Benjamin Franklin once said, "He that would fish, must venture his bait." In America, we have millions of creative women and men, and even teens, who cast their reels everyday in the hopes of catching the American dream. And fortunately, we have the most vibrant economy in the world and the Small Business Administration to help them.

This week, the Small Business Administration is hosting its annual celebration of America's entrepreneurs at the Washington Hilton. President Bush spoke to the group yesterday in recognition of their tremendous contributions.

Just how important are small business owners? These innovators create 60 to 80 percent of new jobs nationwide. They generate more than 50 percent of the gross domestic product.

Small business owners are the heart of the American market place, and their contributions to jobs and productivity are its life blood.

In my home state of Tennessee, over 97% of all businesses are small businesses.

Women owned businesses generate billions of dollars in revenue and employ tens of thousands of workers.

Minority owned firms, the fastest growing small business sector in America, account for nearly 33,000 small businesses in Tennessee.

Elisa Comer, CEO of Eagle's Landing Transcription Service of Johnson City, TN, has been chosen this year as one of the Small Business Administration's 50 Small Business People of the Year.

Elisa's company offers cutting edge electronic technology that improves medical record keeping. This happens to be an issue that, in my capacity as a Senator, I have worked very closely on. Companies that provide up to the minute, medical records technology are crucial to improving patient care, patient safety, and improving efficiency in the medical field.

Workers and consumers depend on entrepreneurs like Elisa to generate jobs and provide higher quality products and services. And with the help of the Small Business Administration, America's entrepreneurs can get their ideas off of the ground and into a neighborhood near you.

Take for example the restaurant chain, the Outback Steakhouse. It may come as surprise to some, but Outback Steakhouse is not headquartered in Australia. It is headquartered right here in America, in Tampa, Florida.

In a little over a decade, Outback Steakhouse has grown from a small restaurant operation into a nationwide phenomenon.

In February of 1990, the two and half year old company employed approximately 300 people and had a net worth of less than $2 million. That year, it received a boost from the Small Business Administration. Ten years later, the restaurant chain employs more than 38,000 people and, in 1999, posted revenues of a dizzying $1.6 billion. Outback has restaurants in 48 states and 13 countries as far away as Seoul and Rio de Janeiro.

Staples is another dazzling example of the Small Business Administration's catalytic effect. It started as a single office supply store in Brighton, Massachusetts in 1986. The office supply store is now the country's largest operator of office superstores.

Staples employs 58,000 people and has an annual gross sales of $11.6 billion. It even offers products and services to up and coming small businesses to help them cut costs.

The Small Business Administration has helped more than 22 million Americans start, grow and expand their businesses. It has become the government's most effective instrument for economic development. With its help, small companies have grown from a handful of employees into the thousands.

The SBA is just one part of our efforts to support job creating policies.

In the 2003 Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Act, we provided 25 million small business owners with tax relief totaling $75 billion.

In fact, small businesses received 80% of the benefits of the reduction in the top marginal tax rate.

The tax relief package quadrupled the amount that small businesses can expense for new capital investments, which will lead to new investment in technology, machinery, and other equipment.

And it phases out the Federal death tax ensuring that family business owners are able to leave their businesses to their families or key employees.

These pro-growth polices are helping to create new jobs, increase productivity and make every consumer's dollar go further.

Remington electric shaver magnate and pitchman Victor Kiam once observed, "Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity – and are able to turn both to their advantage."

I commend my fellow citizens who possess this talent to turn obstacles and opportunity not only to their advantage, but to the advantage of us all. Their risk taking and creativity help keep America moving forward.

[Speech originally delivered on April 29, 2005]