Us Congress 2023-2024 Regular Session

Us Congress House Bill HB1606 Compare Versions

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Old	New		Differences
	1	+	IB
	2	+	Union Calendar No. 75
1	3		118THCONGRESS
2	4		1
3	5		STSESSION H. R. 1606
4		-	AN ACT
	6	+	[Report No. 118–98]
	7	+	To amend the Small Business Act to codify the Boots to Business Program,
	8	+	and for other purposes.
	9	+	IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
	10	+	MARCH14, 2023
	11	+	Mr. S
	12	+	CHNEIDER(for himself, Mr. WILLIAMSof Texas, Mr. MCGARVEY, and
	13	+	Mr. E
	14	+	LLZEY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
	15	+	Committee on Small Business
	16	+	J
	17	+	UNE5, 2023
	18	+	Additional sponsors: Mr. K
	19	+	ILDEE, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. MOLINARO, Mr. MANN,
	20	+	and Mr. T
	21	+	HANEDAR
	22	+	J
	23	+	UNE5, 2023
	24	+	Reported from the Committee on Small Business; committed to the Committee
	25	+	of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
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	28	+	•HR 1606 RH
	29	+	A BILL
5	30		To amend the Small Business Act to codify the Boots to
6	31		Business Program, and for other purposes.
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7	35		Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-1
8		-	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 2
9		-	•HR 1606 EH
10		-	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1
11		-	This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veteran Entrepreneur-2
12		-	ship Training Act of 2023’’. 3
13		-	SEC. 2. BOOTS TO BUSINESS PROGRAM. 4
14		-	Section 32 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 5
15		-	657b) is amended by adding at the end the following: 6
	36	+	tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2
	37	+	SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3
	38	+	This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veteran Entrepreneur-4
	39	+	ship Training Act of 2023’’. 5
	40	+	SEC. 2. BOOTS TO BUSINESS PROGRAM. 6
	41	+	Section 32 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 7
	42	+	657b) is amended by adding at the end the following: 8
16	43		‘‘(h) B
17		-	OOTS TOBUSINESSPROGRAM.— 7
	44	+	OOTS TOBUSINESSPROGRAM.— 9
18	45		‘‘(1) C
19		-	OVERED INDIVIDUAL DEFINED .—In this 8
20		-	subsection, the term ‘covered individual’ means— 9
21		-	‘‘(A) a member of the Armed Forces, in-10
22		-	cluding the National Guard or Reserves; 11
23		-	‘‘(B) an individual who is participating in 12
24		-	the Transition Assistance Program established 13
25		-	under section 1144 of title 10, United States 14
26		-	Code; 15
27		-	‘‘(C) an individual who— 16
28		-	‘‘(i) served on active duty in any 17
29		-	branch of the Armed Forces, including the 18
30		-	National Guard or Reserves; and 19
31		-	‘‘(ii) was discharged or released from 20
32		-	such service under conditions other than 21
33		-	dishonorable; and 22
34		-	‘‘(D) a spouse or dependent of an indi-23
35		-	vidual described in subparagraph (A), (B), or 24
36		-	(C). 25 3
37		-	•HR 1606 EH
38		-	‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT.—During the period be-1
39		-	ginning on the date of enactment of this subsection 2
40		-	and ending on September 30, 2028, the Adminis-3
41		-	trator shall carry out a program to be known as the 4
42		-	‘Boots to Business Program’ to provide entrepre-5
43		-	neurship training to covered individuals. 6
	46	+	OVERED INDIVIDUAL DEFINED .—In this 10
	47	+	subsection, the term ‘covered individual’ means— 11
	48	+	‘‘(A) a member of the Armed Forces, in-12
	49	+	cluding the National Guard or Reserves; 13
	50	+	‘‘(B) an individual who is participating in 14
	51	+	the Transition Assistance Program established 15
	52	+	under section 1144 of title 10, United States 16
	53	+	Code; 17
	54	+	‘‘(C) an individual who— 18
	55	+	‘‘(i) served on active duty in any 19
	56	+	branch of the Armed Forces, including the 20
	57	+	National Guard or Reserves; and 21
	58	+	‘‘(ii) was discharged or released from 22
	59	+	such service under conditions other than 23
	60	+	dishonorable; and 24
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	64	+	‘‘(D) a spouse or dependent of an indi-1
	65	+	vidual described in subparagraph (A), (B), or 2
	66	+	(C). 3
	67	+	‘‘(2) E
	68	+	STABLISHMENT.—During the period be-4
	69	+	ginning on the date of enactment of this subsection 5
	70	+	and ending on September 30, 2028, the Adminis-6
	71	+	trator shall carry out a program to be known as the 7
	72	+	‘Boots to Business Program’ to provide entrepre-8
	73	+	neurship training to covered individuals. 9
44	74		‘‘(3) G
45		-	OALS.—The goals of the Boots to Busi-7
46		-	ness Program are to— 8
47		-	‘‘(A) provide assistance and in-depth train-9
48		-	ing to covered individuals interested in business 10
49		-	ownership; and 11
50		-	‘‘(B) provide covered individuals with the 12
51		-	tools, skills, and knowledge necessary to identify 13
52		-	a business opportunity, draft a business plan, 14
53		-	identify sources of capital, connect with local 15
54		-	resources for small business concerns, and start 16
55		-	up a small business concern. 17
	75	+	OALS.—The goals of the Boots to Busi-10
	76	+	ness Program are to— 11
	77	+	‘‘(A) provide assistance and in-depth train-12
	78	+	ing to covered individuals interested in business 13
	79	+	ownership; and 14
	80	+	‘‘(B) provide covered individuals with the 15
	81	+	tools, skills, and knowledge necessary to identify 16
	82	+	a business opportunity, draft a business plan, 17
	83	+	identify sources of capital, connect with local 18
	84	+	resources for small business concerns, and start 19
	85	+	up a small business concern. 20
56	86		‘‘(4) P
57		-	ROGRAM COMPONENTS .— 18
	87	+	ROGRAM COMPONENTS .— 21
58	88		‘‘(A) I
59		-	N GENERAL.—The Boots to Busi-19
60		-	ness Program may include— 20
61		-	‘‘(i) a presentation providing exposure 21
62		-	to the considerations involved in self-em-22
63		-	ployment and ownership of a small busi-23
64		-	ness concern; 24 4
65		-	•HR 1606 EH
66		-	‘‘(ii) an online, self-study course fo-1
67		-	cused on the basic skills of entrepreneur-2
68		-	ship, the language of business, and the 3
69		-	considerations involved in self-employment 4
70		-	and ownership of a small business concern; 5
71		-	‘‘(iii) an in-person classroom instruc-6
72		-	tion component providing an introduction 7
73		-	to the foundations of self employment and 8
74		-	ownership of a small business concern; and 9
75		-	‘‘(iv) in-depth training delivered 10
76		-	through online instruction, including an 11
77		-	online course that leads to the creation of 12
78		-	a business plan. 13
	89	+	N GENERAL.—The Boots to Busi-22
	90	+	ness Program may include— 23
	91	+	‘‘(i) a presentation providing exposure 24
	92	+	to the considerations involved in self-em-25
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	95	+	•HR 1606 RH
	96	+	ployment and ownership of a small busi-1
	97	+	ness concern; 2
	98	+	‘‘(ii) an online, self-study course fo-3
	99	+	cused on the basic skills of entrepreneur-4
	100	+	ship, the language of business, and the 5
	101	+	considerations involved in self-employment 6
	102	+	and ownership of a small business concern; 7
	103	+	‘‘(iii) an in-person classroom instruc-8
	104	+	tion component providing an introduction 9
	105	+	to the foundations of self employment and 10
	106	+	ownership of a small business concern; and 11
	107	+	‘‘(iv) in-depth training delivered 12
	108	+	through online instruction, including an 13
	109	+	online course that leads to the creation of 14
	110	+	a business plan. 15
79	111		‘‘(B) C
80		-	OLLABORATION.—The Adminis-14
81		-	trator may— 15
82		-	‘‘(i) collaborate with public and pri-16
83		-	vate entities to develop course curricula for 17
84		-	the Boots to Business Program; and 18
85		-	‘‘(ii) modify program components in 19
86		-	coordination with entities participating in a 20
87		-	Warriors in Transition program, as defined 21
88		-	in section 738(e) of the National Defense 22
89		-	Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 23
90		-	(10 U.S.C. 1071 note). 24 5
91		-	•HR 1606 EH
92		-	‘‘(C) USE OF RESOURCE PARTNERS AND 1
93		-	DISTRICT OFFICES.— 2
	112	+	OLLABORATION.—The Adminis-16
	113	+	trator may— 17
	114	+	‘‘(i) collaborate with public and pri-18
	115	+	vate entities to develop course curricula for 19
	116	+	the Boots to Business Program; and 20
	117	+	‘‘(ii) modify program components in 21
	118	+	coordination with entities participating in a 22
	119	+	Warriors in Transition program, as defined 23
	120	+	in section 738(e) of the National Defense 24
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	124	+	Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 1
	125	+	(10 U.S.C. 1071 note). 2
	126	+	‘‘(C) U
	127	+	SE OF RESOURCE PARTNERS AND 3
	128	+	DISTRICT OFFICES.— 4
94	129		‘‘(i) I
95		-	N GENERAL.—The Administrator 3
96		-	shall— 4
97		-	‘‘(I) ensure that Veteran Busi-5
98		-	ness Outreach Centers regularly par-6
99		-	ticipate, on a nationwide basis, in the 7
100		-	Boots to Business Program; and 8
101		-	‘‘(II) to the maximum extent 9
102		-	practicable, use district offices of the 10
103		-	Administration and a variety of other 11
104		-	resource partners and entities in ad-12
105		-	ministering the Boots to Business 13
106		-	Program. 14
	130	+	N GENERAL.—The Administrator 5
	131	+	shall— 6
	132	+	‘‘(I) ensure that Veteran Busi-7
	133	+	ness Outreach Centers regularly par-8
	134	+	ticipate, on a nationwide basis, in the 9
	135	+	Boots to Business Program; and 10
	136	+	‘‘(II) to the maximum extent 11
	137	+	practicable, use district offices of the 12
	138	+	Administration and a variety of other 13
	139	+	resource partners and entities in ad-14
	140	+	ministering the Boots to Business 15
	141	+	Program. 16
107	142		‘‘(ii) G
108		-	RANT AUTHORITY.—In carrying 15
109		-	out clause (i), the Administrator may make 16
110		-	grants, subject to the availability of appro-17
111		-	priations in advance, to Veteran Business 18
112		-	Outreach Centers, other resource partners, 19
113		-	or other entities to carry out components 20
114		-	of the Boots to Business Program. 21
	143	+	RANT AUTHORITY.—In carrying 17
	144	+	out clause (i), the Administrator may make 18
	145	+	grants to Veteran Business Outreach Cen-19
	146	+	ters, other resource partners, or other enti-20
	147	+	ties to carry out components of the Boots 21
	148	+	to Business Program. 22
115	149		‘‘(D) A
116		-	VAILABILITY TO DEPARTMENT OF 22
117		-	DEFENSE AND THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR .— 23
118		-	The Administrator shall make available to the 24
119		-	Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 25 6
120		-	•HR 1606 EH
121		-	Labor information regarding the Boots to Busi-1
122		-	ness Program, including all course materials 2
123		-	and outreach materials related to the Boots to 3
124		-	Business Program, for inclusion on the websites 4
125		-	of the Department of Defense and the Depart-5
126		-	ment of Labor relating to the Transition Assist-6
127		-	ance Program, in the Transition Assistance 7
128		-	Program manual, and in other relevant mate-8
129		-	rials available for distribution from the Sec-9
130		-	retary of Defense and the Secretary of Labor. 10
	150	+	VAILABILITY TO DEPARTMENT OF 23
	151	+	DEFENSE AND THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR .— 24
	152	+	The Administrator shall make available to the 25
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	156	+	Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 1
	157	+	Labor information regarding the Boots to Busi-2
	158	+	ness Program, including all course materials 3
	159	+	and outreach materials related to the Boots to 4
	160	+	Business Program, for inclusion on the websites 5
	161	+	of the Department of Defense and the Depart-6
	162	+	ment of Labor relating to the Transition Assist-7
	163	+	ance Program, in the Transition Assistance 8
	164	+	Program manual, and in other relevant mate-9
	165	+	rials available for distribution from the Sec-10
	166	+	retary of Defense and the Secretary of Labor. 11
131	167		‘‘(E) A
132		-	VAILABILITY TO DEPARTMENT OF 11
133		-	VETERANS AFFAIRS.—In consultation with the 12
134		-	Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Adminis-13
135		-	trator shall make available for distribution and 14
136		-	display on the website of the Department of 15
137		-	Veterans Affairs and at local facilities of the 16
138		-	Department of Veterans Affairs outreach mate-17
139		-	rials regarding the Boots to Business Program, 18
140		-	which shall, at a minimum— 19
141		-	‘‘(i) describe the Boots to Business 20
142		-	Program and the services provided; and 21
143		-	‘‘(ii) include eligibility requirements 22
144		-	for participating in the Boots to Business 23
145		-	Program. 24 7
146		-	•HR 1606 EH
	168	+	VAILABILITY TO DEPARTMENT OF 12
	169	+	VETERANS AFFAIRS.—In consultation with the 13
	170	+	Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Adminis-14
	171	+	trator shall make available for distribution and 15
	172	+	display on the website of the Department of 16
	173	+	Veterans Affairs and at local facilities of the 17
	174	+	Department of Veterans Affairs outreach mate-18
	175	+	rials regarding the Boots to Business Program, 19
	176	+	which shall, at a minimum— 20
	177	+	‘‘(i) describe the Boots to Business 21
	178	+	Program and the services provided; and 22
	179	+	‘‘(ii) include eligibility requirements 23
	180	+	for participating in the Boots to Business 24
	181	+	Program. 25
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147	185		‘‘(F) AVAILABILITY TO OTHER PARTICI -1
148	186		PATING AGENCIES.—The Administrator shall 2
149	187		ensure information regarding the Boots to 3
150	188		Business program, including all course mate-4
151	189		rials and outreach materials related to the 5
152	190		Boots to Business Program, is made available 6
153	191		to other participating agencies in the Transition 7
154	192		Assistance Program and upon request of other 8
155	193		agencies. 9
156	194		‘‘(5) C
157	195		OMPETITIVE BIDDING PROCEDURES .— 10
158	196		The Administration shall use relevant competitive 11
159	197		bidding procedures with respect to any contract or 12
160	198		cooperative agreement executed by the Administra-13
161	199		tion under the Boots to Business Program. 14
162	200		‘‘(6) P
163	201		UBLICATION OF NOTICE OF FUNDING OP -15
164	202		PORTUNITY.—Not later than 30 days before the 16
165	203		deadline for submitting applications for any funding 17
166	204		opportunity under the Boots to Business Program, 18
167	205		the Administration shall publish a notice of the 19
168	206		funding opportunity. 20
169	207		‘‘(7) R
170	208		EPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 21
171	209		the date of enactment of this subsection, and not 22
172	210		less frequently than annually thereafter, the Admin-23
173	211		istrator shall submit to the Committee on Small 24
174		-	Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and 25 8
175		-	•HR 1606 EH
	212	+	Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and 25
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176	216		the Committee on Small Business of the House of 1
177	217		Representatives a report on the performance and ef-2
178	218		fectiveness of the Boots to Business Program, 3
179	219		which— 4
180	220		‘‘(A) may be included as part of another 5
181	221		report submitted to such committees by the Ad-6
182	222		ministrator related to the Office of Veterans 7
183	223		Business Development; and 8
184	224		‘‘(B) shall summarize available information 9
185	225		relating to— 10
186	226		‘‘(i) grants awarded under paragraph 11
187	227		(4)(C); 12
188	228		‘‘(ii) the total cost of the Boots to 13
189	229		Business Program; 14
190	230		‘‘(iii) the number of program partici-15
191	231		pants using each component of the Boots 16
192	232		to Business Program; 17
193	233		‘‘(iv) the completion rates for each 18
194	234		component of the Boots to Business Pro-19
195	235		gram; 20
196	236		‘‘(v) to the extent possible— 21
197	237		‘‘(I) the demographics of pro-22
198	238		gram participants, to include gender, 23
199	239		age, race, ethnicity, and relationship 24
200		-	to military; 25 9
201		-	•HR 1606 EH
	240	+	to military; 25
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202	244		‘‘(II) the number of program 1
203	245		participants that connect with a dis-2
204	246		trict office of the Administration, a 3
205	247		Veteran Business Outreach Center, or 4
206	248		another resource partner of the Ad-5
207	249		ministration; 6
208	250		‘‘(III) the number of program 7
209	251		participants that start a small busi-8
210	252		ness concern; 9
211	253		‘‘(IV) the results of the Boots to 10
212	254		Business and Boots to Business 11
213	255		Reboot course quality surveys con-12
214	256		ducted by the Office of Veterans Busi-13
215	257		ness Development before and after at-14
216	258		tending each of those courses, includ-15
217	259		ing a summary of any comments re-16
218	260		ceived from program participants; 17
219	261		‘‘(V) the results of the Boots to 18
220	262		Business Program outcome surveys 19
221	263		conducted by the Office of Veterans 20
222	264		Business Development, including a 21
223	265		summary of any comments received 22
224	266		from program participants; and 23
225	267		‘‘(VI) the results of other ger-24
226		-	mane participant satisfaction surveys; 25 10
227		-	•HR 1606 EH
	268	+	mane participant satisfaction surveys; 25
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228	272		‘‘(C) an evaluation of the overall effective-1
229	273		ness of the Boots to Business Program based 2
230	274		on each geographic region covered by the Ad-3
231	275		ministration during the most recent fiscal year; 4
232	276		‘‘(D) an assessment of additional perform-5
233	277		ance outcome measures for the Boots to Busi-6
234	278		ness Program, as identified by the Adminis-7
235	279		trator; 8
236	280		‘‘(E) any recommendations of the Adminis-9
237	281		trator for improvement of the Boots to Busi-10
238	282		ness Program, which may include expansion of 11
239	283		the types of individuals who are covered individ-12
240	284		uals; 13
241	285		‘‘(F) an explanation of how the Boots to 14
242	286		Business Program has been integrated with 15
243	287		other transition programs and related resources 16
244	288		of the Administration and other Federal agen-17
245	289		cies; and 18
246	290		‘‘(G) any additional information the Ad-19
247	291		ministrator determines necessary.’’. 20
248		-	Passed the House of Representatives June 20, 2023.
249		-	Attest:
250		-	Clerk. 118
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	294	+	75
	295	+	118
251	296		TH
252	297		CONGRESS
253	298		1
254	299		ST
255	300		S
256	301		ESSION
257	302
258	303		H. R. 1606
259		-	AN ACT
	304	+	[Report No. 118–98]
	305	+	A BILL
260	306		To amend the Small Business Act to codify the
261	307		Boots to Business Program, and for other pur-
262	308		poses.
	309	+	J
	310	+	UNE
	311	+	5, 2023
	312	+	Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
	313	+	State of the Union and ordered to be printed
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