# H.R. 825 (119th): Assisting Small Businesses Not Fraudsters Act

Assisting Small Businesses Not Fraudsters Act This bill prohibits individuals convicted of certain financial crimes from receiving assistance from the Small Business Administration (SBA). Specifically, the bill prohibits individuals who have been convicted of a crime involving financial misconduct or a false statement with respect to certain COVID-19 loans (e.g., Paycheck Protection Program loans, Restaurant Revitalization Fund grants, and Shuttered Venue Operators grants) from receiving any financial assistance from the SBA (other than a disaster loan). The prohibition includes SBA assistance to small businesses that have an owner, officer, director, or key employee who has been convicted of such a crime.

## How this bill is scored

Tier: no Tier 1 record. A bill with no record cannot newly become Tier 1.
Lane: covid_relief_integrity. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: family_policy. Category: children. Lane tag: command.
Lane: fraud_accountability. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: small_business_assistance. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Tier 1 sign-off: no record. A bill with no record cannot newly become Tier 1.
Stored polarity: good. A yea supports the bill. A nay is the penalized direction when the tag is scored as a protection. A yea on a credit tag is a credit.
Roll 43: On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass. Vote type: final_passage.
Polarity rationale: Reviewed enrichment (llm_import) polarity: The bill directly restrains fraud and false statements against federal relief programs, which defends justice in the handling of public funds. Its collective exclusion of businesses linked to a convicted person is a prudential design choice and does not turn the measure into a morally harmful one.
Theological note: The measure relates to justice in the use of public funds and the restraint of deceit. Scripture condemns false weights and dishonest gain, and general equity supports protecting public resources from those who obtained relief through fraud. The collective reach to businesses with a convicted owner or key employee raises a separate question of proportionality that is prudential rather than a clear moral verdict.

## Recorded votes

Roll 43: On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass. Yea 405 · Nay 0 · Other 27.

HTML: https://justmeasure.org/bill/hr-825-119/