Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3511) to amend the Small Business Act to require training on increasing contract awards to small business concerns owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, and for other purposes.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this is the first of eight bills from the Committee on Small Business that we will

be considering today. That goes to show that the Committee on Small Business is a committee that gets things done, and I hope our Senate counterparts follow our lead to get these bills to the President's desk.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3511, the Service- Disabled Veteran Opportunities in Small Business Act, which is sponsored by my good friend, Representative LaLota, from the great State of New York.

H.R. 3511 builds on this Congress' dedication to America's veterans. Our country asks a lot from our brave servicemen and -women. Therefore, we must support them when they return to civilian life and ensure that they have a fair shot to succeed back home.

That is why this bill is critical to ensuring that our veterans are supported as entrepreneurs. The Federal Government is the largest consumer in the world, and each year, these agencies have a goal to spend a portion of their contracts with small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans.

In last year's NDAA, Congress raised the spending goal to 5 percent of all contracting dollars. Unfortunately, not every Federal agency has met its commitment to the men and women who bravely served our country. H.R. 3511 would remedy this by requiring the Small Business Administration to help failing agencies improve their inclusion of service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. Our veterans deserve to have every chance to succeed in the Federal contracting space.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to support H.R. 3511, and I urge all of my colleagues to vote for this bill.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation that Mr. McGarvey and Mr. LaLota did a great job on, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4669) to provide for Department of Energy, National Laboratories, and Small Business Administration joint research and development activities, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4669, the DOE and SBA Research Act, sponsored by my good friend, Representative LaLota, from the great State of New York.

Our national laboratories provide some of the most cutting-edge scientific research initiated by the U.S. Government. The 17 national labs across the country help ensure we remain world leaders in a variety of disciplines, including our Nation's self-defense.

This legislation will ensure that the great work of our national labs and SBA are ensuring small businesses can play a part in these crucial activities. Small businesses play an important role in American innovation. The Committee on Small Business has heard countless testimonies from entrepreneurs who have found inefficiencies in many different industries and have since gone to work fixing these problems.

This is very similar to the work of our national labs as this bill, establishing a memorandum of understanding, will prove mutually beneficial to both parties.

The DOE and SBA Research Act is vital to increasing the opportunities that innovative small businesses must work with some of the most innovative federally funded research organizations in the world.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in voting for H.R. 4669, and I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives, Committee on Science, Space,

and Technology

Washington, DC, December 1, 2023.

Hon. Roger Williams,

Chairman, Committee on Small Business,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman Williams: I am writing concerning H.R. 4669,

the ``DOE and SBA Research Act'', which was referred

primarily to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology,

with an additional referral to the Committee on Small

Business.

H.R. 4669 contains provisions within the Committee on

Science, Space, and Technology's Rule X jurisdiction. As a

result of your having consulted with the Committee and in

order to expedite this bill for floor consideration, the

Committee on Science, Space, and Technology will forego

action on the bill. This is being done on the basis of our

mutual understanding that doing so will in no way diminish or

alter the jurisdiction of the Committee on Science, Space,

and Technology with respect to the appointment of conferees,

or to any future jurisdictional claim over the subject

matters contained in the bill or similar legislation.

I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming

this understanding, and would request that you include a copy

of this letter and your response in in the Congressional

Record during the floor consideration of this bill. Thank you

in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Frank D. Lucas,

Chairman.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I am ready to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation from Mr. Thanedar and Mr. LaLota, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7105) to establish requirements relating to certification of small business concerns owned and controlled by women for certain purposes, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7105, the WOSB Certification and Opportunity Expansion Act, sponsored by the Committee on Small Business' Ranking Member Velazquez.

One of the Committee on Small Business' top priorities is combating fraud and abuse within the government's contracting programs. Small business participation in Federal contracting ensures a strong and resilient industrial base.

Congress sets a governmentwide goal to spend at least 5 percent of its procurement dollars with women-owned small businesses. However, since this goal contains self-certified firms, it is hard to tell the accuracy of the data. This bill would remove self-certified firms from this governmentwide goal. This will add accountability measures to make sure the businesses competing for these contracting dollars are not misrepresenting themselves.

I was proud to work with the ranking member on this important piece of legislation. I urge all of my colleagues to vote for H.R. 7105 and ensure that certified women small business owners are not unfairly shut out of the Federal marketplace by fraudsters.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation from Ranking Member Velazquez and Congressman LaLota. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5265) to amend the Small Business Act to require a report on the performance of the Office of Rural Affairs, to require a report on the memorandum of understanding between the Small Business Administration and the Department of Agriculture entered into on April 4, 2018, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5265, the Small Business Administration Rural Performance Report Act, sponsored by the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Alford).

It should come as no surprise that rural entrepreneurs face unique challenges. In extending assistance to these entrepreneurs, the Department of Agriculture and the Small Business Administration offer a variety of programs to help them start and grow their businesses.

Unfortunately, government agencies often act in a silo and become ineffective in their outreach. That is why the Trump administration created a partnership between the USDA and the SBA to better tailor their outreach and services to rural entrepreneurs.

After our committee marked up this bill, we were happy to see the SBA announce that they are going to work to renew another agreement with the Department of Agriculture. While this progress should not go unnoticed, this bill goes further to require a report to track the effectiveness of this agreement and the SBA's Office of Rural Affairs. If we are going to be spending taxpayer dollars to help accomplish a goal, there must be performance metrics to see where the ROI is for the taxpayers and the businesses they are helping.

Mr. Speaker, it is vital that Congress knows just how impactful these efforts are so we can ensure our rural entrepreneurs are not left behind. I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 5265, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Alford).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation brought to us by Mr. Pappas, Mr. Golden, and Mr. Alford. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6591) to amend section 8(a) of the Small Business Act to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to regularly reassess the asset and net worth thresholds for qualifying as an economically disadvantaged individual, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6591, the Encouraging Success Act, sponsored by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Ellzey), my good friend.

The 8(a) program allows certain small businesses to compete for valuable contracting opportunities. However, SBA regulations threaten to remove the participating firms if the owner reaches certain financial thresholds. While these thresholds are necessary to ensure that only true small businesses are utilizing this program, it can force some small business owners to make a tough decision: proactively stop expanding their business so they can stay in the program or grow outside the limits set by the SBA and get kicked out of the program.

I spoke with a female veteran in my district who was facing this exact issue. The bill doesn't solve all the issues in this program, but it requires the SBA to reassess the 8(a) asset threshold cap every 4 years, ensuring it is in line with market realities.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote for H.R. 6591, the Encouraging Success Act, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Ellzey).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation from Congressmen Ellzey and Thanedar, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5426) to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to provide a link to resources for submitting reports on suspected fraud relating to certain COVID-19 loans.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5426, a bill to require the SBA's administrator to place a visible link on their website to report COVID fraud.

Last summer, the SBA's Inspector General testified to our committee that throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the SBA distributed more than $200 billion in potentially fraudulent loans.

The committee was also told that in order to work through all these cases, it will take more than 100 years of work. That is simply not a realistic feat, and they need all the help they can get from the American people.

Reporting fraud in the SBA should be easy for everyday Americans to do. Our committee now has a direct fraud reporting link on our website, and the SBA should do the same.

When our committee was researching the need for this bill, we found that the only link to report COVID fraud redirected users to a different website that was in Spanish.

Even after we figured out how to correct the language, it was unclear how to actually report the fraud. This bill will ensure that reporting fraud is simply one click away.

It should be a top priority of this body to recoup as many of these taxpayer dollars as possible and in the most timely and efficient manner possible.

H.R. 5426 is a commonsense bill that will help individuals easily report suspected fraudulent activity and help the SBA and the OIG prioritize which potentially fraudulent loans to investigate.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Van Duyne).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation from Congresswoman Van Duyne and Congressman Landsman, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7128) to establish requirements relating to size standard compliance of small business concerns owned and controlled by women for certain purposes, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7128, The WOSB Integrity Act of 2024, sponsored by Representative Maloy from the great State of Utah.

The WOSB Integrity Act removes self-certification of size from this contracting program that is reserved for women-owned small businesses.

It is vital that there are programs to help small business owners access Federal contracting opportunities. That is where the Small Business Administration's women-owned small business program, also known as WOSB, comes in. This program allows women entrepreneurs to compete for unique contracting opportunities.

Unfortunately, the Federal Government currently does not independently verify that these businesses are truly small businesses. Firms can simply self-certify themselves as small businesses, potentially leading to misrepresentation and fraud to obtain contracting opportunities.

It is vital that women-owned entrepreneurs who participate in the WOSB do not have to worry that their competitors misrepresent themselves as a small business.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 7128, The WOSB Integrity Act of 2024, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Utah (Ms. Maloy).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation from Congresswoman Maloy and Scholten, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7102) to establish an Office of Native American Affairs within the Small Business Administration, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill.

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

I rise today in support of H.R. 7102, the Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act, introduced by Representatives Davids of Kansas and Crane of Arizona.

This bill would codify into law the Office of Native American Affairs, which has been providing services like counseling, training, and Tribal consultations for many years.

Additionally, this bill installs specific reporting requirements from the office. If we are going to be spending taxpayer dollars providing a service, it is critical we understand how effectively the services are being performed.

This bill would not appropriate any additional funds or expand government in any way, but it would provide Congress with better oversight and performance metrics to ensure that this office is performing to its fullest extent.

Native American entrepreneurs, Tribal-owned corporations, and Native American small businesses are vital to their local economics.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Davids and Representative Crane for their work on this bill. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 7102, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Crane).

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation brought to us by Congresswoman Davids and Congressman Crane, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, due to a personal family matter, I was unable to be in D.C. to vote today. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 52.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Aledo Bearcats for their win over Smithson Valley Rangers with a score of 51-8 to become the UIL class 5A State football champions.

The Aledo Bearcats finished the season with a record of 16 wins and zero losses.

After a season of early mornings, long hours on the field, and staying focused in school, these young men showed dedication, strength, and an unwavering commitment to victory. I am proud that all their hard work and dedication throughout the year has paid off.

As these bright and talented men and women prepare for their next endeavors, I wish them the best of luck and blessings for an even brighter and more victorious future.

Go Bearcats.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to denounce President Biden's open border policies that have fueled the invasion--I repeat invasion--of our country through our southern border. I wonder how many of my liberal friends across the aisle have actually even been to the border.

Let us be clear: This is a crisis of Biden's making. He has not been to the border nor has Vice President Harris been to the border. They have been to a parking lot in El Paso, Texas, and that is as good as they could do.

For over 3 years now, Biden has ignored calls from the American people to secure our border and protect American lives. This administration's failed policies have allowed over 8 million illegal immigrants to cross into our country, forcing border States such as my home State of Texas to take matters into their own hands, only to be attacked by Biden's out-of-reach DOJ and be sued for protecting the lives of Texans.

It is time President Biden and his administration are held accountable for the lack of action at our southern border.

From my very first day, I have fought against the radical left's open border and pro-amnesty policies and the House Republicans have done their job with real solutions and passed H.R. 2 to fully fund and secure our border, but that too has been ignored by Senator Schumer and President Biden.

This is not the border between New York and New Jersey. It is totally different. Some don't see it that way. Today, we take another stand. I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 957 to denounce President Biden's open border policies. In God we trust.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the National Labor Relations Board joint employer rule that will be disastrous for small businesses across the country, and I also am a franchisee.

The NLRB is attempting to adopt an overly broad new definition of a joint employer that will greatly increase the number of entities that are subject to costly new Department of Labor requirements.

Last fall, the Committee on Small Business held a hearing to examine the disastrous impact of the regulation as well as many others coming out of the Department of Labor.

We heard directly from job creators on how the new joint employer rule will prevent businesses from looking for growth opportunities because of the legal uncertainty caused by this rule.

If we continue to punish the businesses who provide over half the workforce and half the payroll, our economy is going to suffer. In a time where inflation remains stubbornly high, businesses cannot find qualified workers to hire, and supply chains remain fragile, we should not be adding another confusing regulation to the list of their troubles.

I am glad to see the CRA come to the floor today so we can provide regulatory relief to businesses already dealing with significant employee economic headwinds.

I urge my colleagues to support H.J. Res. 98.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, in full disclosure to everybody here, I am a car dealer, and I rise today in opposition to the rule submitted by the Federal Highway Administration that waives the Buy America requirements for electric vehicle chargers built in the U.S.

This allows for federally funded electric charging stations to be built in the U.S. without the use of American steel, iron, manufactured products, and construction materials, ultimately sending billions of taxpayer dollars to China.

The $7.5 billion investment builds on Biden's mission to force his inefficient, expensive, and unreliable green energy agenda onto the American people.

Now, I can tell you exactly what a government charging station is going to look like. It is going to have graffiti on it after the first week; it is going to be broken, and it will never be fixed. That is what it is going to look like.

Instead, we should allow competition, not government, to drive innovation. Let the private sector decide when and how much to invest in the charging infrastructure.

When taxpayer dollars are spent, they should be used to invest in American businesses and quality manufacturing, not to line the pockets of the CCP.

I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the CRA and stop the Biden administration's America last, China first policies. In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to stress the importance that Congress address section 174 of the Tax Cuts and Job Act and continue to allow immediate and full research and development expensing by American small businesses.

Not allowing for full expensing would devastate small businesses across the country, resulting in layoffs, increased debt, and likely forcing thousands of businesses to close their doors for good.

The looming January 15 deadline highlights the growing need for Congressional action to provide continued tax relief to millions of small businesses and hardworking Americans.

As chairman of House Committee on Small Business and owner and operator of a small business in Texas for over 52 years, I am uniquely aware of the relief full expensing has provided to small businesses.

In 2017, Republicans led the way on once-in-a-generation tax reform in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and provided much-needed relief to the American people.

Amid historic inflation and increasing rates, we must continue to build on it. We can start by making the tax cuts

permanent and ensure that pro-growth policies such as full R&D expensing are included.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.J. Res. 88, which I am a cosponsor of.

This Congressional Review Act would stop President Biden's radical SAVE Plan that alters the income-driven repayment program to redefine the vast majority of borrowers as financially distressed.

It saves nothing. In fact, in my business, it is called false advertising, and costing the taxpayer an estimated $559 billion is effectively a loan cancellation program in disguise.

Who is talking about the lenders? Who is talking about the people who loaned the money, the people of America?

In June, President Biden's unconstitutional plan to cancel outstanding loan debt was struck down by the Supreme Court, which stated that the authority to cancel student loans lies with Congress and Congress only, not with President Biden.

This latest plan by President Biden is yet another attempt to ignore the Supreme Court and sidestep Congress even after members of his own party have admitted the executive branch lacks the authority to do so.

Yesterday, the President announced that his administration approved another $4.8 billion in student loan cancellation, bringing the current total to over $130 billion, basically sponsoring deadbeats.

This is a slap in the face to the taxpayer, forcing the 87 percent of Americans who do not hold any Federal student loan debt and who have made sound financial decisions to foot the bill for those unwilling to pay off the debt they chose to rack up.

What this administration refuses to admit to the American people is that this is not debt cancellation or debt forgiveness but a shift in responsibility from the borrowers to the pocketbooks of hardworking families.

In Texas, where I come from, a deal is a deal. You pay your debt back, and a handshake still works.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.J. Res. 88 and put a stop to this administration's unlawful attack on the American taxpayer. In God We Trust.