Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 206 / Thursday, October 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules 84831 

§ 927.236 Fresh pear assessment rate. 

On and after July 1, 2024, the 

following base rates of assessment for 

fresh pears are established for the Fresh 

Pear Committee: 

(a) $0.516 per 44-pound net weight 

standard box or container equivalent for 

any or all varieties or subvarieties of 

fresh pears classified as ‘‘summer/fall’’; 

(b) $0.516 per 44-pound net weight 

standard box or container equivalent for 

any or all varieties or subvarieties of 

fresh pears classified as ‘‘winter’’; and 

* * * * * 

Erin Morris, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–24773 Filed 10–23–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION 

13 CFR Part 120 

RIN 3245–AI21 

ALP Express Pilot to Permanent Status 

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business 

Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Small Business 

Administration (‘‘SBA’’ or Agency) is 

proposing to make permanent the 

increased delegated authorities made 

available under the ALP Express Pilot 

for Certified Development Companies 

(‘‘CDCs’’) approved for the Accredited 

Lenders Program (‘‘ALP’’). These 

increased delegated authorities for 504 

loans of $500,000 or less (‘‘ALP Express 

authority’’) were authorized under the 

Economic Aid to Hard-hit Small 

Businesses, Nonprofits, and Venues Act 

(Economic Aid Act or EAA). When 

these increased delegated authorities 

expired on September 30, 2023, SBA 

implemented the ALP Express Pilot in 

October 2023 to allow SBA to further 

evaluate the improved customer service 

levels for SBA Borrowers and the use of 

these increased delegated authorities by 

ALP CDCs. The ALP Express Pilot 

expires on September 30, 2025. SBA is 

proposing rules to make the pilot 

permanent and is seeking public 

comment to help the Agency identify 

which parts of the pilot have been 

successful and which may need further 

modification. SBA notified Congress of 

the pilot prior to OMB approval and 

notified Congress of the intent to 

convert the pilot to become a permanent 

part of the 504 Loan Program in 

September 2024. 

DATES: SBA must receive comments on 

this proposed rule on or before 

November 25, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by SBA docket number 

Docket No. SBA–2023–0012, by any of 

the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

https://www.regulations.gov/. Follow 

the instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: Gregorius Suryadi, Office of 

Financial Assistance, U.S. Small 

Business Administration, 409 Third 

Street SW, Suite 8300, Washington, DC 

20416. 

• Hand Delivery/Courier: Gregorius 

Suryadi, Office of Financial Assistance, 

U.S. Small Business Administration, 

409 Third Street SW, Washington, DC 

20416. 

SBA will post all comments on 

https://www.regulations.gov/. 

If you wish to submit confidential 

business information (‘‘CBI’’) as defined 

in the User Notice at https://

www.regulations.gov/, please submit the 

information to Gregorius Suryadi, Office 

of Financial Assistance, U.S. Small 

Business Administration, 409 Third 

Street SW, Suite 8300, Washington, DC 

20416; or send an email to 

gregorius.suryadi@sba.gov. Highlight 

the information that you consider to be 

CBI and explain why you believe SBA 

should hold this information as 

confidential. SBA will review the 

information and make the final 

determination as to whether it will 

publish the information. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Gregorius Suryadi, Office of Financial 

Assistance, U.S. Small Business 

Administration at (202) 205–6806 or 

gregorius.suryadi@sba.gov. The phone 

number above may also be reached by 

individuals who are deaf or hard of 

hearing, or who have speech 

disabilities, through the Federal 

Communications Commission’s TTYBased Telecommunications Relay 

Service teletype service at 711. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

1. Background Information 

The 504 Loan Program is an SBA 

financing program authorized under 

title V of the Small Business Investment 

Act of 1958, as amended, 15 U.S.C. 695 

et seq (‘‘Small Business Investment 

Act’’). The core mission of the 504 Loan 

Program is to provide long-term 

financing to small businesses for the 

purchase or improvement of land, 

buildings, and major equipment, and to 

facilitate the creation or retention of jobs 

and local economic development. Under 

the 504 Loan Program, loans are made 

to small business applicants by Certified 

Development Companies (‘‘CDCs’’), 

which are certified and regulated by 

SBA to promote economic development 

within their community. In general, a 

project in the 504 Loan Program (a ‘‘504 

Project’’) includes: a loan obtained from 

a private sector lender with a senior lien 

covering at least 50 percent of the 

project cost; a loan obtained from a CDC 

(a ‘‘504 Loan’’) with a junior lien 

covering up to 40 percent of the total 

cost (backed by a 100 percent SBA 

guaranteed debenture); and a 

contribution from the Borrower of at 

least ten percent equity. 

There are three types of CDCs that 

participate in the 504 Loan Program. 

This document relates to the temporary 

increased delegated authority that was 

granted, in accordance with section 

328(b) of the Economic Aid Act 

(‘‘EAA’’), to CDCs that are approved by 

SBA to participate in the Accredited 

Lenders Program (hereafter ‘‘ALP 

CDCs’’), which is authorized under 

section 507(a) of the Small Business 

Investment Act. Under section 507(c) of 

the Small Business Investment Act, SBA 

is authorized to develop an expedited 

procedure for processing a loan 

application or servicing action 

submitted by ALP CDCs. [15 U.S.C. 

697d.] 

Prior to the Economic Aid Act, ALP 

CDCs were required to obtain SBA’s 

approval on both the loan’s eligibility 

and creditworthiness determinations. In 

addition, ALP CDCs only had delegated 

authority to make certain ‘‘No Adverse 

Change’’ certifications prior to loan 

closing without SBA’s review and 

approval and were only authorized to 

close 504 loans under the expedited 

loan closing procedures applicable to a 

Priority CDC. Further, ALP CDCs were 

required to obtain SBA’s approval for 

most servicing actions. Section 328(b) of 

the EAA temporarily provided ALP 

CDCs increased delegated authority to 

‘‘approve, authorize, close and service 

covered loans,’’ for loans of not more 

than $500,000 and that are not made to 

a borrower in an industry with a high 

rate of default as defined by SBA 

(hereafter referred to as ‘‘ALP Express 

Loans’’). SBA implemented these 

increased delegated authorities with the 

publication of an interim final rule on 

June 27, 2022. (87 FR 37979). Pursuant 

to the EAA, these delegated authorities 

were to expire on September 30, 2023. 

In order to evaluate the use of these 

increased delegated authorities by ALP 

CDCs and to identify opportunities for 

further modification, SBA developed 

the ALP Express Pilot program to 

provide these increased delegated 

authorities through September 30, 2025 


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84832 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 206 / Thursday, October 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

to ALP CDCs (hereafter referred to as 

‘‘ALP Express Pilot Loans’’). The ALP 

Express Pilot’s delegated authorities in 

effect represented a continuation of the 

ALP Express authority provided by the 

Economic Aid Act. (88 FR 69529 

(October 6, 2023)). When ALP Express 

delegated authorities become 

permanent, SBA is not including the 

prohibition found in section 328(b) of 

the EAA against making loans with ALP 

Express authority to a borrower in an 

industry with a high rate of default 

because this mandatory requirement 

sunset with the EAA expiration date. A 

subsequent review of the 504 portfolio 

in June 2024 also found that no ALP 

Express Pilot program loans or covered 

loans made pursuant to Section 328(b) 

of the EAA were in default or 

liquidation as of June 30, 2024. 

Pursuant to its authority set forth in 

Section 507(c) of the Small Business 

Investment Act (15 U.S.C. 697d(c)), 

which authorizes SBA to develop 

expedited procedures for processing a 

loan application or servicing action 

submitted by ALP CDCs, SBA proposes 

to make permanent the increased 

delegated authorities available under 

the ALP Express Pilot. The Agency 

requests comments on all aspects of 

regulatory revisions in this proposed 

rule. 

2. Evaluation Criteria for ALP Express 

Pilot 

SBA typically initiates a pilot loan 

program to test an innovative approach 

to enhance or streamline assistance to 

small businesses, or a subset of small 

businesses, and/or lower taxpayer cost 

or risk. Pilot loan program evaluations 

assess how well a program is achieving 

its objectives and other aspects of 

performance in the context in which the 

program operates. Our ongoing 

evaluations of the 504 program and 

delegations authorized will give the 

SBA the opportunity to refine the design 

of the program and assist in determining 

whether the program operations have 

resulted in the desired benefits for 

participants. 

By documenting on SBA Form 1244 

whether the ALP CDC is using its ALP 

Express authority when submitting an 

application for an ALP Express Pilot 

Loan, SBA was able to track ALP CDCs’ 

use of this increased delegated 

authority. In addition to the program 

changes introduced through the ALP 

Express Pilot, on May 11, 2023, SBA 

instituted an E-Tran risk mitigation 

technology compliance check on all 504 

loans, including those with ALP Express 

authority, and streamlined the 

affiliation policy guidance that reduced 

the amount of paperwork required for 

submitting loan packages. The ALP 

Express ‘‘covered loans’’ had performed 

well prior to this quality control 

upgrade and continue to perform well 

with this enhanced fraud risk 

management systems upgrade in place. 

The processing time for ALP Express 

loans was reduced significantly from an 

average of 5 days to 2.3 days (one loan 

processed in 3 hours). The quality of the 

ALP Express Pilot 504 loans have been 

reviewed by the SBA Office of Credit 

Risk Management (OCRM) and present 

low risk to the 504 portfolio. The E-Tran 

risk mitigation protocols consists of 

background checks on 504 borrowers, 

checks of USCIS verifications, 

confirmation of the identity of the 

borrower using their social security 

number or tax identification number 

and verification by checking 

government databases if the applicant 

has prior loss on government debt. This 

enhancement streamlines the 

application process requirements for the 

CDCs and provides government 

resources to assist in detecting and 

preventing fraud for 504 applicants. 

SBA reviewed the following data 

related to ALP CDCs and their use of 

ALP Express authority under the 

Economic Aid Act and used the same 

evaluation criteria for the ALP Express 

Pilot: 

A. Did the number and percentage of 

504 loans in the portfolio under 

$500,000 increase as a result of the 

availability of ALP Express authority? It 

is hard to evaluate the success of ALP 

Express based solely on the increased 

number of 504 loans during this period, 

as there were other factors that 

influenced demand. During the 

pandemic, SBA experienced a surge of 

504 loan activity in part due to Section 

1112 of the CARES Act, which 

authorized SBA to make the loan 

payments on SBA loans for SBA 

borrowers for six months (or more, in 

some cases). For a more accurate 

comparison, loan activity prior to this 

surge period was also considered. 

Therefore, SBA analyzed recent and prepandemic activity levels, as shown in 

table 1. 

TABLE 1—PORTFOLIO TRENDS FOR 504 LOANS UNDER $500,000 

[FY 19 to FY 24] 

Fiscal Yr. 

Non-ALP Express loans ALP Express loans Total 504 loans under 

$500,000 

No. % Ch No. % Ch No. % Ch 

2019 ................................................................................. 2,983 .................... .................... .................... 2,983 ....................

2020 ................................................................................. 3,426 15 .................... .................... 3,426 15 

2021 ................................................................................. 4,471 31 .................... .................... 4,471 31 

2022 ................................................................................. 3,414 ¥24 162 .................... 3,576 ¥20 

2023 ................................................................................. 1,113 ¥67 1,060 554 2,173 ¥39 

2024 ................................................................................. 908 ¥18 772 ¥27 1,680 ¥23 

* Note: ALP Express Loans were made available in June 2022. 

Table 1 provides 504 Loan Program 

activities for loans of $500,000 or less. 

In FY 2019, SBA approved 2,983 nonALP Express loans, and in FY 2020, 

SBA approved 3,426 loans, an increase 

of 15 percent from FY 2019. In FY 2021, 

SBA approved 4,471 loans, an increase 

of 31 percent from FY 2020. In FY 2020, 

SBA approved 3,414 loans, a decrease of 

24 percent from FY 2020. In FY 2023, 

SBA approved 1,113 loans, a decrease of 

67 percent from FY 2022. For FY 2024 

starting from October 1, 2024 until June 

30, 2024, when this NPRM was drafted, 

SBA approved 908 loans. 

While the Economic Aid Act 

authorized these increased delegated 

authorities, SBA did not implement 

ALP Express until June 27, 2022. From 

June 27, 2022 to September 20, 2022, 

SBA approved 162 ALP Express loans 

for a combined total of 3,576 loans of 

504 loans of $500,000 or less. In FY 

2023, SBA approved 1,060 ALP Express 

loans, and at the same time the number 

of approved non-ALP Express loan of 

$500,000 or less was 1,113 for a 

combined total of 2,173 of 504 loans for 

$500,000 or less. Finally, for FY 2024 

from October 1, 2024 to June 30, 2024, 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 206 / Thursday, October 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules 84833 

SBA approved a total of 908 non-ALP 

Express loans of $500,000 or less, while 

approving 772 ALP Express loans, 

during the same time period, for a 

combined total of approved 504 loans of 

$500,000 or less of 1,680. Even though 

the total number of non-ALP Express 

decreased in FY 2023 and in the first 

three quarters of FY 2024, the total 

approved ALP Express loans were 

almost the same number as the 

approved non-ALP Express loan. 

B. How do the default rates of ALP 

Express loans compare with similarly 

sized loans not processed and serviced 

using this authority? Since the 

implementation of the ALP Express 

Pilot program (June 27, 2022) through 

the end of June 2024, SBA has approved 

1,994 ALP Express Pilot loans for a total 

dollar amount of $579,958,000 with no 

defaults reported. At the same time, 

SBA approved 4,581 non-ALP Express 

loans for a total dollar amount of 

$1,391,408,000 with no defaults 

reported. 

C. Did ALP Express loan approvals 

and servicing turn times improve, 

resulting in enhanced customer service? 

Currently the average approval 

processing time of ALP Express loans is 

2.3 business days, one day less than 

regular 504 loan applications. The 

fastest approval processing time 

recorded during the ALP Express Pilot 

program has been three hours. The 

average processing time is calculated 

based on loan volume and the number 

of loan officers available at the SBA loan 

center processing 504 loans at the time 

of application. This is compared to the 

standard five business days processing 

time for 504 new loan applications at 

the SBA loan processing center, which 

during pandemic had increased up to 10 

business days due to the 504 loan 

volume surge and the Section 1112 

payment impact. 

SBA issued an interim final rule to 

implement the ALP Express temporary 

delegated authority authorized under 

the Economic Aid Act with an effective 

date of June 27, 2022. (87 FR 37979). 

Between June 27, 2022, and September 

30, 2022 (the end of FY 2022), SBA 

approved 162 ALP Express Pilot loans 

for a total loan amount of $49,543,000. 

In FY 2023, SBA approved 1,060 ALP 

Express Pilot loans for a total loan 

amount of $306,236,000. In FY 2024, 

from October 1, 2024 to June 30, 2024, 

SBA has approved 772 ALP Express 

loans for a total dollar amount of 

$224,179,000. 

In comparison, in FY 2022 SBA 

approved 3,414 non-ALP Express loans 

of $500,000 or less and 162 ALP Express 

Pilot loans for a period of June 27, 2022 

to September 30, 2022, for a combined 

total of 3,576 loans of $500,000 or less. 

In FY 2023 SBA approved 1,113 nonALP-Express loans and 1,060 ALP 

Express Pilot loans, for a combined total 

of 2,173 loans. This was due to a return 

to pre-pandemic lending levels before 

the surge created by the availability of 

Section 1112 funding. Even though the 

total combined approved loans 

decreased by 39 percent due to COVID– 

19, the ALP Express Pilot loans 

contributed almost half of the total 

combined approved 504 loans under 

$500,000. Finally, for FY 2024 (October 

1, 2023, to June 30, 2024), SBA 

approved 908 non-ALP Express loans of 

$500,000 or less and 728 ALP Express 

Pilot loans for a combined of 1,636 

loans with a total loan amount of 

$224,179,000. 

Therefore, SBA has used the standard 

five Government Accountability Office 

evaluation methodologies for evaluating 

a pilot beyond the Federal Register 

notice stated objectives in the pilot 

notice and added additional an 

explanation: (1) The measurable 

objectives achieved through the pilot 

were demonstrated by increased ALP 

processing of loans under $500,000 and 

additional CDCs that applied to become 

ALP CDCs under the pilot; (2) The data 

SBA collected and analyzed was based 

on actual 504 loan portfolio 

performance; (3) SBA evaluated 

acceptable costs of the pilot and 

reviewed potential losses and obtain 

cost savings due to staff time not 

required to review credit decisions or 

process certain servicing actions with 

no increase of costs to SBA; (4) due to 

the limited universe of CDCs and the 

self-selection opt in process, SBA 

considers there were sufficient numbers 

and types of lenders using the pilot; (5) 

the factors evidencing a continuing need 

for the pilot included public support 

from the CDCs and their trade 

association and approval to continue to 

the pilot by the SBA Administrator; and 

(6) time frames for completion which 

necessitate this NPRM to convert the 

pilot to permanent status or the 

delegated authorities of the ALP Express 

Pilot will expire on September 30, 2025. 

By beginning the NPRM process in 

November 2024, this should allow the 

full clearance process by SBA and OMB 

and the public comment period and 

comment disposition to move to the 

final rule making and publication stage 

before the September 30, 2025, 

deadline. 

CDC’s Authorities 

Under the ALP Express Pilot, SBA 

delegated to ALP CDCs the authority to 

make the final decision with respect to 

the applicant’s creditworthiness on ALP 

Express Pilot Loans. SBA continued to 

be responsible for reviewing each 504 

loan to ensure that it meets all loan 

program requirements for program 

eligibility, and the risk management ETran enhancement provided a tool to 

assist with fraud detection and 

prevention. SBA proposes to make these 

increased authorities permanent for 

loans that meet ALP Express eligibility 

criteria. SBA is not proposing any 

additional changes to current ALP 

Express underwriting, servicing or 

closing authorities as established by the 

ALP Express Pilot Program. SBA’s 

Office of General Counsel and the Office 

of Credit Risk Management noted the 

top five lender oversight findings of the 

closed ALP Express loans were minor 

and resolved promptly. Based on the 

excellent performance of this cohort of 

the 504 loans portfolio, there has been 

low risk to the national portfolio, due to 

the implementation of the ALP Express 

Pilot. ALP CDCs appear to have used 

their delegated authority as prudent 

lenders. Of all ALP Express approved 

loans since inception of the pilot 

through June 30, 2024, none are in 

default or in liquidation. 

SBA also delegated to ALP CDCs the 

authority to approve certain servicing 

actions after closing on ALP Express 

Pilot Loans (though ALP CDCs were still 

required to notify the appropriate SBA 

servicing center of their approval of any 

servicing action on ALP Express Pilot 

Loans). Finally, SBA delegated to ALP 

CDCs the responsibility to undertake all 

actions necessary to close the ALP 

Express Pilot Loan and Debenture in 

accordance with the expedited loan 

closing procedures applicable to a 

Priority CDC and with 13 CFR 120.960. 

SBA is proposing to make these 

increased authorities permanent for 

loans that meet ALP Express eligibility 

criteria. CDCs use these delegated 

authorities to approve certain servicing 

actions after closing. SBA has not found 

issues with the ALP Express loan cohort 

performance or risk that have become a 

concern and prompted SBA to 

reconsider the increased delegated 

authorities. 

In their own discretion, ALP CDCs 

may decide not to exercise their 

delegated authority with respect to an 

ALP Express Pilot Loan and may instead 

submit the loan to SBA under 

nondelegated procedures. ALP CDCs 

may not use their ALP Express authority 

to service a loan that was approved 

under non-delegated authority that 

could have been made as an ALP 

Express Pilot Loan. In addition, PCLP 

CDCs may decide to process an ALP 

Express Pilot Loan under their status as 

an ALP CDC instead of as a PCLP CDC, 


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thereby not requiring the CDC to comply 

with Loan Loss Reserve Fund 

requirements for that loan. SBA is 

proposing to make these increased 

authorities permanent for loans that 

meet ALP Express eligibility 

requirements and the Loan Loss Reserve 

Fund requirements for PCLP CDCs that 

process ALP Express Loan under their 

status as an ALP CDC instead of as a 

PCLP CDC. 

In making, closing, servicing, or 

liquidating an ALP Express Pilot Loan, 

CDCs were required to follow all Loan 

Program Requirements under the 504 

Loan Program. This included the loan 

closing and disbursement procedures in 

SOP 50 10 7.1 and the servicing and 

liquidation requirements in 13 CFR 

120.535, 120.536, 120.540, 120.842 and 

120.960, as well as SOP 50 55. SBA does 

not propose any changes to these 

responsibilities in making the increased 

authorities available to ALP CDCs under 

the ALP Express Pilot delegations of 

authority permanent. 

For further guidance on ALP Express 

authority, SBA published the ALP 

Express Pilot Program Guide. This guide 

will continue in use until SOP 50 55 is 

amended after this pilot is converted to 

a permanent program. 

Application and Reporting 

Requirements 

CDCs are required to use the 

application forms for current 504 loan 

processing and execute an SBA Terms 

and Conditions document for each 504 

loan, including ALP Express Pilot loans, 

as set forth in SOP 50 10 7.1. 

By documenting on SBA Form 1244 

whether the ALP CDC is using its ALP 

Express authority when submitting an 

application for an ALP Express Pilot 

Loan, SBA was able to track ALP CDCs’ 

use of this increased delegated 

authority. CDCs were also required to 

comply with the reporting requirements 

in 13 CFR 120.830. SBA does not 

propose any changes to these 

responsibilities in making the increased 

authorities available to ALP CDCs under 

the ALP Express Pilot Program 

permanent. 

Lender Oversight 

ALP CDC oversight procedures shall 

continue to follow the requirements set 

forth in 13 CFR part 120, subpart I and 

SOPs 50 53 (Lender Supervision and 

Enforcement) and SOP 51 00 (On-Site 

Lender Reviews and Examinations). The 

SOPs can be found on the SBA website. 

ALP CDCs will be monitored both for 

performance and other risk 

characteristics as well as for compliance 

with the requirements of the ALP 

Express Pilot Program. The ALP CDC 

must maintain compliance with the 

requirement that it only makes ALP 

Express Pilot Loans in an amount of 

$500,000 or less, along with all other 

loan program requirements. ALP CDCs 

also will be subject to 13 CFR 120.1400 

through 120.1600 and the provisions of 

SOP 50 53 concerning supervision and 

enforcement. SBA does not propose any 

changes to these responsibilities in 

making the increased authorities 

available to ALP CDCs under the ALP 

Express Pilot delegations of authority 

permanent. 

Compliance With Executive Orders 

12866, 12988, 13132, 13563, and 14904, 

the Congressional Review Act, (5 U.S.C. 

801–808), Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C., Ch. 35), and the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601–612) 

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

Executive Order 12866, ‘‘Regulatory 

Planning and Review,’’ directs agencies 

to assess all costs and benefits of 

available regulatory alternatives and, if 

regulation is necessary, to select 

regulatory approaches that maximize 

net benefits (including potential 

economic, environmental, public health 

and safety effects, distributive impacts, 

and equity). Executive Order 13563, 

‘‘Improving Regulation and Regulatory 

Review,’’ emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, of 

reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, 

and of promoting flexibility. Executive 

Order 14094, ‘‘Modernizing Regulatory 

Review,’’ amends section 3(f) of 

Executive Order 12866 and supplements 

and reaffirms the principles, structures 

and definitions governing contemporary 

regulatory review established in 

Executive Order 12866 and Executive 

Order 13563. The OMB Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs has 

determined that this rulemaking is not 

a significant regulatory action. SBA has 

drafted a cost-benefit analysis for the 

public’s information in the next section. 

A. Cost-Benefit Analysis 

Is there a need for the Regulatory 

Action? 

Access to capital is one of the primary 

challenges for small business to start, 

grow and sustain their business. SBA 

504 loan programs serve an important 

role in business lending for small 

businesses that do not have credit 

available elsewhere from conventional 

sources on reasonable terms. The 

Agency believes that a streamlined 

process for small dollar loans 

particularly for loans of $500,000 or less 

will facilitate increased participation by 

small business owners, especially those 

in underrepresented communities. As a 

result of proceeding under the 

emergency provision at Executive Order 

12866, section 6(a)(3)(D), based on the 

need to move expeditiously to mitigate 

the COVID–19 pandemic, SBA was able 

to reduce the processing and approval 

time of loan applications that were 

favorable to small businesses that need 

immediate financial assistance from the 

government. The ALP Express Pilot 

delegated authority has proven that ALP 

CDCs are able to process, approve, and 

service ALP Express Pilot loans within 

the guidelines issued by the SBA. SBA 

hopes to make these reductions 

permanent. Accordingly, the proposed 

change will reduce regulatory burdens, 

reduce the number of hours spent 

processing an application to deliver a 

loan for both SBA and lenders and 

increase access to capital for small 

businesses. 

B. Benefits and Costs of the Rulemaking 

What are the potential benefits and costs 

of this Regulatory Action? 

SBA anticipates that implementing 

the ALP Express Loan authority and 

providing ALP CDCs with greater 

authority to approve and service loans 

will reduce processing time and 

therefore benefit small businesses, their 

employees, and the communities they 

serve. 

As a result of the temporary 504 

Express Loan Authority (ALP Express 

Pilot) SBA provides to ALP CDCs, the 

processing time and approval of loans 

for $500,000 or less has an average of 

2.3 business days whereas the 

processing time of regular 504 loans 

non-delegated authority has an average 

of 5 days. Therefore, small businesses 

will have access to capital to start, grow, 

and sustain their businesses in 

reasonable time. SBA does not 

anticipate additional costs or impact on 

the subsidy to operate ALP Express 

loan. 

C. What alternatives have been 

considered? 

SBA could allow the pilot to expire 

and resume the ALP authority 

delegation limited under the 504 

program requirements prior to the 

implementation of the Economic Aid 

Act. Due to the efficiency gains under 

the ALP Express pilot, SBA considered 

it more prudent to retain these delegated 

authorities to reduce regulatory burdens 

for CDCs with ALP approved status and 

responsibly streamline the processing, 

approval and closings of 504 loan 

application under $500,000 without 

substantially increasing the risk of 

waste, fraud, or abuse of the programs, 

or threatening the integrity of the 


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business loan programs or taxpayer 

dollars. 

Executive Order 12988 

This action meets applicable 

standards set forth in sections 3(a) and 

3(b)(2) of Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform, to minimize litigation, 

eliminate ambiguity, and reduce 

burden. The action would not have 

preemptive effect or retroactive effect. 

Executive Order 13175 

This proposed rule would not have 

Tribal implications under Executive 

Order 13175, Consultation and 

Coordination with Indian Tribal 

Governments, because it would not have 

a substantial direct effect on one or 

more Indian tribes, on the relationship 

between the Federal Government and 

Indian tribes, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities between the 

Federal Government and Indian tribes. 

Executive Order 13132 

This rulemaking would not have 

federalism implications as defined in 

Executive Order 13132, Federalism. It 

would not have substantial direct effects 

on the States, on the relationship 

between the National Government and 

the States, or on the distribution of 

power and responsibilities among the 

various levels of government, as 

specified in the Executive order. As 

such it does not warrant the preparation 

of a Federalism Assessment. 

Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C., 

Ch. 35 

This rulemaking does not impose 

additional reporting or recordkeeping 

requirements under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35. In 

order to implement the Economic Aid 

Act, SBA determined that it was 

necessary to temporarily modify SBA 

Form 1244, which was approved on 

November 22, 2022, under OMB Control 

Number 3245–0071, Application for 

Section 504 Loans, to conform the 

application with the revised 

requirements for ALP Express Loan 

authority. The changes did not add any 

new burdens for the respondents. SBA 

made the following technical 

corrections and clarifying changes to 

SBA Form 1244: (1) revised question 

number 4 on page 2 to include the 

updated language of Criminal Justice 

Rule; (2) added paragraph on page 4 

authorizing the SBA to release 

information regarding existing SBA loan 

to Lender/CDC; (3) revised the 

instructions on page 5 (Purpose of the 

Form) to clarify that CDCs with ALP 

Express Loan authority must use the 

form; (4) added a new ALP Express 

checkbox to page 8 in the Submission 

Method field; (5) added additional row 

to the project table on page 9 for Other 

Secured Debt to be Refinanced; and (6) 

updated the instructions on pages 11 

and 12 (Required Exhibits) to identify 

which exhibits must be completed and 

uploaded in SBA’s E-Tran system for 

ALP Express Loans and which exhibits 

non-ASM CDCs must complete and 

upload into E-Tran. SBA obtained 

emergency approval from OMB for the 

revised information collection. No 

additional modifications to SBA Form 

1244 were necessary for the ALP 

Express Pilot, and no additional 

modifications to SBA Form 1244 will be 

necessary for purposes of making the 

ALP Express increased authorities 

permanent through this rulemaking. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 5 U.S.C. 601– 

612 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(‘‘RFA’’), 5 U.S.C. 601, requires 

administrative agencies to consider the 

effect of their actions on small 

businesses, small organizations, and 

small governmental jurisdictions. 

Pursuant to the RFA, when an agency 

issues a proposed rulemaking, it must 

prepare and make available for public 

comment an initial regulatory flexibility 

analysis to address the impact of the 

rule on small entities. However, section 

605 of the RFA allows an agency to 

certify a rule, in lieu of preparing an 

analysis, if the rulemaking is not 

expected to have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. The rulemaking will impact 85 

ALP CDCs; however, SBA believes the 

impact will be positive and beneficial to 

all ALP CDCs. This rulemaking makes 

permanent the temporary increased 

delegated authorities available under 

the ALP Express Pilot program. This 

will improve the approval time of 504 

loan applications for loans in an amount 

of $500,000 or less. 

For the three-year period between FY 

2022 (June 27, 2022) to FY 2024 (June 

30, 2024) SBA approved 4,581 non-ALP 

Express loans of $500,000 or less, for a 

total dollar amount of $1,391,408,000. 

In the same time period SBA approved 

1,994 ALP Express loans for a total 

dollar amount of $579,958,000. The 

total combined approved loans for 504 

loan of less than $500,000 over the same 

three-year period is 6,575 loans for a 

total of $1,971,366,000. 

Based on the actual loans approved in 

the three-year period since ALP Express 

Pilot program implementation, ALP 

CDCs have demonstrated success in 

processing and servicing loans for less 

than $500,000 less through the ALP 

Express program using their ALP 

delegated authority. In addition, since 

ALP Express implementation, there 

have been no instances of ALP Express 

in default or in liquidation. SBA 

estimates the burden for completing 

SBA Form 1244, ‘‘Application For 

Section 504 Loans’’, including time for 

reviewing instructions, gathering data 

and documentation needed, and 

completing and reviewing the form, is 

2.5 hours. SBA will not need to change 

SBA Form 1244 as a result of the 

proposed rulemaking of ALP Express as 

permanent program. SBA anticipates the 

proposed rule will increase CDCs 

participation in making loans of 

$500,000 or less and increase the 

number of approved 504 program loans 

as a whole. The ALP Express pilot 

added no additional cost burdens to 

SBA, CDCs, or small business 

borrowers. There were minimal changes 

to forms and SBA used existing staff to 

implement the pilot. The zero default 

and liquidation rates of the ALP Express 

pilot portfolio cohort document no 

potential impact to SBA subsidy. 

Based on the foregoing, the 

Administrator of the SBA hereby 

certifies that this rulemaking will not 

have a significant economic impact on 

most small businesses. The SBA invites 

comments from the public on this 

certification. 

List of Subjects in 13 CFR Part 120 

Accredited Lender Program, Certified 

development companies, Community 

development, Debentures, Loan 

programs—business, Small businesses. 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, the Small Business 

Administration proposes to amend 13 

CFR part 120 as follows: 

PART 120—BUSINESS LOANS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 120 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 634(b)(6), (b)(7), 

(b)(14), (h), and note, 636(a), (h) and (m), 650, 

687(f), 696(3) and (7), and 697(a) and (e); sec. 

521, Pub. L. 114–113, 129 Stat. 2242; sec. 

328(a), Pub. L. 116–260, 134 Stat. 1182. 

■ 2. Amend § 120.842 by revising 

paragraph (a) and removing paragraph 

(d) to read as follows: 

§ 120.842 ALP Express Loans. 

(a) Definition. For the purposes of this 

section, an ALP Express loan means a 

504 loan in an amount that is not more 

than $500,000 and which is 

underwritten, approved, closed and 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
84836 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 206 / Thursday, October 24, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

serviced using the authorities set forth 

in this section. 

* * * * * 

Isabella Casillas Guzman, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 2024–24753 Filed 10–23–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8026–09–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2024–2411; Project 

Identifier MCAI–2023–00874–R] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus 

Helicopters 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to adopt a 

new airworthiness directive (AD) for all 

Airbus Helicopters Model SA330J 

helicopters. This proposed AD was 

prompted by a determination that new 

or more restrictive airworthiness 

limitations are necessary. This proposed 

AD would require revising the existing 

maintenance records by incorporating 

new or more restrictive airworthiness 

limitations, as specified in a European 

Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) 

AD, which is proposed for incorporation 

by reference. The FAA is proposing this 

AD to address the unsafe condition on 

these products. 

DATES: The FAA must receive comments 

on this NPRM by December 9, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 

11.43 and 11.45, by any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

regulations.gov. Follow the instructions 

for submitting comments. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail 

address above between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

AD Docket: You may examine the AD 

docket at regulations.gov under Docket 

No. FAA–2024–2411; or in person at 

Docket Operations between 9 a.m. and 

5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. The AD docket 

contains this NPRM, the EASA AD, any 

comments received, and other 

information. The street address for 

Docket Operations is listed above. 

Material Incorporated by Reference: 

• For EASA material identified in this 

proposed AD, contact EASA, KonradAdenauer-Ufer 3, 50668 Cologne, 

Germany; phone: +49 221 8999 000; 

email: ADs@easa.europa.eu; website: 

easa.europa.eu. You may find the EASA 

material on the EASA website at 

ad.easa.europa.eu. 

• You may view this material at the 

FAA, Office of the Regional Counsel, 

Southwest Region, 10101 Hillwood 

Parkway, Room 6N–321, Fort Worth, TX 

76177. For information on the 

availability of this material at the FAA, 

call (817) 222–5110. The EASA material 

is also available at regulations.gov under 

Docket No. FAA–2024–2411. 

Other Related Material: For Airbus 

material identified in this proposed AD, 

contact Airbus Helicopters, 2701 North 

Forum Drive, Grand Prairie, TX 75052; 

phone: (972) 641–0000 or (800) 232– 

0323; fax: (972) 641–3775; website: 

airbus.com/en/products-services/ 

helicopters/hcare-services/airbusworld. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Adam Hein, Aviation Safety Engineer, 

FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 410, 

Westbury, NY 11590; phone: (316) 946– 

4116; email: Adam.Hein@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

The FAA invites you to send any 

written relevant data, views, or 

arguments about this proposal. Send 

your comments to an address listed 

under ADDRESSES. Include ‘‘Docket No. 

FAA–2024–2411; Project Identifier 

MCAI–2023–00874–R’’ at the beginning 

of your comments. The most helpful 

comments reference a specific portion of 

the proposal, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 

supporting data. The FAA will consider 

all comments received by the closing 

date and may amend this proposal 

because of those comments. 

Except for Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) as described in the 

following paragraph, and other 

information as described in 14 CFR 

11.35, the FAA will post all comments 

received, without change, to 

regulations.gov, including any personal 

information you provide. The agency 

will also post a report summarizing each 

substantive verbal contact received 

about this NPRM. 

Confidential Business Information 

CBI is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt 

from public disclosure. If your 

comments responsive to this NPRM 

contain commercial or financial 

information that is customarily treated 

as private, that you actually treat as 

private, and that is relevant or 

responsive to this NPRM, it is important 

that you clearly designate the submitted 

comments as CBI. Please mark each 

page of your submission containing CBI 

as ‘‘PROPIN.’’ The FAA will treat such 

marked submissions as confidential 

under the FOIA, and they will not be 

placed in the public docket of this 

NPRM. Submissions containing CBI 

should be sent to Adam Hein, Aviation 

Safety Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart 

Avenue, Suite 410, Westbury, NY 

11590; phone: (316) 946–4116; email: 

Adam.Hein@faa.gov. Any commentary 

that the FAA receives which is not 

specifically designated as CBI will be 

placed in the public docket for this 

rulemaking. 

Background 

EASA, which is the Technical Agent 

for the Member States of the European 

Union, has issued EASA AD 2023–0146, 

dated July 14, 2023 (EASA AD 2023– 

0146), to correct an unsafe condition on 

Airbus Helicopters Model SA 330 J 

helicopters. EASA advises that 

airworthiness limitations and 

certification maintenance instructions 

are identified as mandatory for 

continued airworthiness and that 

Revision 7 of SA 330 J Maintenance 

Program—PUMA 330 J Airworthiness 

Limitations 5.99, Edition 2, date code 

06–22, has been issued to specify all 

service life limits and maintenance tasks 

for SA 330 J helicopters and separate the 

airworthiness limitations from the 

Master Servicing Recommendations 

Manual (P.R.E.). According to EASA, 

failure to accomplish these instructions 

could result in an unsafe condition. You 

may examine EASA AD 2023–0146 in 

the AD docket at regulations.gov under 

Docket No. FAA–2024–2411. 

Material Incorporated by Reference 

Under 1 CFR Part 51 

The FAA reviewed EASA AD 2023– 

0146, which requires replacing 

components before exceeding their life 

limits and accomplishing maintenance 

tasks within thresholds and intervals 

specified in the ALS as defined within. 

Depending on the results of the 

maintenance tasks, EASA AD 2023– 

0146 requires accomplishing corrective 

action(s) or contacting AH [Airbus 

Helicopters] for approved instructions 

and accomplishing those instructions. 


lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with PROPOSALS1