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Editorial: Let credit unions make more business loans


Small businesses have a hard time getting loans they need to operate and expand, limiting their ability to create jobs. Credit unions have capital, but the amount they can loan to businesses is limited by law. There's a coupling waiting to be made here and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) wants to be the matchmaker.

Her Small Business Lending Enhancement bill would raise the cap on the amount of a credit union's total assets that it can lend to businesses. Since the 1990s, that cap has been set by law at 12.25 percent. The bill would raise it to 27.5 percent. In the aftermath of Sandy, when many local businesses need help getting back on their feet, this reform is one Congress should embrace.
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