On February 17, the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee held a hearing to examine President Bush’s FY2006 budget for the Small Business Administration (SBA). Chair Olympia Snowe (R-ME) opened the hearing by expressing her concern about the proposed decrease for key SBA programs. “I am disappointed that the Administration is proposing to eliminate funding for the women’s business sustainability centers. With women owned firms generating almost $2.5 trillion in revenues and employing more than 19 million workers, they are the fastest growing segment of today’s economy,” Sen. Snowe said. “We should be fueling these valuable resources instead of cutting them, especially since tax payers have invested up to nine years of their money to help sustain them in their communities and States.” She also noted that the administration’s request is $85 million less that the FY2005 request.
SBA Administrator Hector Barreto admitted that SBA’s budget has decreased but said that SBA’s goal is “to do more with less,” adding that despite the reduction, “SBA’s programs have reached more and more American entrepreneurs.” Administrator Barreto detailed the $592.9 million request for the agency, saying that the budget “provides for a strong, active SBA that can effectively and efficiently meet the demands of its customers, America’s small business entrepreneurs, while minimizing the cost to the American taxpayer.” Specifically, the budget requests $16.5 billion in lending authority for its 7(a) loan program, a $500 million increase over FY2005. The 504 program also would receive a $500 million increase to $5.5 billion in FY2006.
Pointing to the success of SBA’s programs, Administrator Barreto said that last year “the Agency provided $21.3 billion in loan guarantees and related financing for approximately 87,800 small businesses in FY2004; these being record levels. Out of that $21.3 billion, nearly one-third went to women-owned and minority-owned businesses, which is more than any prior year; over $500 million went to African Americans; approximately $2.8 billion went to women; over $1.2 billion went to Hispanics; and over $115 million went to the Native American community,” he said.
The committee also heard from Patricia Sands, CEO of Spill-Guard in Arlington, Virginia, who testified regarding her experience with the Women’s Business Center (WBC) of Northern Virginia. Noting that she was a middle-aged, low-income mother of three when she first developed her business idea, Ms. Sands said, “I took classes with the Women’s Business Center of Northern Virginia. With the sustained advice and services of the Women’s Business Center of Northern Virginia, I wrote a business plan and learned the basic skills on how to structure the future of my business.” Pointing to herself as an example of the “positive impact” of WBCs, Ms. Sands said, “It is imperative that this service, support and program be available to others…Funding the Small Business Administration programs like the Women’s Business Center of Northern Virginia is like planting seeds for future growth of our country.”
