Castle's small-business plan gets backing

WASHINGTON -- A group of moderate House Republicans is backing legislation Rep. Mike Castle says he proposed -- based on input from small-business owners in Delaware -- to use unspent stimulus money to provide tax breaks, reduce regulatory burdens and increase lending to small businesses.

"It is our position that the money that was in the stimulus package could be better used to help expand businesses [and] create permanent jobs," the Delaware Republican said during a news conference with other members of the Tuesday Group, a group of nine other moderates.

Rep. Charles Dent of Pennsylvania said business owners may be withholding capital "out of fear" of federal policies, including "looming tax hikes" and employer mandates in the new health care reform law.

"All these issues are out there creating an environment of uncertainty and fear, and some would even argue there may be a capital strike going on in this country," he said, adding that Castle's bill "sends a positive signal" to help create jobs.

The Senate is expected this week to consider small-business legislation backed by the Obama administration.

The Small Business Jobs Act is designed to increase lending to small businesses, create tax incentives for new investments, eliminate capital gains taxes on key investments and expand the size of loans that can be backed by the Small Business Administration.

"These are the kind of common-sense steps that folks from both parties have supported in the past -- steps to cut taxes and spur private sector growth and investment," Obama said on Tuesday after a bipartisan leadership meeting.

Castle was one of three Republicans to vote last month for the House version of the small-business bill the administration is supporting, and many of its provisions are similar to what he's proposing now. But Castle said his bill is a "better compilation of the things that directly would benefit small businesses at a reasonable cost."

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