[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 24003]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     PASS TRADE PROMOTION AUTHORITY

  (Mr. LINDER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LINDER. Mr. Speaker, more than 95 percent of the world's 
population lives outside of the United States. For most American 
businesses this means that, in order to remain competitive, they must 
be allowed to market their goods and services across borders. This is 
particularly true for small business. There are more than 25 million 
small businesses in America, and they employ more than half the 
country's private workforce. Small businesses create three out of four 
new jobs and account for half of the America's annual economic 
production. Undoubtedly, small businesses are vital to the United 
States, and trade in turn is vital to them.
  Mr. Speaker, nearly 97 percent of U.S. merchandise exporters are 
small- and medium-sized businesses. Companies with less than 20 
employees account for more than two-thirds of all U.S. exporting firms. 
Further, the number of American small businesses that export grew by 
more than 200 percent between 1987 and 1997.
  The United States is the single most competitive nation in the world. 
Tomorrow, Congress will have an opportunity to enable America's small 
businesses to prove their global competitiveness. We must pass Trade 
Promotion Authority and allow our small businesses to compete.

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