July 21, 2004
SBA Announces Funding For Women’s Business Centers
Thirty-four existing Women’s Business
Centers (WBCs) received $5.1 million in
funding from the U.S. Small Business
Administration last week, allowing them to
continue training, counseling, and mentoring
services to women entrepreneurs.
The WBC Program, administered by the SBA’s
Office of Women’s Business Ownership (OWBO),
provides female entrepreneurs with the
resources they need to start and grow a
business. Each site is required to match a
portion of the federal funds with private
contributions, and services are tailored to
the community in which the WBC is located.
Last year, the WBC program served more than
106,612 clients nationwide. The centers are
located in rural, urban and suburban areas
and direct much of their training and
counseling assistance toward economically
disadvantaged women.
The locations of the WBCs receiving the SBA
matching grants are Birmingham, Ala; Pago
Pago, AS; Tucson, Ariz.; Los Angeles,
Calif.; San Bernardino, Calif.; San Diego,
Calif.; Santa Barbara, Calif.; Lenexa, Kan.;
New Orleans, La.; Worcester, Mass.; Grand
Rapids, Mich.; St. Paul, Minn.; Kansas City,
Mo.; Ashville, N.C.; Durham, N.C.; Lyons,
Neb.; Reno, Nev.; Bronx, N.Y.; Brooklyn,
N.Y.; Buffalo, N.Y.; Queens, N.Y.; Utica,
N.Y.; White Plains, N.Y.; Cleveland, Ohio;
Durant, Okla.; Norman, Okla.; Oklahoma City,
Okla.; Lancaster, Pa.; Sioux Falls, S.D.;
Chattanooga, Tenn.; El Paso, Texas;
Springfield, Va.; Richmond, Va.; and
Everett, Wash.
The program also offers an online Women’s
Business Center that can be accessed 24
hours a day at
http://www.onlinewbc.gov/. For more
information on the SBA’s Women’s Business
Center Program or to find the location of
the nearest center, visit
http://www.onlinewbc.gov/.
House to Consider Extending Equipment Deduction
House of Representative Republicans will
debate this week a bill that would extend
for two years the current $100,000 expensing
limit on equipment purchases by small
businesses. If no legislative action is
taken on
H. R. 4840, introduced by Rep. Philip M.
Crane (R-IL) the expensing amount will
revert back to $25,000 – its 2003 level – at
the end of 2005.
The NASE supports permanently increasing the
Section 179 expensing limit for business
equipment to $40,000 and will continue to
work for this permanent change within the
tax code.
For more information on H.R. 4840 visit:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:HR04840:@@@L&summ2=m&
House Small Business Committee Hears Concerns Before Recess
The
House Small Business Committee plans a
busy week of hearings before leaving
Washington, D.C., for the Congressional
summer recess. Hearings planned this week
include:
-
Government Burden on Small Business,
held jointly by the House Small Business
Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform and
Oversight and the House Government
Reform Subcommittee on Energy Policy,
Natural Resources and Regulatory
Affairs, will focus on the
administration's record in relieving the
burdens on small business.
-
Changes
in Small Business Liability Rules,
held by the House Small Business
Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform and
Oversight on revising liability issues
as they apply to small businesses.
-
Tax
Incentives for Expenses Related to
Homeland Security, held by the House
Small Business Subcommittee on Rural
Enterprises, Agriculture and Technology.
For more
information, visit the
House Small Business Committee Web site.
Women Business Certification Teleconference Call
If you have thought about certifying your
enterprise as a “Woman-Owned Business,” but
have questions as to the process, or if the
hassle is really worth it, the next
teleconference call by the
National Women’s Business Council may
help. Titled “Access to Markets: How
Certification Can Help,” the call will
address these concerns and more.
Participating in the discussion will be the
owner of a certified women’s business
enterprise, an executive in charge of a
corporate diversity program, and the
president of the Women's Business Enterprise
National Council, a third-party
certification organization.
The call is Tuesday, July 27, 2004, 3:00 PM
- 4:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time.
Call 1-877-326-2337, enter code
3687613# to join. You can also hear a
playback of the call after Tuesday at
www.nwbc.gov.
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