Broken Obama Campaign Promise Will Kill American Jobs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 13, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. – According to the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, firms with fewer than 20 employees comprise over 90 percent of all U.S. firms and are responsible for more than 97 percent of all new jobs in America. Over half of all Americans work for small businesses. (http://www.inc.com/news/articles/200708/data.html)

Congress realized the vital importance of small businesses to our national economy when it passed one of our nation's first economic stimulus plans in 1953, the Small Business Act. Today, federal law based on the Small Business Act of 1953 requires a minimum of 23 percent of all federal contracts and sub-contracts be awarded to small businesses.

Since 2003, over 15 federal investigations have been released, which found hundreds of billions of dollars in federal contracts that by law should be going to hardworking American small businesses have been diverted to Fortune 500 firms.

Every major newspaper in the country has reported on the problem and several of the largest television networks such as ABC, CBS and CNN have aired stories on the issue.

President Obama seemed to agree it was time to stop the fraud and abuse in federal small business contracting programs when, in February of 2008, he released the statement, "Small businesses are the backbone of our nation's economy and we must protect this great resource. It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://www.barackobama.com/2008/02/26/the_american_small_business_le.php)

Since making that statement almost a year ago, President Obama has consistently refused to make good on his campaign promise, and support legislation to stop Fortune 500 firms from hijacking federal contracts designated for America's nearly 27 million small businesses.

Not only has President Obama refused to propose even a single policy to address the problem, but he actually changed his website to remove the appearance that he had ever made the statement, "It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/sbhome/)

Just three weeks before the election, President Obama dropped a plan developed by his small business advisory council that would have halted the diversion of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to "corporate giants" and created millions of jobs. (http://www.asbl.com/documents/BOsmallbusinesspolicy.pdf)

The American Small Business League (ASBL) is encouraging journalists to ask President Obama if he will allow Fortune 500 firms to continue to take federal small business contracts during his administration.

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Stimulus Bill Ignores America's Biggest Job Creators

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 12, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. – According to the latest statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, firms with fewer than 20 employees account for over 90 percent of all U.S. businesses and are responsible for more than 97 percent of all new jobs in America. (http://www.asbl.com/documents/INKSBAReport.pdf) CNNMoney.com and Inc.com reported on the findings. (http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/30/smallbusiness/job_creation.fsb/index.htm, http://www.inc.com/news/articles/200708/data.html)

The stimulus bill completely ignores this fact.

There is no need for Congress to reinvent the wheel. America already has a stimulus bill based on the realization that small businesses drive our nation's economy and create 97 percent of new jobs. That stimulus plan is called the Small Business Act. Current federal law stipulates that a minimum of 23 percent of the total value of all federal contracts and subcontracts shall be awarded to America's small businesses.

Unfortunately, since 2003 more than 15 federal investigations have been released which uncovered hundreds of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts actually went to Fortune 500 firms. (http://www.asbl.com/documentlibrary.html) Every major newspaper has covered the story along with ABC, CBS and CNN. (ABC, http://www.asbl.com/abc_evening_news.wmv; CBS, http://www.asbl.com/cbs.wmv; CNN, http://www.asbl.com/showmedia.php?id=1170)

In 2005, the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released Report 5-15, which described the diversion of federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms as, "One of the most important challenges facing the Small Business Administration and the entire Federal government today." (http://www.sba.gov/IG/05-15.pdf)

In February of 2008, President Obama responded to the problem with the statement, "Small businesses are the backbone of our nation's economy and we must protect this great resource. It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://www.barackobama.com/2008/02/26/the_american_small_business_le.php)

To date, neither President Obama, nor any member of Congress have proposed even a single policy to address the diversion of up to $100 billion a year in federal small business contracts to "corporate giants."

If President Obama and Congress are sincerely interested in creating jobs and stimulating our nation's failing economy, the existing economic stimulus plan designed to direct federal infrastructure spending to the firms that create over 97 percent of new jobs must be addressed.

The Small Business Act defines a small business as "independently owned." Publicly traded firms do not qualify as small business, and are obviously not "independently owned."

One sentence in the stimulus bill could completely halt the diversion of federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms and create millions of jobs across the country. "The federal government and prime contractors shall not report awards to publicly traded firms as small business awards." (http://www.asbl.com/documents/fairnessandtrans.pdf)


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Obama Could Stimulate Economy By Keeping Campaign Promise

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 11, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. – In February of 2008, President Obama released the following statement, "Small businesses are the backbone of our nation's economy and we must protect this great resource. It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://www.barackobama.com/2008/02/26/the_american_small_business_le.php)

President Obama's statement was made in response to a series of over 15 federal investigations, which found the Bush Administration had diverted billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms and thousands of other large businesses.

Investigative stories released by ABC, CBS and CNN (ABC, http://www.asbl.com/abc_evening_news.wmv; CBS, http://www.asbl.com/cbs.wmv; CNN, http://www.asbl.com/showmedia.php?id=1170) confirmed that many of the nation's top defense contractors were the actual recipients of most federal small business contracts. Firms such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Dynamics, Raytheon, L-3 Communications, Northrop Grumman and Titan Industries received billions of dollars in U.S. government contracts reported as going to small businesses.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released Report 5-15 which stated, "One of the most important challenges facing the Small Business Administration and the entire Federal government today is that large businesses are receiving small business procurement awards and agencies are receiving credit for these awards." (http://www.sba.gov/IG/05-15.pdf)

A 2007 report from the SBA Office of Advocacy based on U.S. Census Bureau statistics found businesses with fewer than 20 employees were responsible for more than 97 percent of new jobs in America. CNNMoney.com and Inc.com released stories on the findings. (http://www.inc.com/news/articles/200708/data.html ; http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/30/smallbusiness/job_creation.fsb/index.htm)
The American Small Business League (ASBL) is hoping to encourage President Obama and Congress to support draft legislation titled, the Fairness and Transparency in Contracting Act, which will keep President Obama's campaign promise to the small business community and create millions of new jobs.

The new legislation was drafted by the ASBL and is based on original provisions of the Small Business Act, which define a small business as "independently owned." The legislation would exclude publicly traded firms from being counted towards the federal government's small business procurement goal. The essence of the ASBL legislation states, "The federal government and prime contractors can no longer report awards to publicly traded firms as small business awards."

"Everybody in America knows Fortune 500 firms should not be allowed to hijack government small business contracts. Seven years, 15 federal investigations, hundreds of stories in the press and thousands of hard working small businesses forced into bankruptcy are enough," ASBL President Lloyd Chapman said. "It is time for President Obama to do what he said he would do during the campaign and stop the diversion of hundreds of billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to corporate giants."

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Stimulus Bill Ignores Census Bureau Statistics

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 6, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. – According to a report from the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Advocacy, businesses with fewer than 20 employees account for 90 percent of all U.S. firms and are responsible for more than 97 percent of all new jobs. The SBA compiled the report from the latest United States Census Bureau data. (http://www.inc.com/news/articles/200708/data.html)

Detailed analyses of the report were released by Inc.com and CNNMoney.com. (http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/30/smallbusiness/job_creation.fsb/index.htm)

Although the nation's top economists agree that creating jobs is essential to a successful stimulus plan, neither the House, nor Senate versions of the stimulus bill contain any provisions specifically directed to the small businesses that create most new jobs.

Economic experts like Dr. Laura Tyson and Carly Fiorina have both acknowledged that directing federal infrastructure funds to small businesses would be the most effective way to stimulate our nation's failing economy. Tyson is the former Chair of the U.S. President's Council of Economic Advisers during the Clinton Administration and is currently an economic adviser to President Barack Obama. Fiorina is the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard and McCain campaign economic advisor.

During the Bush Administration, federal programs developed to direct federal spending to small businesses were partially dismantled and plagued by widespread fraud and abuse. Since 2003, more than 15 federal investigations have found billions of dollars in federal contracts earmarked for small businesses were actually diverted to Fortune 500 firms, their subsidiaries and other clearly large businesses.

The American Small Business League (ASBL) has launched a national campaign to encourage President Obama and Congress to include a provision in the economic stimulus bill that would bolster federal contracting programs for small business, and eliminate existing abuses in federal small business programs that have diverted billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms.

As early as February 2008, President Obama agreed with the ASBL by stating, "Small businesses are the backbone of our nation's economy and we must protect this great resource. It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants." (http://www.barackobama.com/2008/02/26/the_american_small_business_le.php)

The ASBL estimates that if Congress added a provision to the stimulus bill that would stop the flow of federal small business contracts to large businesses, as much as $100 billion a year in existing federal infrastructure spending would be diverted back to America's small businesses.

On December 6, President Obama's transition team estimated that every billion dollars spent on federal infrastructure projects would create 40,000 jobs. Based on President Obama's estimation, the ASBL projects that a simple pro-small business provision in the stimulus bill to stop the flow of small business contracts to large corporations would create up to 4 million new jobs. (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/07/us/politics/07radio.html)

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National Venture Capital Association President Admits They Are Going After Small Business Programs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 5, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. - National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) President Mark Heesen issued a press release Tuesday that finally acknowledged the NVCA and its wealthy members have set their sights on federal contracts earmarked for small businesses.

In the press release, Heesen acknowledged the NVCA had asked Congress to allow firms controlled by some of the nation's wealthiest investors to land federal small business grants under the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program.

In addition to the SBIR program, the NVCA has blanketed Congress with millions of dollars in political contributions aimed at changing the existing federal definition of a small business, which is currently defined as "independently owned." The NVCA is pushing to change the government's definition of a small business for all federal small business contracting programs to include firms that could be owned by well-heeled venture capitalists and some of the largest venture capital firms in America.

Small business advocates are concerned the legislation the NVCA is advocating for would create a colossal loophole in federal contracting law that would divert billions of dollars in federal small business contracts to wealthy investors and destroy millions of legitimate small businesses and middle class jobs.

In recent years, the NVCA's efforts to take over federal small business contracting programs have been opposed by the White House, the Small Business Administration (SBA), the United States Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Government Contractors, the National Small Businesses Association, the American Small Business League (ASBL) and hundreds of other small business groups and individual chambers of commerce across the country.

The ASBL is concerned President Obama's appointment of venture capitalist Karen Mills to head the SBA could spell disaster for millions of American small businesses.

ASBL President Lloyd Chapman has consistently opposed the NVCA's campaign to take over federal small business contracting programs.

"The NVCA has tried to paint its legislation as something that will benefit small businesses. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is about greed, money and profits for the NVCA and it's members at the expense of legitimate small businesses," Chapman said. "Their multi-million dollar lobbying campaign is nothing more than a blatant attempt to buy legislation that will allow their members to hijack federal small business contracts. If the NVCA succeeds, millions of hard working small business could be forced to close their doors and millions of jobs will be lost. Any member of Congress that votes for this anti-small business legislation should be run out of office."


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Senate Bill Should Address Abuses In Existing Federal Stimulus Programs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 4, 2009

Petaluma, Calif. – The Senate is in the process of debating an economic stimulus plan that will cost taxpayers up to $900 billion with no guarantee of success. Before the Senate tries to reinvent the wheel, it should consider including one sentence in its stimulus bill that will address widely publicized abuses in existing government economic stimulus plans.

In 1953, Congress passed the Small Business Act as an economic stimulus plan. Current federal law, which is based on the original Small Business Act, directs that a minimum of 23 percent of the total value of all federal contracts and subcontracts shall be awarded to small businesses.

Economic experts agree that directing federal infrastructure funds to America's 27 million small businesses, which create nearly 80 percent of all new jobs and employ over 50 percent of all private sector workers, is an efficient and cost effective way to stimulate the United States economy.

The primary purpose of the Small Business Administration (SBA) is to administer and oversee this economic stimulus plan. In addition to thousands of SBA employees, an extensive national network of government and private sector staff already exist to ensure that the economic stimulus the Small Business Act was designed to deliver is properly administered.

Every federal prime contract is required to contain a small business subcontracting plan. Every prime contractor is required to have a small business liaison and submit quarterly reports on their compliance with their small business subcontracting goals.

Unfortunately, since 2003 more than 15 federal investigations have found billions of dollars in federal small business contracts wound up in the hands of Fortune 500 corporations and some of the largest corporations in the U.S. and Europe.

The American Small Business League (ASBL) estimates that as much as $100 billion a year in federal small business contracts are diverted to large businesses.

Hundreds of stories in the mainstream media have chronicled the diversion of federal small business contracts to Fortune 500 firms. ABC, CBS and CNN have all covered the story.

Existing federal law defines a small business as a firm that is "independently owned." Firms that are publicly traded are certainly not "independently owned."

If the Senate sincerely wants to stimulate America's failing economy, one line could be inserted into the economic stimulus plan which would provide a free and easy way to stimulate the economy by redirecting up to $100 billion a year in current federal infrastructure spending to the small businesses that create nearly 80 percent of all new jobs in America.

The one line that should be included in the economic stimulus plan is, "Federal contracting officials and prime contractors can no longer report awards to publicly traded firms as small business awards."

Most American's would probably agree that to ignore a free and easy solution to our current economic dilemma, which would utilize existing federal laws and programs to create millions of jobs, would be the pinnacle of governmental stupidity.

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ASBL's Communications Director Chris Gunn on The Small Business Advocate with Jim Blasingame