IV 111th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 292 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES March 26, 2009 Mr. King of Iowa submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Small Business RESOLUTION Congratulating the on-premise sign industry for its contributions to the success of small businesses on the occasion of its 63rd Annual International Sign Expo.

Whereas safe, creative, and effective on-premise signage has served as a primary catalyst to successful small businesses in America since the establishment of the Nation; Whereas most of the companies that manufacture on-premise signs in the United States are in and of themselves small businesses as described by the Small Business Act and generate thousands of manufacturing jobs that stimulate the economy and support the local, State, and Federal tax bases; Whereas the on-premise sign industry in turn sustains millions of additional entities covered under the Small Business Act by providing to retail businesses across the country an affordable and effective advertising medium through which they can communicate to potential customers about goods and services they offer, direct those customers to their small business sites, and reinforce the memory of existing customers about the locations and the nature of these small businesses; Whereas the Small Business Act empowers the Small Business Administration to take actions to relieve the competitive disadvantages that small businesses face; Whereas one such competitive disadvantage for small businesses is a lack of marketing research and advertising budgets to attract and retain customers; Whereas the Small Business Administration has recognized the value of on-premise signage as a remedy to these competitive disadvantages and has taken action to remediate this disadvantage by collaborating with the sign industry to collect educational information about signs and to publish that information on its website that is free of charge and easily accessible to all small businesses; Whereas thousands of manufacturers, users, and suppliers of on-premise signs and sign products will attend the 63rd Annual International Sign Expo April 15, 2009, through April 18, 2009, making the Expo one of the most significant small-business-related events in the country; Whereas in 2008 there were nearly 600 companies at the Expo displaying nearly 2,000 booths of the most advanced and innovative small business signage products the on-premise sign industry has to offer to nearly 20,000 people from across the Nation and 97 countries across the world; and Whereas this unique convergence of signage innovators, customers, and small business owners will create a prime opportunity for further educating the public about the critical role played by the on-premise sign industry to the Nation’s small businesses during the current economic downturn: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)applauds the U.S. Small Business Administration for educating small business owners on the benefits of using well-placed, well-designed on-premise signs to overcome competitive disadvantages in the areas of marketing and advertising; (2)congratulates the members of the on-premise sign and sign products industry on the occasion of their 63rd Annual International Sign Expo; and (3)encourages the on-premise sign industry to continue events such as the International Sign Expo that further educate the small business community about the benefits of effective signage, and that produce new and greater understanding of how to develop safer, more effective, and more affordable signage products for small businesses, and to continue to make every effort to assist the Small Business Administration in making this information available to the entire small business community so as to alleviate its competitive disadvantages in marketing and advertising its products and services to customers.