I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1985 

To foster the development of minority-owned small businesses. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 20, 2007 

Mr. CUMMINGS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Small Business, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight 

and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To foster the development of minority-owned small 

businesses. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Minority Entrepre5 neurship Development Act of 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 

8 (1) in 2005, the African American unemploy9 ment rate was 9.5 percent and the Hispanic AmerVerDate Aug 31 2005 16:10 Apr 22, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1985.IH H1985

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1 ican unemployment rate was 6 percent, well above 

2 the national average of 4.7 percent; 

3 (2) Hispanics Americans represent 12.5 percent 

4 of the United States population and approximately 

5 6 percent of all United States businesses; 

6 (3) African Americans account for 12.3 percent 

7 of the population and only 4 percent of all United 

8 States businesses; 

9 (4) Native Americans account for approximately 

10 1 percent of the population and .9 percent of all 

11 United States businesses; 

12 (5) entrepreneurship has proven to be an effec13 tive tool for economic growth and viability of all 

14 communities; 

15 (6) minority-owned businesses are a key ingre16 dient for economic development in the community, 

17 an effective tool for creating lasting and higher-pay18 ing jobs, and a source of wealth in the minority com19 munity; and 

20 (7) between 1987 and 1997, revenue from mi21 nority-owned firms rose by 22.5 percent, an increase 

22 equivalent to an annual growth rate of 10 percent, 

23 and employment opportunities within minority24 owned firms increased by 23 percent. 


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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act— 

3 (1) the terms ‘‘Administration’’ and ‘‘Adminis4 trator’’ mean the Small Business Administration 

5 and the Administrator thereof, respectively; 

6 (2) the term ‘‘eligible association or organiza7 tion’’ means an association or organization that— 

8 (A) is— 

9 (i) a national minority business asso10 ciation organized in accordance with sec11 tion 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue 

12 Code of 1986; or 

13 (ii) a foundation of national minority 

14 business associations organized in accord15 ance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal 

16 Revenue Code of 1986; 

17 (B) has a well established national network 

18 of local chapters, or a proven national member19 ship; and 

20 (C) has been in existence for at least the 

21 10-year period before the date of awarding a 

22 grant under section 6; 

23 (3) the term ‘‘eligible educational institution’’ 

24 means an institution that is— 

25 (A) a public or private institution of higher 

26 education (including any land-grant college or 


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1 university, any college or school of business, en2 gineering, commerce, or agriculture, or commu3 nity college or junior college) or any entity 

4 formed by 2 or more institutions of higher edu5 cation; and 

6 (B) a— 

7 (i) historically Black college; 

8 (ii) Hispanic-serving institution; or 

9 (iii) tribal college; 

10 (4) the term ‘‘historically Black college’’ means 

11 a part B institution, as that term is defined in sec12 tion 322 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

13 U.S.C. 1061); 

14 (5) the term ‘‘Hispanic-serving institution’’ has 

15 the meaning given that term in section 502 of the 

16 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a); 

17 (6) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 

18 has the meaning given that term in section 101 of 

19 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

20 1101); 

21 (7) the term ‘‘small business concern’’ has the 

22 meaning given that term in section 3 of the Small 

23 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 532); 


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1 (8) the term ‘‘small business development cen2 ter’’ has the meaning given that term in section 21 

3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648); and 

4 (9) the term ‘‘tribal college’’ has the same 

5 meaning as the term ‘‘tribally controlled college or 

6 university’’ under section 2(a)(4) of the Tribally 

7 Controlled Community College Assistance Act of 

8 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801(a)(4)). 

9 SEC. 4. MINORITY SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Small Business Act (15 

11 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating section 37 as section 38; 

13 and 

14 (2) by inserting after section 36 the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 37. MINORITY SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT. 

16 ‘‘(a) OFFICE OF MINORITY SMALL BUSINESS DE17 VELOPMENT.—There is established in the Administration 

18 an Office of Minority Small Business Development, which 

19 shall be administered by the Associate Administrator for 

20 Minority Small Business Development appointed under 

21 section 4(b)(1) (in this section referred to as the ‘Asso22 ciate Administrator’). 

23 ‘‘(b) ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR FOR MINORITY

24 SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT.—The Associate Ad25 ministrator shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) be— 

2 ‘‘(A) an appointee in the Senior Executive 

3 Service who is a career appointee; or 

4 ‘‘(B) an employee in the competitive serv5 ice; 

6 ‘‘(2) be responsible for the formulation, execu7 tion, and promotion of policies and programs of the 

8 Administration that provide assistance to small busi9 ness concerns owned and controlled by minorities; 

10 ‘‘(3) act as an ombudsman for full consider11 ation of minorities in all programs of the Adminis12 tration (including those under section 7(j) and 8(a)); 

13 ‘‘(4) work with the Associate Deputy Adminis14 trator for Capital Access of the Administration to 

15 increase the proportion of loans and loan dollars, 

16 and investments and investment dollars, going to mi17 norities through the finance programs under this 

18 Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 

19 (including subsections (a), (b), and (m) of section 7 

20 of this Act and the programs under title V and parts 

21 A and B of title III of the Small Business Invest22 ment Act of 1958); 

23 ‘‘(5) work with the Associate Deputy Adminis24 trator for Entrepreneurial Development of the Ad25 ministration to increase the proportion of counseling 


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1 and training that goes to minorities through the en2 trepreneurial development programs of the Adminis3 tration; 

4 ‘‘(6) work with the Associate Deputy Adminis5 trator for Government Contracting and Minority En6 terprise Development of the Administration to in7 crease the proportion of contracts, including through 

8 the Small Business Innovation Research Program 

9 and the Small Business Technology Transfer Pro10 gram, to minorities; 

11 ‘‘(7) work with the partners of the Administra12 tion, trade associations, and business groups to iden13 tify and carry out policies and procedures to more 

14 effectively market the resources of the Administra15 tion to minorities; 

16 ‘‘(8) work with the Office of Field Operations 

17 of the Administration to ensure that district offices 

18 and regional offices have adequate staff, funding, 

19 and other resources to market the programs of the 

20 Administration to meet the objectives described in 

21 paragraphs (4) through (7); and 

22 ‘‘(9) report to and be responsible directly to the 

23 Administrator. 


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1 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sec3 tion— 

4 ‘‘(1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; 

5 ‘‘(2) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and 

6 ‘‘(3) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2009.’’. 

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 4(b)(1) of 

8 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 633(b)(1)) is amended 

9 in the sixth sentence, by striking ‘‘Minority Small Busi10 ness and Capital Ownership Development’’ and all that 

11 follows through the end of the sentence and inserting ‘‘Mi12 nority Small Business Development.’’. 

13 SEC. 5. MINORITY ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION 

14 PILOT PROGRAM OF 2007. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may make 

16 grants to eligible educational institutions— 

17 (1) to assist in establishing an entrepreneurship 

18 curriculum for undergraduate or graduate studies; 

19 and 

20 (2) for placement of a small business develop21 ment center on the physical campus of the institu22 tion. 

23 (b) USE OF FUNDS.— 

24 (1) CURRICULUM REQUIREMENT.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible educational 

2 institution receiving a grant under this section 

3 shall develop a curriculum that includes train4 ing in various skill sets needed by successful en5 trepreneurs, including— 

6 (i) business management and mar7 keting, financial management and account8 ing, market analysis and competitive anal9 ysis, and innovation and strategic plan10 ning; and 

11 (ii) additional entrepreneurial skill 

12 sets specific to the needs of the student 

13 population and the surrounding commu14 nity, as determined by the institution. 

15 (B) FOCUS.—The focus of the curriculum 

16 developed under this paragraph shall be to help 

17 students in non-business majors develop the 

18 tools necessary to use their area of expertise as 

19 entrepreneurs. 

20 (2) SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER

21 REQUIREMENT.—Each eligible educational institu22 tion receiving a grant under this section shall open 

23 a small business development center that— 


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1 (A) performs studies, research, and coun2 seling concerning the managing, financing, and 

3 operation of small business concerns; 

4 (B) performs management training and 

5 provides technical assistance regarding small 

6 business concern participation in international 

7 markets, export promotion and technology 

8 transfer, and the delivery or distribution of 

9 such services and information; 

10 (C) offers referral services for entre11 preneurs and small business concerns to busi12 ness development, financing, and legal experts; 

13 and 

14 (D) promotes market-specific innovation, 

15 niche marketing, capacity building, inter16 national trade, and strategic planning as keys 

17 to long term growth for its small business con18 cern and entrepreneur clients. 

19 (c) GRANT AWARDS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may not 

21 award a grant under this section to a single eligible 

22 educational institution— 

23 (A) in excess of $1,000,000 in any fiscal 

24 year; or 

25 (B) for a term of more than 2 years. 


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1 (2) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Funds 

2 made available under this section may not be used 

3 for— 

4 (A) any purpose other than those associ5 ated with the direct costs incurred by the eligi6 ble educational institution to— 

7 (i) develop and implement the cur8 riculum described in subsection (b)(1); or 

9 (ii) organize and operate a small busi10 ness development center, as described in 

11 subsection (b)(2); or 

12 (B) building expenses, administrative trav13 el budgets, or other expenses not directly re14 lated to the costs described in subparagraph 

15 (A). 

16 (d) MATCHING NOT REQUIRED.—Subparagraphs (A) 

17 and (B) of section 21(a)(4) of the Small Business Act (15 

18 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)) shall not apply to a grant made under 

19 this section. 

20 (e) REPORT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than November 1 

22 of each year in which funds are made available for 

23 grants under this section, the Associate Adminis24 trator of Entrepreneurial Development of the Ad25 ministration shall submit to the Committee on Small 


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1 Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and 

2 the Committee on Small Business of the House of 

3 Representatives, a report evaluating the success of 

4 the program under this section during the preceding 

5 fiscal year. 

6 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report under paragraph 

7 (1) shall include— 

8 (A) a description of each entrepreneurship 

9 program developed with grant funds, the date 

10 of the award, and the number of participants in 

11 each such program; 

12 (B) the number of small business assisted 

13 through the small business development center 

14 with grant funds; and 

15 (C) data regarding the economic impact of 

16 the small business development center coun17 seling provided with grant funds. 

18 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.—There are 

19 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

20 $24,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2009, 

21 to remain available until expended. 

22 (g) LIMITATION ON USE OF OTHER FUNDS.—The 

23 Administrator shall carry out this section only with 

24 amounts appropriated in advance specifically to carry out 

25 this section. 


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1 SEC. 6. MINORITY ACCESS TO INFORMATION DISTANCE 

2 LEARNING PILOT PROGRAM OF 2007. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may make 

4 grants to eligible associations and organizations to— 

5 (1) assist in establishing the technical capacity 

6 to provide online or distance learning for businesses 

7 seeking to contract with the Federal Government; 

8 (2) develop curriculum for seminars that will 

9 provide businesses with the technical expertise to 

10 contract with the Federal government; and 

11 (3) provide training and technical expertise 

12 through distance learning at low cost, or no cost, to 

13 participant business owners and other interested 

14 parties. 

15 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible association or orga16 nization receiving a grant under this section shall develop 

17 a curriculum that includes training in various areas need18 ed by the owners of small business concerns to successfully 

19 contract with the Federal Government, which may include 

20 training in accounting, marketing to the Federal Govern21 ment, applying for Federal certifications, use of offices of 

22 small and disadvantaged businesses, procurement con23 ferences, the scope of Federal procurement contracts, and 

24 General Services Administration schedules. 

25 (c) GRANT AWARDS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may not 

2 award a grant under this section to a single eligible 

3 association or organization— 

4 (A) in excess of $250,000 in any fiscal 

5 year; or 

6 (B) for a term of more than 2 years. 

7 (2) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Funds 

8 made available under this section may not be used— 

9 (A) for any purpose other than those asso10 ciated with the direct costs incurred by the eli11 gible association or organization to develop the 

12 curriculum described in subsection (b); or 

13 (B) for building expenses, administrative 

14 travel budgets, or other expenses not directly 

15 related to the costs described in subparagraph 

16 (A). 

17 (d) MATCHING NOT REQUIRED.—Subparagraphs (A) 

18 and (B) of section 21(a)(4) of the Small Business Act (15 

19 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)) shall not apply to a grant made under 

20 this section. 

21 (e) REPORT.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than November 1 

23 of each year, the Associate Administrator of Entre24 preneurial Development of the Administration shall 

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1 trepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on 

2 Small Business of the House of Representatives, a 

3 report evaluating the success of the program under 

4 this section during the preceding fiscal year. 

5 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report under paragraph 

6 (1) shall include— 

7 (A) a description of each distance learning 

8 program developed with grant funds under this 

9 section, the date of the award, and the number 

10 of participants in each program; and 

11 (B) data regarding the economic impact of 

12 the distance learning technical assistance pro13 vided with such grant funds. 

14 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

15 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

16 $4,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2009, 

17 to remain available until expended. 

18 (g) LIMITATION ON USE OF OTHER FUNDS.—The 

19 Administrator shall carry out this section only with 

20 amounts appropriated in advance specifically to carry out 

21 this section. 

22 SEC. 7. EXTENSION OF SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DIS23 ADVANTAGED BUSINESS PROGRAM. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7102(c) of the Federal 

25 Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994 (15 U.S.C. 644 


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1 note) is amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2003’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘September 30, 2009’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

4 this section shall take effect 30 days after the date of en5 actment of this Act. 

Æ 


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