[Techtaffy Newsdesk]

The U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan CROWDFUND Act that was introduced by U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-MA), along with Senators Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Mary Landrieu (D-LA).  The bill aims to boost job growth in Massachusetts and across the country by empowering new small businesses and aspiring entrepreneurs to raise capital from a wide range of small dollar investors.

This marks the first time that crowdfunding legislation has passed the Senate.

The CROWDFUND Act will:

• Allow entrepreneurs to raise up to $1 million per year through an SEC-registered crowdfunding portal.
• Free people to invest a percentage of their income. For investors with an income of less than $100,000, investments will be capped at the greater of $2,000 or 5% of income. For investors within an income of more than $100,000, investments will be capped at 10% up to $100,000.
• Require crowdfunding portals to provide investor protection, including investor education materials on the risks associated with small issuers and illiquidity.

[Image Courtesy: Live Stream Of U.S. Capitol, United States Senate]