Perlmutter Highlights Aid to Small Businesse

Press Release

To commemorate Small Business Week (May 23-29, 2010), Rep. Ed Perlmutter (CO-07) highlighted resources to help local small business owners prosper and create jobs in Colorado. Perlmutter recently launched his Small Business Resource Center and introduced HR 5249, the Capital Access for Main Street (CAMS) to help small businesses get access to the capital they need to help our economy rebuild and prosper.

"In grocery stores, walking the neighborhoods and at town hall and individual meetings, I've heard first hand from small business owners in the 7th Congressional District about the difficulty they face starting or expanding their operations," said Perlmutter. "Entrepreneurs like those at Big Papa's Barbeque in Littleton are the key to our economic recovery, and we need to make sure they have access to the broadest array of assistance necessary for them to grow their ventures."

In January, Perlmutter helped his constituent and owners of Big Papa's Barbeque, a local Barbeque business, work with a local bank to secure a loan to finish construction on a new store. (See the full story here).

"These are exactly the kinds of small businesses our banks need to lend to and we need to foster and promote," said Perlmutter. "They had a solid business plan, they hired 40 plus people in our community in addition to contractor work. Unfortunately, their situation wasn't unique. I am working through my committee and with other members of the Colorado Congressional delegation, to get credit flowing to these small businesses so we can put people back to work and rebuild our economy."

Access to capital is a widespread challenge for small businesses. While credit markets remain historically tight, there are signs of improvement. Below are some key benefits currently available to small businesses supported by Rep. Perlmutter. For more information, please view Perlmutter's Small Business Resources Center here:

Sponsor of HR 5249, the Capital Access for Main Street (CAMS) bill. This bill will temporarily allow small banks to amortize their losses on commercial real estate over time. As a result, these small community banks, which provide many of the loans to our small businesses, will have more liquid capital available to make responsible loans for businesses to use to hire and retain workers.

Supports Tax Cuts for Small Businesses: All totalled, Congress enacted more than $800 billion in tax cuts to help families and businesses across the country and inject consumer demand into the economy and spur business investment and job creation. Tax cuts include:

* Small Business Expensing: Extends small business expensing, doubling the amount small businesses can immediately write off their taxes for capital investments and purchases of new equipment made in 2009 ($125,000 to $250,000).
* Buying Back Debt: Provides assistance to companies looking to reduce their debt burdens by delaying the tax on businesses that have discharged indebtedness, which will help these companies strengthen their balance sheets so they can invest in job creation.
* Small Business Investment: Spurs investments in small businesses by cutting the capital gains tax on investors in small businesses who buy stock (in the next two years) and hold it for more than 5 years.
* Jobs for Recently Discharged Unemployed Veterans and Disconnected Youth: Creates jobs with business tax credits for hiring recently discharged unemployed veterans who have been out of work or youth who have been out of school for 6 months prior to hire.
Small Business Week A Time to Showcase the Economic Engines of our Communities

Co-sponsored HR 5297, the Small Business Lending Fund Act of 2010: This bill will help ensure small businesses can get loans from the small banks and help rebuild Main Street. The small business lending fund will ensure competition among our community banks and incentivize them to increase lending to small businesses.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA): Helps small firms get capital by increasing to 90 percent the government guarantee on SBA-backed loans and unfreezing the secondary market, which will help increase the flow of capital.

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