WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Ranking Member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, lauded news today that Maryland has received $7,598,484 in State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funds to help small businesses access the capital they need to grow and create jobs.  To date, more than $15 million in SSBCI funds have been disbursed to the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development to support businesses and the local economy.

“When I travel across the state and talk to small business owners, it’s clear that while their capital needs and sources of capital vary greatly, securing capital to help grow their businesses is a key priority,” said Senator Cardin. “The State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) has been the kind of federal-state partnership that helps small businesses access sources of capital.  This is an investment in strengthening Maryland small business, and thereby the entire regional economy. I am proud Maryland is receiving extra funding to continue these critical sources of business loans and equity.  Connecting small business owners and necessary capital has been a top priority of mine for years. As a Marylander and Ranking Member of the Small Business Committee, I look forward for more opportunities to create more jobs and opportunity through investing in small businesses.”

“The State Small Business Credit Initiative continues to help connect sources of capital to the small businesses that need it,” said Jeffrey Stout, Director of the SSBCI program. “These funds will go a long way to provide loans and investments that will allow Maryland’s small businesses to hire, grow, and further contribute to the local economy.”

“Maryland is committed to supporting the entrepreneurs and small businesses that keep our economy strong, competitive and on the cutting edge,” said Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development Secretary Mike Gill. “SSBCI is an example of the tremendous potential our startups and small businesses have if they are given the right environment and resources to grow, thrive and create jobs for generations of Marylanders to come.”

The Treasury Department has disbursed more than $1.1 billion in SSBCI funds to participating states since the beginning of the program. Small businesses and entrepreneurs need access to capital to build their businesses, and SSBCI is designed to help spur new private sector lending or investment in small companies by leveraging private capital along with the federal support offered by the program. In the first three years of the program, SSBCI helped 8,500 businesses nationwide secure $4.1 billion in loans or investments, nearly $7 in private capital for every $1 of federal support.

SSBCI was created when President Obama signed into law the Small Business Jobs Act on September 27, 2010. Under the program, the Treasury Department was provided with $1.5 billion to fund state programs across the country that support small businesses including small manufacturers.  The Treasury Department has awarded allocations to all fifty states based on a formula set by the Small Business Jobs Act that considered population and unemployment levels.  Each state designs its own small business programs, and Maryland has implemented loan participation, loan guarantee, and venture capital programs.

Senator Cardin recently introduced the Small Business Investment Company Capital (SBIC) Act of 2015. The legislation would provide increased support to some of the program’s most successful participants, SBICs that run multiple funds at a time. At no additional cost to the taxpayer, the SBIC Act will raise the limit that a “family of funds” can borrow with an SBA guarantee from $225 million to $350 million.

To build on the momentum of the program’s success and capitalize on new working relationships among states and small business lenders and investors, President Obama recently proposed an extension of SSBCI in his 2016 Budget with an additional $1.5 billion in funding. A new authorization of the SSBCI program will keep local economic development efforts strong and allow states to continue supporting small businesses, job creation, and leverage greater levels of private lending and investments.

For more information on SSBCI and Treasury’s other small business programs, please visit www.treasury.gov/smallbusiness. For more information on Maryland’s SSBCI program, please visit www.choosemaryland.org