State Commercial Financing Disclosure Laws: A Working Guide
Which states require it, what they require, and where the patchwork is still growing.
Three years ago, only California and New York required commercial lenders to give small business borrowers a standardized disclosure before signing. Today at least eleven states require some form of it. Two more, Illinois and New Jersey, passed their own versions in 2026, and several other states have bills pending. If you originate sales-based financing, term loans, or factoring across state lines, this is a moving compliance surface, not a one-time checklist.
This is a working reference, not legal advice. Requirements change and exemptions are specific. Confirm current requirements with counsel before relying on this for a live transaction.
State-by-state comparison
| State | Disclosure required | Provider/broker registration | Notable scope or exemption |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | Yes, since 2022 | No | Broad scope: loans, sales-based financing, factoring |
| New York | Yes, since 2023 | No | Similar breadth to California, different calculation method |
| Utah | Yes, since 2023 | Yes, annual, with DFI | Excludes financings over $1 million |
| Florida | Yes, since 2023 | No | Standard-group format |
| Georgia | Yes, since 2024 | Yes, brokers specifically | Covers financing of $500,000 or less |
| Connecticut | Yes, since 2024 | No | Non-standard format, own applicability rules |
| Kansas | Yes, since 2024 | No | Standard-group format |
| Virginia | Yes, since 2022 | No | Limited to sales-based financing under $500,000 |
| Missouri | Yes | No | Standard-group format |
| Texas | Yes, since 2025 | No | Narrowly focused on sales-based financing (HB 700) |
| Illinois | Yes, new in 2026 | Check current text | Recently enacted, still being interpreted by practitioners |
| New Jersey | Yes, new in 2026 | Check current text | Proposed exemptions for low-volume and larger-ticket providers |
The two rough groups
Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, and Utah share a broadly similar structure, sometimes called the standard group. It centers on APR-style disclosure, total repayment amount, finance charge, and payment frequency, given before the merchant signs.
California, Connecticut, New York, and Virginia are less uniform with each other. Applicability rules and exemptions differ, and some reach beyond sales-based financing into term loans and open-end credit.
What's changed most recently
Texas enacted its own law in 2025, narrowly focused on merchant cash advance rather than general commercial lending. Illinois and New Jersey both passed new disclosure legislation in 2026, and Florida, Maryland, and North Carolina are actively debating similar bills according to industry trackers. If your lending footprint touches more than two or three states, treat this table as provisional. It has grown almost every year since California's original law took effect.
The practical takeaway
Most exemptions hinge on specific, checkable facts: transaction volume in the state over a trailing 12 months, loan size thresholds, and whether the provider is a bank. None of that is guesswork. It's a matter of knowing which states you touch and checking the current threshold in each one. That's why this is worth revisiting periodically rather than filing away after one read.
Put this to work on your own disclosure
Two free tools built for exactly this, currently covering California.
Want a one-page PDF version of this table to keep on hand? Drop your email and it'll be sent your way, along with updates whenever a state changes its requirements.