Shaheen Welcomes Funds to Grow New Hampshire Small Business Exports

Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the top Democrat on the U.S. Senate’s Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, today welcomed the announcement by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) that New Hampshire has been granted $199,878 to help small businesses in the state grow their exports. The funds are an award of the State Trade and Export Promotion (STEP) program, which was created by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 that Senator Shaheen cosponsored and helped craft as a member of the Senate Small Business Committee.

“Exporting holds tremendous opportunity for small businesses to grow their companies and tap into new markets,” said Shaheen. “With 95 percent of the world’s customers living outside of the United States, I’m glad that Granite State businesses will have support through the STEP program to increase their exports.”

Nationwide, the STEP program has supported more than $900 million in U.S. small business exports, producing a return-on-investment of 15 to1 for taxpayers. Shaheen has used her position on the Small Business and Appropriations Committees to consistently push for continued authorization and full funding of the program, including for the 2015 fiscal year.

The State of New Hampshire will use the STEP program to support eligible small business participation in export opportunities through direct financial assistance for counseling, market intelligence, and access to foreign markets. The program has a successful history in New Hampshire, leading to the creation of the NH Aerospace and Defense Export Consortium and providing matching grants to small businesses to help get into overseas markets or expand current export opportunities.