SBA Seeking Input on Reducing Regulations

Public comments sought regarding regulations to repeal, replace, or modify

On August 15, 2017, the US Small Business Administration (SBA) released a request for information (“RFI”) www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2017-08-15/pdf/2017-17176.pdf seeking input from the public as to which SBA regulations should be repealed, replaced, or modified because they are obsolete, unnecessary, ineffective, or burdensome. Comments are requested on or before October 15, 2017.

The RFI notes that federal agencies have an ongoing responsibility to ensure that the regulations they issue do not have an adverse economic impact on those affected by them. Various executive orders over numerous administrations have expressly directed agencies to review their regulations with an eye towards reducing the time and money necessary to comply. Two recent executive orders provide the framework for SBA’s current effort to reduce the regulatory burden on the participants in the agency’s programs. One of SBA’s primary objectives is to continue to promote economic growth, innovation, and job creation in the small business sector, and to ensure that disaster survivors have the clear policy and procedural guidance needed to quickly obtain financial assistance to rebuild their lives. Those responding to SBA’s request for feedback are encouraged to keep these objectives in mind.

The recent Executive Orders seeking to reduce the number and costs of federal regulations include Executive Order 13771, signed by President Trump on January 30, 2017, requiring agencies to identify two existing regulations that the agency may cancel for every new regulation it proposes to implement, and Executive Order 13777, in which President Trump ordered agencies to evaluate existing regulations to determine ones to be repealed, replaced, or modified.

Through the RFI, SBA seeks comments as to SBA regulations that parties believe impose unnecessary burdens or costs that exceed their benefits, eliminate jobs or inhibit job creation, or are ineffective or outdated. The RFI includes the following list of questions:

  • Are there SBA regulations that have become unnecessary or ineffective and, if so, what are they?
  • Are there SBA regulations that can be repealed without impairing SBA’s regulatory programs and, if so, what are they?
  • Are there SBA regulations that have become outdated and, if so, how can they be modernized to better accomplish their regulatory objectives?
  • Are there SBA regulations that are still necessary, but which have not operated as well as expected such that a modified approach is justified, and what is that approach?
  • Are there SBA regulations or regulatory processes that are unnecessarily complicated or could be streamlined to achieve regulatory objectives more efficiently?
  • Are there any technological developments that can be leveraged to modify, streamline, or repeal any existing SBA regulatory requirements?
  • Are there any SBA regulations that are not tailored to impose the least burden on the public?
  • How can SBA best obtain and consider accurate, objective data about the costs, burdens, and benefits of existing SBA regulations?
  • Are there any specific suggestions of ways SBA can better achieve its regulatory objectives?

Comments may be submitted, identified by Docket Number SBA-2017-0005, using either of the following methods:

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Identify comments by “Docket Number SBA-2017-0005, Reducing Regulatory Burden RFI,” and follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Mail: Holly Turner, Regulatory Reform Officer, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 Third Street SW., Washington, DC 20416.

SBA will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov.

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