• First Women Entrepreneur Event a Success

• SBA: Restructuring to Better Serve Small Businesses

• State Updates: Oklahoma and Hawaii Enact Favorable Small Business Laws

First Women Entrepreneur Event a Success

Register Now for the August 8th Event in New Britain, CT
 

NASE President Robert Hughes discusses health care policy at Economic Summit in Nashville.

The Economic Summit 2002: Women and Entrepreneurship event in Nashville, TN, earlier this week was a huge success! NASE President Robert Hughes served as the keynote speaker for the health care panel and offered practical advice for attendees. The NASE, a sponsor of the event, wishes to thank all the area women micro-business owners who came out for this educational forum on health care policy, access to capital, trends in technology and business development. Three more regional forums are scheduled for later this summer, and the NASE encourages you to attend one.

Click here for more information on the upcoming events in New Britain, CT, Houston, TX, and St. Louis, MO.

SBA: Restructuring to Better Serve Small Businesses

In an effort to better serve the needs of small businesses, the Small Business Administration has requested $15 million for a reorganization of its structure and functions. Last week the House Small Business Committee Subcommittee on Workforce, Empowerment and Government Programs held a hearing to discuss the SBA plan.

Dr. Lloyd A. Blanchard, SBA chief operating officer, testified at the hearing entitled, “Maximizing Organization and Leadership in a Federal Agency to fulfill its Statutory Mission: Restructuring of the Small Business Administration.” Blanchard summarized the SBA plan to “bring the Agency's organization in line with the way it will serve small businesses in the future.” He told the subcommittee “small businesses must be able to change with the times, adjusting to the changing demands of their customers as well as incorporating new technologies to remain competitive.” He pointed out that the SBA faces similar challenges.

Blanchard then outlined a five-year plan to return to a regional structure, focus the district offices on marketing and outreach, remove the backroom functions from the districts and consolidate the SBA processing and servicing centers.

The NASE supports the SBA efforts to transform into a more accessible and responsive organization for micro-business owners, and encourages Congress to allocate the necessary funds.

For more on the hearing, click here.

State Updates: Oklahoma and Hawaii Enact Favorable Small
Business Laws

Both Oklahoma and Hawaii have recently taken steps to promote small businesses by enacting state Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Acts.

Oklahoma Gov. Frank Keating signed a law that will ensure that small businesses are given a fair hearing when new state regulations are considered. The law sets up a Small Business Regulatory Review Committee, which will examine regulations that adversely affect small businesses. The Committee will then work with state government agencies to find less restrictive alternatives.

“Small business is central to our economic well-being,” Keating said, “and this Act will help keep it strong and healthy.”

Gov. Benjamin Cayetano made the Hawaii Small Business Regulatory Flexibility Act permanent by removing a sunset portion of the law. Hawaii’s law also creates a review board, charged with examining overly burdensome regulations for small businesses.
 

Do any of these issues affect you? Visit the NASE's Legislative Action Center  and "Tell Your Small Business Story." This will help the NASE understand - on a personal level - how key legislative issues are affecting your business and your bottom line.

For more information about any of the articles in Washington Watch, contact Maureen Petron, NASE public affairs manager, at (202) 466-2100 or mpetron@nase.org.