[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 49 (Thursday, March 27, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1792-S1793]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE SESSION

                                 ______
                                 

 NOMINATION OF MARIA CONTRERAS-SWEET TO BE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE SMALL 
                        BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will 
proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination, 
which the clerk will report.
  The bill clerk read the nomination of Maria Contreras-Sweet, of 
California, to be Administrator of the Small Business Administration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will be 2 
minutes of debate equally divided in the usual form.
  Who yields time?
  The Senator from Washington.
  Ms. CANTWELL. Madam President, I ask to be recognized for 3 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Ms. CANTWELL. Madam President, I understand that this will be a voice 
vote.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is correct.
  Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Washington.
  Ms. CANTWELL. Thank you Madam President. I want to thank my Senate 
colleagues and Senator Risch for helping us get the next Administrator 
of the U.S. Small Business Administration to the floor.
  First, I want to recognize everybody's thoughts and prayers here for 
Oso and Darrington, WA, and for the people who have been hit by an 
unbelievable tragedy. Our hearts go out to this community and I want to 
say that this has been a tremendous effort by first responders.
  There are hundreds of volunteers, thousands of dollars of 
contributions. And Darrington High School students made 1,300 
sandwiches to try to support the research and recovery effort. I thank 
them for all of their hard work.
  One of the reasons I want to get a Small Business Administrator is 
because this agency is going to play a role in this recovery. I thank 
my colleague, Senator Murray, for her help and support.
  The Small Business Administration plays an important role for 
communities in disasters and the woman we have before us is a well-
qualified woman who can help us with this crisis and continued small 
business lending.
  The SBA has been without an Administrator for 8 months, and it is 
critical that we get this position filled today. We cannot forget that 
small businesses create two out of three new jobs in our country--and 
the SBA provide $28 million small business assistance that helps them 
create more jobs.
  So every single day we need to think about small businesses in our 
community and how much we need to help and support them. Businesses, 
from Chobani Yogurt to Ben & Jerry's ice cream to Federal Express, have 
benefited from the SBA program. To have somebody like Maria Contreras-
Sweet to be this person is critical for us.

  I urge my colleagues to support her in this nomination and to move 
forward on an SBA agenda. Everything from making sure we approve the 
504 program, to the STEP export assistance program, and to make sure 
that we continue to make ground on exporting small business products--
made in the United States of America--to the growing middle-class 
around the globe.
  I thank my colleagues and I urge them to support this nominee.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Madam President, I rise to express my strong support 
for Maria Contreras-Sweet--a woman eminently qualified to serve our 
country as the next administrator of the Small Business Administration.
  Maria Contreras-Sweet is the right person to lead the SBA given her 
distinguished record of public service and her deep understanding of 
the challenges and needs facing small businesses today.
  As the founder of ProAmerica Bank, the first Latino-owned business 
bank in California in over 30 years and a leading financial services 
provider and SBA lender, she successfully expanded access to capital 
for small- and medium-sized businesses that often lacked access to 
larger, traditional financial institutions.
  Just yesterday, my colleagues in the Hispanic Task Force and I met 
with Latino business leaders from across the Nation, and the No. 1 
issue that was raised by nearly everyone in the room was the need to 
assist minority entrepreneurs and small business owners with obtaining 
financing and access to capital--an essential function of the SBA, and 
one that Maria-Contreras Sweet understands first-hand.
  Her commitment to supporting small businesses owners embodies the 
entrepreneurial spirit that makes our country great--and is exactly the 
kind of leadership the SBA needs.
  Maria Contreras-Sweet also has a proven track record as a dedicated 
public servant. She previously served as secretary of the California 
Business, Transportation, and Housing Agency, where she was the driving 
force behind major job creation and public investments in 
infrastructure and housing.
  As the first Latina to serve as a cabinet secretary in the state, she 
managed a budget of $14 billion and oversaw more than 40,000 employees. 
This is truly a remarkable nominee who brings a wealth of knowledge and 
leadership to the Small Business Administration, as well as a 
compelling personal story.
  Maria Contreras-Sweet, like me, has humble beginnings. As a young 
child, she immigrated to the United States from Guadalajara, Mexico. 
She settled in California, where her mother worked long hours at a 
chicken packaging plant to support her and her five siblings. Her 
family did not speak any English when they arrived, and Maria has said 
that it was precisely hearing no' so many times and seeing so many 
doors close for them that prompted her to speak up for others, to fight 
to level the playing field for all, and to find a way to say yes' to 
people with good ideas who can drive innovation who are all too often 
overlooked for the wrong reasons.
  Maria Contreras-Sweet represents the promise of America, the 
fulfillment of the American Dream, and the expansion of this dream to 
millions more entrepreneurs and small business owners across the 
Nation. She is building wealth for American families and communities, 
and building pathways to growth and prosperity that extend far beyond 
the business sector.
  Maria Contreras-Sweet is the right nominee for the job. I applaud 
President Obama for selecting her to be our nation's next SBA 
administrator, and I thank Leader Reid for moving quickly to confirm 
her nomination without delay. I'm very pleased the time has finally 
come for good people like Maria Contreras-Sweet to get the up-or-down 
vote they deserve.
  I urge my colleagues to vote to confirm this qualified, competent 
nominee without hesitation.
  With that, I yield the floor.
  Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, I am pleased to support the nomination of 
Maria Contreras-Sweet to be Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration. The SBA Administrator plays an important role in 
helping small businesses create jobs, mainly by making sure small 
businesses have access to capital. Ms. Contreras-Sweet is remarkably 
qualified for this position,

[[Page S1793]]

having founded and run a bank that focuses on making small and mid-size 
loans. She also served as the head of California's Business, 
Transportation and Housing Agency. The SBA will benefit from the 
valuable insight Ms. Contreras-Sweet gained from this combination of 
experience working directly with small businesses and administering a 
large government agency. The experience will serve her well as SBA 
Administrator.
  As a member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship I had the opportunity to engage Ms. Contreras-Sweet 
during her confirmation hearing. She impressed me with her 
understanding of all that it takes to launch and run a successful small 
business. She has the skills and the enthusiasm to help entrepreneurs 
drive our economic growth and create jobs.
  I am happy to support Ms. Contreras-Sweet's nomination and I look 
forward to working with her as the SBA Administrator.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time?
  Ms. CANTWELL. Madam President, I yield back all time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, all time is yielded back.
  The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the nomination 
of Maria Contreras-Sweet, of California, to be Administrator of the 
Small Business Administration?
  The nomination was confirmed.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to 
reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table.
  The President will be immediately notified of the Senate's action.

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