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[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 292 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 292

 Congratulating the on-premise sign industry for its contributions to 
  the success of small businesses on the occasion of its 63rd Annual 
                        International Sign Expo.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 26, 2009

Mr. King of Iowa submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on Small Business

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
 Congratulating the on-premise sign industry for its contributions to 
  the success of small businesses on the occasion of its 63rd Annual 
                        International Sign Expo.

Whereas safe, creative, and effective on-premise signage has served as a primary 
        catalyst to successful small businesses in America since the 
        establishment of the Nation;
Whereas most of the companies that manufacture on-premise signs in the United 
        States are in and of themselves small businesses as described by the 
        Small Business Act and generate thousands of manufacturing jobs that 
        stimulate the economy and support the local, State, and Federal tax 
        bases;
Whereas the on-premise sign industry in turn sustains millions of additional 
        entities covered under the Small Business Act by providing to retail 
        businesses across the country an affordable and effective advertising 
        medium through which they can communicate to potential customers about 
        goods and services they offer, direct those customers to their small 
        business sites, and reinforce the memory of existing customers about the 
        locations and the nature of these small businesses;
Whereas the Small Business Act empowers the Small Business Administration to 
        take actions to relieve the competitive disadvantages that small 
        businesses face;
Whereas one such competitive disadvantage for small businesses is a lack of 
        marketing research and advertising budgets to attract and retain 
        customers;
Whereas the Small Business Administration has recognized the value of on-premise 
        signage as a remedy to these competitive disadvantages and has taken 
        action to remediate this disadvantage by collaborating with the sign 
        industry to collect educational information about signs and to publish 
        that information on its website that is free of charge and easily 
        accessible to all small businesses;
Whereas thousands of manufacturers, users, and suppliers of on-premise signs and 
        sign products will attend the 63rd Annual International Sign Expo April 
        15, 2009, through April 18, 2009, making the Expo one of the most 
        significant small-business-related events in the country;
Whereas in 2008 there were nearly 600 companies at the Expo displaying nearly 
        2,000 booths of the most advanced and innovative small business signage 
        products the on-premise sign industry has to offer to nearly 20,000 
        people from across the Nation and 97 countries across the world; and
Whereas this unique convergence of signage innovators, customers, and small 
        business owners will create a prime opportunity for further educating 
        the public about the critical role played by the on-premise sign 
        industry to the Nation's small businesses during the current economic 
        downturn: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) applauds the U.S. Small Business Administration for 
        educating small business owners on the benefits of using well-
        placed, well-designed on-premise signs to overcome competitive 
        disadvantages in the areas of marketing and advertising;
            (2) congratulates the members of the on-premise sign and 
        sign products industry on the occasion of their 63rd Annual 
        International Sign Expo; and
            (3) encourages the on-premise sign industry to continue 
        events such as the International Sign Expo that further educate 
        the small business community about the benefits of effective 
        signage, and that produce new and greater understanding of how 
        to develop safer, more effective, and more affordable signage 
        products for small businesses, and to continue to make every 
        effort to assist the Small Business Administration in making 
        this information available to the entire small business 
        community so as to alleviate its competitive disadvantages in 
        marketing and advertising its products and services to 
        customers.
                                 <all>
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