FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Leslie Shedd
Leslie.Shedd@Mail.House.Gov
202-225-5901 (W)
April 25, 2012 -

House Passes Legislation to Help Ease Unnecessary Restrictions on Small Businesses

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House has passed H.R. 3336, the Small Business Credit Availability Act. The legislation eases the regulations established under Dodd-Frank that drive up the cost of business on American companies, releasing them from some of the unnecessary regulatory burdens that hamper their growth.  Congressman Westmoreland has long supported small businesses and voted in favor of this bill.

“Small businesses are the economic engine of our economy and we must work to help them through these tough economic times rather than making things harder,” stated Westmoreland.  “That’s why I supported the Small Business Credit Availability Act.   Many of the provisions within the Dodd-Frank Act only hurt small businesses by adding burdensome and unnecessary regulations that drive up their costs, making it harder to hire new employees or expand.  We need to stop the culture of this ‘Regulation Nation’ Congressional Democrats and the White House have adopted in DC and remove the barriers hampering economic growth.”

This legislation would ensure the term “swap dealers” is not used to reference small lenders and certain financial institutions that are regulated by the Commodity Future Trading Commission (CFTC) under the Dodd-Frank Act. The legislation also exempts individuals who enter into swaps from their personal account instead of their regular business activities. Swap dealers are companies that exchange cash flows from one party’s financial instrument to another financial instrument in order to protect customer loans from sudden interest rate fluctuations.

“This legislation will help small financial institutions that are currently struggling, including those in Georgia’s Third Congressional District,” stated Westmoreland. “I am proud to support this legislation to help small financial institutions not only recover, but to eventually thrive once again.”

The Small Business Credit Availability Act passed with bipartisan support and has been sent to the Senate.  It is unclear if or when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) will schedule a vote.