<p><span>Good afternoon, and welcome to the SEC’s 41</span><span>st</span><span> annual </span><a href="https://www.sec.gov/oasb/sbforum2022">Small Business Forum</a><span>. This is one of my favorite events of the year, and not just because it brings together hundreds of people who are passionate about capital raising, all of our Commissioners, as well as other government leaders. This annual event signals that no matter the good work we have done, we will always need advocates pushing us to rethink and retool our policies in response to a constantly changing environment.</span></p>
<p><span>Good morning, and thank you for spending time today with the SEC learning about the breadth of work underway at the agency. One thing is certain: you should be clear by now that the views expressed are the speakers’ own thanks to copious disclaimers throughout this conference.</span><a id=" ednref1" name=" ednref1" href="https://www.sec.gov/news/speech/miller-sec-speaks-2021?utm medium=email&utm source=govdelivery# edn1">[1]</a></p>
A Toast To 40: Opening Remarks At The SEC Small Business Forum, Martha Miller, Advocate For Small Business Capital Formation, May 24, 2021 Date
24/05/2021
Good afternoon, everyone. Whether this is your first Small Business Forum or fortieth, I want to thank you for joining us today and over the course of the week. Planning any 40th event whether a birthday, anniversary, or work milestone engenders an element of nostalgia. If this were a birthday party, we might have a slideshow of childhood pictures and play top hits from the year of birth. In planning for this year’s 40th Small Business Forum, our team couldn’t help but think about the original Forum in 1982 and the events that precipitated it. So please humor me today as I paint the picture of then and now, photos and all. The good news for you: unlike a birthday party toast, this one will not trail on and on, leaving you wondering which cousin will take the mic from the loquacious uncle.