Snowe Offers Bill to Strengthen Independence, Mission of SBA's Office of Advocacy

4/8/2003

From: Craig Orfield of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 202-224-5175 Web: http://sbc.senate.gov/

WASHINGTON, April 8 -- U.S. Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) today introduced the "Independent Office of Advocacy Act of 2003" (S.818) a bill to erect a firewall around the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy, guard against political interference in its day-to-day management, and strengthen its ability to serve as an independent voice for small businesses.

Snowe, chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, offered the bill Thursday, calling the Office of Advocacy the "best hope" for small businesses faced with overly burdensome federal regulations. "The importance of the Office of Advocacy's work cannot be overstated," Snowe said. "I am committed to ensuring the complete independence of the Office of Advocacy in all matters, at all times, for the continued benefit of all small businesses and the nation's self employed."

Snowe's bill, co-sponsored by the Committee's former Chairman, Kit Bond (R-Mo.) and ranking member John Kerry (D-Mass.), would establish a clear mandate that the Office of Advocacy must fight on behalf of small businesses, regardless of the position taken by the President or the Administration. Additionally, it will ensure that the Office of Advocacy has the necessary budget and personnel resources to achieve its Congressionally mandated mission.

"So long as any administration controls the budget allocated to the Office of Advocacy, the independence of this vital office may be in jeopardy," Snowe said. "We must correct this situation, and the sooner we do it, the better it will be for the small business community."

The "Independent Office of Advocacy Act of 2003" would:

-- Require the federal budget to include a separate account for the Office of Advocacy, rather than drawing funds from the general operating account of the SBA, which will free the Chief Counsel for Advocacy from the current requirement to seek approval from the SBA Administrator to hire staff;

-- Provide that any funds appropriated for the Office of Advocacy will remain available without fiscal year limitation until they are expended. This change will give the Chief Counsel the flexibility to preserve precious funds by carrying budget allocations from one fiscal year to the next, while ensuring that funds are spent only for work critical to the Office of Advocacy's mission;

-- Direct the Chief Counsel to submit an annual report on federal agency compliance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) to the President, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, the House Committee on Small Business, the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, the House Committee on Government Reform and the Senate and House Committees on the Judiciary.

Established by Congress in 1976, the Office of Advocacy serves two critical roles: representing small business interests before the federal government in regulatory matters - taking advantage of its statutorily granted independence to argue against regulatory actions that impose too great a burden on small businesses for too little benefit; and conducting valuable research to demonstrate the importance of small businesses to the nation's economy as well as gauge the impact federal regulatory burdens have on small businesses and self employed individuals.