ms. snowe: let me object. mr. thune: i don't know if there is any time agreement here, but my understanding is that it's been going back and forth. the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. anything else? california. mrs. boxer: i have said -- i have offered a unanimous consent agreement, we are functioning, dividing the time between the two of us. it is my decision to yield to senator brown because senator snowe has spoken for a very long time, and i want him to have the time, and i'm wrapping up my comments. and i'd be happy to put in a unanimous consent request that after senator brown's remarks, ten minutes, that we turn to senator thune for 10 or 15 or 20 or whatever it is you want. mr. thune: mr. president, point of clarification here. the presiding officer: the senator from south dakota. mr. thune: my understanding is the senator from california cannot yield time to another senator. the presiding officer: the senator can yield time but not the floor. the senator from californ

ms. snowe: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from maine is recognized. ms. snowe: thank you. and i want to thank the senator from north dakota, senator hoeven, for his excellent remarks. he understands, as a former governor for ten years, the impact of regulations on small businesses and how detrimental they can be to job creation, and particularly at this time where we have a very difficult economy, we have persistently high unemployment, we have subpar economic growth, we are at a consequential moment in our economic history, frankly, mr. president, that deserves the attention of the united states senate on this particular issue. so i want to thank the senator for his comments and recognizing the effects that regulatory reform will have on the performance of small business and ultimately job creation in this economy. mr. president, i'm very pleased to have so many of my colleagues cosponsoring this amendment and i'm pleased as well to as worked with the senator from oklahoma, senator coburn, and has been cosponsored by senators mcconnell, ayotte, barrasso,

merkley, for himself and ms. snowe, propose amendment numbered 428.at the end, added following: federal regulation -- mr. merkley: madam president, i ask unanimous consent to dispense with further reading. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. merkley: thank you, madam president. i'd like to also speak to the bill before us on the economic development administration. i rise specifically to talk about the issue that is on the minds of all americans, and that is the topic of jobs. unemployment is far too high. my home state unemployment is too high. and that's before you count all of the folks who are underemployed, who have found some type of part-time work but it is not enough to support their family. we all know how worried americans are about this. it goes to the heart of their financial foundations, the success of their families, and it should be our top focus. the good news is that the bill before us creates jobs and stimulates the economy in our towns and regions that need the help the most. the economic development administration assista