[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 26 (Tuesday, March 8, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E380]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


    INTRODUCTION OF THE INSULAR AREAS SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 8, 2005

  Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing legislation that 
would provide greater access to an important tool for the development 
and growth of small businesses in Guam, American Samoa, the United 
States Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands (CNMI). My legislation would expand the areas currently 
designated by the Small Business Administration (SBA) as Historically 
Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones) to cover the insular areas in 
their entirety. Not only would this legislation provide an important 
tool for small business growth in these economically disadvantaged 
areas, it would correct issues of implementation related to the current 
one-size-fits all criteria for designating HUBZones. This criteria 
disadvantages small businesses in the insular areas.
  Currently, only those zones in the insular areas designated by the 
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development as 
``qualified census tracts,'' are recognized by the SBA as HUBZones. 
Many additional zones in the insular areas would also be designated 
HUBZones under the program's ``qualified `non-metropolitan county''' 
criteria, as is the case in the 50 States, the District of Columbia and 
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, if not for technical issues of 
implementation. A principal factor of eligibility under the ``qualified 
'nonmetropolitan county''' criteria is a high level of unemployment in 
a given county. The insular areas do not subdivide into counties, nor 
does the Bureau of Labor Statistics collect Local Area Unemployment 
Statistics for Guam. Therefore, firms located in a number of 
financially distressed areas in these jurisdictions are deprived of the 
opportunity to participate in the HUBZone program, as no alternative 
formula is used for the ``qualified `non-metropolitan county' '' 
criteria in the insular areas.
  The purpose of this legislation is to support economic self-
sufficiency in Guam and the insular areas by helping small businesses 
located in these jurisdictions to effectively compete for federal 
contract work. Over the past several years, the SBA's HUBZone program 
has been one of the most successful vehicles for directing federal 
contracts and subcontracting dollars to locally-owned small businesses. 
I am confident that the expertise exists among small businesses in the 
insular areas to successfully meet federal contracting needs, 
particularly for local projects. Universal HUBZone designation 
throughout the insular areas would provide incentives for federal 
agencies to utilize local firms. Considering the relative geographic 
isolation and unique economic challenges encountered in these areas, 
and the problems associated with implementing all provisions of the law 
in the insular areas, it makes sense to designate the entirety of these 
jurisdictions as HUBZones.
  I look forward to working with Mr. Manzullo and Ms. Velazquez on this 
legislation.

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