Date: 1984-03-13
Speaker: DE LA GARZA (democrat)
Chamber: H

I appreciate the chairmans yielding. Mr. Chairman. I want to commend the gentleman and his committee and join with him in showing appreciation to our distinguished colleague. the gentleman from Pennsylvania . and the Members on the other side. Mr. Chairman. I support this legislation. Mr. Chairman. today the House is considering a very important bill. H.R. 3020. small business authorizations and amendments. introduced by my good friend and esteemed colleague. Representative PARREN J. MITCHELL. Throughout its years of existence. the Small Business Administration has played an important role in encouraging the growth and expansion of small business through its technical and financial assistance programs. H.R. 3020 reaffirms the Congress commitment to continue these services. I strongly support the Small Business Committees efforts to foster a supportive environment for small business. and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for passage of the bill. Small businesses represent the entrepreneurial backbone of our Nation. They are major contributors to our economic health through the jobs they create and the services and products they provide. We all know of successful small businesses that found the SBA an invaluable source of assistance at a critical juncture in their operations. Through SBA financial and technical help. they were able to meet their challenges. continue their growth. create new jobs. and increase our gross national product. With our economy just moving out of a recessionary phase. we should not take any action that would reduce our commitment to encourage the formation and success of small businesses. Chairman MITCHELL and the Small Business Committee have included in title III. section 301 through 315 of the bill. provisions to reinstate a more effective SBA disaster assistance program. These are of particular importance to me. for my district has suffered great economic devastation in the past 2 years following the 1982 peso devaluations. and I have shared the frustration and discouragement of my constituents with current SBA policies providing extremely limited disaster assistance. As a result of the peso devalutions. businesses all along the border. some in existence for 50 to 75 years. have had to close their doors. Unemployment rates have skyrocketed. The entire border area found itself trying to cope with an ongoing disaster that would not go away. It has not been just an economic slump but a major economic disaster with national implications. Just as residents of the Rio Grande Valley in south Texas felt they had experienced the worst and the situation could only improve. we were hit by a severe freeze during the 1983 Christmas holidays that destroyed the unharvested citrus. grain. sugar. and vegetable crops. It is almost impossible to realize the extent of the damage from this latest disaster. The Dallas Times Herald recently ran an editorial about conditions in the valley. calling it "The Valley of Despair." Following the freeze. 20.000 to 25.000 farmworkers and workers from agriculturerelated industries were suddenly out of work. causing unemployment rates to shoot up over 60 and 50 percent in the four counties in the valley. Many of these workers lived at marginal levels even when they were employed. Now they are experiencing absolute destitution so heartbreaking the churches in Texas have been raising money to help out with the workers utility. rent. and food bills. It will be months and years before the businesses and growers will overcome the effects of the freeze. Although it is too soon to be certain. some feei we may be lucky to get 10 percent of our usual citrus harvest next year. The SBA disaster . assistance programs. as directed by the current administration. have not provided assistance at low interest rates to help victims of physical and economic disasters. -In 1976. when the peso devaluations caused serious dislocation along the border. the SBAs economic injury program offered vitally needed aid. The program was killed in the GrammLatta bill. with the result that the only help for border businesses in 1982 and 1983 was the administrations much touted "Peso Pack Program" offering loans at Interest rates vgrying from 11% percent to 14% percenttoo high a cost for businesses whose sales had suddenly dropped over 50 percent but which still had inventory pay. ments to meet. The disaster assistance provisions offered in H.R. 3020 would reinstate an effective disaster program that woqld really help disaster victims by limiting maximum interest rates to 4 and 8 percent. Section 304 of the bill incorporates the key features of legislation I twice Introduced after the peso devaluations to provide emergency SBA assistance to areas suffering serious economic dislocation as the result of foreign currency fluctuations. We need this disaster assistance legislation to give disaster victims hope. to tell them their Government does care. and to give them breathing time to develop new business strategies. refocus their marketing and rebuild liquidity. H.R. 3020. with its reauthorization of Important SBA programs and revitalization of the SBA disaster assistance programs. is a worthy bill stating the Congress commitment to assist small business. I urge your support of the legislation.