II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4964 

To establish a Next Generation Entrepreneurship Corps program within the 

Small Business Administration, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 3, 2020 

Mr. COONS (for himself and Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Small 

Business and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To establish a Next Generation Entrepreneurship Corps program within the Small Business Administration, 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Next Generation En5 trepreneurship Corps Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

7 It is the sense of Congress that— 


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1 (1) the United States has a successful fellow2 ship for building the next generation of public serv3 ants; and 

4 (2) with the devastation facing small businesses 

5 in the United States as a result of the novel 2019 

6 Coronavirus (COVID–19), rebuilding Main Street 

7 will require a new generation of entrepreneurial tal8 ent with the backing of the Federal Government. 

9 SEC. 3. NEXT GENERATION ENTREPRENEURSHIP CORPS 

10 PROGRAM. 

11 The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) by redesignating section 49 (15 U.S.C. 631 

14 note) as section 50; and 

15 (2) by inserting after section 48 (15 U.S.C. 

16 657u) the following: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 49. NEXT GENERATION ENTREPRENEURSHIP CORPS 

18 PROGRAM. 

19 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

20 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Committee’ means the selection 

21 committee established under subsection (k); 

22 ‘‘(2) the term ‘community development financial 

23 institution’ has the meaning given the term in sec24 tion 103 of the Riegle Community Development and 


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1 Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 

2 4702)); 

3 ‘‘(3) the term ‘distressed region’ means any 

4 census tract or other area that is treated as a low5 income community for purposes of section 45D of 

6 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

7 ‘‘(4) the term ‘equity investment’— 

8 ‘‘(A) means an investment for an owner9 ship interest in an entity, the financial return 

10 with respect to which is principally aligned with 

11 the financial return of the plurality of owner12 ship interests in the entity; and 

13 ‘‘(B) includes a debt instrument that can 

14 be converted to an equity ownership interest in 

15 an entity based on future events; 

16 ‘‘(5) the term ‘minority depository institution’ 

17 has the meaning given the term in section 308 of the 

18 Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and En19 forcement Act of 1989 (12 U.S.C. 1463 note); 

20 ‘‘(6) the term ‘Program’ means the Next Gen21 eration Entrepreneurship Corps Program established 

22 under subsection (b); 

23 ‘‘(7) the term ‘qualified investor’ means a per24 son that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) invests equity in a small business 

2 concern owned and operated by a fellow under 

3 the Program; and 

4 ‘‘(B) has not more than $250,000,000 in 

5 assets; 

6 ‘‘(8) the term ‘SCORE’ means the Service 

7 Corps of Retired Executives established under sec8 tion 8(b)(1)(B); 

9 ‘‘(9) the term ‘State’ means any State of the 

10 United States, the District of Columbia, and any 

11 territory of the United States; 

12 ‘‘(10) the term ‘veteran business outreach cen13 ter’ means a veteran business outreach center de14 scribed in section 32; and 

15 ‘‘(11) the term ‘women’s business center’ means 

16 a women’s business center operating pursuant to 

17 section 29. 

18 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established within 

20 the Administration an independent fellowship pilot 

21 program to be known as the ‘Next Generation En22 trepreneurship Corps Program’ to foster entrepre23 neurship in the most distressed regions of the 

24 United States, including distressed regions affected 

25 by the COVID–19 pandemic. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION.—The Program shall be 

2 administered by the Office of Entrepreneurial Devel3 opment of the Administration. 

4 ‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Under the Program, 

6 there shall be 1 group of fellows selected each 

7 year for 5 years of the Program, with each 

8 group serving for a 2-year period. 

9 ‘‘(B) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year 

10 after the second group of fellows is selected 

11 under the Program, and every 2 years there12 after, the Committee shall submit to Congress 

13 an evaluation of the Program, along with any 

14 recommendations and options to expand the 

15 Program and make the Program permanent. 

16 ‘‘(4) THIRD-PARTY CONTRACTS.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Entre18 preneurial Development of the Administration 

19 may contract with third-party nonprofit organi20 zations that— 

21 ‘‘(i) do or plan to do service work to 

22 execute the Program; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the Committee determines have 

24 relevant experience to carry out the Pro25 gram. 


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1 ‘‘(B) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days 

2 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad3 ministrator shall submit to Congress a report 

4 on— 

5 ‘‘(i) the requirements and plans relat6 ing to third-party contractors described in 

7 subparagraph (A); and 

8 ‘‘(ii) how those third-party contractors 

9 will begin to carry out the Program. 

10 ‘‘(c) STIPENDS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each fiscal year, the Com12 mittee may select not more than 320 fellows to par13 ticipate in the Program and receive a 2-year stipend 

14 of $120,000 to start and grow a new small business 

15 concern. 

16 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY TO REJECT.—The Assistant 

17 Administrator of the Office of Entrepreneurial De18 velopment of the Administration shall have the au19 thority to reject any fellow selected by the Com20 mittee to participate in the Program. 

21 ‘‘(3) ALLOWABLE USES.—The Committee shall 

22 determine the allowable uses of a stipend awarded 

23 under this subsection. 

24 ‘‘(4) STIPEND AMOUNT.—The amount of a sti25 pend made under this subsection shall be adjusted 


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1 every 3 years to reflect increases in the Consumer 

2 Price Index for All Urban Consumers during that 

3 period. 

4 ‘‘(5) APPLICATIONS.—Each applicant for a sti5 pend made under this subsection shall— 

6 ‘‘(A) propose a small business concern idea 

7 that will be located in a distressed region; and 

8 ‘‘(B) submit to the Committee a small 

9 business concern plan that demonstrates— 

10 ‘‘(i) that the applicant will have pri11 mary decision-making authority in the 

12 small business concern; 

13 ‘‘(ii) a need for the small business 

14 concern of the applicant in the community 

15 or how the small business concern solves 

16 an economic or social problem in the area 

17 to be served by the small business concern 

18 or the United States; 

19 ‘‘(iii) how the applicant plans to build 

20 their small business concern to employ 

21 local talent in entry-level and mid-level po22 sitions to ensure quality job growth; 

23 ‘‘(iv) a vision for long-term growth in 

24 the area to be served by the small business 

25 concern; and 


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1 ‘‘(v) that the applicant does not, at 

2 the time of application, have the resources 

3 to start and grow a small business concern 

4 on their own without assistance. 

5 ‘‘(6) PREFERENCE.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall 

7 give preference to applicants for a stipend 

8 under this subsection that are— 

9 ‘‘(i) individuals moving to a distressed 

10 region to encourage new small business 

11 concern owners in those areas post12 COVID–19; 

13 ‘‘(ii) individuals who can demonstrate 

14 a connection to the State or locality in 

15 which the proposed small business concern 

16 will be located and are willing to relocate 

17 within 15 miles of the distressed region; 

18 ‘‘(iii) owners of small business con19 cerns whose businesses were closed or who 

20 had to significant change their business 

21 model or services due to the COVID–19 

22 public health crisis; 

23 ‘‘(iv) entrepreneurs within populations 

24 underrepresented among small business 

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1 cluding women and racial and ethnic mi2 nority groups; 

3 ‘‘(v) veterans; 

4 ‘‘(vi) individuals who can demonstrate 

5 residence of not less than 2 years in a low6 income census tract; 

7 ‘‘(vii) individuals who have taken non8 traditional pathways for professional devel9 opment, including individuals without a 

10 bachelor’s degree or who received Federal 

11 Pell Grants under section 401 of the High12 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

13 1070a), who shall not be required to estab14 lish a small business concern in a dis15 tressed region; or 

16 ‘‘(viii) individuals with business plans 

17 that have potential, if successful, to be eli18 gible for any contracting assistance pro19 gram of the Administration, including the 

20 business development program under sec21 tion 8(a), the Women Owned Small Busi22 ness Federal contracting program under 

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1 tion 36, and the HUBZone program under 

2 section 31. 

3 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—When evaluating 

4 applicants for a stipend under this subsection, 

5 the Committee— 

6 ‘‘(i) shall differentiate between appli7 cants for a stipend under this subsection 

8 that aim to be a high-growth startup and 

9 a traditional small business concern; 

10 ‘‘(ii) shall consider similar categories 

11 of applicants concurrently; 

12 ‘‘(iii) should seek to encourage both 

13 high-growth and traditional startups across 

14 all geographic areas; and 

15 ‘‘(iv) shall— 

16 ‘‘(I) not prioritize applicants with 

17 prior experience with starting and 

18 growing a small business concern over 

19 applications without that experience; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(II) give equal consideration to 

22 applicants with and without the expe23 rience described in subclause (I). 

24 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL METRICS.—The Com25 mittee shall establish additional metrics by 


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1 which to evaluate applicants for a stipend under 

2 this subsection, including by creating local and 

3 State level applicant competitions. 

4 ‘‘(7) NEW ENTREPRENEURS.—The Committee 

5 may award stipends under this subsection to appli6 cants both at the beginning stages of building their 

7 small business concern as well as to applicants who 

8 have had limited prior business experience. 

9 ‘‘(8) NUMBER OF FELLOWS PER SCORE CHAP10 TER.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each year, the Com12 mittee shall, to the maximum extent prac13 ticable, designate 1 fellow per SCORE chapter 

14 in the United States, provided that the selection 

15 process under this subsection remains competi16 tive. 

17 ‘‘(B) DISTRIBUTION.—The Committee 

18 shall ensure a fair geographic distribution of 

19 fellows selected under this subsection, including 

20 between urban and rural areas, and may create 

21 a process for ensuring that distribution if the 

22 Committee determines necessary. 

23 ‘‘(d) BENEFITS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) STUDENT LOAN DEFERMENT.—For each 

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1 mittee that the fellow has a loan made, insured, or 

2 guaranteed under part B, D, or E of title IV of the 

3 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et 

4 seq.; 1087a et seq.; 1087aa et seq.) that is in repay5 ment— 

6 ‘‘(A) the Committee shall— 

7 ‘‘(i) inform the Secretary of Edu8 cation that the fellow is participating in a 

9 fellowship through the Program; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) provide any additional informa11 tion requested by the Secretary of Edu12 cation regarding the fellow and the loan; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) the Secretary of Education shall, for 

15 the period of the fellowship— 

16 ‘‘(i) in the case of a loan made under 

17 part B or E of title IV of the Higher Edu18 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et 

19 seq.; 1087aa et seq.), require that the 

20 holder of the loan place the loan in 

21 deferment, in which interest shall accrue 

22 and be paid by the Secretary, in the same 

23 manner as a deferment made under section 

24 428(b)(1)(M) of the Higher Education Act 

25 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078(b)(1)(M)); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a loan made under 

2 part D of such Act (20 U.S.C. 1087a et 

3 seq.), place the loan in deferment, during 

4 which interest shall not accrue, in the 

5 same manner as a deferment made under 

6 section 455(f)(1) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

7 1087e(f)(1)) for a Federal Direct Stafford 

8 Loan under such part. 

9 ‘‘(2) HEALTH CARE.—With respect to any fel10 low under the Program that is not otherwise covered 

11 under a health care policy, the Administrator shall 

12 provide or make available a basic health care policy 

13 in accordance with section 140(d) of the National 

14 and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 

15 12594(d)) for the 2-year period during which the 

16 fellow serves under the Program. 

17 ‘‘(e) MENTOR SUPPORT.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each fellow under the Pro19 gram— 

20 ‘‘(A) shall be assigned by the designated 

21 SCORE chapter of the fellow a local mentor, 

22 and the designated SCORE chapter may work 

23 in partnership with a small business develop24 ment center, a veteran business outreach cen25 ter, a women’s business center, or other local 


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1 resources to pair the fellow with a mentor and 

2 provide mentorship; 

3 ‘‘(B) following completion of the Program 

4 is encouraged to join SCORE, a small business 

5 development center, a veteran business outreach 

6 center, or a women’s business center to con7 tribute back to the Program and facilitate part8 nerships with local resource partners of the Ad9 ministration; and 

10 ‘‘(C) shall be assigned by the Committee a 

11 mentor from the Next Generation Entrepre12 neurship Corps Board, which shall be created 

13 by the Committee and consist of notable chief 

14 executive officers of companies and venture cap15 italists from across the United States to help 

16 advise fellows. 

17 ‘‘(2) PARTNERSHIP.—The Committee shall de18 velop a partnership with the mentor-protege pro19 gram for small business concerns eligible to receive 

20 contracts pursuant to section 8(a) to assign mentors 

21 during the second year of the fellowship to fellows 

22 under the Program that have proposed a small busi23 ness concern that may be eligible to receive contracts 

24 pursuant to section 8(a). 


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1 ‘‘(3) RESOURCES.—In providing mentorship 

2 under paragraph (1), each resource partner de3 scribed in that paragraph shall engage the resources 

4 of the Administration in each State, including 

5 through partnerships with community organizations. 

6 ‘‘(f) IMMERSIVE INITIAL TRAINING.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each fellow under the Pro8 gram shall attend an immersive training course de9 signed by the Committee at the beginning of the fel10 lowship, which shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) provide distinct education materials, 

12 including resources and information, for all fel13 lows on high-growth startups and distinct edu14 cation materials for all fellows on traditional 

15 small business concerns; 

16 ‘‘(B) incorporate skills building, transfer of 

17 business know-how when beginning a small 

18 business concern, and a discussion of resources 

19 of the Administration; and 

20 ‘‘(C) include information on local resources 

21 available from SCORE, small business develop22 ment centers, veteran business outreach cen23 ters, and women’s business centers. 

24 ‘‘(2) SELECTION OF HOSTS.—Each year, the 

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1 ness resource partner to host the immersive training 

2 course described in paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(g) NETWORK BUILDING.—To foster connections 

4 across the United States with other innovators, each fellow 

5 under the Program— 

6 ‘‘(1) shall attend not less than 1 small business 

7 concern-related conference per year of the fellowship; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(2) is encouraged to attend regional small 

10 business concern-related conferences. 

11 ‘‘(h) ACCESS TO CAPITAL STRATEGY.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall 

14 establish a strategy for access to capital, insur15 ance, and other core small business concern 

16 services and products, for use both during and 

17 after the Program, for fellows under the Pro18 gram that provides for the needs of both tradi19 tional small business concerns and high-growth 

20 startups. 

21 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—Under the strat22 egy established under subparagraph (A), the 

23 Committee shall— 

24 ‘‘(i) provide to each fellow under the 

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1 gram under section 8(a) and assistance in 

2 submitting the information required for the 

3 small business concern of the fellow to be 

4 certified to participate in the program; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) at the end of each fellowship, 

6 provide follow-up assistance to facilitate 

7 the certification of the small business con8 cern of the fellow to participate in the pro9 gram under section 8(a). 

10 ‘‘(2) MATCHING.—Under the strategy estab11 lished under paragraph (1), the Committee shall 

12 match fellows under the Program with a full range 

13 of lenders, investors, and insurers, including both 

14 local and national resources. 

15 ‘‘(3) PREFERENCE.—The Administrator may 

16 give preference to fellows under the Program with 

17 respect to loans under section 7(a), microloans 

18 under section 7(m), and assistance provided under 

19 title V of the Small Business Investment Act of 

20 1958 (15 U.S.C. 695 et seq.) to facilitate quick and 

21 affordable access to credit during the period of the 

22 fellowship and during the 5-year period after the end 

23 of the fellowship, including by— 

24 ‘‘(A) waiving the credit elsewhere require25 ment; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) expediting the application timeline for 

2 that assistance. 

3 ‘‘(4) WAIVER OF PERSONAL GUARANTEE.— 

4 With respect to high-growth startup small business 

5 concerns established by fellows under the Program, 

6 the Administrator shall waive the personal guarantee 

7 requirement for those small business concerns that 

8 apply for loans under section 7(a), microloans under 

9 section 7(m), or assistance provided under title V of 

10 the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 

11 U.S.C. 695 et seq.). 

12 ‘‘(5) ASSISTANCE WITH ACCESS TO THE 8(a) 

13 PROGRAM.—For purposes of participation in the 

14 program under section 8(a)— 

15 ‘‘(A) a small business concern of a fellow 

16 under the Program shall be eligible to seek cer17 tification to participate in the program under 

18 section 8(a) if the small business concern has 

19 been in business in the primary industry classi20 fication of the small business concern for at 

21 least 18 months; and 

22 ‘‘(B) the Administrator— 

23 ‘‘(i) shall evaluate whether to estab24 lish an expedited process for certification 

25 of a small business concern of a fellow 


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1 under the Program to participate in the 

2 program under section 8(a); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) may implement a process de4 scribed in clause (i) for fellows during the 

5 period of the fellowship and during the 5- 

6 year period after the end of the fellowship. 

7 ‘‘(i) PROGRAM FUND FOR CAPITAL.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

9 Treasury a fund, which shall be available to the Ad10 ministrator to provide loans to qualified investors. 

11 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT OF LOANS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A loan to a qualified 

13 investor under this subsection shall be not more 

14 than 66.6 percent of the amount of equity the 

15 qualified investor invested in the applicable 

16 small business concern owned and operated by 

17 a fellow under the Program. 

18 ‘‘(B) ESTABLISHMENT OF LOAN LIMITS.— 

19 The Administrator may establish additional lim20 its on the maximum amount of loans to quali21 fied investors under this subsection if the Ad22 ministrator determines the limits are necessary 

23 to ensure that the Administrator may make 

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1 gram, using the amounts made available for 

2 such loans. 

3 ‘‘(3) LOAN TERM.—A loan under this sub4 section shall have a maturity of not longer than 30 

5 years. 

6 ‘‘(4) RATE OF INTEREST.—The rate of interest 

7 on a loan under this subsection shall be equal to the 

8 discount window primary credit interest rate most 

9 recently published on the Federal Reserve Statistical 

10 Release on selected interest rates (daily or weekly), 

11 commonly referred to as the ‘H.15 release’ or the 

12 ‘Federal funds rate’. 

13 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.— 

14 ‘‘(A) APPROPRIATIONS.—Out of funds in 

15 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, there 

16 is appropriated to the fund established under 

17 paragraph (1) $30,000,000, to remain available 

18 until expended. 

19 ‘‘(B) REINVESTMENT OF REPAYMENTS.— 

20 Any amounts received from the repayment of a 

21 loan under this subsection shall be deposited in 

22 the fund established under paragraph (1) and 

23 shall remain available until expended. 

24 ‘‘(j) REPORTING BY FELLOWS.—Each fellow under 

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1 mittee and each mentor assigned to the fellow under sub2 section (e) a progress report on the activities of the fellow. 

3 ‘‘(k) SELECTION COMMITTEE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administration shall 

5 establish a selection committee composed of experts 

6 from educational, scientific, technical, and public 

7 service backgrounds to— 

8 ‘‘(A) build the next generation of entre9 preneurs under the Program through a trans10 parent, competitive, fair, and rigorous process; 

11 ‘‘(B) enable entrepreneurs each year under 

12 the Program to successfully build small busi13 ness concerns in distressed regions by providing 

14 guidance, expertise, and partnerships between 

15 the fellows and business supports; 

16 ‘‘(C) increase the diversity of entrepreneur17 ship in the United States; 

18 ‘‘(D) increase entrepreneurship in dis19 tressed regions; 

20 ‘‘(E) increase talent retention and migra21 tion to distressed regions; 

22 ‘‘(F) increase investment and growth in 

23 communities in distressed regions; and 

24 ‘‘(G) ensure the transparent, efficient, and 

25 effective use of taxpayer funds. 


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1 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

2 ‘‘(A) COMPOSITION.—The Committee shall 

3 be composed of 12 members appointed by the 

4 Administrator, of whom— 

5 ‘‘(i) 1 member shall be a small busi6 ness concern investor such as a venture 

7 capitalist or an angel investor; 

8 ‘‘(ii) 1 member shall be a small busi9 ness concern banker, including— 

10 ‘‘(I) a community development fi11 nancial institution; or 

12 ‘‘(II) a minority depository insti13 tution; 

14 ‘‘(iii) 3 members shall be successful 

15 entrepreneurs; 

16 ‘‘(iv) 1 member shall be a SCORE 

17 representative; 

18 ‘‘(v) 1 member shall be a mentor in 

19 the mentor-protege program for small busi20 ness concerns eligible to receive contracts 

21 pursuant to section 8(a) who has relevant 

22 contracting experience; 

23 ‘‘(vi) 1 member shall be an expert on 

24 economic development; 


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1 ‘‘(vii) 1 member shall be an expert on 

2 distressed regions; and 

3 ‘‘(viii) 3 members shall be individuals 

4 from the private sector with relevant expe5 rience as related to the mission and the 

6 duties of the Committee. 

7 ‘‘(B) PREFERENCE.—There shall be a 

8 preference for the appointment of members of 

9 the Committee who are within populations that 

10 are underrepresented among small business 

11 concern owners in the United States, including 

12 women and ethnic minority groups. 

13 ‘‘(C) CHAIR.—The Administrator shall se14 lect the chair of the Committee from among 

15 members of the Committee. 

16 ‘‘(D) TERM; VACANCIES.—The term of of17 fice of each member of the Committee shall be 

18 6 years, except that— 

19 ‘‘(i) of the members first serving on 

20 the Committee— 

21 ‘‘(I) 4 shall serve terms of 2 

22 years; 

23 ‘‘(II) 4 shall serve terms of 4 

24 years; and 


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1 ‘‘(III) 4 shall serve terms of 6 

2 years; 

3 ‘‘(ii) any member appointed to fill a 

4 vacancy shall serve for the remainder of 

5 the term for which his predecessor was ap6 pointed and shall be appointed in the same 

7 manner as the original appointment for 

8 that vacancy was made; and 

9 ‘‘(iii) upon the expiration of their 

10 term of office, any member of the Com11 mittee may continue to serve until their 

12 successor is appointed. 

13 ‘‘(E) POLITICAL PARTY.—Not more than 6 

14 members of the Committee shall be from the 

15 same political party. 

16 ‘‘(F) APPOINTMENTS.—Appointments to 

17 the Committee shall be made not later than 30 

18 days after the date of enactment of the Next 

19 Generation Entrepreneurship Corps Act. 

20 ‘‘(3) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Com21 mittee shall serve without pay, but shall be entitled 

22 to reimbursement for travel, subsistence, and other 

23 necessary expenses incurred in the performance of 

24 their duties. 


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1 ‘‘(4) FIRST MEETING.—Not later than 30 days 

2 after the appointment of a majority of Committee 

3 members, the Committee shall hold its first meeting. 

4 ‘‘(5) DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—The 

5 Committee— 

6 ‘‘(A) shall provide for the conduct of a na7 tionwide competition for selecting fellows to 

8 participate in the Program by— 

9 ‘‘(i) issuing a request for applications 

10 not later than 6 months after the date of 

11 enactment of the Next Generation Entre12 preneurship Corps Act, with a deadline for 

13 submissions that is not later than 12 

14 months after such date of enactment; 

15 ‘‘(ii) partnering with private organiza16 tions, including those with investment ex17 perience or experience in the area of in18 vesting in businesses, to provide edu19 cational materials to educate the public 

20 about the Program, help ensure that the 

21 Program is competitive, and increase 

22 awareness of the Program; 

23 ‘‘(iii) partnering with organizations 

24 that work with or provide programming for 

25 the K–20 entrepreneurship pipeline; and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) selecting the first group of fel2 lows not later than 13 months after the 

3 date of enactment of the Next Generation 

4 Entrepreneurship Corps Act; 

5 ‘‘(B) shall carry out the duties described in 

6 this section with respect to the Program; 

7 ‘‘(C) may identify— 

8 ‘‘(i) priority sectors that advance the 

9 social and economic development of a geo10 graphic area or the United States, includ11 ing social services, education, health and 

12 nutrition, child care, manufacturing, tech13 nology, or any industry sector that sup14 ports the economic development strategy of 

15 an area; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) prohibited sectors and businesses 

17 that could harm the economic development 

18 of communities, such as— 

19 ‘‘(I) predatory financial services 

20 and addictive substances; and 

21 ‘‘(II) businesses described in sec22 tion 120.110 of title 13, Code of Fed23 eral Regulations, or any successor 

24 regulation; 


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1 ‘‘(D) may create an entity described in sec2 tion 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code 

3 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) 

4 of such Code to solicit private funding for the 

5 Program; 

6 ‘‘(E) may work with the Economic Devel7 opment Agency of the Department of Com8 merce in carrying out the duties of the Program 

9 and providing resources to fellows under the 

10 Program; and 

11 ‘‘(F) shall assist with the facilitation of 

12 pairing, and encourage designated SCORE 

13 chapters to pair, assigned fellows with local ac14 celerators. 

15 ‘‘(6) STAFF.—The Committee may appoint a 

16 staff director and other personnel as necessary to 

17 carry out the duties of the Committee. 

18 ‘‘(7) APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal 

19 Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not 

20 apply to the Committee. 

21 ‘‘(l) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

22 on which the Committee selects the first group of fellows 

23 for the Program, and every year thereafter, the Committee 

24 shall submit to Congress a report that empirically evalu25 ates the effectiveness of the Program, including an evaluaVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:06 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4964.IS S4964

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1 tion by revenues and jobs created and sustained, small 

2 business concern survival rates, capital raised, and other 

3 metrics determined appropriate by the Committee. 

4 ‘‘(m) AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) STIPENDS AND NETWORK BUILDING.— 

6 There is authorized to be appropriated $39,200,000 

7 for each fiscal year for the Program, of which— 

8 ‘‘(A) $38,400,000 shall be for stipends 

9 made under subsection (b)(1); and 

10 ‘‘(B) $800,000 shall be for providing reim11 bursable expenses for travel and stay up to 

12 $2,500 per fellow to attend 1 conference de13 scribed in subsection (g). 

14 ‘‘(2) SCORE.—There is authorized to be ap15 propriated $5,000,000 for each fiscal year to 

16 SCORE to carry out activities under the Program. 

17 ‘‘(3) IMMERSIVE INITIAL TRAINING.—There is 

18 authorized to be appropriated for each fiscal year 

19 such sums as may be necessary to provide to the 

20 Committee $4,000 per fellow under the Program for 

21 the cost of hosting the immersive initial training 

22 under subsection (f). 

23 ‘‘(4) STAFF AND ADMINISTRATION.—There is 

24 authorized to be appropriated $2,500,000 for each 


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1 fiscal year for staff and administrative expenses of 

2 the Administration to implement the Program. 

3 ‘‘(5) STUDENT LOAN DEFERRAL AND

4 HEALTHCARE.—There is authorized to be appro5 priated such sums as may be necessary to carry out 

6 subsection (d). 

7 ‘‘(6) COMMITTEE COSTS.—There is authorized 

8 to be appropriated $4,000,000 for each fiscal year 

9 for travel and administrative expenses of the Com10 mittee.’’. 

Æ 


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