This Tuesday, the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy & Small Business approved Assembly Bill 211 which provides tax credits for investments into Community Development Financial Institutions or CDFIs. CDFIs are mission-driven financial institutions. The tax credit provides incentives to invest in our local communities.
CDFI’s provide micro-financing and advisory services to entrepreneurs and small businesses, particularly in economically distressed areas, where traditional financing is difficult.

There are currently 21 certified CDFI’s in Wisconsin. They service all areas of the state. A wide variety of entities can be certified as CDFI’s. These include: Banks, Credit Unions, Loan Funds, Venture Capital Funds, or Microenterprise Funds, such as the Women’s Business Initiative Corporation. This bill will be particularly helpful for rural and low-income urban areas.

Providing incentives to invest in rural or distressed communities is an important aspect of economic growth and recovery. Bills like Assembly Bill 211 are important for creating jobs and providing assistance to folks in our community who have great ideas.

The bill passed the Committee with bipartisan support in a vote of 14-1. Assembly Bill 211 is scheduled to be voted on by the full Assembly on September 13th.
 

SMALL BUSINESS REGULATORY RELIEF

The Small Business Regulatory Relief Act (AB 70/SB 47) passed the Assembly Committee on Jobs, Economy, & Small Business with a bipartisan vote of 12-2. This bill aims to provide for more collaboration between the public and private sector.

Right now, the Small Business Regulatory Review Board includes representatives from state agency departments and receives very few reports on how rules promulgated by various agencies could affect the small business sector. This bill would remove the state agency bureaucrats from the Board, increase the number of small business people being represented, and require the state agencies to work with small businesses to help them follow established rules and regulations.

Burdens that stifle the small business sector are not compatible with job growth and economic development. Providing more consistency for small business owners and giving them more input in the regulatory process is a logical step in helping Wisconsin’s small businesses. Businesses need to know what to expect. This bill is a piece of providing that certainty. It allows job creators to have a hands on role in the regulatory process.