Small Business News You Can Use (4/16)

Looks like this past week was full of contradictions. After two dueling reports about the increase (or, ahem, decrease) in VC funding, now it seems the “experts” can’t agree on small business attitude. A more than decade-old effort by credit unions to expand into more small-business lending is gaining momentum on Capitol Hill, driving worried bankers to step up their congressional lobbying to protect their turf. Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee unveiled on Friday a plan to trim $35 billion from the deficit by rolling back several key administration initiatives, including large pieces of the Dodd-Frank financial reform law. Five years after the U.S. housing bust sent sales and prices plunging, the spring home-buying season is pointing to a long-awaited recovery.