Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7396 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7396

  To establish an Office of Native American Affairs within the Small
            Business Administration, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 5, 2026

 Ms. Davids of Kansas (for herself, Mr. Ellzey, Ms. Morrison, and Mr.
    Crane) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
                      Committee on Small Business

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

  To establish an Office of Native American Affairs within the Small
            Business Administration, 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 ``Native American Entrepreneurial
Opportunity Act''.

SEC. 2. OFFICE OF NATIVE AMERICAN AFFAIRS.

    The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 49 (15 U.S.C. 631 note) as
        section 50; and
            (2) by inserting after section 48 (15 U.S.C. 657u) the
        following:

``SEC. 49. OFFICE OF NATIVE AMERICAN AFFAIRS.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Assistant administrator.--The term `Assistant
        Administrator' means the Assistant Administrator for Native
        American Affairs appointed under subsection (c).
            ``(2) Indian tribe.--The term `Indian Tribe' has the
        meaning given the term `Indian tribe' in section 8(a)(13).
            ``(3) Native hawaiian organization.--The term `Native
        Hawaiian Organization' has the meaning given the term in
        section 8(a)(15).
            ``(4) Office.--The term `Office' means the Office of Native
        American Affairs described in this section.
    ``(b) Establishment.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is established within the
        Administration the Office of Native American Affairs, which
        shall be responsible for establishing a working relationship
        with Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian Organizations by
        targeting programs of the Administration relating to
        entrepreneurial development, contracting, and capital access
        to--
                    ``(A) establish or expand small business concerns
                owned and controlled by individuals who are members of
                Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian Organizations; and
                    ``(B) promote economic development in Indian
                country (as defined in section 1151 of title 18, United
                States Code).
            ``(2) Connection with other programs.--To the extent
        reasonable, the Office shall educate Indian Tribes and Native
        Hawaiian Organizations about programs administered by other
        Federal agencies related to the interests described in
        paragraph (1).
    ``(c) Assistant Administrator.--The Office shall be headed by an
Assistant Administrator for Native American Affairs, who shall--
            ``(1) be appointed by and report to the Administrator;
            ``(2) have knowledge of Native American cultures and
        experience providing culturally tailored small business
        development assistance to Native Americans;
            ``(3) provide assistance to Indian Tribes and Native
        Hawaiian Organizations and small business concerns owned and
        controlled by individuals who are members of Indian Tribes or
        Native Hawaiian Organizations;
            ``(4) formulate policies, and promote policies and existing
        programs, to better address the entrepreneurial, capital
        access, business development, and contracting needs of persons
        described in paragraph (3);
            ``(5) collaborate with Associate Administrators within the
        Administration and officials of other Federal agencies to
        develop policies and plans to implement programs of the
        Administration to holistically address the needs described in
        paragraph (4);
            ``(6) provide assistance, including grants, contracts,
        cooperative agreements, or other financial assistance, to
        Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian Organizations, or to private
        nonprofit organizations governed by members of Indian Tribes or
        Native Hawaiian Organizations that have the experience and
        capability to use the assistance to--
                    ``(A) deploy training, counseling, workshops,
                educational outreach, and supplier events; and
                    ``(B) access the entrepreneurial, capital, and
                contracting programs of the Administration;
            ``(7) assist the Administrator in conducting, or conduct,
        Tribal consultation to solicit input and facilitate discussion
        of potential modifications to programs and procedures of the
        Administration; and
            ``(8) recommend annual budgets for the Office.
    ``(d) Report to Congress.--On an annual basis until the termination
date, the Assistant Administrator shall submit to Congress a report on
the effectiveness of the Office of Native American Affairs that
includes the number of clients served in Tribal communities, the number
of consultations conducted, and the number of trainings held in Tribal
country.
    ``(e) Termination.--The authority under this section shall
terminate 7 years after the date of the enactment of this section.''.
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