Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act - JOBS

The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (aptly named JOBS) is a 2012 U.S. law that relaxes some SEC regulations for the little guys...i.e. small businesses and startups.

For instance, the Securities and Exchange Commission notionally claims that all businesses must have at least $1 billion in yearly revenue before they can go public with an IPO, but JOBS lets startups go public prior to that point. (And yes, all kinds of waivers exist so that, today, very few companies have over a bil in revenues before they go public.)

In general, JOBS makes it easier for smaller businesses to finance themselves, exchanging some regulatory rules for an economic boost. After the Great Recession, the U.S. government was pulling out all kinds of stops to bring the economy back to life, including JOBS.