WASHINGTON, Aug. 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On August 13, 2024, Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the voice in President Biden’s Cabinet for America’s more than 34 million small businesses, announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA). This partnership between OVBD and VBA will improve access to self-employment assistance and SBA training and counseling for active-duty service members and service-disabled veterans participating in the Veteran Readiness & Employment Program (VR&E), also known as Chapter 31. The MOU will run through June 17, 2028.

“This agreement further strengthens coordination between the SBA and VA and will enable countless more veterans to access the capital and resources they need to start, build, and grow their businesses,” said Administrator Guzman. “Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the SBA continues to deliver a strong record of supporting veterans, including increasing the number of Veterans Business Outreach Centers and creating greater access to federal contracts. This new agreement builds on the President’s ongoing commitment to help veterans pursue the American Dream of business ownership.”

“The SBA is proud to sign this MOU with the VA, which gives both agencies more opportunity to maximize our resources and help VR&E program participants find meaningful entrepreneurship opportunities,” said Robert Yannuzzi, Assistant Administrator for the SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development. “SBA resources have helped many veterans and service members start or expand successful small businesses that contribute to local and national economies. We are eager to continue this work and help guide VR&E participants in pursuit of their piece of the American dream.”

The SBA and VA will collaborate to hold joint training sessions, information sessions, and individual group training to train staff on the VR&E program as well as SBA resources to advance and expand appropriate self-employment opportunities for Chapter 31 participants.

Through SBA’s OVBD, Chapter 31 participants will have increased access to SBA resources nationwide, such as 28 Veterans Business Outreach Centers (VBOC) that will be expanding to 31 VBOCs this year, 68 District Offices, and other local resource partners like SCORE, Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), and Women’s Business Centers (WBC). These organizations will help participants get entrepreneurship training, learn new skills, and evaluate their business plans to start and grow a small business.

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About the SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development

The SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) works through the SBA’s extensive resource partner network, which includes Small Business Development Centers, SCORE, Women’s Business Centers, and 28 VBOCs located throughout the nation. VBOCs are also the leading partner in hosting the “Boots to Business” and “Boots to Business Reboot” programs, which offer courses on entrepreneurship on military installations and in local communities. Since the program’s inception in 2013, Boots to Business has trained and graduated more than 210,000 service members, veterans, National Guard and Reserve members, and military spouses. For more information on the resources available for veteran entrepreneurs, visit sba.gov/veterans.

About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.

Christine Saah Nazer
U.S. Small Business Administration
202-756-0304
Kirk.McElwain@sba.gov