The Office of Advocacy is led by
the Chief Counsel for Advocacy,
who is appointed by the President
and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
The Chief Counsel independently
advances the views, concerns, and
interests of small business before
Congress, the White House,
federal regulatory agencies,
federal appellate courts as an
amicus curiae on regulatory
matters, and state policymakers.
The office identifies issues of
concern through economic
research, policy analysis, and
outreach to small business owners
and representatives. The Chief
Counsel’s efforts are supported
by staff in Washington, D.C., and
by Regional Advocates around
the nation.
Putting government
to work for small business
Are you a small business owner concerned about how
a regulatory proposal might affect your business?
Or a researcher who needs to know more about the
demographics of small business owners, their financing sources, or their innovative prowess? Are you a
state policymaker looking for information about the
number of small firms in your state or city, and how
many jobs they create? The Office of Advocacy is a
great source for answers to these kinds of questions.
Region 10
Alaska, Oregon,
Washington, Idaho
Region 8
Montana,
Wyoming,
North Dakota,
South Dakota,
Colorado, Utah
Iowa, Kansas,
Missouri,
Nebraska
Region 5
Illinois, Indiana,
Michigan,
Minnesota, Ohio,
Wisconsin
Region 1
Connecticut, Maine
Massachusetts,
New Hampshire,
Rhode Island, Vermont
Region 2
New Jersey, New York,
Puerto Rico,
Virgin Islands
Region 3
Delaware, Maryland
District of Columbia,
Pennsylvania, Virginia,
West Virginia
Region 9
Arizona,
California,
Guam, Hawaii
Nevada
The source for small business
research
As the federal office responsible for examining the
contributions and challenges of small businesses
in the U.S. economy, we are constantly looking for
answers to small business questions—those that
intrigue researchers, challenge business organizations, enlighten policymakers, and vex small business owners.
The office publishes research reports on such topics as the availability of financing to small firms, the
cost of regulations to small firms, the demographics
of business ownership, and the dynamics of firm and
job creation.
Reference materials published annually
include small business profiles for each of the 50
states and U.S. territories, quarterly updates of general and lending data, and an FAQ on small business.
All of these and many more research resources are
available on the “Research and Statistics” tab of the
Office of Advocacy website, www.sba.gov/advocacy.
Advocacy reaches out with information to academics and think-tank researchers, federal and state
policymakers, trade associations, the media, and all
who have an interest in small firms. We strive to be
the government source of information for and about
small business.
Check our website to find what you
need to know about small business.
Region 7
Region 4
Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky,
Mississippi,
North Carolina,
South Carolina
Tennessee
Region 6
Arkansas, Louisiana,
New Mexico, Texas,
Oklahoma
A Washington advocate on
small business regulatory concerns
On the regulatory front, Advocacy’s attorneys work
within government, educating regulators about their
obligation to consider how small entities will be
affected by federal regulatory proposals.
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) requires
federal agencies to determine the impact of their
proposed rules on small entities, to consider alternatives (or flexibilities) that minimize small entity
impacts while still meeting regulatory goals, and to
make their analyses available for public comment.
The Office of Advocacy is charged to help implement these requirements. We work hard to give
small firm owners and their representatives opportunities to make their voices heard about rules that
affect their interests. Our Regulatory Alerts webpage
highlights notices of proposed rulemaking that may
significantly affect small entities.
It can be reached
from our webpage, www.sba.gov/advocacy.
Each year the Office of Advocacy helps small
businesses save billions in regulatory costs. And
we continue to look for new ways to ease the regulatory burden on small firms.
A national network for small
business input
Gathering input from firms around the country is
key to the Chief Counsel’s ability to effectively
represent small business concerns to the rest of the
federal government. To accomplish this, Advocates
are located in 10 regions nationwide.
They work
with businesses, stakeholders, and state and local
government to provide a direct link to Washington.
Listening to concerns and making connections,
the Regional Advocates are there to hear your
small business concerns and to help level the playing field for small businesses in your area. Find out
more about your Regional Advocate by visiting our
website, www.sba.gov/advocacy, and selecting the
“Regional Advocates” tab.
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