by Will Purcell, Director of Regional Affairs
The Office of Advocacy (Advocacy) advances the views and concerns of small businesses before Congress, the White House, federal agencies, federal courts, and state policymakers. As the voice for small businesses in the federal government, it is critical for Advocacy to hear from small business stakeholders all over the country so that we can better understand their concerns. After all, different regions have different concerns, and the Office of Regional Affairs works diligently to make sure those are heard in Washington D.C.
Advocacy’s Office of Regional Affairs consists of staffers spread across the country. A regional advocate is located in each of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) ten geographic regions. The advocates are the eyes and ears for Advocacy across the nation. They help promote and champion small businesses in their region. Regional advocates:
- Represent the Chief Counsel for Advocacy in their regions, often facilitating opportunities for the Chief Counsel and DC staff to meet with local businesses concerned about regulations that impact their business.
- Conduct extensive outreach to regional small business communities so that Advocacy’s DC team is better informed of distinct regional and local small business concerns.
- Maintain a partnership with regional and district SBA staffers to ensure that SBA is aware of Advocacy’s products and actions.
- Refer regulatory concerns for already existing rules to regional Regulatory Fairness Boards and the SBA Office of the National Ombudsman. This ensures that even small businesses outside of Advocacy’s scope of work are heard.
Each regional advocate engages with small businesses differently, based on their region, their network of contacts, and their background. However, all the regional advocates work to amplify the voices of the small businesses in their regions to ensure that critical information makes it back to Washington D.C.
The advocates amplify small business voices by relaying stories from the field. The advocates’ news articles are a useful way to showcase their work. This allows Advocacy to spotlight small business struggles and successes, which provides personal insight into complex regulatory law and a face to government statistics.
If you are a small business and wish to reach out to an advocate in your region, or you are a trade group or local association that wishes to have a regional advocate speak at one of your events, feel free to reach out to an advocate in your region. Alternatively, you can reach out to Will Purcell, Director of the Office of Regional Affairs, at will.purcell@sba.gov.