CBC Hour: Small Business Week

Floor Speech

Mr. JEFFRIES. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous materials into the Record on the subject of this Special Order.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor and my privilege once again to stand here on behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus to help anchor this Special Order along with my good friend, the distinguished gentleman from the Silver State, Representative Steven Horsford, where for the next 60 minutes, members of the Congressional Black Caucus have an opportunity to speak directly to the American people about an issue of great significance as we kick off Small Business Week in America and commemorate the 50th anniversary.

Entrepreneurship innovation, the capacity of Americans who have an idea and want to translate that idea into a business initiative in urban America, in rural America, in suburban America, is something that we here in the Congress should not simply celebrate, as we will do this week, but figure out ways to make sure that we can facilitate those entrepreneurial ideas in the most robust manner possible and help those entrepreneurs from all over the country translate their ideas and their dreams into small business reality.

It goes without saying that small businesses are the heart and soul of the American economy. A significant number of people all throughout the country are employed in small businesses on Main Street and throughout inner-city commercial corridors and in the far reaches of rural America. Many of these small businesses we, of course, know were also hit extremely hard in the aftermath of the collapse of the economy in 2008. They were knocked down on the ground. And it's our job in the Congress and government, working with industry, to help lift those small businesses up off the ground and get them back on their feet so they can survive and thrive in the face of the economic difficulty that they confronted.

So we will be presenting ideas related to entrepreneurship for small businesses throughout America generally and in the context of entrepreneurship and innovation in the African American community.

We are going to begin today with the distinguished gentleman from Newark, New Jersey, our good friend, Representative Donald Payne, who is a distinguished member of the Small Business Committee. Prior to arriving in Congress, he worked hard on these issues, and he has been a leader since being sworn in as a Member of the House of Representatives. It is my honor and my privilege to yield to Representative Payne.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. I thank the distinguished gentleman from New Jersey for so eloquently laying out the history of entrepreneurship in America through the lens of the Black community, and also for detailing his own personal experiences in Newark, New Jersey, experiences that, I think, were replicated in many inner cities all across the country in the face of urban decay and abandonment that took place in the 1960s and in the 1970s. It was those African Americans who remained behind in inner city after inner city after inner city in America with an entrepreneurial idea of providing a service that otherwise may not have been available. We want to make sure that we create opportunities for all Americans to be able to grow their businesses and transform their ideas into reality.

I look forward, and all the members of the CBC look forward, to working with Representative Payne in his capacity on the Small Business Committee with the leadership that he has demonstrated.

We've now been joined by another distinguished member of the freshman class who also has experience from a personal perspective as a successful small business owner and entrepreneur. So it's my honor right now to yield the floor to the distinguished gentlelady from Ohio, Representative Joyce Beatty.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. I thank the distinguished gentlelady from Ohio. She certainly eloquently illustrated the point that small business and entrepreneurship are as American as baseball and apple pie. And for women and minority-owned businesses to thrive is for America to thrive, as has been pointed out by speaker after speaker.

So many of the jobs that Americans hold to this day are as a result of the employment that small businesses provide. So as we figure out how we can continue to recover from the Great Recession of 2008, it's critically important for us to make sure that we can guarantee the best possible opportunity for small businesses to succeed and for entrepreneurial ideas to flourish. That is why we've taken to the floor today, and it's my honor and my privilege to now yield to another distinguished member of the freshman class, my co-anchor for the CBC Special Order, the gentleman from the Silver State, Representative Steven Horsford.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. I want to thank my good friend, Representative Horsford, who's made several important points. And if I could just highlight a few in particular, we hear a lot of talk here in Washington, D.C., about the evils of regulation. That talk is generally put forth in very generalized terms, without being able to point to specific regulations that actually are impeding the growth and opportunities of small businesses, but is certainly something that we hear a lot about, the evils of regulation.

But the reality is if you really want to deal with some of the problems that are confronting small businesses in America, I think Representative Horsford has laid it out in pretty compelling ways.

One, we need to ensure that our small businesses have access to capital in order to be able to grow their businesses, allow them to flourish and expand, build upon the ideas that exist.

Two, we've got to make sure that we give these small businesses access to contracting and procurement opportunities. Many times there are small businesses that have the capacity to do the job, but are unaware of the opportunities that actually exist, whether that's at the Federal Government level, the State government level, or down at the municipal or county governmental level.

And, lastly, as my good friend, Representative Horsford, pointed out, we've got to make sure that we provide access to technical assistance to deal with the compliance issues that businesses do confront. That doesn't mean that all of these issues are overly burdensome or unnecessary. But we want to make sure that small businesses do have the capacity to operate within the regulatory framework that is applicable and reasonable and that the elected officials in whatever the particular jurisdiction have deemed necessary for the proper functioning of a small business.

So I thank the distinguished gentleman from Nevada for raising those very compelling points.

We've now been joined by a very important leader on the issue of small business and entrepreneurship, who comes from the great State of New York, the great borough and county of Kings and Brooklyn, where we have many entrepreneurs. And she's helped many businesses over time. She is on the Small Business Committee.

She's my neighbor, so I wanted to make sure I gave her the appropriately generous introduction. It's an honor to yield the floor to the distinguished gentlelady from New York, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. I thank the distinguished gentlelady from New York for her very thoughtful and insightful remarks, and I certainly thank her for pointing out that immigrants from the great State of New York and, in fact, immigrants who have come across the world to States all across the United States are hardworking, family-oriented, entrepreneurial, and innovative individuals who have helped to revive and rejuvenate communities all across this great land. It's something that we in this Chamber need to recognize as we celebrate and commemorate Small Business Week and prepare to move forward hopefully with some form of comprehensive immigration reform that we recognize the contributions that immigrants have made in the small business context.

We've been joined by another champion of small businesses here in the Congress who has got a very distinguished record on a wide variety of issues. She has been a thoughtful, eloquent, and passionate voice as it relates to entrepreneurship in America, and specifically within the black community. It is my honor and privilege now to yield the floor to the distinguished gentlelady from the great Lone Star State of Texas, Representative Sheila Jackson Lee.

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Mr. JEFFRIES. I thank the distinguished gentlelady from Texas for her very eloquent and thoughtful remarks and for her putting forth some very important policy prescriptions for what we in the Congress can do to help advance the agenda on behalf of small businesses all across this country, and certainly in the women- and minority-owned business context.

I also want to note, I am thankful that Representative Clarke mentioned one of the important immigrant businesses that began in the Bronx, New York, but has spread all across the country, the Golden Crust Caribbean Bakery and Grill, as well as I thank the distinguished gentlewoman from Texas for highlighting some of the important businesses that have sprouted up in Houston, Texas. Those are just a few examples of what entrepreneurs in the black immigrant community, in the African American community, have done all across the land. All we're saying is we want to make sure that we provide these businessmen and -women the same opportunities that others throughout time in America have had, because if we do, they will be able to translate their entrepreneurial spirit, their innovative ideas, their vision, into reality that will make economic sense for their communities and lead to the hiring of American citizens and others who need the employment opportunity that these small businesses will continue to generate.

Just a few observations in closing. One of the things that was mentioned earlier today on the floor was the fact that many small businesses confront an uncertain economic environment. And as a result of this uncertainty, they are unable to move forward in any concrete fashion because they don't know when the next crisis will hit our economy: Are we going to default on our debt? Are we going to fall over the fiscal cliff? How long are we going to be dealing with sequestration?

I would suggest to my good friends on the other side of the aisle that if we really want to help out small businesses and entrepreneurs, we've got to figure out a way to come together and find common ground as it relates to moving our economy forward, because as long as we're in this period of uncertainty, it will be difficult for small businesses and for entrepreneurs to take any step forward as it relates to growing their businesses and allowing them to be more prosperous.

Now there is a vehicle for us to try and find common ground. For 4 years, my good friends on the other side of the aisle were complaining about the fact that we were not in regular order, that the Senate failed to pass a budget. Well, this year a budget resolution was passed in the House of Representatives. A budget resolution was passed in the Senate. Two very different visions for where we should go as a country. But the vehicle to find common ground is to move forward with a conference committee. The majority in the Senate has indicated they are prepared to move forward and appoint conferees, but the Speaker of the people's House refuses to do so, even though for the last 4 years folks were complaining about the absence of regular order.

If you want to do something about small businesses, what we should do in America is figure out how we in the Congress can come together, find common ground and create some economic certainty so these entrepreneurs can move forward.

I don't know if my good friend has any parting comments, but let me just say that we in the CBC are committed to continuing to stand up for entrepreneurship in America, for opportunity, for the fruitful pursuit of

the American Dream through innovation, and we extend an olive branch to Members of the other side of the aisle on this issue and on all other issues so we can finally find a way to come together and move this economy forward in a way that should benefit all Americans.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

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