[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 130 (Tuesday, September 6, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5342-S5343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. LANDRIEU:
  S. 1511. A bill to extend the participation term for small business 
concerns affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita in certain 
programs, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Small Business 
and Entrepreneurship.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to speak on an 
issue that is of great importance to my home State of Louisiana: 
disaster recovery. As you know, along the Gulf Coast, we keep an eye 
trained on the Gulf of Mexico during hurricane season. This is 
following the devastating one-two punch of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita 
of 2005; Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008; and more recently the 
Deepwater Horizon disaster. Our communities and businesses are still 
recovering from these disasters--some from a disaster that devastated 
the Gulf Coast over 6 years ago. For this reason, as Chair of the 
Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship disaster 
preparedness is one of my top priorities. While the Gulf Coast is prone 
to hurricanes, other parts of the country are no strangers to disaster 
as we have seen recently. For example, we just saw an earthquake strike 
Washington, DC, and Hurricane Irene work its way up the East Coast. In 
general though, the Midwest also has annual tornadoes, California 
experiences earthquakes and wildfires, and the Northeast sees crippling 
snowstorms. So no part of our country is spared from disasters--
disasters which can and will strike at any moment. With this in mind, 
we must ensure that the Federal Government is better prepared and 
assist those businesses impacted by natural disasters.
  As I mentioned, everyone around the country is familiar with the 
impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on the New Orleans area and the 
southeast part of our State. Images from the devastation following 
these storms, and the subsequent Federal levee breaks, were transmitted 
around the country and around the world. This is because Katrina was 
the deadliest natural disaster in United States history, with 1,800 
people killed--1,500 alone in Louisiana. Katrina was also the costliest 
natural disaster in United States history with over $81.2 billion in 
damage. In Louisiana, we had 18,000 businesses catastrophically 
destroyed and 81,000 businesses economically impacted. I believe that, 
across the entire Gulf Coast, some estimates ran as high as 125,000 
businesses impacted by Katrina and Rita. While we have made significant 
progress in rebuilding infrastructure, housing, and our economy, I 
continue to hear from individual business owners who are struggling to 
fully recover. These business owners tell me that they have not been 
hit by one disaster but three: Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Hurricane 
Gustav in 2008, and the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010.
  In order to help ongoing recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast, I am 
introducing today the Gulf Coast Disadvantaged Business Relief Act of 
2011. This legislation is the Senate companion bill to H.R. 2808 
introduced by my colleague Representative Cedric Richmond last month. I 
note that his legislation also had two original cosponsors from Alabama 
and Mississippi: Representative Terri Sewell and Representative Bennie 
Thompson.
  This bill focuses on assisting minority businesses in the Gulf Coast 
that were impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Everyone is familiar 
with the images and the cost of these storms,

[[Page S5343]]

but they may not be too familiar with the impact on individual 
businesses. In particular, I am speaking about the affects of 
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on minority firms in the Gulf Coast. As a 
result of these storms, many minority firms in the Gulf Coast were 
disrupted and thus lost valuable time for participating in the 8(a) 
program. The 8(a) business development initiative, created under the 
Small Business Administration, helps minority entrepreneurs access 
Federal contracts and allows companies to be certified for increments 
of 3 years. These contracts are vital to the revival of these impacted 
areas. However, as currently structured the program allows businesses 
to participate for a limited length of time, 9 years, after which they 
can never re-apply nor get back into the program. It is imperative that 
we provide contracting assistance to our local minority businesses.
  The bill includes a provision which would tackle this problem in 
three important ways. First, the bill extends 8(a) eligibility for 
program participants in Katrina/Rita-impacted areas in Louisiana, 
Mississippi, and Alabama by 24 months. The bill would also apply to any 
areas in the state of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama that have been 
designated by the administrator of the Small Business Administration as 
a disaster area as a result of Hurricanes Katrina or Rita. Lastly, the 
bill would require the administrator of the Small Business 
Administration to ensure that every small business participating in the 
8(a) program before the date of enactment of the Act is reviewed and 
brought into compliance with this act. This requirement would ensure 
that any eligible previous 8(a) participants will be allowed back into 
the program. As such, these key provisions would ensure that these 
businesses continue to play a vital role in rebuilding their 
communities. I note that I introduced a similar provision as part of S. 
3285, the disadvantaged Business Disaster Eligibility Act during the 
110th Congress and as part of S. 2731 last Congress. During the 109th 
Congress, this proposal passed the House of Representatives but we were 
unable to pass the legislation here in the Senate before we adjourned 
for the year. I look forward to renewing my fight this Congress as I 
believe that this is a commonsense proposal which would not cost a 
great deal. It would, however, make a huge difference for these 
businesses impacted by Katrina and Rita.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1511

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Gulf Coast Disadvantaged 
     Business Relief Act of 2011''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act--
       (1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of 
     the Small Business Administration;
       (2) the term ``covered parish or county'' means a parish in 
     the State of Louisiana, or a county in the State of 
     Mississippi or the State of Alabama, that has been designated 
     by the Administrator as a disaster area by reason of 
     Hurricane Katrina of 2005 or Hurricane Rita of 2005 under 
     disaster declaration 10176, 10177, 10178, 10179, 10180, 
     10181, 10205, or 10206; and
       (3) the term ``small business concern'' has the meaning 
     given that term under section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 
     U.S.C. 632).

     SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF PARTICIPATION TERM FOR VICTIMS OF 
                   HURRICANE KATRINA OR HURRICANE RITA.

       (a) Retroactivity.--If a small business concern, while 
     participating in any program or activity under the authority 
     of section 7(j)(10) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
     636(j)(10)), was located in a covered parish or county and 
     was affected by Hurricane Katrina of 2005 or Hurricane Rita 
     of 2005, the period during which the small business concern 
     is permitted continuing participation and eligibility in the 
     program or activity shall be extended for 24 months after the 
     date such participation and eligibility would otherwise 
     terminate.
       (b) Review and Compliance.--The Administrator shall ensure 
     that the case of every small business concern participating 
     before the date of enactment of this Act in a program or 
     activity described in subsection (a) is reviewed and brought 
     into compliance with this Act.

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