ms. velazquez: mr. chairman, i would like to inquire if the other side -- mr. chabot: we do. ms. velazquez: i reserve. the chair: the gentleman from ohio. mr. chabot: i'd like to yield one minute to the gentleman from florida, who is also a new member of the small business committee. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. mr. curbelo: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the chairman for being a strong advocate for our nation's emerging entrepreneurs. i look forward to serving under his leadership on the small business committee. mr. speaker, our local businesses employ our friends and neighbors. helping them pay their bills and provide a bert life for themselves and their he -- better life for themselves and their lives. when we talk about helping our local businesses, it's not just about the entrepreneurs. it's also about helping the workers that depend on them for their paychecks. it's not just about strengthening main street. it's also about keeping our neighbors strong and prosperous. we should never forget the vital role that our local businesses play in our communities. the sma

ms. velazquez: i rise in opposition to the bill before us today. as we all know, small businesses are critical to sustaining our economic growth and it only makes sense to cater our economic policy to meet their needs. congress needs to continue promoting our ultimate goal of providing small firms with certainty and simplicity in our tax code. expanding section 179 permanently is one way to accomplish this goal. unfortunately h.r. 636 negligents other important provisions in the tax code benefiting small firms. what about r&d tax credit? or modernizing the depreciation schedule. these are important tax reform that small businesses have been asking for so long. here we are again enacting a piecemeal tax bill that does nothing to accomplish our bipartisan goal of passing comprehensive tax reform. republicans, they love to claim that they are fighting for small businesses, when it's convenient for them. however, today's bill doesn't provide enough for small business, and it certainly doesn't meet what the other side of the aisle claims is the most imp