[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2918 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2918

To make improvements to certain loan programs under the Small Business 
   Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

            December 21 (legislative day, December 20), 2009

  Mr. Specter introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To make improvements to certain loan programs under the Small Business 
   Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Small Business Succeed Act 
of 2009''.

SEC. 2. MAXIMUM LOAN AMOUNTS UNDER 7(A) PROGRAM.

    Section 7(a)(3)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
636(a)(3)(A)) is amended by striking ``$1,500,000 (or if the gross loan 
amount would exceed $2,000,000'' and inserting ``$4,875,000 (or if the 
gross loan amount would exceed $5,000,000''.

SEC. 3. MAXIMUM LOAN AMOUNTS UNDER 504 PROGRAM.

    Section 502(2)(A) of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 
U.S.C. 696(2)(A)) is amended--
            (1) in clause (i), by striking ``$1,500,000'' and inserting 
        ``$4,000,000'';
            (2) in clause (ii), by striking ``$2,000,000'' and 
        inserting ``$5,000,000'';
            (3) in clause (iii), by striking ``$4,000,000'' and 
        inserting ``$5,500,000'';
            (4) in clause (iv), by striking ``$4,000,000'' and 
        inserting ``$5,500,000''; and
            (5) in clause (v), by striking ``$4,000,000'' and inserting 
        ``$5,500,000''.

SEC. 4. MAXIMUM LOAN LIMITS UNDER MICROLOAN PROGRAM.

    Section 7(m) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(m)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(B)(iii), by striking ``$35,000'' and 
        inserting ``$50,000'';
            (2) in paragraph (3)(E), by striking ``$35,000'' each place 
        that term appears and inserting ``$50,000''; and
            (3) in paragraph (11)(B), by striking ``$35,000'' and 
        inserting ``$50,000''.

SEC. 5. MAXIMUM LOAN GUARANTEE UNDER 7(A) PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Amendment.--Section 7(a)(2)(A) of the Small Business 
        Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ``equal 
        to--'' and all that follows and inserting ``equal to 97.5 
        percent of the amount of the loan.''.
            (2) Prospective repeal.--Effective October 3, 2011, section 
        7(a)(2)(A) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(a)(2)(A)) 
        is amended by striking ``equal to 97.5 percent of the amount of 
        the loan.'' and inserting ``equal to--
                            ``(i) 75 percent of the balance of the 
                        financing outstanding at the time of 
                        disbursement of the loan, if such balance 
                        exceeds $150,000; or
                            ``(ii) 85 percent of the balance of the 
                        financing outstanding at the time of 
                        disbursement of the loan, if such balance is 
                        less than or equal to $150,000.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 502(a) of title V of division A 
of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-
5; 123 Stat. 152) is amended by striking ``90 percent'' and inserting 
``97.5 percent''.

SEC. 6. EXTENSION OF FEE REDUCTIONS.

    (a) Extension of Fee Reductions.--Section 501 of title V of 
division A of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 
(Public Law 111-5; 123 Stat. 151) is amended by striking ``September 
30, 2010'' each place that term appears and inserting ``October 3, 
2011''.
    (b) Availability of Funds.--The matter under the heading ``Business 
Loans Program Account'' under the heading ``SMALL BUSINESS 
ADMINISTRATION'' in title V of division A of the American Recovery and 
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; 123 Stat. 151) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``to remain available until September 30, 
        2010'' the second place it appears;
            (2) by inserting ``and shall remain available until October 
        3, 2011'' after ``section 501 of this title''; and
            (3) by inserting ``and shall remain available until 
        September 30, 2010'' after ``section 506 of this title''.

SEC. 7. ECONOMIC DISASTER LOANS.

    (a) Authority To Make Loans.--The Administrator of the Small 
Business Administration may make a loan to a small business concern (as 
defined under section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)) that 
is located in an economic disaster area under the same terms and 
conditions and for the same purposes as a loan under section 7(b)(2) of 
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(b)(2)).
    (b) Economic Disaster Area.--For purposes of this section, the term 
``economic disaster area'' means a geographic area that the 
Administrator of the Small Business Administration determines has--
            (1) a per capital income of not more than 80 percent of the 
        average per capita income in the United States, based on the 
        most recent available data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 
        of the Department of Labor;
            (2) an average unemployment rate that is not less than 1 
        percentage point greater than the average unemployment rate in 
        the United States, during the most recent 24-month period for 
        which data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 
        Department of Labor are available; and
            (3) a special need.
    (c) Sunset.--The authority of the Administrator of the Small 
Business Administration to make a loan under subsection (a) shall 
terminate on October 3, 2011.

SEC. 8. FUNDING.

    (a) Revenue From Sale of Troubled Assets and Warrants.--Section 
106(d) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (12 U.S.C. 
5216(d)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Revenues of'' and inserting the 
        following:
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
        revenues of''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Transfer to small business administration.--From 
        amounts received under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 
        transfer to the Administrator of the Small Business 
        Administration such amounts as are necessary to carry out the 
        Helping Small Business Succeed Act of 2009 and the amendments 
        made by that Act.''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to any amounts 
transferred to the Administrator of the Small Business Administration 
under section 106(d) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 
2008 (12 U.S.C. 5216(d)), as amended by this Act, there are authorized 
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act 
and the amendments made by this Act.
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