House Committee on Small Business, Republicans
Straight Talk: 111th Congress Adjourns, Food Safety Legislation Approved and More...
Weekly Update from Sam

Friends:

After a lengthy lame duck session, the 111th Congress officially adjourned yesterday afternoon. 

Although the last two years have been hectic and controversial, the 111th Congress was not without its small successes for small business owners.  Members of the House Small Business Committee made positive strides toward addressing issues faced by American entrepreneurs in this tough economy.

Some of our greatest accomplishments over the last two years include a bill to strengthen entrepreneurial development programs within the Small Business Administration (SBA), legislation to improve small business access to capital, and legislation to increase opportunities for small business participation in federal research and development programs. Each of these initiatives received bipartisan support, illustrating that we can achieve great things when we put our differences aside and work together for the common good.

As we spend the holidays with our families, we must all take time to reflect on the progress we made and the challenges we face when Congress returns on January 5th.  I am looking forward to getting to work with my colleagues on the House Small Business Committee as we continue our fight to provide small business owners with the certainty they need to lead our economy in 2011.

(signed)
Sam Graves
Ranking Member

Latest Committee Action
As we schedule new hearings for the 112th Congress, we will be updating the Committee Calendar on our website. If you would like up-to-the-minute updates on Small Business Committee action, follow us on Twitter. Please note that the next edition of Straight Talk will be published on Friday, January 7, 2011.
News from Washington

On Tuesday, the House approved a Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund government operations through March 4, 2011.  Many Republicans did not support this CR because it fails to reduce spending and maintains stimulus-level funding in many federal agency budgets.  House Republicans have pledged to return government spending to pre-stimulus, pre-bailout levels in the 112th Congress.

Also on Tuesday, the House passed the food safety reform bill (H.R. 2751).  The legislation would expand current registration and inspection authority for the Food and Drug Administration by increasing fees on facilities and organization involved in the food business. In order to aid small business compliance, H.R. 2751 includes a provision to exempt certain small employers from some of the requirements of the bill, such as registration of food facilities, standards for produce safety, and hazard prevention plans. 

December 23, 2010
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