US Policy Towards Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Information on Bills Proposed to the United States Congress
In the United States, in both chambers, a bill is a proposed piece of legislation to be considered by the legislature. All bills originating in the House of Representatives begin with "H.R.", and all bills originating in the the Senate begin with an "S.". There is no legal discrepancy between a bill and a joint resolution; both are executed in the same manner. A joint resolution, is a legislative measure that requires approval by the Senate and the House and is forwarded on to the President for decision. Additionally, joint resolutions have the same effect as bills, and are titled as "H. J. Res." or "S. J. Res." depending on chamber of origination. Consequently, a joint resolution and bill may have the same number in the archives although technically different pieces of legislation. A simple resolution, is a legislative form used for matters that pertain to an individual chamber of Congress; often to change the rules of the chamber, or organize a debate for a related bill. The resolution must be agreed to in the chamber of origination. Finally, laws enacted by virtue of a joint resolution are not distinguished from laws enacted by a bill, except only nominally, in that they are designated as resolutions as opposed to acts.
Policy Landscape
Policy Overview
There have been 7,430 bills proposed by the 114th Congress in 2015 thus far; out of these 7,430 bills, 103 are related to entrepreneurship or contain the word "entrepreneurship," making the percentage of entrepreneurship-related bills out of all proposed bills only 1.386%.
Current US Entrepreneurship Policy
- The Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Most of the bills reported/introduced by the U.S. Congress pertaining to innovation and entrepreneurship are reported on by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. The U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship is a standing committee of the United States Senate. The committee has jurisdiction over the Small Business Administration and is also charged with researching and investigating all problems of American small business enterprises. The current Chairman of the Committee is U.S. Senator David Vitter. Other information on the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, including Committee members and recent pieces of legislation, can be found on their website
- Acts Reported on by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Officially established on October 8, 1940, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship was established to analyze and identify problems of small businesses. The committee oversees the operations of the Small Business Administration, an agency responsible for providing support to both entrepreneurs and small businesses. Ten republicans and nine democrats form the current membership of the special committee. Some of the major issues the committee attempts to alleviate for small businesses include, but are not limited to: capital accessibility, business development hurdles, contracting and associated complications, and underrepresented entrepreneur populations. An overview of the current policies in disucssion can be found here: Acts Reported on by the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Current US Innovation Policy
The "Innovation Promotion Act of 2015" was released as a discussion draft on July 31, 2015. The act promotes a reduction of taxes to 10% for income from intellectual property. It also proposes qualifying tax distributions of qualifying intellectual property from a controlled foreign corporation to the US parent company. This act is indicative of the United States' effort to attract and foster more innovation and research. There has also been extensive feedback on the innovation promotion act.
