Women’s Business Ownership Act and Executive Order 12138 - United States

Amends the Small Business Act to establish programmes and initiate efforts to assist the development of small businesses owned and controlled by women entrepreneurs. Establishes the National Women’s Business Council and provides for collection of statistics. 

Exective Order 12138 (44 FR 29637, 3 CFR, 1979 Comp., p. 393) creates a National Women's Business Enterprise Policy and sets out arrangements for developing, coordinating and implementing a national program for women's business enterprise. "Women-owned business" is defined as a business that is at least 51 percent owned by a woman or women who also control and operate it. "Control" in this context means exercising the power to make policy decisions. "Operate" in this context means being actively involved in the day-to-day management. "Women's business enterprise" is defined as a woman-owned business or businesses or the efforts of a woman or women to establish, maintain or develop such a business or businesses.

All Federal departments and agencies are required to take appropriate action to facilitate, preserve and strengthen women's business enterprise and to ensure full participation by women in the free enterprise system. In addition, they must take affirmative action in support of women's business enterprise in appropriate programs and activities. Each department or agency empowered to extend Federal financial assistance to any program or activity must issue regulations requiring the recipient of such assistance to take appropriate affirmative action in support of women's business enterprise and to prohibit actions or policies which discriminate against women's business enterprise on the ground of sex.The head of departments and agencies must designate a high level official to have the responsibility for carrying out the Order. Each department and agency has an obligation to ensure systematic data collection capable of providing current data helpful in evaluating and promoting their actions under the Order. Policies and programs of the women's business enterprise program must be reviewed and monitored and departments and agencies must report and provide information to the Inter-agency Committee on Women's Business Enterprise.

The program is administered and monitored by the Interagency Committee on Women's Business Enterprise established under the order. Its functions include:

• Promote, coordinate and monitor relevant plans, programs and operations of the departments and agencies.
• Establish policies, definitions, procedures and guidelines to govern the implementation, interpretation and application of the Order.
• Promote the mobilization of activities and resources of State and local governments, business and trade associations, private industry, colleges and universities, foundations, professional organizations, and volunteer and other groups toward the growth of women's business enterprise, and facilitate the coordination of the efforts of these groups with those of the departments and agencies.
• Make an annual assessment of the progress made in the Federal Government toward assisting women's business enterprise to enter the mainstream of business ownership and to provide recommendations for future actions to the President.
• Convene and consult as necessary with persons inside and outside government to develop and promote new ideas concerning the development of women's business enterprise.
• Consider the findings and recommendations of government and private sector investigations and studies of the problems of women entrepreneurs, and promote further research into such problems.
• Design a comprehensive and innovative plan for a joint Federal and private sector effort to develop increased numbers of new women-owned businesses and larger and more successful women-owned businesses.