On November 13, 2008, the Office of Advocacy (Advocacy) filed comments with the National Park Service regarding its proposed rule on winter visitation and recreational snowmobile use in Yellowstone National Park.

Small businesses are the innovators of the American economy as they obtain many more patents per employee than larger firms, according to a study, An Analysis of Small Business Patents by Industry and Firm Size, released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Small businesses are the innovators of the American economy as they obtain many more patents per employee than larger firms, according to a study, An Analysis of Small Business Patents by Industry and Firm Size, released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Immigrant-owned businesses generate approximately 11.6 percent of all business income in the United States. Moreover, immigrants own 11.2 percent of businesses with $100,000 or more in sales and 10.8 percent of all businesses with employees. These figures are contained in a report, Estimating the Contribution of Immigrant Business Owners to the U.S. Economy, released by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Immigrant-owned businesses generate approximately 11.6 percent of all business income in the United States. Moreover, immigrants own 11.2 percent of businesses with $100,000 or more in sales and 10.8 percent of all businesses with employees. These figures are contained in a report, Estimating the Contribution of Immigrant Business Owners to the U.S. Economy, released by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

On November 6, 2008, the U.S. Small Business Administration?s (SBA) Office of Advocacy (Advocacy) submitted comments on the Mine Safety and Health Administration?s (MSHA?s) proposed Alcohol- and Drug-Free Mines: Policy, Prohibitions, Testing, Training, and Assistance rule (?Drug and Alcohol Testing? rule).

The U.S. economy experienced weaknesses in the third quarter, as real gross domestic product fell 0.3 percent. This and other economic trends are discussed in the third quarter update to the Quarterly Indicators: The Economy and Small Business.

Shawne Carter McGibbon has been appointed Acting Chief Counsel for Advocacy. She replaces Thomas M. Sullivan who resigned on October 24 to pursue private sector employment at the law firm of Nelson Mullins Riley and Scarborough. McGibbon was previously the Deputy Chief Counsel for Advocacy.

On October 21, 2008, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released a draft economic analysis and a draft environmental assessment for the revised critical habitat designation of the Canada Lynx. In February 2008, the FWS proposed to revise the amount of critical habitat designated for the Canada lynx to cover approximately 42,753 square miles (over 27 million acres) of habitat in portions of northern Maine, northeastern Minnesota, the Northern Rocky Mountains, the Northern Cascades, and the Greater Yellowstone Area. In 2006, the Service designated 1,841 square miles of critical habitat for the lynx. Comments are due on November 20, 2008.

The Office of Advocacy has launched a new small business blog focusing on regulatory issues, small business research, state regulatory activity, and more. ?The Small Business Watchdog? can be found at http://weblog.sba.gov/blog-advo.