INTRODUCTION OF THE SMALL BUSINESS CONTRACTING IMPROVEMENTSACT OF 2010

Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I am pleased today to be introducing, along with theRanking Member on my Committee Senator Olympia Snowe, the Small BusinessContracting Improvements Act of 2010, legislation designed to protect the interests ofsmall businesses and boost their opportunities in the federal marketplace.

As Chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, I havefocused a considerable amount of energy promoting the interests of small businesses inthe federal contracting arena. The legislation I am introducing today marks a critical stepforward in this process.

As the largest purchaser in the world, the federal government is uniquely positioned tooffer new and reliable business opportunities for our Main Street businesses. Governmentcontracts are perhaps one of the easiest and most inexpensive ways the government canhelp immediately increase sales for America's entrepreneurs, giving them the tools theyneed to keep our economy strong and create jobs. By increasing contracts to smallbusinesses by just 1 percent, we can create more than 100,000 new jobs – and today, weneed those jobs more than ever.

But the reality is, small businesses need all the help they can get accessing federalcontracts. In FY 2007, according to the Federal Procurement Data System, the federalgovernment missed its 23 percent contracting goal by .992 percent. That .992 percentrepresents more than $3.74 billion and 93,500 jobs lost for small businesses. Thenumbers are even worse the next fiscal, in FY 2008 the Federal Procurement DataSystem reported that the government missed its goal by 1.51 percent – meaning morethan $6.51 billion and 162,700 jobs lost. While these numbers tell the stark story of whythis legislation is vital for our small businesses and our overall economy, they are stillonly a part of the story of why this legislation is needed.

Mr. President, our small businesses have been taking the brunt of this economicdownturn. In this past year, small businesses accounted for more than 85 percent of joblosses. This fact was vividly illustrated to me this weekend when I met with Louisianabusiness owners and officials. A small business owner who spoke at our meeting told ofhow he was down from 20 plus employees to three. He was clear that if he had access tofederal work he would begin staffing up tomorrow. And that, Mr. President, is the reasonI am introducing this legislation today. These contracting opportunities represent jobcreation for small businesses in a way that is unique. When large businesses get newwork they typically spread that work among existing employees. When small businessesget these contracts they must staff up to meet the increased demand.

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