Small Business Committee Unanimously Adopts Chu Amendment for Women’s Business Centers

Today, the House Small Business Committee approved two bipartisan pieces of legislation that strengthen and improve important Small Business Administration (SBA) programs. H.R. 4783, the Commercializing Small Business Innovation Act of 2016, reauthorizes the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs ahead of their scheduled expiration dates in 2017. H.R. 207, the Small Business Development Centers Improvement Act of 2015, implements reforms to the Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), Women’s Business Centers (WBCs), and SCORE programs, three of the Small Business Administration’s flagship economic development programs.

The Committee also adopted an amendment introduced by Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), a member of the committee, that ensures SBA considers the population density of the area when determining the location of future Women’s Business Centers. Following passage of the amendment and legislation, Rep. Chu released the following statement:

“Women-owned businesses are growing at a faster rate than the national average, yet still only account for about 30% of all U.S. businesses. Women Business Centers (WBC) are proven at helping women entrepreneurs access the unique tools they need to grow, which benefits our entire economy. My amendment, which I’m glad to say was adopted bipartisanly by the House Small Business Committee, will make sure that as many women as possible are able to benefit from the help of these centers by ensuring that the Small Business Administration (SBA) considers population density when determining the location of future WBCs. This will mean more opportunities in heavily populated areas like Los Angeles County, which is home to more women-owned businesses than any other county in the U.S., and it will mean that taxpayers get the most return on their investments.”

The text of H.R. 4783, the Commercializing Small Business Innovation Act of 2016, can be found here. The text of H.R. 207, the Small Business Development Centers Improvement Act of 2015, can be found here.