1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Parren Mitchell Minority Business Education and Empowerment Act of 2019 . 2. Findings The Congress finds the following: (1) As many colleges and universities across the country kept their doors closed to African-American applicants, historically Black colleges and universities (referred to in this section as HBCUs ) played a central role in ensuring that African Americans could attain an excellent education. (2) In 1970, Congressman Parren Mitchell became the first African American from Maryland to be elected to the House of Representatives. During his time in Congress, Congressman Mitchell served as the Chairman of the Small Business Committee, was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus, and served as a senior member of the then-House Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs Committee. In these roles, Congressman Mitchell vigorously supported economic empowerment for minority businesses and education as a vehicle for social mobility. (3) The Bureau of the Census in 2017 indicated that African Americans have a median household income that is 63 percent of the median household income of Whites. (4) In the first quarter of 2019, the African-American unemployment rate was 7.1 percent, well above the national average of 4.1 percent. (5) According to the Minority Business Development Agency— (A) minority firms are more likely to be denied loans at a rate of nearly three times higher than nonminority firms; (B) minority firms are likely to pay higher interest rates, on average 7.8 percent, while nonminority firms pay on average 6.4 percent; (C) minority firms are less likely to receive loans and, when approved, receive lower loan amounts; (D) minority firms secure a lower number and dollar amount of contracts in proportion to the number of available minority firms in the relevant market