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“RECOGNIZING THE NATIONAL WOMEN'S BUSINESS COUNCIL” mentioning the Federal Reserve System was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1887 on Sept. 29, 1997.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
RECOGNIZING THE NATIONAL WOMEN'S BUSINESS COUNCIL
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HON. JOHN J. LaFALCE
of new york
in the house of representatives
Monday, September 29, 1997
Mr. LaFALCE. Mr. Speaker, as the ranking member of the Small Business Committee, I am proud that the reauthorization bill we reported contains strong support for women business owners. I am particularly delighted that our committee has reauthorized and expanded the National Women's Business Council.
As the Small Business Subcommittee Chair in the 1970's, I held a number of hearings on the unique challenges and obstacles faced by women business owners. Remembering these hearings, the late Gillian Rudd, then president of NAWBO, approached me shortly after I became chairman of the House Small Business. She said, ``Congressman LaFalce, now that you are Chairman of the full Committee, I hope you will do something what's never been done before. I hope you will take up the cause of women business owners and give them a seat at the table.'' That is exactly what I intended to do.
I asked Gillian to help me in preparing a series of hearings on women entrepreneurs. We searched for the best minds in the United States to learn about the business environment that was out there for women business owners. The hearings were a tremendous success, and we took our marching orders from the women who testified. We have learned that there were a number of things that Congress needed to do immediately to support the growth of women owned enterprises
First and foremost, we needed to create a National Women's Business Council to be a voice for women entrepreneurs within the Federal Government. We also knew that there would need to be an interagency task force, comprised of representatives from all the Federal agencies to work with the council in a public/private sector partnership. Finally, it was essential that we also come up with a business training program developed for women addressing their unique needs.
On the heels of receiving this information, delivered to the Small Business Committee in landmark testimony, I introduced and Congress passed H.R. 5050. That bill, the Women's Business Ownership Act of 1988, included several very important initiatives, including the creation of the National Women's Business Council. This was the first step in achieving our goals.
Now, 10 years later, we have accomplished all three of these goals. I am deeply gratified to have played a role in the establishment of all three and to see the fruits these efforts have borne. While it is so often repeated, I still think it merits mentioning just one more time. There are more than 8 million women business owners in the United States today, represented by 1,000 women's business organizations. Looking back on where we were two decades ago when this all began. I am still amazed at how the numbers of women entrepreneurs have skyrocketed. With greater growth in women's business ownership on the horizon, it is even more incumbent upon us to find ways to help these businesses succeed.
On July 21, the National Women's Business Council, in partnership with the Federal Reserve System and the Small Business Administration, held an Access to Capital and Credit Expert Policy Workshop in my district, in my hometown of Buffalo, NY. The purpose of the workshop was to make recommendations on how to expand the access to capital and credit. During this particular workshop, one of ten held around the country, we focused on the growth in western New York. The National Women's Business Council has compiled the recommendations made by the great women entrepreneurs of Buffalo and other women around the country into a report to be released tomorrow. I look forward to working with the Council on their implementation.
I have been working with the National Women's Business Council since I helped to create it in 1988. They have been an incredible resource to me and my staff. They do a wonderful job of representing women business owners around the country before Congress and the President, a task to which they have dedicated themselves wholeheartedly. The council is comprised of prominent women business owners and national women's business organizations which represent millions of women entrepreneurs nationwide. It is currently chaired by Lillian Vernon, a true American success story. These accomplished women are a resource at our disposal.
In 1988, I held a series of hearings on the problems that women entrepreneurs face--the first series of its kind--that was compiled into a report entitled ``New Economic Realities: The Role of Women Entrepreneurs.'' In it, I said that there is a great untapped gold mine that exists within the American economy. There is a pool of talent that is so rich, that if we could tap into it and exploit it, we could unleash a windfall for the American economy. We have finally begun to do that.
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