Small Business International Trade and Competition Enhancement Act

(Reported to Senate from the Committee on Small Business with amendment, S. Rept. 100-84)

Small Business International Trade and Competition Enhancement Act - Amends the Small Business Act to require the Office of International Trade to work with relevant Federal agencies and others to: (1) assist in developing a distribution network for existing trade promotion, trade finance, trade adjustment, and trade data collection programs; (2) assist in the aggressive marketing of such programs and the dissemination of marketing information to the small business community; (3) develop mechanisms for identifying subsectors of the small business community with strong export potential, identifying areas of demand in foreign markets and assisting in increasing international marketing by disseminating relevant information and linking potential sellers and buyers; (4) assist small businesses in the formation and utilization of export trading companies, export management companies, and research and development pools; (5) identify foreign language translation services; (6) disseminate data regarding the small business share of U.S. exports and the nature of State exports; (7) recommend revisions of the SIC code to encompass industries currently overlooked and to create codes for export trading companies and export management companies; (8) improve the utility of export promotion programs for small businesses; (9) improve the accessibility of the Export Trading Company contract facilitation service; (10) provide to the small business community information on conferences on exporting and international trade; (11) develop a program through which Small Business Administration (SBA) and Small Business Export Assistance Center (SBEAC) personnel can facilitate the access of small businesses to relevant export financing programs; (12) counsel small businesses regarding the administration of U.S. trade laws; and (13) increase access to trade remedy proceedings for small businesses. Requires the Office to report annually to the House and Senate Committees on Small Business on the implementation of such requirements.

Authorizes appropriations to the SBA to carry out the provisions of the Act concerning the Office.

Requires the Office to study and report to the House and Senate Committees on Small Business on: (1) the viability and cost of establishing an annual, competitive export incentive program for small business; (2) methods of expediting trade remedy proceedings to assist smaller firms; and (3) methods of expediting export licensing procedures to assist smaller firms seeking such licenses.

Authorizes the SBA to: (1) provide extensions and revolving lines of credit for export purposes and pre-export financing to allow small businesses to develop foreign markets; and (2) give weight to export-related benefits in considering loan or loan guarantee applications.

Authorizes appropriations for FY 1988 through 1990 for SBEAC funding agreements.

Expands the SBA's authority to make grants to include grants for management and technical assistance regarding small business participation in international markets, export promotion, and technology transfer.

Requires Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) to work with the SBA's regional and local offices, the Department of Commerce, and other Federal, State and local agencies to serve as a service delivery clearinghouse for existing trade promotion, trade finance, trade adjustment, and trade data collection programs for small businesses. Provides that any applicant eligible to be funded by the SBA as an SBDC may apply for additional funding for new or increased activities to assist in: (1) small business participation in international trade; (2) technology transfer; and (3) information dissemination and service delivery.

Authorizes the SBA to enter into funding agreements to establish SBEACs. Requires applicants to emphasize encouraging small businesses to participate in international trade, providing technology transfers which will promote productivity, and providing assistance to small businesses in marketing goods in foreign markets. Requires applicants to provide matching funds from outside sources.

Requires the Administrator to establish an advisory committee, consisting of three SBA representatives and two SBDC representatives, to recommend and publish guidelines for the evaluation of SBEAC proposals, and to conduct an annual review of programs established with funding agreements.

Provides that in States where no application for an SBEAC is funded, the SBA shall use its regional and local offices to carry out SBEAC activities.

Requires the SBA, in consultation with the SBEACs, to develop an information sharing system to: (1) allow participating SBEACs to exchange information; and (2) provide information central to technology transfer. Requires the SBA to present its proposal for implementing such system to the Congress within six months of the enactment of this Act.

Increases the limits on the SBA loan guarantees and economic development loans to $750,000 (currently, $500,000). Allows funding under these programs to be combined for a single project.

Requires the SBA Administrator, within six months after the enactment of this Act, to report to the House and Senate Small Business Committees on the advisability of amending the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIRP) to: (1) increase each agency's share of research and development expenditures by a specified amount per year until it reaches three percent of the total extramural research and development funds; (2) make the SBIRP permanent with a formal congressional review every ten years; (3) allocate a share of each agency's SBIR fund for administrative purposes; (4) determine annually that each agency complies with the law and that SBIRP funding is not being accompanied by parallel reductions in other small business programs; and (5) include within the SBIRP all agencies expending specified amounts on extramural research and development.

Requires the SBA to conduct a National Conference on Small Business Exports within one year of the enactment of this Act to develop recommendations designed to stimulate exports from small companies.

Expresses the sense of the Congress that such Conference and the SBA shall make recommendations on the desirability of an international conference on small business and international trade.

Expresses the sense of the Congress that the interests of the small business community have not been adequately represented in trade policy formulation and in trade negotiations, that the SBA's Administrator should be appointed as a member of the Trade Policy Committee, and that the United States Trade Representative should consult with the SBA and its Office of Advocacy in trade policy formation and should appoint a special trade assistant for small business.