(Image Credit: Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo)

President Obama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act today, calling it a "game-changer" that would remove barriers that prevent small businesses from growing and hiring.

"Because of this bill, start-ups and small business will now have access to a big, new pool of potential investors - namely, the American people. For the first time, ordinary Americans will be able to go online and invest in entrepreneurs that they believe in," the president said in a Rose Garden signing ceremony.

The president said the JOBS Act  would make it easier for business owners to take their companies public, noting "that's a big deal because going public is a major step toward expanding and hiring more workers."

Going forward, the president said it was important to make sure the Securities and Exchange Commission  is properly funded "so that they can do the job and make sure that our investors get adequate protections."

The president, surrounded for the second day in a row by lawmakers from both parties, said the bill "represents exactly the kind of bipartisan action we should be taking in Washington to help our economy."