The U.S. House of Representatives on January 14, 2015, voted (271-154) to pass H.R. 37, the “Promoting Job Creation and Reducing Small Business Burdens Act.” If enacted, the bill, among other things, would extend the Volcker Rule conformance date for collateralized loan obligations (CLOs) and ease requirements for investment advisers of small business investment companies (SBICs) and venture capital firms. The bill also includes a number of measures that correct issues arising in the JOBS Act, or that otherwise are intended to promote capital formation.

Volcker Rule conformance for CLOs. H.R. 37 would extend to July 21, 2019, the conformance period for CLOs that issued debt securities prior to January 31, 2014. Significantly, the bill defines a CLO as “any issuing entity of an asset-backed security, as defined in section 3(a)(77) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 . . . that is comprised primarily of commercial loans.”