I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1010 
To amend the Small Business Act to spur entrepreneurial ecosystems in 
underserved communities. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 11, 2021 
Mr. MFUME introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Small Business 
A BILL 
To amend the Small Business Act to spur entrepreneurial 
ecosystems in underserved communities. 
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 ‘‘Ushering Progress by 
Leveraging Innovation and Future Technology Act of 
2021’’ or the ‘‘UPLIFT Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Studies have found that incubators, accel-
erators, and other similar models are effective at in-
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creasing revenues, the number of employees, and the 
likelihood that the business venture will be success-
ful for participants. 
(2) According to the Kauffman Foundation— 
(A) minority-owned and women-owned 
businesses are half as likely to employ people 
than nonminority-owned and men-owned busi-
nesses; and 
(B) if minorities started businesses at the 
same rate as nonminorities, approximately 
9,500,000 jobs would be added to the economy 
of the United States. 
(3) The Kauffman Foundation also found that 
the percentage of startups in rural communities has 
dropped from 20 percent in the 1980s to 12.2 per-
cent. 
(4) According to the Martin Prosperity Insti-
tute, less than 1 percent of all venture capital fund-
ing goes to businesses located in rural areas. 
(5) According to PitchBook, around 2 percent 
of all venture capital funding goes to businesses with 
women founders. 
(6) According to Crunchbase, less than 3 per-
cent of all venture capital funding goes to businesses 
with Black and Hispanic founders. 
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(7) Historically Black colleges and universities, 
minority-serving institutions, and community col-
leges are anchor institutions that serve populations 
that tend to be underrepresented in entrepreneur-
ship, particularly in high-growth sectors. 
SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of the Innovation Centers Program es-
tablished under section 49 of the Small Business Act, as 
added by this Act, are to— 
(1) spur economic growth in underserved com-
munities by creating good paying jobs and pathways 
to prosperity; 
(2) increase prospects for success for small 
business concerns in underserved communities, 
which often suffer from higher business failure rates 
than the national average; 
(3) help create a pipeline for small business 
concerns in underserved and rural markets into 
high-growth sectors, where they are generally under-
represented; 
(4) help address the multi-decade decline in the 
rate of new business creation; 
(5) close the gaps that underserved small busi-
ness concerns often have in terms of revenue and 
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number of employees, which represent lost oppor-
tunity for the economy of the United States; and 
(6) encourage collaboration between the Small 
Business Administration and institutions of higher 
learning that serve low-income and minority commu-
nities. 
SEC. 4. INNOVATION CENTERS PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—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: 
‘‘SEC. 49. INNOVATION CENTERS PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) ACCELERATOR.—The term ‘accelerator’ 
means an organization— 
‘‘(A) that— 
‘‘(i) works with a startup or growing 
small business concern for a predetermined 
period; and 
‘‘(ii) provides mentorship and instruc-
tion to scale businesses; and 
‘‘(B) that may— 
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‘‘(i) provide, but is not exclusively de-
signed to provide, seed investment in ex-
change for a small amount of equity; and 
‘‘(ii) offer startup capital or the op-
portunity to raise capital from outside in-
vestors. 
‘‘(2) FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED AREA OF ECO-
NOMIC
DISTRESS.—The term ‘federally recognized 
area of economic distress’ means— 
‘‘(A) a HUBZone, as that term is defined 
in section 31(b); or 
‘‘(B) an area that has been designated 
as— 
‘‘(i) an empowerment zone under sec-
tion 1391 of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986; 
‘‘(ii) a Promise Zone by the Secretary 
of Housing and Urban Development; or 
‘‘(iii) a low-income neighborhood or 
moderate-income neighborhood for pur-
poses of the Community Reinvestment Act 
of 1977 (12 U.S.C. 2901 et seq.). 
‘‘(3) GROWING; NEWLY ESTABLISHED; START-
UP.—The terms ‘growing’, ‘newly established’, and 
‘startup’, with respect to a small business concern, 
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mean growing, newly established, and startup, re-
spectively, within the meaning given those terms 
under section 7(m). 
‘‘(4) INCUBATOR.—The term ‘incubator’ means 
an organization— 
‘‘(A) that— 
‘‘(i) tends to work with startup and 
newly established small business concerns; 
and 
‘‘(ii) provides mentorship to startup 
and newly established small business con-
cerns; and 
‘‘(B) that may— 
‘‘(i) provide a co-working environment 
or a month-to-month lease program; and 
‘‘(ii) work with a startup or newly es-
tablished small business concern for a pre-
determined period or an open-ended pe-
riod. 
‘‘(5) INDIVIDUALS
WITH
A
DISABILITY.—The 
term ‘individuals with a disability’ means more than 
1 individual with a disability, as defined in section 
3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 
U.S.C. 12102). 
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‘‘(6) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en-
tity’ means— 
‘‘(A) an institution described in any of 
paragraphs (1) through (7) of section 371(a) of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1067q(a)); or 
‘‘(B) a junior or community college, as de-
fined in section 312 of the Higher Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058). 
‘‘(7) RURAL AREA.—The term ‘rural area’ has 
the meaning given the term in section 7(m)(11). 
‘‘(8) SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVAN-
TAGED INDIVIDUALS.—The term ‘socially and eco-
nomically disadvantaged individual’ means a socially 
and economically disadvantaged individual within the 
meaning given that term in section 8(d)(3)(C). 
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of enactment of the Ushering Progress by 
Leveraging Innovation and Future Technology Act of 
2021, the Administrator shall develop and begin imple-
menting a program (to be known as the ‘Innovation Cen-
ters Program’) to enter into cooperative agreements with 
eligible entities under this section. 
‘‘(c) AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may— 
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‘‘(A) enter into cooperative agreements to 
provide financial assistance to eligible entities 
to conduct 5-year projects for the benefit of 
startup, newly established, or growing small 
business concerns; and 
‘‘(B) renew a cooperative agreement en-
tered into under this section for additional 3- 
year periods, in accordance with paragraph (3). 
‘‘(2) PROJECT REQUIREMENTS.—A project con-
ducted under a cooperative agreement under this 
section shall— 
‘‘(A) include operating as an accelerator, 
an incubator, or any other small business inno-
vation-focused project as the Administrator ap-
proves; 
‘‘(B) be carried out in such locations as to 
provide maximum accessibility and benefits to 
the small business concerns that the project is 
intended to serve; 
‘‘(C) have a full-time staff, including a 
full-time director who shall— 
‘‘(i) have the authority to make ex-
penditures under the budget of the project; 
and 
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‘‘(ii) manage the activities carried out 
under the project; 
‘‘(D) include the joint provision of pro-
grams and services by the eligible entity and 
the Administration, which— 
‘‘(i) shall be jointly developed, nego-
tiated, and agreed upon, with full partici-
pation of both parties, pursuant to an exe-
cuted cooperative agreement between the 
eligible entity and the Administration; and 
‘‘(ii) shall include— 
‘‘(I) one-to-one individual coun-
seling, 
as 
described 
in 
section 
21(c)(3)(A); and 
‘‘(II) 
a 
formal, 
structured 
mentorship program; 
‘‘(E) incorporate continuous upgrades and 
modifications to the services and programs of-
fered under the project, as needed to meet the 
changing and evolving needs of the business 
community; 
‘‘(F) involve working with underserved 
groups, which include— 
‘‘(i) women; 
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‘‘(ii) socially and economically dis-
advantaged individuals; 
‘‘(iii) veterans; 
‘‘(iv) individuals with disabilities; or 
‘‘(v) startup, newly established, or 
growing small business concerns located in 
rural areas; 
‘‘(G) not impose or otherwise collect a fee 
or other compensation in connection with par-
ticipation in the programs and services de-
scribed in subparagraph (D)(ii); and 
‘‘(H) ensure that small business concerns 
participating in the project have access, includ-
ing through resource partners, to information 
concerning Federal, State, and local regulations 
that affect small business concerns. 
‘‘(3) CONTINUED FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity that 
enters into an initial cooperative agreement or 
a renewal of a cooperative under paragraph (1) 
may submit an application for a 3-year renewal 
of the cooperative agreement at such time, in 
such manner, and accompanied by such infor-
mation as the Administrator may establish. 
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‘‘(B) APPLICATION
AND
APPROVAL
CRI-
TERIA.— 
‘‘(i) CRITERIA.—The Administrator 
shall develop and publish criteria for the 
consideration and approval of applications 
for renewals by eligible entities under this 
paragraph, which shall take into account 
the structure and the stated goals of the 
project. 
‘‘(ii) NOTIFICATION.—Not later than 
60 days after the date of the deadline to 
submit applications for each fiscal year, 
the Administrator shall approve or deny 
any application under this paragraph and 
notify the applicant for each such applica-
tion. 
‘‘(C) PRIORITY.—In allocating funds made 
available for cooperative agreements under this 
section, the Administrator shall give applica-
tions under this paragraph priority over first- 
time applications for cooperative agreements 
under paragraph (1)(A). 
‘‘(4) LIMIT ON USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts re-
ceived by an eligible entity under a cooperative 
agreement under this section may not be used to 
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provide capital to a participant in the project carried 
out under the cooperative agreement. 
‘‘(5) SCOPE OF AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(A) SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATIONS.—The 
authority of the Administrator to enter into co-
operative agreements under this section shall be 
in effect for each fiscal year only to the extent 
and in the amounts as are provided in advance 
in appropriations Acts. 
‘‘(B) SUSPENSION, 
TERMINATION, 
AND 
FAILURE
TO
RENEW
OR
EXTEND.—After the 
Administrator has entered into a cooperative 
agreement with an eligible entity under this sec-
tion, the Administrator may not suspend, termi-
nate, or fail to renew or extend the cooperative 
agreement unless the Administrator provides 
the eligible entity with written notification set-
ting forth the reasons therefore and affords the 
eligible entity an opportunity for a hearing, ap-
peal, or other administrative proceeding under 
chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code. 
‘‘(d) CRITERIA.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall— 
‘‘(A) establish and rank in terms of rel-
ative importance the criteria the Administrator 
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shall use in awarding cooperative agreements 
under this section, which shall include— 
‘‘(i) whether the proposed project will 
be located in— 
‘‘(I) a federally recognized area 
of economic distress; 
‘‘(II) a rural area; or 
‘‘(III) an area lacking sufficient 
entrepreneurial 
development 
re-
sources, as determined by the Admin-
istrator; and 
‘‘(ii) whether the proposed project 
demonstrates a commitment to partner 
with core stakeholders working with small 
business concerns in the relevant area, in-
cluding— 
‘‘(I) investment and lending orga-
nizations; 
‘‘(II) nongovernmental organiza-
tions; 
‘‘(III) programs of State and 
local governments that are concerned 
with aiding small business concerns; 
‘‘(IV) Federal agencies; and 
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‘‘(V) for-profit organizations with 
an expertise in small business innova-
tion; 
‘‘(B) make publicly available, including on 
the website of the Administration, and state in 
each solicitation for applications for cooperative 
agreements under this section, the selection cri-
teria and ranking established under subpara-
graph (A); and 
‘‘(C) evaluate and rank applicants for co-
operative agreements under this section in ac-
cordance with the selection criteria and ranking 
established under subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(2) 
CONTENTS.—The 
criteria 
established 
under paragraph (1)(A)— 
‘‘(A) for eligible entities that have in oper-
ation an accelerator, incubator, or other small 
business innovation-focused project shall include 
the record of the eligible entity in assisting 
growing, newly established, and startup small 
business concerns, including, for each of the 3 
full years before the date on which the eligible 
entity applies for a cooperative agreement 
under this section, or if the accelerator, incu-
bator, or other small business innovation-fo-
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cused project has been in operation for less 
than 3 years, for the most recent full year the 
accelerator, incubator, or other small business 
innovation-focused project was in operation— 
‘‘(i) the number and retention rate of 
growing, newly established, and startup 
business concerns in the program of the el-
igible entity; 
‘‘(ii) the average period of participa-
tion by growing, newly established, and 
startup small business concerns in the pro-
gram of the eligible entity; 
‘‘(iii) the total and median capital 
raised by growing, newly established, and 
startup small business concerns partici-
pating in the program of the eligible entity; 
‘‘(iv) the number of investments or 
loans received by growing, newly estab-
lished, and startup small business concerns 
participating in the program of the eligible 
entity; and 
‘‘(v) the total and median number of 
employees of growing, newly established, 
and startup small business concerns par-
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ticipating in the program of the eligible en-
tity; and 
‘‘(B) for all eligible entities— 
‘‘(i) shall include whether the eligible 
entity— 
‘‘(I) indicates the structure and 
goals of the project; 
‘‘(II) demonstrates ties to the 
business community; 
‘‘(III) identifies the resources 
available for the project; 
‘‘(IV) describes the capabilities of 
the project, including coordination 
with local resource partners and local 
or national lending partners of the 
Administration; 
‘‘(V) addresses the unique busi-
ness and economic challenges faced by 
the community in which the eligible 
entity is located and businesses in 
that community; or 
‘‘(VI) provides a proposed budget 
and plan for use of funds; and 
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‘‘(ii) may include any other criteria 
determined appropriate by the Adminis-
trator. 
‘‘(e) PROGRAM EXAMINATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall— 
‘‘(A) develop and implement an annual 
programmatic and financial examination of 
each project conducted under this section, 
under which each eligible entity entering into a 
cooperative agreement under this section shall 
provide to the Administrator— 
‘‘(i) an itemized cost breakdown of ac-
tual expenditures for costs incurred during 
the preceding year; and 
‘‘(ii) documentation regarding— 
‘‘(I) the amount of matching as-
sistance from non-Federal sources ob-
tained and expended by the eligible 
entity during the preceding year in 
order to meet the matching require-
ment; and 
‘‘(II) with respect to any in-kind 
contributions that were used to satisfy 
the matching requirement, verification 
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of the existence and valuation of those 
contributions; and 
‘‘(B) analyze the results of each examina-
tion conducted under subparagraph (A) and, 
based on that analysis, make a determination 
regarding the programmatic and financial via-
bility of each eligible entity. 
‘‘(2) CONDITIONS FOR CONTINUED FUNDING.— 
In determining whether to continue or renew a coop-
erative agreement under this section, the Adminis-
trator— 
‘‘(A) shall consider the results of the most 
recent examination of the project under para-
graph (1); and 
‘‘(B) may terminate or not renew a cooper-
ative agreement, if the Administrator deter-
mines that the eligible entity has failed to pro-
vide any information required to be provided 
(including information provide for purpose of 
the annual report by the Administrator under 
subsection (m)) or the information provided by 
the eligible entity is inadequate. 
‘‘(f) TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The 
Administrator— 
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‘‘(1) shall provide in person or online training 
and technical assistance to each eligible entity enter-
ing into a cooperative agreement under this section 
at the beginning of the participation of the eligible 
entity in the Innovation Centers Program in order to 
build the capacity of the eligible entity and ensure 
compliance with procedures established by the Ad-
ministrator; 
‘‘(2) shall ensure that the training and tech-
nical assistance described in paragraph (1) is pro-
vided at no cost or at a low cost; and 
‘‘(3) may enter into a contract to provide the 
training or technical assistance described in para-
graph (1) with 1 or more organizations with exper-
tise in the entrepreneurial development programs of 
the Administration, innovation, and entrepreneurial 
development. 
‘‘(g) COORDINATION.—In carrying out a project 
under this section, an eligible entity may coordinate 
with— 
‘‘(1) resource and lending partners of the Ad-
ministration; 
‘‘(2) programs of State and local governments 
that are concerned with aiding small business con-
cerns; and 
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‘‘(3) other Federal agencies, including to pro-
vide services to and assist small business concerns in 
participating in the SBIR and STTR programs, as 
defined in section 9(e). 
‘‘(h) FUNDING LIMIT.—The amount of financial as-
sistance provided to an eligible entity under a cooperative 
agreement entered into under this section shall be not 
more than $400,000 during each year. 
‘‘(i) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity shall con-
tribute toward the cost of the project carried out 
under the cooperative agreement under this section 
an amount equal to 50 percent of the amount re-
ceived under the cooperative agreement. 
‘‘(2) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—Not more than 
50 percent of the contribution of an eligible entity 
under paragraph (1) may be in the form of in-kind 
contributions. 
‘‘(3) WAIVER.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator 
determines that an eligible entity is unable to 
meet the contribution requirement under para-
graph (1), the Administrator may reduce the 
required contribution. 
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‘‘(B) PRESUMPTION.—An eligible entity 
shall be presumed to be unable to meet the con-
tribution requirement under paragraph (1) if 
the eligible entity has— 
‘‘(i) long-term debt in an amount that 
is less than $10,000,000; 
‘‘(ii) an invested market endowment 
in 
an 
amount 
that 
is 
less 
than 
$15,000,000; or 
‘‘(iii) total net liquid assets in an 
amount that is less than $15,000,000. 
‘‘(4) FAILURE TO OBTAIN NON-FEDERAL FUND-
ING.—If an eligible entity fails to obtain the re-
quired non-Federal contribution during any project, 
or the reduced non-Federal contribution as deter-
mined by the Administrator— 
‘‘(A) the eligible entity shall not be eligible 
thereafter for any other project for which it is 
or may be funded by the Administration; and 
‘‘(B) before approving assistance for the 
eligible entity for any other projects, the Ad-
ministrator shall specifically determine whether 
the Administrator believes that the eligible enti-
ty will be able to obtain the requisite non-Fed-
eral funding and enter a written finding setting 
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the forth the reasons for making that deter-
mination. 
‘‘(5) RULE
OF
CONSTRUCTION.—The dem-
onstrated inability of an eligible entity to meet the 
contribution requirement under paragraph (1) shall 
not disqualify the eligible entity from entering into 
a cooperative agreement under this section. 
‘‘(j) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—An eligible entity may 
enter into a contract with a Federal department or 
agency to provide specific assistance to startup, 
newly established, or growing small business con-
cerns. 
‘‘(2) PERFORMANCE.—Performance of a con-
tract entered into under paragraph (1) may not 
hinder the eligible entity in carrying out the terms 
of the cooperative agreement under this section. 
‘‘(3) EXEMPTION
FROM
MATCHING
REQUIRE-
MENT.—A contract entered into under paragraph 
(1) shall not be subject to the matching requirement 
under subsection (i). 
‘‘(4) 
ADDITIONAL
PROVISION.—Notwith-
standing any other provision of law, a contract for 
assistance under paragraph (1) shall not be applied 
to any Federal department or agency’s small busi-
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ness, woman-owned business, or socially and eco-
nomically disadvantaged business contracting goal 
under section 15(g). 
‘‘(k) PRIVACY REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity may not 
disclose the name, address, or telephone number of 
any individual or small business concern receiving 
assistance under this section without the consent of 
such individual or small business concern, unless— 
‘‘(A) the Administrator is ordered to make 
such a disclosure by a court in any civil or 
criminal enforcement action initiated by a Fed-
eral or State agency; or 
‘‘(B) the Administrator considers such a 
disclosure to be necessary for the purpose of 
conducting a financial audit of an eligible enti-
ty, but a disclosure under this subparagraph 
shall be limited to the information necessary for 
such audit. 
‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATION USE OF INFORMATION.— 
This subsection shall not— 
‘‘(A) restrict Administration access to pro-
gram activity data; or 
‘‘(B) prevent the Administration from 
using client information (other than the infor-
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