Obama Calls For Congress to Pass Small Business Legistion
| 8 | Aug 2010 |
President Obama urged Congress on Friday to put aside the "election-time games" and pass measures he said will help the economy, The Hill.com reports.
The Small Business Jobs and Credit Act has stalled in the Senate.
"It is so important to pass this jobs bill for America's small businesses. That's where most of our jobs are created. And small businesses have been especially hard-hit by the economy," said Obama, speaking at a small sign company in Washington, D.C., Friday.
The bill would authorize the creation of a $30 billion lending fund. The Treasury Department would run the program, which would deliver ultra-cheap capital to community banks, defined as those with less than $10 billion in total assets, CBSNews.com reports.
Other key components of the bill would provide $12 billion worth of tax relief for small businesses between 2010 and 2020, according to a preliminary estimate from the Joint Committee on Taxation. The bill also would increase Small Business Administration loan limits and extend loan sweeteners through the end of the year, according to the report on CNN.com.
It would also offer a variety of tax cuts for small businesses and would provide $1.5 billion in grants to state lending programs.