Successful Entrepreneurship for Reservists and Veterans Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support H.R. 4480, the Successful Entrepreneurship for Reservists and Veterans Act, also known as the SERV Act, as amended.

Veteran entrepreneurs are powerful economic engines and job creators. More than 2.4 million veteran businessowners employ more than 5.7 million Americans and contribute approximately $1.2 trillion annually to our GDP.

With that said, one of the biggest challenges facing veteran-owned small businesses is access to capital. Servicemembers report that it can be difficult to build credit while serving in the military, and studies have shown that a higher percentage of veterans are turned down for loans.

The SERV Act requires GAO to conduct a study on the availability of credit to veteran-owned, service-disabled-, and reservist-owned small businesses. The study would provide a report on the obstacles facing veterans, including the extent to which deployment and other military responsibilities affect their credit histories.

Most importantly, it requires the SBA Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development to create an outreach plan to promote the many valuable programs available to help veteran small business owners.

Representative Davids has been a staunch supporter of efforts to aid veteran entrepreneurs. She first introduced this legislation in the 116th Congress, and it passed the House with broad bipartisan support.

As the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access in the 117th Congress, she led efforts to make capital more affordable for all small firms.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this bill to ensure Congress is working to address the challenges veteran small employers face, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Davids).

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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, our country is experiencing a small business boom and veteran entrepreneurship is helping to lead the way.

SBA offers a number of counseling and training programs that can help them either launch or grow a small business. It is vitally important that we increase the awareness of SBA programs and services, particularly among veterans.

I applaud Ms. Davids and Mr. Alford for their commitment to our Nation's veterans, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4480, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I thank Chairman Williams for bringing these six bills to the floor and for working in a bipartisan manner. I yield back the balance of my time.

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