[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 113 (Tuesday, July 9, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S4298]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2096. Ms. ERNST submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
her to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2025 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the end of subtitle H of title X, add the following:

     SEC. 10__. ACCOUNTABILITY IN WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS 
                   CONTRACTING.

       (a) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
     Administrator of the Small Business Administration.
       (2) Small business concern owned and controlled by women.--
     The term ``small business concern owned and controlled by 
     women'' has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the 
     Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
       (b) Eliminating Self-Certification for Women-Owned Small 
     Businesses.--
       (1) Eliminating self-certification in prime contracting and 
     subcontracting for wosbs.--
       (A) In general.--Each prime contract award and subcontract 
     award that is counted for the purpose of meeting the goals 
     for participation by small business concerns owned and 
     controlled by women in procurement contracts for Federal 
     agencies, as established in section 15(g)(2) of the Small 
     Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(g)(2)), shall be entered into 
     with small business concerns certified by the Administrator 
     or by a national certifying entity approved by the 
     Administrator under section 8(m) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 
     637(m)) to meet the requirements under section 3(n) of such 
     Act (15 U.S.C. 632(n)) to be a small business concern owned 
     and controlled by women.
       (B) Effective date.--Subparagraph (A) shall take effect on 
     October 1 of the second fiscal year beginning after the 
     Administrator promulgates the regulations required under 
     paragraph (3).
       (2) Phased approach to eliminating self-certification for 
     wosbs.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any small 
     business concern that self-certified as a small business 
     concern owned and controlled by women may--
       (A) if the small business concern files a certification 
     application with the Administrator before the end of the 1-
     year period beginning on the date of the final rulemaking by 
     the Administrator in accordance with paragraph (3), maintain 
     such self-certification until the Administrator makes a 
     determination with respect to such certification; and
       (B) if the small business concern does not file a 
     certification application before the end of the 1-year period 
     beginning on the date of the final rulemaking by the 
     Administrator in accordance with paragraph (3), lose, at the 
     end of such 1-year period, any self-certification of the 
     small business concern as a small business concern owned and 
     controlled by women.
       (3) Rulemaking.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     enactment of this section, the Administrator shall promulgate 
     regulations to carry out this subsection.
                                 ______