. By making improvements to the SBA's capital access programs, this bill will yield $21 billion in new lending and investment for small firms. We have also targeted $15 billion in new tax relief to small businesses through the act, and many small companies are being put back to work rebuilding our economic infrastructure. In fact, small businesses which dominate trades like construction and engineering can expect to see $30 billion in infrastructure opportunities thanks to the Recovery Act.

However, our work on behalf of small businesses does not stop there. In May, this body passed bipartisan legislation to update and improve the SBA's Entrepreneurial Development programs. These initiatives have a solid track record of success. Small businesses that use them are twice as likely to succeed.

Last year alone, ED programs helped create 73,000 new jobs. The legislation we passed in May will build on this success. Through outreach to targeted communities like veterans, our bill will ensure more companies take advantage of these services. And the legislation responds to current economic pressures by helping dislocated workers start their own enterprises and offering expert consulting to troubled businesses.

Finally, in the last month we have worked to update the Small Business Innovation Research program and the Small Business Technology Transfer program. Every year, through SBIR and STTR, some of our largest Federal agencies invest $2.2 billion in small business research. This infusion helps launch 1,500 new companies. The House-passed bill will strengthen the SBIR program in a number of ways. It will make it easier for companies participating in SBIR to access venture capital. We have also adjusted the size of program grants to better reflect the research costs. And we have targeted the program toward commercialization so more products come to the market and there are further opportunities for job creation.

Mr. Speaker, all of these measures will update and improve Federal programs that small businesses rely on. As we speak, the committee is continuing work with our counterparts in the Senate to finalize these bills, prepare them for final passage, and get them to the President for his signature.

However, as the current programs at the SBA expire at the end of this month, we must pass an extension so that our legislative work can continue. The bill before us will keep existing initiatives at the SBA running for another 60 days. This will allow us time to finalize these measures and prepare them for final passage.

I urge my colleagues to vote "yes'' on this measure.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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