PRIA Logo™
Title 15 — Commerce and TradeRelease 119-73not60

§631b Reports to Congress; State of Small Business

Title 15 › Chapter 14A— AID TO SMALL BUSINESS › § 631b

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

The President must send Congress by January 20 each year a Report on Small Business and Competition. The report must look at small businesses industry by industry. It must give current and historical numbers on things like production, jobs, investment, population, job creation and loss, business failures and startups, and other economic measures for the whole economy and for each sector. Where possible, the data should be split into urban, suburban, and rural areas. The report must point out trends that affect small businesses and competition. It must examine how laws and regulations (for example, tax, retirement, and securities laws) affect small business, identify problems, and recommend legislative and administrative fixes. The President must also recommend a program to carry out the law’s small-business policy. As an appendix, the report must list, by agency, the total dollar value of all Federal contracts exceeding $10,000 and the dollar amounts of those contracts and subcontracts awarded to small, minority-owned, female-owned, and veteran-owned businesses. The President may send extra or updated reports to Congress whenever needed. All these reports are sent to the Senate Select Committee on Small Business and the House Committee on Small Business. The data in the main report must separately show information for businesses owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (including by gender as defined in the law), businesses owned by women, qualified HUBZone small businesses, and businesses owned by veterans and service-disabled veterans.

Full Legal Text

Title 15, §631b

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The President shall transmit to the Congress not later than January 20 of each year a Report on Small Business and Competition which shall—
(1)examine the current role of small business in the economy on an industry-by-industry basis;
(2)present current and historical data on production, employment, investment, population, job creation and retention, annual business failures, annual business startups, and other economic variables for small business in the economy as a whole and for small business in each sector of the economy, with, to the extent practicable, specific statistics divided as to urban, suburban, and rural areas;
(3)identify economic trends which will or may affect the small business sector and the state of competition;
(4)examine the effects on small business and competition of policies, programs, and activities, including, but not limited to the Internal Revenue Code [26 U.S.C. 1 et seq.], the Employee Retirement Income Security Act [29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.], the Securities Act of 1933 [15 U.S.C. 77a et seq.], and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 [15 U.S.C. 78a et seq.], and regulations promulgated thereunder; identify problems generated by such policies, programs, and activities; and recommend legislative and administrative solutions to such problems; and
(5)recommend a program for carrying out the policy declared in section 631a of this title, together with such recommendations for legislation as he may deem necessary or desirable.
(b)The President also shall transmit simultaneously as an appendix to such annual report, a report, by agency and department, on the total dollar value of all Federal contracts exceeding $10,000 in amount and the dollar amount (including the subcontracts thereunder in excess of $10,000) awarded to small, minority-owned, female-owned, and veteran-owned businesses.
(c)The President may transmit from time to time to the Congress reports supplementary to the Report on Small Business and Competition, each of which shall include such supplementary or revised recommendations as he may deem necessary or desirable to achieve the policy declared in section 631a of this title.
(d)The Report on Small Business and Competition and all supplementary reports transmitted under subsections (b) and (c) of this section shall, when transmitted to Congress, be referred to the Senate Select Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives.
(e)The information and data required to be reported pursuant to subsection (a) shall separately detail those portions of such information and data that are relevant to—
(1)small business concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, by gender, as defined pursuant to section 637(d) of this title;
(2)small business concerns owned and controlled by women; and
(3)22 So in original. Two pars. (3) have been enacted. qualified HUBZone small business concern (as defined in section 632(p) 33 See References in Text note below. of this title).
(3)2 small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans, as defined in section 632(q) of this title, and small business concerns owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, as defined in such section 632(q) of this title.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Internal Revenue Code, referred to in subsec. (a)(4), is classified to Title 26, Internal Revenue Code. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(4), is Pub. L. 93–406, Sept. 2, 1974, 88 Stat. 829, which is classified principally to chapter 18 (§ 1001 et seq.) of Title 29, Labor. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 1001 of Title 29 and Tables. The Securities Act of 1933, referred to in subsec. (a)(4), is act
May 27, 1933, ch. 38, title I, 48 Stat. 74, which is classified generally to subchapter I (§ 77a et seq.) of chapter 2A of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 77a of this title and Tables. The Securities Exchange Act of 1934, referred to in subsec. (a)(4), is act
June 6, 1934, ch. 404, 48 Stat. 881, which is classified principally to chapter 2B (§ 78a et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 78a of this title and Tables. section 632(p) of this title, referred to in subsec. (e)(3), was redesignated section 657a(b) of this title by Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title XVII, § 1701(a)(2), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1795. Codification Section was enacted as part of the Small Business Economic Policy Act of 1980, and not as part of the Small Business Act which comprises this chapter.

Amendments

1999—Subsec. (e)(1). Pub. L. 106–50, § 602(1), which directed amendment of par. (1) by striking “and” after the semicolon, could not be executed because the word “and” did not appear after the semicolon. Subsec. (e)(2). Pub. L. 106–50, § 602(2), which directed amendment of par. (2) by substituting “; and” for the period, could not be executed because par. (2) did not contain a period. Subsec. (e)(3). Pub. L. 106–50, § 602(3), added par. (3) relating to small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans. 1997—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 105–135, § 705, substituted “, female-owned, and veteran-owned businesses” for “and female-owned businesses”. Subsec. (e)(3). Pub. L. 105–135, § 604(c), added par. (3). 1990—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 101–574 added par. (2) and struck out former par. (2) which read as follows: “present current and historical data on production, employment, investment, and other economic variables for small business in the economy as a whole and for small business in each sector of the economy;”. 1988—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 100–533 and Pub. L. 100–590 added subsecs. (e) which were identical, except that the subsec. (e) added by Pub. L. 100–533, which is set out as text of this section, contained the phrase “, by gender,” in par. (1).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Change of Name

Committee on Small Business of Senate changed to Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of Senate. See Senate Resolution No. 123, One Hundred Seventh Congress, June 29, 2001. Previously, Select Committee on Small Business of Senate became Committee on Small Business of Senate. See Senate Resolution No. 101, Ninety-Seventh Congress, Mar. 25, 1981.

Effective Date

of 1997 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 105–135 effective Oct. 1, 1997, see section 3 of Pub. L. 105–135, set out as a note under section 631 of this title.

Effective Date

Section effective Oct. 1, 1980, see section 507 of Pub. L. 96–302, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1980 Amendment note under section 631 of this title. Termination of Reporting RequirementsFor termination, effective May 15, 2000, of reporting provisions in subsecs. (a) and (b) of this section, see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance, and pages 17 and 34 of House Document No. 103–7.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

15 U.S.C. § 631b

Title 15 — Commerce and Trade

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60