I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5939 

To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to establish a program to encourage small business concerns to make business 

succession plans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 12, 2023 

Mr. CROW (for himself and Mr. GARBARINO) introduced the following bill 

OCTOBER 25, 2023 

Referred to the Committee on Small Business, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined 

by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 

within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to establish a program to encourage small business concerns to make business succession plans, 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 ‘‘Small Business Succes5 sion Planning Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLANS FOR SMALL BUSI2 NESS CONCERNS. 

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

4 Business Administration shall establish a program to help 

5 small business concerns develop and implement business 

6 succession plans. 

7 (b) TOOLKIT.—The Administrator, in consultation 

8 with resource partners, shall develop a toolkit to assist 

9 small business concerns in establishing a business succes10 sion plan. Such toolkit shall be made available on a public 

11 website of the Administration. 

12 (c) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.—The Administrator— 

13 (1) shall train resource partners on using the 

14 toolkit described in subsection (b) with small busi15 ness concerns; 

16 (2) shall educate small business concerns about 

17 the program established under this section; 

18 (3) shall ensure that each district office of the 

19 Administration and each resource partner described 

20 in subparagraphs (B) through (E) has an employee 

21 with the specific job responsibility of providing coun22 seling, in person or virtually, to small business con23 cerns on use of the toolkit described in subsection 

24 (b); and 

25 (4) may hold workshops or events on business 

26 succession planning. 


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1 (d) PLAN.—Not later than 120 days after the date 

2 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub3 mit to the appropriate committees a plan for increasing 

4 the amount of small business concerns that have business 

5 succession plans. Such plan shall include a description of 

6 methods to increase the frequency and use of business suc7 cession plans by small business concerns owned and con8 trolled by socially and economically disadvantaged individ9 uals (as defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of the Small Busi10 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C))). 

11 (e) TAX CREDIT FOR SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS

12 WHICH COMPLETE A BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLAN.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subpart D of part IV of 

14 subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue 

15 Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 

16 following new section: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 45AA. BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLAN CREDIT. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 38, the 

19 business succession plan credit determined under this sec20 tion is— 

21 ‘‘(1) $250 for the first taxable year during 

22 which the Administrator of the Small Business Ad23 ministration certifies that the taxpayer has estab24 lished a business succession plan, that the taxpayer 

25 is a small business concern at the time that such 


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1 plan is established, and that such plan does not pro2 vide for substantially all of the interests or assets of 

3 small business concern to be acquired by one or 

4 more entities which are not small business concerns, 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(2) $250 for the first taxable year during 

7 which such Administrator certifies that the taxpayer 

8 has successfully completed a succession of respon9 sibilities pursuant to a business succession plan 

10 which was certified under paragraph (1), that the 

11 taxpayer is a small business concern immediately 

12 after such succession, and that the business with re13 spect to which such business succession plan relates 

14 was a small business concern immediately prior to 

15 such succession. 

16 ‘‘(b) RECAPTURE OF CREDITS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) RECAPTURE OF CREDIT FOR ESTABLISH18 MENT OF PLAN.—If, during the 3-year period begin19 ning on the date of the establishment of a business 

20 succession plan described in subsection (a)(1), sub21 stantially all of the equity interests in the taxpayer 

22 or substantially all of the assets of the taxpayer are 

23 acquired by one or more entities which are not small 

24 business concerns, the taxpayer’s tax imposed under 

25 this chapter for the taxable year during which such 


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1 interest or assets are so acquired shall be increased 

2 by amount of the credit allowed to the taxpayer 

3 under subsection (a)(1) for such taxable year or any 

4 prior taxable year. 

5 ‘‘(2) RECAPTURE OF CREDIT FOR COMPLETION

6 OF SUCCESSION.—If, during the 3-year period begin7 ning on the date of the completion of a succession 

8 of responsibilities described in subsection (a)(2), 

9 substantially all of the equity interests in the tax10 payer or substantially all of the assets of the tax11 payer are acquired by one or more entities which are 

12 not small business concerns, the taxpayer’s tax im13 posed under this chapter for the taxable year during 

14 which such interests or assets are so acquired shall 

15 be increased by amount of the credit allowed to the 

16 taxpayer under subsection (a)(2) for such taxable 

17 year or any prior taxable year. 

18 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 

19 terms ‘small business concern’ and ‘business succession 

20 plan’ have the respective meanings given such terms under 

21 section 2(g) of the Small Business Succession Planning 

22 Act.’’. 

23 (2) CREDIT ALLOWED AS PART OF GENERAL

24 BUSINESS CREDIT.—Section 38(b) of such Code is 

25 amended by striking ‘‘plus’’ at the end of paragraph 


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1 (39), by striking the period at the end of paragraph 

2 (40) and inserting ‘‘, plus’’, and by adding at the 

3 end the following new paragraph: 

4 ‘‘(41) the business succession plan credit deter5 mined under section 45AA(a).’’. 

6 (3) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec7 tions for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of 

8 chapter 1 of such Code is amended by adding at the 

9 end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 45AA. Business succession plan credit.’’. 

10 (4) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 90 

11 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

12 Secretary of the Treasury (or the Secretary’s dele13 gate) shall submit a report to the Committee on 

14 Ways and Means of the House of Representatives 

15 and the Committee on Finance of the Senate de16 scribing the steps which will be taken to enforce the 

17 recapture provisions of section 45AA(b) of the Inter18 nal Revenue Code of 1986, as added by this section. 

19 (5) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

20 by this subsection shall apply to taxable years end21 ing after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

22 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

23 authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator such 

24 sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2024 through 

25 2029 to carry out the requirements of this section. 


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1 (g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis3 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Small Busi4 ness Administration. 

5 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra6 tion’’ means the Small Business Administration. 

7 (3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES.—The term 

8 ‘‘appropriate committees’’ means— 

9 (A) the Committee on Small Business and 

10 Entrepreneurship and the Committee on Appro11 priations of the Senate; and 

12 (B) the Committee on Small Business and 

13 the Committee on Appropriations of the House 

14 of Representatives. 

15 (4) BUSINESS SUCCESSION PLAN.—The term 

16 ‘‘business succession plan’’ means a document 

17 that— 

18 (A) identifies an individual who will as19 sume the responsibilities of the owner to a 

20 small business concern upon the death or retire21 ment of such owner, along with the legal docu22 ments necessary; and 

23 (B) includes an operational description of 

24 the small business concern to ensure the con25 tinuation of operations of such concern. 


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1 (5) RESOURCE PARTNERS.—The term ‘‘re2 source partners’’ means— 

3 (A) any office of the Administration; 

4 (B) small business development centers 

5 (defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act 

6 (15 U.S.C. 632)); 

7 (C) women’s business centers (described 

8 under section 29 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 656)); 

9 (D) chapters of the Service Corps of Re10 tired Executives (established under section 

11 8(b)(1)(B) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 

12 637(b)(1)(B))); 

13 (E) Veteran Business Outreach Centers 

14 (described under section 32 of such Act (15 

15 U.S.C. 657b)); and 

16 (F) any other entity, as determined by the 

17 Administrator. 

18 (6) SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN.—The term 

19 ‘‘small business concern’’ has the meaning given 

20 under section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 

21 U.S.C. 632). 

Æ 


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