108TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1772

AN ACT

To improve small business advocacy, and for other

purposes.

108TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1772

AN ACT

To improve small business advocacy, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2

•HR 1772 EH

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business Advo3 cacy Improvement Act of 2003’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:

6 (1) Excessive regulations continue to burden

7 the Nation’s small businesses.

8 (2) Federal agencies continue to propose regu9 lations that impose disproportionate burdens on

10 small businesses.

11 (3) An independent office of small business ad12 vocacy will help to ensure that Federal agencies are

13 responsive to small businesses and that those agen14 cies comply with their statutory obligations with re15 spect to small businesses.

16 (4) The independence of an office that acts as

17 an advocate for small businesses is essential to en18 sure that it can serve as an effective advocate with19 out being restricted by the views or policies of the

20 Small Business Administration or any other Federal

21 executive branch agency.

22 (5) To be effective an office that acts as an ad23 vocate for small businesses needs sufficient resources

24 to conduct creditable economic studies and research

25 which are necessary for the maintenance of small

26 business databases and for the accurate assessment
3

•HR 1772 EH

1 of the impact of regulations on small businesses, the

2 role of small business in the Nation’s economy, and

3 the barriers to the growth of small businesses.

4 (6) The research, information, and expertise

5 provided by an independent office of small business

6 advocacy will be a valuable source of information

7 and advice for Congress and Federal agencies with

8 which the office will work on behalf of small busi9 nesses.

10 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—

11 (1) to ensure that there exists an entity that

12 has the statutory independence and adequate finan13 cial resources to effectively advocate for and on be14 half of small business;

15 (2) to require that such an entity report to the

16 Chairmen and Ranking Members of the Committee

17 on Small Business of the House of Representatives

18 and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepre19 neurship of the Senate, and to the Administrator of

20 the Small Business Administration in order to keep

21 them fully and currently informed about issues and

22 regulations affecting small business concerns and the

23 necessity for corrective action by the regulatory

24 agency or Congress;
4

•HR 1772 EH

1 (3) to provide a separate authorization for ap2 propriations for such an entity; and

3 (4) to strengthen the role of the Small Business

4 and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombuds5 man by ensuring continued cooperation between the

6 Ombudsman and the Office of Advocacy of the

7 Small Business Administration.

8 SEC. 3. APPOINTMENT OF CHIEF COUNSEL OF ADVOCACY.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 201 of Public Law 94–

10 305 (15 U.S.C. 634a) is amended—

11 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘There is estab12 lished’’;

13 (2) by striking the second sentence; and

14 (3) by adding at the end the following:

15 ‘‘(b) The management of the Office shall be vested

16 in a Chief Counsel for Advocacy who shall be appointed

17 from civilian life by the President, by and with the advice

18 and consent of the Senate, and who should be appointed

19 without regard to political affiliation and on the basis of

20 fitness to perform the duties of the office.

21 ‘‘(c) No individual may be appointed under sub22 section (b) if such individual has served as an officer or

23 employee of the Small Business Administration during the

24 5-year period preceding the date of such individual’s ap25 pointment.
5

•HR 1772 EH

1 ‘‘(d) An individual serving as Chief Counsel on the

2 date of the expiration of any term of the President may

3 not continue to serve as Chief Counsel for more than 1

4 year after such date unless such individual is reappointed

5 after such date by the President, by and with the advice

6 and consent of the Senate. The preceding sentence shall

7 not apply in the case of the expiration of a term of an

8 individual holding the office of President if such individual

9 is elected to the office of President for a term successive

10 to such term.’’.

11 (b) INCUMBENT CHIEF COUNSEL FOR ADVOCACY.—

12 The individual serving as the Chief Counsel for Advocacy

13 of the Small Business Administration on the date of the

14 enactment of this Act shall continue to serve in that posi15 tion after such date in accordance with section 201 of

16 Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634a), as amended by this

17 section.

18 SEC. 4. PRIMARY FUNCTIONS OF OFFICE OF ADVOCACY.

19 Section 202 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634b)

20 is amended—

21 (1) in paragraph (6) by striking ‘‘to minority

22 enterprises’’ and inserting ‘‘to small business con23 cerns owned and controlled by socially and economi24 cally disadvantaged individuals, to small business

25 concerns owned and controlled by women, and to
6

•HR 1772 EH

1 small business concerns owned and controlled by vet2 erans’’;

3 (2) in paragraph (7) by striking ‘‘minority en4 terprises’’ and inserting ‘‘small business concerns

5 owned and controlled by socially and economically

6 disadvantaged individuals, small business concerns

7 owned and controlled by women, and small business

8 concerns owned and controlled by veterans’’;

9 (3) in paragraph (8) by striking ‘‘minority and

10 other small business enterprises’’ and inserting

11 ‘‘small business concerns owned and controlled by

12 socially and economically disadvantaged individuals,

13 small business concerns owned and controlled by

14 women, small business concerns owned and con15 trolled by veterans, and other small businesses’’;

16 (4) in paragraph (9) by striking ‘‘complete’’

17 and inserting ‘‘compete’’;

18 (5) by striking paragraph (11);

19 (6) by redesignating paragraph (12) as para20 graph (11);

21 (7) in paragraph (11) (as so redesignated)—

22 (A) by striking ‘‘serviced-disabled’’ and in23 serting ‘‘service-disabled’’; and

24 (B) by striking the period at the end and

25 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
7

•HR 1772 EH

1 (8) by adding at the end the following:

2 ‘‘(12) make such recommendations and submit

3 such reports as the Chief Counsel determines appro4 priate to the President, to the Chairmen and Rank5 ing Members of the Committee on Small Business of

6 the House of Representatives and the Committee on

7 Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate,

8 and to the Administrator of the Small Business Ad9 ministration, with respect to issues and regulations

10 affecting small businesses and the necessity for cor11 rective action by any Federal agency or by Con12 gress.’’.

13 SEC. 5. ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 203 of Public Law 94–

15 305 (15 U.S.C. 634c) is amended—

16 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The Office of Ad17 vocacy shall also perform’’; and

18 (2) in subsection (a) (as so designated)—

19 (A) in paragraph (4) by striking ‘‘and’’ at

20 the end;

21 (B) in paragraph (5) by striking the period

22 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

23 (C) by adding at the end the following:

24 ‘‘(6) maintain economic databases and make

25 the information contained therein available to the
8

•HR 1772 EH

1 Administrator of the Small Business Administration

2 and to Congress;

3 ‘‘(7) carry out the responsibilities of the Chief

4 Counsel under chapter 6 of title 5, United States

5 Code; and

6 ‘‘(8) maintain a memorandum of understanding

7 with the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory

8 Enforcement Ombudsman regarding methods and

9 procedures for cooperation between the Ombudsman

10 and the Office of Advocacy and transmit a copy of

11 such memorandum to the Committee on Small Busi12 ness of the House of Representatives and the Com13 mittee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of

14 the Senate.’’.

15 (b) APPROPRIATION REQUEST.—Section 203 of Pub16 lic Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634c) is further amended by

17 adding at the end the following:

18 ‘‘(b)(1) For each fiscal year, the Chief Counsel shall

19 transmit the Office of Advocacy’s appropriation estimate

20 and request to the Office of Management and Budget, the

21 Committee on Small Business of the House of Representa22 tives, the Committee on Small Business and Entrepre23 neurship of the Senate, and the Committees on Appropria24 tions of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
9

•HR 1772 EH

1 ‘‘(2) Each budget of the United States Government

2 submitted by the President shall include a separate state3 ment of the amount of appropriations requested for the

4 Office of Advocacy.’’.

5 ‘‘(3) Each such budget shall also include a statement

6 indicating whether the proportion of the funds requested

7 for the Office of Advocacy when compared to the funds

8 requested for the Small Business Administration has in9 creased, decreased, or stayed the same relative to the pro10 portion of the amount appropriated for the Office of Advo11 cacy for the previous fiscal year when compared to the

12 amount appropriated for the Small Business Administra13 tion for the previous fiscal year.’’.

14 SEC. 6. PRINCIPAL DEPUTY CHIEF COUNSEL AND RE15 GIONAL ADVOCATES.

16 Section 204 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634d)

17 is amended—

18 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘In carrying out’’;

19 and

20 (2) by adding at the end the following:

21 ‘‘(b)(1) The Chief Counsel may appoint 1 individual

22 to serve as Principal Deputy Chief Counsel.

23 ‘‘(2) The Principal Deputy Chief Counsel shall be

24 paid at an annual rate not less than the minimum rate,

25 nor more than the maximum rate, for the Senior Execu-
10

•HR 1772 EH

1 tive Service under chapter 53 of title 5, United States

2 Code.

3 ‘‘(3) An individual appointed to a position under this

4 subsection shall not be counted toward the limitation con5 tained in subsection (a)(1) regarding the number of indi6 viduals who may be compensated at a rate in excess of

7 the lowest rate for GS–15 of the General Schedule.

8 ‘‘(c) The Chief Counsel may appoint regional advo9 cates within each Standard Federal Region as appro10 priate. Such regional advocates shall—

11 ‘‘(1) assist in examining the role of small busi12 ness in the economy of the United States by identi13 fying academic and other research institutions that

14 focus on small business concerns and linking these

15 research resources to research activities conducted

16 by the Office of Advocacy;

17 ‘‘(2) assist in representing the views and inter18 ests of small business concerns before Federal agen19 cies whose policies and activities may affect small

20 business;

21 ‘‘(3) assist the functioning of regional small

22 business fairness boards in coordination with the

23 Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforce24 ment Ombudsman;
11

•HR 1772 EH

1 ‘‘(4) assist in enlisting the cooperation and as2 sistance of public and private agencies, businesses,

3 and other organizations in disseminating information

4 about the programs and services provided by the

5 Federal Government that are of benefit to small

6 business concerns and the means by which small

7 business concerns can participate in or make use of

8 such programs and services; and

9 ‘‘(5) carry out such duties pursuant to the mis10 sion of the Office of Advocacy as the Chief Counsel

11 may assign.’’.

12 SEC. 7. OVERHEAD AND ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.

13 Section 205 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634e)

14 is amended by inserting before ‘‘Each department’’ the

15 following:

16 ‘‘(a) The Administrator of the Small Business Ad17 ministration shall provide the Office of Advocacy with ap18 propriate and adequate office space at central and field

19 office locations of the Administration, together with such

20 equipment, office supplies, communications facilities, and

21 personnel and maintenance services as may be necessary

22 for the operation of such offices.

23 ‘‘(b)’’.
12

•HR 1772 EH

1 SEC. 8. REPORTS.

2 Section 206 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634f)

3 is amended by striking ‘‘The Chief Counsel may’’ and all

4 that follows through ‘‘on his activities.’’ and inserting the

5 following:

6 ‘‘(a) Not less than annually, the Chief Counsel shall

7 submit to the President, the Committee on Small Business

8 of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Small

9 Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate, the Com10 mittee on Government Affairs of the Senate, the Com11 mittee on Government Reform of the House of Represent12 atives, and the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate

13 and the House of Representatives, and the Administrator

14 of the Small Business Administration a report on agency

15 compliance with chapter 6 of title 5, United States Code.

16 ‘‘(b) In addition to the reports required by this title,

17 the Chief Counsel may prepare and publish such other re18 ports as the Chief Counsel determines appropriate.

19 ‘‘(c)’’.

20 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

21 Section 207 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634g)

22 is amended by striking ‘‘not to exceed $1,000,000’’ and

23 inserting ‘‘$10,000,000 for fiscal years 2003 and 2004,

24 $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, and $14,000,000 for fis25 cal year 2006’’.
13

•HR 1772 EH

1 SEC. 10. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

2 (a) RURAL TOURISM TRAINING PROGRAM.—Section

3 311 of the Small Business Administration Reauthorization

4 and Amendments Act of 1990 (15 U.S.C. 653 note; 104

5 Stat. 2832) is amended by striking ‘‘Chief Counsel for Ad6 vocacy’’ and inserting ‘‘Administrator’’.

7 (b) SMALL BUSINESS AND AGRICULTURE REGU8 LATORY ENFORCEMENT OMBUDSMAN.—Section 30(b)(2)

9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657(b)(2)) is

10 amended—

11 (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

12 the end;

13 (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period

14 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

15 (3) by adding at the end the following:

16 ‘‘(F) maintain a memorandum of under17 standing with the Office of Advocacy regarding

18 methods and procedures for cooperation be19 tween the Ombudsman and the Office of Advo20 cacy.’’.

Passed the House of Representatives June 24, 2003.

Attest:

Clerk.