An original resolution authorizing expenditures by the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
This is a Senate resolution (S. Res. 71) introduced by Senator Joni Ernst on behalf of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. It authorizes specific expenditures and staffing for the committee from March 1, 2025, through February 28, 2027. The resolution allows the committee to spend from the Senate’s contingent fund, hire personnel, and, with the right approvals, use services of staff from other government departments or agencies on a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis. It sets explicit budget caps for three time periods and includes rules about how expenses are paid (vouchers are typically required, with some exceptions). It also allows agency contributions to help cover the committee’s employee compensation. In short, it provides a formal funding framework to support the committee’s hearings, investigations, and related staff activities over a two-year period.
Key Points
- 1General authority to spend, hire staff, and obtain services from other government bodies for the committee’s work from March 1, 2025, to February 28, 2027.
- 2Budget caps by period:
- 3- March 1, 2025 – September 30, 2025: up to $2,769,908 (with up to $50,000 for consultants and up to $10,000 for staff training).
- 4- October 1, 2025 – September 30, 2026: up to $4,748,413 (with up to $50,000 for consultants and up to $10,000 for staff training).
- 5- October 1, 2026 – February 28, 2027: up to $1,978,505 (with up to $50,000 for consultants and up to $10,000 for staff training).
- 6Payment and voucher rules: most expenses are paid from the contingent fund upon vouchers approved by the committee chair, but certain items (e.g., salaries, telecom, stationery, postages, copying charges, recording services, and mass mail costs) do not require vouchers.
- 7Agency contributions: provides for contributions from the Senate’s appropriations to cover the compensation of committee employees for the defined periods.
- 8Interagency staffing: the committee can use personnel from other government departments or agencies on a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis, with prior consent from the relevant department/agency and the Rules and Administration Committee.