'Happy bank' bill coming?

U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-Louisiana, chairman of the small business committee, spoke on the floor of the U.S. Senate June 30 to urge her colleagues to pass what she calls the “happy bank bill.”

Officially, it's the Small Business Job Creation Act of 2010.

Landrieu contrasted the bill with the infamous TARP legislation, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, saying it's not for troubled banks but for “happy” banks.

The $30 billion measure, which Landrieu also termed a “smart lending” bill, would provide capital to community banks to spur small business lending.