A Politico series by Daniel W. Reilly. The Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee may not have the most glamorous name or profile on Capitol Hill. But given the economic uncertainty that has roiled world financial markets and dominated the inboxes of Washington policymakers in recent weeks, the committee is poised to play a major role in the weeks and months to come. Chairman John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) and ranking member Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) enjoy a strong bipartisan working relationship and say a push for renewed funding for the Small Business Administration and an expanded SBA disaster relief plan will be two key issues for this session of Congress. Kerry readies for recession He may have married into one of the biggest business empires in America, but for Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), the focus is always on the little guy. The chairman of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, Kerry is tasked with representing the needs of an estimated 27 million small businesses in America, which employ almost half of all private-sector employees. And though the committee rarely makes headlines, the plight of the small-business owner has been thrust into the spotlight recently, as fears of a recession have spurred Congress to consider an economic stimulus package. To read the rest of this story, please click here. Ranking member lauds 'beacon of bipartisanship' Long before she was a senator, Olympia Snowe helped her late husband keep the books as he struggled to turn around his father’s construction business. And with her father-in-law giving them just a year to do it, Snowe, now remarried to former Maine Gov. John R. McKernan Jr., quickly learned how to navigate federal regulations, expand a business and try to stay afloat in a competitive marketplace. Now, as the ranking Republican on the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, the senator from Maine is still guided by the business lessons she learned long ago — even if it means bucking her own party in flagging economic times. To read the rest of this story, please click here. Committee revs up for budget fight Perhaps it’s not the most glamorous outpost on Capitol Hill , but with a portfolio that includes more than 99 percent of all employer firms in America, the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee is certainly one of the most far-reaching. And with economic concerns dominating the Washington conversation and lawmakers contemplating a legislative fix, committee chairman Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) and ranking Republican Olympia Snowe of Maine are working together to make sure small businesses get their fair share. To read the rest of this story, please click here.