A bill to improve access to technology by and increase entrepreneurship among small businesses located in rural communities, and for other purposes.

Summary: Rural Small Business Enhancement Act of 2008 - Amends the Small Business Act to reduce state matching funds requirements for participation in the Federal and State Technology Partnership (FAST) and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

Revises the SBA's Rural Outreach program (a program to increase states' participation in the SBIR and Small Business Technology Transfer [STTR] programs) to: (1) make eligible for program awards states whose total value of SBIR and STTR contracts awarded during FY2004 was less than $10 million and will match federal funding on a 50% basis; (2) reauthorize the program for FY2009-FY2020; and (3) require award funds to be used to increase state participation in the SBIR and STTR programs.

Requires a report from the SBA Administrator to the congressional small business committees on the number of government-owned computers in possession of, and recently disposed by, the SBA.

Directs the Administrator to establish a pilot program to annually provide up to 1,000 excess government-owned computers to small businesses at no cost or a reduced cost.

Requires the Administrator to hire at least five additional full-time employees for the SBA's Office of Technology.

Directs the Administrator to carry out a rural lending outreach program to provide up to an 85% guaranty of loans of not more than $250,000.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Small Business Enhancement Act 
of 2008''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the terms ``Administration'' and ``Administrator'' 
mean the Small Business Administration and the Administrator thereof, 
respectively.

SEC. 3. RURAL AREAS.

    Section 34(e)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 6657d(e)(2)) 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as 
        subparagraphs (D) and (E), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
                    ``(C) Rural areas.--
                            ``(i) In general.--Except as provided in 
                        clause (ii), the non-Federal share of the cost 
                        of the activity carried out using an award or 
                        under a cooperative agreement under this 
                        section shall be 50 cents for each Federal 
                        dollar that will be directly allocated by a 
                        recipient described in paragraph (A) to serve 
                        small business concerns located in a rural 
                        area.
                            ``(ii) SBIR awards.--For a recipient 
                        located in a rural area that is located in a 
                        States as described in subparagraph (A)(i), the 
                        non-Federal share of the cost of the activity 
                        carried out using an award or under a 
                        cooperative agreement under this section shall 
                        be 35 cents for each Federal dollar that will 
                        be directly allocated by a recipient described 
                        in paragraph (A) to serve small business 
                        concerns located in the rural area.
                            ``(iii) Definition of rural area.--In this 
                        subparagraph, the term `rural area' has the 
                        meaning given that term in section 1393(a)(2)) 
                        of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.''.

SEC. 4. RURAL OUTREACH PROGRAM.

    Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended by 
inserting after subsection (r) the following:
    ``(s) Outreach.--
            ``(1) Definition of eligible state.--In this subsection, 
        the term `eligible State' means a State--
                    ``(A) if the total value of contracts awarded to 
                the State during fiscal year 2004 under this section 
                was less than $10,000,000; and
                    ``(B) that certifies to the Administration 
                described in paragraph (2) that the State will, upon 
                receipt of assistance under this subsection, provide 
                matching funds from non-Federal sources in an amount 
                that is not less than 50 percent of the amount provided 
                under this subsection.
            ``(2) Program authority.--Of amounts made available to 
        carry out this section for each of the fiscal years 2009 
        through 2020, the Administrator may expend with eligible States 
        not more than $2,000,000 in each such fiscal year in order to 
        increase the participation of small business concerns located 
        in those States in the programs under this section.
            ``(3) Amount of assistance.--The amount of assistance 
        provided to an eligible State under this subsection in any 
        fiscal year--
                    ``(A) shall be equal to twice the total amount of 
                matching funds from non-Federal sources provided by the 
                State; and
                    ``(B) shall not exceed $100,000.
            ``(4) Use of assistance.--Assistance provided to an 
        eligible State under this subsection shall be used by the 
        State, in consultation with State and local departments and 
        agencies, for programs and activities to increase the 
        participation of small business concerns located in the State 
        in the programs under this section, including--
                    ``(A) the establishment of quantifiable performance 
                goals, including goals relating to--
                            ``(i) the number of program awards under 
                        this section made to small business concerns in 
                        the State; and
                            ``(ii) the total amount of Federal research 
                        and development contracts awarded to small 
                        business concerns in the State;
                    ``(B) the provision of competition outreach support 
                to small business concerns in the State that are 
                involved in research and development; and
                    ``(C) the development and dissemination of 
                educational and promotional information relating to the 
                programs under this section to small business concerns 
                in the State.''.

SEC. 5. RURAL SMALL BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY PILOT PROGRAM.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``qualified small business concern'' means a 
        small business concern located in a rural area;
            (2) the term ``rural area'' has the meaning given that term 
        in section 1393(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and
            (3) the term ``small business concern'' has the same 
        meaning as under section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
        632).
    (b) Report.--Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator, in coordination with the Administrator of 
General Services, shall submit to the Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business of 
the House of Representatives a report describing--
            (1) the number of Government-owned computers in the 
        possession of the Administration, including the number of 
        working computers, nonworking computers, desktop computers, and 
        laptop computers;
            (2) the number of Government-owned computers disposed of by 
        the Administration during the 5-year period ending on the date 
        of enactment of this Act, including the number of such 
        computers that were working computers, nonworking computers, 
        desktop computers, or laptop computers;
            (3) the procedures of the Administration for the disposal 
        of Government-owned computers; and
            (4) the plans of the Administrator for carrying out the 
        pilot program under subsection (c).
    (c) Pilot Program.--
            (1) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a 
        pilot program to provide not more than 1,000 excess Government-
        owned computers each year to qualified small business concerns 
        at no cost or a reduced cost.
            (2) Purposes of program.--The pilot program established 
        under paragraph (1) shall be designed to--
                    (A) encourage entrepreneurship in rural areas;
                    (B) assist small business concerns in accessing 
                technology; and
                    (C) accelerate the growth of qualified small 
                business concerns.
            (3) Termination.--The authority to conduct the pilot 
        program under this subsection shall terminate 3 years after the 
        date of enactment of this Act.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Administrator such sums as are necessary to carry 
out this section.

SEC. 6. OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator shall hire not less than 5 
additional full-time equivalent employees for the Office of Technology 
of the Administration.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Administrator such sums as are necessary to carry 
out this section.

SEC. 7. RURAL LENDING OUTREACH PROGRAM.

    Section 7(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)) is 
amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (25)(C);
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (32) relating to increased 
        veteran participation, as added by section 208 of the Military 
        Reservist and Veteran Small Business Reauthorization and 
        Opportunity Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-186; 122 Stat. 631), as 
        paragraph (33); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(34) Rural lending outreach program.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall carry 
                out a rural lending outreach program to provide not 
                more than an 85 percent guaranty for loans of not more 
                than $250,000. The program shall be carried out only 
                through lenders located in rural areas (as the term 
                `rural' is defined in section 501(f) of the Small 
                Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 695(f))).
                    ``(B) Loan terms.--For a loan made through the 
                program under this paragraph--
                            ``(i) the Administrator shall approve or 
                        disapprove the loan within 36 hours of the time 
                        the Administrator receives the application;
                            ``(ii) the program shall use abbreviated 
                        application and documentation requirements; and
                            ``(iii) minimum credit standards, as the 
                        Administrator considers necessary to limit the 
                        rate of default on loans made under the 
                        program, shall apply.''.