[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 85 (Friday, June 14, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E875]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2014

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                               speech of

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 13, 2013

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1960) to 
     authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2014 for military 
     activities of the Department of Defense and for military 
     construction, to prescribe military personnel strengths for 
     such fiscal year, and for other purposes:

  Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of the bipartisan Hanna-
Graves-Shuster-Hunter-Connolly Amendment 72, a modified version of H.R. 
2232, the Make Every Small Business Count Act of 2013, which Mr. Graves 
introduced on June 4, 2013. This common sense amendment will strengthen 
the Federal Government's ability to fulfill its long-standing 
commitment to promote the viability and growth of American small 
businesses through Federal contracting.
  Amendment 72 will ensure that our Nation's procurement policy 
incentivizes the use of small business contracting at every tier by 
allowing prime contractors to receive credit towards meeting their 
small business contracting goals for lower tier subcontract awards to 
small firms. This will not only maximize small business subcontracting 
opportunities in the Federal space, but it will also ensure parity 
between government--which receives credit towards its small business 
goals for all tiers of subcontracting--and prime contractors--who only 
receive credit for first tier subcontractors.
  As the Chairman of the House Small Business Committee has noted, this 
incongruity has actually created a disincentive against considering 
small businesses for lower tier subcontracts, even though emerging, 
innovative small firms are often best suited for this type of work.
  This bipartisan amendment also removes a restriction in current law 
preventing agencies from negotiating subcontracting goals beyond the 
first tier, which in turn will allow for higher goals in a given 
contract and expand subcontracting opportunities for small businesses.
  The large and small businesses in my District are not asking for 
unfair competitive advantages or undeserved credit towards meeting 
small business contracting goals. They simply want a chance to fairly 
compete for Federal contracts and appropriate credit for subcontracting 
with small businesses at all tiers. In accomplishing these goals, our 
bipartisan amendment truly represents a win-win for all stakeholders, 
since increased competition in Federal contracting enhances innovation 
and job creation, while bolstering our industrial base. I urge all my 
colleagues to join me in supporting this amendment.

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