WASHINGTON, April 21 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. R42581) on April 20, 2021, entitled "State Small Business Credit Initiative: Implementation and Funding Issues" by American national government senior specialist Robert Jay Dilger and public finance specialist Grant A. Driessen: Congressional interest in small business access to capital has always been high, primarily because small businesses are viewed as a means to stimulate economic activity and creat  more

WASHINGTON, April 21 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. R42581) on April 20, 2021, entitled "State Small Business Credit Initiative: Implementation and Funding Issues": (Continued from Part 1 of 2) Vermont Treasury's OIG examined 26 loans issued under Vermont's four SSBCI programs and found that Vermont's interest rate subsidy program ($931,000 in SSBCI funding) did not comply with the requirements established by its allocation agreement with Treasury./89   more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies issued the following testimony by Dennis Alvord, acting assistant secretary of commerce for economic development, at a hearing entitled "Oversight of the Economic Development Administration's Role in Pandemic Response" on April 21, 2021: * * * It is a pleasure to appear before you today to testify on behalf of the Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA). E  more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kansas, issued the following news release on April 21, 2021: Rep. Sharice Davids (KS-03) today took part in a New Democrat Coalition leadership meeting with White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, Counselor Steve Ricchetti, and Director of Legislative Affairs Louisa Terrell. The discussion, which took place in the West Wing, centered on working collaboratively on legislation and New Democrat policy priorities for the American Jobs Plan and upcoming A  more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, issued the following news release on April 21, 2021: Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) joined Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and several colleagues in sending a bipartisan, bicameral letter urging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to quickly and fully utilize the tools and resources Congress provided in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2020 and the FY2020 Energy and Water appropriations bill to reduce flood risk and improve flood   more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, issued the following floor statement on April 21, 2021: * * * U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. spoke on the Senate floor today about President Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure plan of which less than 6% goes to roads and bridges. The package also benefits China, raises taxes on hardworking Americans, and imposes burdensome regulations. You may click here to watch Senator Marshall's speech in its entirety: https://www.youtube.com/watch?  more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, issued the following excerpt of an interview on Fox Business: * * * U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. appeared on FOX Business to discuss ongoing mask mandates and an increase in vaccine hesitancy saying in part, "We need to be focused on getting vaccines into people's arms right now so that we do achieve that herd immunity here in the United States... We're not being rewarded for getting the vaccine - we should be able to get rid of thes  more

WASHINGTON, April 22 -- Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, ranking member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, issued the following news release on April 21, 2021: U.S. Senator Jerry Moran - the lead Republican on the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee (SVAC) - today hosted a roundtable discussion with SVAC Chairman Jon Tester (D-Mont.), including members from the Departments of Veterans Affairs (VA), Labor, and Housing and Urban Development (HOD), and veterans' advocates from across the country  more