[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4614 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4614

 To establish a program so that business concerns owned and controlled 
  by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals may achieve 
     proficiency to compete, on an equal basis, for contracts and 
 subcontracts in Department of Transportation projects, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 13, 2023

   Mr. Gomez (for himself, Mr. Aguilar, Ms. Titus, and Ms. Barragan) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                   Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish a program so that business concerns owned and controlled 
  by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals may achieve 
     proficiency to compete, on an equal basis, for contracts and 
 subcontracts in Department of Transportation projects, 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 ``Accelerating Small Business Growth 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ACCELERATING BUSINESS GROWTH PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Transportation shall establish 
a competitive grant program to provide financial assistance to eligible 
entities to establish and carry out innovative programs so that 
business concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically 
disadvantaged individuals may achieve proficiency to compete, on an 
equal basis, for contracts and subcontracts in projects carried out 
with financial assistance from the Secretary.
    (b) Eligible Entities.--An entity eligible to receive financial 
assistance under this section is--
            (1) a State or territory of the United States;
            (2) a political subdivision of a State or local government;
            (3) a Tribal government;
            (4) a special purpose district or public authority with a 
        transit or aviation function;
            (5) a port authority;
            (6) a metropolitan planning organization; or
            (7) a group of entities described in paragraphs (1) through 
        (6).
    (c) Applications.--To be eligible to participate in the program 
under this section, an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary an 
application at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Secretary may require.
    (d) Partnerships.--In carrying out activities with a grant under 
this section, an eligible entity may partner with--
            (1) 1 or more nonprofit organizations; or
            (2) 1 or more institutions of higher education.
    (e) Required Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after an eligible 
        entity is awarded a grant under this section, the eligible 
        entity shall submit to the Secretary a report that includes--
                    (A) a description of the activities carried out 
                with the grant; and
                    (B) an evaluation of the effectiveness of those 
                activities in meeting the objectives described in 
                subsection (b).
            (2) Public availability.--Each report submitted under 
        paragraph (1) shall be made available on a public internet 
        website managed by the Secretary.
    (f) Report to Congress.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 
report that evaluates the program under this section.
    (g) Definition of Socially and Economically Disadvantaged 
Individuals.--The term ``socially and economically disadvantaged 
individuals'' has the meaning given the term in section 11101(e)(2) of 
the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (23 U.S.C. 101 note; Public 
Law 117-58).
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2024 through 2026.
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