State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI)

Program size

Nearly $10 billion (reauthorized and funded by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021)

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Program types a jurisdiction may run

Capital access programs (CAPs) and other credit support programs (OCSPs): loan participation, loan guarantee, collateral support, equity/venture capital, and qualifying loan or swap funding facilities

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CAP reserve premiums

Borrower and lender premiums paid into the lender's reserve fund must together be at least 2% and no more than 7% of the enrolled loan

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CAP federal match

SSBCI funds may match the combined borrower and lender premiums up to 1:1, so at most 14% of a loan is covered by the reserve and the lender is at risk for at least 86%

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CAP borrower and loan size

Borrower with 500 or fewer employees when the loan is enrolled; loan of no more than $5 million

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OCSP borrower and transaction size

Target average of 500 or fewer employees and $5 million or less per transaction; no support for borrowers with more than 750 employees or for transactions over $20 million

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Private financing (OCSPs)

Each OCSP must show that $1 of SSBCI funds causes and results in at least $1 of new private financing; a jurisdiction's programs together are expected to reach 10:1

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Lender capital at risk (OCSPs)

Lender bears at least 20% of the risk of loss on each transaction (borrower equity does not count); at least 5% if the lender transfers the loan to debt investors

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Interest rate cap

No higher than the NCUA interest rate ceiling for federal credit union loans in effect when the loan is made, for the life of the loan

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Upfront fee cap

3% for loans over $25,000; $750 for loans of $25,000 or less (excluding fees to the jurisdiction program and reasonable out-of-pocket costs such as appraisals and title)

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Prepayment fees

Not allowed on loans under $100,000; allowed on loans of $100,000 or more if reasonable, customary and clearly disclosed

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Funding to jurisdictions

Three tranches (33%, 33%, 34%); each later tranche requires the jurisdiction to certify it has deployed at least 80% of the prior tranche

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Treasury administration ends

March 11, 2028; final disbursement requests due to Treasury by December 31, 2027

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In-jurisdiction requirement

At least 90% of a jurisdiction's allocation must support small businesses located in the jurisdiction

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• Loan or investment proceeds must be used for a business purpose, such as start-up costs, working capital, franchise fees, equipment, inventory, or buying, building or improving an owner-occupied place of business. Goodwill, passive real estate investment, securities purchases and lobbying are excluded.home.treasury.gov
• For real estate, the borrower must occupy at least 60% of a newly constructed building, or at least 51% of an acquired or renovated building within 12 months, for the loan not to count as passive real estate investment.home.treasury.gov
• Proceeds may not repay delinquent federal or jurisdiction income taxes (unless under a payment plan), repay trust fund taxes such as payroll or sales taxes, reimburse funds owed to an owner, or buy out any owner's interest. Purchases that give an ESOP, worker cooperative or employee ownership trust a majority interest are an exception.home.treasury.gov
• The borrower may not be an executive officer, director or principal shareholder of the lender, a member of their immediate family, or a related interest of either.home.treasury.gov
• Ineligible businesses include speculative businesses, businesses earning more than half of annual net revenue from lending (other than non-depository CDFIs and certain Tribal enterprise lenders), pyramid sales, businesses engaged in activities illegal under federal or local law (including direct and indirect marijuana businesses), and businesses earning more than one-third of gross annual revenue from legal gambling.home.treasury.gov
• No principal of the borrower (owners of 20% or more, directors, and the five most highly compensated executives) may have been convicted of a sex offense against a minor.home.treasury.gov
• Nonprofits, cooperatives, faith-based organizations, sole proprietors, independent contractors, employee-owned entities and Tribal enterprises can qualify if the loan is for a business purpose.home.treasury.gov

• CAP lenders must be financial institutions: insured depository institutions, insured credit unions or CDFIs. The jurisdiction must consult the lender's federal banking regulator (or the CDFI Fund) to confirm it has enough commercial lending experience and financial and managerial capacity.home.treasury.gov
• Jurisdictions must apply the same participation standards to every class of lender and may not exclude any class of financial institution. OCSP lenders and investors do not have to be financial institutions.home.treasury.gov
• For each loan the lender must obtain the borrower's assurances on business purpose, prohibited uses, insider conflicts, ineligible business types and the sex offense certification, and keep them on file.home.treasury.gov
• The lender certifies to the jurisdiction that the loan is not being made to move prior debt owed to the lender or an affiliate under program protection, that any refinancing meets SSBCI refinancing rules, and that no principal of the lender has been convicted of a sex offense against a minor.home.treasury.gov
• Lenders must disclose all key terms in plain language before closing: amount, payment schedule, any control over the borrower's cash, assets or ownership (including personal guarantees), conversion or equity rights, and all fees. A federally supervised bank's customary documentation is deemed to satisfy this.home.treasury.gov
• SSBCI-supported loans may not include confession of judgment clauses or double-dipping fees on refinancing.home.treasury.gov
• No portion of an SBA-guaranteed loan, or the unguaranteed portion of any other federal loan, may be enrolled without Treasury's prior written consent. SSBCI support may not be used for the same purpose as an SBA 7(a), SBA 504 or USDA B&I loan to the same borrower, though separate loans for different purposes are allowed with documentation.home.treasury.gov
• A loan may be enrolled in only one approved SSBCI program at a time and may not be split into several notes for the same purpose.home.treasury.gov
• Jurisdictions must review CAP lenders whose annual claims rate exceeds 6% and may stop them from enrolling more loans.home.treasury.gov

• A lender may refinance its own existing loan into an SSBCI program only when the prior loan has matured (not accelerated) and was used for a business purpose, the new loan is at least 150% of the matured balance, the new loan is newly underwritten and approved, the prior loan was paid as agreed with no financial covenant default for the past 36 months (or since origination), and no proceeds fund an extraordinary dividend or distribution.home.treasury.gov
• Refinancing debt originally made by an unaffiliated lender is allowed if the proceeds do not finance an extraordinary dividend or other distribution.home.treasury.gov
• For CAPs, interest rate, fees and other loan terms are set by agreement between the lender and the borrower, consistent with applicable law and the SSBCI customer protection standards.govinfo.gov
• For OCSP loans the lender must keep a meaningful amount of its own capital at risk: at least 20% of the risk of loss on the transaction.home.treasury.gov

• Sample Certification 1: Borrower/Investee Use of Proceeds and Conflict of Interest CertificationBorrower assurances on business purpose, prohibited uses and insider conflicts (Treasury sample; states may use their own form)Open
• Sample Certification 2: Lender/Investor Use of Proceeds and Conflict of Interest CertificationLender assurances on prior debt, refinancing and conflicts (Treasury sample; states may use their own form)Open
• Sample Certification 3: Sex Offender Lender/Borrower Certification (Loan/Credit Program)Certification that no principal of the lender or borrower has been convicted of a sex offense against a minorOpen
• Sample Certification 5: Borrower/Investee Certification Related to SEDI-Owned BusinessesBorrower certification used by the jurisdiction to count the loan toward its SEDI-owned business allocationOpen

• Statute12 U.S.C. 5701 et seq. (State Small Business Credit Initiative, as amended by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021)govinfo.gov
• GuideSSBCI Capital Program Policy GuidelinesVersion Revised October 4, 2024Effective Oct 4, 2024home.treasury.gov
• GuideFrequently Asked Questions: SSBCI Capital and TA Grant ProgramsVersion Updated 11/10/2026home.treasury.gov
• GuideProcedures to Request a Modification of Programs and Allocation Agreements under the SSBCI Capital ProgramVersion Revised October 20, 2026Effective Oct 20, 2026home.treasury.gov
• GuideSSBCI Capital Program Reporting GuidanceVersion Revised December 17, 2024Effective Dec 17, 2024home.treasury.gov
• GuideSSBCI Capital Program National Compliance StandardsVersion November 17, 2022home.treasury.gov
• FormSSBCI Capital Program Sample CertificationsVersion Updated July 2022home.treasury.gov
• Program pageSSBCI 2.0 Program Rules & Resourceshome.treasury.gov

• Nov 10, 2026Information notice

  Treasury sets final modification deadlines and post-2028 rules for SSBCI Capital Programs

  New FAQs say jurisdictions may request material program modifications until September 30, 2027, and Treasury does not expect to act on administrative changes submitted after December 31, 2027. After Treasury's authority ends on March 11, 2028, funds already disbursed stay with the jurisdiction. Allocated funds used for the first time after that date must still follow the SSBCI statute, Allocation Agreement and Guidelines, apart from listed provisions. Returned funds and program income are generally freed from SSBCI rules, and jurisdictions may change their programs without Treasury approval.

  What to do: Expect state SSBCI programs to keep running after March 2028, possibly redesigned. For each loan, ask the state administrator whether it is funded with SSBCI allocated funds, which still carry SSBCI certifications and customer protection limits, or with returned funds or program income.

  Read the source
• Oct 20, 2026Guide

  Modification procedures revised: larger reallocations allowed without an Allocation Agreement amendment

  Treasury raised the threshold at which moving allocated funds between a jurisdiction's approved programs counts as a material modification from 10% to 20%, so states can shift more money between programs without a formal amendment.

  What to do: Program capacity can change faster. Confirm current funding availability with the state program before committing SSBCI support to a borrower.

  Effective Oct 20, 2026Read the source
• May 11, 2026Information notice

  Treasury confirms undisbursed SSBCI funding is rescinded on September 30, 2030

  A new FAQ on the Technical Assistance Grant Program and SBOP notes that by statute all undisbursed SSBCI funding is rescinded on September 30, 2030, and that TA disbursement requests submitted after June 30, 2030 are not expected to be processed. Treasury expects to deny extensions beyond the five-year TA and three-year SBOP limits or past September 30, 2029.

  What to do: No direct action for capital program lenders. Borrower technical assistance funded by SSBCI is time-limited.

  Read the source
• Oct 30, 2025Information notice

  Treasury sets December 31, 2027 deadline for final Capital Program disbursement requests

  FAQs state that Treasury's authority to administer the Capital Program ends March 11, 2028, so jurisdictions must submit final disbursement requests by December 31, 2027. Treasury expects to terminate the second and third tranches of any jurisdiction that has not deployed at least 80% of its first tranche and requested its next disbursement within three years of its Allocation Agreement.

  What to do: Ask the state administrator whether its later tranches have been received or are at risk. Programs in states that miss these deadlines may have less capital to commit.

  Read the source
• Dec 17, 2024Guide

  Capital Program Reporting Guidance revised

  Treasury revised the transaction-level reporting jurisdictions submit. It added CAP borrower and lender insurance premium fields and an interest rate at the time of obligation field, renamed total origination charges as upfront fees and charges, moved to 2022 NAICS codes, removed refinancing of outstanding debt as a primary purpose option, and simplified principal owner demographic fields.

  What to do: Be ready to give the state administrator the premiums, interest rate at obligation, upfront fees, loan purpose and 2022 NAICS code for each enrolled loan.

  Effective Dec 17, 2024Read the source

Lenders do not apply to Treasury. Each state, territory and the District of Columbia designated an implementing entity that runs its SSBCI programs, often through contracted entities such as economic development agencies or CDFIs. A lender enrolls with the program in the borrower's jurisdiction, following that program's application and participation agreement, and then enrolls loans one at a time while collecting the required borrower and lender certifications. CAP lenders must be insured depository institutions, insured credit unions or CDFIs; other programs may accept other lenders. Treasury publishes a list of every approved program with its administering entity and contact.

• List of SSBCI Capital Programs and Contacts (by state and territory)
• State/Territory Capital Program Summaries
• Treasury SSBCI program page (questions: ssbci_information@treasury.gov)