Jaime Herrera Beutler, Member of the House Small Business Committee, announced today that Southwest Washington business owner Dixie Kolditz has been invited to Washington, DC, to give Congress her expert testimony regarding challenges facing the small business economy.
The House Small Business Committee will hold a hearing Wednesday, February 16, in Washington, DC entitled “Putting Americans Back to Work: A Look at the Small Business Economy.” With the larger goal of empowering small businesses – the number one source of new jobs in America – the Committee has invited a few small business owners from around the country to testify on tax, regulatory and health care policies that are inhibiting small business. At Herrera Beutler’s request, Dixie Kolditz of Cathlamet will be one of four expert witnesses to speak before the Committee.
Dixie and her husband are the owners of Open-Box Creations, a wholesale home décor company located in Cathlamet, Washington that specializes in unique products from around the world. Though Dixie hopes to hire 15-20 people to help with the business in the coming year, inefficient and increasingly unpredictable inspection fees have burdened their business’ growth. For instance, a container from Thailand will be inspected, re-inspected, and stored for indeterminate lengths of time – and Dixie has no way of knowing how long it will take, or what the final government bill will be. She only knows that her business picks up the full tab for inspections and each day of storage.
“Small business owners like Dixie will be the ones who lead Southwest Washington’s economic turnaround – if government lets them,” said Herrera Beutler. “I want to thank Chairman Graves for honoring my request that Ms. Kolditz be allowed to testify. I’m thrilled that Congress has reached into our backyard for help on turning the small business economy around. The real jobs ‘experts’ aren’t based in Washington, DC; they’re out in our communities, striving to build successful businesses that put people to work. I’ll be urging my colleagues in Congress to listen and respond to what these experts tell us small business needs to survive.”
