PRESS | NSBA Commends Congress for Ending Shutdown, Harm for Small Business

Shutdowns always harm small business - NSBA thanks Congress for choosing compromise to end the shutdown and urges action on innovation programs that remain lapsed.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

NSBA thanks lawmakers for ending the shutdown and urges action on innovation programs that remain lapsed

 Washington, D.C. – On Wednesday night, the House of Representatives passed a short-term funding measure by a vote of 222-209. President Trump signed the legislation into law shortly thereafter, bringing to an end the longest shutdown in U.S. history.

The House vote followed Senate approval on Sunday, when eight Democratic senators broke with party leadership and joined Republicans to advance the agreement after several weeks of negotiation. In the House, six Democrats voted with all but two Republicans to pass the bill.

“NSBA thanks lawmakers for finally ending the impasse,” stated NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken. “For 43 days, we have faced uncertainty that plagued small businesses waiting for an SBA loan, trying to get a government contract, trying to get paid for work they’d already done or worrying how to pay employees.”

The package provides full-year funding for three of the twelve annual appropriations bills (Agriculture, Military Construction–VA, and the Legislative Branch), while extending short-term funding for the remaining agencies to January 30th.  As part of the negotiation arrangement, Senate Majority Leader John Thune pledged to schedule a mid-December vote on Affordable Care Act premium subsidy provisions, though House Speaker Mike Johnson has made no commitment to scheduling a corresponding vote in the lower chamber. 

Lawmakers have their work cut out for them: the shutdown could have lingering affects. According to a recent NSBA survey, 78% of small business-respondents anticipate a flat or recessionary economy—up from 73% just five months ago. Among those impacted small firms who ARE doing business with the federal government, nearly two-thirds have experienced delayed payments from federal agencies and one-third have experienced delayed payments as a subcontractor.

 “Lawmakers and agency staff must act quickly to try and earn back trust from the small-business community,” McCracken went on to say, “And that includes expediting payments and moving forward on other key small-business programs like the Small Business Innovation and Research (STTR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs that have languished since Sept. 30 due to another failure of lawmakers to move the ball down the field.”

 

RELATED | NSBA Urges Senate, Congress to Reauthorize SBIR/STTR Program Funds

 

The House will now adjourn for the weekend and return for the week before Thanksgiving break. Congress will need to advance the remaining nine full-year bills before January 30th to avoid another shutdown."

 

Celebrating nearly 90 years in operation, NSBA is a member-driven nonpartisan organization advocating on behalf of America’s entrepreneurs. NSBA's 65,000 members represent every state and every industry in the U.S., and we are proud to be the nation’s first small-business advocacy organization. Please visit www.NSBAadvocate.org and follow us at @NSBAAdvocate.