The U.S. Senate (by a 73-to-26 vote) and the U.S. House of Representatives (by a 380-to-41 vote) each have passed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act). The JOBS Act now is heading to President Obama, who previously has voiced support for the bill and is expected to sign it shortly.

The JOBS Act is a collection of legislative measures that have been introduced over the past year and focus on the ability of emerging growth companies to raise capital (both publicly and privately) and to determine the timing of becoming a public company. It codifies many of the reforms to the initial public offering (IPO) and capital-raising processes presented to the U.S. Department of the Treasury by the IPO Task Force—a working group of venture capitalists, CEOs, public investors, academics, investment bankers, and securities lawyers, including Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati partner Steve Bochner.