U.S. Sens. Dean Heller (R-NV) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) urged Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman (SEC) Jay Clayton to make appointments to its Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation.
The office was created by the SEC Small Business Advocate Act, legislation sponsored by Heller and Heitkamp last December. The office was designed to make sure the interests of small businesses and startups are heard during the federal rulemaking process.
“Despite the huge importance of small businesses to the US economy, collectively, they continue to face challenges being heard here in Washington,” Heller and Heitkamp wrote in a letter to Clayton.
“Small businesses, especially those in areas outside of the coasts, are at times underrepresented in many facets of the lawmaking and regulatory process. This lack of attention doesn’t just harm small business; it also adversely impacts investors and the public at large.”
With new federal rules and laws in the process of being implemented, the senators are urging Clayton to move quickly to appoint to serve in this new office.
“As the SEC moves forward to set up the Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation (Small Business Advocate), we urge you to consider candidates that have a demonstrated track record of advocacy on small business matters and a clear understanding of the regulatory and capital formation challenges facing small business start-ups, especially in areas outside of the coasts, such as North Dakota and Nevada,” the senators added. “Once the Small Business Advocate position is filled, we urge the Commission to move quickly to stand up the new Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (Advisory Committee).”
Last week, Heller and Heitkamp’s bill, Supporting America’s Innovators Act, unanimously passed in the U.S. Senate. The legislation would bolster investments in startups and small businesses in rural communities.