Marathon Pundit: Dold on four bills to help small businesses gain access to capital passing the House

Saturday, November 05, 2011

Dold on four bills to help small businesses gain access to capital passing the House

After being introduced by Republican Whip Kevin McCarthy of California, Rep. Robert Dold (R-IL), discusses the unnecessary burdens facing small businesses and touts the benefits of bills named below.

From a Dold press release:

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Congressman Robert Dold (IL-10) is a co-sponsor of four bills that passed the U.S. House of Representatives this week. Collectively, these bills will give small businesses easier access to capital for creating and maintaining jobs. As a co-sponsor, Dold advocated for passage on the House floor.

"The government cannot create net new jobs. Small businesses do that," said Rep. Dold. "And so I'm proud to support these four different bills that improve the conditions for small businesses to access the capital needed to grow, expand, and create new jobs. By sensibly and responsibly improving the regulatory conditions for job creators, we are one step closer to putting our nation back to work. This bipartisan legislation is exactly the kind of thing we need to be doing in Washington -- looking for common ground that helps business grow and creates new opportunities for people to find and create new jobs."

H.R. 2167, the Private Company Flexibility and Growth Act, introduced by Rep. David Schweikert

H.R. 2167 removes an impediment to capital formation for small companies by raising the shareholder threshold for mandatory registration with the SEC from 500 to 2,000 shareholders. The shareholder threshold was originally adopted in 1964 and has not been modernized since then. At a recent hearing, the Committee received testimony from witnesses regarding the impact the bill will have on the availability of credit for small companies, job creation, and economic growth.

H.R. 2940, the Access to Capital for Job Creators Act, introduced by Rep. Kevin McCarthy

H.R. 2940 removes the regulatory ban that prevents small, privately held companies from using advertisements to solicit sophisticated investors for private offerings. Securities laws not only prohibit general solicitation and advertising, but also require investors to have an existing relationship with the company to meet SEC exemption requirements. This ban has limited the ability of small businesses to raise capital.

H.R. 2930, the Entrepreneur Access to Capital Act, introduced by Rep. Patrick McHenry

Glenview, IL, 10th cong. dist.

H.R. 2930 permits "crowd-funding" to finance new businesses by allowing companies to accept and pool donations up to $5 million without registering with the SEC. Crowd-funding is an innovative and lower-risk financing mechanism that enables several individuals to pool investment money with a particular company. Current SEC regulations prohibiting general solicitation have prevented crowd-funding from developing and flourishing in the United States.

H.R. 1965, introduced by Rep. Jim Himes

H.R. 1965 modifies regulations concerning registration and de-registration of small bank holding companies under securities laws. Current law prohibits community banks from de-registering if they have more than 300 shareholders. As a result, to de-register, many community banks have had to use scarce capital to buy back shares instead of providing more capital to their community’s families and businesses.