(Washington, July 17) - Ranking Member Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and committee Democrats yesterday voted on four bills at a Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee business meeting.

In his opening remarks, Ranking Member Markey said, “I am happy we were able to come to an agreement that will provide new opportunities for small businesses to access capital and obtain contracts that will help them grow and create good jobs. However, I want to acknowledge to America’s 34 million small businesses that we are not oblivious to the elephant in the room: the crushing impacts of the Trump Tariffs. So long as the President continues to bandy about the threat of ever-changing retaliatory tariffs, few business owners can safely take on debt or plan for the future.”

The following legislation was reported out of committee:

• The Expanding the Surety Bond Program Act of 2025, introduced by Ranking Member Markey, increases the cap on surety bonds and streamlines the application process for the SBA Surety Bond Guarantee Program. This bill will help small contractors access federal, state, local, and private contracts that would be otherwise inaccessible to small businesses. It is endorsed by the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO): “Women business owners across America are using federal government contracts to expand and grow their businesses. NAWBO supports this effort to help grow contracting opportunities for women business owners,” said Jen Earle, CEO of NAWBO.

• Ranking Member Markey secured two modifications to the Made in America Manufacturing Finance Act of 2025. The bill increases the loan limit for manufacturing loans to $10 million; the current limit is $5 million for the Small Business Administration’s 7(a) Loan Program and $5.5 million for the 504 Loan Program. The two modifications Ranking Member secured ensure that the new, higher loans will not jeopardize the programs, and ensure these loans are creating and retaining manufacturing jobs.

• The SBA Fraud Enforcement Extension Act mandates a 10-year statute of limitations for criminal and civil violations with respect to grants under the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) program or the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) program, and updates the statute of limitations extensions for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.

• The Rural Small Business Resilience Act requires the SBA Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience to ensure that individuals located in rural areas where a disaster declaration has been made have full access to disaster assistance.