Ted Budd, NC
“I want the Senate to pass this bill right now. After Hurricane Helene, the government mismanaged disaster loans and ran out of money. This bill makes the agency tell Congress before the money runs out so small businesses can always get help.”
“Mr. President, the most basic responsibility of Congress is to identify problems and deliver policy solutions that better serve the American people. That means cutting unnecessary redtape, eliminating confusion, and fixing gaps in the Federal Government that prevent it from doing its job effectively. And that responsibility is often put to the test when disaster strikes. In Western North Carolina, Hurricane Helene did more than devastate our communities--it exposed weaknesses in our Federal disaster response that we, here in Congress, have a responsibility to fix. Any Senator who has served their State in the wake of a natural disaster knows that bureaucratic failures are not just problems on paper--they have real consequences for real people. Every unnecessary delay, outdated process, or a gap in our response can stand between a devastated community and the Federal assistance that it needs to recover and to rebuild. I understand that reality all too well, having walked the road to recovery with the people of Western North Carolina who lost everything in a once-in-a-century--hopefully, more than a century--storm. In this rural part of our State, small businesses drive local economies, and many were destroyed and shuttered after Helene. For many, their only hope of getting back on their feet was by accessing disaster loan assistance through the SBA, or the Small Business Administration. But in 2024, when these small businesses were trying to secure a fighting chance, the Biden administration--they dropped the ball by gravely mismanaging the SBA’s Disaster Loan Program. By issuing irresponsible rules, drastically increasing the costs of making and administering these disaster loans, and failing to notify Congress that funding to administer these loans was running low, the Biden administration allowed for a 66-day shortfall that impacted 97 percent of North Carolina residents. We can’t allow this to happen again. So I am bringing a commonsense solution to the table that has received bipartisan support in the Small Business Committee. My Disaster Loan Accountability and Reform Act will create more safeguards against a future shortfall by requiring annual appropriations to the SBA’s Disaster Loan Program and informing Congress when these funds are running low. The bill has one clear goal, and that is to make sure our Nation’s small businesses are never left without the disaster assistance that they were promised. The next major disaster should not expose the same failures as the last. It is our responsibility to mend broken systems and to coordinate the Federal Government and its agencies so that we are ready to manage the aftermath of the next major disaster. So I ask my colleagues to join me in taking a necessary step forward in improving our Federal disaster response by voting to pass this bill. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 448, H.R. 4238; further, I ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.”
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Speech in the House
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Mr. President, the most basic responsibility of Congress is to identify problems and deliver policy solutions that better serve the American people. That means cutting unnecessary redtape, eliminating confusion, and fixing gaps in the Federal Government that prevent it from doing its job effectively. And that responsibility is often put to the test when disaster strikes. In Western North Carolina, Hurricane Helene did more than devastate our communities--it exposed weaknesses in our Federal disaster response that we, here in Congress, have a responsibility to fix. Any Senator who has served their State in the wake of a natural disaster knows that bureaucratic failures are not just problems on paper--they have real consequences for real people. Every unnecessary delay, outdated process, or a gap in our response can stand between a devastated community and the Federal assistance that it needs to recover and to rebuild. I understand that reality all too well, having walked the road to recovery with the people of Western North Carolina who lost everything in a once-in-a-century--hopefully, more than a century--storm. In this rural part of our State, small businesses drive local economies, and many were destroyed and shuttered after Helene. For many, their only hope of getting back on their feet was by accessing disaster loan assistance through the SBA, or the Small Business Administration. But in 2024, when these small businesses were trying to secure a fighting chance, the Biden administration--they dropped the ball by gravely mismanaging the SBA’s Disaster Loan Program. By issuing irresponsible rules, drastically increasing the costs of making and administering these disaster loans, and failing to notify Congress that funding to administer these loans was running low, the Biden administration allowed for a 66-day shortfall that impacted 97 percent of North Carolina residents. We can’t allow this to happen again. So I am bringing a commonsense solution to the table that has received bipartisan support in the Small Business Committee. My Disaster Loan Accountability and Reform Act will create more safeguards against a future shortfall by requiring annual appropriations to the SBA’s Disaster Loan Program and informing Congress when these funds are running low. The bill has one clear goal, and that is to make sure our Nation’s small businesses are never left without the disaster assistance that they were promised. The next major disaster should not expose the same failures as the last. It is our responsibility to mend broken systems and to coordinate the Federal Government and its agencies so that we are ready to manage the aftermath of the next major disaster. So I ask my colleagues to join me in taking a necessary step forward in improving our Federal disaster response by voting to pass this bill. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 448, H.R. 4238; further, I ask that the bill be considered read a third time and passed; and that the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
