Fremont-Madison Conveyance Act

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted that we were able to expeditiously move this legislation on the floor today. This bill is identical to legislation this House unanimously approved on December 5, 2001. It is unfortunate that the Senate was unable to take this legislation up on the Senate floor last year but we are here today to try again.

The purpose of H.R. 1106 is to create jobs, to spur entrepreneurship, and to stimulate the economies and foster economic development on Indian lands. Further, the purpose of the Act is to help in the creation of new small businesses owned and managed by Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians and to help expand such small businesses that already exist. The Act will provide much needed management, technical, and research assistance to small businesses owned by Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians. The Act will help insure that Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians have full access to existing counseling and technical assistance provided through the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) program. In providing entrepreneurial assistance, a State receiving a grant under the provisions of the Act is required to seek the advice of local Tribal Councils on where small business development assistance is needed.

Approximately 60 percent of Indian tribe members and Native Alaskans live on or in the immediate vicinity of Indian lands and suffer from an average unemployment rate of 45 percent. Currently, Indian tribe members and Native Alaskans own more than 197,000 business enterprises and generate revenues in excess of $34 billion.

The service industry, the largest sector, accounts for 17 percent of the businesses, and 15.7 percent of the total revenues. The second largest sector is construction, which accounts for 13.9 percent of the businesses and 15.7 percent of the total revenues. The third largest sector, the retail trades, accounts for 7.5 percent of the businesses and 13.4 percent of the total revenues.

The number of businesses owned by Indian tribe members and Native Alaskans grew by 84 percent during the period from 1992 to 1997, while businesses, generally, grew by only seven percent. During the same period, the gross receipts for Indian tribe members and Native Alaskan business owners increased by 179 percent, in comparison with the business community, as a whole, where the gross receipts for the same period grew only by 40 percent.

In the past, the SBDC program with more than 1,100 offices throughout the United States has provided cost-effective business counseling and technical assistance to small businesses. For example, clients receiving long-term counseling under the program in 1998 generated additional tax revenues of $468 million, which was approximately six times the cost of the program to the Federal government.

By using the existing infrastructure of the SBDC program, it is anticipated that small businesses owned by Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians, who receive services under the Act, will have a higher survival rate than the average small businesses not receiving such services. Further, increased assistance through SBDC counseling has in the past been able to reduce defaults under Small Business Administration (SBA) lending programs.

The business counseling and technical assistance, provided for under this Act, is critical on Indian land where, without such assistance, similar services are scarce and expensive. Past and current efforts by SBDCs to assist Native American populations located on or along reservation lands have proven difficult. In addition, the lack of resources makes it difficult to raise an equal amount of matching funds to specifically assist Native Americans.

H.R. 1166 will establish a three-year pilot project providing grants to SBDCs for assisting Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiian populations with their entrepreneurial needs. The purpose is to stimulate

the economies on reservation lands through the creation and expansion of small businesses by ensuring the target population has full access to important business counseling and technical assistance through the SBDC program.

Any SBDC in a State, whose Indian tribe members, Native Alaskan, and Native Hawaiian populations are one percent of the State's total population, can apply for a grant from the SBA. Such grants must be used to provide SBDC program assistance to Native Americans. Grants under the Act are limited to $300,000 and the amount authorized to be appropriated annually, in each of the fiscal years 2004, 2005, and 2006, is $7 million. No matching funds are required from the States.

Services by SBDCs are to be provided to benefit the target population on tribal lands and reservations, but an individual center need not be located on each tribal land location or reservation. If the target population is in more than one location or reservation within a State, the center should be situated in a location that optimizes access by all those serviced by the center. H.R. 1166 does not limit in any way, the number of centers or subcenters a state program may implement. I expect the SBA Administrator to balance the need for multiple sites with the quality of assistance and counseling when awarding grants. Consultation with the local Tribal Council is required in determining those locations in most need and where the best access may be attained.

SBA is responsible for designing the grant application, which should provide essential information, but should not be burdensome to applicants. At a minimum, the application should contain information concerning the applicant's (1) goals and objectives, (2) prior experience in providing entrepreneurial and technical assistance to small businesses, (3) the ability to provide training and services to Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians, and (4) the extent of consultation with local Tribal Councils. In addition, the applicant should identify the location of a proposed center, and the amount of funding required.

Within 180 days after the enactment of H.R. 1166, the SBA Administrator is required to issue final regulations, after a notice and comment period, that implement the requirements of the Act. Such regulations shall include standards for the educational, technical, and support services to be provided and for a work plan for providing assistance to the targeted community.

The Act's predecessor, H.R. 2538, was subject to a hearing and a committee mark-up in the 107th Congress. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that implementing the bill would cost $20 million over the next four years and contains no intergovernmental or private sector mandates. H.R. 2538 also unanimously passed the House on December 5, 2001 but unfortunately saw no action on the Senate floor, even though a companion bill was discussed and marked-up in the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee. That's why I am pleased to join again with my good friend from New Mexico, in cosponsoring H.R. 1166 in this Congress and seeing it pass the House yet once again. Hopefully, the other body will look more kindly upon the legislation this year.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman Manzullo), chairman of the Committee on Small Business, and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez), for their work and commitment to expanding small business opportunities for all Americans and for working to bring this bill to the floor today.

I would also like to thank the staff members of the committee for their hard work on this legislation and my colleagues who supported this bill by joining me as cosponsors.

The important legislation before us today, H.R. 1166, allows Small Business Development Centers to apply for an additional Small Business Administration grant to provide specified services to assist with outreach, development, and enhancement on Indian lands of small business start-ups and expansions that are owned by Indian tribal members, Alaskan Natives, or Native Hawaiians.

This legislation ensures participation of governing bodies of Indian tribes, Alaska Native entities, and Native Hawaiian organizations. Under H.R. 1166, States receiving a Small Business Development Center program grant are required to request advice from the appropriate governmental organization on how best to provide assistance to such members and where to locate satellite centers to provide such assistance. Our intent is to ensure these business development tools are provided in a culturally sensitive way.

Mr. Speaker, small businesses create 75 percent of all new employment opportunities, make up 99 percent of all employers, and provide almost half of all sales in this country. As many of us have said before and will say again, small businesses are the fuel for the engine of economic development. That is why it is so imperative that we take steps to help ensure that small business development reaches the places in this country where economic prosperity has yet to be realized.

The current economic situation on Native American lands is very grave. However, it does hold promise for the future. The average unemployment rate of these lands is over 10 times the national average. At the same time, small business creation is at an all-time high. Native American and Native Alaskan-owned small businesses grew by 84 percent from 1992 to 1997, and their gross receipts grew by 179 percent in that same time period.

Compare those figures to an overall small business growth rate of 7 percent and to the gross receipt growth of 40 percent, and we can see why there is reason to be optimistic about the future of small business development on tribal lands.

It is with these facts in mind and the desire to help Native American, Native Alaskan, and Native Hawaiian entrepreneurs capitalize on these positive developments that I introduce this legislation. My bill ensures that Native Americans, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians seeking to create, develop, and expand small businesses have full access to the counseling and technical assistance available through the SBA's SBDC program. The business development tools offered by the SBDCs can assist Native Americans with the information and opportunity to build sustainable businesses in their communities.

In an effort to ensure the quality and success of the program, the proposal requires the SBA to include several items in the grant application.

In addition to the obvious requirements like requiring the applicant's goals and objectives, we also must see the applicant's experience in conducting programs on ongoing efforts designed to assist the business skills of small business owners. Also the capability of such applicant to provide training and services to a representative number of Native Americans, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians is also important to this process.

I have the great honor of representing 14 Pueblos, the Hickory Apache Nation, and a portion of the Navajo Nation. These communities are in great need of economic development, and it is clear we can do more to aid Native American entrepreneurs not only in my district but throughout the country as well. Not enough has been done to assist Native Americans in building their businesses. I hope to change this situation with the passage of this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Guam (Mr. Bordallo).

Mr. Speaker, we thank the gentlewoman for her service on the Committee on Small Business.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Case) who also serves on the Committee on Small Business and is a hardworking member on that committee.

(Mr. CASE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballance). He is the ranking member on the Subcommittee on Rural Enterprises, Agriculture, and Technology.

(Mr. BALLANCE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster) has no further speakers, I am prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster) for his management of this bill and for his hard work here on the floor today.

Mr. Speaker, I would again like to thank the chairman of the Committee on Small Business and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) for their commitment to passing this important legislation. I have high hopes for the impact of this legislation and the impact it will have on small business and economic development on tribal lands.

As some of my colleagues have mentioned today, the average unemployment rate of Native American communities, particularly on reservations, is around 45 percent, while one-third of Native Americans currently live below the Nation's poverty level. Mr. Speaker, this situation is unacceptable.

The persistent poverty that is prevalent on tribal lands must come to an end, and I believe that passing H.R. 1166 is an important step towards achieving this goal. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

And just one moment before I yield back, let me also thank the committee staff, my former legislative director, Tony Martinez; my legislative assistant, Mike Collins; and Michael Day, the minority staff director of the Committee on Small Business.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1166) to amend the Small Business Act to expand and improve the assistance provided by Small Business Development Centers to Indian tribe members, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiians.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1166 is identical to legislation the House passed unanimously December 5, 2001. Unfortunately, this bill did not pass the Senate last year. We are here today to try again.

This bill simply establishes a 3-year pilot program providing grants to the Small Business Development Centers for assisting Native Americans, Native Alaskans, and Native Hawaiian populations with their small business development needs.

Few people realize that 60 percent of our Native American population lives in or adjacent to Indian lands that suffer from an average unemployment rate of 45 percent. One-third of Native Americans live below the poverty level. However, the number of businesses owned by Native Americans grew by 84 percent between 1998 and 1997, as compared to all other businesses, which grew at only 7 percent over the same time period.

It is quite clear that the entrepreneurial spirit of Native American small business ownership is the key to economic growth and revitalization of these often forgotten communities. Instead of creating a new program, H.R. 1166 uses the existing Small Business Development Center network to develop culturally sensitive entrepreneurial counseling and technical assistance programs for Native Americans.

The SBDC network has a track record of success. Small businesses that use their service have a higher survival rate than the average small businesses not receiving such assistance. Any SBDC in a State whose Native American population is at least 1 percent of the State's total population can apply for a grant from the SBA. Such grants must be used to provide SBDC program assistance to Native Americans. The maximum grant size is $300,000 and the authorized level is capped at $7 million per year.

Already this fiscal year, the Small Business Administration received a $2 million appropriation to develop Native American entrepreneur education programs. I join many of my colleagues, including the chairman of the Committee on Small Business, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Manzullo), who is an original cosponsor of this bill, in supporting H.R. 1166.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers. I reserve my right to close.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I would close by first commending and congratulating the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall) for his hard work on this legislation and his support for the small business men and women across America. I also want to take this opportunity to thank the ranking member, the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) for her support on H.R. 1166. And I finally want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman Manzullo) for his leadership and his passion for defending the backbone of the American economy and that is small business.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1166, a bill to enhance the capacity of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) to provide assistance to Native American tribal members, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians. I would like to commend my colleague and friend, Representative Tom Udall, for his work on, once again, bringing this important legislation to the floor.

SBDCs are the premier technical assistance providers to America's entrepreneurs. Many small businesses often operate near or at their profit margin and do not have additional resources to hire legal or technical experts. Research shows that small businesses that receive technical assistance are twice as likely to succeed in the marketplace than those that do not. In addition to providing technical assistance to the general small business community, SBDCs should also target that segment of our population with special and unique needs.

The Native American population is one such population. The United States government has an endless commitment to addressing the economic and health disparities of Native Americans. Although we have passed other legislation such as the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and the Indian Self-Determination Act of 1975, which both encourage self- sufficiency in an attempt to amend the effects of relocation, not enough has been done to ensure success of economic development within this community. That is why I support this bill. The ``Native American Small Business Development Act'' (NASBD) will allow Native Americans to strengthen and expand their small business infrastructure. This would also provide more stable employment and move closer to ending the desperate and disparate conditions on reservations. More importantly, this bill will allow Native American entrepreneurs to better utilize the current SBDC network.

The Native American population represents a disadvantaged and underserved segment of our nation. One-third of Native Americans currently live below the nation's poverty level and suffer from the highest rate in health disparities. Despite these difficulties, Native American small businesses grew at a rate of 84 percent over the last five years. But with technical assistance specifically geared toward meeting the unique needs of this population, we can create a more prosperous economic community in the Native American population, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians.

This legislation passed the House of Representatives in the previous Congress with strong bipartisan support but failed to reach the Senate floor last year. I remain in support of this legislation and committed to seeing its complete passage.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored this evening to join with my colleagues on this important issue.

A careful reading of history reminds us that the first Americans, whom we now call Native Americans and sometimes we call Indians, those whose ancestors walked the Trail of Tears, part of which is in my native State of North Carolina, those who suffered through broken promises from our government, and even as we stand here today in combat in Federal court with our Department of Interior over how to account for funds derived from lands that America allegedly set aside for Native Americans, we all know how important small businesses are all over our Nation and in every community, where they make up 75 percent of new employment and, by some figures, more than 90 percent of all new employers.

The average unemployment rate of Native Americans, particularly those on the reservation, languishes today around 45 percent. That is unacceptable in modern America, when we keep in mind that the national unemployment rate in February of this year was 5.8 percent. Even more alarming, one-third of Native Americans currently live below the poverty line. And so that is why I am honored to stand with my colleagues in support of this important legislation which I understand was introduced and went forward last year but did not make it all the way. We are hopeful that we can pass this legislation in the House of Representatives and it can become law.

Native American small businesses grew at a rate of 84 percent over the last 5 years. And we not only have a legal, I think, responsibility, but we have a moral responsibility to ensure that this trend continues to ensure that we make efforts to right past wrongs, and for selfish reasons, to ensure that in our country that every segment of our community has an opportunity for its young people to move forward and to enjoy the American dream. I am strongly in support of this legislation and I urge my colleagues to pass it.