III 112th CONGRESS 1st Session S. RES. 197 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 24, 2011 Ms. Landrieu (for herself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, Mr. Kerry, Ms. Ayotte, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Enzi, Mr. Cardin, and Mr. Risch) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to RESOLUTION Honoring the entrepreneurial spirit of small business concerns in the United States during National Small Business Week, which begins on May 15, 2011.

Whereas the approximately 27,200,000 small business concerns in the United States are the driving force behind the Nation’s economy, creating 2 out of every 3 new jobs and generating more than 50 percent of the Nation’s non-farm gross domestic product; Whereas small businesses are the driving force behind the economic recovery of the United States; Whereas small businesses represent 99.7 percent of employer firms in the United States; Whereas small business concerns are the Nation’s innovators, serving to advance technology and productivity; Whereas small business concerns represent 97.6 percent of all exporters and produce 32.8 percent of exported goods; Whereas Congress established the Small Business Administration in 1953 to aid, counsel, assist, and protect the interests of small business concerns in order to preserve free and competitive enterprise, to ensure that a fair proportion of the total Federal Government purchases, contracts, and subcontracts for property and services are placed with small business concerns, to ensure that a fair proportion of the total sales of government property are made to such small business concerns, and to maintain and strengthen the overall economy of the United States; Whereas every year since 1963, the President has designated a National Small Business Week to recognize the contributions of small businesses to the economic well-being of the United States; Whereas in 2011, National Small Business Week will honor the estimated 27,200,000 small businesses in the United States; Whereas the Small Business Administration has helped small business concerns by providing access to critical lending opportunities, protecting small business concerns from excessive Federal regulatory enforcement, helping to ensure full and open competition for government contracts, and improving the economic environment in which small business concerns compete; Whereas for more than 50 years, the Small Business Administration has helped millions of entrepreneurs achieve the American dream of owning a small business concern, and has played a key role in fostering economic growth; and Whereas the President has designated the week beginning May 15, 2011, as ‘‘National Small Business Week’’: Now, therefore, be it

That the Senate— (1)honors the entrepreneurial spirit of small business concerns in the United States during National Small Business Week, which begins on May 15, 2011; (2)applauds the efforts and achievements of the owners and employees of small business concerns, whose hard work and commitment to excellence have made such small business concerns a key part of the economic vitality of the United States; (3)recognizes the work of the Small Business Administration and its resource partners in providing assistance to entrepreneurs and small business concerns; and (4)recognizes the importance of ensuring that— (A)guaranteed loans, including microloans and microloan technical assistance, for start-up and growing small business concerns, and venture capital, are made available to all qualified small business concerns; (B)the management assistance programs delivered by resource partners on behalf of the Small Business Administration, such as Small Business Development Centers, Women's Business Centers, and the Service Corps of Retired Executives, are provided with the Federal resources necessary to provide invaluable counseling services to entrepreneurs in the United States; (C)the Small Business Administration continues to provide timely and efficient disaster assistance so that small businesses in areas struck by natural or manmade disasters can quickly return to business to keep local economies alive in the aftermath of such disasters; (D)affordable broadband Internet access is available to all people in the United States, particularly people in rural and underserved communities, so that small businesses can use the Internet to make their operations more globally competitive while boosting local economies; (E)regulatory relief is provided to small businesses through the reduction of duplicative or unnecessary regulatory requirements that increase costs for small businesses; and (F)leveling the playing field for contracting opportunities remains a primary focus, so that small businesses, particularly minority-owned small businesses, can compete for and win more of the $400,000,000,000 in contracts that the Federal Government enters into each year for goods and services.