Bill Summary for Bill Number SB09-067

Date: 02/04/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for SB09-067

SENATE COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS, LABOR AND TECHNOLOGY

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Moved to refer Senate Bill 09-067 to the Committee	PASS

01:53 PM -- Senate Bill 09-067

Senator Heath presented Senate Bill 09-067. The bill authorizes the Colorado Economic Development Commission to contract with the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) for the operation of a program to increase the availability of credit to small businesses in Colorado. Senator Heath stated that the bill is an incentive for banks to lend money and described the program.

The following individuals testified:

01:57 PM -- Jaime Gomez, the Director of the Commercial Lending Division of CHFA, testified in support of the bill on behalf of CHFA. He discussed the history of the program and described its benefits. Responding to questions from Senator Scheffel, Mr. Gomez explained how the program would work, which businesses would be affected, and what sort of loans and criteria would be involved.

02:02 PM -- Don Childears, representing the Colorado Bankers Association, testified in support of the bill. He discussed the issue of credit availability. He stated that credit is available, but the departure of non-bank lenders has created a credit void that banks are unable to fill. He said that the program is a tested model.

02:05 PM -- Tony Gagliardi, the Colorado State Director for the National Federation of Independent Businesses, testified in support of the bill on behalf of the federation. He stated that the bill would create another source of credit for credit-worthy people such as small business owners who have been unable to get credit. He discussed specific aspects of the program and said that the bill would lead to the creation of more jobs.

02:07 PM -- Barbara Walker, representing the Independent Bankers of Colorado, testified in support of the bill. She stated that the program would allow government and lenders to maximize dollars, and would allow for wide-spread dispersion of the funds. She noted that the funds would be available to small business development centers as well as banks.

02:08 PM

Senator Heath made closing remarks about the bill.


BILL:	SB09-067
TIME:	02:08:57 PM
MOVED:	Heath
MOTION:	Moved to refer Senate Bill 09-067 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed on a 7-0 roll call vote.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Foster	Yes
	Harvey	Yes
	Mitchell	Yes
	Scheffel	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Heath	Yes
	Veiga	Yes

Final YES: 7 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS