IB 

Union Calendar No. 114 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2359 

[Report No. 110–193] 

To reauthorize programs to assist small business concerns, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 17, 2007 

Mr. SESTAK (for himself, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, and Mr. SHULER) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Small Business 

JUNE 15, 2007 

Additional sponsor: Mr. BRALEY of Iowa 

JUNE 15, 2007 

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union 

and ordered to be printed 

A BILL 

To reauthorize programs to assist small business concerns, 

and for other purposes. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘SBA Entrepreneurial Development Programs Act of 

4 2007’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—REVISIONS TO SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 

CENTERS 

Sec. 101. Small Business Development Centers operational changes. 

TITLE II—GRANT INITIATIVES 

Sec. 201. Capital Access Initiative. 

Sec. 202. Disaster Recovery Program. 

Sec. 203. Innovation and Competitiveness Services to Manufacturers Initiative. 

Sec. 204. Mature Entrepreneurs Assistance Program. 

Sec. 205. Small Business Sustainability Initiative. 

Sec. 206. Grants to small business development centers to provide assistance in 

securing affordable health insurance. 

Sec. 207. National regulatory assistance. 

Sec. 208. Report. 

TITLE III—SCORE 

Sec. 301. Repeal of Active Corporation of Executives. 

Sec. 302. Increasing the proportion of SCORE volunteers from socially and 

economically disadvantaged backgrounds. 

Sec. 303. Benchmark reporting. 

7 TITLE I—REVISIONS TO SMALL 

8 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 

9 CENTERS 

10 SEC. 101. SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS OPER11 ATIONAL CHANGES. 

12 (a) ACCREDITATION REQUIREMENT.—Section 

13 21(a)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(1)) 

14 is amended— 


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1 (1) in the proviso, by inserting before ‘‘institu2 tion’’ the following: ‘‘accredited’’; 

3 (2) in the sentence beginning ‘‘The Administra4 tion shall’’, by inserting before ‘‘institutions’’ the fol5 lowing: ‘‘accredited’’; and 

6 (3) by adding at the end the following new sen7 tence: ‘‘As used in this paragraph, the term ‘accred8 ited institution of higher education’ means an insti9 tution that is accredited as described in section 

10 101(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

11 U.S.C. 1001(a)(5)).’’ 

12 (b) PROGRAM NEGOTIATIONS.—Section 21(a)(3) of 

13 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(3)) is amended, 

14 in the matter before subparagraph (A), by inserting before 

15 ‘‘agreed’’ the following: ‘‘mutually’’. 

16 (c) CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS.—Section 21(a)(3)(A) 

17 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(3)(A)) is 

18 amended by inserting after ‘‘uniform negotiated’’ the fol19 lowing: ‘‘mutually agreed to’’. 

20 (d) NO SBA INTERFERENCE IN SBDC HIRING.— 

21 Section 21(c)(2)(A) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 648(c)(2)(A)) 

22 is amended by inserting after ‘‘full-time staff’’ the fol23 lowing: ‘‘, the hiring of which is carried out by the center 

24 without interference from, and without influence by, any 

25 officer or employee of the Administration,’’. 


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1 (e) CONTENT OF CONSULTATIONS COVERED BY PRI2 VACY REQUIREMENTS.—Section 21(a)(7)(A) of that Act 

3 (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(7)(A)) is amended by inserting after 

4 ‘‘under this section’’ the following: ‘‘, or the content of 

5 any consultation with such an individual or small business 

6 concern,’’. 

7 (f) REPEAL OF AUTHORITY TO USE AUTHORIZED

8 AMOUNTS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Section 

9 21(a)(4)(C)(v) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)(4)(C)(v)) is 

10 amended by amending subclause (I) to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Of the 

12 amounts made available in any fiscal 

13 year to carry out this section, not 

14 more than $500,000 may be used by 

15 the Administration to pay expenses 

16 enumerated in subparagraphs (B) 

17 through (D) of section 20(a)(1).’’. 

18 (g) NO CAP ON NON-MATCHING PORTABILITY

19 GRANTS IN THE EVENT OF A DISASTER.—Section 

20 21(a)(4)(C)(viii) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 

21 648(a)(4)(C)(viii)) is amended by adding at the end the 

22 following: ‘‘However, in the event of a disaster, the dollar 

23 limitation in the preceding sentence does not apply.’’. 


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1 (h) DEFINITION OF SBDC.—Section 21(a) of that 

2 Act (15 U.S.C. 648(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(8) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this section, 

5 a Small Business Development Center is— 

6 ‘‘(A) the entity selected by the Administrator to 

7 receive funds pursuant to the funding formula set 

8 forth in paragraph (4); or 

9 ‘‘(B) the site at which the services specified by 

10 this section are delivered.’’. 

11 (i) LIMITATION ON DISTRIBUTION TO SBDCS.—Sec12 tion 21(b) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 648(b)) is amended by 

13 adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON DISTRIBUTION TO SMALL BUSI15 NESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in this 

17 paragraph, the Administrator shall not distribute 

18 funds to a Small Business Development Center if 

19 the State in which the Small Business Development 

20 Center is located is served by more than one Small 

21 Business Development Center. For purposes of this 

22 limitation, the term Small Business Development 

23 Center shall have the meaning set forth in sub24 section (a)(8). 


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1 ‘‘(B) UNAVAILABILITY EXCEPTION.—The Ad2 ministrator may distribute funds to two Small Busi3 ness Development Centers, as that term is defined 

4 in subsection (a)(8)(A), if no applicant has applied 

5 to serve the entire State. Except as provided in sub6 paragraph (C), the Administrator is prohibited from 

7 distributing funds to more than two Small Business 

8 Development Centers. 

9 ‘‘(C) GRANDFATHER CLAUSE.—The limitations 

10 in this paragraph shall not apply for any State in 

11 which more than one Small Business Development 

12 Center received funding prior to January 1, 2007.’’. 

13 (j) REPORTING OF BROADBAND SERVICE PUR14 CHASES.—Section 21(c) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 648(c)) 

15 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(9) REPORTING OF BROADBAND SERVICE PUR17 CHASES.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to policies 

19 adopted by the Administrator, Small Business 

20 Development Centers shall report information 

21 to the Administrator by nine-digit zip code— 

22 ‘‘(i) whether the individual seeking 

23 counseling purchases broadband service at 

24 the address reported to the Small Business 

25 Development Center; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) if the reported address is dif2 ferent than the business address, whether 

3 broadband service is purchased at the busi4 ness address; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) if broadband service is not pur6 chased at the addresses set forth in clauses 

7 (i) and (ii). 

8 ‘‘(B) REPORTING.—The Administrator 

9 shall aggregate data by nine-digit zip code re10 porting such information to the Federal Com11 munications Commission and the National Tele12 communication and Information Administra13 tion.’’. 

14 TITLE II—GRANT INITIATIVES 

15 SEC. 201. CAPITAL ACCESS INITIATIVE. 

16 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648) 

17 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(n) CAPITAL ACCESS INITIATIVE.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De20 velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 

21 to carry out a capital access initiative program. 

22 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro23 gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) provide capital education by creating 

2 a model template to assist individuals in pre3 paring for a broad range of capital offerings; 

4 ‘‘(B) assess company potential by con5 ducting company assessments, which shall in6 clude, at a minimum, risk analysis and mapping 

7 of best capital opportunities; 

8 ‘‘(C) prepare individuals to request capital 

9 by advising on the various aspects of such a re10 quest, including the business plan, the finan11 cials, the projections, the presentation, and the 

12 approach; 

13 ‘‘(D) provide education on the rules of ac14 cess engagement, organizations involved and 

15 available, and approaches that maximize suc16 cessful requests; and 

17 ‘‘(E) deliver ongoing assistance once cap18 ital is secured. 

19 ‘‘(3) SUPPORT.—In carrying out this sub20 section, the Administrator shall obtain support from 

21 national associations and from organizations such as 

22 regional development groups and ‘angel’ groups 

23 founded by Small Business Development Centers. 

24 ‘‘(4) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—Each grant under 

25 this subsection shall be for at least $100,000. 


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1 ‘‘(5) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—No applicant may 

2 receive more than $300,000 in grants under this 

3 subsection in a fiscal year. 

4 ‘‘(6) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 

5 in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 

6 amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 

7 Administrator may make grants or enter into coop8 erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 

9 SEC. 202. DISASTER RECOVERY PROGRAM. 

10 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

11 648), as amended by this Act, is further amended by add12 ing at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(o) DISASTER RECOVERY PROGRAM.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De15 velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 

16 to carry out a disaster recovery program. 

17 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro18 gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) serve, in partnership with the Admin20 istration’s disaster center response teams, as a 

21 locally based resource for first responders by— 

22 ‘‘(i) rotating personnel into a disaster 

23 area for immediate response on the 

24 ground, processing applications, developing 


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1 an evaluating recovery business models, 

2 and distributing accurate information; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) providing continued interaction, 

4 over time, with businesses that are recov5 ering from a disaster; 

6 ‘‘(B) participate in ongoing national dis7 aster training; 

8 ‘‘(C) develop specific State-level disaster 

9 response plans; and 

10 ‘‘(D) form a network with other Centers to 

11 serve as a platform for sharing disaster exper12 tise, training, and human resources. 

13 ‘‘(3) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—Each grant under 

14 this subsection shall be for at least $50,000. 

15 ‘‘(4) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 

16 in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 

17 amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 

18 Administrator may make grants or enter into coop19 erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 

20 SEC. 203. INNOVATION AND COMPETITIVENESS SERVICES 

21 TO MANUFACTURERS INITIATIVE. 

22 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

23 648), as amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

24 the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(p) INNOVATION AND COMPETITIVENESS SERVICES

2 TO MANUFACTURERS INITIATIVE.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De4 velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 

5 to carry out an innovation and competitiveness serv6 ices to manufacturers initiative program. 

7 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro8 gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) participate in national training insti10 tutes to provide training to all programs of the 

11 Center to assist those programs to qualify for 

12 technology accreditation designation; 

13 ‘‘(B) develop, disseminate, and regularly 

14 update best practices ‘toolkits’ that include best 

15 practices for resources, training programs, con16 sultative approaches, and support services; 

17 ‘‘(C) recruit and engage significant local 

18 assets and resources (such as colleges, univer19 sities, economic development organizations, and 

20 trade associations) in each State; 

21 ‘‘(D) launch nationally a locally based but 

22 common themed marketing program, targeted 

23 at small manufacturers; 

24 ‘‘(E) undertake aggressive outreach to in25 crease the levels of innovation and competitiveVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:54 Jun 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2359.RH H2359

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1 ness, focusing on business advisement and 

2 training for manufacturers; 

3 ‘‘(F) provide ongoing professional develop4 ment to personnel of the Center and of other 

5 resource partners; and 

6 ‘‘(G) develop and report performance, 

7 using common evaluation metrics and outcome 

8 measurements. 

9 ‘‘(3) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—Each grant under 

10 this subsection shall be for at least $150,000. 

11 ‘‘(4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—A grant under this 

12 subsection may not exceed $500,000. 

13 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 

14 in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 

15 amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 

16 Administrator may make grants or enter into coop17 erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 

18 SEC. 204. MATURE ENTREPRENEURS ASSISTANCE PRO19 GRAM. 

20 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

21 648), as amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(q) MATURE ENTREPRENEURS ASSISTANCE PRO24 GRAM.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De2 velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 

3 to carry out a mature entrepreneurs assistance pro4 gram. 

5 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro6 gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) provide advisors and training re8 sources to assist business owners in recognizing 

9 and developing transition plans, including by— 

10 ‘‘(i) providing training and edu11 cational screening processes on the poten12 tial benefits and hazards of self-employ13 ment; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) developing courses, consulting 

15 processes, and highly targeted resource 

16 materials, and deploying them throughout 

17 the Small Business Development Center 

18 network; 

19 ‘‘(B) link business owners with additional 

20 resource service providers to prepare businesses 

21 for transition, including by increasing partner22 ship opportunities, particularly with the Service 

23 Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE); 

24 ‘‘(C) identify business opportunities for 

25 those interested in acquiring businesses; 


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1 ‘‘(D) help individuals identify and acquire 

2 financing for acquisition; and 

3 ‘‘(E) provide continuing support once tran4 sition has occurred. 

5 ‘‘(3) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—Each grant under 

6 this subsection shall be for at least $175,000. 

7 ‘‘(4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—A grant under this 

8 subsection may not exceed $350,000. 

9 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 

10 in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 

11 amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 

12 Administrator may make grants or enter into coop13 erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 

14 SEC. 205. SMALL BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE. 

15 Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

16 648), as amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 

17 the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(r) SMALL BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY INITIA19 TIVE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De21 velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 

22 to carry out a small business sustainability initiative 

23 program. 

24 ‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro25 gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) provide necessary support to smaller 

2 and medium-sized businesses to— 

3 ‘‘(i) evaluate energy efficiency and 

4 green building opportunities; 

5 ‘‘(ii) understand the cost benefits of 

6 energy efficiency and green building oppor7 tunities; 

8 ‘‘(iii) secure financing to achieve en9 ergy efficiency or to construct green build10 ings; and 

11 ‘‘(iv) empower management to imple12 ment energy efficiency projects; 

13 ‘‘(B) assist entrepreneurs with clean tech14 nology development and technology commer15 cialization through— 

16 ‘‘(i) technology assessment; 

17 ‘‘(ii) intellectual property; 

18 ‘‘(iii) Small Business Innovation Re19 search submissions; 

20 ‘‘(iv) strategic alliances; 

21 ‘‘(v) business model development; and 

22 ‘‘(vi) preparation for investors; and 

23 ‘‘(C) help small business improve environ24 mental performance by shifting to less haz25 ardous materials and reducing waste and emisVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:54 Jun 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2359.RH H2359

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1 sions at the source, including by providing as2 sistance for businesses to adapt the materials 

3 they use, the processes they operate, and the 

4 products and services they produce. 

5 ‘‘(3) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—Each grant under 

6 this subsection shall be for at least $150,000. 

7 ‘‘(4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—A grant under this 

8 subsection may not exceed $300,000. 

9 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 

10 in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 

11 amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 

12 Administrator may make grants or enter into coop13 erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 

14 SEC. 206. GRANTS TO SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 

15 CENTERS TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE IN SE16 CURING AFFORDABLE HEALTH INSURANCE. 

17 (a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Administrator of the 

18 Small Business Administration (hereafter in this section 

19 referred to as the Administrator) may award a grant 

20 under this section to a lead small business development 

21 center (as described under section 21 of the Small Busi22 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 648)). 

23 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—A recipient of a grant under 

24 this section shall use the grant only for the purpose of 

25 providing to the owner of a small business concern assistVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:54 Jun 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2359.RH H2359

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1 ance in identifying and securing affordable health insur2 ance for their business and employees. A recipient of such 

3 a grant shall identify Federal, State, and local initiatives 

4 designed to assist small businesses and provide such edu5 cation information to small business concerns seeking as6 sistance on obtaining health insurance. A recipient of such 

7 a grant shall also work with health insurance providers 

8 in the area to identify premiums charged on health insur9 ance for small business. A recipient of such a grant shall 

10 also attempt to negotiate lower health insurance premiums 

11 for small business concerns that seek the assistance of the 

12 recipient. 

13 (c) MINIMUM GRANT AMOUNT.—A grant under this 

14 section may not be in an amount less than $200,000. 

15 (d) APPLICATION.—Each applicant for a grant under 

16 this section shall submit to the Administrator an applica17 tion in such form as the Administrator may require. The 

18 application shall include information regarding the appli19 cant’s goals and objectives for helping address entre20 preneur’s concerns with health insurance costs. 

21 (e) REPORT TO ADMINISTRATOR.—As a condition of 

22 receiving a grant under this section, the Administrator 

23 shall require the recipient of a grant to submit to the Ad24 ministrator, not later than 18 months after the date on 


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1 which the grant is received, a report describing how the 

2 grant funds were used. 

3 (f) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS.— 

4 The Administrator may enter into a cooperative agree5 ment or contract with the recipient of a grant under this 

6 section to provide additional assistance that furthers the 

7 purposes of this section. 

8 (g) APPLICABILITY OF GRANT REQUIREMENTS.—An 

9 applicant for a grant under this section shall comply with 

10 all of the requirements applicable to a grantee under sec11 tion 21 of the Small Business Act, except that the match12 ing funds requirements of such section shall not apply. 

13 (h) EVALUATION OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 

14 March 31, 2009, the Administrator shall submit to Con15 gress a report that contains an evaluation of the grant 

16 program under this section. 

17 (i) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved in ad18 vance in appropriations Acts and separate from amounts 

19 approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the Administrator 

20 may make grants or enter into cooperative agreements to 

21 carry out this subsection. 

22 SEC. 207. NATIONAL REGULATORY ASSISTANCE. 

23 The Small Business Act is amended by inserting after 

24 section 21 (15 U.S.C. 648) the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 21A. SMALL BUSINESS REGULATORY ASSISTANCE. 

2 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 

3 definitions apply: 

4 ‘‘(1) ASSOCIATION.—The term ‘Association’ 

5 means the association recognized by the Adminis6 trator of the Small Business Administration under 

7 section 21(a)(3)(A). 

8 ‘‘(2) PARTICIPATING SMALL BUSINESS DEVEL9 OPMENT CENTER.—The term ‘participating Small 

10 Business Development Center’ means a Small Busi11 ness Development Center participating in the pro12 gram. 

13 ‘‘(3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘program’ means 

14 the regulatory assistance program established under 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘(4) REGULATORY COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE.— 

17 The term ‘regulatory compliance assistance’ means 

18 assistance provided by a Small Business Develop19 ment Center to a small business concern to enable 

20 the concern to comply with Federal regulatory re21 quirements. 

22 ‘‘(5) SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CEN23 TER.—The term ‘Small Business Development Cen24 ter’ means a lead Small Business Development Cen25 ter described in section 21. 


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1 ‘‘(6) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means each of 

2 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 

3 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, 

4 Guam, and American Samoa. 

5 ‘‘(b) AUTHORITY.—In accordance with this section, 

6 the Administrator shall establish a program to provide 

7 regulatory compliance assistance to small business con8 cerns through selected Small Business Development Cen9 ters, the Association of Small Business Development Cen10 ters, and Federal compliance partnership programs. 

11 ‘‘(c) SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTERS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the pro13 gram, the Administrator shall enter into arrange14 ments with selected Small Business Development 

15 Centers under which such Centers shall provide— 

16 ‘‘(A) access to information and resources, 

17 including current Federal and State nonpuni18 tive compliance and technical assistance pro19 grams similar to those established under section 

20 507 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7661f); 

21 ‘‘(B) training and educational activities; 

22 ‘‘(C) confidential, free-of-charge, one-on23 one, in-depth counseling to the owners and op24 erators of small business concerns regarding 

25 compliance with Federal and State regulations, 


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1 as long as such counseling is not considered to 

2 be the practice of law in a State in which a 

3 Small Business Development Center is located 

4 or in which such counseling is conducted; 

5 ‘‘(D) technical assistance; 

6 ‘‘(E) referrals to experts and other pro7 viders of compliance assistance who meet such 

8 standards for educational, technical, and profes9 sional competency as are established by the Ad10 ministrator; and 

11 ‘‘(F) access to the Internet and training on 

12 Internet use, including the use of the Internet 

13 website established by the Administrator under 

14 subsection (d)(1)(C). 

15 ‘‘(2) REPORTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each selected Small 

17 Business Development Center shall transmit to 

18 the Administrator a quarterly report that in19 cludes— 

20 ‘‘(i) a summary of the regulatory com21 pliance assistance provided by the center 

22 under the program; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) any data and information ob24 tained by the center from a Federal agency 

25 regarding regulatory compliance that the 


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1 agency intends to be disseminated to small 

2 business concerns. 

3 ‘‘(B) ELECTRONIC FORM.—Each report re4 quired under subparagraph (A) shall be trans5 mitted in electronic form. 

6 ‘‘(C) INTERIM REPORTS.—A participating 

7 Small Business Development Center may trans8 mit to the Administrator such interim reports 

9 as the Center considers appropriate. 

10 ‘‘(D) LIMITATION ON DISCLOSURE RE11 QUIREMENTS.—The Administrator shall not re12 quire a Small Business Development Center to 

13 disclose the name or address of any small busi14 ness concern that received or is receiving assist15 ance under the program, except that the Ad16 ministrator shall require such a disclosure if or17 dered to do so by a court in any civil or crimi18 nal action. 

19 ‘‘(d) DATA REPOSITORY AND CLEARINGHOUSE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the pro21 gram, the Administrator shall— 

22 ‘‘(A) act as the repository of and clearing23 house for data and information submitted by 

24 Small Business Development Centers; 


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1 ‘‘(B) submit to the President, the Com2 mittee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

3 of the Senate, and the Committee on Small 

4 Business of the House of Representatives an 

5 annual report that includes— 

6 ‘‘(i) a description of the types of as7 sistance provided by participating Small 

8 Business Development Centers under the 

9 program; 

10 ‘‘(ii) data regarding the number of 

11 small business concerns that contacted 

12 participating Small Business Development 

13 Centers regarding assistance under the 

14 program; 

15 ‘‘(iii) data regarding the number of 

16 small business concerns assisted by partici17 pating Small Business Development Cen18 ters under the program; 

19 ‘‘(iv) data and information regarding 

20 outreach activities conducted by partici21 pating Small Business Development Cen22 ters under the program, including any ac23 tivities conducted in partnership with Fed24 eral agencies; 


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1 ‘‘(v) data and information regarding 

2 each case known to the Administrator in 

3 which one or more Small Business Devel4 opment Centers offered conflicting advice 

5 or information regarding compliance with a 

6 Federal or State regulation to one or more 

7 small business concerns; 

8 ‘‘(vi) any recommendations for im9 provements in the regulation of small busi10 ness concerns; and 

11 ‘‘(vii) a list of regulations identified 

12 by the Administrator, after consultation 

13 with the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the 

14 Administration, who shall review such list, 

15 and the Small Business and Agriculture 

16 Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman, as 

17 being most burdensome to small business 

18 concerns, and recommendations to reduce 

19 or eliminate the burdens of such regula20 tions; and 

21 ‘‘(C) establish an Internet website that— 

22 ‘‘(i) provides access to Federal, State, 

23 academic, and industry association Inter24 net websites containing industry-specific 

25 regulatory compliance information that the 


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1 Administrator deems potentially useful to 

2 small businesses attempting to comply with 

3 Federal regulations; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) arranges such Internet websites 

5 in industry-specific categories. 

6 ‘‘(e) REVIEW OF BURDENSOME REGULATIONS AND

7 PETITION FOR AGENCY REVIEW.— 

8 ‘‘(1) TRANSMISSION OF LIST OF REGULATIONS

9 TO CHIEF COUNSEL FOR ADVOCACY.—The Adminis10 trator shall transmit to the Chief Counsel for Advo11 cacy of the Administration a copy of the list of regu12 lations submitted under subsection (d)(1)(B) as part 

13 of the annual report required by that subsection. 

14 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF LIST OF REGULATIONS.—The 

15 Chief Counsel for Advocacy shall review the list of 

16 regulations transmitted under paragraph (1) and 

17 identify any regulation that— 

18 ‘‘(A) is eligible for review in accordance 

19 with section 610 of title 5, United States Code; 

20 ‘‘(B) has a significant impact on a sub21 stantial number of small business concerns that 

22 is substantially different from the impact indi23 cated in the final regulatory flexibility analysis 

24 for that regulation, as published with the final 

25 regulation in the Federal Register; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) has a significant impact on a sub2 stantial number of small business concerns and 

3 for which no final regulatory flexibility analysis 

4 was ever performed. 

5 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION AND AGENCY REVIEW.— 

6 With respect to any regulation identified under para7 graph (2) the Chief Counsel for Advocacy shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) notify the appropriate Federal rule9 making agency and the Office of Information 

10 and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Manage11 ment of the identification of such rule or regu12 lation; and 

13 ‘‘(B) request the review of such regula14 tion— 

15 ‘‘(i) in accordance with section 610 of 

16 title 5, United States Code; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) for any impact it has on small 

18 business concerns. 

19 ‘‘(4) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Chief Counsel for 

20 Advocacy shall publish an annual report containing 

21 a list of any regulation identified under paragraph 

22 (2) and the disposition by the appropriate agency. 

23 ‘‘(f) ELIGIBILITY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A Small Business Develop25 ment Center shall be eligible to receive assistance 


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1 under the program only if the center is certified 

2 under section 21(k)(2). 

3 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—With respect to a Small Busi4 ness Development Center seeking assistance under 

5 the program, the Administrator may waive the cer6 tification requirement set forth in paragraph (1) if 

7 the Administrator determines that the center is 

8 making a good faith effort to obtain such certifi9 cation. 

10 ‘‘(g) SELECTION OF PARTICIPATING STATE PRO11 GRAMS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—In con13 sultation with the Association and giving substantial 

14 weight to the Association’s recommendations, the 

15 Administrator shall select the Small Business Devel16 opment Center programs of 2 States from each of 

17 the following groups of States to participate in the 

18 program: 

19 ‘‘(A) Group 1: Maine, Massachusetts, New 

20 Hampshire, Connecticut, Vermont, and Rhode 

21 Island. 

22 ‘‘(B) Group 2: New York, New Jersey, 

23 Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. 


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1 ‘‘(C) Group 3: Pennsylvania, Maryland, 

2 West Virginia, Virginia, the District of Colum3 bia, and Delaware. 

4 ‘‘(D) Group 4: Georgia, Alabama, North 

5 Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, 

6 Kentucky, and Tennessee. 

7 ‘‘(E) Group 5: Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, In8 diana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. 

9 ‘‘(F) Group 6: Texas, New Mexico, Arkan10 sas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. 

11 ‘‘(G) Group 7: Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, 

12 and Kansas. 

13 ‘‘(H) Group 8: Colorado, Wyoming, North 

14 Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Utah. 

15 ‘‘(I) Group 9: California, Guam, Hawaii, 

16 Nevada, and Arizona. 

17 ‘‘(J) Group 10: Washington, Alaska, 

18 Idaho, and Oregon. 

19 ‘‘(2) DEADLINE FOR INITIAL SELECTIONS.— 

20 The Administrator shall make selections under para21 graph (1) not later than 60 days after promulgation 

22 of regulations under subsection (k). 

23 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL SELECTIONS.—Not earlier 

24 than the date 3 years after the date of the enact25 ment of this paragraph, the Administrator may seVerDate Aug 31 2005 01:54 Jun 16, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2359.RH H2359

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1 lect Small Business Development Center programs 

2 of States in addition to those selected under para3 graph (1). The Administrator shall consider the ef4 fect on the programs selected under paragraph (1) 

5 before selecting additional programs under this 

6 paragraph. 

7 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION TO AVOID DUPLICATION

8 WITH OTHER PROGRAMS.—In selecting programs 

9 under this subsection, the Administrator shall give a 

10 preference to Small Business Development Center 

11 programs that have a plan for consulting with Fed12 eral and State agencies to ensure that any assist13 ance provided under this section is not duplicated by 

14 an existing Federal or State program. 

15 ‘‘(h) MATCHING NOT REQUIRED.—Subparagraphs 

16 (A) and (B) of section 21(a)(4) shall not apply to assist17 ance made available under the program. 

18 ‘‘(i) DISTRIBUTION OF GRANTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), each State program selected to receive a 

21 grant under subsection (g) in a fiscal year shall be 

22 eligible to receive a grant in an amount not to ex23 ceed the product obtained by multiplying— 

24 ‘‘(A) the amount made available for grants 

25 under this section for the fiscal year; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the ratio that the population of the 

2 State bears to the population of all the States 

3 with programs selected to receive grants under 

4 subsection (g) for the fiscal year. 

5 ‘‘(2) MINIMUM AMOUNT.—The minimum 

6 amount that a State program selected to receive a 

7 grant under subsection (g) shall be eligible to receive 

8 under this section for any fiscal year shall be 

9 $200,000. The Administrator shall reduce the 

10 amount described in paragraph (1) as appropriate to 

11 carry out the purposes of this paragraph and sub12 section (j)(2). 

13 ‘‘(j) EVALUATION AND REPORT.—Not later than 3 

14 years after the establishment of the program, the Comp15 troller General of the United States shall conduct an eval16 uation of the program and shall transmit to the Adminis17 trator, the Committee on Small Business and Entrepre18 neurship of the Senate, and the Committee on Small Busi19 ness of the House of Representatives a report containing 

20 the results of the evaluation along with any recommenda21 tions as to whether the program, with or without modifica22 tion, should be extended to include the participation of all 

23 Small Business Development Centers. 

24 ‘‘(k) PROMULGATION OF REGULATIONS.—After pro25 viding notice and an opportunity for comment and after 


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1 consulting with the Association (but not later than 180 

2 days after the date of the enactment of this section), the 

3 Administrator shall promulgate final regulations to carry 

4 out this section, including regulations that establish— 

5 ‘‘(1) priorities for the types of assistance to be 

6 provided under the program; 

7 ‘‘(2) standards relating to educational, tech8 nical, and support services to be provided by partici9 pating Small Business Development Centers; 

10 ‘‘(3) standards relating to any national service 

11 delivery and support function to be provided by the 

12 Association under the program; 

13 ‘‘(4) standards relating to any work plan that 

14 the Administrator may require a participating Small 

15 Business Development Center to develop; and 

16 ‘‘(5) standards relating to the educational, tech17 nical, and professional competency of any expert or 

18 other assistance provider to whom a small business 

19 concern may be referred for compliance assistance 

20 under the program. 

21 ‘‘(l) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved in ad22 vance in appropriations Acts and separate from amounts 

23 approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the Administrator 

24 may make grants or enter into cooperative agreements to 

25 carry out this section.’’. 


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1 SEC. 208. REPORT. 

2 Not later than 18 months after the date of the enact3 ment of this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business 

4 Administration shall submit to Congress a report evalu5 ating the effectiveness of the new Small Business Develop6 ment Center programs added by the amendments made 

7 by this title. 

8 TITLE III—SCORE 

9 SEC. 301. REPEAL OF ACTIVE CORPORATION OF EXECU10 TIVES. 

11 Section 8(b)(1)(B) of the Small Business Act (15 

12 U.S.C. 637(b)(1)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘and an Ac13 tive Corps of Executive (ACE)’’. 

14 SEC. 302. INCREASING THE PROPORTION OF SCORE VOL15 UNTEERS FROM SOCIALLY AND ECONOMI16 CALLY DISADVANTAGED BACKGROUNDS. 

17 Section 8(b)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

18 637(b)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(H) The Service Corps of Retired Execu20 tives (SCORE) established under subparagraph 

21 (B) shall carry out a plan to increase the pro22 portion of mentors who are from socially or eco23 nomically disadvantaged backgrounds. SCORE 

24 shall, on an annual basis, report to the Admin25 istrator on the implementation of this subpara26 graph.’’. 


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1 SEC. 303. BENCHMARK REPORTING. 

2 Section 8(b)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

3 637(b)(1)), as amended by section 202, is further amend4 ed by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(I) The Service Corps of Retired Execu6 tives (SCORE) established under subparagraph 

7 (B) shall, in consultation with the Adminis8 trator, establish benchmarks for use in evalu9 ating the performance of its activities and the 

10 performance of its volunteers. The benchmarks 

11 shall include benchmarks relating to the demo12 graphic characteristics and the geographic char13 acteristics of persons assisted by SCORE, 

14 benchmarks relating to the hours spent men15 toring by volunteers, and benchmarks relating 

16 to the performance of the persons assisted by 

17 SCORE. SCORE shall, on an annual basis, re18 port to the Administrator on the extent to 

19 which the benchmarks established under this 

20 subparagraph are being attained.’’. 


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Union Calendar No. 114 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2359 

[Report No. 110

–193] 

A BILL 

To reauthorize programs to assist small business 

concerns, and for other purposes. 

JUNE 15, 2007 

Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 

State of the Union and ordered to be printed 


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