Shaheen Helps Introduce Legislation to Reauthorize & Improve Women’s Business Center Program

September 15, 2022

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Modest Company and Entrepreneurship, these days joined Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD), Mazie Hirono (D-Hi), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) in introducing the Women’s Business enterprise Centers Enhancement Act of 2022 — laws to reauthorize and increase the U.S. Small Business enterprise Administration’s (SBA) Women’s Company Middle (WBC) Method. 

“Women enterprise entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs are at the coronary heart of ingenuity and economic enhancement throughout the Granite Condition. Making sure ladies have accessibility to sources, help and mentorship is essential to leveling the playing discipline and empowering gals to direct,” mentioned Senator Shaheen. “I’m proud to support introduce this bill to support Women’s Business Facilities, which enable place ladies at the helm of the small business local community.” 

The Women’s Enterprise Middle software is a countrywide network of far more than 140 centers that provide counseling, schooling, networking, workshops, technical aid and mentoring to business people. WBCs guidance business people at all phases of the business improvement system, which include help with writing a business enterprise system, conducting sector research, navigating the federal procurement method and other organization administration and functions techniques. The program performed a key part in the SBA’s guidance of smaller corporations through the pandemic. WBCs served far more than 88,000 consumers in 2021, which is a 36 p.c boost from the 64,000 customers served in 2019. 

The Women’s Company Facilities Advancement Act of 2022 will give the SBA and WBCs the instruments vital to satisfy the requires of a historic boom in new business formation. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, People in america registered 5.4 million new firms in 2021—the greatest full on history and a almost 2 million boost from 2019 when there were being 3.5 million new small business apps. 

The Women’s Business Facilities Enhancement Act of 2022 will maximize federal guidance to WBCs by doubling the utmost yearly grant award to $300,000. The bill also empowers the SBA administrator to provide larger versatility to smaller, much more under-resourced WBCs. Less than the monthly bill, the SBA administrator may waive, in full or in part, the nonfederal match need for one yr dependent on an investigation of the financial circumstances of the grant receiver, the demonstrated capability of the receiver to increase nonfederal funds, and the past functionality of the receiver. The monthly bill also sets the duties of the WBCs and involves the SBA to set up an accreditation method for WBCs. Furthermore, the invoice clarifies the obligations of the SBA’s Office of Women’s Small business Ownership and codifies the office’s mission in statute amid other provisions. 

As a senior member of the Senate Committee on Compact Organization and Entrepreneurship and as a previous modest company proprietor, Senator Shaheen is a intense advocate for New Hampshire’s smaller business enterprise community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Shaheen went to bat for small enterprise proprietors who have been among the most severely impacted by the public well being disaster. She worked to provide compact corporations with the methods they essential to weather conditions and recover from the financial impact of the COVID-19, top negotiations on provisions in the Coronavirus Assist, Reduction and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which established the Paycheck Defense Plan (PPP) and expanded the Economic Damage Disaster Personal loan Method, each of which had been lifelines for firms all through New Hampshire and the region. 

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