Democrats Reject Rep. Williams’ Amendment to Increase Transparency on the Biden Administration
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Roger Williams (TX-25) offered an amendment in the House Small Business Committee to H. Res. 1298which requested the Treasury Secretary provide all documents and communications relating to any of Treasury's actions to assist small businesses. This amendment failed to pass out of the Committee by a vote of 11-11.
"Since President Biden was sworn into office, small businesses have been met with dire economic challenges, such as rising inflation, ongoing labor shortages, to persistent supply chain issues," said Congressman Roger Williams. "I introduced an amendment to require the Department of the Treasury to report all the documents and communications made with the Small Business Admisniration to provide insights on how the Biden Administration plans to deal with these economic headwinds. Unfortunately, committee Democrats rejected my amendment and refused to provide transparency into these agencies' efforts to try to improve the business climate for American small businesses."
You can watch the Congressman's full statement introducing the amendment by clicking on the photo below:
You can read the Congressman's full statement below:
I offer this amendment on behalf of the American people. Let's be clear. Things are getting worse, not better. Runaway inflation is laying siege to this nation. Shipping containers are piled up on docks and ships remain idle offshore. Massive worker shortages are worsening this country's already fragile fiscal situation. The Labor Department reported an enormous 8.3% leap in consumer prices over the past year. I am a business owner and I can tell you that it is true and right with us as we speak. Core inflation prices jumped 0.6% since July. And, even the Department of Defense acknowledges this moment as a critical juncture, concerned that rising inflation will drive small businesses out of the defense industrial base leaving our nation vulnerable to attack.
For months, we have been living in a world where Americans are forced to make difficult, and sometimes impossible choices as every part of their daily lives becomes increasingly expensive. Despite this, their government, specifically Secretary Yellen, had the audacity to describe this period as "transitory." I have news for her and news for you, I am lifetime small business owner and it isn't. It is here and it is getting worse.
The Department of the Treasury is charged with implementing economic and fiscal policy in this country. As such, it was tasked with collaborating with the SBA on the Paycheck Protection Program, a program intended to assist small businesses during a period of intense economic distress caused by poor state and local government policies enacted during the coronavirus pandemic. While the economic pain of government-forced closures had immediate negative impacts on small businesses, we must not be so blind as to ignore or minimize, as Secretary Yellen did. This slow bleed to small businesses is caused by rising inflation, labor shortages, and disruptions to the supply chain, not to mention tax increases.
Therefore, I urge you, Madam Chair, and my colleagues to support this amendment. My amendment requires the Department of the Treasury to report to Congress the actions taken and communications made with the Small Business Administration to assist small businesses in response to these economic headwinds. While the pandemic may have been the catalyst to this country's current economic misfortune, we continue to see the effects that bad government policy has on small businesses. We must be aware of what our government is doing for small businesses, especially in these challenging times. Again, I urge the support of my colleagues and I yield back.
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Congressman Roger Williams represents the 25th Congressional District of Texas and serves as a member of the House Committee on Financial Services and as Vice-Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee.