Transparency and Predictability in Small Business Opportunities Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. ALFORD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chair for yielding, and I thank our friend from Kentucky for his leadership.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 789, the Transparency and Predictability in Small Business Opportunities Act.

Small businesses aren't just part of our economy. They are our economy, Mr. Speaker. They are the innovators, the job creators, the backbone of our communities, and the heartbeat of Main Street America.

Far too often, as we have seen, they have been overlooked, underserved, and, frankly, undermined by the very government they pay taxes to support. Federal agencies are simply not doing enough to open the door for small businesses to compete. Mr. Speaker, this must change.

To do that, I am proud to co-lead this bipartisan bill because supporting our small businesses should never be a Republican or Democratic issue. It is an American issue, Mr. Speaker.

Here is what is happening: When a Federal agency determines they have a need for certain products or services, then that agency's acquisition personnel will post a solicitation on the Federal Government's SAM.gov website for a contract to fill the requirements. That solicitation lays out what the agency wants to buy, how it will evaluate the bids, and when responses are due.

In good faith, small businesses dedicate precious time, money, and resources, sometimes thousands of dollars, to just submit these proposals. Too often, they are met with silence, confusion, or outright cancelation of the solicitation without any explanation. That is not just inefficient. That is unfair.

Agencies right now have broad discretion to cancel or amend solicitations without any transparency whatsoever. A small business can go all in on a contract proposal only to watch it vanish like that with no reason given. That is unacceptable.

H.R. 789 brings much-needed transparency and accountability to this process. It requires agencies to disclose why a solicitation was canceled because our small businesses deserve to know. Additionally, our bill requires a Federal agency's Office of Small Business and Disadvantaged Business Utilization to help small businesses find additional opportunities if a solicitation on which they made an offer is canceled so that they can go after these opportunities.

Small businesses create most of the new jobs in this country. In fact, in Missouri's Fourth Congressional District and in rural communities across America, they are the lifeline and fabric of our communities, but time and time again, they are squeezed out by overregulation and ignored by the bureaucracy. They are pushed aside in favor of corporations with high-paid consultants and armies of lobbyists.

That is wrong, and by passing H.R. 789, we take a concrete step toward restoring fairness in Federal contracting and rebuilding the relationship between our government and the small businesses it is supposed to serve.

I thank Congressmen Latimer and Mfume for their partnership on this legislation. I also applaud the Small Business Committee chairman, Roger Williams, for his leadership in putting Main Street America first.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the Transparency and Predictability in Small Business Opportunities Act.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source