Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass) has been named Chairman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship for the 110th Congress. Kerry has served on the Committee for 21 years, proving to be a tireless advocate for small businesses by working to increase access to capital, ensure small firms get their fair share of federal contracts, improve business development opportunities, and enact common sense tax proposals and small-business-friendly regulations. Following is a statement from Senator Kerry:
"Small businesses are the heart of the American economy and the place where American dreams rise and fall every day. I can’t wait to lead the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship so we can focus on really fighting for small businesses to have a fair shot, to increase competition, to foster innovation, and to drive our economy.
"There are countless challenges small businesses face today. Twenty seven million Americans without health insurance work for small businesses that can’t afford to cover them. Minority and women entrepreneurs are growing in numbers, but the dollars they receive in small business loans have remained stagnant under the Bush Administration. Service disabled veteran owned businesses only received a mere 0.6 percent of federal contracts in 2005. And, while 80 percent of America’s businesses are small firms, they aren’t even getting the 23 percent of federal contracts they’re entitled to under the law – but somehow Washington has been so upside down that big businesses have obtained nearly $2 billion in federal contracts that should have gone to small firms.
"Next year, we will change that and we will make Washington a friend of small business once again. We need to focus on making health care affordable for small businesses. We need to reduce the burden of paperwork and bureaucracy for small businesses. We need to remove the obstacles that minority, women, and veteran entrepreneurs encounter. We need to promote tax incentives to encourage investment in small businesses and restore fairness in the tax code for small firms.
"Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma revealed a need for serious reform of the SBA’s Disaster Loan Program, so I will continue to push legislation that provides short-term relief for struggling businesses after a disaster and to cut through the red tape so that disaster victims get much-needed assistance quickly.
"As Chairman, I will look beyond the SBA for ways to foster the entrepreneurial spirit and assist small businesses across America. And, as I have in the past, I will continue to work across party lines to create sensible legislation that eases the burden on our entrepreneurs and helps them succeed."
Kerry has served as the senior Democrat on the Committee since 1997, serving as the Chair of the Committee in 2001-2002, and as Ranking Member from 1997-2001, and 2002-present. Earlier this year, Kerry was named as one of the entrepreneur’s "best friends in Washington" by Inc. magazine.
A strong critic of the reduced funding for the SBA over the last five years, Kerry is fighting to preserve key programs at the SBA, including the popular 7(a) lending program, the Microloan program and Microloan technical assistance program, Women’s Business Centers, and Small Business Development Centers, among others.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid also announced the rest of the Democratic Members on the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship today. They are:
Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.)
Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa)
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I/D-Conn.)
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.)
Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.)
Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.)
Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.)
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.)
Sen. John Tester (D-Mont.)
