[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 99 (Tuesday, July 25, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1529]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCING THE MINORITY ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION PILOT PROGRAM 
                                OF 2006

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 2006

  Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to 
support the Minority Entrepreneurship & Innovation Pilot Program of 
2006, a bill that I am introducing as a companion to S. 2586, sponsored 
by Senator John Kerry. This bill is designed to address our nation's 
growing economic disparities through the promotion of business 
development and entrepreneurship in minority communities.
  Economic indicators show that today, the average income for African 
Americans is just 62 percent that of whites. More than 40 years after 
the last of the Jim Crow laws was repealed by the Civil Rights Act of 
1964, the economic value of blacks is still nearly three-fifths that of 
whites--a statistic that clearly indicates that the vestiges of slavery 
are enduring.
  This race-based ``wealth gap'' is simply unacceptable. And African 
Americans are not the only minority group suffering from this 
disparity. The average incomes of Native Americans and Latinos are 
similarly unbalanced, with those communities earning 65 and 74 percent 
of the income of whites respectively.
  But the news is not all bad. The National Urban League, in its 2006 
``State of Black America Report,'' indicated that there may be a silver 
lining to this cloud. The prevalence of black-owned businesses has been 
on the upswing, revealing a difference of 2.5 to 1 (White Businesses to 
African-American Businesses), as compared with 3 to 1 a few years ago.
  As many of my colleagues know, minority-owned businesses provide real 
opportunity for individuals, families and communities. By supporting 
their growth, we can begin to reverse the increasing ``wealth gap'' for 
good, leading to greater economic independence for minorities. This 
result will multiply itself and in the process lay the foundation for 
closing other socio-economic gaps--gaps that have created an 
environment for persistent economic failure in many of these 
communities.
  That is why I am introducing the Minority Entrepreneurship and 
Innovation Pilot Program of 2006. This legislation would establish a 
$24 million, two-year pilot program to promote small business 
development in colleges and universities that serve African American, 
Native American and Latino communities.
  Through $1 million grants, the institutions would provide students in 
highly-skilled fields such as engineering, manufacturing and science 
with the tools they need to start their own businesses. The bill would 
also allow institutions to establish Small Business Development Centers 
to provide counseling, capacity building and niche market development 
services.
  A great legacy of the American Dream has been the opportunity for 
ordinary citizens to improve their livelihoods by starting their own 
business. The Minority Entrepreneurship and Innovation Pilot Program of 
2006 would give minority communities a chance to share in this 
attainable dream.
  I want to thank the original cosponsors who have joined with me in 
introducing this important bill, Representatives Bennie Thompson, Grace 
Napolitano, Sanford Bishop, Albert Wynn, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, 
Bobby Scott, Major Owens, Benjamin Cardin, Al Green, Gregory Meeks, 
Bobby Rush, Juanita Millender-McDonald, Raul Grijalva, John Conyers, 
G.K. Butterfield, Allen Boyd, Mike Ross, Danny Davis, Stephanie Tubbs 
Jones, Linda Sanchez, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Carolyn Kilpatrick, Joe 
Baca, David Scott, Albert Wynn, Chris Van Hollen, Hilda Solis, Donald 
Payne, Barbara Lee, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, Sam Farr and James 
Clyburn.
  I ask the rest of my colleagues to please join us in helping to 
reverse the ``wealth gap'' by supporting this legislation.

                          ____________________