Sponsors (6)
The bill directs meaningful grant funding and advisory support to help students at MSIs/HBCUs and minority entrepreneurs build businesses and improve oversight, but it creates new federal spending, administrative burdens, potential exclusions from narrow eligibility definitions, and reduced transparency for the advisory board.
Students at Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) and HBCUs will get direct grant funding and wraparound business support (legal, accounting, training, capital access) to help start or grow student-led businesses, backed by a $50 million authorization and $250,000 minimum grants.
Minority-owned small businesses and local entrepreneurs gain a formal channel for expert input and stronger college–community partnerships through a board of experienced startup advisers, which can expand technical assistance, networks, and practical recommendations.
Recipients and the SBA must report regularly, and the SBA must provide annual, institution-level reporting to Congress, improving oversight and transparency of program outcomes for taxpayers and policymakers.
Taxpayers face a net increase in federal spending because the bill authorizes $50 million in program funding without an offset.
Students and groups could be excluded because narrow cross-references to older statutory/regulatory definitions (including reliance on text 'as in effect Nov. 23, 1984') may freeze out groups or institutions recognized later or not covered by those definitions.
Smaller MSIs/HBCUs may be unable to absorb the $250,000 minimum grant size or meet program requirements, effectively excluding the smallest institutions from accessing funds.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Authorizes an SBA grant program ($50M) to fund MSI and HBCU entrepreneurship programs, with $250,000 minimum grants and new reporting and advisory-board requirements.
Official title: To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, in consultation with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development, to establish a grant program to create or expand programs at minority-serving institutions and historically Black colleges and universities that promote minority business ownership and entrepreneurship, and for other purposes.
Introduced June 5, 2025 by Nikema Williams · Last progress June 5, 2025
Creates a new SBA grant program to fund entrepreneurship programs at minority-serving institutions (MSIs) and historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), and establishes an advisory board to develop recommendations to better serve minority entrepreneurs. The bill authorizes $50 million, requires grants of at least $250,000, sets application and reporting requirements for recipients, and directs the SBA to form the Minority Entrepreneurship Advisory Board and deliver recommendations to Congress within 18 months.