Chabot, Risch Frontrunners For Posts
With the mid-term elections approaching fast,
the Washington Post on Tuesday looked at potential changes to the leadership of
the House and Senate small business committees. In the House, where the GOP is
expected to retain control, Chairman Sam Graves is expected to step down at the
end of the year as part of six-year chairmanship term limits honored by the
House Republicans. The leading candidate to replace him is Ohio Rep. Steve
Chabot, though others said to be interested include Colorado’s Scott Tipton and
Chris Collins and Richard Hanna of New York. Chabot has seniority, and has
previously been the ranking member.
The situation is more complicated in the Senate. Political pundits generally give the GOP a
better-than-even chance of picking up the six Senate seats they need to take
control of the chamber, which would usher in a new chairman. In that case,
ranking member Jim Risch of Idaho is expected to become the new chairman. If
the Democrats retain control, Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell is expected to
stay in place as chair.
What This Means For Small Business:
Chabot has a strong
record of supporting small business legislative initiatives, including
regulatory reform, simplifying the tax code and addressing provisions important
to employers in Obamacare. Chabot is the author of the Permanent Internet
Tax Freedom Act, the Small Business Investment Company Modernization Act and the Promoting Startup Innovation
Act.
Additional Reading:
The Washington
Post examines the issue in depth.