zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Small Business Export Growth Act of 2013 - Amends the Export Enhancement Act of 1988 to revise the duties of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC).

Requires the TPCC to: (1) identify opportunities to consolidate or co-locate offices of federal agencies involved in export promotion and export financing activities; (2) assess the use and coordination of electronic databases among federal agencies in support of such activities; and (3) provide a detailed listing of current and future federal and state-led trade missions, trade fairs, and related activities to ensure better delivery of services to U.S. businesses.

Requires the Secretary of Commerce to make available information on federal and state-led trade missions, trade fairs, and related activities on the Export.gov website.

Requires the governmentwide strategic plan for federal trade promotion efforts to: (1) clearly identify and explain the role, goals, and objectives of each agency represented on the TPCC with respect its export promotion and export financing activities; (2) include any recommendations of the Comptroller General relating to coordination of the agencies represented on the TPCC; and (3) reflect the recommendations of the U.S. Travel Association (currently, U.S. National Tourism Organization) to the degree considered appropriate by the TPCC.

Directs the President to establish a State and Federal Export Promotion Coordination Working Group as a subcommittee of the TPCC to develop a strategy for improving coordination of federal and state resources for small business export promotion and export financing activities.

Requires the Inspector General of the Department of Commerce to report annually to Congress on the extent to which the TPCC is successfully carrying out its duties.

Requires the Associate Administrator for International Trade of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to report to Congress on recommendations for improving the experience of the Export.gov website as a comprehensive export information resource and a single website for exporters to submit all federally required information on the exportation of articles from the United States.

Amends the Small Business Act to require that the nationwide marketing effort of the Associate Administrator, in promoting sales opportunities for the export of small business goods and services, to conduct at least one outreach event each fiscal year in each state.

Directs the SBA Administrator, the Secretary of Agriculture, the U.S. Export-Import Bank, and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to establish jointly a Small Business Inter-Agency Task Force on Export Financing.

Date: 2013-06-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Foreign trade and international finance
Small Business Innovation Act of 2013 - Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to authorize the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to guarantee the payment of up to $4 billion per fiscal year for debentures or participating securities issued by small business investment companies (SBICs) to encourage the formation and growth of small businesses. Increases from $225 million to $350 million the maximum amount of outstanding leverage for two or more commonly-controlled SBICs.

Direct the Administrator to establish and carry out an early-stage investment program to provide, through participating investment companies, equity financing to support early-stage businesses (gross annual sales of $15 million or less in any of the previous three years). Outlines investment company application requirements and selection and approval procedures. Allows the Administrator to make one or more equity financings to a participating company, with a limit of $100 million to any one company. Requires the company to make all of its investments in small businesses, of which at least 50% shall be early-stage small businesses in specified targeted industries. Establishes in the Treasury a separate account for equity financings under the program.

Date: 2013-07-11
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Tax Credits Improvement Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the tax credit for the health insurance expenses of small employers, to: (1) expand eligibility for the credit to employers having up to 50 (currently, 25) full-time equivalent employees whose annual wages do not exceed $75,000 (currently, $50,000); (2) raise the employee threshold for triggering the phaseout of such credit from 10 to 20 full-time employees; (3) eliminate the requirement that employers contribute the same percentage of cost of each employee's health insurance and the cap limiting eligible employer contributions to average premiums paid to a state health care exchange; and (4) make such credit available to employee-owners and their dependents.

Date: 2013-07-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Small Business Investment Promotion Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the expensing allowance for depreciable business property, to make permanent: (1) the increased $200,000 expensing allowance for such property, (2) the increased $800,000 threshold amount for such property over which the expensing allowance is reduced, (3) expensing of computer software, and (4) rules for the expensing of qualified real property. Eliminates the termination date for exercising an election to expense property. Allows an inflation adjustment to the dollar amounts of the expensing allowance for taxable years beginning after 2014.

Date: 2013-07-23
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Empowering Encore Entrepreneurs Act of 2013 - Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a program under which the Administrator may enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, or make grants to, nonprofit organizations to provide technical assistance, mentoring, and other specialized training activities for encore entrepreneurs.

Defines "encore entrepreneur" to mean an entrepreneur, business person, or owner of a small business concern who: (1) is seeking to start a new small business concern or expand an existing one, and (2) is at least age 50 or has at least 20 years of experience in a workplace.

Directs the Administrator to give special consideration to applications seeking funding for programs for: (1) members of the Armed Forces impacted by base closures or realignment, or (2) encore entrepreneurs unemployed for a period of not less than one year.

Terminates the program on September 30, 2017.

Requires the Administrator to submit to specified congressional committees a report that describes the barriers and obstacles faced by encore entrepreneurs in starting new small business concerns or expanding existing small business concerns.

Date: 2013-08-01
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through 2014: (1) the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale of certain small business stock; (2) the increased amount of the tax deduction for business start-up expenses; (3) the reductions of the recognition period for built-in gains of S corporations; and (4) the increased expensing allowance for tangible business assets, including computer software, and real property. Allows a deduction in 2013 for health insurance costs in computing self-employment taxable income.

Date: 2013-09-12
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Start-up Jobs and Innovation Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the increase to $500,000 of the expensing allowance for business assets, including computer software, and the treatment of qualified real property as depreciable business property; (2) make permanent the 100% exclusion from gross income of gain from the sale or exchange of small business stock; (3) increase and equalize the tax deduction for business start-up expenses and organizational expenditures; (4) increase from $5 million to $10 million the gross receipt test used to determine the eligibility of small businesses to use simplified cash accounting and inventory rules; and (5) exempt from passive loss rules any research activity carried on by a high technology research small business pass-thru entity.

Date: 2013-11-06
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
SCORE for Small Business Act of 2014 - Amends the Small Business Act, with respect to the SCORE program (Service Corps of Retired Executives), to: (1) reauthorize such program for FY2015-FY2017; (2) modify requirements of such program with respect to the role of participating volunteers, program plans and goals, and reporting; and (3) outline privacy requirements pertaining to the disclosure of information of businesses assisted under such program.

Amends the Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 to repeal the program of assistance to microenterprises (i.e., businesses that have fewer than five employees and generally lack access to conventional loans, equity, or other banking services).

Date: 2014-02-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax exclusion of gain from the sale or exchange of small business stock; and (2) exempt from the definition of "passive activity," for purposes of the passive loss tax rules, any qualified research activity carried on by a high technology research small business pass-thru entity.

Defines "high technology research small business pass-thru entity" as any domestic pass-thru entity if: (1) more than 75% of the entity's expenditures are paid or incurred in connection with qualified research, or (2) more than 50% of the entity's expenditures constitute qualified research expenses. Designates a high technology research entity as a small business if such entity has 250 or fewer full-time employees and does not have aggregate gross assets in excess of $150 million.

Date: 2014-03-13
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Protect Small Business Jobs Act of 2014 - Requires a federal agency, before any enforcement action is taken on any sanction on a small business for any violation of a rule or pursuant to an adjudication, to: (1) notify the small business that it may be subject to a sanction at the end of a six-month grace period following such notification; (2) delay further action for 15 days after such notification; (3) defer further action for the six-month period (allowing an additional three-month period upon application by the small business demonstrating reasonable good-faith efforts to remedy the violation or other conduct giving rise to the sanction); (4) make a further determination at the end of the applicable grace period as to whether the small business would still be subject to the sanction; and (5) upon a negative determination, waive the sanction. Makes the grace period inapplicable with respect to a violation that puts anyone in imminent danger, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Renders any sanction imposed in violation of the requirements of this Act as having no force or effect.

Requires: (1) federal agencies to report annually to the Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman on the implementation of the requirements of this Act, and (2) the Ombudsman to include such information in a currently-required annual report to Congress.

Date: 2014-04-07
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Farm and Small Business Expensing Tax Relief Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a business taxpayer to expense up to $5,000 of the costs incurred to acquire or produce any item of tangible property if: (1) the taxpayer's average annual gross receipts during the preceding three taxable years do not exceed $10 million, and (2) the taxpayer has in effect written accounting procedures as may be prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury.

Date: 2014-04-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Access to Capital, Access to Opportunity Act - Amends the Small Business Act to increase from $50,000 to $100,000 the maximum amount of a loan under the microloan program.

Authorizes the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to use amounts made available for administrative expenses to carry out the direct and guaranteed loan programs to pay for any costs associated with these increases.

Requires the Administrator to develop and adopt outcome-oriented standards to measure the microloan program's performance, including the recommendations provided in the SBA Office of Inspector General Memorandum ROM-10-10, "SBA's Administration of the Microloan Program under the Recovery Act," issued December 28, 2009.

Authorizes the Administrator to educate individuals, including owners and operators of small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs, about the microloan program.

Date: 2014-06-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Working Parents Home Office Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code, with respect to the home office tax deduction, to allow the use of a portion of a dwelling unit used for conducting a trade or business for the care of a dependent child of the taxpayer.

Date: 2014-06-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Technology and Research Accelerating National Security and Future Economic Resiliency Act of 2013 or the TRANSFER Act of 2013 - Amends the Small Business Act to revise the requirement that the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) use funds for a Proof of Concept Partnership pilot program to accelerate the creation of small businesses and the commercialization of research innovations made by certain institutions.

Directs the head of each covered federal agency required to establish a small business technology transfer (STTR) program to establish an Innovative Approaches to Technology Transfer Grant Program to make grants to institutions of higher education, technology transfer organizations that facilitate the commercialization of technologies developed by one or more of the institutions, federal laboratories, public or private nonprofit entities, or a consortium of any of these entities in order to improve or accelerate the commercialization of high quality and commercially viable federally funded research and technology by small businesses.

Outlines activities eligible for funding, application requirements, and award procedures and amounts. Requires grant recipients to assemble an oversight board to establish award programs for individual projects and evaluate project applications. Prescribes the percentage of each covered agency's extramural budget for research, or research development required to be expended on such Program for FY2015-FY2017.

Directs each covered agency to develop a Program evaluation plan to collect data to identify outcomes resulting from the transfer of technology under its Program.

Requires the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to include information on each covered agency's Program on the public database of small businesses participating in STTR or Small Business Innovation Research programs.

Date: 2014-06-26
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
American Diversification and Progress in Trade Act of 2014 or the ADAPT Act - Directs the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a pilot program to assist in expanding and diversifying the business of small businesses the majority of whose business consists of amounts awarded under federal contracts and subcontracts, particularly in geographic areas, including rural areas, where amounts awarded for federal contracts and subcontracts are a significant driver of the local economy.

Requires the Administrator to report to Congress on how SBA is addressing the need for such small businesses to expand and diversify business during periods of decline in appropriations for federal contracting, including an analysis of how such declines would impact growth among such small businesses, particularly those owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, women, or socially and economically disadvantaged.

Date: 2014-07-10
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
SBA Intermediary Lending Program Act of 2014 - Amends the Small Business Act to make permanent the Small Business Administration (SBA) Intermediary Lending Program (ILP).

Limits to a maximum of: (1) $1 million a single ILP loan to an eligible intermediary, (2) $5 million the total amount outstanding and committed to the intermediary by the Administrator under the program, and (3) $20 million the total amount of all ILP loans during each of FY2015-FY2017.

Authorizes the Administrator, during FY2018 and each ensuing fiscal year, to use amounts made available for the program.

Date: 2014-07-22
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Incentivize Growth Now In Tomorrow's Entrepreneurs Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish tax-exempt small business start-up accounts to allow businesses that employ 50 or fewer full-time employees to make distributions for operating capital, the purchase of equipment or facilities, marketing, training, incorporation, and accounting fees. Allows a tax deduction from gross income for contributions to such accounts, limited by the taxpayer's adjusted gross income. Limits the annual amount that may be contributed to such accounts to the lesser of $10,000, or the compensation that is includible in the taxpayer's gross income.

Sets forth reporting requirements for the trustee of a small business start-up account.

Makes the tax penalties for prohibited transactions and excess contributions applicable to such accounts.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Small Business Regulatory Sunset Act of 2014 - Requires each federal agency to establish a plan for the periodic review (every nine years) of: (1) its rules that have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities, and (2) any small entity compliance guide required to be published by an agency. Sets forth criteria for review of a rule, including the continued need for the rule, the complexity of the rule, and the economic impact of the rule on small entities. Requires: (1) each agency to publish in the Federal Register and on the agency website a list of the rules and small entity compliance guides to be reviewed under the plan, and (2) the agency Inspector General to determine whether the agency has conducted the required review.

Provides that each covered rule (i.e., any rule for which an agency is required to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis and which is a major rule) promulgated by an agency shall cease to have effect seven years after the final version of such rule is published unless renewed by the agency using the notice and comment rulemaking process.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Government operations and politics
SBIC Advisers Relief Act of 2014 - Amends the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 to exempt specified advisers of small business investment companies (SBICs) from certain: (1) Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) registration requirements with respect to the provision of investment advice relating to venture capital funds, and (2) SEC registration and reporting requirements with respect to assets under management of private funds.

Provides the same exemption with respect to any state or local law requiring the registration, licensing, or qualifications of investment advisers.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Startup Opportunity Accelerator Act of 2014 or the SOAR Act - Amends the Small Business Act to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to develop a program to award cash prizes of up to $50,000 to organizations in the United States whose primary purpose is to support new small businesses that have been in operation for five years or less.

Authorizes the use of a prize for construction costs, space acquisition, and programmatic purposes. Prohibits its use for capital or professional services to new small businesses.

Requires a prize recipient to provide assistance to at least 10 new small businesses per year.

Date: 2014-09-17
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Incentivize Growth Now In Tomorrow's Entrepreneurs Act of 2015

This bill creates tax-exempt small business start-up accounts to pay for the start-up expenses (defined as expenses for investigating the creation or acquisition of an active trade or business) of a business that does not employ more than 50 full-time employees during a taxable year. Cash contributions to such accounts are allowed up to the lesser of $10,000 or the amount of compensation includible in the taxpayer's gross income for the taxable year.

Date: 2015-01-09
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Creating Jobs From Innovative Small Businesses Act of 2015

 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a general business tax credit of 20% of the amount paid to acquire an equity investment in a qualified research intensive small business concern. Defines "qualified research intensive small business concern" as a small business concern that employs an average of fewer than 500 employees during a year and devotes at least 50% of its gross expenditures to research and experimentation.

Date: 2015-01-09
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Minority Small Business Enhancement Act of 2015

Amends the Small Business Act to consider an individual with a net worth of less than $1.5 million as eligible for participation in a Small Business Administration (SBA) program providing grants to small businesses owned and controlled by economically disadvantaged individuals. Allows a small business to receive SBA developmental assistance under the program for the entire period of an SBA-guaranteed loan.

Redefines the term "bundled contract" to mean a contract or order entered into to meet procurement requirements that are consolidated in a bundling of contract requirements, without regard to its designation by the procuring agency or whether a study of the effects of the solicitation on civilian or military personnel has been made, subject to exceptions. Expands the definition of "bundling of contract requirements." Makes the revised and expanded definitions inapplicable to contracts for construction services under $65 million or under $5 million for all other types of contracts.

Increases from: (1) 23% to 25% the government-wide small business procurement contract goal, and (2) 5% to 10% the government-wide procurement goal for small disadvantaged businesses and women-owned businesses. Limits the number of categories for which a small business may qualify under such goals.

Requires a report from the Comptroller General to Congress on disparities in the awarding of federal contracts to small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, small businesses, and other businesses.

Date: 2015-01-12
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the House reported version is repeated here.)

Small Business Investment Company Capital Act of 2015

 (Sec. 2) Amends the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to increase from $225 million to $350 million the maximum amount of outstanding leverage to be made available by the Small Business Administration to two or more commonly controlled small business investment companies not under capital impairment.

Date: 2015-02-24
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Entrepreneur Subcontracting Opportunities Act of 2015 or the SESO Act

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 is amended with respect to the requirement that federal agency heads ensure that senior executive personnel responsible for acquisition assume responsibility for that agency's success in achieving small business contracting goals and percentages.

Such personnel are also responsible for the agency's success in achieving small business prime contracting and subcontracting goals and percentages.

Date: 2015-03-17
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Joint Venturing Act of 2015

This bill amends the Small Business Act to revise requirements with respect to solicitation of offers for bundled contracts issued by the head of a federal agency that allows a small business to submit an offer (bid) that provides for the use of a particular team of subcontractors for the performance of the contract.

The small business is also permitted to bid on a bundled or consolidated contract that provides for the use of a joint venture of small businesses.

Date: 2015-03-17
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
This bill amends the Small Business Act with respect to the plan developed by the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to improve the quality of data reported on bundled and consolidated contracts in the federal procurement data system.

By the first day of FY2017 the Administrator must implement this plan and, if not, then until it is implemented the Administrator may not exercise the authority to award limited SBA guaranteed loans for any fiscal year as part of certain SBA-administered pilot programs.

By the first day of FY2018 the Comptroller General must initiate a study on the plan's effectiveness, assessing whether contracts were accurately labeled as bundled or consolidated.

Date: 2015-03-17
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Stronger Voice for Small Business Act of 2015

This bill amends the Small Business Act to authorize a person to file with the Office of Hearings and Appeals a petition or reconsideration of a size standard revised, modified, or established by the Administrator of the Small Business Administration.

Date: 2015-03-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Commonsense Contracting Act of 2015

This bill expresses the sense of Congress that, when used appropriately, with respect to federal agency procurement, an auction between a group of offerors who compete against each other by submitting offers for a contract or task or delivery order with the ability to submit revised offers with lower prices throughout the course of the auction (reverse auction) may improve the federal government's procurement of commercially available commodities by increasing competition, reducing prices, and improving opportunities for small businesses.

The Small Business Act is amended to prohibit the use of reverse auction methods for certain Small Business Administration federal procurement contracts for:

 design and construction services; goods purchased to protect federal employees, members of the Armed Forces, or civilians from bodily harm; or goods or services other than these: (1) to be awarded based on factors other than price and technical responsibility, or (2) if awarding the contract requires the contracting officer to conduct discussions with the offerors about their offer.

Date: 2015-03-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Contractor's Clarification Act of 2015

This bill amends the Small Business Act to revise the federal procurement requirements of the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA) with respect to small business contracts for articles, equipment, supplies, services or materials, or to perform construction work for the government.

The permission to submit an offer for a procurement contract, even though the offeror is not the actual manufacturer or processor of the product in question, is extended to additional kinds of small businesses, including:

 women-owned small businesses; HUBZone small businesses, and small businesses owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans. Contracts whose principal purpose is acquisition of services or construction are exempt from this Act.

Limitations on SBA subcontracting are revised to require contracts that are principally for supplies from a regular dealer in such supplies, and that are not contracts principally for services or construction, to supply the product of a domestic small business manufacturer or processor, unless a waiver is granted by the Administrator under specified conditions.

Date: 2015-03-24
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Fairness to Veterans for Infrastructure Investment Act of 2015

 (Sec. 2) This bill amends the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) to revise the requirement that 10% of the award of contracts for federal-aid highway, federal public transportation, and highway safety research and development programs be set-aside for small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. This set-aside must include veteran-owned small businesses.

Date: 2015-03-26
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Right to Lend Act of 2015

 Repeals provisions of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, as amended by Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, that require financial institutions to: (1) inquire whether businesses applying for credit for a women-owned, minority-owned, or small business are such a business; and (2) submit annually to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, in a manner to be made available to the public, a record of the responses to such inquiry, including census tract information and disclosures as to the race, sex, and ethnicity of the principal owners of such businesses.

Date: 2015-04-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Finance and financial sector
Partnerships to Advance Revolutionary Technology and Novel Entrepreneurial Research Act or the PARTNER Act

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from the definition of "passive activity," for purposes of the passive loss tax rules, any qualified research activity carried on by a high technology research small business pass-thru entity.

Defines "high technology research small business pass-thru entity" as any domestic pass-thru entity if: (1) more than 75% of the entity's expenditures are paid or incurred in connection with qualified research, or (2) more than 50% of the entity's expenditures constitute qualified research expenses. Designates a high technology research entity as a small business if such entity has 250 or fewer full-time employees and does not have aggregate gross assets in excess of $150 million.

Date: 2015-04-30
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Veterans Small Business Enhancement Act of 2015

Amends the Small Business Act to require the interagency task force that is responsible for coordinating federal efforts to improve the business development and federal contracting opportunities available to small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans to coordinate administrative and regulatory activities and develop proposals to provide access to, and manage the distribution of, excess or surplus U.S. property to small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans, pursuant to a memorandum of understanding with the appropriate state agency for surplus property.

Date: 2015-05-01
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Emerging Business Encouragement Act of 2015

 Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), for each industry category for which the Administrator established a size standard, to establish procedures, by rule, for designating a small business in that industry category as an emerging business enterprise (EBE).

Requires the designation to expire when the small business is no longer in compliance with the criteria, except that:

 in the case of an EBE which existed as a business entity before its EBE designation, the designation shall not expire until five years after it was made; and if the EBE exceeds the required size limitation its designation shall expire only if the size is 50% or more of the maximum size of a small business within that industry category. Directs the Administrator to establish specified criteria for designation of an EBE.

Requires the head of each federal agency to establish goals for participation by the designated EBEs in at least 5% of all contracts, including prime contracts and subcontracts, for each fiscal year.

Authorizes the Administrator to make a loan to a designated EBE under the SBA Express Loan Program, but only in accordance with specified terms.

Requires the Administrator, by rule, to establish a process for initial self-certification of EBEs for purposes of participation in federal contracts and eligibility for the Express Loans.

Date: 2015-05-05
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Commercial Real Estate and Economic Development Act of 2015 or the CREED Act of 2015

 Reinstates for a five-year period beginning after enactment of this Act the authority for Small Business Administration (SBA) low-interest refinancing of small business debt not involving business expansion under the SBA's local development business loan program.

Repeals a provision of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 that terminated such authority as of September 26, 2012. Restores and revives any provision of law struck by the provision, and any regulations promulgated pursuant to it as they were in effect on that date.

Date: 2015-05-12
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Helping Our Middle-Class Entrepreneurs Act or the HOME Act

 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a taxpayer who uses a residence to conduct a trade or business a standard tax deduction equal to the lesser of $1,500 or the taxpayer's gross trade or business income derived from the business use of such residence. Provides for an inflation adjustment to the standard deduction amount in calendar years beginning after 2015.

Date: 2015-05-13
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Main Street Revival Act

 Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a specified small business to pay its first-year employment taxes in four annual installments. Defines "specified small business" as any HUBZone business (a business operating in a historically underutilized business zone as defined by the Small Business Act) that is not reasonably expected to employ more than 25 full-time employees in its first year of operation.

Date: 2015-05-19
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on July 23, 2015. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Veterans Entrepreneurship Act of 2015

(Sec. 2) Amends the Small Business Act to prohibit the Small Business Administration (SBA) from collecting a guarantee fee in connection with a loan made under the SBA Express Program to a veteran or the spouse of a veteran on or after October 1, 2015, except during any upcoming fiscal year for which the President's budget, submitted to Congress, includes a cost for the Program that is above zero.

(Sec. 3) Requires the SBA to assess for Congress the level of outreach to and consultation with female veterans regarding access to capital by women's business centers and Veterans Business Outreach Centers.

(Sec. 4) Amends the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 to increase the limit from $18.75 billion to $23.5 billion for FY2015 commitments for general business loans for a combination of amortizing term loans and the aggregated maximum line of credit provided by revolving loans.

Amends the Small Business Act to prohibit the SBA, starting October 1, 2015, from guaranteeing a loan if:

 the lender determines that the borrower is unable to obtain credit elsewhere solely because the lender's liquidity depends upon the guaranteed portion of the loan being sold on the secondary market, or the sole purpose for requesting the guarantee is to allow the lender to exceed its legal lending limit.

Date: 2015-05-21
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Support Our Start-Ups Act 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend the tax deduction for new business expenditures to organizational expenditures, generally defined as expenditures incident to the creation of a corporation or a partnership.

The bill also increases the maximum deduction amount for start-up and organizational expenditures from $5,000 to $20,000 and increases from $50,000 to $120,000 the threshold amount after which the maximum deduction amount for such expenditures is reduced.

Date: 2015-05-21
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the House reported version is repeated here.)

Microloan Modernization Act of 2015

(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Small Business Act with respect to the rule under the Small Business Administration (SBA) Microloan Program (assisting low-income individuals to start and operate a small business) that permits SBA-designated microloan intermediary lenders to expend up to 25% of the grant funds they receive from the SBA to provide information and technical assistance to small businesses that are their prospective borrowers.

The SBA must establish a process by which these microloan intermediaries may apply for, and the SBA may grant, a waiver of this 25/75 allocation.

This rule shall require any waiver applicant to:

 specify how it will use the additional technical assistance, and make assurances that the intermediary will have sufficient funds to provide technical assistance to all of the intermediary's borrowers. (Sec. 3) The total amount of loans outstanding and committed to any particular intermediary (excluding outstanding grants) from the SBA business loan and investment fund is increased from $5 million to $6 million for the remaining years of the intermediary's participation in the program.

(Sec. 4) The SBA may not impose limitations on the repayment term of a loan by an intermediary to a small business or entrepreneur. This repayment term, however, may not exceed:

 6 years for a loan of $10,000 or less, or 10 years for a loan greater than $10,000. (Sec. 5) An eligible intermediary may include lines of credit among the short-term, fixed rate loans it makes to startup, newly established, and growing small businesses from SBA funds made available to the intermediary for working capital and the acquisition of materials, supplies, furniture, fixtures, and equipment.

(Sec. 6) The Government Accountability Office shall:

 compare the operations of a representative sample of eligible intermediaries that participate in the microloan program and of eligible intermediaries that do not, study the reasons why the latter do not participate, recommend how to encourage increased participation by intermediaries in the microloan program, and recommend how to decrease the associated costs for intermediary participation. (Sec. 7) The SBA Office of Advocacy shall report to Congress on the economic impact of a mandatory savings requirement on businesses eligible to participate in the microloan program, including on the benefits and costs of such a requirement, and make implementing recommendations.

Date: 2015-06-04
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Contracting Clarity Act of 2015

This bill expresses the sense of Congress that it is in the best interests of the United States to consistently promote and assist Native Hawaiian Organizations, which are deemed to be economically disadvantaged for purposes of Small Business Administration (SBA) procurement contract requirements.

 The Small Business Act is amended to designate these Organizations as HUBZone (historically underutilized business zone) small businesses for purposes of SBA assistance.

Date: 2015-07-07
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Innovators Job Creation Act of 2015

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a qualified small business to elect to use a portion of its tax credit for increasing research expenditures as an offset against its payroll tax liability under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act.

Defines "qualified small business" as a corporation, a partnership, or a person other than a tax-exempt organization that had gross receipts of less than $5 million for the taxable year and that did not have gross receipts for any period preceding the five-taxable-year period ending with such taxable year.

Limits: (1) the number of years a taxpayer may elect to offset payroll taxes under this Act to five, and (2) the annual amount of such offset to $250,000.

Allows an offset of research tax credit amounts against alternative minimum tax liability. 

Date: 2015-07-14
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
This bill amends the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 to increase the limit from $18.75 billion to $23.5 billion for FY2015 commitments for general business loans authorized under the Small Business Act for a combination of amortizing term loans and the aggregated maximum line of credit provided by revolving loans.

Date: 2015-07-21
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Assuring Contracting Equity Act of 2015

This bill increases from: (1) 23% to 25% the government-wide small business procurement contract goal, (2) 5% to 10% the government-wide procurement goal for small disadvantaged businesses and women-owned businesses, and (3) 3% to 6% the government-wide procurement goal for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and HUBZONE (historically underutilized business zone) small businesses. The number of categories is limited for which a small business may qualify under such goals.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) must include in its annual report to the President and Congress on these goals the percentage of participation by small businesses for the total value of all prime contracts and subcontracts awards for a fiscal year, including the value of each contract awarded.

The SBA must consult with the heads of other federal agencies to develop and implement standards for procurement officers to take into consideration the past compliance of potential contractors with small business subcontracting goals when making contract awards.

Date: 2015-07-23
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Small Business Administration Franchise Loan Transparency Act of 2015

This bill requires a franchisor, except one with a franchise in the lodging industry, to disclose in the required Federal Trade Commission disclosure document:

 the average first-year revenue of each specific location of the franchise for each of the preceding five years of operation; the number of franchise locations that went out of business or were sold by the franchisee during the first year of operation for each such period; and the average revenues for all locations of the franchise for each such period, aggregated to show the top 25%, middle 50%, and the bottom 25% of revenue. Any financial information relating to the performance of any franchise's location provided by the franchisor, or its representatives, to the lender for the purpose of qualifying the loan, must be disclosed to the prospective franchisee borrower.

Date: 2015-07-23
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Fair Franchise Act of 2015

 This bill prohibits any franchise seller, in connection with any disclosure document, notice, or report required by any federal, state, or local law, from making an untrue statement of material fact or failing to state a material fact or any other fact that would render any required statement or disclosure either untrue or misleading.

A franchise seller is also prohibited from failing to furnish any prospective franchisee with:

 all information required to be disclosed by law; a written statement on whether the franchise agreement involved contains a right to renew it; and certain historical financial performance data in the disclosure document. Nor may a franchise seller make any oral or written claim or representation to a prospective franchisee that is inconsistent with, or that contradicts, the disclosure document.

 A franchisor or subfranchisor, in connection with the performance, enforcement, renewal, or termination of any franchise agreement, must not:

 engage in any act or pattern of conduct that operates as a fraud upon any person; hinder, prohibit, or penalize the free association of franchisees for any lawful purpose; discriminate against a franchisee by imposing requirements not imposed on other similarly situated franchisees or otherwise retaliate against any franchisee for membership or participation in a franchisee association; charge excessive and unreasonable renewal fees; enforce a provision in a franchise agreement requiring the parties to submit to arbitration unless certain conditions are met; terminate, cancel, or fail to renew a franchise for failure or refusal of the franchisee because it failed or refused to perform specified activities; restrict a franchisee from associating with other franchisees or from joining, leading, or otherwise participating in a trade or other association; require or prohibit any change in management of any franchise except for good cause; or impose on a franchisee a standard of conduct or performance unless the franchisor sustains the burden of proving the standard to be reasonable, necessary, and uniformly enforced. This bill specifies requirements concerning minimum standards of conduct (good faith and due care) for each party to a franchise agreement. It also prohibits:

 requiring inclusion in a franchise agreement of a term or condition which violates this Act or relieves a person from a duty or liability under it, or any waiver of compliance with this Act. A franchisee may assign a franchise interest to a transferee, provided the transferee satisfies reasonable qualifications applied by the franchisor in the offer and sale of franchises.

The bill also:

 requires specified renewal, termination, and transfer protection for franchisees; specifies requirements concerning legal actions brought by franchisees injured or damaged by violations of this Act; and authorizes legal actions by state attorneys general on behalf of state residents for alleged violation of this Act.

Date: 2015-07-23
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Veterans Entrepreneurial Transition Act of 2015 or the VET Act of 2015

This bill amends the Small Business Act to direct the Small Business Administration to carry out a pilot program to assess the feasibility and advisability of making grants to eligible veterans to start or acquire a qualifying business enterprise.

Date: 2015-07-28
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce
Paycheck Relief Act of 2015

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to reduce Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax rates on wage income and corresponding tax rates on self-employment income.

Date: 2015-07-28
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Taxation
Small Business Administration Franchise Loan Transparency Act of 2015

This bill requires a franchisor, except one with a franchise in the lodging industry, to disclose in the required Federal Trade Commission disclosure document:

 the average first-year revenue for all franchise locations for each of the preceding five years of operation; the number of franchise locations that went out of business or were sold by the franchisee during the first year of operation for each such period; and the average revenues for all locations of the franchise for each such period, aggregated to show the top 25%, middle 50%, and the bottom 25% of revenue. Any financial information relating to the performance of any franchise's location provided by the franchisor, or its representatives, to the lender for the purpose of qualifying the loan, must be disclosed to the prospective franchisee borrower.

Date: 2015-09-18
Topic: Domestic Commerce (Small Businesses)
Subject: Commerce