NEWSRELEASE
For Release: April 20, 2006
Contact: John McDowell, (202) 205-6941
john.mcdowell@sba.gov
SBA Number: 06-11 ADVO
Press Kit
Advocacy Saves Small Business $6.6 Billion In FY 2005
Result Of The Voice Of Small Business Heard In Washington
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Office of Advocacy, the “small business watchdog” of the government, saved small business over $6.6 billion in fiscal year 2005. By working with federal agencies to implement the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), Advocacy ensured the voice of small business was heard in the regulatory process. That effort resulted in rules which met their regulatory goals while at the same time lessening the burden on small business compared with the original proposals.
“The Office of Advocacy is proud to live up to its reputation as a fighter for American small business,” said Chief Counsel for Advocacy Thomas M. Sullivan. “When the voice of small business is heard in the regulatory process better decisions are made and better rules are written. By working closely with small business owners, their representatives, and with federal agencies our staff showed that one-size-fits-all rules are not the best solution. Our cost savings show that many times original proposed rules can impose unintended costs on America’s innovative, job-creating small businesses.”
The $6.6 billion in foregone regulatory cost savings by small business are outlined in the Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act, FY 2005, released today by the Office of Advocacy.
The report also highlights other Advocacy accomplishments in RFA compliance and compliance with President Bush’s Executive Order 13272, which mandates additional agency actions to limit the impact of proposed rules on small business. These accomplishments include:
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An additional $966 million in annual recurring savings for small entities.Ø
Twenty-one agency training seminars focusing on how to comply with the RFA and EO 13272.Ø
Two dozen comment letters submitted to agencies by Advocacy, outlining how compliance with the RFA would result in better rules and reduce burdens on small business.Advocacy research shows that the smallest of businesses annually spend $7,647 per employee to comply with all federal regulations. That is 45 percent more than the $5,282 per employee spent by firms with 500 employees or more.
The Office of Advocacy, the “small business watchdog” of the government, examines the role and status of small business in the economy and independently represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the President. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-friendly formats and it funds research into small business issues.
For more information and a full copy of the report, visit the Office of Advocacy website at
www.sba.gov/advo.###
The Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent voice for small business within the federal government. The presidentially appointed Chief Counsel for Advocacy advances the views, concerns, and interests of small business before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, federal courts, and state policy makers. For more information, visit
www.sba.gov/advo, or call (202) 205-6533.