Four Months In: Sen. Kaine Holds Q & A With Local Entrepreneurs

“Thank you. Loudoun treated me real well.”

That’s how Tim Kaine, Virginia’s newest Senator, started an informal roundtable discussion with a group of Loudoun County small business owners at the Mason Enterprise Center Friday afternoon. The day marked his fourth month in office after a heated campaign against former Virginia Gov. George Allen that brought the two through Loudoun frequently last year.

Kaine, who served as Virginia governor from 2006 to 2010, gave the group of about 30 an update on what he’s been up to on Capitol Hill since he took office. Much of his focus has been on passing a budget—which the Senate did in March for the first time in four years—and drafting his first bill, the Troop Talent Act. The bill, which was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives last week, is designed to help veterans effectively translate their military skills and credentials into civilian employment.

“You can’t walk into a place of employment and say I was a gunnery sergeant in the Marine Corps and expect that somebody will know what you did,” Kaine said. “We appreciate the military, but we don’t always know what technical skills or leadership skills they bring to the table.”

Kaine also voiced his support fort the Market Place Fairness Act, which is expected to pass the Senate today. The legislation would allow states to require online retailers to collect sales tax for online purchases.

“I think it’s a positive thing because it levels the playing field for both bricks and mortar and online business,” Kaine said.

After he ran through the Senate highlights of the past few months, Kaine opened the floor up to questions.

Doug Fabbioli, owner of Fabbioli Cellars, told Kaine it feels as if large companies have more lobbying power to get their concerns to lawmakers compared with small business owners and entrepreneurs like himself because, “we’re so busy trying to make our businesses work. Do you feel like you’re hearing us? How can we get our thoughts and concerns to you?”

Kaine said lawmakers will not hear from small businesses unless politicians leave their office. “That’s why I spend recess traveling around Virginia—to listen.” He also encouraged Fabbioli and the other small business owners and entrepreneurs in the room to connect with local groups, such as the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce and the Mason Enterprise Center, a small business incubator in downtown Leesburg.

“Then when we come out and we talk about issues, they can boil them down and say ‘these are the five issues we’re hearing,’” Kaine said.

But he also said the “listening” should translate into policies that improve business. He told the group that as governor he worked to ensure more small businesses—and women- and minority-owned businesses—were getting government contracts to supply Virginia with everything from services to pencils. When he took office, 13 percent of government contracts went to women- and minority-owned businesses, and that figure rose to 40 percent by the time he left office in 2010.

“I very much want to do the same thing at the federal level,” he said. “It’s important to make sure that small, women- and minority-owned businesses are fairly represented around the table, as they are in the overall economy.”

Kaine sits on the Budget, Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees. Contact his office at www.kaine.senate.gov.

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