NFIB Urges Support for Small Business Regulatory Fairness Board

Date: February 15, 2019

NFIB members Scott George and Nancy Zurbuchen went before the House Small Business Committee on Feb. 13 and testified in support of House Bill 272. The measure, introduced by NFIB member Rep. Dan Shaul, would rejuvenate the Small Business Regulatory Fairness Board.

The board was created in 2005 to give small businesses a voice in the rulemaking process. It was an effective conduit between the small business community and state agencies. “Often, problems between agencies and small companies were worked out by just having a couple of phone calls or a face to face meeting,” said Brad Jones, NFIB’s state director for Missouri.

“Unfortunately,” Jones said, “during the last administration, appointments to boards and commissions just stopped happening.”

Too often, he said, board members were not replaced as their terms expired, and some boards and commissions, including the Small Business Regulatory Fairness Board, were unable to meet because they didn’t have enough members to have a quorum.

NFIB hopes HB 272 will restore the board to its full functionality, Jones said. “We need to get small business people appointed to the board and resume regular meetings,” he said. “We are also hoping to get some resources to better market the board to the small business community.”

The bill also moves the board from the Department of Economic Development to the secretary of state’s office. “Since the secretary of state has the responsibility for publishing state regulations, we feel they would be a better fit for housing the board,” Jones said.

The Small Business Committee will vote on the week of Feb. 18.

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