II 

Calendar No. 280 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2521 

To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to 

establish an SBIC Working Group, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 28, 2021 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. RISCH, and Mr. COONS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Small 

Business and Entrepreneurship 

FEBRUARY 17, 2022 

Reported by Mr. CARDIN, with an amendment and an amendment to the title 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to establish an SBIC Working Group, 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 ‘‘SBIC Working Group 

5 Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. SBIC WORKING GROUP. 

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

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

5 and the Administrator thereof, respectively; 

6 (2) the term ‘‘covered Members’’ means the 

7 Chair and Ranking Member of— 

8 (A) the Committee on Small Business and 

9 Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and 

10 (B) the Committee on Small Business of 

11 the House of Representatives; 

12 (3) the terms ‘‘licensee’’, ‘‘small business in13 vestment company’’, and ‘‘underlicensed State’’ have 

14 the meanings given those terms in section 301 of the 

15 Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 

16 662); 

17 (4) the term ‘‘low-income community’’ has the 

18 meaning given the term in section 45D(e) of the In19 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

20 (5) the term ‘‘rural area’’ has the meaning 

21 given the term by the Bureau of the Census; 

22 (6) the terms ‘‘small business concern’’, ‘‘small 

23 business concern owned and controlled by veterans’’, 

24 and ‘‘small business concern owned and controlled 

25 by women’’ have the meanings given those terms in 


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1 section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

2 632); 

3 (7) the term ‘‘socially or economically disadvan4 taged individual’’ means a socially disadvantaged in5 dividual or economically disadvantaged individual, as 

6 described in paragraphs (5) and (6)(A), respectively, 

7 of section 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

8 637(a)); 

9 (8) the term ‘‘underfinanced State’’ means a 

10 State that has below median financing, as deter11 mined by the Administrator; and 

12 (9) the term ‘‘underserved community’’ 

13 means— 

14 (A) a HUBZone, as defined in section 

15 31(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

16 657a(b)); 

17 (B) a community that has been designated 

18 as an empowerment zone or an enterprise com19 munity under section 1391 of the Internal Rev20 enue Code of 1986; 

21 (C) a community that has been designated 

22 as a promise zone by the Secretary of Housing 

23 and Urban Development; and 


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1 (D) a community that has been designated 

2 as a qualified opportunity zone under section 

3 1400Z–1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

4 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 days after 

5 the date on which the covered Members submit to the Ad6 ministrator a notification that the covered Members have 

7 made all selections described in subparagraphs (A)(ii), 

8 (B)(ii), and (D) of paragraph (1) (and that the individuals 

9 so selected have accepted those assignments), the Admin10 istrator shall establish an SBIC Working Group (referred 

11 to in this section as the ‘‘Working Group’’), which shall— 

12 (1) include— 

13 (A) 4 representatives— 

14 (i) among general partners of licens15 ees that have a demonstrated record of in16 vesting in— 

17 (I) low-income communities; 

18 (II) communities that have been 

19 designated as qualified opportunity 

20 zones under section 1400Z–1 of the 

21 Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

22 (III) businesses primarily en23 gaged in research and development; 

24 (IV) manufacturers; 


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1 (V) businesses primarily owned 

2 or controlled by individuals in under3 served communities before receiving 

4 capital from the licensee; and 

5 (VI) rural areas; and 

6 (ii) of whom— 

7 (I) 1 shall be selected by the 

8 Chair of the Committee on Small 

9 Business and Entrepreneurship of the 

10 Senate; 

11 (II) 1 shall be selected by the 

12 Ranking Member of the Committee on 

13 Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

14 of the Senate; 

15 (III) 1 shall be selected by the 

16 Chair of the Committee on Small 

17 Business of the House of Representa18 tives; and 

19 (IV) 1 shall be selected by the 

20 Ranking Member of the Committee on 

21 Small Business of the House of Rep22 resentatives; 

23 (B) 4 representatives— 

24 (i) from licensees, of whom 1 shall be 

25 an owner of a small business investment 


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1 company or fund manager that is located 

2 in— 

3 (I) a low-income community; 

4 (II) a community that has been 

5 designated as a qualified opportunity 

6 zone under section 1400Z–1 of the In7 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

8 (III) an underserved community; 

9 (IV) a rural area; or 

10 (V) an underfinanced State; and 

11 (ii) of whom— 

12 (I) 1 shall be selected by the 

13 Chair of the Committee on Small 

14 Business and Entrepreneurship of the 

15 Senate; 

16 (II) 1 shall be selected by the 

17 Ranking Member of the Committee on 

18 Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

19 of the Senate; 

20 (III) 1 shall be selected by the 

21 Chair of the Committee on Small 

22 Business of the House of Representa23 tives; and 

24 (IV) 1 shall be selected by the 

25 Ranking Member of the Committee on 


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1 Small Business of the House of Rep2 resentatives; 

3 (C) the Associate Administrator for the 

4 Office of Investment and Innovation of the Ad5 ministration, who shall— 

6 (i) serve as the Chair of the Working 

7 Group; and 

8 (ii) select not more than 4 additional 

9 representatives from the Office of Invest10 ment and Innovation of the Administration 

11 to serve as representatives of the Working 

12 Group; and 

13 (D) 4 representatives from the investment 

14 industry or academia, or who are bank limited 

15 partners, with expertise in developing and moni16 toring interventions to expand the investment 

17 industry, of whom— 

18 (i) 1 shall be selected by the Chair of 

19 the Committee on Small Business and En20 trepreneurship of the Senate; 

21 (ii) 1 shall be selected by the Ranking 

22 Member of the Committee on Small Busi23 ness and Entrepreneurship of the Senate; 


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1 (iii) 1 shall be selected by the Chair of 

2 the Committee on Small Business of the 

3 House of Representatives; and 

4 (iv) 1 shall be selected by the Ranking 

5 Member of the Committee on Small Busi6 ness of the House of Representatives; 

7 (2) develop recommendations regarding how the 

8 Administrator could increase the number of— 

9 (A) applicants to become small business in10 vestment companies, with a focus on manage11 ment teams or companies located in— 

12 (i) low-income communities; 

13 (ii) communities that have been des14 ignated as qualified opportunity zones 

15 under section 1400Z–1 of the Internal 

16 Revenue Code of 1986; 

17 (iii) underserved communities; and 

18 (iv) rural areas; and 

19 (B) investments made in underfinanced 

20 States; 

21 (3) develop recommendations for incentives for 

22 small business investment companies to— 

23 (A) invest and locate in underlicensed 

24 States and underfinanced States; and 


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1 (B) invest in small business concerns, in2 cluding those owned and controlled by socially 

3 or economically disadvantaged individuals, small 

4 business concerns owned and controlled by vet5 erans, and small business concerns owned and 

6 controlled by women; and 

7 (4) develop recommendations for metrics of suc8 cess, and benchmarks for success, with respect to 

9 the goals described in this section. 

10 (c) AVAILABILITY OF MEETINGS.—The Working 

11 Group may make the meetings of the Working Group open 

12 to the public without regard to whether those meetings 

13 are held in-person, virtually, or by some other means. 

14 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

15 on which the Administrator establishes the Working 

16 Group under subsection (b), the Working Group shall sub17 mit to 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 that in20 cludes— 

21 (1) the recommendations of the Working 

22 Group; and 

23 (2) a recommended plan and timeline for imple24 menting the recommendations described in para25 graph (1). 


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1 (e) TERMINATION.—The Working Group shall termi2 nate on the date on which the Working Group submits 

3 the report required under subsection (d). 

4 (f) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM5 MITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

6 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply with respect to the Working 

7 Group or the activities of the Working Group. 

8 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

9 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘SBIC Advisory Com10 mittee Act of 2022’’. 

11 SEC. 2. SBIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

12 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

13 (1) the terms ‘‘Administration’’ and ‘‘Adminis14 trator’’ mean the Small Business Administration and 

15 the Administrator thereof, respectively; 

16 (2) the term ‘‘Advisory Committee’’ means the 

17 SBIC Advisory Committee established under sub18 section (b); 

19 (3) the term ‘‘covered Members’’ means the Chair 

20 and Ranking Member of— 

21 (A) the Committee on Small Business and 

22 Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and 

23 (B) the Committee on Small Business of the 

24 House of Representatives; 


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1 (4) the terms ‘‘licensee’’, ‘‘small business invest2 ment company’’, and ‘‘underlicensed State’’ have the 

3 meanings given those terms in section 103 of the 

4 Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 

5 662); 

6 (5) the term ‘‘low-income community’’ has the 

7 meaning given the term in section 45D(e) of the In8 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

9 (6) the term ‘‘rural area’’ has the meaning given 

10 the term by the Bureau of the Census; 

11 (7) the terms ‘‘small business concern’’, ‘‘small 

12 business concern owned and controlled by veterans’’, 

13 and ‘‘small business concern owned and controlled by 

14 women’’ have the meanings given those terms in sec15 tion 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632); 

16 (8) the term ‘‘socially or economically disadvan17 taged individual’’ means a socially disadvantaged in18 dividual or economically disadvantaged individual, 

19 as described in paragraphs (5) and (6)(A), respec20 tively, of section 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 

21 U.S.C. 637(a)); 

22 (9) the term ‘‘underfinanced State’’ means a 

23 State that has below median financing, as determined 

24 by the Administrator; and 


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1 (10) the term ‘‘underserved community’’ 

2 means— 

3 (A) a HUBZone, as defined in section 31(b) 

4 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657a(b)); 

5 (B) a community that has been designated 

6 as an empowerment zone or an enterprise com7 munity under section 1391 of the Internal Rev8 enue Code of 1986; 

9 (C) a community that has been designated 

10 as a promise zone by the Secretary of Housing 

11 and Urban Development; and 

12 (D) a community that has been designated 

13 as a qualified opportunity zone under section 

14 1400Z–1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

15 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall estab16 lish an SBIC Advisory Committee to convene outside ex17 perts to advise on the small business investment program 

18 under title III of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 

19 (15 U.S.C. 681 et seq.). 

20 (c) COMPOSITION.— 

21 (1) MEMBERSHIP.—The Advisory Committee 

22 shall be composed of 16 members appointed by the 

23 Administrator as follows: 

24 (A) The Associate Administrator of the Of25 fice of Investment and Innovation of the Small 


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1 Business Administration, or another designee of 

2 the Administrator as determined by the Admin3 istrator. 

4 (B) 7 members with competence, interest, or 

5 knowledge of the small business investment pro6 gram under title III of the Small Business In7 vestment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 681 et seq.), of 

8 whom— 

9 (i) not fewer than 3 shall have a dem10 onstrated record of expertise in investing 

11 in— 

12 (I) low-income communities; 

13 (II) communities that have been 

14 designated as qualified opportunity 

15 zones under section 1400Z–1 of the In16 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

17 (III) businesses primarily engaged 

18 in research and development; 

19 (IV) manufacturers; 

20 (V) businesses primarily owned or 

21 controlled by individuals in under22 served communities before receiving 

23 capital from the licensee; 

24 (VI) rural areas; or 

25 (VII) underfinanced States; and 


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1 (ii) not fewer than 1 member shall be 

2 a representative from a trade association 

3 for the small business investment program 

4 under title III of the Small Business Invest5 ment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 681 et seq.). 

6 (C) 8 members appointed by the Adminis7 trator as follows: 

8 (i) 2 members shall be selected from 

9 among the individuals on the list submitted 

10 by the Chair of the Committee on Small 

11 Business and Entrepreneurship of the Sen12 ate under paragraph (2). 

13 (ii) 2 members shall be selected from 

14 among the individuals on the list submitted 

15 by the Ranking Member of the Committee 

16 on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of 

17 the Senate under paragraph (2). 

18 (iii) 2 members shall be selected from 

19 among the individuals on the list submitted 

20 by the Chair of the Committee on Small 

21 Business of the House of Representatives 

22 under paragraph (2). 

23 (iv) 2 members shall be selected from 

24 among the individuals on the list submitted 

25 by the Ranking Member of the Committee 


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1 on Small Business of the House of Rep2 resentatives under paragraph (2). 

3 (2) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later than 30 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, each of the 

5 covered Members shall provide to the Administrator a 

6 list of 3 candidates for membership on the Advisory 

7 Committee, who shall be individuals who hold a high8 ranking position or senior leadership role, and have 

9 no conflict of interest in the small business investment 

10 program under title III of the Small Business Invest11 ment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 681 et seq.), in— 

12 (A) a relevant industry trade association; 

13 (B) the investment industry with expertise 

14 in pensions, endowments, and other non-banking 

15 institutions; 

16 (C) academia with expertise in the invest17 ment industry; or 

18 (D) a nonprofit institution, including one 

19 that serves any of the communities, entities, or 

20 areas described in subclauses (I) through (VII) of 

21 paragraph (1)(B)(i). 

22 (3) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the Ad23 visory Committee shall be the member of the Advisory 

24 Committee appointed under paragraph (1)(A). 


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1 (4) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT.—Members of the 

2 Advisory Committee shall be appointed for the life of 

3 the Advisory Committee. 

4 (5) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Advisory 

5 Committee shall be filled in the same manner as the 

6 original appointment. 

7 (d) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 60 

8 days after the date on which the covered Members provide 

9 the lists to the Administrator under subsection (c)(2), the 

10 Administrator shall— 

11 (1) appoint the members of the Advisory Com12 mittee; and 

13 (2) submit to Congress a list of the members so 

14 appointed. 

15 (e) DUTIES.—The Advisory Committee shall provide 

16 advice and recommendations to the Administrator— 

17 (1) concerning policy and program development 

18 and other matters of significance concerning activities 

19 under the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) 

20 and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 

21 U.S.C. 661 et seq.), including how the Administrator 

22 may increase the number of applicants to become 

23 small business investment companies, with a focus on 

24 management teams or companies investing in or lo25 cated in— 


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1 (A) low-income communities; 

2 (B) underserved communities; 

3 (C) rural areas; or 

4 (D) underfinanced States; 

5 (2) concerning incentives for small business in6 vestment companies to— 

7 (A) invest and locate in underlicensed 

8 States and underfinanced States; and 

9 (B) invest in small business concerns, in10 cluding those owned and controlled by socially or 

11 economically disadvantaged individuals, small 

12 business concerns owned and controlled by vet13 erans, and small business concerns owned and 

14 controlled by women; and 

15 (3) concerning metrics of success, and bench16 marks for success, with respect to the goals described 

17 in this section. 

18 (f) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the date 

19 on which the Administrator establishes the Advisory Com20 mittee under subsection (b), the Advisory Committee shall 

21 submit to the Administrator, the Committee on Small Busi22 ness and Entrepreneurship of the Senate, and the Com23 mittee on Small Business of the House of Representatives 

24 a report that includes— 


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1 (1) the recommendations of the Advisory Com2 mittee; and 

3 (2) a discussion of the impact of State, local, 

4 and financial institution investment in small busi5 ness investment companies on small business concerns 

6 in rural areas, low-income communities, underserved 

7 communities, and underfinanced States. 

8 (g) TERMINATION.—The Advisory Committee shall ter9 minate on the date on which the Advisory Committee sub10 mits the report required under subsection (f). 

Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘A bill to require the 

Administrator of the Small Business Administration to 

establish an SBIC Advisory Committee, and for other 

purposes.’’. 


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Calendar No. 280 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2521 

A BILL 

To require the Administrator of the Small Business 

Group, and for other purposes. Administration to establish an SBIC Working 

FEBRUARY 17, 2022 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

title 


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