Private Loans to Small Businesses

Rationale

Small businesses make a great contribution to their state's economy-employing over half of the workforce (on average) and leading the way in new job growth, innovation, and productivity. For these businesses to prosper, they must have adequate access to credit from financial institutions. This measure is an attempt to capture the opportunity to build wealth through small business ownership. All things being equal, the larger the amount of loans made to small businesses in a state, the better the opportunity to succeed and build wealth in a business.

About Measure

The dollar amount of private business loans under $1 million per worker (in 1999).

Source

Ou, Charles, U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy, Office of Economic Research, (Personal communication, June 2001) from Community Reinvestment Act data. Washington, D.C.