WASHINGTON – Bipartisan measures to provide recovery assistance to small businesses impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are included in the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Bill to be considered by the full Senate next week. The provisions, which provide additional capital for impacted businesses and increase their access to federal recovery contracts, were requested by Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and David Vitter (R-La.), all members of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Landrieu, a member of the Appropriations Committee, secured the provisions in the bill.
"It's been a year and a half since Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, yet many businesses have not reopened their doors. We need to give these businesses a shot in the arm, get them the financial assistance they need and the opportunity to help rebuild their communities, and that's exactly what this bill does," said Kerry, Chairman of the Committee. "I thank Sen. Landrieu for her work to include these provisions and thank Senators Robert Byrd and Thad Cochran for their commitment to help boost the Gulf Coast economy."
"The nation's small businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they are devastated by storms like Katrina and Rita, we need to do everything possible to help them rebuild and recover. This legislation provides much needed assistance for these small companies through SBA and extends HubZones so vital to spurring economic development and creating jobs for the areas that were hardest hit by those terrible storms," said Snowe, Ranking Member of the Committee.
"As Louisiana and the Gulf Coast continue to recover from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the devastating levee breaks that followed, we must ensure that our small businesses have the resources they need to return and reopen. These provisions will help those small businesses that have reopened their doors but are suffering because of the lack of tourism in the area. These businesses are doing a service to the community, and it is our responsibility to give them the assistance they need while the region recovers. These provisions will also give preference to our small businesses in federal contracting, giving them the work they need to sustain themselves. I am pleased that I could secure the funding in the Appropriations Committee, and I thank Sen. Kerry and Sen. Snowe for helping to get these provisions in the supplemental spending bill," said Landrieu.
"I am pleased that the committee included these provisions, especially the HUBZone designation to give federal contracting preferences to our small businesses. I previously offered this provision as an amendment that passed the Senate, and I look forward to working with the committee to ensure that these two provisions remain in the final bill," said Vitter.
The small business provisions in the Appropriations bill include: According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, over 125,000 businesses were disrupted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. In Louisiana alone, over 81,000 small businesses were damaged or economically impacted, with 18,000 businesses catastrophically destroyed by the storms.
In St. Bernard Parish, one of the Louisiana parishes hardest-hit by Hurricane Katrina, only 370 businesses have re-opened – far below the total of 1,400 businesses in operation before Katrina. In addition, only 38 percent of the pre-Katrina population has returned to the parish, according to state statistics. Some of the other hardest-hit parishes in Louisiana are also experiencing similar population declines: Cameron Parish's population is 74 percent, Plaquemines Parish 68 percent, and Orleans Parish 43.
"It's been a year and a half since Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, yet many businesses have not reopened their doors. We need to give these businesses a shot in the arm, get them the financial assistance they need and the opportunity to help rebuild their communities, and that's exactly what this bill does," said Kerry, Chairman of the Committee. "I thank Sen. Landrieu for her work to include these provisions and thank Senators Robert Byrd and Thad Cochran for their commitment to help boost the Gulf Coast economy."
"The nation's small businesses are the backbone of our economy and when they are devastated by storms like Katrina and Rita, we need to do everything possible to help them rebuild and recover. This legislation provides much needed assistance for these small companies through SBA and extends HubZones so vital to spurring economic development and creating jobs for the areas that were hardest hit by those terrible storms," said Snowe, Ranking Member of the Committee.
"As Louisiana and the Gulf Coast continue to recover from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the devastating levee breaks that followed, we must ensure that our small businesses have the resources they need to return and reopen. These provisions will help those small businesses that have reopened their doors but are suffering because of the lack of tourism in the area. These businesses are doing a service to the community, and it is our responsibility to give them the assistance they need while the region recovers. These provisions will also give preference to our small businesses in federal contracting, giving them the work they need to sustain themselves. I am pleased that I could secure the funding in the Appropriations Committee, and I thank Sen. Kerry and Sen. Snowe for helping to get these provisions in the supplemental spending bill," said Landrieu.
"I am pleased that the committee included these provisions, especially the HUBZone designation to give federal contracting preferences to our small businesses. I previously offered this provision as an amendment that passed the Senate, and I look forward to working with the committee to ensure that these two provisions remain in the final bill," said Vitter.
The small business provisions in the Appropriations bill include: According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, over 125,000 businesses were disrupted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. In Louisiana alone, over 81,000 small businesses were damaged or economically impacted, with 18,000 businesses catastrophically destroyed by the storms.
In St. Bernard Parish, one of the Louisiana parishes hardest-hit by Hurricane Katrina, only 370 businesses have re-opened – far below the total of 1,400 businesses in operation before Katrina. In addition, only 38 percent of the pre-Katrina population has returned to the parish, according to state statistics. Some of the other hardest-hit parishes in Louisiana are also experiencing similar population declines: Cameron Parish's population is 74 percent, Plaquemines Parish 68 percent, and Orleans Parish 43.