II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3197 

To reauthorize the women’s business center program of the Small Business 

Administration, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 17, 2012 

Ms. SNOWE (for herself and Ms. LANDRIEU) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business 

and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the women’s business center program of 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 ‘‘Women’s Small Busi5 ness Ownership Act of 2012’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITION. 

7 In this Act, the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad8 ministrator of the Small Business Administration. 


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1 SEC. 3. OFFICE OF WOMEN’S BUSINESS OWNERSHIP. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 29(g) of the Small Busi3 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 656(g)) is amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

5 (A) in subparagraph (B)— 

6 (i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘in the 

7 areas’’ and all that follows through the end 

8 of subclause (I), and inserting the fol9 lowing: ‘‘to address issues concerning the 

10 management, operations, manufacturing, 

11 technology, finance, retail and product 

12 sales, international trade, Government con13 tracting, and other disciplines required 

14 for— 

15 ‘‘(I) starting, operating, and in16 creasing the business of a small busi17 ness concern;’’; and 

18 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘Wom19 en’s Business Center program’’ each place 

20 that term appears and inserting ‘‘women’s 

21 business center program’’; and 

22 (B) in subparagraph (C), by inserting be23 fore the period at the end the following: ‘‘, the 

24 National Women’s Business Council, and any 

25 association of women’s business centers’’; and 

26 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(3) TRAINING.—The Administrator may pro2 vide annual programmatic and financial examination 

3 training for women’s business ownership representa4 tives and district office technical representatives of 

5 the Administration to enable representatives to carry 

6 out their responsibilities. 

7 ‘‘(4) PROGRAM AND TRANSPARENCY IMPROVE8 MENTS.—The Administrator shall maximize the 

9 transparency of the women’s business center finan10 cial assistance proposal process and the pro11 grammatic and financial examination process by— 

12 ‘‘(A) providing public notice of any an13 nouncement for financial assistance under sub14 section (b) or a grant under subsection (l) not 

15 later than the end of the first quarter of each 

16 fiscal year; 

17 ‘‘(B) in the announcement described in 

18 subparagraph (A), outlining award and pro19 gram evaluation criteria and describing the 

20 weighting of the criteria for financial assistance 

21 under subsection (b) and grants under sub22 section (l); 

23 ‘‘(C) minimizing paperwork and reporting 

24 requirements for applicants for and recipients 

25 of financial assistance under this section; 


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1 ‘‘(D) standardizing the programmatic and 

2 financial examination process; and 

3 ‘‘(E) providing to each women’s business 

4 center, not later than 60 days after the comple5 tion of a site visit to the women’s business cen6 ter (whether conducted for an audit, perform7 ance review, or other reason), a copy of any site 

8 visit reports or evaluation reports prepared by 

9 district office technical representatives or offi10 cers or employees of the Administration.’’. 

11 (b) CHANGE OF TITLE.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 29 of the Small 

13 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656) is amended— 

14 (A) in subsection (a)— 

15 (i) by striking paragraphs (1) and (4); 

16 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2) 

17 and (3) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respec18 tively; and 

19 (iii) by inserting before paragraph (4), 

20 as so redesignated, the following: 

21 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Director’ means the Director of 

22 the Office of Women’s Business Ownership estab23 lished under subsection (g);’’; 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’ 

2 each place that term appears and inserting ‘‘Di3 rector’’; and 

4 (C) in subsection (g)(2), in the paragraph 

5 heading, by striking ‘‘ASSISTANT ADMINIS6 TRATOR’’ and inserting ‘‘DIRECTOR’’. 

7 (2) WOMEN’S BUSINESS OWNERSHIP ACT OF

8 1988.—Title IV of the Women’s Business Ownership 

9 Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.) is amended— 

10 (A) in section 403(a)(2)(B), by striking 

11 ‘‘Assistant Administrator’’ and inserting ‘‘Di12 rector’’; 

13 (B) in section 405, by striking ‘‘Assistant 

14 Administrator’’ and inserting ‘‘Director’’; and 

15 (C) in section 406(c), by striking ‘‘Assist16 ant Administrator’’ and inserting ‘‘Director’’. 

17 SEC. 4. WOMEN’S BUSINESS CENTER PROGRAM. 

18 (a) WOMEN’S BUSINESS CENTER FINANCIAL ASSIST19 ANCE.—Section 29 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

20 656) is amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a), as amended by section 

22 3(b) of this Act— 

23 (A) by inserting before paragraph (2) the 

24 following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) the term ‘association of women’s business 

2 centers’ means an organization— 

3 ‘‘(A) that represents not less than 51 per4 cent of the women’s business centers that par5 ticipate in a program under this section; and 

6 ‘‘(B) whose primary purpose is to rep7 resent women’s business centers;’’; 

8 (B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(3) the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a private nonprofit organization; 

12 ‘‘(B) a State, regional, or local economic 

13 development organization; 

14 ‘‘(C) a development, credit, or finance cor15 poration chartered by a State; 

16 ‘‘(D) a junior or community college, as de17 fined in section 312(f) of the Higher Education 

18 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058(f)); or 

19 ‘‘(E) any combination of entities listed in 

20 subparagraphs (A) through (D);’’; 

21 (C) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

22 the end; 

23 (D) in paragraph (5), by striking the pe24 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (E) by adding after paragraph (5) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(6) the term ‘women’s business center’ means 

4 a project conducted by an eligible entity under this 

5 section.’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), 

8 and (3) as subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), 

9 and adjusting the margins accordingly; 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘The Administration’’ and 

11 all that follows through ‘‘5-year projects’’ and 

12 inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administration may 

14 provide financial assistance to an eligible entity to 

15 conduct a project under this section’’; 

16 (C) by striking ‘‘The projects shall’’ and 

17 inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—The project shall be de19 signed to provide training and counseling that meets 

20 the needs of women, especially socially and economi21 cally disadvantaged women, and shall’’; and 

22 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(3) AMOUNT OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

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1 section of not less than $100,000 and not more 

2 than $150,000 per year. 

3 ‘‘(B) LOWER AMOUNT.—The Adminis4 trator may award financial assistance under 

5 this subsection to a recipient in an amount that 

6 is less than $100,000 if the Administrator de7 termines that the recipient is unable to make a 

8 non-Federal contribution of $100,000 or more, 

9 as required under subsection (c). 

10 ‘‘(C) EQUAL ALLOCATIONS.—If the Admin11 istration has insufficient funds to provide finan12 cial assistance of not less than $100,000 for 

13 each recipient of financial assistance under this 

14 subsection in any fiscal year, the Administrator 

15 shall provide an equal amount of financial as16 sistance to each recipient in the fiscal year, un17 less a recipient requests a lower amount than 

18 the allocated amount. 

19 ‘‘(4) CONSULTATION WITH ASSOCIATIONS OF

20 WOMEN’S BUSINESS CENTERS.—The Administrator 

21 shall consult with each association of women’s busi22 ness centers to develop— 

23 ‘‘(A) a training program for the staff of 

24 women’s business centers and the Administra25 tion; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) recommendations to improve the poli2 cies and procedures for governing the general 

3 operations and administration of the women’s 

4 business center program, including grant pro5 gram improvements under subsection (g)(4).’’; 

6 (3) in subsection (c)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘the re8 cipient organization’’ and inserting ‘‘an eligible 

9 entity’’; 

10 (B) in paragraph (3), in the second sen11 tence, by striking ‘‘a recipient organization’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘an eligible entity’’; 

13 (C) in paragraph (4)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘recipient of assist15 ance’’ and inserting ‘‘eligible entity’’; 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘such organization’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘the eligible entity’’; and 

18 (iii) by striking ‘‘recipient’’ and in19 serting ‘‘eligible entity’’; and 

20 (D) in paragraph (5)— 

21 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

22 ‘‘a recipient organization’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘an eligible entity’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘the recipient organi2 zation’’ each place it appears and inserting 

3 ‘‘the eligible entity’’; and 

4 (E) by adding at end the following: 

5 ‘‘(6) SEPARATION OF PROJECT AND FUNDS.— 

6 An eligible entity shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) carry out a project under this section 

8 separately from other projects, if any, of the eli9 gible entity; and 

10 ‘‘(B) separately maintain and account for 

11 any financial assistance under this section.’’; 

12 (4) in subsection (e)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘applicant organization’’ 

14 and inserting ‘‘eligible entity’’; 

15 (B) by striking ‘‘a recipient organization’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘an eligible entity’’; and 

17 (C) by striking ‘‘site’’; 

18 (5) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(f) APPLICATIONS AND CRITERIA FOR INITIAL FI21 NANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

22 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION.—Each eligible entity desir23 ing financial assistance under subsection (b) shall 

24 submit to the Administrator an application that con25 tains— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a certification that the eligible enti2 ty— 

3 ‘‘(i) has designated an executive direc4 tor or program manager, who may be com5 pensated using financial assistance under 

6 subsection (b) or other sources, to manage 

7 the center on a full-time basis; 

8 ‘‘(ii) as a condition of receiving finan9 cial assistance under subsection (b), 

10 agrees— 

11 ‘‘(I) to receive a site visit by the 

12 Administrator as part of the final se13 lection process; 

14 ‘‘(II) to undergo an annual pro15 grammatic and financial examination; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(III) to the maximum extent 

18 practicable, to remedy any problems 

19 identified pursuant to the site visit or 

20 examination under subclause (I) or 

21 (II); and 

22 ‘‘(iii) meets the accounting and re23 porting requirements established by the 

24 Director of the Office of Management and 

25 Budget; 


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1 ‘‘(B) information demonstrating that the 

2 eligible entity has the ability and resources to 

3 meet the needs of the market to be served by 

4 the women’s business center for which financial 

5 assistance under subsection (b) is sought, in6 cluding the ability to obtain the non-Federal 

7 contribution required under subsection (c); 

8 ‘‘(C) information relating to the assistance 

9 to be provided by the women’s business center 

10 for which financial assistance under subsection 

11 (b) is sought in the area in which the women’s 

12 business center is located; 

13 ‘‘(D) information demonstrating the expe14 rience and effectiveness of the eligible entity 

15 in— 

16 ‘‘(i) conducting financial, manage17 ment, and marketing assistance programs, 

18 as described in subsection (b)(2), which 

19 are designed to teach or upgrade the busi20 ness skills of women who are business own21 ers or potential business owners; 

22 ‘‘(ii) providing training and services to 

23 a representative number of women who are 

24 socially and economically disadvantaged; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) working with resource partners 

2 of the Administration and other entities, 

3 such as universities; and 

4 ‘‘(E) a 5-year plan that describes the abil5 ity of the women’s business center for which fi6 nancial assistance is sought— 

7 ‘‘(i) to serve women who are business 

8 owners or potential business owners by 

9 conducting training and counseling activi10 ties; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) to provide training and services 

12 to a representative number of women who 

13 are socially and economically disadvan14 taged. 

15 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—The Admin16 istrator shall make any request for additional infor17 mation from an organization applying for financial 

18 assistance under subsection (b) that was not re19 quested in the original announcement in writing. 

20 ‘‘(3) REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF APPLICATIONS

21 FOR INITIAL FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

23 shall— 

24 ‘‘(i) review each application submitted 

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1 mation described in such paragraph and 

2 the criteria set forth under subparagraph 

3 (B) of this paragraph; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) to the extent practicable, as part 

5 of the final selection process, conduct a 

6 site visit to each women’s business center 

7 for which financial assistance under sub8 section (b) is sought. 

9 ‘‘(B) SELECTION CRITERIA.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

11 shall evaluate applicants for financial as12 sistance under subsection (b) in accordance 

13 with selection criteria that are— 

14 ‘‘(I) established before the date 

15 on which applicants are required to 

16 submit the applications; 

17 ‘‘(II) stated in terms of relative 

18 importance; and 

19 ‘‘(III) publicly available and stat20 ed in each solicitation for applications 

21 for financial assistance under sub22 section (b) made by the Adminis23 trator. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) REQUIRED CRITERIA.—The se2 lection criteria for financial assistance 

3 under subsection (b) shall include— 

4 ‘‘(I) the experience of the appli5 cant in conducting programs or ongo6 ing efforts designed to teach or en7 hance the business skills of women 

8 who are business owners or potential 

9 business owners; 

10 ‘‘(II) the ability of the applicant 

11 to begin a project within a minimum 

12 amount of time; 

13 ‘‘(III) the ability of the applicant 

14 to provide training and services to a 

15 representative number of women who 

16 are socially and economically dis17 advantaged; and 

18 ‘‘(IV) the location for the wom19 en’s business center proposed by the 

20 applicant, including whether the appli21 cant is located in a State in which 

22 there is not a women’s business center 

23 receiving funding from the Adminis24 tration. 


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1 ‘‘(C) PROXIMITY.—If the principal place of 

2 business of an applicant for financial assistance 

3 under subsection (b) is located less than 50 

4 miles from the principal place of business of a 

5 women’s business center that received funds 

6 under this section on or before the date of the 

7 application, the applicant shall not be eligible 

8 for the financial assistance, unless the applicant 

9 submits a detailed written justification of the 

10 need for an additional center in the area in 

11 which the applicant is located. 

12 ‘‘(D) RECORD RETENTION.—The Adminis13 trator shall maintain a copy of each application 

14 submitted under this subsection for not less 

15 than 7 years.’’; and 

16 (6) in subsection (m)— 

17 (A) by striking paragraph (3) and insert18 ing the following: 

19 ‘‘(3) APPLICATION AND APPROVAL FOR RE20 NEWAL GRANTS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) SOLICITATION OF APPLICATIONS.— 

22 The Administrator shall solicit applications and 

23 award grants under this subsection for the first 

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1 ship Act of 2012, and every third fiscal year 

2 thereafter. 

3 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—Each 

4 eligible entity desiring a grant under this sub5 section shall submit to the Administrator an ap6 plication that contains— 

7 ‘‘(i) a certification that the appli8 cant— 

9 ‘‘(I) is an eligible entity; 

10 ‘‘(II) has designated a full-time 

11 executive director or program man12 ager to manage the women’s business 

13 center operated by the applicant; and 

14 ‘‘(III) as a condition of receiving 

15 a grant under this subsection, 

16 agrees— 

17 ‘‘(aa) to receive a site visit 

18 as part of the final selection 

19 process; 

20 ‘‘(bb) to submit, for the 2 

21 full fiscal years before the date 

22 on which the application is sub23 mitted, annual programmatic and 

24 financial examination reports or 

25 certified copies of the compliance 


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1 supplemental audits under OMB 

2 Circular A–133 of the applicant; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(cc) to remedy any problem 

5 identified pursuant to the site 

6 visit or examination under item 

7 (aa) or (bb); 

8 ‘‘(ii) information demonstrating that 

9 the applicant has the ability and resources 

10 to meet the needs of the market to be 

11 served by the women’s business center for 

12 which a grant under this subsection is 

13 sought, including the ability to obtain the 

14 non-Federal contribution required under 

15 paragraph (4)(C); 

16 ‘‘(iii) information relating to assist17 ance to be provided by the women’s busi18 ness center in the area served by the wom19 en’s business center for which a grant 

20 under this subsection is sought; 

21 ‘‘(iv) information demonstrating that 

22 the applicant has worked with resource 

23 partners of the Administration and other 

24 entities; 


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1 ‘‘(v) a 3-year plan that describes the 

2 ability of the women’s business center for 

3 which a grant under this subsection is 

4 sought— 

5 ‘‘(I) to serve women who are 

6 business owners or potential business 

7 owners by conducting training and 

8 counseling activities; and 

9 ‘‘(II) to provide training and 

10 services to a representative number of 

11 women who are socially and economi12 cally disadvantaged; and 

13 ‘‘(vi) any additional information that 

14 the Administrator may reasonably require. 

15 ‘‘(C) REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF APPLICA16 TIONS FOR GRANTS.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

18 shall— 

19 ‘‘(I) review each application sub20 mitted under subparagraph (B), based 

21 on the information described in such 

22 subparagraph and the criteria set 

23 forth under clause (ii) of this subpara24 graph; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) whenever practicable, as 

2 part of the final selection process, 

3 conduct a site visit to each women’s 

4 business center for which a grant 

5 under this subsection is sought. 

6 ‘‘(ii) SELECTION CRITERIA.— 

7 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The Admin8 istrator shall evaluate applicants for 

9 grants under this subsection in ac10 cordance with selection criteria that 

11 are— 

12 ‘‘(aa) established before the 

13 date on which applicants are re14 quired to submit the applications; 

15 ‘‘(bb) stated in terms of rel16 ative importance; and 

17 ‘‘(cc) publicly available and 

18 stated in each solicitation for ap19 plications for grants under this 

20 subsection made by the Adminis21 trator. 

22 ‘‘(II) REQUIRED CRITERIA.—The 

23 selection criteria for a grant under 

24 this subsection shall include— 


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1 ‘‘(aa) the total number of 

2 entrepreneurs served by the ap3 plicant; 

4 ‘‘(bb) the total number of 

5 new startup companies assisted 

6 by the applicant; 

7 ‘‘(cc) the percentage of cli8 ents of the applicant that are so9 cially or economically disadvan10 taged; and 

11 ‘‘(dd) the percentage of indi12 viduals in the community served 

13 by the applicant who are socially 

14 or economically disadvantaged. 

15 ‘‘(iii) CONDITIONS FOR CONTINUED

16 FUNDING.—In determining whether to 

17 make a grant under this subsection, the 

18 Administrator— 

19 ‘‘(I) shall consider the results of 

20 the most recent evaluation of the 

21 women’s business center for which a 

22 grant under this subsection is sought, 

23 and, to a lesser extent, previous eval24 uations; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) may withhold a grant under 

2 this subsection, if the Administrator 

3 determines that the applicant has 

4 failed to provide the information re5 quired to be provided under this para6 graph, or the information provided by 

7 the applicant is inadequate. 

8 ‘‘(D) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 60 

9 days after the date of each deadline to submit 

10 applications, the Administrator shall approve or 

11 deny any application under this paragraph and 

12 notify the applicant for each such application of 

13 the approval or denial. 

14 ‘‘(E) RECORD RETENTION.—The Adminis15 trator shall maintain a copy of each application 

16 submitted under this paragraph for not less 

17 than 7 years.’’; and 

18 (B) by striking paragraph (5) and insert19 ing the following: 

20 ‘‘(5) AWARD TO PREVIOUS RECIPIENTS.—There 

21 shall be no limitation on the number of times the 

22 Administrator may award a grant to an applicant 

23 under this subsection.’’. 

24 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 29 of the Small 

2 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656) is amended— 

3 (A) in subsection (h)(2), by striking ‘‘to 

4 award a contract (as a sustainability grant) 

5 under subsection (l) or’’; 

6 (B) in subsection (j)(1), by striking ‘‘The 

7 Administration’’ and inserting ‘‘Not later than 

8 November 1 of each year, the Administrator’’; 

9 (C) in subsection (k)— 

10 (i) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), 

11 and (4); 

12 (ii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

13 paragraph (5); and 

14 (iii) by inserting before paragraph (5), 

15 as so redesignated, the following: 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

17 appropriated to the Administration to carry out this 

18 section, to remain available until expended, 

19 $14,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2013, 2014, 

20 and 2015. 

21 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts made available 

22 under this subsection may only be used for grant 

23 awards and may not be used for costs incurred by 

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1 ment and administration of the program under this 

2 section. 

3 ‘‘(3) CONTINUING GRANT AND COOPERATIVE

4 AGREEMENT AUTHORITY.— 

5 ‘‘(A) PROMPT DISBURSEMENT.—Upon re6 ceiving funds to carry out this section for a fis7 cal year, the Administrator shall, to the extent 

8 practicable, promptly reimburse funds to any 

9 women’s business center awarded financial as10 sistance under this section if the center meets 

11 the eligibility requirements under this section. 

12 ‘‘(B) SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION.—If 

13 the Administrator has entered into a grant or 

14 cooperative agreement with a women’s business 

15 center under this section, the Administrator 

16 may not suspend or terminate the grant or co17 operative agreement, unless the Adminis18 trator— 

19 ‘‘(i) provides the women’s business 

20 center with written notification setting 

21 forth the reasons for that action; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) affords the women’s business 

23 center an opportunity for a hearing, ap24 peal, or other administrative proceeding 


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1 under chapter 5 of title 5, United States 

2 Code.’’; 

3 (D) in subsection (m)— 

4 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘sub5 section (b) or (l)’’ and inserting ‘‘this sub6 section or subsection (b)’’; and 

7 (ii) in paragraph (4)(D), by striking 

8 ‘‘or subsection (l)’’; and 

9 (E) by redesignating subsections (m) and 

10 (n), as amended by this Act, as subsections (l) 

11 and (m), respectively. 

12 (2) PROSPECTIVE REPEAL.—Section 1401(c)(2) 

13 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (15 U.S.C. 

14 636 note) is amended— 

15 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

16 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

17 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 

18 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(C) by redesignating paragraph (6), as 

21 added by section 4(a)(3)(E) of the Women’s 

22 Small Business Ownership Act of 2012, as 

23 paragraph (5).’’. 

24 (c) EFFECT ON EXISTING GRANTS.— 


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1 (1) TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—A nonprofit or2 ganization receiving a grant under section 29(m) of 

3 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656(m)), as in 

4 effect on the day before the date of enactment of 

5 this Act, shall continue to receive the grant under 

6 the terms and conditions in effect for the grant on 

7 the day before the date of enactment of this Act, ex8 cept that the nonprofit organization may not apply 

9 for a renewal of the grant under section 29(m)(5) of 

10 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656(m)(5)), as 

11 in effect on the day before the date of enactment of 

12 this Act. 

13 (2) LENGTH OF RENEWAL GRANT.—The Ad14 ministrator may award a grant under section 29(l) 

15 of the Small Business Act, as so redesignated by 

16 subsection (b)(5) of this Act, to a nonprofit organi17 zation receiving a grant under section 29(m) of the 

18 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 656(m)), as in effect 

19 on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, 

20 for the period— 

21 (A) beginning on the day after the last day 

22 of the grant agreement under such section 

23 29(m); and 


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1 (B) ending at the end of the third fiscal 

2 year beginning after the date of enactment of 

3 this Act. 

4 SEC. 5. STUDY AND REPORT ON ECONOMIC ISSUES FACING 

5 WOMEN’S BUSINESS CENTERS. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the United 

7 States shall conduct a broad study of the unique economic 

8 issues facing women’s business centers located in covered 

9 areas to identify— 

10 (1) the difficulties such centers face in raising 

11 non-Federal funds; 

12 (2) the difficulties such centers face in com13 peting for financial assistance, non-Federal funds, or 

14 other types of assistance; 

15 (3) the difficulties such centers face in writing 

16 grant proposals; and 

17 (4) other difficulties such centers face because 

18 of the economy in the type of covered area in which 

19 such centers are located. 

20 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

22 submit to Congress a report containing the results of the 

23 study under subsection (a), which shall include rec24 ommendations, if any, regarding how to— 


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1 (1) address the unique difficulties women’s 

2 business centers located in covered areas face be3 cause of the type of covered area in which such cen4 ters are located; 

5 (2) expand the presence of, and increase the 

6 services provided by, women’s business centers lo7 cated in covered areas; and 

8 (3) best use technology and other resources to 

9 better serve women business owners located in cov10 ered areas. 

11 (c) DEFINITION OF COVERED AREA.—In this section, 

12 the term ‘‘covered area’’ means— 

13 (1) any State that is predominantly rural, as 

14 determined by the Administrator; 

15 (2) any State that is predominantly urban, as 

16 determined by the Administrator; and 

17 (3) any State or territory that is an island. 

18 SEC. 6. STUDY AND REPORT ON OVERSIGHT OF WOMEN’S 

19 BUSINESS CENTERS. 

20 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the United 

21 States shall conduct a study of the oversight of women’s 

22 business centers by the Administrator, which shall in23 clude— 

24 (1) an analysis of the coordination by the Ad25 ministrator of the activities of women’s business cenVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:09 May 18, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3197.IS S3197

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1 ters with the activities of small business development 

2 centers, the Service Corps of Retired Executives, 

3 and Veteran Business Outreach Centers; 

4 (2) a comparison of the types of individuals and 

5 small business concerns served by women’s business 

6 centers and the types of individuals and small busi7 ness concerns served by small business development 

8 centers, the Service Corps of Retired Executives, 

9 and Veteran Business Outreach Centers; and 

10 (3) an analysis of performance data for wom11 en’s business centers that evaluates how well wom12 en’s business centers are carrying out the mission of 

13 women’s business centers and serving individuals 

14 and small business concerns. 

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

16 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

17 submit to Congress a report containing the results of the 

18 study under subsection (a), which shall include rec19 ommendations, if any, for eliminating the duplication of 

20 services provided by women’s business centers, small busi21 ness development centers, the Service Corps of Retired 

22 Executives, and Veteran Business Outreach Centers. 

Æ 


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