Veterans
Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999
In August 1999 the US Congress
enacted Public Law 106-50, the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development Act of 1999.
The Act was initially designed
to cushion the impact on small businesses when their owners or essential
employees who are reservists are ordered to active duty during military
conflicts, but was expanded to provide assistance to veterans who are
entrepreneurs and to service-disabled veteran entrepreneurs.
Loans, loan payment deferrals
during time of call-up, technical, and managerial assistance were mandated.
The Act establishes an Office
of Veterans Business Development, administered by an Associate Administrator
for Veterans Business Development within the Small Business Administration.
The Act establishes the
national Veterans Business Development Corporation to expand the provision
of and improve access to technical assistance regarding entrepreneurship for
veterans, and to work with and organize public and private resources and the
business development staffs of each Federal department and agency to assist
veterans and service-disabled veterans with the formation and expansion of
small businesses.
The Act establishes an
Advisory Committee on Veterans Business Affairs to serve as an independent
source of advice and policy recommendations concerning veterans' business
affairs.The Act directs the SBA to
work with the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) to provide a
variety of training and counseling services to veterans, including
assistance with business plans.
SBA
Sources for Veterans
Presently the SBA has
designated four regions to provide entrepreneurial development services such
as business training, counseling and mentoring, business plan workshops,
concept assessments, business plan preparations, comprehensive feasibility
analysis, entrepreneurial training and counseling, mentorship, and training
in international trade, franchising, internet marketing and accounting.
Business plans that were once
rejected are now welcomed.
Check out the SBA
Procurement Veterans Business Development Program. It is available to
Veterans who own and operate their own businesses. It is an online,
interactive, electronic gateway of procurement information that is for and
about small business.
The Veterans'
Pre-qualification Program was created to assist all small businesses
owned and operated by veterans with the small business loan application
process. The program assists with the preparation of the loan
pre-qualification process, and provides an SBA-guaranty commitment letter
upon application approval. It allows for SBA guaranty of up to 80% for loans
less than $100,000 and 75% for loans above $100,000. It presently has a
$250,000 loan maximum.
See how New Jersey has handled
providing SBA enhanced benefits to veterans via SBA
business loans for veterans.
Return
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Veterans
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The four SBA centers focused on veterans affairs are:
Region
II: New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
Veterans
Business Outreach Center
41 State Street
Albany, NY 12246
ph: 877.875.8387
em: veterans@nyssbdc.org
Region
III: Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington DC, West
Virginia
Delaware/Maryland
Contact:
Jayne Armstrong
ph: 302.573.6382
em: jayne.armstrong@sba.gov
Pennsylvania
Contact:
Joseph McDevitt
ph: 215.580.2706
em: joseph.mcdevitt@sba.gov
Virginia
Contact:
Leroy Harris
ph: 804.771.2400, ext. 132
em: leroy.harris@sba.gov
Washington
DC Contact:
Seth Jones
ph: 202.606.4000
em: seth.jones@sba.gov
W. Virginia
Contact:
William Durham
ph: 304.347.5220
em: william.durham@sba.gov
Region
IV: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississpiip, N. Carolina, S.
Carolina, Tennessee
The Veterans
Outreach Center
2500 Minnesota Avenue
Lynn Haven, FL 32444
ph: 800.542.7232
em: vboc@knology.net
Region
VI: Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico
Veterans
Business Outreach Center
1201 W University Drive
Edinburg, TX 78539
ph: 956.292.7535
em: vboc@panam.edu
OTHER
RESOURCES:
Vet
Biz provides city-by-city searches for business training, financing
and development, especially for U.S. Veterans. As of April 2006, the
site is operating very well. I did several test searches, and came
up with a dozen or more responses. It's well worth the effort to try
it out. Information here is totally FREE.
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