The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is proposing several amendments to the Small Business Credit Availability Act and the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act.

The proposed amendments would ease the registration process for eligible business development companies and registered closed-end funds to sell "off the shelf" securities through the use of a new short-form registration statement. They would also allow eligible funds to qualify as well-known seasoned issuers, which would mean a more flexible registration process and greater latitude to communicate with the market.

Business development companies are closed-end funds that primarily invest in small and developing companies.