South Carolina Acts To Support Small Business – Gives Small Business A Voice In The State Regulatory Process

South Carolina small businesses will face a
friendlier regulatory environment, thanks to new legislation signed into
law today by Governor Mark Sanford. The new law gives South Carolina’s
small businesses a voice in the state’s regulatory process.

“South Carolina’s small business owners now have a seat at the
table when regulatory decisions are made,” said Thomas M. Sullivan, Chief
Counsel for Advocacy. “When their voice is heard, better decisions are
made, and that means more jobs and growth for South Carolina. Small
business owners are lucky that they have friends like Governor Sanford and
the bill’s co-sponsors, Representatives Harry Cato, Daniel Tripp, Garry
Smith, Michael Anthony, and Douglas Jennings,” he said.

The “Small Business Regulatory Relief Act” (H 4130) implements
elements of small business friendly regulatory legislation
(http://www.sba.gov/advo/laws/law_modeleg.html) put forward as a model by
the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration. Similar
to the federal Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), it encourages
entrepreneurial success by requiring state agencies to consider their
impact on small business before they issue final regulations.

“This bill is all about making life easier for our state’s small
businesses, which is a big step forward in stimulating job creation and
economic growth in South Carolina,” Gov. Sanford said. “Ultimately, though,
letting those businesses keep more of what they earn so they can reinvest
in new people, new equipment and new technologies is going to have the
biggest impact on our state’s economy,” he continued.

The model legislation, endorsed by the American Legislative
Exchange Council (ALEC), is pending in 12 states. In the past year, small
business regulatory flexibility has been implemented in six states
including most recently Wisconsin and South Dakota.

Passage and signing of the “Small Business Regulatory Relief Act”
is a result of South Carolina small business stakeholders working together
to promote small business. This coalition included the South Carolina
State Chamber of Commerce, and the South Carolina Business and Industry
Political Education Committee was led by Michael Fields, state director for
the National Federation of Independent Business.

For more information and the complete text of the model
legislation, visit the Office of Advocacy website at http://www.sba.gov/advo.

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Created by Congress in 1976, the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small
Business Administration (SBA) is an independent voice for small business
within the federal government. Appointed by the President and confirmed by
the U.S. Senate, the Chief Counsel for Advocacy directs the office. The
Chief Counsel advances the views, concerns, and interests of small business
before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, federal courts, and
state policy makers. Economic research, policy analyses, and small
business outreach help identify issues of concern. Regional Advocates and
an office in Washington, DC, support the Chief Counsel’s efforts. For more
information on the Office of Advocacy, visit http://www.sba.gov/advo, or call
(202) 205-6533.

** Visit Advocacy’s Regulatory Alerts page to learn about and comment on
proposed federal rules that may affect small business:
http://www.sba.gov/advo/laws/law_regalerts.html. **

** In order to receive e-mail notices of Advocacy’s news releases, monthly
newsletter, small business research, statistics, and regulatory
communications visit http://web.sba.gov/list. **