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Resident Commissioner promotes development through Small Businesses

April 5, 2017

Meets with SBA Administrator, Linda McMahon

Washington, DC - This morning, Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González Colón, participated in a public hearing convened by the Small Business Committee of the US House of Representatives, where the discussion focused on what were the priorities to be established for the development of small entrepreneurs, as well as the administrative priorities of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

As part of her turn, the resident commissioner questioned SBA Administrator Linda McMahon for five minutes about how the expansion of the HUBZone designated enterprise areas under the PROMESA legislation would have a positive effect on the economy from Puerto Rico. She also reminded her that the General Accounting Office (GAO) is conducting aa study on HUBzones in the Island that should be ready for this summer.

Under PROMESA 500 locations in the Island were added to the HUBzone program for a total of 776 in Puerto Rico. In addition to pointing this out, the Resident Commissioner asked how can the government can meet the 3% federal 3% contracting target in Puerto Rico for these zones, which all together represent 82.1% of the island communities.

Administrator McMahon told the Commissioner that in the only six weeks she has been in the position, she has appointed Michael Morales, a Puerto Rican from Naranjito and a senior advisor to the administrator, as a 'White House fellow' to lead the compilation of activities in the island for SBA and HUBzones.

According to estimates by the Resident Commissioner, if Puerto Rico were just able to reach even a 2% federal contracting goal out of the 3% maximum, that could represent $330 million direct input to the island's economy in small and medium traders.

González-Colón also asked the Administrator to review the services of the Small Business Administration in the disbursement of disaster mitigation loans for small businesses, Puerto Rico being a focus of hurricanes and floods due to our geographic location, while preventing abuse of these benefit programs for small and medium merchants.

Administrator McMahon asked the Congresswoman to gather, list and forward requests from local merchants to review the procedures in these areas that apply in Puerto Rico.

At the end of the hearing, the commissioner met with the administrator and the Puerto Rican official in charge of the data gathering for the island.

"I am grateful to Administrator McMahon for her willingness to help develop our economy through small business owners and HUBzones. I invited the administrator to visit the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Base and small businesses in Puerto Rico. And it was a great opportunity to be able to talk with Michael Morales, White House liaison in SBA, who besides being from Naranjito and member of the Air Force, is the person in charge of information about Puerto Rico for the Administrator. I will be with him when he visits the Island later in April," concluded the resident commissioner.

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