国际英语新闻:U.S. president touts jobs bill as boon to small businesses

WASHINGTON, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama Wednesday made his latest pitch to urge Congress to pass a 447-billion-dollar jobs bill, saying American small businesses and workers will benefit from the bill.

Speaking at North Carolina State University, Obama noted that this bill could help small businesses cut taxes, raise the salaries for their current employees and make new investment.

Facing a sluggish economic growth and stubbornly high unemployment, Obama unveiled a job plan on Sept. 8 including measures like payroll tax cuts for employers and employees as well as new investment in infrastructure projects.

"It will lead to new jobs for young people, for construction workers, for teachers, for veterans, for the unemployed. It will provide tax relief for every worker and every small business in America," Obama stressed.

In a similar move, the U.S. Treasury Department Wednesday announced that an additional 61 community banks across the country received a total of 608 million dollars as part of the next wave of funding provided through the government's Small Business Lending Fund (SBLF), to help small businesses grow and create new jobs.