I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 5065 
To amend the Small Business Act to provide re-entry entrepreneurship coun-
seling and training services for formerly incarcerated individuals, and 
for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
NOVEMBER 13, 2019 
Mr. JEFFRIES (for himself and Mr. BURCHETT) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Small Business 
A BILL 
To amend the Small Business Act to provide re-entry entre-
preneurship counseling and training services for formerly 
incarcerated individuals, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Prison to Proprietor-
ship for Formerly Incarcerated Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. RE-ENTRY ENTREPRENEURSHIP COUNSELING AND 
TRAINING FOR FORMERLY INCARCERATED 
INDIVIDUALS. 
The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is 
amended— 
(1) by redesignating section 49 as section 50; 
and 
(2) by inserting after section 48 the following 
new section: 
‘‘SEC. 49. RE-ENTRY ENTREPRENEURSHIP COUNSELING 
AND TRAINING FOR FORMERLY INCARCER-
ATED INDIVIDUALS. 
‘‘(a) SERVICES REQUIRED.—The Administrator, in 
coordination with the Director of the Bureau of Prisons, 
shall require the Service Corps of Retired Executives to 
provide entrepreneurship counseling and training services 
to individuals formerly incarcerated in a Federal prison 
(hereinafter referred to as ‘covered individuals’) on a na-
tionwide basis. 
‘‘(b) GOALS.—The goal of the services provided under 
this section is to provide covered individuals with the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(1) Mentoring, workshops, and instructional 
videos designed specifically for covered individuals 
on how to start or expand a small business concern. 
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‘‘(2) Tools, skills, and knowledge necessary to 
identify a business opportunity, including how to— 
‘‘(A) draft a skills profile, business plan, 
and transition plan; 
‘‘(B) identify sources of capital; and 
‘‘(C) connect with local resources for small 
business concerns. 
‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL
REQUIREMENTS.—The services 
provided under this section shall include— 
‘‘(1) regular individualized mentoring sessions, 
to take place over the course of a year, to support 
development of the business plans of covered individ-
uals and the growth of covered individuals as entre-
preneurs; 
‘‘(2) assistance with identifying of local re-
sources for small business concerns for covered indi-
viduals; 
‘‘(3) assistance with identifying sources of cap-
ital, and when appropriate, assistance with pre-
paring applications for loans and other funding op-
portunities; and 
‘‘(4) workshops on topics specifically tailored to 
meet the needs of covered individuals. 
‘‘(d) SURVEY.—The Service Corps of Retired Execu-
tives shall survey covered individuals who received services 
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under this section to assess the satisfaction of such cov-
ered individuals with such services. 
‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this section and annually thereafter, 
the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Small 
Business of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the 
Senate a report on the performance and effectiveness of 
the services provided under this section, which may be in-
cluded as part of another report submitted to such com-
mittees by the Administrator, and which shall include— 
‘‘(1) 
the 
number 
of 
covered 
individuals 
mentored under this section; 
‘‘(2) the number of hours of mentorship pro-
vided by the Service Corps of Retired Executives 
under this section; 
‘‘(3) the demographics of covered individuals 
who received services, including age, gender, race, 
and ethnicity; 
‘‘(4) a summary and analysis of surveys con-
ducted under subsection (d); and 
‘‘(5) any additional information the Adminis-
trator may require.’’. 
Æ 
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