A California Chamber of Commerce job creator bill that encourages creation of small businesses by expanding their access to loans has passed the Senate with unanimous bipartisan support and awaits assignment to a committee in the Assembly.
SB 936 (Hertzberg; D-Van Nuys) expands the availability of loans through the Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank’s (IBank) California Small Business Loan Guarantee Program.
“The program helps businesses create and retain jobs,” says CalChamber Policy Advocate Valerie Nera in the video below.
“It promotes statewide economic development by supporting loans to small businesses that would not otherwise qualify.”
Small businesses establish a favorable credit history with a lender under this program and then are able to obtain future loans on their own. The program has been in place since 1968 with almost no defaults.
SB 936 increases the IBank’s ability to leverage state and federal funding, thus incentivizing private lending and economic investments. The loan guarantee program uses state and federal funding to create a loan loss reserve, which reduces the risk of lending to small businesses.
