Small Business Owners Urge Congress to Extend Export-Import Bank Before Sept. 30 Deadline

Washington, DC̢??‰۝ Using a new website called the Ex-Im Thought Bank, small business owners across the country are sending comments to Members of Congress, urging them to reauthorize the Export-Import Bank before it expires at the end of the month.

The Ex-Im Bank gives small businesses an edge by leveling the playing field between small firms and their larger counterparts. The bank fills in the gaps offered by traditional financing, by partnering with private-sector lenders to provide loans and credit to aid foreign purchasers in buying American-made goods. Many small businesses rely on the bank because commercial lenders typically don̢??‰?t support small businesses in this area. In fact, nearly 90 percent of the Ex-Im Bank̢??‰?s transactions in 2013 were for American small businesses.

Faced with a September 30th deadline, small business owners are asking Congress to reauthorize the bank now. They̢??‰?re making their voices heard using Small Business Majority̢??‰?s Ex-Im Thought Bank, a website that allows small business owners to share their experiences with the bank and have their comments sent directly to Members of Congress.

The comments range from small business owners calling the Ex-Im Bank an ̢???essential finance agency̢???? that U.S. exporters big and small need to compete globally, to saying it ̢???plays a very important role in creating and sustaining American jobs.̢????

Senator Maria Cantwell, Chairwoman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, has sponsored legislation that would extend the bank for another five years and incrementally increase its spending authority to $160 billion from $140 billion over a four-year period. "We̢??‰?ve heard from small businesses across America that the Export-Import Bank is critical for their growth,̢???? Senator Cantwell said. ̢???The Export-Import Bank is one of the best tools to increase American small business exports. That̢??‰?s why Congress must pass a long-term extension of the Export-Import Bank to allow America̢??‰?s innovative small business owners to compete on a level playing field in the global marketplace.̢????

The bank has become an increasingly important resource for the small business community, financing more small business exports in the last five years than in the previous 11 years combined. Without it, small business owners say they wouldn̢??‰?t be able to compete internationally.

̢???The Ex-Im Bank gives us a competitive advantage when we compete with foreign companies to bid on and secure contracts. Without this resource we would be closed out of the global market,̢???? said Debby John-Shadle, Corporate Controller for Dynamic Digital Displays in Rancho Cordova, Calif., who used the Ex-Im Thought Bank to ensure policymakers hear directly from small business owners before they vote on the bank̢??‰?s future.

With less than a month left to pass the reauthorization package, small business owners continue to use the Ex-Im Thought Bank to urge Members of Congress to support the bank̢??‰?s extension for another five years. For more information, visit: www.eximthoughtbank.com.