Late Amendments Postpone SBA Bill Mark-up

WASHINGTON – A flurry of last-minute amendments forced House Small Business Committee Chairman Don Manzullo (R-Ill.) to postpone a May 17 committee mark-up of his legislation that would reauthorize the Small Business Administration programs for another four years. The committee was scheduled to consider HR 5352, or the Small Business Reauthorization Act of 2006, at an 11:30 a.m. mark-up May 17. Late May 16, several amendments started to come in and by the time of the mark-up, 47 more had been received by the committee. In addition, the committee was informed that a 200-page substitute bill would be forthcoming from the minority staff of the committee. Manzullo said he decided to postpone the mark-up to give himself time to meet with the sponsors to see if he can accommodate any of their amendments. Meanwhile, both CUNA and NAFCU have expressed support for Manzullo’s legislation. Among other changes, the bill would increase the maximum 7(a) loan amount from $2 million to $3 million and the guarantee limit from $1.5 million to $2.25 million. The half-point lender fee within the 504 or the Certified Development Company program would be transferred to CDCs and borrowers. He is also against adding more fees to cover administrative expenses to manage the 7(a), CDC, and Small Business Investment Company programs.