Honoring small business owners of the year, President Obama recently urged Congress to pass two major programs to increase lending to small businesses. "Government can't guarantee a company's success," the president said, "but it can knock down the barriers that prevent small business owners from getting loans or investing in the future."

Unfortunately, the president wasn't urging the knocking down of obstacles that limit the ability of the nation's 7,710 credit unions to make loans to small businesses. Indeed, unless lawmakers amend the bills, the two programs-one a $30 billion lending fund-won't even allow credit unions to participate. For instance, the House Financial Services Committee approved lending fund legislation, but it applies only to any community bank under $10 billion in assets.

Traditionally, to be sure, credit unions provide service primarily to individual consumers who become members. They underwrite mortgage, auto and consumer loans. But business lending has grown substantially over the past decade. That isn't surprising since many of the estimated 91.2 million U.S. credit-union members are business-owning members. Over time, they increasingly have sought business loans from their credit unions, especially as banks have reduced their small business lending.