Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 15th anniversary of the Brooklyn Chinese-American Association.

The Brooklyn Chinese-American Association (BCA) has developed into the largest service and community development organization for the Asian communities of Brooklyn since its inception in 1987. BCA addresses the needs and concerns of Asian Americans, which therefore enhances the strength and cohesiveness of our neighborhoods.

Since BCA's beginnings, Brooklyn's Asian-American communities have seen tremendous growth with recent estimates of more than 250,000 Asian-American residents. Sunset Park has seen such a significant increase that it is now called ``Brooklyn's Chinatown.'' Due to this population boom BCA provides numerous services and programs to ease transition of recent immigrants.

These programs include three early childhood education centers, nine youth-oriented programs, comprehensive bilingual social services, crime prevention and victim services. BCA also organizes community events and economic development projects. One annual event BCA is proud of is the annual Chinese New Year's parade, which brings local residents together to celebrate their heritage and traditions.

In celebration of BCA's 15th anniversary, I would like to acknowledge their hard work and dedication to enhancing the lives of Asian Americans in Brooklyn. Over the years, BCA's achievements have enabled them to offer programs that bring great joy to many residents.

I hereby join the Brooklyn Chinese-American Association along with Asian-Americans throughout the city to celebrate BCA's 15th anniversary.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to congratulate both the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kucinich) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) on this important amendment.

I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 4. In 1996, we passed what was wrongly termed ``landmark legislation'' that would end welfare as we know it. Over the past several years, our Nation's poor and working families have survived, not because of the strong safety net, but because of a strong economy.

With the economy in recession and States facing record deficits, we need welfare reform now more than ever.

To hear the President speak, you think he would agree.

Recently the President said, ``Welfare reform, to me, means liberation from dependency. It means we realize each person matters, and if we can help people find work, it means dignity.'' Great rhetoric. I do not know what proposal he has been looking at, because today's proposal does nothing to promote dignity.

This proposal is about victimizing the poor. This bill is so bad in so many ways I do not even know where to start: lack of funding for child care, increased work requirements, discrimination against immigrants. But what it is most about, unfortunately, is a lost opportunity.

A major shortcoming of the welfare reform system is that it fails to effectively and creatively use our number one job creator, small business. The current system is so confusing and bureaucratic that both small businesses and welfare recipients simply give up out of sheer frustration. This leaves welfare recipients without jobs and small businesses without employees.

But today's vote is also about mixed-up priorities. Just imagine if we had taken the more than $300 billion for the Bush dividend tax cut and instead put it towards training and tax credits for small businesses that give welfare recipients jobs. Think of the economic power as small businesses expand and we gain a whole new group of consumers.

Once again, tax breaks for the wealthy is more important than dignity for the poor. That is a real shame. Vote ``no'' on H.R. 4 and support the Lee-Kucinich amendment.

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

I rise in strong support of S. 141. This legislation is long overdue. Today, more than ever, small businesses struggle to find avenues of capital. This is only reinforced by the fact that in our day and age, the number one rate for entrepreneurs to finance their great idea is through credit cards. Oftentimes, these carry prohibitively high interest rates, weighing small businesses down with insurmountable debt even before they get off the ground.

Filling this financing vacuum are the SBA loan programs. Through public-private partnerships that share the lending risk, small businesses are able to tap into capital that is both affordable and accessible. In these programs last year, $20 billion in capital, accounting for 40 percent of all long-term small business lending, was provided to this Nation's entrepreneurs.

Unfortunately, at a time when we need these programs the most, they are blocked from fulfilling their true potential because of policies that place the Federal Treasury's bottom line above this Nation's small business bottom line. Over the last decades, both lenders and small businesses receiving SBA loans have been overcharged by a whopping $1.5 billion. This is nothing more than a tax on small business that should have been put to rest long ago.

S. 141 will help to change this inequity by requiring the administration to more accurately report the cost of these programs to taxpayers. The move will begin to turn the tide of this unfair tax, and coupled with the pending fiscal year 2003 omnibus appropriations bill, entrepreneurs will finally have the access to capital they need.

I urge my colleagues to join me in calling on the President to follow through on our actions today and put capital where it belongs, in the hands of small business owners.

Mr. Speaker, for almost 6 months now, this administration has limited access to capital for the small business sectors by placing a cap of $500,000 on SBA loans. This move is tantamount to credit rationing. Because of these actions, entrepreneurs have been blocked from accessing billions of dollars. These funds could have been used to create economic growth and jobs, two important components to aid us in our climb out of the current economic doldrums.

With the passage of this measure, the SBA and the administration will no longer have an excuse to withhold these funds from small businesses, and they must lift this cap.

While this legislation offers some remedy, it is only a very minor move in terms of what truly needs to happen to give the small business community the fairness it deserves. With this bill's implementation we will see the first significant reduction in the subsidy rate governing the program. But even with the passage of S. 141, small businesses and lenders are still paying too much, and that must change.

Even more importantly, this legislation does nothing to address the most egregious practice of taxing small business, the overcharging of those entrepreneurs who use the 504 loan program.

The average small business owner today, receiving a 504 loan, can expect to pay an additional $15,000. That is the difference between hiring a part-time employee and a full-time employee, providing health care benefits or purchasing new equipment that will add jobs. This is shameful. But the fact that the administration is aware of this and their current budget refuses to fix it is without conscience. I am not going to stand for this. Small business owners are not going to stand for it either. And this body should not stand for it.

Mr. Speaker, S. 141 is the first step in helping Main Street America, but there is still a lot of work to be done before small firms receive fair and equal treatment. One of our mantras in the Committee on Small Business is ``Access to capital is access to opportunity.'' With the passage of this legislation, we will be a little closer to making it possible for thousands of individuals to realize the American dream of business ownership. I urge the adoption of this legislation

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hinojosa).

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Jones), an alumna of the Committee on Small Business and the newest member of the Committee on Ways and Means.

(Mrs. JONES of Ohio asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

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

S. 141 is a good start. It is time to stop finger-pointing and get to work. The administration needs to lift the loan cap and get this critical capital where it is needed most, in the hands of small businesses.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year in New York City.

The Year of the Ram is being celebrated on the first day of February, 2003, as the people of New York join the Asian American community in marking the start of a New Year.

The Ram signifies harmony, reconciliation and peacemaking--both politically and personally. This is the year for reconciliation, diplomacy and the healing of rifts.

Since the Ram is also patron of the arts, this year will bring out individual creativity, and an increased interest in music and theater.

After last year's quick pace of the Year of the Horse, the Year of the Ram will be a time for quiet introspection. In taking to a slower pace of life, this year will be dedicated to spending quality time with those closest to us.

In celebration of the Year of the Ram, our great City will come alive with many lively festivals, colorful processions and cultural performances. Several neighborhoods in the City will host the traditional lion and dragon parades. Streets will be adorned with red paper lanterns for the Lantern Festival, and bright decorations and lights will hang across storefronts and sidewalks.

The beginning of the Lunar New Year is a special occasion for Asian Americans. It is a time for reflection, for making future plans, and for honoring the past. It is an opportunity to share old, treasured traditions with friends and family. It is a time for all New Yorkers of various ethnic backgrounds to join the Asian American community as they look forward to a year of peace, prosperity and good will among all people.

I hereby join the City of New York and the Asian American community in celebration of Lunar New Year's Day on February 1, 2003, to mark the start of the Year of the Ram.