§9002 — Title 15 Commerce and Trade | U.S. Code

Summary

Gives the Small Business Administration the power to give grants to certain small-business help centers so they can teach, train, and advise small businesses hurt by COVID‑19. Covered small businesses are those that faced supply problems, staffing problems, fewer customers or sales, or a closure because of COVID‑19. Resource partners are small business development centers and women’s business centers. Small business development centers and women’s business centers are the centers defined in the law. The grants must pay for help on things like finding money and federal help, preventing spread of COVID‑19 and other diseases, dealing with supply‑chain and sales problems, telework and remote customer service, cyber risks, and other business steps to reduce COVID‑19 damage. The Administration must give 80% of the money to small business development centers under a formula it develops with the national association named in the law, and 20% to women’s business centers under a process the Administration sets up with input from recipients. No matching funds are required. The Administration can also fund an association to build one online hub that pulls together federal COVID‑19 resources and to train counselors (including SCORE and veterans center counselors). Goals and performance measures for these grants must be developed together with the partners, and the Administration must publish how those goals are set. The Administration must report to the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and the House Committee on Small Business no later than 6 months after March 27, 2020, and once a year after that, describing programs, early efforts, the online hub and training, how many unique businesses were helped, outcomes (employees affected, sales impact, supply‑chain disruptions), challenges, and how many counselors were trained.

Title 15, §9002

Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)In this section—

(1)the term “covered small business concern” means a small business concern that has experienced, as a result of COVID–19—

(A)supply chain disruptions, including changes in—

(i)quantity and lead time, including the number of shipments of components and delays in shipments;

(ii)quality, including shortages in supply for quality control reasons; and

(iii)technology, including a compromised payment network;

(B)staffing challenges;

(C)a decrease in gross receipts or customers; or

(D)a closure;

(2)the term “resource partner” means—

(A)a small business development center; and

(B)a women’s business center;

(3)the term “small business development center” has the meaning given the term in section 632 of this title; and

(4)the term “women’s business center” means a women’s business center described in section 656 of this title.

(b)(1)The Administration may provide financial assistance in the form of grants to resource partners to provide education, training, and advising to covered small business concerns.

(2)Grants under this subsection shall be used for the education, training, and advising of covered small business concerns and their employees on—

(A)accessing and applying for resources provided by the Administration and other Federal resources relating to access to capital and business resiliency;

(B)the hazards and prevention of the transmission and communication of COVID–19 and other communicable diseases;

(C)the potential effects of COVID–19 on the supply chains, distribution, and sale of products of covered small business concerns and the mitigation of those effects;

(D)the management and practice of telework to reduce possible transmission of COVID–19;

(E)the management and practice of remote customer service by electronic or other means;

(F)the risks of and mitigation of cyber threats in remote customer service or telework practices;

(G)the mitigation of the effects of reduced travel or outside activities on covered small business concerns during COVID–19 or similar occurrences; and

(H)any other relevant business practices necessary to mitigate the economic effects of COVID–19 or similar occurrences.

(3)(A)(i)The Administration shall award 80 percent of funds authorized to carry out this subsection to small business development centers, which shall be awarded pursuant to a formula jointly developed, negotiated, and agreed upon, with full participation of both parties, between the association formed under section 648(a)(3)(A) of this title and the Administration.

(ii)Awards made under clause (i) shall be in addition to, and separate from, any amounts appropriated to make grants under section 648(a) of this title and such an award may be used to complement and support such a grant, except that priority with respect to the receipt of that assistance shall be given to small business development centers that have been affected by issues described in paragraph (2).

(B)The Administration shall award 20 percent of funds authorized to carry out this subsection to women’s business centers, which shall be awarded pursuant to a process established by the Administration in consultation with recipients of assistance.

(C)Matching funds shall not be required for any grant under this subsection.

(4)(A)Goals and metrics for the funds made available under this subsection shall be jointly developed, negotiated, and agreed upon, with full participation of both parties, between the resource partners and the Administrator, which shall—

(i)take into consideration the extent of the circumstances relating to the spread of COVID–19, or similar occurrences, that affect covered small business concerns located in the areas covered by the resource partner, particularly in rural areas or economically distressed areas;

(ii)generally follow the use of funds outlined in paragraph (2), but shall not restrict the activities of resource partners in responding to unique situations; and

(iii)encourage resource partners to develop and provide services to covered small business concerns.

(B)The Administrator shall make publicly available the methodology by which the Administrator and resource partners jointly develop the metrics and goals described in subparagraph (A).

(c)(1)The Administrator may provide grants to an association or associations representing resource partners under which the association or associations shall establish a single centralized hub for COVID–19 information, which shall include—

(A)1 online platform that consolidates resources and information available across multiple Federal agencies for small business concerns related to COVID–19; and

(B)a training program to educate resource partner counselors, members of the Service Corps of Retired Executives established under section 637(b)(1)(B) of this title, and counselors at veterans business outreach centers described in section 657b of this title on the resources and information described in subparagraph (A).

(2)Goals and metrics for the funds made available under this subsection shall be jointly developed, negotiated, and agreed upon, with full participation of both parties, between the association or associations receiving a grant under this subsection and the Administrator.

(d)Not later than 6 months after March 27, 2020, and annually thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives a report that describes—

(1)with respect to the initial year covered by the report—

(A)the programs and services developed and provided by the Administration and resource partners under subsection (b);

(B)the initial efforts to provide those services under subsection (b); and

(C)the online platform and training developed and provided by the Administration and the association or associations under subsection (c); and

(2)with respect to the subsequent years covered by the report—

(A)with respect to the grant program under subsection (b)—

(i)the efforts of the Administrator and resource partners to develop services to assist covered small business concerns;

(ii)the challenges faced by owners of covered small business concerns in accessing services provided by the Administration and resource partners;

(iii)the number of unique covered small business concerns that were served by the Administration and resource partners; and

(iv)other relevant outcome performance data with respect to covered small business concerns, including the number of employees affected, the effect on sales, the disruptions of supply chains, and the efforts made by the Administration and resource partners to mitigate these effects; and

(B)with respect to the grant program under subsection (c)—

(i)the efforts of the Administrator and the association or associations to develop and evolve an online resource for small business concerns; and

(ii)the efforts of the Administrator and the association or associations to develop a training program for resource partner counselors, including the number of counselors trained.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2020—Subsec. (b)(3)(A). Pub. L. 116–260 designated existing provisions as cl. (i), inserted heading, and added cl. (ii).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2020 Amendment Pub. L. 116–260, div. N, title III, § 346(b), Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2052, provided that: “The

Amendments

made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall be effective as if included in the CARES Act (Public Law 116–136; 134 Stat. 281).”

§9002 Entrepreneurial Development

Summary

Title 15, §9002

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Amendments

Citations & Metadata