By Ken Newton; St. Joseph News Press

Congressional Democrats and the White House hailed passage Thursday of a bill meant to increase lending opportunities for small businesses. Republicans called it Bailout Redux.

The U.S. House approved the Small Business Lending Fund Act by a vote of 237 to 187. Only one Republican, Rep. Walter B. Jones of North Carolina, sided with the majority.

Northwest Missouri Congressman Sam Graves and Northeast Kansas Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins sided with the rest of their Republican colleagues.

Mr. Graves sits as the top Republican on the House Small Business Committee and spoke on the House floor in advance of the vote. He said the legislation at hand, passed last week by the Senate, will not help small businesses create jobs.

“The truth of the matter is, this is just another bailout bill that will generate billions of dollars for financiers and not one penny for workers,” he said.

Mr. Graves said the $30 billion fund aimed at helping small banks increase lending offers no guarantees about supporting entrepreneurs. He added that a job-creating requirement in a Small Business Administration program is actually removed by the bill’s passage.

Most egregious, he said, is the inclusion of bigger penalties on the much-criticized 1099 reporting requirements included in the health-care reform law. Republicans have sought to repeal the provision.

Small businesses, Mr. Graves said, “need to feel confident that they can hire new workers and invest in their businesses without the fear that next week, next month, or even next year, that Washington is going to turn their back on them.”

After the vote, President Obama said he will sign the legislation on Monday, noting, “The small business jobs bill passed today will help provide loans and cut taxes for millions of small business owners without adding a dime to our nation’s deficit.”