News From Congresswoman
Nydia M. Velázquez
Representing New York's 12th Congressional District - Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens
Ranking Democratic Member, House Small Business Committee

For Immediate Release
March 5, 2004

CONTACT: Wendy Belzer, Kate Davis (202) 225-2361

Velazquez: Latest Jobs Report Disappoints
Administration sticks to failed economic policies, job creation is non-existent

WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-N.Y.), Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee, today called the latest report issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), "not unexpected, but extremely disheartening, especially for those 8.2 million Americans out of work."

"Yesterday, the Small Business Committee Democrats released a report on how Bush's FY 2005 budget cuts more than $1 billion in federal small business programs, and prevents approximately $2 billion in capital from getting into the hands of our nation's entrepreneurs," Congresswoman Velazquez said. "The numbers released today by BLS just confirm what this report already tells us - by not investing in small businesses, which create three out of every four new jobs - we will never see the job creation needed for a sustained economic recovery. Job creation and small business go hand-in-hand."

The BLS report showed the unemployment rate remaining stagnant at 5.6 percent in February, and also a paltry 21,000 jobs being created last month, with none of them in the private sector. In addition, the BLS also lowered its count of job gains in November and December by 23,000. The hard hit manufacturing sector lost jobs for the 43rd month in a row, with factories cutting approximately 3,000 positions.

"There's a lot of talk coming out of the White House about this administration's support for small business," Congresswoman Velázquez said. "The president has made it a point to travel around the country and visit small business owners," Congresswoman Velazquez said. "But all you need to do is look at the Bush policies - from the latest tax cut, where just 3 percent of the $350 billion package was in the form of targeted small business tax relief, to the FY 2005 budget, in which funding for small business programs was slashed - and you realize this is not a small business friendly administration. The talk simply does not match the walk. Our small business owners lose, our workers lose, and our economy loses under the Bush policies."

The report compiled and issued yesterday by the Democrats of the House Small Business Committee identified 36 programs serving the small business community that were either cut or terminated in the Bush administration's FY 2005 budget proposal. In addition, the report examined a number of tax measures that would specifically help the small business sector that were excluded from the budget.

"My question continues to be - how can this administration continually say it wants to help small businesses and then turn around and cut all the programs that are out there to help our country's entrepreneurs?" Congresswoman Velázquez said. "It just doesn't make any sense."

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