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Boise, ID – Today, U.S. Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho) spoke at the Idaho Women’s Business Center kick-off event to celebrate the recently awarded grants that he helped bring back to the state to serve Idaho’s women entrepreneurs. Sen. Risch has been working with the Small Business Administrator (SBA) and stakeholders in the state to bring a WBC back to Idaho since he served as chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship from 2017-2018.

Sen. Risch was joined by Idaho Governor Brad Little, National Women Business Council member Jessica Flynn, SBA Associate Administrator Allen Gutierrez, representatives from the Idaho Hispanic Foundation, the University of Idaho, and other community leaders at the Idaho State Capitol.

“Thanks to our thriving economy, Idaho’s market is flourishing and small business optimism is at an all-time high,”  said Senator Risch. “The establishment of the Idaho Women’s Business Center will serve as a catalyst for Idaho to fully realize the gains from this positive momentum. In our State, women own nearly 5,000 businesses and employ over 36,000 Idahoans, paying more than $1 billion dollars in salaries and wages. I have full confidence that the resources made available through the Idaho Women’s Business Center will increase the success of female entrepreneurs in Idaho and thus benefit the entire state.”

The new Idaho Women’s Business Center, hosted by the Idaho Hispanic Foundation and the University of Idaho, will provide resources and tools to Idaho’s female entrepreneurs to help them start and grow businesses. Risch, who is a member and former chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, played an integral role in helping bring this vital program back to the state of Idaho.

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