The National Ombudsman has helped thousands of small businesses save time and money by resolving difficult regulatory compliance and enforcement issues. Our role is to promote a level playing field for small business by working directly with federal regulators to facilitate practical and timely resolutions for regulatory enforcement fairness matters impacting small businesses.
America’s small business owners want and deserve a fair shot to succeed. The National Ombudsman ensures fair enforcement of small business regulation by providing small business owners a confidential way to report and resolve problems such as excessive enforcement action or disproportionate fines. The National Ombudsman escalates these concerns to federal agencies for fairness review and resolution. We promote fairness for small businesses by:
1. Helping resolve federal regulatory issues
2. Helping reduce excessive fines and penalties
3. Working to create federal regulatory solutions that promote small business success
Why a National Ombudsman?
Too often, even well-intentioned rules or regulators’ actions can have unintended consequences that create unnecessary barriers to small business success. And that’s where the Office of the National Ombudsman comes in. The Ombudsman helps small business owners understand regulatory requirements, resolve disputes with Federal regulators, and ultimately thrive. The Office of the National Ombudsman (ONO) is an office established within the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Act of 1996 (SBREFA). The National Ombudsman is charged with holding federal regulators accountable for playing fair and responding to small business regulatory concerns. As part of this, the National Ombudsman reports to Congress its findings on the impact of the policies and practices of every federal agency that touches small business.
An Accessible and Responsive Channel for Small Businesses
Small businesses can connect with the National Ombudsman online at sba.gov/ombudsman, in-person, or through a national network of Regulatory Fairness Board Members. The National Ombudsman meets with small business owners around the country at listening sessions and regulatory fairness dialogues in all ten SBA Regions. These outreach events provide critical, real-time input from the small business community on regulatory enforcement fairness issues impacting small business growth and help federal regulators better understand how government can best support small business success. These events also enable small businesses to learn how the SBA and the National Ombudsman can be resources in navigating procurement and regulatory issues.
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