Small Business Lending Fund Act

The Small Business Lending Fund Act creates a small business loan fund that is designed to boost bank lending to small businesses struggling to gain access to credit due to the financial crisis. The legislation will establish a $30 billion fund to boost lending to small businesses looking to hire and expand their operations by providing additional capital to community banks. The legislation also provides $1 billion in financing to support early stage small businesses in the form of true equity financing.

The bill also provides $2 billion in funding for new or existing state lending programs. These programs already exist in around thirty states, and use small amounts of public dollars to generate substantial private bank financing. By supporting existing expertise in states around the country and using an easy to replicate model, this program will be able to quickly increase small business lending and create jobs.