[Pages H740-H742]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     SMALL BUSINESS PROCUREMENT AND UTILIZATION REFORM ACT OF 2025

  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 818) to amend the Small Business Act to include 
requirements relating to new small business entrants in the scorecard 
program, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 818

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Procurement 
     and Utilization Reform Act of 2025'' or the ``SPUR Act''.

     SEC. 2. MODIFICATIONS TO SCORECARD REQUIREMENTS.

       Section 15(y) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(y)) 
     is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2)--
       (A) by redesignating subparagraph (E) as subparagraph (F); 
     and
       (B) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following new 
     subparagraph:
       ``(E) The number of new small business entrants, including 
     new small business entrants that are small business concerns 
     owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, qualified 
     HUBZone small business concerns, small business concerns 
     owned and controlled by socially and economically 
     disadvantaged individuals, and small business concerns owned 
     and controlled by women awarded prime contracts in each North 
     American Industry Classification System code during the 
     fiscal year, and a comparison to the number awarded prime 
     contracts during the prior fiscal year, if available.'';
       (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ``subparagraphs (B) 
     through (E) of paragraph (2)'' and inserting ``subparagraphs 
     (B) through (F) of paragraph (2)''; and
       (3) by amending paragraph (6) to read as follows:
       ``(6) Definitions.--In this subsection:
       ``(A) New small business entrant.--The term `new small 
     business entrant' means a small business concern that--
       ``(i) has been awarded a prime contract by a Federal 
     agency; and
       ``(ii) has not previously been awarded a prime contract by 
     any Federal agency.
       ``(B) Scorecard.--The term `scorecard' means any summary 
     using a rating system to evaluate the efforts of a Federal 
     agency to meet goals established under subsection (g)(1)(B) 
     that--
       ``(i) includes the measures described in paragraph (2); and
       ``(ii) assigns a score to each Federal agency evaluated.''.

     SEC. 3. COMPLIANCE WITH CUTGO.

       No additional amounts are authorized to be appropriated to 
     carry out this Act or the amendments made by this Act.


[[Page H741]]


  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Williams) and the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in full support of H.R. 818, the SPUR Act, led by 
my colleagues Representatives Stauber, Cisneros, and Perez.
  The SPUR Act is crucial in assessing the Federal Government's 
progress in bringing in new companies and expanding the industrial 
base.
  Understanding the number of new small businesses engaged in 
government contracting will highlight the concerning decline in 
industrial base participation and track agencies' progress on 
rebuilding it.
  Small businesses are an essential component of the United States 
industrial base. Despite their importance, over the last few decades, 
small businesses have been squeezed out of the industrial base at an 
alarming rate, with nearly half of the businesses leaving over the past 
10 years. This threatens America's economic interests and strategic 
readiness, which must be remedied.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote for H.R. 818, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend Representatives Stauber and Cisneros for their 
work to bring this important bipartisan legislation to the floor today.
  Mr. Speaker, Congress and the executive branch have carefully crafted 
fair and deliberate policies to ensure that small businesses can 
compete for Federal contracts.
  These policies, including and especially the small business 
procurement goals and set-aside authorities, have leveled the playing 
field for small businesses and enabled their participation in the 
Federal marketplace. They have a proven record of success.
  Federal agencies award a record amount of contracting dollars to 
small businesses each year. However, many other factors, complexities, 
and policies, like category management and overly strict past 
performance requirements, are countering the impact of these programs. 
As a result, the government has over 40 percent fewer small businesses 
in its ecosystem than it did just a decade ago.
  These trends mean that fewer small businesses are getting larger 
contracts and that contracts are becoming out of reach for many small 
businesses, especially those that are not already government 
contractors.
  This legislation is a productive step that will help break that 
cycle. The SPUR Act will require SBA to take into account new small 
business government contractors when grading a Federal agency's 
performance toward meeting its small business goal.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Stauber).
  Mr. STAUBER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my bill, 
the Small Business Procurement and Utilization Reform Act, also known 
as the SPUR Act.
  I will begin by thanking my colleagues and friends from California 
and Washington, respectively, Representatives Cisneros and Gluesenkamp 
Perez, for their support of this legislation.
  Small businesses are the backbone of our economy. They are the 
innovators, the job creators, and the driving force behind economic 
growth.
  In Minnesota, small businesses account for over 99 percent of all 
businesses and employ over half of the workforce. It is no exaggeration 
to say that the success of our economy is tied to the success of our 
small businesses.
  Despite government set-asides meant to help small businesses compete, 
participation in Federal contracting has dropped by 50 percent over the 
past decade. That means fewer small businesses are securing Federal 
contracts, and fewer are benefiting from the opportunity to grow and 
innovate.
  The Federal Government is the largest purchaser of goods and services 
in the world. If we are serious about supporting small businesses, we 
need to ensure they have a fair shot at competing for these contracts.

                              {time}  1630

  Right now, the scorecard system measures whether agencies are meeting 
their small business contracting goals, but it fails to consider how 
many of those contracts go to first-time participants. Without this 
data, we don't know if new small businesses are successfully entering 
the marketplace or if the same firms are winning contracts year after 
year.
  If small businesses can't break into Federal contracting, innovation 
is stifled, costs for taxpayers increase, and American entrepreneurs 
lose out on opportunities to grow.
  My bill, the SPUR Act, addresses this issue by requiring the SBA to 
track and report the number of new small business participants into the 
Federal procurement space. This simple but crucial change will ensure 
that small businesses, especially new and growing ones, have a fair 
shot at competing.
  Too many Federal agencies fall short of their small business 
contracting goals, leaving billions of dollars in contracts out of 
reach for American entrepreneurs. The SPUR Act will provide 
transparency and accountability, ensuring that the Federal Government 
is doing its part to support small businesses. I urge my colleagues to 
support this important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, you are from the great State of New York. Forty-five 
years ago tonight, Team USA, led by Herb Brooks and 12 Minnesotans, 
beat Finland for the gold medal, and I congratulate them 45 years 
later.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Cisneros).
  Mr. CISNEROS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Small 
Business Procurement and Utilization Reform, or SPUR, Act.
  I thank Congressman Stauber and Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez for 
joining me in introducing this bipartisan legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, small business owners and entrepreneurs take a chance 
when they start their ventures, so it is only right that the Federal 
Government do what it can to provide them with a greater opportunity to 
succeed.
  Our government plays a vital role in working to keep our economy 
strong and vibrant, and Federal contracts can be a great opportunity 
and boon for our small businesses.
  However, the government isn't doing enough to ensure our local small 
businesses have access to these opportunities. We need to not only do 
more for small businesses with existing Federal contracts but also help 
attract new small businesses to navigate the Federal contracting 
process.
  The SPUR Act will help ensure more small businesses, like those in 
the San Gabriel Valley which I represent, can fairly compete for 
Federal contracts.
  The SPUR Act will require Federal agencies to examine the following 
data:
  How many small businesses received a prime contract for the first 
time and are owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans.
  It will track the concerns of qualified HUBZone small businesses, 
track the concerns of businesses controlled by socially and 
economically disadvantaged individuals, and track the concerns of small 
businesses owned and controlled by women.
  There are several HUBZones in my district, including the cities of El 
Monte, Covina, Azusa, and La Puente. There are even more small 
businesses owned by women and people of color in my district. They are 
working just as hard as other small business owners to realize their 
dreams, and they deserve to play on the same level playing field as 
other small business owners that

[[Page H742]]

have experience navigating the Federal bureaucracy.
  I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense, bipartisan piece of 
legislation, and I thank, again, the co-leads of Congressman Stauber 
and Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez.
  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I 
am prepared to close. I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the work of my colleagues on 
this bill, and I urge its adoption. I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support 
this commonsense legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Moore of North Carolina). The question 
is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Williams) 
that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 818.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. WILLIAMS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and 
nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

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