[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2538 Engrossed in House (EH)]


  1st Session

                               H. R. 2538

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To amend the Small Business Act to expand and improve the assistance 
provided by Small Business Development Centers to Indian tribe members, 
                 Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2538

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To amend the Small Business Act to expand and improve the assistance 
provided by Small Business Development Centers to Indian tribe members, 
                 Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians.

    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 ``Native American Small Business 
Development Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Approximately 60 percent of Indian tribe members and 
        Alaska Natives live on or adjacent to Indian lands, which 
        suffer from an average unemployment rate of 45 percent.
            (2) Indian tribe members and Alaska Natives own more than 
        197,000 businesses and generate more than $34,000,000,000 in 
        revenues. The service industry accounted for 17 percent of 
        these businesses (of which 40 percent were engaged in business 
        and personal services) and 15.1 percent of their total 
        receipts. The next largest was the construction industry (13.9 
        percent and 15.7 percent, respectively). The third largest was 
        the retail trade industry (7.5 percent and 13.4 percent, 
        respectively).
            (3) The number of businesses owned by Indian tribe members 
        and Alaska Natives grew by 84 percent from 1992 to 1997, and 
        their gross receipts grew by 179 percent in that period. This 
        is compared to all businesses which grew by 7 percent, and 
        their total gross receipts grew by 40 percent, in that period.
            (4) The Small Business Development Center program is cost 
        effective. Clients receiving long-term counseling under the 
        program in 1998 generated additional tax revenues of 
        $468,000,000, roughly 6 times the cost of the program to the 
        Federal Government.
            (5) Using the existing infrastructure of the Small Business 
        Development Center program, small businesses owned by Indian 
        tribe members, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians receiving 
        services under the program will have a higher survival rate 
        than the average small business not receiving such services.
            (6) Business counseling and technical assistance is 
        critical on Indian lands where similar services are scarce and 
        expensive.
            (7) Increased assistance through counseling under the Small 
        Business Development Center program has been shown to reduce 
        the default rate associated with lending programs of the Small 
        Business Administration.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are as follows:
            (1) To stimulate economies on Indian lands.
            (2) To foster economic development on Indian lands.
            (3) To assist in the creation of new small businesses owned 
        by Indian tribe members, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians 
        and expand existing ones.
            (4) To provide management, technical, and research 
        assistance to small businesses owned by Indian tribe members, 
        Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians.
            (5) To seek the advice of the governing bodies of Indian 
        tribes, corporations organized pursuant to the Alaska Native 
        Claims Settlement Act and other Alaska Native entities, and 
        Native Hawaiian organizations on where small business 
        development assistance is most needed.
            (6) To ensure that Indian tribe members, Alaska Natives, 
        and Native Hawaiians have full access to existing business 
        counseling and technical assistance available through the Small 
        Business Development Center program.

SEC. 3. SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER ASSISTANCE TO INDIAN TRIBE 
              MEMBERS, ALASKA NATIVES, AND NATIVE HAWAIIANS.

    (a) In General.--Section 21(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
648(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(7) Additional grant to assist indian tribe members, 
        alaska natives, and native hawaiians.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any applicant in an eligible 
                State that is funded by the Administration as a Small 
                Business Development Center may apply for an additional 
                grant to be used solely to provide services described 
                in subsection (c)(3) to assist with outreach, 
                development, and enhancement of small business startups 
                and expansions that are owned by Indian tribe members, 
                Alaska Natives, or Native Hawaiians and that are 
                located in Alaska or Hawaii, or on Indian lands in the 
                48 contiguous States.
                    ``(B) Eligible states.--For purposes of 
                subparagraph (A), an eligible State is a State that has 
                a combined population of Indian tribe members, Alaska 
                Natives, and Native Hawaiians that comprises at least 1 
                percent of the State's total population, as shown by 
                the latest available census.
                    ``(C) Grant applications.--An applicant for a grant 
                under subparagraph (A) shall submit to the Associate 
                Administrator an application that is in such form as 
                the Associate Administrator may require. The 
                application shall include information regarding the 
                applicant's goals and objectives for the services to be 
                provided using the grant, including--
                            ``(i) the capability of the applicant to 
                        provide training and services to a 
                        representative number of Indian tribe members, 
                        Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians;
                            ``(ii) the location of the Small Business 
                        Development Center site proposed by the 
                        applicant;
                            ``(iii) the required amount of grant 
                        funding needed by the applicant to implement 
                        the program; and
                            ``(iv) the extent to which the applicant 
                        has consulted with the governing bodies of 
                        Indian tribes, corporations organized pursuant 
                        to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act and 
                        other Alaska Native entities, and Native 
                        Hawaiian organizations, as appropriate.
                    ``(D) Applicability of grant requirements.--An 
                applicant for a grant under subparagraph (A) shall 
                comply with all of the requirements of this section, 
                except that the matching funds requirements of 
                paragraph (4)(A) shall not apply.
                    ``(E) Maximum amount of grants.--No applicant may 
                receive more than $300,000 in grants under this 
                paragraph in a fiscal year.
                    ``(F) Regulations.--After providing notice and an 
                opportunity for comment and after consulting with the 
                Association recognized by the Administration pursuant 
                to paragraph (3)(A) (but not later than 180 days after 
                the date of enactment of this paragraph), the 
                Administrator shall issue final regulations to carry 
                out this paragraph, including regulations that 
                establish--
                            ``(i) standards relating to educational, 
                        technical, and support services to be provided 
                        by Small Business Development Centers receiving 
                        assistance under this paragraph; and
                            ``(ii) standards relating to any work plan 
                        that the Associate Administrator may require a 
                        Small Business Development Center receiving 
                        assistance under this paragraph to develop.
                    ``(G) Definitions.--In this paragraph, the 
                following definitions apply:
                            ``(i) Associate administrator.--The term 
                        `Associate Administrator' means the Associate 
                        Administrator for Small Business Development 
                        Centers.
                            ``(ii) Indian lands.--The term `Indian 
                        lands' means, in the 48 contiguous States, land 
                        that is a `reservation' for the purposes of 
                        section 4 of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 
                        1978 (25 U.S.C. 1903) and land that is an 
                        `Indian reservation' for the purposes of 
                        section 151.2 of title 25, Code of Federal 
                        Regulations (as in effect on the date of 
                        enactment of this paragraph).
                            ``(iii) Indian tribe.--The term `Indian 
                        tribe' means a federally recognized Indian 
                        tribe.
                            ``(iv) Indian tribe member.--The term 
                        `Indian tribe member' means an individual who 
                        is a member of an Indian tribe.
                            ``(v) Alaska Native.--The term `Alaska 
                        Native' means an individual who is--
                                    ``(I) a `Native' for the purposes 
                                of section 3(b) of the Alaska Native 
                                Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 
                                1602(b));
                                    ``(II) a descendent of an 
                                individual who is a `Native' for the 
                                purposes of section 3(b) of the Alaska 
                                Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 
                                1602(b)); or
                                    ``(III) a Tsimshian Indian who is 
                                an enrolled member of the Metlakatla 
                                Indian Community.
                            ``(vi) Native hawaiian.--The term `Native 
                        Hawaiian' means any individual who is a 
                        descendant of the aboriginal people, who prior 
                        to 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in 
                        the area that now constitutes the State of 
                        Hawaii.
                    ``(H) Authorization of appropriations.--There is 
                authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
                paragraph $7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 
                through 2004.
                    ``(I) Funding limitations.--
                            ``(i) Nonapplicability of certain 
                        limitations.--Funding under this paragraph 
                        shall be in addition to the dollar program 
                        limitations specified in paragraph (4).
                            ``(ii) Limitation on use of funds.--The 
                        Administration may carry out this paragraph 
                        only with amounts appropriated in advance 
                        specifically to carry out this paragraph.''.

SEC. 4. STATE CONSULTATION WITH LOCAL TRIBAL COUNCILS.

    Section 21(c) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 648(c)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(9) Advice of governing bodies of indian tribes, alaska 
        native corporations and other entities, and native hawaiian 
        organizations.--A State receiving grants under this section 
        shall request the advice of the governing bodies of Indian 
        tribes, corporations organized pursuant to the Alaska Native 
        Claims Settlement Act and other Alaska Native entities, and 
        Native Hawaiian organizations, as appropriate, on how best to 
        provide assistance to Indian tribe members, Alaska Natives, and 
        Native Hawaiians and where to locate satellite centers to 
        provide such assistance.''.

            Passed the House of Representatives December 5, 2001.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.