II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2396 

To establish the veterans’ business outreach center program, to improve 

the programs for veterans of the Small Business Administration, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 22, 2014 

Mr. PRYOR (for himself, Ms. LANDRIEU, Mr. JOHANNS, and Ms. MURKOWSKI) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 

A BILL 

To establish the veterans’ business outreach center program, 

to improve the programs for veterans 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 ‘‘Veteran Entrepreneur5 ship and Training Opportunities Act of 2014’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. VETERANS’ BUSINESS OUTREACH CENTER PRO2 GRAM; OFFICE OF VETERANS BUSINESS DE3 VELOPMENT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 32 of the Small Business 

5 Act (15 U.S.C. 657b) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking subsection (d); 

7 (2) by striking subsection (f); 

8 (3) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub9 section (f); 

10 (4) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(d) BOOTS TO BUSINESS PROGRAM.— 

13 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection the 

14 term ‘covered individual’ means— 

15 ‘‘(A) a member of the Armed Forces; 

16 ‘‘(B) an individual who separated from the 

17 Armed Forces during the 1-year period ending 

18 on the date on which the individual receives as19 sistance under this subsection; and 

20 ‘‘(C) a spouse or dependent of an indi21 vidual described in subparagraph (A) or (B). 

22 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a 

23 program to be known as the ‘Boots to Business Pro24 gram’ to provide entrepreneurship training to cov25 ered individuals, which shall be carried out by the 

26 Administrator. 


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1 ‘‘(3) GOALS.—The goals of the Boots to Busi2 ness Program are to— 

3 ‘‘(A) provide exposure, introduction, and 

4 in-depth training for covered individuals inter5 ested in business ownership; and 

6 ‘‘(B) provide covered individuals with the 

7 tools and knowledge necessary to identify a 

8 business opportunity, draft a business plan, 

9 connect with local small business resources, and 

10 launch a small business concern. 

11 ‘‘(4) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Boots to Busi13 ness Program may include— 

14 ‘‘(i) a brief presentation providing ex15 posure to the considerations involved in 

16 self employment and small business owner17 ship; 

18 ‘‘(ii) an in-person classroom instruc19 tion component providing an introduction 

20 to the foundations of self employment and 

21 small business ownership; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) in-depth training delivered 

23 through online instruction, including an 

24 online course that leads to the creation of 

25 a business plan. 


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1 ‘‘(B) COLLABORATION.—The Adminis2 trator may— 

3 ‘‘(i) collaborate with public and pri4 vate entities to develop a course curriculum 

5 for the Boots to Business Program; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) design the course curriculum to 

7 allow participants to receive college credit 

8 or a certificate through an educational in9 stitution upon completion of all compo10 nents of the Boots to Business Program. 

11 ‘‘(C) AVAILABILITY TO DOD.—The Admin12 istrator shall make available electronically all 

13 course materials created for the Boots to Busi14 ness Program to the Secretary of Defense for 

15 inclusion in the Transition Assistance Program 

16 manual. 

17 ‘‘(e) VETERAN WOMEN IGNITING THE SPIRIT OF EN18 TREPRENEURSHIP.— 

19 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term 

20 ‘covered woman’ means an individual who— 

21 ‘‘(A) is female; and 

22 ‘‘(B) is— 

23 ‘‘(i) a member of the Armed Forces; 

24 ‘‘(ii) a veteran; or 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the spouse or dependent of a 

2 member of the Armed Forces or a veteran. 

3 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator 

4 shall establish a program, to be known as the Vet5 eran Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship 

6 Program, to provide specific training for covered 

7 women interested in exploring careers as owners of 

8 small business concerns. 

9 ‘‘(3) GOALS.—The goals of the Veteran Women 

10 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Program are 

11 to— 

12 ‘‘(A) help covered women by providing the 

13 tools to become successful entrepreneurs; and 

14 ‘‘(B) integrate the leadership, integrity, 

15 focus, and drive of covered women into a pre16 mier education training program taught by ac17 complished entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship 

18 educators from across the United States. 

19 ‘‘(4) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Veteran Women 

21 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Pro22 gram may include— 

23 ‘‘(i) an online, self-study course fo24 cused on the basic skills of entrepreneur25 ship and the language of business; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a conference where participants 

2 are exposed to accomplished entrepreneurs 

3 and entrepreneurship educators from 

4 across the United States; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) a plan to provide ongoing sup6 port and mentorship. 

7 ‘‘(B) COLLABORATION.—The Adminis8 trator may collaborate with public and private 

9 entities to develop a course curriculum for the 

10 Veteran Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepre11 neurship Program.’’; and 

12 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(g) ENTREPRENEURSHIP BOOTCAMP FOR VET14 ERANS WITH DISABILITIES PROGRAM.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall es16 tablish a program, to be known as the Entrepreneur17 ship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Pro18 gram, to provide specific training for service-disabled 

19 veterans interested in exploring careers as owners of 

20 small business concerns. 

21 ‘‘(2) GOALS.—The goals of the Entrepreneur22 ship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Pro23 gram are to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) help service-disabled veterans by pro2 viding the tools to become successful entre3 preneurs; and 

4 ‘‘(B) integrate the leadership, integrity, 

5 focus, and drive of service-disabled veterans 

6 into a premier education training program 

7 taught by accomplished entrepreneurs and en8 trepreneurship educators from across the 

9 United States. 

10 ‘‘(3) PROGRAM COMPONENTS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Entrepreneurship 

12 Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Pro13 gram may include— 

14 ‘‘(i) an online, self-study course fo15 cused on the basic skills of entrepreneur16 ship and the language of business; 

17 ‘‘(ii) a conference where participants 

18 are exposed to accomplished entrepreneurs 

19 and entrepreneurship educators from 

20 across the United States; and 

21 ‘‘(iii) a plan to provide ongoing sup22 port and mentorship. 

23 ‘‘(B) COLLABORATION.—The Adminis24 trator may collaborate with public and private 

25 entities to develop a course curriculum for the 


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1 Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with 

2 Disabilities Program. 

3 ‘‘(h) ONLINE COORDINATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

5 ‘veterans’ assistance provider’ means— 

6 ‘‘(A) a veterans’ business outreach center 

7 established under subsection (i); 

8 ‘‘(B) an employee of the Administration 

9 assigned to the Office of Veterans Business De10 velopment; or 

11 ‘‘(C) a veterans business development offi12 cer designated under subsection (i)(11)(B). 

13 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Associate Admin14 istrator shall establish an online mechanism to— 

15 ‘‘(A) provide information that assists vet16 erans’ assistance providers in carrying out the 

17 activities of the veterans’ assistance providers; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(B) coordinate and leverage the work of 

20 the veterans’ assistance providers, including by 

21 allowing a veterans’ assistance provider to— 

22 ‘‘(i) distribute best practices and 

23 other materials; 

24 ‘‘(ii) communicate with other vet25 erans’ assistance providers regarding the 


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1 activities of the veterans’ assistance pro2 vider on behalf of veterans; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) pose questions to and request 

4 input from other veterans’ assistance pro5 viders. 

6 ‘‘(i) VETERANS’ BUSINESS OUTREACH CENTER PRO7 GRAM.— 

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

9 ‘‘(A) the term ‘active duty’ has the mean10 ing given that term in section 101 of title 10, 

11 United States Code; 

12 ‘‘(B) the term ‘Reservist’ means a member 

13 of a reserve component of the Armed Forces, as 

14 described in section 10101 of title 10, United 

15 States Code; 

16 ‘‘(C) the term ‘small business concern 

17 owned and controlled by veterans’— 

18 ‘‘(i) has the same meaning as in sec19 tion 3(q); and 

20 ‘‘(ii) includes a small business con21 cern— 

22 ‘‘(I) not less than 51 percent of 

23 which is owned by one or more 

24 spouses of veterans or, in the case of 

25 any publicly owned business, not less 


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1 than 51 percent of the stock of which 

2 is owned by one or more spouses of 

3 veterans; and 

4 ‘‘(II) the management and daily 

5 business operations of which are con6 trolled by one or more spouses of vet7 erans; 

8 ‘‘(D) the term ‘spouse’, relating to a mem9 ber of the Armed Forces on active duty, vet10 eran, service-disabled veteran, or Reservist, in11 cludes an individual who, on the date on which 

12 the member of the Armed Forces on active 

13 duty, veteran, service-disabled veteran, or Re14 servist died, is the spouse of the member of the 

15 Armed Forces on active duty, veteran, service16 disabled veteran, or Reservist; and 

17 ‘‘(E) the term ‘veterans’ business outreach 

18 center program’ means the program established 

19 under paragraph (2)(A). 

20 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, 

22 acting through the Associate Administrator, 

23 shall establish a veterans’ business outreach 

24 center program, under which the Associate Ad25 ministrator may provide financial assistance to 


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1 educational institutions, veterans’ nonprofit 

2 community-based organizations, and Federal, 

3 State, and local departments and agencies to 

4 conduct a 5-year project for the benefit of small 

5 business concerns owned and controlled by vet6 erans, which, upon application by the entity re7 ceiving financial assistance, may be renewed for 

8 one or more additional 5-year periods. 

9 ‘‘(B) FORM OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 

10 Financial assistance under this subsection may 

11 be in the form of a grant, a contract, or a coop12 erative agreement. 

13 ‘‘(3) VETERANS’ BUSINESS OUTREACH CEN14 TERS.—Each entity that receives financial assistance 

15 under this subsection shall establish or operate a 

16 veterans’ business outreach center (which may in17 clude establishing or operating satellite offices in the 

18 region described in paragraph (5) served by that en19 tity) that provides to veterans (including service-dis20 abled veterans), Reservists, and the spouses of mem21 bers of the Armed Forces on active duty, veterans 

22 (including service-disabled veterans), and Reserv23 ists— 

24 ‘‘(A) financial advice, including training 

25 and counseling on applying for and securing 


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1 business credit and investment capital, pre2 paring and presenting financial statements, and 

3 managing cash flow and other financial oper4 ations of a small business concern; 

5 ‘‘(B) management advice, including train6 ing and counseling on the planning, organiza7 tion, staffing, direction, and control of each 

8 major activity and function of a small business 

9 concern; 

10 ‘‘(C) marketing advice, including training 

11 and counseling on identifying and segmenting 

12 domestic and international market opportuni13 ties, preparing and executing marketing plans, 

14 developing pricing strategies, locating contract 

15 opportunities, negotiating contracts, and using 

16 public relations and advertising techniques; and 

17 ‘‘(D) advice, including training and coun18 seling. 

19 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An entity desiring to 

21 receive financial assistance under this sub22 section shall submit an application to the Asso23 ciate Administrator at such time and in such 

24 manner as the Associate Administrator may re25 quire. 


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1 ‘‘(B) 5-YEAR PLAN.—Each application de2 scribed in subparagraph (A) shall include a 5- 

3 year plan on proposed fundraising and training 

4 activities relating to the veterans’ business out5 reach center. 

6 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION AND NOTIFICA7 TION.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

8 on which applications for a fiscal year are re9 quired to be submitted under subparagraph (A), 

10 the Associate Administrator shall approve or 

11 deny any application submitted and notify the 

12 applicant of the determination. 

13 ‘‘(D) AVAILABILITY OF APPLICATION.— 

14 The Associate Administrator shall make every 

15 effort to make the application under subpara16 graph (A) available online. 

17 ‘‘(5) ELIGIBILITY.—The Associate Adminis18 trator may select to receive financial assistance 

19 under this subsection— 

20 ‘‘(A) a Veterans Business Outreach Center 

21 established by the Administrator under section 

22 8(b)(17) on or before the day before the date 

23 of enactment of this subsection; or 

24 ‘‘(B) educational institutions, veterans’ 

25 nonprofit community-based organizations, and 


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1 Federal, State, and local departments and 

2 agencies located in various regions of the 

3 United States, as the Associate Administrator 

4 determines is appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(6) SELECTION CRITERIA.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Associate Admin7 istrator shall establish selection criteria, stated 

8 in terms of relative importance, to evaluate and 

9 rank applicants under paragraph (5)(B) for fi10 nancial assistance under this subsection. 

11 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA.—The selection criteria es12 tablished under this paragraph shall include— 

13 ‘‘(i) the experience of the applicant in 

14 conducting programs or ongoing efforts de15 signed to impart or upgrade the business 

16 skills of veterans (including service-dis17 abled veterans), Reservists, and the 

18 spouses of members of the Armed Forces 

19 on active duty, veterans (including service20 disabled veterans), and Reservists who own 

21 or may own small business concerns; 

22 ‘‘(ii) for an applicant for initial finan23 cial assistance under this subsection— 

24 ‘‘(I) the ability of the applicant 

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1 ness outreach center within a min2 imum amount of time; and 

3 ‘‘(II) the geographic region to be 

4 served by the veterans’ business out5 reach center; 

6 ‘‘(iii) the demonstrated ability of the 

7 applicant to— 

8 ‘‘(I) provide managerial coun9 seling and technical assistance to en10 trepreneurs; and 

11 ‘‘(II) coordinate services provided 

12 by veterans services organizations and 

13 other public or private entities; 

14 ‘‘(iv) the ability to leverage and co15 ordinate with existing resources and infra16 structure of the Administration; and 

17 ‘‘(v) for any applicant for a renewal of 

18 financial assistance under this subsection, 

19 the results of the most recent examination 

20 under paragraph (10) of the veterans’ 

21 business outreach center operated by the 

22 applicant. 

23 ‘‘(C) CRITERIA PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.— 

24 The Associate Administrator shall— 


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1 ‘‘(i) make publicly available the selec2 tion criteria established under this para3 graph; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) include the criteria in each solici5 tation for applications for financial assist6 ance under this subsection. 

7 ‘‘(7) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—The amount of 

8 financial assistance provided under this subsection 

9 to an entity for each fiscal year shall be— 

10 ‘‘(A) not less than $100,000; and 

11 ‘‘(B) not more than $300,000. 

12 ‘‘(8) FEDERAL SHARE.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.— 

14 ‘‘(i) INITIAL FINANCIAL ASSIST15 ANCE.—Except as provided in clause (ii) 

16 and subparagraph (E), an entity that re17 ceives financial assistance under this sub18 section shall provide non-Federal contribu19 tions for the operation of the veterans’ 

20 business outreach center established by the 

21 entity in an amount equal to— 

22 ‘‘(I) in each of the first and sec23 ond years of the project, not less than 

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1 nancial assistance received under this 

2 subsection; and 

3 ‘‘(II) in each of the third through 

4 fifth years of the project, not less 

5 than 50 percent of the amount of the 

6 financial assistance received under 

7 this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(ii) RENEWALS.—An entity that re9 ceives a renewal of financial assistance 

10 under this subsection shall provide non11 Federal contributions for the operation of 

12 the veterans’ business outreach center es13 tablished by the entity in an amount equal 

14 to not less than 50 percent of the amount 

15 of the financial assistance received under 

16 this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(B) FORM OF NON-FEDERAL SHARE.— 

18 Not more than 50 percent of the non-Federal 

19 share for a project carried out using financial 

20 assistance under this subsection may be in the 

21 form of in-kind contributions. 

22 ‘‘(C) TIMING OF DISBURSEMENT.—The 

23 Associate Administrator may disburse not more 

24 than 25 percent of the financial assistance 

25 awarded to an entity before the entity obtains 


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1 the non-Federal share required under this para2 graph with respect to that award. 

3 ‘‘(D) FAILURE TO OBTAIN NON-FEDERAL

4 FUNDING.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If an entity that 

6 receives financial assistance under this 

7 subsection fails to obtain the non-Federal 

8 share required under this paragraph dur9 ing any fiscal year, the entity may not re10 ceive a disbursement under this subsection 

11 in a subsequent fiscal year or a disburse12 ment for any other project funded by the 

13 Administration, unless the Administrator 

14 makes a written determination that the en15 tity will be able to obtain a non-Federal 

16 contribution. 

17 ‘‘(ii) RESTORATION.—An entity pro18 hibited from receiving a disbursement 

19 under clause (i) in a fiscal year may re20 ceive financial assistance in a subsequent 

21 fiscal year if the entity obtains the non22 Federal share required under this para23 graph for the subsequent fiscal year. 

24 ‘‘(E) WAIVER OF NON-FEDERAL SHARE.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Upon request by 

2 an entity, and in accordance with this sub3 paragraph, the Administrator may waive, 

4 in whole or in part, the requirement to ob5 tain non-Federal funds under subpara6 graph (A) for a fiscal year. The Adminis7 trator may not waive the requirement for 

8 an entity to obtain non-Federal funds 

9 under this subparagraph for more than a 

10 total of 2 fiscal years. 

11 ‘‘(ii) CONSIDERATIONS.—In deter12 mining whether to waive the requirement 

13 to obtain non-Federal funds under this 

14 subparagraph, the Administrator shall con15 sider— 

16 ‘‘(I) the economic conditions af17 fecting the entity; 

18 ‘‘(II) the impact a waiver under 

19 this subparagraph would have on the 

20 credibility of the veterans’ business 

21 outreach center program; 

22 ‘‘(III) the demonstrated ability of 

23 the entity to raise non-Federal funds; 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(IV) the performance of the en2 tity. 

3 ‘‘(iii) LIMITATION.—The Adminis4 trator may not waive the requirement to 

5 obtain non-Federal funds under this sub6 paragraph if granting the waiver would un7 dermine the credibility of the veterans’ 

8 business outreach center program. 

9 ‘‘(9) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—A veterans’ busi10 ness outreach center may enter into a contract with 

11 a Federal department or agency to provide specific 

12 assistance to veterans, service-disabled veterans, Re13 servists, or the spouses of members of the Armed 

14 Forces on active duty, veterans, service-disabled vet15 erans, or Reservists with prior written approval of 

16 the Associate Administrator. Performance of such 

17 contract shall not hinder the veterans’ business out18 reach center in carrying out the terms of the grant 

19 received by the veterans’ business outreach center 

20 from the Administrator. 

21 ‘‘(10) EXAMINATION AND DETERMINATION OF

22 PERFORMANCE.— 

23 ‘‘(A) EXAMINATION.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

25 180 days after the date of enactment of 


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1 this subsection and every year thereafter, 

2 the Associate Administrator shall conduct 

3 an annual examination of the programs 

4 and finances of each veterans’ business 

5 outreach center established or operated 

6 using financial assistance under this sub7 section. 

8 ‘‘(ii) FACTORS.—In conducting the ex9 amination under clause (i), the Associate 

10 Administrator shall consider whether the 

11 veterans’ business outreach center has 

12 failed— 

13 ‘‘(I) to provide the information 

14 required to be provided under sub15 paragraph (B), or the information 

16 provided by the center is inadequate; 

17 ‘‘(II) to comply with a require18 ment for participation in the veterans’ 

19 business outreach center program, as 

20 determined by the Associate Adminis21 trator, including— 

22 ‘‘(aa) failure to acquire or 

23 properly document a non-Federal 

24 share; 


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1 ‘‘(bb) failure to establish an 

2 appropriate partnership or pro3 gram for marketing and outreach 

4 to small business concerns; 

5 ‘‘(cc) failure to achieve re6 sults described in a financial as7 sistance agreement; and 

8 ‘‘(dd) failure to provide to 

9 the Administrator a description 

10 of the amount and sources of any 

11 non-Federal funding received by 

12 the center; 

13 ‘‘(III) to carry out the 5-year 

14 plan under in paragraph (4)(B); 

15 ‘‘(IV) to meet the eligibility re16 quirements under paragraph (5); or 

17 ‘‘(V) to serve small business con18 cerns in the geographic region served 

19 by the veterans’ business outreach 

20 center. 

21 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION PROVIDED.—In the 

22 course of an examination under subparagraph 

23 (A), the veterans’ business outreach center shall 

24 provide to the Associate Administrator— 


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1 ‘‘(i) an itemized cost breakdown of ac2 tual expenditures for costs incurred during 

3 the most recent full fiscal year, including 

4 the amount spent on administrative ex5 penses; 

6 ‘‘(ii) documentation of the amount of 

7 non-Federal contributions obtained and ex8 pended by the veterans’ business outreach 

9 center during the most recent full fiscal 

10 year; 

11 ‘‘(iii) with respect to any in-kind con12 tribution under paragraph (8)(B), 

13 verification of the existence and valuation 

14 of such contribution; and 

15 ‘‘(iv) any additional information the 

16 Associate Administrator determines nec17 essary. 

18 ‘‘(C) DETERMINATION OF PERFORM19 ANCE.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Associate Ad21 ministrator shall analyze the results of 

22 each examination under subparagraph (A) 

23 and, based on that analysis, make a deter24 mination regarding the performance of the 


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1 programs and finances of each veterans’ 

2 business outreach center. 

3 ‘‘(ii) NONDELEGATION OF DETER4 MINATION.—The duty under clause (i) to 

5 make a determination regarding the per6 formance of the programs and finances of 

7 a veterans’ business outreach center may 

8 not be delegated. 

9 ‘‘(D) DISCONTINUATION OF FUNDING.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Associate Ad11 ministrator may discontinue an award of 

12 financial assistance to an entity at any 

13 time for poor performance as determined 

14 under subparagraph (C). 

15 ‘‘(ii) RESTORATION.—The Associate 

16 Administrator may continue to provide fi17 nancial assistance to an entity in a subse18 quent fiscal year if the Associate Adminis19 trator determines under subparagraph (C) 

20 that the veterans’ business outreach center 

21 has taken appropriate measures to improve 

22 its performance and it is viable. 

23 ‘‘(11) COORDINATION OF EFFORTS AND CON24 SULTATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION AND CONSULTA2 TION.—To the extent practicable, the Associate 

3 Administrator and each entity that receives fi4 nancial assistance under this subsection shall— 

5 ‘‘(i) coordinate outreach and other ac6 tivities with other programs of the Admin7 istration and the programs of other Fed8 eral agencies; 

9 ‘‘(ii) consult with technical representa10 tives of the district offices of the Adminis11 tration in carrying out activities using fi12 nancial assistance under this subsection; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(iii) provide information to the vet15 erans business development officers des16 ignated under subparagraph (B) and co17 ordinate with the veterans business devel18 opment officers to increase the ability of 

19 the veterans business development officers 

20 to provide services throughout the area 

21 served by the veterans business develop22 ment officers. 

23 ‘‘(B) VETERANS BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

24 OFFICERS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) DESIGNATION.—The Adminis2 trator shall designate not fewer than one 

3 individual in each district office of the Ad4 ministration as a veterans business devel5 opment officer, who shall communicate and 

6 coordinate activities of the district office 

7 with entities that receive financial assist8 ance under this subsection. 

9 ‘‘(ii) INITIAL DESIGNATION.—The 

10 first individual in each district office of the 

11 Administration designated by the Adminis12 trator as a veterans business development 

13 officer under clause (i) shall be an indi14 vidual that is employed by the Administra15 tion on the date of enactment of this sub16 section. 

17 ‘‘(12) EXISTING CONTRACTS.—An award of fi18 nancial assistance under this subsection shall not 

19 void any contract between any entity and the Ad20 ministration that is in effect on the date of such 

21 award. 

22 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

23 are authorized to be appropriated— 

24 ‘‘(1) to carry out subsection (d), $7,000,000 for 

25 each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019; 


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1 ‘‘(2) to carry out subsection (e), $500,000 for 

2 each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019; 

3 ‘‘(3) to carry out subsection (g), $450,000 for 

4 each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019; and 

5 ‘‘(4) to carry out subsection (i)— 

6 ‘‘(A) $3,000,000 for fiscal year 2015; 

7 ‘‘(B) $3,500,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

8 ‘‘(C) $4,000,000 for fiscal year 2017; 

9 ‘‘(D) $4,500,000 for fiscal year 2018; and 

10 ‘‘(E) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2019. 

11 ‘‘(k) REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after the 

12 date of enactment of this subsection and every year there13 after, the Associate Administrator shall submit to the 

14 Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of 

15 the Senate and the Committee on Small Business of the 

16 House of Representatives a report, which may be included 

17 as part of another report submitted to the Committee on 

18 Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and 

19 the Committee on Small Business of the House of Rep20 resentatives by the Associate Administrator, and which 

21 shall include the following: 

22 ‘‘(1) BOOTS TO BUSINESS.—For the Boots to 

23 Business Program under subsection (d)— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the number of program participants 

2 using each component of the Boots to Business 

3 Program; 

4 ‘‘(B) the completion rates for each compo5 nent of the Boots to Business Program; 

6 ‘‘(C) the demographics of program partici7 pants, to include gender, age, race, relationship 

8 to military, and years of service; 

9 ‘‘(D) to the extent possible— 

10 ‘‘(i) the number of small business con11 cerns formed or expanded with assistance 

12 under the Boots to Business Program; 

13 ‘‘(ii) the gross receipts of small busi14 ness concerns receiving assistance under 

15 the Boots to Business program; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) the number of jobs created with 

17 assistance under the Boots to Business 

18 program; 

19 ‘‘(E) the number of referrals to other re20 sources and programs of the Administration; 

21 ‘‘(F) the number of program participants 

22 receiving financial assistance under loan pro23 grams of the Administration; 


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1 ‘‘(G) the type and dollar amount of finan2 cial assistance received by program participants 

3 under loan programs of the Administration; 

4 ‘‘(H) results of participant satisfaction 

5 surveys, including a summary of any comments 

6 received from program participants; 

7 ‘‘(I) the range of percentage of disability 

8 and the average percentage of disability, as 

9 identified by the Department of Veterans Af10 fairs, of program participants; 

11 ‘‘(J) an evaluation of the effectiveness of 

12 the program in each region of the Administra13 tion during the most recent fiscal year; 

14 ‘‘(K) an assessment of additional perform15 ance outcome measures for the Boots to Busi16 ness Program, as identified by the Associate 

17 Administrator; 

18 ‘‘(L) any recommendations of the Adminis19 trator for improvement of the Boots to Busi20 ness Program, which may include expansion of 

21 the types of individuals who are covered individ22 uals; 

23 ‘‘(M) a discussion of how the Boots to 

24 Business program has been integrated with 


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1 other resources and programs of the Adminis2 tration; and 

3 ‘‘(N) any additional information the Ad4 ministrator determines necessary. 

5 ‘‘(2) VETERAN WOMEN IGNITING THE SPIRIT

6 OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP.—For the Veteran Women 

7 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Program 

8 under subsection (e)— 

9 ‘‘(A) the number of program participants 

10 using each component of the Veteran Women 

11 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Pro12 gram; 

13 ‘‘(B) the completion rates for each compo14 nent of the Veteran Women Igniting the Spirit 

15 of Entrepreneurship Program; 

16 ‘‘(C) the demographics of program partici17 pants, to include gender, age, race, relationship 

18 to military, and years of service; 

19 ‘‘(D) to the extent possible— 

20 ‘‘(i) the number of small business con21 cerns formed or expanded with assistance 

22 under the Veteran Women Igniting the 

23 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Program; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the gross receipts of small busi25 ness concerns receiving assistance under 


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1 the Veteran Women Igniting the Spirit of 

2 Entrepreneurship Program; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) the number of jobs created with 

4 assistance under the Veteran Women Ig5 niting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Pro6 gram; 

7 ‘‘(E) the number of referrals to other re8 sources and programs of the Administration; 

9 ‘‘(F) the number of program participants 

10 receiving financial assistance under loan pro11 grams of the Administration; 

12 ‘‘(G) the type and dollar amount of finan13 cial assistance received by program participants 

14 under loan programs of the Administration; 

15 ‘‘(H) the results of participant satisfaction 

16 surveys, including a summary of any comments 

17 received from program participants; 

18 ‘‘(I) the range of percentage of disability 

19 and the average percentage of disability, as 

20 identified by the Department of Veterans Af21 fairs, of program participants; 

22 ‘‘(J) an assessment of additional perform23 ance outcome measures for the Veteran Women 

24 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship ProVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:07 Jun 03, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2396.IS S2396

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1 gram, as identified by the Associate Adminis2 trator; 

3 ‘‘(K) any recommendations of the Adminis4 trator for improvement of the Veteran Women 

5 Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Pro6 gram; 

7 ‘‘(L) a discussion of how the Veteran 

8 Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship 

9 Program has been integrated with other re10 sources and programs of the Administration; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(M) any additional information the Ad13 ministrator determines necessary. 

14 ‘‘(3) ENTREPRENEURSHIP BOOTCAMP FOR VET15 ERANS WITH DISABILITIES PROGRAM.—For the En16 trepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabil17 ities Program under subsection (g)— 

18 ‘‘(A) the number of program participants 

19 using each component of the Entrepreneurship 

20 Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Pro21 gram; 

22 ‘‘(B) the completion rates for each compo23 nent of the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for 

24 Veterans with Disabilities Program; 


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1 ‘‘(C) the demographics of program partici2 pants, to include gender, age, race, relationship 

3 to military, and years of service; 

4 ‘‘(D) to the extent possible— 

5 ‘‘(i) the number of small business con6 cerns formed or expanded with assistance 

7 under the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for 

8 Veterans with Disabilities Program; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the gross receipts of small busi10 ness concerns receiving assistance under 

11 the Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Vet12 erans with Disabilities Program; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) the number of jobs created with 

14 assistance under the Entrepreneurship 

15 Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities 

16 Program; 

17 ‘‘(E) the number of referrals to other re18 sources and programs of the Administration; 

19 ‘‘(F) the number of program participants 

20 receiving financial assistance under loan pro21 grams of the Administration; 

22 ‘‘(G) the type and dollar amount of finan23 cial assistance received by program participants 

24 under loan programs of the Administration; 


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1 ‘‘(H) the results of participant satisfaction 

2 surveys, including a summary of any comments 

3 received from program participants; 

4 ‘‘(I) the range of percentage of disability 

5 and the average percentage of disability, as 

6 identified by the Department of Veterans Af7 fairs, of program participants; 

8 ‘‘(J) an assessment of additional perform9 ance outcome measures for the Entrepreneur10 ship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities 

11 Program, as identified by the Associate Admin12 istrator; 

13 ‘‘(K) any recommendations of the Adminis14 trator for improvement of the Entrepreneurship 

15 Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities Pro16 gram; 

17 ‘‘(L) a discussion of how the Entrepre18 neurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabil19 ities Program has been integrated with other 

20 resources and programs of the Administration; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(M) any additional information the Ad23 ministrator determines necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(4) VETERANS’ BUSINESS OUTREACH CENTER

2 PROGRAM.—For the veterans’ business outreach cen3 ter program under subsection (i)— 

4 ‘‘(A) an evaluation of the effectiveness of 

5 the veterans’ business outreach center program 

6 in each region of the Administration during the 

7 most recent full fiscal year; 

8 ‘‘(B) for each veterans’ business outreach 

9 center established or operated using financial 

10 assistance provided under subsection (i)— 

11 ‘‘(i) the number of individuals receiv12 ing assistance from the veterans’ business 

13 outreach center, including the number of 

14 such individuals who are— 

15 ‘‘(I) veterans or spouses of vet16 erans; 

17 ‘‘(II) service-disabled veterans or 

18 spouses of service-disabled veterans; 

19 ‘‘(III) Reservists or spouses of 

20 Reservists; or 

21 ‘‘(IV) spouses of members of the 

22 Armed Forces on active duty; 

23 ‘‘(ii) the number of small business 

24 concerns formed by individuals receiving 


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1 assistance from the veterans’ business out2 reach center, including— 

3 ‘‘(I) veterans or spouses of vet4 erans; 

5 ‘‘(II) service-disabled veterans or 

6 spouses of service-disabled veterans; 

7 ‘‘(III) Reservists or spouses of 

8 Reservists; or 

9 ‘‘(IV) spouses of members of the 

10 Armed Forces on active duty; 

11 ‘‘(iii) to the extent possible— 

12 ‘‘(I) the gross receipts of small 

13 business concerns receiving assistance 

14 from the veterans’ business outreach 

15 center; 

16 ‘‘(II) the employment increases 

17 or decreases of small business con18 cerns receiving assistance from the 

19 veterans’ business outreach center; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(III) the increases or decreases 

22 in profits of small business concerns 

23 receiving assistance from the veterans’ 

24 business outreach center; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) the number of referrals by the 

2 veterans’ business outreach center to other 

3 resources and programs of the Administra4 tion; 

5 ‘‘(v) the results of satisfaction sur6 veys, including a summary of any com7 ments received from small business con8 cerns receiving assistance from the vet9 erans’ business outreach center; 

10 ‘‘(vi) the range of percentage of dis11 ability and the average percentage of dis12 ability, as identified by the Department of 

13 Veterans Affairs, of individuals receiving 

14 assistance from the veterans’ business out15 reach center; 

16 ‘‘(vii) the number of small business 

17 concerns receiving assistance from the vet18 erans’ business outreach center that re19 ceived financial assistance under loan pro20 grams of the Administration; 

21 ‘‘(viii) the type and dollar amount of 

22 financial assistance received under loan 

23 programs of the Administration by small 

24 business concerns receiving assistance from 

25 the veterans’ business outreach center; 


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1 ‘‘(ix) an assessment of additional per2 formance outcome measures for the vet3 erans’ business outreach center, as identi4 fied by the Associate Administrator; 

5 ‘‘(x) whether the Administrator 

6 waived, in whole or in part, the require7 ment to obtain non-Federal funds under 

8 subsection (i)(8) and, if so, the justifica9 tion for the waiver; and 

10 ‘‘(xi) the results of the examination of 

11 the veterans’ business outreach center 

12 under subsection (i)(10); 

13 ‘‘(C) any recommendations of the Adminis14 trator for improvement of the veterans’ busi15 ness outreach center program; 

16 ‘‘(D) a discussion of how the veterans’ 

17 business outreach center program has been in18 tegrated with other resources and programs of 

19 the Administration; and 

20 ‘‘(E) any additional information the Ad21 ministrator determines necessary. 

22 ‘‘(5) OTHER ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMS AD23 MINISTERED BY THE OFFICE OF VETERANS BUSI24 NESS DEVELOPMENT.—An evaluation of the effec25 tiveness of any other activities and programs adminVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:07 Jun 03, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2396.IS S2396

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1 istered by the Office of Veterans Business Develop2 ment, including using the metrics identified in para3 graphs (1) through (4).’’. 

4 (b) GAO REPORTS.— 

5 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

6 (A) the term ‘‘covered individual’’ means— 

7 (i) a veteran; 

8 (ii) a service-disabled veteran; 

9 (iii) a Reservist; 

10 (iv) the spouse of an individual de11 scribed in clause (i), (ii), or (iii); or 

12 (v) the spouse of a member of the 

13 Armed Forces; 

14 (B) the terms ‘‘Reservist’’ and ‘‘veterans’ 

15 business outreach center program’’ have the 

16 meanings given those terms in section 32(h) of 

17 the Small Business Act, as added by this sec18 tion; and 

19 (C) the terms ‘‘service-disabled veteran’’, 

20 ‘‘small business concern’’, and ‘‘veteran’’ have 

21 the meanings given those terms under section 3 

22 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632). 

23 (2) REPORT ON ACCESS TO CREDIT.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the 


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1 Comptroller General of the United States shall 

2 submit a report regarding the ability of small 

3 business concerns owned and controlled by cov4 ered individuals to access credit to— 

5 (i) the Committee on Veterans’ Af6 fairs and the Committee on Small Business 

7 and Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and 

8 (ii) the Committee on Veterans’ Af9 fairs and the Committee on Small Business 

10 of the House of Representatives. 

11 (B) CONTENTS.—The report submitted 

12 under subparagraph (A) shall include an anal13 ysis of— 

14 (i) the sources of credit used by small 

15 business concerns owned and controlled by 

16 covered individuals and the percentage of 

17 the credit obtained by small business con18 cerns owned and controlled by covered in19 dividuals that is obtained from each 

20 source; 

21 (ii) the default rate for small business 

22 concerns owned and controlled by covered 

23 individuals separately for each source of 

24 credit described in clause (i), as compared 


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1 to the default rate for the source of credit 

2 for small business concerns generally; 

3 (iii) the Federal lending programs 

4 available to provide credit to small busi5 ness concerns owned and controlled by cov6 ered individuals; 

7 (iv) gaps, if any, in the availability of 

8 credit for small business concerns owned 

9 and controlled by covered individuals that 

10 are not being filled by the Federal Govern11 ment or private sources; 

12 (v) obstacles faced by covered individ13 uals in trying to access credit; 

14 (vi) the extent to which deployment 

15 and other military responsibilities affect 

16 the credit history of veterans and Reserv17 ists; and 

18 (vii) the extent to which covered indi19 viduals are aware of Federal programs tar20 geted towards helping covered individuals 

21 access credit. 

22 (3) REPORT ON VETERANS’ BUSINESS OUT23 REACH CENTER PROGRAM.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days 

25 after the end of the second fiscal year beginning 


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1 after the date on which the veterans’ business 

2 outreach center program is established, the 

3 Comptroller General of the United States shall 

4 evaluate the effectiveness of the veterans’ busi5 ness outreach center program, and submit to 

6 Congress a report on the results of that evalua7 tion. 

8 (B) CONTENTS.—The report submitted 

9 under subparagraph (A) shall include— 

10 (i) an assessment of— 

11 (I) the use of amounts made 

12 available to carry out the veterans’ 

13 business outreach center program; 

14 (II) the effectiveness of the serv15 ices provided by each entity receiving 

16 financial assistance under the vet17 erans’ business outreach center pro18 gram; 

19 (III) whether the services de20 scribed in subclause (II) are duplica21 tive of services provided by other vet22 eran service organizations, programs 

23 of the Small Business Administration, 

24 or programs of another Federal de25 partment or agency and, if so, recVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:07 Jun 03, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2396.IS S2396

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1 ommendations regarding how to al2 leviate the duplication of the services; 

3 and 

4 (IV) whether there are areas of 

5 the United States in which there are 

6 not adequate entrepreneurial services 

7 for small business concerns owned and 

8 controlled by veterans and, if so, 

9 whether there is a veterans’ business 

10 outreach center established under the 

11 veterans’ business outreach center 

12 program providing services to that 

13 area; and 

14 (ii) recommendations, if any, for im15 proving the veterans’ business outreach 

16 center program. 

17 SEC. 3. REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR INTERAGENCY 

18 TASK FORCE. 

19 Section 32(c) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

20 657b(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(4) REPORT.—Not less frequently than once 

22 each year, the Administrator shall submit to Con23 gress a report— 

24 ‘‘(A) discussing the appointments made to 

25 and activities of the task force; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) identifying and outlining a plan for 

2 outreach and promotion of all the programs au3 thorized under the Veteran Entrepreneurship 

4 and Training Opportunities Act of 2014, or an 

5 amendment made by that Act.’’. 

Æ 


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