Chairman Williams hosts 250th‑anniversary Small Business hearing; witnesses press Congress on capital, predictability and tariffs

At a House Small Business Committee hearing this week, Chairman Williams convened witnesses representing family restaurants, manufacturing and small‑business service firms to mark the nation’s 250th anniversary and outline policy priorities for the next generation of entrepreneurs.

The panel of witnesses — Adrian Adornetto, owner of Adornetto’s Pizzeria; Philip Freeman, founder and CEO of Murphy’s Naturals and the Loading Dock; Anne Chabanko Moore, CEO of GSE Dynamics; and Veronica Kool, president and CEO of Kool and Associates LLC — told the committee that predictable rules, better access to capital and streamlined procurement are essential for small businesses to survive and expand.

“We need access to capital and flexible space,” Philip Freeman said in his opening remarks, listing those items as his first priority for congressional action. Freeman described the Loading Dock as a co‑warehousing model that lowers barriers to entry by removing rigid long‑term leases and personal guarantees for startups.

Adrian Adornetto, who testified about his family’s restaurants, said pandemic aid and tax provisions such as accelerated depreciation made crucial renovations and hires possible. Adornetto urged attention to operating costs that threaten multigenerational businesses, calling out merchant card fees as a growing burden: “credit card swipe fees ... are approaching more of my profit and loss than what I pay for benefits for my employees,” he said.

Anne Chabanko Moore framed the discussion around manufacturing and national security, noting GSE Dynamics supplies components for the U.S. military and that a shrinking supply chain and workforce shortages undermine resilience. She urged policies that sustain defense supply chains, expand employer‑led workforce training and modernize permitting to speed manufacturing investment.

Veronica Kool highlighted procurement and language access challenges, saying small contractors often confront excessive paperwork and compliance costs that deter entry into federal contracting. “Communication is economic infrastructure,” Kool said, describing how her firm’s bilingual outreach supported public health efforts during the COVID‑19 pandemic.

Members pressed witnesses on several recurring themes. Ranking Member Olszewski raised corporate consolidation and immigration enforcement as headwinds and pressed for inclusion of business group statements in the record. Members across the aisle pressed for regulatory simplification, tax policies that allow immediate expensing and greater coordination between federal and state regulatory bodies.

The hearing also addressed tariffs and reimbursement difficulties. Representatives asked whether small firms had sought refunds for tariff costs; Freeman said his company had submitted claims and had recently learned of a credit coming through a vendor but described the process as slow and administratively burdensome.

Lawmakers and witnesses emphasized that many solutions would require bipartisan work: expand SBA lending and flexible‑space programs, streamline procurement and technical assistance for women‑owned and small contractors, and reduce uncertainty in federal policy so businesses can plan investments.

Chairman Williams closed the hearing by thanking witnesses, giving members five legislative days to submit written materials and questions for the record, and adjourning the committee without any recorded votes.

The record for the hearing will include written testimony and the additional materials members submit in the coming days.