[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 28, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H8916-H8918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION EXTENSION

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (S. 1513) to provide for an additional temporary extension of 
programs under the Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment 
Act of 1958, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                S. 1513

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

[[Page H8917]]

     SECTION 1. ADDITIONAL TEMPORARY EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION OF 
                   PROGRAMS UNDER THE SMALL BUSINESS ACT AND THE 
                   SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT ACT OF 1958.

       (a) In General.--Section 1 of the Act entitled ``An Act to 
     extend temporarily certain authorities of the Small Business 
     Administration'', approved October 10, 2006 (Public Law 109-
     316; 120 Stat. 1742), as most recently amended by section 1 
     of Public Law 111-10 (123 Stat. 990), is amended by striking 
     ``July 31, 2009'' each place it appears and inserting 
     ``September 30, 2009''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect on July 30, 2009.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
New York (Ms. Velazquez) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Thompson) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  All of us on both sides of the aisle agree that America's small 
businesses will be the cornerstone of our economic recovery. Not only 
are small businesses more nimble and better able to respond to economic 
turbulence, but after losing their jobs many Americans turn to 
entrepreneurship as a new source of income. This ingenuity has led us 
out of previous recessions. With the right tools and support, I believe 
small businesses will again lead our Nation back to recovery.
  Since January, this Congress has taken important steps to help our 
small businesses. The Recovery Act is helping address the single 
biggest challenge facing entrepreneurs today, namely, access to 
affordable capital. By making improvements to the SBA's capital access 
programs, this bill will yield $21 billion in new lending and 
investment for small firms. We have also targeted $15 billion in new 
tax relief to small businesses through the act, and many small 
companies are being put back to work rebuilding our economic 
infrastructure. In fact, small businesses which dominate trades like 
construction and engineering can expect to see $30 billion in 
infrastructure opportunities thanks to the Recovery Act.
  However, our work on behalf of small businesses does not stop there. 
In May, this body passed bipartisan legislation to update and improve 
the SBA's Entrepreneurial Development programs. These initiatives have 
a solid track record of success. Small businesses that use them are 
twice as likely to succeed.
  Last year alone, ED programs helped create 73,000 new jobs. The 
legislation we passed in May will build on this success. Through 
outreach to targeted communities like veterans, our bill will ensure 
more companies take advantage of these services. And the legislation 
responds to current economic pressures by helping dislocated workers 
start their own enterprises and offering expert consulting to troubled 
businesses.
  Finally, in the last month we have worked to update the Small 
Business Innovation Research program and the Small Business Technology 
Transfer program. Every year, through SBIR and STTR, some of our 
largest Federal agencies invest $2.2 billion in small business 
research. This infusion helps launch 1,500 new companies. The House-
passed bill will strengthen the SBIR program in a number of ways. It 
will make it easier for companies participating in SBIR to access 
venture capital. We have also adjusted the size of program grants to 
better reflect the research costs. And we have targeted the program 
toward commercialization so more products come to the market and there 
are further opportunities for job creation.
  Mr. Speaker, all of these measures will update and improve Federal 
programs that small businesses rely on. As we speak, the committee is 
continuing work with our counterparts in the Senate to finalize these 
bills, prepare them for final passage, and get them to the President 
for his signature.
  However, as the current programs at the SBA expire at the end of this 
month, we must pass an extension so that our legislative work can 
continue. The bill before us will keep existing initiatives at the SBA 
running for another 60 days. This will allow us time to finalize these 
measures and prepare them for final passage.
  I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the chairwoman's request to 
suspend the rules and pass S. 1513.
  The bill is very simple. It extends the authorization of all programs 
authorized by the Small Business Act, the Small Business Investment 
Act, and any program operated by the Small Business Administration for 
which Congress has already appropriated funds. This extension will last 
until September 30, 2009. This extension is necessary because the 
authorization for various programs operated by SBA ceases on July 30, 
2009.
  The committee has worked in a bipartisan fashion over the past two 
Congresses and reported out a number of bills to address programs 
operated by the SBA. Despite the efforts of the House, the extension 
passed earlier this year by both parties of Congress will expire before 
the legislative process can run its course. The work needed to help 
America's entrepreneurs revitalize the economy simply cannot be 
accomplished by Friday of this week. Without enactment of this 
extension, a number of vital programs that SBA operates would cease to 
function.
  Given the importance that small businesses play and will continue to 
play in the revitalization of the American economy, we cannot allow the 
SBA authorizations to run out. Enactment of this extension will enable 
the House and Senate to continue to work in a diligent manner to 
address necessary changes to SBA programs.
  I urge all my colleagues to suspend the rules and pass S. 1513.
  Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 
1513, legislation that would provide a short term extension of the 
Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology 
Transfer (STTR) programs. While I wish that our colleagues in the 
Senate would have taken up the House-passed H.R. 2965 before the 
programs' scheduled expiration on July 31, I believe that it is 
imperative that we act quickly so as not to lose the ability to help 
small businesses, who are the biggest job creators in our country.
  Small business drives U.S. economic growth and innovation. These 
companies make up 99.7 percent of all U.S. employers and employ nearly 
half of all Americans not working for the government. In addition, 
small businesses employ 39 percent of high-tech workers such as 
scientists and engineers, and produce 13 to 14 times more patents per 
employee than do large firms.
  Mr. Speaker, the SBIR and STTR programs were created to provide 
critical funding to these companies so they could conduct R&D that they 
otherwise would not be able to afford. These programs also provide 
further funding to commercialize promising technology resulting from 
this R&D.
  Since their inception in 1982, these programs continue to provide 
over $2 billion in grants and contracts each year and have provided the 
start-up funding for hundreds of small businesses in the United States.
  In my own State of Georgia, Georgia Tech provides assistance to small 
business initiatives across the State, and as a result, companies have 
received over $244 million in SBIR and STTR grants since the programs' 
inception. In my northwest Georgia district alone, over $3.3 million in 
SBIR grants were awarded in fiscal year 2008.
  Mr. Speaker, earlier this month, both Chambers of Congress passed 
respective legislation to fully reauthorize the SBIR and STTR programs. 
It is my hope that after we return from the annual August recess, we 
can work in a bipartisan and bicameral way to pass this important 
reauthorization. These programs have been effective in providing 
government assistance to small businesses to help more people in our 
country achieve the American Dream. We need to ensure that both SBIR 
and STTR are extended until September 30 so that we can continue to 
foster small business development in the emerging technology-based 
global economy--while we work with our Senate colleagues for a full 
reauthorization.

[[Page H8918]]

  I urge all of my colleagues to support this short-term extension by 
voting in favor of S. 1513.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, S. 1513.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on 
the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order 
that a quorum is not present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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