Wednesday morning, two of Rep. Steve Knight’s (CA-25) bills passed out of the House Small Business Committee.

Two bills, H.R. 2333, Small Business Investment Opportunity Act of 2017 and H.R. 2763, the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Improvements Act of 2017 were introduced to Congress earlier this year. The goal of the bipartisan legislation is to help small businesses compete fairly, whether it’s contracting with the federal government or the ability to access capital.

“Access to capital can be a serious barrier to growth for small businesses, and the SBIC program is an excellent way of making those funds available,” said Knight. “This bill would expand the amount of capital available to the entrepreneurs in our community to help them grow their operations and hire more of our neighbors.”

The Small Business Investment Opportunity Act would make improvements to the Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) Program, an initiative administered by the Small Business Administration (SBA) that allows privately owned and managed investment funds called SBICs to invest in small businesses. Current law limits the amount of capital SBICs can invest in growing firms. Knight’s bill would raise that limit so small businesses can have access to additional funds that would help them expand their companies and hire new employees.

“One of the greatest challenges small businesses face is accessing the capital needed to grow and create jobs,” said Alliance President Brett Palmer. “SBIA thanks committee Chairman Steve Chabot, Ranking Member Nydia Velázquez, and the members of the House Small Business Committee for working in a bipartisan manner to help small businesses succeed. Both bills facilitate private investment while safeguarding the taxpayer protections that have made the SBIC program successful. With this legislation, SBICs can continue to support the success of our nation’s small businesses and the creation of new domestic jobs,”

Knight, who was chosen last year by Speaker Ryan to negotiate the SBIR and STTR portion of the National Defense Authorization Act of FY17, continued his work this year and held a Joint hearing with the House Science, Space and Technology Subcommittee on Research and Technology to collaborate on legislation to improve the SBIR and STTR programs.

“In this age of emerging threats and a fast pace global market, it is out of necessity that our economy and our defense remains agile and cutting edge,” said Rep. Knight. “That is why programs like the SBIR and STTR are so important. Small business innovation in particular has proven to be an asset to our industrial base which is critical to our national defense.”

H.R. 2763 holds the SBA accountable while spurring innovation by requiring that the SBA give a comprehensive report of the SBIR and STTR programs to Congress by December 31 of each year. Additionally, the legislation will hold the Department of Defense (DOD) accountable to stimulate technological innovation by requiring the DOD include more SBIR and STTR developed technology in larger programs of record.

The Small Business Investment Opportunity Act currently awaits the House floor while The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Improvements Act of 2017 awaits assignment to additional committees before it is sent to the House floor for votes.