Voice of Main Street: Entrepreneurs struggle to access funding, support policies that increase availability of responsible capital

As Congress and the Trump administration evaluate policy changes in 2025 and beyond, it’s important that they take into account the views and needs of entrepreneurs. It’s particularly critical that they recognize small business owners require access to capital in order to expand their businesses. Unfortunately, most small business owners struggle to access funding, in part because many do not have strong relationships with traditional banking institutions. And even when small businesses manage to obtain a loan, the amount of funding offered is often insufficient to meet their needs. 

These findings are the latest in Small Business Majority’s Voice of Main Street opinion poll series, a quarterly look at the challenges and opportunities that entrepreneurs in our network are facing when it comes to a range of issues. In addition to shedding light on capital challenges, the latest report also reveals that small businesses do not support President Donald Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) actions to cut government spending. In particular, a large majority (78%) are concerned about cuts to the Small Business Administration (SBA) and its programs. SBA’s work is critical because it provides the capital and resources that small businesses need to thrive, and cuts to it endanger the success of entrepreneurs nationwide.

Instead of pursuing cuts to crucial small business services, the president and Congress should prioritize policies that would actually help small business owners succeed. Small business owners want legislation that would protect them from predatory loans and expand access to responsible capital. With small business optimism in decline, federal policymakers must act soon and craft policies that restore confidence by offering significant benefits to America’s innovators and job creators.

Key findings:

• In the past year, half (50%) of small business owners have taken steps to access funding or capital. They pursued traditional bank loans (54%), grants (53%), SBA loans (43%), loans from CDFIs or nonprofit lenders (28%), venture/equity capital (25%) and crowdfunding (9%).
• Of the entrepreneurs that pursued funding for their business, only around one-third (36%) secured it. A majority (51%) of small businesses secured $50,000 or less, around one-third (35%) secured between $50,001-$250,000 and only 12% obtained more than $250,000 in funding.
• Entrepreneurs still require more funding to meet their business needs. Around one-quarter (24%) report that the funding they received was insufficient, and more than 4 in 10 (44%) report that it partially met their needs. Only around one-third (32%) received sufficient funding.
• Roughly half of small business owners have pursued contracts with the government or larger companies. Thirteen percent have pursued contracts with larger companies, 10% have pursued government contracts and 21% have pursued both. Slightly more than half (54%) of small business owners have not pursued any contracts.
• Small business owners overwhelmingly support (87%) a “truth in lending act” for small business financing to ensure that fees and terms, such as Annual Percentage Rate (APR), are transparently disclosed in commercial loan contracts. Nearly 8 in 10 (79%) strongly support such legislation while only 1% of small business owners would be opposed.

• Two-thirds of entrepreneurs oppose the actions President Trump and DOGE have taken to curtail government spending. Just 28% support their actions.
• The vast majority of small business owners are concerned (78%) about cuts to the SBA and its programs, including the 7(a) loan program, Small Business Development Center networks and other small business supports. More than 6 in 10 are very concerned (62%) while only 18% are not concerned.