Small Business Development Centers Improvement Act of 2018

Summary: Small Business Development Centers Improvement Act of 2017  This bill amends the Small Business Act with respect to the authority of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to use certain SBA programs, including the small business development center (SBDC) program, to provide grants, financial assistance, loans, export assistance, and subcontracting opportunities on federal contracts to specified small businesses, organizations, state governments, universities, companies, and other entities that assist smaller enterprises. The SBA shall use such programs only to deliver entrepreneurial development services, entrepreneurial education, support for the development and maintenance of clusters, or business training. Such program requirements shall not apply to services provided to assist small businesses owned by an Indian tribe. The SBA shall not prohibit SBDC grant recipients from marketing and advertising their services to individuals and small business concerns. The SBA shall establish a Data Collection Working Group to determine the best way to capture data collection and create or revise existing systems dedicated to data collection. The bill: (1) increases the portion of certain available funds the SBA may use to pay the expenses of the National Small Business Development Center Advisory Board, the information sharing system, and the SBDC association for conducting an SBCD accreditation program; and (2) removes a limitation on the amount the SBA may use to pay the examination expenses of the SBDC accreditation program. The SBA may not award grants (including contracts and cooperative agreements) under the SBDC program to entities other than those that received them before September 30, 2015, and seek to renew them after that date, with an exception for not-for-profit institutions of higher education.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This subtitle may be cited as the ``Small Business Development 
Centers Improvement Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. USE OF AUTHORIZED ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS.

    The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 47 as section 48; and
            (2) by inserting after section 46 the following new 
        section:

``SEC. 47. USE OF AUTHORIZED ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS.

    ``(a) Expanded Support for Entrepreneurs.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the Administrator shall only deliver entrepreneurial 
        development services, entrepreneurial education, support for 
        the development and maintenance of clusters, or business 
        training through a program authorized under--
                    ``(A) section 7(j), 7(m), 8(a), 8(b)(1), 21, 22, 
                29, or 32 of this Act; or
                    ``(B) sections 358 or 389 of the Small Business 
                Investment Act of 1958.
            ``(2) Exception.--This section shall not apply to services 
        provided to assist small business concerns owned by an Indian 
        tribe (as such term is defined in section 8(a)(13)).
    ``(b) Annual Report.--Beginning on the first December 1 after the 
date of the enactment of this subsection, the Administrator shall 
annually report to the Committee on Small Business of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship of the Senate on all entrepreneurial development 
activities undertaken in the current fiscal year through a program 
described in subsection (a). Such report shall include--
            ``(1) a description and operating details for each program 
        and activity;
            ``(2) operating circulars, manuals, and standard operating 
        procedures for each program and activity;
            ``(3) a description of the process used to award grants 
        under each program and activity;
            ``(4) a list of all awardees, contractors, and vendors 
        (including organization name and location) and the amount of 
        awards for the current fiscal year for each program and 
        activity;
            ``(5) the amount of funding obligated for the current 
        fiscal year for each program and activity; and
            ``(6) the names and titles for those individuals 
        responsible for each program and activity.''.

SEC. 3. MARKETING OF SERVICES.

    Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(o) No Prohibition of Marketing of Services.--The Administrator 
shall not prohibit applicants receiving grants under this section from 
marketing and advertising their services to individuals and small 
business concerns.''.

SEC. 4. DATA COLLECTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 21(a)(3)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 648(a)(3)(A)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``as provided in this section and'' and 
        inserting ``as provided in this section,''; and
            (2) by inserting before the period at the end the 
        following: ``, and (iv) governing data collection activities 
        related to applicants receiving grants under this section''.
    (b) Annual Report on Data Collection.--Section 21 of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648), as amended by section 3 of this Act, is 
further amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(p) Annual Report on Data Collection.--The Administrator shall 
report annually to the Committee on Small Business of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship of the Senate on any data collection activities 
related to the Small Business Development Center Program.''.
    (c) Working Group To Improve Data Collection.--
            (1) Establishment and study.--The Administrator of the 
        Small Business Administration shall establish a group to be 
        known as the ``Data Collection Working Group'' consisting of 
        members from entrepreneurial development grant recipients 
        associations and organizations and officials from the Small 
        Business Administration, to carry out a study to determine the 
        best way to capture data collection and create or revise 
        existing systems dedicated to data collection.
            (2) Report.--Not later than the end of the 180-day period 
        beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Data 
        Collection Working Group shall issue a report to the Committee 
        on Small Business of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate 
        containing the findings and determinations made in carrying out 
        the study required under paragraph (1), including--
                    (A) recommendations for revising existing data 
                collection practices; and
                    (B) a proposed plan for the Small Business 
                Administration to implement such recommendations.

SEC. 5. FEES FROM PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND COSPONSORSHIPS.

    Section 21(a)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
648(a)(3)(C)), as amended by section 4, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following:
    ``(D) Fees From Private Partnerships and Cosponsorships.--A small 
business development center that participates in a private partnership 
or cosponsorship with the Administration shall not be prohibited from 
collecting fees or other income related to the operation of such a 
private partnership or cosponsorship.''.

SEC. 6. EQUITY FOR SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS.

    Subclause (I) of section 21(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)(C)(v)) is amended to read as follows:
                                    ``(I) In general.--Of the amounts 
                                made available in any fiscal year to 
                                carry out this section, not more than 
                                $600,000 may be used by the 
                                Administration to pay expenses 
                                enumerated in subparagraphs (B) through 
                                (D) of section 20(a)(1).''.

SEC. 7. CONFIDENTIALITY REQUIREMENTS.

    Section 21(a)(7)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
648(a)(7)(A)) is amended by inserting after ``under this section'' the 
following: ``to any State, local, or Federal agency, or to any third 
party''.

SEC. 8. LIMITATION ON AWARD OF GRANTS TO SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 
              CENTERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
648), as amended by section 4, is further amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ``any women's 
        business center operating pursuant to section 29,''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(q) Limitation on Award of Grants.--Except for not-for-profit 
institutions of higher education, and notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the Administrator may not award grants (including 
contracts and cooperative agreements) under this section to any entity 
other than those that received grants (including contracts and 
cooperative agreements) under this section prior to the date of the 
enactment of this subsection, and that seek to renew such grants 
(including contracts and cooperative agreements) after such date.''.
    (b) Rule of Construction.--The amendments made by this section may 
not be construed as prohibiting a women's business center (as described 
under section 29 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656)) from 
receiving a subgrant from an entity receiving a grant under section 21 
of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648).

            Passed the House of Representatives May 8, 2018.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.