C-Suite Wednesday – $25 Billion of the $3.5 Trillion Build Better Back Act is Allocated for Small Businesses

September 29, 2021

Delaney Sexton
Contributing Editor

C-Suite Wednesday – $25 Billion of the $3.5 Trillion Build Better Back Act is Allocated for Small Businesses

The $3.5 trillion budget package has had multiple provisions approved by the House Small Business Committee. If passed, the provisions would include $25 billion to support small businesses over the next decade.

Here is how the money would be utilized for small businesses:

• Over the course of ten years, there would be $4.465 billion allocated for a direct 7(a) loan program administered by the SBA
• $2.746 billion would establish a direct lending subprogram through the 504/CDC lending program. CDCs could make loans for small contractors, manufacturers, and businesses in underserved and underrepresented markets.
• $9.5 billion would be directed to the Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program. This money would create a subprogram to supply patient capital to underserved markets and small manufacturers.
• $1.75 billion of the budget would fund an uplift accelerator program and business development academy at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges for underrepresented small businesses seeking to contract with the government.
• $1 billion would form a national network of business incubators.
• $600 million would be dedicated to improving the 7(a) Community Advantage program.
• More than $100 million would be invested in entrepreneurial training initiatives for the formerly incarcerated. This initiative would be through Women Business Centers, Small Business Development Centers, and other entities.
• The provisions include the use of $35 million for the creation of a grant for non-profits that operate entrepreneurship training programs. This specifically assists veteran small business contractors.
• $20 million would enhance the SBA’s Office of Native American Affairs, Office of Rural Affairs, and create an Office of Emerging Markets.

“I am proud that the House Small Business Committee has approved the small business provisions of the Build Back Better Budget. This budget will invest $25 billion in American small businesses in the next 10 years and give them the resources they need to participate in the rebuilding of our nation’s infrastructure,” says Ben Cardin, the chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

Source:
U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Press Release
Small Business Committee Provisions Section Summaries