Scholten’s Bipartisan Bill to Encourage Investment in Rural and Low-Income Areas Passes the House During Small Business Week

Rep. Scholten speaks on the House floor in support of her legislation.

 WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, to kick off National Small Business Week, Rep. Hillary Scholten’s (MI-03) bipartisan bill she introduced with Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA) to increase capital available to small businesses, particularly those in rural or low-income areas and those operating in the national security sector, passed the House of Representatives. The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration. 

Small Business Investment Companies (SBICs) are privately owned companies, licensed and regulated by the Small Business Administration (SBA). They use their private funds and SBA-guaranteed funding to invest in small businesses. 

The Investing in All of America Act would encourage SBIC investments in these areas by ensuring that dollars invested in rural and/or low-income areas or national security technologies sector are not counted against SBIC’s leverage cap.

“More than 99% of Michigan’s businesses are small – making them the economic engine of our state. Recent studies have shown that less than 20 percent of SBIC funds reach low-income and rural communities - that disparity is unacceptable,” said Rep. Scholten. “By passing our bill today, we took an important step towards changing that statistic and investing in the people who are investing in our communities. I want to thank my colleagues for coming together at this important moment during National Small Business Week to support small businesses across the country.” 

Text of the bill can be found here.