[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 50 (Thursday, March 27, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E603]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            H.R. 1460--VETERANS ENTREPRENEURSHIP ACT OF 2003

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. RICK RENZI

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 27, 2003

  Mr. RENZI. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing H.R. 1460, the 
Veterans Entrepreneurship Act of 2003, a bill to help veterans create, 
manage, and grow their own small businesses. I am joined by Mr. Smith 
of New Jersey, Mr. Evans, Mr. Brown of South Carolina, Mr. Manzullo, 
Mr. Beauprez, and Mr. Michaud as original cosponsors. We believe 
Congress should accord veterans a full opportunity to participate in 
the economic system that their military service has helped sustain. 
Veterans indeed represent a unique national resource and we need to 
harness their engaging abilities in our economy.
  First, this measure would allow veterans to use VA education benefits 
to enroll in a non-degree, non-credit business course offered by a 
Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the National Veterans 
Small Business Development Corporation. The Small Business 
Administration helps fund 1,000 SBDCs in the United States; Puerto 
Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa. SBDCs are operated 
in partnership with colleges and universities or governmental entities. 
We have drafted this section so that it would improve access to pre-
entrepreneurship training and skills building for veterans and certain 
others, as well. Disabled veterans, dependent spouses and children of 
certain disabled or deceased veterans, and members of the Guard and 
Reserve, also would be eligible.
  Second, the bill would clarify that disabled veterans enrolled in 
school under a VA vocational rehabilitation program may establish self-
employment in a small business enterprise as a vocational goal. The 
bill recognizes that self-employment is a legitimate rehabilitation 
goal. It intends to discontinue any current VA practices that could 
require a disabled veteran to establish that he or she is unable to be 
employed in another job before being permitted to benefit from the 
essential entrepreneurship services VA's vocational rehabilitation 
program currently furnishes. These services include necessary 
equipment, supplies, and other needs associated with starting a small 
business. We note VA still could establish certain controls, so that 
aspiring disabled veterans would have the best chance of succeeding as 
small business owners. This section of the bill is especially important 
for disabled veterans who desire to start and grow home-based small 
businesses.
  Third, our bill would give federal agency contracting officers the 
discretionary authority to create sole source contracts for disabled 
veteran-owned businesses up to $5 million for manufacturing awards and 
$3 million for non-manufacturing awards. It also would furnish 
contracting officers discretionary authority to restrict certain 
contracts to disabled veteran-owned small businesses if at least two 
such concerns are qualified to bid on the contract. This section of the 
bill is designed simply to create a ``level playing field'' for those 
individuals who have been wounded or injured in defending our freedoms.
  Mr. Speaker, the smaller business sector is our economy's job 
generator. Our former servicemembers indeed are engaging and 
resourceful individuals. Our bill simply gives them additional tools to 
realize the dream of entrepreneurship.

                          ____________________