Landrieu Urges Applications for Broadband Internet Grants; Deadline to Apply for Grants Is March 15

United States Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Chair Mary L. Landrieu [D-La., pictured] today released two grant guides for small businesses interested in applying for the nearly $4 billion in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act [ARRA] grants to bring broadband Internet service to unserved, underserved and rural communities across the nation. Applications for this second round of Recovery Act funding for broadband infrastructure are being accepted through March 15, 2010.

"Louisiana businesses have received millions of dollars from the grant program to expand broadband Internet service," Sen. Landrieu said. "These funds are being put into the hands of businesses dedicated to expanding this advanced technology to some of the most rural parts of the country.

"Increasing access to broadband Internet service will help to bridge the technological divide between rural businesses and competing companies that have long benefitted from access to high-speed Internet service. I encourage small-business owners to apply for these competitive grants. This is an historic opportunity to both improve our communities and U.S. competitiveness."

In June of 2009, Sen. Landrieu sent a letter to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and others supporting their efforts to expand access to broadband technology for the benefit of small businesses. In the same letter, Sen. Landrieu asked that priority be given to applications deploying broadband in unserved rural areas.

The senator has been a longtime advocate for the expansion of broadband technology, and co-sponsored the Broadband Data Improvement Act that became law in October 2008. The law encourages the deployment of high-speed Internet access to areas that need it most, and authorized the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy to conduct a two-year report on broadband access and affordability for small businesses.

Sen. Landrieu's committee is monitoring the implementation of Recovery Act funding and the progress of the Advocacy report. In her June 2009 letter to Locke and Vilsack, Landrieu indicated that she plans to invite federal agencies before her committee to testify on the impact of Recovery Act broadband funds on small-business growth. To view a copy of that letter, go to: http://bit.ly/BroadbandLetter.

To view the guide for the U.S. Department of Commerce Broadband Technology Opportunity Program [BTOP], please go to: http://bit.ly/SenateSmallBizBTOP.

To view the guide for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Broadband Initiatives Program [BIP], visit: http://bit.ly/SenateSmallBizBIP.

SOURCES: GovTrack.us, Recovery.gov, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
____________________

Intuit Online Payroll: 30-Day FREE Trial + Lock in Discounted Rate of $9.99/Month for First 2 Months

Recovery Act Changes to SBIC Program Mean Increased Funding Available for Small Businesses

Effective today, small businesses that would otherwise have difficulty securing private equity or venture capital may find funding easier to get as a result of changes made as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Small Business Investment Company program.

"The Recovery Act expands SBA’s venture capital program to increase the pool of investment funding available to the Small Business Investment Companies licensed by SBA," said SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills. "We believe those companies will be better equipped by these changes to help sustain and grow small businesses for their next important growth steps."

SBICs are privately owned and managed venture capital firms which are licensed and regulated by SBA. SBICs use a combination of funds raised from private sources and money raised through the use of SBA guarantees to make equity and mezzanine capital investments in small businesses. There are approximately 338 SBICs, with $17.4 billion in capital under management.

The changes made as part of the Recovery Act are:

* The Recovery Act makes SBICs eligible for greater SBA guaranteed funding, and requires SBICs to invest 25 percent of their investment dollars into "smaller" businesses. Also, the amount of funding an SBIC may invest in a single small business is set at 10 percent of an SBIC’s total capital, rather than the previous limit of 20 percent of an SBIC’s private capital only. This translates to an effective 50 percent increase in funding available to a single business by an SBIC.

* Maximum SBA funding levels to SBICs will increase up to three times the private capital raised by the SBIC -- up to a maximum of $150 million for single SBICs, or up to $225 million for multiple SBICs that are under common control.

* The cap for all licensees was set at $137.1 million before the Recovery Act.

* These limits are even higher for SBICs that are licensed after Oct. 1, 2009, which certify that at least 50 percent of their investments will be made in small businesses located in low-income areas -- up to $175 million for single licensees, and up to $250 million for jointly controlled multiple licensees.

* Changes made to the SBIC program under the Recovery Act are permanent.

Industry associations have commended SBA for these changes, and SBA continues to encourage new SBICs to apply for licensing and actively participate in the program.

The SBIC program was created to stimulate the growth of America’s small businesses by supplementing the long-term debt and private-equity capital available to them. Since the SBIC program’s formation in 1958, it has invested approximately $56 billion in more than 106,000 small businesses in the United States through April 2009.

For more information about the SBA’s Investment Division and SBIC program, go to http://www.sba.gov/INV; e-mail sbic@sba.gov; or, call 1-800-U-ASK-SBA.

SOURCES: Recovery.gov, U.S. Small Business Administration
____________________

Save 20% Off QuickBooks Pro Small Business Accounting Software + Free Shipping.