| Weekly Update from Sam |
Dear Friends,
Small businesses remain the underlying strength of our economy as innovators and job creators, but the slow recovery is not providing the confidence and consumer demand they need to invest and grow. Nearly 12 million Americans are still out of work and another 7.9 million can’t find full-time work. The NFIB’s June report shows that only 5 percent of small businesses plan to increase their total employment. Next week is National Small Business Week, another great chance to highlight what makes an expanding small business economy so essential to a healthy job market. Now is the time to help these small firms grow by working for lower taxes and a simpler code, fewer and less burdensome regulations, and new opportunities to compete in both world markets and federal contracting.
The Committee has been focused on promoting policies that provide more opportunities for small business growth. Last month, we introduced three bills that work together to reduce small business obstacles and encourage small companies to expand their customer base beyond our borders and tap into new markets through international trade. The 2013 National Association of Small Business Small Business Exporting Survey, released this week, confirmed that many small firms are highly interested in trade, but are put off by lack of information and the multitude of federal agencies involved. Our Committee recognizes that these challenges can be eased legislatively – at no cost to the taxpayers – so that small firms can take the next step. In addition, the Small Business Committee’s legislation to broaden small business access to federal contracting passed the House of Representatives today as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act of 2014.
Sincerely,
Sam Graves
Chairman
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Latest Committee Action
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On Wednesday, the Small Business Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax and Capital Access, under the chairmanship of Rep. Tom Rice (R-SC), examined the H-2B visa program and how recent regulatory changes impede small tourism businesses. Small firms with seasonal business rely on the H-2B visa program to hire foreign guest workers to fill low-skilled, non-agricultural temporary jobs during peak seasons. This year, there is an application backlog created by a one-month suspension of the program by the Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security. Adding insult to injury, an April 24 decision revising the wage methodology, imposed significant increased labor costs on small firms just as the summer tourism season began.
On Thursday, the Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Workforce, under the chairmanship of Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY), explored recent changes to the Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI) and how it’s limiting the competitive viability of small contractors, as reported here.
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News from Washington
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On Friday, by a vote of 315-108, the House passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which included two Committee initiatives to boost federal contracting opportunities for small firms. Small business involvement in federal procurement keeps prices lower and creates jobs. The Make Every Small Business Count Act, introduced on June 4, was included in the NDAA. It helps small businesses compete for subcontracts.
Also, the Committee’s limitation on subcontracting proposal was included as another amendment to clarify rules for small businesses, and clear up a conflict between the Small Business Act and the Department of Defense policy. NDAA is major legislation that authorizes all military spending for the fiscal year ahead. The Defense Department is the federal government’s largest source of contracts and subcontracts for businesses large and small.
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| Notable Op-Ed |
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Why the temporary foreign worker program still matters to U.S. businesses
By Rep. Tom Rice
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| June 14, 2013 |
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| What We're Reading |
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Small Biz Resources
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| Tweet of the Week |
| @FreeEnterprise Higher taxes, not the sequester, is what’s killing US economic growth - http://t.co/UwBKC6cqfo (via @JimPethokoukis) |
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