- (a) Criteria
- (1) For the purposes of this chapter, a small-business concern, including but
not limited to enterprises that are engaged in the business of production of food and fiber, ranching and raising of livestock, agriculture, and all other farming and agricultural related industries, shall be deemed to be one which is independently owned and operated and which is not dominant in its field of operation: Provided, That notwithstanding any other provision of law, an agricultural enterprise shall be deemed to be a small business concern if it (including its affiliates) has annual receipts not in excess of $500,000.
- (2) Establishment of size standards. -
- (A) In general. - In addition to the criteria specified in paragraph (1), the
Administrator may specify detailed definitions or standards by which a business concern may be determined to be a small business concern for the purposes of this chapter or any other Act.
- (B) Additional criteria. - The standards described in paragraph (1) may
utilize number of employees, dollar volume of business, net worth, net income, a combination thereof, or other appropriate factors.
- (C) Requirements. - Unless specifically authorized by statute, no Federal
department or agency may prescribe a size standard for categorizing a business concern as a small business concern, unless such proposed size standard -
- (i) is proposed after an opportunity for public notice and comment;
- (ii) provides for determining - (I) the size of a manufacturing concern
as measured by the manufacturing concern's average employment based upon employment during each of the manufacturing concern's pay periods for the preceding 12 months; (II) the size of a business concern providing services on the basis of the annual average gross receipts of the business concern over a period of not less than 3 years; (III) the size of other business concerns on the basis of data over a period of not less than 3 years; or (IV) other appropriate factors; and
- (iii) is approved by the Administrator.
- (3) When establishing or approving any size standard pursuant to paragraph
(2), the Administrator shall ensure that the size standard varies from industry to industry to the extent necessary to reflect the differing characteristics of the various industries and consider other factors deemed to be relevant by the Administrator.
- (b) "Agency" defined
For purposes of this chapter, any reference to an agency or department of the
United States, and the term "Federal agency", shall have the meaning given the term "agency" by section 551(1) of title 5, but does not include the United States Postal Service or the General Accounting Office.
- (c) Qualified employee trust; eligibility for loan guarantee; "qualified
employee trust" defined; regulations for treatment of trust as qualified employee trust
- (1) For purposes of this chapter, a qualified employee trust shall be
eligible for any loan guarantee under section 636(a) of this title with respect to a small business concern on the same basis as if such trust were the same legal entity as such concern.
- (2) For purposes of this chapter, the term "qualified employee trust"
means, with respect to a small business concern, a trust -
- (A) which forms part of an employee stock ownership plan (as defined in
section 4975(e)(7) of title 26) -
- (i) which is maintained by such concern, and
- (ii) which provides that each participant in the plan is entitled to direct
the plan as to the manner in which voting rights under qualifying employer securities (as defined in section 4975(e)(8) of title 26) which are allocated to the account of such participant are to be exercised with respect to a corporate matter which (by law or charter) must be decided by a majority vote of outstanding common shares voted; and
- (B) in the case of any loan guarantee under section 636(a) of this title, the
trustee of which enters into an agreement with the Administrator which is binding on the trust and on such small business concern and which provides that -
- (i) the loan guaranteed under section 636(a) of this title shall be used
solely for the purchase of qualifying employer securities of such concern,
- (ii) all funds acquired by the concern in such purchase shall be used by such
concern solely for the purposes for which such loan was guaranteed,
- (iii) such concern will provide such funds as may be necessary for the timely
repayment of such loan, and the property of such concern shall be available as security for repayment of such loan, and
- (iv) all qualifying employer securities acquired by such trust in such
purchase shall be allocated to the accounts of participants in such plan who are entitled to share in such allocation, and each participant has a nonforfeitable right, not later than the date such loan is repaid, to all such qualifying employer securities which are so allocated to the participant's account.
- (3) Under regulations which may be prescribed by the Administrator, a trust
may be treated as a qualified employee trust with respect to a small business concern if -
- (A) the trust is maintained by an employee organization which represents at
least 51 percent of the employees of such concern, and
- (B) such concern maintains a plan -
- (i) which is an employee benefit plan which is designed to invest primarily
in qualifying employer securities (as defined in section 4975(e)(8) of title 26),
- (ii) which provides that each participant in the plan is entitled to direct
the plan as to the manner in which voting rights under qualifying employer securities which are allocated to the account of such participant are to be exercised with respect to a corporate matter which (by law or charter) must be decided by a majority vote of the outstanding common shares voted,
- (iii) which provides that each participant who is entitled to distribution
from the plan has a right, in the case of qualifying employer securities which are not readily tradeable on an established market, to require that the concern repurchase such securities under a fair valuation formula, and
- (iv) which meets such other requirements (similar to requirements applicable
to employee stock ownership plans as defined in section 4975(e)(7) of title 26) as the Administrator may prescribe, and
- (C) in the case of a loan guarantee under section 636(a) of this title, such
organization enters into an agreement with the Administration which is described in paragraph (2)(B).
- (d) "Qualified Indian tribe" defined
For purposes of section 636 of this title, the term "qualified Indian tribe"
means an Indian tribe as defined in section 450b(e) of title 25, which owns and controls 100 per centum of a small business concern.
- (e) "Public or private organization for the handicapped" defined
For purposes of section 636 of this title, the term "public or private
organization for the handicapped" means one -
- (1) which is organized under the laws of the United States or of any State,
operated in the interest of handicapped individuals, the net income of which does not inure in whole or in part to the benefit of any shareholder or other individuals;
- (2) which complies with any applicable occupational health and safety
standard prescribed by the Secretary of Labor; and
- (3) which, in the production of commodities and in the provision of services
during any fiscal year in which it received financial assistance under this subsection, employs handicapped individuals for not less than 75 per centum of the man-hours required for the production or provision of the commodities or services.
- (f) "Handicapped individual" defined
For purposes of section 636 of this title, the term "handicapped individual"
means a person who has a physical, mental, or emotional impairment, defect, ailment, disease, or disability of a permanent nature which in any way limits the selection of any type of employment for which the person would otherwise be qualified or qualifiable.
- (g) "Energy measures" defined
For purposes of section 636 of this title, the term "energy measures"
includes -
- (1) solar thermal energy equipment which is either of the active type based
upon mechanically forced energy transfer or of the passive type based on convective, conductive, or radiant energy transfer or some combination of these types;
- (2) photovoltaic cells and related equipment;
- (3) a product or service the primary purpose of which is conservation of
energy through devices or techniques which increase the energy efficiency of existing equipment, methods of operation, or systems which use fossil fuels, and which is on the Energy Conservation Measures list of the Secretary of Energy or which the Administrator determines to be consistent with the intent of this subsection;
- (4) equipment the primary purpose of which is production of energy from wood,
biological waste, grain, or other biomass source of energy;
- (5) equipment the primary purpose of which is industrial cogeneration of
energy, district heating, or production of energy from industrial waste;
- (6) hydroelectric power equipment;
- (7) wind energy conversion equipment; and
- (8) engineering, architectural, consulting, or other professional services
which are necessary or appropriate to aid citizens in using any of the measures described in paragraph (1) through (7).
- (h) "Credit elsewhere" defined
For purposes of this chapter the term "credit elsewhere" means the availability
of credit from non-Federal sources on reasonable terms and conditions taking into consideration the prevailing rates and terms in the community in or near where the concern transacts business, or the homeowner resides, for similar purposes and periods of time.
- (i) "Homeowners" defined
For purposes of section 636 of this title, the term "homeowners" includes
owners and lessees of residential property and also includes personal property.
- (j) "Small agricultural cooperative" defined
For the purposes of section 636(b)(2) of this title, the term "small
agricultural cooperative" means an association (corporate or otherwise) acting pursuant to the provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Act (12 U.S.C. 1141j), whose size does not exceed the size standard established by the Administration for other similar agricultural small business concerns. In determining such size, the Administration shall regard the association as a business concern and shall not include the income or employees of any member shareholder of such cooperative.
- (k) "Disaster" defined
For the purposes of this chapter, the term "disaster" means a sudden event
which causes severe damage including, but not limited to, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, fires, explosions, volcanoes, windstorms, landslides or mudslides, tidal waves, ocean conditions resulting in the closure of customary fishing waters, riots, civil disorders or other catastrophes, except it does not include economic dislocations.
- (l) "Computer crime" defined
For purposes of this chapter -
- (m) "Simplified acquisition threshold" defined
For purposes of this chapter, the term "simplified acquisition threshold"
has the meaning given such term in section 403(11) of title 41.
- (n) "Small business concern owned and controlled by women" defined
For the purposes of this chapter, a small business concern is a small business
concern owned and controlled by women if -
- (1) at least 51 percent of small business concern is owned by one or more
women or, in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more women; and
- (2) the management and daily business operations of the business are
controlled by one or more women.