SCORE for Small Business Act of 2019

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4407 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 reauthorize the SCORE 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\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 HR 4407 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘SCORE for Small 2 Business Act of 2019’’. 3 SEC. 2. SCORE PROGRAM PROVISIONS AND REQUIRE- 4 MENTS. 5 Section 8 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637) 6 is amended— 7 (1) in subsection (b)(1)(B)— 8 (A) by striking ‘‘a Service Corps of Retired 9 Executives (SCORE)’’ and inserting ‘‘the 10 SCORE program described in subsection (c)’’; 11 and 12 (B) by striking ‘‘SCORE may’’ and insert- 13 ing ‘‘the SCORE Association (as defined in 14 subsection (c)) may’’; and 15 (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 16 following: 17 ‘‘(c) SCORE PROGRAM.— 18 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 19 ‘‘(A) SCORE ASSOCIATION.—The term 20 ‘SCORE Association’ means the Service Corps 21 of Retired Executives Association or any suc- 22 cessor or other organization that enters into a 23 cooperative agreement (as described under 24 paragraph (2)) with the Administrator to oper- 25 ate the SCORE program. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(B) SCORE FOUNDATION.—The term 1 ‘SCORE Foundation’ means an organization 2 with a mission to support the SCORE Associa- 3 tion and volunteers of the SCORE program. 4 ‘‘(C) SCORE PROGRAM.—The term 5 ‘SCORE program’ means the SCORE program 6 authorized by subsection (b)(1)(B). 7 ‘‘(2) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT.—The Admin- 8 istrator shall enter into a cooperative agreement 9 with the SCORE Association to carry out the 10 SCORE program, which shall include the following 11 requirements: 12 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATOR DUTIES.—The Ad- 13 ministrator shall— 14 ‘‘(i) conduct an annual financial ex- 15 amination of the SCORE Association to 16 ensure that any costs paid for with Federal 17 funds are allowable, allocable, and reason- 18 able; 19 ‘‘(ii) for contracts entered into by the 20 SCORE Association to provide goods or 21 services for the SCORE program of a 22 value greater than an amount determined 23 by the Administrator, review and approve 24 such contracts; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(iii) establish a system through 1 which the SCORE Association can provide 2 documentation relating to such contracts; 3 and 4 ‘‘(iv) within 30 days of the receipt of 5 a quarterly report on the achievements of 6 the SCORE program submitted by the 7 SCORE Association, reconcile and dif- 8 ferences between such report and the per- 9 formance results of the SCORE program 10 reported in a management information sys- 11 tem of the Office of Entrepreneurial Devel- 12 opment. 13 ‘‘(B) SCORE ASSOCIATION DUTIES.—The 14 SCORE Association shall— 15 ‘‘(i) manage nationwide chapters of 16 the SCORE program; 17 ‘‘(ii) develop guidance and provide an- 18 nual training to employees of the SCORE 19 Association on generating and using pro- 20 gram income from the SCORE program; 21 ‘‘(iii) submit documentation to the 22 Administrator verifying such annual train- 23 ing is completed; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(iv) separate funds donated to the 1 SCORE Association from program income 2 and funds received pursuant to a coopera- 3 tive agreement; and 4 ‘‘(v) establish requirements for volun- 5 teers participating in the SCORE program, 6 including requirements that each such vol- 7 unteer shall— 8 ‘‘(I) based on the business expe- 9 rience and knowledge of the volun- 10 teer— 11 ‘‘(aa) provide personal coun- 12 seling, mentoring, and coaching 13 on the process of starting, ex- 14 panding, managing, buying, and 15 selling a business at no cost to 16 individuals who own, or aspire to 17 own, small business concerns; 18 and 19 ‘‘(bb) facilitate free or low- 20 cost education workshops for in- 21 dividuals who own, or aspire to 22 own, small business concerns; 23 and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(II) as appropriate, use tools, 1 resources, and expertise of other orga- 2 nizations to carry out the SCORE 3 program. 4 ‘‘(C) JOINT DUTIES.—The Administrator, 5 in consultation with the SCORE Association, 6 shall ensure that the SCORE program and each 7 chapter of the SCORE program— 8 ‘‘(i) develop and implement plans and 9 goals to more effectively and efficiently 10 provide services to individuals in rural 11 areas, economically disadvantaged commu- 12 nities, or other traditionally underserved 13 communities, including plans for electronic 14 initiatives, web-based initiatives, chapter 15 expansion, partnerships, and the develop- 16 ment of new skills by volunteers partici- 17 pating in the SCORE program; and 18 ‘‘(ii) reinforce an inclusive culture by 19 recruiting diverse volunteers for the chap- 20 ters of the SCORE program. 21 ‘‘(3) ONLINE COMPONENT.—In carrying out 22 this subsection, the SCORE Association shall make 23 use of online counseling, including by developing and 24 implementing webinars and an electronic mentoring 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 HR 4407 RFS platform to expand access to services provided under 1 this subsection and to further support entre- 2 preneurs. 3 ‘‘(4) ACCOUNTING.—Not later than 6 months 4 after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 5 the SCORE Association shall— 6 ‘‘(A) centralize all accounting and finance 7 systems of each chapter of the SCORE pro- 8 gram and develop a uniform policy and proce- 9 dures to manage Federal funds; and 10 ‘‘(B) designate an employee of the SCORE 11 Association to serve as a compliance officer to 12 ensure expenditures of the SCORE program are 13 fully compliant with any law, regulation, or co- 14 operative agreement relating to the SCORE 15 program. 16 ‘‘(5) COMPENSATION.— 17 ‘‘(A) SALARIES.—The salary of an em- 18 ployee of the SCORE Association may not ex- 19 ceed the equivalent of the maximum rate of pay 20 allowable for an individual in the career Senior 21 Executive Service employed at the Small Busi- 22 ness Administration. 23 ‘‘(B) PERFORMANCE AWARDS.—The 24 SCORE Association may spend up to 1.5 per- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 HR 4407 RFS cent of the aggregate salaries of employees of 1 the SCORE Association on individual perform- 2 ance awards to employees of the SCORE Asso- 3 ciation, to be disbursed before the last day of 4 the fiscal year, if not later than 60 days before 5 disbursement the SCORE Association submits 6 to the Administrator a report on the number 7 and amount of such awards to be disbursed. 8 ‘‘(C) SCORE FOUNDATION.—A member of 9 the Board of Directors of the SCORE Associa- 10 tion or an employee of the SCORE Association 11 may not simultaneously serve on the Board of 12 Directors of, or receive compensation from, the 13 SCORE Foundation without written approval 14 from the Administrator. 15 ‘‘(6) WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION REQUIRE- 16 MENTS.—The SCORE Association shall— 17 ‘‘(A) annually update all manuals or other 18 documents applicable to employees and volun- 19 teers of the SCORE Association or the SCORE 20 program to include requirements relating to re- 21 porting procedures and protectors for whistle- 22 blowers; and 23 ‘‘(B) conduct an annual training for em- 24 ployees and volunteers of the SCORE Associa- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 HR 4407 RFS tion or the SCORE program on the require- 1 ments described in paragraph (1) and empha- 2 size the use of the hotline established by the Of- 3 fice of the Inspector General of the Small Busi- 4 ness Administration to submit whistleblower re- 5 ports. 6 ‘‘(7) PUBLISHED MATERIALS.—The SCORE 7 Association shall ensure all published materials in- 8 clude written acknowledgment of Small Business Ad- 9 ministration support of the SCORE program if such 10 materials are paid for in whole or in part by Federal 11 funds. 12 ‘‘(8) PRIVACY REQUIREMENTS.— 13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Neither the Adminis- 14 trator nor the SCORE Association may disclose 15 the name, address, or telephone number of any 16 individual or small business concern receiving 17 assistance from the SCORE Association with- 18 out the consent of such individual or small busi- 19 ness concern, unless— 20 ‘‘(i) the Administrator is ordered to 21 make such a disclosure by a court in any 22 civil or criminal enforcement action initi- 23 ated by a Federal or State agency; or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(ii) the Administrator determines 1 such a disclosure to be necessary for the 2 purpose of conducting a financial audit of 3 the SCORE program, in which case disclo- 4 sure shall be limited to the information 5 necessary for the audit. 6 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATOR USE OF INFORMA- 7 TION.—This paragraph shall not— 8 ‘‘(i) restrict the access of the Adminis- 9 trator to SCORE program activity data; or 10 ‘‘(ii) prevent the Administrator from 11 using SCORE program client information 12 to conduct client surveys. 13 ‘‘(C) STANDARDS.— 14 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 15 shall, after the opportunity for notice and 16 comment, establish standards for— 17 ‘‘(I) disclosures with respect to 18 financial audits under subparagraph 19 (A)(ii); and 20 ‘‘(II) conducting client surveys, 21 including standards for oversight of 22 the surveys and for dissemination and 23 use of client information. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(ii) MAXIMUM PRIVACY PROTEC- 1 TION.—The standards issued under this 2 subparagraph shall, to the extent prac- 3 ticable, provide for the maximum amount 4 of privacy protection. 5 ‘‘(9) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 6 days after the date of the enactment of this sub- 7 section and annually thereafter, the Administrator 8 shall submit to the Committee on Small Business 9 and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Com- 10 mittee on Small Business of the House of Rep- 11 resentatives a report on the performance and effec- 12 tiveness of the SCORE program, which may be in- 13 cluded as part of another report submitted to such 14 Committees by the Administrator, and which shall 15 include— 16 ‘‘(A) the number of individuals counseled 17 or trained under the SCORE program; 18 ‘‘(B) the number of hours of counseling 19 provided under the SCORE program; 20 ‘‘(C) the number of local workshops; 21 ‘‘(D) the number of clients attending on- 22 line and local workshops; 23 ‘‘(E) the number of unique clients served; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(F) to the extent practicable, the demo- 1 graphics of SCORE program participants and 2 volunteers, which shall include the gender, race, 3 and age of each such participant or volunteer; 4 ‘‘(G) the cost to create a job, the cost to 5 create a business, and return on investment; 6 ‘‘(H) the number of referrals to other re- 7 sources and programs of the Administration; 8 ‘‘(I) the number of participants in the 9 SCORE program receiving financial assistance, 10 including the type and dollar amount, under 11 loan programs of the Administration; 12 ‘‘(J) the results of SCORE program par- 13 ticipant satisfactory surveys, including a sum- 14 mary of any comments received from such par- 15 ticipants; 16 ‘‘(K) the number of new businesses started 17 up by SCORE program participants; 18 ‘‘(L) the number of such new businesses 19 realizing revenue growth; 20 ‘‘(M) to the extent practicable, the number 21 of jobs created with assistance from the 22 SCORE program; 23 ‘‘(N) the total cost of the SCORE pro- 24 gram; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 HR 4407 RFS ‘‘(O) any recommendations of the Adminis- 1 trator to improve the SCORE program; and 2 ‘‘(P) an explanation of how the SCORE 3 program has been integrated with other re- 4 source partners and related resources of the 5 Administration.’’. 6 SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE 7 SCORE PROGRAM. 8 Section 20 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 9 note) is amended by adding at the end the following new 10 subsection: 11 ‘‘(h) SCORE PROGRAM.—There are authorized to be 12 appropriated to the Administrator to carry out the 13 SCORE program authorized by section 8(b)(1) such sums 14 as are necessary for the Administrator to make grants or 15 enter into cooperative agreements in a total amount that 16 does not exceed $11,700,000 in each of fiscal years 2020, 17 2021, and 2022.’’. 18 SEC. 4. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 19 (a) STUDY AND REPORT ON THE FUTURE ROLE OF 20 THE SCORE PROGRAM.— 21 (1) STUDY.—The SCORE Association shall 22 carry out a study on the future role of the SCORE 23 program and develop a strategic plan for how the 24 SCORE program will meet the needs of small busi- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:57 Oct 22, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4407.RFS H4407 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 14 HR 4407 RFS ness concerns during the 5-year period beginning on 1 the date of the enactment of this Act, with specific 2 objectives for the first, third, and fifth years of the 3 5-year period. 4 (2) REPORT.—Not later than the end of the 6- 5 month period beginning on the date of the enact- 6 ment of this Act, the SCORE Association shall sub- 7 mit to the Committe [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]