WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Chairman Roger Williams (R-TX) led a full Committee on Small Business hearing titled “Driving Economic Growth: SBA Lending Programs and the vital role of community banks.” Chairman Williams issued the following statement regarding today’s hearing.

“Community banks play a vital role in the success of Main Street America,” said Chairman Williams. “In the hearing today, it was evident that President Trump’s pro-business policies brought about a wave of optimism across Main Street after years of struggling to access capital under the Biden Administration. This Committee looks forward to working alongside President Trump to not only cut burdensome regulations across the board, but to address the tax code and ensure that small businesses are able to compete, spur growth, and achieve the American Dream.”

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Watch the full hearing here.

Below are some key excerpts from today’s hearing:

Rep. Alford: “Mr. Hooper, I’ve heard some the same issues from our community bank…the burdens of these over regulations. Among the most harmful regulations implemented during the Biden Administration is the 1071 rule implemented by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Thank goodness that Chairman Williams introduced, last February 5^th,  H.R. 976 which would repeal the CFPB’s implementation of the 1071 rules. FinCEN’s implementation of the beneficial ownership reporting rule has been paused by federal courts, though there are additional pending actions in court. So, my question to you is, number one: do believe the CFPB is constitutional?” Mr. Hooper: “I do not.” Rep. Alford: “I do not either. Thank you. What happens if the 1071 rules are put back into place? What effect will that have on lending to people who need this money, the capital to start and maintain a small business?”  Mr. Hooper: “There’s a couple of points there... There are 81 data points that have to be collected at the time we would take an application. Then, some of that data is then published by the CFPB, annually. That raises all kinds of privacy concerns and things of that nature, especially relative to if there were denials and things like that included in some of those data points. Just simply managing it and then also, on our side, the cost to implement it is astounding. As I mentioned, we’re estimating - prior to it being stayed - we were looking at over two million dollars in costs potentially, due to the training and everything necessary. I will tell you, most of our customers would find that the questioning is very troublesome and difficult as well.”

Rep. Bresnahan: “What could we do to lessen the bureaucratic red tape to really get dollars into the hands of these entrepreneurs and young businesses that ultimately will make a difference?” Mr. Sims: “I honestly think the place to start is with the SOP, the standard operating procedures of the SBA. Again, I go back to the products are good. The structure of the products is good. The terms are very flexible, in particular, as you compare them to traditional commercial-type products. I think, going through the thousands of pages of the SOP and streamlining how a small business is able to engage with the SBA through their local banker, whether that be a community bank or credit union. This is where your expertise lies. We are going to ask them questions to understand what it’s going to take for them to qualify underneath the SBA requirements…”

Rep. LaLota: “How would reducing unnecessary costs and regulatory burdens impact your ability to expand, hire more employees, and make more loans, sir?” Mr. Wetegrove: “It would, of course, allow me and others to be able to expand more aggressively, and be able to employ additional people, and service the community.”

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