[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Page 10082]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-4009]


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SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION


Office of International Trade; State Trade and Export Promotion 
(STEP) Grant Program

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

ACTION: Notice of grant opportunity to States.

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    Eligible Applicants: Each of the several States, the District of 
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, 
Guam, and American Samoa.
SUMMARY: The SBA plans to issue Program Announcement No. OIT-STEP-2011-
01 to invite the States, the District of Columbia and the U.S. 
Territories to apply for a STEP grant to carry out export promotion 
programs that assist eligible small business concerns to become 
exporters and increase the value of small business U.S. exports. STEP 
grants will be awarded on a competitive basis. The funding instrument 
is a cooperative agreement. A state may not submit more than 1 
application for a grant under the program. Awards will be made for a 
project period of 12 months from the date of award. A state may apply 
each Federal fiscal year that Congressional appropriations are made 
available throughout the 3-year term of the program.

DATES: Program Announcement No. OIT-STEP-2011-01 will be posted on 
http://www.Grants.gov on March 1, 2011. The application period will be 
March 1, 2011 through April 26, 2011. Awards for the first year of the 
grant program will be issued in the summer of 2011.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 
authorizes the U.S. Small Business Administration to establish a 3-year 
pilot program, known as the State Trade and Export Promotion (STEP) 
Grant Program, to make grants to States to assist eligible small 
business concerns. The objective of the STEP Grant Program is to 
increase the number of small businesses that are exporting, and 
increase the value of exports by small businesses in the States.
    The applicants' proposed activities for small businesses may 
include:
     Participation in a foreign trade mission,
     A foreign market sales trip,
     A subscription to services provided by the Department of 
Commerce,
     The payment of website foreign language translation fees,
     The design of international marketing products or 
campaigns,
     An export trade show exhibit,
     Participation in training workshops,
     Any other export initiative deemed appropriate by SBA's 
Associate Administrator of the Office of International Trade (OIT) that 
does not duplicate the services of other SBA resource partners. These 
other export initiatives may include, but are not limited to, projects 
that increase direct and indirect supply chain exporting; export match-
making events; formation of export outreach teams composed of State, 
local, Federal, etc. personnel; sector-specific projects unique to the 
State's environment/geography/international relationships; projects to 
develop and use technology for exporting; reverse trade missions; and 
projects to increase lender readiness for financing export trade.

    In making grants, SBA may give priority to an application that 
focuses on socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses, 
women-owned small businesses, veteran and service-connected disabled 
veteran-owned small businesses, or rural small businesses as part of an 
export promotion program.
    State recipients are encouraged to work collaboratively with the 
SBA District Offices, SBA regional managers at U.S. Export Assistance 
Centers (USEAC) and SBA resource partners (i.e., Women's Business 
Centers (WBCs), Small Business Trade Development Centers (SBTDC), Small 
Business Development Centers (SBDC), Veterans Business Outreach Centers 
(VBOC) and SCORE) to coordinate their efforts to promote trade and 
avoid duplication. Also, the States are encouraged to fully utilize the 
resources of other Federal, state and local government agencies, 
academic and private-sector programs that aid small businesses in order 
to provide seamless, non-duplicative export promotion assistance.
    SBA expects to issue awards under this Program Announcement 
totaling the full FY 2011 appropriated amount of $30,000,000. 
Individual State project award amounts will vary based on the State's 
proposed project plan and budget. The Federal share of project costs 
for grants to the 10 states with the highest number of exporters that 
are small business concerns will not exceed 40% of the $30 million 
appropriation. The other 60% will be reserved for the remaining States. 
The States with the highest number of small business exporters will be 
determined based on the latest data available from the Department of 
Commerce.
    The Federal share of project cost for a State that has a high 
export volume will be 65%. The Federal share of project cost for a 
State that does not have a high export volume will be 75%. (The 
Associate Administrator for the SBA Office of International Trade will 
determine which States have high export volume). The State must match 
the remainder of project cost. The match must be comprised of not less 
than 50% cash and not more than 50% of indirect costs and in-kind 
contributions. Matching funds may not be derived from any Federal 
program.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: E-mail questions about the STEP Grant 
Program to [email protected].

    Dated: February 17, 2011.
Luz Hopewell,
Acting Associate Administrator, Office of International Trade.
[FR Doc. 2011-4009 Filed 2-22-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025-01-P