Van Duyne: “Executive Overreach: Examining the SBA’s Electioneering Efforts with Associate Administrator of Office of Field Operations, Jennifer Kim”

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations is holding a hearing titled "Executive Overreach: Examining the SBA's Electioneering Efforts with Associate Administrator of Office of Field Operations, Jennifer Kim."

Subcommittee Chairman Van Duyne's opening statement as prepared for delivery:

Good morning, and welcome to today's hearing which will focus on the SBA's unlawful involvement in registering voters in the state of Michigan.

We are seriously concerned that these actions are unlawful, and that the SBA is engaging in partisan activities to the detriment of small business owners. Since your signature is at the bottom of this agreement between the SBA and Michigan, Ms. Kim, we look forward to hearing from you and getting answers for the American people during our conversation today.

As this Committee has pointed out many times before, the SBA cannot even handle their current responsibilities. We have heard from the Administrator herself that the SBA does not have the resources to do what they are statutorily mandated to do, let alone engage in electioneering.

In fact, we heard directly from several small businesses like the Silver Star Bar in Monroe County, Michigan that the SBA is failing small business owners. The Silver Star Bar is not alone, I would like to read a quote from Dr. Chad Savage on the status of SBA assistance in Michigan:

'As a proud small business owner in Michigan, I expect the SBA to provide support and guidance to small businesses. However, instead of focusing on aiding and assisting businesses like mine, the Biden-Harris Administration is diverting my taxpayer funds towards voter registration. This misallocation of resources for partisan purposes is frustrating and undermines the critical support we need for small businesses.'

The Small Business Association of Michigan found that 50 percent of small business owners in Michigan report not being optimistic about their prospects over the next six months.

A recent CNBC poll found 86 percent of small business owners feel they have no voice in policy making. The SBA is supposed to be their voice and is failing miserably.

The SBA's sole mission is to support small businesses. It has no authority to meddle in electioneering. By entering into a memorandum of understanding with a battleground state like Michigan to facilitate voter registration, the SBA has stepped far beyond its intended role. This move by the SBA which they assert is action taken under Executive Order 14019, also raises serious legal questions.

The SBA has tried to convince us that this memorandum, whenever they start implementing it, will be done in a non-partisan manner. Yet we know the Administrator has discretion to determine where she travels, and the Committee has found that during her tenure she has chosen to go to areas with likely Democrat voters leading us to believe future SBA events, at which they will register voters, will follow the same pattern.

Moreover, the SBA's recent actions have blurred the line between advocating for small businesses and serving as a political arm for the Biden-Harris Administration. We know the SBA has been heavily involved in Michigan - the Administrator has traveled to Michigan more than any other state during her tenure. We learned from emails produced to us by Michigan Department of State, that Governor Whitmer was involved in the planning process of this memorandum and just this week, she was announced as co-chair to the Harris for President campaign.

Further, as noted on the SBA's website, your background, Ms. Kim, fails to highlight any experience in helping small businesses, but rather highlights your years of experience in "increasing voter registration in communities of color as well as promoting youth civic engagement." Coincidentally, you also attended the University of Michigan.

For obvious reasons, we have a lot of questions we hope you can help answer today. I think we can all agree that the federal government's involvement in state elections goes against constitutional principles and the SBA has circumvented established protocols, further eroding confidence in its impartiality.

For the sake of our job creators, this agency must return to its core mission in order to reestablish trust and credibility. We hope to see a realignment of your efforts with the needs of America's entrepreneurs, addressing concerns such as regulatory burdens and economic recovery. The future of our nation's small businesses depends on it.

Ms. Kim, thank you for joining us today. We look forward to the conversation ahead and finding answers to the many concerns this Committee has raised about apparent electioneering.

With that I will yield to our distinguished Ranking Member from Michigan, Mr. Thanedar.

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