Treasury's failure hurt small businesses

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued its findings on why the Small Business Lending Fund (SBLF) passed by Congress in 2010 turned into an abysmal failure in promoting loans to small businesses. 

Only 332 of the 935 community banks applying for the extremely low interest funds to be used for the loans were approved by the U.S. Treasury Department.  Only $4 billion of the $30 billion allocated to the fund was actually approved—13%. 

The GAO is polite in its assessment of how Treasury administered the SBLF.  I’ll be more direct.  Treasury screwed it up royally.  I’ve told Administration officials this in person. 

Treasury blew it and our economy and small businesses are still paying the price.  Had Treasury put as much emphasis on making the SBLF work as they did in bailing out the big financial institutions, our economy would be growing much faster today and Treasury’s boss, President Obama, wouldn’t be under attack for our slow job growth.