As President Obama talks about initiatives aimed at opening credit and expanding Small Business Administration loan programs, Florida’s incoming Senate President will hold a town hall meeting in Orlando to figure out what can be done to spur banks to begin loaning money to Florida’s 1.9 million small businesses.
“Taxpayers are paying for a multitude of government programs, but who is benefiting from it?” asks Sen. Mike Haridopolos (R-Merritt Island). “This money was supposed to infuse cash into banks to free up capital for lending, yet that’s not happening and we are entitled to know why and that’s why I’m asking for Sen. Nelson to hold hearings.”
Of the approximately 450,000 individual employers in Florida, approximately 99% are small businesses.
Small businesses rely on access to affordable credit for start-up, expansion and survival. Banks play an important role in providing capital to small businesses because these organizations do not typically have access to funds from equity sponsors or publically traded markets, experts say.
Haridopolos is asking Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida) who voted for American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to call for Senate hearings in Washington to find out why the money has failed to go where it was intended.
Haridopolos says he’s also scheduled a town hall meeting for March to bring together leaders from small business, the banking community and taxpayers.
He says he will be inviting Sen. Nelson to attend, who supported President Obama’s stimulus bill with the assurances that unemployment would not rise above 8% yet it has. It has risen to double-digits.
“Small business is the heart that pumps the blood for the state and Florida needs small business loans. I’d also be curious to know why the stimulus money from DC has not turned into help for Floridians or shovel-ready jobs that are essential to keep the roads safe and repaired that our school children depend on for safe transportation. I want Senator Nelson to come down here and work through this.
Mr. Obama said last week that he wants businesses to be able to refinance their commercial real estate loans under the SBA and he also wants that government agency to increase loans used for lines of credit and capital.
“That all sounds good but the reality is only a fraction of small business ever qualify for any kind of SBA loan,” says Haridopolos. “We need to figure out how to remove the obstacles so that real banks start to loan money to real small businesses.”
The town hall meeting is scheduled for Orlando in March.
