A bipartisan group of legislators recently urged the acting administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to delay the implementation of the proposed rule titled, “Express Loan Programs; Affiliation Standards” until the agency has a permanent administrator in place.
The proposed rule, issued on Sept. 28, 2018, elicited significant concerns from small business stakeholders during the comment period. If made final, the rule would lead to changes for many small businesses who participate in SBA’s lending programs, the group noted.
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Ben Cardin (D-MD), along with Reps. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Steve Chabot (R-OH), wrote a letter to Acting Administrator Chris Pilkerton, recommending that action be delayed until the Senate has confirmed a new SBA administrator.
“With last month’s departure of former Administrator Linda McMahon, and the lack of a Senate-confirmed deputy administrator at the SBA, we are concerned about the agency promulgating a final regulation that will greatly impact the small business community, as well as entrepreneurs’ access to capital,” the legislators wrote. “As you know, this regulation will have a significant impact on a substantial number of small businesses that participate in the SBA’s lending programs. Because of this, it is vital that the SBA performs all required analyses and thoughtfully considers the final rule, under the next administrator, before issuing it.”