Two new programs out from the Small Business Administration (SBA) promise easier loan access for US companies, which is good news for the many small firms that have struggled to get funding from banks over the past few years.

The first program is called Small Loan Advantage, and its main goal is to reduce the paperwork involved in getting loan approval and decrease the wait-time from application to money receipt.

US compliance costs for small businesses are only getting higher, and those costs are massive versus similar costs for larger corporations, putting small business as a serious disadvantage, according to a report from the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Advocacy.

The report found that small companies—with fewer than 20 employees—pay an astounding 36 percent more than their larger counterparts on annual regulatory costs.

 The Small Business Jobs Act, signed into being on Monday, should go some way to making small business lending more accessible and available, but it does not erase the fact that the Administration has fallen down in its small business support over the past couple of months—at a time when that support was most necessary.

Under the new Act, small businesses will certainly see the benefits of the Small Business Administration (SBA) loan sweeteners and additional funding for SBA and other small business lending initiatives.

Bank of America is trying to boost puny loans to small business.

The banking giant, which is very active in the small business community, said it will provide $10 million in grants to nonprofit lenders, such as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), to leverage funds from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for lending to small and rural businesses.

With all the news about President Obama's proposals to increase bank lending to small business, there's one obvious question that needs to be addressed: Why not have the Small Business Administration take a more aggressive role? Why not allow the agency to lend directly to small businesses?

The issue came up at a recent hearing held by the House Financial Services and Small Business Committees.