WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development (IATF) and Advisory Committee on Veterans Business Affairs (ACVBA) will hold their second public meetings of 2017 on June 7 and 8 at SBA headquarters in Washington, D.C.
“These meetings are critical in helping us understand veterans’ workforce opportunities and challenges, especially as small business owners," said Barb Carson, Associate Administrator, SBA Office of Veterans Business Development. “For this reason, we sincerely appreciate public participation and look forward to hearing from veteran entrepreneurs, advocates, and colleagues.”
Both federal advisory committee meetings will address the current state of veteran-owned small businesses, updating the public on progress made regarding pushing forward veteran entrepreneurship and employment. Committee members will receive briefs on access to capital, counseling and training, and government contracting.
The ACVBA meeting will also include a veterans’ service organization roundtable discussion featuring American Legion, Student Veterans of America, 1 Vet at a Time, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Institute for Veteran and Military Families (IVMF) among others. Focal points include leveraging the G.I. Bill for veteran access to startup capital, procurement (certification, business development, and SBA Mentor Protégé programs), and recommendations for improving the current state of veteran business ownership.
Both IATF and ACVBA meetings are public meetings held quarterly in Washington, D.C. The committee meetings will be available via teleconference at 888-858-2144, access code: 4881729# as well as on webinar at: http://soc.att.com/2sn9t88. The ACVBA public meeting transcripts may also be found at www.sba.gov/ovbd under section heading, “Policy Formulation Committees,” upon conclusion of each meeting.
Please email any questions to veteransbusiness@sba.gov or call (202) 205-6337.
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About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) was created in 1953 and since January 13, 2012, has served as a Cabinet-level agency of the federal government to aid, counsel, assist and protect the interests of small business concerns, to preserve free competitive enterprise and to maintain and strengthen the overall economy of our nation. The SBA helps Americans start, build and grow businesses. Through an extensive network of field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations, the SBA delivers its services to people throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. Visit the website at www.sba.gov.
About Advisory Committee on Veterans Business Affairs
Public Law 106-50, the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999 established the ACVBA to serve as an independent source of advice and policy recommendations to the SBA Administrator, the Associate Administrator for Veterans Business Development, the Congress, the President and other U.S. Policy Makers.
About SBA’s Interagency Task Force on Veterans Small Business Development
The IATF, established February 14, 2008 by Public Law 110-186 and executed by Executive Order, coordinates federal efforts to increase and improve veteran small business development. This includes increasing access to capital, improving business development opportunities, and meeting federal contracting goals for veteran-owned small businesses and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.