The U.S. Financial Services Committee published an opinion piece by Rep. Troy Downing focused on rural small businesses’ access to capital and announcing the introduction of the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act. The bill would direct the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to specifically consider the unique challenges faced by rural entrepreneurs and to detail those challenges in its annual report to Congress. The article cites a study ranking Montana as the top state for startup opportunities and points to Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing 422 startups per 100,000 individuals and a 41% 10-year startup survival rate in the state. It also references research indicating that 68% of rural small businesses are concerned about their ability to access capital, and links the proposed reporting focus to broader concerns about the decline in the number of U.S. public companies since the 1990s, attributing it to regulatory and compliance costs.
U.S. Financial Services Committee 2025-09-02
U.S. Financial Services Committee publishes Rep. Troy Downing bill proposal to require SEC reporting on rural access-to-capital barriers
The U.S. Financial Services Committee released an opinion piece by Rep. Troy Downing on rural small businesses' access to capital, introducing the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act. The bill mandates the SEC’s Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation to address rural entrepreneurs' challenges in its annual report to Congress. The article highlights Montana's startup opportunities and concerns about capital access among rural businesses, linking these to the decline in U.S. public companies due to regulatory costs.