The Role of Entrepreneurship in Reducing the Wealth Gap (S. Hrg. 119-349)
Summary
The printed record of a field hearing of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the United States Senate titled The Role of Entrepreneurship in Reducing the Wealth Gap, on February 9, 2026, S. HRG. 119–349, at Roxbury Community College. Senator Ed Markey presided, and Lauretta Siggers-Benton, the Chief Operating Officer for Roxbury Community College, gave an introduction. The witnesses were Mechalle Brown of the 7uice Foundation on behalf of Jaylen Brown, Lauren Holiday and Jrue Holiday of the JLH Social Impact Fund, Renee King of We Are The Funders, Keith A. Mahoney of The Boston Foundation, Nicole Obi of the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts and Karim Hill of BDC Community Capital Corporation. The record adds a Center for Entrepreneurial Opportunity statement dated February 9, 2026.
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“The Role of Entrepreneurship in Reducing the Wealth Gap (S. Hrg. 119-349).”
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S. HRG. 119–349
FIELD HEARING: THE ROLE OF ENTREPRENEUR-
SHIP IN REDUCING THE WEALTH GAP
HEARING
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
OF THE
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
FEBRUARY 9, 2026
Printed for the use of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
(
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
63–358 WASHINGTON : 2026
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COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
ONE HUNDRED NINETEENTH CONGRESS
JONI ERNST, Iowa, Chair
EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts, Ranking Member
JAMES E. RISCH, Idaho MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
RAND PAUL, Kentucky JEANNE SHAHEEN, New Hampshire
TIM SCOTT, South Carolina CORY A. BOOKER, New Jersey
TODD YOUNG, Indiana CHRISTOPHER A. COONS, Delaware
JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri MAZIE K. HIRONO, Hawaii
TED BUDD, North Carolina JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
JOHN R. CURTIS, Utah JOHN W. HICKENLOOPER, Colorado
JAMES C. JUSTICE, West Virginia ADAM B. SCHIFF, California
JON HUSTED, Ohio
MEREDITH WEST, Republican Staff Director
SEAN MOORE, Democratic Staff Director
(II)
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CONTENTS
FEBRUARY 9, 2026
OPENING STATEMENTS
Page
Edward J. Markey, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts ......................................... 1
WITNESSES
Ms. Mechalle Brown, President, 7uice Foundation, on Behalf of Jaylen Brown,
Waltham, MA ....................................................................................................... 7
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 9
Mrs. Lauren Holiday, Founder, JLH Social Impact Fund, Los Angeles, CA ...... 11
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 13
Mr. Jrue Holiday, Founder, JLH Social Impact Fund, Los Angeles, CA
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 16
Ms. Renee King, CEO, We Are The Funders, New York, NY .............................. 21
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 24
Mr. Keith A. Mahoney, Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs,
The Boston Foundation, Boston, MA .................................................................. 27
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 30
Ms. Nicole Obi, President and CEO, Black Economic Council of Massachu-
setts, Roxbury Crossing, MA ............................................................................... 34
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 36
Mr. Karim Hill, President, BDC Community Capital Corporation, Wakefield,
MA ......................................................................................................................... 38
Prepared Statement ......................................................................................... 41
ADDITIONAL LETTERS/STATEMENTS FOR THE RECORD
Center for Entrepreneurial Opportunity—Statement Dated February 9, 2026 . 49
(III)
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THE ROLE OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN
REDUCING THE WEALTH GAP
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2026
UNITED STATES SENATE,
COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP,
Washington, DC.
The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 12:05 p.m., in 1st
Floor Student Commons, Building 3 Academic Building, Roxbury
Community College, 1234 Columbus Avenue, Roxbury, Massachu-
setts 02120, Hon. Ed Markey, presiding.
Present: Senator Markey [presiding].
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR MARKEY
Senator MARKEY. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for
being here today. The Senate Committee on Small Business and
Entrepreneurship will come to order. We have a very important
hearing today. I want to first turn it to Lauretta Siggers-Benton,
the Chief Operating Officer for Roxbury Community College for an
introduction. Lauretta.
Ms. SIGGERS-BENTON. Thank you, Senator. Good afternoon, Sen-
ator Markey and distinguished witnesses and guests. On behalf of
the President Jonathan Jefferson, Roxbury Community College’s
Board of trustees, and our broader community, we want to welcome
you here to Roxbury Community College today. Thank you for
choosing RCC as the site for this important hearing on such a crit-
ical role that entrepreneurship plays in the closing racial wealth
gap.
My name as he mentioned, is Lauretta Siggers-Benton. I’m the
Chief Operating Officer here at the college. I’m also serving as an
interim role right now for advancement. So, we’re also raising
money for our college, and I’m honored to represent the college
today to share just a few ways that Roxbury Community College
is supporting entrepreneurs across our service area.
Roxbury Community College is deeply committed to economic
mobility, equity, and opportunity. Two of our key initiatives to do
this through is through our Center for Economic and Social Justice.
We call that the CESJ, and the Business Innovation Center, which
is our BIC.
These initiatives are at the forefront of our work. Today we pro-
vide residents and students with the services, support, and connec-
tions to capital necessary for long-term success. Established in
2022, the Center for Economic and Social Justice focuses on pre-
paring students to secure employment and develop their own small
(1)
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businesses and high growth industries such as green technology
and healthcare.
The CESJ is also leading the implementation of Roxbury’s new
Learn and Earn model, which will ensure that every student has
the opportunity to complete a paid credit bearing internship before
graduating here from Roxbury Community College. This game
changing approach removes the impossible choice many students
face between working and staying enrolled here at the college.
We’re creating a clear and efficient pathway to economic mobil-
ity. And I want to extend a special thank you to Senator Markey
for securing the CDS funding that allowed RCC to begin trans-
forming the historic David Dudley House into the future home of
the Center for Economic and Social Justice. So, can I just give him
a round of applause? It’s because of him we received that funding.
We are continuing to raise funds for this capital project and look
forward to welcoming you back to the campus for the
groundbreaking when this is all complete. The Business Innovation
Center, or the BIC, as I referred to earlier, supports aspiring entre-
preneurs by providing practical knowledge, mentorship, and access
to resources.
Since opening last year, we have served over 668 individuals,
and they have utilized the center. And about, approximately one
third of that is our own students, and then two thirds of that are
people out in the community. And so, we’re excited again that we
have branched this out, not just to our students, but for those in
the community as well.
The BIC offers one-on-one mentorship, and introductory business
planning programs and informational sessions with key partners to
provide them access. And we provide, as I mentioned, provide the
access to physical space and technology essential for success.
To maximize the impact, the BIC has built strong partnerships
with organizations, including many, I’ll just name a few here just
in essence of time. The U.S. Small Business Administration, Law-
yers for Civil Rights, we connected with Suffolk University Seed
Program, Boston Main Street, just to name a few. And we continue
to align ourselves with other mission partners. This is what we’ve
tried to do is continue to align ourselves with other opportunities
that are out there.
Through the collaborations, the BIC has delivered a robust series
of business focus workshops and resources on a rolling basis. So,
this is happening now for both students and community entre-
preneurs, where we are opening our doors to teach them how to
own their own business through workshops.
Roxbury Community College is also proud to serve the SPARK
Bill, which is fully aligned with the mission and work of the BIC.
Together, the CESJ and the BIC will play central roles in imple-
menting Roxbury’s 2025 to 2030 strategic goals known as Roxbury
2030. The plan positions the college to lead with clarity, purpose,
and impact, focusing transparency, belonging, and institutional ac-
countability.
Grounded in the lived experiences of our students, the expertise
of our faculty and staff, and the insights of our community and
civic partners, the plan reflects both the urgency and the promise
of this moment.
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We look forward to continue collaboration with you, Senator Mar-
key, representative Presley, and many others that have been there
for Roxbury Community College, and every one of you in the room
as we implement this plan, measure our success and expand oppor-
tunities for lasting economic mobility.
Thank you again for your continued support in joining us here
today at Roxbury Community College.
Senator MARKEY. Beautiful. Thank you, thank you so much. And
we’re honored to be joined by leaders from the Boston City Council,
but we’re also joined by a champion on Beacon Hill, a fighter every
day for economic equality, but breaking down the barriers to enter-
ing into this economic system. And she is joining us right now. Sen-
ator Liz Miranda, would you like to say a few words?
Ms. MIRANDA. Every time the Senator speaks, I feel like I should
put Reverend in front of his name. Do y’all get that feeling as well?
I’m happy to be here as the state senator, the second Suffolk dis-
trict. I see three of my city council colleagues, I welcome you. And
none of us can do this work without the relationship that we have
with both the Federal, the State, and of local officials and the mu-
nicipalities like Roxbury.
I’m not going to be long, but it’s actually afternoon, right? I
haven’t finished my Dunkin Donuts yet. But as someone who’s
been born and raised and owns a home in Roxbury, it’s always an
honor to welcome you as partners and as leaders into this commu-
nity, especially those who just don’t talk about it. But folks that ac-
tually live and work toward equity every day, but they show up
and they do the work alongside us.
Today, I’m proud to welcome my colleagues and my friend Ed
Markey, back to Roxbury for the Senate Small Business Committee
field hearing on the role of entrepreneurship in reducing the racial
wealth gap. I know something about that as a former entrepreneur,
and I guess you’re always an entrepreneur, right? Once you start
a business, regardless if you close it, you always be an entre-
preneur.
And Senator Markey, I just want to thank you. We’ve been on
this road to together supporting RCC and a lot of initiatives for the
last eight years that I’ve been in the legislature, and you’ve always
been present in our neighborhoods. You listen to small businesses
and our families, and you show up early and you show up often,
which I appreciate. And that consistency really matters when you
want that from your leadership.
And it’s important to ground ourselves in where we actually are
though. We’re gathered in a building that exists because the com-
munity fought back. More than 50 years ago, black leaders joined
hands with leaders all throughout many communities and fought
for eight lane highway to not exist in our communities. And there
would be no Roxbury Community College if that group of people
did not succeed.
And because of them, not only are we here, but we’re still here,
we’re still rooted, and we’re still building. We stand on these shoul-
ders of all of our ancestors today, and it’s our responsibility to ful-
fill the promises they actually fought for. Not just as elected offi-
cials, but as people in community as well.
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So here in Roxbury, we know that talent is everywhere, but the
opportunity is not. We have entrepreneurs, we have innovators,
small business owners, and dreamers on every block. What they
need is access to capital. They need contracts, and they need ac-
tual, real investment.
If we are serious about closing the racial wealth gap in the Com-
monwealth of Massachusetts, that is actually widening and the pay
gender gap that is actually widening. If we’re serious about doing
that, we have to be serious about supporting minority- and women-
owned businesses and creating the pathways to ownership and
generational wealth.
I want to thank you because today is about solutions, and I’m
grateful you chose to hold it right here in my favorite place in the
city of Boston. Welcome back to Roxbury, Senator. We are glad
you’re here, and we are ready to get to work with you. Thank you.
Senator MARKEY. Thank you, thank you Senator so much. And
we’re joined by city councilor Enrique Pepen, who is sitting right
here in the front row, city councilor Sharon Durkan sitting here in
the front row, city counselor John Fitzgerald sitting right here in
the front row, all here, front and center, trying to build this as a
community issue. Would each of you like to get up on one minute
and say something at the opening?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER. Want to hear Senator, thank you.
Senator MARKEY. So, thanks to everyone for joining us here
today. I’m honored to be holding this field hearing entitled, ‘‘The
Role of Entrepreneurship in Reducing the Racial Wealth Gap,’’ at
RCC because of what this institution stands for, affordable quality
education for everyone. And this is without question the key, be-
cause education and entrepreneurship go together like peanut but-
ter and jelly, it’s just that you need them both to make the sand-
wich work.
And if we’re going to deal with these gaps in racial wealth, then
it begins with this institution, along with all of the access to cap-
ital, which then accompanies people leaving here to go off into the
world.
Roxbury Community College’s Center for Economic and Social
Justice and the New Business Innovation Center are breaking
down barriers on a daily basis. And these programs offer the edu-
cation, the skills, the mentorship opportunities to build wealth
through entrepreneurship.
The Roxbury Community College has partnered with Jaylen
Brown, Jrue Holiday, Lauren Holiday, to launch and support the
Boston Creator Incubator and Accelerator. This collaboration sup-
ports creators from underinvested communities with the resources
and the support which they need in order to thrive.
Their work builds on and relies on the research network and the
capital that organizations like the Black Economic Council of Mas-
sachusetts BECMA, BDC Capital Corporation, We Are The
Funders, and Boston Foundation provide. These witnesses are a
shining example of what can happen when a community comes to-
gether, collaborates and centers community needs. That’s what this
hearing is all about.
It’s about a whole of community approach bringing together gov-
ernment, higher education, research institutions, investors, and vi-
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5
sionaries. It is only with a combination of these systems and inten-
tional programs and policies that we will harness entrepreneurship
of true potential to close the racial wealth gap.
For more than a decade, the Federal Reserve of Boston reported
that median net worth of Boston’s black neighborhoods was just $8,
compared with more than $247,000 for white communities. That’s
a decade ago. An update to that report is expected later this year.
But it doesn’t take another report to know that we still have a lot
of work to do.
The racial wealth gap has widened over generations because of
unjust policies that exclude systematically and discriminate against
and ultimately restrict people of color from the means to accumu-
late wealth. This is most evident in the challenges that black-
owned businesses face when trying to get a loan to help their busi-
nesses succeed.
In Massachusetts, 68 percent of black-owned businesses are con-
cerned about access to capital, double that of white owned busi-
nesses. I’ll say that again. Twice as many black owned businesses
have a problem with access to capital as white owned businesses.
That concern is well founded. About two thirds of entrepreneurs
use personal or family savings to start a business. That means
those without generational wealth start at a disadvantage. In fact,
black-owned businesses are more likely to apply for financing, but
twice as likely to be denied as are white businesses. And that is
unacceptable.
It is our responsibility to support efforts to rectify historical in-
justices and offer real opportunities. So, I’ve been proud to fight
with Senator Warren and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley to se-
cure funding for organizations across the Commonwealth like
BECMA and RCC to support their efforts to close the racial wealth
gap. Our work is more important than ever.
And this administration continues to turn back the clock on
progress by dismantling the Minority Business Development Agen-
cy, the only Federal agency dedicated to helping minority owned
businesses, attempting to shut down community development fi-
nancial institutions, which largely deliver needed capital to under-
served communities, and barring immigrants, including green card
holders, refugees, and DACA recipients from receiving small busi-
ness administration loans.
This is not America first. This is hate first. Hate directed at
black and brown communities in our country who are seeking to
become a part of this economic engine of growth, which is the envy
of the world, but which has always had barriers to entry. And
they’re only trying to make it more difficult by what they have
done just in their first year.
So, this is not progress. That’s only propaganda. That’s all we’re
hearing, and it’s not opportunity for all. It’s just an oligarchy for
the few. We will not go backwards. We must reimagine a brighter
and more inclusive future for everyone. One where we actually
close the racial wealth gap. This gap isn’t just a moral and policy
failure, it robs us of our full potential as a society to not have ev-
eryone included in this economic opportunity, which we call the
United States.
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That is why I am introducing the SPARK Act. So, my bill, which
supercharges the existing infrastructure with new grant dollars for
entities like Roxbury Community College, and creates a new pro-
gram that provides direct grants to underserved entrepreneurs, di-
rect grants to those entrepreneurs. And that work mirrors the work
that the groups here are already doing. That’s what we’re going to
be talking about.
The SPARK Act would expand their work to reach entrepreneurs
shut out from opportunity. This is important because a vision with-
out funding is a hallucination. If we want to have all these barriers
broken down, if we want more black and brown business people to
be successful, we have to ensure they have the funding. That’s
what my bill will do. The SPARK Act is just the beginning, and I
will continue to fight to reduce the racial wealth gap at the highest
levels of government.
And while I won’t be signing with the Celtics anytime soon, I’m
proud to be on a team with Jaylen and everyone here today to up-
lift the next generation of underserved entrepreneurs and work to
close the racial wealth gap here in the Commonwealth and across
the country.
So, Jaylen’s mother, Mechalle, who is here on behalf of Jaylen
today, they work in partnership on these issues, said, ‘‘Who you are
is measured by the mark you leave on the world.’’ And to truly
leave a mark on the world, you have to do the right things and
speak out against the wrong things. And today, we are not agoniz-
ing, we’re organizing to do the right things and to speak out
against the wrong things.
So, we thank everyone for being here today. We have an incred-
ible panel of experts who have joined us here today.
And I am the Senior Democrat on the Small Business Committee
for the United States Senate. And with a little bit of luck, I’ll be
back here in January of next year as the chairman of the Small
Business Committee in the United States Senate, and that’s what
we’re going to work towards accomplishing. And then we’re putting
the SPARK Act right at the top of the small business agenda for
the country.
So, I’m pleased to welcome our first panel of witnesses. Ms.
Mechalle Brown is the president of the 7uice Foundation, an orga-
nization founded by her son, Jaylen Brown, that aims to bridge the
opportunity gap for youth in underserved communities.
Mechalle is also an educator with experience as a professor at
Cambridge College and is an activist. She is here today to testify
both on her own behalf and on Jaylen’s behalf as the founder of the
Boston Xchange, which provides underserved entrepreneurs with
resources, support, and opportunity for their vision for what they
can accomplish.
And next, we’re going to have Mrs. Lauren Holiday. She and
Jrue Holiday, are the founders of JLH Social Impact Fund, which
supports initiatives that focus on equitable outcomes for black and
brown communities. JLH partners with local organizations and
leaders in order to provide the support which they need to be suc-
cessful, holistic support to minority communities.
And Ms. Lauren Holiday is also a former professional soccer
player, two-time Olympic Gold medalist, FIFA Women’s World Cup
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champion and is a Boston Breakers alum. And she is going to be
joining us virtually. And we look forward to hearing Lauren from
you in just a little bit. And thank you for all that you do.
So, let’s then begin with you, Mechalle, thank you for all of your
work. You and your son have helped to create incredible framework
for how we have to move forward much more rapidly. And so, with-
out further ado, welcome and whenever you feel comfortable, please
begin.
STATEMENT OF MS. MECHALLE BROWN (ON BEHALF OF
JAYLEN BROWN), PRESIDENT, 7UICE, WALTHAM, MASSACHU-
SETTS
Ms. BROWN. Ranking Member, thank you so much for having me.
It’s a pleasure to be here. As Senator Markey stated, my name is
Mechalle Brown. I’m the president of the 7uice Foundation, which
encompasses Boston Xchange and also Bridge programming. Jaylen
who plays for the Boston Celtics is the founder of Boston Xchange
and also the co-founder of the Boston Creator Accelerator.
So, I am here today on Jaylen’s behalf, myself as well, to first-
hand talk about why the SPARK Act matters. Not from just a pol-
icy perspective, but from what I’ve seen firsthand in the commu-
nities that we care about since living here for 10 years.
So, over the years, I’ve witnessed minority communities face
challenges, not because people weren’t talented or hardworking,
but because the systems weren’t built for us. Jobs disappear, busi-
nesses close, wealth continues to leave our neighborhoods instead
of staying and circulating.
When Jaylen got to Boston, he wanted to do something different,
not just a charity or a one-time donation. He wanted to build infra-
structure, a platform where people could own, create, and build
businesses that last. And that’s why he founded Boston Xchange as
well, to create pathways for entrepreneurs, artists, and creators to
access the resources, networks, and support they need to succeed.
He knew that alone wasn’t going to be enough. The founders
need mentorship. They also need access to capital. They need part-
ners who understand the barriers they’re facing and to help them
to try to navigate through those issues as well. That’s why we
partnered with Jrue and Lauren Holiday, MIT, Harvard Business
School, and Suffolk University to create the Boston Creator Accel-
erator.
The beauty of the Boston Creator Accelerator is not just one or-
ganization doing everything. It’s a big collaboration. MIT brought
curriculum and technical expertise. Harvard brought investor and
readiness training. Suffolk brought legal support. So, Jrue and
Lauren brought learned experiences and funding, and also a na-
tional lens on this. Boston Xchange provided the platform and long-
term commitment.
Together, we support the 10 founders over multiple years. Not a
quick program, but sustained support. Those founders have also
created jobs. They built real businesses, and they’ve done it in com-
munities such as Roxbury and Dorchester communities that don’t
usually get this kind of investment.
What Jaylen and I have learned is that real economic power
comes from ownership. Not just having a job, but owning the busi-
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8
ness, owning the building, and owning the block. When commu-
nities have those resources to build and capital circulates within
the community, instead extracting it out, that’s when you create
generational wealth, not just jobs.
But here’s the reality. Most communities don’t have the infra-
structure to make that happen. Founders are out here grinding,
they’re out here taking a leap into entrepreneurship because they
have to, not because they want to, and we’re asking them to do it
without the support system that makes the business succeed.
The SPARK Act is about changing that. It would fund accelera-
tors and incubators across the country, not just for six months, but
for five years with the possibility of renewal. So, it would require
that kind of partnership that we built in Boston: universities, lend-
ers, community organizations working all together. And it will pro-
vide founders with access to capital, not just advice. That’s how you
turn survival into sustainability and necessity into ownership.
When you invest in people and give them the infrastructure to
succeed, it begins not just to be a program, but real sustained sup-
port. They build businesses, they create jobs, wealth, and oppor-
tunity in their own communities. The SPARK Act would make that
possible nationwide, not just in one city, but everywhere.
It is an honor to be included in this historic moment, and we ea-
gerly anticipate stories that the SPARK Act will ignite. Thank you
so much.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Brown follows.]
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Senator MARKEY. Okay. Thank you so much. Great testimony.
And now remotely we are going to hear from Lauren Holiday. Wel-
come. And whenever you feel comfortable, please begin.
STATEMENT OF MRS. LAUREN HOLIDAY, FOUNDER, JLH
SOCIAL IMPACT FUND, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
Ms. HOLIDAY. Hi, everyone. Ms. Mechalle, I wish I was there to
give you a hug. [Laughter.]
Ms. BROWN. So sweet. I miss you.
Ms. HOLIDAY. I miss you, too. Ranking Member, thank you for
this opportunity. My name is Lauren Holiday. I’m here today to
talk about why Senator Markey’s SPARK Act matters, not just for
Boston, but for communities across the country.
Over the past several years, through the Jrue and Lauren Holi-
day Social Impact Fund, we’ve had the privilege of supporting en-
trepreneurs in cities nationwide. Boston, New Orleans, Los Ange-
les, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, and beyond. What we’ve learned is
this: entrepreneurs don’t fail because of the lack of talent. They fail
because the systems around them are fragmented.
And when you’re building in underserved communities, those
systems aren’t just fragmented, they’re often absent entirely. What
we’ve seen work is we didn’t start with a theory. We started listen-
ing to founders and asking, what do you actually need? The an-
swers were consistent across every city.
Long term support and short-term grants. Founders don’t need
a check that disappears after six months. They need partners who
commit for years, who are there when revenue is slow, when pivots
are necessary, when the work gets hard. Trusted relationships, not
transactional. Businesses grow when they’re supported the way
families support each other, with patience, trust, and genuine in-
vestment in their success.
Coordination across institutions, not isolated efforts. Not a single
organization can provide everything a founder needs. But when
universities, lenders, accelerators, and community partners work
together, founders don’t have to navigate alone.
Through our work in Boston, we supported an entrepreneur
named Tracy, the founder of Little Cocoa Bean, a children’s food
business, rooted in community and culture. What got her across the
finish line wasn’t a single grant or program, but all of us together,
wrapping around her, government partners, philanthropy institu-
tions, customers, community members, operators, walking the jour-
ney with her.
That collective support helped Tracy open her newest location at
the Boston Children’s Museum at the Seaport. And in her own
words, she could not have done this without people staying in it
with her from start to finish. That’s the model we’ve built through
our work, through the Boston Creator Accelerator, in partnership
with Jaylen’s Brown Boston Xchange, MIT, Harvard Business
School, and Suffolk University. And it’s the model we’ve seen work
in other cities when the right partners come together.
Why this needs to be national not just Boston. In Boston, we re-
ceived over 2000 applications for 10 spots. In New Orleans found-
ers told us the same story. Talent everywhere, infrastructure no-
where. In Los Angeles, in Milwaukee, and every city we’ve worked,
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the pattern is identical. Entrepreneurs are taking the leap, not be-
cause they have an innovative dream but because they have to feed
their families.
Traditional employment is disappearing, industries are restruc-
turing, corporations are moving their workforce offshore, and peo-
ple are left with no other choice, but to bet on themselves starting
businesses out of necessity, not aspiration. But survival without
support leads to failure.
The SPARK Act recognizes that if we want entrepreneurship to
be a viable path for everyone, not just those with access to wealth,
and access to the elite networks and capital, we have to invest in
the institutions that can provide that support at scale, not in one
city. Everywhere.
What the SPARK Act gets right is this Bill reflects what we’ve
proven works. Multi-year commitments, five-year funding with the
possibility of renewal. That’s what allows real relationships to form
and businesses to grow sustainability. Required collaboration, the
bill mandates partnerships between universities, lenders, accelera-
tors, and community organizations. That coordination is what
makes ecosystems function.
Place-based design. Every community is different. The bill recog-
nizes that solutions have to be rooted locally, led by people who un-
derstand the context. Capital paired with support. The financing
provision is critical. Founders need more than mentorship. They
need resources. This bill provides both.
What’s at stake? Community isn’t transactional, it’s trans-
formational. When you love your community like family, you don’t
just write a check and walk away. You build systems that last. The
SPARK Act is about building those systems nationwide so that
every community has access to the infrastructure that makes en-
trepreneurs possible. Not as the privilege, as a path forward.
We’ve seen what happens when you invest in people and institu-
tions the right way. Businesses grow, jobs are created, wealth stays
local instead of extracting out. The SPARK Act would make that
possible at a scale we can’t achieve alone. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Holiday follows.]
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Senator MARKEY. Beautiful. Thank you so much for your testi-
mony. If I may, I’d just like to ask a couple of questions. First of
all, why did you and Jaylen just focus on entrepreneurship? Why
is that, from your perspective, the key that you have decided to put
the spotlight on?
Ms. BROWN. Well, with being in the community Jaylen saw that
same article that you spoke about earlier and wanted to give peo-
ple, like I said, just not jobs, but the ability to own or to create
their own. So, with that being said, entrepreneurship was what we
talked about and how that would be successful, for if they had, you
know, continued resources and funding to be able to create their
own opportunity.
Senator MARKEY. Yes. Lauren, what drew you to this one issue,
you, and Jrue?
Ms. HOLIDAY. It actually started during the pandemic when the
guys were going to the NBA bubble, and I was pregnant with our
son. And during the time, like George Floyd had just happened, all
of these things just happened, and my husband was having a hard
time figuring out why, or like what mattered, to go back to the
bubble to play basketball when there was such a divide in our
country of racial divide.
And we were brainstorming and I asked him what would make
it worth it, and not going to the bubble, maybe would’ve made a
stand, but it wouldn’t have made an impact that we wanted. And
so, he decided to donate the rest of his salary for that year, $5.3
million to support black-owned businesses and black-owned non-
profits, black and brown owned. And so that is really what inspired
us. It was just seeing the need during a pandemic, during a time
of social unrest that the black community was disproportionately
affected.
Senator MARKEY. Yep. Beautiful. And do you have a story or two
that each of you might want to bring to this issue that kind of
sticks out in your mind? Someone you met, some opportunity that
you really thought should be able to get help, but was denied that
help? Do you have an example, Mechalle?
Ms. BROWN. Well, I have two, but Lauren talked about Little
Cocoa Bean, which was one of them, I spoke at when they opened
at the Children’s Museum, but also the Sneaker launch, which was
Sydney’s project. And we just saw that once that was there with
the support that, how it spiked his sales and able to help him gath-
er what he needed, like being able to be a part of the cohort. And
learn and grow what we saw what that was doing, and wanted to
continue to be able to do that.
Senator MARKEY. Thank you. Lauren, do you have a story?
Ms. HOLIDAY. Yeah, I feel like we have so many stories. One that
really sticks out to me. I told you about Tracy from Little Cocoa
Bean, but a story from Milwaukee, actually. There was a woman
that was teaching yoga in inner city schools to make sure that the
kids had proper mechanisms to cope with the traumas that were
around them and what was happening. And she was trying to open
her own studio.
And through our JLH they were able to crowdfund almost or
over $100,000, and she has been thriving ever since. And I feel like
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these stories just continue to happen. Like once the investment is
there, they’re able to thrive.
Senator MARKEY. Oh, excellent. So, what’s the one message if
you’re going to sum up what your message is, what Jaylen’s mes-
sage is, you Lauren, what you and Jrue, what is your message to
the community? What is your message to Washington in terms of
what you think has to happen to unlock all this potential Mechalle?
Ms. BROWN. Sure. I believe that our vision, like you said, to
unlock the potential for Boston Xchange would be to help rebuild
what was stripped away. And this would be able to nurture a local
economy rooted in innovation, inclusion, culture, and care. So, I
think with that being the message that we need, the resources re-
garding to build up the communities again, that they were there
at one time or not really, but we want to build those up. So that,
I think would be our message, is to be able to come together and
nurture the local economy.
Senator MARKEY. Okay. Thank you. Lauren, what’s your, mes-
sage?
Ms. HOLIDAY. I think the message that my husband and I always
say is, ‘‘cause creates community, but contribution creates belong-
ing.’’ And in our communities, we need to contribute so that every-
one feels like they belong. And I can use Boston as an example. Us
going to Boston and being able to contribute, we still feel like Bos-
ton is home. We have created a family with Jaylen Brown, with
Miss Mechalle.
We have been able to create a family with our Boston Xchange
cohort. And that isn’t possible if we didn’t actually contribute to
that. And so, I would say cause creates community, but contribu-
tion creates belonging. It is our job to contribute to our commu-
nities.
Senator MARKEY. Yes. Well, that’s what you’re doing. These two
families have given us a vision for what is possible, for how we
have to focus on the issue, but then work across all segments of
the community in order to ensure that we see the progress, which
we know can happen, right? It’s just a stultification of human po-
tential.
And unfortunately, once again, president Trump over the week-
end in his insulting comments about Barack and Michelle Obama,
have demonstrate how hard we have to work in over to overcome
that historic bigotry which has led to this denial of access to the
financial capital that unlocks human capital in the black and
brown communities in our country.
So just this hearing is actually could not be on a better day than
after what we just saw this weekend. It just says we have to work
a lot harder and we have to win this year so that then we can pass
the SPARK Act and have that funding be made available.
So, we can’t thank you enough for all of the work, which the two
of you have done. And maybe we could all just give a warm round
of thanks to Mechalle and Lauren. Thank you for all of your great
work. Thank you so much, and thank you for being here.
Ms. BROWN. Thank you.
Ms. HOLIDAY. Thank you.
Senator MARKEY. Now we’re going to move to our second panel
and we can we can hear from them and their comments reinforcing
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what Ms. Brown and Mrs. Holiday have already laid out for us.
While we’re waiting for that, I see actually Gladys Vega is here.
Gladys Vega is the CEO of La Colaborativa, which is in Chelsea,
but it just serves so many other communities in the greater Boston
area. And she is here as just an incredible leader, incredible
spokesperson for all of those in need, including entrepreneurs to
get access to the Capitol, which they need.
And we’re also joined by counselor Miniard Culpepper, who has
joined us as well. We thank you for joining us today. And would
you like to say a word before?
Mr. CULPEPPER. It’s amazing. I didn’t think he was going to give
me the mic, but I thank Senator Markey for giving me two min-
utes. Senator Markey and I go way back when Ted Kennedy ran
for president. That’s when I first met Senator Markey. Some of you
weren’t even born.
And so, we’ve been working in the trenches. Remember, he was
at the State House, and he went to Congress, and now he’s a Sen-
ator. And the good news is that we’ve done some good things to-
gether. This is a great hearing because I think it connects with
some, I just got off a conference call and what we talked about for
city council next week, Senator, is we’re having Black History
Month.
And the thing for Black History Month that the city council has
laid out is economic empowerment for our community. And so, Sen-
ator Markey is always on the right side of issues. When he’s not
you can always give him a call, but he stands with us and for us.
When I was running this summer, you know who I called, Ed
Markey. And let me tell you what he did. Yep. He did something.
He walked up Nazing Street. That was the first time a United
States Senator had ever walked up Nazing Street in Roxbury in
the history of this Commonwealth. And he knocked on doors and
talked to folks. That’s the kind of Senator he is. He goes into the
neighborhoods where you’ll never find a Senator.
So, I just want to thank you for inviting me to be with you today.
And just give me a call. Just call my name. I’ll be there. Thank
you, Senator Markey.
[Applause.]
Senator MARKEY. Great. Thank you. And again, the SPARK Act,
it’s a big bill. It’s $500,000 per year per organization for five years
in a row, guaranteed. And so, it’s a lot of money per organization.
And then you seed it in community after community across the
country then you can see the difference which it would make.
So now I’m excited to introduce our second panel of witnesses.
Ms. Renee King is the CEO We Are The Funders. Ms. King works
with Boston Xchange and JLH social Impact Fund to support mi-
nority entrepreneurs in Boston. Her work focuses on providing
funding and other long-term support for black-owned businesses.
So, welcome, Renee, whenever you’re comfortable, please begin. So,
whenever you’re ready Ms. Renee King please begin. Thank you.
Can you move the microphone in a little bit closer?
Ms. KING. How’s that?
Senator MARKEY. Good. Beautiful.
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STATEMENT OF MS. RENEE KING, CEO, WE ARE THE FUNDERS,
NEW YORK
Ms. KING. Okay. So, Senator Markey and team, thank you for
the opportunity to testify. Good afternoon, everyone.
So, my name is Renee King. And for the last several years I’ve
worked alongside founders, institutions, community leaders sup-
porting entrepreneurs who are building businesses because they
had innovative ideas and they also had to. And the solutions they
needed to support them didn’t exist around to help them get to the
final stage of where they’re going.
And now, also, I’ll echo the statement that jobs also don’t exist
too. So, a lot of these entrepreneurs, the future of work is entrepre-
neurship. That’s the reality that we are in right now in this econ-
omy. And when we see traditional employment disappearing, entire
industry is restructuring, and millions of like Americans in our
communities they’re taking this leap into business ownership. Not
only because, you know, they have an idea, but also out of neces-
sity.
We have a problem if we’re asking them to jump in without a
net, right? We have a huge problem at hand. And the problem is
that we’re leaving entire communities without the infrastructure to
turn survival into sustainability, without the mentorship, the net-
works, the capital, the coordination that makes businesses succeed
instead of fail.
And that result isn’t just the inequity that we see in reducing the
rate, this view in causing this huge racial wealth gap that we do
see. But it’s also economic loss for all of us, right? We are literally
leaving tons of money on the table. We’re leaving money on the
table, talent on the sidelines, and capacity untapped.
Senator Markey SPARK Act is about stopping that loss. It in-
vests directly on the ground ecosystem builders, the place-based
community informed institutions that already know how to mobi-
lize our communities into ownership, like guide them into entrepre-
neurship success.
These are the institutions that can scale support at the speed at
the current moment right now demands and it pairs that ecosystem
support with capital, with funding, because as ready as you are to
be able to jump into becoming an entrepreneur, readiness without
funding is just another barrier.
We can’t afford to leave entire communities unresourced while
the economy restructures around them. That’s what I want to talk
you through today. Over the last several years, I’ve had the oppor-
tunity to work with athlete led platforms like Jrue and Lauren
Holiday, Social Impact Fund, community development institutions,
corporate partners to support founders in not just Boston, but New
Orleans, Kentucky, LA and so many cities beyond.
And what we’ve learned in that work is this: entrepreneurs do
not fail because they lack the talent and the ideas, they fail be-
cause the systems around them are not connected. Too often the
support is short term. The programs end just as the entrepreneur
is experiencing momentum. Momentum builds, and the institutions
that are here that are doing great work, sometimes we’re doing this
great work, but we’re operating in silos and the capital arrives too
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late, or the support arrives too late or not at all for these entre-
preneurs.
So, the gap between this readiness and access is where our busi-
nesses are dying. But when you resource to institutions that are
rooted in community and culture, institutions that understand local
context, that build long-term relationships with the businesses in
the community that coordinate across sectors, entrepreneurs truly
succeed.
They don’t just survive, they succeed. They raise capital, they
hire, they scale, and the wealth they create, it stays in the commu-
nity, right? And that’s what ecosystem building looks like when it’s
done right.
The SPARK Act matters because it reflects what actually works,
which I love that. Like it’s taken in a lot of input and insights from
folks who are doing great work already. It recognizes that eco-
systems are not short-term pilots. They require time, trust, and
multi-year commitment. It prioritizes collaboration between accel-
erators, lenders, educational institutions, government, philan-
thropy, conscious consumers, and local partners.
Like, it pulls all this together and that mirrors how successful
ecosystems actually function. And critically, it acknowledges that
ecosystem support must be paired with capital funding. That’s mis-
sion critical.
I want to specifically lift up the financing provision in the bill.
From experience I’ve been ready to start a business. I’ve started
multiple businesses and didn’t have the capital and the funding
stays, and then everything stalls and everything goes out the door.
And without capital or funding, that’s what happens. You stall the
economic growth of a business that can totally grow and survive.
Founders can complete every program. They can build the plan,
they can get investment ready and still hit a wall because they do
not have funding, they don’t have collateral, they don’t have credit
history, they don’t have the right relationships, right? To give them
the capital to fuel them to the next milestone, to the next step.
And that gap, yes, it is causing the racial wealth gap, but it’s
also causing a huge economic gap in just our U.S. economy period.
So, the financing provision in the SPARK Act addresses this by
pairing grants and also lower cost loans with trusted ecosystem op-
erators who can get it out to these businesses and get them the
fuel they need.
This is really important because it treats capital as being cata-
lytic. It unlocks momentum, it covers the gap between idea and
traction. And this is what’s needed. This is what our entrepreneurs
need to be able to sustain. And the success of this provision will
depend on thoughtful implementation.
But its inclusion materially strengthens the bill by addressing a
barrier entrepreneurs face every single day. So, I want to be really,
really clear of what’s at stake. The economy is restructuring auto-
mation. You have AI, you have industry consolidation, you have
traditional employment pathways are disappearing faster than
we’re creating new ones.
Entrepreneurship is not only like just for those who have innova-
tive ideas. It’s not only a side option anymore. It’s going to be how
many of us are going to survive. That’s it. Entrepreneurship is
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going to be the future. And we’re not ready. We don’t have the sup-
port systems ready to support the amount of entrepreneurs that
are here right now, and that want the entrepreneurs to come.
We’re asking entire communities to build without the infrastruc-
ture to succeed.
So, the SPARK Act doesn’t attempt to impose like a top-down so-
lution and invest in the institutions that already know how to do
this work. And it scales what is already working. This isn’t as aspi-
rational; this is economically necessary.
If we want an economy that actually works, that doesn’t leave
entire demographics on the sidelines while industries restructure
around them, we have to resource, the institutions that can mobi-
lize all communities into ownership, not just some communities.
We are leaving too much money on the table with the current way
that we’re doing this work.
The SPARK Act is about stopping that loss and building the in-
frastructure this moment demands. And I’m really grateful to have
the opportunity to testify and to support this and endorse this act.
And I love the work that you all have done, and thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. King follows.]
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[Applause.]
Senator MARKEY. Thank you, Renee, and great work. And thank
you for your help in putting this together today, Renee. Absolutely
indispensable. And I’m just going to lay out for you what the vision
is in the SPARK Act because not just Renee, but the other wit-
nesses are now going to go into the sub details of how then all of
this would work.
And so, the SPARK Act will create two programs, the SPARK
Program, and the SPARK Financing Program. Eligible organiza-
tions, which may include non-profits, community development fi-
nance institutions, CDFIs, which we will hear from, minority de-
pository institutions, lenders, participating in small business ad-
ministration programs, HBCUs, MSIs, and community colleges can
apply for both or one of these two programs.
The SPARK program, let me go through that first. The SPARK
program eligible organizations can apply to receive a minimum of
$500,000 annually for an initial term of five years. So, it’s a min-
imum of $2.5 million over five years to establish or expand accel-
erator or incubator services for underserved small businesses.
And this funding would be used for administrative, staffing, and
other infrastructure needs associated with funding accelerator are
incubator programs. The second program, the SPARK Financing
Program. Eligible organizations can apply to receive either one up
to $1 million annually if they also receive funding under the
SPARK Program and up to $500,000 annually if they don’t receive
funding under the SPARK program.
This funding would be used to provide financing directly to un-
derserved small businesses. Organizations that receive this funding
can either provide grants of up to $20,000 are subsidized loans di-
rectly to underserved small businesses. So that’s kind of the core
idea that it’s institutionalized. It’s there. We have professional or-
ganizations and then we have the businesses that know where they
can go to in the community in order to get the funding which they
would need.
So that’s the concept which I’ve built into the legislation, and I
think it fits exactly what Boston is already trying to unleash.
So, we’re next going to hear from Keith Mahoney, who is the Vice
President for Communications and Public Affairs at the Boston
Foundation, one of the nation’s first and most impactful community
foundations that aims to advance economic justice and equity in
Massachusetts. And Mr. Mahoney manages the foundation’s re-
search and public policy initiatives. Welcome.
STATEMENT OF MR. KEITH MAHONEY, VICE PRESIDENT FOR
COMMUNICATIONS AND PUBLIC AFFAIRS, THE BOSTON
FOUNDATION, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
Mr. MAHONEY. Thank you, Senator Markey for convening this
field hearing and for your longstanding leadership on economic jus-
tice and opportunity. We’re especially grateful for your work on the
SPARK Act, which will make a real difference for thousands of
Massachusetts small businesses.
As you said, my name is Keith Mahoney. I’m a vice president at
the Boston Foundation, 111-year-old public charity with a simple
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but enduring mission: to improve lives and strengthen commu-
nities.
Philanthropy can often take risks and make investments that
government is unable or unwilling to do. Hopefully, the work we
have done here in Boston will demonstrate the wisdom behind the
SPARK Act.
In 2020, as COVID laid bare deep racial inequities, and as the
country reckoned with the murder of George Floyd, some hard data
cut through the noise. A U.S. Department of Commerce report
showed that businesses owned by people of color were denied loans
at twice the rate of white owned businesses.
And when loans were approved, the interest rates were on aver-
age 22 percent higher. These disparities weren’t new. But seeing
them documented so clearly prompted many financial institutions
to make public comments to support businesses of color. Too many
of those commitments did not last.
As political climates change too often, resolve changes with them,
and that’s a problem because the small business community in
Massachusetts is becoming more diverse every year. New busi-
nesses are far more likely to be black owned, Latino-owned, or
woman owned than older ones. If we are serious about growing our
economy, we cannot afford to ignore that reality.
For community foundations like ours, that is precisely when the
responsibility becomes clearest. At the Boston Foundation, we be-
lieve that equity work must be durable, not fashionable. That belief
is why we launched the Business Equity Fund in 2018, well before
the 2020 National Reckoning.
The goal of the fund is straightforward: to help establish busi-
nesses of color, grow, create jobs, build we wealth and strengthen
their communities. The fund provides patient flexible, low-cost cap-
ital to businesses that are already performing, but are too often
locked out of traditional financing.
Here’s what that’s looked like so far. 7 businesses have received
2.3 million in loans. The fund has attracted nearly 6 million in ad-
ditional investment, bringing total capitalization to 8.8 million.
Early leadership funding came from Eastern Bank, alongside sig-
nificant support from the foundation. And the Business Equity
Fund doesn’t operate in isolation. It’s part of a broader ecosystem
that recognizes simple truth. Capital alone is not enough.
That ecosystem includes the Business Equity Initiative, which
provides grants to organizations offering technical assistance, pro-
fessional networks, and industry specific expertise. And the Great-
er Boston Chamber of Commerce Pacesetters initiative, which en-
courages major employers to direct more procurement dollars to
businesses of color. It’s this coordination, capital, technical assist-
ance, and market access that makes the work effective and scal-
able.
At a moment when we talk rightly about trillions of dollars in
national investment, the Business Equity fund offers a lesson in
how smaller targeted interventions can deliver outsized returns
when they are trusted, locally rooted, and built for the long haul.
Let me give you one example. OutKast Electrical Contractors, a
growing black-owned firm based in Dorchester was at a crossroads
in 2024. The company employed 60 local union workers when its
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29
financial partners abruptly closed its line of credit, leaving bank-
ruptcy as the only apparent option. LEAF, the Local Enterprise As-
sistance Fund, and a Boston Foundation grantee stepped in, help-
ing OutKast navigate out of bankruptcy, stabilize operations, and
build a more secure future. This is only one story among many. in-
novative companies in overlooked communities that can now not
only survive, but grow and thrive.
Senator Markey, if we’re serious about closing the racial wealth
gap and strengthening the Commonwealth’s economy from the
ground up, we must invest in models that endure political shifts,
center lived experience, treat equity as a permanent commitment,
not a temporary response.
That’s why we’re so excited about the SPARK Act. It reflects
common sense policy that extends a lifeline to small businesses and
strengthens our economy. Patient equitable capital can work. We
have shown that locally the SPARK Act will bring that to scale.
The Boston Foundation stands ready to continue this work and to
partner with leaders who understand that economic justice is not
optional infrastructure. It’s essential. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Mahoney follows.]
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34
Senator MARKEY. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Mahoney. We’re going to
hear from Nicole Obi. Nicole is the President of the Black Economic
Council of Massachusetts. BECMA is a nonprofit organization that
builds black wealth across Massachusetts by supporting and em-
powering businesses and removing barriers to opportunity and
prosperity for the community.
Ms. Obi is an entrepreneur and serves on the Governor’s Advi-
sory Council on Black Empowerment. Congresswoman Presley and
I and Senator—we were able to give $1 million to BECMA a couple
years ago to help with their structure. We were able to add
$700,000 this year to further augment that work, which you do in-
side of the community. Your organization’s kind of a beacon for
plaque entrepreneurship, and we thank you so much.
So, whenever you’re comfortable, please begin.
STATEMENT OF MS. NICOLE OBI, PRESIDENT, BLACK ECO-
NOMIC COUNCIL OF MASSACHUSETTS, ROXBURY CROSSING,
MASSACHUSETTS
Ms. OBI. Thank you, Ranking Member Markey, and thank you
for the opportunity to testify today. And thank you for your leader-
ship on behalf of America’s Small Businesses.
BECMA, we are a statewide member-based nonprofit focused on
closing the racial wealth gap by helping black-owned businesses,
700 to date in the last four years. We help them to start, grow, and
scale, and by strengthening the economic ecosystem that supports
them.
And I appreciate the committee’s focus on uplifting minority en-
trepreneurs, because as we’ve heard, the challenges they face today
are not abstract. They’re structural, compounding, and increasingly
shaped by Federal policy decisions.
Black and minority entrepreneurs are more likely to start busi-
nesses, yet less likely to access adequate, affordable capital, profes-
sional support, or growth stage opportunities. Even the profitable
firms are denied financing at higher rates. And when support does
exist, it’s often short term, fragmented or disconnected from the
places where entrepreneurs actually operate.
At the same time, these longstanding barriers are colliding with
new pressures. Tariffs and supply chain disruptions have raised
the cost of goods and materials, and inclusive procurement path-
ways are narrowing as agencies and private and public companies
pull back amid legal and political uncertainty. Immigration en-
forcement actions, even when not directed at a specific business,
are destabilizing local label markets and reducing foot traffic in en-
tire neighborhoods. So, fear alone has economic consequences.
For black owned businesses, which are more likely to operate
with thinner margins and less access to flexible capital, these pres-
sures don’t just slow growth. They force businesses to freeze hiring,
reduce hours, delay expansion, or exit the market altogether. And
this is not anecdotal. It’s a predictable pattern we are seeing play-
ing out across many sectors, and that’s why the SPARK Act is so
important and why its timing matters.
What distinguishes Senator Markey’s SPARK Act is that it does
not treat entrepreneurs as isolated actors who simply need more
advice or resilience. It recognizes that successful businesses grow
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35
with strong local ecosystems, and that those ecosystems require
sustained investment. The SPARK Act invests in incubators, accel-
erators, and community-based lenders that provide trust, on the
ground support in underserved communities.
And just as importantly, it pairs technical assistance with flexi-
ble financing, that helps to reduce collateral barriers and steers en-
trepreneurs away from predatory alternatives, and this combina-
tion is critical. From our experience at BECMA, this integrated ap-
proach is what actually changes outcomes. When entrepreneurs re-
ceive coordinated support, business advice, access to capital and
pathways into procurement and job creation, businesses last
longer, they hire locally and create wealth that circulates within
their communities.
So, the SPARK Act also gets accountability right. By requiring
reporting on capital access, job creation, wages, and participation
by race and geography. It ensures that public dollars are tied to
real economic outcomes, not just activity. And at a moment when
data transparency is eroding, this commitment matters.
In Massachusetts, we’ve seen how fragile progress becomes when
ecosystem funding is short term or disconnected from local reali-
ties. The SPARK Act offers a durable national framework that
scales what works, while allowing communities to tailor solutions
to their unique challenges.
Senator Markey’s leadership on this legislation sends a clear
message: Minority entrepreneurs are not a niche concern. They are
central to America’s economic resilience. And when black and other
underserved entrepreneurs succeed, families stabilize, wealth is
created and regional economies grow stronger.
So, on behalf of BECMA and the entrepreneurs, we have one
here, in the communities we represent, I urge this committee to ad-
vance the SPARK Act and continue investing in policies that make
entrepreneurship a viable pathway to stability growth, and wealth
building. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Obi follows.]
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38
Senator MARKEY. Thank you so much. Beautiful. And now, we’re
going to hear—and this is a key piece of testimony here because
Karim Hill represents people who are already doing it right now.
He’s the president of BDC Community Capital, which is a Commu-
nity Development Financial Institution, or CDFI, an SBA Commu-
nity Advantage lender, and an affiliate of the New England Cer-
tified Development Corporation, a leading SBA 504 lender in Mas-
sachusetts.
And Mr. Hill has extensive experience as a lender and was presi-
dent and the CEO of the New England Business Association. So,
we welcome you and whenever you feel comfortable, please begin.
STATEMENT OF MR. KARIM HILL, PRESIDENT, BDC COMMU-
NITY CAPITAL CORPORATION, WAKEFIELD, MASSACHU-
SETTS
Mr. HILL. Thank you, Ranking Member Markey. And I want to
thank you for all the work you have continued to do. And one thing
I’ll say about the Ranking Member is six years ago when I was
running the New England Business Association, you did an inter-
view with me before you actually went for this new term.
So, I really appreciate the fact that you are always accessible and
you find a way to get down to the brass tacks of helping small busi-
ness owners. So, thank you for all the work you have continued to
do, and thank you for inviting me back to speak for this testimony
today.
Again, as the Senator said, I’m Karim Hill. I’m the President of
BDC Community Capital, and I’m the inaugural president. What
that means is we actually started this program. I started this pro-
gram in 2021. I was fortunate enough to get an investment from
BDC Capital, which is the larger organization of half a million dol-
lars in equity, and a line of credit of $5 million to lend out to mi-
nority business owners.
Once I received that, my job was to then go and find a way to
make us U.S. Treasury certified, which is not an easy thing to do,
right? It took us almost two years to go through all the steps to
be U.S. Treasury certified. And then once we accomplished that in
2022, we started making our first loans.
Now, as I said, we had a $5 million line of credit. I had my own
separate board. We’re a 501(c)(3), and within the first year, we ex-
hausted that $5 million line of credit. So now I had to go back to
the banks and ask for more money, which we all know is not fun,
right?
But as a former banker, I knew the words to say, I knew how
to approach them, and we’re able to secure a larger line of credit.
Today, since 2022, we’ve made 185 loans and lent out more than
$25 million to minority based small businesses throughout the New
England region.
Now, the proudest piece of that is 92 percent of those loans have
fit our target market. What’s our target market? Every CDFI has
to have a designated target market. Ours are African American
small businesses, Hispanic-owned small businesses, and any small
business in a low to moderate income area.
Ninety-two percent of our $25 million has gone to an entity in
those target markets. And that’s really why we’re here. We’re here
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to make sure that access to capital gets down to where it needs to
be.
So, we at BDC Community Capital, we fully support the SPARK
Act. And I want to read this appropriately because it deserves to
be read. The reason we support the SPARK Act is because it allows
the expansion of our personal efforts to underserved entrepreneurs.
And it focuses on spurring economic growth to underserved commu-
nities. It encourages collaboration between the SBA and organiza-
tions that serve low to moderate income areas in minority and
rural communities.
This is critical to supporting the local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Fostering and using the rails that already exist is critical. To get
something what happens in a lot of areas and Boston’s no different.
We have well hearted people, people that have great ideas, great
energy, they create something. But when you’re not using the rails
that already exist, it’s hard for it to sustain.
Senator, I’m so proud that you’re doing this the way you’re doing
it, because you’re using the SBA, which already exists, that’s im-
portant. And you’re also using the SBA 504 program, which is crit-
ical. For those who don’t understand what the SBA 504 program
is, it is vital to reducing the racial wealth gap. And here’s why.
The 504 is a primary lender, lends out a bank or credit union
lends out 50 percent loan to value on that project. The 40 percent
is done by a CDC or ACDFI. Like us, we come in and do the 40
percent that leaves a 10 percent equity slug that the small busi-
ness owner must provide.
We have gone out and created our own SBA 504 down payment
program where we will give you up to $100,000 to fulfill that 10
percent equity piece. That is critical. It’s critical because it takes
a small business owner who is currently running his or her busi-
ness very, very well, and allows them to truly build, close the racial
wealth gap by owning their building.
That sustainability is key to minority business owners. We start-
ed this two years ago. I got the blessing of my board to do it. We
had no grant funding to do it. My board just allowed us to go out
and do this. We’ve now made 11 loans for just over $1.1 million.
And the best part about it, not a single default, no issues. It’s
testing and proving the fact that these small business owners know
how to run their businesses, and they just need a little bit of more
support to move forward. This is a critical component, and this
SPARK program will allow us to enhance that with the funds you
were talking about, Senator.
So, we are fully behind you on what you’re trying to accomplish.
And we’re out in front trying to bring access to capital to those who
truly need it.
Lastly, I want to make sure that everyone understands that this
work cannot be done without my peers here. The work that these
wonderful people do, they prepare small businesses for us, meaning
my group, to actually provide the funding. What happens a lot is
we will teach people what to do, but if you can’t secure that fund-
ing, that knowledge is not going to get you where you need it to
be.
Other CDFIs like myself, we are here and committed to making
sure we get those funds to where they need to be. Senator, we fully
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support the efforts you’re doing with the Spark program. I’m hon-
ored to be here and can’t wait to answer any questions you may
have.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Hill follows.]
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43
Senator MARKEY. No, thank you. Great question. Great testi-
mony. And again, this question of access to capital is throughout
the entire system. So, the state of Massachusetts decided three
years ago to make community college free.
So, you’ve got kids who come from the kind of communities that
I came from when I went to Boston College, it was affordable. You
could earn the tuition working during the summer. You could take
out a small amount of student loans in order to do it. To go to Bos-
ton College or Boston University to go to any of these schools, now
it’s $90,000 a year. Who has that kind of money in the same streets
that kids used to be able to say, I can earn that funding.
So free community college has meant here in Roxbury Commu-
nity College, there’s now more students here than there were be-
fore the pandemic, because they don’t have to think about access
to capital for their educational opportunities. And there’s been a
dramatic rise in those students all across the entire community col-
lege system, the entry level.
And so that’s again, a smart business plan for Massachusetts,
which should be replicated across the whole country. You know,
we’re not just the Bay State, we’re the brain state too. We’re look-
ing ahead, thinking about the issues that everyone should have to
deal with from an economic perspective. And that’s what the
SPARK Act is intended to deal with that issue when it comes to
small businesses, to entrepreneurs graduating from the school.
The data though, Mr. Mahoney, let’s lay out, if you can quickly.
What’s the data that you developed in terms of the racial wealth
gap that has locked minority members out of that entrepreneurial
world that then creates generational wealth?
Mr. MAHONEY. So, I think there are a few different data points.
Senator, you mentioned earlier the 2015 Color of Wealth study.
And that is going to be redone this year. The Federal Reserve Bank
of Boston with the Boston Foundation, Bar Foundation, Eastern
Bank Foundation, and Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce are
supporting that study.
And that is you know, going to look at economic conditions across
the state. You know, the number may be different than the one
that was burned into the brains of most Bostonians 10 years ago.
But it will show that gap continues.
The other data point that I think is important is around the
major legislation that passed earlier this year. The so-called Big
Beautiful Bill Act, which is not only going to increase the deficit,
but it’s doing so by extending tax cuts to favor the wealthy and
scaling back the social safety net, increasing border and security
and defense funding.
The analysis from experts across the ideological spectrum, in-
cluding the CBO, the Yale Budget Lab, Urban Institute, Brookings,
all reached the same conclusion. The law will tilt heavily towards
the highest income households.
According to the CBO families in the bottom 10 percent of the
income gap lose about $120,000 a year, while those in the top per-
cent gain roughly $13,600. So that is going to exacerbate not close
the racial wealth gap in the years to come.
Senator MARKEY. And again, you’re talking about access to edu-
cational healthcare, food benefits for those families, correct?
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Mr. MAHONEY. Correct. When families that can’t afford it are
paying more for healthcare or paying more for housing, or paying
more for education to cover tax cuts for families that quite frankly,
can afford healthcare education and the like, and housing, own
homes already. That’s where that comes in.
And the other, you know, home ownership is an important aspect
of this, because that is a root of what is wealth as opposed to in-
come. Income gaps may close as earnings change, but wealth is
what gets passed down from generations. And wealth is what al-
lows someone to start a small business, to afford higher education.
When you own your house and you can put the equity in that to
helping the next generation purchase their house, that is what has
created the wealth gap over time. And that is a result of deliberate
policies like redlining, discrimination on home loans and zoning de-
cisions that were made over decades and decades.
Senator MARKEY. Yes, and my father drove a truck for the Hood
Note Company, and I’m sitting here as a United States Senator,
right? So that’s what we have to provide for everyone. Well, no
matter how they want to use their God-given abilities that they can
kind of dream and become that.
But not if you’re taking away funding, which is what the big ugly
bill did beginning last July. Then people don’t have the discre-
tionary capital. They have to pay more in healthcare, more for edu-
cation, more for food, more for everything.
And then that extra 20, 50, 100 grand that they might have put
into a business, it’s just not there, you know, because they just
have to try to survive. So, Ms. King, access to opportunities and
networks and capital are significant barriers for underserved entre-
preneurs looking to start and run their businesses. How do organi-
zations that you run provide an approach in supporting entre-
preneurs? And why is this approach even more effective?
Ms. KING. So, there was a lot of points, really great points that
everybody set on here.
Senator MARKEY. Can you move the microphone down just a lit-
tle?
Ms. KING. Oh yes. There was a lot of great points that everyone
said on here. And I don’t know, I’m going to quote the African prov-
erb where many of you probably have heard this, where it’s like,
‘‘it takes a village to raise a child.’’ Have you heard that proverb?
It also takes a village to grow an entrepreneur, to grow a busi-
ness, right? And the village has to be connected, right? And this
is what you’re seeing. Here is the village, right? We’re all the vil-
lage.
So, when we’ve built entire systems, when you think around,
like, we kind of have like a pre-K to college system for like, if you
want to go to school, this is the flow. But like when it comes to en-
trepreneurship, we don’t really have that flow completely put to-
gether and coordinated, right?
We have folks who are doing it in the village who are doing dif-
ferent siloed approaches of it, but we don’t have it completely
through it. So, when someone starts a business, we tell them, go
figure it out. Go find the resource, go piece the support together,
piece the guidance you need together, even though we already have
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institutions right here who can collaborate, who can work together
to ping pong around folks.
And that’s what we’re saying what I love about the SPARK Act
starts to facilitate. Like, how do you make it even easier for all of
us in the village? We already talk to each other. We already cir-
culate and bounce entrepreneurs between each other because we
know each other and can text each other and be like, hey, look at
the Little Cocoa Bean, or look at this business.
But now imagine if that got strengthened to the point of where
it’s like a pre-K to college system, right? It’s like strengthened and
we have the resources that we need so that we can build that even
better, because as Karim said, like he needs folks to be prepped be-
fore they get to him, right? And also, the folks in that prep, they
need capital and resourcing right before they can get to him.
So, the gap is what happens with this gap. And they kind of call
this kind of like the valley of death, I think is one of the things,
you can look it up. In this gap, when we don’t have us, all talking
together and all the whole entire village activated, not just us, but
also customers, government, philanthropy, everybody activated
around this one entrepreneur and making sure she survives, she’s
successful to get where she is.
So, I’m going to give you another example of that. It’s when you
don’t have that, then the entrepreneur fails. But what it looks like
when you do have that is that when an entrepreneur comes, they
have this product, it has demand already. Then you have like, MIT
helps them build their technical capacity. Harvard preps him for
investor conversations. Suffolk chimes in with legal support. RCC
has done stuff with us too to support that entrepreneur.
And then you have Jrue and Lauren Holiday supporting them
with their networks and funding. And Jaylen Brown is creating
space and also pouring in his funding and opening up his networks.
And they don’t just operate during this one specific time, they’re
staying with them, right? They’re part of the family of like; we’re
going to stay with this entrepreneur to get you through because
maybe in about eight months you have a problem that you didn’t
even know was coming. So here it comes.
Now you’re in this problem. So, then MIT comes back in and
says, let me create this war room of all of our successful, like entre-
preneurs who’ve been through your problem. Like, let them sit with
you and get you through the problem.
Then you have a barrier in month eight, where it’s like, okay,
well Jrue is like, let me make a call to like, can we walk you in
to get this partnership? This is what it looks like, right? It looks
like we all have to be all-hands-on-deck for these businesses in our
communities who need us, not just as customers, but they need us
to also be the opener for all the next things that they need for them
to survive.
And there were a couple data points that were like floated. I
think we talked a lot. One thing why it’s really important for the
businesses in our communities to really thrive is because they’re
the first ones to pour back into the community.
There’s a lot of data that shows that. Especially as black and
brown business owners, when they reach and sell or get to the
point of where they’re like on shelves or they’re IPO-ing or what-
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ever it is, they’re the first ones to turn back into an angel investor
and double down and invest in the next business.
They’re the first ones to give to the different solutions that need
help on the ground in their community. So, if we don’t support
them, then the community, that’s another gap you see of like the
person who knows exactly what the community needs can’t come
back and resource their community that they love.
So, it’s really important around that. One other data point I
wanted to add in, and I was trying to find this to pull it. I think
sometimes when we speak about this, and like we speak about this
as like our black businesses, our brown businesses, they don’t get
access to capital, right? They don’t get access to all these resources.
We gave you all that data.
The other side of it, for you to intentionally not give the capital
to black and brown businesses is wild. Because what other data
point to know is that black businesses, with that little bit of
resourcing that you give, they’re shown to produce more revenue
than other businesses who are well resourced. That’s what the data
shows.
There’s been CFIs that we’ve spoken to where they’ll tell us, you
know, who doesn’t default on the loan? Black businesses, and we’re
not giving them loans. Why? Like, you’re intentionally blocking the
economy. You’re intentionally saying like, this is what you’re doing.
So, this village, this is what we do. One of the things we were
very intentional with Jrue, Lauren and Jaylen was like, we already
knew there were folks right here in Boston intentionally building
from like governors, mayors, Nicole, everybody was already build-
ing.
So, it wasn’t for us to duplicate it, it was to come in and say,
well, where do we fit in? How do we like ping pong things together
and let’s flow this together. And then like, now let’s also invite the
community and the customers in too, so that we have this beautiful
wrapped around village, around the entrepreneur. And that’s when
you’re going to see more success.
Where we’re like, hands on everybody. It’s like you have to treat
them like family and we all have to be coordinated around this. Be-
cause if wherever you want to live, you want to see it thrive and
grow, it depends on this, it depends on those businesses who are
creating innovations to live right in your communities.
Senator MARKEY. Fabulous. Thank you. So, Nicole Obi, how do
you interact with organizations like Boston Xchange and BDC Cap-
ital? What is the role that you play?
Ms. OBI. Our role is while we focus on black entrepreneurs, and
as I mentioned, we’ve touched 700 of them directly. We also part-
ner with other organizations that are also supporting small busi-
nesses. I often say that not all small businesses are black and
brown, but almost all black and brown businesses are small.
And so, we partner, you know, it’s the same challenges that we
often face. So, we partner with Latino, Asian and LGBT commu-
nities as well. And we find that to be really important. I would say
that last year we did a study of our member base and we found
that 70 percent of the survey respondents said that we were the
only source of support that they received. And so, a lot of times
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those are our earliest stage businesses or those that just haven’t
gotten any support quite yet.
And so, they are sort of the tip of the spear, the top of the funnel.
And what we are really trying to do in partnership with others, in-
cluding the folks here, is move people through different stage gates.
While we do provide grants, because that’s a great way to start,
for those businesses that are trying to get through those initial
milestones, we too have offered loans and like Karim and like
Renee just said, we’ve done 10 loans for a total of $850,000 and all
of those loans are current or have been repaid. Those are very safe
bets. And that’s what we are really trying to make sure that tradi-
tional lenders understand.
A success to us is being able to spin those businesses out to tra-
ditional lenders and other CDFIs. And so, we’ve been able to ac-
complish that. Something else that we work on, and especially in
partnership with other. So, Karim sits on a board that I chair for
the state around procurement.
We know that grants are not going to sustain businesses indefi-
nitely, but they are a great start. But it’s really procurement that
we think is an important next step in helping our businesses get
and sustain themselves. And what we’ve found just in BECMA over
the last few years, that it usually takes a couple of deals for our
businesses to be able to sustain themselves at this new level. So,
we really look to try to get them to that third deal mark.
But in the meantime, there’s more support that we get from our
partners, whether it’s capital or professional services or advice.
And so, there’s a lot of ways that we are connected to each other.
We happen to see a lot of the businesses maybe earlier stage, but
to us, success is being able to have them advance and get support
from others and having them take it to the next level.
Senator MARKEY. Fabulous. And Mr. Hill, we’re going to give you
the last word here. Bring it all together for us. 504 Community Ad-
vantage program. Everything that you see here in terms of how it
could all funnel into you out into the economy, businesses opening.
Mr. HILL. Yes. So, a lot of acronyms when you talk about the
SBA, right? So, you’ve got 504, you’ve got community advantage. So
how, how do those programs fit into the ecosystem of getting access
to capital to minority owned businesses? Well, I’ll give you one
from each category.
The Community Advantage program, the reason it’s so important
is it allows a lender like me to make a loan to a company that’s
under two years in existence. Very few banks, if any, will do a loan
for a business that’s under two years in existence. The only way
they will do it is if you have an exorbitantly high net worth be-
cause they’re really not banking on the business. They’re banking
on you, right?
So, if you don’t have a high net worth and your business is under
two years in existence, there’s really no place for you to go for fi-
nancing except to a lender that has a Community Advantage tag.
Now, what would we do with the SPARK funds with that com-
munity advantage? How does that help? We can take a SPARK line
of $1 million that Senator Markey was talking about and leverage
that five times. So, $1 million can turn into $5 million in lending.
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That goes out in Community Advantage. Why? Because the SBA
guarantees us 75 percent on every Community Advantage loan.
So, it allows us to leverage those dollars in a way that has true
impact. So that’s the first way on Community Advantage. The SBA
504, as I said earlier, with our down payment program, we can
take a million dollars of SPARK funding and leverage that five
times when it comes to that.
So, it allows us then to go out and reach to put $5 million out
on the street, divide that by a hundred thousand. That’s a lot of
loans you can do. That’s a lot of loans that can be put out to indi-
viduals who could not receive that. Here’s the one data point I’ll
give you on the 504 piece. Here’s why it’s important. 504 money it’s
fixed. It’s a fixed rate for 25 years.
If you run your business today, I can guarantee you one thing,
your rent will not be the same for 25 years. Can guarantee that.
If you do a 504 loan, your rent will be the same for 25 years. That’s
how it allows that business owner to grow. It allows them not only
to have the asset, but it gives them certainty on the expense side.
Certainty is critical when you’re running your own business. So
that’s how these programs, Senator Markey, can really help and
really drive this racial wealth gap that we talk about so often.
Senator MARKEY. You’re great. Thank you so much. Thanks to
this incredible panel. Can we just give them a warm thanks for
their incredible work.
[Applause.]
Senator MARKEY. We’re at the center of kind of the economic rev-
olution right here. I was able to put in $4 million for Roxbury Com-
munity College a couple of years ago, and they’re renovating the
Dudley House, which is right next door, which is going to become
the Center for Economic and Social Justice.
And we were just able to put in $2 million into the Federal budg-
et for Roxbury Community College for internships to learn and
earn. So, we’re seeding those programs right here at the school,
and with this expert panel, we can see that these really, really
smart, ambitious young people walking the curb, looking in are all
wanting to maximize their God-given abilities. So that’s what this
is going to be all about.
This has been an incredible hearing today. I’m taking all of this
back to Washington. My goal is to build a more equitable future
for everyone to ensure that black and brown communities are fully
integrated into our economy.
For anyone who is watching or would like to submit testimony,
you have 14 days to submit testimony. It will be included in the
congressional record, okay. So that we will have all of your testi-
mony to help us to develop this program in a way that beginning
next January will begin to really augment all of the funding that
should be available for young, black, and brown entrepreneurs in
our country.
With that, thank you all for being here, and this hearing is ad-
journed. Thank you.
[Whereupon, at 1:39 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
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