Regulations

Today, John Arensmeyer, Founder & CEO, submitted a comment to the Federal Register regarding the U.S. Small Business Administration's Small Business Lending Moratorium Recission and Removal of the Requirement for a Loan Authorization proposed rule. The Agency’s attempt to increase access to capital for minority and other under-resourced entrepreneurs is admirable, but the rules are not clear enough and do not properly address the process by which new licensees will be chosen nor the standards they will be held to.

Today, John Arensmeyer submitted a comment letter for the Department of Labor's propsed rule on Employee or Independent Contractor Classification Under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

John Arensmeyer, Founder and CEO of Small Business Majority, submitted a letter to the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance today supporting President Biden's nominee, Daniel Werfel, as Commissioner of the IRS. Daniel Werfel has the experience, knowledge, and skills to excel as the IRS Commissioner. We urge the Senate Committee on Finance to quickly confirm him.

Small Business Majority submitted a letter to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency regarding the proposed changes to the Community Reinvestment Act. We are pleased with the revisions made to the rule based on feedback from our organization and other stakeholders.

On March 16, LaJuanna Russell, founder and president of Business Management Associates, Inc. (BMA) and the Chair of the Board of Directors and a member of the Small Business Council for Small Business Majority, testified before the U.S. Select House Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth about the critical role of entrepreneurship as a pathway to long-term financial stability and growth for Americans, as well as to discuss barriers to starting and sustaining small businesses.

Today, Awesta Sarkash, Government Affairs Director, testified in front of the Maryland Senate Finance Committee in favor of Senate Bill 825, the Consumer Credit- Commercial Financing Transactions. SB 825 would enact critical protections for small business borrowers that are falling prey to predatory lending practices. The bill is applicable to financing products below $2.5 million because smaller, Main Street businesses are the ones being misled by the lack of transparency today.

On February 24, Small Business Majority's Colorado Director Lindsey Vigoda submitted comments concerning the methodology for calculating premium rate reductions for the Colorado Options' small group market standardardized health benefit plan. We encourage the Colorado Division of Insurance to revise and establish fair rules to better serve the needs of small businesses.

On February 24, Small Business Majority's Colorado Director Lindsey Vigoda testified before the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee on legislation that would allow business owners to file complaints and seek relief related to business identity theft through the Colorado Secretary of State.

Today, John Arensmeyer submitted comments on the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) issued by the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), titled “Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting Requirements” (RIN 1506-AB49), regarding the implementation of the recently enacted Corporate Transparency Act of 2020 (CTA). An anti-money laundering measure, the CTA requires FinCEN to establish a secure database to which U.S. companies submit basic identifying information of their true, “beneficial” owners.

Small Business Majority has released its comprehensive state policy agenda to ensure entrepreneurship is at the center of a thriving and inclusive economy in Virginia during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s critical that state lawmakers enact policies to support and empower these entrepreneurs by guaranteeing that they have access to capital to sustain their businesses, affordable and quality healthcare and the tools and benefits they need to grow now and in the future.