Oregon plans to let small cos. crowdsource funding
The Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services is holding a public hearing and seeking comments on a rule to let small businesses raise money through small investments, known as crowdfunding, with reduced regulation.
The hearing by the department’s Division of Finance and Corporate Securities is scheduled for Wednesday at 9 a.m. in Room 260 at the Labor and Industries Building, 350 Winter St. NE in Salem. The public can submit comments about the rule until Wednesday, Dec. 10, at 5 p.m. to Shelley.A.Greiner@state.or.us.
If approved, the proposed rule would create an exemption that would allow Oregon-based small companies to raise up to $250,000 from Oregon investors to start new businesses or expand existing operations without registering the investment offering or security or using a licensed salesperson.
To use the exemption, the company must meet certain requirements, including:
* The company must be registered to do business in Oregon and the securities can be offered only to Oregon residents.
* The company can advertise the basic terms of the offering, but must make detailed disclosures before offering or selling the security.
* No single investor can invest more than $2,500 in any one offering.
The proposed rule can be found at this link: http://www.dfcs.oregon.gov/rules_statutes/new_legislation/441-035proposed.pdf. The DFCS website has more information about the proposed rule, as well as a recently approved rule to allow raising funds for renewable energy cooperative corporations at http://www.dfcs.oregon.gov/securities/raise_capital.html.
The Division of Finance and Corporate Securities helps ensure that a wide range of financial products and services are available to Oregonians and protects consumers from financial fraud and abuse.
It does that by licensing financial institutions and service providers, regulating the sale of securities in Oregon, investigating complaints and alleged violations of financial-service laws, and providing education and other resources to consumers.
The Department of Consumer and Business Services is Oregon’s largest business regulatory and consumer protection agency. For more information, visit www.dcbs.oregon.gov.
