WASHINGTON — The Small Business Administration issued an interim final rule today for new lender oversight regulations in its guaranteed loan programs with the aim of greater enforcement authority and increase transparency on how risk is evaluated.

The interim final rule, which will go into effect Jan. 12, codified a new framework for SBA's lender oversight program to ensure that directions are clear and transparent to lenders and the public. It clarified supervision and enforcement actions for all SBA lenders and partners.

SBA had proposed a regulatory framework for oversight of participants in the 7(a), 504 and Microloan lending programs that aimed to enhance the agency's Office of Credit Risk Management's ability to maximize the efficiency of agency's lending programs by effectively managing program credit risk, monitoring lender performance, and enforcing lending program requirements.