[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1408 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1408

   To amend the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to promote the 
  cleanup of abandoned, idled, or underused commercial or industrial 
facilities, the expansion or redevelopment of which are complicated by 
 real or perceived environmental contamination, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 21, 1999

 Mr. Jeffords (for himself, Mr. Moynihan, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Lautenberg, 
Mr. Lieberman, and Mr. Leahy) introduced the following bill; which was 
       read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to promote the 
  cleanup of abandoned, idled, or underused commercial or industrial 
facilities, the expansion or redevelopment of which are complicated by 
 real or perceived environmental contamination, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Brownfields 
Redevelopment Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT COMPANY PROGRAM SET-ASIDE FOR 
              BROWNFIELD PREVENTION AND REDEVELOPMENT.

    Section 504 of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 
697a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Set-Aside for Brownfield Prevention and Redevelopment 
Projects.--
            ``(1) In general.--Of the amount authorized for financings 
        under this section in each fiscal year, the Administration 
        shall set aside the lesser of $50,000,000 or 10 percent, which 
        shall be used by qualified State and local development 
        companies to finance projects that assist qualified small 
        businesses (or prospective owners or operators of qualified 
        small businesses) in--
                    ``(A) carrying out site assessment and cleanup 
                activities at brownfield sites or at sites contaminated 
                with petroleum; and
                    ``(B) acquiring new, clean technologies and 
                production equipment.
            ``(2) Definitions.--In this subsection--
                    ``(A) the term `brownfield site' has the meaning 
                given that term in section 321(d);
                    ``(B) the term `site assessment' means any 
                investigation of a site determined to be appropriate by 
                the President and undertaken pursuant to section 104(b) 
                of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
                Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 
                9604(b));
                    ``(C) the term `qualified small business' means a 
                small business--
                            ``(i) that--
                                    ``(I) has acquired a brownfield 
                                site; or
                                    ``(II) uses, in the course of doing 
                                business, any hazardous substance (as 
                                defined in section 101(14) of such Act 
                                (42 U.S.C. 9601(14)); and
                            ``(ii) that has limited or no access to 
                        capital from conventional sources, as 
                        determined by the Administration; and
                    ``(D) the term `qualified State or local 
                development company' has the meaning given that term in 
                section 503(e).''.

SEC. 3. PROMOTION OF SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT COMPANIES FOR BROWNFIELD 
              ACTIVITIES.

    Title III of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. 
681 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 321. SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT COMPANIES FOR BROWNFIELD 
              ACTIVITIES.

    ``(a) Establishment of Certain Small Business Investment 
Companies.--The Administration shall promote the establishment of 1 or 
more small business investment companies, the primary purpose of which 
is to finance--
            ``(1) cleanup activities for brownfield sites or sites 
        contaminated with petroleum, including those that use 
        innovative or experimental cleanup technologies; or
            ``(2) projects that assist small businesses in cleaning up 
        the facilities owned or operated by those small businesses and 
        adopting new, clean technologies.
    ``(b) Authority To Waive Certain Fee.--The Administration may waive 
any filing fee otherwise required by the Administration under this 
title with respect to any small business investment company described 
in subsection (a).
    ``(c) Set-Aside.--Notwithstanding any other provision of this 
title, of the amount authorized for purchases of participating 
securities and guarantees of debentures under this title in each fiscal 
year, the Administration shall set aside the lesser of $2,000,000 or 10 
percent, which shall be used to provide leverage to any small business 
investment company described in subsection (a).
    ``(d) Brownfield Site Defined.--In this section, the term 
`brownfield site' means an abandoned, idled, or underused commercial or 
industrial facility, the expansion or redevelopment of which is 
complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination.''.
                                 <all>