II
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 738
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 1, 2007
Ms. Landrieu (for herself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Kerry, and Mr. Coleman) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
A BILL
To amend the Small Business Act to improve the Office of International Trade, and for other purposes.
Short title
This Act may be cited as
the Small Business International Trade
Enhancements Act of 2007
.
Small Business Administration Associate Administrator for International Trade
Establishment
Section
22(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649(a)) is amended by adding at the
end the following: The head of the Office shall be the Associate
Administrator for International Trade, who shall be responsible to the
Administrator.
.
Authority for Additional Associate Administrator
Section 4(b)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 633(b)(1)) is amended—
in the fifth
sentence, by striking five Associate Administrators
and
inserting Associate Administrators
; and
by adding at the
end the following: One of the Associate Administrators shall be the
Associate Administrator for International Trade, who shall be the head of the
Office of International Trade established under section 22.
.
Discharge of Administration International Trade Responsibilities
Section 22 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649) is amended by adding at the end the following:
Discharge of Administration International Trade Responsibilities
The Administrator shall ensure that—
the responsibilities of the Administration regarding international trade are carried out through the Associate Administrator for International Trade;
the Associate Administrator for International Trade has sufficient resources to carry out such responsibilities; and
the Associate Administrator for International Trade has direct supervision and control over the staff of the Office of International Trade, and over any employee of the Administration whose principal duty station is a United States Export Assistance Center or any successor entity.
.
Role of Associate Administrator in carrying out international trade policy
Section 2(b)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631(b)(1)) is amended in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)—
by inserting
the Administrator of
before the Small Business
Administration
; and
by inserting
through the Associate Administrator for International Trade, and
before in cooperation with
.
Technical amendment
Section 22(c)(5) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649(c)(5)) is amended by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon.
Effective date
Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall appoint an Associate Administrator for International Trade under section 22 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649), as amended by this section.
Office of International Trade
Section 22 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 649) is amended—
by striking
SEC. 22.
(a) There
and inserting the following:
Office of International Trade
Establishment
There
;
in subsection
(a), by inserting (referred to in this section as the
after Office
),Trade
;
in subsection (b)—
by striking
The Office
and inserting the following:
Trade distribution network
The Office, including United States Export
Assistance Centers (referred to as one-stop shops
in section
2301(b)(8) of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C.
4721(b)(8)) and as export centers
in this
section)
; and
by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
assist in maintaining a distribution network using regional and local offices of the Administration, the small business development center network, the women's business center network, and export centers for—
trade promotion;
trade finance;
trade adjustment;
trade remedy assistance; and
trade data collection.
;
in subsection (c)—
by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (8) as paragraphs (2) through (9), respectively;
by inserting before paragraph (2), as so redesignated, the following:
establish annual goals for the Office relating to—
enhancing the exporting capability of small business concerns and small manufacturers;
facilitating technology transfers;
enhancing programs and services to assist small business concerns and small manufacturers to compete effectively and efficiently against foreign entities;
increasing the access to capital by small business concerns;
disseminating information concerning Federal, State, and private programs and initiatives; and
ensuring that the interests of small business concerns are adequately represented in trade negotiations;
;
in paragraph (2),
as so redesignated, by striking mechanism for
and all that
follows through (D)
and inserting the
following:
mechanism for—
identifying subsectors of the small business community with strong export potential;
identifying areas of demand in foreign markets;
prescreening foreign buyers for commercial and credit purposes; and
; and
in paragraph (9), as so redesignated—
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A)—
by striking
full-time export development specialists to each Administration regional
office and assigning
; and
by striking
office. Such specialists
and inserting office and
providing each Administration regional office with a full-time export
development specialist, who
;
in
subparagraph (D), by striking and
at the end;
in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and
by adding at the end the following:
participate jointly with employees of the Office in an annual training program that focuses on current small business needs for exporting; and
jointly develop and conduct training programs for exporters and lenders in cooperation with the United States Export Assistance Centers, the Department of Commerce, small business development centers, and other relevant Federal agencies.
;
in subsection (d)—
by inserting
Export financing
programs.—
after (d)
;
by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (5) as clauses (i) through (v), respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly;
by striking
The Office shall work in cooperation
and inserting the
following:
In general
The Office shall work in cooperation
; and
by striking
To accomplish this goal, the Office shall work
and inserting the
following:
Trade financial specialist
To accomplish the goal established under paragraph (1), the Office shall—
designate at least 1 individual within the Administration as a trade financial specialist to oversee international loan programs and assist Administration employees with trade finance issues; and
work
;
in subsection
(e), by inserting Trade
remedies.—
after (e)
;
by amending subsection (f) to read as follows:
Reporting requirement
The Office shall submit an annual report to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives that contains—
a description of the progress of the Office in implementing the requirements of this section;
the destinations of travel by Office staff and benefits to the Administration and to small business concerns therefrom; and
a description of the participation by the Office in trade negotiations.
;
in subsection
(g), by inserting Studies.—
after (g)
;
and
by adding at the end the following:
Export assistance centers
In general
During the period beginning on October 1, 2006, and ending on September 30, 2009, the Administrator shall ensure that the number of full-time equivalent employees of the Office assigned to the one-stop shops referred to in section 2301(b) of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4721 (b)) is not less than the number of such employees so assigned on January 1, 2003.
Priority of placement
Priority shall be given, to the maximum extent practicable, to placing employees of the Administration at any Export Assistance Center that—
had an Administration employee assigned to such Center before January 2003; and
has not had an Administration employee assigned to such Center during the period beginning January 2003, and ending on the date of enactment of this subsection, either through retirement or reassignment.
Needs of exporters
The Administrator shall, to the maximum extent practicable, strategically assign Administration employees to Export Assistance Centers, based on the needs of exporters.
Goals
The Office shall work with the Department of Commerce and the Export-Import Bank to establish shared annual goals for the Export Centers.
Oversight
The Office shall designate an individual within the Administration to oversee all activities conducted by Administration employees assigned to Export Centers.
.
International trade loans
In general
Section 7(a)(3)(B) of
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(3)(B)) is amended by striking
$1,750,000, of which not more than $1,250,000
and inserting
$2,750,000 (or if the gross loan amount would exceed $3,670,000), of
which not more than $2,000,000
.
Working capital
Section 7(a)(16)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(16)(A)) is amended—
in the matter
preceding clause (i), by striking in—
and inserting
—
;
in clause (i)—
by inserting
in
after (i)
; and
by striking
or
at the end;
in clause (ii)—
by inserting
in
after (ii)
; and
by striking the
period and inserting ; or
; and
by adding at the end the following:
by providing working capital.
.
Collateral
Section 7(a)(16)(B) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(16)(B)) is amended—
by striking
Each loan
and inserting the following:
In general
Except as provided in clause (ii), each loan
; and
by adding at the end the following:
Exception
A loan under this paragraph may be secured by a second lien position on the property or equipment financed by the loan or on other assets of the small business concern, if the Administrator determines such lien provides adequate assurance of the payment of such loan.
.
Refinancing
Section
7(a)(16)(A)(ii) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(16)(A)(ii)), as
amended by this section, is amended by inserting , including any debt
that qualifies for refinancing under any other provision of this
subsection
before the semicolon.