Press Release
An Open Letter to Senator Bernie Sanders from American Small Business League
May 2, 2016
PETALUMA, Calif., May 2, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/-- The AmericanSmall Business League (ASBL)is asking all Presidential candidates to celebrate Federal Small Business Weekby pledging to keep a 2008 campaign promise President Obama made when hestated, "Itis time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporategiants."
Federal law mandates a minimum of 23% of the total value of all federal primecontracts be awarded to small businesses. Within that category, thegoal states 5% for women-owned small businesses, 5% for minority-owned firms,and 3% for disabled veterans.
There have been a long series of federal investigations that have found theactual recipients of billions a year in federal small business contracts were Fortune 500 firms , their subsidiaries, and corporategiants around the world .
Since 2002, virtuallyevery major newspaper in the nation has reported on the fraud and abuse infederal small business programs. Every major television network such as NBC ,CBS ,ABC ,CNN ,CNBC ,MSNBC ,Fox Newsand RRTVhave released investigative reports on the blatant fraud in federal smallbusiness programs.
In addition todiverting billions a month in federalsmall business contracts to corporate giants, all categories of smallbusinesses have been cheated out of hundreds of billions by what the SBA callstheir "exclusionary rule." As opposed to using thetotal federal acquisition budget as required by law to calculate the percentageof awards to small businesses, the SBA uses a much smaller number to drastically inflate and fabricate those numbers .
According to theCongressional Budge Office for fiscal year 2015, the total discretionaryacquisition budget was $1.2 trillion. Yet, the SBA used just $352 billion to falsify the government's achievementof small business goals in 2015.
The Small Business Act that originally established federalsmall business contracting goals is the single largest economic stimulusprogram ever passed for middle class Americans.
Based on governmentdata there are over 28 million small businesses in America. Those firms areresponsible for the over 50% of the private sector work force and over 50% ofthe Gross Domestic Product. The SBA data shows that small businesses wereresponsible for over 66% of all net new jobs.
What is a better wayto invest a minimum of 23% of our tax dollars than to reinvest those funds withthe small businesses where most American's work?
Jobs and the economyare the single most important issue to American voters. The easiestway to create these jobs is to quit cheating the small businesses that generatethe majority of America's net new jobs.
There are so manywedge issues in American politics today, but ending federal contracting fraudagainst small businesses is one of them. I believe 99.9% of voters would agree that the federal governmentshould not cheat small businesses.
If I were running for president, I would promise Americans,the 28 million small businesses, including the small businesses owned by women,minorities and disabled veterans, and the millions upon millions of Americansthey employ, that I would ensure they will no longer be cheated under myadministration.
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