Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Ms. AYOTTE. Mr. President, I am pleased today to join my colleague from New Hampshire, Senator SHAHEEN, in introducing the Small Business Export Growth Act, which would help small businesses better navigate the complex process of promoting and selling their goods abroad.

Senator SHAHEEN and I serve together on the Small Business Committee, and as she mentioned, we held a field hearing in Manchester, New Hampshire, last August to examine the role of exports in small business growth and job creation. We heard testimony from key national and New Hampshire-based stakeholders about ways to improve coordination among regulatory agencies, and how to ease the burdens faced by small business owners seeking to grow and export their products to foreign markets. The Small Business Export Growth Act represents a commonsense, bipartisan response to the issues identified at that hearing.

This legislation makes improvements to the operational efficiency of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee, TPCC, and improves Congressional oversight of the TPCC's activities. The bill also gives the Small Business Administration a larger voice in developing export policy and facilitates more networking opportunities for small businesses.

New Hampshire companies export to 160 countries and our exports are increasing at the fourth highest rate of any State. In fact, New Hampshire is leading the ten northeastern states in exports. Since 2003, New Hampshire exports have risen three times faster than the State's economy. Small businesses comprise over 96 percent of all New Hampshire firms, and it is imperative that we empower them with the tools they need to grow and hire. Opening markets around the world for our small businesses is an area in which we can find bipartisan agreement.

During the Manchester Small Business Week Forum I attended yesterday, I heard first-hand about the challenges small business owners are facing as they try to grow and create jobs in this tough economic climate. Exporting represents an enormous opportunity, not only for New Hampshire small businesses, but for small businesses across the country. The Small Business Export Growth Act will help smaller firms to compete in the global marketplace.

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