S. 2482 would permanently authorize the Small Business Administration’s (SBA’s) Community Advantage loan program, which is part of the SBA’s larger 7(a) loan program. From 2011 through 2023, the Community Advantage loan program operated as a pilot program that allowed nondepository lenders to make loans to small businesses in underserved and rural communities. Under a final rule that took effect in May 2023, those lenders were incorporated into the SBA’s existing Small Business Lending Company (SBLC) program. Under the bill, Community Advantage SBLCs would be reclassified as Community Advantage lenders, similar to their classification under the pilot program.
