SBE Council Releases 8 Bills U.S. House Has Already Passed with Overwhelming Bipartisan Majorities, Calls for Immediate Action
The Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council), a nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy, research and education organization working to protect small businesses and promote entrepreneurship, has released a list of eight pieces of legislation the United States Senate should pass immediately and send to President Obama’s desk for signature.
The list of eight bills have already passed the U.S. House of Representatives with either zero opposition or with overwhelming majorities, making them ripe for President Obama’s signature.
“With Congress currently in session, there is a narrow window in this highly partisan political season to pass these eight small business bills that would provide relief and support America’s small business community,” said Karen Kerrigan, president and CEO of the SBE Council. “This list is a no-brainer for Senate action and these non-controversial measures should quickly be acted upon and sent to President Obama’s desk for signature.”
The following list of eight pieces of legislation currently waiting for final passage by the U.S. Senate before being sent to President Obama’s desk for likely signature would help strengthen capital formation for entrepreneurs, provide them with some relief or options when it comes to health insurance, improve access to government contracts, and instill spending accountability with respect to how and where their hard-earned tax dollars are being used.
The eight pieces of small business legislation include:
- Fostering Innovation Act, H.R. 4139 – would allow growing companies to direct their precious capital toward R&D and other investments to help them strengthen their position in the marketplace. The one-size-fits-all regulatory burdens associated with 404(b) compliance are especially costly for small businesses, and H.R. 4139 provides needed flexibility. Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
- Small Business Capital Formation Enhancement Act, H.R. 4168 – would require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to act upon common sense reforms developed by consensus at their Annual Forum on Small Business Capital Formation. Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
- Fix Crowdfunding Act, H.R. 4855 – makes improvements and needed changes to JOBS Act Title III crowdfunding. Among other key reforms that will fully leverage equity crowdfunding for small businesses, the bill increases the amount that can be raised from $1 million to $5 million and fixes the liability uncertainty for funding portals. Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
- Helping Angels Lead Our Startups Act (HALOs Act), H.R. 4498 – strengthens JOBS Act intentions of improving capital access by clarifying that startups and entrepreneurs can continue to showcase their ideas and businesses at events designed to connect them with Angel investors. Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
- Small Business Health Care Relief Act, H.R. 5447 – will allow small businesses to provide Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) to employees with health insurance. See the Coalition letter supporting H.R. 5447, and Senate companion bill S. 3060, signed by SBE Council here.
- Package of Bills to Help Small Business Government Contractors – both separately and taken together these bills will encourage small business participation in government procurement by providing more certainty, clarity and opportunity. When small businesses win government contracts, the economy and taxpayers win. Read SBE Council’s support letter here, which lists each of the bills.
- Taxpayers Right-to-Know Act, H.R. 598 – would require an annual inventory on all federal programs, staff, administrative costs, and program performance metrics. Small business owners care about how their tax dollars are being spent and H.R 598 would hold federal agencies accountable by requiring such reporting and disclosure. Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
- Small Business Broadband Deployment Act, H.R. 4596 – extends for 5 years an exemption for small telecommunications providers regarding the costly disclosure requirements under Title II of Federal Communications Commission’s open Internet order (net neutrality). Read SBE Council’s support letter here.
