Nydia M. Velazquez: “Mr. Speaker, the biggest challenge facing our Nation's business is access to capital. For small businesses, access to…”

“Mr. Speaker, the biggest challenge facing our Nation's business is access to capital. For small businesses, access to capital means access to opportunity, and by passing the Small Business Investment Company Technical Corrections Act today, we can take an important step toward giving small businesses a chance to take advantage of that opportunity. The SBIC program has an impressive history of helping small businesses grow and expand. The work done by SBIC is especially critical now as everyday more and more private venture dollars are sent overseas to help support companies that compete with U.S. businesses. The SBIC program helps level the playing field for American business by focusing solely on helping domestic small businesses. These are companies that create the bulk of American jobs. Furthermore, SBICs fill a unique gap by providing capital to companies that need smaller loans which are not generally made by large banks or lending institutions. The competitiveness that SBIC provides our small businesses helps strengthen our American economy. The changes that will result from H.R. 68 will provide SBICs with the flexibility to offer more loans, increase the amount of available funding and lower interest rates. Today's measure will help SBICs build on their already impressive work and pave the way for future small business success stories.”