Sixteen U.S. Senators who sit on the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on April 2, which urged commission members to support efforts and calls by the states to combat IP theft.
In the letter, the bipartisan group of Senators wrote: “We are writing to you to ask you to consider a request submitted by the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) to use all the tools at your disposal to fight the theft and use of stolen American manufacturing information technology (IT) and intellectual property (IP).” SBE Council shares the concerns of these Senators as the theft of, and disregard for, IP hurts small to mid-size firms and their ability to compete domestically and internationally. Innovation and investment also suffer as a result of such theft.
Specifically, the letter points to businesses that use stolen IP. The Senators believe this is unfair, stifles innovation and forces “law-abiding businesses – large and small –to compete against those businesses that reduce their operating costs through the use of pirated IP.”
The NAAG has asked for the support of the FTC in fighting stolen IP, and put that request in writing on November 4, 2011.
Karen Kerrigan, President & CEO
Showing posts with label Senate Small Business Committee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Senate Small Business Committee. Show all posts
Senate Small Business Committee Chair is Out-of-Touch
“I mean, somebody made a mistake on this, and it should’ve gone through a committee.” – Quote by U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu, Chair, Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship on the JOBS Act, H.R. 3606, – the bill that includes key capital formation provisions supported by SBE Council. (Read the quote in its context here.)
So, Chairwoman Landrieu has become the biggest opponent of H.R. 3606, the JOBS Act. She claims the White House made a mistake in supporting it. As did 407 members of the U.S. House of Representatives when they first voted "yes" for H.R. 2930, the "Entrepreneurs Access to Capital Act" (the crowdfunding bill), and a second time 390 members for the JOBS Act, H.R. 3606, which includes H.R. 2930 as well as several other capital formation bills strongly supported by SBE Council.
There is no reason why the Senate Small Business Committee couldn’t have held hearings on the current crowdfunding space, how it works, why fraud is nonexistent, etc. so she could better understand this marketplace. Crowdfunding has been one of the hottest issues of discussion among entrepreneurs for several years, yet seemingly no interest from a Committee that is supposed to be keeping up with issues of importance to small business. In fact, the Committee has held only two hearings this year in total (one on March 20), according to the hearing schedule posted on its website.
The various provisions of H.R. 3606 were properly vetted in the U.S. House where, again, it received wide bipartisanship support -- TWICE. Chairman Landrieu needs to get out of the beltway bubble to understand the modern entrepreneurial marketplace and the innovation that is taking place to better serve the needs of America's small businesses. Unfortunately, she is standing in the way of entrepreneurs and small business owners who desperately need capital to startup and grow their businesses.
Karen Kerrigan, President & CEO, SBE Council
So, Chairwoman Landrieu has become the biggest opponent of H.R. 3606, the JOBS Act. She claims the White House made a mistake in supporting it. As did 407 members of the U.S. House of Representatives when they first voted "yes" for H.R. 2930, the "Entrepreneurs Access to Capital Act" (the crowdfunding bill), and a second time 390 members for the JOBS Act, H.R. 3606, which includes H.R. 2930 as well as several other capital formation bills strongly supported by SBE Council.
There is no reason why the Senate Small Business Committee couldn’t have held hearings on the current crowdfunding space, how it works, why fraud is nonexistent, etc. so she could better understand this marketplace. Crowdfunding has been one of the hottest issues of discussion among entrepreneurs for several years, yet seemingly no interest from a Committee that is supposed to be keeping up with issues of importance to small business. In fact, the Committee has held only two hearings this year in total (one on March 20), according to the hearing schedule posted on its website.
The various provisions of H.R. 3606 were properly vetted in the U.S. House where, again, it received wide bipartisanship support -- TWICE. Chairman Landrieu needs to get out of the beltway bubble to understand the modern entrepreneurial marketplace and the innovation that is taking place to better serve the needs of America's small businesses. Unfortunately, she is standing in the way of entrepreneurs and small business owners who desperately need capital to startup and grow their businesses.
Karen Kerrigan, President & CEO, SBE Council
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