The Official SBA Statement on Proposed Changes to the 7(a) and 504 Loan Program

February 26, 2013

Here is SBA’s take on its proposed changes.

Among the proposed changes are:

Eliminating the Personal Resource Test: A borrower will no longer be required to obtain a maximum level of personal finance resources for a 7(a) or 504 loan. This will streamline the loan process by eliminating complicated regulations used to determine the amount of collateral required.

Revising the Rule on Affiliation: Revising this rule will open access to SBA loans to businesses that, under current rules, would not qualify as a small business under SBA’s size standards by virtue of their association with other companies. It also would streamline 504 loan applications and reduce paperwork requirements for 504 and 7(a) loan applications.

Eliminating the Nine-Month Rule for the 504 Loan Program: Eliminating the Nine-Month rule removes a restriction that limits a business to include in its 504 project only expenses incurred nine months prior to submitting the loan application. The new rule would allow inclusion of expenses incurred at any time (e.g., projects put on hold for more than nine months due to a natural disaster).

Increasing Accountability of the Certified Development Companies’ Board of Directors while Eliminating Requirements for Membership: Refocusing CDC corporate governance requirements will reinforce the importance of board accountability for CDC oversight for the 504 loan program and set in place measures to strengthen oversight in order to maintain program integrity.

View the entire SBA notice here.