The SCORE Act of 2023 reauthorizes and modernizes the SCORE program, which provides free business coaching to entrepreneurs. The bill renames the program from "Service Corps of Retired Executives" to "Supporting Coaching Opportunities for Resilient Entrepreneurs" and requires the Small Business Administration to enter into a competitive cooperative agreement with an organization to operate the program, with mandatory recompetition every five years. The legislation requires coaches to have knowledge of modern business practices including e-commerce and digital marketing, and establishes performance standards with a one-year improvement plan before removal from the program. The bill also mandates that SCORE expand online services like webinars and mentoring platforms, increase focus on serving rural entrepreneurs, and partner with the National Women's Business Coaches to recruit diverse volunteers and match women entrepreneurs with appropriate coaches. Additionally, the law establishes the National Women's Business Coaches as a group of 30 volunteer coaches with a staff of up to four full-time employees, and requires the Government Accountability Office to study SCORE's rural service effectiveness within 180 days. The SCORE program is reauthorized for four years from enactment, after which it will require Congressional renewal.
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