White House Conference on Small Business Act of 2025

Bill Number

H.R. 6855

Origin Chamber

House

Congress

119th Congress, Session 1

Policy Area

Commerce

Status

Introduced

Latest Action

2025-12-18: Referred to the House Committee on Small Business.

Last Updated

2026-02-11T09:06:22Z

AI-Generated Summary

Purpose

The White House Conference on Small Business Act of 2025 reauthorizes and updates the original White House Conference on Small Business Authorization Act (from 1990). Its main goal is to convene small business owners and stakeholders to discuss challenges facing small businesses, prioritize issues, and recommend policy improvements to support their growth and contribution to the U.S. economy. The conference aims to foster collaboration on federal assistance programs and long-term solutions.

Key Provisions

• Conference Structure and Timing: Establishes state, regional, and national conferences to gather input from small business delegates. The national conference must occur between December 31, 2025, and December 1, 2026, with planning starting no later than October 1, 2025.
• Delegate Selection: Participants must be small business owners, officers, or employees. Delegates to the national conference include:
• One appointed by each state governor or chief executive.
• One appointed by each member of Congress (including delegates and the Puerto Rico Resident Commissioner).
• 100 appointed by the President.
• Elected delegates from state conferences.
• Each delegate has an alternate, selected similarly.
• Policy and Operations: A Policy Committee, chaired by the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration (SBA), will develop recommendations. An electronic system will enable ongoing communication among delegates for at least four years post-conference to refine ideas and track policy actions.
• Evaluation Focus: The conference will assess SBA and other federal small business programs, recommending enhancements.
• Co-Sponsorship and Activities: The SBA Administrator can co-sponsor events with for-profit, nonprofit, or government entities, but must avoid implying endorsement of their products or services.
• Funding: Operations are funded solely through voluntary gifts, donations, or bequests from non-federal sources (no taxpayer money). Unused funds return to the U.S. Treasury upon conference end. Conflicts of interest in accepting gifts are prohibited, as determined by the SBA Inspector General.
• Scope: "State" includes the 50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and U.S. territories.
• Fees: Increases the registration fee for the national conference from $10 to $200 to help cover costs.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Updated Timeline: Shifts the conference from the original 1995 dates to 2025-2026, extending the planning period.
• Enhanced Purpose: Expands the focus from general small business issues to prioritizing economic impacts, including explicit evaluation of federal programs for improvements (previously less emphasized).
• Delegate Rules: Tightens eligibility to verified small business representatives and formalizes appointments (e.g., presidential slots and alternates), replacing looser prior structures.
• Leadership and Staffing: Lowers the executive director's pay grade from GS-18 to GS-15 (a senior federal civil service level) and assigns the SBA's Chief Counsel as chair for better alignment with small business advocacy.
• Technology Addition: Introduces a mandatory online platform for delegate collaboration, absent in the original law.
• Funding Shift: Eliminates appropriations; relies entirely on private donations (original allowed federal funding). Replaces outdated sections on co-sponsorship and adds gift-acceptance rules.
• Fee Increase: Raises participant fees significantly to offset reliance on donations.

Potential Impacts

• On Government Agencies: The SBA gains authority to host or co-sponsor events but must self-fund through donations, potentially reducing administrative burden while increasing reliance on private support. Other federal agencies may face recommendations for program tweaks, leading to efficiency gains or policy shifts.
• On Citizens: Small business owners benefit from a structured forum to voice concerns (e.g., regulations, access to capital), potentially influencing laws that ease operations and boost economic participation. Broader public awareness of small business issues could grow via the conference's visibility.
• On International Relations: Minimal direct impact, though recommendations might indirectly affect trade or global competitiveness policies for small exporters.

Main Stakeholders Affected

• Small Business Owners and Employees: Primary participants and beneficiaries, as they elect delegates and shape recommendations.
• Small Business Administration (SBA): Oversees implementation, funding, and program evaluations; its Chief Counsel leads the Policy Committee.
• Federal and State Governments: Congress and governors appoint delegates; agencies like the General Services Administration assist with logistics and gifts.
• Nonprofit and Private Entities: Can donate or co-sponsor, gaining recognition but not endorsements.
• Congressional Members: Each appoints a delegate, ensuring representation of diverse districts.

Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications

• Legal: Strengthens conflict-of-interest safeguards for gift acceptance, aligning with federal ethics rules (e.g., under the Internal Revenue Code for nonprofits). The donation-only funding model avoids new appropriations, complying with budget laws but risking underfunding if donations fall short.
• Constitutional: No apparent challenges; it supports free speech and assembly by facilitating stakeholder input on economic policy, without infringing on rights.
• Political: Promotes bipartisan small business advocacy (introduced by representatives from different parties), potentially influencing future legislation on economic recovery or deregulation. The expanded delegate appointments ensure balanced representation across government levels, reducing perceptions of top-down control, but the fee hike might limit access for lower-income participants. Overall, it modernizes a decades-old framework to address contemporary issues like digital tools and program accountability without partisan overtones.

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.

Sponsor

Rep. Finstad, Brad [R-MN-1]

Cosponsors (3)

Rep. Davis, Donald G. [D-NC-1], Rep. Wied, Tony [R-WI-8], Del. King-Hinds, Kimberlyn [R-MP-At Large]

Recent Actions

• 2025-12-18: Referred to the House Committee on Small Business.
• 2025-12-18: Introduced in House
• 2025-12-18: Introduced in House

Bill Versions

• White House Conference on Small Business Act of 2025 — issued 2025-12-18 — PDF (7 pages)