[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 128 (Wednesday, September 17, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S11639]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   THE SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

  Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I speak today in honor of the Small 
Business Administration, which this year is celebrating the 50th 
anniversary of its service to America's small businesses.
  This week marks the SBA's annual Small Business Week. Throughout the 
events of this week, the SBA will demonstrate many of the valuable 
programs that have been created to help entrepreneurs across the 
country achieve success over the past 50 years. The SBA is relied upon 
to help restore economically depressed communities, spur technological 
research and development, provide access to capital and business 
training, monitor the procurement practices of Federal agencies, and 
ensure small businesses are heard within the Federal Government.
  With the assistance of the programs and resources of the Small 
Business Administration and its dedicated employees, thousands of small 
businesses across the country have developed and expanded. Some of 
those companies have since developed into household names after 
receiving help from the SBA; companies like Outback Steakhouse, Nike, 
and Staples. These businesses exemplify the entrepreneurial spirit that 
is so unique to this country.
  The importance of the small business community cannot and should not 
be underestimated. The link between small businesses and a strong 
economy is clear: small businesses account for over 50 percent of 
nonfarm GDP, and account for 75 percent of all new jobs. Time and 
again, our small businesses have led this Nation out of bad economic 
times.
  We cannot help this country's economy by ignoring our small 
businesses and underfunding the initiatives meant to foster their 
establishment and growth. President Bush seems to understand that there 
is a need to support small businesses, but during his 3 years in 
office, he has yet to translate that understanding into actions. In his 
first year, he cut the SBA's budget by almost 50 percent. In his second 
year, he eliminated all funding for the agency's largest small-business 
loan program and shifted the cost--more than a hundred million--to the 
small businesses and the SBA's lending partners in the private sector 
who make the loans possible--never mind that the government was already 
overcharging them. He has cut funding for microloans and counseling--
the SBA's number one program for reaching African Americans, Hispanics 
and women.
  Here in the Senate, we are trying to pass legislation reauthorizing 
the programs of the Small Business Administration for another 3 years, 
and I think Chair Snowe and the other members of the committee for 
working with me to create a bill that enables small businesses to 
continue to prosper. We are doing our part to assist small businesses, 
and the next step is to ensure that the SBA and its programs receive 
the funding they need to actively help small businesses across the 
country in these difficult economic times. The administration's low-
ball request for FY 2004 will not help about adequate funding of the 
critical assistance that America's small businesses need. I intend to 
do everything possible to obtain necessary funding for these critical 
small business programs to ensure they will thrive in the next year and 
for the 50 years to come.

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