Small Business Development Centers Improvement Act of 2019

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4406 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES OCTOBER 22, 2019 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship AN ACT To amend the Small Business Act to improve the small business development centers program, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 HR 4406 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business Devel- 2 opment Centers Improvement Act of 2019’’. 3 SEC. 2. USE OF AUTHORIZED ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVEL- 4 OPMENT PROGRAMS. 5 The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is 6 amended— 7 (1) by redesignating section 49 as section 50; 8 and 9 (2) by inserting after section 48 the following 10 new section: 11 ‘‘SEC. 49. USE OF AUTHORIZED ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVEL- 12 OPMENT PROGRAMS. 13 ‘‘(a) EXPANDED SUPPORT FOR ENTREPRENEURS.— 14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 15 provision of law, the Administrator shall only deliver 16 entrepreneurial development services, entrepreneurial 17 education, and support for the development and 18 maintenance of the Regional Innovation Clusters 19 Program (or similar business training services) 20 through a program authorized under— 21 ‘‘(A) section 7(j), 7(m), 8(a), 8(b)(1), 21, 22 22, 29, or 32 of this Act; or 23 ‘‘(B) sections 358 or 389 of the Small 24 Business Investment Act of 1958. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 HR 4406 RFS ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—This section shall not apply 1 to services provided to assist small business concerns 2 owned by an Indian tribe (as such term is defined 3 in section 8(a)(13)). 4 ‘‘(b) ANNUAL REPORT.—Beginning on the first De- 5 cember 1 after the date of the enactment of this section, 6 the Administrator shall annually submit to the Committee 7 on Small Business of the House of Representatives and 8 the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 9 of the Senate a report on the following: 10 ‘‘(1) All entrepreneurial development activities 11 undertaken during the fiscal year preceding the date 12 of the report through a program described in sub- 13 section (a), including— 14 ‘‘(A) a description and operating details 15 for each program and the activities performed 16 under each program; 17 ‘‘(B) operating circulars, manuals, and 18 standard operating procedures for each pro- 19 gram; 20 ‘‘(C) a description of the process used to 21 award grants under such programs; 22 ‘‘(D) a list of all recipients of awards 23 under a program described in subsection (a), 24 contractors, and vendors (including organiza- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 HR 4406 RFS tion name and location) and the amount of 1 awards provided during the fiscal year pre- 2 ceding the date of the report for such programs 3 and activities performed under such programs; 4 ‘‘(E) the total amount of funding obligated 5 for such programs and activities for the fiscal 6 year preceding the date of the report; and 7 ‘‘(F) the names and titles of the individ- 8 uals responsible for such programs. 9 ‘‘(2) For entrepreneurial development activities 10 undertaken during the fiscal year preceding the date 11 of the report through the Small Business Develop- 12 ment Center Program (in this section referred to as 13 the ‘Program’)— 14 ‘‘(A) the number of individuals counseled 15 or trained through the Program; 16 ‘‘(B) the total number of hours of coun- 17 seling and training services provided through 18 the Program; 19 ‘‘(C) the demographics of participants in 20 the Program, which shall include the gender, 21 race, and age of each such participant; 22 ‘‘(D) the number of participants in the 23 Program who are veterans; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 HR 4406 RFS ‘‘(E) the number of new businesses started 1 by participants in the Program; 2 ‘‘(F) to the extent practicable, the number 3 of jobs supported, created, or retained with as- 4 sistance from small business development cen- 5 ters; 6 ‘‘(G) the amount of capital secured by par- 7 ticipants in the Program, including through 8 loans and equity investment; 9 ‘‘(H) the number of participants in the 10 Program receiving financial assistance, includ- 11 ing the type and dollar amount, under the loan 12 programs of the Administration; 13 ‘‘(I) an estimate of gross receipts, includ- 14 ing (to the extent practicable) a description of 15 any change in revenue, of small business con- 16 cerns assisted through the Program; 17 ‘‘(J) the number of referrals to other re- 18 sources and programs of the Administration; 19 ‘‘(K) the results of satisfaction surveys of 20 participants in the Program, including a sum- 21 mary of any comments received from such par- 22 ticipants; and 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 HR 4406 RFS ‘‘(L) any recommendations by the Admin- 1 istrator to improve the delivery of services by 2 the Program.’’. 3 SEC. 3. MARKETING OF SERVICES. 4 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648) 5 is amended by adding at the end the following: 6 ‘‘(o) NO PROHIBITION OF MARKETING OF SERV- 7 ICES.—An applicant receiving a grant under this section 8 may market and advertise the services of such applicant 9 to individuals and small business concerns.’’. 10 SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION BY THE SMALL BUSINESS DE- 11 VELOPMENT CENTER ASSOCIATION. 12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 21(a)(3)(A) of the Small 13 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(3)(A)) is amended— 14 (1) by striking ‘‘as provided in this section 15 and’’ and inserting ‘‘as provided in this section,’’; 16 and 17 (2) by inserting before the period at the end the 18 following: ‘‘, and (iv) governing data collection ac- 19 tivities related to applicants receiving grants under 20 this section’’. 21 (b) ANNUAL REPORT ON DATA COLLECTION.—Sec- 22 tion 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648), as 23 amended by section 3 of this Act, is further amended by 24 adding at the end the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 HR 4406 RFS ‘‘(p) ANNUAL REPORT ON DATA COLLECTION.—The 1 Administrator shall annually submit to the Committee on 2 Small Business of the House of Representatives and the 3 Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of 4 the Senate a report on any data collection activities related 5 to the Small Business Development Center Program.’’. 6 (c) WORKING GROUP TO IMPROVE DATA COLLEC- 7 TION.— 8 (1) ESTABLISHMENT AND STUDY.—The Admin- 9 istrator of the Small Business Administration shall 10 establish a group to be known as the ‘‘Data Collec- 11 tion Working Group’’ consisting of entrepreneurial 12 development grant recipients, the associations and 13 organizations representing such recipients, and offi- 14 cials from the Small Business Administration, to 15 carry out a study to determine the best methods for 16 conducting data collection activities and create or re- 17 vise existing systems dedicated to data collection. 18 (2) REPORT.—Not later than the end of the 19 180-day period beginning on the date of the enact- 20 ment of this Act, the Data Collection Working 21 Group shall issue a report to the Committee on 22 Small Business of the House of Representatives and 23 the Committee on Small Business and Entrepre- 24 neurship of the Senate containing the findings and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 HR 4406 RFS determinations made in carrying out the study re- 1 quired under paragraph (1), including— 2 (A) recommendations for revising existing 3 data collection practices for the Small Business 4 Development Center Program; and 5 (B) a proposed plan for the Administrator 6 of the Small Business Administration to imple- 7 ment such recommendations. 8 SEC. 5. FEES FROM PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND CO- 9 SPONSORSHIPS. 10 Section 21(a)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 11 U.S.C. 648(a)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the 12 following: 13 ‘‘(D) FEES FROM PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND CO- 14 SPONSORSHIPS.—A small business development center 15 that participates in a private partnership or cosponsor- 16 ship, in which the Administrator or designee of the Admin- 17 istrator also participates, may collect fees or other income 18 related to the operation of such private partnership or co- 19 sponsorship.’’. 20 SEC. 6. EQUITY FOR SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CEN- 21 TERS. 22 Subclause (I) of section 21(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Small 23 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)(C)(v)(I)) is amended 24 to read as follows: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 HR 4406 RFS ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Of the 1 amounts made available in any fiscal 2 year to carry out this section, not 3 more than $600,000 may be used by 4 the Administration to pay expenses 5 enumerated in subparagraphs (B) 6 through (D) of section 20(a)(1).’’. 7 SEC. 7. CONFIDENTIALITY REQUIREMENTS. 8 Section 21(a)(7)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 9 U.S.C. 648(a)(7)(A)) is amended— 10 (1) by striking ‘‘or telephone number’’ and in- 11 serting ‘‘, telephone number, or email address’’; and 12 (2) by inserting ‘‘, or the nature or content of 13 such assistance, to any State, local, or Federal agen- 14 cy, or to any third party’’ after ‘‘receiving assistance 15 under this section’’. 16 SEC. 8. LIMITATION ON AWARD OF GRANTS TO SMALL 17 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS. 18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 21 of the Small Business 19 Act (15 U.S.C. 648), as amended by section 4, is further 20 amended— 21 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 22 (A) by striking ‘‘any women’s business 23 center operating pursuant to section 29,’’; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 HR 4406 RFS (B) by striking ‘‘or a women’s business 1 center operating pursuant to section 29’’; and 2 (C) by striking ‘‘and women’s business 3 centers operating pursuant to section 29’’; and 4 (2) by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(q) LIMITATION ON AWARD OF GRANTS.—Except 6 for not-for-profit institutions of higher education, and not- 7 withstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator 8 may not award a grant or contract to, or enter into a coop- 9 erative agreement with, an entity under this section unless 10 that entity— 11 ‘‘(1) received a grant or contract from, or en- 12 tered into a cooperative agreement with, the Admin- 13 istrator under this section before the date of the en- 14 actment of this subsection; and 15 ‘‘(2) seeks to renew such a grant, contract, or 16 cooperative agreement after such date.’’. 17 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The amendments 18 made by this section may not be construed as prohibiting 19 a women’s business center (as described under section 29 20 of the Small Business Act) from receiving a subgrant from 21 an entity receiving a grant under section 21 of the Small 22 Business Act. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 HR 4406 RFS SEC. 9. MANAGEMENT OF PROGRAM ACTIVITIES. 1 Section 21(a)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 2 U.S.C. 648(a)(3)), as amended by section 4, is further 3 amended— 4 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 5 by striking ‘‘upon, with full participation of both 6 parties,’’ and inserting ‘‘upon with the full participa- 7 tion of all parties (including the association author- 8 ized in subparagraph (A)), and carried out’’; 9 (2) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and de- 10 velop’’ and inserting ‘‘and negotiate the development 11 of’’; and 12 (3) in subparagraph (C)— 13 (A) by striking ‘‘Whereas’’; 14 (B) by inserting ‘‘Program’’ after ‘‘Cen- 15 ter’’; 16 (C) by striking ‘‘National’’ and inserting 17 ‘‘national’’; and 18 (D) by moving such subparagraph 2 ems 19 to the left. 20 SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 21 Section 21(a)(4)(C) of the Small Business Act (15 22 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)(C)) is amended— 23 (1) in clause (vii), by striking ‘‘subparagraph’’ 24 and all that follows through the period at the end 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 HR 4406 RFS and inserting ‘‘subparagraph $175,000,000 for each 1 of fiscal years 2020 through 2023.’’; and 2 (2) in clause (viii), by striking ‘‘shall reserve 3 not less than $1,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘shall re- 4 serve not more than $2,000,000’’. 5 SEC. 11. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 6 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 7 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, 8 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 9 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 10 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 11 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro- 12 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 13 vote on passage. 14 Passed the House of Representatives October 21, 2019. Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, Clerk. VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4406.RFS H4406 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS