EXCLUSIVE — The top Republicans on the House and Senate Small Business committees are calling on the Small Business Administration to comply with oversight after they launched an investigation into potential electioneering activities.
“The House and Senate Committees on Small Business have a constitutional duty to conduct oversight of the SBA,” Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) said in a joint statement shared with the Washington Examiner.
“To little surprise, Biden’s SBA has continued to stonewall and ignore legitimate requests from both Committees. We are extremely disappointed that the agency has chosen this path, nevertheless, we’re not stopping our joint efforts to get answers on behalf of the American people,” they added.
The House committee, led by Williams, subpoenaed SBA chief of staff Arthur Plews and adviser Tyler Robinson after the two did not attend a scheduled interview and failed to turn over documents the committee requested.
The investigation is surrounding SBA’s collaboration with the Michigan Department of State on a program “to promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan,” according to a press release that came out last month. The Michigan Department of State would generate a link for SBA to use to drive online visitors to register to vote. The agency’s Michigan field office would also allow officials to hold voter registration events. The outreach effort comes as President Joe Biden’s campaign focuses on Michigan as a critical state to win.
Ernst, the ranking member on the panel in the upper chamber, recently sent a letter to SBA Administrator Isabel Guzman, demanding answers after an undercover video was posted on X by a conservative video activist showing an adviser talking about how “Guzman travels across the country to help elect Democrats.”
Ernst sent the letter last month, demanding more information from Guzman, looking into whether the agency violated the Hatch Act, which was intended to stop the federal government from affecting elections or acting in a partisan manner. The law applies to federal employees as well as state and local employees who work with federally funded programs.
In addition, Ernst has requested the SBA inspector general look into telework abuse after the Government Accountability Office found only 9% of employees were working in the office.
“We must ensure the SBA is focused solely on helping America’s small businesses, not working to campaign or swing votes by conducting and participating in outside political activities,” the lawmakers added in their statement.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“These potential violations demand immediate attention. It is our hope Administrator Guzman and her agency choose to work with us to bring much-needed transparency and accountability,” they said.
The Washington Examiner reached out to SBA for comment.