HR 4668 — POST IT Act of 2023

changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

 SMALL BUSINESS ACT

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SEC. 30. OVERSIGHT OF REGULATORY ENFORCEMENT.

 (a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the term--
 (1) ``Board'' means a Regional Small Business 
 Regulatory Fairness Board established under subsection 
 (c); and
 (2) ``Ombudsman'' means the Small Business and 
 Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman designated 
 under subsection (b).
 (b) SBA Enforcement Ombudsman.--
 (1) Not later than 180 days after the date of 
 enactment of this section, the Administrator shall 
 designate a Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory 
 Enforcement Ombudsman, who shall report directly to the 
 Administrator, utilizing personnel of the Small 
 Business Administration to the extent practicable. 
 Other agencies shall assist the Ombudsman and take 
 actions as necessary to ensure compliance with the 
 requirements of this section. Nothing in this section 
 is intended to replace or diminish the activities of 
 any Ombudsman or similar office in any other agency.
 (2) The Ombudsman shall--
 (A) work with each agency with regulatory 
 authority over small businesses to ensure that 
 small business concerns that receive or are 
 subject to an audit, on-site inspection, 
 compliance assistance effort, or other 
 enforcement related communication or contact by 
 agency personnel are provided with a means to 
 comment on the enforcement activity conducted 
 by such personnel;
 (B) establish means to receive comments from 
 small business concerns regarding actions by 
 agency employees conducting compliance or 
 enforcement activities with respect to the 
 small business concern, means to refer comments 
 to the Inspector General of the affected agency 
 in the appropriate circumstances, and otherwise 
 seek to maintain the identity of the person and 
 small business concern making such comments on 
 a confidential basis to the same extent as 
 employee identities are protected under section 
 407 of title 5, United States Code;
 (C) based on substantiated comments received 
 from small business concerns and the Boards, 
 annually report to Congress and affected 
 agencies evaluating the enforcement activities 
 of agency personnel including a rating of the 
 responsiveness to small business of the various 
 regional and program offices of each agency;
 (D) coordinate and report annually on the 
 activities, findings and recommendations of the 
 Boards to the Administrator and to the heads of 
 affected agencies; and
 (E) provide the affected agency with an 
 opportunity to comment on draft reports 
 prepared under subparagraph (C), and include a 
 section of the final report in which the 
 affected agency may make such comments as are 
 not addressed by the Ombudsman in revisions to 
 the draft.
 (c) Regional Small Business Regulatory Fairness Boards.--
 (1) Not later than 180 days after the date of 
 enactment of this section, the Administrator shall 
 establish a Small Business Regulatory Fairness Board in 
 each regional office of the Small Business 
 Administration.
 (2) Each Board established under paragraph (1) 
 shall--
 (A) meet at least annually to advise the 
 Ombudsman on matters of concern to small 
 businesses relating to the enforcement 
 activities of agencies;
 (B) report to the Ombudsman on substantiated 
 instances of excessive enforcement actions of 
 agencies against small business concerns 
 including any findings or recommendations of 
 the Board as to agency enforcement policy or 
 practice; and
 (C) prior to publication, provide comment on 
 the annual report of the Ombudsman prepared 
 under subsection (b).
 (3) Each Board shall consist of five members, who are 
 owners, operators, or officers of small business 
 concerns, appointed by the Administrator, after 
 receiving the recommendations of the chair and ranking 
 minority member of the Committees on Small Business of 
 the House of Representatives and the Senate. Not more 
 than three of the Board members shall be of the same 
 political party. No member shall be an officer or 
 employee of the Federal Government, in either the 
 executive branch or the Congress.
 (4) Members of the Board shall serve at the pleasure 
 of the Administrator for terms of three years or less.
 (5) The Administrator shall select a chair from among 
 the members of the Board who shall serve at the 
 pleasure of the Administrator for not more than 1 year 
 as chair.
 (6) A majority of the members of the Board shall 
 constitute a quorum for the conduct of business, but a 
 lesser number may hold hearings.
 (d) Powers of the Boards.--
 (1) The Board may hold such hearings and collect such 
 information as appropriate for carrying out this 
 section.
 (2) The Board may use the United States mails in the 
 same manner and under the same conditions as other 
 departments and agencies of the Federal Government.
 (3) The Board may accept donations of services 
 necessary to conduct its business, provided that the 
 donations and their sources are disclosed by the Board.
 (4) Members of the Board shall serve without 
 compensation, provided that, members of the Board shall 
 be allowed travel expenses, including per diem in lieu 
 of subsistence, at rates authorized for employees of 
 agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, 
 United States Code, while away from their homes or 
 regular places of business in the performance of 
 services for the Board.
 (e) Centralized Website.--Not later than 6 months after the 
date of the enactment of this subsection, the Ombudsman shall 
maintain a publicly available website that includes--
 (1) hyperlinks to small entity compliance guides 
 described under section 212(a)(1) of the Small Business 
 Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996; [and]
 (2) with respect to each such small entity compliance 
 guide, the contact information for an individual who 
 can offer assistance to small entities with respect to 
 the rules that are the subject of such guide[.]; and
 (3) to the extent practicable, hyperlinks for such 
 guidance that is designed to set forth policy on a 
 statutory, regulatory, or technical issue, or an 
 interpretation of such issue, for any rule for which an 
 agency produces a small entity compliance guide.
 (f) Report on Agency Compliance.--The Ombudsman shall include 
in the annual report required under subsection (b)(2)(C) an 
assessment of agency compliance with the requirements of 
section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 
Fairness Act of 1996 for the year covered by such annual 
report.
 (g) Protection of Confidential Information.--Subsection (e) 
does not require the public availability of information that is 
exempt from public disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5, 
United States Code (commonly known as the ``Freedom of 
Information Act'').

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