II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2149 

To amend the Small Business Act to create a program to provide funding 

for organizations that support startup businesses in formation and early 

growth stages by providing entrepreneurs with resources and services 

to produce viable businesses, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 17, 2019 

Mr. BOOKER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To amend the Small Business Act to create a program to 

provide funding for organizations that support startup 

businesses in formation and early growth stages by providing entrepreneurs with resources and services to 

produce viable businesses, 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 ‘‘Startup Opportunity 

5 Accelerator Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘SOAR Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) startups have contributed greatly to the 

2 United States economy, with research showing that 

3 between 1982 and 2011, businesses 5 years or 

4 younger were responsible for nearly every net new 

5 job created; 

6 (2) startups face common challenges as they 

7 seek to transform their ideas into successful, high8 growth businesses; 

9 (3) 4 metropolitan areas in 3 States—the San 

10 Francisco Bay Area, New York City, Boston, and 

11 Los Angeles—receive nearly 75 percent of all ven12 ture capital investment, which is a critical source of 

13 funding for high-growth startups; 

14 (4) of startups that receive venture capital 

15 funding, 2 percent are African-American-owned, 6 

16 percent are Latino-owned, and only 13 percent are 

17 owned solely by women; 

18 (5) incubators and accelerators are new models 

19 of growth that drive innovation by connecting entre20 preneurial individuals and teams to create viable 

21 business ventures and social initiatives; 

22 (6) incubators and accelerators support prom23 ising startups through partnerships, mentoring, and 

24 resources connecting them with seasoned entre25 preneurs; 


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1 (7) the goal of an incubator or an accelerator 

2 is to help create and grow young businesses by pro3 viding them with necessary financial, technical, and 

4 industry support and financial and technical serv5 ices; and 

6 (8) startups offer unique opportunities for 

7 growth and development for women, minority, and 

8 veterans to become successful entrepreneurs and 

9 leaders in new and developed fields. 

10 SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT SUPPORT 

11 STARTUP BUSINESSES. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Small Business Act (15 

13 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended— 

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

15 note) as section 50; and 

16 (2) by inserting after section 48 the following: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 49. FUNDING FOR ORGANIZATIONS THAT SUPPORT 

18 STARTUP BUSINESSES. 

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

20 ‘‘(1) the term ‘accelerator’ means an organiza21 tion that— 

22 ‘‘(A) frequently provides, but is not exclu23 sively designed to provide, seed investment in 

24 exchange for a small amount of equity; 


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1 ‘‘(B) works with a startup for a predeter2 mined amount of time; 

3 ‘‘(C) provides mentorship and instruction 

4 to scale businesses; or 

5 ‘‘(D) offers startup capital or the oppor6 tunity to raise capital from outside investors; 

7 ‘‘(2) the term ‘disability’ has the meaning given 

8 the term in section 3 of the Americans with Disabil9 ities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102); 

10 ‘‘(3) the term ‘eligible entity’ means an organi11 zation— 

12 ‘‘(A) that is located in the United States; 

13 ‘‘(B) the primary purpose of which is to 

14 support new small business concerns; and 

15 ‘‘(C) that is often classified as an accel16 erator; 

17 ‘‘(4) the term ‘new small business concern’ 

18 means a small business concern that has been in op19 eration for not more than 5 years; 

20 ‘‘(5) the term ‘small business concern owned 

21 and controlled by socially and economically disadvan22 taged individuals’ has the meaning given the term in 

23 section 8(d)(3)(C); and 

24 ‘‘(6) the term ‘State’ means any State of the 

25 United States, the District of Columbia, the ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:02 Jul 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2149.IS S2149

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1 monwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or pos2 session of the United States. 

3 ‘‘(b) FUNDING.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of enactment of this section, the Adminis6 trator shall develop and begin implementing a pro7 gram to award cash grants of not more than 

8 $100,000 to eligible entities to support new small 

9 business concerns. 

10 ‘‘(2) USE OF FUNDS.—A grant under this sec11 tion— 

12 ‘‘(A) may be used for construction costs, 

13 space acquisition, and programmatic purposes; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(B) may not be used to provide capital or 

16 professional services to new small business con17 cerns directly or through the subaward of 

18 funds. 

19 ‘‘(3) DISBURSAL OF FUNDS.—In disbursing 

20 funds under this section, the Administrator may use 

21 incremental or scheduled payments. 

22 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity desiring a 

24 grant under this section shall demonstrate that the 

25 eligible entity will use the grant to provide assistance 


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1 to not less than 10 new small business concerns per 

2 year. 

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In soliciting applica4 tions and awarding grants to eligible entities under 

5 this section, the Administrator shall employ a 

6 streamlined and inclusive approach that— 

7 ‘‘(A) widely publicizes funding opportuni8 ties to a broad audience, including through the 

9 use of digital resources such as the website of 

10 the Administration and social media; 

11 ‘‘(B) utilizes an easily accessible submis12 sion process or platform; 

13 ‘‘(C) shall make every effort to minimize— 

14 ‘‘(i) the use of forms, detailed budg15 ets, supporting documentation, or written 

16 submissions; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) any other burdensome require18 ment; 

19 ‘‘(D) focuses on solution-based approaches 

20 and results-based outcomes; 

21 ‘‘(E) encourages innovation; and 

22 ‘‘(F) allows proposals or pitches to be pre23 sented using various formats or media. 

24 ‘‘(d) CRITERIA.—The Administrator shall establish 

25 criteria for a grant under this section shall give priority 


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1 to eligible entities that are providing or plan to provide 

2 to new small business concerns— 

3 ‘‘(1) office, manufacturing, or warehouse space, 

4 including appropriate operations infrastructure; 

5 ‘‘(2) access to capital either directly from the 

6 eligible entity (using amounts other than the 

7 amounts provided under the grant) or through guid8 ance and contacts for acquiring capital from outside 

9 investors; 

10 ‘‘(3) access to professional services either di11 rectly from the eligible entity (using amounts other 

12 than the amounts provided under the grant) or 

13 through guidance and contacts for acquiring profes14 sional services, including accounting and legal serv15 ices; or 

16 ‘‘(4) a formal structured mentorship or develop17 mental program that assists new small business con18 cerns with building business skills and competencies. 

19 ‘‘(e) CONSIDERATIONS IN CHOOSING RECIPIENTS.— 

20 In determining whether to award a grant under this sec21 tion to an eligible entity, the Administrator shall take into 

22 account— 

23 ‘‘(1) for eligible entities that have in operation 

24 a program to support new small business concerns, 

25 the record of the eligible entity in assisting new 


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1 small business concerns, including, for each of the 3 

2 full years before the date on which the eligible entity 

3 applies for a grant under this section— 

4 ‘‘(A) the retention rate of new small busi5 ness concerns in the program of the eligible en6 tity; 

7 ‘‘(B) the average period of participation by 

8 new small business concerns in the program of 

9 the eligible entity; 

10 ‘‘(C) the total, average, and median capital 

11 raised by new small business concerns partici12 pating in the program of the eligible entity; and 

13 ‘‘(D) the total, average, and median num14 ber of employees of new small business concerns 

15 participating in the program of the eligible enti16 ty; 

17 ‘‘(2) for all eligible entities— 

18 ‘‘(A) the number of new small business 

19 concerns assisted or anticipated to be assisted 

20 by the eligible entity; 

21 ‘‘(B) the number of new small business 

22 concerns applying or anticipated to apply for 

23 assistance from the eligible entity; 

24 ‘‘(C) whether the program of the eligible 

25 entity provides or would provide assistance to 


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1 individuals in gender, racial, or ethnic groups 

2 underrepresented by existing programs to assist 

3 new small business concerns; and 

4 ‘‘(D) other metrics determined appropriate 

5 by the Administrator; 

6 ‘‘(3) the need in the geographic area to be 

7 served by the program to be carried out using the 

8 grant for additional assistance for new small busi9 ness concerns, if the area has sufficient population 

10 density, as determined by the Administrator; 

11 ‘‘(4) the level of experience of the entrepre12 neurial leadership of the eligible entity; and 

13 ‘‘(5) the ability of the eligible entity to use and 

14 leverage local strengths, including human resources, 

15 infrastructure, and educational institutions. 

16 ‘‘(f) REQUIREMENT TO AWARD GRANTS TO CERTAIN

17 ACCELERATORS.—In order to promote diversity in entre18 preneurship, the Administrator shall award not less than 

19 50 percent of amounts appropriated for grants in a given 

20 fiscal year to— 

21 ‘‘(1) accelerators located in an area described in 

22 subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 3(p)(1); 

23 and 


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1 ‘‘(2) accelerators for which not less than 50 

2 percent of the small business concerns served by the 

3 accelerator are small business concerns— 

4 ‘‘(A) owned and controlled by socially and 

5 economically disadvantaged individuals; 

6 ‘‘(B) owned and controlled by women; or 

7 ‘‘(C) that are not less than 51 percent 

8 owned by one or more— 

9 ‘‘(i) Native Americans; 

10 ‘‘(ii) individuals participating in the 

11 Transition Assistance Program of the De12 partment of Defense; 

13 ‘‘(iii) individuals who— 

14 ‘‘(I) served on active duty in any 

15 branch of the Armed Forces, includ16 ing the National Guard and Reserves; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(II) were discharged or released 

19 from such service under conditions 

20 other than dishonorable; 

21 ‘‘(iv) formerly incarcerated individ22 uals; or 

23 ‘‘(v) individuals with a disability. 

24 ‘‘(g) MATCHING NONPUBLIC FUNDING REQUIRE25 MENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity receiving 

2 a grant under this section shall obtain funds from 

3 a private individual or entity (including a for-profit 

4 or nonprofit entity) that are— 

5 ‘‘(A) for the same purposes as a grant may 

6 be made under this section; 

7 ‘‘(B) used to carry out the program of the 

8 eligible entity carried out using the grant under 

9 this section; and 

10 ‘‘(C) in an amount that is not to be less 

11 than 50 percent of the amount of the grant 

12 under this section. 

13 ‘‘(2) FORM OF NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—Not 

14 more than 25 percent of the funds obtained under 

15 paragraph (1) may be in the form of in-kind con16 tributions. 

17 ‘‘(h) CONSEQUENCES OF FAILURE TO ABIDE BY

18 TERMS OR CONDITIONS OF GRANT OR REQUIREMENTS OF

19 THIS SECTION.—The Administrator shall notify each eli20 gible entity receiving a grant under this section that fail21 ure to abide by the terms and conditions of the grant or 

22 the requirements of this section may, in the discretion of 

23 the Administrator and in addition to any other civil or 

24 criminal consequences, result in the Administrator withVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:02 Jul 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2149.IS S2149

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1 holding payments or ordering the eligible entity to return 

2 the grant funds. 

3 ‘‘(i) ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTING BY RECIPIENTS

4 OF GRANT.—Each eligible entity receiving a grant under 

5 this section shall submit to the Administrator an annual 

6 report on the progress of the program carried out using 

7 the amounts received under the grant, including— 

8 ‘‘(1) the number of new small business concerns 

9 participating in the program during each of the 3 

10 years preceding the report; 

11 ‘‘(2) the number of new small business concerns 

12 applying to participate in the program during each 

13 of the 3 years preceding the report; 

14 ‘‘(3) the retention rate of new small business 

15 concerns in the program; 

16 ‘‘(4) the average period of participation in the 

17 program by new small business concerns; 

18 ‘‘(5) the total, average, and median capital 

19 raised by new small business concerns participating 

20 in the program; 

21 ‘‘(6) the total, average, and median number of 

22 employees of new small business concerns partici23 pating in the program; 

24 ‘‘(7) the number of new small business con25 cerns— 


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1 ‘‘(A) owned and controlled by socially and 

2 economically disadvantaged individuals; 

3 ‘‘(B) owned and controlled by women; or 

4 ‘‘(C) that are not less than 51 percent 

5 owned by one or more— 

6 ‘‘(i) Native Americans; 

7 ‘‘(ii) individuals participating in the 

8 Transition Assistance Program of the De9 partment of Defense; 

10 ‘‘(iii) individuals who— 

11 ‘‘(I) served on active duty in any 

12 branch of the Armed Forces, includ13 ing the National Guard and Reserves; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(II) were discharged or released 

16 from such service under conditions 

17 other than dishonorable; 

18 ‘‘(iv) formerly incarcerated individ19 uals; or 

20 ‘‘(v) individuals with a disability; and 

21 ‘‘(8) other metrics determined appropriate by 

22 the Administrator. 

23 ‘‘(j) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Administrator 

24 shall submit to Congress an annual report on the program 

25 under this section, which shall include an assessment of 


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1 the effectiveness of the program, including an assessment 

2 based on the metrics listed in subsection (i). 

3 ‘‘(k) COORDINATION WITH OTHER SMALL BUSINESS

4 ADMINISTRATION PROGRAMS.—The Administrator shall 

5 take appropriate action to encourage eligible entities re6 ceiving a grant under this section to use and incorporate 

7 other programs of the Administration, such as small busi8 ness development centers, small business investment com9 panies, loans under section 7(a), assistance under title V 

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

11 695 et seq.), and resource partners of the Administration, 

12 including women’s business centers and veteran’s business 

13 outreach centers. 

14 ‘‘(l) COORDINATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF

15 VETERANS AFFAIRS.—In consultation with the Secretary 

16 of Veteran Affairs, the Administrator shall make available 

17 outreach materials regarding the opportunities for vet18 erans within the program under this section for distribu19 tion and display at local facilities of the Department of 

20 Veterans Affairs. 

21 ‘‘(m) LISTING ON WEBSITE.—The Administrator 

22 shall include a list of eligible entities receiving a grant 

23 under this section on the website of the Administration. 

24 ‘‘(n) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

25 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 


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1 $6,000,000 for each of the first 5 fiscal years beginning 

2 after the date of enactment of this section.’’. 

3 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

4 Effective on January 1, 2020, section 49(f)(1) of the 

5 Small Business Act, as added by subsection (a), is amend6 ed to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(1) accelerators located in an area described in 

8 subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 31(b); 

9 and’’. 

Æ 


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