The Committee on Appropriations submits the following report in explanation of the accompanying bill making appropriations for Financial Services and General Government for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2022.  Page 106 of this report has the following positive comments concerning employee ownership and succession planning.  As reported by TEA While Committee reports don’t have the force of law, they are carefully reviewed and nearly always followed by federal agencies.

Employee Ownership.—The Committee recognizes that employee owned businesses are uniquely structured and provide wide-ranging benefits for businesses, workers, and the local economy. The Committee notes that the Main Street Employee Ownership Act, which Congress enacted in section 862 of Public Law 115–232, requires SBA to make structural changes in SBA lending programs to ease the challenges faced by employee-owned businesses in accessing financing. This legislation also requires SBA to use Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) establish an employee owned business promotion program to provide assistance on structure, business succession, and planning. SBA is directed to fully implement these requirements. The Committee further directs SBA to work with the Departments of Agriculture, Labor, and Commerce to provide education and outreach to businesses, employees and financial institutions about employee-ownership, including cooperatives and employee stock ownership plans; provide technical assistance to assist employees’ efforts to become businesses; and assist in accessing capital sources.

Small Business Succession Planning.—The Committee is concerned that more than 58 percent of businesses do not have succession plans. The Committee encourages SBA to work with its resource partners to develop guidance, training, best practices, workshops, and other resources to assist small business owners and entrepreneurs in establishing and executing a business succession plan. In addition, SBA should consider the development of a publicly available online toolkit that can be used by SBA and its resource partners to guide small businesses through the process of creating a business succession plan.

The Senate passed the bill on 3/11 and the bill is on its way to the President to be approved!