In the Senate of the United States,

August 5, 1999.

Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 1568) entitled ‘‘An Act to provide technical, financial, and procurement assistance to veteran owned small

businesses, and for other purposes.’’, do pass with the following

AMENDMENT:

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans Entrepreneur3 ship and Small Business Development Act of 1999’’.

4 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

5 The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.

Sec. 2. Table of contents.

TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 101. Findings.

Sec. 102. Purpose.

Sec. 103. Definitions.

TITLE II—VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

Sec. 201. Veterans business development in the Small Business Administration.
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Sec. 202. National Veterans Business Development Corporation.

Sec. 203. Advisory Committee on Veterans Business Affairs.

TITLE III—TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

Sec. 301. SCORE program.

Sec. 302. Entrepreneurial assistance.

Sec. 303. Business development and management assistance for military reservists’ small businesses.

TITLE IV—FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

Sec. 401. General business loan program.

Sec. 402. Assistance to active duty military reservists.

Sec. 403. Microloan program.

Sec. 404. Defense Economic Transition Loan Program.

Sec. 405. State development company program.

TITLE V—PROCUREMENT ASSISTANCE

Sec. 501. Subcontracting.

Sec. 502. Participation in Federal procurement.

TITLE VI—REPORTS AND DATA COLLECTION

Sec. 601. Reporting requirements.

Sec. 602. Report on small business and competition.

Sec. 603. Annual report of the Administrator.

Sec. 604. Data and information collection.

TITLE VII—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 701. Administrator’s order.

Sec. 702. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy.

Sec. 703. Study of fixed-asset small business loans.

1 TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

2 SEC. 101. FINDINGS.

3 Congress finds the following:

4 (1) Veterans of the United States Armed Forces

5 have been and continue to be vital to the small busi6 ness enterprises of the United States.

7 (2) In serving the United States, veterans often

8 faced great risks to preserve the American dream of

9 freedom and prosperity.
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1 (3) The United States has done too little to assist

2 veterans, particularly service-disabled veterans, in

3 playing a greater role in the economy of the United

4 States by forming and expanding small business en5 terprises.

6 (4) Medical advances and new medical tech7 nologies have made it possible for service-disabled vet8 erans to play a much more active role in the forma9 tion and expansion of small business enterprises in

10 the United States.

11 (5) The United States must provide additional

12 assistance and support to veterans to better equip

13 them to form and expand small business enterprises,

14 thereby enabling them to realize the American dream

15 that they fought to protect.

16 SEC. 102. PURPOSE.

17 The purpose of this Act is to expand existing and es18 tablish new assistance programs for veterans who own or

19 operate small businesses. This Act accomplishes this purpose

20 by—

21 (1) expanding the eligibility for certain small

22 business assistance programs to include veterans;

23 (2) directing certain departments and agencies of

24 the United States to take actions that enhance small

25 business assistance to veterans; and
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1 (3) establishing new institutions to provide small

2 business assistance to veterans or to support the insti3 tutions that provide such assistance.

4 SEC. 103. DEFINITIONS.

5 (a) SMALL BUSINESS ACT.—Section 3 of the Small

6 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632) is amended by adding at the

7 end the following:

8 ‘‘(q) DEFINITIONS RELATING TO VETERANS.—In this

9 Act, the following definitions apply:

10 ‘‘(1) SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN.—The term

11 ‘service-disabled veteran’ means a veteran with a dis12 ability that is service-connected (as defined in section

13 101(16) of title 38, United States Code).

14 ‘‘(2) SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN OWNED AND

15 CONTROLLED BY SERVICE-DISABLED VETERANS.—The

16 term ‘small business concern owned and controlled by

17 service-disabled veterans’ means a small business

18 concern—

19 ‘‘(A) not less than 51 percent of which is

20 owned by one or more service-disabled veterans

21 or, in the case of any publicly owned business,

22 not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is

23 owned by one or more service-disabled veterans;

24 and
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1 ‘‘(B) the management and daily business

2 operations of which are controlled by one or

3 more service-disabled veterans or, in the case of

4 a veteran with permanent and severe disability,

5 the spouse or permanent caregiver of such vet6 eran.

7 ‘‘(3) SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN OWNED AND

8 CONTROLLED BY VETERANS.—The term ‘small busi9 ness concern owned and controlled by veterans’ means

10 a small business concern—

11 ‘‘(A) not less than 51 percent of which is

12 owned by one or more veterans or, in the case of

13 any publicly owned business, not less than 51

14 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or

15 more veterans; and

16 ‘‘(B) the management and daily business

17 operations of which are controlled by one or

18 more veterans.

19 ‘‘(4) VETERAN.—The term ‘veteran’ has the

20 meaning given the term in section 101(2) of title 38,

21 United States Code.’’.

22 (b) APPLICABILITY TO THIS ACT.—In this Act, the

23 definitions contained in section 3(q) of the Small Business

24 Act, as added by this section, apply.
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1 TITLE II—VETERANS BUSINESS

2 DEVELOPMENT

3 SEC. 201. VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN THE

4 SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4(b)(1) of the Small Busi6 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 633(b)(1)) is amended—

7 (1) in the fifth sentence, by striking ‘‘four Asso8 ciate Administrators’’ and inserting ‘‘five Associate

9 Administrators’’; and

10 (2) by inserting after the fifth sentence the fol11 lowing: ‘‘One such Associate Administrator shall be

12 the Associate Administrator for Veterans Business De13 velopment, who shall administer the Office of Veterans

14 Business Development established under section 32.’’.

15 (b) OFFICE OF VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT;

16 ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR.—The Small Business Act (15

17 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended—

18 (1) by redesignating section 32 as section 34;

19 and

20 (2) by inserting after section 31 the following:

21 ‘‘SEC. 32. VETERANS PROGRAMS.

22 ‘‘(a) OFFICE OF VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOP23 MENT.—There is established in the Administration an Of24 fice of Veterans Business Development, which shall be ad25 ministered by the Associate Administrator for Veterans
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1 Business Development (in this section referred to as the ‘As2 sociate Administrator’) appointed under section 4(b)(1).

3 ‘‘(b) ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR FOR VETERANS

4 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT.—The Associate

5 Administrator—

6 ‘‘(1) shall be an appointee in the Senior Execu7 tive Service;

8 ‘‘(2) shall be responsible for the formulation, exe9 cution, and promotion of policies and programs of the

10 Administration that provide assistance to small busi11 ness concerns owned and controlled by veterans and

12 small business concerns owned and controlled by serv13 ice-disabled veterans. The Associate Administrator

14 shall act as an ombudsman for full consideration of

15 veterans in all programs of the Administration; and

16 ‘‘(3) shall report to and be responsible directly to

17 the Administrator.’’.

18 SEC. 202. NATIONAL VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

19 CORPORATION.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

21 631 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 32 (as

22 added by this Act) the following:
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1 ‘‘SEC. 33. NATIONAL VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

2 CORPORATION.

3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a feder4 ally chartered corporation to be known as the National Vet5 erans Business Development Corporation (in this section re6 ferred to as the ‘Corporation’) which shall be incorporated

7 under the laws of the District of Columbia and which shall

8 have the powers granted in this section.

9 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES OF THE CORPORATION.—The purposes

10 of the Corporation shall be—

11 ‘‘(1) to expand the provision of and improve ac12 cess to technical assistance regarding entrepreneur13 ship for the Nation’s veterans; and

14 ‘‘(2) to assist veterans, including service-disabled

15 veterans, with the formation and expansion of small

16 business concerns by working with and organizing

17 public and private resources, including those of the

18 Small Business Administration, the Department of

19 Veterans Affairs, the Department of Labor, the De20 partment of Commerce, the Department of Defense,

21 the Service Corps of Retired Executives (described in

22 section 8(b)(1)(B) of this Act), the Small Business

23 Development Centers (described in section 21 of this

24 Act), and the business development staffs of each de25 partment and agency of the United States.

26 ‘‘(c) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The management of the Cor2 poration shall be vested in a Board of Directors com3 posed of nine voting members and three nonvoting ex

4 officio members.

5 ‘‘(2) APPOINTMENT OF VOTING MEMBERS.—The

6 President shall, after considering recommendations

7 which shall be proposed by the Chairmen and Rank8 ing Members of the Committees on Small Business

9 and the Committees on Veterans Affairs of the House

10 of Representatives and the Senate, appoint United

11 States citizens to be voting members of the Board, not

12 more than 5 of whom shall be members of the same

13 political party.

14 ‘‘(3) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—The Administrator

15 of the Small Business Administration, the Secretary

16 of Defense, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall

17 serve as the nonvoting ex officio members of the Board

18 of Directors.

19 ‘‘(4) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—The initial mem20 bers of the Board of Directors shall be appointed not

21 later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this

22 Act.

23 ‘‘(5) CHAIRPERSON.—The members of the Board

24 of Directors appointed under paragraph (2) shall
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1 elect one such member to serve as chairperson of the

2 Board of Directors for a term of 2 years.

3 ‘‘(6) TERMS OF APPOINTED MEMBERS.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the

5 Board of Directors appointed under paragraph

6 (2) shall serve a term of 6 years, except as pro7 vided in subparagraph (B).

8 ‘‘(B) TERMS OF INITIAL APPOINTEES.—As

9 designated by the President at the time of ap10 pointment, of the members first appointed—

11 ‘‘(i) three shall be for a term of 2

12 years; and

13 ‘‘(ii) three shall be for a term of 4

14 years.

15 ‘‘(C) UNEXPIRED TERMS.—Any member of

16 the Board of Directors appointed to fill a va17 cancy occurring before the expiration of the term

18 for which the member’s predecessor was ap19 pointed shall be appointed only for the remain20 der of the term. A member may serve after the

21 expiration of that member’s term until a suc22 cessor has taken office.

23 ‘‘(7) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy on the Board of

24 Directors shall be filled in the manner in which the

25 original appointment was made. In the case of a va-
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1 cancy in the office of the Administrator of the Small

2 Business Administration or the Secretary of Veterans

3 Affairs, and pending the appointment of a successor,

4 an acting appointee for such vacancy may serve as

5 an ex officio member.

6 ‘‘(8) INELIGIBILITY FOR OTHER OFFICES.—No

7 voting member of the Board of Directors may be an

8 officer or employee of the United States while serving

9 as a member of the Board of Directors or during the

10 2-year period preceding such service.

11 ‘‘(9) IMPARTIALITY AND NONDISCRIMINATION.—

12 The Board of Directors shall administer the affairs of

13 the Corporation fairly and impartially and without

14 discrimination.

15 ‘‘(10) OBLIGATIONS AND EXPENSES.—The Board

16 of Directors shall prescribe the manner in which the

17 obligations of the Corporation may be incurred and

18 in which its expenses shall be allowed and paid.

19 ‘‘(11) QUORUM.—Five voting members of the

20 Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum, but a

21 lesser number may hold hearings.

22 ‘‘(d) CORPORATE POWERS.—On October 1, 1999, the

23 Corporation shall become a body corporate and as such

24 shall have the authority to do the following:

25 ‘‘(1) To adopt and use a corporate seal.
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1 ‘‘(2) To have succession until dissolved by an Act

2 of Congress.

3 ‘‘(3) To make contracts or grants.

4 ‘‘(4) To sue and be sued, and to file and defend

5 against lawsuits in State or Federal court.

6 ‘‘(5) To appoint, through the actions of its Board

7 of Directors, officers and employees of the Corpora8 tion, to define their duties and responsibilities, fix

9 their compensations, and to dismiss at will such offi10 cers or employees.

11 ‘‘(6) To prescribe, through the actions of its

12 Board of Directors, bylaws not inconsistent with Fed13 eral law and the law of the State of incorporation,

14 regulating the manner in which its general business

15 may be conducted and the manner in which the privi16 leges granted to it by law may be exercised.

17 ‘‘(7) To exercise, through the actions of its Board

18 of Directors or duly authorized officers, all powers

19 specifically granted by the provisions of this section,

20 and such incidental powers as shall be necessary.

21 ‘‘(8) To solicit, receive, and disburse funds from

22 private, Federal, State and local organizations.

23 ‘‘(9) To accept and employ or dispose of in fur24 therance of the purposes of this section any money or
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1 property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intan2 gible, received by gift, devise, bequest, or otherwise.

3 ‘‘(10) To accept voluntary and uncompensated

4 services.

5 ‘‘(e) CORPORATE FUNDS.—

6 ‘‘(1) DEPOSIT OF FUNDS.—The Board of Direc7 tors shall deposit all funds of the Corporation in fed8 erally chartered and insured depository institutions

9 until such funds are disbursed under paragraph (2).

10 ‘‘(2) DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.—Funds of the

11 Corporation may be disbursed only for purposes that

12 are—

13 ‘‘(A) approved by the Board of Directors by

14 a recorded vote with a quorum present; and

15 ‘‘(B) in accordance with the purposes of the

16 Corporation as specified in subsection (b).

17 ‘‘(f) NETWORK OF INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE

18 CENTERS.—In carrying out the purpose described in sub19 section (b), the Corporation shall establish and maintain

20 a network of information and assistance centers for use by

21 veterans and the public.

22 ‘‘(g) ANNUAL REPORT.—On or before October 1 of each

23 year, the Board of Directors shall transmit a report to the

24 President and the Congress describing the activities and ac25 complishments of the Corporation for the preceding year
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1 and the Corporation’s findings regarding the efforts of Fed2 eral, State and private organizations to assist veterans in

3 the formation and expansion of small business concerns.

4 ‘‘(h) ASSUMPTION OF DUTIES OF ADVISORY COM5 MITTEE.—On October 1, 2004, the Corporation established

6 under this section shall assume the duties, responsibilities,

7 and authority of the Advisory Committee on Veterans Af8 fairs established under section 203 of this Act.

9 ‘‘(i) USE OF MAILS.—The Corporation may use the

10 United States mails in the same manner and under the

11 same conditions as the departments and agencies of the

12 United States.

13 ‘‘(j) PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION ADVISORY

14 BOARD.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Acting through the Board of

16 Directors, the Corporation shall establish a Profes17 sional Certification Advisory Board to create uniform

18 guidelines and standards for the professional certifi19 cation of members of the Armed Services to aid in

20 their efficient and orderly transition to civilian occu21 pations and professions and to remove potential bar22 riers in the areas of licensure and certification.

23 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Advi24 sory Board shall serve without compensation, shall

25 meet in the District of Columbia no less than quar-
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1 terly, and shall be appointed by the Board of Direc2 tors as follows:

3 ‘‘(A) PRIVATE SECTOR MEMBERS.—The

4 Corporation shall appoint not less than seven

5 members for terms of 2 years to represent private

6 sector organizations and associations, including

7 the American Association of Community Col8 leges, the Society for Human Resource Managers,

9 the Coalition for Professional Certification, the

10 Council on Licensure and Enforcement, and the

11 American Legion.

12 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC SECTOR MEMBERS.—The Cor13 poration shall invite public sector members to

14 serve at the discretion of their departments or

15 agencies and shall—

16 ‘‘(i) encourage the participation of the

17 Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel

18 and Readiness;

19 ‘‘(ii) encourage the participation of

20 two officers from each branch of the Armed

21 Forces to represent the Training Commands

22 of their branch; and

23 ‘‘(iii) seek the participation and guid24 ance of the Assistant Secretary of Labor for

25 Veterans’ Employment and Training.
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1 ‘‘(k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

3 there are authorized to be appropriated to the Cor4 poration to carry out this section—

5 ‘‘(A) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2000;

6 ‘‘(B) $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;

7 ‘‘(C) $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2002; and

8 ‘‘(D) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2003.

9 ‘‘(2) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.—

10 ‘‘(A) FISCAL YEAR 2001.—The amount made

11 available to the Corporation for fiscal year 2001

12 may not exceed twice the amount that the Cor13 poration certifies that it will provide for that fis14 cal year from sources other than the Federal

15 Government.

16 ‘‘(B) SUBSEQUENT FISCAL YEARS.—The

17 amount made available to the Corporation for

18 fiscal year 2002 or 2003 may not exceed the

19 amount that the Corporation certifies that it will

20 provide for that fiscal year from sources other

21 than the Federal Government.

22 ‘‘(3) PRIVATIZATION.—The Corporation shall in23 stitute and implement a plan to raise private funds

24 and become a self-sustaining corporation.’’.
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1 (b) GAO REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the

2 last day of the second fiscal year beginning after the date

3 on which the initial members of the Board of Directors of

4 the National Veterans Business Development Corporation

5 are appointed under section 33(c) of the Small Business

6 Act (as added by this section), the Comptroller General of

7 the United States shall evaluate the effectiveness of the Na8 tional Veterans Business Development Corporation in car9 rying out the purposes under section 33(b) of the Small

10 Business Act (as added by this section), and submit to Con11 gress a report on the results of that evaluation.

12 SEC. 203. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON VETERANS BUSINESS

13 AFFAIRS.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established an advisory

15 committee to be known as the ‘‘Advisory Committee on Vet16 erans Business Affairs’’ (in this section referred to as the

17 ‘‘Committee’’), which shall serve as an independent source

18 of advice and policy recommendations to—

19 (1) the Administrator of the Small Business Ad20 ministration (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Ad21 ministrator’’);

22 (2) the Associate Administrator for Veterans

23 Business Development of the Small Business Admin24 istration;

25 (3) the Congress;
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1 (4) the President; and

2 (5) other United States policymakers.

3 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall be com5 posed of 15 members, of whom—

6 (A) eight shall be veterans who are owners

7 of small business concerns (within the meaning

8 of the term under section 3 of the Small Business

9 Act (15 U.S.C. 632)); and

10 (B) seven shall be representatives of veterans

11 organizations.

12 (2) APPOINTMENT.—

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The members of the

14 Committee shall be appointed by the Adminis15 trator in accordance with this section.

16 (B) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—Not later

17 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this

18 Act, the Administrator shall appoint the initial

19 members of the Committee.

20 (3) POLITICAL AFFILIATION.—Not more than

21 eight members of the Committee shall be of the same

22 political party as the President.

23 (4) PROHIBITION ON FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT.—

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

25 subparagraph (B), no member of the Committee
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1 may serve as an officer or employee of the

2 United States.

3 (B) EXCEPTION.—A member of the Com4 mittee who accepts a position as an officer or

5 employee of the United States after the date of

6 the member’s appointment to the Committee may

7 continue to serve on the Committee for not more

8 than 30 days after such acceptance.

9 (5) TERM OF SERVICE.—

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subparagraph

11 (B), the term of service of each member of the

12 Committee shall be 3 years.

13 (B) TERMS OF INITIAL APPOINTEES.—As

14 designated by the Administrator at the time of

15 appointment, of the members first appointed—

16 (i) six shall be appointed for a term of

17 4 years; and

18 (ii) five shall be appointed for a term

19 of 5 years.

20 (6) VACANCIES.—The Administrator shall fill

21 any vacancies on the membership of the Committee

22 not later than 30 days after the date on which such

23 vacancy occurs.

24 (7) CHAIRPERSON.—
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The members of the

2 Committee shall elect one of the members to be

3 Chairperson of the Committee.

4 (B) VACANCIES IN OFFICE OF CHAIR5 PERSON.—Any vacancy in the office of the

6 Chairperson of the Committee shall be filled by

7 the Committee at the first meeting of the Com8 mittee following the date on which the vacancy

9 occurs.

10 (c) DUTIES.—The duties of the Committee shall be the

11 following:

12 (1) Review, coordinate, and monitor plans and

13 programs developed in the public and private sectors,

14 that affect the ability of small business concerns

15 owned and controlled by veterans to obtain capital

16 and credit and to access markets.

17 (2) Promote the collection of business informa18 tion and survey data as they relate to veterans and

19 small business concerns owned and controlled by vet20 erans.

21 (3) Monitor and promote plans, programs, and

22 operations of the departments and agencies of the

23 United States that may contribute to the formation

24 and growth of small business concerns owned and

25 controlled by veterans.
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1 (4) Develop and promote initiatives, policies,

2 programs, and plans designed to foster small business

3 concerns owned and controlled by veterans.

4 (5) In cooperation with the National Veterans

5 Business Development Corporation, develop a com6 prehensive plan, to be updated annually, for joint

7 public-private sector efforts to facilitate growth and

8 development of small business concerns owned and

9 controlled by veterans.

10 (d) POWERS.—

11 (1) HEARINGS.—Subject to subsection (e), the

12 Committee may hold such hearings, sit and act at

13 such times and places, take such testimony, and re14 ceive such evidence as the Committee considers advis15 able to carry out its duties.

16 (2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.—

17 Upon request of the Chairperson of the Committee, the

18 head of any department or agency of the United

19 States shall furnish such information to the Com20 mittee as the Committee considers to be necessary to

21 carry out its duties.

22 (3) USE OF MAILS.—The Committee may use the

23 United States mails in the same manner and under

24 the same conditions as other departments and agen25 cies of the United States.
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1 (4) GIFTS.—The Committee may accept, use,

2 and dispose of gifts or donations of services or prop3 erty.

4 (e) MEETINGS.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall meet, not

6 less than three times per year, at the call of the

7 Chairperson or at the request of the Administrator.

8 (2) LOCATION.—Each meeting of the full Com9 mittee shall be held at the headquarters of the Small

10 Business Administration located in Washington, Dis11 trict of Columbia. The Administrator shall provide

12 suitable meeting facilities and such administrative

13 support as may be necessary for each full meeting of

14 the Committee.

15 (3) TASK GROUPS.—The Committee may, from

16 time to time, establish temporary task groups as may

17 be necessary in order to carry out its duties.

18 (f) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—

19 (1) NO COMPENSATION.—Members of the Com20 mittee shall serve without compensation for their serv21 ice to the Committee.

22 (2) EXPENSES.—The members of the Committee

23 shall be reimbursed for travel and subsistence expenses

24 in accordance with section 5703 of title 5, United

25 States Code.
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1 (g) REPORT.—Not later than 30 days after the end of

2 each fiscal year beginning after the date of enactment of

3 this section, the Committee shall transmit to the Congress

4 and the President a report describing the activities of the

5 Committee and any recommendations developed by the

6 Committee for the promotion of small business concerns

7 owned and controlled by veterans.

8 (h) TERMINATION.—The Committee shall terminate its

9 business on September 30, 2004.

10 TITLE III—TECHNICAL

11 ASSISTANCE

12 SEC. 301. SCORE PROGRAM.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Small

14 Business Administration shall enter into a memorandum

15 of understanding with the Service Core of Retired Execu16 tives (described in section 8(b)(1)(B) of the Small Business

17 Act (15 U.S.C. 637(b)(1)(B)) and in this section referred

18 to as ‘‘SCORE’’) to provide for the following:

19 (1) The appointment by SCORE in its national

20 office of an individual to act as National Veterans

21 Business Coordinator, whose duties shall relate exclu22 sively to veterans business matters, and who shall be

23 responsible for the establishment and administration

24 of a program to coordinate counseling and training
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1 regarding entrepreneurship to veterans through the

2 chapters of SCORE throughout the United States.

3 (2) The assistance of SCORE in the establishing

4 and maintaining a toll-free telephone number and an

5 Internet website to provide access for veterans to in6 formation about the counseling and training regard7 ing entrepreneurship available to veterans through

8 SCORE.

9 (3) The collection of statistics concerning services

10 provided by SCORE to veterans, including service11 disabled veterans, for inclusion in each annual report

12 published by the Administrator under section

13 4(b)(2)(B) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

14 633(b)(2)(B)).

15 (b) RESOURCES.—The Administrator shall provide to

16 SCORE such resources as the Administrator determines

17 necessary for SCORE to carry out the requirements of the

18 memorandum of understanding specified in paragraph (1).

19 SEC. 302. ENTREPRENEURIAL ASSISTANCE.

20 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment

21 of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Adminis22 trator of the Small Business Administration, and the head

23 of the association formed pursuant to section 21(a)(3)(A)

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

25 enter into a memorandum of understanding with respect
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1 to entrepreneurial assistance to veterans, including service2 disabled veterans, through Small Business Development

3 Centers (described in section 21 of the Small Business Act

4 (15 U.S.C. 648)) and facilities of the Department of Vet5 erans Affairs. Such assistance shall include the following:

6 (1) Conducting of studies and research, and the

7 distribution of information generated by such studies

8 and research, on the formation, management, financ9 ing, marketing, and operation of small business con10 cerns by veterans.

11 (2) Provision of training and counseling to vet12 erans concerning the formation, management, financ13 ing, marketing, and operation of small business con14 cerns.

15 (3) Provision of management and technical as16 sistance to the owners and operators of small business

17 concerns regarding international markets, the pro18 motion of exports, and the transfer of technology.

19 (4) Provision of assistance and information to

20 veterans regarding procurement opportunities with

21 Federal, State, and local agencies, especially such

22 agencies funded in whole or in part with Federal

23 funds.

24 (5) Establishment of an information clearing25 house to collect and distribute information, including
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1 by electronic means, on the assistance programs of

2 Federal, State, and local governments, and of the pri3 vate sector, including information on office locations,

4 key personnel, telephone numbers, mail and electronic

5 addresses, and contracting and subcontracting oppor6 tunities.

7 (6) Provision of Internet or other distance learn8 ing academic instruction for veterans in business sub9 jects, including accounting, marketing, and business

10 fundamentals.

11 (7) Compilation of a list of small business con12 cerns owned and controlled by service-disabled vet13 erans that provide products or services that could be

14 procured by the United States and delivery of such

15 list to each department and agency of the United

16 States. Such list shall be delivered in hard copy and

17 electronic form and shall include the name and ad18 dress of each such small business concern and the

19 products or services that it provides.

20 SEC. 303. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT AS21 SISTANCE FOR MILITARY RESERVISTS’ SMALL

22 BUSINESSES.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8 of the Small Business Act

24 (15 U.S.C. 637) is amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing:
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1 ‘‘(l) MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL BUSI2 NESSES AFFECTED BY MILITARY OPERATIONS.—The Ad3 ministration shall utilize, as appropriate, its entrepre4 neurial development and management assistance programs,

5 including programs involving State or private sector part6 ners, to provide business counseling and training to any

7 small business concern adversely affected by the deployment

8 of units of the Armed Forces of the United States in support

9 of a period of military conflict (as defined in section

10 7(n)(1)).’’.

11 (b) ENHANCED PUBLICITY DURING OPERATION AL12 LIED FORCE.—For the duration of Operation Allied Force

13 and for 120 days thereafter, the Administration shall en14 hance its publicity of the availability of assistance provided

15 pursuant to the amendment made by this section, including

16 information regarding the appropriate local office at which

17 affected small businesses may seek such assistance.

18 (c) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 30 days after the

19 date of enactment of this section, the Administrator of the

20 Small Business Administration shall issue such guidelines

21 as the Administrator determines to be necessary to carry

22 out this section and the amendment made by this section.
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1 TITLE IV—FINANCIAL

2 ASSISTANCE

3 SEC. 401. GENERAL BUSINESS LOAN PROGRAM.

4 (a) DEFINITION OF HANDICAPPED INDIVIDUAL.—Sec5 tion 3(f) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(f)) is

6 amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(f) For purposes of section 7 of this Act, the term

8 ‘handicapped individual’ means an individual—

9 ‘‘(1) who has a physical, mental, or emotional

10 impairment, defect, ailment, disease, or disability of

11 a permanent nature which in any way limits the se12 lection of any type of employment for which the per13 son would otherwise be qualified or qualifiable; or

14 ‘‘(2) who is a service-disabled veteran.’’.

15 (b) AUTHORIZATION TO MAKE LOANS.—Section

16 7(a)(10) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(10))

17 is amended—

18 (1) by inserting ‘‘guaranteed’’ after ‘‘provide’’;

19 and

20 (2) by inserting, ‘‘, including service-disabled

21 veterans,’’ after ‘‘handicapped individual’’.
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1 SEC. 402. ASSISTANCE TO ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY RESERV2 ISTS.

3 (a) REPAYMENT DEFERRAL FOR ACTIVE DUTY RE4 SERVISTS.—Section 7 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

5 636) is amended by adding at the end the following:

6 ‘‘(n) REPAYMENT DEFERRED FOR ACTIVE DUTY RE7 SERVISTS.—

8 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:

9 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE RESERVIST.—The term ‘eli10 gible reservist’ means a member of a reserve com11 ponent of the Armed Forces ordered to active

12 duty during a period of military conflict.

13 ‘‘(B) ESSENTIAL EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘es14 sential employee’ means an individual who is

15 employed by a small business concern and whose

16 managerial or technical expertise is critical to

17 the successful day-to-day operations of that small

18 business concern.

19 ‘‘(C) PERIOD OF MILITARY CONFLICT.—The

20 term ‘period of military conflict’ means—

21 ‘‘(i) a period of war declared by the

22 Congress;

23 ‘‘(ii) a period of national emergency

24 declared by the Congress or by the Presi25 dent; or
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1 ‘‘(iii) a period of a contingency oper2 ation, as defined in section 101(a) of title

3 10, United States Code.

4 ‘‘(D) QUALIFIED BORROWER.—The term

5 ‘qualified borrower’ means—

6 ‘‘(i) an individual who is an eligible

7 reservist and who received a direct loan

8 under subsection (a) or (b) before being or9 dered to active duty; or

10 ‘‘(ii) a small business concern that re11 ceived a direct loan under subsection (a) or

12 (b) before an eligible reservist, who is an es13 sential employee, was ordered to active

14 duty.

15 ‘‘(2) DEFERRAL OF DIRECT LOANS.—

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administration

17 shall, upon written request, defer repayment of

18 principal and interest due on a direct loan made

19 under subsection (a) or (b), if such loan was in20 curred by a qualified borrower.

21 ‘‘(B) PERIOD OF DEFERRAL.—The period of

22 deferral for repayment under this paragraph

23 shall begin on the date on which the eligible re24 servist is ordered to active duty and shall termi25 nate on the date that is 180 days after the date
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1 such eligible reservist is discharged or released

2 from active duty.

3 ‘‘(C) INTEREST RATE REDUCTION DURING

4 DEFERRAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi5 sion of law, during the period of deferral de6 scribed in subparagraph (B), the Administration

7 may, in its discretion, reduce the interest rate on

8 any loan qualifying for a deferral under this

9 paragraph.

10 ‘‘(3) DEFERRAL OF LOAN GUARANTEES AND

11 OTHER FINANCINGS.—The Administration shall—

12 ‘‘(A) encourage intermediaries participating

13 in the program under subsection (m) to defer re14 payment of a loan made with proceeds made

15 available under that subsection, if such loan was

16 incurred by a small business concern that is eli17 gible to apply for assistance under subsection

18 (b)(3); and

19 ‘‘(B) not later than 30 days after the date

20 of enactment of this subsection, establish guide21 lines to—

22 ‘‘(i) encourage lenders and other inter23 mediaries to defer repayment of, or provide

24 other relief relating to, loan guarantees

25 under subsection (a) and financings under
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1 section 504 of the Small Business Invest2 ment Act of 1958 that were incurred by

3 small business concerns that are eligible to

4 apply for assistance under subsection (b)(3),

5 and loan guarantees provided under sub6 section (m) if the intermediary provides re7 lief to a small business concern under this

8 paragraph; and

9 ‘‘(ii) implement a program to provide

10 for the deferral of repayment or other relief

11 to any intermediary providing relief to a

12 small business borrower under this para13 graph.’’.

14 (b) DISASTER LOAN ASSISTANCE FOR MILITARY RE15 SERVISTS’ SMALL BUSINESSES.—Section 7(b) of the Small

16 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)) is amended by inserting

17 after the undesignated paragraph that begins with ‘‘Pro18 vided, That no loan’’, the following:

19 ‘‘(3)(A) In this paragraph—

20 ‘‘(i) the term ‘essential employee’ means an

21 individual who is employed by a small business

22 concern and whose managerial or technical ex23 pertise is critical to the successful day-to-day op24 erations of that small business concern;
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1 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘period of military conflict’

2 has the meaning given the term in subsection

3 (n)(1); and

4 ‘‘(iii) the term ‘substantial economic injury’

5 means an economic harm to a business concern

6 that results in the inability of the business

7 concern—

8 ‘‘(I) to meet its obligations as they ma9 ture;

10 ‘‘(II) to pay its ordinary and nec11 essary operating expenses; or

12 ‘‘(III) to market, produce, or provide a

13 product or service ordinarily marketed, pro14 duced, or provided by the business concern.

15 ‘‘(B) The Administration may make such dis16 aster loans (either directly or in cooperation with

17 banks or other lending institutions through agree18 ments to participate on an immediate or deferred

19 basis) to assist a small business concern that has suf20 fered or that is likely to suffer substantial economic

21 injury as the result of an essential employee of such

22 small business concern being ordered to active mili23 tary duty during a period of military conflict.

24 ‘‘(C) A small business concern described in sub25 paragraph (B) shall be eligible to apply for assistance
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1 under this paragraph during the period beginning on

2 the date on which the essential employee is ordered to

3 active duty and ending on the date that is 90 days

4 after the date on which such essential employee is dis5 charged or released from active duty.

6 ‘‘(D) Any loan or guarantee extended pursuant

7 to this paragraph shall be made at the same interest

8 rate as economic injury loans under paragraph (2).

9 ‘‘(E) No loan may be made under this para10 graph, either directly or in cooperation with banks or

11 other lending institutions through agreements to par12 ticipate on an immediate or deferred basis, if the

13 total amount outstanding and committed to the bor14 rower under this subsection would exceed $1,500,000,

15 unless such applicant constitutes a major source of

16 employment in its surrounding area, as determined

17 by the Administration, in which case the Administra18 tion, in its discretion, may waive the $1,500,000 lim19 itation.

20 ‘‘(F) For purposes of assistance under this para21 graph, no declaration of a disaster area shall be re22 quired.’’.

23 (c) ENHANCED PUBLICITY DURING OPERATION AL24 LIED FORCE.—For the duration of Operation Allied Force

25 and for 120 days thereafter, the Administration shall en-
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1 hance its publicity of the availability of assistance provided

2 pursuant to the amendments made by this section, includ3 ing information regarding the appropriate local office at

4 which affected small businesses may seek such assistance.

5 (d) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 30 days after the

6 date of enactment of this section, the Administrator of the

7 Small Business Administration shall issue such guidelines

8 as the Administrator determines to be necessary to carry

9 out this section and the amendments made by this section.

10 (e) EFFECTIVE DATES.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para12 graph (2), the amendments made by this section shall

13 take effect on the date of the enactment of this section.

14 (2) DISASTER LOANS.—The amendments made

15 by subsection (b) shall apply to economic injury suf16 fered or likely to be suffered as the result of a period

17 of military conflict occurring or ending on or after

18 March 24, 1999.

19 SEC. 403. MICROLOAN PROGRAM.

20 Section 7(m)(1)(A)(i) of the Small Business Act (15

21 U.S.C. 636(m)(1)(A)(i)) is amended by inserting ‘‘veteran

22 (within the meaning of such term under section 3(q)),’’ after

23 ‘‘low-income,’’.
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1 SEC. 404. DEFENSE ECONOMIC TRANSITION LOAN PRO2 GRAM.

3 Section 7(a)(21)(A)(ii) of the Small Business Act (15

4 U.S.C. 636(a)(21)(A)(ii)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or a

5 veteran’’ after ‘‘qualified individual’’.

6 SEC. 405. STATE DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PROGRAM.

7 Section 501(d)(3) of the Small Business Investment

8 Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 695(d)(3)) is amended—

9 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (E), (F),

10 and (G) as subparagraphs (F), (G), and (H), respec11 tively; and

12 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the fol13 lowing:

14 ‘‘(E) expansion of small business concerns

15 owned and controlled by veterans, as defined in

16 section 3(q) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

17 632(q)), especially service-disabled veterans, as

18 defined in such section 3(q),’’.

19 TITLE V—PROCUREMENT

20 ASSISTANCE

21 SEC. 501. SUBCONTRACTING.

22 (a) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—Section 8(d)(1) of the

23 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(1)) is amended by

24 inserting ‘‘small business concerns owned and controlled by

25 service-disabled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’

26 the first place it appears in the first and second sentences.
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1 (b) CONTRACT CLAUSE.—The contract clause specified

2 in section 8(d)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

3 637(d)(3)) is amended as follows:

4 (1) Subparagraph (A) of such clause is amended

5 by inserting ‘‘small business concerns owned and con6 trolled by veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’

7 the first place it appears in the first and second sen8 tences.

9 (2) Subparagraphs (E) and (F) of such clause

10 are redesignated as subparagraphs (F) and (G), re11 spectively, and the following new subparagraph is in12 serted after subparagraph (D) of such clause:

13 ‘‘(E) The term ‘small business concern owned

14 and controlled by veterans’ shall mean a small busi15 ness concern—

16 ‘‘(i) which is at least 51 per centum owned

17 by one or more eligible veterans; or, in the case

18 of any publicly owned business, at least 51 per

19 centum of the stock of which is owned by one or

20 more veterans; and

21 ‘‘(ii) whose management and daily business

22 operations are controlled by such veterans. The

23 contractor shall treat as veterans all individuals

24 who are veterans within the meaning of the term

25 under section 3(q) of the Small Business Act.’’.
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1 (3) Subparagraph (F) of such clause, as redesig2 nated by paragraph (2) of this subsection, is amended

3 by inserting ‘‘small business concern owned and con4 trolled by veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concern,’’

5 the first place it appears.

6 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 8(d) of the

7 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)) is amended by in8 serting ‘‘small business concerns owned and controlled by

9 veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’ the first place

10 it appears in each of paragraphs (4)(D), (4)(E), (6)(A),

11 (6)(C), (6)(F), and (10)(B).

12 SEC. 502. PARTICIPATION IN FEDERAL PROCUREMENT.

13 (a) GOVERNMENT-WIDE PARTICIPATION GOALS.—Sec14 tion 15(g)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

15 644(g)(1)) is amended—

16 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘small

17 business concerns owned and controlled by service dis18 abled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’ the

19 first place it appears;

20 (2) by inserting after the second sentence, the fol21 lowing: ‘‘The Government-wide goal for participation

22 by small business concerns owned and controlled by

23 service-disabled veterans shall be established at not

24 less than 3 percent of the total value of all prime con-
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1 tract and subcontract awards for each fiscal year.’’;

2 and

3 (3) in the second to last sentence, by inserting

4 ‘‘small business concerns owned and controlled by

5 service-disabled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business con6 cerns,’’ the first place it appears.

7 (b) AGENCY PARTICIPATION GOALS.—Section 15 of the

8 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)(2)) is amended—

9 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘by small

10 business concerns owned and controlled by service-dis11 abled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’; the

12 first place it appears;

13 (2) in the second sentence, by inserting ‘‘small

14 business concerns owned and controlled by service-dis15 abled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’ the

16 first place it appears; and

17 (3) in the fourth sentence, by inserting ‘‘small

18 business concerns owned and controlled by service-dis19 abled veterans, by’’ after ‘‘including participation

20 by’’.

21 TITLE VI—REPORTS AND DATA

22 COLLECTION

23 SEC. 601. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

24 (a) REPORTS TO SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRA25 TION.—Section 15(h)(1) of the Small Business Act (15
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1 U.S.C. 644(h)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘small business

2 concerns owned and controlled by veterans (including serv3 ice-disabled veterans),’’ after ‘‘small business concerns,’’ the

4 first place it appears.

5 (b) REPORTS TO THE PRESIDENT AND THE CON6 GRESS.—Section 15(h)(2) of the Small Business Act (15

7 U.S.C. 644(h)(2)) is amended—

8 (1) by inserting ‘‘and the Congress’’ before the

9 period at the end of first sentence; and

10 (2) in each of subparagraphs (A), (D), and (E),

11 by inserting ‘‘small business concerns owned and con12 trolled by service-disabled veterans,’’ after ‘‘small

13 business concerns,’’ the first place it appears.

14 SEC. 602. REPORT ON SMALL BUSINESS AND COMPETITION.

15 Section 303(e) of the Small Business Economic Policy

16 Act of 1980 (15 U.S.C. 631b(e)) is amended—

17 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the

18 semicolon;

19 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at

20 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

21 (3) by adding at the end the following:

22 ‘‘(3) small business concerns owned and con23 trolled by veterans, as defined in section 3(q) of the

24 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(q)), and small
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1 business concerns owned and controlled by service-dis2 abled veterans, as defined in such section 3(q).’’.

3 SEC. 603. ANNUAL REPORT OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.

4 The Administrator of the Small Business Administra5 tion shall transmit annually to the Committees on Small

6 Business and Veterans Affairs of the House of Representa7 tives and the Senate a report on the needs of small business

8 concerns owned and controlled by veterans and small busi9 ness concerns owned and controlled by service-disabled vet10 erans, which shall include information on—

11 (1) the availability of Small Business Adminis12 tration programs for such small business concerns

13 and the degree of utilization of such programs by such

14 small business concerns during the preceding 12-

15 month period, including statistical information on

16 such utilization as compared to the small business

17 community as a whole;

18 (2) the percentage and dollar value of Federal

19 contracts awarded to such small business concerns

20 during the preceding 12-month period, based on the

21 data collected pursuant to section 604(d); and

22 (3) proposals to improve the access of such small

23 business concerns to the assistance made available by

24 the United States.
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1 SEC. 604. DATA AND INFORMATION COLLECTION.

2 (a) INFORMATION ON FEDERAL PROCUREMENT PRAC3 TICES.—The Administrator of the Small Business Adminis4 tration shall, for each fiscal year—

5 (1) collect information concerning the procure6 ment practices and procedures of each department

7 and agency of the United States having procurement

8 authority;

9 (2) publish and disseminate such information to

10 procurement officers in all Federal agencies; and

11 (3) make such information available to any

12 small business concern requesting such information.

13 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS

14 OWNED BY ELIGIBLE VETERANS.—Each fiscal year, the

15 Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall, in consultation with the

16 Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans’ Employment and

17 Training and the Administrator of the Small Business Ad18 ministration, identify small business concerns owned and

19 controlled by veterans in the United States. The Secretary

20 shall inform each small business concern identified under

21 this paragraph that information on Federal procurement

22 is available from the Administrator.

23 (c) SELF-EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES.—The Sec24 retary of Labor, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and the

25 Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall

26 enter into a memorandum of understanding to provide for
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1 coordination of vocational rehabilitation services, technical

2 and managerial assistance, and financial assistance to vet3 erans, including service-disabled veterans, seeking to employ

4 themselves by forming or expanding small business con5 cerns. The memorandum of understanding shall include rec6 ommendations for expanding existing programs or estab7 lishing new programs to provide such services or assistance

8 to such veterans.

9 (d) DATA COLLECTION REQUIRED.—The Federal Pro10 curement Data System described in section 6(d)(4)(A) of

11 the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C.

12 405(d)(4)(A)) shall be modified to collect data regarding the

13 percentage and dollar value of prime contracts and sub14 contracts awarded to small business concerns owned and

15 controlled by veterans and small business concerns owned

16 and controlled by service-disabled veterans.

17 TITLE VII—MISCELLANEOUS

18 PROVISIONS

19 SEC. 701. ADMINISTRATOR’S ORDER.

20 The Administrator of the Small Business Administra21 tion shall strengthen and reissue the Administrator’s order

22 regarding the third sentence of section 4(b)(1) of the Small

23 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 633(b)(1)), relating to non24 discrimination and special considerations for veterans, and
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1 take all necessary steps to ensure that its provisions are

2 fully and vigorously implemented.

3 SEC. 702. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION OFFICE OF

4 ADVOCACY.

5 Section 202 of Public Law 94–305 (15 U.S.C. 634b)

6 is amended—

7 (1) in paragraph (10), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the

8 end;

9 (2) in paragraph (11), by striking the period at

10 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

11 (3) by adding at the end the following:

12 ‘‘(12) evaluate the efforts of each department and

13 agency of the United States, and of private industry,

14 to assist small business concerns owned and controlled

15 by veterans, as defined in section 3(q) of the Small

16 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632(q)), and small business

17 concerns owned and controlled by serviced-disabled

18 veterans, as defined in such section 3(q), and to pro19 vide statistical information on the utilization of such

20 programs by such small business concerns, and to

21 make appropriate recommendations to the Adminis22 trator of the Small Business Administration and to

23 the Congress in order to promote the establishment

24 and growth of those small business concerns.’’.
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1 SEC. 703. STUDY OF FIXED-ASSET SMALL BUSINESS LOANS.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall con3 duct a study on whether there would exist any additional

4 risk or cost to the United States if—

5 (1) up to 10 percent of the loans guaranteed

6 under chapter 37 of title 38, United States Code, were

7 made for the acquisition or construction of fixed as8 sets used in a trade or business rather than for the

9 construction or purchase of residential buildings; and

10 (2) such loans for acquisition or construction of

11 fixed assets were for a term of not more than 10 years

12 and the terms regarding eligibility, loan limits, inter13 est, fees, and down payment were the same as for

14 other loans guaranteed under such chapter.

15 (b) REPORT.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after

17 the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General

18 shall transmit the report described in subsection (a)

19 to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs and the Com20 mittees on Small Business of the House of Represent21 atives and the Senate.

22 (2) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The report required

23 by paragraph (1) shall specifically address the fol24 lowing:
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1 (A) With respect to the change in the vet2 erans’ housing loan program contemplated under

3 subsection (a):

4 (i) The increase or decrease in admin5 istrative costs to the Department of Veterans

6 Affairs.

7 (ii) The increase or decrease in the de8 gree of exposure of the United States as the

9 guarantor of the loans.

10 (iii) The increase or decrease in the

11 Federal subsidy rate that would be possible.

12 (iv) Any increase in the interest rate

13 or fees charged to the borrower or lender

14 that would be required to maintain present

15 program costs.

16 (B) Information regarding the delinquency

17 rates, default rates, length of time required for

18 recovery after default, for fixed-asset business

19 loans, of a size and duration comparable to those

20 contemplated under subsection (a), made avail-
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1 able in the private market or under section 503

2 of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958.

Attest:

Secretary.
106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1568

AMENDMENT