Amendment Increases Small Business Loan Opportunities to Promote New Home Construction

Washington, DC – Today the House of Representatives approved an amendment to H.R. 5297, the Small Business Lending Fund Act of 2010, offered by Rep. Joe Baca (D-Rialto) and Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC).  The amendment, which passed with an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote of 418 – 3, ensures that small and medium sized banks issuing housing production loans to America’s home builders are eligible for additional capital under the new Small Business Lending fund the bill creates.

“The construction industry is a consistent source of jobs for the American people,” said Rep. Baca.  “Unfortunately, the housing market crash has had a devastating impact on the home building industry in the Inland Empire and thousands of other communities across our nation.  I thank my colleague, Rep. Brad Miller, for working with me on this critical amendment – which helps target vital small business lending assistance to America’s housing industry, a proven source of new job creation.”

H.R. 5297 establishes a $30 billion Small Business Lending fund to boost small business lending by providing additional capital to smaller and medium sized banks, with assets of $10 billion or less.  The legislation also establishes the State Small Business Credit Initiative, which will allocate funding to states to support Capital Access Programs and a range of other innovative credit support programs. The overall bill, which includes the Baca/Miller amendment, was approved by the House with a 241 – 182 vote.

Despite a growing demand for new residential housing in many markets, the home building industry continues to experience severe problems in accessing credit from banks.  The amendment sponsored by Reps. Baca and Miller will help address the housing production credit crisis faced by builders across the country by opening the Small Business Lending fund program to include housing production loans to our nation’s home builders, who are comprised primarily of small businesses.

“Small businesses are the backbone of the U.S. economy,” concluded Rep. Baca.  “Many of the construction sector businesses that play an important role in the home building industry continue to face a crippling credit freeze.  The housing crisis led our country into the current economic recession, and creating incentives to allow the housing market to thrive is critical to a sustained economic recovery.  I thank my colleagues in the House for supporting this important amendment, and urge the Senate and the Administration to act quickly to implement this funding that will help get our economy moving again.”