Key Biden agency slapped with historic subpoenas over 'improper' swing state voter registration push

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FIRST ON FOX: The House Committee on Small Business subpoenaed the Small Business Administration on Tuesday over what it says is a lack of transparency on alleged efforts by the Biden administration to funnel resources to a key swing state to register voters in a move they say could be unconstitutional.

On Tuesday, the committee subpoenaed SBA Chief of Staff Arthur Plews and his special adviser, Tyler Robinson, after they are said to have been no-shows at scheduled transcribed interviews with the committee and failed to turn over documents related to a program that is allegedly "diverting its resources away from assisting Main Street so it can register Democrat voters" in the key swing state of Michigan.

The committee says this action represents the first time that Chairman Roger Williams has subpoenaed the SBA and is the first subpoena from the committee in a decade. 

In March, Biden’s SBA announced a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Michigan Department of State to "promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan" that it called the "first-of-its-kind collaboration" and that will run through Jan. 1, 2036.

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President Biden’s SBA recently announced a memo of understanding with the Michigan Department of State to "promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan" that it called the "first-of-its-kind collaboration." (Fox News)

In a press release, SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman said the partnership "will help connect Michiganders to vital voter registration information from the State of Michigan so that more small business owners can exercise their right to vote."

The coordination between the SBA and Michigan was sparked by a 2021 executive order from Biden directing federal agencies to promote "access to voting," which raised concerns from some that the administration is using the government agency to register votes in a swing state that many believe will be one of the states the November election hinges upon.

According to the committee, both Plews and Robinson have avoided addressing those concerns voluntarily, which led to Tuesday’s subpoenas.

Williams is targeting a partnership started by the Michigan Department of State and Small Business Administration chief Isabel Guzman. (Getty Images/File)

Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images/File)

"The fact that we are having to issue subpoenas to speak with SBA officials is extremely disappointing," House Small Business Committee Chair Roger Williams, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital in a statement.

"The committee has given these two individuals the opportunity to speak with us voluntarily without taking these actions, but this appears to be the only way to get them to comply with our oversight responsibilities. The American people deserve answers and transparency on the electioneering activities of the SBA and how they plan on inserting themselves in the upcoming federal elections," Williams continued. "The SBA's sole mission is to help Main Street thrive and grow, and they have repeatedly strayed from that mission to pursue outside political objectives. It's unfortunate that we have arrived at this point, but this Committee is determined to get answers on behalf of the American people."

Williams’ committee is investigating the Small Business Administration’s collaboration with the Michigan Department of State on a program "to promote civic engagement and voter registration in Michigan," according to a press release announcing the partnership.

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The press release said the Michigan Department of State would "create a unique URL for the SBA to use to drive online visitors to register to vote" and that the SBA’s Michigan field office would allow state government officials to facilitate in-person voter registration at the federal agency’s business outreach events. It is part of an overall effort by the Biden administration to expand access to voter registration, launched by the 2021 executive order.

"The SBA’s MOU with the Michigan Department of State is improper, inappropriate, and perhaps, unconstitutional," Williams told Fox News Digital last month. 

The efforts by the Biden administration come as his re-election campaign eyes Michigan as a must-win state in the 2024 race. Biden beat former President Trump by less than 3% there in 2020.

An investigation by the House Small Business Committee found that 22 out of 25 such outreach events have taken place in counties with the highest population of Democratic National Committee (DNC) target demographics.

Meanwhile, 11 of 15 Michigan counties that showed the largest voter registration increase over the last year have ranked highest in population of young voters and Black voters, according to the committee – two of the left’s most-sought voting blocs.

"It is unconscionable that during such a precarious time for our nation’s small businesses, the sole federal agency created to serve as their advocate is instead utilizing their limited taxpayer resources and time to advance partisan political campaigns," Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa., chair of the Small Business Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access, told Fox News Digital.

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(Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images/File)

"It shows a total disregard for our nation’s small businesses and gross administrative malpractice. The SBA’s MOU with the Michigan Department of State is a blatant attempt by the Biden administration to illegally use the SBA as an extension of the president’s campaign. They are working to elect Democrats, which is abundantly clear considering registration efforts are targeted at cities like Detroit and other urban areas. And if this is being done in Michigan, we can make an educated assumption that it is also happening in other swing states."

Meuser continued, "The subpoenas issued today by the Small Business Committee will help expose where exactly this is happening, who authorized it and what other federal agencies are engaged in similar illegal electioneering. We are demanding documents and testimony from the SBA, and we will get answers for the American people. This is a scandal and yet another illegal action from President Biden. Those involved in this illegal effort will be held accountable."

Jason Snead, Honest Elections Project executive director, told Fox News Digital earlier this year that he applauds the committee's efforts investigating this "unprecedented agreement" with Michigan and other states.

"This is the latest example of the Biden administration’s ongoing efforts to manipulate the levers of the federal government for political advantage," Snead said.

"With Executive Order 14019, President Biden has ordered every federal agency to collaborate with liberal organizations to mobilize voters. The administration is even using taxpayers’ dollars to pay college students to turn out voters. This program raises serious concerns about the misuse and abuse of federal agencies for political gain, and the public deserves answers."

Fox News Digital reached out to the SBA and White House for comment but did not receive a response.

Rep. Dan Meuser, R-Pa. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images/File)

The Biden executive order in 2021 instructing federal agencies to register voters to combat racism has drawn criticism from states across the country, including recently in Mississippi.

In March, the state's Republican Secretary of State Michael Watson sent a letter to Biden's Department of Justice demanding they stop efforts to register voters in federal prisons due to concerns that illegal immigrants and ineligible felons are being registered.

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"This serves as another example of the Biden administration’s unconstitutional efforts to weaponize every federal agency into voter registration and GOTV arms of the Democratic Party," Watson told Fox News Digital earlier this year.

"Federal agencies should not act as campaign arms for their administrations, period. Americans have a right to know the extent of the SBA’s involvement, and based on further investigation, it appears even more concerning," Williams told Fox News Digital in April.

Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.