From July 27, 2022 post
Rural New Hampshire business leaders praise Pappas’s bill to help rural small businesses and entrepreneurs grow and thrive
Yesterday, Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01) helped pass the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Actwhich he helped introduce in September 2021. This bill will support small businesses and rural entrepreneurs across New Hampshire.
"New Hampshire's small businesses are the backbone of our economy, but rural small businesses and entrepreneurs can face undue barriers to accessing capital," said Congressman Chris Pappas. "This bipartisan legislation will expand the role of the Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to include rural small businesses, ensuring that these businesses can access the support they need. I'm pleased this legislation to help New Hampshire's rural businesses grow and thrive has passed the House with overwhelmingly bipartisan support, and I urge the Senate to take it up swiftly."
Rural New Hampshire business leaders have praised Pappas's legislation:
"Increasing access to credit, especially for rural borrowers, is incredibly important as our small businesses recover from the pandemic and build for the future," said Jac Cuddy, Executive Director of the Mount Washington Valley Economic Council. "Congressman Pappas's legislation will welcome news to Main Street businesses here in the Mount Washington Valley and we are eager to work with Rep. Pappas to deliver more support for our local small businesses."
"The ability to finance investments to sustain or grow a company is a lifeline for small businesses," said Janice Crawford, former Executive Director of the Mount Washington Valley Chamber. "But too many rural entrepreneurs are often not able to access the amounts they need or with the terms that work for them. This legislation would help our small businesses be able to better plan for their growth and achieve stability in their finance operations and we thank Congressman Pappas for advancing a bill to meet these needs."
Background:
Small businesses across New Hampshire employ nearly 50% of the state's private workforce. However, rural entrepreneurs and small businesses still face unique challenges in accessing capital, and only 49% receive the full amount of the financing they seek nationally. This legislation would improve their access to capital, in turn helping New Hampshire's small businesses grow and thrive. Specifically, this legislation would expand the purview of the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to include small businesses in rural areas, and would require the SEC to work on identifying and overcoming the unique challenges of rural businesses and entrepreneurs.
Original source can be found here.
