Small Business Trade Programs

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2992, the S.B.A. Trade Programs Act. I want to thank Congressman Hall for introducing this important bill and for his continued efforts to ensure our trade policies work for American businesses and workers. I also want to applaud the distinguished Chairwoman, Chairwoman Velazquez, for her leadership on this issue and dedication to helping our small businesses.

This bill could not be more relevant because small businesses in Ohio and across this nation are struggling to compete because of sometimes misguided U.S. trade policies and unfair and often illegal foreign trade practices. Small businesses and their workers are the backbone of the communities in Ohio and across this nation.

Just listen to the statistics: Small businesses comprise 97% of all export enterprises but only generate 30% of domestic export revenues, and that number is shrinking. And this is happening because our trade policies often benefit large corporate interests and leave small businesses behind. The trends also show that it's becoming more and more difficult for American small businesses to compete against unfair trade practices of foreign nations, often propped up by governmental subsidies, weak intellectual property laws, and currency manipulation. H.R. 2992 will help small businesses become more competitive in the international trade market.

This bill will provide a competitive set of resources to help small businesses by increasing export assistance, strengthening small business trade policies, and providing adjustment assistance. These are very important steps we can take at the Small Business Administration to help our local firms stay competitive. And while this will help small businesses compete both domestically and globally, there is clearly much more that needs to be done, including a greater overhaul of U.S. trade policies to ensure that the needs of American businesses and workers and communities are being met. Unfortunately, our current trade policies put American businesses and workers often at a disadvantage and reward companies who move overseas or outsource jobs. For communities like mine, Mr. Speaker, in northeast Ohio, where the creation and retention of jobs is the number one issue, supporting our local industries and small businesses will be critical to our ability to revitalize our economy and succeed in the future. Today we move in the right direction by passing the S.B.A. Trade Programs Act, and once again I applaud Congressman Hall and Chairwoman Velazquez for their leadership on this important issue and for the hard work that they are doing.