Dennis Moore: “I also want to congratulate Mr. Kanjorski and Mr. Royce on their hard work in crafting a bipartisan bill to provide reg…”

“I also want to congratulate Mr. Kanjorski and Mr. Royce on their hard work in crafting a bipartisan bill to provide reg relief to credit unions. As you know, the legislation before us today combines important provisions from credit union regulatory relief legislation previously introduced by Mr. Kanjorski and Mr. Royce with provisions from my legislation H.R. 5841, the Bank and Thrift Regulatory Relief Act of 2008. At a time when many businesses are having difficulty obtaining access to credit, H.R. 5841 will provide important credit opportunities for small- and medium-sized businesses. Among other provisions, this legislation would remove the existing limits on small business lending for thrifts, thereby enhancing the role of savings associations as community leaders. The Homeowners Loan Act currently caps the aggregate amount of commercial loans other than small business loans at 10 percent of a savings association's assets, and it permits commercial lending, including small business lending, of up to 20 percent of assets. According to the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy, smaller businesses have experienced difficulty in obtaining relatively small loans from large commercial banks that set minimum loan amounts relatively high. Savings associations are increasingly important providers of small business credit and communities throughout the country.”