House Passes Small Business Lending Funding

Press Release

Includes Braley's Plain Language Amendment.

Congressman Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) voted today for the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act (H.R. 5297), which will deliver loans to small businesses across the country to create jobs and stimulate the economy. The bill includes Braley's Plain Language Amendment that would require the Department of the Treasury and the Small Business Administration use plain language for documents that go to the public related to this new lending fund.

"As we continue to work our way out of the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression, small businesses continue to face challenges when it comes to accessing credit," Braley said. "When I go back and talk to small business owners in my district, one of their biggest complaints is federal bureaucracy and too much red tape written in language they can't understand, which forces them to hire lawyers and accountants so they can understand the requirements we impose upon them. Writing these documents in plain language will increase government accountability and will save taxpayers, community banks and small business owners critical time and money. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and this bill gives them the tools they need to create jobs on Main Street and continue down the road to a full economic recovery."

Watch video of Braley's floor speech on his Plan Language amendment here.

The Small Business Jobs and Credit Act will create a $30 billion lending fund for small and medium sized community banks to provide credit to local businesses in order for them to grow. Banks will repay the loans over the next 10 years with interest, saving the taxpayers $1 billion.

The bill also provides $2 billion in funding for new or existing state lending programs and helps small business startups through a public/private partnership designed to direct investment capital to them.

Braley's Plain Language Amendment would require the Department of the Treasury and the Small Business Administration to implement plain writing requirements by:

- designating a senior official to oversee implementation of the provision,
- communicating the requirements to employees,
- training employees in plain writing,
- establishing a process to oversee compliance,
- creating a plain writing section of the agency's website,
- and designating one or more agency points of contact to receive and respond to public feedback.

Source