III 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 197 

Honoring the entrepreneurial spirit of small business concerns in the United 

States during National Small Business Week, which begins on May 

15, 2011. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 24, 2011 

Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. NELSON of Nebraska, Mr. 

KERRY, Ms. AYOTTE, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. ENZI, Mr. CARDIN, and Mr. 

RISCH) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 

agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the entrepreneurial spirit of small business concerns in the United States during National Small Business Week, which begins on May 15, 2011. 

Whereas the approximately 27,200,000 small business concerns in the United States are the driving force behind 

the Nation’s economy, creating 2 out of every 3 new jobs 

and generating more than 50 percent of the Nation’s 

non-farm gross domestic product; 

Whereas small businesses are the driving force behind the 

economic recovery of the United States; 

Whereas small businesses represent 99.7 percent of employer 

firms in the United States; 


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Whereas small business concerns are the Nation’s innovators, 

serving to advance technology and productivity; 

Whereas small business concerns represent 97.6 percent of all 

exporters and produce 32.8 percent of exported goods; 

Whereas Congress established the Small Business Administration in 1953 to aid, counsel, assist, and protect the interests of small business concerns in order to preserve 

free and competitive enterprise, to ensure that a fair proportion of the total Federal Government purchases, contracts, and subcontracts for property and services are 

placed with small business concerns, to ensure that a fair 

proportion of the total sales of government property are 

made to such small business concerns, and to maintain 

and strengthen the overall economy of the United States; 

Whereas every year since 1963, the President has designated 

a ‘‘National Small Business Week’’ to recognize the contributions of small businesses to the economic well-being 

of the United States; 

Whereas in 2011, National Small Business Week will honor 

the estimated 27,200,000 small businesses in the United 

States; 

Whereas the Small Business Administration has helped small 

business concerns by providing access to critical lending 

opportunities, protecting small business concerns from 

excessive Federal regulatory enforcement, helping to ensure full and open competition for government contracts, 

and improving the economic environment in which small 

business concerns compete; 

Whereas for more than 50 years, the Small Business Administration has helped millions of entrepreneurs achieve the 


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American dream of owning a small business concern, and 

has played a key role in fostering economic growth; and 

Whereas the President has designated the week beginning 

May 15, 2011, as ‘‘National Small Business Week’’: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) honors the entrepreneurial spirit of small 

3 business concerns in the United States during Na4 tional Small Business Week, which begins on May 

5 15, 2011; 

6 (2) applauds the efforts and achievements of 

7 the owners and employees of small business con8 cerns, whose hard work and commitment to excel9 lence have made such small business concerns a key 

10 part of the economic vitality of the United States; 

11 (3) recognizes the work of the Small Business 

12 Administration and its resource partners in pro13 viding assistance to entrepreneurs and small busi14 ness concerns; and 

15 (4) recognizes the importance of ensuring 

16 that— 

17 (A) guaranteed loans, including microloans 

18 and microloan technical assistance, for start-up 

19 and growing small business concerns, and ven20 ture capital, are made available to all qualified 

21 small business concerns; 


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1 (B) the management assistance programs 

2 delivered by resource partners on behalf of the 

3 Small Business Administration, such as Small 

4 Business Development Centers, Women’s Busi5 ness Centers, and the Service Corps of Retired 

6 Executives, are provided with the Federal re7 sources necessary to provide invaluable coun8 seling services to entrepreneurs in the United 

9 States; 

10 (C) the Small Business Administration 

11 continues to provide timely and efficient dis12 aster assistance so that small businesses in 

13 areas struck by natural or manmade disasters 

14 can quickly return to business to keep local 

15 economies alive in the aftermath of such disas16 ters; 

17 (D) affordable broadband Internet access 

18 is available to all people in the United States, 

19 particularly people in rural and underserved 

20 communities, so that small businesses can use 

21 the Internet to make their operations more 

22 globally competitive while boosting local econo23 mies; 

24 (E) regulatory relief is provided to small 

25 businesses through the reduction of duplicative 


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1 or unnecessary regulatory requirements that in2 crease costs for small businesses; and 

3 (F) leveling the playing field for con4 tracting opportunities remains a primary focus, 

5 so that small businesses, particularly minority6 owned small businesses, can compete for and 

7 win more of the $400,000,000,000 in contracts 

8 that the Federal Government enters into each 

9 year for goods and services. 

Æ 


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