Washington, D.C.— Today, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) and eight Committee Democrats sent a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer expressing concern over the Trump Administration’s decision to impose retaliatory tariffs on European wines, which they say will mainly hurt American small businesses. In October, the Trump Administration imposed a 2... Read More »
As the Chair of the House Small Business Committee, I see every day how innovation and invention drive entrepreneurship. An important part of how we support American inventors is through our patent system. Applying for and obtaining a patent allows small firms to gain access to capital, find licensing deals, and level the playing field with larger competitors---all of which lead to jobs and econom... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, the House Small Business Committee under Chairwoman Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) held a hearing examining the issue of patent diversity and how a lack of diversity in the innovation process is hindering the economy and small business. Studies show that women and minorities apply and obtain patents at a rate significantly lower than their white male counterparts, effectively lock... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) issued the following statement after the Labor Department released its December jobs statement: “December’s weak jobs report captures the difficulties that plagued our job creators and small businesses in 2019 under President Trump’s watch. In small business-heavy sectors such as manufacturing, jobs are de... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, the House Small Business Subcommittee on Innovation and Workforce Development, chaired by Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO), held a hearing examining how small businesses are driving growth in the agricultural technology (ag-tech) industry and how these technological developments are benefiting America’s small farms. “Farming and agriculture are at the heart of strong economies aroun... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, the House passed two bipartisan prison reform bills authored by House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) and House Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). The two bills, H.R. 5078, the Prison to Proprietorship Act and H.R. 5065, Prison to Proprietorship for Formerly Incarcerated Act would improve entrepreneurship opportunities for inca... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, the House passed bipartisan reforms to improve opportunities for small businesses to be competitive in the marketplace. H.R. 5130, the Capturing All Small Businesses Act of 2019, was authored by Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX) and Rep. Kevin Hern (R-OK). H.R. 5146, the Unlocking Opportunities for Small Businesses Act, was authored by Rep. Jim Hagedorn (R-MN) and Vice Chair Dwight ... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) issued the following statement after the Senate voted to confirm Jovita Carranza as Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA): “The Small Business Administration is the nation’s only federal agency dedicated solely to helping America’s entrepreneurs launch businesses and grow. In addition to... Read More »
Washington, D.C.—Today, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) released the following statement on the passage of H.R 1158, which contains funding for the Small Business Administration (SBA) for fiscal year 2020 (FY20) “Across the country, the Small Business Administration and its resource partners inject lifeblood into local economies by providing entrepreneurial deve... Read More »
On this Committee, we are focused on making sure that small businesses, whether in my district in California – in Ranking Member Spano’s district in Florida – and in every district across America – can access the capital they need to start, grow, and create new jobs. And we know that when capital is affordable and accessible, small businesses can do what they do best: strengthen our communities, c... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA), Chairwoman of the House Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight, and Regulations, held a hearing on the current state of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 504/Certified Development Company (CDC) lending program. The 504/CDC program facilitates small business growth by helping firms secure affordable capital for investments in ... Read More »
Throughout the history of industrialized economies, the primary goal of a business was to make money and the chief objective of Corporations was to increase shareholder value above all else. This approach has had clear benefits. Over the last four decades, American-owned firms have become the largest, most visible companies in the world, and the United States has established itself as the world’s ... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— Today, the House Small Business Committee, chaired by Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), conducted a hearing focused on how small businesses incorporate social and environmental responsibility into their business model and ways that Congress can support them. The hearing gave members the chance to look at how Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can provide a more sustainable economi... Read More »
Washington, D.C.— On Monday, at a press event at New York City Hall, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) and House Democratic Caucus Chairman Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) announced a set of bills to fight mass incarceration by launching entrepreneurial training initiatives for the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated. Studies show that returning citizens are often me... Read More »
In today’s mark-up, we will be considering four bipartisan bills. Two of the bills will require SBA’s resource partners to provide counseling and training to individuals in prison and post-release. The other two bills will make meaningful improvements to contracting programs that support small businesses. I would like to take a moment to thank the Ranking Member and all the members of the Committe... Read More »
