Enacted by Congress in April 2012 to reduce the restrictions on capital raising for emerging growth companies. This rule change also spawned the confidential filing process and Regulation A+ offerings. It wasn’t without drawbacks: startups could go public providing investors with less time and fewer disclosures. The new test-the-waters rule directly contributed to a boom in biotech IPOs. However, the JOBS Act also contributed to a decline in tech IPOs by allowing companies to have a larger private investor base before they are required to be public.