Yesterday, Sens. John Kerry (D-MA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME), both of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, urged the Small Business Administration to comply with a law to make renewal grants available for Women's Business Centers nationwide. "Unless the administration acts quickly to get funding to these Women's Business Centers, some of them may be forced to cut key services or possibly shut down entirely," said Kerry.  

Originally, Congress planned on implementing the renewal grants program immediately to ensure centers received the necessary funding by October 1. But since that didn't happen, the centers would have to wait another year for funding. Kerry and Snowe are asking the SBA to make a compromise regarding its grant-making process so those centers can receive the grants by January 1 instead.

On Friday, we told you about the rise of the quinceañera market, and now, two California-based entrepreneurs are announcing the fall launch of a new Spanish-language home shopping network called TeleGalería. TeleGalería executives say it's not just a network for pitching products, but for creating programming with a focus on the Hispanic lifestyle. "By embracing the language, culture and preferences of Hispanics, TeleGalería will connect brands to the Hispanic consumer's lifestyle," said TeleGalería CEO Frederick Ackourey.

The nationwide network will broadcast programming weekly and online 24 hours a day. Shows like Cocinado a Moda Latin will feature guest chefs and culinary artists, while Unicos will showcase one-of-a-kind jewelry.

In May, we told you about the UPS Best "Out-of-the-Box" Small Business Contest, boasting a grand-prize of $25,000 in cash. You still have until September 1 to enter. To qualify, your business must have 2006 revenues of at least $250,000 but not exceeding $10 million. Sound like your small biz? Then submit a 500-word essay explaining why your business is original and successful. In addition to $25,000, the first place winner will also receive an IBM small-business package valued at $2,000 and become part of an international UPS publicity campaign related to the contest.