§9501 Definitions

Summary

Defines key words used in the chapter. Agency is the Minority Business Development Agency at the Department of Commerce. Community-based organization is defined in title 20, section 7801. Eligible entity is a private sector, public sector, or Native entity and can include a college or university. Federal agency has the same meaning as “agency” in title 5, section 551. Federally recognized area of economic distress covers places like HUBZones, empowerment zones, Promise Zones, low- or moderate-income areas, qualified opportunity zones, or any other area the Under Secretary designates. Institution of higher education is defined in title 20, section 1001. MBDA Business Center is a center the Agency creates to give technical help to minority businesses. MBDA Business Center agreement is the legal document that sets the terms between the Agency and the center operator. Minority business enterprise is a business at least 51 percent owned and run by one or more socially or economically disadvantaged individuals; being for-profit or not-for-profit or the business’s annual revenue does not stop qualification. Native entity includes Tribal Governments, Alaska Native villages or ANCSA corporations, Native Hawaiian organizations as defined in title 20, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Private sector entity is any entity that is not a public sector entity and does not include the Federal Government, a Federal agency, or its instrumentalities. Public sector entity includes States, State agencies, political subdivisions and their agencies, and Native entities. Secretary means the Secretary of Commerce. Socially or economically disadvantaged business concern is a for‑profit business that is at least 51 percent owned or otherwise disadvantaged and is managed by disadvantaged individuals. Socially or economically disadvantaged individual means someone who has faced racial, ethnic, or cultural bias or reduced capital and credit opportunities because of group identity; the Under Secretary will presume this includes Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and any group the Agency listed under part 1400 of title 15, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on November 23, 1984. Specialty center is an MBDA Business Center that focuses on specific needs like capital access, Federal procurement, entrepreneurship, technology transfer, or other Agency priorities. State includes all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, and each Tribal Government. Tribal Government means a recognized governing body of an Indian or Alaska Native tribe or similar group listed under section 5131 of title 25 as of November 15, 2021. Under Secretary is the Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development, who administers this chapter.