‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De-
velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 
to carry out a mature entrepreneurs assistance pro-
gram. 
‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro-
gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall— 
‘‘(A) provide advisors and training re-
sources to assist business owners in recognizing 
and developing transition plans, including by— 
‘‘(i) providing training and edu-
cational screening processes on the poten-
tial benefits and hazards of self-employ-
ment; and 
‘‘(ii) developing courses, consulting 
processes, and highly targeted resource 
materials, and deploying them throughout 
the Small Business Development Center 
network; 
‘‘(B) link business owners with additional 
resource service providers to prepare businesses 
for transition, including by increasing partner-
ship opportunities, particularly with the Service 
Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE); 
‘‘(C) identify business opportunities for 
those interested in acquiring businesses;
‘‘(D) help individuals identify and acquire 
financing for acquisition; and 
‘‘(E) provide continuing support once tran-
sition has occurred. 
‘‘(3) MINIMUM
AMOUNT.—Each grant under 
this subsection shall be for at least $175,000. 
‘‘(4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—A grant under this 
subsection may not exceed $350,000. 
‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 
in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 
amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 
Administrator may make grants or enter into coop-
erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 
SEC. 205. SMALL BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE. 
Section 21 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
648), as amended by this Act, is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(r) SMALL
BUSINESS
SUSTAINABILITY
INITIA-
TIVE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A lead Small Business De-
velopment Center may apply for an additional grant 
to carry out a small business sustainability initiative 
program. 
‘‘(2) ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.—Under a pro-
gram under paragraph (1), the Center shall—
‘‘(A) provide necessary support to smaller 
and medium-sized businesses to— 
‘‘(i) evaluate energy efficiency and 
green building opportunities; 
‘‘(ii) understand the cost benefits of 
energy efficiency and green building oppor-
tunities; 
‘‘(iii) secure financing to achieve en-
ergy efficiency or to construct green build-
ings; and 
‘‘(iv) empower management to imple-
ment energy efficiency projects; 
‘‘(B) assist entrepreneurs with clean tech-
nology development and technology commer-
cialization through— 
‘‘(i) technology assessment; 
‘‘(ii) intellectual property; 
‘‘(iii) Small Business Innovation Re-
search submissions; 
‘‘(iv) strategic alliances; 
‘‘(v) business model development; and 
‘‘(vi) preparation for investors; and 
‘‘(C) help small business improve environ-
mental performance by shifting to less haz-
ardous materials and reducing waste and emis-
sions at the source, including by providing as-
sistance for businesses to adapt the materials 
they use, the processes they operate, and the 
products and services they produce. 
‘‘(3) MINIMUM
AMOUNT.—Each grant under 
this subsection shall be for at least $150,000. 
‘‘(4) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—A grant under this 
subsection may not exceed $300,000. 
‘‘(5) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved 
in advance in appropriations Acts and separate from 
amounts approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the 
Administrator may make grants or enter into coop-
erative agreements to carry out this subsection.’’. 
SEC. 206. GRANTS TO SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT 
CENTERS TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE IN SE-
CURING AFFORDABLE HEALTH INSURANCE. 
(a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Administrator of the 
Small Business Administration (hereafter in this section 
referred to as the Administrator) may award a grant 
under this section to a lead small business development 
center (as described under section 21 of the Small Busi-
ness Act (15 U.S.C. 648)). 
(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A recipient of a grant under 
this section shall use the grant only for the purpose of 
providing to the owner of a small business concern assist-
ance in identifying and securing affordable health insur-
ance for their business and employees. A recipient of such 
a grant shall identify Federal, State, and local initiatives 
designed to assist small businesses and provide such edu-
cation information to small business concerns seeking as-
sistance on obtaining health insurance. A recipient of such 
a grant shall also work with health insurance providers 
in the area to identify premiums charged on health insur-
ance for small business. A recipient of such a grant shall 
also attempt to negotiate lower health insurance premiums 
for small business concerns that seek the assistance of the 
recipient. 
(c) MINIMUM GRANT AMOUNT.—A grant under this 
section may not be in an amount less than $200,000. 
(d) APPLICATION.—Each applicant for a grant under 
this section shall submit to the Administrator an applica-
tion in such form as the Administrator may require. The 
application shall include information regarding the appli-
cant’s goals and objectives for helping address entre-
preneur’s concerns with health insurance costs. 
(e) REPORT TO ADMINISTRATOR.—As a condition of 
receiving a grant under this section, the Administrator 
shall require the recipient of a grant to submit to the Ad-
ministrator, not later than 18 months after the date on
which the grant is received, a report describing how the 
grant funds were used. 
(f) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS.— 
The Administrator may enter into a cooperative agree-
ment or contract with the recipient of a grant under this 
section to provide additional assistance that furthers the 
purposes of this section. 
(g) APPLICABILITY OF GRANT REQUIREMENTS.—An 
applicant for a grant under this section shall comply with 
all of the requirements applicable to a grantee under sec-
tion 21 of the Small Business Act, except that the match-
ing funds requirements of such section shall not apply. 
(h) EVALUATION
OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 
March 31, 2009, the Administrator shall submit to Con-
gress a report that contains an evaluation of the grant 
program under this section. 
(i) FUNDING.—Subject to amounts approved in ad-
vance in appropriations Acts and separate from amounts 
approved to carry out section 21(a)(1), the Administrator 
may make grants or enter into cooperative agreements to 
carry out this subsection. 
SEC. 207. NATIONAL REGULATORY ASSISTANCE. 
The Small Business Act is amended by inserting after 
section 21 (15 U.S.C. 648) the following: