Rep. Scott Peters Lauds Innovators on National Entrepreneurs’ Day

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) recognized National Entrepreneurs’ Day and the men and women who are driving innovation across our country. Last year, Rep. Peters introduced H.Res. 401 to honor the late Duane Roth, a San Diego business pioneer, and to celebrate the culture of entrepreneurism that has spurred America’s economic growth.

“At the heart of America is the idea that you can start your own business and build it to success,” Rep. Scott Peters said. “Congress must send the message that we are focused on fostering economic growth and National Entrepreneurs’ Day should be just the beginning. We should also fix our broken immigration system to make it easier for the best and brightest from around the world to come start their ventures here. It is beyond time to reform our tax code so that businesses can spend less time on burdensome compliance and more time on growing their companies and creating jobs. And we must continue to find bipartisan places to remove unnecessary regulations that bog down innovators.”

“Congressman Scott Peters has provided a strong support to our small biotechnology company, Gaia Medical Institute in La Jolla,” said Sarka Southern, PhD., Founder and Scientific Director of Gaia Medical Institute. “As a result, the company was awarded a $6 million prime contract from the Department of Defense to develop a rapid saliva test for preventing dehydration in warfighters during training and combat. The contract created 20 new high-tech jobs in the 52nd District this year, and will create over 100 new jobs in future years. In addition, Mr. Peters’ support has promoted further growth in our business. This allowed us to start working on urgently needed new technologies such as a rapid saliva test for Ebola, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and post-traumatic stress (PTSD).”

“On Behalf of San Diego’s entrepreneurs and innovators, and those across the nation, CONNECT thanks Rep. Scott Peters for introducing H.R. 401 recognizing the third Tuesday of November as National Entrepreneurs’ Day,” said Greg McKee, CEO of CONNECT. “Entrepreneurs have been part of the fabric of our nation since the very beginning; building the foundation for the world’s most vibrant economy. Innovation, creativity, and hard work have formed the U.S. and few people exemplify these traits as powerfully as entrepreneurs. By celebrating the creativity, sacrifices, and accomplishments of past and present entrepreneurs we hope to inspire future generations to follow in those footsteps.”

Along with other members from the House New Democratic Coalition, Rep. Peters also participated in a Tweet storm to raise awareness for National Entrepreneurs’ Day using the hashtag #EntrepreneursDay. See @RepScottPeters or click HERE to see the Twitter activity.

Congressman Peters co-authored an op-ed today in the Huffington Post with Congressmen Patrick Murphy (FL-18) and Ron Kind (WI-03), colleagues from the pro-growth New Democrat Coalition, entitled “Entrepreneurs: Engines of Our Economic Growth” that focused on the role entrepreneurs and small businesses have in helping the United States maintain its competitive advantage. It can be read HERE. Rep. Peters’ op-ed from last November to honor National Entrepreneurs’ Day can be read HERE.

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