SENATE BILL: Cooperative Development Act of 2014 (Law'd)

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

1.4 is a neat idea.  I don't know if it will work out most of the time, but it is good for displaced workers to have the option to form a cooperative.

I support this.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I object. I don't want these cooperatives to be so dependent on large sums of government money.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I'm open to debating the numbers. The original program shells out $1 billion, but I figure that we could throw a little more the way of our worker enterprises, given that we're currently debating floating huge sums of money to small businesses under the terms of the Let's Get Atlasia Back to Work Act.

I don't expect those numbers to end up near as big when we are done with that bill.  In any case cooperatives will be eligible for those same benefits, will they not?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Are worker cooperatives classified as businesses under Atlasian law?

I see no reason why they wouldn't be.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

NAY

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I don't know if I can support both this and the loan program we're trying to establish with the President's bill. It seems like unnecessary duplication.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I'm offering this amendment.  Having a lending program specifically for cooperatives just doesn't make much sense to me.

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[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Amendment is hostile, obviously, because it guts the meat of the entire bill.

If it is the meat of the entire bill why was it not in the bill when you brought it to the floor?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I would like to modify my amendment as follows:

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[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Aye

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Nay

Protect our churches!

?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

The problem is we don't know how many people will be trying to establish co-ops and what the quality of the loan requests will be.  I don't want us to get into a situation where big loans are being put out for things that have little chance of success just because we have the money set aside for it.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

The problem is we don't know how many people will be trying to establish co-ops and what the quality of the loan requests will be.  I don't want us to get into a situation where big loans are being put out for things that have little chance of success just because we have the money set aside for it.

Is there a set of standards that you would approve of? How are the loans in the "Put People to Work" bill going to be handled. We are directing them through the SBA, no? What standards are they using for them? Could we use those same ones here?

I don't really know, it's something I've been wondering. With the version of that bill that had $50 billion I was worried about the same thing. I still am somewhat, but when cash available for loans is smaller in comparison to demand I think we can generally expect the lender to be more selective.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

We could formulate a set of standards then. They don't have be complex, just simple things like they must have an organized business plan, a competative model, a realistic outlook etc etc.

Or set some basic goals and have the appropriate DoIA agency fill in the blanks.

That sounds like a good idea if we can figure it out.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

We can do anything we want to, shua. Just have to want it badly enough.

I don't have a clear sense of direction on this really.  Do I want it badly enough?  I'm not sure.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Do we force traditional businesses to submit business plans and turn a profit? I don't see why we're unduly burdening cooperatives here.

I don't see why we need a separate program for cooperatives in the first place.

But yes, whatever we do here, I think we should make it apply to other business loans as well. 

Just start throwing some stuff down on the page shua.

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would a co-op or business really be able to demonstrate that revenue will exceed expenses by a certain date?  any business plan is going to have some risk in it. 

maybe we should do this by trying to set some general goals for the program.  Like, what is this program supposed to provide that would not be offered by private banking loans?

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Couldn't we just say "cooperatives will be treated exactly like businesses" with a few required changes (i.e. all this executive compensation stuff wouldn't really apply)?

not if we haven't establish loan practices as they apply to businesses.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

what do you think of this?

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[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

I formally introduce the above amendment.

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Aye