The Small Business Programs Improvement Act of 1996 made a number of changes to the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, as amended. For the Small Business Investment Company program, these changes include provisions affecting capital requirements, Leverage eligibility and fees, and the status of Section 301(d) Licensees. This final rule implements the statutory provisions; in addition, it makes various technical corrections and clarifications, as well as other changes to provide greater fairness and flexibility in such areas as portfolio diversification requirements, Cost of Money and distributions by SBICs that have issued Participating Securities.