U.S. Rep. Young Kim (R-CA) bemoaned the failure last week of three amendments she offered to the $3.5 trillion reconciliation budget package that would have tackled inflation, supported United States military veterans, and addressed crime impacting America’s small business owners.
“Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle did not support these commonsense amendments,” said Rep. Kim. “I hope Democrats come to the table to work on a bipartisan, commonsense budget that provides for our nation’s needs without raising taxes.”
On Sept. 9, the U.S. House Small Business Committee considered the small business title of reconciliation pursuant to the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2022, S.Con.Res. 14, which will provide $25 billion over 10 years to the Small Business Administration (SBA).
During the committee’s markup of the package, Rep. Kim offered two amendments. One that would require the Interagency Task Force on Veteran Small Business Development established under the Small Business Act to conduct a study on access to credit for small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans compared to other small businesses and submit the report to Congress.
The second Kim-led amendment would have addressed crime impacting small business owners by directing the SBA administrator to submit a report to Congress and testify before the Small Business Committee on the effects of crime on small businesses in communities where local governments have decided to cut funding or defund law enforcement, according to the texts of both amendments.
Neither amendment made it into the committee’s approved package, which the House Small Business Committee approved to deliver $25 billion in funding to invest in small business programs. The committee now sends the bill to the U.S. House Budget Committee for inclusion in the Build Back Better Act.
Also on Sept. 9, Rep. Kim’s Amendment #010 to S.Con.Res. 14 was offered during the U.S. House Science, Space, and Technology Committee’s markup and called for repurposing $1 million for the National Science Foundation to conduct an economic study on the impacts of inflation on Americans and the U.S. economy. The amendment failed by a recorded vote of 17-21 and the committee’s approved package now also heads to the House Budget Committee.
“While California workers and families confront higher food, energy and housing costs in addition to some of the highest state and local taxes in the country, I am disappointed that Democrats are rushing through a $3.5-trillion, expansive partisan budget plan that will raise taxes and continue to drive up costs,” Rep. Kim said.
