[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 48 (Monday, December 2, 2002)]
[Page 2087]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Message to the Congress Transmitting a Report on
Small Business

November 19, 2002

To the Congress of the United States:

    This report documents the state of small business at the end of the 
20th century. Small businesses have always been the backbone of our 
economy. They perennially account for most innovation and job creation. 
Small businesses have sustained the economy when it is robust and 
growing as well as in weaker times when small businesses have put the 
economy back on the track to long-term growth.
    We must work together to give small businesses an environment in 
which they can thrive. Small businesses are disproportionately affected 
by Government regulations and paperwork, and I am committed to reducing 
this burden. We should regulate only where there is a real need, fully 
justified through rigorous cost-benefit analysis and clear legal 
authority. And when Government must regulate, it must adopt commonsense 
approaches. Regulations work best when agencies anticipate and analyze 
the effects of their proposals on small firms. Rules need to reflect the 
ability of small businesses to comply.
    Another barrier to unleashing the full potential of small business 
is our tax code. I am committed to reducing taxes for all Americans--
especially small businesses. We must eliminate permanently the estate 
tax, which so often has spelled the death of the business and the jobs 
of its employees after the death of its founder. Our tax code should 
encourage investment in small businesses, and particularly in new and 
growing businesses. Because the innovations that drive tomorrow's 
economy come from entrepreneurial small businesses today, we must help 
them enter the marketplace, not impede them before they get there. Above 
all, small businesses need a tax code that is understandable and stable. 
Fairness, simplicity, transparency, and accountability should be our 
goals, and I am committed to this end.
    Small business embodies so much of what America is all about. Self-
reliance, hard work, innovation, the courage to take risks for future 
growth: these are values that have served our Nation well since its very 
beginning. They are values to be passed on from generation to 
generation. We must ensure that our small businesses continue to thrive 
and prosper, not just for their own sakes, but for all of us.
                                                George W. Bush
 The White House,
 November 19, 2002.

Note: This message was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
November 25.