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| <title> - ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING</title> | |
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| [House Hearing, 118 Congress] | |
| [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] | |
| ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING | |
| ======================================================================= | |
| HEARING | |
| BEFORE THE | |
| COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS | |
| UNITED STATES | |
| HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES | |
| ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS | |
| FIRST SESSION | |
| __________ | |
| HEARING HELD | |
| FEBRUARY 8, 2023 | |
| __________ | |
| [GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] | |
| Small Business Committee Document Number 118-001 | |
| Available via the GPO Website: www.govinfo.gov | |
| __________ | |
| U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE | |
| 51-184 WASHINGTON : 2023 | |
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | |
| HOUSE COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS | |
| ROGER WILLIAMS, Texas, Chairman | |
| BLAINE LUETKEMEYER, Missouri | |
| PETE STAUBER, Minnesota | |
| DAN MEUSER, Pennsylvania | |
| BETH VAN DUYNE, Texas | |
| MARIA SALAZAR, Florida | |
| TRACEY MANN, Kansas | |
| JACK ELLZEY, Texas | |
| MARC MOLINARO, New York | |
| MARK ALFORD, Missouri | |
| ELI CRANE, Arizona | |
| AARON BEAN, Florida | |
| WESLEY HUNT, Texas | |
| NICK LALOTA, New York | |
| NYDIA VELAZQUEZ, New York, Ranking Member | |
| JARED GOLDEN, Maine | |
| KWEISI MFUME, Maryland | |
| DEAN PHILLIPS, Minnesota | |
| GREG LANDSMAN, Ohio | |
| MORGAN MCGARVEY, Kentucky | |
| MARIE GLUESENKAMP PEREZ, Washington | |
| HILLARY SCHOLTEN, Michigan | |
| SHRI THANEDAR, Michigan | |
| JUDY CHU, California | |
| SHARICE DAVIDS, Kansas | |
| CHRIS PAPPAS, New Hampshire | |
| Ben Johnson, Majority Staff Director | |
| Melissa Jung, Minority Staff Director | |
| C O N T E N T S | |
| OPENING STATEMENTS | |
| Page | |
| Hon. Roger Williams.............................................. 1 | |
| Hon. Nydia Velazquez............................................. 2 | |
| APPENDIX | |
| Additional Material Submitted for the record: | |
| Rules and Procedures......................................... 8 | |
| Authorization and Oversight Plan............................. 25 | |
| ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING | |
| ---------- | |
| WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2023 | |
| House of Representatives, | |
| Committee on Small Business, | |
| Washington, DC. | |
| The Committee met, pursuant to call, at 3:31 p.m., in Room | |
| 2360, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Roger Williams | |
| [Chairman of the Committee] presiding. | |
| Present: Representatives Williams, Luetkemeyer, Stauber, | |
| Meuser, Salazar, Ellzey, Molinaro, Alford, Crane, Bean, LaLota, | |
| Velazquez, Mfume, Phillips, Landsman, McGarvey, Gluesenkamp | |
| Perez, Scholten, Thanedar, Davids, and Pappas. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. Good afternoon, everybody. We are going | |
| to get started. And let me just say before we get started, as | |
| we start our next hearings that we have coming up, we are going | |
| to be saying the Pledge of Allegiance and a short blessing, | |
| just like we do on the House floor. And so, if any of our | |
| colleagues on either side of the aisle are interested in | |
| leading the Pledge or blessing for a hearing, let my office | |
| know. We will get you on the schedule. So let us begin. | |
| The Committee will now come to order, and without | |
| objection, the Chair is authorized to declare a recess of the | |
| Committee at any time. I want to welcome all our Members, both | |
| returning and new, to the organizational meeting of the | |
| Committee on Small Business for the 118th Congress. | |
| This meeting will proceed as follows. First, Ranking Member | |
| Velazquez and I will introduce our Members on each side. Then | |
| we will introduce and officially approve our Subcommittee | |
| Chairs. Next, we will officially adopt our Committee rules. And | |
| finally, we will officially adopt our Committee's authorization | |
| and oversight plan. | |
| I want to take a moment to recognize Ranking Member | |
| Velazquez. As you said last year, Ms. Velazquez, small business | |
| deserve our partnership. And I look forward to working together | |
| to make the small business in this nation better and more | |
| prosperous. And I think we will find out we have much more in | |
| common than we don't. | |
| As a small business owner myself, I know firsthand the | |
| hardship many small businesses face every single day. As | |
| Chairman, I hope we can come together, conduct meaningful | |
| oversight of the many problems in the SBA during the COVID-19 | |
| pandemic and of the overburdensome regulations coming out of | |
| the Biden administration. | |
| Now, before I introduce our new Members, I want to welcome | |
| back Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer from Missouri, who will | |
| serve as the Vice Chair of this Congress. I was his Vice | |
| Ranking Member last year, and I look forward to continuing to | |
| work together to make America the greatest country in the world | |
| and the best place to do business. | |
| So now I want to introduce the new Majority Members of this | |
| Committee. First, Congressman Tracey Mann from Kansas, | |
| Congressman Jake Ellzey from Texas, Congressman Marc Molinaro | |
| from New York, Congressman Mark Alford from Missouri, | |
| Congressman Eli Crane from Arizona, Congressman Aaron Bean from | |
| Florida, Congressman Wesley Hunt from Texas, and Congressman | |
| Nick LaLota from New York. | |
| I also want to welcome back our Members returning to the | |
| Committee: Congressman Pete Stauber from Minnesota, who is | |
| serving his third term in Congress and served on two of our | |
| Subcommittees last Congress; Congressman Dan Meuser from | |
| Pennsylvania, who was our Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on | |
| Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access last Congress; | |
| Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne from Texas, who served as our | |
| Ranking Member for the Subcommittee on Oversight, | |
| Investigations, and Regulations last Congress; and finally, | |
| Congresswoman Maria Salazar from Florida, who served as our | |
| Ranking Member for the Subcommittee on Contracting | |
| Infrastructure last Congress. I am excited to have you all join | |
| us for the 118th, and I am looking forward to all we will | |
| accomplish together as we move forward. | |
| So with that, I will yield to our distinguished Ranking | |
| Member from New York, Ms. Velazquez. | |
| Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Chairman Williams, and | |
| congratulations on your new role. | |
| Small businesses make vital contributions to our economy. | |
| Not only do they generate two out of the three net jobs, but | |
| they drive innovation and economic progress throughout our | |
| country. However, the past few years have not been easy for | |
| small businesses. The pandemic brought challenges that were | |
| unthinkable a short time ago. Perseverance, combined with the | |
| historic investment in economic recovery, helped millions of | |
| small firms stay afloat. | |
| Since January 2021, there has been over 10.5 million | |
| applications for new businesses. In January 2022, we smashed | |
| economic growth expectations with the addition of more than | |
| 500,000 new jobs--but our work is not done. Looking ahead, we | |
| must work together on this Committee to make sure small | |
| businesses are given the resources and protections they need to | |
| prosper. I hope we can continue our bipartisan tradition during | |
| the 118th Congress and show our constituents and new Members | |
| what it is like to make real change happen. | |
| I now would like to welcome our new and returning Members | |
| and take a moment to introduce the Democratic Members on our | |
| side. Let me begin with the newest Members of our Committee. | |
| First is Mr. Greg Landsman of Ohio. He is a former public | |
| school teacher and faith-based nonprofit leader who served five | |
| terms on the Cincinnati City Council before being elected to | |
| Congress. As someone with deep community connections, he will | |
| be a vital resource to our efforts to strengthen our nation's | |
| main street. | |
| Our next freshman Member is Mr. Morgan McGarvey, an | |
| attorney from Louisville, Kentucky, with a history and track | |
| record of representing the interests of small businesses. His | |
| passion for serving his community led him to run for Kentucky | |
| State Senate in 2012, where he became the minority leader by | |
| 2018. His leadership, legislative experience, and work ethic | |
| will be invaluable to this Committee. | |
| I would also like to introduce Ms. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, | |
| a working mother and small business owner from Southwest | |
| Washington. She started her auto repair and machine shop with | |
| her husband, Dean, with the help of an SBA loan. Her experience | |
| with SBA and running her own business is exactly the type of | |
| knowledge we need on the Committee. | |
| Next are two Members from Michigan. First, Ms. Hillary | |
| Scholten, an attorney who clerked with the U.S. Court of | |
| Appeals for the Second Circuit in a special unit focused on | |
| immigration. She is a proven leader that is committed to | |
| finding common sense solutions. Secondly, Mr. Shri Thanedar, | |
| who immigrated to the U.S. at age 24 with $20. Discovering a | |
| passion for entrepreneurship, he started several small | |
| businesses, and his success with the SBIR program will be an | |
| asset to this Committee. | |
| Last but not least is Mr. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, | |
| who helps run his family's 100-year-old restaurant. As a third- | |
| term Member of Congress, he serves on the Committee on | |
| Transportation and Infrastructure and Committee on Veterans | |
| Affairs. | |
| I would also like to welcome back some excellent Members | |
| from last Congress: Jared Golden from Maine, Kweisi Mfume from | |
| Maryland, Dean Phillips of Minnesota, Judy Chu from California, | |
| and Sharice Davids of Kansas. | |
| Thank you and I yield back. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you. And I want to also welcome, | |
| of course, all the new Committee to the Republican side and all | |
| the Democratic side. Look forward to working with all of you. | |
| Thank you. And thank you, Ranking Member, for that. | |
| Now, I would like to introduce our five Subcommittee Chairs | |
| on the majority side. Congressman Dan Meuser will Chair the | |
| Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access. | |
| Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne will Chair the Subcommittee on | |
| Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations. Congressman Wesley | |
| Hunt will Chair the Subcommittee on Rural Development, Energy, | |
| and Supply Chains. And Congressman Nick LaLota will Chair the | |
| Subcommittee on Contracting and Infrastructure. Congressman | |
| Marc Molinaro will Chair the Subcommittee on Innovation, | |
| Entrepreneurship, and Workforce Development. | |
| So, I want to thank all of you for your willingness to | |
| serve in that capacity. And now I yield to Ranking Member | |
| Velazquez to introduce the Ranking Members of the | |
| Subcommittees. | |
| Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Mr. Williams. I would like to | |
| congratulate the Committee Chairs and Ranking Members. We have | |
| had some bright, dynamic Members join our Committee, and I am | |
| confident this will be a productive session. | |
| The full Committee Vice Ranking Member will be Dean | |
| Phillips. Kweisi Mfume will be the Ranking Member of the | |
| Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations. | |
| Greg Landsman will be the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on | |
| Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access. Morgan McGarvey will | |
| be the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Innovation, | |
| Entrepreneurship, and Workforce Development. Marie Gluesenkamp | |
| Perez will be the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Rural | |
| Development, Energy, and Supply Chains. Hilary Scholten will be | |
| the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Contracting and | |
| Infrastructure. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. All right, thank you very much. And I | |
| move that the list of Subcommittee Chairs and Ranking Members | |
| and as set forth in the rosters be approved. | |
| All those in favor, say aye. | |
| All those opposed, say no. | |
| In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the | |
| Chairs and Ranking Members are appointed. Without objection, | |
| the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. | |
| I would like to now proceed to the Committee rules package. | |
| Pursuant to clause 2A of House Rule XI, the first order of | |
| business is adoption of the Committee's Rules of Procedure for | |
| the 118th Congress. A copy of the proposed rules has been | |
| distributed to each of you in advance. | |
| Now, the rules package is nearly the same as last Congress, | |
| with a few minor changes. For instance, the name and | |
| jurisdiction of some of the Subcommittees have been modified to | |
| better address the problems facing small business in today's | |
| economy. We clarified the procedure for deposition and | |
| subpoenas to align with the House rules. We added language to | |
| remove remote proceedings to align with the House rules and to | |
| ensure that we are here in person, working hard for the | |
| American people. And I think these changes will allow us to | |
| propel this Committee forward to the benefit of small | |
| businesses nationwide. | |
| So I now recognize Ranking Member Velazquez for her remarks | |
| on the rules. | |
| Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Our Committee's | |
| rules are not only a vital institutional requirement, but they | |
| also set clear parameters for how we operate. More importantly, | |
| they contain protections, ensuring that all points of view are | |
| considered. It is important for Members on both sides of the | |
| aisle to note that, with a few exceptions, these rules are very | |
| similar to those of previous Congresses. | |
| With that said, I will be remiss if I didn't mention my | |
| concern over the new rule to grant the Chairman of the | |
| Committee unilateral subpoena authority. While I recognize this | |
| change is in line with House rules, our Committee has always | |
| required either a majority vote of the Committee or an | |
| agreement between the Chair and Ranking Member before the | |
| Committee issues a subpoena. Under the new rules, the Chairman | |
| has unilateral authority to issue a subpoena with no debate. | |
| Subpoenas should be a measure of last resort to prevent | |
| bringing important work to aid small businesses to a halt. | |
| I expressed these concerns to the Chairman, and we reached | |
| an agreement to require 24-hour notification to the minority | |
| before issuing a subpoena. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate your | |
| understanding and respect for honoring the minority's rights | |
| and, most importantly, of this Committee's bipartisanship and | |
| bipartisan history. | |
| Throughout my tenure on the Committee, we have conducted | |
| bipartisan oversight to hold the SBA to the highest standards, | |
| no matter if we were analyzing regular SBA programs or the | |
| COVID response programs. I look forward to our continued | |
| efforts in this area, and it is my hope that we will work | |
| together if a subpoena is to be issued. A Committee that is run | |
| openly and fairly is a Committee that works and can best | |
| achieve its objective. | |
| I yield back, Mr. Chairman. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you, Ms. Velazquez. And without | |
| objection, the draft Committee rules are considered as read and | |
| open for amendment at any point. Does any Member who wish to be | |
| recognized to offer amendments to the proposed Committee rules? | |
| Okay. If not, I move the proposed rules be adopted as the | |
| rules of the Committee on Small Business for the 118th | |
| Congress. | |
| All those in favor, say aye. | |
| All those opposed, say no. | |
| In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the | |
| proposed rules are adopted. Now, without objection, the motion | |
| to reconsider is laid on the table. Pursuant to House rules, | |
| the rules adopted by the Committee on Small Business for 118th | |
| Congress will be published in the Congressional Record and made | |
| available to Members and the public on the Committee's website. | |
| Now, the next order of business before the Committee is the | |
| adoption of our Authorization Oversight Plan for the 118th | |
| Congress. House rule X, clause 2D, directs each standing | |
| Committee to no later than March 1 of the first session of a | |
| Congress in a meeting that is open to the public adopt its | |
| Authorization and Oversight Plan for that Congress. As required | |
| by the rules our plan includes descriptions of each program or | |
| agency that is intended to be authorized in the current | |
| Congress or the next Congress, and description of oversight to | |
| support reauthorization in the current Congress. In addition, | |
| the plan includes recommendations for removing any such | |
| programs or agencies from mandatory to discretionary funding. | |
| The Committee may consider reforms and improvements to various | |
| SBA programs as noted throughout this Authorization and | |
| Oversight Plan. The Committee's Authorization and Oversight | |
| Plan for the 118th Congress was compiled with input from the | |
| Ranking Minority Member and has been made available in advance | |
| to all Members. | |
| So, now I have recognized myself for 5 minutes to discuss | |
| the plan for this Congress. | |
| As a lifelong small business owner, I know firsthand how | |
| often the smallest changes in Washington, D.C., can have a | |
| disastrous impact on small businesses across America. Over the | |
| last 2 years, overburdensome regulations have harmed small | |
| businesses. As Chairman, I intend to focus this Committee's | |
| attention on resources, conducting rigorous oversight of costly | |
| regulatory burdens that are harming small businesses. Members | |
| of this Committee will be fierce advocates for free market | |
| principles and pro growth policies. | |
| We will work to highlight the American Dream and the many | |
| success stories of small business owners around the country | |
| with entrepreneurs and innovators from all corners of this | |
| country. We will hear from small business owners across the | |
| nation who are on the front lines of innovation and job | |
| creation, and we will investigate ways the Small Business | |
| Administration could improve the landscape for small business. | |
| We will investigate agencies' rulemaking process and work | |
| to ensure that the interests of small businesses are properly | |
| considered. We will work to remove excessive and burdensome | |
| regulations to make it easier for small businesses not only to | |
| form, but to stay in business and to grow. And we will amplify | |
| the voice of small business in Washington, D.C. I know my | |
| colleagues on both sides of the aisle are eager to get to work | |
| on behalf of main street America. | |
| With that, I yield to Distinguished Ranking Member | |
| Velazquez for 5 minutes for any remarks she may wish to make on | |
| the Oversight and Authorization Plan. | |
| Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Chairman Williams. The Oversight | |
| Plan sets forth a policy framework for our work this Congress. | |
| Like in previous years, the plan calls for the robust oversight | |
| of the SBA and other federal small business initiatives, a long | |
| tradition that this Committee takes seriously. To that end, | |
| this Committee has forged a bipartisan consensus opposing the | |
| creation of unauthorized pilot programs. Diverting scarce | |
| taxpayers' dollars away from proven programs can open the door | |
| to fraud, waste, and abuse, something we are all working to | |
| minimize. | |
| On the other hand, this Committee has steadfastly supported | |
| statutorily authorized programs, including the Entrepreneurial | |
| Development Programs that offer free or low-cost counseling and | |
| training to small businesses. Lending programs help small | |
| businesses access affordable capital and contracting programs | |
| that help small businesses compete in the federal marketplace. | |
| In the past two Congresses, we held numerous hearings with | |
| GAO and the Office of the Inspector General and made it clear | |
| that safeguarding taxpayers' dollars was our top priority. In | |
| fact, our oversight efforts increased last Congress, primarily | |
| in an effort to work with the IG and DOJ to hold bad actors | |
| accountable for fraud in COVID programs. In that vein, we | |
| enacted two bills that gave the DOJ and other investigative | |
| agencies additional time to prosecute fraud in the PPP and | |
| COVID EIDL programs. These laws were the product of the robust | |
| bipartisan oversight conducted by our Committee. | |
| Additionally, regulatory burden is an important issue for | |
| small businesses, and we must continue our work in this area. | |
| We need to understand how we can make the regulatory process | |
| friendlier to small businesses without undermining essential | |
| safeguards that many of these rules provide. I hope to work | |
| with my colleagues to review SBA rules, particularly the | |
| lending rules, to lift the 40-year moratorium on licensing new | |
| small business lending companies to participate in the 7A | |
| program. I have urged SBA to exercise caution in making | |
| substantial changes to this successful program and to take the | |
| time to review the issues and comments to the rule. | |
| I am fully committed to working with the agency and the new | |
| majority to protect the integrity of all SBA programs and | |
| ensure they serve small business owners as efficiently and | |
| effectively as possible. | |
| With that, I urge Members to approve this oversight plan | |
| and I get back. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you, Ranking Member. And as noted, | |
| the proposed Authorization Oversight Plan has been distributed | |
| to Members in advance. Now, without objection, the plan is | |
| considered as read and open for amendment at any point. Does | |
| any Member wish to be recognized to discuss the draft | |
| Authorization and Oversight Plan? | |
| Okay. Are there any amendments? | |
| All right. If not, I move the Authorization and Oversight | |
| Plan of the Committee on Small Business for the 118th Congress | |
| be adopted. | |
| All those in favor, say aye. | |
| All those opposed, say no. | |
| In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the plan | |
| is adopted. Now, without objection, the motion to reconsider is | |
| laid on the table. As directed by House rule X the | |
| Authorization and Oversight Plan will be submitted | |
| simultaneously to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability | |
| and the Committee on House Administration, who will compile and | |
| report the plan submitted by the standing Committees to the | |
| House no later than April 1. | |
| So, this concludes today's business meeting. And I just | |
| want to say, this will be a fun Committee. We are going to get | |
| a lot of things done, and we are really going to help small | |
| business and create jobs and see a lot of results. | |
| So, without objection, Committee staff is authorized to | |
| make technical and conforming changes to reflect the action of | |
| the Committee in adopting the resolution embodying our rules. | |
| So, without objection, the Committee stands adjourned. | |
| Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you. | |
| Chairman WILLIAMS. Thank you. | |
| [Whereupon, 3:51 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.] | |
| A P P E N D I X | |
| [GRAPHICS NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT] | |
| [all] | |
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