ABC continued its longstanding opposition to the Obama administration’s blacklisting proposal by submitting a letter for the record in support of the Sept. 29 Committee on Small Business Subcommittees on Contracting and the Workforce and Investigations, Oversight and Regulations hearing titled The Blacklist: Are Small Businesses Guilty Until Proven Innocent?

“The blacklisting proposal is illegal and creates an unworkable reporting and compliance burden on federal contractors because it is a job killer, jeopardizing the jobs of workers whose livelihoods are tied to their employer’s federal contracts,” said ABC Director of Labor and Federal Procurement Ben Brubeck. “By circumventing longstanding suspension and debarment procedures, the proposal will create an environment where qualified federal contractors may be needlessly debarred resulting in less competition for federal contracts and increased costs to taxpayers.”

As noted by Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight and Regulations Chairman Cresent Hardy (R-Nev.), 57 percent of respondents in ABC’s survey of its federal contractor members believe that they will abandon the pursuit of federal contracts if the blacklisting rule is finalize as proposed..

“ABC will continue to work with Congress to improve and streamline the federal procurement process to best suit taxpayers, small businesses and American workers and thank Chairmen Hanna and Hardy for holding this hearing,” Brubeck said.

A more complete rundown of ABC’s opposition to the blacklisting proposal is available at abc.org/blacklisting.