House Votes Down Paul Kanjorski’s Anti-Small Business Amendment

House Votes Down Paul Kanjorski’s Anti-Small Business Amendment

Kanjorski Pushes Wall Street Bailouts But Wants to Suffocate Small Businesses with New Regulations

Washington- Luckily for small businesses, the House voted down Pennsylvania Democrat Paul Kanjorski’s amendment to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act today. Kanjorski’s amendment would have placed suffocating regulations and punishments on already struggling small businesses. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted to protect businesses from scandals like Enron and WorldCom which shook the foundations of the financial sector. Different from huge corporations, small businesses cannot endure the stringent regulations imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Democrats have already forced job-killing regulations and taxes on small businesses, focusing on expanding government while neglecting the engine of the economy–small businesses.

“Lawmakers today defeated 271-153 an effort to remove an exemption from legislation overhauling Wall Street regulation. The bill retains language letting companies with market values less than $75 million avoid complying with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act’s audit requirements.

“The amendment was offered by members including Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank and Representative Paul Kanjorski…Proponents of the exemption said imposing compliance fees on small companies would hurt the fragile U.S. economy.”

“Sarbanes-Oxley was adopted seven years ago to impose checks on businesses after meltdowns at Enron and WorldCom shook faith in the accuracy of corporate financial statements.”

“The SEC has never required businesses with market values below $75 million to comply with the audit requirements, providing multiple exemptions since 2004.” (Jesse Westbrook, “House Closer to Sparing Small Firms From Audit Costs,” Bloomberg, 12/11/2009)

“After bailing out Wall Street earlier this year, Kanjorski aimed to punish Main Street and small business owners today with job-killing regulations,” said NRCC Communications Director Ken Spain. “Rather than providing relief to the nations’ largest employer – small businesses – Paul Kanjorski attempted to impose more suffocating regulations and punishments on them. With Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate at 8.8 percent and climbing, Kanjorski is hopelessly out of touch if he thinks he can get away with these backward priorities.”

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