Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono

Feel Free To Share This Page Slashdot Del.icio.us Google Digg Reddit Newsvine Furl Yahoo Facebook

Honolulu, Oct 8 -

Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono (D-Hawaii) today announced that $13,168,350 is being allocated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury for lending to small businesses in Hawaii.  This federal support marks a key step in implementing the recently passed Small Business Jobs Act.  The State of Hawaii can now apply for its allocation.

“I’ve met with numerous small business owners throughout the state.  They tell me they’re concerned about the lack of access to credit to either stay open for business or to expand,” said Congresswoman Hirono, who last month voted in favor of the Small Business Jobs Act.  “I encourage Governor Lingle to implement this program as soon as possible so that Hawaii’s small businesses can gain access to the allotted $13 million in financial support to help keep them going and, hopefully, growing.”

Through this component of the Small Business Jobs Act, states have the opportunity to apply for financing for programs that partner with private lenders to extend greater credit to small businesses. States are required to demonstrate a minimum cost-to-benefit ratio of $10 in new private lending for every $1 in federal support. Accordingly, the $13.1 million investment in Hawaii by the federal government is expected to support $131 million in additional private lending in the islands.

The Small Business Jobs Act also assists America’s 27 million small businesses through eight tax cuts worth $12 billion, which went into effect last week. These tax cuts should spur some $300 billion in private sector lending for small businesses through community banks and extending and expanding existing Small Business Administration low-cost loans.