Statement on Reviewing SBA’s Office of Advocacy Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act (June 22, 2023)

Summary

A June 22, 2023 statement of the Hon. Nydia Velazquez on reviewing the SBA Office of Advocacy report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act. The statement thanks Chairman Williams, welcomes Mr. Clark back to the Committee, and says that Mr. Clark has been the acting chief counsel at Advocacy for more than six years. It says the Office of Advocacy serves as the independent voice of small businesses within the federal government and monitors agencies’ compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA). It says that 99.9 percent of all U.S. businesses are considered small, and that some can have 1,500 employees and up to $47 million in receipts, depending on the industry.

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Statement of the Hon. Nydia Velazquez on Reviewing SBA’s Office of Advocacy  Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act
Source(print): https://democrats-smallbusiness.house.gov/news/documentprint.aspx?DocumentID=4603

Statement of the Hon. Nydia Velazquez on Reviewing SBA’s Office of Advocacy Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

 democrats-smallbusiness.house.gov 

 Cmte Small Business (D) 

 Contact: 

 Statement of the Hon. Nydia Velazquez on Reviewing SBA’s Office of Advocacy Report on the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

 Washington ,
 June 22, 2023 
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 Thank you, Chairman Williams, and welcome back to the Committee Mr. Clark. 
 
I want to take a moment to thank you for your service. I know that you have been the acting chief counsel at Advocacy for more than six years, and your dedication is commendable. The position of chief counsel is an important role. 
 
The Office of Advocacy serves as the independent voice of small businesses within the federal government. It’s their job to promote the concerns of small firms before all three branches of the federal government and state policymakers. A central component of that role is to monitor and report on agencies compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, or RFA. 
 
Today, I hope to have a productive discussion on Advocacy’s RFA work in FY 2022. 
 
As you know, 99.9 percent of all U.S. businesses are considered small. Some of these small firms can have 1,500 employees and up to $47 million in receipts, depending on the industry. 
 
While they may be considered small in their sector, many of the larger firms have lawyers, accountants, and other experts who understand the rules, submit comments on rules to the agency, and help the business comply with regulations. 
 
It is important to make this distinction during our discussion today and take the time to learn more about how the Office of Advocacy conducts outreach to ensure the views of the smallest of the small business are being conveyed to the agencies. And in turn, level the playing field for small businesses. 
 
We must also discuss comment letters Advocacy files with federal agencies, which are not violation letters, but efforts to alert agencies to their rules’ impact on small businesses. 
In many areas these letters are effective, leading to a number of modifications to the rules that have benefitted small businesses and still achieved the mission of the regulations. 
 
Contrary to what we’ll hear today, federal regulations can and do benefit our economy. Regulations that protect our air and waters, boost small businesses that comprise the outdoor recreational industry, which accounted for $454 billion of our GDP in 2021. 
 
The key is not to roll back all regulations that protect our health, safety, and environment but to allow Advocacy to work with agencies to recognize the impact regulations have on small businesses, and work to find ways to balance the shared goal of minimizing the burdens and achieving the goal of the regulation. 
 
Smart, well-crafted, common-sense regulations have the potential to unleash innovation and provide critical health, safety, and environmental protections. 
 
With that, thank you again for testifying today, and I look forward to hearing more about the regulatory work you’ve performed and how we can strengthen the Office of Advocacy and ensure that small businesses have a voice at all levels of government. 
 
Thank you and I yield back.

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