Connecting Small Businesses with Career and Technical Education Graduates Act
Summary
SB 1048, the Connecting Small Businesses with Career and Technical Education Graduates Act, would amend the Small Business Act to formally incorporate career and technical education (CTE) into the mission and activities of Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) and Women’s Business Centers (WBCs). The bill adds a definition of “career and technical education” by cross-referencing the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006, ensuring the term is used consistently with existing federal education law.
The bill directs SBDCs and WBCs to provide assistance in two related areas: helping small business concerns hire graduates of CTE programs, and helping CTE graduates start their own small businesses. In practical terms, it expands the list of authorized counseling and training topics for these federally supported business assistance networks, tying workforce development more closely to entrepreneurship and small business hiring needs.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would amend sections 3, 21, and 29 of the Small Business Act, adding CTE-related activities to the statutory duties of SBDCs and WBCs. It would not create a new grant program or mandate direct hiring, but it would broaden the scope of federally supported small business assistance services to include recruitment of CTE graduates and entrepreneurship support for those graduates. The affected parties would be small business development centers, women’s business centers, small businesses seeking skilled workers, and graduates of career and technical education programs.
Sentiment
There is limited recorded legislative sentiment in the available materials because the bill was only introduced, read twice, and referred to committee, with no committee transcript or vote history provided. The sponsorship by Senators Marshall and Coons suggests bipartisan interest in linking workforce training with small business development. Overall, the bill appears policy-oriented and constructive, with a focus on workforce pipelines and entrepreneurship rather than controversy.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the available record. Potential areas of debate, if the bill advances, could include whether SBDCs and WBCs should take on additional responsibilities, whether the new language duplicates existing workforce or small business programs, and whether the federal government should emphasize CTE graduates in small business hiring and startup assistance. At this stage, however, no member objections, amendments, or opposing arguments are recorded.