S 5286

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IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

August 6, 2026

Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mr. Cassidy) 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 establish the position of Coordinator for Disabled Small Business Concerns within the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights of the Small Business Administration, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Supporting Disabled Entrepreneurs Act”.

SEC. 2. COORDINATOR FOR DISABLED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.

The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended—

(1) by redesignating section 49 (15 U.S.C. 631 note) as section 50; and

(2) by inserting after section 48 (15 U.S.C. 657u) the following:

“SEC. 49. ASSISTANCE FOR DISABLED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.

“(a) Coordinator for Disabled Small Business Concerns.—

“(1) Establishment.—There is established within the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights of the Administration the position of Coordinator for Disabled Small Business Concerns (referred to in this section as the ‘Coordinator’), the occupant of which shall be responsible for the planning, coordination, implementation, evaluation, and improvement of the efforts of the Administrator to enhance support for disabled small business concerns across capital, counseling, and contracting programs.

“(2) Coordinator.—

“(A) Designation.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the Supporting Disabled Entrepreneurs Act, the Administrator shall designate to serve as Coordinator an individual who—

“(i) may be, as of the date of that designation, an employee of the Administration; and

“(ii) has—

“(I) demonstrated experience working with and knowledge of disabled small business concerns; and

“(II) experience providing access to capital, contracting opportunities, or counseling to disabled small business concerns.

“(B) Duties.—The Coordinator shall—

“(i) create and implement strategies and programs that support the activities, development, and growth of disabled small business concerns;

“(ii) facilitate outreach to disabled small business concerns through the entities described in clauses (i) through (iii) of subparagraph (C);

“(iii) develop technical support and training programs for disabled small business concerns that the entities described in clauses

(i) through (iii) of subparagraph (C) may use when conducting the outreach described in clause (ii) of this subparagraph;

“(iv) establish partnerships within the Administration and with relevant Federal agencies to advance the goal of supporting the economic success of disabled small business concerns;

“(v) review the effectiveness and impact of Administration programs for disabled small business concerns;

“(vi) when appropriate, advocate on behalf of disabled small business concerns within the Administration;

“(vii) not less frequently than once every 6 months beginning 1 year after the date of enactment of the Supporting Disabled Entrepreneurs Act, hold public meetings with relevant stakeholders to assess the effectiveness of the strategies and programs of the Administration designed to support disabled small business concerns and any gaps in those programs of the Administration; and

“(viii) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the Supporting Disabled Entrepreneurs Act, submit to Congress a report that describes the major activities of the Coordinator, contains recommendations for congressional action to further support disabled small business concerns, and addresses the potential for growth within the areas in which the Coordinator operates.

“(C) Consultation.—In carrying out the duties under this paragraph, the Coordinator shall consult with—

“(i) district offices of the Administration;

“(ii) regional offices of the Administration;

“(iii) resource partners of the Administration, including small business development centers, women’s business centers described in section 29, chapters of the Service Corps of Retired Executives described in section 8(a)(1)(A), and Veteran Business Outreach Centers described in section 32; and

“(iv) other relevant Federal agencies, including the National Council on Disability, Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Education, the Social Security Administration, the Access Board, and the Minority Business Development Agency.

“(b) Reporting.—To the extent possible, the Administration shall publicly report, including in weekly reports on lending approvals, data on services provided to disabled small business concerns across programs of the Administration.

“(c) Data Collection.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the Supporting Disabled Entrepreneurs Act, the Administrator shall collect data across programs of the Administration regarding the disability status of small business concerns, on a voluntary basis, through program intake forms.”. <all>