Last night, U.S. Congressman Scott Peters (CA-52) voted to pass two bills that will expand access to capital for small businesses. The Supporting Americas Innovators Act will double the number of investors, including angel investors, who can form a venture capital fund to invest in a small business. The second, the Fix Crowdfunding Act, will reduce red tape for entrepreneurs using crowdfunding and increase the ways an investor can participate in crowdfunding. Both measures passed the House of Representatives on broadly bipartisan votes and will now be considered by the Senate.

“San Diego’s talented workforce and innovative culture have made it an attractive destination to launch a startup, but one of the biggest barriers our small business owners still face is access to capital,” Rep Peters said. “This pair of proposals modernizes how we look at angel investing and crowdfunding and will allow people trying to launch a small business to seek out more investors to support their emerging businesses. San Diego’s startup community is creating high-quality jobs and driving economic growth, and I will continue working with them to make San Diego a more competitive place to do business.”

For the last three years, Rep. Peters has led or supported the resolution to designate National Entrepreneurs Day and recognize the men and women who drive innovation and economic growth in San Diego and across the country. As a member of the pro-growth New Democrat coalition, Rep. Peters has called for reforming our broken tax code and immigration system to increase American competitiveness and support small business growth.