| If
you're being treated unfairly by your USDA inspector, if
he or she harasses you and treats you unprofessionally,
you now have recourse where you can protest what's going
on, and take some action to get help. The U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA) enforces a federal law called the Small
Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Fairness
Act (SBREFA). SBA's Office of National Ombudsman 'sjob it
is to make federal regulatory enforcement friendlier toward
small businesses. If you are having problems with a regulatory
agency such as USDA or FDA, you can fill out a form outlining
the problem and send it to the Office of Ombudsman. This
office will take action to encourage the regulatory agency
to improve the way they do business with small businesses
such as yours. The form is below. When you fill it out,
send it and any supporting materials you have to:
Instructions
for Completing the Federal Agency Appraisal Form.
To record your comment, please:
-
Fill out each section of the form;
- Print or type the information;
- Select an appropriate confidentiality / disclosure option,
and;
- Sign and date the form.
Information
to include with the Agency Appraisal Form:
-
Describe briefly the positive and negative aspects of
the agency contact with your small business (for example,
your perceptions about the courtesy, professionalism,
knowledge base and training of the agency personnel who
contacted the small business).
- Describe briefly how the agency could have served your
small business better.
- Describe briefly the enforcement or compliance inspection
or review activity performed and its result.
- If an enforcement action was taken, provide specific
facts and supporting
documentation such as correspondence between your small
business and the agency, starting with the date of your
first agency contact (the agency's enforcement or other
letters, such as a citation, a copy of your business'
canceled check to the agency, etc.- also see Confidentiality
/ Disclosure, below)
- Provide a statement that estimates the number of employees
and net revenues for the year in which the compliance
or enforcement action or inspection/ review activities
took place.
Confidentiality
/ Disclosure
If you have chosen disclosure Option 3, "My identity and
the identity of my small business may be fully disclosed
and made public", any and all information you provide to
the Ombudsman's Office will be subject to full disclosure
to any person who files a request to see this information
under the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). If
you select Option 3, please keep this in mind in deciding
which materials to provide to the Ombudsman's Office in
support of your concern with the federal agency.
Important
Information about this program:
-
Only federal government agency regulatory compliance and
enforcement actions are covered by the process.
- Neither the Ombudsman nor the Regulatory Fairness Boards
can overrule an agency decision or stay an action.
- This process is not a substitute for any legal action
you may choose to exercise. You should pursue all options
you believe to be in your best interest.
Note:
The Ombudsman/Fairness Board process has no effect on your
rights or obligations under the procedures of the agency
on which you are commenting. You must still comply with
all of that agency's processes and procedures.
Return
the completed, signed and dated form and supporting materials
to:
Nicholas
N. Owens, National Ombudsman
Office of the National Ombudsman
U. S. Small Business Administration
409 Third Street, SW
Washington, DC 20416
Telephone: 1-888-REG-FAIR (734-3247)
Fax: 202-481-5719
E-mail: Ombudsman@sba.gov
Click
here for a printable version of form
(PDF Format) |
