May 28, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 100 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Pages H2330-H2332]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  0945
   SMALL BUSINESS TRANSPARENCY AND REPORTING FOR THE UNDERBANKED AND 
                         TAXPAYERS AT HOME ACT

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 6782) to require the Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration to submit a report on recipients of assistance under the 
paycheck protection program and the economic injury disaster loan 
program, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 6782

       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 Transparency 
     and Reporting for the Underbanked and Taxpayers at Home Act'' 
     or the ``TRUTH Act''.

     SEC. 2. REPORT.

       Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business 
     Administration shall make publicly available, in an online 
     format that is sortable and searchable for key words and 
     downloadable (to the extent technically practicable), the 
     following information with respect to the paycheck protection 
     program and the economic injury disaster loan program:
       (1) An identification of each recipient of assistance in an 
     amount greater than $2,000,000 from funds appropriated under 
     the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136) or the Paycheck Protection 
     Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (Public Law 116-139).

[[Page H2331]]

       (2) An explanation of the decision-making processes under 
     which such funds were disbursed.
       (3) The number of employees of each entity that received 
     such assistance.
       (4) The date on which such assistance was disbursed.
       (5) An identification of each lender or intermediary 
     through which such assistance was disbursed.
       (6) The amount of assistance provided to small business 
     concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically 
     disadvantaged individuals (as defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) 
     of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)), small 
     business concern owned and controlled by women (as defined 
     under section 3(n) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 632(n)), and small 
     business concern owned and controlled by veterans (as defined 
     in section 3(q) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 632(q)), from 
     information voluntarily provided by such concerns.

     SEC. 3. COMMITMENTS FOR 7(A) LOANS.

       Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the amounts 
     authorized for commitments for general business loans 
     authorized under section 7(a) of the Small Business Act (15 
     U.S.C. 636(a)) under the heading ``business loans program 
     account'' under the heading ``Small Business Administration'' 
     under title V of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 
     (Public Law 116-93; 133 Stat. 2475) shall apply with respect 
     to loans made under such section 7(a), other than loans made 
     under paragraph (36) of such section 7(a), on and after the 
     date of enactment of this Act.

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


                             General Leave

  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. 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 measure under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill before us today, H.R. 
6782, the Small Business Transparency and Reporting for the Underbanked 
and Taxpayers at Home Act, or the TRUTH Act.
  The CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care 
Enhancement Act provided over $725 billion in relief to nonprofits, 
small businesses, and the independently employed who are struggling to 
cope with the economic downturn brought about by the spread of COVID-
19.
  By utilizing the SBA's Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and 
creating the Paycheck Protection Program, Congress took swift action to 
provide a necessary lifeline. And while both programs have saved 
countless livelihoods, jobs, and businesses, millions more remain left 
out.
  Unfortunately, it won't matter how much money Congress spends to 
address these problems if Congress cannot track where the money is 
going to verify that it is reaching the families and businesses that 
need it most.
  To that end, my colleagues and I have sent multiple oversight letters 
to SBA requesting detailed data and information on the implementation 
of the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loans. 
To date, we have not received anything more than what SBA has published 
on their website. This is simply unacceptable.
  It is vital that the administration be transparent and good stewards 
of taxpayers' dollars. I am proud to support the bipartisan effort 
before us today, led by my esteemed colleagues Mr. Phillips of 
Minnesota and Mr. Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.
  The bill requires SBA to publish an online database of the recipients 
of PPP and EIDL loans over $2 million. It would also list the number of 
employees at each business benefiting from this assistance and the 
amount of funds provided to underserved businesses.
  This is precisely the kind of data Congress needs to ensure that the 
programs are being administered as intended and, more importantly, to 
ensure the scarce funds are reaching those communities and businesses 
that need it most.
  Furthermore, the bill includes language that will decouple the 7(a) 
loan program and Paycheck Protection Program accounts.
  Currently, both programs share the same appropriations account, 
meaning that once the Paycheck Protection Program appropriation lapses, 
the 7(a) loan program will shut down along with it. It was never 
congressional intent to tie the future of both programs together, so in 
order to preserve the sustainability of the 7(a) loan program, it is 
necessary to decouple the two accounts.
  At a time when the future of the small business economy is so 
uncertain, it is of top importance to ensure the long-term 
sustainability of the 7(a) loan program. This language achieves that 
goal.
  I applaud the bipartisanship and, more importantly, the commitment to 
being good stewards of the taxpayers' dollars.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues, Republican and Democrat, to 
join me in voting for stronger transparency and oversight of the CARES 
Act programs. Our hardworking small business owners and the American 
people deserve no less.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in reluctant opposition to H.R. 6782, the Small Business 
Transparency and Reporting for the Underbanked and Taxpayers at Home 
Act, or the TRUTH Act, as amended.
  Mr. Speaker, I do want to express my appreciation to Chairwoman 
Velazquez and her staff for working with me and with my staff on this 
legislation, as well as many other pieces of legislation in the past.
  On this specific bill, we were able to negotiate a couple of changes 
that made the bill slightly more palatable for those of us on this side 
of the aisle, and that would have not happened without the chairwoman's 
leadership, so we do appreciate that.
  That said, philosophically, it is exceptionally difficult for me and 
others on this side of the aisle to accept the bill in its entirety. 
For instance, I am a firm believer that small businesses are just that, 
small businesses; and as long as they qualify under the Small Business 
Act and the SBA size standards, no one small business ought to have to 
do anything different under the law than any other small business.
  In addition to all the burdensome reporting requirements this 
legislation would impose on small businesses, there are two specific 
provisions that are difficult for us to support.
  First, the bill we have before us attempts to name--and some would 
say, shame--businesses that are recent PPP loan recipients above $2 
million. And I do appreciate Chairwoman Velazquez going from $250,000 
to $2 million.
  These businesses--at least the ones that acted in good faith--
followed the law and the guidelines and received their loans based on 
the best information available at that time, and I do not believe that 
those businesses should be put on public display for potential shaming.
  If they didn't follow the rules, we have remedies for calling them 
out, such as the SBA's Office of the Inspector General, even the 
Department of Justice, to seek out waste, fraud, and abuse. Publicly 
naming them will do little to increase transparency or anything else, 
for that matter, we believe.
  Second, the bill requires, albeit voluntarily, small businesses to 
disclose whether they are economically disadvantaged, minority owned, 
women owned, or veteran owned. As I mentioned previously, I believe we 
ought to be making regulatory burdens fewer and farther between, not 
imposing more paperwork that doesn't help any business fight this 
pandemic.
  Again, Mr. Speaker, I reluctantly oppose this legislation but again 
thank the chairwoman for her leadership and willingness to work with us 
on these bills and on many issues facing America's small businesses 
moving forward.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Phillips), the sponsor of the bill.
  Mr. PHILLIPS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Velazquez for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about truth.
  Now, you would think that truth would not be up for debate in this 
Chamber, yet here we stand literally

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debating my bill, the TRUTH Act, which simply injects transparency and 
accountability into the very largest expenditure of taxpayer money in 
American history.
  That is it. There is no hidden agenda, just a straightforward 
requirement for the Small Business Administration to publish 
information about how Federal relief dollars are flowing and where they 
are going. And that truth should be important to every American: 
business owners and patrons, bankers and borrowers, Republicans and 
Democrats.
  We cannot accept a situation in which bigger businesses with access 
to other sources of liquidity are pushing to the front of the line at 
the expense of those with the greatest need, particularly minority-, 
women-, and veteran-owned businesses that are struggling the very most 
during the pandemic.
  I won't accept it.
  I am on a mission to restore Americans' faith in their government. 
But trust is earned by action, not by words. So I ask my colleagues to 
join me in supporting the TRUTH Act, in allowing the American people to 
see where their money is going and in ensuring that businesses that 
need relief the most are getting it.
  They say that sunlight is the best disinfectant, and we could surely 
use more of it here.
  Mr. CHABOT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I 
want to thank the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) on her 
leadership, and I regret that we cannot support this particular piece 
of legislation; however, I am certain that we will continue to work 
together in a bipartisan manner to address the needs of America's small 
businesses.
  I would note, just in response, briefly, to the gentleman's mention 
that this is called the TRUTH Act, just because something is called the 
TRUTH Act doesn't necessarily mean that it is the truth, just like 
something called the Affordable Care Act doesn't necessarily mean it is 
going to make healthcare more affordable.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, when this body spent trillions of dollars to address the 
economic downturn brought about by COVID-19, we included a special 
inspector general to provide oversight over the expenditure of these 
dollars. Unfortunately, President Trump said the special IG could not 
issue reports to Congress without Presidential supervision and 
subsequently removed the acting IG at the Pentagon and chairman of the 
panel.
  So with the erosion of accountability, transparency is needed more 
than ever. Congress needs to ensure that there is no waste, fraud, or 
abuse of taxpayers' dollars.

                              {time}  1000

  This data collection and transparency bill is a positive step in that 
direction, providing much-needed transparency and accountability. 
Knowledge is power and, with this bill, the public will finally have 
the knowledge on how these programs have been implemented, where the 
money has gone, who has gotten it and who hasn't.
  Not only will this empower the people, it will empower Congress as we 
continue working to optimize the CARES Act programs.
  The bill also clarifies the program accounts for the Paycheck 
Protection Program and the 7(a) Loan Program are wholly distinct, 
ensuring that the SBA's flagship lending program will not shut down 
when the Paycheck Protection Program appropriation lapses.
  As the small business economy begins to recover in the coming weeks 
and months, small businesses need to be able to access affordable 
capital to rehire workers, restock their shelves, and resume 
operations. This language ensures the 7(a) program will be an option 
for them in the next phase of recovery.
  I urge my colleagues to support this measure, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 6782, 
the Small Business Transparency and Reporting for the Underbanked and 
Taxpayers at Home Act or TRUTH Act, which directs the Small Business 
Administration (SBA) to explain and justify all disbursements of 
coronavirus relief funds, ensuring transparency and accountability from 
this critical agency.
  Together, the CARES Act and the Payroll Protection Program and Health 
Care Enhancement Act together allocated more than $2 trillion to 
address the devastating coronavirus pandemic, the most expensive relief 
package ever authorized by Congress, and the largest outlay of taxpayer 
funds in all human history.
  The stakes simply are too high to allow irresponsible stewardship, 
and those charged with disbursing coronavirus relief funds must be held 
to the highest standards and held to account for misfeasance or 
malfeasance.
  Mr. Speaker, it is wholly unacceptable that the SBA has not to date 
provided full transparency over its administration of the Payroll 
Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program 
(EIDL).
  PPP and EIDL were created by Congress to provide relief for small 
businesses affected by the pandemic, and more than $700 billion has 
been allocated in service of those goals.
  However, in too many cases the programs did not function as Congress 
intended, and large organizations such as the Los Angeles Lakers 
received funding while many of our smallest and most vulnerable 
businesses were unable to secure assistance.
  In light of this mismanagement, it is imperative that SBA be subject 
to an exhaustive audit of its handling of PPP and EIDL funding.
  The agency has refused to do so voluntarily, requiring Congress to 
mandate compliance from the agency that exists to serve small business, 
the backbone of the American economy.
  The TRUTH Act would require the SBA to make the following information 
publicly available in an online, searchable, sortable, and downloadable 
format within 30 days of passage:
  1. The identity of every recipient of a grant or loan that was funded 
by the CARES Act or the Payroll Protection Program and Health Care 
Enhancement Act;
  2. An explanation of the SBA's decision-making process;
  3. The number of employees at the entity in question;
  4. The date when the grant or loan was disbursed;
  5. The identification number of the bank or lender that administered 
the grant or loan; and
  6. The amount of assistance provided to small businesses owned by 
socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, women, and 
veterans.
  Mr. Speaker, the COVID-19 pandemic has challenged us in ways we could 
have scarcely imagined; it has claimed lives and destroyed livelihoods 
all across our nation.
  We are in this together and we will come out stronger and better.
  And we do that by caring for each other and rendering equal, justice 
and fairness, whether it is in the area of coronavirus testing, 
distribution of PPE, or economic assistance.
  Our small businesses need help and they need the truth, which is why 
I urge my colleagues to join me in voting to pass H.R. 6782, the TRUTH 
Act.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 6782, as amended.
  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. ROY. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3 of House Resolution 
965, the yeas and nays are ordered.
  Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings on this question 
are postponed.

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