The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

June 8, 2021 – June 6, 2024 R46816

The Minority Business Development Agency:
June 6, 2024
An Overview of Its History and Programs
Adam G. Levin
The Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is the lead
Analyst in Economic
federal agency dedicated to assisting minority business enterprises (MBEs) in overcoming social
Development Policy
and economic disadvantages that have limited their participation in the nation’s free enterprise

system. MBDA’s mission is to support the growth and global competitiveness of the minority
business community. Through a network of local business development centers and other

initiatives, MBDA carries out this mission by providing technical and business assistance,
support, and resources, as well as advocacy and research on behalf of MBEs.
MBDA’s role and its services have shifted over time to address new and emerging challenges and opportunities. The agency
was originally established as the Office of Minority Business Enterprise (OMBE) by Executive Order 11458, signed by
President Richard Nixon in 1969. In 1979, the Carter Administration reorganized and renamed the OMBE as the Minority
Business Development Agency (MBDA). The Carter Administration also refocused the agency’s efforts on helping
businesses of all sizes develop into medium and large-scale businesses, particularly in growth industries. The Reagan
Administration established the Minority Business Development Center program, which became MBDA’s primary method for
delivering technical and management services to minority businesses. The George H.W. Bush Administration proposed
eliminating the agency and transferring its mission to the Small Business Administration (SBA), but ultimately continued the
agency as an entity within the Department of Commerce. Successive Administrations have changed the agency’s focus and
reorganized the delivery of its assistance and services.
The agency was provided statutory authorization by the Minority Business Development Act of 2021 (Division K of the
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, P.L. 117-58), enacted on November 15, 2021. In August 2022, the Senate confirmed
the first Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development.
After fluctuating amounts of funding in its early years, MBDA received annual appropriations of almost $60 million in the
early 1980s. Its funding then generally declined, including a 27% reduction in annual appropriation between FY1995 and
FY1996. By the late 1990s, MBDA’s annual appropriations had fallen below $30 million, where it largely remained for more
than a decade. Since FY2013, MBDA’s funding has more than doubled to a high of $73 million in FY2021 before dropping
to $55 million in FY2022. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42) funded MBDA at $68.25 million. In
FY2020 and FY2021, Congress provided supplemental appropriations to MBDA to assist MBEs in preventing, preparing for,
and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today, the agency’s activities are designed to expand access to capital, markets, and contracts through public and private
sector programs, policy, and research. MBDA clients historically included MBEs that are not less than 51% owned by one or
more socially or economically disadvantaged individuals; and the management and daily business operations of which are
controlled by one or more socially or economically disadvantaged individuals. However, in a March 2024 decision, Nuziard
et al. v. Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) et al., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
found MBDA’s presumption of social disadvantage for certain program applicants to be unconstitutional and ordered the
agency to discontinue using race or ethnicity as criteria for receiving MBDA Business Center services nationwide. The
agency’s response to the court order indicated it will continue to assist businesses owned by socially or economically
disadvantaged individuals, but exclude race or ethnicity as criteria for receiving services.
Technical and managerial assistance and other services are principally provided to businesses through a network of Business
Centers, Specialty Centers, and other projects. MBDA also coordinates with other federal agencies, nongovernmental
organizations, and private firms to expand contracting and export opportunities for businesses. In recent years, MBDA has
increased the number of access to capital initiatives and expanded its entrepreneurship education programs in partnership
with historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), minority-serving institutions (MSIs), and other institutions. In
legislation authorizing the agency in statute in FY2022, Congress directed MBDA to also establish the Rural Business Center
program and regional MBDA offices and to further develop its research and data clearinghouse roles.
Current issues of congressional interest include the agency’s response to the March 2024 court ruling; its implementation of
new programs to reach MBEs, individuals, and communities; the agency’s funding; and the integration of existing activities.
MBDA may seek to hire additional staff or otherwise increase its capacity to reestablish regional offices, administer existing
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The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

and new programs, and activate additional roles, such as coordination among federal agencies and the development of new
areas of technical assistance and research activities. Congress may be interested in the integration of MBDA activities with
other agencies, such as the Small Business Administration. Congress may also be interested in options for MBDA to take on
new or expanded roles, services, and partnerships, or in reviewing additional coordination opportunities between MBDA and
other federal agencies.
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Contacts
Author Information ........................................................................................................................ 40

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The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

Introduction
The Department of Commerce’s (DOC’s) Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) is
the lead federal agency dedicated to supporting growth and global competitiveness of the
minority business community.1 Numerous congressional hearings, undergirded by historical and
current academic research, have tried to document the extent to which members of minority
groups confront disparities and disadvantages in creating new businesses, expanding markets, and
finding opportunities for their business enterprises.2 Barriers include difficulty in accessing
capital, a lack of capacity or expertise, and exclusion from business networks. Given these
challenges, Congress and many successive presidential Administrations since the Nixon
Administration have supported national policies intended to address these disparities through
MBDA.
MBDA’s primary mission is to assist minority businesses in achieving entrepreneurial
participation and parity in the nation’s free enterprise system and to overcome social and
economic disadvantages that have limited their participation. To these ends, MBDA is charged
with formulating and coordinating federal policies and programs to support minority business
enterprises (MBEs) by providing technical and managerial expertise and resources through a
network of local business development centers. This report includes
• a discussion of the agency’s origins and authority;
• a summary of the agency’s funding history, including Administration requests
and final appropriations;
• a review of the agency’s recent programs, initiatives, performance, and
accomplishments; and
• a review of current issues and considerations.
For over 50 years, Congress approved legislation to fund MBDA without providing the agency
statutory authorization. For example, in FY2021, MBDA received $48 million in annual
appropriations and an additional $25 million in supplemental appropriations to assist MBEs
adversely affected by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.3 The Minority
Business Development Act of 2021 (MBD Act of 2021; Division K of the Infrastructure
Investment and Jobs Act, P.L. 117-58) statutorily authorized the agency, codified selected existing
programs, and added new programs and roles.4 In August 2022, Donald R. Cravins Jr. was
confirmed by the Senate as the first Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business

1 15 C.F.R. §1400.2 “Determination of Group Eligibility for MBDA Assistance, Definitions” defines Minority
Business Enterprise as a business that is owned or controlled by one or more socially or economically disadvantaged
persons. Socially disadvantaged persons means those persons who have been subjected to cultural, racial, or ethnic
prejudice because of their identity as members of a group without regard to their individual qualities. Economically
disadvantaged persons means those persons whose ability to compete in the free enterprise system has been impaired
due to diminished capital and credit opportunities because of their identity as members of a group without regard to
their individual qualities, as compared to others in the same line of business and competitive market area. Person means
a citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
2 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Small Business, Subcommittee on General Oversight and Minority Enterprise,
Establishment of a Minority Business Development Administration in the Department of Commerce, 96th Congress, 2nd
sess., June 9, 1980, and June 16, 1980 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1980); MBDA, “Demographic Trends Publications,”
https://www.mbda.gov/page/demographic-trends-publications; and Robert W. Fairlie and Alicia M. Robb, Race and
Entrepreneurial Success: Black-, Asian-, and White-Owned Businesses in the United States (Cambridge, MA: The MIT
Press, 2010).
3 P.L. 116-260. MBDA also received $10 million in supplemental appropriations in FY2020. See P.L. 116-136.
4 P.L. 117-58, 135 Stat. 429, November 15, 2021.
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Development.5 In January 2024, Under Secretary Cravins stepped down and MBDA reported that
Eric Morrissette will temporarily lead the agency.6
Federal District Court Ruling on MBDA Business Center Program
In March 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas found in Nuziard et al. v. Minority
Business Development Agency (MBDA) et al. that MBDA’s presumption of social disadvantage for certain program
applicants was unconstitutional, and ordered the agency to discontinue using race or ethnicity as criteria for
receiving MBDA Business Center services nationwide.7
MBDA's Business Center program offers technical assistance to minority business enterprises (MBEs) that have
“socially or economically disadvantaged" owners. MBDA’s authorizing statute, the MBD Act of 2021, states that
the Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development may presume that “socially or economically
disadvantaged individual” includes any individual who is:
•
Black or African American;
•
Hispanic or Latino;
•
American Indian or Alaska Native;
•
Asian;
•
Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; or
•
A member of a group that MBDA determines under Title 15, Part 1400 of the Code of Federal Regulations, is
a socially disadvantaged group eligible to receive assistance.8
The MBD Act of 2021 also defined a “socially or economical y disadvantaged individual” as someone who:
•
Has been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice or cultural bias because of the identity of the individual as a
member of a group, without regard to any individual quality of the individual that is unrelated to that identity;
or
•
Has had his or her ability to compete in the free enterprise system impaired due to diminished capital and
credit opportunities, as compared to others in the same line of business and competitive market area because
of the identity of the individual as a member of a group, without regard to any individual quality of the
individual that is unrelated to that identity.9
In October 2023, fol owing a preliminary injunction against the Wisconsin, Orlando, and Dallas-Fort Worth
MBDA Business Centers, MBDA issued guidance stating that while the MBD Act of 2021 designated certain racial
groups as presumptively socially and economically disadvantaged, “An individual does not need to identify as a
member of one of these groups to be a socially or economically disadvantaged individual eligible to receive
Business Center services under the” MBD Act of 2021. Rather, an individual can claim to be socially or
economically disadvantaged if “their membership in a group has resulted in their subjection to racial or ethnic
prejudice or cultural bias or impaired their ability to compete in the free enterprise system.”10
According to news reports, MBDA has continued to offer Business Center services since the March 2024 ruling.11
In April 2024, MBDA issued guidance to its staff that “Business Centers MUST NOT apply” the statutory

5 Congress.gov, “Nomination: Donald R Cravins—Department of Commerce,” PN2062, https://www.congress.gov/
nomination/117th-congress/2062?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22cravins%22%7D.
6 MBDA, “Minority Business Development Agency Announces Departure of Donald R. Cravins, Jr., as First-Ever
Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development,” https://www.mbda.gov/minority-business-
development-agency-announces-departure-donald-r-cravins-jr-first-ever-under.
7 Jeffrey Nuziard et al. v. Minority Business Development Agency et al., (United States District Court for the Northern
District of Texas, Fort Worth Division 2024).
8 15 U.S.C. §9501(15)(B).
9 15 U.S.C. §9501(15)(A).
10 Donald R. Cravins, Under Secretary for Minority Business Development, Guidance to MBDA Business Center
Operators, MBDA, October 23, 2023, https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/2023-10/
MBDA%20Guidance%20Memo.pdf.
11 Julian Mark, “To comply with court, federal agency lets White people claim social disadvantage,” The Washington
Post, April 3, 2024.
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presumptions of social and economic disadvantage established in the MBD Act of 2021 (emphasis original).12 The
guidance went on to state that “All promotion or outreach conducted by a Business Center should make clear
that Business Center services are available for individuals of any race or ethnicity who qualify as socially or
economically disadvantaged.”13 MBDA also updated its Business Center client engagement form to note that “An
individual of any race or ethnicity may meet the definition of socially or economically disadvantaged under the”
MBD Act of 2021.14 The form requires the applicant to self-certify that they meet the definition of socially or
economically disadvantaged.

As of May 2024, MBDA’s website states, “Our clients are mostly U.S. minority business enterprises (MBEs) as
defined in the” MBD Act of 2021.15 As a result, this report continues to use the term “MBE.”
MBDA Origins and Authority
MBDA was originally established as the Office of Minority Business Enterprise (OMBE) by
President Richard Nixon with the signing of Executive Order (E.O.) 11458 on March 5, 1969.16
During the 1968 presidential campaign, then-Republican candidate Nixon embraced the idea of
“Black Capitalism,” which promoted increasing minority participation as owners and managers in
the U.S. economy as a means of not only promoting economic advancement and parity, but
political power as well.17 Eager to demonstrate his commitment to these goals and pressed by
civil rights advocates to fulfill his campaign promise, President Nixon chose to bypass Congress
and the legislative process, opting to establish a Cabinet-level committee on minority enterprise.18
Within the first 100 days of his administration, President Nixon had established the OMBE as a
policy prescription for issues of racial inequality and social injustice.
The OMBE’s mission, as outlined in E.O. 11458, was threefold:
• encourage the coordination of the plans, operations, and programs of the federal
government in ways that strengthen participation of minority businesses in the
activities of federal agencies;
• promote the deployment of the resources of state and local governments,
businesses, trade associations, and other nongovernmental entities in support of
minority businesses; and
• establish a clearinghouse to identify and disseminate information to support the
successful operation of MBEs.

12 Eric Morrissette, Acting Under Secretary for Minority Business Development, Guidance to Minority Business
Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center Operators, MBDA, March 20, 2024, https://mbda.gov/sites/default/
files/2024-03/MBDA%20Guidance%20Memo%20on%20Eligibility_03%2020%202024_No%20CEF.pdf.
13 Ibid
14 MBDA, MBDA Business Center Client Engagement Form, https://www.mbda.gov/files/mbda-business-center-client-
engagement-form.
15 MBDA, Who We Are, https://www.mbda.gov/who-we-are/overview.
16 Executive Order 11458, “Prescribing Arrangements for Developing and Coordinating a National Program for
Minority Business Enterprise,” 34 Federal Register 4937, March 5, 1969.
17 Dean Kotlowski, “Black Power-Nixon Style: The Nixon Administration and Minority Business Enterprise,” The
Business History Review, vol. 72, no. 3 (Autumn 1998), p. 411.
18 Members of the committee included Secretary of Commerce Maurice Stans, Secretary of Health, Education, and
Welfare Robert H. Finch, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development George Romney, Secretary of Agriculture
Clifford Hardin, and Secretary of Transportation John Volpe. See Dean Kotlowski, “Black Power-Nixon Style: The
Nixon Administration and Minority Business Enterprise,” The Business History Review, vol. 72, no. 3 (Autumn 1998),
p. 420.
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E.O. 11458 also established an Advisory Council on Minority Enterprise (ACME), charging it
with advising and supporting the Secretary of Commerce on matters affecting the success of
minority businesses, including recommendations for further actions. During its first two years, the
ACME played a significant role in shaping the OMBE’s agenda. The ACME also helped develop
efforts to increase minority participation in franchises.19
Stymied by organizational difficulties, including a lack of cooperation from other Cabinet-level
departments, an inexperienced staff, and the absence of a dedicated budget, the OMBE struggled
during its first years of operation. It was also said to be handicapped in pursuing its mission by
the Commerce Secretary’s decision “not to become involved in individual cases or with programs
at the operational level and not to seek to encroach upon existing programs functions of other
federal agencies.”
E.O. 11625—Expanding Agency Role
To address concerns raised during the OMBE’s initial two years of operations, President Nixon,
on October 13, 1971, signed E.O. 11625, Prescribing Additional Arrangements for Developing
and Coordinating a National Program for Minority Business Enterprise.20 The new E.O. was
intended to clarify and strengthen OMBE’s role. In remarks made at the time the new E.O. was
issued, President Nixon noted the following:
This order gives the Secretary a clear mandate to establish and carry out Federal policy
concerning minority enterprise and to coordinate the related efforts of all Federal
departments and agencies. It also directs the departments and agencies to develop
systematic data collection processes concerning their minority enterprise programs and to
cooperate in expanding the overall Federal effort.21
In addition to reinforcing the original E.O.’s objectives, the new E.O. called for the OMBE to
create a network of minority business centers. These centers would be charged with providing
managerial and technical assistance to minority businesses and conducting special projects,
including the provision of direct financial assistance to minority businesses. This development
marked an evolution in the agency’s role from an advisory one undertaken principally through the
ACME to an active one, supporting the development of minority business enterprises using
public-private partnerships.

19 In 1969, eager to demonstrate results, the OMBE co-sponsored with the Small Business Administration (SBA) what
was dubbed the 25 x 25 x 2 program, which was one of two federal programs focused on increasing minority
participation in the franchise industry. The plan involved the OMBE, during eight separate rounds, recruiting 25
national franchisors who each would commit to awarding 25 franchises to minority owners each year for a two-year
period. See U.S. Congress, Senate Select Committee on Small Business, The Economic Effects of Franchising,
committee print, prepared for the Small Business Administration by Urban B. Ozanne, D.B.A. and Shelby D. Hunt. Ph.
D, Graduate School of Business, the University of Wisconsin, 92nd Cong., 1st sess., September 8, 1971, committee print
(Washington, DC: GPO, 1971), pp. 51-55 and pp. 187-198. Two years later, the franchising initiatives and SBA’s
commitment to minority business development were criticized in a 1971 committee print released by the Senate Select
Committee on Small Business. In addition, the OMBE initiated efforts to increase capital assets in minority-controlled
banking institutions to be made available to minority businesses.
20 Executive Order 11625, “Prescribing Additional Arrangements for Developing and Coordinating a National Program
for Minority Business Enterprise,” 36 Federal Register 19967-19970, October 13, 1971.
21 U.S. President (Nixon), “Special Message to the Congress Urging Expansion of the Minority Business Enterprise
Program,” Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Richard Nixon 1971, vol. 332 (Washington, DC: GPO,
1972), pp. 1041-1046.
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Agency Reorganization
During the Carter Administration, Congress considered, but did not pass, enabling legislation
authorizing the agency and its mission.22 In 1979, the Carter Administration reorganized and
renamed the OMBE as the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). The reorganization
was, in part, a response to reports that characterized the agency’s efforts to support MBEs as
fragmented, heavily focused on small businesses, and favoring the number of firms assisted rather
than the quality of assistance provided. The Carter Administration’s efforts were intended to
refocus the agency on assisting “minority businesses develop into medium- and large-size firms
in growth industries that produced jobs, stabilized communities, and improved the overall
economy.”23
See “Additional Agency History” in Appendix A for information about MBDA’s history since the
Carter Administration. See “Legislative Proposals, 96th Congress-117th Congress” in Appendix C
for a summary of bills related to MBDA and its activities.
Agency Establishment
Congress considered proposals to codify MBDA for decades (see Appendix C) prior to the
enactment of the MBD Act of 2021. MBDA’s powers and duties are now to be set in accordance
with the statute “and without regard to Executive Order 11625 (36 Federal Register 19967;
relating to prescribing additional arrangements for developing and coordinating a national
program for minority business enterprise).”24
The MBD Act of 2021 also established within the agency an Office of Business Centers, an
Office on Minority Business Development Grants, and regional MBDA offices.25 The act directs
the agency to submit a report to Congress by March 15, 2022, that describes
• the agency’s organizational structure;
• the agency’s organizational position within DOC; and
• how the agency will function in relation to the operations carried out by other
DOC components.26
MBDA is also required to submit two reports to Congress by November 15, 2022. The first report
must include a summary of its efforts to serve MBEs in states without a Business Center, and
recommendations for extending outreach to underserved areas. The second report must address
the ways that MBEs can address gaps in the supply chain.27 The act directs MBDA and the DOC
Office of Inspector General to submit reports on MBDA’s grants to nonprofit organizations.28 In
addition to biennial reports, the act further directs MBDA to submit reports on its
entrepreneurship education activities and a study on alternative financing solutions.29 The

22 For a summary of legislative activities related to the establishment of a Minority Business Development
Administration in the 96th Congress, 2nd sess., see H.Rept. 96-1542, pp. 129-138.
23 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Small Business, Subcommittee on General Oversight and Minority Enterprise,
Establishment of a Minority Business Development Administration in the Department of Commerce, 96th Congress, 2nd
sess., June 9, 1980, and June 16, 1980 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1980), pp. 2-3.
24 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title VII, Sec. 100707.
25 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100003, Sec. 100001, and Sec. 100401.
26 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100003.
27 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100303 and Sec. 100304.
28 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100401.
29 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100705, Sec. 100203, and Sec. 100202.
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Comptroller General of the United States is required to report to Congress on the agency’s
programs by no later than November 15, 2025.30
The MBD Act of 2021 authorized to be appropriated $110 million for MBDA for each fiscal year,
FY2021 through FY2025. The act directed MBDA to allocate the majority of annual
appropriations, if approved, to the Business Center program, and to reserve $20 million each
fiscal year for the Rural Business Center program.31 MBDA received $73 million in
appropriations for FY2021, $55 million in appropriations for FY2022, $70 million in
appropriations for FY2023, and $68.25 million in appropriations for FY2024.
New Programs, Activities and Expanded Roles, Partnerships
The MBD Act of 2021 established new MBDA programs and activities, including the following:
• Initiatives to promote economic resiliency for minority businesses (Title II),
including
• An annual diverse business capital formation forum (Sec. 100201),
• A study on alternative financing (Sec. 100202), and
• Grants to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and minority-
serving institutions (MSIs) for entrepreneurship curriculum development and
new partnerships and activities to increase entrepreneurial education and
training (Sec. 100203);
• Rural Business Centers to be operated by MSIs (Title III);
• Grants to nonprofit organizations to support the development, growth, or
retention of MBEs (Title IV);
• An MBE Advisory Council (Title V); and
• Coordination and convening activities among federal agencies regarding socially
or economically disadvantaged businesses (Title VI).
The act established support for—and in some instances expanded the scope of—existing
programs and activities, including MBDA Business Center and Specialty Center programs and
MBDA’s research, evaluation, outreach, and informational activities.32 For instance, the act
directed the Under Secretary to ensure center coverage so that the Business Center Program offers
services in “all regions of the United States.”33 The act also recommended increased funding for
the Business Center program, with the majority of MBDA funding, as appropriated, spent on the
Business Center program (including the Specialty Centers). The Rural Business Center
program—although a new program—may be viewed as an expansion of the existing MBDA
Business Center program to serve MBEs in rural areas.34

30 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100704.
31 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100708.
32 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title I.
33 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100111. Additionally, the Under Secretary will develop selection criteria for MBDA’s Business
Center program. The MBD Act of 2021 provides three options for consideration for the Under Secretary in developing
the criteria, including “(i) an area, the population of which is composed of not less than 51 percent socially or
economically disadvantaged individuals, as determined in accordance with data collected by the Bureau of the Census;
(ii) a federally recognized area of economic distress; or (iii) a State that is underserved with respect to MBDA’s
Business Center Program, as defined by the Under Secretary.” See P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100114.
34 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title III.
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In terms of research, evaluation, and informational activities, Executive Order 11625 previously
directed the agency to establish a center for the “development, collection, summarization, and
dissemination of information” to promote the establishment and growth of MBEs, among other
monitoring, reporting, and evaluation roles. The MBD Act of 2021 codified the agency’s
research, evaluation, and outreach activities, and directed the agency to undertake certain studies
and outreach roles.35 For instance, Section 100103 noted that the agency shall conduct research,
studies, and surveys, and shall “provide outreach, educational services, and technical assistance
in, at a minimum, the five most commonly spoken languages in the United States to ensure that
limited English proficient individuals receive culturally and linguistically appropriate access to
the services and information provided by the Agency.”36
The MBD Act of 2021 also authorized MBDA to implement services through partnerships with
both private and public sector entities, and directed the agency to engage with specific partners
(e.g., HBCUs, MSIs, community-based organizations, national nonprofit organizations, and
community-based organizations) on new and existing programs. For example, the act established
new roles and activities to expand entrepreneurial education activities specifically with HBCUs
and MSIs, among other partners. The entrepreneurial education activities include a grant program
to develop and implement entrepreneurship curricula and other education and training
opportunities for socially or economically disadvantaged individuals in the fields of business,
management, and entrepreneurship.37
While the MBD Act of 2021 granted MBDA specific statutory authority to operate these
entrepreneurial education programs, MBDA had previously managed similar programs at the
agency’s initiative. For example, in FY2018, MBDA made grants worth a combined total of $2
million to four HBCUs in order to help the schools compete for federal research and development
funds, leverage partnerships with federal laboratories and/or technology-related resources,
develop and implement STEM entrepreneurship, and compete for federal contracting
opportunities.38
The MBD Act of 2021 directs MBDA to make grants to nonprofit organizations in order to
support the growth, development, and retention of MBEs. The act specified that MBDA may
consider nonprofit organizations located in a federally recognized area of economic distress and
may award grants with consideration for a diverse array of grantees (e.g., community-based
organizations, organizations with annual budgets under $1 million, and organizations that serve
low-income and rural communities).39 Also, once established, the Minority Business Enterprises
Advisory Council—composed of both public and private sector members—will advise MBDA on
plans, programs, and activities that relate to socially or economically disadvantaged business
concerns.40
As noted previously, the act expanded the agency’s roles and programs, which may increase
awareness of its services and increase access to services by new and previously underserved

35 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100103.
36 Additionally, the bill encouraged MBDA to use the common languages spoken by the groups served in their outreach
and communication efforts regarding MBDA’s Business Centers. See P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100116.
37 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100203.
38 MBDA, “Minority Business Development Agency Awards Nearly $2 Million to Historically Black Colleges and
Universities,” press release, December 3, 2018, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2018/12/minority-business-
development-agency-awards-nearly-2-million.
39 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title IV.
40 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title V.
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communities and MBEs.41 For instance, once established, the new Rural Business Centers will
serve lower-density regions that may not have large concentrations of minority populations or
MBEs compared to more populous regions or metropolitan areas.42 The reestablishment of
regional MBDA offices may further extend MBDA’s services through their engagement with the
local and regional business development partners, lending partners, and federal, state, and local
procurement offices.43 Additionally, the agency’s authorizing statute involves the Under Secretary
in partnerships, outreach, and other activities with public sector entities in order to leverage
resources and promote the position of MBEs in local economies.44
Funding History
During the agency’s first 54 years, MBDA continued to receive annual appropriations while
various Administrations considered reorganizing it, authorizing it, defunding its activities, or
merging it into the Small Business Administration (SBA) (see Appendix A).
Figure 1 provides a visual representation of OMBE/MBDA appropriations from FY1970 to
FY2024. Table A-1 provides a history of Administrations’ annual budget requests and enacted
appropriations for the agency since FY1970. After fluctuating amounts of funding in its early
years, MBDA received annual appropriations of almost $60 million in the early 1980s. Its funding
then generally declined, including a 27% reduction in annual appropriation between FY1995 and
FY1996. By the late 1990s, MBDA’s annual appropriations had fallen below $30 million, where
it largely remained for more than a decade. Since FY2013, MBDA’s funding has more than
doubled to a high of $73 million in FY2021 before dropping to $55 million in FY2022. The
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42) funded MBDA at $68.25 million. In
FY2020 and FY2021, Congress provided supplemental appropriations to MBDA to assist MBEs
in preventing, preparing for, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

41 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title I.
42 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title III directs the Rural Business Center program to primarily serve clients that are
located 50 miles from an MBDA Business Center.
43 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100003.
44 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100102.
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Figure 1. OMBE/MBDA Appropriations History: FY1970 to FY2024
(in millions of dollars)

Source: Budget Appendices of the United States.
Note: Includes supplemental appropriations.
FY2024 Appropriations
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42) funded MBDA at $68.25 million—a
2.5% decrease from the agency’s FY2023 funding level of $70 million. Congress directed the
agency to allocate up to $5 million for grants to American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native
Hawaiian entities qualified to provide business, financing, and technical assistance services to
tribes.45
Recent Administrations’ Budget Requests and Related Activities
The Biden Administration’s FY2025 budget request included $80 million for MBDA, an amount
that would be 17% more than the FY2024 enacted level for annual appropriations of $68.25
million.46 The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58) authorized to be appropriated
$110 million to MBDA for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025.

45 The explanatory statement accompanying P.L. 118-42 adopted “the Senate language under the
heading ‘Native Entities’ and encourage[d] MBDA to coordinate with the Department’s Office of
Native American Business Development on these efforts.” See explanatory
statement accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (P.L. 118-42) printed in the
March 5, 2024, Congressional Record (p. S1399), vol. 170, no. 39, https://www.congress.gov/
118/crec/2024/03/05/170/39/CREC-2024-03-05.pdf; and U.S. Congress, Senate Appropriations
Committee, “Report to Accompany S. 2321,” 118th Congress, 1st sess., July 13, 2023, S.Rept.
118-62, p. 16.
46 OMB, “Budget of the U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2025” (2024), https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/
2022/03/budget_fy2023.pdf, and “Appendix: Budget of the U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2023” (2022), p. 186,
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In addition to recommending increased appropriations for MBDA, the Biden Administration has
initiated other activities to support small, disadvantaged businesses, including MBEs. For
example, in March 2024, MBDA signed memorandums of understanding with nine historically
black sororities and four minority women’s business organizations to help grow women-owned
businesses.47 In October 2023, the Biden Administration announced that, by FY2024, federal
agencies should establish a goal of collectively awarding at least 13% of federal contract
spending to small disadvantaged businesses (including minority-owned businesses) in order to
increase the small disadvantaged business share of federal contract award dollars to 15% by
FY2025.48
Agency Overview
Mission and Structure
MBDA’s mission is to foster the economic growth and global competitiveness of MBEs. The
agency’s activities are designed to expand access to capital, markets, and contracts through public
and private sector programs, policy, and research. Technical and managerial assistance and other
services are principally provided to MBEs through a network of Business Centers, Specialty
Centers, and other projects and initiatives.49 MBDA and its network partners coordinate with
other agencies, such as the Department of the Treasury, DOC’s International Trade
Administration, the Export-Import (EXIM) Bank, and other federal agencies, nongovernmental
organizations, and private firms to expand capital access and contracting and export opportunities
for MBEs.50

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/com_fy2025.pdf. In FY2024, P.L. 118-42 provided MBDA
$68.25 million in annual appropriations.
47 MBDA, “The Minority Business Development Agency to Announce Historic Collaboration with Divine Nine
Sororities and National Women’s Leadership Organizations,” press release, March 11, 2024, https://www.mbda.gov/
news/press-releases/2024/03/minority-business-development-agency-announce-historic-collaboration.
48 Shalanda Young, Increasing the Share of Contract Dollars Awarded to Small Disadvantaged Businesses for Fiscal
Year (FY) 2024 and in Subsequent FYs, Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget, M-24-
01, October 25, 2023, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/M-24-01-Increasing-the-Share-of-
Contract-Dollars-Awarded-to-Small-Disadvantaged-Businesses_Final.pdf. For more information on federal small
business contracting goals, see CRS Report R45576, An Overview of Small Business Contracting, by R. Corinne
Blackford.
49 MBDA, “Overview,” https://www.mbda.gov/who-we-are/overview.
50 MBDA, “2020 Year in Review,” https://www.mbda.gov/2020-year-in-review; MBDA, “Global Business: Strategic
Partners,” https://www.mbda.gov/page/global-business-strategic-partners; and Testimony of MBDA Director,
Alejandra Castillo, in U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Accessing Capital in Indian Country, 114th
Congress, 1st sess., June 17, 2015, S.Hrg. 114-97 (Washington, DC: GPO, 2015), https://www.congress.gov/event/
114th-congress/senate-event/LC34122/text?s=5&r=29.
The SBA, for instance, is a source of funding for minority small businesses, and it partners with MBDA in providing
assistance to minority firms. Technical and management assistance from MBDA and its partners may facilitate
minority business entities to qualify for SBA’s Section (8)(a) small disadvantage business and other programs.
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Minority Businesses Face Distinct Challenges
According to MBDA and other sources, MBEs have unique challenges in accessing capital, contracts, and other
areas of business development. Below are findings from a FY2020 MBDA summary of key challenges:
•
Overall, minority-owned firms are smaller in size and scale than their nonminority counterparts. The gap in
combined gross receipts is 10:1, with only 2% of minority firms generating gross receipts of more than $1
mil ion and only 11% of minority-owned firms having paid employees.
•
In terms of capital access, minority firms are more likely to be denied loans at a rate nearly three times
higher than nonminority firms, and minority firms are likely to pay higher interest rates of, on average 7.8%,
while nonminority firms pay on average 6.4%. Additionally, minority firms are less likely to receive loans, and
when approved, receive lower loan amounts.
•
In terms of contracts, minority firms secure a lower number and dol ar amount of contracts in proportion to
the number of available minority firms in the relevant market. Additionally, studies indicate that market and
other barriers impact minority firms’ access to contracts.51
Source: MBDA, “The Minority Business Development Agency—Vital to Making America Great,”
https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/migrated/files-attachments/MBDAVitaltoMakingAmericaGreat_170330.pdf.
Before the MBD Act of 2021’s enactment, MBDA was composed of offices focused on business
development, Native American business development, policy analysis and development,
management, administration, and education, legislative, and intergovernmental affairs.52 The
Office of Business Development coordinated the agency’s business center activities, and plans
and implements business development strategies (e.g., strategies related to access to capital,
contracts, emerging domestic and international markets, and global supply chains).53 In 2005,
MBDA established the Office of Native American Business Development within the Office of
Business Development.54 In FY2020, MBDA completed its launch of the Office of Policy
Analysis and Development (OPAD). OPAD works with other agencies to expand data, research,
analysis, and policy recommendations for minority business development based on economic and
industry trends.55
MBDA’s organization structure shifted following enactment of the MBD Act of 2021 (see
“Agency Establishment”). The Office of Business Development is now known as the Office of
Business Centers, and OPAD is now known as the Office of Data Research and Evaluation.
According to MBDA’s FY2025 congressional budget justification, the agency is proposing further
organizational adjustments, primarily by placing the Office of the Chief Operating Officer in

51 As noted in MBDA’s summary of key challenges facing minority businesses. See MBDA, “The Minority Business
Development Agency: Vital to Making America Great,” https://www.mbda.gov/page/minority-business-development-
agency-vital-making-america-great.
52 U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), FY2021 MBDA Congressional Budget Justification, p. 2,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2020-02/fy2021_mbda_congressional_budget_justification.pdf, and
MBDA, “Organization Chart,” https://www.mbda.gov/images/organizationchartjpg.
53 MBDA, “Chief of the Office of Business Development,” https://www.mbda.gov/who-we-are/leadership/
Chief%20of%20the%20Office%20of%20Business%20Development.
54 DOC, FY2016 MBDA Congressional Budget Justification, p. 17, https://www.osec.doc.gov/bmi/budget/FY16CJ/
MBDA_FY_2016_CJ_Final.pdf.
55 Testimony of MBDA Director Henry Childs, in U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, Building Out
Indian Country: Tools for Community Development, 116th Cong., 1st sess., April 10, 2019, S.Hrg. 116-16 (Washington,
DC: GPO, 2019), https://www.congress.gov/event/116th-congress/senate-event/LC63799/text?s=2&r=33.
In terms of data, MBDA and researchers have noted that existing data on MBEs, which is generally survey-based and
incomplete, is insufficient. See MBDA, “How 11 Million Minority-Owned Firms Can Close the Wealth Gap and Drive
the U.S. Economy,” September 16, 2019, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2019/09/how-11-million-
minority-owned-firms-can-close-wealth-gap-and-drive-us, and Lucas Misera, An Uphill Battle: COVID-19’s Outsized
Toll on Minority-Owned Firms, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, October 8, 2020, https://www.clevelandfed.org/
newsroom-and-events/publications/community-development-briefs/db-20201008-misera-report.aspx.
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charge of the Offices of Business Centers and Data and Research Evaluation, among other
departments.56 Figure 2 and Figure 3 present MBDA’s current and proposed organizational
structure.
Figure 2. MBDA’s Current Organizational Structure

Source: MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, p. 5,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
Figure 3. MBDA’s Proposed Organizational Structure

Source: MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, p. 6,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.

56 MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, pp. 5-6,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
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Additionally, the MBD Act of 2021 specified that MBDA be led by an Under Secretary of
Commerce for Minority Business Development (Under Secretary), selected by the President and
confirmed by the Senate. MBDA has not had a Senate-confirmed Under Secretary since early
2024.57
MBDA Clients
MBDA clients have historically included U.S. minority business enterprises (MBEs) that are not
less than 51 percent-owned by one or more socially or economically disadvantaged individuals;
and the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more
socially or economically disadvantaged individuals.58 According to the agency’s authorizing
statute, the term “socially or economically disadvantaged individual” means
an individual who has been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice or cultural bias (or the
ability of whom to compete in the free enterprise system has been impaired due to
diminished capital and credit opportunities, as compared to others in the same line of
business and competitive market area) because of the identity of the individual as a member
of a group, without regard to any individual quality of the individual that is unrelated to
that identity.59
The agency’s authorizing statute also noted that the Under Secretary shall presume that the term
“socially or economically disadvantaged individual” includes any individual who is
• Black or African American;
• Hispanic or Latino;
• American Indian or Alaska Native;
• Asian;
• Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; or
• A member of a group that the agency determines under part 1400 of title 15,
Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on November 23, 1984, is a socially
disadvantaged group eligible to receive assistance.60
The agency provides services to MBEs through a network of business centers and other programs
and initiatives. The agency’s events and referral services are available to businesses of any size.
In its FY2021 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), MBDA primarily focused its Business

57 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100003. For additional context, see CRS Report RS21412, Temporarily Filling Presidentially
Appointed, Senate-Confirmed Positions, by Henry B. Hogue. As noted, in August 2022, Donald R. Cravins Jr. was
confirmed by the Senate as the first Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development, but stepped
down in early 2024. See MBDA, “Minority Business Development Agency Announces Departure of Donald R.
Cravins, Jr., as First-Ever Under Secretary of Commerce for Minority Business Development,” press release, January
12, 2024, https://www.mbda.gov/minority-business-development-agency-announces-departure-donald-r-cravins-jr-
first-ever-under.
58 MBDA’s establishing statute defines MBEs at 15 U.S.C. §9501 (9).
59 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100002.
60 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100002. In 15 C.F.R. Part 1400, the term “socially disadvantaged persons” has the meaning of
“those persons who have been subjected to cultural, racial or ethnic prejudice because of their identity as members of a
group without regard to their individual qualities.”
Prior to the MBD Act of 2021’s enactment and pursuant to Executive Order 11625, MBDA clients included U.S.
minority business enterprises owned or controlled by members of one or more of the following groups: African
Americans, Asian Americans, Hasidic Jewish Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific
Islanders. See also 15 C.F.R. §§1400.1 and 1400.2, https://ecfr.federalregister.gov/current/title-15/subtitle-B/chapter-
XIV/part-1400; and MBDA, “Who We Are,” https://www.mbda.gov/who-we-are/overview.
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Center services on businesses with revenues of at least $500,000 annually, although MBDA does
not always include such revenue targets in its NOFOs.61
March 2024 Court Order
As noted, in March 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas found in
Nuziard et al. v. Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) et al. that MBDA’s presumption
of social disadvantage for certain program applicants was unconstitutional, and ordered the
agency to discontinue using race or ethnicity as criteria for receiving MBDA Business Center
services nationwide (see “Introduction”).
MBDA has continued providing services to business owners that self-certify to the definition of
“socially or economically disadvantaged individual” as established in the MBD Act of 2021,
regardless of the business owner’s race.62 Moreover, MBDA instructed its staff to not use the
racial and ethnic categories that were previously presumed to be socially or economically
disadvantaged in determining eligibility for MBDA services.63
Programs
Congress authorizes MBDA to foster, promote, and develop MBEs through grants, contracts, and
other agreements with public or private organizations.64 The agency’s programs and activities
focus on addressing MBDA and DOC priorities, and include the Business Center program, among
other projects and partnerships.65 Through the Business Center network and partnerships, the
agency facilitates export opportunities, contracts, and financings for minority clients.66 MBDA
does not provide loans or grants for business formation or expansion purposes.67 According to
MBDA’s 2023 Year In Review, there were 131 Business Centers in FY2023, including Specialty
Centers and other similar projects.68

61 MBDA, MBDA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)—Business Center Program, FY2021,
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=MBDA-OBD-2021-2006809. The NOFO notes that,
“This NOFO is focused on capacity building for firms with revenues of $500,000 or more.”
62 15 U.S.C. §9501(15)(A).
63 Eric Morrissette, Acting Under Secretary for Minority Business Development, Guidance to Minority Business
Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center Operators, MBDA, March 20, 2024, https://mbda.gov/sites/default/
files/2024-03/MBDA%20Guidance%20Memo%20on%20Eligibility_03%2020%202024_No%20CEF.pdf.
64 See P.L. 117-58 and P.L. 116-260.
65 The DOC strategic goals are outlined in the 2018-2022 Strategic Plan, Helping the American Economy Grow, and
include (1) accelerating American leadership through commercial space activities, foundational research investments,
and protecting intellectual property; (2) enhancing job creation through increased exports and foreign direct investment;
(3) strengthening U.S. economic and national security; (4) fulfilling Constitutional requirements and supporting
economic activity with reliable data; and (5) excelling in the delivery of customer-centric services. See
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/us_department_of_commerce_2018-2022_strategic_plan.pdf.
66 DOC, FY2021 MBDA Congressional Budget Justification, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2020-02/
fy2021_mbda_congressional_budget_justification.pdf.
67 MBDA, “Grants,” https://www.mbda.gov/grants.
68 MBDA, 2023 Year in Review, https://www.mbda.gov/2023yearinreview. For an online directory of Business
Centers, see MBDA, Business Centers, https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/business-centers.
Prior to the MBD Act of 2021’s enactment, the FY2021 NOFO for MBDA’s Business Center program indicated that
programs should be located in areas with the largest concentration of minority populations and the largest number of
minority businesses. MBDA Business Centers were directed to serve MBEs in any U.S. state or territory. Following the
MBD Act of 2021, the Under Secretary will develop criteria for selection of MBDA Business Centers. See also
MBDA, MBDA Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)—MBDA Business Center Program, FY2021, MBDA-OBD-
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Business Centers
The purpose of MBDA’s Business Center Program is to
create a national network of public-private partnerships that—
(1) assist minority business enterprises in—
(A) accessing capital, contracts, and grants; and
(B) creating and maintaining jobs;
(2) provide counseling and mentoring to minority business enterprises; and
(3) facilitate the growth of minority business enterprises by promoting trade.69
MBDA provides financial assistance to organizations that operate Business Centers. In turn,
MBDA Business Centers provide management and technical assistance to MBEs seeking to
expand to new domestic and international markets. According to MBDA’s funding procedures,
Business Center services focus on business development and capacity building by assisting MBEs
to
• improve operational efficiencies;
• increase resources;
• build scale;
• manage risk and increase liability thresholds;
• strengthen management teams;
• access and secure financing, equity, and venture capital;
• raise online capital;
• increase profits and owner equity; and
• implement and integrate new technology and equipment.
Applicants eligible to compete to operate an MBDA Business Center include nonprofit
organizations, for-profit firms, state and local governments, educational institutions, and Native
American tribal entities. Operators are expected to contribute nonfederal cost share funding.70
MBDA lists 40 Business Centers in 32 states and Puerto Rico.71
MBDA Business Centers may provide services on a fee-for-services basis.72 In light of the
COVID-19 pandemic, MBDA and its network of Business Centers increased or shifted more
activities to online events and through other virtual communications tools.73

2021-2006809, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=mbda; and MBDA, “Business
Services,” https://www.mbda.gov/page/business-services.
69 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100111.
70 Operators are expected to contribute one-third of the amount of the financial assistance. Operators may request a
reduced cost share requirement based on need. P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100111.
71 MBDA, Business Centers, https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/business-centers.
72 See P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100114.
73 By example, see the online 2021 Minority Enterprise Development Week event, https://www.mbda.gov/medweek-
2021.
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Specialty Centers
MBDA also supports Business Centers that provide specialized business development services
and technical assistance (“Specialty Centers”). The MBD Act of 2021 defines Specialty Centers
as MBDA Business Centers that provide specialty services focusing on specific business needs,
including assistance related to
• capital access;
• federal procurement;
• entrepreneurship;
• technology transfer; or
• any other area determined necessary or appropriate based on the priorities of the
agency.74
In FY2021, MBDA published Notices of Funding Opportunity for Specialty Centers focused on
exports, advanced manufacturing, and federal procurement.75
• Export Centers seek to expand access to new and global markets and to help
identify, screen, promote, and refer MBEs to exporting resources. MBDA export
centers are located in Mesa, AZ; Houston, TX; Miami, FL; and San Antonio,
TX.76
• Advanced Manufacturing Centers provide “[t]argeted assistance for
manufacturers that aim to employ new technologies to increase the number of
“Made in America” products that can be sold domestically and globally.”77
MBDA advanced manufacturing centers are located in East Hartford, CT;
Baltimore, MD; Louisville, KY; and San Antonio, TX.78

74 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100002. See also MBDA, “Specialty Centers,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/specialty-
centers.
75 Prior to the announcement of the FY2021 Business Center and Specialty Center awards, there were four MBDA
export centers, four MBDA advanced manufacturing centers, and one federal procurement center. Prior to the FY2021
awards,
•
the export centers were previously located in Chicago, IL; Miami, FL; San Antonio, TX; and Sacramento,
CA;
•
the advanced manufacturing centers were previously located in Atlanta, GA; Detroit, MI; Baltimore, MD;
and San Antonio, TX; and
•
the federal procurement center was located in Alexandria, VA.
76 MBDA, “MBDA Programs,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs; and MBDA, MBDA NOFO—Export Project,
FY2021, MBDA-OBD-2021-2006815, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=mbda. The
NOFO states that prospective funding is contingent upon the availability of funds from Congress, satisfactory
performance, and continued relevance to program objectives, and Export Center operators are expected to contribute
nonfederal cost share funding (pp. 6-7).
77 MBDA, “Specialty Centers,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/specialty-centers.
78 MBDA, “MBDA Programs,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs; and MBDA, MBDA NOFO—Advanced
Manufacturing Project, FY2021, MBDA-OBD-2021-2006811, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?
keywords=mbda. The NOFO states that prospective funding is contingent upon the availability of funds from Congress,
satisfactory performance, and continued relevance to program objectives, and Advanced Manufacturing Center
operators are not required to contribute nonfederal cost share funding (pp. 7-8).
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• The Federal Procurement Center provides services designed to generate
increased federal procurement and acquisition opportunities for MBEs. In
FY2021, the federal procurement center was located in Washington, DC.79
MBDA lists 16 Specialty Centers operating in 11 states, Puerto Rico, and Washington, DC.80
MBDA’s FY025 congressional budget justification noted that the agency’s priorities include
establishing additional Specialty Centers focused on women-, native- and indigenous-, and
veteran-owned businesses.81 The budget justification requested $1.96 million to strengthen the
existing network of MBDA Business Centers and Specialty Centers.82
Rural Business Centers
The MBD Act of 2021 established a new Rural Business Center program to be implemented by
MSIs for services to MBEs in rural areas.83 The program will provide education, training, and
legal, financial, and technical assistance to MBEs with a focus on issues relating to
• the adoption of broadband internet access service, digital literacy skills, and e-
commerce;
• advanced manufacturing;
• the promotion of manufacturing in the United States;
• ways for MBEs to meet gaps in the supply chain for the United States;
• improving the connectivity of rural MBEs through transportation and logistics;
• promoting trade and export opportunities;
• securing financial capital;
• facilitating entrepreneurship in rural areas;
• creating jobs in rural areas; and
• any other issue relating to the unique challenges faced by rural MBEs.84
MBDA launched a pilot Rural Business Center program in FY2023 by providing $3.8 million in
supplemental grants to eligible existing Business or Specialty Centers to establish new Rural
Business Centers. Business or Specialty Centers were eligible to receive funding if they were
located in a state with:
• a rural minority population of at least 200,000;
• a rural population that is at least 20% minority; or

79 MBDA, “MBDA Programs,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs; and MBDA, MBDA NOFO—Federal
Procurement Project, FY2021, MBDA-OBD-2021-2006824, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?
keywords=mbda. The NOFO states that prospective funding is contingent upon the availability of funds from Congress,
satisfactory performance, and continued relevance to program objectives, and Federal Procurement Center operators
are expected to contribute nonfederal cost share funding (p. 7).
80 MBDA, Specialty Centers, https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/specialty-centers.
81 MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, p. 27,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
82 Ibid., p. 29.
83 The MBD Act of 2021 authorized to be appropriated $20 million to the program each year for FY2021 through
FY2025. Rural areas are defined in statute as having the meaning given the term in Section 343(a) of the Consolidated
Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. §1991(a)). See P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100301.
84 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100302.
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• at least one rural majority-minority county based on U.S. Census Bureau data.85
Business or Specialty Centers that received funding to establish a Rural Business Center are
expected to provide technical assistance to rural MBEs in their state. As of FY2024, MBDA has
funded 19 Rural Business Centers.86 MBDA’S FY2025 congressional budget justification listed
broadening the Rural Business Center program as an agency priority, and requested $3.182
million to expand the reach of existing Rural Business Centers and potentially establish additional
Rural Business Centers.87
Entrepreneurship Education Development Activities
The MBD Act of 2021 also authorized new entrepreneurship education development activities,
including the Parren J. Mitchell Entrepreneurship Education Grants program for grants to eligible
institutions (e.g., HBCUs, MSIs, tribal colleges or universities, among others). The act also
directed MBDA to partner with public and private sector entities and educational institutions to
support opportunities for business and management education, apprenticeships, entrepreneurship
training, and related activities for the benefit of socially or economically disadvantaged
individuals.88
MBDA may use broad agency announcements (BAAs) and unsolicited proposals to respond to
specific challenges or opportunities. In recent years, MBDA has issued several BAAs to develop
entrepreneurship programs for students at Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) before and after
the enactment of the MBD Act of 2021.89 For instance, in April 2022, MBDA announced a BAA
to develop entrepreneurship programs for students at MSIs.90 The BAA resulted in a total of $1.75
million in grants to seven awardees.91
Related Initiatives, Events, and Partnerships
To further increase MBE’s access to capital, contracts, and markets, MBDA partners with other
federal agencies and private sector partners on business development services, cross-sector
initiatives, annual events, and interagency groups and commissions. For instance, technical and
management assistance from MBDA Business Centers may assist MBEs in qualifying for SBA’s
8(a) contracting preference program for small businesses owned by socially- and economically-
disadvantaged individuals (as well as other SBA programs), or to transition from the 8(a) program
to the private sector.92 MBDA works with other DOC agencies and the EXIM Bank to encourage

85 MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, p. 24,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
86 Ibid.
87 MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, pp. 7-8,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
88 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100203.
89 MBDA, Minority Colleges and Universities Programs, https://www.mbda.gov/centers-projects/minority-colleges-
and-universities-programs.
90 MBDA, Notice of Federal Funding, Minority Colleges and Universities, April 25, 2022, https://www.grants.gov/
search-results-detail/339798.
91 MBDA, “MBDA Announces $1.75 Million in Grants for Minority Colleges and Universities,” press release, October
18, 2022, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2022/10/mbda-announces-175-million-grants-minority-colleges-
and-universities.
92 MBDA, “The Minority Business Development Agency: Vital to Making America Great,” https://www.mbda.gov/
page/minority-business-development-agency-vital-making-america-great.
(continued...)
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MBE participation in international trade, and partners with the Department of Energy’s Office of
Economic Impact to expand opportunities for MBE participation in the energy supply chain.93
Through the InVision Tour initiative, MBDA has partnered with several agencies to support
minority innovation and entrepreneurship in space technology, smart cities, satellites, aerospace,
and related industries. InVision Tour partners include NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and agencies of the Departments of Commerce,
Defense, Energy, Health and Human Services, Interior, and Homeland Security, among others.94
Additional MBDA initiatives have involved partners such as the U.S. India Small Medium
Entrepreneurs Council, the U.S. Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce, the National
Minority Supplier Development Council, the National Business League, U.S. Chamber of
Commerce, and others.95 MBDA’s participation in interagency groups and commissions includes
the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, among others.96
MBDA assistance may also address specific challenges or opportunities, support proof of concept
program models, meet presidential or departmental priorities, and facilitate the programs and
initiatives not addressed through MBDA’s Business Center program.97 For instance, in FY2019
and FY2020, MBDA funded projects designed to increase MBE participation in advanced
technology and innovation sectors. In FY2020, MBDA grants funded a capital formation
initiative and the Minority Growth Equity Fund Initiative (MGEFI), among others.98 Additional,
targeted MBDA initiatives include the Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC) initiative and
centers, the American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian (AIANNH) projects, the
Entrepreneurship Education Programs for Formerly Incarcerated Persons, and the Inner-City

For more information on the SBA’s (8)(a) program, see CRS Report R44844, SBA’s “8(a) Program”: Overview,
History, and Current Issues, by Robert Jay Dilger and R. Corinne Blackford.
93 EXIM Bank, “EXIM Signs Memorandum of Understanding with U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business
Development Agency,” September, 14, 2020, https://www.exim.gov/news/exim-signs-memorandum-understanding-
department-commerce-minority-business-development-agency, and MBDA, “2020 Year in Review,”
https://www.mbda.gov/2020-year-in-review.
94 MBDA, “InVision Tour,” https://www.mbdainvision.com/.
95 MBDA, “2020 Year in Review,” https://www.mbda.gov/2020-year-in-review, and Black Enterprise, “Black
Enterprise, Minority Business Development Agency Partner to Help Black Businesses Gain Access to Innovation and
Financing,” April 19, 2019, https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-enterprise-minority-business-development-agency-
black-businesses/.
96 MBDA, “White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders,” https://www.mbda.gov/WHIAAPI, and
Black Enterprise, “Black Enterprise, Minority Business Development Agency Partner to Help Black Businesses Gain
Access to Innovation and Financing,” April 19, 2019, https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-enterprise-minority-
business-development-agency-black-businesses/.
97 MBDA may use Broad Agency Agreements (BAAs) and unsolicited proposals to respond to specific challenges or
opportunities. See MBDA, “Frequently Asked Questions—2018 MBDA Broad Agency Announcement,”
https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/2018baafrequentlyaskedquestions070918.pdf, and DOC, FY2021 MBDA
Congressional Budget Justification, p. 17, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2020-02/
fy2021_mbda_congressional_budget_justification.pdf.
98 MBDA, MBDA FY2021 Congressional Budget Justification, pp. 12-20, 23, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/
files/2020-02/fy2021_mbda_congressional_budget_justification.pdf; and MBDA, “MBDA Awards $5.1 Million in
Grants,” October 23, 2020, https://www.mbda.gov/news/news-and-announcements/2020/10/minority-business-
development-agency-awards-51-million-grants.
The American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian (AIANNH) projects are also awarded through BAAs.
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Innovation Hub Program.99 In FY2022, MBDA solicited proposals under a BAA for the Access to
Capital/Innovative Finance initiative.100
Capital Access Initiatives
Barriers to capital—including but not limited to growth capital—limit expansion and scale
opportunities for many MBEs. In FY2020, an MBDA award established the MGEFI. The
MGEFI’s goal is to expand access to capital by facilitating the aggregation and deployment of $1
billion in growth equity capital to MBEs.101 In FY2021, MBDA announced the Equity Multiplier
Project, which will fund technical assistance to expand MBE’s access to capital. The Equity
Multiplier Project focuses on capacity building, venture capital readiness, and increasing access
to equity and venture investment and investors.102 In FY2022, MBDA issued a NOFO for the
Access to Capital: Innovative Finance initiative, which was designed to leverage non-traditional
financial resources to address barriers to capital access for MBEs.103 In FY2023, MBDA
announced a NOFO designed to fund technical assistance providers that would help entrepreneurs
build capacity and expand access to capital opportunities through the Capital Readiness Program.
The program focuses on assistance for entrepreneurs who are socially and economically
disadvantaged individuals (SEDI).104
Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC)
Entrepreneurship is often viewed as a strategy for economic growth and individual economic
independence. Minority women are considered the fastest growing population of entrepreneurs.105
MBDA-supported entrepreneurship programs include activities designed to support minority
women business owners. Through the Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC) initiative, launched

99 MBDA, “MBDA Awards $5.1 Million in Grants,” October 23, 2020, https://www.mbda.gov/news/news-and-
announcements/2020/10/minority-business-development-agency-awards-51-million-grants.
100 MBDA, “MBDA Announces Grant Competition to Fund Innovative Access Capital Project for Minority-Owned
Businesses,” May 5, 2022, https://www.mbda.gov/news/news-and-announcements/2022/05/mbda-announces-grant-
competition-fund-innovative-access-capital.
101 MBDA, “MBDA Awards NAIC Million Dollar Grant to Raise $1 Billion for Investment in Minority
Entrepreneurs,” October 4, 2019, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2019/10/mbda-awards-naic-million-
dollar-grant-raise-1-billion-investment, and MBDA, “2020 Year in Review,” https://www.mbda.gov/2020-year-in-
review.
102 MBDA, FY2021 Notice of Funding Opportunity—Equity Multiplier Project, MBDA-OBD-2021- 2006868,
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=mbda.
103 MBDA, FY2022 Notice of Funding Opportunity—Broad Agency Announcement—Access to Capital: Innovative
Finance, MBDA-OBD-2022-2007329, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=mbda; and
MBDA, “Minority Business Development Agency Awards $1.68 Million to Fund Innovative Access to Capital Projects
for Minority-Owned Businesses,” September 20, 2022, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2022/09/minority-
business-development-agency-awards-168-million-fund-innovative.
104 MBDA, FY2023 Notice of Funding Opportunity—Capital Readiness Program, MBDA-OBD-2023-2007775,
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html?keywords=mbda; MBDA, “Commerce Department’s Minority
Business Development Agency Announces Nearly $100 Million to Expand Opportunities for Underserved
Entrepreneurs,” December 21, 2022, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2022/12/commerce-departments-
minority-business-development-agency-announces.
105 American Express’ State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, 2019 (see https://about.americanexpress.com/all-
news/news-details/2019/Woman-Owned-Businesses-Are-Growing-2X-Faster-On-Average-Than-All-Businesses-
Nationwide/default.aspx). The report is based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners (SBO).
The report noted that although SBO “is conducted every year in years ending in two and seven. Data from the 2012
Census surveys were collated, analyzed and extrapolated forward to 2019, factoring in relative changes in Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) not only nationally but also at industry, state and metropolitan statistical area levels. All GDP
data was obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (bea.gov).”
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in 2019, MBDA has provided assistance to expand access to capital, business education, and
professional networks. The EWOC initiative also provided assistance to five projects focused on
minority women business enterprises beginning in FY2020.106
American Indian Alaska Native / Native Hawaiian (AIANNH) Initiatives and
Reports
MBDA provides assistance to entities with an expertise in American Indian, Alaska Native, and
Native Hawaiian (AIANNH) business for projects that focus on one or more of the following
three strategic initiatives: (1) innovation and entrepreneurship; (2) strategic planning; and/or (3)
transformative projects.107 AIANNH projects may provide a range of services including, but not
limited to: entrepreneurial assistance, training, capital access, federal procurement assistance,
networking and relationship management, deal sourcing, joint ventures and partnerships, strategic
infrastructure and economic planning assistance, and education for entrepreneurial and tribal
entities. In FY2019-FY2021, MBDA supported 13 projects designed to address specific needs of
Native American businesses.108 In FY2021, MBDA funded 13 AIANNH projects.109 In FY2022,
MBDA’s OPAD published a report on business development and economic growth in tribal
communities.110
Entrepreneurship Education Programs for Formerly Incarcerated Persons
The Entrepreneurship Education Programs for Formerly Incarcerated Persons are designed to
provide individuals with skills and a business network to enable them to start their own business
after incarceration. The programs also aim to reduce the rates of recidivism. According to MBDA
and other sources, researchers have linked recidivism to unemployment, education level, and
inability to reintegrate into communities after prison.111

106 MBDA, “Enterprising Women of Color (EWOC),” https://www.mbda.gov/enterprising-women-of-color, and
MBDA, “Grant Awards,” https://www.mbda.gov/grantawards.
In the FY2020 EWOC Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), MBDA cited measures of growth in levels of minority
women entrepreneurship as reported by American Express’ State of Women-Owned Businesses Report, 2019 (see
https://about.americanexpress.com/all-news/news-details/2019/Woman-Owned-Businesses-Are-Growing-2X-Faster-
On-Average-Than-All-Businesses-Nationwide/default.aspx). Highlights include “as of 2019, 6.4 million minority-
owned women businesses employed nearly 2.4 million people and generated $422.5 billion in revenue, and women-
owned businesses represent 42% of all businesses, among others.”
107 MBDA, “AIANNH Projects,” https://www.mbda.gov/aiannhprojects.
108 MBDA, FY2019 Notice of Funding Opportunity—AIANNH Projects, MBDA-OBD-2019-2006047,
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=315200. For a list of current AIANNH projects, see
MBDA, “AIANNH Projects,” https://www.mbda.gov/aiannhprojects.
A list and map of prior AIANNH projects is available at https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/aiannh_2.pdf. See
also MBDA, “Minority Business Development Agency Awards $3.6 Million for Business Development in Indian
Country,” September 26, 2019, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2019/09/minority-business-development-
agency-awards-36-million-business, and “Native American Success Stories,” https://www.mbda.gov/native-american-
success-stories.
109 MBDA, “AIANNH Projects,” https://www.mbda.gov/mbda-programs/aiannhprojects; and MBDA, FY2021 Notice
of Funding Opportunity—AIANNH Projects, MBDA-OBD-2021-2006916, https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-
grants.html?keywords=mbda.
110 Ashley Winston et al., “Keys to Unlocking Business Development in Indian Country,” MBDA Research Report,
August 2021, https://www.mbda.gov/files/keys-unlocking-business-development-indian-country.
111 MBDA, FY2020 Notice of Funding Opportunity—Entrepreneurship Education Programs for Formerly Incarcerated
Persons, MBDA-OBD-2020-2006457, April 2020, https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/2020-10/
Entrepreneurship%20Education%20Program%20for%20Formerly%20Incarcerated%20Persons_Full%20Announceme
nt%20%28April%202020%29.pdf.
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Inner City Innovation Hub Program
The Inner City Innovation Hub program supports new and established entrepreneurs in inner
cities and urban areas with high concentrations of minority populations and MBEs. The program
focuses on entrepreneurship, digital innovation, artificial intelligence, and research and
technology transfer. Recent awards facilitate the growth of MBEs in regionally-specific industry
concentrations, such as the aerospace industry, and by providing technical assistance to MBEs
through accelerators, incubators, and co-working spaces and university-focused technology,
artificial intelligence, technology, research, mergers, and acquisitions.112
National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week
According to MBDA, since 1983, every President has issued a Presidential Proclamation
designating one week as National Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week.113 The event
highlights the role of minority entrepreneurs in creating jobs, products, and services, and
contributions to local economic activity. Features of recent MED Week events include a
conference panel focused on global markets and the National Minority Business Awards Program.
MBDA also coordinates, sponsors, and participates in other national events, such as Buy Minority
Business Enterprises Day, among others.114
Capital Readiness Program
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2) reauthorized the State Small Business Credit
Initiative (SSBCI). SSBCI, which is administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury
(Treasury), offered states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, and tribal governments a
formula-allocated share of $10 billion to help expand access to capital for small businesses. The
funding was designed to support activities related to setting up venture capital programs, loan
participation programs, and loan guarantee programs, as well as technical assistance. In terms of
technical assistance, P.L. 117-2 directed Treasury to transfer funding to MBDA so that MBDA
“may use such amounts in a manner the Agency determines appropriate, including through
contracting with third parties, to provide technical assistance to business enterprises owned and
controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.”115
In December 2022, DOC announced a grant award competition for funding for entities to provide
technical assistance to help SSBCI applicants.116 The program was called the Capital Readiness
Program (CRP). In August 2023, the Biden Administration announced that MBDA had made 43

112 MBDA, Notice of Funding Opportunity—Inner City Innovation Hubs, MBDA-OBD-2020-2006442, April 2020,
https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/2020-10/
Inner%20City%20Innovation%20Hubs_Full%20Announcement%20%28April%202020%29.pdf, and MBDA, “Grant
Awards,” https://www.mbda.gov/grantawards.
113 MBDA, “MBDA Announces 2019 National MED Week Award Winners,” https://medweek.mbda.gov/awards-
program.
114 DOC, “Minority Business Development Agency: Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; National Minority Business
Awards,” 86 Federal Register 10544-10545, February 22, 2021, and MBDA, “Minority Enterprise Development
Week,” https://www.mbda.gov/MEDWeek.
115 Section 3301 of P.L. 117-2.
116 DOC, “Commerce Department’s Minority Business Development Agency Announces Nearly $100 Million to
Expand Opportunities for Underserved Entrepreneurs,” press release, December 21, 2022, https://www.commerce.gov/
news/press-releases/2022/12/commerce-departments-minority-business-development-agency-announces.
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CRP awards worth a total of $125 million.117 To help implement and evaluate CRP, MBDA’s
FY2025 congressional budget justification requested $2.063 million for MBDA’s Office of Data
Research, and Evaluation.118
Other Initiatives
The MBD Act of 2021 established a Minority Business Enterprise Advisory Council and
authorized the Under Secretary to coordinate on matters relating to federal MBE programs. The
act also authorized grants to nonprofit organizations to support MBEs.
Additional initiatives and activities support MBDA’s mission and priorities of DOC. For instance,
MBDA initiatives include global and domestic Business-to-Business (B2B) efforts to expand
MBE access to domestic and global markets. In March 2020, in collaboration with Amazon
Business, MBDA launched the Minority Business and Technology Initiative, to expand MBE
participation in e-commerce and the use of digital technology for domestic and international
sales.119 MBDA and Business Center partners participate in Global B2B efforts in Africa, Asia,
Latin America, and the Caribbean. MBDA has also joined trade missions and partnered with
DOC’s International Trade Administration, the EXIM Bank, and other agencies and organizations
to expand export opportunities for MBEs.120
Performance Metrics
MBDA uses several performance metrics to measure its effectiveness, including
• dollar value of contracts secured for MBDA clients;
• dollar value of capital secured for MBDA clients;
• number of jobs created; and
• number of jobs retained.
According to the latest data available, in FY2022, MBDA reported 15,418 jobs were created or
retained with the assistance of MBDA resources.121 MBDA’s measure of jobs created or retained
included the number of new full-time and/or part-time positions reported on the client’s payroll,
and positions MBDA clients would have eliminated without the contract and/or financing
obtained with MBDA’s help.122 Although the value of contracts measures both public and private
sector activity, in FY2020, approximately 70% of contracts that MBDA helped MBEs to secure

117 MBDA, “Biden-Harris Administration Announces Competition Winners for the Minority Business Development
Agency’s Capital Readiness Program,” press release, August 3, 2023, https://www.mbda.gov/biden-harris-
administration-announces-competition-winners-minority-business-development-agencys.
118 MBDA, Minority Business Development Agency Fiscal Year 2025 Congressional Budget Justification, p. 8,
https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/2024-03/MBDA-FY2025-Congressional-Budget-Submission.pdf.
119 MBDA, “Minority Business and Technology Initiative,” https://www.mbda.gov/page/minority-business-and-
technology-initiative, and “The Minority Business Development Agency Launches the ‘Minority Business and
Technology Initiative’ with Amazon Business,” March 17, 2020, https://www.mbda.gov/news/press-releases/2020/03/
minority-business-development-agency-launches-minority-business-and.
120 DOC, FY2020-2022 Annual Performance Plan and Report, p. 61, https://www.commerce.gov/sites/default/files/
2021-01/DOC-FY20-22-APPR-Final.pdf, and MBDA, “Global Business: Strategic Partners,” https://www.mbda.gov/
page/global-business-strategic-partners.
121 MBDA, “Annual Performance Summary, FY2022,” https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/2023-08/
MBDA_FY%202022APR%20Summary_062323_1230pm.pdf.
122 For definitions of MBDA measures, see “MBDA Performance Metrics,” https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/
2020-11/MBDA%20Performance%20Metrics.pdf.
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were for private sector deals.123 See Table 1 for a summary of assessments and evaluations of the
agency.
Table 1. MBDA Performance Metrics, FY2016–FY2022

FY2016
FY2017
FY2018
FY2019
FY2020
FY2021
FY2022
Total Value of
$1.4 bil ion
$3 bil ion
$3.4
$3.1
$6.9
$2.8
$1.6
Contracts
bil ion
bil ion
bil ion
bil ion
bil ion
Total Value of
$1.3 bil ion $4.9
$1.2
$1.8
$967
$709
$1.2
Capital
bil ion
bil ion
bil ion
mil ion
mil ion
bil ion
Jobs Created
5,784
10,191
10,196
10,366
11,597
6,265
7,904
Jobs Retained
5,689
8,364
9,277
11,764
15,720
7,478
7,514
Source: MBDA, “MBDA Annual Performance Reports,” https://www.mbda.gov/performance.
Notes: The source of data regarding contracts, financial transactions, and jobs created/retained are reported by
MBDA Business Centers and are verified by MBDA headquarters staff. The performance data date of retrieval
was April 15, 2024.
Considerations for Congress
In considering the MBD Act of 2021’s implementation, Congress may focus its oversight role on
the new and expanded activities authorized by the agency’s enabling legislation. A perennial issue
of congressional interest involves debates about the agency’s role in supplementing (or
duplicating) other forms of federal assistance for businesses. In addition, there has been continued
interest in developing strategies to use MBDA to promote individual economic mobility, as well
as broader national economic growth, especially with regard to reducing inequities and advancing
minority entrepreneurship, innovation, and business expansion activities.
March 2024 District Court Order
In a March 2024 decision, Nuziard et al. v. Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) et
al., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas found MBDA’s presumption of
social disadvantage for certain program applicants to be unconstitutional and ordered the agency
to discontinue using race or ethnicity as criteria for receiving MBDA Business Center services
nationwide. (See “Introduction” for more information.)
MBDA has been allowing businesses to receive Business Center services if a business owner self-
certifies that they are socially or economically disadvantaged, regardless of race. Congress may
consider requiring a procedure other than self-certification for MBDA clients to demonstrate
social or economic disadvantage. This could include requiring members of the racial and ethnic
groups that were previously presumed to be disadvantaged—as well as all other businesses
interested in Business Center services—to demonstrate social or economic disadvantage. One
way to accomplish this could be by requiring a written narrative explaining why the applicant is
socially or economically disadvantaged. The Small Business Administration has taken this
approach with applicants to its 8(a) Business Development Program, which in July 2023 was the
subject of a similar court ruling as MBDA’s Business Centers. (For more information on 8(a), see

123 David Byrd, National Director, MBDA, “Meeting Notes—President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans
and Pacific Islanders Fourth Quarterly Meeting and AAPI Town Hall,” January 13, 2021, https://www.commerce.gov/
sites/default/files/2021-02/PAC-
AAPI%20Fourth%20Quarterly%20Meeting%20Minutes%20Final_January%2013%202021.pdf.
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CRS In Focus IF12458, The SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program, by R. Corinne
Blackford.)
MBDA may choose to appeal the ruling, allow the ruling to stand as is, or opt for another
approach. The agency could evaluate how private lenders take actions to remove barriers to credit
for underserved or socially or economically disadvantaged business owners; the ruling does not
appear to prevent the MBDA from conducting studies.
Implementation of Enabling Legislation
As mentioned, the MBD Act of 2021 created several new programs and reporting requirements
for the agency and authorized the appropriation of $110 million each fiscal year from FY2021
through FY2025 (see Table A-1 for recent MBDA appropriations). MBDA may seek to hire
additional staff or otherwise increase its capacity to reestablish regional offices, administer
existing and new programs, and activate additional roles, such as coordination among federal
agencies and new areas of technical assistance and research (e.g., workforce development
services, supply chain opportunities, and other priorities outlined in the act). Congress will have
an opportunity to oversee all of these activities. For example, Congress may seek to monitor key
milestones and engage with MBDA as it implements new structures, roles, and programs.124
Congress may also seek to monitor the agency’s performance metrics, which may be revised to
reflect expanded service areas and/or different types of outcomes.125
Other issues of congressional interest include
• the degree to which MBDA services may be available to previously unserved or
underserved minority communities and MBEs (e.g., rural areas and areas not
served by existing programs). As noted, the act directed MBDA to apply revised
criteria to define MBEs, and Congress may be interested in the impact of a
revised MBE definition on the agency’s outreach and program activities (see
“MBDA Clients”).
• MBDA’s efforts to coordinate with other federal agencies in the “establishment,
preservation, and strengthening of socially or economically disadvantaged
business concerns.”126
• MBDA’s required reports (see “Agency Establishment”).
MBDA is further tasked with evaluating the impact of federal support of socially or economically
disadvantaged business concerns.127
Duplication of SBA Activities
Whether MBDA complements or duplicates the SBA’s programs, especially those programs
targeted to minority populations (e.g., the Microloan program)128 or the socially and economically
disadvantaged (e.g., the 8(a) Business Development Program)129, has been a perennial issue of

124 P.L. 117-58, Sec. 100003 and Sec. 100401.
125 The MBD Act of 2021 requires a report on the organizational structure of the agency and reports on other activities.
126 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title IV.
127 Ibid.
128 For further information and analysis of the Microloan program, see CRS Report R41057, Small Business
Administration Microloan Program, by Robert Jay Dilger.
129 For further information and analysis of the 8(a) Business Development program, see CRS Report R44844, SBA’s
“8(a) Program”: Overview, History, and Current Issues, by Robert Jay Dilger.
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congressional interest. There have been several proposals in the past to terminate MBDA and
transfer its activities to the SBA. There have also been proposals to transfer SBA programs that
support minority business development to MBDA (or a reorganized version of the agency within
DOC).130 MBDA’s proponents have argued that the agency complements rather than conflicts
with the SBA’s programs. The SBA focuses on small businesses. MBDA does not restrict its
activities, referrals, or events based on business size. However, MBDA Business Centers have
recently focused on providing technical and business development services to minority firms with
employees and revenues that exceed $500,000.131 Additionally, Title VI of the MBD Act of 2021
directs the Under Secretary “to ensure consistency with program goals and to avoid duplication”
by reviewing all proposed federal training and technical assistance activities in direct support of
the programs carried out under the Business Center program and the Rural Business Center
program.132
Additional Considerations
Over the years, due to the unique set of challenges and circumstances faced by minority business
owners, some analysts and policymakers have called for MBDA to take on new or expanded
roles, services, and partnerships. The MBD Act of 2021 expanded MBDA’s scope of activities by
providing it several new roles and programs. As Congress reviews options to support economic
development, MBDA may continue to offer existing and potentially new avenues for providing
financial and technical assistance to MBEs. For instance, in light of COVID-19’s disproportionate
impact on MBEs, Congress may further consider economic recovery policy options to address the
unique challenges faced by MBEs as well as other options to involve MBDA in additional
convening, coordinating, and assistance roles.133

130 See U.S. Commission on Minority Business Development (CMBD), Final Report, 1992 (Washington, DC: GPO)
and U.S. Congress, House Committee on Small Business, Minority Business Development, H102-91, 102nd Cong., 2nd
sess., September 24, 1992, pp. 7-8, 16 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1992). The commission was established by P.L. 100-
656 to assess and review federal programs designed to promote minority business development.
131 MBDA, MBDA Notice of Funding Opportunity—Business Center Program, FY2021, https://www.grants.gov/web/
grants/search-grants.html?keywords=MBDA-OBD-2021-2006809.
132 P.L. 117-58, Division K, Title IV.
133 Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers identified challenges and outcomes that are unique to MBEs and
small MBEs in particular. For reports on aspects of minority business ownership, including capital access and
entrepreneurship, see MBDA, “Demographic Trends Publications,” https://www.mbda.gov/page/demographic-trends-
publications; Robert W. Fairlie, Alicia Robb, and David T. Robinson, “Black and White: Access to Capital Among
Minority-Owned Startups,” NBER Working Paper No. 28154 (November 2020); V. Hwang, S. Desai, and R. Baird,
“Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs: Removing Barriers,” Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation: Kansas City (2019).
Timothy Bates, W.D. Bradford, and Robert Seamans, “Minority Entrepreneurship in Twenty-First Century America,”
Small Business Economics, 50, pp. 415-427 (2018); Robert W. Fairlie and Alicia M. Robb, Race and Entrepreneurial
Success: Black-, Asian-, and White-Owned Businesses in the United States (Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2010);
and Robert W. Fairlie, Alicia M. Robb, and David Hinson, “Disparities in Capital Access Between Minority and Non-
Minority-Owned Businesses,” Minority Business Development Agency (2010), https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/
files/migrated/files-attachments/DisparitiesinCapitalAccessReport.pdf.
Studies indicate that the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic has affected minority business owners more
severely than nonminority business owners. For a summary of research on the economic impact of the coronavirus
pandemic on MBEs, see Lucas Misera, An Uphill Battle: COVID-19’s Outsized Toll on Minority-Owned Firms,
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, October 8, 2020, https://www.clevelandfed.org/newsroom-and-events/
publications/community-development-briefs/db-20201008-misera-report.aspx.
For analysis of metrics related to small businesses, including disparities between small MBEs and small nonminority
firms, see Small Business Credit Survey: 2021 Report on Employer Firms, Federal Reserve Banks, February 2021,
https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/survey/2021/report-on-employer-firms; and Mels de Zeeuw, Small Business Credit
(continued...)
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Survey: 2019 Report on Minority-Owned Firms, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, December 2019,
https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/survey/2019/report-on-minority-owned-firms, among others.
For additional analysis of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic on small businesses, see Daniel Wilmoth,
“The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Small Businesses,” SBA, Office of Advocacy, Issue Brief Number 16,
March 2021, https://cdn.advocacy.sba.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/02112318/COVID-19-Impact-On-Small-
Business.pdf; Robert Fairlie, The Impact of COVID-19 on Small Business Owners: Evidence of Early-Stage Losses
from the April 2020 Current Population Survey, National Bureau of Economic Research, Working Paper 27309, 2020,
doi.org/10.3386/w27309; and Alexander W. Bartik, et al., How Are Small Businesses Adjusting to COVID-19? Early
Evidence from a Survey, National Bureau of Economic Research, Working Paper 26989, 2020,
doi.org/10.3386/w26989, among others.
Researchers have also proposed additional roles, services, outreach, and partnerships for the agency in recent years.
Some suggest that MBDA resources could be directed to focus on minority serving-institutions (MSIs) that would
administer business incubators and accelerators or operate business centers; administer an equity grant program to fund
municipal capital projects; and develop and administer a minority business investment company (MBIC)—similar to
the SBA’s small business investment company (SBIC) program—to allow the agency to license lenders and lend
capital for business investments, among other activities. For an example of these perspectives, see Connor Maxwell,
Darrick Hamilton, Andre M. Perry, and Danyelle Solomon, “A Blueprint for Revamping the Minority Business
Development Agency,” July 31, 2020, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2020/07/31/488423/
blueprint-revamping-minority-business-development-agency/.
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Appendix A. Additional Agency History
Successive Administrations since the Carter Administration have changed the agency’s focus and
reorganized the delivery of its assistance and services. Among other shifts, the agency expanded
its services through the Business Center program in the 1980s and focused on enhancing global
competitiveness of MBEs in the 1990s and early 2000s. During the Obama Administration, the
agency continued to enhance global competitiveness and coordinated inter-agency minority
business initiatives. Beginning in FY2017, the Trump Administration proposed cuts to the
agency’s budget and proposed orienting the agency’s initiatives away from services for individual
businesses. The Biden Administration has proposed increased annual appropriations, a dedicated
Assistant Secretary, and expanded programs and activities for the agency.
Evolving Delivery System
In 1981, the Reagan Administration established the Minority Business Development Center
program (MBDC), which became MBDA’s primary method for delivering technical and
management services to minority businesses. The centers, located in metropolitan areas, were
designed to serve as “one-stop” service centers intended to address the needs of minority
entrepreneurs. The centers focused on recruiting and encouraging private corporations to do
business with minority firms, including creating a directory of minority firms and their
capabilities. President Ronald Reagan also issued E.O. 12432, Minority Business Enterprise
Development, which required federal agencies with substantial procurement and grant-making
authority to develop plans that encourage minority business participation in federal procurement,
contracts, and grants.134 President George H.W. Bush proposed eliminating the agency and
transferring its mission to the SBA, but ultimately continued the agency as an entity within
DOC.135
In 1994, President Clinton issued E.O. 12928, Promoting Procurement with Small Businesses
Owned and Controlled by Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals, Historically
Black Colleges and Universities, and Minority Institutions.136 Although E.O. 12928 did not
directly reference E.O. 11625, it reiterated support for expanding access to federal procurement
contracts for businesses owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, black
colleges and universities, and other minority institutions. The Clinton Administration supported
substantial increases in the agency’s budget. In seeking to expand MBDA’s reach and capacity,
the Clinton Administration sought increases to fund the establishment of Rural Business
Development Centers, and the activities of the MBDCs and Minority Business Opportunity
Committees (MBOC).
In 1996, the agency announced the initiation of a pilot program, the Community Based
Enhancement Services (CBES). According to the Federal Register Notice on March 6, 1996, the
CBES’s goal was “to enable MBDA to enter into strategic alliances, coordinating the delivery of

134 Executive Order 12432, “Minority Business Enterprise Development,” 48 Federal Register 32551, July 14, 1983.
135 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and
State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies, Departments of Commerce, Justice, And State, The Judiciary, and Related
Agencies Appropriations for 1990, H181-26, 101st Cong., 2nd sess., March 14-17, 20-22, 1989 (Washington, DC: GPO,
1989).
136 Executive Order 12928, “Promoting Procurement with Small Businesses Owned and Controlled by Socially and
Economically Disadvantaged Individuals, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and Minority Institutions,” 59
Federal Register 48377, September 20, 1994.
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its services with those of other entities capable of assisting in minority and/or small and
disadvantaged business development in a particular market.”137
An audit of the pilot program found significant deficiencies in MBDA’s administration of the
pilot project, noting that MBDA failed to monitor and assess the grantees’ performance in accord
with its own handbook.138 The report recommended that MBDA develop project-specific
performance measures to reflect the nature of the project, assign staff with adequate technical and
business expertise to monitor project activities, and undertake timely and thorough evaluation to
determine program effectiveness.139
Under the George W. Bush Administration, MBDA continued efforts to coordinate its programs
with the programs of the SBA supporting minority and disadvantaged firms. The Bush
Administration, based on research findings, pledged to focus its resources on minority firms with
$500,000 or more in annual revenues.140
The agency funded programs and services including
• National Enterprise Centers staffed by MBDC personnel who provided support
services, including referrals and marketing services, to business entities of
significant size and capacity;
• MBDCs, which provided consultant services to firms with significant growth
potential; and
• MBOCs that provided consulting services, including identifying potential sources
of equity and working capital, assisting minority entrepreneurs gain access to
profitable markets.
The agency also funded a number of projects intended to address communities with special needs
(Special Projects). Other activities included supporting youth entrepreneurship (Emerging
Minority Business Leaders Program), improving access to capital (Equity Capital Access
Committee), and the continued development of an online database of potential procurement and
contracting opportunities.
Global Competitiveness
Starting in the 1990s, the agency began to focus on assisting minority firms enter and compete in
the global economy. A 2003 MBDA study explored issues and opportunities for minority

137 DOC, “Minority Business Development Agency: Implementation of Pilot Community-Based Enhanced Services
(CBES) Initiative in Baltimore, Maryland, and the Identification of Other Markets To Be Considered as Alternatives to
the Minority Business Development Center Program for the Delivery of Management and Technical Assistance to
Minority Firms and Entrepreneurs,” 61 Federal Register 8919-8920, March 6, 1996.
138 DOC, Office of Inspector General, Minority Business Development Agency Community-Based Enhanced Services
Pilot Project Award Not Effectively Monitored, Final Audit Report No. EDD-9406-8-0002, Washington, DC, May
1998, pp. i-ii.
139 Ibid. p. 8.
140 DOC, Minority Business Development Agency, The State of Minority Business Enterprises, An Overview of the
2002 Survey of Business Owners, Washington, DC, August 2006, p. 30, https://archive.mbda.gov/sites/mbda.gov/files/
migrated/files-attachments/StateofMinorityBusiness2002SurveyofBusinessOwners.pdf.
Later, a 2015 report also noted that minority firms with gross annual receipts of $500,000 or more generated a much
larger percentage of all minority revenues and were more likely to have paid employees compared to minority firms
with annual gross receipts under $500,000. See Sumiye “Sue” Obuko and Mark Planting, The State of Minority
Business Enterprises: An Overview of the 2007 Survey of Business Owners, U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority
Business Development Agency, Washington, DC, 2015, p. 36 (footnote), https://archive.mbda.gov/sites/mbda.gov/
files/migrated/files-attachments/State_Minority_Business_Enterprises_2007Data.pdf.
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businesses seeking international opportunities. The preliminary study’s key findings included the
following observations:
• Minority businesses may not be able to compete directly with massive U.S.
companies that have already established a multinational presence in developed
economies.
• By capitalizing on their unique competitive strengths, especially in developing
countries, minority-business enterprises (MBEs) can compete with larger
multinational companies.
• A secondary conclusion is that the quality of information about MBE interaction
with the international economy is badly outdated, and further research must be
conducted. Given the need to design successful policies and programs to support
MBE international expansion, this lack of data is a critical hurdle that must be
overcome.141
During the Obama Administration, in addition to a focus on facilitating entry or expansion of
minority firms into the global market place, increased emphasis was placed on quantifying the
impact of MBDA activities, increasing the efficient delivery of services to minority business
communities, and increasing coordination with other federal agencies. Federal agencies that have
partnered with MBDA include the SBA, the International Trade Administration, the Export-
Import Bank, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Economic Development
Administration.
Proposals to Establish, Transfer, or Eliminate the Agency
Executive branch and legislative proposals have sought to transfer, eliminate, or—alternatively—
statutorily authorize the agency. MBDA was originally created by executive order. Prior to the
MBD Act of 2021’s enactment in 2021, there were a number of proposals over the years to
statutorily authorize MBDA. Absent specific statutory requirements, the President could have
exercised authority to effectively terminate MBDA’s discretionary activities at any time without
congressional consultation or consent. Nevertheless, during this time, Congress could have (and
has from time to time) appropriated funds to carry out specific activities, and potentially
supersede presidential discretion.142 In addition, Congress could have revoked or modified the
executive order, potentially eliminating, expanding, or restricting the agency.
Transferring the agency would have changed the agency’s role and visibility. Several
reorganization plans from the late 1970s through the 1990s from the executive branch would have
moved MBDA out of DOC.143 For instance, the George H.W. Bush Administration proposed to

141 John Owens and Robert Pazornik, Globalization and Minority-Owned Businesses in the United States: Assessment
and Prospects, Minority Business Development Agency, Preliminary Study, Washington, DC, September 28, 2003, p. 1,
https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/migrated/files-attachments/MBEintheGlobalEconomy.pdf.
142 In general, when Congress appropriates a specific amount of budget authority for a specific purpose, the President
has only limited authority to order executive branch agencies to reduce or withhold funds. Decisions by federal courts,
including a unanimous decision by the Supreme Court in Train v City of New York, 420 U.S. 35 (1975), and the
enactment of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, P.L. 93-344, clarified this. Specifically,
under ICA, the President can withhold funds for a limited time if he complies with specific reporting requirements to
Congress, but he cannot permanently prevent the obligation or expenditure of funds provided in law unless Congress
agrees.
143 For example, in the 95th Congress, the Senate Committee on Appropriations urged “the Office of Management and
Budget to consider the merger of OMBE into SBA’s programs of assistance to minority businesses so that a unified
program will be available for consideration in the 1980 budget review.” See S.Rept. 95-1043.
(continued...)
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transfer MBDA into the SBA in FY1989 and FY1990.144 In FY2018, the Trump Administration
recommended a $6 million budget for MBDA, to be used to close out the agency.145 The Trump
Administration’s budgets in FY2019, FY2020, and FY2021 would have reduced the agency’s
annual funding to approximately $10 million and proposed to change the focus of MBDA
services from assisting individual MBEs to efforts to address issues facing the broader minority
business community.146
The Trump Administration’s first budget request (for FY2018) proposed to eliminate the agency,
and later budget requests proposed reductions to the agency’s budget by approximately 75%. For
example, the Trump Administration sought to reduce the agency’s budget to $10.3 million for
FY2021, with the intent of redirecting resources away from services for individual businesses.147
According to budget documents, the Trump Administration supported the termination of MBDA
and its programs as part of its wider efforts to reduce federal spending and to redefine the role of
the federal government in domestic affairs. MBDA and its activities are among a number of
federal programs that support private sector job creation.148 The Administration’s opposition may
have been rooted in a view of federalism which argues that these kinds of activities are the
responsibilities of state and local governments and the private and nonprofit sectors, not the

In the 98th Congress, the Department of International Trade and Industry Act of 1983 (S. 121) proposed transferring
MBDA to the SBA as one of several aspects of a reorganization plan for DOC. See S.Rept. 98-374. Later, during the
Reagan Administration, a memo from the Secretary of Commerce, James Baker, outlined a proposal to reorganize
DOC and establish the Department of International Trade and Industry. Included in the proposal are references to
efforts to consolidate government and the following proposed action: “Disposition of other elements of DOC will be
identical to the Administration proposal of the 98th Congress approved by OMB, except that PTO [Patent and
Trademark Office] would go to Justice and MBDA would go to HUD (unless SBA receives continued funding).” See
Memo, Malcolm Baldrige to Edwin Meese, James Baker, Richard Darman, January 5, 1985, folder “Cabinet Affairs
(1)” box 6, James Baker Files, Ronald Reagan Library. (At the time, Malcolm Baldrige was Secretary of DOC, Edwin
Meese was Counselor to the President, and Richard Darman was Assistant to the President and Deputy to the Chief of
Staff.)
In the 104th Congress, the Commerce Department Termination and Government Reorganization Act of 1995 (S. 929,
S.Rept. 104-164) and the Department of Commerce Dismantling Act (H.R. 1756, H.Rept. 104-260) proposed to
eliminate several Commerce agencies, including MBDA. S. 929 and H.R. 1756 are noted in the analysis of trade
reorganization in CRS Report R42555, Trade Reorganization: Overview and Issues for Congress, by Shayerah I.
Akhtar.
144 OMB, “Budget of the U.S. Government - FY1989,” pp. 5-69 and 5-70, available at https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/
54/item/18995; and “Budget of the U.S. Government—FY1990,” p. 5-78, available at https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/
54/item/18996.
145 OMB “Appendix: Budget of the U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2018” (2017), p. 190, https://www.govinfo.gov/
content/pkg/BUDGET-2018-APP/pdf/BUDGET-2018-APP.pdf.
146 OMB, “Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2019,” (2018), p. 31, https://www.govinfo.gov/
content/pkg/BUDGET-2019-BUD/pdf/BUDGET-2019-BUD.pdf, and “Appendix: Budget of the United States
Government, Fiscal Year 2019” (2018), p. 189, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BUDGET-2019-APP/pdf/
BUDGET-2019-APP.pdf; “Appendix: Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2020” (2019), p. 187,
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BUDGET-2020-APP/pdf/BUDGET-2020-APP.pdf; and “Appendix: Budget of
the United States Government, Fiscal Year 2021” (2020), p. 198, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BUDGET-
2021-APP/pdf/BUDGET-2021-APP.pdf.
147 U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), “A Budget for America’s Future—Appendix,” FY2021
Congressional Budget Justification, p. 198, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BUDGET-2021-APP/pdf/BUDGET-
2021-APP.pdf.
148 Other agencies and programs that support private job creation and economic development include the SBA;
federally chartered regional economic development agencies, including the Appalachian Regional Commission, the
Delta Regional Authority, the Northern Border Regional Commission, and the Denali Commission; the Economic
Development Administration and its programs; the rural development programs administered by the Rural
Development Administration of the Department of Agriculture; and the Community Development Block Grant
program administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. See CRS Report R46683, Federal
Resources for State and Local Economic Development, by Julie M. Lawhorn.
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federal government. MBDA supporters contend that the agency’s mission is critical to the nation’s
economic future and that the agency’s programs and services address a number of deficiencies
and impediments faced by minority entrepreneurs.
As previously noted, Congress continued to provide MBDA appropriations even as various
Administrations and legislative proposals considered reorganizing the agency, defunding the
agency’s activities, or merging it into the SBA. Legislative proposals to transfer or establish
MBDA and its programs are included in Appendix C, and Table A-1 provides a history of
Administrations’ annual budget requests and enacted appropriations for the agency since FY1970.
MBDA Annual Budget Requests and Enacted Appropriations, FY1970–FY2024
Table A-1 provides a history of annual budget requests and enacted appropriations for MBDA
since FY1970.
Table A-1. MBDA Appropriations, FY1970–FY2024
(in millions of dollars)
Fiscal Year
Admin. Request
Enacted
1970
1.5
1.2
1971
1.8
2.1
1972
3.5
43.6
1972supplemental
40.0
40.0
1973
63.6
63.9
1974
74.5
35.6
1975
52.0
52.0
1976
52.6
49.8
1977
0.0
50.3
1978
50.3
49.4
1979
60.6
57.9
1980
58.8
58.9
1981
62.9
59.6
1982
65.4
56.6
1983
50.0
47.3
1984
54.0
53.9
1985
49.6
49.6
1986
44.8
43.0
1987
45.4
39.8
1988
4.6
39.7
1989
0.0
39.7
1990
0.0
39.7
1991
46.2
41.1
1992
0
42.6
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Fiscal Year
Admin. Request
Enacted
1993
37.9
37.9
1994
46.0
44.1
1995
46.2
43.8
1996
47.9
32.0
1997
34.0
28.0
1998
28.0
25.0
1999
28.1
27.3
2000
27.6
27.3
2001
28.2
27.3
2002
28.4
28.3
2003
29.8
28.9
2004
29.5
28.9
2005
34.5
29.9
2006
30.7
30.0
2007
29.6
30.0
2008
28.7
28.6
2009
29.0
29.8
2010
31.0
31.5
2011
32.3
30.3
2012
32.3
30.3
2013
28.7
27.5
2014
29.3
28.0
2015
28.3
30.0
2016
30.0
32.0
2017
35.6
34.0
2018
6.0
39.0
2019
10.0
40.0
2020
10.0
52.0
2021
10.3
73.0
2022
70.0
55.0
2023
110.0
70.0
2024
110.0
68.25
2025
80.0

Source: Budget Appendices of the United States, FY1970-FY2025.
Notes: In FY2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act, P.L. 116-136) provided
MBDA an additional $10 mil ion in supplemental funding in addition to $42 mil ion in annual appropriations, for a
total of $52 mil ion. The supplemental funding was to assist MBEs with preventing, preparing for, and responding
to the COVID-19 pandemic through education, training, and advising grants to minority business centers and
minority chambers of commerce. In FY2021, the Consolidated Appropriations Act (P.L. 116-260) provided
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MBDA with $25 mil ion in supplemental funding, in addition to $48 mil ion in annual appropriations. The table
does not include funding provided by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (P.L. 117-2, Title III, Subtitle C,
Section 3301) provided funding for the Department of the Treasury’s State Small Business Credit Initiative
(SSBCI), part of which was later transferred to MBDA. See “Error! Reference source not found..”
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Appendix B. Assessments and Evaluations
During its 52-year history, MBDA has been the subject of numerous evaluative reports. These
reports have examined the agency’s efficacy in creating and assisting minority businesses,
performance measures used to gauge progress in achieving agency objectives, and program
management and duplication issues.
National Advisory Council on Minority Business Enterprise 2013
In 2013, the National Advisory Council on Minority Business Enterprise (NACMBE) released a
set of recommendations to improve MBDA’s effectiveness. The NACMBE, which was created by
the Obama Administration in 2010, was a voluntary body comprised of representatives from
business and public sectors. The final recommendations included the following:
• centralizing and consolidating federal MBE development efforts into one single
well-funded agency;
• assisting MBEs’ development of long-term contractual relations with larger
businesses to facilitate integration;
• expanding MBE access to capital by establishing new sources of capital through
the use of tax credits in exchange for equity capital investments in MBEs or by
an enterprise bond fund;
• establishing an MBE Academy to provide ongoing education to MBE owners
through a public private partnership; and
• building a comprehensive longitudinal database to support long-term policy
analysis of the issues and opportunities.149
PART Evaluation 2007
Starting in 2002, the George W. Bush Administration initiated its Program Assessment Rating
Tool (PART) as a means to evaluate the effectiveness of federal programs. The PART instrument
was a set of questionnaires focused on four elements: purpose and design; strategic planning;
program management; and program outcomes. A PART evaluation of the agency conducted in
2007 found MBDA performance to be Adequate with high marks for program purpose and design
(80%); strategic planning (75%); and program management (100%).150 Among the highlights, the
evaluation noted the following:
• The program has developed appropriate annual and long-term measures that
focus on the direct impact of its assistance on business clients. However, more
research and evaluation needs to be conducted on the long-term impact of MBDA
assistance.
• The program has strong management. It awards grants using a competitive
process, and provides sufficient oversight of grant activities, including tracking
of progress towards meeting performance goals.

149 DOC, National Advisory Council on Minority Business Enterprise Recommendations, Washington, DC, December
2013, https://www.mbda.gov/sites/default/files/migrated/files-attachments/NACMBEFinalReport041314.PDF.
150 U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Program Assessment: Minority Business Development Agency,
Washington, DC, 2007, https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/omb/assets/omb/expectmore/
summary/10000034.2007.html.
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• While MBDA is focused on minority small businesses, there are many other
sources of minority business assistance and support at the federal, state, and local
level. At the federal level, the SBA provides similar assistance through its
entrepreneurial development programs.151
Office of Inspector General Reports
Past reports of the Commerce Department’s Office of Inspector General (IG) examined various
aspects of the agency and its operations. Three of these reports are summarized below.152
• A 2017 report by DOC IG reviewed MBDA’s management of cooperative
agreements for the Minority Business Center Program and found no significant
problems. The MBDA director concurred with the report’s recommendations,
which directed MBDA to enforce existing and implement new procedures related
to oversight, reporting policies and procedures, and the agency’s methodology for
verifying select performance measures.153
• A 2006 report by DOC IG found that MBDA performance measures were
undermined by inappropriately combining results for three different programs
and unreliable performance data. The report was initiated after the agency
reported a 300% increase in the number of clients assisted during the 2004
program year by MBOCs despite a decrease in FY2004 appropriations. The
report found that MBDA, in reporting FY2004 results, inappropriately combined
results for MBOCs with two other programs—Business Development Centers
and the Phoenix program—resulting in the inflation of the number of clients
served by MBOCs.154 The MBDA director concurred with the recommendations
of the report, which directed MBDA to define clearly key performance measures
and the types of actions that may be counted toward measuring the “dollar value
of contract awards obtained,” and report performance measures of its programs
separately.
• A 1998 audit report by DOC IG identified deficiencies in the process MBDA
used to monitor the performance of a pilot project that would test the viability of
the Community-Based Enhancement Services initiatives as an alternative to the
Minority Business Development Center. The report found that MBDA’s
monitoring of the pilot project failed to follow the agency’s written policies and
procedures and thus was ineffective in its assessment of the program. MBDA
concurred with the report’s findings and committed to incorporating the
recommendations put forth by the report, which included assigning staff with
appropriate expertise who will follow MBDA policies and procedures; and

151 Ibid.
152 Another report of note is the U.S. Government Accountability Office, Minority Business Development Agency
Needs to Address Program Weaknesses, RCED-91-114, April 16, 1991, http://www.gao.gov/products/RCED-91-114.
153 DOC, Office of Inspector General, MBDA Can Improve Processes to More Effectively Monitor Cooperative
Agreements, Final Report OIG-17-029-A, Washington, DC, September 2017, https://www.oig.doc.gov/
OIGPublications/2017-09-05_MBDA-Business-Centers_final-report-Secured.pdf.
154 DOC, Office of Inspector General, Minority Business Development Agency Value of MBDA Performance Measures
Is Undermined by Inappropriate Combining of Program Results and Unreliable Performance Data from MBOC
Program, FSD-17252-5-0001, Washington, DC, September 2005, https://www.oig.doc.gov/OIGPublications/MBDA-
FSD-17252-5-0001-09-2005.pdf.
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developing project specific performance measures and specific reporting
requirements to reflect the specific nature of the project.155

155 DOC, Office of the Inspector General, Minority Business Development Agency Community-Based Enhancement
Services Pilot Project Award Not Effectively Monitored, EDD-9406-8-0002, Washington, DC, June 1998, p.
8, https://www.oig.doc.gov/OIGPublications/MBDA-EDD-9406-2-06-1998.pdf.
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Appendix C. Legislative Proposals, 96th Congress-
118th Congress
Since MBDA’s inception, a number of bills have been introduced that would have “codified” the
agency or its duties by, for example, establishing, redesignating, or transferring the agency;
creating new programs within the agency; or authorizing the agency to carry out certain
functions. The following bills—introduced in the 96th -117th Congresses—address the agency’s
statutory authority or its activities.
• The 96th Congress considered, but did not pass, legislative proposals to provide
MBDA statutory authorization. The House Committee on Small Business held
hearings on bills (H.R. 6904 and S. 2565) that would have established a
permanent MBDA within DOC.156 The House bill, introduced by Representatives
Parren Mitchell and Joseph Addabbo, would have granted the agency the
authority to engage in a number of activities in support of the agency’s mission,
including equity financing of minority business; financial and technical
assistance in penetrating domestic and foreign markets; and minority business
management education. A Senate bill, S. 2565, introduced by Senator Abraham
Ribicoff and backed by the Carter Administration, would have authorized the
creation of a Minority Business Development Agency focused on the provision
of technical assistance to minority firms. The Senate bill included much of the
language of E.O. 11625.
• In the 98th Congress, Senator William Roth introduced the Department of
International Trade and Industry Act of 1983 (S. 121), which proposed
transferring MBDA to the SBA as one of several aspects of an executive branch
agency reorganization plan.157
• During the 99th Congress, Representative Parren Mitchell introduced H.R. 4632,
a bill that would have denied any appropriations to MBDA to avoid potential
duplication of services with the SBA’s Associate Administrator for Minority
Small Business and Capital Ownership Development. MBDA’s activities, as well
as any unexpended balances, would have been transferred to the SBA Associate
Administrator for Minority Small Business and Capital Ownership Development.
• During the 101st through the 104th Congresses, Representative Kweisi Mfume
introduced legislation (H.R. 1769, H.R. 373, H.R. 278, H.R. 114, respectively)
that would have redesignated MBDA as the Minority Business Development
Administration. The bill would have directed MBDA to assist disadvantaged
businesses penetrate domestic and foreign markets, encourage firms to form joint
ventures to increase their share of the market, provide financial assistance to
public and private entities in support of the mission of MBDA, conduct pilot
projects that would assist disadvantaged businesses obtain and expand access to
capital; support management education efforts, and conduct research to advance

156 U.S. Congress, House Committee on Small Business, Subcommittee on General Oversight and Minority Enterprise,
Establishment of a Minority Business Development Administration in the Department of Commerce, 96th Cong., 2nd
sess., June 9 and 16, 1980 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1980).
157 S. 121 would have established a new Cabinet-level agency and eliminated DOC. See U.S. Congress, Senate
Committee on Government Affairs, Report on the Trade Reorganization Act of 1983, 98th Cong., 2nd sess., April 3,
1984, S.Rept. 98-374 (Washington, DC: GPO, 1984).
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The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

the nation’s understanding of the issues and opportunities surrounding minority
business enterprises.
• During the 111th Congress, Senator Bob Casey introduced S. 4026, the Minority
Business Development Improvements Act of 2010. This bill would have required
MBDA to establish the Minority Business Development Program and charged it
with providing qualified minority businesses with technical assistance and
contract procurement assistance. This bill would have also outlined minority
business qualification requirements for the program. It would have required that
(1) not less than 51% of the qualified minority business is directly and
unconditionally owned or controlled by historically disadvantaged individuals;
and (2) each officer or other individual exercising control over regular operations
would meet the definition of a historically disadvantaged individual.
Additionally, the bill would have authorized the program to provide technical
assistance to qualified disadvantaged businesses and support efforts to expand
federal procurement opportunities for disadvantaged businesses.
• Also during the 111th Congress, Representative Bobby Rush introduced H.R.
4343, the Minority Business Development Improvements Act of 2009, which
would have required the National Director of the Minority Business
Development Agency to establish and administer a Minority Business
Development Program focused on providing loan guarantees, technical
assistance, and contract procurement assistance to qualified minority businesses.
The bill would have defined a qualified minority business as a business that is at
least 51% directly owned or controlled by historically disadvantaged individuals.
In addition, the net worth of each principal of the minority business could not
exceed $2 million. The bill would have directed MBDA’s National Director to (1)
establish a database to assist prime contractors in identifying historically
disadvantaged firms for subcontracting, (2) enter into agreements to provide set-
aside contracting opportunities to minority businesses, and (3) terminate a
minority business from the program for specified violations. Representative Rush
also introduced H.R. 4929, Expanding Opportunities for Main Street Act of 2010.
This bill included a provision that would have required MBDA to establish a
Minority Business Development Program with the objective of providing
technical assistance, loan guarantees, and contract procurement assistance to
minority businesses. This bill would have also authorized MBDA to (1) enter into
agreements to provide set-aside contracting opportunities to minority businesses;
and (2) terminate a minority business from the program for specified violations.
This bill would have also required MBDA to establish a database to assist prime
contractors in identifying historically disadvantaged firms for subcontracting.
• During the 112th Congress, Senator Tom Udall introduced S. 1334, Expanding
Opportunities for Main Street Act of 2011. An identical bill (H.R. 2424) was
introduced by Representative Bobby Rush. Both bills’ MBDA provisions are
identical to provisions included in H.R. 4929, introduced by Representative Rush
during the 111th Congress.
• During the 113th Congress, Representative Bobby Rush introduced H.R. 2551,
Expanding Opportunities for Main Street Act. Title II of the bill deals exclusively
with MBDA and includes the same provisions included in H.R. 4343, introduced
during the 111th Congress.
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The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

• During the 114th and 115th Congresses, no bills were introduced to formally
establish the agency and its duties by statute.
• During the 116th Congress, Representative Jerry McNerney introduced H.R.
1432, the Minority Business Development Act of 2019, to redesignate and
establish MBDA as the Minority Business Development Administration. Later in
the 116th Congress, Representative Al Green introduced H.R. 6869 and Senator
Benjamin Cardin introduced S. 4208, both titled the Minority Business
Resiliency Act of 2020. Both bills were designed to codify the agency by
providing it statutory authorization and provide additional funding to help MBEs
recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, among other activities. Later in 2020,
Senator Benjamin Cardin introduced the Heroes Small Business Lifeline Act (S.
4818), and it included the Minority Business Resiliency Act of 2020 as a subtitle
of the larger bill. Representative Karen Bass introduced H.R. 8352 and Senator
Charles Schumer introduced S. 5065, which both included the Minority Business
Resiliency Act of 2020 as a subtitle of the larger bill. During the 116th Congress,
versions of the Heroes Act (H.R. 925, S. 4800, H.R. 8406) included language to
establish the agency and fund emergency grants for nonprofit organizations and
MBEs impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, among other activities. Also during
the 116th Congress, Senator Kelly Loeffler introduced S. 5011 to codify MBDA
and establish an Office of African American Affairs within the agency.
• During the 117th Congress, Senator Benjamin Cardin introduced two versions of
the Minority Business Resiliency Act of 2021 (S. 1255 in April 2021 and S. 2068
in June 2021) to make permanent and expand MBDA’s activities. Representative
Al Green introduced companion legislation in the House (H.R. 2689). Senator
Roger Wicker also introduced the Reaching America’s Rural Minority Businesses
Act of 2021 (S. 1749). The Minority Business Development Act of 2021
(Division K—Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, P.L. 117-58), enacted on
November 15, 2021, provided statutory authorization for the agency.
• During the 118th Congress, Representative Haley Stevens introduced H.R. 4499,
the IDEA Act of 2023. The bill would require MBDA to establish a grant
program for business accelerators, which would then help MBEs access capital
and provide MBEs with networking opportunities. Representative Emanuel
Cleaver introduced the Endowment Transparency Act (H.R. 4405), which would
require MBDA to report on recommended changes for substantially increasing
the use of MBEs or women-owned businesses in the investment and bond
transactions of institutions of higher education. A companion Senate bill (S.
2187) was introduced by Senator Cory Booker.

Author Information

Adam G. Levin

Analyst in Economic Development Policy

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40

The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs

Acknowledgments
This report was previously maintained by Julie Lawhorn, CRS Analyst in Economic Development Policy.
Readers may direct questions to the current author.

Disclaimer
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Congressional Research Service
R46816 · VERSION 12 · UPDATED
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